Subscription: Birchbox
Cost: $10/month, with chance to review one box per year starting July 11th
What to Expect: 5 beauty samples
The Box: Everyday Magic, “This month, we’ll be showing you the right products and techniques for a presto-chango payoff.”
My magic trick was trying to remove the blue tint from these photos since I ran outside at 9pm to take them one night! Haha, I failed magic school clearly.
PARLOR® by Jeff Chastain Moisturizing & Repairing Shampoo: $22.00 for 8oz. “Infused with the brand’s signature scent of ripe peach, fresh cut grass, and white woods, it’s sulfate-free, paraben-free, gluten-free, and color-safe.”
I haven’t used this yet and felt ambivalent about getting it, but the scent notes sound amazing! I guess I will try it.
Now that I complained about having no shampoo and conditioner, I’ve been getting a lot!
Laura Geller New York Baked Gelato Swirl Illuminator: $26.00, gilded honey
I didn’t think I’d like this, but it actually looks quite nice!
I think I’m starting to like highlighter...
Oribe Supershine Moisturizing Cream: $49.00 for 5oz. “The multitasking formula acts as both a leave-in conditioner and a styling cream, helping to calm and smooth coarse, thick, or fuller hair.”
It’s nice seeing things like this where I think, “wow maybe they’re actually reading my profile sometimes…”
However, what’s good enough for J-lo is way out of my price range.
Benefit gimme brow volumizing fiber gel: $24.00 in 05 deep
After getting this, I took my friend to get her brows threaded for the first time, then I took her to get her brows filled in. I also decided to try out this product, so the woman with gorgeous makeup filled in my brows. My brows still looked thin, and she did mention it was more for adding tint for people who already had brows. I have wildly growing brows that must be threaded EVERY week, but they are also very flat and sparse. So, this product didn’t do much for me.
However, while I was getting that put on I decided to buy a new Benefit eyebrow brush and I LOVE IT!!!! This one makes a really nice thin line with my eyebrow powder <3
Evologie® Intensive Blemish Serum: $35.00 for 0.5oz. “The doctor-developed formula penetrates the skin, going straight to the source to eliminate trapped bacteria, dirt, and oil to restore damaged skin.”
This is a product I almost tossed into my swap box, but then I read about it and realized I needed it! My skin broke out really bad in June, and I tried my usual toothpaste remedy, but it super dried out my skin. Blemish serum to the rescue, because this stuff actually really worked! It helped stop one of those major underground zits from popping up, and helped my other visible zits subside. Plus, I love tea tree oil, and the scent of this stuff is really nice. Win!!! The only downside is that this sample is .33 oz, which means that it’s around $23, so I’m finding it hard to swap for, wahhh.
Random cat picture! Bella really likes when I get packages, and I was trying on a dress when I found her SLEEPING on this air packing!! She loves this stuff so much. Weirdo.
Favorite May product: Vera Bradley Macaroon Rose. I didn’t think I’d like this scent as much as I did, but it smells really nice! Every time I spill it all over myself though…
Verdict: This box was so-so. I liked the serum A LOT and the highlighter I use daily!
What do you think about Birchbox’s new points system? I felt like they must have been losing a lot of money the way they were operating, so it did not surprise me too terribly much. The points are one of the highlights of using Birchbox over Ipsy, and without them the boxes are just kinda okay because they do not really seem to go off of my beauty profile. They really revamped the subscription game though, and brought a lot of people into sub boxes, so I hope they continue to do well!
By revamped, of course I am referring to the CD and book monthly subscriptions you could get in the 90s, or the Reader’s Digests from well before that. I want to go back in time and make a dictionary section of the month club. You start out with A, and over 26 months you get some book binding materials to make your own dictionary! #brilliant
See our other Birchbox reviews!
Disclosure: This box was purchased by me at a discount. There is a referral link.
Drat! I wished I’d known you liked that blemish serum. I could have sent you mine. I didn’t realize ti was so expensive either, and just tossed it in with a swap.
My Birchbox samples have been total mismatches for me. I got the brow gel in medium when I have black hair marked on my profile, the blemish serum when my skin concerns are dry skin and wrinkles, and multiple makeup items even though I have asked for anything but that. From a financial standpoint I completely understand why they’re taking away points for reviews, but as a customer points were the only reason to stay subscribed. Even though I had the Black Friday 30% an annual, I cancelled.
Love With Food has started giving really generous points for their reviews. I hope they don’t become the next Birchbox and take them away entirely!
Ake that’ll teach me to post in a more timely manner!!
Did you get a refund for canceling on your annual sub? I reviewed my July box items and then spent 500 points on some items I’d been wanting, and now I suppose I’ll only use the site if I need to order more eyeliner or something. I thought it was funny that they were trying to get people back for August with TWO personalized hair samples. Not particularly appealing to me, I’d rather just have personalized samples EVERY month…
I rarely read food reviews, because to me I find they’re less interesting because I can’t EAT the food!!! Haha. I’ll have to check out Love with Food though, thanks!
I’ll look through my stash and see if I have it or anything like it.
I’ve been testing concealer and was happy to get a pimple this week because then I could really test my stash
Since they changed the terms of the subscription I did get a refund for canceling the annual. I disagree with how they calculated it, but decided it wasn’t worth making a stink over $5. I still have a handful of points left and I’m not sure if I should wait for Black Friday to get a good discount or spend them ASAP before Birchbox goes out of business. 🙂
Love With Food is overpriced, but you can often get good deals on one-month or three-month subscriptions. I think the reviews they have you leave are mostly for market research rather than true reviews (lots of questions like how much you would be willing to pay for the snacks), but they’ve just raised the points from 10 cents worth to 50 cents worth. There are at least 8 snacks in a box, so the points add up!
just make sure to spend them before they expire!
I get that same tint when I take early morning outside pics!
Matrixy!
that highlighter was made for you. Although where is our shot of you wearing it? Simply love your reviews. You could review a postage stamp and I would love it.