Birchbox: beauty samples, $10/month
Promo:BB50OFF for 50% off first box.
I paid: $11, including tax
Birchbox sends you five beauty samples a month, generally a mixture of skin/haircare and makeup. It comes in a cute little box that you can re-use. You can review each sample you receive for 10 points, and exchange 100 points for $10 off their online store, including gift subscriptions to their box. When you subscribe, you can fill out a questionnaire telling Birchbox which type of products interest you, though you may still get products you don’t care for. Lately, Birchbox has allowed subscribers to chose between a curated box, that lists what samples are included, and a mystery box.
This month I opted for their mystery box. I was lucky because I can use all the products and some seem very cool. Update: I found out that one of the products (the mask) is made in China, which makes the box quite a disappointment, specially as last month I e-mailed Birchbox asking that they don’t include Chinese products.
Each box comes with a list of the contents of the box. This time I got 3 skin products, 1 hair product and 1 makeup item. In all the value of the box was $20, not super high but not bad given that I’m planning to use all products.
Aruba Aloe Luxe Foot Creme, 1 oz, $9
This seems to be a new product as I can’t find it anywhere but its own website and birchbox. It’s first ingredient is water (the second one is aloe vera), so I consider it more a lotion than a creme. It’s pretty thick and while it left an oily feeling on my hands, it was quickly absorbed by the callused skin on the bottom of my feet, leaving it much softer. However, the feeling doesn’t last for too long – though that may be because my feet are very rough. It has a pleasant, soft scent that is partly minty but not quite. In all, I’m very happy to get this. It’s made in Aruba.
Amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo
Given the drought in California and the suggestion that we skip daily showers, I’m happy to get a dry shampoo. This one gets pretty good reviews on Amazon and is made in the US.
Cotz Flawless Complexion Spf 50
This is a tinted sunscreen with a 50 spf. So far I tried it only on my hand and it was fairly easy to apply and left my skin feeling silky. The color completely disappeared into my skin. The only think I’m unhappy about is how tiny the sample is, though I’ll just leave it in one of my purses for when I’ve left the house unprepared. Made in USA.
Cynthia Rowley Beauty Creamy Lip Stain in Hearthrob (dark pink), .07 oz , $8
This is the second time I get this sample in Birchbox, not surprising as I have more than one account. This is what I wrote during my first review: “This has to be the most overpriced lip stain/gloss ever. But then again, I really didn’t like it. First, the color – which I think is supposed to be red – looked too pink on my lips. Second, it was way too liquidy. That made it easy to apply/smooth all over my lips, but left them wet and very stainy. Unfortunately my husband figured out what I was up to before I could kiss him and leave my mark on him It took quite a while for my lips to dry and then they didn’t feel particularly moist. The sample size seems too small, but it’s almost half a regular size. Definitely not a product I would buy. ” Unfortunately there is no information about where this product was made. I e-mailed the company and if they respond that it wasn’t made in China, I’ll let my daughter have it.
WEI Kakadu Plum Brightening Sugar Mask, 1 mask, $7.5
This seems to be the same thing as the WEI Kakadu Plum Whitening Sugar Mask. The only ingredient differences are that the whitening mask has butylated hydroxytoluene (an anti-oxidant) while the brightening mask has phenoxyethanol (a preservative). The term “brightening” might have more appeal than “whitening,” however. I, for one, have no interest in whitening my skin. The gimmick with this incredibly expensive mask is that the “kakadu plum” is very rich in vitamin C, which is good for the skin. However, there have been no studies to show its effectiveness in topical form, much less in a scrub. In any case, it’s one of the last ingredients listed. That said, I love trying new masks so I’m happy to have this.
Update: It was difficult to find any information as to where this product was made, but finally found on WEI’s webpage that their products are manufactured in China. That is enough for me to not try this mask. I can only hope someone will want to swap with me.
Update 2: I found this sample semi-opened (yes, I suspect the kids) so I figured it wasn’t fit for swapping and I checked it out. It basically looks, feels and smells like your run of the mill sugar-lemon juice scrub. The instructions say to leave it on your face 3 to 5 minutes, I assume any more and it can start irritating your skin. But I think you should be able to do the same with any sugar scrub you have at home – or make your own for just a couple of dollars.