Birchbox July 2013

Nothing reminds me how fast the month is passing like the arrival of a Birchbox.

I was excited for this month’s box, I sensed a lot of hype around the it so I avoided any spoilers and waited patiently for it to arrive. But when it arrived I had mixed feelings, but more on that later. 

The theme this month is Jet Set, so each of the products comes from a "far-flung destination” and is also suitable for summer holidays.

So what’s inside the box:

My first Birchbox April 2013

You may know that at Christmas I won a subscription to Birchbox at #bbloggersxmas, which I recently activated.

After trying other beauty boxes I had lost my love of them slightly and decided that I was probably best saving £12 a month for one thing that I really wanted.

My first Birchbox arrived this week and I have to say I'm very impressed. I haven't had a chance to test anything yet but I thought I would quickly show you whats inside the box and ask if you would like to see a post like this every month? Or would you just prefer to see reviews of the products as and when I've tried them?

In this months box:

La Societe Parisienne De Savons

I'm not a soap user to be honest but the packaging and everything about this brand says luxury and even if I don't use it, it would look lovely as part of a gift for someone else.

It is worth £8.50, and I am assuming this is full size.

Gerda Spillmann, Renaissance Age Serum

I have a love hate relationship with serum samples. In my experience it takes a few weeks to get results so a sample will never provide you with enough to test the benefits, but it is enough for a first impression and to make sure your skin doesn't react badly, and that's probably all that's needed. Gerda Spillmann is a brand I haven't heard of before so this will be a nice introduction to the brand.

A full size product is £69.

Waleda Skin Food

Waleda is a brand I have tried before but not this product. It is described as an all-natural moisturiser for dry skin and Victoria Beckham is meant to be a fan. Just the name makes it sound perfect to me, so I am looking forward to trying this.

A full sized product is £8.50.

Natio Gentle foaming facial cleanser

I've been trying to move away from foaming cleansers in general but somehow I always seem to end up with another! But Natio say that their cleanser leaves out the traditional lathering chemicals so that skin doesn't feel dry, so I am curious to try this and see how my skin responds.

A full sized product costs £6.80.

Mirenesse Glossy Kiss

I've heard of Mirenesse before but not used the products. I was really pleased to see a makeup product in the box and extra pleased that I got a shade I would wear.

Again, I am assuming this is full size, which means the product is worth £17.50.

Lifestyle extra: Paname Paris mirror

When I first saw this inside the box I thought it was a badge! But in fact it is a lovely sized mirror great for a handbag/makeup case.

This is worth £7.50.

As I said previously I am very happy with the box and I know I'll look forward to it arriving each month. This particular box seems to be great value for money with two full sized products and another two generous sample sizes.

I also briefly want to mention the packaging.....how cute! I'm not sure about the use of the drawstring bag though. I also really enjoyed flicking through the magazine to find out more about the products in the box and other beauty news.

If you are interested in subscribing to Birchbox more information can be found on their website.

Let me know which beauty boxes you love, or are you over the beauty box trend now? Also don't forget to leave me your thoughts on having a regular Birchbox post.

SoukSouk — a green and clean beauty box

I mentioned in my previous post that one of the most exciting things I saw at the Vitality Show was the launch of a new beauty box called SoukSouk. I have a little bit of a love hate relationship with beauty boxes, I love the idea but the samples are never very generous or there is so much variation in the boxes that you can be left feeling short changed.

SoukSouk works like many other beauty boxes, you can subscribe on a monthly basis or take advantage of subscription packages and each month you receive a beauty box filled with 4 to 5 samples.

The unique thing about SoukSouk is that it offers ‘green and clean’ beauty products, including brands that are certified organic and natural, are free from certain chemicals and are not tested on animals. The box also includes a magazine, SoukSouk: little green magazine, which contains information on the products as well as beauty news, tips and features.

I spoke to the founder Victoria, who told me that the box aims to support brands that are trying to do the right thing in terms of reducing environmental damage and using the best ingredients, as well as brands that are not necessarily well known. For this reason they also pay for the samples that are in the boxes and can offer good sample sizes (I didn’t actually realise that other beauty boxes might not pay for the samples!)

Victoria also told me that at the moment everyone will receive the same boxes but that she hopes in the future to be able to offer products catered to individual needs.

The April box

My sister has more sensitive skin than I do and with only a gentle nudge from me signed up for a 3-month subscription. The boxes are usually priced at £12 + £2.95 P&P, but at the show a 3-month subscription for £30 + P&P was on offer.

I am hoping that my sister will share her thoughts on the contents of the SoukSouk boxes since I doubt that she will be very happy if start to highjack them every month, so please encourage her in the comments below!

Also, Victoria very kindly allowed me to offer the show price on my blog, so if you are interested in taking advantage click here! You will need to be quick though because the offer is only available until Tuesday 2 April 2013.

What do you think about this new addition to the UK beauty box selection, is it something you would subscribe to? If you would like to find out more you can see the Souk Souk website, Facebook and Twitter pages.