Another late post: April Birchbox

This will be my last Birchbox post, I only have a few months of my subscription left and I am not able to receive them directly anymore anyway, but more than that I am finding myself bored - bored writing the posts and bored of the boxes themselves. That said I could do with a beauty box now more than ever since there was only so much of my stash I could bring with me and there isn't access to a lot of brands here.

A very late post: Birchbox February 2014

Excuse how late this post is, February’s Birchbox arrived the week of the wedding and with finalising the details and relocating, writing my review landed at the bottom of my to do this. That said, I was very close to striking it off the list completely, that's how unexcited I was with the products.

I expected February to be about Valentine’s and love, maybe include a nice smelling body oil and a good lipstick but the theme was fashion week. It doesn't seem that long ago that there was a fashion related box, which again I remember being very unimpressed by. There is nothing wrong with the products included per se, but I'm starting to get bored of the same sorts of products popping up each month.

Birchbox January 2014

After overspending at Christmas and then behaving myself by not indulging in sale shopping the arrival of this month's Birchbox was a much needed beauty pick me up.

The theme this month is 'Tiny Tweaks,’ in-keeping with the new year and resolutions, with the twist that instead of unrealistic, large resolutions that may not be kept, making a few 'Tiny Tweaks’ instead making them easier to keep.

Birchbox December 2013

This month is all about sparkling and shining according to Birchbox. This means the box includes products to help you sparkle at all the parties and nights out that happen over the festive season and quick fix products to help you shine throughout the month too. 

While the box doesn’t have that immediate “wow” factor, overall it is a good box and I can see everything getting some loving.

Birchbox November 2013

After what most would agree was an epic Birchbox in October, I expected something with the theme "Icons" to be the same.

But, sadly not. When I think icons, I expect that to be the products themselves rather than an iconic makeup artists.

Birchbox October 2013 #BBXBUZZ

Birchbox really got it right with their Beauty Buzz box this month and this has now become my favourite box to date.

Beauty Buzz, or #BBXBUZZ, is the theme and is all about celebrating award-winning and celeb-favourite beauty samples. Everything in the box is new to me, which is exactly what I want but they are also products that I have heard raved about, as you would expect from a buzz box.

Birchbox September 2013

My Birchbox arrived late this month after it seemed I was forgotten with the initial dispatch. Birchbox did deal with it promptly though and my box arrived today.

I stayed away from any spoilers and had no idea what the theme was this month. That said having opened the box it wasn’t too clear, the magazine mentioned London Fashion Week so I’m going with that.

Birchbox August 2013

Birchbox teamed with InStyle this month selecting the teams favourites for a "summer nights" themed box.

This is by far my favourite box to date and I thought about listing the products in order of what I was most excited about but it was too hard to choose.

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:

Birchbox June 2013

It’s that Birchbox time of the month again! This month’s box landed on my doorstep on the day of my exam making it a much needed treat.

I already knew from Twitter three things about this month's box:
1) that Birchbox had a redesign,
2) that the boxes were going to be personalised,
3) that the box had a festival theme.

Now I am not a festival goer and to be honest after finding out the theme I wasn’t looking forward to the box because I expected dry shampoo — or even worse, a dry shampoo for the body — and gimmicky makeup, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Inside this month’s box:

Beauty Protector, Protect & Detangle (full size £15)

Normally a hair product would have me sigh, but because I have curly and dry hair a product for detangling could be very useful. The spray also adds shine and is meant to protect hair from UVA damage and heat, which will be perfect if I go on holiday this year.

Color Club nail polish (full size £10)

I have never heard of Colour Club before and these shades are two of four exclusive-to-Birchbox colours. They aren’t shades I would pick out myself but they look very pretty in the magazine so I am curious to know how they will look. One polishes is meant to be given away to a friend to introduce them to Birchbox but I have decided to be greedy and keep both for myself! 

Green People sun lotion SPF 15 with tan accelerator (full size £17.50)

I can’t wait to try this, I am keen to find my perfect sun protection and even though this is a little expensive if it has the right texture I would consider purchasing it. I love the fact that it includes a tan accelerator, I have used separate tan accelerating products in the past and they are great if you want to look golden without spending as much time in the sun. 

ModelCo eye define eye pencil (full size £14) 

I was very pleased to see a make-up product included in this month’s box and I am always happy to try black eyeliners especially if they are budge-proof, as this one claims to be. I still haven’t repurchased my much loved Rimmel eyeliner, so it will be good to see if this can contend for best eyeliner.

Carole Franck Fluide Fraicheur Phyto-Hydrant (£47.50)

I am sure I have said before that I am always glad to have moisturiser samples. This one is on the pricy side but it is meant to provide all day hydration and can be used in place of a primer. 

Every brand in the box is new to me, which is exactly what I think these boxes are for, and there isn’t one thing in the box that I will not try. I do feel like the box is catered to me and I hope that continues for the rest of my subscription. 

As for the redesign I am not really fussed, I would have preferred if they got rid of the drawstring bag completely, it makes me feel guilty that I can’t reuse it in someway. 

What do you think of this month’s box and if you are not a subscriber are you now tempted?

Birchbox May 2013

So this month’s Birchbox has arrived and it is inspired by the idea of getting ready for your own red carpet moment this summer.

Inside the box this month there is….

Make Believe shimmer lip gloss (full size £10)

I am aware of the Make Believe brand, I have the bronzer and my sister is a fan of the tinted moisturiser but this lipgloss leaves me a bit underwhelmed. I don’t have a tan at the moment, so I feel there is nothing to ‘enhance’ and I suspect this is a product they added to the range just to include a lip product rather than because it is something special. You never know though, I may be pleasantly surprised.

Elemental Herbology Cell Plumping Facial Moisturiser (sample size — full size £42)

I am always on the hunt for a good moisturiser so samples are very welcome. This will be my first experience of this brand too and I am glad that the sample is a decent size for a thorough test.

OPI Nail Lacquer (sample size — full size £11.50)

Such a cute little bottle but such a shame about the colour. It’s white or grey, I can’t tell. It doesn’t say red carpet to me, I would expect a colour that is in this season. Hopefully it will be more impressive on the nails, but I suspect it may well end up as something I use for manicure tips rather than an all over colour.

B/Attitude Body Souffle (sample size — full size £24)

Generally I don’t like body moisturiser samples but I immediately opened this up to give it a sniff. The scent is fresh but sweet and you can see the souffle texture. I expect this to be a treat to use even though I am unlikely to be persuaded to so much on a body moisturiser.

Kusmi Tea Detox Tea (lifestyle extra — full size £13.85)

Of the whole box this was the sample I was most excited to see. I tend to go for English tea but I know that I should incorporating more herbal teas. This is a blend of mate and green tea, flavoured with lemon and lemon grass and is meant to help rid the body of pent up toxins and boost energy, which is very much needed right now as I lie in bed with a cold! If it tastes good I’m sure I’ll repurchase.

Doctor Duve Anti-Ageing and Firming Eye Cream (beauty extra, sample size — full size £115)

A sachet sample for an eye cream in particular is pretty useless, unless the effects are immediate or overnight there is never enough product to do a full trial. I can understand why the sample isn’t bigger though, the full size product is £115!

I’m in two minds about this box, I know I’ll use everything but it doesn’t scream ‘red carpet’ to me or really excite me. What do you think?

If you are interested in subscribing to Birchbox more information can be found on their website and this month they are donating 30% of all sales in the e-shop to Fashion Targets Breast Cancer! 

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.

Birchbox taxi rides for LFW 2013

I love all the quirky events that I hear that happen in the city, and although I've lived here all my life I haven't actually taken part in anything. So I am very tempted to head into town this weekend and tweet #arriveinstyle to @Birchbox UK.

Because of London Fashion Week Birchbox have lined up some special pink London cabs to collect those that tweet and drive them to their destination, free of charge! And the extra special part is that the cab will have a makeup artist on board who will give a mini makeover en route too!

So, if you are in London this weekend and you see one of the cabs, be sure to hail it down or tweet.

However, if you aren't in you can still win a years’ Birchbox subscription by tweeting #arriveinstyle on Saturday or Sunday.

I would love to hear from you if you do get to take advantage of the experience and I will be sure to let you know if I do!

p.s I'm not getting anything for writing this post, I just think it sounds amazing :-)