Birchbox November 2015 Review

What's in

the box?

Birchbox sends monthly hair, skin, and hair products for you to sample and check out before you buy the full size item.  They have an online store that is fantastic - and you earn points that turn into cash to spend in that store.  I have a hard time saving up my points - I usually spend it when it gets to $20, especially if I have a discount code.

The box this month is gorgeous!  I love these colors!

Sumbody Milky Rich Salt Scrub -  (full size $18.95) I will be passing this on to my Swap Buddy since I sell Perfectly Posh and we have the best scrubs.  I do like this has lots of natural ingredients.

eSalon Perfect Ending Leave In Conditioner -   (sample $3, full-size $15.95)  I love leave in conditioners - they are one of my favorite hair products.  I like to use them every time I wash my hair.  I like the size of this tube too - sometimes the samples are not very big.

MAKE Face Gloss -   (full-size $25)  This is a very small tube but you only have to use a pea size amount so it should last. I am not sure I would buy this in the full size, but it is fun to try out new products.  I love this line of makeup.

LOC One & Done Shadow Stick in Impress Me (Deep Rose Gold) -  (full-size $10)  Birchbox has developed it's own makeup line with the help from Tati Westbrook.  These are very reasonable and I love the colors that they come in.  They also have a lip line too.

Catherine Malandrino Style de Paris -  This perfume will also be passed on to my Swap Buddy - I have a hard time with perfumes.  Usually I am allergic to them unless they are fruity.

I thought this was a great box - I will only be swapping two of the five items and will earn 60 points - 50 points for reviewing it and 10 for buying it.  100 points equals $10 in the store.

Purchased.  All opinions are my own and no compensation was received.

Happy Weekend!

The week really flew by  - so hard to believe we are in November and the Holidays are just around the corner. 

Birchbox never ceases to amaze me.  I got an e-mail stating a product I love, Yarok Feed Your Ends,  is back in stock.  It is $19.80.  I jumped right on because I knew I had a code for being with Birchbox for 21 months - that's right, you get a code all the time - 20% off.  I had about $10 in points too.  I am an Ace so I get free shipping all the time.  That made it about $6 for this hair product to be shipped to me.  This is why I am still a BB subscriber after 21 months!  There is not a sub box out there with this type of program - you get points for reviewing, buying, referring, for just getting a box every month.  Those points turn into cash to spend in their store - and their store is fantastic.  It's not just makeup, skin and hair products - there are kitchen items, candles, clothes, and so many other items. 

My planner addiction is beyond control!  I love all the goodies - washi tape, sticky notes, pens, page flags, stickers, paperclips, and more!  Target $1 spot has revamped - it is Spot's Playground now and there are some amazing items in it!  Stuff you can give for Christmas presents - for $1 and $3!  Go check it out.  I had fun sorting through all the goodies.  I got some cute ornaments, stickers, erasers, gift tags, and stocking stuffers.

Etsy shopping is so easy it is addicting.  There are so many cute shops out there and I love the ones that give you little extras with your order.   I ordered these cute Kawaii animal pens and she sent me two paperclips and a note pad set.   How sweet was that?  Planner Hauls is the Etsy shop - go get these pens - affordable and adorable!

I have been on the hunt to increase my planner family with an A5 - I have three personal size - two from Webster's Pages and a Filofax.  But I have really been eyeing the A5 size.  I think I finally decided to get the Simple Stories Carpe Diem set.  Not just because of the planner but the inserts that are included are just beautiful.  Deciding on the color is going to be so hard!  I love the coral, the aqua, and the platinum!  I am leaning toward the aqua because that is the color I have wanted from the start of my planner obsession.

Have a great weekend!  Link your planner blog below so I can check it out!

Birchbox October 2015 Review

What's in

the box?

Birchbox is a sample monthly subscription kit for $10 a month.   The real value in this sub is the online store and the points you earn every month.  You can turn these points into money in the BB store.  

The box this month was decorated for October Breast Cancer Awareness and it is beautiful.  I love this gorgeous, marble pink.  

Stila Huge mascara -   I have wanted to try this mascara for awhile - it was my choice of the month from the 5 mascaras we could choose.  I am loving how this feels on my lashes. 

Klorane Dry Shampoo -   I have received this dry shampoo in many boxes and it really is not my favorite.  I will be passing it along to my BB swap buddy! (Hi, Swap Buddy!) 

Dr Jart Ceramidin Cream -     This is a lightweight cream to moisturize the skin.  I love the moisturizer I already use so this too will go to my Swap Buddy.

Bio Republic Aloe Rescue Mask -  I have gotten this mask several times in boxes over the last year so it too will be passed on to my Swap Buddy.  

Number 4 Lumiere dhiver Fluoro5 Elixir Restore & Repair -  This is a hair oil - I love hair oils so I cannot wait to see if this lives up to the Number 4 reputation.  

I would say this was not the perfect box for me since I am swapping out 3 of the 5 items.  I do love the two that I am keeping, however, so that is a nice trade off.  I also get to review the items (most of which I have already tried) to earn more points for spending in the online store.  I really do not know how people save them up because I usually cave at $20 worth.  Do you get Birchbox?  Join here.   If you do, did you get some great samples this month?

Purchased.  All opinions are my own and no compensation was received.

Birchbox September 2015

What's in

the box?

My Birchbox arrived pretty late this month but I think it is because they had a big response for the curated box.   The boxes for the choice were so beautiful - and they told you that You're Beautiful!  

Malin+Goetz Grapefruit Face Cleanser and Vitamin E Face Moisturizer  -   I really appreciate it when we get the cleanser and moisturizer as a set.  I am a big advocate of using a moisturizer morning and night.  I already have a great face cleanser and moisturizer set (Perfectly Posh BFF and Night & Day) so I have passed this on to my swap buddy. 

Davines Love Shampoo and Conditioner -  Another set that goes together is shampoo and conditioner - this is a pretty nice one!  I love the size of the shampoo but the conditioner packet could have been a tad larger.  The shampoo was my choice this month.

English Laundry Eau de Parfum for Her -   This is one of the few perfumes that does not cause me to wheeze so it was a nice addition to the box.

Pop Beauty eyeshadow palette -   I have several eye palettes that I am working through right now so I passed this on to my swap buddy as well.  These have some really pretty colors for Fall.

Juice Beauty Green Apple Peel Sensitive -   I believe I have gotten this in a box before so I am passing this on to my swap buddy as well.  The last time I did a peel from a Birchbox product, it broke a blood vessel in my face that still has not cleared up. 

This was a very full box and even though I gave more than half away to my Sway Buddy, I was thrilled at the collaboration - plus I got to do reviews for lots of points.  I have no idea how people save them - if I have $20, I spend it! 

Birchbox Plus choice had me at the lips bag - and it came with 3 Stila lipsticks!  This is the Stila Look at Me Liquid Lipstick trio. Birchbox was celebrating its Birthday and included 3 balloons in the box as well.

Birchbox August 2015

What's in 
the box?

Birchbox came in so early this month - I think I got it on the 11th.  It has been doing that the last couple months and I am thrilled - there is quite a drought the last week of the month till the boxes start arriving.  

If you have followed my blog, you know I am a fan of BB - mainly because I love getting rewarded for doing reviews and little things like posting on social media sites.  No one else rewards you like BB does - you are earning actual points to turn into cash in their online store.  This online store is fantastic - if you want to save up for a makeup item, have at it!  If you want to just save a little every time you order, that is your choice too!  Love the flexibility!   I have never had points expire - mainly because I love to shop in there and if I can save $10 on my order right then, I do! 

This month's theme was Soak It Up, summer, of course!  The box looks like a cute pool.  It is not my favorite art work for a BB, but it was right on point for the time of year.

 

A nice thing about BB is that they always include an information card.  It addresses every item in the box, the full size value and sometimes a nice tip or bonus about your item. 

 

Dr Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Deep Hydration Sheet Mask - ($6) I am not a big fan of sheet masks.  I would rather have a mask that you apply - probably because I do not want to lay down to keep the mask on.  I have other stuff to keep doing lol.  I swapped this with a fellow BB subscriber.  I love my Perfectly Posh face masks, I rarely buy any for myself anywhere else.

  

St Tropez Gradual Tan in Shower - (full size $25)  I do not know what BB was thinking when they sent this out to the pale, red haired girl in my profile.  I really look kind of funny with a fake tan.  I do not tan naturally - I go from pasty pale white to lobster red and back to an off white that is not tan.  I passed this on to my swap buddy.

  

Oribe Masque for Beautiful Color -  (full size $59) Looking at this price tag, I will probably never get the full sized one unless I manage to hoard my BB points, so it was nice to get a great size sample.  This smells amazing!  I am waiting to try till after I color but I am excited about it!

  

theBalm cosmetics Balm Desert Bronzer/Blush -  (full size $21)  This is the tiniest sample ever!  Like I think the actual product is the size of a dime - small! I do not know what theBalm has against samples - all their pressed samples are like this - the lip products are a nice sample size.  I will probably put this up on my Pinterest swap board but if I do end up using it, it will be as a blush.  As my swap buddy says, it always looks like I just have a dirty face. I am crazy about the packaging for this brand though - and they do go up on Hautelook once in awhile so you can save money on your addiction there.  Kohl's has this brand in their cosmetics section for anyone who wants to check out in store.

 

Rusk Volumizing Mousse - (full size $18)  I do love the Rusk brand.  

 Oribe Shampoo and Conditioner for Beautiful color - (full size $14-42) This is probably the item I am most excited about trying.  I color my hair as the gray has started appearing so I want to see how this effects it.  I am saving it for right after I color - I am desperately in need of a dye job right now.  Here is the thing about foil packets - I do not mind getting them if they have resealable options.  I could get two uses out of this but I hate having them in the shower to get water in or leak out.  We have gotten some great resealable packets from Ipsy before and I loved that about them!

 So that is my Birchbox for August.  I do think my boxes are getting so much better.  My first two boxes were pretty bad.  I think as you start reviewing stuff and telling them what you like and didn't like, BB does listen to you.  This box had great value for my $10 and I look forward to earning those review points.

What did you get this month?  Did you find any holy grail products?

What's Happening? Wednesday!

So I have taken up a new craft/hobby - pocket letters!  This is a variation on pen pals - but you are sending goodies as well as getting to know your pal.  You make them out of a baseball card sleeve with the nine pockets.  I mailed out my first one yesterday to a cousin.  I have decided to just start with two people at first and will build up.  For more ideas, check out Pinterest.

A lot of the goodies I have found so far are from Target's $1 Spot.  Great place for cheap desk items and paper products.  I found some really cute mason jar tags there a few weeks ago.

Another great thing about this hobby is that I have so many scrapbooking items left from when I scrapbooked that it's really just the little goodies I need to purchase.  My theme for my cousin's was items for the hands:  she received hand creme (Perfectly Posh's BFYHC of course), a set of Jamberry nail stickers, and an owl nail file from Thirty One.

I could not decide on a bonus item from Birchbox this month - I really wanted the pineapple bag, the Fouta towel, and the glass water bottle but could not get all three.  I decided not to get any and save the money toward getting another sub box.  I am still trying to decide which book sub box to try.  I really want one that includes awesome goodies with it - paper products or office supplies or book swag.  If you found a good one, let me know. 

There is a new palette from Urban Decay on the horizon - sounds like it will be a smoky palette - they have a Smoked palette but this is more like the original Naked palettes. 

That's what is on my radar this week - what are you starting on?  Any new hobbies?  New sub boxes?