Review of November Birchbox

Now that I have had some time to go through and try all of these lovely products, I thought I would let you know my thoughts on them. Turns out that some of the products I thought I would love I liked a lot less than the products I was less excited about. That always seems to be the case with these subscription boxes, which is what i love about them. 

Lulu Organics Lavender and Clary Sage Hair Powder - $30

Revive second-day locks by working this organic dry shampoo into your roots. You'll get plenty of lift, but no residue.

I have always wanted to try a dry shampoo, but have been unwilling to buy a bottle and until now, never received a sample. I am pretty glad that I never purchased one now. To those who like and use dry shampoos, I am sure you will be pleased. It has a very pleasant scent and did seem to soak up excess oil nicely, I just found it was messy and unnecessary. I would rather just wash my hair.

ModelCo Fibre Lashxtend Lengthening Mascara - $24

Falsies without the fuss. This innovative mascara uses tiny lash-extending fibers to give you a lengthy fringe. Tip: Rotate the wand inside the bottle to pick up the fibers.

I was super pumped to receive this is my box and originally used it every day. It thickened my lashes, extended them, darkened them, separated them etc. Everything you would want from a mascara. It originally seemed like I had found my dream mascara, that is until I started realizing that by the end of the day all of those little fibers were coming off onto my face. I had a peppering of little black fibers all under my eyes and sometimes onto my cheeks. No bueno. I tried to ignore it and continue using and loving this mascara, but sadly they need to work on this just a bit more before I can really tell you I love it. Which is very sad.

Here you can see the big fat wand

Mox Botanicals Pomegranate and Fig Lip Butter - $16

This eco-chic balm, in an exclusive flavor, revives lips with avocado oil and shea butter.

This is on my list as the opposite of the mascara. I originally used it and disliked it. Weirdly enough, I have never tried a lip butter before. Having not tried one, it has a weird, oily quality to it that I was not anticipating coming from chapsticks. It is really light on your lips and fast absorbing. It took a bit to get used to the change in texture, but once I did I found I really love this. It has a tart scent to it and sweet taste if you lick you lips while wearing it. It is quite a pleasant product. I find my lips to be well moisturized and I love that its all natural.

One Love Organics Aromatic Body Serum - $39

Made with pumpkin seed and sea buckthorn oil, this fast-absorbing oil keeps skin subtle and hydrated. Bonus: It has aromatherapy benefits!

This product I could take or leave. It is a body oil. It smells amazing (I have already stated I love One Love Organics) and as such was really excited to try this out, but it is quite greasy. I have used body oils in the past and found this was not as fast absorbing as I would have excepted. I had heard others complain about this oil, but found it has other uses, massage oil anyone? Although not my favorite sample, I think the rest of the box more than made up for it, especially since I was hoping to get this sample. I have pretty dry skin and found this a bit greasy, so I'm not sure many people would find this suited them, but let me know in the comments if you think I'm wrong.

John Varvatos Artisan

Give this extra sample to a lucky guy. It's modern blend of energizing citrus and warm woods. After he's been dapper-fied, send him over to birchbox.com/men to learn about birchbox man.

I have quite the funny little story that goes with this last sample. I did what was expected of me and gave it to a very dapper man in my life: my father. I was all excited and got home for Thanksgiving, and went to give this to my father, who was in his office at the time, who just thanked me and went on with his business. I was upset, I told him to smell it, he tried to remove the vial from the cardboard with one hand, and promptly spilled the contents of this cologne everywhere. Although this does smell really nice, very manly, very woody scent, it was not pleasant all over the desk and his papers.

Anyone else ever spill their sample vial all over their stuff?

I love playing with samples and found this to be a great box full of full sized items and large samples. What did your box contain? Did you enjoy playing as much as I did?

Birchbox is a monthly subscription service available for $10 a month. It can be purchased from http://www.birchbox.com/

November Birchbox and Review of October Birchbox Items

This post is all about Birchbox! I never posted my october unboxing because I received it pretty much a week ago and figured it was a bit late. I will however post my thoughts on the products I received, however. This month's birchbox was all about giving and as such they included a cute little envelope that you are supposed to fill with something and give it to someone else. It's a very cute idea. I have to say, after the past few months with boxes that were a bit of a let-down, this box was amazing. I am absolutely thrilled!

My box contained:

LuLu Organics Lavender + Sage Hair Powder

ModelCo Fibre LashXtend Lengthening Mascara (full size!)

Mox Botanicals Pomegranate and Fig Butter (I think full size)

One Love Organics Aromatic Body Serum

And something to give a man in your life:

John Varvatos Artisan (Cologne)

It also came with a $15 off coupon for Chromatic Gallerie

Wow! Two full sized products and some awesome samples that I cannot wait to play with! I had actually cancelled my subscription with them (because of shipping issues) and this box was given to me for free. After this box, I may have to rethink that! This really looks to be an awesome box. Do any of you subscribe? What did you get?

When I opened my october box, I was not the least bit thrilled. However, after having played with my samples a bit, I am starting to appreciate it a bit more. I do enjoy the samples I was given.

Lucy B Pink Frangipani and Wild Jasmine Roll-On Perfume Oils - $48

Boost your mood with these uplifting indigenous Australian flower essences. Try separately or blend together for a wildly tropical bouquet.

Anyone else tired of getting perfume samples in every birchbox? I know I am. These smell good and last on your body a decent amount of time, but I prefer my perfume to these samples almost always.

Ouidad Climate Control Head and Humidity Gel - $16

This frizz-fighting gel keeps hair sleek and manageable. Work into damp hair before styling to enhance your natural texture.

I really liked this sample. I have used this 3 times at this point and there is still plenty more in the sample container. All you need is a penny size amount and you work it into your hair. I have found my hair to be much more manageable and less frizzy, just as advertised. I like the scent too. It is light and refreshing without being too overpowering. 

theBalm Cosmetics Mary-Lou Manizer - $24

Play up your best features with this three-in-one highlighter, shadow, and all-over shimmer.

This was my absolute favorite item in this box. Everyone was complaining about the fingerprint on the product, but I think they are just being silly. It was part of the packaging. If you look at the back of it there was a full set of fingerprints. It wasn't like someone stuck their finger in the product. Anyway, I have used this everyday since receiving it. It is a gorgeous, long lasting shadow. A great highlighter, and I have even dusted it on my collar bone before going out. The sample size is also pretty adequate. I would imagine that even with continuous use, I could probably use this for a few months before needing to buy the full sized. 

Vitivia Pro:Vitamins A15 and C10 - $55

Twist open these nifty single-use capsules and smooth onto your face and neck. Concentrated vitamin C brightens your skin tone, while vitamin A refines pores.

I am a big fan of using vitamin C on my face every morning. I have a Ole Henriksen version of this that I have been using daily for a few months and really like the outcome. So this was a welcome sample. Although I prefer what I had been using perviously, I could see myself using this product. It felt like less of a serum and more of a lotion consistency. The vitamin A did indeed seem to make my pores smaller. I love when products do what they say they will do. I overall really liked this product. 

Luna Protein Chocolate Peanut Butter - $14.95

We keep these yummy protein-packed bars on hand at all times.

This was another product that upset me. I had received a luna bar in a previous box, but since it wasn't labeled as a protein bar, they thought it necessary to give me another one. I don't like receiving food items in my beauty boxes to begin with, let alone receiving one twice. I also dislike the combination of chocolate and peanut butter together, which didn't help. This is a product I cannot review as I have not eaten it. I'm sorry to anyone who was interested.

Birchbox is a beauty subscription service that is $10 a month and can be purchased from http://www.birchbox.com/