The subscription: Birchbox
The cost: $10 US/month
Total product value: $29.56
Why is it unique? With Birchbox you can get "beauty extras" which are bonus products that can be provided to you (this happens once every few months) which do not count as part of your 10 products. You can also gain 10 points per review of each item on their website and 100 points (you can earn this every 2 months at the latest) gives you $10 to spend in their store.
Where can I subscribe? Click here
This month, Birchbox sent out a Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser and Liz Early Pure Muslin Cloth (these count as 2 separate items). I wish this combo counted as one item seeing as you can't really use the cleanser properly without the cloth. The cleanser deluxe sample was 1 fl oz and the full size which is 3.3 fl oz retails for $21.50 which brings this sample price to $6.51. 2 muslin cloths retail for $6, so the value of the cloth is $3.
I also received the Pop Beauty Aqua Lacquer Lip Gloss in Flowering Fuchsia which is a full sized item that retails for $14 (this item alone is worth more than the box subscription costs).
I also received a foil packet of Miss Jessie's Creme de la Creme Conditioner. The 1 oz foil packet is worth $1.33 since the full sized version of this product (12oz) retails for $16. I wasn't too thrilled with this product because I know conditioners require a few applications to actually work their magic and I can't imagine getting more than 1 use out of this foil packet, especially since I have long hair.
The last sample in the box was the Folle de Joie eau de parfum in 0.06 oz. The full size of this product (3.4 fl oz) retails for $98 which brings the value of the sample to $1.73. I like that the perfume had a spray pump, but it wasn't a scent that I would consider purchasing just because it's extremely expensive. It has tones of citrus and woodsy florals, it's definitely a more summer scent.
And last, but certainly not least, we received a beauty extra which is a Birchbox find that doesn't replace one of the 5 items in the box but is an added bonus they wanted us to try. I'm really excited about this one because you can never have enough lip balms. The vanilla creme scent of this ChapStick Lip Care Moisturizer, Hydration Lock, Vanilla Creme 0.15 oz (4 g)
is very pleasant, not overpowering, and it really moisturizes your lips. This is a $2.99 value full sized product.
I'm very happy with this month's Birchbox. It's definitely building up to be a lot better than Birchbox used to be, they are sending far less foil packets (1 out of 6 ain't bad) but they still have a way's to go to match Ipsy and Glossybox in terms of product appeal. The lip gloss and chapstick were my favorite samples, I was really let down by the conditioner sample and I really wish they would stop sending me dinky perfume samples that are only good for 1 use.
