Birchbox 2012

After waiting only a few weeks, I got added to the subscription box known as Birchbox. I have read on many websites that Birchbox is a favorite of some. I guess I have been spoiled by the full-size products from Cravebox and Popsugar or the luxury products that I receive from Sample Society, but I was not impressed with Birchbox.

I received my first box a few days ago and was a bit disappointed when I first looked in the box. First, the wrapping on the items had come loose, so it was not a very good presentation especially with the bow that was supposed to be around something just laying to the side. The other three boxes I subscribe to are always so neatly packaged. I tried to put my prejudice of the sloppily packaged items aside and look at the contents with a clear mind.

I was not impressed with the size of the samples, for one thing. The Viva La Juicy by Couture was tiny. I have actually already received two of these same samples for free. I do like the smell of it and I will use it, but in my opinion it doesn't stack up to the deluxe sized samples of perfume that I have gotten from Sample Society. 

Next, there was a tiny little bar of some sort. I had to pick it up to read what it was. I found out that it is an Uber bar and the flavor is Apple Turnover. I had never heard of this bar so I googled it and found out that the cost is about $25 for a box of 15. This looks like about half the size of what appears to be a full-size bar. I will pass it on to my children, however, because I am currently on a strict weight loss diet and this has way too many fat grams for me to eat right now. I hope they enjoy it because at $25/15 I will probably not be buying any!

There was a card which appeared to have q-tips attached to it. I looked closer and the q-tips had clear middles which seemed to have liquid inside. These turned out to be Beauty Fixation Makeup Remover. Apparently you break one end and use the other end to remove makeup. These are relatively inexpensive as I found them online at $5 for 24 count. The card in the box had three attached.

The next item was a bright red tube that read "Stainiac". This is a lip and cheek tint. Supposedly it is not as bright as it looks, but I haven't tried it yet. It is supposed to stain your lips and cheeks and be long-wearing, so I don't really want to try it when I am going somewhere as I'm afraid it will be too red. Perhaps I will try it before bed tonight and hopefully if it's too dark it will wear off before morning, either that or my husband will think I'm sexy. ;P

The last item is my favorite (I think, I have yet to try it). It is Sumita Brow Base and at first I was unclear as to the purpose of this product. I was pleased to find that this is a smoother for eyebrows, but it also doubles as an eyeshadow primer. It will be great if it keeps my eyeshadow looking fresh all day. We will see. It retails for $11, so I guess you could say that this one product was worth the $10 I paid for the box.

I also found that for every box you pay for, you get 10 points at the Birchbox website and 100 points translates into $10 to spend on their site. So, to sum things up, I'm not super excited about this first box. I will give them another go next month, but if I still feel the same I will probably cancel and give someone else a chance to get their Birchbox.