Review: July 2012 Birchbox

Hello everyone! 


I can't help but rave that I am in LOVE with July's Birchbox! I was impressed with last month's offerings and continue to be impressed by Birchbox.  This month, Birchbox collaborated with Glamour magazine to bring us a box inspired by Glamour's Five Senses of Summer issue.  Each item included in the box can be attributed to one of the five senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.  

In this month's box, I received... 

Beauty Blender

Sample of Harvey Prince's Hello Fragrance

Sample of Jouer's Luminizing Moisture Tint 

Stila Lip Glaze in Camera

Tea Forte Minteas

Birchbox Exclusive Earbuds

If you've read my previous post on the Beauty Blender, you know how in love I am with them.  So imagine my delight when I received one in my Birchbox! The $10 I spent on the box this month has already been justified with just this one product.  

While I don't mind fragrance samples, it's always a difficult product because everyone has their own preference.  I don't mind Harvey Prince's Hello, however, it is not what I consider a summer scent.  It is very floral and I can see it giving me a headache if I apply too much.  

Jouer Luminizing Moisture Tint / Stila Lip Glaze in Camera

The mini sample of Jouer's Luminizing Moisture Tint was interesting.  I've been meaning to try out Jouer's products since hearing about them on missglamorazzi's YouTube videos, but haven't had much access to them.  Now that they're being sold at Nordstrom's, I may think about test driving out some of their products, especially after trying out this Moisture Tint.  The coverage it provides is very light -- very much like a tinted moisturizer.  It evens out my skintone, but does not cover my blemishes.  It feels very lightweight and refreshing to wear, especially in this sweltering summer heat.  

I've had a couple of Stila Lip Glazes before and I can say that I am still not a big fan.  The tacky texture and sticky residue it leaves is irritating to me.  I like glosses that have no taste and a non-sticky residue, much like Le Metier de Beaute's Sheer Brilliance Lip Glosses.  

The lifestyle extras were definitely fun! I can't say if the Teamints provided me with a boost of energy, but they are certainly delicious.  The bright colored earbuds are useful because I'm constantly misplacing my own earphones, so these will be a nice backup! 

I highly, highly, highly recommend you get a Birchbox... and soon! :) 

Review: June 2012 Birchbox

In the past year, subscription beauty and fashion services have been coming out left and right.  Fashion subscriptions, including stylemint, jewelmint, shoemint (the list goes on!), have become just as popular as the beauty subscription box services.  I recently joined the bandwagon, thanks to my good friend who bought me a three-month subscription to Birchbox as a birthday gift, and just received my second box this month.  

The theme for June's Birchbox is "Jet Set," for which they've included products that will last through a long flight or items that they've found on their global travels.  Each month there is at least twenty different variety of boxes that can be sent to you.  It all depends on the beauty quiz/survey that you take when you sign up.  For this month, I received:

Comodynes Self-Tanning Intensive 

Stila One-Step Bronze  

theBalm Staniac in Beauty Queen 

Taylor Swift's Wonderstruck 

Luna Bar Mini 

I haven't had the chance to try out all of the products, but I don't think I will be trying out the Comodynes Self-Tanning Intensive. Since I am already tan (it's hard to avoid the sun in California!), it would be pointless for me to use these so I may end up giving them to a friend. 

In regards to the Stila One Step Bronze, I was surprised to receive a full sized product in the box! At first, I was wary of the bronzer because it looked rather drab in the bottle, but when I used it for the first time on my face, I was surprised at the subtle tan glow that it gives.  This will definitely be a staple in the upcoming summer months!

From other reviews that I have read and seen on youtube, I've heard that Birchbox is known to give many fragrance samples.  Since this is only my second box, I can't comment on the frequency, but I must admit that I do enjoy Taylor Swift's Wonderstruck fragrance.  It's not necessarily something I would gravitate towards, but it is always nice to sample something and be surprised at how much you actually do like it! 

There's not much to say about the Luna Bar mini except that I ate it as soon as I opened the box! As an "extra," I don't think it was anything special, but it was still thoroughly enjoyable!

Lastly, I've been recently impressed with theBalm eyeshadow palettes, so it was nice to receive a product from them in this month's box.  Unfortunately, I wasn't as taken with this product (theBalm's Staniac in Beauty Queen) as I was with their other products.  When I applied the stain on my lips, I could not see any noticeable difference on my lips.  Not only that, but I detested the initial taste of the product as it was very bitter.  On the positive side, I did like using it as a cheek stain because it stayed on for about 5-6 hours before it began to fade.  So while I will not be using this on my lips, I think it would be very beneficial for my cheeks during the summer months.

I was initially disappointed when I opened up my box this month; however, I must say that I was thoroughly surprised at how much I did end up liking the fragrance and the bronzer.  For $10/month, I believe that it is a nice service to have, but not a necessity.  Once my three-month subscription ends, I will highly consider paying for this service myself -- especially if next month's box is as good as this month's.  :)