Look at this fur baby!
(Heart eyes)
I recently picked up a Birchbox subscription after dropping my second ipsy bag. The reason that this subscription intrigued me was that it seems to mostly contain skin and haircare items, which is something that my ipsy bags had been severely lacking. Luckily, at the time I signed up they offered a promotion where I got a second box free!
Birchbox is a monthly subscription service that delivers five deluxe samples tailored to your personal preferences. These samples include makeup, skincare, bath and body, haircare, fragrance, and more.
Upon joining you’ll complete a beauty profile that helps them to curate your box to you. Each month you have the option of receiving five surprise items, choosing one of your items, or buying a set of items that are pre-determined by Birchbox. If you’re anything like me, you love to be surprised, but you still want a little bit of control. I choose one item as long as I like one of them.
The good news is that if you fall in love with any of your sample items you can find the full size in the Birchbox shop for purchase. Reviewing your items earns you points which can be used for discounts.
Interested? Sign up here! —> Birchbox (this is my referral link. I earn $5 if you use it!)
Box #1
This box came with a cute little insert that listed all of the products, their full size prices, and a short description of them.
Number 4 Super Comb Prep & Protect – full size $32
I’m really loving spray, leave-in conditioners right now so it’s a funny coincidence that I got one in my first Birchbox. I really liked this product. I’ve never heard of the brand before, but I found it pretty comparable to the It’s a 10 leave-in that I’ve been using lately. I’m going to experiment a little with both and see which one I like the most, especially because the retail is about $5 less than my It’s a 10 product. It claims to protect from heat and UV, as well as protect color. This product makes my hair feel so soft after using, and I feel like it helps my hair remain less greasy for longer (although I’d still prefer to wash my hair every day). It also smells AMAZING!
COOLA Mineral Face SPF 30 Unscented Matte Tint – full size $36
This product baffles me a little bit. I get that it’s a BB cream, but it seems like it’s mostly sunscreen and I say that because it barely provides any sort of tinted coverage or tone evening to my face. It did go on very smoothly, like velvet, but it bunched up in my creases and didn’t look uniform. I’m probably not going to purchase this product in full size. I just don’t see a need for it. Most moisturizers and foundations have SPF in them these days and, like I said before, there wasn’t any actual noticeable difference after applying it to my face that would make it worth it.
Balance Me Wonder Eye Cream – full size $29
I don’t care for eye creams. I’m like, 67% sure that they’re useless, but that’s just me. The other theory is that after working nightshift for so long my dark eye circles and bags cannot be helped. So that being said, I’m really not the best person to be judging this product. It went on nicely and they give you a lot for a sample. I’ve worked it into my routine for giggles, so we’ll see if they make a believer out of me or not.
MAC Cosmetics In Extreme Dimension 3D Black Lash Mascara – full size $23
A pinky-sized tube of mascara. Oh, MAC.. This tube probably has three to five uses in it, but that’s okay. It is a sample, after all. I’m lucky enough to have the chance to try this $23 product ahead of time. I like the wand for this mascara. It’s easy to use and it definitely delivers on its promise. After using it I thought that my lashes looked blacker and had a lot more volume to them. The formula is super lightweight and actually gave my lashes more of a curl.
Before
After
Daily Concepts Your Facial Micro Scrubber (full size item) – $8
This is a cute little item. It’s a facial scrubber that fits over your fingers like a little mitten and removes makeup while exfoliating your face with two different sides of varying “roughness”. They come in three varieties and the one I got was Gentle, which is for the best because I have sensitive skin. They’re multi-use and come with an indicator for when it’s time to throw it away. I thought that this worked great, and it’s super convenient for travel purposes. It’s also pretty cheap, which is nice!
Free box
Birchbox brand – unsure of retail value
I’m so thankful to receive this new eyelash curler, because my old one is probably 10 years old and not so great at doing its job anymore. It think this one works fantastically and I love the teal accents. I believe that this is Birchbox brand, but I can’t find it anywhere on their website so I’m not entirely positive. That being said, I don’t know how much it would retail for either.
Lord & Berry Brunette Magic Brow – full size $22
I’ve never attempted to do my eyebrows before, so get ready for some humor. Eyebrow makeup scares me, because it’s so easy to accidentally go overboard and think that you look really awesome when you actually look like Spock.
Jokes aside.. I found this pencil to be very pigmented and long lasting. My biggest issue, apart from not knowing what I’m doing, is that this pencil was definitely too dark for me. I probably should have received the blonde tint, as opposed to brunette.
Okay, sorry, haha. Last one I swear.
Number 4 Hydrating Set L’eau de Mare Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner – full size set $68
It was really convenient to receive this set in my free box to go along with the leave-in conditioner they sent in my actual box. I was very happy to have these to try. I was a little confused as to why they sent so much more shampoo than they did conditioner. A foil packet, really? Oh well. In the end, I really liked these products. It helped my hair retain moisture and offered some heat protection. The set is a little pricey compared to the set that I currently use, but maybe for a gift someday..
Marcelle Hydra-C Eye Contour Gel-Cream – full size $27
Another eye cream, ugh.. This one was annoying, because there was barely anything in the tube at all. I had to roll the tube down to the very bottom to squeeze any product out. This cream promises a quick pick-me-up that depuffs eyes and reduces dark circles, but I’ll probably never find out if that’s true because I only have maybe three uses in this sample.
IPKN Color Correcting Primer SPF 15 – full size $28
I definitely have green color correctors in my arsenal, because I have a lot of redness on my face. So to receive a color correcting primer is a really neat idea. My one draw back on this item is that it is seriously thick. I tried to spread it on my face like my usual primer, but that was a mistake. A little goes a long way with this product, but I liked the outcome. There was less redness visible on my face after applying my foundation, and my foundation lasted all day.
My impression: I really loved my first Birchbox! I think the idea of doing the second box free is really amazing and I’m glad that I was able to take part in this offer. I found some new products that I actually really love, namely the eyelash curler, shampoo and conditioner, leave-in conditioner, and face scrub. What I think I like the most about Birchbox is that it supplements my ipsy perfectly. I found that my ipsy was lacking in skin and haircare items, but now I don’t have to worry about it!
Thanks for taking the time to read my little blog! 🙂
– Tia
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