Monday 12 May 2014

My last Birchbox - May 2014

May 2014 Birchbox with Harpers Bazaar

May 2014 Birchbox

Back in January last year, I excitedly blogged about how Birchbox were launching here in the UK. After seeing all the American boxes, I was so excited to see what would be in ours.  I signed up immediately after being left so disappointed with the last few She Said beauty boxes.

Later that month, my first Birchbox arrived on my doorstep, and I was really impressed.  Of the 4 products in there, I fell in love with 4 of them - this was a good box :)  The next few that followed were just as good and I was really happy with my purchase.  Coming up to the end of the year, the boxes became less exciting, but a couple of good boxes had them redeem themselves.  Then once the year was over, we were back to very lack-lustre boxes, then one good one, and each since just not exciting.

Now, this month's box isn't a bad one, not by any stretch, but when I come to go on maternity, luxuries like this will have to go out the window, as I simply won't be able to afford them anymore - I'll be saying a sad goodbye to Sky TV too :( 

Why did I cancel this now?  I just didn't find it very inspiring and didn't want to spend another £13 to get a disappointing box, I'd rather spend that money on some baby clothes to be quite honest.  So, enough of my back story - here's the May 2014 box!

Benefit They're Real mascara - full size £19.50
I'm not the biggest fan of this mascara - don't get me wrong, it does give me pretty lovely lashes, but if I wear it on the bottom lashes too, if I blink hard my top and bottom lashes stick together :/  I've had quite a few of these small samples before and usually give them away, meaning it's not something I'm likely to use.

Soigne nail lacquer - full size £11 (this is a full size item)
I can't comment on the quality of this, although I do think it was excessively packaged.  It was wrapped in black dense foam, which coated my hands and the product... then in a box - I'd have been happy to have had it as it was :)  The colour itself looks very pretty, a deep coral that would compliment MAC's morange.

Aromatherapy Associates - Revive morning bath & shower - full size £39
Packed with pink grapefruit (LOVE!), rosemary & juniper berries this is supposed to smell quite epic. Apparently it'll soften skin and uplift your mood.  They suggest adding a capful to your bath, or smooth over your body before showering (how unusual!).  I'm quite intrigued by this, so watch this space!

Philip Kingsley - One more day dry shampoo - full size £13.50
I'm not the biggest fan/user of dry shampoo - with having dark hair, this is usually something that tends to make me look a bit grey, not matter how well I brush it out.  On past experience, the Batiste cans don't last very long either, so if that's anything to go by, the Philip Kingsley one could prove to be very expensive.  On the flip side, I really liked the Elzasticizer so this definitely has potential.

Laura Mercier face polish - full size £25.50
Now this I was excited about, seeing as my skin is very dry at the moment, I'm in much need of regular (weekly) face scrubs to get rid of those dry flakey patches, so this I'm looking forward to trying.

LIFESTYLE EXTRA - Imedeen Derma One vitamin tablets - full size £37.99
For me, personally, these were quite a disappointment.  For one I'm vegetarian and these contain fish oil, so I can't have them.  Then on top of that with being pregnant, it's not advised to take vitamins you don't need, all I'm taking at the moment is folic acid with vitamin D - so these will be given to a friend, or the bin.

Do I regret my decision to cancel?  No - I'm sure there'll be some great boxes they'll do, but to pay £13 a month and only like one product every so often is a big waste of money.  Nine times out of ten, these products just sit in their box and I give them away to a friend, as they're not things I'd necessarily use.




This months Biggest-Pixi3 advertiser is the lovely Jaina from Which Beauty Box UK

 
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9 comments

  1. Wow that's a decent looking box! I completely agree with your decision though, I cancelled all my subscription boxes last year, I just wasn't using the samples and that £10 a month builds up very quickly!

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    1. Yeah exactly - most of the products I just wouldn't use. On the surface it looks good, but if it's not things I'd use or wear, there's not much point :)

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  2. I suppose different things appeal to everybody but I think i'd be pretty pleased with this box (mainly for the mascara) I can understand you cancelling though, I really want to subscribe to a box myself but when you don't actually need any of the products it's hard to see if it's worth it
    | | Dreams Of New York | |

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    1. Yeah exactly - I know this box would be amazing to a lot of people, and for a good reason, but lots of it I wouldn't use. Personally, my fav for beauty products is Wantable :)

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  3. I do like the look of this box but can totally understand why you would cancel it x

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    1. Yeah - it's not exactly their worst box, but I've just had enough... if I think about the amount of money I've spent on them since they started last Jan (over £200) and the amount of products I've used (£20 worth at most) it's far from worth it

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  4. The box is beautiful but I have seen quite a few people disappointed with the contents and I have to say, I don't think I'd be impressed!

    Jess xo

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    1. Yeah - I was really disappointed with the vitamins... I mean, 2 big reasons why they're no good for me, and in fairness to them, they wouldn't know that. But boy would I have loved to have received the Liz Earle C&P instead!

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  5. Definitely a wise decision if it isn't consistent, now you can spend it on more valuable stuff that will help you and your family grow.. and of course, a few extra lipsticks (of your choice, not ones a beautybox have picked for you!) won't go a miss here and there either!

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