Birchbox: The June Box & First Impressions

Again, another late post. I actually only ordered the box at the very end of June so it arrived at the start of July and this is the first opportunity I've had to sit down and blog about it.

Birchbox is pretty much the same idea as Glossybox, a monthly subscription to a box that contains beauty products and samples. I believe Birchbox does generally stick to the more high-end products so you are more likely to receive minis than full size items. 

This was my first ever subscription to Birchbox and I wasn't really impressed with how long it took my box to arrive. It took around two weeks and during that time I was sent several different emails with different tracking numbers, none of which gave me the right information about where my box was. But eventually the box arrived. A cardboard box with the Birchbox logo, the same size as the Glossybox packaging. So I opened this to find another box.

The box itself was smaller than that of Glossybox, so I highly doubt I am ever going to get anything other than travel sized items of products I won't be able to afford to buy whether I like them or not. Regardless, these can be considered as luxury treats once a month if I continue with the subscription. The magazine included with Birchbox is much better than the one in Glossybox, but to be honest although it is nice to receive it I don't care about the magazine too much. It's what is inside the box that is important.

 

So inside the box are lots of little cards, some are little postcards, one is outlining the included products and one was a welcome note. Nice little touches and they do add to the experience of the box, but again I was more interested in what products they had sent me. Inside the box was a little cloth bag, and inside this (finally, it was beginning to turn into pass the parcel without the music and friends) were the products (although there was another small cardboard box inside containing another item, a bit excessive on all the packaging really).

Okay so finally onto the items. In the box there were six items. These were as follows:

Beauty Protector Protect & Detangle Spray for Hair

(Sample size, doesn't say how much is in the sample, probably enough for 4 or 5 uses, but full size retails at £15.00)

Color Club Nail Polishes from the Wanderlust Collection

Shades Reign in Spain and Pardon My French

(7ml, retails at £10 for the full pack of four minis)

Coola Classic Face SPF 30 Cucumber

(7ml Sample, full size retails at £26 for 50ml)

ModelCo Eye Define Pencil

(Full size product, £14.00)

Noble Isle Willow Song Bath & Shower Gel

(30ml sample, full size product retails at £20.00)

I thought the products selection was quite reasonable for the price I had paid (£12.95 including P&P - the same as Glossybox) but I would like to feel like I might receive a full sized item now and again to make it really worth it (okay so the pencil was full size but I can pick up a really good eyeliner for under £4 quite easily). So far I have tried the nail polish in Reign in Spain, which is the neon pastel (is that even possible? I guess so!) peachy orange, and I love the colour but find it doesn't last at all well on me (I got about 24 hours before it started peeling and chipping). I haven't yet tried the facial SPF as I already have two on the go and sunscreen goes off fairly quickly so I'm holding off on that.

I am keeping my subscription with Birchbox for now but as it stands I much prefer Glossybox. I feel I have more chance of getting value for money with Glossybox, but what I do like about Birchbox is that it gives me the opportunity to try products I couldn't usually afford or would want to part so much money for (I mean £20 for a shower gel?? Really??).

If you have a spare £12.95 one month and feel like treating yourself why not try one of these subscriptions? It's like a present to yourself and is even more exciting because you never know what you are going to get. It's really good fun when one of these turns up on your doorstep and you unbox it and find out just what goodies you have been sent. Give it a go, you can cancel at any time so you can even just treat yourself to a one off box for your birthday or just because you feel you deserve it.

xx     

Barry M Gelly Nail Paints

A few days ago I purchased four more of these lovely shades so I thought I would do a blog post. The Barry M Gelly Nail Paints provide beautifully opaque glossy colour and last well on the nails. They are amongst the best drugstore nail polishes out there and at £3.99 each are an absolute steal. They have recently added some new shades to the range for the summer so there are now 18 different colours available to choose from. They have a gel-like finish, hence the name, and you only need 1-2 coats to get a really great finish. Top coat is optional as the polish provides enough shine of its own and they become touch-dry really quickly. I don't have the best nails at the moment to be showing them off but I did some swatches anyway to show you the shades that I own.

 

Grapefruit is a gorgeous warm toned pink, slightly edging towards a pinky-coral. Papaya is a super summery peachy shade and I can't wait to wear this next time we get a hot day (perhaps wishful thinking with UK summers).

Guava and Blue Grape are both from the new summer collection and both are stunning shades. Guava is a beautiful light almost-turquoise blue and Blue Grape is a perfectly patriotic royal blue. I had been hoping to buy Nails Inc. Baker Street but it is £11! The Barry M shade is the same colour but for a fraction of the price, and from what I have seen the finish is a lot better too.

 

Finally I have two greens. The first is Key Lime which is a gorgeous tropical shade and is from the summer collection. I have wanted a shade like this since the moment summer hit and finally I found what I was looking for. This colour also matches a really exciting non-beauty related item which I have on order and shall hopefully be arriving early August, so every time I wear this it reminds me of that. But shhh! It's a secret! The second shade is Watermelon and is a really deep teal green and this is where my love affair with Barry M Gelly Nail Paints began as it is the first shade I bought several months ago.

So they are the shades I own, I hope to expand on my collection very soon because I love everything about these polishes. I am currently eyeing up Lychee (a sophisticated nude shade), Plum (a stunning Cadbury purple), Pomegranate (raspberry pink), Dragonfruit (a slightly shimmery candy pink) and Greenberry (mint green).

I still cannot believe the quality for the price. Barry M Nail Paints have always been known to be great quality but these really are up there with the more expensive brands and I would say in some cases they are better. If you don't already own one of these I totally recommend you pick one up next time you are in Boots or Superdrug, but with so many stunning shades I think you will find it hard to only buy one.

xx

June Glossybox & Blogging Everyday!

 

As I mentioned in a previous post, I didn't get round to blogging about the May Glossybox because it arrived just before my second surgery and then time just seemed to pass by and before I knew it the June Glossybox had arrived.

I have decided to just give an overview of what is in each box as I get them and then review the products in separate posts as sometimes by the time I come to use the products or use them long enough to see how well they work it becomes irrelevant me even telling you about what you could receive if you subscribe because it has moved onto the next month. So these Glossybox reviews are going to be shortened right down, I'm going to tell you what I received, first impressions, and how happy I am overall with the contents of the box.

So as you can see in the photograph as always I received five products, this month they were all full sized which is brilliant! The Glossybox magazine was also included although a little on the useless side this month. The only part I am interested in is product info and how much they are to buy, but they clearly didn't proof read this months issue as this information was only half completed. That aside, after a quick Google search I calculated the total cost of the products in my box this month to be worth an impressive £35.43, almost three times the amount I paid for the monthly subscription.

The products I received and their retail values were as follows:

- Organic Surge Volume Boost Conditioner (£5.99)

- Figs & Rouge Cherry Blossom Tinted Lip Balm (£5.00)

- GOSH The Secret of Longer Lashes Mascara (£8.49)

- MonuSpa Hand & Nail Cream (£10.95)

- MeMeMe Nail Collection Long Lasting Gloss (£5.00)

I believe this to be in the shade Rebellious but this is just from looking on the MeMeMe website as there was no indication of the shade on the bottle or in the magazine

On first impressions I am happy with the products received overall and here are my initial thoughts and feelings:

- The Organic Surge conditioner smells great, really zesty and limey and I love my lime scented products. It is apparently completely natural and free of all silicones and chemicals and is vegan friendly. 

- I have used Figs & Rouge lip balms before and whilst I like them I was very disappointed with how quickly they go off. The packaging indicated it should be good for 12 months but these had gone gloopy and smelly within just two, however they were the ones in the cute little tins and not the tinted balms in the tubes like this one is. So the packaging, whilst not as nice, may be better for keeping the product at its best.

- The GOSH mascara looks okay, not sure about the wand or the claims of lash growth, but we shall see how it performs.

- The MonuSpa product smells amazing, it reminds me a little of the Origins Ginger Souffle Body Cream but not as strong. Unfortunately this contains aloe, which I am allergic to, but I have found I am beginning to tolerate small amounts of this such as in brow products. Although if a brow pencil contains 0.2g of product then how much aloe is going to be in there really? I have tried this out very sparingly to test the waters and so far I am getting away with it, and it seems like a really nice hand cream.

- The MeMeMe nail polish is okay, the colour isn't the best but I would wear it although I would say it is more a winter shade so a bad choice for the June box. I'm not the biggest fan of the finish, it's almost like a chalky metallic and I don't feel this would last too well on me.

A bit of a mixed bag but I'm definitely looking forward to trying them all out, and once I do you can be pretty sure they will be appearing again for a more in-depth review.

Just a little add to this also, because my blogging commitment has been a little lacking recently I have decided to attempt to blog everyday for the rest of June so I can go into July with some fresh ideas.

xx

My New L'Oreal Loves: Two Amazing Facial Cleansers!

I hadn't intended on writing a blog post this evening but a few days ago I picked up the L'Oreal Skin Perfection 15 Second Miracle Cleansing Oil. Alongside this I also picked up the Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution. They are currently buy one get one free in Tesco until the 1st July and are priced at £7.99 and £4.99 respectively. 

I have used the Micellar Solution and immediately went out and bought two more on the offer as I thought they were really good and had the intention of blogging about them when I got through some more products on my list. It is basically a make-up remover and toner in one and is the most gentle but effective remover I have found on the high street. This has been likened to make-up artist favourite Bioderma Crealine H20 (currently not available in the UK, but I hear it is coming soon although probably only to online boutiques and will no doubt be pretty pricey). This is no good at removing waterproof mascara but everything else dissolves with ease leaving a fresh feeling face with little effort. Suitable for all skin types this contains no alcohol, no perfumes and is hypo-allergenic.

So why did I suddenly decide to blog this evening then? Well, I tried the 15 Second Miracle Cleansing Oil. This is a definite WOW moment. I have fallen in love with this stuff and despite being extremely poor until pay day I will be going out tomorrow to stock up whilst the offer is on. Just two to three pumps of this oil is all that is needed, massage onto dry skin and even into eyelashes (it didn't sting my eyes and removed my waterproof mascara like nothing else I have ever used). Then simply rinse away. I used a muslin cloth to rinse mine but any face cloth or just splashing water on your face will do. Right now I have the softest, cleanest feeling face with not a single trace of oily residue or tightness (which is my biggest issue with washing my face). As the name suggests, you could easily remove your make-up in 15 seconds with this stuff, maybe a little longer if waterproof mascara is involved, think how long it takes to find your baby wipes, let alone take your make-up off with them. So no excuses for not properly removing your make-up and night ladies (and gents)! This should be a staple in every bathroom and is suitable for all skin types.

xx

Review: La Roche-Posay Anthelios XL Dry Touch Gel Cream SPF 50+

This product arrived in my May Glossybox (apologies for not doing a review on that, it landed on my doorstep the day before I was due to have surgery so I never got around to it). This one item alone made my Glossybox worth the money (not that I paid for it, I used my Glossydots to pay for it - these are acquired by taking surveys on the products you receive each month and very quickly mount up so you can order a free box). The La Roche-Posay Anthelios XL Dry Touch Gel Cream SPF 50+ is a great summer product. How many times have you put standard suncream on your face, then piled your make-up on top for it to just slide off before you have even left the house? Do you just hate the greasy feeling sunscreen leaves on your face, or does it break you out? If so a product like this is perfect. 

At £16.50 for 50ml this isn't cheap, but suncream and SPF isn't, and it is your health we are talking about here. It's a £16.50 investment once a year and particularly if you are fair skinned like me something like this is amazing for keeping you protected. It's also brilliant for those of you with an oily skin with its anti-shine formula, but my dry skin can also handle this as long as I moisturise well beforehand, I don't feel any tightness or dryness when using this. Sensitive skins can also benefit from this as it is fragrance and paraben free.

You might be wondering why you need a separate face SPF. Well you wouldn't use your body butters all over your face would you? The skin on your face is very different to the skin on your body. It has different needs and if you use something developed for the body on your face chances are it could be too strongly perfumed or too oily and can cause reactions or break-outs. A face SPF is specially formulated for the more delicate skin on the face.

So seeing as I received this for free would I actually be willing to go out and pay for this product? Yes I would. I don't think you can put a price on protecting your skin from the sun and I find I can trust this product to do that as well as providing the other benefits mentioned above.

xx

Mental Block & YouTube

I have been really struggling to write blog posts lately while I have been recovering from my surgeries. I have had severe cases of mental block when it comes to writing anything that makes any sense, perhaps due to the meds I have been on and also due to severe tiredness. The combination of my medication, having had two surgeries in less than five weeks and a pre-existing medical condition that already includes fatigue and cognitive issues as symptoms has left me unable to sit down and focus on what it is I have needed to say.

Which is why I took to making videos. I can just pick a moment where I am feeling focused and ramble away, and just edit out my stutterings and brain malfunctions later. I have four videos up on YouTube as we speak (please check them out here if you haven't already and subscribe) and one or two more pre-recorded and ready for editing. I still have a lot to learn and improve on but it's pretty fun to do =)

If you prefer to read blog posts then I should be posting regularly again soon, I have a whole list of short product reviews with photographs and swatches lined up, but things like monthly favourites, TAGS, extensive reviews and possibly tutorials will more than likely be made into videos now.

Please let me know if you enjoy reading my blog and watching my videos. I enjoy doing them and it's a fun project for me to occupy my mind with but it's even better when people tell me that they also enjoy the final result.

xx

The Big Soap & Glory Review

I wanted to try filming a video for a while but have always been really shy in front of the camera so I decided blogging was the way forward for me. However, the Soap & Glory Review would have been such a long review and I only wanted to do a quick overview of each product rather than go into huge detail about each that yesterday I bit the bullet and thought hey, it could be fun, and filmed my review instead of blogging it. The audio is a little quiet so you might have to turn up the volume a bit but if I decide I feel comfortable doing this a little more then I will learn how to fix all of that in future videos. If I spend anymore time learning to edit I might chicken out of uploading this. Hope you enjoy.

 

xx