Birchbox is a beauty sampling subscription service that sends 5 new items each month so you can try before you buy. Birchbox is $10 a month and you can choose a monthly sample during selection time, let Birchbox decide, or pick a pre-curated box. This is a review of a regular, non-curated box with sample choice. How well did it match the profile that I created when I signed up? Read on to find out!
DEAL: For a limited time use coupon code SMOKEY to get a FREE Bobbi Brown Mascara and a mirror with your first month of a Birchbox subscription!
This month, Birchbox’s theme is Follow Your Heart!
The information card gives brief details on each item as well as the price if you were to buy the full size.
You can visit Birchbox.com/MyBox to easily see the details of your box, which I recommend because sometimes they have videos on the item product pages which I find useful.
Everything in my February box!
Balance Me Natural Eye Cream ($13.65) is a pretty generous sample size, about half of the full-sized product! I have long given up on expecting any miracles from an eye cream but at least this one didn’t irritate my eyes. It is packed with botanicals (such as rosehip, cloudberry seed, and cucumber oils) and hyaluronic acid and has a natural scent.
Love, Beauty & Planet Coconut Water & Mimosa Flower Shampoo ($1.54) is formulated for fine hair, which I have so this matched my profile perfectly. I found that I had to wash, rinse, and repeat and it was pretty perfumey and reminded me of hand soap. Be careful if you avoid sulfates, since SLS is the second ingredient.
Love, Beauty & Planet Coconut Water & Mimosa Flower Conditioner ($1.54) is the matching conditioner and I appreciate that Birchbox sent a matching set, since most companies formulate their products to work together. I felt like it took a bit longer than usual to rinse my hair after using this.
NOTE: I used this duo two days in a row. The first day I air-dried my hair and it was impossible to style and my hair was greasy by midday. The second day I did my usual styling routine and am happy to say it looked fine all day long.
Smashbox Cosmetics Always On Gel Liner In Fishnet (No size listed, $9?) Wow, I’ve never found a Smashbox product that I have liked, until now! I received the shade “Fishnet”, which is classic black, but there are other shades available online.
This is a gel/pencil hybrid, so you get the ease of a pencil with the staying power of a gel. I used it in the morning and found it easy to apply, but make sure to smudge quickly if that’s your thing because this stuff sets quickly. Plus, it stayed on all day long, no raccoon eyes at the end of the day, yay!
Here it is swatched on my arm. I tried to remove it after the photo, first with a dry paper towel, then with a wet paper towel, and it didn’t move. I was able to remove it in the evening with makeup remover, no problem.
MAC Cosmetics False Lashes Mascara In Extreme Black (No size listed, $5?) is ophthalmologist tested so it should be safe for contact lens wearers and those with sensitive eyes.
I was surprised at how well this worked on my lashes. I applied to one side and could really tell the difference, the wand separated my lashes well without making them clump together, and they looked longer, too.
Foreo Awakening Radiance Day Cleanser ($0.93) I don’t own a Foreo cleansing device, or any other battery-powered facial brush, but that’s ok because the manufacturer says you can just use your hands. Probiotics, apricot oil, and bergamot extract are a few of the ingredients. Since this is meant for use in the morning, make sure to wear your sunscreen since bergamot may make your skin burn when exposed to sunlight.
Foreo Celestial Melting Gel Night Cleanser ($1.11) Wow, this has ground up meteorites in it! Something that was a rock in outer space was used to clean my face, that blows my mind for some reason! I liked the texture – you put it on your skin and it sort of melts and becomes creamy, and the exfoilation was not too hard. Both of these products were overly scented for my sensitive skin.
These samples were one-time use foil packets and I am grateful that Birchbox sent them in addition to the other 5 samples, and not as 2 out of 5 samples.
I was very happy with the sample sizes and curation of my February Birchbox! No they weren’t all hits with me, but that is the point of a sampling subscription, I can try before I buy. I felt like they matched my beauty profile, most of these samples will last through multiple uses, and I discovered an amazing eyeliner. My box had a value of around $32.77, but keep in mind that Birchbox sends out a variety of samples each month so your box may be drastically different from mine, both in products and value.
What do you think of the February Birchbox? What was your favorite item from your box?
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