Better Beauty Box January 2016 Subscription Box Review

The Better Beauty Box is a monthly subscription box aimed at tween and teen girls.  What makes this box different from other subscription boxes is the focus on age-appropriate products (no wrinkle cream!) and cleaner cosmetics (most products will be natural, organic or non-toxic).  I have shared beauty subscription boxes with my teenage daughter before, and she always gives me the crows-feet moisturizers and dark, dark lipsticks.  I was excited to get a box that she could have all for herself!

The monthly subscription is $20 and will include at least five products.  Of the five, up to three could be cosmetics.  If your teen or tween isn’t quite ready for makeup yet, they also offer a makeup free box for $16/month.  Although the value of the box will vary by month, it will always exceed the cost of the monthly subscription.

Enough about the logistics.  I’m sure, just like my daughter, you’d rather get to the good stuff inside.  And to start things off, how can you not like a package that comes with green squiggly packing material!

A list of the products for the month is glued to the inside of the box.  This is a nice touch, especially since my teen is fairly new to makeup and beauty products.  Letting her know what the products are and how to use them is so helpful.  Additionally, from the mom perspective, it’s nice to understand which products are organic, hypoallergenic, etc.

Verita Classic 100% Pure Organic Argan Oil ($20):

I thought this was a strange thing to include in a teen/tween beauty box – both based on the product and the price point.  My daughter was willing to give it a shot, and thankfully, The Better Beauty Box folks included a handout that explains Argan oil and how to use it.

So far, my daughter has used it as a hand lotion and as a hair conditioner.  Her primary comments:  “I thought it would be greasy, but it really isn’t.  It doesn’t have a particular smell – well, it smells like something, but I don’t know what.  It’s not a bad smell though.  But here – feel how soft my hands are!”  I’ll take that as positive feedback, but honestly, I think that she could probably have soft hands with drugstore lotion for less cost  It’s fun, though, to have a luxury product to test out.

Crystal Essence Mineral Deodorant Towelette Trio ($1.50):

Next were mineral deodorant towelettes.  My daughter has thus far used traditional deodorant products, so these were new to her.  She tested one out (the lavender and white tea scent) and it seemed to work well as a deodorant, which I appreciate as a mom.  Her comments:  “It’s strange because it goes on wet, but then it dries really quickly and it smells super nice.”  I don’t know that it is something we would buy, but I think we’re going to shove the other two towelettes in her soccer bag to use during all-day tournaments.

Mai Couture Blush Papier ($17.50)

This product is pretty cool – it is a combination of blotting paper and blush, so you can get rid of the oil and end up with a little color on your cheeks.  Another nice thing is that it is super-portable – I could see my daughter shoving this in her gym locker to blot & make-up after gym class.  Her comments:  “Super easy to use.  I didn’t feel like I used all the blush on the paper, so I wonder if there’s anyway to reuse them?  It did say I could press harder to make it darker, but I don’t really like that look.”  (Proud mom, here – raising a frugal daughter, if nothing else!)  My only other mom thought on this product is the price – again, a little hefty for teen makeup in my experience, but fun to play with.

You can see the swatch of this product in our December Vegan Cuts review!

Wet-N-Wild Color Icon Kohl Liner Pencil Duo ($2)

This product (and the next one) are much more in line with my teen’s current makeup purchases.  It was fun to get these eyeliner pencils, though, because of the new colors.  (In fact, I had to watch some online videos because I personally had no idea what to do with white eyeliner.  Educational!)  The Better Beauty Box folks indicate that the colors chosen (You’re Always White” and “Pros and Bronze”) have lower toxicity formulas, but I although thought the colors were just fun.

My daughter isn’t a big eyeliner wearer yet – in part because she doesn’t like how dark many of the colors are, but she really liked the bronze eyeliner and how it looked on her.

e.l.f. Foundation Brush ($2):

My daughter already has a set of e.l.f. brushes, so I think I’ll be taking this one for myself.  (Seems fair after splitting other beauty boxes with her and always getting stuck with the wrinkle cream, right?)  These are nice cosmetic brushes, especially for the price point and we’ll definitely get some use out of it.  For teens and tweens who may still be building up a decent cosmetic brush collection, this is nice addition to the box.

The final verdict:   My daughter liked, but didn’t love, the January Better Beauty Box.  We checked out the website and she thought the December box looked like it had more “fun” things in it than January – which is kind of the nature of the subscription box.  As a mom, I liked the products and the care that the Better Beauty Box people put into picking good quality, clean makeup.  My only complaint is that although the box is aimed at teens and tweens, this one felt a little older to me.  Not old lady, but definitely older than young teens.  One other feature of the Better Beauty Box company is that they have a closed and monitored interactive forum for girls to discuss areas of interest in a safe environment.  My daughter has her own online presence, so I didn’t set her up there, but I did think it was a nice idea of the company in trying to take good care of our girls.

Visit The Better Beauty Box to subscribe or find out more!