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Beauty Box – Total Beauty May 2012 was a dud

30 May

I am up for trying new things, so I thought I would try the new Total Beauty Box that was recently released.  I love Total Beauty because they have SO much information I am able to go through and share with you all regarding topics I think you might be interested in.

The box was $15, which was a little on the high side for me.  In contrast, Birchbox is only $10 and Beauty Army is only $12 – both I have been amazingly happy with.

I received my box quickly after I had ordered it.  The box and presentation was unique and kinda fun to open.

There were very few products and included a gift card to a skin care company.  Whenever a box does that, I am always a little put off.  I have already paid for the products in the box… why send me a “gift card” – I did check out the website for Pevonia and it was SUPER expensive skin care for men and women.  Why would I spend $ on skin care I have only seen on the internet with out any prior knowledge or recommendation?  What a waste. 

3 products and a gift card… really?

Here are the actual products I received:

Alterna: Bamboo Luminous Shine Mist – Kiss dull hair goodbye with this shine mist which gives you glossier hair!  I’ve heard Alterna is a great brand, so I will try this deluxe size.

June Jacobs: Green Tea and Cucumber Body Balm – hydrate and replenish dry skin with this balm that’s packed with shea butter and the nourishing oils.

Blinc: Mascara – Stop painting your lashes and TUBE them with this mascara.  It won’t run, smudge, clump or flake.

That’s it.  My entire box.  While I am excited about the Mascara and Alterna Shine Mist, I am insulted by the gift card and nominal about the Body Balm.

Conclusion:  Skip Total Beauty.  Read their beauty articles, but don’t buy the beauty box.  Keep your excess beauty dollars with Birchbox or Beauty Army!

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Birchbox May 2012 Special Edition: Gossip Girl

27 May

Birchbox May 2012 Gossip Girl Special Edition

May 2012 Birchbox

I am not into gossip girl, so this one did not move me.  The box was super cute – a nighttime city skyline.

Here is what was in my box:

Bvlugar: Omnia Crystalline Eau de Toilette Spray – lotus flowers, bamboo and Nashi pear fragrance.

Color Club: Clambake Coral Nail Polish – this is super cute and totally hip to the fashion scene right now.  I love anything that keeps me in style.  I wear nail polish every single day, so I treasure new colors.

Kiehl’s: Abyssine Cream +, anti-aging moisturizer – repairs and protects skin.  I have wanted to try Kiehl’s skin care, so I was grateful to be able to try this one for sure.

Side note:  I have had very, very, very sensitive skin.  I was leary of trying skin care from any of the beauty boxes for fear of terrifying my skin!  So far, there have been very few items that have hurt my skin.

Ojon: Damage Reverse Restorative Conditioner – Repair stressed strands with this aromatic hair treatment… smooth and hydrate. I won’t be able to use this – my color is so sensitive that I only have one conditioner I use on my hair, so this will be a freebee to someone else!  Yippee for you.

Birchbox Extra:  Notecards – modern stationary.  Mine was pink… always happy about something pink in the mail!

I love Birchbox – the products are always quality.  My favs this month are: the nail polish in coral and the Abyssine Cream +

Birchbox is handpicked deluxe sized beauty and lifestyle samples, delivered right to your door for $10 a month!  Follow my link to sign up!

Here is what my latest boxes and bonus boxes look like:

 Bonus box I received with my bonus points

April’s Birchbox Review

March Birchbox Review

January Birchbox Review

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Birchbox April 2012

2 May

April’s Birchbox was simply delightful.  The colors were obviously a wonderful way to say… Hello Spring!

Inside the box… I spy a full size product!

Inside my box!

Like I have said before… I just love opening these!  It is just like receiving a present in the mail!

Let me break down what exactly I got:

A FULL SIZE Tarte – Lipsurgence lip tint in Peach.  It is super soft on my lips. This retails for $24!

Warula The Leakey Collection – Pure Marula oil.  Great antioxidant for fighting acne scaring and premature signs of aging.

Wonderstruck by Taylor Swift – nice scent!

Yu-Be – moisturizer for very dry skin, also healing for hands and chapped lips.

Beauty Extra: MircodermaMitt – Body mitt that gently exfoliates away dead skin cells and pore-clogging debris. *great before a shave.

Overall, this is a great box!  If you are interested in signing up for Birchbox, it is only $10 per month and I have enjoyed it every month.  I have been a subscriber for over 6 months and have overall been very pleased.  It looks like they have a full size product just about every other month.  You also get points toward full size products for giving feedback about the products you have sampled toward full size products.  I currently have over $40 in credit… I am waiting for just the right thing.

If you would like to sign up, please use my Birchbox link.

Birchbox March 2012 WOWZA – it was GREAT!

22 Mar March2012BBedited

Bravo to Birchbox this month!

  • Color Club Nail Lacquer – “Age of Aquarius” – fantastic color and will be fun for spring!
  • Harvey Prince – Ageless “The scent of Youth” – I love just the name of it!
  • Lulu Organics – Lavender + Clary Sage Hair Powder
  • One Love Organics – Skin Savior Waterless Beauty Balm.  Can’t wait to try this, it was sent to me with the sensitivity to my sensitive skin and is a good size product that will last me a couple of weeks!
  • Supergoop! Sunscreen Swipe… Excuse me… did they know I am going to Phoenix next week?

Life Style Extra

  • Tea Forte – Skin Smart Teas.  They actually included Three teas in this package: Cherry Marzipan for corrective repair, Honey Yuzu for natural renewal and Cucumber Mint for youth recovery.

This is an exciting box and I cannot wait to use every item in it!  Last month was kinda a bummer, but wow… this one is great!

If you are considering Birchbox, follow my link to sign up for only $10 per month and I have found it to be worth every penny to try new things and a variety of things at that!

http://www.birchbox.com

My Glam Box – subscriptions opened today!

9 Jan

I think some of you know how crazy I am about the beauty boxes that are currently available – you get 4-6 large sized samples of luxury brands with a monthly subscription of 10-20 bucks, depending on the company.  Honestly, I dropped the one that was the most expensive – it was the Julep box I reviewed last month and I came to the conclusion that it just wasn’t worth 20 bucks to get more nail polish than I could ever really use!

Now the other boxes that I subscribe to are: Birchbox.com, beautyarmy.com and myglam.com – these are becoming limited editions and hard to get in and are the latest thing on the beauty scene!

Birchbox currently has openings for new members – they are only 10 bucks per month (month to month) and I have been happy with every box so far – I even ordered my mom a subscription for Christmas!

BeautyArmy opened on January 1st with a huge launch!  They only had 300 boxes available… well there were so many people interested that their site crashed… crashed!  They had 65,000!!! hits once the site went live.  But guess who was persistent and got in on the 300?  That’s right – yours truly!  I will review this box in about a week or so, once I receive it. $12 month to month subscription – you can sign up on their web site, but can’t order anything until they open up new spots.


 LIMITED TIME OPPORTUNITY!! 
I WANT YOU GUYS TO GET IN ON IT! 

MyGlam.com launched a couple of months ago and had a similar experience as BeautyArmy – they have been sold out of subscriptions for a while… I have been on a list and they finally opened more spots this morning.  So… of course I signed up.  Last month they had more makeup samples than other boxes:  nyx, two urban decay (full size), perfume sample, tart. That’s a GREAT haul, as the beauty bloggers call it.  Of course I had to be in on this one!  Subscription is month to month and is 10 bucks.

Here is the link to My Glam, in case you want to sign up – I would do it today – it will go quickly.

http://www.myglam.com/member/ - this has pictures of last month’s items. 

I will review the box once I get it – later this month!

Birchbox – Month 1 *must read*

22 Dec

So I’ve been holding out on you guys with the Birchbox.  I got the first month and decided to wait until I got two months in a row before I recommended it to you.  Items pictured below are from my first month (November).

Here is how “birchbox” works: for $10 a month you get 4-6 deluxe size samples that are customized to your preferences and skin type.  This also includes shipping.  You get to try the items and if you decide you want the full sizes, there is always some sort of discount or incentive to do so.

Birchbox sends you monthly deliveries of high-end beauty samples to help you discover products you’ll love!

Now let’s get to the fun stuff!  Here is what was in my first box!


November 2011 Custom for Arica

Zoya Gems & Jewels Collection – teal vegan nail polish

BORGHESE Fango Delicato – moisturizing mud mask for dry and sensitive skin

Two Paperdolls Coasters – teal and white

Supersmile Professional Whitening Toothpaste – tasted like cinnamon 

Atelier Cologne Orange Sanguine Cologne Absolue – fresh citrus sent, really pretty



The box was bright pink and clearly labled BIRCHBOX.  When I opened it it smelled good and has wrapped with ribbons and tissue paper. Oh! That was worth the $10! 

This is a great way to spend just a little money for a little bit of luxury and try a few things that might be out of your comfort zone!  I would have never tried any of those things (except the zoya polish), had I not gotten a subscription to Birchbox!  


You can buy a whole year if you want, or just go month to month with no commitment.  I am on the month to month, just in case I need to skip a month.  

Here is the link if you choose to try it out (and give me some points:): Try it now! 




Points are a way of receiving discounted or free full size products:

  • For every item I “review” after receiving my box, I get 10 points. 
  • For every box I receive, I get 10 points.  
  • I got my mom a subscription for Christmas and got 10 points for every month I subscribed her! 
  • Every friend I refer (hint, hint, follow this link: BIRCHBOX ) I get 50 points.
  • Every 100 points, I get $10 off of my next purchase.  
I am in my second month and already have earned $10! 
Go here to order your first box, or just check out the site:  BIRCHBOX

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