Subscription Review: Birchbox

As part of my Goals for Self this year, I want to take better care of myself (which includes doing things for myself) and learn new things. I have never been into makeup, hair, nails, or pretty much anything girly, and now that I want to make myself look the best I can, missing out on the knowledge of how to do stuff (like super simple stuff...you know...like how to blow dry my hair) is coming back to bite me! I decided to sign up for Birchbox for this year to learn about products I would never even think to look up on my own, as well as hopefully learn how to do things like, umm, put on makeup. (In my defense, Eric likes me best without makeup, so I probably still won't wear it that much. But maybe I can make my hair and nails look good?) Birchbox is a subscription beauty box. For $10/month (or $110/year, which essentially gets you a free month), you receive 4-5 samples of various beauty supplies.

My first Birchbox came in the middle of December. I didn't take a picture of the pretty box because I almost immediately used it to package up a gift for my mom...but it was nice. And my mom thought it was pretty when she opened her Christmas present ;) This was the very first subscription box I ever got!

Here's what was in my box. Some of the things I liked so much that I bought the full-size version of, and as I no longer have the sample size packaging, I took a photo of the full-size version instead. I will definitely remember to take more photos this month.

First up we have Soak Handmaid lotion. This one I liked so much I bought the full-size; in my box, I had one of those little foil samples. (Tip: I transfer the entire sample into a little screw-top jar that I save from my face lotion; that way I don't have to use the whole sample at once and I can really get all the stuff out of that little package!) I had the Yuzu sample and it is my new favorite hand lotion scent (which is really saying something). I could just sit and smell my hands but that would be weird ;) It soaks into my hands incredibly quickly (I can put lotion on and immediately start typing again, which is not something that happens with other lotions) and makes them feel nice.

Next up is the Beauty Protector Protect & Detangle. This is another one I bought for the full-size. The sample was a little mini bottle of this that is perfect for traveling. This stuff smells AMAZING. It's an all-in-one spray for your hair (heat protector, leave in conditioner, detangler, and a million other things). I have been using it almost exclusively since it got here about a week ago. My hair smells fantastic and looks healthy.

And this is the last full-size version I bought ;) These are fortune cookies thickly covered in chocolate. They do not fit in to my "eat less sugar" goal, but in my defense I originally bought them for our New Year's Eve party (I passed out fortune cookies for people to open for the new year) and they didn't get here in time. Now I'm saving them for some other special occasion. In my box I had one of these individually-wrapped cookies.

Sometimes Birchbox puts in actual full-size products into the boxes, too, like nail polish. I got this blue Color Club polish. Unfortunately I don't usually wear blue nail polish so I've only worn it once (for our fake Winter Formal). I keep blue around for Colts games, though. The polish goes on smoothly and it looks nice.

The last product was this little sample of an exfoliating face cleanser. It's by Benta Berry and I didn't like it very much. It smells good but doesn't really do anything. I like my cleansers to lather and this doesn't.

Finally, we also had an extra bonus item, which was a really nice Chapstick, the Chapstick Hydration Lock. And I can't find it for the life of me, which is a huge bummer because it was my favorite flavor (sort of vanilla-y). Hopefully it will turn up in a coat somewhere. If not, there was also a $1 off coupon for it included in the box.

One of the things a lot of people like best about Birchbox is its points system. You get points for reviewing your samples, points for buying full size items, and points for referring friends. For every 100 points, you get $10 to spend in the Birchbox shop. It definitely encourages you to buy your items from Birchbox ;)

If you are interested in Birchbox you can sign up here, which is my referral link. I am going to keep with it for this year at least, so expect to see some more reviews!

Disclaimer: I received no compensation for writing this review and all opinions are my own. I just thought it would be fun to review subscription boxes!