Birchbox “Do Try this at Home” March 2015 Edition
Monthly subscription is £10.00 Plus £2.95 P&P
No. of Products in the Box – 7 items
www.birchbox.co.uk
I think the majority of us can’t wait to see the back of winter and thankfully spring is slowly but surely approaching and with this in mind the March 2015 Birchbox sees a surprising but exciting collaboration with Homeware and Lifestyle experts Habitat to inspire us to embrace the new season of renewal, whether it’s adding bursts of bright colours to your wardrobe, freshening up your existing beauty regime or introducing springtime motifs into your home. The “Do Try It at Home” edition features a spring-ready beauty line-up and comes presented in a refreshing, vibrant designed box which I absolutely adore. If that’s not enough to entice you, this month sees the return of choose your own sample with Benefit, a brand we all know and love. This month also sees the launch of Habitat’s SS15 Collection of dressing tables and beauty storage boxes and it’s the perfect partnership this month as both beauty and storage solutions go hand in hand.
This month’s box has all areas covered and features a selection of treats to get you in the mood for the spring including skin and body care products, your chosen Benefit Mascara sample, a hair smoothing cream, a springtime fragrance alongside two lifestyle extras.
Birchbox is a monthly beauty subscription service. The box consists of 4-5 selected hair, make-up and beauty products from well-known brands and new brands. They also include a lifestyle extra within their box too. Birchbox also have an online shop where you can purchase all the brands which have been featured in their boxes. Their reward program offers exceptional benefits too.
The content’s of the March Birchbox will vary. To see what you may receive please click here
1. Benefit Roller Lash Mascara – Sample Size 3.0g. Full Size RRP £19.50
Despite all of the surrounding hype and everyone posting pictures of their roller lash mascara last month I somehow don’t ask me how, managed to miss the boat of the free sample in Elle Magazine and was very delighted to see one tucked inside this month’s box. As it’s choose you own sample there’s three different Benefit Mascaras to choose from, all of which are hailed for enhancing your lashes in some form or another, so if you missed out too there’s still a chance to get one inside your box!
Benefit’s newly launched Roller Lash Mascara promises to hook, lift and curl the lashes and it certainly didn’t disappoint. The formula goes on clump-free and the brush really separates and grips the lashes giving both length and lift. It’s not the best mascara I’ve tried but in terms of it’s main objective it did much better than what I was initially expecting.
2. Catherine Malandrino Style de Paris Perfume – Sample Vial. Full Size from £50.00
I don’t mind receiving samples of perfumes especially from Birchbox as I’ve discovered some great niche and unique scents which are exclusive only to the Birchbox shop so I know I’m getting something a little more special and this one by Catherine Malandrino is no exception.
Style de Paris by Catherine Malandrino is a powder soft scent with citrus top notes that open up to aromas of lush orange blossom, sweet jasmine, and fresh gardenia with hints of amber and musk.
When I smelt this, it was love at first whiff with it’s delicate burst of floral notes with a very sweet twist. You need to like floral/sweet scents to really appreciate this but if you do, it will not disappoint. It’s the perfect scent to get you in the mood for spring.
3. TanOrganic Self Tanning Oil – Sample Size 25ml. Full Size RRP £24.99 My skin has definitely been looking on the pasty side recently and I’m talking Edward Cullen style so was happy to see a self tanning oil sample from TanOrganic to get my spring glow-on.
This self tanning oil by TanOrganic is the world’s first self-tanning oil and is essentially a moisturising dry oil with a elegant subtle tan. With its moisturising qualities it instantly illuminates the skin with an irresistible glow and contains no synthetic colours, preservatives or parabens making it much kinder for your skin. In comparison to other tanning products which smell unpleasant this oil has a refreshing and uplifting citrus scent and is something that I really like.
On first impressions the sample is teeny for it’s purpose however this will undoubtedly cover some area’s or alternatively you could do a little patch test to really get a feel of the formula and the developed colour. I was introduced to TanOrganic last year and got on quite well with their skin friendly formula and this has just reminded me to hunt for the bigger bottle I own! It’s a great product to achieve a healthy, natural glow and being a dry-oil it feels really comfortable on the skin compared to creams and mousses.
4. Philip Kingsley Smooth Cream – Sample Size. Full Size RRP £18.00
The Philip Kingsley Smooth Cream is for medium textured, coarse, curly or frizzy hair types and promises to tame frizz and calm and define waves and curls to leave hair superbly shiny and under control. It also contains sunscreen for UV protection and to extend the life of colour treated hair. This sounds like the perfect solution for my troublesome hair and I love that it can also be used on wet and dry hair.
Whilst I love the Philip Kingsley samples I’ve received via Birchbox, it’s apparent that the brand has become a regular guest and although it’s very welcomed, I would love to see some other haircare brands showcased to mix it up a little.
5. Janjira Pomegranate & Acai Facial Scrub Cleanser – Sample Size 10ml. Full Size RRP £24.00
I’ve not tried anything from Janjira who is a brand born and bread in Thailand and was happy to make the discovery.
This scrub cleanser helps to deeply cleanse and exfoliate whilst retaining moisture and brightening the complexion. It contains walnut shell to gently removes dead skin cells, dirt and black heads leaving the skin soft and smooth alongside fruit oils to help reduce the appearance of pores and moisturise the skin. If it’s pore fighting. I’m definitely in!
The cleanser has a subtle pomegranate scent and smells absolutely delicious, the fruitiness even comes through when squeezing the product out of the tube. It has a very thick consistency with a slight shimmer which gives it that luxurious element. Whilst the scrub contains walnut shell it’s broken down into miniscule grains and feels very gentle on the skin and combined with the creamy texture I couldn’t stop rubbing this on my face, it felt really therapeutic! If you like that squeaky clean feeling you are in for a real treat with this scrub and it doesn’t strip or dry out the skin but instead leaves your skin feeling rather pampered and clean.
6. Lifestyle Extra – A Perfect Heritage by Penny Vincenzi
An unusual lifestyle extra this month exclusively for Birchbox subscribers in the form of a book which gives you a chapter sampler of “A perfect Heritage” written by Penny Vincenzi, a novel which has the beauty industry as a backdrop.
I think the inclusion of one chapter is a great idea especially when I think about the amount of times a book has let me down or failed to grip me. This concept gives you much more control and if you like what you’ve read you’ll probably be more inclined to purchase the book to find out what happens next!
7. Lifestyle Extra – Birchbox & Habitat Exclusive Notebook
This handy little notebook has been designed by both Birchbox and habitat and the quality is fantastic with a durable cover making it robust for even the messiest and the brimmed to the top handbags.
My Verdict
This month’s Birchbox in collaboration with Habitat literally brings the beauty of spring straight to your door and embraces the season of renewal with a good balance of samples all contained within a cheerful, spring-inspired box. When it comes to spring cleaning, I really enjoy refreshing my beauty stash and replacing the old with the new and there’s definitely a few new discoveries which I will continue to use. There was also a little customisation available this month in form of pick your own sample which is always popular with subscribers.
I loved the unexpected collaboration with Habitat and the design of the box and whilst there was only few items that really stood out for me, all of the products are usable with the box showcasing a good mix of well-known and emerging brands. This month’s edition boasts seven items covering a good area of beauty and I’m looking forward to incorporating these new discoveries into my spring regime.
I’m super excited for April as next month there will be another “pick your own sample” from Laura Mercier and Birchbox will also be releasing a limited edition box in collaboration with Tatler and will be available as an one off purchase for £25.00 (worth £60.00) on the 2nd April 2015. You can register your interest here.
Thinking of Subscribing?
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