Birchbox, January 2014

Good evening! How've ya been? I've been doing okay, considering this crazy Wisconsin weather! One day it's sunny, 40 degrees, making you think Spring is around the corner and BAM!!! Snowstorm. Ugg! Well, tonight, I thought I'd do a post of something I love getting each month :) Birchbox! For those who aren't familiar w/ Birchbox, it's basically a monthly subscription service where for $10 a month, they will send you a box that looks like this:

Inside this box are 4-6 (or sometimes more) deluxe sized samples. These range from skincare, make up, hair stuffs, perfume, etc. Sometimes there will be something a bit different, like lifestyle or food, but is mainly based around beauty products.

I have been a subscriber for 2+ years now, and so far, have not been disappointed :) Of course, some months are better for me than others, but I think that's just the way the cookie crumbles. As a whole, I love this company :)

So I thought for this post, I would show you my January Birchbox! Here we go!

When it arrives in the mail, it looks something like this:

And then you tear into it, and then looks like this!

Take off the cover....

Always wrapped so nicely!

Ooooooooo!

They put so much detail in to this, that even the inside of the box has a neat design!

But of course, that's not really what we're looking for, right? Right, lol :) This is more what we're looking for:

Just glancing at it, I can tell I'm going to like this box :) Right off the bat, I see something Burt's Bees (one of my absolute favorite brands) and a shampoo/conditioner. Sweet!!

Digging into the box, I find there's also a perfume sample and an eyeshadow in the little mint pouch thing:

I also notice the little mint pouch thing had a bit of an accident :S

Whoops! Oh well, the stuff inside wasn't damaged at all, so no biggie!!

So here's a rundown of what I received this month:

• Fekkai Brilliant Gloss Shampoo and Conditioner (full size: $19.99-$39.99 ea)
• Harvey Prince Journey (full size: $55)
• Coast Scents Revealed Eye Shadow Palette (full size: $34)
• Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Day Lotion with Clary Sage (full size: $18 according to Burt's Bees website, http://www.burtsbees.com/Intense-Hydration-Day-Lotion/01682-00,default,pd.html?cgid=facialMoisturizers&start=1&q=#start=1)

Let's start with the Fekkai stuffs!

I've never tried this brand before, but I have seen them in stores. First thing I did was take a whiff (honestly, that's probably the first thing I do with any hair product-scent is important to me!). Wowzers! I was super surprised at how calming the scent was! I was expecting a heavy salon perfume scent, but instead it was light, slightly fresh, and even a bit olive oily! I really liked it! 

Now I only really used the conditioner, for the shampoo does contain sulfates, and they don't play nice with my scalp :(. So I can't say how well that worked for hair hair, but it worked great for my make up brushes! :D The conditioner was nice, but definitely on the light side. It did make my hair shiny, and didn't leave a coating or anything like that, but it wasn't moisturizing enough for my super dry hair in this Wisconsin winter air. Granted, it isn't marketing towards moisturizing at all, so it wasn't false advertising or anything. I can see this working for someone who has fine hair, since it was lightweight, or who doesn't have super dry hair. I could see maybe trying this again in the summer, since my hair isn't quite as dry then.

Next was the perfume sample. Now, I know a lot of reviews don't like when Birchbox throws one of these in, but I personally do! I'm not one who goes to a counter often to sniff a new one, so I do like getting these! I've had Harvey Prince ones before, and wasn't a fan, so I was a bit iffy to try this one. But luckily, I was pleasantly surprised!!

This scent is described having notes of South African Freesia, Japanese orange flower, Moroccan rose, Indonesian clove bud, and Australian sandalwood (can you see where it gets it "Journey" name???) Just reading those notes alone is a no wonder I really enjoy this perfume, I love all those types of scents! This a wonderful fall/winter perfume, for it has that warmth and depth one looks for in a heavier scent, but it still has a light, floral scent lingering in there. I will probably be purchasing this soon!!

Next is the the little eyeshadow quad from Coastal Scents:

Again, a little skeptical. Not because I didn't like Coastal Scents, but because the colors I've received before weren't really my taste. And, again! Was pleasantly surprised!!

Whoo-ooh!! NUDES!!! Here's what the whole Revealed palette looks like:

Picture via Birchbox

As you can see, it's Coastals Scent's version of the Naked palettes! Just by glance, there seems to be a lot of similar colors between this and the Naked and Naked 2 palettes! With this being only $34, and each Naked being $52, this seems to be a steal! Would be awesome for someone who has been interested in owning a "nude" palette, but didn't want to shell out the cash for the Urban Decay ones (and honestly, who does? I've been saving up my Ulta points for the Naked 3!!). 

Each one of the colors is nicely pigmented, goes on smoothly, and feels buttery!

If I didn't already have the first two Naked palettes, I would seriously consider getting this!

Lastly, is what Birchbox considers their "Latest Discovery Finds"

Is the Burts Bees Intense Hydration Day Lotion, and it came in this super cute little jar!

Even though this is a "day" lotion, I did try it at night, and honestly? IT'S AWESOME!!! It has a light scent (if you have ever used any of Burt's Bees facial lotion, it's a similar scent), sinks right into the skin, doesn't feel greasy, and leaves my skin moisturized and lovely. I would consider buying this in the future!!

And of course, Birchbox likes to put in extra papery things:

As well as the "info" card that's included each month:

Overall, I think this was an awesome box!!! Lots of new, fun things to try, and most of them were a hit!!

Well, I think that's about does it! Thanks for hanging around for a longerish post!! Hope you're having a great night!!

Emily

Alba Botanica – Natural Hawaiian Lip Balm

Well. That was lame. Four whole posts for 2013, eh? Good job, Em, good job. So, as per on my New Year’s resolutions, I want to take a crack at this again, and actually post reviews more often that, you know, three times ever.

Today I’d like to talk about a lip balm. When it comes to lip products, I’ve very one sided. I’ve never been a big fan of lip gloss and really kind of hate lipsticks. But when it comes to lip balm, I am aaaaaaaaaaaaaall over that. So this is going to be about a wonderful lip balm. A very luscious and lovely lip balm. J It’s the Alba Botanica Natural Hawaiian lip balm! (what a mouthful, eh?) And here it is!

(sorry for the colored middle part, it doesn't come like that, I sometimes put this over something tinted!)

It smells of coconuts, and is super buttery! It lasts quiet a long time on the lips, and always makes them feel super moisture, no matter the weather! (which is good, because as I type this, it is currently -18° here in Wisconsin!) It comes off clear and makes your lips slightly shiny – not glossy, but just a nice sheen to them. The best part of this balm, for me at least, is it’s made of all natural, good for you ingredients. It’s something I've been striving for, for the past year, and lip balm is by far the easiest thing to find that doesn’t have any nasty stuffs in it. This one has awesome oils like coconut, caster, jojoba, apricot, and soybean, as well as lots of natural extracts and waxes.

I did find this at Target, and I think I've seen it at Walmart, but beyond that, I haven’t seen it in person anywhere else. Of course you can always find it online, like here: http://www.albabotanica.com/lip/lip-balms/nourishing-coconut-cream.html. I will be definitely buying this again, for it is one of my favorite lip balms!

Happy Monday!

Emily

Avalon Organics: Balancing Toner

Well, look at that! Another skincare item! Who would have thunk it? Now to be honest, toner is still a relatively new thing to me. I've always done the facial moisturizer thing (well, as long as I have been getting to stuff like that), but toner? That was a foreign word to me. I've heard of it here and there, and had some friends that used it, but wasn't completely sure what it was for. As far as I knew, it was something that helped with acne, and I really didn't have a problem with that, so I just kind of ignored it.

Until I discovered there was a beauty community on Youtube.

I saw some girls talk about it, but was really did it for me was Nicole Guerriro. She actually explained what a toner was, and she recommended one from Neutrogena to try out. It worked, and was pretty cheap. I was sold.

Oh, and if you're not sure who Nicole is, here's a link to her channel: www.youtube.com/user/nguerriero19
I'm glad I tried the Neutrogena one, because it was so cheap. A nice, biggerish bottle was just around $5. Prefect for someone who's just trying it out. Overall, I'm glad I did. I like the way it made my skin look and feel, and I wanted to add to my non-existent skincare routine.

However, I wasn't a fan that it was making my eyes sting and water (sometimes even my skin), and it was geared toward acne skin, which I didn't really have. I liked that it took any traces of makeup off, but I wanted to see what else was out there.

So, while walking that "natural" section of Target (I'm actually in that aisle quite a bit), I stumbled across this:

A toner!! With oranges on it!!!
And that really was the first thing that appealed to me: oranges on the bottle. Citrus!! Yum!! One of my favorite scents!! Then I noticed it wasn't targeted towards acne. Another bonus!! So I screwed the cap off, took a whiff, and fell in love!
Overall, I love it :) It smells fantastic, doesn't sting my skin (my old toner did), doesn't burn my eyes, takes off any left over make up still on my face, and leaves my skins soft and smooth. :)

It's pretty much a keeper. I don't think I'll ever really want to try another toner. I don't say for sure I won't, because who knows, maybe one day I'll wake up and hate the scent of oranges. But until that happens, I will be repurchasing this little sucker. Oh! And the price wasn't too bad, around $8 I believe.
:)

Toodles!

Emily

P.S. They also have other skincare stuff that also smells fantastic! I can't wait tory them!

Burt's Bees Radiance SPF 7 Day Lotion

Let's start out with skincare. Why? Because I really don't think much about it, so might as well put at least one post about in here. :)
A number of years ago, I was in love with the Burt's Bees Radiance day lotion. It smelled amazing, loved the way it made my skin look and feel, was the perfect amount of moisture (I have pretty normal skin) and I liked that fact it was 90 something percent natural. It was perfect. And then...........it was gone. I couldn't find it! I went everywhere, Target, Walmart, Walgreens, but nothing. It was no where to be found.

Fast forward to about a month ago. I was looking the "natural" section at Target (you know, the half of an aisle with Yes to Carrots and Burt's Bees and such) and something caught my eye. No. Freakin'. Way.

It was my lotion! I didn't recognize it at first, because the box it came in was different, but it was my long lost lotion. I was giddy that I found it again! :)

......or so I thought.

From day one, I could tell something was.....different. A bad different. It felt sticky after I put it on (it kind of did before, but went away after a second, now it stays for a couple of minutes), doesn't give me the same effect it did before, wasn't as moisturizing, and, I guess, just didn't wow me. The only thing I could find that was the same was the scent. Maybe I thought it was better than it was because I couldn't find it? Who knows. But I do know it's not what I was looking for, and that makes me a bit sad. However, after paying almost $20 for that sucker, I'll be using it up for sure. Luckily, I guess in this case, it's a smaller bottle, and I'm a third of the way done already, so it shouldn't be too much longer.

Also, how weird is it that it has SPF 7? I mean, 7?? What the heck am I going to do with that??

Oh well. Maybe the next one will be a keeper :)

Thanks!

Em

P. S.Here's a link to the Burt's Bee's website, if you are interested: https://www.burtsbees.com/natural-products/face-care-facial-moisturizers/radiance-spf-7-day-lotion.html