Subscription Boxes

Glossybox August 2016

By Sheetar 15 August 2016 15 August 2016

After the good deal they offered for Buy-1-Get-2-Free, I decided to stay on another month, just in case Glossybox has somehow magically become a box that works for me. I’m sad to say it hasn’t, although it looks like there’s more of an effort to include paraben-free and cruelty-free products which is nice to see. At first when I opened the box, I thought, “Oh hey! This is pretty good!” but when I got to actually looking at the products and ingredients, the initial excitement faded. I’ll get into why for each product below.

Too Faced Mascara Melt Off – .23 oz / $17 – (Product is .04 oz, value of $2.96 by volume) I wanted to be excited about this, but you can get the same results with pure olive oil and not be using a petroleum-based product (it contains Isohexadecane as the 2nd ingredient which is derived from petroleum). I’ve used a few different oil blends to remove mascara before, and they’re actually 100% oil – for this product, the first oil is the 9th ingredient out of 16. Disappointing, really. You can actually use straight olive oil to remove mascara and it works just about the same.
Borghese Fango Ferma – 17.6 oz / $72.50 – (Product is 1 oz, value of $4.12 by volume) It’s a mud mask basically, and I dig mud masks, but unfortunately this contains parabens. I know Glossybox isn’t an ingredient-conscious or cruelty-free box, but, I expect better of high-end products. The scent is rather pleasant though and not too terribly overwhelming, sort of a natural floral. The mud is also a pale lavender color which is different!
Wella Oil Reflections – 1 oz / $20 – (Product is 1 oz, value of $20) SIGH. I was initially pretty excited about this. Hair oil? TOTALLY ME. Then I looked at the ingredients – the first two are silicones and the third is denatured alcohol. When we get down to the tenth ingredient, we finally find three oils, but they’re so low on the ingredient list, they might as well not even be there (water is listed higher). So, this product is just barely an oil – it’s actually a silicone-based smoother just like all the other cheap silicone-based anti-frizz products out there. The addition of alcohol (an ingredient that’s incredibly drying) runs against the hydrating properties of the oils and is listed higher, so there’s more alcohol than oil in here which is really silly. This is completely useless to me since I don’t use silicones on my hair, and it’s basically lying about what it actually is. The scent is nice though – sort of a fruity vanilla – but I’ll never, ever use it.
De Bruyere After-Sun Lotion – 50 mL / $12.30 – (Product is 50mL, value of $12.30) I love after-sun lotions for hydrating parched skin after a day in the sun (usually post-shower after mowing the lawn). The scent is a coconutty Monoi and it’s pretty light and perfectly summery. This, again, contains Isohexadecane though, so it’s not exactly perfect, unfortunately.
Trifle Cosmetics Lip Parfait – 3.5 g / $18.95 – (Product is 3.5 g, value of $18.95) I received the color, “Exotic Fruits,” which is a super pale nude pink. The color is better suited to being a concealer than a lip color for my skin tone, and as you can see from the swatch (linked here), it’s just a wee bit pinker than the skin tone on my inner arm. I don’t look good in nude shades like this, so it’s a complete miss for me.
Invisibobble – 3 pcs / $7.95 – (3 pcs included, value of $7.95) UGGHHH PINK. WHY PINK?! I loathe pink. Absolutely hate it. Outside of the color, I decided to give it a try since, hey, if it works, who cares what color it is if I’m using it around the house where no one can see me wearing such a terrible color. Well, my hair is very curly, so when I tried to pull it out of my hair, it tangled up into such a snarl at the ends that it ended up ripping out a bunch of hair, far worse than a traditional hair elastic that at least slides out smoothly with no spiral to catch on every last hair at the ends. It also stretched out like crazy and didn’t manage to hold the whole time (it has since returned to shape, but it’s not as elastic as traditional hair elastics when in use). So, another nope. This definitely does NOT work on all hair types.

Overall the value comes out to $66.28 for a box that costs $21. The value is great on the surface, but when you consider that I’m only keeping three items (Mascara Melt Off, mud mask, and the after-sun lotion) that have a value of $19.38, it really isn’t that great. This really just isn’t the box for me – the products included consistently miss the mark for having quality ingredients (ie. ingredients that aren’t petroleum-based, parabens, irritants, silicones, etc). I know I’m a bit of a natural hippie who prefers more of a purist approach to the things I put on my face and skin, and I should know that this isn’t going to be a good fit, but every once in a while it’s fun to try something new and different. Well, I’m over it, back to the ones I know and trust to deliver exactly the products I’m interested in!

Subscription Boxes

Espionage Cosmetics BOOM!Box August 2016

By Sheetar 14 August 2016 31 August 2016

Another Espionage Cosmetics BOOM!Box has arrived! This one showed up on my front steps on Friday the 12th which was just a hair behind schedule, but we were given an email update alerting us to the ever so slight delay. It’s still the first half of the month, so it’s not a big deal to me, but I definitely appreciate the communication! This month’s theme was Retro Gaming, so of course I expected a little Zelda, some 8 bit joy, but as usual, had no idea how they’d incorporate that into the products in the box. I’m yet again astounded by how well everything fits into the theme and how fun this box is! I feel like I’m a kid again.

Three eyeshadows were included this month, all with fun names and colors that fit the theme. On the left is an Everything Shadow in “1up,” and it’s a perfect shimmery green. On the right are two brand new items to the Espionage Cosmetics line, pressed powders in “Console,” the blue, and “Pixel,” the pink. The two even blend together to make a stunning purple color and there are tutorial cards included, courtesy of @thepryncess. Having the tutorial cards is HUGE for me since I’m really not all that great with makeup, and seeing new ways to use these shadows is a big help.

Up next are TWO new nail wraps this month. On the left is “8-Bit Hearts,” which, if you’ve ever played Legend of Zelda or really any 8 bit game with a heart health meter, you’ll recognize these right away. On the right is “Power Up” with a nod to the Konami Code, featuring a glittery scatter of 8 bit doodads from games (Rupees from Legend of Zelda!). I absolutely love both of these and cannot wait to wear them.

Hooboy does this bring back memories! It’s a notepad with floppy disks for the covers. It’s completely brilliant, and I got a good laugh out of the use of the America Online for Windows 3.0 disk. I honestly love having notepads like this to carry around to jot a quick note. I’m probably faster at grabbing a notepad and pen than finding that app on my phone to take notes (weird, especially for a computer/tech nerd like myself), so I will definitely be carrying this around with me!

On the left are three stickers and dude, OREGON TRAIL! That one I didn’t expect to see in this box (Retro Gaming, so DUH, of course Oregon Trail), but I’m SO PSYCHED to have that sticker. It may have to go on my car right away. On the right is a beautiful print by Fox Smith. It’s in the style of traditional Japanese prints, but that’s definitely our beloved Mario riding Yoshi, attacking a koopa paratroopa. It’s such a fun new take on a classic we all know and love. I’ve got a spot in the guest room (also known as the Lady Lair) picked out for this and the other two prints from previous boxes once I decide on frames. (Note to self, go find frames!)

WOW. Just.. wow. This necklace is a gold Triforce from GeekStar Costuming. It’s acrylic with a mirrored back and it could not be any more perfect! In case you missed it, I’m a beekeeper, and while the husband and I were trying to come up with names for our hives, the one that stuck instantly? Hive Hyrule with Queen Zelda. This is what happens when the power of two nerds combines to name beehives. So yeah, I love this A LOT A LOT, and you can be sure I’ll be wearing it all week to show off my nerd pride. Also included in the box was a discount code for 20% off a future purchase with GeekStar Costuming.

As far as value goes, it’s definitely above and beyond the cost which is between $25 and $30 depending on the length of the subscription. The sentimental value of seeing childhood favorites reborn into nail wraps, makeup, stickers, notepads, and jewelery? PRICELESS. Every box so far has been a wild hit and I find myself eagerly awaiting the next shipment because I just know they’re going to knock it out of the park every time. It’s like I’ve finally found my people and they get me, they really get me. I just cannot possibly say enough good things about this box. In case you’re thinking about subscribing and want to send me some love, hit up my referral link!

Subscription Boxes

Espionage Cosmetics Nexus – August 2016

By Sheetar 8 August 2016 7 August 2016

This month’s theme was, “Bedtime Stories,” and yet again, they find the neatest little corners of the theme to bring to life in two spectacular nail wraps. I had a feeling from a little spoiler earlier on that this shipment would probably include the Wizard of Oz and Alice in Wonderland, but you really never know exactly how it’s going to be executed which is part of the surprise.

Paint The Roses Red – A glossy nail wrap with splashes of red painted on white roses, a nod to a song from Alice and Wonderland, designed by the marvelous Sam Skyler. In case you need an earworm, here you go! I do have a fondness for the somewhat more subtle nail wraps because I get a kick out of finding fellow fans at the weirdest times, much like how I found out that the gal who sells me vegetables at the farmers market is JUST as into Ghostbusters as I am when she saw my Ectoplasm nail wraps last weekend and we had a little nerd-out moment together. It’s like being in a secret, awesome club of glitter and geekery.
Emerald City Attire – Blue and white check sets the field for red poppies and a ruby-red glitter accent nail wrap. I don’t think I even need to go into how well this fits with the Wizard of Oz theme – it’s just perfect! Dorothy’s dress, and the field of poppies, and ruby red slippers, OH MY!

The nail wraps usually cost $10 each on the Espionage Cosmetics website, so the value definitely exceeds the cost of a month-to-month subscription at $15 per month. Subscribers then vote for their favorite of the two, and the winner goes on to regular sale on the website. That means Nexus subscribers get a super limited edition nail wrap that will never be produced again! I don’t think the September theme has been announced yet, but I’m psyched to see what they’re up to for next month. In case you’re thinking about subscribing and want to send me some love, hit up my referral link!

Subscription Boxes

Loot4Fangirls

By Sheetar 7 August 2016 7 August 2016

This is a little late going online, but I think the Loot4Fangirls crate is still available, so for $65, you can get this awesome haul. If you want to use my referral link, click here!

I have a current subscription to LootCrate already, but lately have been skipping months that aren’t interesting to me. I’ll admit that my interest in geeky and nerdy fandoms is fairly narrow and specific, so the regular monthly LootCrates don’t always appeal to me, but it’s awesome to have the option to skip a month once the theme and franchises are revealed. I really love that LootCrate gives their subscribers that option. Anyway, once they announced the Loot4Fangirls, I KNEW I was going to be in, no matter what was inside. Geeky ladies are really starting to have bunches of products just for them in the world of nerdery, so it’s exciting to see LootCrate put together a box just for us! The dress alone would probably retail for about $45 based on other Her Universe dresses, so I know the value exceeds the cost of the box which, as a pre-order, cost me $54.99 plus shipping for a total of $58.29.

Women of Marvel Skater Dress by Her Universe – I was so glad to see this come in plus sizes. I ended up sizing up from my normal size and while the fit wasn’t perfect (too big on the top but the bottom half was fine), it’s the same level of imperfect fit I have with all commercial clothing. Apparently plus size gals are supposed to have err, huge tracts of land, and since I don’t, there’s a lot of excess fabric in the top that leads to gaping at the armholes and a waist that falls three inches below where it should. It’s a fairly easy fix for a nerd who also sews (take up the straps and a little bit in at the arm holes), so all in all, this worked out just fine and I’m super thrilled to have this included in the box! The fabric is a decent weight too and super comfortable with a pair of leggings. What a perfect print to have on a dress for a Fangirls box.

Borderlands Nail Wraps by Espionage Cosmetics – A brand I know and love, Espionage Cosmetics has largely replaced nail polish for me, so it’s great to see a nail wrap from them included in this box. While I’ve never played the Borderlands games before, this design, Moxxi, is exclusive to the box, super pretty AND glows in the dark. With a good top coat, the nail wraps typically last just about two weeks for me and have the bonus effect of keeping my nails protected and making them stronger in the long run.

DC Bombshells Wonder Woman Mini-Figure by Cryptozoic Entertainment – Exclusive to the Loot4Fangirls box was this cute Wonder Woman figure with metallic details. The original has yellow accents, but the gold was a special run just for LootCrate. Wonder Woman was one of my heroes as a girl, so it’s neat to have this figure of her in the box. The 1940s pin-up styling works really well too and makes this unique in the world of vinyl figures.

The Walking Dead Michonne/Carol Charm Wrap Bracelet by Love and Madness – YESS! One of my favorite shows and I love the charms on this. It pays homage to two of the toughest women in the show and was a perfect item to add to the box. The wrap style even has two extra buttons so you can customize the fit which is a nice bonus.

Star Trek Uhura Clutch Bag by A Crowded Coop – Probably my favorite item in the entire box, this clutch features the Star Trek 50th anniversary logo and even has a keychain with enamel charms showing Uhura and the Enterprise as well as three little fuzzy tribbles. Every last little detail on this is PERFECT and I cannot wait to take this out somewhere.

“Fangirls: A Coloring Book For Girls That Like Stuff” by Her Universe Press – Included along with the coloring book, designed by Katie Cook and Ashley Eckstein, was a set of colored pencils. It’s a substantial book with over 50 coloring pages of all types of fangirls and their interests. The addition of the colored pencils was a really nice touch!

The product sheet also included four stickers which was a nice little bonus, including a nod to Captain Marvel with the quote on the bottom center sticker.

Overall, I’m really happy with what arrived and would definitely be in for another Fangirls box from LootCrate. I’d probably even be interested in a Fangirls monthly box from LootCrate if they can swing it since this was really spectacular! Maybe even a quarterly thing? C’mon LootCrate!

Subscription Boxes

Glossybox July 2016 + Bonus Boxes

By Sheetar 28 July 2016 6 August 2016

My first ever subscription box was Glossybox which I ended up dumping since they really didn’t cater much to me. So why did I subscribe again? Last month they were offering a Buy-One-Get-Two-Free deal and it seemed pretty well worth it! For only $21, I got three boxes – one is the current July box above and the other two free boxes I received were the June Tony Awards box and January 2016’s box. Everything was shipped together in one box and arrived yesterday, 26 July 2016. I’ll post the other two below along with their contents, but first, the July Box!

Fango Essenziali Moisturize Sheet Mask – 1 mask / $7 – (Full size product) It’s a bigger packet than I expected, larger than my hand. I do have dry skin, so this should be excellent to try since it claims it’s a remedy for parched, dry skin. CHECK!
Glov Quick Treat – 1 packet / $5 – (Full size product) You can’t tell from the packet what it is, but it’s a microfiber cloth shaped to fit over your finger. It seems much like the Makeup Eraser cloth I received from the Benevolent Beauty Box this month, but sized for just one finger instead of a whole cloth. I’m glad it’s reuseable and washable and all, but this teeny little thing seems a little silly when you can have a whole cloth for not much more cost.
Leighton Denny Miracle Mist – 75 mL / $16 – (Full size product) I’m honestly pretty interested to see how this works. My nails are already painted so I don’t need to use it right away, but the idea that it might save me from my impatient self and help nudge my nail polish to dry faster is pretty appealing.
Too Faced Melted – .4 oz / $21 – (Sample size product, value of $8.40 by volume) I already have this exact same product and size from the Ulta 11 Piece Lip Sampler from earlier this year and I have no reason to have two even though it is a nice color, so this is going to be saved for a friend.
Nuxe Shimmering Huile Prodigieuse – 3.3 oz / $54 – (Full size product) The most expensive item in the box and well over and beyond covers the cost of the subscription. I’m not all that thrilled about it since it is basically a sparkly gold blend of oils. The sparkle doesn’t really show up on the skin since it’s a really fine glitter, but I noticed on the hang tag on the bottle that it can be used on hair too, and since all the ingredients check out, I think I’m going to use this to help give my dry hair a little boost on days I don’t wash it.
Eyeko Fat Eye Stick – 4 g / $12 – (Full size product) I received the color, “Satin,” and this product appears to be altogether discontinued – I couldn’t find it on the Eyeko website at all. The color is sort of a silvery bronze and has a decent shimmer to it. I’ll definitely use it, but I always feel like when they throw in discontinued items like this that it’s a bit of a cop-out – if I wanted another color of this, I couldn’t buy it since it doesn’t exist anymore.

This box’s value comes to $102.40 which is pretty damn incredible. Outside of the liquid lipstick, I’ll use everything in here, and would’ve used the lipstick too if I didn’t have the exact same color already. Now on to the bonus boxes which I’ll keep short and sweet with no individual reviews, just a product list and value.

Glossybox January 2016 Bonus Box #1

Royal Apothic Cream Creme – 1.25 oz / $14 – Full size product (in scent, “Venetian Grove”)
MeMeMe Lip Glide – 1 stick / $12.50 – Full size product (in color, “Playful Peach”)
-417 Foot Nourishing Cream – 3.4 oz / $18 – Product is 1.7 oz, value of $9 by volume
Beautiful Nutrition Lemon Rinse – 13.3 oz / $10 – Product is 2 oz, value of $1.50 by volume
Emite Diamond Heart Primer – 35 mL / $29 – Product is 15 mL, value of $12.43 by volume

Total value of $49.43. The Lip Glide is the wrong color for me (too coral/yellow toned), the Lemon Rinse has no-no ingredients for curly hair, but I like everything else.

Glossybox June 2016 Tony Awards Bonus Box #2

Sinful Colors Nail Polish – .5 oz / $3 – Full size product (in color “After Dark”)
Tan Towel – 10 towelettes / $27 – 2 towelettes, value of $2.70
Icona Milano Emotion Allowed Mascara – .34 oz / $19 – Full size product
LA Splash Lip Gloss – .2 oz / $18 – Full size product (in color, “Red Carpet”)
Sebastian Whipped Creme – 5.3 oz / $20 – Product is .9 oz, value of $3.40 by volume
Sebastian Dark Oil – 3.2 oz / $48 – Product is .06 oz, value of $.90 by volume
Caolion Pore Pack Duo – 1 set, 1.75 oz / $30 – Product is .4 oz total, value of $6.86 by volume

Total value of $53.86. I’ve heard terrible things about the tan towel, plus I don’t use fake tanners anyway. The two hair products both contain no-no ingredients for curly hair, and the mascara contains cyclopentasiloxane which irritates my eyes. But hey, at least I’ll keep the nail polish, lip gloss, and will try the pore pack? See, this is part of the reason why I stopped my subscription with Glossybox.. So many boxes had products I couldn’t/wouldn’t use since I’m just not the intended audience. Oh and the lip gloss appears to be a discontinued item – I can’t find it on the company’s website.

Overall, for $21, I got all that, even if a bunch of the products are complete misses. Thankfully July’s box had a super high value because if I had received the other two boxes as the primary box, I’d have been rather disappointed. The first spoiler for August is up already, and I’m interested enough to let the subscrption ride for one more month. If you enjoyed my review and wanted to send me some referral love, here’s my link!

Subscription Boxes

Benevolent Beauty Box July 2016

By Sheetar 25 July 2016 25 July 2016

July’s Benevolent Beauty Box arrived in the mail today! I have to say, I’m pretty happy with this box yet again. There’s a good selection of items, and even though the highlighting powder broke in shipping, the product is all still in there, so it’s no loss. Hey, it’s super hot, the mail carriers don’t exactly treat every box like glass, and it’s powder anyway, so really, no big deal. I was able to press the pieces back into the compact, so even though it might not look perfect, it’s still the same product. The lip glaze was the spoiler product this month and I’m SO SO glad I got the bright red color. Anyway, before I go on too much, on to the products!

Mirabella Mineral Highlighting Powder – 7.5 g / $40 – (Full Size Product) I received the color, “Glowing Coral,” which is a peach sort of tone. I’m not big into highlighters since I don’t generally do a full-face foundation and this is a touch too sparkly to be using as a highlighter, in my opinion. However, I think the color would make a great eyeshadow base since it’s just a wee bit lighter than my natural skin tone, so it’s not going to waste! It did arrive in pieces, but again, with the heat and being jumbled around in shipping, it was bound to happen, but at least it all stayed in the compact and didn’t spill all over and was easy enough to press back into place.
Makeup Eraser Mini – 4 pack / $30 – (Single cloth value is $7.50) I love the idea of a nearly infinitely reuseable and washable cloth for removing makeup, but why does it have to be pink?! In case you missed it, pink is my least favorite color in the world and I go out of my way to avoid ANYTHING pink. Still, I’m eager to see if this actually works using just water, no soap, to remove makeup which will be especially great around my eyes since I tend to be super sensitive to nearly everything. I’ll be sure to post an update here after I have a chance to give it a try!
Plain Jane Beauty Conceal Stick – 2 mL / $13.95 – (Full Size Product) I received the shade, “Moonstone,” which is really just a hair too light for me, I think. It might be okay once we’re back to winter pale, but during peak summer, it’s just a little too light. It does work though as an under-eye concealer and it contains tea tree oil, so if you’re using it to cover blemishes, it helps to get rid of them at the same time.
Face Atelier Lip Glaze Petite – 7.5 mL / $17 – (Full Size Product) I received the color, “Mystique,” which is this beautiful perfect stunner of a red. It goes on much like lip gloss, but the pigmentation is really incredible and not like a gloss at all. I’m absolutely loving this, and it’s definitely my favorite product out of the box.
Earth’s Beauty Shea & Aloe Lipstick – .14 oz / $15.95 – (Full Size Product) I received the color, “Summer Quartz,” and it’s a shimmery nude-ish pink that goes on very sheer. It means it’s a rather nice everyday sort of color that won’t be too much, plus with the moisturizing ingredients, it feels really smooth on.
Medusa’s Makeup Eyeshadow – 2 g / $8 – (Full Size Product) I received the color, “Electro Purple,” and hooboy is it purple. It does go on lightly and isn’t as pigmented as it seems in the container, but it builds up nicely if you want a super crazy purple. There’s LOTS of glitter in this too!

Overall value is $102.40 for a six item box which is pretty incredible. The box costs $29.95 for a month-to-month subscription, so the value is amazing in comparison to the cost. Super happy this month, looking forward to see what’s in store for August!

Subscription Boxes

Sephora Play! July 2016

By Sheetar 21 July 2016 20 July 2016

I was FINALLY able to sign up for PLAY! by Sephora just this past month. It appears they’re slowly opening up subscription spots periodically, so if you haven’t gotten an invitation yet, it hopefully shouldn’t be long! Anyway, my first box arrived this week on July 19th. Inside the black and white striped box, there’s a folded insert that shows the products you received as well as a card for 50 Beauty Insider points when you purchase items in-store at Sephora. Underneath that is a bag containing the products. This month’s theme was, “Effortless Summer,” and the bag has a cute pink ice pop design with a lipstick kiss mark next to it. The boxes were apparently a little different depending on your preferences and I know I received the “Dry Skin” variant.

benefit Dew the Hoola – 1 oz / $28 – (Sample size is .16 oz, value of $4.48 by volume) At first I thought, eh, bronzer, because it’s just not a thing I wear generally. I thought the product looked a little dark for my fair skin, but it actually goes on very subtly and makes for a nice summer glow that will definitely work to extend what little natural summer bronzing I pick up from gardening and mowing the lawn. It would definitely be too dark once I fade back to pale in the winter, but this will definitely work for late summer and fall.
First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser – 1 oz / $5.50 – (Trial Size Product) Fragrance free and SLS/ALS free! It foams slightly into a creamy lather and doesn’t irritate my skin or feel drying at all which is rather nice. Definitely going to keep this to slip into my travel bag.
Smashbox Photo Finish Primer – .5 oz / $16 – (Sample size is .25 oz, value of $8) I have a bunch of these that I’ve gotten as free samples on various orders, but it works well enough that I’m not mad to have another one that I’ll use eventually. I really don’t ever do a full-face foundation since I just don’t need it and feel smothered by foundation anyway, but for the times that we’re going out somewhere nice and I do the full dip, this is nice to have on hand.
Ouai Wave Spray – 5 oz / $26 – (Sample is 1.7 oz, value of $8.84 by volume) It smells nice, but it has an ingredient, “Sodium Polystyrene Sulfonate,” which is a, “sticky ingredient that can cause hair and scalp dryness, plus strip hair color with repeated use,” according to TightlyCurly.com. I do color my hair with henna and my scalp is already SO DRY, so this is a big miss. Bummer too, because it smells rather nice, but the more I look at ingredients, the more it seems they chose the more irritating ingredients. Plus, my hair is already phone-cord curly, and I really don’t need MORE waves/curls, so this misses the mark in multiple ways. Going to throw this is the trade/give-away box.
Beautyblender Blotterazzi – 1 set / $20 – (Sample is a single blotter, approx value $10) Oh man, peak summer, so I can definitely use this. The little cardboard pack has a single blotter made from the same material as the beautyblender and has a small packet of liquid cleanser inside as well to clean the blotter pad. It’s pink (eew, pink, ugghhh), and I’m not sure how to keep it sanitary while being used since the packaging is cardboard, but I might be able to sneak it inside an old mint tin or something? Still, incredibly useful for summer whether you wear makeup or not.
Nest Citrine Fragrance – 1.7 oz / $68 – (Sample is .004 oz, value of $.16 by volume) Well, I guess it’s good this is the lowest value item in the box because I really don’t like the scent. It’s far too floral for me and in a bad way. One of the scent notes is Freesia and that’s probably what’s turning me off. I like scents that are a little deeper and muskier, with none of the stinky flower shop florals (Jasmine, Freesia, Rose, etc). This is going to the trade/give-away box as well.

The total value comes to $36.98 which is decent for a box that cost $10.60 (including tax). Even when you take out the two things I won’t be keeping, the value is still $27.98 which is above the cost. I’m super bummed about the Ouai spray since it looks like it’s just going to irritate my already sahara-dry scalp, but I may give it a whirl on dry hair and try to keep it down at the ends to see if it helps with frizz. I’m not entirely sure if this box is going to be a hit most months since it’s not cruelty-free and doesn’t contain the hippie-crunchy-granola sort of products I like – it’s more mainstream and popular instead of ingredient-conscious. Still, for $10, as long as the box value keeps exceeding the cost for the items I do keep, it’s worth it! Plus, if you have a Sephora nearby, the 50 points every month add up quickly. Unfortunately my closest Sephora is in the Mall From Hell and between fighting for a parking spot and walking through the mall just to get to Sephora, I doubt I’ll be getting to the store to take advantage of these. Oh well, 4 out of 6 of the items in the box were still worth trying and keeping, so that works for me!

Subscription Boxes

Espionage Cosmetics Nexus – July 2016

By Sheetar 20 July 2016 20 July 2016

It’s that time again! This month’s Espionage Cosmetics Nexus shipment was themed, “Passport to Nihon,” as a sort of tribute to some EC staff who had lived there at one point or another. I had no idea what to expect and this could’ve gone a bunch of different ways, but I was TOTALLY psyched to open the bag and see these two gorgeous designs!

Ukiyo-E Nail Wrap – This is absolutely my favorite wrap between the two and without a doubt the one I’ll be voting and rooting for when it comes time to select which wrap makes it to go into regular sale on the Espionage Cosmetics Website. This one was designed by the ever talented Sam Skyler who really knocked it out of the park.
Neko-Chan – AHHH! How cute! Let’s face it, I’m hopelessly addicted to Neko Atsume, so this is another great design. Little hearts and paw prints alternate with cute little cats all over the wraps. We currently have two dogs, but as a kid we had two cats, and between that and Neko Atsume’s virtual kitties, I’m loving this one and am pleased to see it as part of the shipment this month!

The nail wraps usually cost $10 each on the Espionage Cosmetics website, so the value exceeds the cost of a month-to-month subscription at $15 per month. What’s best is that after the voting ends, you have one fantastic nail wrap that survived the cut and one unicorn of a nail wrap that only Nexus subscribers will ever have which is, not gonna lie, pretty neat. August’s theme has already been revealed too, and it’s, “Bedtime Stories.” I cannot even begin to tell you how psyched I am for that one! In case you’re thinking about subscribing and want to send me some love, hit up my referral link!