The January Goodebox arrived yesterday, before January even began which was a pleasant surprise! They’re ahead of the game, and this box? KNOCKED IT OUT OF THE PARK. This is one of the best boxes, IMHO, in a while and I’m super psyched about it. The box overview card mentions ringing in a new year with new beginnings and fresh starts which I think they’ve been able to pull off in spectacular fashion with this box.
- Soapbox African Black Soap – 4 oz / $4.99 – (Sample is full size, value of $4.99) I could smell this before I even opened the box and it’s this wonderful clean scent. I love using charcoal based soap for my face, so this is a welcome product at a great price. The soap lathers up nicely and has a slight grey tinge to the lather, but neither the color nor the scent remain behind and wash away cleanly. I really like using a basic bar soap to wash my face, so this is absolutely perfect.
- Eslor Botanical Peeling Gel – 60 mL / $38 – (Sample is 15 mL, value of $9.50) I’ve never used anything like this before, but it sounds like part mask, part exfoliator. It pumps out like a thick aloe vera gel (which is also the main ingredient) and after about 5-10 minutes, the gel is supposed to melt into the skin and liquify, but I found that it dried on my skin and when rubbed as directed it felt a little like an oil. It rinsed away clean and didn’t leave my face feeling dry or greasy, so that’s good! I didn’t notice much of an exfoliating effect, but it seems to be much more gentle than a coarse salt or sugar scrub. Might be good to alternate with a coarser scrub (coarse scrub one week, this product the next).
- Earthwise Beauty Green Leaves & Co. Facial Oil – 30 mL / $30 – (Sample is about 8 mL, value of about $8) Smells like herbal tea and fresh herbs. I’m not entirely sold on the scent – I’m not sure if it’s the rosemary or basil or what that’s throwing me off, but it smells odd to me – I wish the lavender did more to overpower the other herbs. I did give this a go and the scent is kind of strong and really really not my thing but it immediately made my face feel soft and smooth. I’m torn between loving this for what it does and not liking the scent. A small bit goes a very long way too, so the value is pretty good. The small 8 mL container will easily last me somewhere around 10 or more applications.
- Palmetto Derma Retinol & Peptide Infused Eye Lifting Cream – 35 mL / $68 – (Sample is 5 mL, value of $9.70) The product card says it’s great for smoothing wrinkles anywhere, so if it irritates my eyes, it’ll be worth a try on my forehead. I don’t use any wrinkle-reducing or anti-aging products in my daily routine so this is a fn sample to have. I gave this a try and it didn’t seem to bother my sensitive eyes at all. We’ll have to see if it makes a difference after a few uses!
- Della Travel Bag – 8.5″ x 5″ / $24 – (Sample is full size, value of $24) LOVE the bag, not entirely fond of the colors (Ugghh it’s a hot pink design and I hate pink). I can only find ones with vegan leather accents on their site which I really don’t like either. I’d love to be able to find this same bag in another print though (anyone wanna swap?!) because it’s a great size and fully lined. I do love their headbands, but hey, Della! List some more prints/travel bags on your website! Willing shopper, right here!
The box comes up to a total value of $56.19! Even without the travel bag, the other products are worth $32.19 which still well more than covers the cost of the box. The products are mostly face products, but they can all be used in order (soap, peeling gel, lifting cream, and facial oil) in one evening facial care routine which is fun. Even if the samples mostly aren’t things I’d end up buying, the point of the box is to try new things I wouldn’t have found or tried othewise which is exactly what happened this month, so I’m pleased!