January 2015 Birchbox Review

My favorite time of the month is when my Birchbox arrives, its like someone sends me a gift every month! For those who don't know, Birchbox is a monthly beauty subscription program. For $10, you get 4-5 deluxe or full sized samples of beauty products picked out for you and sent to your door. Some month's are amazing, some not so much, so let's see how this month turned out.

This year all the boxes are patterned and I guess there will be some big deal with them at the end of the year. I save all my boxes anyways since they make for awesome storage boxes, but I'm intrigued as to what the big plan is. This month's theme is "Let's Do This!", and is all about making the most of the new year. All of the samples this month are suppose to be geared towards helping you start the year looking and feeling awesome.

First look, pretty good!

What was in my box this month.

My first look was really good, no foil packages and everything is pretty decent sized. I of course peaked at my box earlier this month so I knew what was coming, And this is the first box I picked a sample for, which thankfully arrived in my box as I know some people have had problems with not getting their picked sample. I got two makeup items, two skin care items, and a hair product, so a really good mix this month. Nothing full sized but I'm pretty happy with the sample sizes I received so no complaining here.

I received the Essentiel Elements Mint and Rosemary shower gel last month and LOVED it, so when I saw that the lotion version was one of the sample choices I crossed my fingers that it wouldn't be sold out by time I got my sample pick email (I'm on the West Coast so I'm always last to pick). And it was the only thing not sold out yet, yay! The lotion itself is a bit thinner, which I'm fine with, just means it absorbs faster. It left my skin feeling nice and soft, so I'm pretty happy with it. The scent is REALLY strong, like I put some on my arm and could smell it through my sweatshirt. I'm going to save it for next time the flu hits since I'm pretty sure this will clear my sinuses in a heartbeat. I won't be purchasing a full sized since I now have more lotion than I know what to do with, but I do like it. A full size retails for $19 and is 8 oz, making my 1.5 oz sample worth $3.56. Not a bad value at all.

I love dry shampoo, I use it every other day actually. So anytime I receive dry shampoo in my Birchbox I'm instantly happy. I've actually used Klorane before, I think its a really great dry shampoo, but this is their new tinted formula which is specially designed for dark haired people. If you've ever used dry shampoo you know that white cast, or a white tint from it, can be a major problem. Super excited to try this out, but I'm going to save it for next time I go on a trip since its the perfect travel size. The only problem with Klorane is the price, $19.50 a can! That's a lot for something I will use up in a month. So my 1 oz sample is worth $6.09, so quite a high priced sample.

This is the most expensive product I have ever used in my life, Looking at the price tag just about gave me a heart attack you guys. This is a hydrating face mask by Innarah, a company I had never heard of before.

There's about two uses in their, so not a huge sample but enough to get the job done. Its a very thick, clay like mask with a weird scent, like clay flowers if that makes sense. I used it today and it was super hydrating, so great for this time of year, but I don't see it being worth a $125 price tag. Yes, you read that right. $125 for 3.4 oz. Crazy right? So unless it makes me sweat diamonds I will not be repurchasing it. My sample is half an ounce, making it worth $18.38, that's almost twice the cost of the box right there!

I've recently jumped onto the BB cream bandwagon after falling in love with one by Tarte cosmetics, so I'm anxious to see how I feel about this one. I tried the Dr Jart+ Black Label Detox BB Cream before and did not like it at all, so we'll see if this one redeems the brand for me.

The color looks pretty good, and no greasy feeling with was what I hated about the other BB Cream. I haven't actually tried this one yet, I promised myself I'd finish the foundation I had open before I tried this one since I am almost done with that Tarte BB Cream, so I will have to get back to you on how I feel about this particular BB Cream. A full size retails for $39 and is 1.5 oz, making my 0.2 oz tube worth $5.20, so half the cost of the box. This is shaping up to be a high value box!

And last, I received the Manna Kadar Lip Locked. This is a stain, primer, and gloss all rolled into one, so a pretty cool product.

I received the shade "All of You", which is kind of a neutral orangey color. Not a great color for the dead of winter, but come summer I'll be rocking it for sure. The formula was really smooth and creamy and had some decent lasting power, though the stain left any dry spots a different color. I would be interested in trying a different color before I commit to buying a full sized one. A full sized one is 1.2 oz and retails for $24, making my 0.01 oz sample worth a whopping 20 cents. Not a big sample at all and a teenie value. Can't hit the jackpot every time I guess.

All total my box had a value of $33.23, so a pretty big value for sure! I liked this box, though October's box is still my favorite of all time. I don't think I'll be purchasing a full sized of anything here, but I did like my box and I love the new patterned boxes for sure. If you got a Birchbox this month what did you think of it?

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