Love Me Beauty Box January 14

After last month's slight disappointment with my Love Me Beauty box and the options they had on offer, the first box of this year got me excited again with some lovely menus to choose from. Four out of five items are full sized products and there's a nice mix of make-up, haircare and skincare. All the menus featured the Anatomicals shower gel, the Pureology styling mousse, the Cosmetics a la Carte mascara and the NYX eye shadow, albeit in different shades depending on the menu. Lastly, you got to choose between a Weleda body oil sample, a Weleda hand cream sample or a full sized Arran Aromatics soap. The menu I went for was Menu 3, as I liked the eye shadow shade the most out of all of the options.

1) NYX Cosmetics | Single Eyeshadow in "Sahara"

Full size: £5.00

NYX Cosmetics Single Eyeshadow in Sahara swatch in day light

The first item in the box was a full sized eye shadow by NYX - a brand I used to see quite a lot of when I lived in Germany, but that's not overly prevalent over here in the UK. This eyeshadow is the only reason I chose this particular menu, as the other shades on offer were a bright orange which I wouldn't really know how to wear and a dark smoky grey which I have enough of in my collection already. Sahara translates as a light sparkly champagne onto the skin and admittedly I'm not overly impressed with the pigmentation. It might work quite well as a base colour, however, or for adding a bit of sparkle to an everyday make-up look.

2) Arran Aromatics | Apothecary Wheatgerm & Vitamin E Soap

Full size: £2.75

As I chose my box by eye shadow colour this is a product that I was sort of forced to pick. I would have preferred the Weleda body oil sample to be completely honest, as it's difficult to get excited over soap. However, it's something we all need and I have no doubt that I'll use it. I haven't unwrapped it yet, as I want to leave it fresh for when we move into our new home, so I can't really comment on the scent of this product.

3) Anatomicals | Rose & Jasmine Body Cleanser

Full size: £3.00

I know there's quite a few people who don't like getting body wash in their beauty boxes and while I understand completely where they're coming from, I personally don't mind at all, as long as it's not too frequent. Shower gel is something everyone needs, but I usually get mine from the Pound shop or on special offer from the supermarket, so it's nice to have something a tad more special from time to time. Having said that, this one only comes in at £3 anyway, so it's certainly not a splurge product anyway! I really like the smell of roses, so to me this scent is pure bliss. Not to mention I'm a huge fan of Anatomicals' packaging design and cheeky slogans!

4) Pureology | Colour Stylist Silk Bodifier

Full size: £15.00 for 250ml / Sample value: £4.88

Well, admittedly it's been quite a while since I've used mousse on my hair and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this sample. Memories of sticky, crispy hair come to mind, but perhaps mousse formulas have improved over the years and I'll fall in love with this product. I've heard a lot of beauty bloggers rave about Pureology and their sulfate-free products, so it's nice to try something from the brand for myself. This mousse in particular is also made for colour-treated hair, so should be perfect for my bleached tresses.

5) Cosmetics a la Carte | Divine Lash Mascara in "Black"

Full size: £23.00

Even after browsing their website, I can't quite fathom where I've heard of this brand before, but the name does certainly ring a bell. Hailed as this month's star product, I'm certainly excited to try this mascara. Which girl doesn't love mascara after all? This one has quite spiky looking long synthetic bristles - a bit like a hybrid between a traditional mascara wand and a lash comb. I can't wait to give this a trial run on my lashes and see how it performs!

Total value: £38.63

It feels like Love Me Beauty have certainly kicked off the New Year by returning back to form. Out of the five products I received this month, I can say with certainty that I will use each and every single one. I like the nice mix of product types and high-end vs. budget brands featured. Even though two brands have been in boxes before (Arran Aromatics and Anatomicals), they're completely different types of products, so I don't mind like I did with last month's Lord & Berry scenario. Now I can't wait to see what's going to be in next month's box!

Are you subscribed to Love Me Beauty? If so, what did you think of this month's boxes?

Birchbox April 2013

There seems to be a reoccurring theme that whenever I get a delivery, it ought to be either just as I'm about to head out for a run, or just as I'm stepping into the shower. So, naturally, this month's Birchbox arrived just as I was leaving the door and I was way too excited to just leave it, so off came my trainers and my jacket and my headphones and god knows what else.

This month's theme is "In Bloom" and considering the warm weather that's suddenly hit us yesterday and caused all the trees on my road to magically explode into pink fluffiness, it couldn't have been a better choice!

1) Gerda Spillman | Renaissance Age Serum

Full size: £69 / Sample value: £6.90

Whoops, looks like a had a little silly moment and took a picture of the back side of the sample. But don't worry, the front is fairly unspectacular, so you're not missing much. I'm feeling much less rebellious against anti ageing products these days, so even though it is minuscule, I'll happily give this serum sample a go. It smells absolutely divine, but unfortunately it's going to have to wait on the back-up shelf until I've used up my current serum. And at almost £70 for the full size it would have to be beyond amazing for me to purchase it after the sample runs out!

2) La Societe Parisienne De Savons | Savon Maya

Full size: £8.50 / Sample value: £8.50

This was the first item I spotted as I opened the drawstring bag and it got me beyond excited. Just look at how gorgeous the packaging is! Then I realised it was soap.

Now, nothing against soap, but I'm just not a person that tends to appreciate it. I use shower gel in the shower and hand wash to wash my hands. Soap is slippy, harsh on the skin and always leaves this mucky, slimy residue on the soap dish. Having said that the scent of this one is absolutely beautiful, so it would be a shame to just leave it laying around. Nevertheless, this is more of an item I'd gift to my nan instead of buying it for myself.

3) Mirenesse | Glossy Kiss

Full size: £17.50 / Sample value: £17.50

This was the other product that stood out to me right away as I opened my box this month. I've never heard of Mirenesse, but pencil lip products are having a big moment right now and I'm excited to give this one a go. It's a full sized product, so I'll be getting plenty of use out of it. The colour I got (14. Perfect Kiss) is also really, really pretty. A fire-engine red studded with a light gold shimmer, absolutely gorgeous! From a quick swatch I can see that application is soft and very glossy, so this seems to be a winner!

Random side note: I keep accidentally writing "Glossy Kill" instead of "Glossy Kiss". Just to show what's on my mind these days...

4) Weleda | Skin Food

Full size: £8.95 / Sample value: £1.19

Considering what an institution Weleda has become, especially concerning natural skincare, I'm almost ashamed to say that I've never tried any of their products. Skin Food seems to be one of those cult creams, which I've heard loads and loads about and finally I get my mitts on a sample to try it for myself!

I do, however, struggle a little with multi-purpose balms like this, as I never know what to actually use them for. Give me a choice of options and I'll sit there fretting and eventually go without anything. I'm thinking of trying this on my feet, as my heels are pretty much the only dry skin area I have at the moment.

5) Green & Spring | Relaxing Conditioner

Full size: £16 / Sample Value: £2.67

I love the design of this little bottle, it's so cute! In this box you'd randomly get either the shampoo or the conditioner and I have to admit that I'm a little peeved, as I much prefer using the same brand shampoo and conditioner together. But oh well...

The scent of this is a tad strong for my tastes - you can really, REALLY smell the lavender and the rosemary that have gone into the product, but I imagine it would leave a beautiful lingering scent on the hair after washing. This is another product that will certainly get used up.

Lifestyle Extra: Birchbox | Paname Paris Mirror

Full size: £7.50 / Sample value: £7.50

Oh, c'mon. You gotta be kidding me. This is literally one of the worst compact mirrors I have ever seen in my life. It weighs about a gram and doesn't even have a lid! If I put this in my handbag it would get ruined within seconds. I don't know who they're trying to fool with the supposed £7.50 price tag, but yeah, good luck selling a mirrored badge for that price. I absolutely hate it when beauty boxes make their own shoddy tools and try to sell them as luxury beauty samples. At least Birchbox had the decency to include this as an extra instead of one of the actual five samples. But I would have much rather received a single tea bag or something, rather than this rubbish. Rant over.

So, my second Birchbox has been full of ups and downs to be honest with you. The only real highlight is the lip crayon, though I will certainly use every single product and I really like the fact that they're all brands I haven't tried before. The inclusion of two full sized products is also a bonus.

The soap on the other hand was a bit of a disappointment, even though it was one of the two full sized products and the mirror... let's no longer talk about the mirror.

The total value of this box comes in at £44.26 for those of you who are interested.