"All That Glitters" December Birchbox: Unboxing and Review

On Facebook, I've seen a number of posts over the past few months about a subscription box called Birchbox. I love the idea of subscription boxes and for a while I got Graze which was a cheap snack box. I've recently wanted to get into makeup more and so have been looking for a beauty box but they all seem so expensive! When I saw this offer online I had to get it as the box was half price!

I decided to wait to post a what's in my box so that I could also include a review of the products I got. I was super happy when I got the box because I loved the bag and so even without looking at the products I thought it was worth the £6.

I have linked all the products to where you can buy them on the main Birchbox shop page, if you want to buy them :)

Inside there was a notebook with all the products included inside but not only that, there were also discounts for other beauty related products and other information for products. I liked that they included some 'how to's' for the products I received and that they told you the retail price of each product and whether that which I received was a sample size or the full size.
As already mentioned, this month came in a bag inside of the usual box. I think this is so cute and definitely worth the money spent. It has asymmetric shapes of green, black and glittery gold. I've been looking for a new clutch for night's out for a while and so in the meantime, before I find one I LOVE, this will work perfectly. It seems to fit a fair amount of stuff in but it's also compact.

The first product I found was this mini 'Embryolisse Lait-Creme Concentre' which is apparently an instant hydrator. I thought the sample size was super small and so it only lasts about two uses so I can't really say what sort of long lasting effect. I have very sensitive, oily, acne prone skin and so a lot of products make me break out when I first use them, and this one did too. It was fairly moisturising but I think it's better as a make-up primer used over moisturiser and under make-up.

The next two products came in a joined packaging but then they were in separate boxes inside. 
The first was Benefit's 'They're Real Push-Up Liner Duo'. I literally hated this product! I've never used such a bad eye liner. First of all it took me ages to figure out how to use it and I even had to google it. Once removing the orange stopper, you have to warm it up in your hands and then push it up slowly from the bottom to the tip. While the angle tip seems like it would work perfectly it's actually really uncomfortable. The product comes out lumpy and uneven and in the end it's very flaky and clumpy. Really disappointed with the whole concept of the product.
Similarly to the first part, this Benefit 'Puff Off!' product didn't seem to work for me either. I've never had problem with bags or dark circles under my eyes so I didn't see too much of a change. The product was come out in a porcelain creamy colour that was actually a really good colour match but would easily blend in with most skin tones. Once applied for about 10 minutes it felt very tingly almost like a mint mask. The product applied smoothly and only needed a small amount. I think the product would be better as a moisturiser because it did feel very smooth after but don't think it really got rid of bags.
This moisturising shower lotion is called Rituals 'T'ai Chi Foaming Shower Gel' worked for me but not as expected. I only needed a very small amount of product to use as it was almost like shaving gel. It came out as a smooth liquid and quickly puffed up to a foam. I used it all over by body but didn't really notice a difference. I then used it as a shaving foam and I loved it! It made shaving really smooth and I didn't get a rash at all. Afterwards, my skin definitely felt more moisturised than my usual shaving foam so I will definitely be using it up. The sample size I received was actually pretty big so I think it will last a while!  
I'm not sure if I've mentioned, but I've been looking for lipstick that I love for a long time and this one is amazing! It is 'Model Co Colour Essentials'. The colour is so pretty and is really pigmented. I got this in the shade 'Smitten' and it's gorgeous. Ever since I've got it, I've been wearing it all the time and it makes me feel so confident. The colour lasts well but when I drink it rubs off a little. When eating it also needs re-coating. By the end of the day, the lipstick has all gone but the lip is stained around the edges almost like a lip liner.



I'm obsessed with OPI nail varnishes, or lacquer's as they call them, so this Ciate nail lacquer was never going to be something I purchased. I used both a bottom and top coat and then two layers of the colour as usual. The colour was very faint and had lots of speckles in it. While it went on smoothly, it didn't have great coverage because the base colour was so light and the 'sprinkles' didn't seem to separate evenly. The colour chipped after a day which was disappointing. Overall it isn't a colour I would ever wear and I probably wouldn't repurchase this any time soon. I think the polish itself is good but I don't think the colour works.

 As you can see it's very bumpy due to the sprinkles and although the varnish looks green in the bottle has a lot of underlying blue tints to it. It is also very difficult to remove due to these with normal nail polish remover.

This perfume is called 'Catherine Malandrino Style de Paris Eau de Parfum'. It was a stopper bottle which I actually prefer. The smell was like rich fruit but not sweet. It was extremely long lasting and only needed one drop on each wrist for the whole day. Not really my smell but it is nice but no rash experienced.

Overall, I think this months box had a good selection of a wide range of products and I loved it!

If you would like to get a box for yourself, just simple click on the link below and both you and I will get a discount!

Also, if anyone wants to book a treatment through 'wahanda' you can use the following code to get £10 off until 31st January 2015:
H6WN-7XFA4G-HQYW

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