Bulu Box August 2014 Review

The Box: 5-6 samples of premium health, nutrition, and weight loss items.  Choose from Original or Weight Loss box.

The Cost: $10 a month + free shipping

The Rewards: Earn 20 points for each item review as well as points for having a subscription.  Each 50 points is worth $5.00 in their shop.

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Included in the box is a card detailing each product and what is does, which is very helpful for people like me who don't know a single thing about supplements!

the first thing in my box was a sample of Zestra essential arousal oils.  These are supposed increase arousal and satisfaction in women, which is never a bad thing!

Next up is two packets of Simple Diet green coffee bean pills.  These are supposed to naturally increase metabolism and boost energy.

Next up is a set of 3 different variations of the popular "energy shot" which is exciting to me!  First is something called "Dream Water" which is a sleep and relaxation shot.  This may go to Mr. GGG, or I may save this for a time when I'm feeling jittery and need to wind down.  Next is a Forgiven shot, which helps metabolize alcohol and clear your head faster.  Genius.  Last up is and EBoost energy shot with coconut water.  With the coconut water craze at an all time high, I like seeing it mixed with an energy booster.

Finally, in the bottom of my box, was a packet of chocolate shake mix.  Not only is this a protein shake, but it also has Iron, an energy boost, and other vitamins and minerals to support immunity.  It says you can mix with water or milk, but I think I'll be sticking with milk.  Water tends to make it harder to dissolve and milk just tastes better!

So far I've been super impressed with Bulu Box, and for only 10 a month it's a great way to sample expensive supplements!  Stay gorgeous!

XOXO
Gina

KitNipBox August 2014 Review

The Box:  A monthly box of cat toys, treats, and more that focus on creating and maintaining a healthy lifestyle for your cat(s)

The Cost: $9 (1-2 goodies valued at $15), $19 (5+ goodies valued at $30), or $29 (7+ goodies valued at $40)  + Free Shipping

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This month KitNipBox included a printout detailing the items included in this month's box, which was really great!

As always, the cats made a mad dash for the box and picture taking was rushed.  Whatever KitNipBox puts in their products and packaging is a CAT MAGNET.

As a side note, this month's box was sealed with a ribbon, which definitely doubles as a cat toy.

 The first item in the box was my favorite; A catnip strawberry! It's soooooo cute and they love bouncing it around the house.

Here's Tifa coming to steal yo strawberry

Next up is a known favorite; a catnip cigar.  Their old cigar was kind of limp and sad, so it's great to get a replacement!

Next up is an orange feather mouse and a coarse blue whale, both of which Cloud decided were his.  I love the whale because it also cleans their teeth.

Another great item included was a crocheted fish similar to the mouse from last moth.  The cats love these and they are just so cute!

the last couple of items were a little bit of a bust; Feliway is a wipe to help ease anxiety when traveling, and Grace is an all natural human-grade cat food.  They both sound great, but we don't travel with our cats, and apparently the super great all natural fancy food wasn't good enough for them.  They sniffed around it for a minute, then just walked away.  Bummer. 

All in all, this KitNipBox was another success; It's like cat Christmas and it's definitely my favorite cat version of a BarkBox.  What do you other cat parents think?

XOXO

Gina

A visual representation of opening a KitNipBox

Popsugar Must Have August 2014 Review

The Box: Must have items in beauty, fashion, home, fitness, and food

The Cost: $39.95 a month + free shipping

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Popsugar Must Have is one of my favorite subscriptions.  It's so well rounded and I love getting a little bit of everything each month.

First up is an Ocean Tide and Sea Salt candle.  It smells summery and I absolutely love the container.

Next is a lip gloss from Bite Beauty in and exclusive shade for Popsugar.  I love that it's all natural and its surprisingly pigmented!

Next up is white petal and rice flower shower gel from Lollia.  I LOVE this shower gel.  It has a luxurious lather and the scent is very light and fresh.

Next are the two food items this month: Cookie mix from Mason Jar Cookie Company and a protein bar from Think Thin.  I haven't made the cookies yet, but I'm super excited about them: they seem like a really fun and different cookie.  As for the Think Thin bar, I've seen commercials for these lately and happy I got to try one.  I really like that they have 0g of sugar.  A lot of high protein bars are also high in sugar, so this is a much better option.

Another food-type item this month was a Tupperware from Goodbyn.  This one is designed for snacks and dips, and I think its perfect!  This has been carrying carrots and ranch for me lately, and I love it.

The last item in this box was what I was most looking forward to; the Kendra Scott Jewelry piece.  I was really hoping for the necklace, so The earrings were a bit of a disappointment.  I may try these out, or just give them to a friend, but they are good quality and I like the storage bag they came in.

As always, the Popsugar box was full of great items that i'm already using on a daily basis.  What do you think of this month's box?  Thanks for reading and remember to stay gorgeous!

XOXO
Gina

Ipsy August 2014 Review

The Box(Bag): 5 samples of beauty products inside a reusable cosmetic bag.  You can take a quiz to help personalize your monthly samples.

The Cost: $10 a month + free shipping

The Rewards: Earn 100 points for joining, 10 points per product review, and 10 points for reviewing your entire bag.  Earn 5 points for sharing you bag on Facebook and 5 points for answering the question of the month and sharing it on Facebook.  You can redeem 500 or 1000 points for an item in the Ipsy points shop.

Subscribe Here to bypass the wait list

This month's theme was "Beauty Schooled" which is fun a fun way to celebrate back to school (without actually having to go to school).  This month's bag looks like a pencil bag, which is super cute a great for throwing in your bag or backpack.

 

The first item in my bag was the star this month, both because I love urban decay and because I love New product launches. Plus the packaging is cool and sophisticated.

The nest product was a Mongolia lip balm from Jersey Shore Sun. I love the citrus scent and it's very moisturizing.

Next up is Dr. BRANDT pores no more primer.  I really like this primer; it has a nice consistency and doesn't feel too slick like some proletarian.  Plus the sample is a pretty decent size.

The next two products were just ok for me-nothing very special.  First is an eyeshadow from flying solo in a super basic nude shade. Meh.

The last item was a dry shampoo from Klorane.  This was meh for me because I really don't use dry shampoo when I wear my hair naturally curly.  Maybe if I decide to go straight again and start using heat on my hair I'll get some use out of this.

All in all I really liked this month's bag.  Even though I didn't like 2 of the products, the other 3 made up for it in my book!  Thanks for reading and stay gorgeous.

XOXO

Gina

Boxycharm August 2014 Review

The Box: 5 Full sized and deluxe sized beauty products valued at $100+

The Cost: $21 a month + free shipping

The Rewards: Earn 450 charms every 3 months and 50 charm for every product review.  Charms can be redeemed for various products.

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This month's theme was Beach Babe, and included a card detailing each item and it's value.  And everything was FULL SIZE this month!

The first item in the box was one of two bronzers.  I received the Enter Pronoun bronzer in Blowtorch.  Also included was a powder brush from Morphe Brushes to go with the bronzer.  The bronzer is in a really nice compact, but the shade was a little off on me.  Regardless, it's a great product.

Next up was a lip sheen from Tara Tarantino.  After being introduced to the brand in a previous box, I was glad to see another product from them this month.  And can we just talk about the packaging for a minute? It's GORGEOUS .  Not only is it super shiny, but it has rhinestones on it.  RHINESTONES.  Let's just say I was sold on this lip sheen before I even looked at the shade, which didn't disappoint.  I received Pendant, which is a pinkish coral with a golden shimmer.  Beautiful.  And unlike a traditional lipstick, these lip sheens are more sheer and super moisturizing.  Love.

Up next is a cheek and lip tint from ModelCO in Rosy Red.  This is very similar to benetint, but I love these stains so much that I can never get enough.

The last product was kind of a letdown, only because I really don't use lip liners.  Other than that, this one from OFRA cosmetics was good quality, a nice red color to match red lipsticks, and really didn't smudge.  This would be great for someone who uses liners.

As always, I loved this month's box.  Boxycharm is one of the best subscriptions in terms of products and value.  This month's box was worth $112.  Wow!  If you haven't tried Boxycharm yet, you need to check it out  RIGHT. NOW.

XOXO
Gina

Birchbox august 2014

 

The Box:  5 samples of beauty products from well known brands

The Cost: $10 a month + free shipping

The Rewards: Earn 1 point per $1 dollar spent in the birchbox shop and 10 points on each review on items from your box.  100 points can be redeemed for $10 in the Birchbox shop.  It adds up fast!

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This month's theme was keeping things light in the hot summer months, and as always there was a cad detailing the samples I received. This month Birchbox again allowed subscribers to choose one of their samples.

The first items in my box were a set of Neil George shampoo and conditioner. I really like when subscription boxes send a pair of Harvard products, as opposed to just one.

The next two products were ModelCo shimmer bronzed (my sample pick) and Dr. Jart+ BB dis-a-pore primer. The bronzed is a good shade and blends well, and the BB primer seems nice, but the sample is very small.

The last item in my box was a fragrance, which I seem to be getting a lot of lately. Unfortunately, this one wasn't for me. It's described as a summery mix of fruits and florals, but I found it overly flowery and way too strong.

This month was ok for me, but I really like that Birchbox is letting you choose one of your samples. I hope they continue with it! Thanks for reading, and remember to stay gorgeous!

XOXO Gina