Glossybox: Three Month Round Up

Beauty boxes have been the talk of the town for the last few months and with there being about 8 (that I can recall) on the market, it can be difficult to decide which one is for you. To be honest, I don't think the beauty box idea is something I could subscribe to purely because I own enough beauty products as it is so knowing that I'd be getting another five each month would not help my storage issues. However, with that being said, when I was offered the chance to receive a Glossybox (the original beauty box), I was definitely interested to see what the fuss was about.

From what I gather about Glossybox, each month you pay £12.99, including postage and packaging, for five large sample size products for you to test with. The concept is meant to be a 'try before you buy' type thing where you can use the sample and if it something you like then you can go out and buy it. Simple. Well, so you think it would be. It turns out that there are still some kinks that are being ironed out with Glossybox and other beauty box concepts when it comes down to personal choice and what each person would like to see in their box. I've seen more than enough tweets of people being disappointed with the products they receive in their boxes because someone else received something better. I guess I would be pretty cheesed off too if I knew the girl next door got something way better in her box than I had in mine, it's only natural and, so it seems, something that we never grow out of.

Anyway, I digress. I've received the September, October and November Glossyboxes so I thought I would do a quick round up as to what came in each box and you can all see how the products vary to give you a better idea if you're unsure as to whether you want to join with one of the beauty box schemes.

One thing I have to say about Glossybox is that their boxes do look pretty damn good and you can tell that they pay a lot of attention to detail with contents of each box being wrapped in black tissue and a hand-tied ribbon.

The boxes are solid cardboard so you can probably find different uses for them, including filling them with goodies for children and sending them to Give and Make-Up.

The contents for Septmber, October and November (L-R):

So you can see that each box comes with 5 deluxe sized samples and a little card to give you information on each product as well as how much the full size is and where you can buy the products from. There are also discount codes for some products so if you do like what you have, you can buy them cheaper with your Glossy-code from the relevant website.

September box:

1. Green People - Day Solution
2. HD Brows - Eye & Brow Palette
3. Moa - The Green Balm
4. Plum by Mary Greenwell - Eau de Parfum
5. Rahua - Shampoo & Conditioner
October box:

1. Dermalogica Age Smart - MultiVitamin Thermafoliant
2. Dermalogica Age Smart - MultiVitamin Power Recover Masque
3. Leighton Denny Expert Nails - Nailpolish in Sex Kitten
4. Stila - Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner in Moray
5. Robert Piguet - Eau de Parfums
6. Dermalogica Age Smart - Renewal Lip Complex & Beauty Bag

November box:

1. Arbonne FC5 - Ultra Hydrating Hand Creme

2. Dead Sea Spa Magik - Dead Sea Bath Salts

3. Etro - Set of 5 fragrance vials

4. Nail Rock - Designer Nail Wraps

5. Philip Kingsley - Elasticizer

Do you see how the boxes differ every month? There really is no way of telling what kind of product you'll get each month and whether or not it'll be the same as the girl next door. After reading blog posts galore on Glossybox boxes, there really is a wide range of products that are sent out and sometimes it is a bit hit and miss. I know that in September, some people were lucky enough to receive a full size L'Oreal Mythic Oil whereas others received the HD Brows palette. The October Glossybox was a special one as it was their six month anniversary so everyone got the same thing but the Leighton Denny nailpolish shade differed. In the November Glossybox some people were treated to a sample of the new Illamasqua fragrance called 'Freak' while others received the Etro five vial set. There just is no telling what you might or might not get with these boxes and I'm sure there is a similar problem with the other beauty boxes out there, not just Glossybox.

In all honesty, if  was paying £12.99 for the boxes that I've just gone through then I probably would be quite happy because there are some full size products in there that would be double the value of the box. For example, the Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Liner in the October box is £13.00 on its' own whereas you've got that and a load of other samples for less. Yes, if I knew that someone else had gotten something better in their box then I might be disappointed but when you weigh it all up, it really doesn't count because the contents of my box might be better overall. The whole beauty box concept is a great idea and I'm glad that I've been lucky enough to try the Glossybox ones out but I think that if you are considering signing up for one, shop around and read reviews on all the other ones out there first as you might prefer the quality of products that are going.

You can join the Glossybox scheme by heading over to their website where you'll get a better picture of their service and what to expect each month.

How many of you have joined up with a beauty box service? Are you getting your pennies worth?

Until next time...

Keep swivelling those hips in your

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