My very first Voxbox

Good Evening :)

About a month ago when I was researching monthly subscription services I came across a website called www.influenster.com and was very curious because I absolutely love samples. Influenster provides the Voxbox, it is not a monthly service, it is free, all you have to do is qualify for the type of box they are offering, and in return do a product review for items in your box.

Who gets a Voxbox?

Influenster's are selected for themed shipments based on the badges they have unlocked and individual demographics, ensuring members receive products that match their lifestyles and interests. Members with high 'Influenster scores' - within the specific consumer groups we are targeting for that program - are prioritized, so make sure to connect and unlock as many influence badges as you can!

When am I getting a Voxbox?

All new shipment announcements are made on their Facebook and Twitter pages, so make sure to like and follow Influenster on social media to stay in the loop! Note their programs are themed and designed to target various consumer groups throughout the year. When you meet the specific requirements for an upcoming VoxBox campaign, they send a program invitation a few weeks in advance so that you can officially confirm your participation. Please note:  They do not ship to Hawaii or Alaska at this time. 

What are Influenster Badges?

  Influenster has two categories of badges, lifestyle and influence badges, the more badges you receive the more of a chance you have to receive a Voxbox. They have badges for the blogger, the traveler, the mother and nearly everything in between and it doesn't take much to qualify for a badge, all you have to do is either take a little quiz or survey. (Don't worry they do not intrude too much on your personal life, and do not require much information.)

Now onto my very first Voxbox...

I recieved my very first Voxbox two days ago, to qualify for this Voxbox you had to be a mother, which I am. (If you look back at my very first blog post you can see pictures of my two children.)

Included in the Mom Voxbox was:

One Quaker Soft Baked Oatmeal Raisin Cookie- www.quakeroats.com

I absolutely love Quaker Cookies, and this one was very soft. Both of my children snagged and piece and enjoyed it just as much as I did.

Ivory Bar Soap- www.ivory.com

I don't typically use bar soap, but if I was to use it on a regular basis I would go with Ivory.

DenTek Comfort Clean & Fun Flossers- www.dentek.com

My son was excited to try the Fun Flossers, they come in bright colors and are Wild Fruit flavored. The Fun Flossers were easy to use for my three year old and definetly encouraged him to floss. The Dentek Comfort Clean Flossers say on the package they are easy to use with teeth that are tight together and sensitive gums and I agree, I have both of those problems and they were simple and comfortable to use.

Stash Tea Superfruits Tea Sampler & Nektar Sweetner and Coupon- www.stashtea.com

I was very excited about this sample because I love fruit flavored teas, and I am always looking for a new favorite. This sampler came with Mangosteen, Goji Berry and Pomengranate Raspberry, Acai Berry, and Yumberry Blackcurrant and Blueberry. This also came with some Nektar Naturals Honey Crystals to use as a natural sweetner without all the sticky mess. So far I have tried the Goji Berry and Pomengranate Raspberry Tea and I absolutely loved it, I was worried it was going to be too strong for my taste, but my taste buds thoroughly enjoyed the flavor. I also use one packet of the Nektar Honey Sweetner in a glass of green tea and it was great, it added that subtle honey taste that I love.

imPRESS Press-On Manicure by Broadway in Stiletto and Coupon- www.impressmanicure.com

I absolutely loved receiving this sample because I have been trying out different types of "no nail polish" nail treatments lately and will soon be doing a review on all of them. You can find these nails in tons of different nail colors and a few prints, and you may have seen commercials of these with Nicole Scherzinger in them. This is the very first thing I used out of my Voxbox and was pretty excited with the results. The nails do look nice and seem to be lasting well, I have given the kids a bath with them on, did dishes, and scrubbed the floors, and so far they are still sticking very well. My only complaint about them is they didn't have one to fit my thumbnail, but I have extra wide nails it seems, and luckily I happened to have a nail polish that was very close to the Stiletto Shade to use.

Monthly Subscription Services

Hello :)

In the past couple months I have been trying out a couple different monthly subscription services, I wanted to share my experiences, products and thoughts about the different companies I have tried so far and the ones I am interested in trying in the future. I have researched and watched YouTube videos on almost all the services and I will post some links to videos on each. The first four services I have tried myself and the rest I am interested in trying.

MyGlam

http://www.myglam.com/   $10 a month

I learned about MyGlam through Jessica Harlow off of YouTube, MyGlam is the very first monthly subscription I checked out, when I first wanted to sign up they were sold out of subscriptions, which so far has happened with most of the companies, they typically take your email and send you a message when you can subscribe. So far I have received one MyGlam Bag and I was pretty impressed. When you first start up on http://www.myglam.com/ they have you take a little quiz  that customizes a beauty profile for you, then every month you receive 4-5 beauty samples, some are full sized products others deluxe beauty samples. MyGlam also offers videos on how to use your products and looks you can achieve with your products, they have five stylists named Promise, Michelle, Andrea, Jessica and Bethany that lead you through this, below is links to each of there YouTube accounts. It is possible to find many unveiling of the monthly boxes on YouTube made by many different people if you are interested in seeing more opinions and what has come in past months.

Jessica Harlow (one of my favorite youtubers) http://www.youtube.com/user/missjessicaharlow?feature=results_main

Promise Phan (amazing at makeup transformations) http://www.youtube.com/user/dope2111?feature=results_main

Michelle Phan http://www.youtube.com/user/michellephan?feature=results_main

Andrea http://www.youtube.com/user/andreaschoice?feature=results_main

Bethany http://www.youtube.com/user/macbarbie07?feature=results_main

The first bag I received was the May Glam Bag, each month your samples come in an adorable makeup bag, this month the bag was blue with pink lips on it.

Inside my bag was samples of:

Love Sweet Love Spray Fragrance by Philosophy

It was a small sample, but it has an amazing smell and this is surprisingly the first time I have tried a product from philosophy.

Lipstick from Studio Gear in the shade of Foxy Pink

The color itself isn't something I would typically pick, but I am excited to try a lipstick from a brand I have never tried before.

Three Brushes

I received two concealer brushes and a defining eyeliner brushes, and they are made by myglam themselves, so far I think they are good quality.

Miss Beauty Nail Bling

Silver nail stickers with pink hearts on them, they were very girly looking and I did try them but I was not too impressed. They were not easy to fit to your nails and when I did take them off they left my nails looking horrible.

Birchbox

$10 a month https://www.birchbox.com?raf=hhbph

I have been subscribed to Birchbox for two months now, so far I am still deciding which services I like the most. With Birchbox you receive the typical 4-5 samples, they come in a small cardboard box that is really nice to reuse for storage. Here is a link to Birchbox TV on YouTube, they have tutorials, sneak peeks, beauty tips and other interesting videos. http://www.youtube.com/user/birchboxtv?feature=results_main

My April Birchbox included samples of:

Kerastase Elixir Ultime

A nourishing oil for the hair that you use before blow drying to protect from heat damage, I love this, at first I was worried about it leaving my hair greasy but it leaves it soft and smelling good.

Showstoppers Designer Fashion Tape in Nude

This sample came with two strips of tape and I tried it out and absolutely loved it, it doesn't hurt the skin or the clothing, and it stays firmly in place.

Juicy Couture- Viva La Juicy Perfume Sample

Absolutely in love with the smell of this fragrance, I will be purchasing this soon.

Color Club Neon Nail Polish in Totally Teal

I love the color and quality of the polish.

Jurlique Herbal Recovery Night Cream

This protects your skin and moisturizes it well, I absolutely loved it.

My May Birchbox included samples of:

Stila Sparkle Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner

I definitely would never buy this, I thought it was a low quality liquid liner.

Algenist Regenerative Anti-Aging Moisturizer

It is always nice to get samples of anti-aging moisturizers, even though I am young it is never to early to take good care of your skin, and these can be quite expensive to purchase.

Beauty Blender Cleanser

It is a gentle cleanser for makeup brushes, I have yet to try this.

Arquiste Flor Y Canto Perfume Sample

This fragrance has a very natural floral scent, but I don't often wear it, I tend to go with more fruity, flirty scents.

Julep Maven

$20 a month http://julep.com/?r=21058789

So far I have received the introductory box and the June Julep Maven Box. With Julep Maven they have you take a little quiz that helps them picks the colors of the products they send you, you can try different looks each month if you would like. They also offer the opportunity to skip months, because they do show you what will be in each box. Julep Maven is mainly nail polish samples, I do not personally think it is worth $20 a month. So far I have received four full sized polish samples from them I am in love with the colors but I mean you are basically paying $10 per nail polish.... The box comes with amazing packaging and my June box also came with a sample of Julep Daylight Defense Lip Balm SPF 15 and Julep Daylight Defense for Hands & Face SPF 30 3 oz sample, but I am pretty sure I will be canceling my subscription to this one.  

Beauty Army

$12 a month https://beautyarmy.com

When I learned about Beauty Army I was pretty excited, with beauty army you get to choose your own samples, they give nine samples to choose from based on a quiz they have you take, and you can choose up to six. As of right now my first package is in transit and I can not wait to receive it. I have watched many YouTube videos on this, and read reviews, and overall it seems this is the best monthly subscription service to go with. It comes in a sturdy box that would be great to reuse for storage. I will tell you the samples I chose for this month and when I do receive it I will update this and tell you more of what I think.

What I chose for month of June:

Control Corrective Redness Relief Serum Sample size .1 oz

It is a small sample but if it works I may purchase in the future, it is a botanical based serum that hydrates and provides relief to redness prone skin. My skin is very sensitive and dry and my cheeks tend to turn red because of this so I hope this works.

Aquolina Pink Sugar Eau De Toilette Natural Spray Sample Size .6 oz

A blend of raspberry, vanilla, caramel , fig leaf, licorice blossom, lily of the valley, Sicilian oranges, and red berry scents.

Update: I love this, it reminds me of roasted almonds from the fair.

Clickr Skin Care Acne Spot Serum Sample Size .11 oz

I do have a bit of acne and I am hoping this works for it, I have read reviews that say it is great when you feel a pimple coming on.

Update: I have been trying this, but I have not noticed any difference for me.

Atopalm Intensive Moisturizing Cream Sample Size .25 oz

Another type of face moisturizer, with my dry skin this is always in need.

Update: I have been using this recently and it has made my problem areas much smoother and a little less red. :)

La Fresh Oil Free Face Cleanser Sample Size 1 wipe

This is suppose to cleanses and exfoliate while effectively removing makeup.

Update: I used this the very day I received my box and it easily removed my makeup, and made my skin feel fresh, now if I only had more.

NYX La Amoureux Mascara Full Sized Sample

24 hour, smudge free mascara

Update: Definitely was excited that this was a full size sample, I have been using it a lot lately.

Conscious Box

$12 a month + $7 Shipping http://consciousbox.com/

I have no tried this service I have just read reviews on it. With this service you receive 10-20 Eco friendly samples of products once a month. This service offers vegan beauty products, organic food samples, content on daily living tips, and products for the home. This is the only Eco friendly service that I have discovered and it seems quite interesting to me, I am not sure if I will be trying this one myself but I do have a couple friends I am recommending this one to.

GoGoGirlfriend

With this service I will not be providing links or the price because me writing about this is more of a warning then anything. I have read many reviews on this service and so far it sounds horrible. People say that billing wise they bill you as soon as you join then don't send your package for over a month, they change there prices and ways of doing things often, and when you do receive a package it is of either expired products or off brand bad quality products, so I recommend to please avoid this service.

Curlbox

$20 a month + shipping that varies http://curlbox.com/

This is a service for women with curly hair, they send you 6-8 products monthly. This service allows you to choose the products you receive monthly, but I can not find many reviews on this one.

Cravebox

$10 a month http://www.cravebox.com/

With this service you receive 4-5 products monthly but far the reviews are not the best they say that the products you receive are low quality and that there are many better services out there.