Monday, May 21, 2012

Sample subscriptions

Birchbox, Myglam, Beauty Army, Test Tube, there seem to be more and more of these services popping up all the time.

This week I'm going to review a few of the more well known sample subscriptions. We'll start with Birchbox. Birchbox is a monthly sub, $10 a month gets you a box with 4 or 5 samples in the mail. I've been a member since March, and can honestly say there hasn't Been a month I wasn't happy. You have a choice of 2 different subscriptions, monthly, or yearly. If you decide to pay in full, it'll save you $10 at $110 for a year. Monthly, they take the $10 out on the 1st of every month, and the boxes ship around the 10th. You fill out your beauty profile, and while I don't know how much of an impact your answers have on what comes in your box, they do send out a variety of boxes every month.





  I've received everything from hair serums to tea bags, and each of my boxes has been valued at least 3 times my $10 investment. March and May were curated boxes by Teen Vogue, and Gossip Girl, with April being a "green" box for Earth month. Some claim these curated boxes have better, higher end items, but I think my regular box had items that were just as good. One of the great things about Birchbox is their rewards system. When you get your box, you log into your account to review the items in your box. Each review gets you 10 points. 100 points is equal to $10 which can be spent in the Birchbox shop on the full size goodies that come in the boxes. Every dollar you spend in the shop is worth a point, and referrals get you 50 points. It's easy to rack up the points and get free products, which in my opinion pays for the cost of the subscription. They send out anniversary coupons for 20% off any items in the shop too, which is great since cosmetics and perfume at department stores rarely go on sale, or let you use a coupon. I've had to contact customer service a few times, and they have gotten back to me quickly each time.

Being a member of Birchbox has introduced me to products I otherwise would've never tried.  I more than likely wouldn't splurge on a $90 moisturizer from Algenist, but the sample size is a quarter of the full size and will last me quite awhile.  When I found out I was getting a full size Stila liquid sparkle liner in my May box, I thought it would go up for trade immediately.  I ended up trying it and loving it!

The only downside of Birchbox that I can see? You have to get on a wait list to join. They're still a rather new company, and while they're growing, you have to wait your turn to get in on the fun. Not to worry, it can range from a couple of days to a couple of weeks wait. Watch out for that e-mail though, once you get accepted you have 24 hours to respond before they give your spot up to someone else. Love Birchox? Questions about the service? Hit me up in the comments. Ready to join already? Here's a referral link.

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