First Ever Beauty Box Battle: May

While I have written about my love for Birchbox before, I typically don’t write a post for my beauty box reveals. Most of the time, I do an Instagram Story or just post a flatlay. I decided to actually do a post because I get a ton of questions about the beauty products I share on Instagram.

This post contains affiliate links. Should you make a purchase, I will make 2.5 cents at no added cost to you.

So to make this more interesting I decided to make my post a beauty box competition. Each month, I will be sharing all three of my beauty boxes and then picking a winner for the month.  While Birchbox sends a mix of different kind of brands, I feel like Ipsy tends to send a combination of small brands and trend brands.  From what I can tell, Sephora will often send something from their line, cult classics, and product that are new. Of course, I’ve only received three months worth of boxes from Sephora since I was on the waiting list for a million years. So I haven’t had long to make any informed observations.

Birchbox

 

Mac Strobe Cream in Pinklight Full Size $33: This was my sample choice for May. I was really looking forward to trying this product out. I was expecting a cream with a pretty intense shimmer but that isn’t the case. I used this product as a highlight on my nose, cheekbones, and cupid’s bow but didn’t get the results I was looking for. I’m going to try this mixed with a BB cream and see how that looks.
Coola Makeup Setting Spray Full Size $36: So I haven’t actually used this product. I’ve never used a makeup setting spray despite the fact that I have been sent quite a few. I don’t really feel I need this product. I typically remove my makeup the minute I get home because I actually prefer not wearing foundation. Using a spray to make my foundation harder to remove isn’t something I am interested in with my current lifestyle. When I was younger and went out, maybe.

Whish Firming Body Cream Full Size $36: I don’t really like lotion. I will apply it to my hands, elbows, knees, and feet when my skin is dry but that is about it. I don’t think I will be trying this product because I might give it to someone that would appreciate it.

The Birchbox box is $15 a month since I am part of their beta test for a new type of subscription. It used to only cost me $10 a month but I had less options for my box. We shall see in a couple more months if this beta subscription is worth the extra $5.

So we are going to look a bit more at the value of the box, something I haven’t really done before. I calculated the value of the sample based on the price of the full size product.

Cost of box $15
Value of box $25.90  ($3.77+$7.20+$5.40+$5.20+$4.33)

Ipsy

 

Cailyn Extreme Matte Tint Full Size $19: This is a really pretty color but I am sad that it is a matte. I’m just so over it. A lot of times subscription boxes send me colors that don’t work with my fair skin. I was surprised at how well it looked on me. Again I wish it wasn’t matte but I might actually wear it anyway.
Briogeo Rosarco Milk Reparative Conditioning Spray Full Size $20: I am doing an update on my old leave in conditioning spray post in a couple of weeks. I’ve only used this product once so I can’t say too much about it now.
Jelly Pong Pong Supercharged Super Intense Eyeshadow Full Size $22.95: The name had me a bit scared because I like my eyeshadow to look natural unless I am doing a smokey eye. (Which to be honest I don’t do that often) However these shades are pretty buildable so you can go lighter or a bit more glam. I actually like this more than I thought I would.
Urban Decay Afterglow in Sin Full Size $26: This is a really nice highlighter. I love that it isn’t overly glittery. The downside is that the pan is pretty small. The pan is deeper than I thought it would be but that doesn’t really help with application.
IT Cosmetics Superhero Mascara Full Size $24: I’ve worn this mascara once and so far so good. Again I will be doing an entire post dedicated to mascara where I will do a more in-depth review.

The Ipsy Glam Bag is $10 a month and you also get a small little bag. Most of the time I’m not impressed with the bag quality but every once in a while they send a good one. This month they sent a clear plastic bag which I won’t be keeping.

Cost of box $10
Value of box $65.99 ($19+ $3+$22.95+$9.04+$12)

Play!bySephora

 

Belif Hungarian Water Essence Full Size $42: I love this brand so I was pretty excited to see this in my box. I have been using this product for a couple of days and I can tell you my skin looks so much better. I love that it is so light feeling yet leaves my skin feeling great. I don’t use a toner so this is the first thing I apply to my face. I then put a bit of moisturizer on my drier spots. I’ll come out and say it. I love this product.
Rahua Omega 9 Hair Mask Full Size $58:I love a good hair mask. I haven’t tried this yet so I’ll have to update you later.
Trestique Highlight + Perfect Stick in Maldives Luminescent Full Size $34: I was so looking forward to this product and mine arrived broken. If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen my story about the broken product. I was seriously disappointed.
Tatcha Pure Cleansing Oil Full Size $48: So I haven’t used this and I am thinking about maybe adding it to a stockpile of stuff I am thinking of giving away.
Nudestix Magnetic Matte Lip Color Full Size $24: I’m not entirely sure what color this is. It is technically labeled Greystone but it looks like a brown color. According to Sephora, it is a greige color. This color wouldn’t look good on me and I wouldn’t wear it. The product also has some pretty negative reviews. I could toss it in the giveaway box but I might just toss it.

Cost of box $10
Value of box $43.89 (37.42)* ($5.47+ $6.13 + (0) $6.47+ $4.70 + $21.12)
* I subtracted the value of the broken sample

Scores

Value: (1) $65.99 Ipsy, (2) $37. 42 Sephora, (3) $25.90 Birchbox
Usefulness*: (1) Ipsy 4/5 products (2) Sephora 2/5 products (3) Birchbox 2/5 products
* This is the number of products from each subscription that I will actually use

Winner

Ipsy is the obvious winner for the month of May!

I know a lot of you are shy about commenting on my posts, but I would love to hear your thoughts. Do you like this kind of reveal? Which would have been your favorite? Are you a subscriber to any?