Saturday, August 20, 2011

August 2011 Birchbox (Better Late Than Never!)

So, as you may have heard, my first August Birchbox for this month was stolen (I'm still seriously annoyed by that, and God help the person if I ever find her [him?]). Luckily, Birchbox customer service is fantastic, and just a week after contacting the company, I received a replacement box.

The question then becomes: Was it worth the wait and frustration? Well, just judging by the contents, the answer is yes and no. While I'm intrigued by most of the products (and I actually love the much-maligned hair tie), there are a few caveats.

This month's theme is "Beauty Innovations," and the products do seem to fill a need left unfulfilled by others that have come before. The contents of my box include:
  • A large sample of Befine Night Cream & a single use sample of Befine Exfoliating Cleanser
  • A large sample of Blinc mascara
  • A sample of LIFTLAB Lift & Fix High Potency Serum
  • A small vial of Kate Spade New York Twirl
  • A Twistband hair tie (this was my extra)

I'm very excited about trying the Blinc mascara, since I love tubular mascara. I am also curious about the nigh cream, since I know that is an area lacking in my skincare regime.

However, I'm bummed about three things. The first is that this is the second time in three months that I've received the sample of Twirl. I have lots of allergies, so I don't use a lot of perfume. Also, getting it again doesn't make a ton of sense to me, since it seem that the aim of Birchbox is to introduce you to new products.

The second thing that annoys me is that the Befine Exfoliating Cleanser is a single use packet. I probably shouldn't complain since I received six things in my box (counting the cleanser and the hair tie), but I would have much rather received a larger sample of the cleanser instead of the Twirl sample (again).

Finally, and I know that this will be somewhat ironic given the complaint I just had about the cleanser, but I wish that there were more of a balance between the makeup samples and the skincare samples. A half-and-half split would be perfect, but I've noticed that my boxes tend to be primarily skincare. I've checked my beauty profile on the site, and it doesn't seem to be skewed towards skincare, but maybe I'm missing something.

Anyway, this complaints aren't enough to make me abandon Birchbox just yet. I'll definitely be giving it another month or two, and then I might reevaluate it (particularly if I get more repeat samples!).

ETA (August 22): I wanted to add that I sent Birchbox an email asking about the repeat item policy, and I received an incredibly nice reply back. I also was given some more points, which weren't necessary but are greatly appreciated. So, three cheers for Birchbox customer service! Those ladies know how to keep their customers happy.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I got the exact same August Birchbox as you did (it was my first ever), except mine wasn't stolen. :) I don't mind the skincare, I use more of that than makeup. I thought the perfume sample was kind of lame, I could get that at any beauty counter, and since my hair is short, the hair tie is useless. I liked all the other products and look forward to September. From looking at other blogs and YouTube videos, it seems some months are definitely better than others, and I hope to someday get a full size skin care product in my box!

Terri said...

Thanks for the comment! I'm glad that you like the skincare; I must admit that most of it is excellent (I LOVED the exfoliating cleanser, I just wish there was more of it :).

It's a bummer that the hair tie is useless, but you should definitely give it to someone. I was skeptical when I first heard about it coming, but I really, really like it. It is far superior to elastics or scrunchies.

madhunter said...

hello. I was excited to recieve my first birchbox. I could have went to any department stores and got the same things for free. I am not a young person, and have no clue what to do with fake eyeliner. that curls up on the edges. I told them I was dark skinned and they sent me a self tanner. and lipgloss meant for a thirteen year old. i only received the the three things. This is a farse. If you look up birchbox, a picture shows four ladies laughing all the way to the bank. I am very upset as this was a gift to me.

Terri said...

@madhunter - I'm so sorry you've had a bad Birchbox experience. I really didn't like the February 2012 box either - there was nothing that I was interested in trying.

However, if you only received three items (you should have gotten at least four), you should contact customer service. They are usually very good about making things right if you didn't receive something.