SheSaid Beauty Box July 2012

Hello! So I received my July SheSaid beauty box about a week ago now I think? But I have been a bit slow to post about it because I've been working so much! I'm actually writing this right before I go out to work AGAIN for the 5th day in a row, I'm sure this is meant to be my summer holiday....
Anyway! Enough of that, here's what I got in my box:

Miners Cosmetics Bronzer and Blusher Blend - a full size product, score! I'm excited to try this one out, it doesn't look too dark like it would overpower and look dirty on my pale skin, and I really like that it's a blusher and a bronzer! I'm very pleased to receive this in my box, especially as it's (meant to be) summer, so I've got another bronzer try out! I also think that this looks really pretty with the swirl pattern on the powder, lovely!

The Vintage Cosmetics Company Vintage Eyelash Curler - another full size product! I love the packaging these come in, just as cute as the Vintage Cosmetics False Eyelashes I received in my May She Said Beauty box! I'm looking forward to trying these out and seeing the sort of effect they have on my lashes, fingers crossed it'll be a good response!

Murad Time Release Blemish Cleanser - yet another full size product! This is an anti-ageing and blemish reducing, cleansing product, I'd probably be a bit more excited about this if it wasn't anti-ageing, just because I'm only 19 and I don't really want to start with all that yet. I'm not sure I'll be trying this one out, just because of the anti-ageing thing, maybe I'm just being silly, but I do love that they've put in another full size product and it's a brand that I wouldn't have thought to try or have heard very much about before!

Stylefile S-file - and another full size product! shesaid have really outdone themselves this time! I don't clip my nails, I only ever file them, so this should come in handy! I wonder whether how it will compare to my old faithful boots essentials naile files...

Freeze 24.7 Ice Crystals Anti-Ageing Prep&Polish - this was a teeny tiny little sample sachet, which I didn't mind at all because of all the other full size products in the box. Again, it's another anti-ageing product, so I'm not really excited about this, it sounds a little scary too, described as "a powerful resurfacing cocktail" I tend to go for very gentle and natural products to use on my face and this sounds like it could be really quite harsh! I am slightly enticed by the promise of "a fresh new glow" because that's something I'm always searching for! But in all honesty I think I'll be giving this one a miss because it sounds a bit harsher than the sort of thing I'd want to be putting on my face, but again, this is another brand I've never heard of, so might have a look if they have anything more to my taste on offer!

I also received a Debenhams Beauty Club Reward Card in my box (Debenhams is a department store in the UK) which I thought was a little bit weird actually, but anyway...

So overall, not my favourite box from SheSaid Beauty, but still a good box nonetheless! Has anyone else subscribed to SheSaid Beauty Box?
Eleanor x

Glossybox June 2012

Hello! My second Glossybox arrived this morning, I always get excited getting a beauty box because I can't wait to see what's inside for me to try out!
So here's what I received in my box:

Glossybox Serie Pro Beauty Brush - So when I opened my little beauty menu I was very excited to see this! I love a good brush or two, and I've been going through  bit of an obsession with face brushes, gathering quite a collection of different brush styles of different makes (partly to review, but partly just because I NEED THEM ALL). This is a Glossybox blush brush made with natural goat hair, and retails at £15. I'm not entirely sure whether anyone else got different types of brushes or whether everyone was sent a blush brush? When I took the brush out of the cellophane it doesn't look to be of the best quality, I have to admit. I'm going to reserve my opinion for a later post after I've had the opportunity to try this one out..


Yves Rocher France Mini Mascara ultra-volume Sexy Pulp - Phew, what a mouthful! A cute little sample size mascara, the brush is quite large with natural bristles. The brush is an hourglass shape, the formula seems to be quite nice, I don't like very wet mascaras, I prefer mine to be on the drier side. I can say that this looks to be a dry mascara, but it definitely isn't overly wet, it's difficult to explain, but I think it's something I could work with, and I see great potential lying in this little tube!


BM Beauty Summer Warmth Bronzer - I've heard great things about the BM Beauty loose powder blushes, so this product is off to a good start already! I also don't actually own any loose powder bronzers, so I'm looking forward to trying this one out, because all of the ones I own are pressed ones. It has come in quite a small sample pot, but dont be fooled, this one's filled to the brim! My only worries are these: the shade of this bronzer looks quite dark, and I think it might be too much for my porcelain skin. I'm also not too sure how you'd go about applying this, seeing as the pot is so small it would be difficult to get a brush in there to get any product, so I can see this is going to be a messy trial of having to tip some out onto another surface, I'll have to think of something creative!


Agent Provocateur Eau Provocateur Trio - I'm pleased that these 3 samples have come in little viles with spray applicators, rather than sticks (I hate those!) First is the baby pink coloured one, which I think is the original fragrance because it doesn't have any extra titles or names attached? It's a spicy scent, a little bit oriental I'd say.. I think? I can't say this fragrance is to my taste, and it isn't something I'd wear myself, as I prefer something fresher, the smell isn't too heavy though, so it isn't overpowering. The second is the black one entitled, L'Agent. This is definitely a heavier scent, not overly so though, I think it's more floral. This is a tricky one, it's very hard to tell what's going on in the fragrance (especially with my poor knowledge) I'm undecided whether I like this or not, but I'm swaying more towards saying not. It's a reasonably nice scent, just not something I'd tend to go for as I'm not too fond of floral perfumes. Finally the third perfume is the red coloured one, which is called Maitresse. I'd say this was my favourite of the three, it's a sweeter smell than the others, but perhaps a little too sweet for me. All 3 perfumes are nice enough and not too expensive at £39 for 50ml, but unfortunately none are really to my taste and I wouldn't consider buying them, however it's nice to have the samples if I ever want to wear something a little different to my usual fragrances!


Vichy Dermablend Ultra-Corrective Foundation Cream Stick - This is so strange because I was actually talking to somebody about this the other day telling them that I've heard good reviews of this but I wasn't sure whether it was available in the UK and I hadn't had the opportunity to try it out myself! So it was a nice surprise to receive this! There are 6 little samples in different shades, ranging from light to dark, and looking at all 6 of them, there seems to be a light, a medium, and a dark shade each with yellow undertones, and a light, a medium and a dark shade each with pink undertones, which is really good! This is a really full coverage cream foundation, which in full size comes in stick form and retails at £19. I don't tend to like cream stick foundations just because they're usually a lot heavier than I prefer to wear, but I'm hopeful that this could potentially be an excellent concealer. One thing I will say is: Glossybox, I filled out my beauty profile and you know I have fair skin, it would have been nice to perhaps receive a larger sample size of only the 2 light shades, because I don't have a great deal of use for the other 4 shades!


Overall quite a good box, I wouldn't say that I've been particularly bowled over by Glossybox so far, I feel like the quality of the boxes has gone down in the past couple of months but I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone else got in their boxes and what they think of the products we received this month. The note in the box also said that this month was all about summer essentials, which I don't think they conveyed through the products at all, the only product I would class as summery is the bronzer. But I hate to be negative, so to end on a high note I would like to say that I was glad not to receive another expensive body wash sample this month! I always feel like that's a sample wasted because I'm not really interested in spending lots of money on a body wash even if I do like the sample, so I'd rather try something else!
Eleanor x

SheSaid Beauty Box June 2012

Hello! This is the second SheSaid box that I have received, and I must be honest, they just keep getting better and better! I think they put a lot of seasonal consideration into the samples and products they pack into their boxes, which I absolutely love, and the range of products I have received so far has been absolutely great! I'm so impressed with this beauty box, especially considering it's £1 cheaper than Glossybox and Joliebox every month, and it doesn't seem to be as widely publicised and talked about (at least not among the beauty bloggers I follow) and I want to send out some BIG LOVE to the people at SheSaid beauty box co. because I think they're doing an excellent job, and they're keeping me very happy with the monthly packages I find sitting on my doorstep! Bravo!


This month's box:

Yardley London Royal Diamond Eau de Toilette - This is a really beautiful scent, I think there's a subtle blend of floral, powdery and sweet notes. It's a really nice scent and I think very appropriate for a celebration of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, I would say that I think this scent could be for someone maybe a bit older than myself. After seeing that the price of the full size 50ml bottle is only £9.99!! I think I'm going to go out and get myself one of these, I can't believe how cheap it is! My only gripe with this sample is that it's in a little vile without a spray, which annoys me, but other than that, we're off to a good start!


Balance Super Moisturising Hand Cream - I like the fact that this is made from 98% natural ingredients, and that this is a 30ml full size product! I always think it's great to see full size products in the boxes, because it makes them feel really worth the money that you pay for them. I really like getting hand creams too, because I'm always on the hunt for a new, better one! The cream is quite thick and a little goes a long way, it has quite a strong herbal smell, it isn't unpleasant and I can't quite pin down exactly what it is that this smells like, but I can only describe it as... herbally! I have more to say on this cream, so in the interest of keeping this post as short as possible, I'll do a separate review another time!


Elemis Tranquil Touch Indulgent Bath Elixir - I have yet to use this in the bath, because I don't tend to have a lot of baths! (I'm not disgusting and saying I don't wash, my personal hygiene is perfectly fine, thank you very much, I just prefer showers) But I have given it a little sniff, and it seems to have quite a spicy, oriental smell, which isn't something I tend to go towards, but it'll be nice to try something new!


St. Tropez Gradual Tan Everyday Body Moisturiser - I was SO excited to see this sitting in my box! Obviously St. Tropez is raved about generally as a brand but it's just so expensive I've never been able to bring myself to spend that much on something I don't know will work well with my skin. So I'm so pleased that I've got the opportunity to try before I buy! I think it's great to see a well known, more expensive product to try out! I'm a bit worried that mine is in medium deep, considering how pale I am, but I'm willing to give it a try!


Let's Go Lashes in Temptress - I'm not usually a fan of dramatic or full on lashes, I don't tend to wear lashes full stop actually, and if I ever buy them, I always look for lashes that are quite natural, not too long, and will blend in and just naturally enhance my own lashes, rather than make them the fullest and longest lashes in the world. These lashes are quite full, and quite long, but there's something I really like about them! I definitely would NOT wear this for everyday use, they're definitely too full on for that, but they look like they could be gorgeous, slightly more intense lashes for a night out, but not look scary like some fuller lashes can. It's difficult to explain, but what I'm trying to say is: I usually prefer natural looking lashes, these are a little bit more full on, but I like them! There, that wasn't so hard!


Ginvera Green Tea Nude Cover BB Cream - Yet another sample that I was really pleased to see in my box! My best friend has absolutely raved about this to me since receiving a sample in an online beauty order. She's got combination to oily skin and this keeps her skin matte virtually all day, which is unusual for  BB cream! I haven't tried this out myself yet, so look out for a review soon.


Like I said before, I love that the SheSaid beauty box puts seasonal products in the boxes, like the St. Tropez and BB cream, which I feel are more appropriate for the summer months. I also like getting the lashes in my boxes, because they're not something I'd usually spend money on, and I like being sent the lashes from companies I haven't heard of before, because it means I get to try out something new! I give my full recommendation to the SheSaid beauty box, if I were to recommend one, it'd be this one and it's cheaper than most of the others, which is just an added bonus! Subscription is avaiable in the U.K from the SheSaid Beauty Box website.
Eleanor x