Battle of the Beauty Boxes - January 2013

Welcome to my comparison of January's Glossybox and Birchbox (previously known as Joliebox).  I have done full reviews of each box but I thought it would be interesting to see which box deem to be better each month.

Let us begin...

In all photos Glossybox is on the left and Birchbox is on the right.  Here you can the full contents and packaging   I prefer the packaging of Birchbox, the drawstring bag and magazine mean they get the point for this round.  

Glossybox: 0

Birchbox: 1

They both came with rubbishy freebies this month.  On the basis that I may be able to give away the teabags whereas I don't think anyone would want a polyester eye mask Birchbox wins the points yet again.

Glossybox: 0

Birchbox: 2

The worst products in both boxes were body lotions.  However the sample in the Glossybox is bigger so I feel I will get more use out of it.  Therefore Glossybox wins the point.

Glossybox: 1

Birchbox: 2

The best products were a Monu Mask in Glossybox and a Fresh lip treatment   Although I am really happy to receive both of these I almost squealed with delight when I saw a Fresh product.  Therefore I have to give the point to Birchbox.  

Glossybox: 1

Birchbox: 3

This month Birchbox wins happily.  Having said that I am happy with the contents of both boxes.

I can't wait to see what next month's beauty boxes bring.

Birchbox/Joliebox - January 2013

This is the third Joliebox that I have received, however this month Joliebox became Birchbox.  I liked the first two boxes but this month's has blown them both out of the water.

So boring details first.  Birchboxes cost £10 plus £2.95 for postage and packaging.  However you can make savings if you pay for more than a month at a time.  If you do want to look at the different subscription options you can find them here.

So what was in this months box?

For the first ever Birchbox they decided upon the theme of 'fresh starts' which obviously goes perfectly with the start of the new year as well.

I am really glad that Birchbox decided to continue with the drawstring bags and the magazine.  These are the things that set them apart of other beauty boxes in my humble opinion.

Chamomile Flower Tea from Teapigs: I'm not a fan of 'lifestyle extras' because lets be honest - this is a teabag.  its not exciting or glamourous, its just a teabag.  Plus to add insult to injury I don't even drink tea and neither do anyone in my family so I fear this may end up either in a cupboard for years or in the bin.  I really hate wasting things so I'd rather just not receive things like this.

Deep Massage Body Cream with Myrrh from I Coloniali: I always feel a bit miffed when I get sachets of things like body cream.  I don't know about anyone else but this tiny sachet is not enough to cover my body let alone make a decision about whether or not I would repurchase this.  The packaging is lovely though.  A 1/5 on first impressions.

Taaj Crème Mains Delhicates Hand Cream from Taaj:  I was really pleased to see this.  I love getting hand cream samples as they are perfect to have in my handbags.  Plus Taaj is a brand that makes me happy - products that work, natural ingredients and packaging that is simplistically beautiful.  A 3/5 for this one.

KMS California Free Shape Quick Blow Dry from KMS California:   I am ashamed to say that I have never tried KMS products before.  This smells lovely, like when you go into the hairdressers.  This is meant to make your hair dry faster whilst you are blow drying it.  Unfortunately I don't blow dry my hair so I'm not sure how much use I will get out of this for that reason it gets a 2/5 from me.

 

WEI Jujube Age Control Serum from WEI: I have always been curious about WEI as a brand so I was happy to see this.  I do like using serums but at 22 I'm not sure if I need one with 'age control'.  At least I hope I don't.  I'm still excited to try this out though.  I'd give it a 3/5.
 

Sugar Rosé Lip Treatment from Fresh:  This is the absolute stand out in my opinion.  I have wanted to try Fresh lip treatments for ages but they always seemed very pricey.  I was glad to get a tinted version as it makes it that bit more useful than usual lip balm.  The packaging on this is divine and I personally like the scent.  I think I would almost have been happy to receive this alone.  A massive 4/5 for this little gem.

Overall I'd give this box a 4/5.  If this is a sign of things to come from Birchbox I am very excited.

You can see all the things that could have been in the box here.

Glossybox - January 2013

This is the second Glossybox I have received, if I'm honest the reason I first subscribed was because I was hoping for a really fab Christmas box.  I liked the December box but I wasn't blown away.  I definitely like this months box more.

So boring details first.  Glossyboxes cost £10 plus £2.95 for postage and packaging.  However you can make savings if you pay for more than a month at a time.  If you do want to look at the different subscription options you can find them here.

So what was in this months box?

This month, to go with January promises, Glossybox was Detox themed.  I thought this was a really nice theme to have at this time of the year.

So these are the contents of the box, as always the box is beautifully packaged.

First I am going to start with a bit of a moan.  I really don't like it when beauty boxes put in 'extras'.  I don't like wasting things but I really don't see when I will want a polyester eye mask.  If the things they included were better quality I would love it but I don't want to receive cheap extras that will just end up in the bin.  Rant over.

Super Strong Daily Conditioner from Paul Mitchell: On a more positive note I was pleased to receive this conditioner.  I am always happy to try new conditioners especially if they promise to sort out my damaged hair.  I'd give it a 3/5 on first impressions.

Skin Glow Exfoliating Face Wash from Elemis: This was another product I was excited to see.  I like Elemis as a brand and am always happy to try their products.  On first impressions i would give this a 4/5.

Body lotion from Duck Island: This was a strange one as I had never heard of the brand before.  Plus I am terribly lazy when it comes to body lotions so this didn't blow me away.  It does smells quite nice though, I just couldn't decide if it looked a little too much like the toiletries you find in hotel bathrooms.  For me this was a 2/5 on first impressions and probably the weakest item in the box.

Lip Balm from Jason: Another brand I had never heard of. I am always happy to have extra lip balms especially if they involve natural ingredients.  It wasn't an exciting product but it will get used.  A 2/5 from me for this one.

Aromatic Mask from Monu: This was my favourite item in the box.  I have wanted to try Monu products for ages and I love face masks so this was a winner for me.  This will hopefully help my poor winter skin recover.  A strong 4/5 

Overall a fairly good box, I would give it a 3/5.

If you want to see what else could have been in the January box you can have a sneaky peak here.