i appreciate getting something other than bills in the mail. magazines, amazon orders and now subscription boxes make the daily ritual of opening our mailbox kind of exciting. with this in mind, i felt like i’d scored the last golden ticket when my first essence beauty box arrived. then i opened it and thought: meh.
here’s my essence beauty box review:
packaging 10/10
let’s start with the good stuff — the packaging was beautiful. little details like wrapping, note cards and tissue paper can be just as important as a box’s contents.
products 4/10
march’s box included:
- la belle femme’s pomegranate kiss body butter — this stuff smells divine. it’s soft enough for easy application and gets into those crevices that thicker body butters can miss.
- biossance face oil — i go hard in the paint for a good face oil. my current skincare regimen includes goddess glow by coco butter mothers, but as the weather changes, it’s a little too thick to wear under makeup. biossance is light weight and doesn’t leave your face feeling greasy.
- cream of nature perfect edges — girl. no. i haven’t used styling gel in years and have no purpose for it with my tapered natural hair. it’s a damn shame though because this was the only full size product in the box.
- bite lipgloss — yet another miss. the consistency is super sticky and the color is all wrong. the opal shade feels like it’s for the 99 and the 2000.
- uncle funky’s daughter curly magic — meh. curl gels are most useful for wash and go’s which my hair doesn’t tolerate. at all. i tried the gel for a twist out and wasn’t impressed.
overall thoughts
i think subscription boxes are a good idea and a great way to be introduced to new products at a low cost. the trick is to find a company whose mission and products align with your taste. the essence beauty box would be so much better if they asked subscribers questions about their likes, dislikes, makeup choices, hair type and more. this information could determine the best products to include in a small variety of boxes that they shipped based upon interests.
overall, i’m on the fence about whether to keep my $15 monthly subscription. have you tried the essence beauty box? what are your thoughts on subscription boxes?
