Product Review: Violet Box March 2014

Another month has gone by, - can you believe it, we are already three months, a quarter into the new year, and a month into autumn! And yesterday the *March Violet Box arrived at my door, here are my thoughts;

What They Say:

Violet Box brands promises to every month include 4-6 premium beauty and lifestyle samples from well-known and trusted Australian beauty brands as well as exciting new International brands, one in particular is a revolutionary product currently trending in New York and has been featured in Vogue and on the Today Show!

RRP: You can subscribe to Violet Box for:

1 month – $22.95

3 months - $66.00

6 months - $130

12 months - $250

Available from Violet Box

What I Say:

As per the usual, the Violet Box arrived in a narrower sized black matte box, with the magnetic closure and a purple ribbon – and while this box is very simple in look, I do prefer the simplicity of it and have kept quite a few of them to store small things such as jewellery etc.

Anyway, this is what was in the March Violet Box…

Love Those Lashes New Silk Strip Lashes – Full Size (RRP: $14.95)

These lashes claims to be reusable up to 15 times and come in a protective case to store them in. they come with the glue and can be cut and shaped to fit eye shape and size. I have to be honest and admit that I am not the biggest user of false lashes, as with a baby it is rare that we go out to special occasions where I feel they are suitable, and for everyday wear, I struggle as it is finding time to do my makeup!! In saying that, these are nicer than by far the majority of false lashes that I’ve come across lately, and they do look quite natural, so I look forward to trying them out. Now I just need to find a babysitter, LOL!

Starlooks Gem Pencil – Full Size (RRP: $19.50)

This eyeliner has a metallic finish, and as claimed it has a very soft and creamy finish. In fact it truly soft that it can be used as both eyeliner and eye base claimed.

Left as an eyeliner, and right is blended

I got the shade Amethyst, which is a metallic dusty pink/lavender shade, which is lovely, but firstly I generally prefer darker eyeliners, such as taupes, browns and blacks (I’m quit conservative with my makeup), and secondly, unfortunately I am at the age where I find that the use of intense glitter finishes is not of use.

Sinful Colors Nail Polish - Full Size (RRP: $4.95)

I’ve previously received a Sinful Nail Polish in some box, sorry cannot remember which one, so as such it doesn’t excite me that much, as I do like trying out new brands. But in saying that, another nail polish added never goes astray, and the colour I got, GoGo Girl, is a lovely bright red, so I will definitely be using this one.

Acorelle Skincare Serum –Sample Size, 2ml (RRP: $58.00)

I have never heard of this brand before, so this does excite me, plus the fact that I love love love serums and I am always on the chase for great ones. This one is perfect for my skin, claiming to fight signs of ageing due to the high contents of powerful anti-oxidants. The sample is unfortunately very tiny, and I would have loved to see a larger sample to be able to use it for a little longer to see how it performs, but nonetheless, I am still looking forward to testing it out.

Mineresse Vevet Lip Lift Moisture Shine Lipgloss – Sample, 1.5g (RRP: $39.95)

This lipgloss claims to have a plumping effect due to the included micro-collagen, and it not only has an instant plumping effect, it is also working long-term as an anti-ageing lip treatment. I got the colour 47, which is a lovely pinky-coral shade, which is perfect for everyday casual wear. I have heard a lot about this lipgloss, so I look forward to seeing how it performs.

So there you go, this was the contents of the March Violet Box. With the inclusion of the lashes, the nail polish and the eyeliner, the box does contain three full sized products, but rarely wearing false lashes, not being able to use the eyeliner, and the nail polish being ‘old news’ I am not too excited about these products, and consequently I am unfortunately I am not quite as impressed with the March box as I have been with previous month’s boxes, including the February box which contained two full sized Be A Bombshell products.

I am sadly more excited about the two samples, the Acorelle Serum and the Mirenesse Lipgloss, but again, as they are only samples, they do not make up for the cost of the box.

In saying that, again, I will make use of both the lashes and also the nail polish, and I am sure I can find a good home for the Starlooks Eyeliner, so these products are not a completely waste, but if you wear false lashes more frequently than I do, and are a little more experimental with your makeup than little old conservative me, then I am sure you will love this months box. But as Violet Box generally goes from strength to strength and has impressed me every month since launch, I am not too upset with this, as there also has to be products included to suit every taste and style.

*Product was kindly provided for consideration, and has reviewed in accordance with my Disclosure Policy.

What do you think of the products of this month’s Violet Box? Did you get this months’ box too? What did you think? And if not, would you consider subscribing?

And of course, as always, if you’d like to see an in-depth review of any of products in the box, leave me a comment below..

  

Product Review: Violet Box – January 2014

It is that time of month again – where the monthly beauty box subscription boxes start to arrive, and this morning I received the first beauty box for the year, so here are my thoughts on the *January edition of the Violet Box;

What They Say:

Violet Box brands promises to every month include 4-6 premium beauty and lifestyle samples from well-known and trusted Australian beauty brands as well as exciting new International brands, one in particular is a revolutionary product currently trending in New York and has been featured in Vogue and on the Today Show!

RRP: You can subscribe to Violet Box for:

1 month – $22.95

3 months - $66.00

6 months - $130

12 months - $250

http://www.violetbox.com.au/

What I Say:

This month’s Violet Box arrived in the now standard narrower sized black matte box, which closes with a magnetic closure and a purple ribbon, and this is what was in the December Violet Box…

Do you remember my review of the December Violet Box….well if not, you can see it here…

Anyway, in last month’s box there was a note with an apology saying that unfortunately the planned Jelly Pong Pong Wide Awake Palette that was supposed to have been included on the box, and which was mentioned on the product card, unfortunately had been damaged during the transit. Violet Box instead included two Sweetpea & Fay eyeshadows as a replacement in the December Box, and made a promise that the Jelly Pong Pong palette would be included in the January box.

And as promised, this box did indeed include the Jelly Pong Pong palette!

Jelly Pong Pong Wide Awake Palette – Full Size (RRP: $32.00)

The palette is not mentioned at all on the card with all the product descriptions, so you can truly call this a bonus product, and at $32.00 how amazing value is that! This month’s box has more than paid for itself there and then! The palette contains a highlighter and a concealer along with three brow sculpting shades, and a small brush, all presented in a pale pastel pink palette with a large mirror. This looks interesting, so I can’t wait to test this out!

So Susan Water-Based Pure Luminizer – Full Size (RRP: $49.00)

I have never before heard of this UK brand, but I love it when I read that the products contains no sulfates, mineral oils, phthalates, triclosan or animal by-products.

It is a water-based liquid illuminiser with micronized pearlescent pigments to add sheen to cheekbones, or brow bones . As this is a new brand to me, I cannot wait to trial this luminiser ,and even more so knowing that it doesn’t contain any chemical nasties. This is another full sized products with a massive value of $49 – Wow, this box is starting out well..

So Susan Nail Lacquer – Full Size (RRP:$10.00)

Another product from So Susan, and this nail polish is also free from all the chemical nasties, as well as it contains rosehip fruit oil to strengthen the nail and the skin around it.

I got the colour Pink Guava, which is a lovely cerise pink, absolutely perfect for tanned summer hands and feet, so this definitely won’t go to waste.

Lush Gorgeous Facial Moisturiser – Sample Size 10g (RRP: $74.95/45g)

This cream moistures, softens and nourishes, which provided it is not too rich for my combination skin sounds perfect. Truth is that I have only ever tried the bath products from Lush, and so long wanted to try the skincare products from Lush, but just never gotten around to it, so can’t wait to put this one to the test. It comes in a cute little tin – and the first challenge will be to work out how to open it, maybe it is me, or perhaps my clumsy little fingers, but I will need to enlist the help of my husband to open it up for me to I can put it to the test!

The box also included a card where if you spend $40 or more on Lush products online, you get free postage. Tempting…

MOR Essential Collection Hand Cream – 2 x sample sachets, 3ml each (RRP: 14.95/80ml)

I am very happy to receive not one, but two sachet samples of these hand creams. I got Basil & Grape, as well as Black Currant Iris. I am already familiar with the MOR hand creams, and love them, and as I don’t know these two scent, I am quite happy to be able to test them out too. The hand creams always smell gorgeous, - although sometimes so nice that I cannot stop smelling my hands, LOL!

Villainess Soaps in Dulces en Fuego – Sample – (RRP: $8.50/90g)

Another brand that I have never heard of before. This one contains black pepper and cinnamon sprinkled throughout, and consequently has a slightly spicy scent. It smells nice, and the spicy scent is a refreshing change from the always floral varieties. However, I must admit that I generally prefer to use liquid hand soap as I find them less messy in the bathroom, but still, I will definitely put it to the test, and actually, I could imagine that it would be right up my hubby’s alley, not being sweet and girly scented.

Acorelle Eau de Parfum – Sample vial 1.5ml (RRP: $$69.95/50ml)

I love perfumes, and I have more than I can count, and there is always room for another one. In my opinion there are simply too many gorgeous perfumes around to limit yourself to just one signature scent, so I like to swap and change every day depending on my mood, outfit and occasion. I have never heard of this brand before, so I am always excited to trial out a new one. And especially when I read that it contains mandarin and jasmine – and citrus scented products are on the absolute top of my favourite scents.

Overall I am extremely impressed with the contents of this months Violet Box, including the Jelly Pong Pong palette, it contains a whole three full sized products, with a combined value of $91 – how good is that when you only pay a maximum of $22.95 for the box –that is over four times the value. I am obviously aware that the Jelly Pong Pong Palette is bonus, but to quite honest, although Violet Box had promised that it would be included in this month’s box, I didn’t expect to be a bonus product, but that it would a part of the regularly included products! Very impressive and generous of Violet Box!

And in addition the box also contains a full five samples in the form of the soap, a facial cream, two hand creams and a perfume. Of course, it is only value for money if you intend to use every single one of the included products, and I definitely will, and am quite excited about them all.

If I have to be negative, it would be that there are two products included from the So Susan brand, and while I love discovering unknown brands, I would personally have preferred just one So Susan product and have the second product replaced with another brand that is new to me, if that makes sense. But really, that is just me nit-picking, as with the value of the contents of the box, Violet Box could easily have simply omitted say the nail polish from the box, and it would still have been extremely good value.

So all in all, I am very impressed with this month’s box – what a fantastic start to the New Year, well done Violet Box!!

*Product was kindly provided for consideration, and has reviewed in accordance with my Disclosure Policy.

What do you think of the products of the January Violet Box? Did you get this months’ box too? What did you think? And if not, would you consider subscribing?

And of course, as always, if you’d like to see an in-depth review of any of products in the box, leave me a comment below..