Seems like a week flies by without posting anything to my blog, and this week has been a big one for receiving my subscription boxes. Last month I only received both my usual boxes right at the end of the month, and then only a couple of weeks later I received my first Her Fashion Box and then both my Bellabox and Lusthaveit! Box on the next day! I guess they may be responding to some complaints about how late ladies have been receiving them in recent months, but also maybe feeling the pressure now that there is another player in the game? Time will tell if it keeps up in future months.
Her Fashion Box is a monthly subscription box that markets itself as not just providing beauty samples, but also fashion and homeware items. They offer three different options to choose from: Trendy, Classic or Feminine. I am definitely not a girlie-girl, so I was able to discount the Feminine choice pretty quickly, the problem was deciding between the other two. After a while I decided to go with the Classic option as I realised I'm not really all that trendy and classic items should continue to be wearable in future as well. ;p
This subscription box was originally being marketed as $49.95 per month, with the first box being offered at 50% off with a special code (there were a number of these codes available on the blogosphere, so it was pretty easy to get one for half price). They have since put the monthly price down to $39.95 per month, which is still pretty expensive as far as I'm concerned.
Okay, so let's look at what I got:
The size of the box is quite a bit larger than BB and LHI, which means it can fit a lot more goodies inside each month.
Upon opening the box, all items were packed in classic black tissue paper, and there was a really overwhelming floral fragrance which invaded my nostrils. I found this extremely off-putting as strong floral fragrances make my nose itch and some tend to give me a migraine after a while.
It was nice to see that the box was filled to the brim with items and included a glossy A5 magazine with info about each item. This is a great idea and certainly better than the short paragraphs of information provided on the small cards in the other boxes. A lot of time and effort has obviously been spent on the photography, layout and design of this mag; also probably a bit of money has been spent on it, so I keep flipping between being impressed by the quality of the mag and disgusted by the waste of my money.
Apparently each box contained pretty much the same items, with the point of difference being the fashion item/s in each box. The Classic box contained a chunky black and gold necklace in a striking Art Deco style. I quite like the necklace, but I imagine there are some more conservative ladies who were hoping for something a bit more subtle and classic. The magazine also showed the other necklace options and I was definitely glad I didn't choose the feminine box - I can appreciate it, but it's definitely not my style. I didn't mind the look of the trendy one, but it appears that the necklace the Trendies actually received was a fluoro spiky tribal looking thing which I would have chucked across the room in disgust.
The second fashion item in the box was a 'bonus' hair tie. If I had long hair I would probably wear it but since I have short hair, pretty useless to me at the moment (and for some years to come).
The source of the floral smell was a soap by the brand Circa Home in the fragrance Lilac & Orchid. Nicely packaged in a little box, the soap seems quite luxurious, I'm just never going to use it because of the smell. There are other fragrances in the range, most of which are floral fragrances. Probably the only one I would purchase would be the Vanilla and Cocoa Butter one.
It was nice to see three items from the Redken Diamond Oil haircare range - shampoo, conditioner and hair treatment. The samples are good sizes (30mL and 50mL) which means I can try them out for a few shampoos and get a better idea of how I like them. Look forward to trying these.
Next item is a pretty little pink box by Moxie Collection. This contains samples of their tampons, pads and liners. I'll use these, but doubt I'll change from my usual brand as I don't see the point in buying fashionable, expensive items for my time-of-the month when normal brands are already quite costly.
The next item is a boxed eyeshadow brush from Master Makeup by Dean Nixon. It appears different brushes were randomly distributed in each box. I was happy to receive the eyeshadow brush, although it is quite a lot larger than one I would normally choose for myself.
Finally there was a Maybelline NY ColorSensation High Shine Lip Gloss in the colour 80 Gleaming Grenadine. This colour is a bright red with a very fine golden glitter through it. I am happy to have received this colour and like to switch between lipstick and lipgloss on different days according to my mood. I look forward to trying it out.
So, my overall thoughts on this box... (I just re-read what I'd written and realised I sounded like a real grump!). Generally I was impressed by this box, but I'm not sure if I am keen to pay $40 for it every month. I feel I got my money's worth but, as with any sample box, there are many items included which I wouldn't normally spend my money on. I will give this box another try next month (actually I have no choice since they had already taken a second payment out of my account before they had even sent me my first box).
Next month will be crunch time for me to start culling at least one of my subscription boxes.
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