August Glossybox review

I know what you’re all thinking about the title of this post.
“But Fran, you’re a loyal Birchbox girl. You have been for years!”
And you’re right I was, or I am, I’m not fully decided yet. But for the last few months I’ve been seriously disappointed with my boxes from Birchbox, so like any savvy shopper I thought I’d have look around and see what else was out there.
I couldn’t just cancel my Birchbox subscription and sign up to any old beauty box though, so in true scientific fashion I have ordered both boxes this month and for the next few months too in order to see which I prefer.

The first thing I noticed about my Glossy box is that it’s a lot bigger than the Birchbox. Let’s have a closer look at the contents shall we?

The first thing I saw when I opened it up was a welcome card, with some product details on the back, and underneath that the goodies themselves, all wrapped in pink tissue paper and tied with a bow.

It was very pretty, but I was more excited to get my grubby little paws on the products themselves, and the box was bursting with them!

Sure enough, my little card told me, this month’s box contained four full sized products. Let’s look at them all laid out nicely.

The first sample out of my box was the full sized MeMeMe lipglide in Playful Peach.

It’s a peachy/pink colour and glides on very smoothly but I did notice it smelt very waxy which wasn’t pleasant. I also thought the coverage wasn’t particularly good as I could still see my natural lips through the colour. It’s okay for a quick wash of colour on the go but I’m not convinced it’s the best quality.

My second sample was the full sized Emite powder blush in shade 108.

It looks a bit pinker here than it really is, the actual sample has more of a bronze tint to it. In fact the info card describes this as a blunzer (blusher/bronzer). It’s quite dark for my skin, or maybe that’s because I have no tan at all at the moment due to a serious lack of sunlight, so I’m not sure how much use I’ll be getting out of it.

It’s not totally useless though, I think with some bronzer already in place and a gentle hand with my blusher brush I could get away with it.

Sample number three was a full sized lash primer from Manna Kadar.

This can be used solo to nourish your lashes or layered under mascara to enhance the effect.
It makes your lashes white when you first apply, but if you leave it it will dry clear. It also has some hold on its own so you can curl your lashes and then apply for a lash friendly daytime look, or layer the mascara on top as suggested.
I like this product, it’s nice to get a lash product that isn’t just another mascara and I appreciate the novelty.

My next sample was a purifying cleanser from SASS.

It took me a while to realise that this was a cleanser for your intimate areas, as the product description on the card was not very clear. I’ve never felt the need for a specific girly wash so I don’t quite get the relevance of this sample. It smells nice, very clean and fresh, and the smell reminds me of cucumbers. You can use this as an all over body wash, which is probably what I’ll do but I’m not convinced this is a product I need in my life.

The last sample in my Glossybox was a full sized calming face toner from Naobay.

Supposedly with a citrus scent although I couldn’t smell it all, this product is designed to remove makeup whilst cleansing, calming and hydrating skin.
I liked the packaging, it looks nice on my dresser and it does remove my makeup but struggles when it comes to the eye area. It just smudged my mascara all over my face. My favourite test for a makeup remover is to go over my face with my micellar water and a cotton bud and see how much is left and this didn’t totally pass. There were still traces of foundation all over my face.

I probably wouldn’t use this product to remove makeup, but as a cleanser/toner before bed it leaves my skin feeling quite fresh. I’m happy with the full sized product but am not convinced I’ll repurchase it.

And that’s all folks. My initial impressions are that I like the wide variety of brands that Glossybox brings to the table and they have been very generous with sample sizes (this month at least). It’s nice to try something other than the few brands Birchbox like to cycle through again and again. I would give this box a solid 7/10.

Are you a Birchbox, Glossybox or some other beauty box subscriber?
Which is your favourite and why?

Fran X