September 2012 Birchbox..

*subtitle* one month away from unsubscribing and switching back to MyGlam (yupp, MyGlam).

Since I just got this like ...5 minutes ago. I am going on my complete first impressions. Hey, maybe they will change once I try some of the products, but even trying them may not change my feelings about unsubscribing. Next month will have to be something special...if it's mediocre it will not cut it.

Pictures will come tonight once my phone turns on.

Teal tissue paper is gorgeous though lol.




Card basically reads: "the September Issue". "September marks the starting line for the season's fashion bonanza" "We've put together a mini-mag filled with our favorite beauty trends" "Jumpstart your autumn beauty collection"

Birchbox - The Fall Lookbook (mini-mag): Hmmm...they came out with this just two months after Glossybox started a mini-mag....coincidence? It's the same size as the card. It is a very cute idea. Has a bunch of fall trends, pictures and products. I do like it and I do see myself using it.

First thing (the BIGGEST item @ a full 20g *can you feel the sarcasm through the computer?)
Vasanti BrightenUp! Enzymatic Face Rejuvenator (in lay mans terms - a chemical exfoliating cleanser).
99% natural, Paraben and Sulfate free. You can tell before even opening it that the bottle isn't full. I don't know what 20g is, but the package could fit 1 oz. Has a nice scent (contains coconut and papaya enzymes but it doesn't smell tropical - which I would HATE - just yet at least). I do like the idea of this product. I would have liked it more if I hadn't gotten basically the EXACT SAME THING in last months box (a brightening chemical exfoliating cleanser, and just wait...). I feel like I am going to email them and ask why.
(*4,3)

Second thing I saw (which turned out to be one of the "lifestyle extras"
Brush Guards: Now this I did really like because I've seen them around and seen people use them and really like this idea. You get 3, one large, 1 medium, 1 small (is what I am going to call them) which is basically a stipple brush/smaller blush brush, a flat shader brush or a larger fluffy crease, and a small which would be good if you had a pencil, brush or a pointed or smaller crease brush. It says full size is $5.50 but I don't know how many come in it. No matter what it's still a decent price and I probably will purchase these at some point in the future.
(5)

WEI to Go Beauty - Sleep Over Kit: Includes (2) *foil* packets for a total of 1.0 mL of Real Clean Gelled Oil Cleanser and (1) 3 mL packet of Ideal Skin Perfect Finish. It comes in one pink "folder". The Ideal Skin Perfect Finish is in light but I have not swatched or tried it. It probably will work. It's more like a tinted moisturizer and the packing on this one is kind of cool even though it is a foil packer thingy as well. They both feel thick in the packet. And depending on how much you use, you might be able to get at least 2 uses out of each cleanser (I know I will)....oh yeah...see that...ANOTHER CLEASNER!!! My biggest pet peeve is getting multiples of the same type of item (like cleansers, moisturizers etc.). Does not look like it contains any parabens based on the ingredients (I don't really care about that).
(4,3)

Mini Color Club Nail Polish in "Put a Pin in it":-Aside from the name having to go with fashion/fashion week, the name has nothing to do with the color (like most nail companies at least *try* to do). It's a light copper color with a lot of silver metallic. Here is my second big pet peeve of this box....the last time I got a color club nail polish...I got the gold one, which is the exact same thing as this nail polish, but gold and it gave me a lot of issues and I'm not very happy with it (it turned my nails BRIGHT yellow). Their metallics are a little hard to apply and get very thick on the brush very quick (especially if you are in a cold room or having a ceiling fan going). I just saw that the look book is describing this as a pink, not sure if they are colorblind or not..
(3)

Twistband in Purple Lace: This is super cute and will look awesome on a braid. The color and pattern are perfect for fall and I've heard good things about these. It's thick enough to still see the pattern. I got one of the skinny headbands that are like this that I do really like (I need to wash it though). So it's another two similar items that I've gotten recently. (I've only been getting birchbox for I think four months now).
(5)

Bvlgari Mon Jasmin Noir "The essence of a jeweler"Eau de Parfum: (odd tag line) - Yay for perfumes! (not really). This one at least has a little sprayer, but I'm not sure if I like that for this perfume. The reason being is that this is a *very* strong perfume. I wouldn't even wear it in the beginning of fall. Only on the the cold days when you are wearing multiple layers. Now I really don't mind trying lots of perfumes and having little bottles/samples of them IF IF IF, they actually surveyed you on what scents you like and only sent you scents that would be in a category that you may like. Like I said, this is very strong. I always read the description of the scent to get key words (minus what scents are in it because I am awful at that haha). And this one says "pays tribute to the most sensual and sophisticated *key word* women". The sophisticated is going to give away that this is probably going to smell like an "old lady perfume" or a "mature woman scent". Now, I do have to say that I don't always mind these scents, if they can be applied lightly. This one, because of the sprayer, and I mean I barely spritzed it, almost cannot be. This is the one that I am currently not liking the sprayer on. I did a little on my wrists and I can smell it with my hands down on the laptop and it's almost giving me a headache. It says "addictive new floral scent" ...yeah I don't know about that. The girls from eleventh gorgeous are not going to like this one, I don't see mistermakeupartist liking it either. :)
(2,1)

There were two other things:
1. a $25 Gift Card (for your purchase of $75 or more) - okay, I'll say the same thing as I did with myglam, if it requires a purchase, IT IS NOT A GIFT CARD, IT IS A COUPON! And it must be used by Sept. 30th, leaving no time to save up to use it. I'm going to guess that they are expensive. There was something about this in the look book but I don't know why..(0)
2. Another lifestyle extra was two free music downloads by an artist that I don't remember the name because my son through the card behind the couch and I can't currently get to it. (Nice idea, I'll see if I like the music)

I need to come up with a rating system like mistermakeupartist (on youtube). I'd use hers but I am not a professional makeup artist so I don't have a kit and can't bring myself to throw things out :))



Hmmm... 
*First Impression Rating*(On the product alone, I'm putting aside all my other feelings about the box itself, other products I've received etc. and focusing on just the product).

5 - I WANT TO USE THIS RIGHT NOW!!!
4 - I will use this within the next 2-3 days
3 - I'll probably use it within a week
2 - Eh, I might use it within the next month or so
1 - I really don't want this, but I can't care to bring myself to throw it away...
0 - Ew. I don't mind throwing this out....
(*-) - (Asterisk and then the number) -  I am currently using a product just like it/for this purpose, but if I wasn't, it would get this number.
Note - perfumes will be tried and then I will give them a rating. (I mean, I have to try it to know when I'd use it again)


And then I can do part of the review...I want to make graphics for these instead of having to type everything out...

Size:
*Awesome*
*Yeah, I'd call it a deluxe sample*
*I'd barely get 1-2 uses out of this*
*Are you blind? You want me to pay for this?*

Texture/Color:
*Love It!*
*Pretty Nice*
*I don't mind it*
*Cheap*
*Awful*

Product after Testing:
*I'd repurchase this tomorrow if I could*
*I'd repurchase this, the price is right*
*I'd repurchase is the price was lower/if it was on sale for a good price/coupon*
*I might consider repurchasing it*
*I need to use it/test it more*
*I do not wish to repurchase this item*
*Are you kidding me?*

Is this product worth the price?
*YES!*
*I can see why it's that price*
*I can find something just like it at a lower price*
*Not even close*