Birchbox Subscription Box Review + Coupon – December 2016

Every month, Birchbox lets subscribers pick between a curated box (all samples revealed) or a single sample choice and be surprised by the rest of the items.

My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).

This review is of the Sample Choice, $10 a month, box. 

The Subscription Box: Birchbox

The Cost: $10 a month (get one month free and $10 to spend in the shop with an annual subscription!)

COUPON: Get $5 (50 points) to spend in the Birchbox shop when you subscribe with coupon code SUBSCRIBENOW50

OR

Try any of these free gift with purchase coupons on orders of $35 or more!) And don’t forget your free mystery sample pack on orders of $35 or more!

OR

Check out more details here about the 40% off sale on Aces-only Limited Edition Boxes, Kits, and other beauty sets and 30% off sale for everyone, too!

The Products: Beauty and lifestyle samples selected by the Birchbox team.

Ships to: US, France, Spain and the UK and Canada

Check out all of our Birchbox reviews and the Beauty Subscription Box Directory!

Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!

Each box comes with a card that has a blurb of the month’s theme and focus. December’s theme is “Shine On!” and is designed around products that are “brilliant and festive, plus treats for on-the-go touch ups and easy gifting.” Sounds like exactly what I need this month!

And the flip side of the card always lists the names and details of the items in your box!

Also included in my box this month was a little sheet with gift tags!

The first thing I noticed about my box was there was an extra little bonus from Birchbox this month, a little pocket mirror.

It’s one-sided, so there’s no hinge or anything. I always keep some kind of little mirror in my purse, so I appreciate this as a little extra.

Saphira Hair Mineral Mud - 0.7 oz, Value $2.55 (Full size: 8.5 oz, $31)

This is a nice hair mask! I love that it only takes 5 minutes because sometimes I just can’t commit to an extra 20 minutes pre-shower with a toddler around or during naptimes. This smells amazing and definitely left my hair feeling softer and more hydrated – much needed during these winter months especially!

Hey Honey Walk the Walk Propolis Foot Cream - 0.84 oz (25 ml), Value $3.83 (Full size: 150 ml, $23)

This foot and heel cream contains propolis extract, jojoba oil, chamomile, and aloe vera, sage essential oil, basil essential oil, and is paraben-free. The ingredients work together to purify, soothe inflammation, relieve soreness, and naturally eliminate bacteria. I’m not generally a big fan of herb scents in my beauty products so I was relieved that I mostly smell the chamomile. This formula hydrated my feet well without being greasy or weird-feeling. I also like using this on elbows and even a little on my knuckles when they get really dry this time of year.

Real Chemistry Luminous 3-Minute Peel - 0.17 fl oz, Value $4.80 (full size: 1.7 fl oz, value: $48)

This peel was my sample choice this month because I’ve tried it before and love it! It has an acid-free formula to exfoliate, and in the 3 minutes, this takes you literally see the dead skin cells this is sloughing up and washing away. When I worked at Sephora, I found a very similar product from Peter Thomas Roth that uses fruit enzymes to do the same thing. I like this Real Chemistry peel but I like the PTR one just as much, and you actually get twice as much product for the same price from PTR.

Laura Gellar New York GlamLASH Dramatic Volumizing Mascara – Value $17 (full-size: 0.28 oz, value: $24)

I love this mascara! I hadn’t tried this one before, but I really love the wand and formula. It was completely clump-free, the thin wand really helped with separation and length. It was also easy to apply mess-free since I was able to get a lot of control and precision from the shape of the wand. I was ready to say this is my new favorite mascara, but after a full day, I had a lot of product smudged under my eyes. It didn’t look good, but I’m wondering if topping with a coat of clear mascara or waterproof top coat could help with that. It’s a shame, though – it’s fantastic in every other way!

I’m bummed, the mascara smudge for me, but I’ll have to try it on a couple more days to see if that’s a consistent issue with it. Maybe it was just something about the day.

Here is how the Laura Gellar mascara looks on my lashes.

Lollia by Margot Elena Dream eau de parfum – sample

This perfume is a mix of linen, white tea, bergamot, and honeysuckle. Unfortunately, this is a definite miss for me. It smells powdery and soapy and doesn’t settle into a fresh classic scent, like Birchbox’s website says it’s meant to. I will say, though, that I love the packaging – the full-size bottle has the same navy and gold pattern on it as this sample card.

Verdict: I’m happy with my December Birchbox. The sample choices underwhelmed me a little this month, but I was able to get more of an expensive favorite that I’ve tried before. Aside from the perfume being a bit of a throwaway sample for me, the rest of the products were things I enjoyed finding. The value adds up to $28.18, which I’m happy with.

What do you think about Birchbox? What samples did you get this month?