Birchbox UK February 2014 - Love Your Style

Hi guys!

I mentioned on Twitter last month that January's Birchbox had disappointed me and I had no inspiration to blog its contents to you guys, so I was hoping that for February, Birchbox would pull it out of the bag and draw me back in. And pull it out of the bag they did.

This month's theme is 'Love Your Style', in line with London Fashion Week kicking off this weekend (and probably a hint at Valentine's Day too). There were notelets with awesome 'style' sayings on ("Being Happy Never Goes Out Of Style" being my personal favourite), and also a truly helpful liquid liner masterclass for the less steady-handed of us out there! Also a spoiler for March - Birchbox are partnering with Lulu Guiness, excited to see what this will mean for next month!

Right, onto the contents! Six items this month, two of which are full size(ish).

 

 

Eyeko London Skinny Mini Liquid Eyeliner in Black - I am classifying this as a full size product, although it's branded as a 'mini' version, it's definitely more than sample size and is one of my highlights this month. The black is very intense and the brush pen applicator leaves a really crisp line. I definitely need to work on my skills, but this is all the more incentive to! Based on £12 for the regular size product, I work out this mini version to be worth £6.84 - not bad!

Green & Blacks's Organic Dark Chocolate with 70% Cocoa Solids - a totally delicious little mouthful of dark chocolate, from a brand I already know and love. No problems here with this lifestyle extra!

Beauty Protector Protect & Oil - this is an exclusive launch to Birchbox, and claims to nourish hair whilst battling UV rays, heat and breakage. I am slightly cautious about using oils in my hair, because it can be prone to oiliness already, however I think this will be a perfect sample to take away on a warm holiday later in the year to protect my hair from the sun, heat and replenish moisture after swimming etc. Full size worth £16, I'd say this is only around 10ml but 1-3 drops used each time means this little bottle will last a while!

Leighton Denny Nail Polish in Coconutty - this is another product I'm excited about. It's a full size nail polish in a beautiful mink colour with flecks of gold sparkle. Claims to be 'high perfomance', so once I've finished this manufacturing placement and can get girly with nail polish again, I'll be putting it to the test! Worth £11 - more than the price of the Birchbox alone!

Gilchrist & Soames Shower Gel - a handy-sized sample of shower gel, perfect for when I have to suitcase-hop with work for training. Smells fresh and claims to refresh and hydrate skin (don't all shower gels claim that.?!). Not overwhelmed with this one but happy all the same. At £13.75 for full size, this 45ml sample works out at worth £2.61.

Urbanveda Radiance Exfoliating Facial Polish - I'm always happy to try out face cleansers and scrubs so was interested to find this product in my box. I quite like the botanical fragrance to this product and the exfoliating beads are small so not too brutal on the skin. Nice to have a product that's very natural, made in the UK, not tested on animals; guilt-free cleansing! This 20ml sample is worth £1.44.

Overall I'm really pleased with this box, looking forward to trying out the eyeliner and the nail polish, and the chocolate has already been successfully 'sampled' #sorrynotsorry.

Anyone with oil-prone hair, would love to hear if you've tried out the Protect & Oil and your thoughts please!

JAM x