Beauty Subscriptions 411: Why You Shouldn't Birchbox?

 

I've been a consistent subscriber to Birchbox for three months now. I wanted to share my experience with them so far. I am currently awaiting my November Birchbox but I already got a sneak peak of my shipped samples. I am in the process of getting my December 2017 Birchbox invoiced.

I do want to state whatever opinion is stated in this article is mine alone and I am by no means an affiliate or representative to Birchbox. Also Birchbox's website and app have been glitching lately but the flower box with gold background is actually September's box.

What's so good about Birchbox?

Today in the beauty industry and market women and men love trying out curated samples of products before purchasing a full size item. This helps save money, time, and avoid any effort wasted on buying something that wasn't what you expected.

Birchbox Women is a year older than Ipsy and was founded in 2010. Birchbox Men was founded in 2012. Today I am here to talk about Birchbox for Women. By joining Birchbox you will get an assortment of Birchbox only perks; this allows you to shop their exclusive Birchbox discovery kits, limited edition boxes, and an occasional promotional discount on certain items. From what I know, you do not have to be a subscriber to shop their store inventory.

Birchbox doesn't blindly select samples to every subscriber. It keeps track of your personal beauty profile through a beauty profile generator. Once you complete your profile they try to optimize and complete a perfect experience for the subscriber. Each subscriber will get 5 personalized beauty samples tailored for them. If you are billed on time when the billing date is scheduled you will have an option of customizing your box by selecting one sample of three options. 

Your beauty profile generator will ask: How would you describe your complexion? What are your skin concerns? How would you describe your skin tone? What color is your hair? How would you describe your hair? How do you style your hair? What's your level of beauty knowledge? How would you describe your beauty style? What is your ethnicity? What is your household's annual income?

I do have to say the options you can select aren't necessarily unique. Some options are limiting and not every individual will completely fit to the answers given. I definitely don't see options for light with warm undertones for a skin tone choice or even yellow with warm undertones.

First Time Subscribers
If you are a first time subscriber you will be given a deluxe sized sample of the current promotional product being offered. When I joined in September 2017 I received after inserting a code Smashbox Be Legendary Liquid Lip. Let's break down my first Birchbox together shall we?

I should have known better than to ever believe that Birchbox's box is a flexible thing that I would personally find use for. The whole concept of receiving samples in a box is kind of dull. It takes up way too much space. Despite the apps "cute" ways of revamping your box for everyday use... I still am not buying into it, because I would never care enough to put push pins or paperclips in them. Also at the far left of my box is the product deluxe sample size I got for joining.

September 2017 Box Theme: "Your Time to Shine!"

These are the 5 samples I received: Marcelle BB Cream Golden Glow (Full Size Retails For: $29), Vasanti Eye Wonder 2.0 Super Powered Eye Cream w/ Ceramic Tip (Full Size Retails For: $42), Daily Concepts Your Facial Micro Scrubber (Full Size Retails For: $8), amika Un.Done Texture Spray (Full Size Retails For: $24), Lord & Berry Glow Strobing Pencil Travel Size (Retails For: $10).

The Marcelle BB Cream Golden Glow was too light for my skin tone and it did not do well on my combination skin. Also the price is a bit too high for my budget. The Vasanti Eye Wonder 2.0 Super Powered Eye Cream w/ Ceramic Tip felt nice on my skin, very soft texture, and smooth. However, let's be honest the amount of sample I received for that product was not enough for me to properly indicate if it truly was de-puffing for my eyes. I noticed no difference after getting 6-7 uses out of that product. If I did notice a slight difference it's because I got more than 8 hours of sleep the night before. It makes sense that my eyes would not look horrid if I get enough sleep. For a price point of $42 to buy full size I pass. The results I got made me realize there was not enough product to judge whether they were true to their product's promise.

The Daily Concepts Your Facial Micro Scrubber is not ideal for acne skin. It is labeled gentle but it is not. It actually made my face bleed. So if you have sensitive skin or acne prone skin please be careful when using this. It really hurt after gently using it but it did exfoliate blackheads on my nose. The amika Un.Done Texture Spray smelled great but would I really dish out $24 bucks just because of smell? No. It did give my hair a lightweight feel when texture holding it and flexibility with limited to no flaking. It was not impressive enough for me to quit buying a simple Herbal Essence hairspray that is way cheaper at a regular drugstore.

I had fun with the Lord & Berry Glow Strobing Pencil: I actually still have some of that product left to use. It makes a great brow bone highlight pencil. I would definitely buy it once I run out. Here is the swatch of that below: *(Please note it is only great for the brow bone. I tried the cheeks, cupid's bow, the nose, and you're better off using your favorite brand for those areas.)

My first impressions on my first Birchbox?
I was not impressed and felt kind of bitter because the micro scrubber although labeled as gentle made my face bleed. In my beauty profile I had put one of my skin concerns was acne. The generator obviously made me feel like a algorithm (which I am to it) and not a person since they brushed that fact away.The only thing I truly enjoyed was the Lord & Berry Glow Strobing Pencil. Was that really enough for me to stay for $10 a month?

I wasn't sure if I was being biased to be honest. I have had positive first time experiences with other beauty subscriptions. I decided to give it another chance.

My Second Birchbox:

October 2017 Box Theme: Behind the Scenes

The samples I got for my October 2017 Birchbox were: Eyeko Skinny Liquid Liner in Pitch Black (Full Size Retails For: $22),  Embryolisse Lait‑Crème Concentré (Full Size Retails For: $28), Beauty Protector Protect & Detangle (Full Size Retails For: $23.50), Lavanila The Healthy Fragrance Vanilla and Coconut Perfume (Full Size Retails For: $48), and Lipstick Queen Lip Liner in Nude (Full Size Retails For: $18).

Eyeko London Skinny Liquid Liner in Pitch Black claims to be smudge proof and precise. Save your money ladies. Smudge proof can only go so far. The precision of the felt tip is a bit precise but not an aid for those who have unsteady hands. Definitely not fool proof. The whole smudge proof claim I can't buy into it. I tried it out on my eyelids and hand. I'll show you a swatch on my hand below. Here you go, take note that the swatch on the top is how it applies, and the one on the bottom is after I smudged it with my finger (as I would if I were to rub my eyes). I'm one of those gals that rubs her eyes and forgets she had eyeliner or eyeshadow on (oops!). Not that smudge proof huh? Kind of falls out there and there is slight bleeding of the eyeliner after a smudge. Almost similar to when you write with a ball point pen, how sometimes your hand gets on top of the words, and that creates smudge on the paper. You don't want to deal with that after finishing applying your eyeshadow look. I did and it wasn't fun.

So they gave me a hydration cream sample that I listed above, that French women love, and that's where it kind of died out for me. Embryolisse Lait‑Crème Concentré is great as a primer and worth buying when you want a luxury primer that isn't e.l.f. cosmetics or native to the USA. If you want to feel like a french gal that is go for it. How dumb does that sound though (to me it did)? I know nothing of France but my primer French women love. That's all I have to say about it. I can't get behind that bandwagon. Would I go out of my way to buy it? No. It's not because of the price. It's because if I were to get a high end primer I would go with Smashbox Cosmetics primers.

Beauty Protector Protect & Detangle it has a dual use as it states, yes it does detangle, and it does protect from heat when straightening your hair (350 degrees cleared!). Other than that, I pass yet again, because I personally am okay with Mane & Tail Detangler and Treseme heat protector. I think I might be low maintenance ladies but I just like beauty on a budget. I won't ever shell out too much cash on hair products but I will for makeup.

Lavanilla The Healthy Fragrance Vanilla Coconut it was a nice smelling perfume my husband said it smelled nice. I think they ignored my age group of 18-24. At my current age, I don't care much for luxury perfume. I rely on Bath and Body Co. body sprays mostly or Victoria's Secret sprays. I never shell out $48 in any of those stores for just one scent. Sorry, Birchbox I feel this is something women in their 30s-40s would appreciate more. Not me though.

Lipstick Queen Liner in Nude was great. I loved it. I've been using it a lot with my lipsticks since the nude shade works well with much of my matte lipsticks and gloss. Here's a swatch for you:

The Neutral

1. The Birchbox App

I can't say I'm impressed with Birchbox. Their app isn't that fun to use. Most of the articles they do offer on how to apply your currently sampled beauty products are linked to a YouTube video. There is no text description on applications for certain makeup underneath linked videos.

I am a fan of picture illustrations and not having to be forced to watch a YouTube video to know how to use a product. Aside from an occasional picture reminder sent to subscribers of a quote saying "You are beautiful! Just a little reminder for you in case you forgot." which is cute that's the only nice thing about the app. The app allows you to get a sneak peak of your sampled shipped products and keep an eye on tracking your box. The app isn't necessary to be able to do that as you can easily view that by logging into your account on your computer.

Birchbox app also has articles written by Birchbox babes but the way they organize the articles is tedious. You are greeted with random articles every time you go to your homepage that are outdated and not the current up to date one. I did find some interesting light reads which I will show you below:

 

I do have to note that the articles they do offer isn't on currently trending makeup applications, or trending topics, but factual helpful advice for an everyday woman. It would just be more fluid on the app if they organized them in sections by month, year, and had a scroll feature to select the articles on whatever month interests the subscriber. Instead everything is always so clunky.

2. Customer Service

So far my customer service with Birchbox has been professional, quick responses are given, and easy communication without a bump of frustration is achieved. It's easy to e-mail them for any questions or concerns. You will get a reply within 24 hour or less.

The Bad

1. Delayed box deliveries

Make sure you subscribe prior to the billing date in which their system is scheduled to charge subscriptions. When I first joined I joined after the billing cycle and I received my box later than their original schedule due to that factor.

I admit that after my October 2017 box I quit my subscription but then rejoined November 2nd when I saw they had a promotional code: doublefun where you get 5 customized samples and 5 mystery samples if you join Birchbox. Due to that I was billed on the 3rd and my box has been delayed. I still have not gotten it. I did contact customer service November 13th and through a string of interactions I got a tracking number finalized by November 21st. My box should come before the end of November.

2. Their Tracking Provider is Torture

It does not update real time as it is traveling to you which means updates on tracking notifications can be delayed by 5 business days. Now this can worry a lot of subscribers who aren't sure what the status of their already billed box is. Patience is key.

3. Their Birchbox Exclusives Are Not Always Full-Size Products

I thought they would be but nope, I was wrong, so are their exclusives really worth it when what is being sold is not full sized? I don't think so. This The Maid Up Ready Kit sounded good to me but then I passed when I saw that it was minis. Here's an example.

So it turns out much of this is deluxe-size or travel-size. I can't get into deluxe size samples if you are going to treat yourself, girl treat yourself well, but I will cave for travel-size items. So always before purchasing anything from Birchbox make sure you read the Birchbox Breakdown. It'll save you a headache trying to return.

Final Verdict:
No, Birchbox is not worth your time, unless you are okay with all that was said above, then by all means go for it. I'm going to post an article about my November 2017 Birchbox that I am still waiting to get in the mail. Was this article informative? Do you feel that I am missing any other key insights about Birchbox? Would you like me to cover an area you were curious about? Let me know in a comment below by 11/30/2017. We can explore your curiousity together in the December 2017 Birchbox. If you are not interested though and feel I have touched the subject well let me know in a comment below. That way I can terminate my December 2017 Birchbox in time.

I took the time to go on my Instagram and search #Birchbox and I found that another new subscriber also agreed with me in feeling not impressed by their sample selection. So I suppose I am not being too critical then. Have you tried Birchbox? What are your thoughts on them?

Thank you, for stopping by, and reading, also for any interaction you give this article. Please resteem, upvote, and comment. I would greatly appreciate it. As always follow me @CamposMusing on Steemit, Instagram, or at my website by clicking here