July Birchbox Review

So even though I cancelled my Birchbox subscription (for the second time) after my June box, I re-joined shortly after because I found out that they were pairing with Glamour for July's box.  Glamour posted a sneak peek of the brands that would be included, and I really liked the way it sounded.  I'm glad that I reactivated my subscription, because I'm pretty happy with my July box!

The theme for the month was the five senses, which is apparent from the box sleeve.  I loved the green and blue hues, it's my favorite color combo.

The tissue paper inside was also blue and green, which was a fun break from the usual pink.  I do like the pink, but these theme boxes are something nice and different.  My box took way too long to get to me again (8 days!), and I still think it's ridiculous how long it takes to ship from NYC to Rochester.  But oh well, if I want to stay a subscriber I'm just going to have to suck it up.

I received four beauty samples and two lifestyle extras, which is a good quantity of items for $10.  My loot included:

• beautyblender - I've heard a lot of buzz about the beautyblender sponge, so I was interested to try it out for myself.  It definitely applied my makeup nice and smoothly, but at the end of the day it's just a sponge, not something I would spend $26 on (for two of them).  I was also turned off by the company owner's aggressive comments on the official YouTube video.
• Jouer Luminizing Moisture Tint - I have also heard quite a bit about Jouer products but have never tried them before.  The shade I got was "Bronzed," which was perfect for my skin.  It wasn't the best for coverage of my redness, but the shade blended in really well and was just luminous enough.  It was also really weightless.  I would consider buying a full-sized bottle of this.
• Stila It's Go Time Lip Glaze - The color of this gloss ("Action") is gorgeous!  It's a mauve/pink with flecks of gold in it and I just love it.  It also smells really nice.  I usually hate the twist dispensers because I feel like I twist and twist and nothing comes out, but this one dispensed nicely.
• Harvey Prince Hello - I love Harvey Prince perfumes!  I've tried three (Yogini, Ageless, and Eau Flirt), and Hello is a great addition to my collection.  I usually don't wear citrus-y scents, but this one is fun and perfect for the summer.  And thumbs-up for it being an atomizer!
• Tea Forte minteas - I've had minteas before (through Conscious Box) and they are super yummy.  The flavor I previously had was Ginger Pear, and this time I got Cocoa Mate.  Both are awesome and I was really happy to get another tin of these through Birchbox.
• Birchbox earbuds - Everyone got these in their box this month, and it was supposed to come with a month of premium Spotify.  I haven't checked out the playlist on the info card, so maybe the Spotify link is on that.  But anyway, the color of these is really cute (reminds me of cotton candy), but the sound quality is terrible so I probably won't actually use these.

Bottom Line: My July Birchbox was pretty good!  I cancelled in the past because I felt like I was only getting skincare, but if Birchbox keeps up sending me stuff like this I'll probably hang on to my subscription for a while.  I'm definitely staying on until at least August because I'm only 10 points away from having 300 to spend in the store ($30).

*Disclaimer: I purchased this Birchbox with my own money and was not asked to review it.  I was not compensated for this review in any way and the honest opinions here are entirely my own.

Stila In The Know Palette Review

I recently won a giveaway for a Sephora gift card, and I had it in my mind to treat myself to a Stila palette since I had never tried their eyeshadows before.  When it came time to spend it, though, I talked myself out of the palette because I thought, "I don't need another palette."  But then I realized that I don't actually need any makeup, so I went ahead and got what I wanted!

I have heard great things about Stila before, and I really wanted to get their "Stylish In Seoul" palette because that's where I was born, but it was out of stock online and my gift card was an e-gift code.  My second choice was the "In The Moment" palette because I love purples, but I ultimately chose the In The Know palette because it's new to their collection and is made up of all mattes.  I usually gravitate toward shimmers, but I wanted to try something different.  The shades are also really gorgeous.

The palette retails for $39 and comes with 10 shadows and a full-sized Smudge Stick.  I was drawn to the shades because they're all "Earth-inspired," and I have an affinity for neutrals.  So I guess this is the third neutral palette I've acquired, but they make me happy!

Another aspect of this palette that I really liked was that it came with a little booklet that contained tutorials for six looks.  These shades can definitely be worn to work and played up for night.  For work I used Air, Clay, and Earth.  I think Clay is my favorite color in the palette because it's so pretty; it's slightly peachier than my skin tone so I just love the way it looks all over my lid.  The shadows apply decently with a brush, but when I swatched them I noticed that they didn't feel as soft as I had envisioned them to be.  By "soft" I mean that I was expecting a really smooth application, and in reality their color payoff wasn't as solid as I was hoping for (Fire is definitely the most pigmented).  I have yet to try the Smudge Stick (shade: Halfmoon), but I did swatch it on my hand out of curiosity and it applies super smoothly!

Bottom Line: I think this is my second-favorite neutral palette that I have in my collection.  The colors go together very well and I like that it comes with a full-sized Smudge Stick, too.  I would recommend this for someone who wants a great set of eyeshadows but might not want to pay as much as some other palettes cost.

Check out my swatches after the cut!