October Eco Emi Review

I got my extra October Eco Emi box in the mail today! It came really quickly and it made me wonder if I'll be receiving all of my boxes so fast (Christine, the founder and CEO, said that they would be shipped out on Wednesday). I thought for sure it would take longer, especially due to the holiday.

The contents of this box are old news to probably everyone who is familiar with Eco Emi, but I can at least offer up my personal opinions about the products and the service as a whole. I subscribed in November, and since payments are for the following month I won't be receiving my first box until December. I was really happy when extra October boxes went on sale and I snatched one up!



The box comes shipped in a standard USPS flat rate box, and it looked like this upon opening. All of the items were tucked away in a pretty little velvet bag, and underneath the bag were some inserts about some of the companies in the bag.

For those who aren't familiar with Eco Emi, it's a monthly subscription service that sends out samples from eco-friendly companies for $15 a month. Learn more by visiting their site here.



These are all of the items that were in the box. As you can see, three of them were wrapped in tissue paper, which I think is really fun because it's like opening up presents. I already knew what was going to be in my box so the surprise element was missing, but I didn't mind because I knew that I already wanted to try everything!



Each box comes with a card that talks about the theme for the month and what products are included. The October theme was, very appropriately, Halloween and autumn. The text is hard to read on some of the lighter parts of the image, so an extra print out was included since the cards were printed much lighter than they were supposed to be.



On to the reviews! First I'll go over the food items...

• Vegan Organic Mulling Spice by Simply Organic (1.2 oz) - This is a full-sized product which usually costs $2.19. I haven't made it up yet since I don't have any apple juice in the house, but I love spiced cider and this just sounds so yummy! I can't wait to try this.
• Gin Gins Boost Ginger Candies by The Ginger People (1.1 oz) - I'm not a huge ginger fan (aside from gingerbread cookies), but I wanted to try these out anyway. They're interesting; a bit hard at first but after you suck on them for a bit they turn chewy. I can deal with the flavor, but it's not one of my favorites. A 6 pack of 3 oz bags normally costs $16.99.
• Blueberry Coconut Rise Energy Bar by Rise Foods (.85 oz) - I thought this was really yummy. It's kind of odd looking, brown with pieces of nuts and seeds and everything, but I enjoyed the flavor. It's nice and chewy and had the perfect hint of blueberry. A case of 12 bars costs $22.68.
• Organic Fair-Trade Oolong Tea in Peach Blossom by Zhena's Gypsy Tea (.07 oz) - I am a huge tea drinker so I was really happy to get this in the box. Peach is also one of my favorite flavors! I haven't tried this yet; I'm going to save it to drink at work. I'll let you all know what I think of it then.

And now for the beauty products:

• Organic Vegan Lip Balm by Crazy Rumors (.15 oz) - This was another full-sized product, which retails for $3.49. I absolutely love love love Crazy Rumors! If you recall, I reviewed them in my "Bevy of Balms" post (find it here). Christine sent out random balms from their Brew collection, and I was hoping that I wouldn't get Spiced Chai since I already have that flavor. I was lucky enough to get the Orange Bergamot balm, which is lovely. It smells really good and, like all Crazy Rumors balms, goes on really smoothly.
• Neuma Hair Care (.25 fl oz each) - I used these today and I love them. The samples included were the Renew shampoo and conditioner, Blow Dry Lotion, Style Texturizer, and Smoothing Creme. The Renews smell like peppermint and left my hair big and full after blowdrying (my thick hair sometimes gets weighed down by conditioners), which I loved. I also tried the Blow Dry Lotion and Smoothing Creme, which also were very nice. The Blow Dry Lotion had an herbal smell, while the Smoothing Creme had more of a citrus touch. I would have preferred for them all to smell like the Renew shampoo, but oh well. I would definitely consider buying these full-sized products, which range from $15-$25.
• Rejuvenation Candle by Big Dipper Wax Works (1.7 oz) - I have an obsession with candles so I was really excited to try this out. I know it's technically not a beauty product, but I felt it was more appropriate to add it to this grouping. The full-sized candle is $5 for 2 oz or $9.50 for 6 oz. The scent is sweet orange and clove bud, and it's very delicate. I had it burning for a while and couldn't really pick up much of a scent.
• Herbal Soap in Almond Spice by Herbaria (size unknown) - This is my favorite product in the box! It smells soooooo amazing! Spice-y scents are my all-time favorite, and this has a very strong spice scent. I'm not even going to use it as a soap because I don't want it to ever be gone. I think I'm going to stick it in my drawer to scent my clothes. The full-sized soap is $5.95 for 4.5 oz and I will definitely be buying some.

Bottom Line: I love this box because I love autumn and spice things, and I love Eco Emi because I enjoy learning about green, organic, and eco-friendly companies. I can't wait until I get my December box, I'm confident that it'll be full of fun holiday products!