January Birchbox Review

I think Birchbox may have had some shipping issues this month because my box shipped later than it usually does, and I saw a few other people around social media with the same issue.  It appeared that those who ordered one of the curated boxes got theirs on time, but those of us that went with the standard boxes didn't.  Mine always takes a frustratingly long time to get to me anyway, though, which is annoying because I live in New York.  I wish Birchbox wouldn't ship through Newgistics because they're terrible.

Anyway!  Birchbox announced that all of the boxes are going to have different designs this year, and that we should hang on to them because they have some kind of surprised planned for the end of the year if you collect them all.  I'm intrigued.  The January box was aptly themed "Let's Do This!," as you can see from the photo above.

To go along with the theme, they're also posting challenges each day that can help you lead a healthier lifestyle (check it out here).  You can enter to win prizes daily, too.

This box was just okay to me.  I didn't really love any of the samples, but it wasn't the worst box I ever received.  They can't all be winners!

• Mirenesse Mattfinity Cream Lip Rouge (~$7.04 for 1.7 fl oz) - I got the shade "New York," which is a bright pink/red color.  I posted this for swap because I don't think I'll really use it.  I have a ton of lip products, and I don't want to open this one up and use it and end up not liking it.  I feel like I've gotten a lot of Mirenesse products from Birchbox and I'm not the biggest fan of the brand, so I'd be happy not to get any more from them for a while.
• Essentiel Elements Wake Up Rosemary Body Lotion (~$3.56 for 1.5 fl oz) - This was the sample I picked during sample selection.  I wasn't thrilled about the choices this month, but I picked this anyway because I can always use another hand cream.  This "energizes with invigorating rosemary and mint."  The texture is a little thin but I like it.  The scent is also very minty, so those who don't like herbal scents probably wouldn't care for this.
• Harvey Prince Hello Liquid Loofah (~$.94 for .51 fl oz) - I got the Ageless Liquid Loofah in my September box and I didn't care for it.  I really like Harvey Prince's scents, but I found that this didn't lather well at all.  I'm a fan of the Hello scent, though.
• Sumita Color Contrast Eyeliner ($4.40 for .024 oz) - I got the shade "Jaipur Gold" which looks like an olive/gold on the packaging.  I didn't open this to try it since I don't think I'll ever use it, so I posted it for swap.
• Silhouette by Christian Siriano ($1.36 for 1 ml) - I really like this scent but I hate the sample packaging.  It's difficult to open; you have to twist it and then pull the cap off, and since there's so little liquid to begin with I'm always afraid it will spill when I pop the cap off.  The scent itself is sweet with musky notes.

Bottom Line: My box had an approximate retail value of $17.30, which I think is one of the lower values I've gotten recently.  I liked the Essentiel Elements sample the best, and the Silhouette perfume was good except for the packaging.  The rest of the items were posted for swap, so this box wasn't exactly a winner for me.

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