Birchbox and Rifle Paper Co. partnered together for April’s delicately designed, Spring collection box. If you’re unfamiliar with Rifle, they’re a stationary and lifestyle brand that officially launched in 2009 and took off from a small, garage start-up to one of the 500 fastest growing companies in 2014. The fact that Rifle believes in the art of handwriting and personal gifting, makes them a great partner for Birchbox’s subscription-based service that gets its members excited to go check the mail.
Like always, you can scroll over the above product images to find out what I rated each of them, but I’ll give a brief recap on them below so you can know the reasoning behind the number.
Wish Shave Crave Shaving Cream is a special thing. I have to be totally honest and say I never, ever use shaving cream. I always get the razors with the built in moisturizing strips and call it a day. I’ve never been a fan of the foamy cream, not to mention how much extra time it takes. This shaving cream is more like a lotion that you can quickly and thinly spread over the area you’re prepping to shave. I noticed a big difference in not only the feel of my skin, but the efficiency of the razor when using this. I still don’t like the extra time it took though, so I think this is more of a substitute product for women who normally use shaving cream.
Next, I tried English Laundry Notting Hill Femme Eau de Parfum – 1.7 and it made me wish that Birchbox had a scent preference section because boy oh boy, I wasn’t a fan. You can tell it’s a well made perfume with perfected packaging and the same size was generous, but this smelt like something my great aunt would put on her Christmas list. It was very florally with cotton undertones that smelt like a hospital room after flowers had been delivered. I associated a lot of memories with scents, as I’m sure a lot of people do, so it could be totally different for you. But for me, this was not the glass slipper I was waiting on from the perfume prince.
Acure Organics Pore Minimizing Facial Scrub is a beautifully priced blessing I never knew existed. Usually, I can’t use a lot of facial products because they actually make me break out. Soap and water is about as far as I can push it without a wash that opens my pores up so much I actually break out from it. This red clay mask is super gentle, exfoliating without harshly wearing away at skin and moisturizing at the same time with it’s creamy base. At $12.99 a bottle, this is something I can jump on the band-wagon for.
While the samples were super small, I really loved the color palette that Au Naturale Cosmetics Trio Set was centered around. This is the sort of palette your rely on in the Summer months when your tan does enough for your complexion and you don’t want to cover up your sunglass lines or freckles, you just want to enhance them. With the little bit that the sample provided, I had the opportunity to use the entire collection once and I was really impressed with the long-lasting wear of each (eyeshadow, lipstick and blush).
Davines OI All in One Milk is the miracle potion I never knew I needed. It truly is an all-in-one hair product that I already wish I had more of. At $30.00 it seems pricey, but a little goes a long way. I foresee my sample lasting at least another week or two, which is well over a month of use every time I was my hair. Not only does your hair smell like you just left a salon after you blow dry/style it, but it feels that way too!
Davines OI Shampoo & Conditioner and definitely better together, but at $28.00 and $34.00 a piece, that may not be feasible. The smell is pleasant and adds to the wonders the “All in One Milk” provides, but I don’t feel like these are essential products. I tried using the shampoo by itself when I was in a hurry and didn’t get the same volume-driven results as I did when I used the two in conjunction. Either way, it’s good to know Davines has a whole slew of products ready to fight on the main lines and protect your hair against the things you don’t think about.
Well Worth It 