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9/10

June Birchbox, you were so worth the wait. If you follow my Birchbox reviews at all, you may know that my June box was “delivered” when it normally is every month, but one of my neighbors must’ve been pretty desperate for a package and taken mine. Totally fine, because Birchbox sent me a new one as soon as I contacted them about never receiving it and it was so worth the wait. Perhaps my favorite so far, I love and actively use every sample that was in it – especially the face cleanser and moisturizer, which is rare for me because normally anything besides soap and water makes me break out. As always, you can scroll over the pictures above for my quick out-of-ten recap, but the details are as follows:

Benefit gimme brow volumizing fiber gel is every natural-makeup loving girl’s best friend. I have never done anything to my eyebrows as far as makeup goes. They’ve always been the most Italian part of me – growing like weeds – so the most I’ve ever done is get them waxed and occasionally pluck in between. I’ve never used a filler or brow pencil, because honestly it’s just felt weird to me, but I recently started using “brow gel” to keep them in place. I’ve been using a Mary K sample I got from a free makeover I won about five months ago until this little gem came in my Birchbox. It is a tinted brow gel, almost exactly the same color as my eyebrows (shade 3) that goes on smooth and light. It’s been great for those days I don’t want to wear any makeup but want my brows to at least look in tact. The only downfall is the size of the brush. It’s miniature. I think if it was the same size as a mascara brush it would be easier to apply, but I also have pretty thick eyebrows so that may be a personal problem.

The most amazing facial scrub I’ve ever used came in a tiny blue bottle in June and I’ve had dreams about it ever since. dr. brandt® PoreDermabrasion is truly incredible. Most dermabrasion scrubs break me out or are just too rough on my skin, but this scrub is perfect. It has minuscule exfoliants that don’t feel harsh at all and instantly leave skin feeling refreshed and smooth. It also noticeably reduced the appearance of my pores after one use. I am truly hooked and saving up $58.00 as we speak to purchase the full-size.

I never used lip color until Birchbox came into my life and I’ve recently added The Beauty Crop PBJ Smoothie Stick to my list of favorites. It literally looks like a big crayon and applies smooth and creamy with just the right amount of color. Since I recently started using little pops of lip color, I don’t like daring or crazy shades, but this raspberry like shade is light and subtle. The downfall? It’s almost a little too subtle, even for me, so if you wear a lot of makeup it may seem non-existent. I think it could last a bit longer too, but maybe I’m just harsh on lip color because I like to eat a lot of food? We’ll never know…

Juice Beauty® Oil-Free Moisturizer smells amazing, feels smooth and is super light weight. My experience with moisturizers in the past has been a fear of clogged pours and oily skin, but this oil-free sample is the perfect follow-up to a pore dermabrasion cleanser and made me skin look flawless, without any tint! Unlike most, their main base is not water, but a blend of organic juices and just like I’d prefer a glass of apple juice in the morning over some tap water, I think my face feels the same way.

This box is really giving it away, but I’m definitely a maintenance beauty type of girl. I like throwing my hair in a bun so it dries curly and wearing chapstick instead of lipstick so my lips are healthy instead of colored. I like painting my toe nails because I pick at my fingernails and I don’t own eyeliner. That being said, it’s probably no surprise when I tell you I don’t fuss with shaving cream. Just a moisturized shea-butter razor and I’m good to go, but Whish Shave Cream with Vitamin K may have changed my mind. It’s more like a lotion than a shave cream and leaves skin smooth and subtle. Enhanced with vitamin K, it also works to reduce the appearance of redness or veins, which I’ve learned a lot of girls struggle with in their early 20’s (I thought I was a misfit, and I was okay with it). I honestly saw and felt a difference in my legs after one use and I think you will too.

Overall, I think you’d be making an amazing investment if you tried any of these products. You can’t go wrong with ways to enhance your body’s own natural beauty and to me, that’s what this box is all about.