You Beauty Discovery Box

As I've mentioned in a recent post, I've been looking to possibly subscribe to a beauty box lately, so that I can try out sample sized new to me products, before buying full size versions.  Back in January, I ordered the Glamour Edit Beauty Box from Latest in Beauty, which wasn't a subscription box, but was a one off purchase from their collection of boxes.

It was packed full of lovely products, some of which I've used, some of which I'm waiting to use.
At only £14 for 12 or 13 products it was amazing value and I've been keeping an eye on their current limited edition boxes to see if another box caught my eye, but it hasn't so far.

Anyway, I then heard about the You Beauty Discovery Box, which is a subscription box, but one which costs just £6.95 per month including postage.  At such a good price I had to take a look.  I think that the company is owned by the Daily Mail, just in case anyone is interested in this, and although I don't read this newspaper, I decided to subscribe to this box, as I liked how it works.

Basically, you pay £6.95 per month and receive a box of 4 or 5 beauty products each month.  This is the normal amount of products for many of the beauty boxes out there, but where this box differs is that you get to choose two of the products from a selection that they provide on the website.  In addition, this box is at least half the price of many of the others, which will probably be reflected in the products I realise, but we'll see. The remaining products you receive with the two chosen ones, they pick for you, so they are a surprise.

This suited me, as I didn't want to receive lots of random items that I would never use, and having some control over what they send you is great, as you are at least going to get a couple of items you actually want.

My March box arrived very promptly last Saturday morning and here it is.  (Sweet little box, ideal for gift wrapping/storage.)


  

And here's what was inside it.

One of the items I chose to receive was the Illamasqua lipstick, which is a beautiful matt shade of bright red.  My current red lipstick, which I wear a lot in the summer months, has almost run out, so this will definitely be my replacement.  I have tried it on and I did like the colour.  I found it felt quite dry on the lips though, so I might put a balm or something over the top or underneath.   I'm pretty happy with it though.  More so because I think these retail for £18 or thereabouts, a lot more than the whole box cost me. I definitely probably wouldn't buy it myself at full price and even a drugstore lipstick these days can cost as much as this entire box.

It was interesting to note that the headquarters of this brand is down the same street as our vet's practice, so I'll be checking them out next time we go there.  (Because I'm nosy like that!)

The second product I chose was this sample tube of Good Things Manuka Honey Radiance Face Mask.  It's pretty small, 15ml in volume, but should allow me to use it at least once or twice.  It is supposed to brighten and refresh the skin.  It contains white clay and beeswax, which sounds nice and is parabens, mineral oils and SLS free.  It still does have lots of other long named ingredients though, but I'll happily give it a go.  I believe you can purchase this brand from Boots.

Also included in the box were these Dove Youthful Vitality shampoo and conditioner for ageing hair. Not sure how they knew I'm ageing (aren't we all darling), as I never gave them any details about my age! Luckily for them, I'm not insulted in any way and am happy to try these 50ml sized products, which will also be a great size for travel or on occasion to take to the gym.

There was one other item in the box which was a Nakd Cocoa Orange bar. Here's a picture, it's the one on the right, which of course I've eaten.  It was quite rich, so I probably wouldn't choose to buy it again.  It was full of very healthy ingredients though, mainly dates, cashews, cocoa powder.  I'm not a great cereal bar eater, but I am always happy to try something new.

What I've just realised on reading the little booklet that comes with this box, is that this month's edit is a Best of British edit, so these are all British brands.  In addition, you do receive money off codes to re-purchase items online, for most of the brands received.

I was pretty happy with the box and will see how this subscription goes. It seems easy enough to cancel if you want to.  There was a widget/button on the website. If after a few boxes I'm not happy with the contents, I may end my subscription.  It was also interesting to note that you could pay using Paypal for this box, which was a plus.

Please note, that I have not been sponsored to do this post.  I have subscribed of my own volition and the opinions expressed are completely my own.  In addition, this subscription was entered into before my non-essential spending ban started, but I am going to continue with it anyway, as a little motivator/treat to myself on a monthly basis.