August Beauty Bar Sample Society with Allure box 2012

• Phyto/Phytonectar Treatment Oil- This is an ultra nourishing oil treatment for the hair containing 98% botanical ingredients. You apply this from roots to ends, massage to facilitate penetration. Leave on for minimum of 15 minutes. Then you rinse then shampoo. This should be used once to twice a week, for 5 consecutive weeks.

• Deborah Lippmann/Nail Lacquer- This was a full-sized polish in Private Dancer. Which ironically is my favorite Tina Turner song next to We don't need another Hero (Thunderdome). Any who this is a beautiful purple mirrored chrome finish which looks like many different colors depending on the nails angle and the lighting. I really like it and was worth the box.

• Jane Iredale/Longest Lash Mascara- This came in the color Black Ice it is a thickening and lengthening mascara. I can't say much about this because I haven't used it yet. I have so many mascaras as of late and haven't even gotten to them all. Plus, I haven't had great luck with her products. I was sent a lipstick sample from her not to long ago in another box. Well I hated it for starters the smell was overwhelming so I never tried it.

• Elemental Herbology Skin Care/Facial Detox Purifying Facial Mask- I have never heard of this brand before and yet another mask. I have sent so many in recent months. I just haven't been able to try them all. So I think I'm set for life. This mask is made in England and what you do is apply to clean dry skin leave on for 10 minutes then remove it with a warm face cloth. Splash cool water and pat dry. They also say to use this tri-weekly for oily skin or otherwise use weekly. For combo skin to only use on congested areas. So we will see how this mask works.

• Arcona/Cranberry Toner- This 3 in 1 cranberry milk toner cleanses, tones and hydrates, infusing skin with protective antioxidants to leave it glowing and refreshed.  Removes dirt, oil and make-up. Protect and clarify skin with antimicrobial cranberry, containing vitamins, phyto nutrients and essential fatty acids. Neutralize free radicals with vitamin E tocopherols and tocotrienols. Nourish and restore skin with omegas 3, 6 and 9 and rice milk. A lot to say for such a little bottle of toner.

• Malin+Goetz/Vitamin E Face Moisturizer- Wow this is a super small special bonus. A sachet with a sample of this moisturizer. Which should be called a foil pack. This is for all skin types with fatty acid absorption technology. This residue-free moisturizer is scientifically synthesized with soothing vitamins E and B5 to gently and effectively hydrate and balance all skin types. Absorbent fatty acids and fatty alcohols, unlike traditionally greasy, pore-clogging oils, are blended for an intensely nourishing treatment to reduce epidermal irritation. Natural fragrance and color. Easily integrated into daily maintenance and prevention regimen. Another wow all this on the back of one tiny packet. This also claims it's concentrated and to use a small amount avoiding eyes, oily areas, and over-moisturizing. Increase application for dryer areas. I have oily skin so I guess I should avoid using this at all.

June Beauty Bar Sample Society with Allure box 2012

This review is for another monthly box subscription Sample Society. I was going to not do anymore subscription boxes but, this one caught my eye. This particular one is from BeautyBar.com along with Allure. I was looking into this one before but, there wasn't any openings. So I joined a waiting list to be notified when subscriptions opened up again. Well they did in May for the June box. So this particular one is $15 a month. Which I will admit is pretty pricey but, the Allure name drew me in. You also get a years subscription to Allure Magazine which I love. So I will give this a go and see if I like it if so I will stay if not I will cancel. I'm trying to see which services to stick with and which to let go.

Already there are some similarities to the other boxes. Sample Society is roughly the same size and depth as Birchbox and filled with black crinkle paper & gray tissue paper. The difference is that the description card is actually a booklet with helpful hints and tips on using your products. So for the month of June there were 5 samples.

The first one was from Jane Iredale her Just Kissed lip plumper. Which I got in the color Tokyo. This is a pretty rose color. The lipstick does have a slight smell to it. I can't place it but, it smells strange to me. Almost like air freshener that you find in a retail stores bathroom. When I tried it the smell was so overwhelming and the taste as well. It has a slight minty feel to it but, not in a good way. I will not be using this at all. I have allergies to certain scents and this was one of them. What a shame because I really liked the color. Sample Value $15.62 believe it or not. This sample size is only a few Oz's less than the full-sized for $25.

Oscar De La Renta Eau de Parfum in Live in Love. So this parfum is in such a cute bottle and I liked that you can have more than 3 uses like other samples. There isn't much to say about this except that the smell was alright. Nothing spectacular or amazing. It was just there. The scent is just not for me. It is alright and so far I haven't sneezed which is good. I will give this to someone who might enjoy it more than I would. Sample Value $5.80

From Alterna is Boho Waves Texture Mist. Which will help you get the sexiest beachy waves. This contains organic bamboo and blue yucca root. This weightless mist instantly gives you natural, tousled, "just back from beach" waves. Adds texture, volume, and healthy shine to all hair types. This I will try. Who wouldn't want beach waved hair? This I was happy to get. Sample Value $4.47

Caudalie's Premier Cru Eye Cream is a very pricey eye cream a full size is $95. So this sample was extremely tiny. Even worse was that there was nothing in the tube. I was so disappointed. I'm gonna have to contact them about this. So I can't say much about it. Sample Value $6.26

Lastly is Murad Clarifying Cleanser. Which cleanses and tones. Contains 1.5% Salicylic acid acne treatment. Now, I have very oily skin with few if no breakouts ever but, this may come in handy to control my oil. So I will try this. Sample Value $7.69 and I've seen it at Ulta for $9.

So overall this box was alright everyone gets the same box. So there isn't much variety in the items included. Like the parfum was okay not my taste and the lipstick was terrible in my opinion. Plus not getting any eye cream in the sample was not good. I will give them a few more months then we will see. Overall Box Value $39.84