The box its self looks lovely. I wrapped a friend's Christmas get in my last box and she commented on how sturdy and pretty it was.
Gold and white <3
So excited! I see some items from this season's LouLou box!
Kiehl's Ultra Facial Moisturizer 30 mL
Value $8.80
Two days ago I ran out of my favourite Ole Henriksen moisturizer. I wanted to go pick up another one, but decided against it for three reasons. One, I put it on my Christmas List. Two, I also put Sephora gift cards on my Christmas List. And three, it is a rather expensive product. If I buy it after January 1st it will count towards my 2014 VIB Rouge count. Given that, I was happy to receive enough moisturizer to tide me over until January 1st. While it doesn't leave my skin feeling as refreshed as Ole's does, this one does the job. I probably won't buy this one again, but thats just my brand preference. I have normal skin, and this product claims to work for everybody. Its fine for me, but I don't love it.
EVOLVh UltraShine Moisture Conditioner 75 mL
Value $7.50
LUXE TIP---UltraShine will be unlike any conditioner you've used before. It will feel completely different, because it is. Rather than coating hair (as most other conditioners do), UltraShine penetrates the hair shaft to moisturize and repair hair from the inside out. Specialized amino acids rebuild damaged hair, gradually returning hair closer to its ideal composition. When you apply the conditioner it will feel as if it is vanishing. This is because it is being absorbed rather than just sitting on top of the hair. UltraShine will also balance the pH of your hair to its optimum level of 4.5 - 5.5.
I admit to having tried this product before reading the Luxebox website. It was difficult to get out of the bottle (perhaps because it was so cold from transit, though I think it is more a formula issue). At first I was confused as to why my hair didn't feel slippery when I applied the product, so I added more... and it still wasn't slippery. I read the package and it all made sense, so I brushed it through and gave it some time to soak in. Though my hair didn't feel conditioned in the classic sense, it was wonderfully soft and silky all day. It was even good enough that I used it the next day. My hair felt light, and dried quickly. The brand celebrated being organic, vegan, and sulfate free (sulfate is what mass your normal shampoo foam up and removed a bunch of good and healthy hair oils). Their website challenges consumers to a 2 week challenge. Personally I would rather have two weeks of both their shampoo and conditioner to try out before investing in their products-- I think I will get about 3 uses, maybe 4, out of this sample. While I am indifferent to organic and vegan labels on products I liked the results this one delivered. I can't guarantee that I will purchase this product, but it makes my list of things to look out for in my travels!
L'Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream 10 mL
Value $2
Love this product! I have the full sized and I love it. I will add this purse friendly mini to my collection as #3. I love having these to toss in my purse to protect my hands from winter. Anybody else noticing a "Moisture" theme so far in this box, or is it just me? So happy to have another one of these! At this rate I will never need to buy the full sized again... :)
L'Occitane Pivoine Flora Eau de Toilette
Value $2.93
This has a pretty floral, feminine smell. The box is prettier than the bottle. I haven't decided if I will keep it or put it in my gift bin. Regardless, this is nice and light, just not entirely my style. But I appreciate the brand, and the quality. If I do keep it it looks like the contents will be easy to transfer to an atomizer.
Value $10 (Full Sized)
Mmmmmmm drug store brands...not exactly thrilling in a "Luxe" box. Anybody else feel that way? Maybe I am just biased. Actually I am biased. But this is not "Luxe". Putting that aside, full sized products are good. And this is a pretty colour that does its job. I would not buy this again given that I have a fair number of other similar products. But this is nice, and gets the job done. I will probably toss this on for a less done up sort of day.
Clinique High Impact Mascara in Black
Value $5 (About? Full sized is $19 and this is a standard mini)
More mini-mascaras! I will never ever ever ever ever run out of mascara. I have about 10 minis I have obtained in various boxes and promotions, and some full sized mascaras Sephora gave me as a VIB Rouge thank you gift. This will go in the little place where I stash future use mascaras. Given that they only last about 4 months once you start using them (bacteria and such) I will not be giving this one a try for a while. Sometimes I even end up giving my mini-mascaras to friends when we are getting ready for an event together and they forget theirs (WAY more hygienic than sharing a mascara).
Essie "Hors d'Oeuvres" Nail Polish
Value $11 (Full sized)
I know it looks silver in the bottle, but on my nails it is this amazing, complex glitter. Okay, maybe not complex, butI would describe it as a gold micro-shimmer base with variously sized silver pieces of glitter. It isn't a pure gold, or silver, more of a white gold. It feels very luxurious- I could't stop looking at it on my nails. My only complaint is that it chips so easily. Even with a base coat and a high quality top coat I found it chipping with in 12 hours of applying it. If you are planning to wear this to an event I would recommend applying it the day of. I can't wait to wear this on Christmas for dinner so I will apply it Christmas Day after all the presents are opened. I recommend two coats to get the full coverage "luxe" feel. Note: This polish was featured in their advent calendar. Lucky me!
Loose Button Lip Brush
Value $14 (Full sized)
This is a neat little brush. You need to put the two pieces together to make the brush emerge. A lip brush has been on my list for a while, but I never get around to buying them because something prettier always catches my eye. This is a great brush for lip balms in little pots (yay hygiene!) but I wouldn't recommend it for applying lip stick as it is too soft and the bristles too long.
Total Value $61.23 (+/-)
What I paid $26 (+/-)
I am beyond impressed with the value and quality of this Luxebox. While I may not be in love with every single item I have a use for each of them. I will note that I am very happy that I did not pay the extra money to upgrade to the LouLou box because of the items in the LouLou Box six were in my regular box (noted in bold). The part that makes this better is that I actually got the items I wanted from the LouLou box (including an Essie nail polish in a colour I simply LOVE).
- Kiehl’s | Ultra Facial Cream (7 mL)
- Essie | Assorted Shades (Full Size)
- L’Occitane | Shea Butter Hand Cream (10 mL)
- CoverGirl | Jumbo Gloss Balm in Ruby Twist (Full Size)
- No Dark Shadows | Complexion Enhancer (Full Size)
- L’Occitane | Pivoine Flora Eau de Toilette (5 mL)
- Loose Button | Lip Brush (Full Size)
- Pantene Expert Collection | Advanced+ Keratin Repair Split End Fuser (30 mL)
- Bonus 4-issue subscription to LOULOU Magazine
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