May Box Recap (Umba - Birch Box - My Glam)

This month I had the pleasure of receiving three different subscription boxes (not including my regular Stitch Fix shipment). There always seems to be a mad dash to post them to blogs once they've been received, but I really prefer to try out the products for a week or two and then give my feedback. I thought it'd be a little overkill to break them all into separate posts so instead, here's my monthly roundup of goodies.
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First up, my Umba Box! Umba Box was one of LCH's featured sponsors this month so I was stoked to get to try it out myself. I'm a little bit in love with UB's branding so I knew the contents of the box would be lovely. This box contained the three handmade items that follow...

The candle was such a lovely smell, and the little owl on the front made it aesthetically pleasing. And I really loved the little rosette bobby pins. We carry a similar item (albeit a bit larger) in Honeybean, but I loved the petite size (and the color combo!). I wanted to love the chapstick as I'm a chapstick fanatic, but it was Basil flavored and I find that smell to be a little bit overwhelming. A summer herb scent sounds great in theory, but I just think it was too much for me personally. It was intensely hydrating, even though I felt like I had Naan pizza stuck to my face ;) I honestly think Umba Box would be the perfect gift for someone. Housewarming, birthday, or just because. I can totally see the appeal of buying it for yourself, too, don't get me wrong. But I felt like I was opening a sweet friendly present each time I unwrapped something. (That's kind of the best part!) You can sign up for your own Umba Box if you're interested!

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Now for May's Birch Box! This month was Gossip Girl themed and if you follow me anywhere you'll know I'm currently obsessed with GG. We just started the first few episodes of season 3 yesterday so I'm totally in the thick of it. I feel like this box was definitely GG inspired so if you're a fellow fanatic (even late to the game like me) then you might like it!


I have to admit I really like the moisturizer. I have naturally dry skin, especially on my face, so this seems to really be nice. The sample size really is a generous amount. I'll use the whole thing up before deciding whether I'll plunk down that cash for a full size version, but I'm a little cheap (ha!). The blendercleanser seems like it'd be a nice product, except I don't own a beautyblender. After looking them up and reading all about them, they actually seem like they might be justified, but until then this sample will just go in my sample bucket. The Arquiste perfume is really quite lovely smelling. The sample is great for my purse when I'm feeling like I need a little scent-revival. But without a doubt my favorite in this month's box was the stila eye liner. I love that it's brown and I love the product itself. I doubt I'll run out anytime soon but when I do, I'll definitely snag another to replace it! You can sign up for your own BirchBox here if you'd like! I really think they're worth the risk at only $10/mo!

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And last but not least, my newest subscription: My Glam Bag. I was really on the fence about ever signing up for this one. For one, I follow the Michelle Phan drama (google it if you're interested. There would be too many things to link) on the interwebs, and I'm not really a big fan. Of course this is all just based on what I've read and looked in on, but that's for each person to decide. Still - I had heard good things about MGB so I decided to give it a shot. You get 4-5 deluxe samples in a cute (but tiny) makeup bag each month. Sounds kind of nice, but then I started thinking "What in the world am I going to do with so many makeup bags after a few months?!" Anyway, here's my haul...

In this box: Philosophy Love Sweet Love Spray Fragrance - Studio Gear Complete Color Lipstick - Miss Beauty Nail Bling - myglam Concealer Brush and Defining Eyeliner Brush


The perfume was a beautiful scent, and probably my favorite thing in the bag (and best of all, the full size is not expensive!) The lipstick was sort of a let down because I really expected to love it. The packaging on the lipstick is awesome. And I'm a package snob. The tube is a milky soft texture and the box it came in was even nice. The disappointing part was the color. I feel like there are very few women who can properly wear this color, but maybe that's just me! It's not quite a red/burgundy as it may appear... but more of a brown hue honestly. Who knows, maybe I'll end up loving it! It's a bit bold though. The brushes seem good enough and they're getting decent wear thus far. I haven't used the "nail bling" yet because well... usually that stuff doesn't fit well on my teensy little childlike fingernails. Plus I'm not crazy about the design. Overall I'd say this one was a flop but I'm debating on giving it another go for June! You can sign up for your own My Glam Bag here! It's $10 a month and seems to be very cosmetic-driven (which I like). 

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So! Do you subscribe to any monthly brands like this? How do you like them? If you got anything that I did, what is your favorite?

28 comments:

  1. i currently only receive birchbox but i wasn't too thrilled with this month's. i've been considering the other two you mentioned as well. glam bag looks like it has more full sized items compared to birchbox? and umba box looks really cute. i like the handmade theme. i'm afraid that if i cancel my birchbox i'm going to see what other people get next month and wanna kick myself lol :)

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    1. That's the worst part : canceling and then having them be awesome! That's what I did with BB in the past. I try to justify it by saying "it's $2.50 a week... less than 40 cents a day" haha!

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  2. I subscribe to MyGlam and BB...not umba because its just too expensive for me to rationalize signing up. I've had MyGlam for 5 months now and I love it. The lipstick for May was my favorite...but then again i loved the color. I received my first BB in May and was so disappointed...I'll give it a couple more months. I am going to try Loose Button aka Luxe Box too...just to compare!

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    1. I feel like you have to give them a few months to really judge how they will pan out, so I'm hoping my next MGB is better! I'm going to check out Luxe Box though! Thanks for the suggestion!

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  3. I don't currently subscribe to any, but am starting my own. I like the idea of Umba box but wasn't thrilled with the fact you have absolutely no control over what you get, so I started Indie Gift Box (http://indiegiftbox.com). It's starting out small, but we'll see how it goes!

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    1. I love the idea of the different themed boxes! Let me know how it goes for you, lady!

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  4. I haven't been interested in Birch Box for a while! I have seen it featured on other blogs and it seems like a great thing to invest in! Now that you have posted about Umba Box, which I didn't know about, I might give that a try, too!

    Plus, I didn't know about that Michelle Phan thing and I went and read it. I can't believe that craziness! Hopefully you're referring to the Twitter drama...? Or is there something else? It's crazy because, I know people like that who have called me out on online because of a misunderstanding. I don't understand how they're okay with doing something like that.

    Anyways, this was a great post! Thank you for sharing!

    xo Krystin

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    1. Unfortunately there's way more than just that. She used to have a skincare line called IQQU. You can look that up. Plus repackaging cosmetics, failed startup ventures (which happens to the best of us.. but more about how she handled it), claiming her skincare stuff was FDA approved when it wasn't, blah blah blah. A lot of this can be found on sites like Guru Gossip, etc. GG is way too indepth for me to ever try to understand/follow, but she's been a regular topic of conversation on the internet for a while it seems. Again I can only go by what I've read and seen, and with that I'm not her biggest fan. But kudos to her for getting MGB up and running with only a few bumps along the way.

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    2. Have you ever subscribed to any others? If so, what are your favorites? What would you suggest to someone (me!) who hasn't subscribed to something like this before?

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  5. I would love to sign up for some but I can't find any that ship to Canada. I'm just gonna have to wait a bit I guess.

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    1. If I'm not mistaken the Luxe Box is Canadian!

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    2. Don't want to seem like I'm cutting in, but since I live in Canada too I've found a couple of beauty boxes that do deliver to the great white north lol. Try Topbox and Glossy Box Canada. Topbox seems to have a huge waiting list, I signed up abut 2 or 3 months ago now and am still waiting to be let in but if you subscribe to Glossybox before the last week of the month you should get your first box in that same month.

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  6. Really interesting post as usual :) Make-up/Cosmetics aren't really my thing, I stick to what I like, but really insightful anyhow.

    I'm currently trying to find a way to produce my own subscription box focusing on local businesses, it's in its infancy but I think it could be a really cool idea :)

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    1. Seems like a ton of people are giving sub-boxes their own go! Congrats and best of luck!! Can't wait to see how it pans out :D

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  7. I've done Foodzie, Umba, Julep Maven, Little Black Bag and Birchbox. I ended up cancelling Foodzie because I'm diabetic. Cut out Umba and Julep Maven for financial reasons. I have been disappointed with Birchbox since my first box, but my recent GG one, I received Rose Sugar lip balm from Fresh which I LOVELOVELOVE. Just waiting to see what the June box holds and if its not that great I'm going to cancel. Have you heard of little black bag? It's the most expensive one I know of, but everything is high end. The current priciest item is $109 and you pay $50, but you get 2 more items.

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    1. I actually signed up for LBB this morning! I picked out and item but haven't paid for it yet because I'm trying to decide if it's worth it. I mean, clearly the deals are good, but I don't want to drown in sub-boxes! haha

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    2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adDHzJR2Cqs skip the first 2 minutes she rambles a lot :P
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRyhuQokL0c&list=UUuaQ-5iDHAuUHdxdBDrrjPQ&index=1&feature=plcp her sisters is easier to listen to

      I'd totally try it if i was in the USA!

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  8. I'm in love with Little Black Bag, which I see someone mentioned above. I picked a BCBGeneration gold-toned watch as my pay item, & I really like the others they chose for me but can't resist the fun of trading for a perfect haul!

    I tried Umba box one month & liked it but found it too expensive for my level of interest, & I finally gave up on My Glam because everything seemed to suck & be tacky - blue eyelashes?! No, thanks... BUT I also just subscribed to GlossyBox now that it's come to the US, so I'm looking forward to trying that out instead!

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  9. I love reading these posts, you seem to get so many of these subscription packages and though I don't get any myself, I love seeing what you got and what you think of each thing. My favourite are the clothing ones!

    Also, you can send those 'nail bling' stick ons my way if you don't like 'em, they're too cute :)

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  10. We've only got Glossybox/Lust Have It in Aus that's within my price range. We have various others but they suck. My USA pal has tried Umbra and liked it but didn't feel it would be worth continuing at that price point though they love Stitch Fix and BirchBox. It's all opinion!

    As for the Michelle thing omfg sociopathic much, how she still has 1.8 million subs is strange, oh well, she's not even that good! :P

    Love your roundup, very interesting, always lovely to see!

    xx
    Nichola

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  11. I got the stila eyeliner too, and I LOVE it! I think it's my new favorite...I want to try one of the other colors!

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  12. I canceled my birchbox last year because of financial reasons and then saw a whole bunch of videos about how disappointed people were so I was glad I canceled when I did. I saw some videos recently that made me decide to give them another shot. Sadly I'm not all impressed, I got a nail polish that I could pretty much get anywhere and another one of those funky hair ties. I did really like the fresh sugar lip treatment I got and that should last me awhile.

    I also signed up for glossybox and that should be arriving soon! So I'm hoping that I'll like that one better than bb.

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  13. I have a BB subscription too, and this month was a little flat for me. I've only been a subscriber since april, though, so I haven't really gotten the feel for it yet. I keep changing my profile because it seems as though they only send me hair stuff, and I have no idea why! I never use hair things.

    I got the same cleanser (and had no idea what it was) and the same perfume.

    Not blown away, but not disappointed either.
    Thanks for sharing, love!

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  14. got that birchbox too. i wasn't SUPER happy with it :( merrrrrrr

    also i am sharing a little mini giveaway i'm doing over on my blog, and wanted to share with some of my favorite ladies :)

    http://talesforkarina.blogspot.com/2012/05/giveaway-goodies-from-mab-graves.html

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  15. I've been subscribed to BirchBox for a while, but I accidentally let my subscription lapse in May and with every post that I've seen I'm super disappointed that I let it lapse :(

    Have you tried other monthly subscription services like Jewelmint or Little Black Bag? Sorry if you answered a question like this before.


    http://greyskysaturday.wordpress.com

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  16. May was my first month for both the BirchBox and MyGlam.

    I got the exact same lipcolor as you in my MyGlam bag. I found it works ok if I put balm on first and then just dab the lipstick on. Might look good at "full strength" in the fall.

    My birchbox was COMPLETELY different, I am so jealous of your eyeliner I could scream!

    The sneak peeks for MyGlam this month look really good, and I am excited. Overall, it's a little "young" for me, but it's neat to get items I normally wouldn't buy myself (like the nail bling) and figure out how to use them in a way that's "ME". Makes me think.

    I am sticking with both of them through August (ok, maybe September), then I will re-evaluate.

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  17. I have Birchbox and Glossybox, and I'm undecided. The first BB I got was pretty underwhelming, but the second one was the Gossip Girl and I liked the Stila liner (I already had a different shade and love it) and a different Algenist product than you got. For $10 that's okay, but we'll see what June brings. My first Glossybox was okay, but I'm not sure I'll stick with it for $21 unless the next one is pretty good. I'm considering My Glam Bag, but am waiting until I dump GB or BB.

    That Patch NYC candle you got in your Umba Box is great. I bought a few candles from that line--the owl one and the skull one--and they are favorites. Thanks for that preview!

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  18. The make up bag is super cute. I always love blue and pink together. I'm definitely not a fan of those nail stickers though. I've tried a few different brands now, mind you they weren't high end but they looked similar to these ones and I found them horrible! Maybe I just don't have the patience or my nails are too big but they always end up looking weird.

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HEY! Thanks for dropping by. xo KB