The first step is admitting you have a problem
Step One: Say it with me, “I suffer from subscription addiction.”
How does this happen?
Well, I’ll tell you how it happened to me. A few years back, I started hearing about subscription services like Birch Box. You pay a set amount of money and each month you get a box in the mail with a bunch of beauty-stuff. Sounds appealing, right?
To be honest, I wasn’t keen on this idea at first. The idea of being surprised by an assortment of makeup, skincare, perfume, and haircare, NOT of my own choosing, held no appeal for me whatsoever.
For one thing, perfume doesn’t excite me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a MAJOR scent person. I smell damned near everything. Perfume, skincare, makeup, food, books… you name it, my nose will be up in it because I can’t form an opinion about anything until I know what it smells like – and that’s my issue with perfume. I’m very particular about scent and receiving a random popular scent, doesn’t excite me.
Haircare and skincare items fall under a similar umbrella for me. Skincare is extremely important. You can have the best makeup, tools, and application out there but if your skin doesn’t look good, none of that matters. Getting a random assortment of trendy skincare items that don’t speak to my particular needs, doesn’t appeal to me either. Ditto for haircare. I know what I need my products to do (condition, detangle, give my hair a “natural” sheen) and I rarely receive items that speak to these issues, instead, all I seem to receive are bottles of dry-shampoo and wave spray, neither of which I use.
My attitude changed a few years ago when Sephora announced that they would be joining the subscription game. The idea of getting a box every month containing six items from Sephora, the mothership of all things beauty, was more than I could handle. I wanted in – and within a month or so of the announcement, I was invited to subscribe.
In the early days of Sephora Play! the unboxing ceremony was a tad different than it is now. You received a Sephora shipping box that contained a beautiful Sephora-branded box inside. When you lifted the lid you would see six high-end beauty products nestled in kraft crinkle cut fill. My heart would just soar. And yes, I was totally the girl that would keep my little treasures in the box until they eventually made it into my vast makeup collection. And I was also the girl who saved those boxes. (They eventually switched from boxes filled with kraft crinkle cut fill to cotton draw-string sacks, not nearly as exciting, but a better environmental choice).
This ritual caused me to subscribe to other beauty boxes.
MANY other beauty boxes.
(And eventually MANY other food subscriptions)
The hope was to feel the same sense of elation that Sephora Play! provided.
Why?
Opening the mailbox and seeing something other than bills.
Win!
Getting a “present” every month.
Win!
Getting MANY presents.
Win!
Spending $120 plus a year of your makeup budget (yes, I have a makeup budget 🙂 on items that you may or may not like ….
Ummm …. This is when it gets tricky. Many of the boxes I subscribed to were “mixed bags” literally and figuratively. The hardest part is the emotional game these boxes play with you.
- You subscribe to a box from a reputable company.
- You’re excited to get your box.
- You enjoy opening the box/bag to see what surprises await.
- But then you realize that you’re not excited by the items/brands that you received.
- Sometimes the brands are just too generic or common which is a bummer. Who wants to get a brand that you can pick up at Wal-Mart for $.99? No one.
- Sometimes they’re brands you’ve never heard of. Sure, they could be the next great thing, but they could also be some generic Dollar Store quality makeup with a fancy name and higher price tag.
- Sometimes it’s just trendy stuff that you don’t want or need. If it’s not making your skin and hair look better – then why bother?
- Sometimes you’re allergic to the items you receive – and that’s no fun.
- Sometimes you get things that are tried and true. Good items, but did you really want deluxe sample sizes of things you already own?
- Sometimes the items just plain suck!
- And sometimes you want a do-over or for someone to just give you your money back. The solution, cancel!
BUT you won’t cancel because you keep hoping that next month will be better – and it doesn’t happen so you FINALLY decide you’re going to go ahead and cut the cord and then an unwanted miracle happens. You get the best box EVER!
So you don’t cancel.
And then … you’re back to receiving mediocre boxes.
Luckily for me, most of my “meh” beauty subscriptions have canceled themselves. If the first step is admitting you have a problem, the second step is …
… hoping that your meh subscription services cancel themselves.
Step Two: (Phew: I didn’t have to do anything – it took care of itself)
Over the past couple-few years, I subscribed to five beauty boxes. Here are my thoughts.
TOP PICK / FAVORITE
Sephora Play!
For $10 a month I get a cool-looking striped box in my mailbox. When I open the striped box I get a cotton pouch filled with six deluxe-sized samples.
- (1) Perfume sample
- (5) Assorted Makeup, Skincare, and Haircare items.
Sephora Play! has been around for a couple-few years now, and I was invited to subscribe soon after the service started. I’ve NEVER been disappointed. Sephora sells higher-end and luxury items, which is what you receive in your box. The cheapest thing you’ll ever receive in a box is a Sephora-brand item and frankly, I’m a huge fan of their products.
The only issue I’ve ever had with the boxes is the perfume. I’m very particular about scent. I favor sweet scents (fruit, candy, edible scents) and the chances of me getting a scent I like are slim. That being said, the perfumes you receive are solid and from great brands, so if you enjoy scent – this is a great way for you sample twelve high-end perfumes, so it’s a win-win for most subscribers.
In the end, Sephora Play! is my favorite beauty subscription.
ON THE FENCE: LOVE / HATE
Ipsy Glambag
I was hesitant about Ipsy at first. The $10 a month price tag fits my budget but Ipsy isn’t Sephora. Sephora sells high-end makeup so I feel like I’m getting my money’s worth, even if I’m not excited about a particular category. My other issue with Ipsy is that one of the six items is a makeup bag. I have a large collection of well-loved makeup bags and don’t really need anymore; personally, I would prefer to get six beauty items (makeup and application tools) over a bag. That being said, I’m certain that the makeup bag is a major part of the appeal for most people – so that’s just a me-thing.
One thing that I LOVE about Ipsy, is that they always include a makeup application tool in the mix. I adore makeup brushes and have enjoyed most of the makeup brushes that I’ve received.
Here’s why I end up on the fence. The makeup/skincare items aren’t all high-end items from well-known brands. As a You Tuber, I appreciate receiving items from newer, lesser-known brands. It gives me an opportunity to review and share items that maybe others aren’t talking about however as a beauty-lover, I much prefer to get items from tried-and-true, upscale brands, and this is where Sephora wins over Ipsy every month.
So why haven’t I canceled? Easy, they hooked me. The month I was ready to cancel, Ipsy gave me the ultimate makeup item. Foundation. Not just any foundation, one of the best foundations I’ve ever used, in what appeared to be a full-sized compact in my exact skin tone with an applicator that actually works. Estee Lauder’s Double Wear Makeup To Go Liquid Compact was exceptional and Ipsy won my heart. I was so excited to get this item, that I decided to give Ipsy another month and so on and so on. There was one strike against Ipsy though. I found out that Estee Lauder was in the process of discontinuing this particular item (Double Wear foundation still exists but this particular version was phased out). I’ve always felt that real point of these subscriptions was to highlight new and worthwhile products – and this soured me a bit.
All in all, I go back and forth between loving Ipsy and being bummed out by them. So for now, I continue to subscribe to this beauty bag.
SAVE YOUR MONEY / CANCELLED
Wal-Mart
The Wal-Mart box gets mailed quarterly and is technically “free.” Every three months you get billed $5 for shipping/handling and you’ll receive a simple box with several sample-sized items. In the year plus that I’ve been subscribing, I’ve largely received ordinary items in sample sizes. Dove deodorant, toothpaste … things of that nature. There were two occasions where I received conventional drugstore mascara and I remember being excited to receive a beauty item. I adore mascara, and normally mascara is a favorite but this time I was disappointed. We’ve all been to the makeup aisle at Wal-Mart. There are tons of great makeup items in those aisles, and Wal-Mart missed their opportunity to fill these boxes with newer, seasonal, beauty items that could have gotten me excited about their box and inspired me to go to Walmart for future beauty purchases. The box is really just filled with $.99 travel items like deodorant and sunscreen. Nothing I could build a beauty look with, and nothing that could take my skincare regimen to the next level. Wal-Mart can do MUCH better.
Save yourself the disappointment and your $5.
BOX THAT CANCELLED ITSELF
LOVE / HATE
Beautycon Box
I have such mixed feelings about this one. I ADORE all things Beautycon. I attend Beautycon in Los Angeles and New York. Every year I purchase the Beautycon Bag (an additional purchase at conventions) and I subscribed to their beauty box.
The Beautycon Box was a quarterly subscription which cost me somewhere between $25 and $30 a quarter (there were various deals – so the price fluctuated slightly depending on when/how you subscribed). Every season I would get a fairly heavy box filled with items, more often than not, full-sized. The value of the box varied, but my boxes were always well over $100 worth (average $140 values by my count).
I received some stellar items, but I also received a lot of items I wasn’t able to use at all. The wave spray (hair item) kills me. I just get so much of it, and it’s simply not something I use. Also, many of my products contained sunscreen – which is FANTASTIC for most subscribers but I’m horribly allergic and those were items I had to give away. One month, I got a box full of SPF products and orange makeup, which is simply not flattering on my skin-tone.
When all is said and done, I’m paying the same (approximately) $120 dollars a year, but instead of getting a surprise every month I have to wait every three months. When the boxes were good – they were so good, when they were full of items I didn’t want/couldn’t use, it was such a disappointment. I was getting ready to cancel but the universe intervened, Beautycon sent an email letting me know that the Summer 2017 box was the last box I’d be receiving. It was a blessing in disguise.
BOX THAT CANCELLED ITSELF
SOLID BOX / NOT MEANT FOR ME
Essence Beauty Box
This one was crafted specifically for Women of Color and many items came from indie-black-owned brands.
As a woman, and a woman of color, I was excited to subscribe to this box. When you opened the package (shipping box) you would find a beautiful, well-made box that featured beautiful artwork – hands down the most beautiful packaging of any beauty box I’ve subscribed to. After lifting the cover you would find a layer of tissue which hid your treasures. The treasures included at least one product from an indie-black-owned brand. I was always excited to see what I received, especially the indie item. There were a few winners – items that Essence had that no other box dared share (natural female hygiene items made by women for women, being one of the best items I’ve ever received). For $10 a month, the items were solid and the surprise was worth it – but I knew eventually I’d have to cut myself off. Before I got the chance to cancel on my own, I got a message from Essence letting me know that they would no longer be sending me boxes. It’s unfortunate because I think this was an excellent box for the target audience (I’m not a part of the intended target audience, but knowing me, I’d still be subscribing if they hadn’t canceled the service).
Final thoughts: Sephora Play! can have my money. I’ll continue with the Ipsy Glambag for the rest of the year and then reassess. I have no regrets about canceling my Walmart subscription and don’t really miss my Beautycon or Essence subscriptions. Will I check out other boxes, it’s entirely likely but for now, I’m happy with the two subscriptions I have.
Foodie Beauty Life Videos
(click to see videos)
Subscription Addiction [Playlist]
Sephora Play! Unboxing Videos [Playlist]
Walmart Beauty Box Unboxing Videos [Playlist]
Beautycon Beautybox Unboxing [Playlist]
Beautycon Experience: Conventions, Beautycon Bag Reveal, & Beauty Box Unboxings [Playlist]