Remember when you were a teenager and you would go to the MAC counter at the mall, try on all the fabulous eyeshadows and lipsticks and admire your reflection? Chances are, as you've gotten older and life has thrown you more and more responsibilities, your adventurous trips to the makeup counter have slowed down and you've started buying or ordering products that you know work for you. You stick with Maybelline mascara, Revlon eyeliner, Clinique foundation and concealer, and for blush you have the perfect shade of coral shimmer that works both winter and summer.
It's nice to have trusted beauty products, but wouldn't it be fun, really fun to switch things up a bit? Relive the excitement of when you were a teenager, try fabulous new products, rediscover yourself in a way you forgot, how?
Sure sounds like fun. But when you have a deadline at work, and you have to pick up the dry cleaning, and you have to do the shopping, and you have to make dinner for the kids… Oh my, who has time for makeup adventures?
Fortunately, there is a way to have your cake and eat it too; In other words, you can inject some fun into your beauty life without wasting time you don't necessarily have.
How? A personalized beauty subscription box to you.
What is a Beauty Subscription Box?
A beauty subscription box is a monthly or seasonal box filled with a variety of makeup, nail polish, skin care, and hair products that you can sign up to receive in the mail for a nominal cost.
Before signing up, you'll be asked to take a beauty quiz, which is pretty fun. Whichever company you choose, based on your answers, they will select a special box filled with beauty products.
These boxes are a relatively new but ever-growing trend and are the perfect answer for women who love all things cosmetics but don't necessarily have the time or motivation to go to the store and pick up new products.
Beauty subscription boxes are great for women who enjoy pampering themselves because, frankly, there's nothing better than having a golden box of beauty products delivered right to your door. They also make great gifts and are a great way for makeup artists to discover new products and keep their business fresh.
Sounds Like a Scam—Is it?
There's nothing gimmicky about beauty subscription boxes. The boxes are bought and paid for by women who consciously buy them and know what they will get. If someone isn't happy with the box they received, that's a different story, but it's not a scam.
The only thing we can say about beauty subscription boxes is that yes, they are products designed to make money for their companies. This is normal. The idea behind sending beauty boxes is to entice women to buy more of the beauty products they receive. Also normal! In fact, this is a win-win situation. women who get beauty kits get great products that they can buy more of and companies make money. Not a scam, just good marketing.
Below, we'll take a closer look at the best beauty subscription boxes and the different aspects that come with them. This way you can make the most informed decision possible. Remember, you're paying for them, so you want to do as much due diligence as possible so you're not unhappy with your purchase.
Quality and Products
As with any product, there are normal versions and more complex versions. Birchbox, Walmart Beauty Box, GlossyBox, and Ipsy are what we would call “regular” beauty boxes. Yes, they carry a variety of products from many brands, but they aren't necessarily the brands you'll find at Sephora. That doesn't mean they aren't good, and you won't have fun using them; it just means you shouldn't expect premium labels.
On the other hand, Julep, FabFitFun, LookFantastic, BeautyFix by Dermstore, BoxyCharm and Play! From Sephora are considered high-end. While they won't necessarily provide you with an Estee Lauder, Lancome, or Chanel arsenal, they will send you higher quality products from both recognizable companies and more obscure brands.
Monthly versus Seasonal Beauty Boxes
The Walmart Beauty Box and FabFitFun Beauty Box come seasonally, meaning 4 times a year.
And Julep still exists, which allows you to pay not by the month, but by the box.
You can decide how often you want to receive your beauty box. That choice will also depend on the cost of each subscription.
Cost
Don't think beauty marketers are giving it away for free. While beauty boxes offer the expected excitement of receiving new beauty products, remember that you are actually paying for them.
The cost of each beauty subscription box varies and you need to decide what your budget is or how much you are willing to spend.
At the bottom, Birchbox, Ipsy Glam Bag and, surprisingly, Play! from Sephora, all for $10 a month.
Julep and Walmart dance to the beat of their own drummers. Julep allows subscribers to create their own beauty boxes from selected products, which means the cost varies per box. And Walmart doesn't charge for the beauty box, instead charging the equivalent of $5 shipping per season.
Many of these companies offer annual (rather than monthly) subscriptions, which work out a little cheaper in the long run. Also, some offer free shipping, so that's something to keep in mind as well.
Product Size and Amount
Some subscriptions will send you full-size products, while others will send you samples. Boxes that send you samples often offer the option to purchase a full-size product, sometimes at a member-only discount. (Membership is free.)
Examples include Birchbox, BeautyFix by Dermstore, and Play! Sephora offers sample size products, while FabFitFun, GlossyBox, Julep, and BoxyCharm offer full size products.
On the other hand, how many items would you like to receive? Most beauty boxes come with 5, but there are some like BeautyFix from Dermstore and Walmart that offer more.
Remember that beauty boxes that contain samples cost less.
Making Your Decision
The main thing to remember is that signing up for a beauty subscription is amazing. It's a way to recreate the fun you had before or to invent a whole new fun.
This means that you do not need to worry about your decision. after all, it's not a marriage. The worst that can happen is that you order and don't like it.But the best thing that can happen is that you will like it. And receiving your box will be something you look forward to each month/season.