I've been a subscriber of the Ben Nye Quarterly box for a while now so when My Subscription Addiction became a curator, I had to give it a shot. I have been anxiously awaiting this box since June so I was incredibly anxious when the shipping notification went out on September 17th. Go figure it was waiting for me when I got home the following day, neatly placed near my computer, ready for the unboxing.
In this box I received a Raw Naturals Candle in Chai Latte, Fig+Yarrow Cardamom and Coffee body scrub, Tatcha Polished Classic Rice Enzyme Powder, Juice Beauty Reflecting Gloss in Guava, and the Simonetta Infinity Knit Scarf. The curator (Liz) included a printout of what was provided in the box along with her reasoning for it.
What I really liked about this box (and I know this will be shocking) is that there wasn't any makeup. Sorry everyone, but surprise makeup is fun, but also somewhat sad if it doesn't match. In this box, everything just struck me as being incredibly useful.
Within a few minutes of my taking this picture, my boyfriend (who has been on a major candle kick lately) and I lit the candle. It smells amazing and we adore it. We have been drawn to wooden wicks as of late, so it was great to see that variety in the box. The scent is lovely and the candle itself retails for $24.
This morning I gave the body scrub a whirl and it smells amazing. To be fair, it does smell exactly like coffee so that helps (I love coffee). It is incredibly moisturizing -- so much so that when I stepped out of the shower, I felt like I already had lotion on. And yes, totally forgot that I hadn't put on lotion and I'm still going about my day without my skin feeling dry. The scrub costs $22 and is available through Fig+Yarrow.
The infinity scarf I had mixed feelings about. It is so lightweight and soft, but I was a bit unsure about the colours. It did strike me as more of a Christmas feel (which isn't bad at all!) but it has kind of grown on me. That isn't the fault of the scarf or the selection, I just don't have anything to match it in my closet. Yet. This totally means I get to go shopping to colour coordinate with it. The scarf retails for $25.
The Tatcha powder I was also on the fence about. I recognized the brand and was immediately like "Oh no, I better not like this because I know it's pricey but I will love it." At a $65 price tag, sure, it's hard to want to fall in love with a facial cleanser especially when you've been sitting pretty with Noxzema. I haven't tried it yet because I'm actually testing out another facial cleanser, but I am excited about it. What intrigued me was that this cleanser is a powder that you'd add water to and then proceed to clean with. So not too dissimilar in nature to how you'd use the Aztec Cleansing Clay Mark except, it's not a mask. I bring this mask up though because if you do keep those tools nearby (a small mixing container and a scoop), you should be fine transitioning over to such a cleanser.
Last, but certainly not least is the lip gloss. I haven't tried it out yet because when it comes to lip glosses and lip balms, I'm a completionist and I will have to continue using it till it's done. I do like the colour so perhaps in the near future I'll be posting an update on how it actually feels and lasts. The lip gloss is available for purchase at Juice Beauty for $15.
Overall, I really like My Subscription Addiction's Quarterly box. In terms of value, the box costs $50 and retail value alone puts it at $151 which is an amazing savings. What really made me happy about this box was simply the items themselves since all of them seem to be high quality and is a great blend that is on the practical side. I love it and I look forward to MSA02.
