September 2012 Birchbox!

I don't know why I was so inclined to put an exclamation point at the end of the title since *SPOILER ALERT* this box was less than exciting.

Take the jump below to see why!

My box... adorable kitten interested in the tissue paper not included.

I had the nervy feeling that I was going to dislike this box the moment I received the email telling me what the theme this month was. It was something along the lines of "fashion trending" and how to do the weird trends that inevitably come along with every season and that I inevitably usually end up doing months later without realizing. 

Here's the front and back of the card for those interested in reading it!

If I'm being honest with myself, I was actually a little excited and intrigued about my box when I pulled it out of my mail box since the box was EXTREMELY full; it could barely shut! 

However, upon opening, I discovered it was just from one particular sample product (that really is a deluxe size) haha... way to dash my dreams, Birchbox.

Birchbox also included a little magazine/pamphlet/whatever in the box to talk about what they consider to be the top "ten fall trends to try" and how to try them out for yourself. Even Galileo took a quick read (but then just ended up chewing on the corners)!

I thought it was a nice thing to include in the box since the products really had nothing to do with fall trends as far as I could tell.

If you're a longtime reader of my blog, you know how less than jazzed I am about receiving perfume samples in my Birchboxes. So somehow I'll refrain from complaining about how worthless and cheap they are...

Anyways, I've tried "twirl" before. It was actually one of the first perfumes I ever tried out when I first started getting into them and the thrill of finding my own personal scent. So I already knew that this one... well, for lack of a better term, sucks. 

For an $80 bottle of perfume, it should really last more than 2-3 hours and should have more than just one note in it. Granted, I'll give credit where it's deserved, this has beautiful opening notes of crisp, sparkling grapefruit. However, the dry down is nothing more than an overwhelming white floral; 

Blech, no thank you.

The next sample product was another throwaway for me since I've received one of these before in a previous box and, well, to be honest, I just don't care for them. I have plenty of owch-less hair bindies that are my actual hair color that I much prefer.

Oh well, all was not lost since my cat absolutely loved this thing; I couldn't even get a photo of it since he was so happy batting it around on the table. So, luckily for him, he has another treasure to proudly stash in his secret spot under my bed behind the bin of winter sweaters.

Here's the one product that was actually a deluxe size sample. 

Too bad I'm not sure that I'll ever use it.

While it feels absolutely divine on the skin (no greasy residue, sinks in quickly, hydrates like you can't even imagine), the smell is just overwhelming. I have nothing against a floral scent, but this is just too much; it's reminiscent of a mixed bouquet a day or two after it's started to wilt and go bad. 

So sorry soy body whip, but I just don't have any intention of smelling like a necrophiliac's wet dream. 

One of the things I was actually very happy to receive this month was the color club nail polish in the shade "INSTA-THIS". I have gotten color club polishes in Birchboxes before but they are something that I will never be mad about getting again since a.) I'm a nail polish hoarding wh0re, and b.) these polishes have one of the best formulas I've ever had the pleasure of working with.

They are creamy, smooth, opaque, and I tend to get almost a week's worth of wear (with no top coat) out of these polishes before they start to chip. Yup. I wouldn't lie to you about something this serious.

Plus, this is one of the most beautiful and rich cornflower blues I have ever laid my eyes on in a nail polish!! It's so unique, lovely, and bold... I can't wait to try this on my nails!

I was really excited to try this out since I received the original Jouer luminizing moisture tint in one of my first Birchboxes and really enjoyed it.

HOWEVER, brace yourself for the horror that is about to hit your pupils...

What was Birchbox thinking when they sent me this shade!!??! I even checked online and this is the darkest shade available on Birchboxes site... why would they send this to someone who has a light/medium complexion clearly stated in their user profile???

The photos are so much more flattering than real life; this is probably at least 3-4 shades darker than my skin tone (insert Charlie Brown "ARGGGG" here).

Thankfully this blends out beautifully (and I'm being honest when I say that the photos are very misleading to what this looks like in real life... I received the shade "hazel" which can be seen much truer in color here) so I think I might be able to figure out a way to use this as a cream contour color.

Le sigh...

Anywhew, onto the "extras". One of the samples was of this fashion tape which I've secretly always wanted to try but just couldn't justify buying what essentially seems like double sided tape to me. Plus, I just usually use saftey pins to close gaps in my shirts or whatever, but what the hey! I'll try these out for the heck of it.

And by the way, I kind of chuckled when I saw that one idea they showed on the packaging was to tape down a scarf to your shirt... would people actually do this??? I don't know, it just seems so silly to me but let me know! I don't wear scarves (no need to add more bulk to my already bulky chest) so maybe this would be helpful?

Aaaaaand a "gift card"... where I have spend at least $50 (after the $25 off) to use.

Thanks a heap Birchbox/Madewell! I'll be tossing this in the recycling after Galileo has had his fun chewing on it.

But that's it guys!! 

Can you see why I was less than pleased with this box?

The best part was probably the fact that the tissue paper and the twist tie tired Galileo out for the day so he was able to crash pretty hard last night :)

Do you receive Birchbox?

What did you get this month?

Don't get Birchbox?

Am I just being too picky about this box/is this month's box something you would have enjoyed receiving?

xoxo - Cassie