Birch Box Canada February

Birch Box - a monthly subscription box for $14.95. This is going to be short and sweet because, well, renovations.

Arrived! Yey!

Very cute inside box.

Noir Long Wear Eyeliner and Whish body lotion.

Mereadesso lotion. This caused me to break out last time, I'll be pawning this off gifting it to someone.

Cynthia Rowley lip stain and Color Club Art Duo Pen in Black.

The complete box.

Showing the dotting tool and my roughed up renovation nails. It dots/draws well! Yes, my nails are ugly, but we're getting it done. 

I don't quite have time to calculate. I paid $14.95 for this box, and I can easily say the value is double that. Follow the link if you want to give Birch Box a try!

Treats Box vs Project Candy Box - February

I love candy. I learned about subscription boxes and although I don't like consumerism, waste and greed... well, ... I like some boxes. And it's candy. I'd be buying it anyway. ;)

I couldn't find any online comparisons between the (only?) two Canadian Candy boxes I found. So I decided I would order one of each and compare myself. In the name of Science I must eat this candy! 

Check out my reviews on the boxes for a more detailed break down of each box. I'm comparing a regular Treats Box (~$30) with a regular Project Candy Box (~$27). Both were purchased by me for the February box.

Yey! Candy! Both a very clearly the boxes I ordered. Project Candy Box ships mid-month (and is very fast to my location, usually one day) and Treats Box ships around the 5th (taking about 4-5 business days from their Ontario location). So both ship fast.

Side view. Project Candy Box is about twice the height of Treats Box. Room for bigger candies?.... 

Presentation would go to Treats Box. They know what they are doing for "standard" subscription box class/anti-environmentism, and the packing squiggles probably aid in preventing candies from breaking.

More side by side. Project Candy Box does link to an information page that gives more details on the sweet treats.

Above: The contents of Project Candy Box

 The contents of Treats Box.

Side by side of the awesome Candy goodness.

A side-by-side for February. 

Both boxes shot the theme right though the heart. Had I not left the box unopened for review, I would have been able to (re)gift some items to the kidlets for Valentine's Day. 

Treats Box seems to specialize in smaller items, and plenty of them, Of these two boxes, I think this one has the lower value although I paid more. You could pay less on a subscription or go epic and get double the candy (which might be the way to go if you have lots of candy lovers with good dental hygiene). 

Project Candy Box appears to be trying to find a niche in locating hard-to-find candies. I hope the current dollar slipping won't affect their buying power and allow them to maintain providing unique treats.

I like how Treats Box expands beyond candy, and if you had young kids, provides a toy. I like how Project Candy Box offers some more refined taste candies. It would be easier to justify as a candy loving adult.

I didn't use a promo code, but I have seen them for Treats Box. I.e. use buddybox to save 15% on your order. I have not yet seen a promo code for Project Candy Box.

I live in a world where I could justify both boxes. I'm someone who includes a candy line in my food budget. Seriously, I do!

Let me know what you think of these boxes, and if you could choose one, which would it be?

Glossy Box February

My first glossybox <3

This box hit me right in the sweet spot (except I didn't get the special edition Love box). I paid about $32 Canadian for this box with the exchange rate and buying as a single purchase. Prices are cheaper with longer subscriptions.

Everything is so pretty.

I thought that birch boxes were nice. This is amazing and durable.

Wrapped like a present.

Again, so much detail. You can see why you are paying a premium for this service.

I like what I see! The body wash is why I bought the box. It was released as a spoiler at the same time my current shower one was about to run out.

Hartleigh from Julep. I wanted this so bad, and I love it. A interlocking gloss from Jouer. The make your own compact system seems like it might be useful if you wanted to stick with one brand.

Swatched. Love it!

Teadora soap, smells great! Unwash conditioning shampoo. It's okay.

The Rituals body wash. I love how this smells and the novelty of foaming. It is ackward with the loafa so I just rub it all over. Oh... that didn't sound as clean as I hoped. 

The suggested value of this box is: $90 ! But we know some of those prices could be inflated. It's a great value for the purchase price.  

Glossy box is very tempting for me right now, but with the Canadian/American exchange rate and my dislike for waste/clutter (I feel better about not using a sample and I would hoard a full size even if I didn't like it) is holding me back. Oh, and wanting to pay off my student loan. If you are for it, search for a coupon and you can get some pretty nice bonuses your first month. 

Treats Box - February Review

Treats Box is a Canadian Candy Subscription box with lots of options. First there are two sizes, Regular and Epic. Epic has double the candy of the regular box with a little in savings. You can also prepay with 3, 6 or 12 month subscriptions with increased savings for the longer you purchase. The regular box is $30 with free shipping, epic is $50. I purchased the regular box. Boxes ship near the beginning of the month.

The box was carefully wrapped in packing squiggles and tissue paper. No information nor links, but it did have a 

PROMO CODE: buddybox

to save 15% on a subscription. 

Here's the inside before I dissected it.

Oooo a chocolate valentine.

Again, I apologize for the lack of editing. Photos were taken with a fussy baby and a hungry tummy, and my mouse has broken and I don't feel up to the amount of time to edit. If it really bugs you, comment and I'll be sure to come back and fix them :)

A full size chocolate bar (in red), cinnamon hearts, some small candies.

A package of gum (not my favorite, but I'll take it). Love hearts! Halls (because I guess they know that Halls really is just Candy). Some more small candies and a Halloween size Hot Tamalies. 

Some rain-blo gum balls, a large sucker (that was eaten too quickly so the name was forgotten), and marshmallow strawberries. Those did not last long. 

There was fun skittles toy that lit up and squirted a sour candy solution. The husband equivilent took one for the team and finished that sucker off. We also discussed how amazing that when we were kids or even in high school you would never see something like it. Also included were some candies, a couple suckers including a heart shaped sucker, a pixie stick (more love from me) and a second Hot Tamalies. 

I paid just over $30 for this Treats Box (and remember you can save more by buying subscriptions in longer chunks). I love Candy, and I like how this was a collection based on around the heart. For Valentine's day, get it? The problem I have with estimation of the value of this box is the unit price for some of these items can change dramatically depending on quantity purchased. I would say you're getting close to the value paid, if not more. But, I do think I love it. 

It's Candy. It's Canadian. It's wonderful!

Project Candy Box - February Review

Project Candy Box is a new Canadian Candy subscription service. The cost is about $20, but with shipping and taxes I'm paying $27 per month. Boxes ship around the middle of the month.

The boxes are wonderfully decorated in a Project Candy Box green design and come with a thank you card that links to a review of the items. This didn't work for me last month, but it did today.

From Project Candy Box: 

"February is the month of Valentine's day. After red roses and Hallmark cards, men and women flock to the stores to pick up something sweet for their spouse, partner or even a first date. Love, like or hate this holiday, one thing is obvious; nothing says you care like candy and chocolate!

Valentine's day is what inspired this month's theme but LOVE and CARING are some of the core traits of everyone here at Project Candy Box.

Enjoy this month's box and make sure to share it with the people who you love. Make sure not to feed the dog any chocolate."

First glance, I like what I see! (Side note, my mouse has broken so the photos will not be edited for this post nor any post for a while. And if it appears I took the photos while holding a fussing baby, you would be right. I really wanted to eat the candy so I had to get it done quick before she really wanted to eat".

Kancho cookies from Korea. I liked these, some family member said they tasted like soap. 

Milka! One of my absolute favorite chocolate brands. From Germany.

Red hots (not approved by the toddler), sweethearts and sweet hearts. All lovely and V-day appropriate.. All consumed quickly. Turkish delight from England.

A ring pop (so cute! The only ring I want to be given this time of year), 2 drumsticks from England and a 2 box of Baci chocolates from Italy. The later were so good. I'd say better than that gold candy that appears at christmas time.

Korean gummy worms. Don't eat these. They taste awful. 

What I like is Project Candy Box seems to be putting great care in to the cureration of the box and to bring quality low-mid price ranges candies to your door. I estimated the value of this box to be between $20 and $26 so I feel comfortable that you are getting what you're paying (but it's nothing crazy like those boxes that claim to be 2 -3 times their value). 

It's Candy. It's Canadian. It's wonderful! 

Ipsy February glam bag review

Ipsy is a monthly subscription box for $10 plus $4.95 shipping to Canada. 

This wasn't part of my bag, but it was for some last month. I used the promo code for 50% off to get this cute brush. It had good reviews, and shipping was... okay. So I decided to get it. I wouldn't have if it wasn't for last month's bag reviews.

First up: 

Luxie Beauty

Large Angled Face Brush 504. Estimated full price $16.00

JOYA

Composition No. 1 Parfum Oil. I think this smelt nice. $4.50 ish.

This blush has been compared to Nars Orgasm - which may mean it's a great shade and a great find. I like the neutral colour of the gloss.

CARGO Cosmetics

Mini Lip Gloss $6.00 ish

and 

ModelCo

BLUSH Cheek Powder $22

Lastly 

'Tini Beauty

Rob Scheppy for 'Tini Beauty eyeshadow. This is a pretty easy to wear shade that I might depot and put into my new z-pallete but mostly because I'm looking for stuff to stick magnets to as I'm amused by the newness of the z-pallete. $6.45

This wasn't part of my bag, but it was for some last month. I used the promo code for 50% off to get this cute brush. It had good reviews, and shipping was... okay. So I decided to get it. I wouldn't have if it wasn't for last month's bag reviews. It's the Elizabeth Mott Shadow Brush.

So there it is. Total estimated value $54.50. I haven't had time to try out this bag because, yup, we're still renovating and it's somewhere in my bathroom pile. 

Please use my link if you're tempted. This month was a great example of five products I might not buy often, but I do use and that I might fall in love with.