May Birchbox: Gossip Girl

This month Birchbox teamed up with the CW's Gossip Girl, with samples inspired by the series and Manhattan's chicest events.  Here are the items included in my box:

Arquiste L'Etrog:  A perfume sample with warm notes of citron, palm leaves,and mrytle that are inspired by the aromas of a medieval harvest festival in Calabria, Italy.  A full sized bottle would set you back $165.  To me, this was a masculine scent - not bad, but not my style either.  My sample is worth about $3.

Miracle Skin Transformer Body SPF 20 in Glow:  A tinted treatment from Sarah McNamara that erases blemishes and scars on arms, legs, and decollete.  A full-size would cost $34 and mine is a .5 oz sample, which I think works out to about a $6.80 value.  My chest could use some help, so I'll be testing it there.  A swatch on my hand left behind a sheer wash of color with a slight shimmer.

Ojon Volumizing shampoo:  Made with the ultra nourishing Central American ojon oil to make your hair look and feel thicker.  I've used Ojon products before, but not this volumizing shampoo.  A full sized bottle is 8.5 oz and costs $22, so my 1 oz. sample is worth about $2.58.

stila sparkle waterproof liquid eye liner in Starry Night:  Waterproof, smudge-proof - check.  This stuff doesn't budge once on.  In fact, I had a hard time getting my arm swatch off, period.  I used an oil based makeup remover followed by soap and a few flakes come off with vigorous rubbing.  I'll try a bi-phase eye makeup remover on my next arm swatch.  Until then, I'm afraid to use it on my eyes because I'm not sure I can get it off!  Not kidding.  It's pretty though, so if you are looking for a liner that could last all day, all night, and the next few days, these could be it.  This was full size and sells for $22. 

The Birchbox extra this month was a note card.  Hand written thank you cards are always such a nice touch.  A set of 12 costs $10, so mine is worth 83 cents.  No wonder emails are so popular;-).  It's cute, and I'll use it.

Overall, I'm underwhelmed with my Gossip Girl box, but that's because the perfume sample wasn't my style and I don't use liquid eye liners.  It's not a bad box, just not my favorite.  The overall value of my box this month was roughly $35, so not bad for my $10 investment.  I do love getting my Birchbox's each month - they are quality, even if there are some samples that don't float my boat!

Clever marking on Gossip Girl's part and I know there was much anticipation for this month's box.   I'll be interested to hear what other people got and if it met their expectations.  Are you a Birchbox subscriber?  What did you think of the Gossip Girl box?