Hello 2016: January Birchbox

Disclaimer:  I purchased this.

New Year, new Birchbox. This one felt particularly heavy when I pulled it out the mail box, and I've got to say the contents did not disappoint, for the most part. Let's take a closer look.

I was particularly pleased with the size of all the items, which even included one full sized product - the eyeko Fat Liquid eyeliner in black ($16).

A few reviews I read online made it sound like this eyeliner is particularly easy to use, but I'm not sure I noticed any advantage over my skinnier liquid liners. I've already got several favorite black liquid eyeliners such as Kat von D's Trooper and Lorac's Front of the Line Pro in black, and this one wasn't quite at their level.  It's not as pigmented nor does it apply as smoothly, so I'm not sure I'll be reaching for it much.

Next is a lovely coral red mini polish from Ciate London called Access All Areas ($5.55).  I'll be breaking this out once it gets warm.  Trying to remember if I've worn a Ciate polish before, and I do not believe I have.

Super happy with the size of the shampoo and conditioner samples (~$2) from the Beautiful Nutrition Grapefruit Detox Shine Repair line. These are supposed to help with product buildup and hard water, and should be a better for my hair option than the dish washing liquid I usually use for that purpose (although that does the trick). This is the item I'm most excited about for some reason.  Happy to see it's also sulfate-free.

Last up is the RESIST Wrinkle-Repair Retinol Serum from Paula's Choice ($9.46). I'm in need of a good retinol product and this sample should be large enough for me to form a solid impression. The formula contains a stabilized version of retinol as well as antioxidants and skin soothers, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed to see a difference in my skin.

Also included in January's box were some inspirational word stickers, which I added to my office door collection of similar objects. Sometimes I need to mentally prepare before I walk out that door :-)

Total value of January's box was $33.01, but even better I'm pretty excited about the shampoo/conditioner/retinol serum.  Way to start the year off, Birchbox!