Violet Box July 2014 - unboxing and first impressions

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Well I'm home from my meeting so I can write a proper post - and I must say it was such a rubbish meeting that I'd have much preferred to stay home and take a good look at my goodies. Ha. Anyhoo.

Older members will notice the box design has changed. I think I prefer the old one but it's nice to have something new (and who really cares much about the boxes anyway ; ) ).


Violet Box is definitely my favourite of the three subscription boxes I'm currently receiving (the others being Bellabox and Lust Have It). Even though it's a little more expensive ($22.95/month), it always ends up being better value.


At first glance July's box didn't blow my socks off, but in my experience that doesn't always mean much - sometimes the boxes that look amazing contain products that don't work for you in practice, and sometimes the boxes that seem not so good end up containing unexpected gems.

Note: as always I will update this post in future as I use the products so I can give you an idea of what they're like.

Here's what we got this month:


Skin & Co Truffle Therapy Serum (RRP $75 for 30ml; received 5ml sample)

I'm glad this came in a tube and not a sachet. 5ml should be enough to trial this face serum. It's meant to plump the skin with hydration and fight off free radicals, and it goes on under your moisturiser. I hadn't heard about this brand until Violet Box posted about it on Facebook, and I'm always excited to try new things.

UPDATE: I had high hopes for this one, since it looks like a high-end product (and costs like one ; ) ), but I wasn't wowed. I've hit the end of the tube now and it's just not moisturising enough for me - it tends to leave my skin super-dry and I have to apply double amounts of moisturiser afterwards. Boo foo boo. Hoh well, glad to have tried it anyway.

Sukin Skin Purifying Facial Mask (RRP $15 for 100ml; received 2 x 8ml samples)

Sukin seems to have been doing the subscription box rounds lately and I've noticed their stuff in Priceline etc. I haven't tried this yet so I'm happy to give it a go. It's formulated with a clay base and infused with aloe vera and other goodies. It's meant to draw out dirt and grime while nourishing the skin. 8ml is a good-sized sample for a mask. Yay to that.

UPDATE: I've just used this, and noticed that there were in fact two 8ml samples and not one (must have had a blonde moment when I first wrote this review hehe). I love that Violet Box sometimes gives us double samples (it's happened with a face mask before), ensuring we get enough product to trial the items properly. This went on smoothly and felt lovely on my skin. It also smelled really good. As with most masks, I'm not seeing a massive after-effect other than my skin feeling a bit nicer - but perhaps I'll notice some difference as I use the samples over time. I do prefer this though to many masks I've tried, and since it's not hugely expensive, I may well buy it in future.


LAQA&Co Sheer Lip Lube Pencil (RRP $20; received 2g product)

This was the sneak peek item. I think it's a full size but am having issues finding gram quantities online so I'm not sure. Anyway, it looks full size. I got the peachy colour ('Bees Knees'), which is in fact the one I wanted! My golly, that never happens. Double excitement. Can't wait to try it.

UPDATE: I LOVE this! This pencil alone made the whole box worth it to me. It's wonderfully creamy and has a nice peppermint smell, and the colour is beautiful. It's pretty true to the colour you can see on the nib above, so I won't swatch it - though it's a little less bright. It's quite a sheer colour so you need to build it to get a good colour, but I don't mind that. Because it's so creamy it doesn't last that well (it's like a gloss in this sense), but I don't care because I'm so in love with the texture and the colour. I can totally see myself using this to death pretty quickly and then having to buy another : ).

KMS California Hair Play Moulding Paste (RRP $40 for 150ml; received 20ml sample)

This is meant to provide texture, create pliable hold and add definition. I'm not sure how much I'll use something like this, but I'm happy to give it a crack and see if I like it. I've tried a finishing spray from this brand before and didn't like it, so hopefully this product fares better.

UPDATE: The first thing I noticed about this was the smell: it's full on and a bit repulsive, and to me it smells a little like alcohol. BUT once I got over that and used it, I liked the effect. I've used it on dry hair (you can use it on either dry or wet locks) and it tames my fly-aways without weighing my hair down or making it look dirty. Mentally I had this marked down as a 'give away' item, but I may actually keep it. While it's not my favourite product of this nature, it does the job and 20ml is a good travel or purse size.

Lavender Sandalwood Calming Body Wash (RRP $6 for 10ml; received 10ml)

I've used Dr Hauschka products before and have liked them (particularly the Melissa Day Cream). I'm also thoroughly bored of my jumbo size body wash at the moment and have been waiting to receive a sample of something else to try, so I'm happy with this inclusion.

UPDATE: I've used this twice now. The smell is strong and true to name (absolutely lavender and sandlewood hehe). In using it I experienced the usual Dr Hauschka metal tube issue - when you use the cap to pierce open the foil top, product spews out. So make sure you open it for the first time in the shower: you'll be able to catch the spew and use it, rather than ending up with it all over the table ; ). I didn't love this and was surprised - normally I love Dr H products. It didn't seem to foam well and this made me feel that it didn't clean well either. But I'm glad I've tried this now because I've been considering buying Dr H body washes in the past, and now I know not to : ).

So Susan Flutter Mascara (RRP $32 for 4g; received full size)

It's nice to receive a mascara once in a while since they go off so quickly and are therefore a high turnaround product. I do have a few back-up mascaras already however so I might do some research on this before opening it to see if it's the right product for me (I have short eyelashes and need a lengthening mascara, and so many just don't cut the mustard). Thankfully this one is black (I'm not up for gimmicky fluoro violet ones thanks very much ; )). It sounds good in the description (something about hyaluronic spheres, whatever they may be), so fingers crossed.

UPDATE: This one is fine but not brilliant. I need serious lengthening action ('need' - ha) from my mascara and this doesn't cut the mustard. It doesn't thicken much either. I think it'd be better for lasses who have good lashes and just want to define them a bit. I also found that it took a while to dry, which meant that - with my puffy eyes - I was cleaning black dots off the skin around my eye area for a while after application. Unless you have great lashes, I'd give this a miss - plenty of better products exist, and ones that cost less.

Beyonce Rise (teeny tiny sample - looks like a bonus product)

I missed this the first time around when I was rushing to leave for my meeting, so it was a nice surprise when I got home. Until I smelled it. Yukko. Sickly sweet and strange. Hoh well, at least I know not to go near it in stores hehe.

August Sneak Peak

Dear Violet Box, can I please pretty please have the Be a Bombshell eye shadow quad in Madrid, when it comes to packing our August boxes. I currently have this product sitting in my Violet Box shopping cart, but haven't purchased it yet since I really can't afford to spend any more on cosmetics this month. Please please please, I will be your best friend. Love from Jane.


In sum

I'm not crazy amazed by this box but I'm also not disappointed - just keeping an open mind. I'm thrilled I managed to get the lip lube colour I wanted (waahhooo!), but nothing else in the box grabs my attention (unlike in previous months). But the jury's still out and I'm looking forward to trying everything. Overall a decent box, and I'll use most if not all things.

UPDATE: After using everything, my favourite items are the lip pencil and the Sukin mask. My thoughts on the box are the same as they were at the outset - decent but not brilliant. I'm totally looking forward to the August box now though, since Violet Box so rarely disappoints and my lack of booming excitement over the July box means the August one may well blow my socks off. Wahoooo!!!

What did others think of this box?

To join Violet Box, click the ad on the right of my blog or visit here. Use the code VIOLETBOX10 for $10 off your first box : ).


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