BEAUTY BOX | May Birchbox – Curated by Emily Shuman from Cupcakes and Cashmere!

The blog Cupcakes and Cashmere was one of the first blogs I started reading because let's face it, Emily Shuman is a veteran when it comes to this blogging world and her book is the ONLY coffee table book that I have ever thought worthy of purchasing. Her 5 Favourite Things segment is one of my favourites and have always loved how easy she seems to make any task from baking a pie to putting together an outfit for a night out. Imagine how excited I was when I heard that the May Birchbox* was to be curated by the one and only Emily Shuman!

LAQA & Co. Lip Lube

Thoughts: I have tried a few LAQA & Co. products before and really liked them, but it cost too much to ship to Canada so it's nice to see that the Birchbox shop carries the brand with free shipping! The size I received seems to be part of a 5 piece gift set that is currently sold out which is unfortunate seeing as how the shade is pretty darn awesome.

Full size: 0.1oz/$25.00

I received: 0.07oz/$8.00

Whish Shave Cream in Pomegranate

Thoughts: I was looking for a travel-sized shave cream and now I've got one! I've never heard of Whish before, but this smells very yummy and will be taking it with me on my next work trip!

Full size: 150mL/$22.00

I received: 22mL/$3.23

No.4 Non-Aerosal Hairspray

Thoughts: I am now constantly on the lookout for a good hairspray so when I saw this was non-aerosol I thought...OK...let's see how this will go. I took this with me while I was away in Calgary last week and it actually did a pretty decent job of holding my curls in place while keeping them loose. The only thing that I missed with having an aerosal dispenser is that nicely continuous, fine hairspray mist, but the mist that came out was fine enough and did the job. Of course, I also love that it's eco-friendly.

Full size: 200mL/$34.00

I received: 30mL/$5.10

Paula's Choice Skin Balancing Super Balancing Concentrate Serum

Thoughts: Seeing as how I have just enbarked on a Paula's Choice journey, seeing this in the May Birchbox made me very happy. It is a retinol treatment which sounds scary, but it really is one of the more proven anti-wrinkle treatments. It does make your skin more sensitive to the sun so make sure to wear sun protection (although you SHOULD be wearing it anyway!)

Full size: 30mL/$30.00

I received: 5mL/$5.00

Raw Spirit Desert Blush EDT

Thoughts: This is a most unique fragrance. With notes of Australian Boronia, ylang ylang, osmanthus, jasmine petals and violets, Australian sandalwood, cedarwood and musk, this EDT is all over the place. At first, all I could smell was the ylang ylang and then came the jasmine and violets. Though this isn't my typical scent, it wears in such a beautiful way that you really can smell all of the layers. The price of the full size may seem high, but keep in mind that it is an eau de parfum as opposed to eau de toilette.

Full size: 7.5mL/$50.00 Rollerball or 30mL/$113.00

I received: 1mL/$3.77

Total Value of May Birchbox: $25.10

Final Verdict: If I had paid for this box, I would have been fairly happy. I can definitely see Emily Shuman enjoying the fragrance, hairspray and scented shave cream. I thought the packaging was adorable and at this point in the beauty box game our standards can be quite high. Luckily, I was a fan of all of the products, but I know it can be hard to please everyone especially when you receive brands that are foreign to you. From what I have seen so far, most subscribers are quite happy with Birchbox especially with the point system!

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