Birchbox Haul

Yesterday I ventured out into the semi-cold (it's been around 30 degrees here; chilly but it's only going to get worse...) to the mailroom to see if I had any mail. Lo and behold, my tiny mailbox held a package slip. Upon picking up my package I realized it was an order I had placed with Birchbox! Needless to say, I was thrilled.

I got the Purity Made Simple cleanser from Philosophy and two Zoya nail polishes in Izzy and Kissy, from the new Gems and Jewels collection and best of all... they were FREE!

I'm sure if you're reading a beauty blog, you know about Birchbox. You pay $10 a month and receive a box full of generously sized samples. You can then go leave feedback on the samples you receive and get 10 points for each review. 100 points = $10. I had 430 points and my order was $36, so I paid nothing out of pocket! Such a cool system.

Here are the basics:

Philosophy Purity Made Simple (8 oz. for $20): a great, gentle but thorough cleanser that works really well with my normal-to-dry sensitive skin. I've sampled this before, but never used it long-term. I'm curious to see how my skin will react to using this every day.

Zoya nail polish in Izzy ($8): this is a gorgeous metallic berry pink color. As someone who doesn't go for the traditional red nail, this is the perfect holiday color for me.

Zoya nail polish in Kissy ($8): THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PINK GLITTER IN THE WORLD! That may be a stretch, but then again, it's the most gorgeous polish I've ever seen. I'm sure it will be GORGEOUS layered over Izzy. I feel like I will be wearing this constantly.

More in-depth reviews will coming in the near future, so keep an eye out for those!

A quick note on the order: I placed it on Saturday, Nov. 12th, it shipped on Tuesday, Nov. 15th and was delivered on Thursday, Nov. 17th (however because my school's mailroom is a little slow, I didn't get it until the next day). It was shipped through USPS. Props to Birchbox for sending out the order so quickly! It was also packaged very carefully. The polishes were individually wrapped in a thick layer of bubble wrap and the box was filled with bubble wrap too. Everything arrived in pristine condition.

Overall, I'm thrilled with Birchbox's point system that allowed me to get these products for free, the shipping, and of course, the products themselves! I highly recommend ordering from Birchbox's shop, especially now that they have a great gift guide up!