Allure Beauty Thrills, $60 (including shipping), one-time box of toiletries and cosmetics, available 3-times a year
I paid $60 +tax.
Box retail value: ~$350
The Allure Beauty Thrills box comes out three times a year, in May, August and November. You buy the boxes individually and they sell out quickly after they become available for purchase. If you want the next one, start stalking the My Subscription Addiction website in mid-April, for info on when it’ll become available. The boxes include a variety of full-size drug-store brand toiletries and beauty products, with an emphasis on hair products. Many are new products and it seems likely that the manufacturers are providing them for free to get a buzz going. This is not a surprise box and the items are listed before you purchase them. It’s a great value but only if you will use the products.
This particular box included 24 full size products. Ten of these were hair care products, the rest were a mixture of products for your face, body and teeth, including some makeup. This box included two ridiculously priced serums. The value of the box without the serums was $200 , but it rose to $455 with the serums (or $320 , if you consider that one of the serums can most often be found on sale).
Here is what I got:
Simple Micellar Make-Up Remover Wipes, 25 wipes, $7
I haven’t tried these yet, but I’m looking forward to trying them. I usually use cheap epielle makeup remover wipes, but they are not great. Hopefully these will be better – they do cost several times as much. They are made in the UK.
Yes to Tomatoes Detoxifying Charcoal Cleanser, 5 oz, $10
This is an acne cleanser which comes with 1% salicylic acid. Salicylic acid is great for all types of skin, as it helps open pores. My daughter was excited about the charcoal, but she got burned by a yes to cucumbers products so now is reluctant to try this. I’ll make her. Made in the USA (I think)
Algenist Power Advanced Wrinkle Fighter Serum, 1 oz, $105
This is a new serum from Algenist, but I think I’d prefer their retinol one. This one has similar ingredients but not retinol, which is the one ingredient that is known to work against wrinkles. It does have algae extract and a bunch of other anti-oxidants. Made in the USA.
Knu Anti-Aging Face Lift Serum, 1.2 oz, $150
If you thought the Algenist serum was ridiculously priced, wait until you see this one. I didn’t take a photo of this as it came sealed, and I’m wondering whether to keep it. It has snail extract, which is apparently a fad. Still, it does get good reviews from users (but you never know if those are planted). This item’s pricing does seem to be a scam. While the RV is presumably $150, it sells at Amazon.com for $42 and on Groupon for just $20!. Made in USA.
Caress Body Wash, Daily Silk White Peach and Silky Orange Blossom, 12 oz, $4
I’m always glad to get body wash as I know it’s something that will get used, either by me or someone else. I love the smell of Caress products so that’s a plus. Made in USA.
Dove Deep Moisture Body Wash, 22 oz, $5.50
It’s body wash, it’s cheap, not much more to say. Made in the USA.
Dove Advanced Care Anti-Perspirant/Deodorant, 2.6 oz, $6
I’ve used Dove deodorants before and they’re effective enough. Made in the USA.
Herbal Essences Naked Volume Shampoo, 10.1 oz, $4
It smells great and it’ll be used. Made in USA.
Not Your Mother’s Clean Freak Unscented Refreshing Dry Shampoo, 7 oz, $6
So far it’s worked as well as more expensive dry shampoos.
Clear Scalp & Hair Total Care Nourishing Shampoo & Conditioner, 12.7 oz and 12.9 oz, $10 combined
This is the third pair of Clear Scalp & Hair shampoo and conditioners I get in Allure Beauty Thrills. They smell great and my daughter likes how they work – though she hasn’t tried these particular products yet. Made in USA.
One ‘n Only Island Essentials Awapuhi Intensive Treatment, 5.3 oz, $6-10
This deep conditioner gets mixed reviews, and we’ll have to try and see how it works for my girls. It smells great. Made in USA.
Redken One United Multi-Benefit Treatment, 5 oz, $22
I’m not exactly sure what this product is supposed to do. The instructions say to towel dry your hair, spray it, leave it on for a couple of minutes and then rinse it. Reviews from people who like it, however, say they use it as a leave-in conditioner. My guess is that it’s best for people who have dry/damaged hair.
Rusk Working Spray Flexible Hairspray, 10 oz, $19
None of us use hair spray, but this came with a broken cap so we are keeping it. To Allure’s credit, when I complained about this and another problem they offered to send another spray. I’ll probably swap that one.
Aloxxi Volumizing Whip, hold factor 3, 6.7 oz, $13.5
I’ve gotten an Aloxxi product in each of the Allure Beauty Thrill boxes I’ve received, but none of them are the sort of stuff I use. This one will go to my mom. Made in the USA.
Suave Moroccan Infusion Styling Oil, 3 oz, $6
We don’t use these, so it’ll be donated. Made in USA.
Hask Monoi Coconut Nourishing Shine Oil, 18 ml, $3
The main ingredients in this hair oil are cyclopentasiloxane (a silicone that shows potential for endocrine disruption) and dimethiconol (another silicone). The third ingredient is monoi flower extract, followed by coconut oil. Not that any of this matters because nobody here uses hair oil. So I’ll be donating this as well.
Jessica Custom Nail Colour in Graceful, .5 oz, $8
This is a lovely pale pink/peach color. I like it, but I have several similar colors so I’ll probably gift it. I couldn’t find “graceful” in Jessica’s line, though they have several colors that look similar – and a lot of other fabulous colors as well.
Touch in Sol Feel Like Honey Moon Skin Base, 1.12 oz, $24
This is a primer with honey and collagen and it’s supposed to help firm up your skin. I don’t wear face makeup and when I do, it’s just BB cream. My daughter has really gotten into primers, but she wasn’t interested in trying this one. At 13 yo, firming her skin is not really a priority. Still, it’s a cool item to get. Made in Korea.
E.L.F. Studio Moisturizing Lipstick in Bordeaux Beauty, .11 oz, $3
E.L.F. products are cheap, they are hip and they’re made in China. So much to my daughter’s chagrin, this is going to the donation pile. It does look like a nice color, albeit probably too dark for her anyway.
E.L.F. Studio Lip Exfoliator in clear, .16 oz, $3
This is a basic sugar scrub with some added wax to give it solidness. Like all/most of E.L.F. products it’s made in China, so I’ll be donating it.
Sonia Kashuk Tools Medium Eye Shadow Brush No.28, $11
I tested it out and it’s very soft and works smoothly. It does retain quite a lot of powder, however. Still, being white, you can tell just how much. I’m glad to have it. Made in China.
Colgate Optic White Toothbrush + Built-In Whitening Pen, $13
With four people in the house, we go through toothbrushes very quickly. I still haven’t tried any of the whitening tooth treatments, but maybe I’ll finally use this one.ccc
Colgate Optic White Express White Toothpaste, $4
I don’t really think any of these whitening toothpastes make a difference, but toothpaste is toothpaste.