TOPBOX December 2012 - Open Box Time!

The December Topbox has arrived today! For those of you who don't know, Topbox is a monthly subscription service that offers to deliver samples from top-rated brands once a month to your door step for a subscription fee of $12, shipping included. You have the option of cancelling at anytime before they charge you for the next month.

This month I did not choose the enviro-friendly version..and this is what my box looks like, unwrapped:

Such festive packaging!

Both the box's exterior and tissue paper is a beautiful red colour that is just oh-so-fitting for the holiday season :) Now what goodies are hiding underneath the paper?

1) Goldwell Sleek Perfection - 20mL - "Waterless spray-on serum for silky-straight looks that lasts. Full-size 100mL $20.95". I am, honestly, not much of a hair product junkie, yet products that promise to de-fizz always capture my curiosity, so I'm eager to try this one out.

2) Ferro Cosmetics - Ultimate HD 3-in-1 Foundation | Concealer | Powder - "A brand founded by Celebrity Makeup Artist Krissy Ferro, that makes 100% natural mineral makeup. Cruelty Free." I am not a big fan of powder foundations and mineral makeup. I don't have overly sensitive skin that reacts to cream/liquid foundations, in fact, my favorite foundation type is liquid! That could likely be due to the fact that I lean more towards dry skin, especially in the winter time, therefore anything that is powdery will tend to accentuate the dry parts of my skin. Furthermore, this product is so messy! :( Oh well, perhaps I can still give this a try, once I figure out how to get a decent-sized brush into the tiny container. If you can't tell already, I'm not too thrilled about this particular sample.

3) Kellett Skincare - Clarifying Acne Treatment (benzoyl peroxide gel USP 5%) - "Developed by Dr. Lisa Kellett, one of Canada's top dermatologists. Combines technologically advanced peptides." I don't know about the peptide part (theoretically, peptides may promote the regeneration of healthy skin cells which increases the rate of skin renewal and results in healthier, more radiant looking skin), but by looking at the main active medicinal ingredient listed right on the package, I know this is no miracle product for acne. Now for a bit of pharmacist ramble...benzoyl peroxide is a type of antiseptic that is able to breakdown bacteria's cell wall and promote bacterial death. It is, overall, quite mild, making it ideal for topical use on the skin to kill off the bacterial that most commonly causes acne. The same ingredient is found in drugstore products that costs as little as under $10 for a 60g tube. As far as I'm concerned, this is not a high-end product in my books, but I will use it up, since my go-to product PanOxyl is currently on manufacturer back-order haha

My favourite fragrance of all time :)

4) Chloe Eau de Parfum - 5mL - "Chloe's signature scent captures the creative, confident individuality of the Chloe woman. Full size $90 (50mL), $115 (75mL)" This is my all-time favourite fragrance, its notes are very unique and very feminine. It is on the rather strong side of frangrance but personally I still find it both day-time (work) and night-time appropriate. I currently have a 50mL bottle on my dresser, a rollerball in my purse, and a 75mL bottle unopened in my closet. If you can't tell already, I don't plan to go a day without Chloe EDP hahaha. The sample bottle from Topbox is really cute, and tiny as it is, it is still made of glass, giving it a minature luxury feel. However, I don't think that I will actually use this bottle because it has a little stopper top that tends to be a bit more difficult to open, plus I already have the full size item in use. I think I will keep it more as a small decoration piece. 

Here is the sample bottle next to the 50mL bottle, it is just so adorable I couldn't help but put one more picture in here!

Overall, I wasn't too impressed with this month's Topbox, especially considering the fact that they recently increased the price from $10/month to $12/month. If only its contents were as appealing as the change in colour of the box itself and the tissue paper. However, this is only my second month receiving it since I came off the waitlist for November, and last month's box wasn't too shabby. I'll continue with the subscription for a little while and hopefully there will be some more surprises in the months to come! 

If you are interested in subscribing to topbox, you can visit them here: www.topbox.ca

Disclaimer: The topbox subscription was paid for with my own money and the above post was my honest, unbiased opinion :)

Thanks for reading!

Joanne