Review: 'Back To Basics Glossybox' - January 2014

This months Glossybox came under the theme of 'Back To Basics'. It is clear, because of this, that Glossybox have tied into the idea of resolutions, health, fitness and a new start for your beauty regime.

(^ This just makes me feel guilty I haven't been doing my Pop Pilate's ;__; *sobs*)

This months box came with a little magazine which is a first for me personally, which was nice. I had a quick flick through it and there seems to be lots of health related articles and recipes… mmm... food. 

As usual, a little card with all the Goodies names, descriptions and prices came with the box.

Yu-Be - Moisturising Skin Cream

This was the 'tester' item of my box this month, which typically are moisturisers (or this has been the case for the three boxes I've received so far). 

3ml each

I have yet to use the testers, but I like trying new products and I still haven't found any moisturisers I swear by, so this was a nice addition to my box. Yu-Be is a Japanese brand, and use Vitamin E, B2 and Camphor. At full price, it comes in at £13.50 for 33g, which is more pricey than drugstore brands, but not as heart wrenchingly expensive as some other moisturisers. I think I'd have to try them to tell you if it's worth the price, but the brand appears to be a respectable one.

Balance Me - Super Toning Body Wash

The next item in my box was a 'Balance Me' body wash with a price tag of £10.25 for 250ml (I got a 50ml bottle). I think that this one is possibly for the organic junkies but ties in very nicely to the idea of basics they have going throughout the box. The wash has a 99% natural origin and uses a variety of essential oils to give you the perfect 'morning boost'. 

As with most of the items in this box, I have yet to try this, but it has a thick honey-like appearance and smells somewhat herbal (I think it's the lavender). It can be used as either a body wash or bubble bath, dependant upon your preference, and I think I'll look forward to trying this out for myself!

The Vintage Cosmetic Company - Floral Slanted Tweezers

This was the item I knew for definite would be coming in my January Glossybox, as it was advertised on their website.

Ohh~ pretty~

Above is the picture of the pretty vintage inspired tweezers I received, which sport a delicate floral pattern. The tweezers are slanted, sharp (always a good sign) and just downright pretty! They come with a price tag of £8.00, which I would say is a bare minimum for good tweezers, and expect that with proper care, they will last a long time.

I actually had a look at their website because I felt that the product was just that attractive and hoped that they would have similar beautiful products. Needless to say, I was not disappointed and you can purchase these tweezers - and more - here. They have a wide range of fantastic false eyelashes, makeup bags, brushes and other beauty accessories - definitely check them out.

Anatomicals - Puffy The Eye Bag Slayer: Wake-Up Under Eye Patches

Dat Pun!

Puns, Puns, Puns So Many Puns~

I feel like anyone who does not appreciate the sheer amount of puns on this must have the personality of a mop. I've been struggling to figure out which is the 'joke gift' of the box, but I guess this is it. First some foot scrub, then a razor and now some Buffy inspired jokes - very nice. 

This packet has only one set of eye patches as opposed to the full size of three patches at £6.00. I don't consider the price to be too steep considering most people wouldn't use them everyday (or I wouldn't have thought so). I know that for me personally, I would be more likely to use this if I needed fresh looking eyes for a big day but I didn't get much sleep the night before. 

Vaseline - Essential Moisture Lotion

Finally, the last product on the list was a small bottle of moisturiser from the brand Vaseline. 

I kind of think this is my 'ehh' item of the month, as there always has to be one. It's purchasable at Boots and I think what it truly boils down to is that I could get loads of this stuff and spend little to nothing thanks to staff discount. Either way, I could have been given better, but I could also have been given worse. 

The moisturiser has 'Pure Oat Extract', which as some of you may be aware, oats are amazing for the skin. The cream isn't particular thick, but has a good coverage and the skin absorbs the moisture very quickly. The original size is a massive 400ml at £4.99 - you'd definitely get your moneys worth - and I was given a 50ml bottle to try. 

The Math

(Do correct me if I am wrong with my calculations)

£2.45 (Yu-Be) + £2.05 (Balance Me) + £8.00 (Vintage Tweezers) + £2.00 (Anatomicals) + £0.62 (Vaseline) = £15.12

I'd say that the worth could have been better and I'd definitely say that this is the box I have been least impressed with. I really, really, really hoped I'd get some makeup but I guess that wasn't to be the case this month. Better luck next month, eh? 

Everything together~ 

So what did you think of the Glossybox this month? Should I do an in-depth review of any items in particular? 

Thanks for reading~~

xx