May Allure Sample Society came with some news, which might be exciting for some and not so much for others. For the first time ever, Sample Society decided to temporarily stop accepting new members, with nowhere to sign up for the wait list and no official ETA. Those of us who are currently subscribed will still keep getting our boxes every month as usual, but everyone else will have to wait for a notice on when and if they will make this program available for new members. By the way, the theme this month is “New & Improved”, and our sample sociboxes came with six instead of five usual samples. Each product inside is either a brand new release or a cult favorite that we might not have tried before.
HOW IT WORKS: For $15/month Sample Society will send its members 5 deluxe-sized samples from beauty brands like stila, Murad, Sisley, Alterna, Butter London, and Too Faced, and a $10 off $50 monthly discount code to BeautyBar.com. Click here to join Sample Society. You can also buy some of the past boxes here.
John Frieda Luxurious Volume 7 Day Volume In-Shower Treatment – Could this name be any longer, seriously? Jokes aside, this is a product I’ve never tried before – it’s wash-off treatment that you apply after shampoo and conditioner, that helps the volume stay for days. I don’t know how this thing works but holy smokes, it does! I’ve only used it once, but it makes my hair look like I just got a blow dry, hours after I styled it. I think I’ll repurchase it when I run out.
Julep Lip Gloss in Graceful – Graceful is a universally flattering sheer pink lip gloss shade. It looks nice as a lipstick topper, and adds a little color to the lips when worn alone. I liked that it doesn’t seem to accentuate the lip lines, and also has a non-sticky consistency that doesn’t drag or bleed out. It smells like vanilla frosting, too! I actually like it a lot, and would definitely recommend it to other lip gloss lovers.
Versace Eros Pour Femme – We rarely get actual mini-bottles of perfumes in subscription boxes, so this one was much appreciated. On another note, I would much rather get a small vial, because I always feel like it’s a waste if I don’t like the scent, which is what happened here. While Eros is not totally generic and boring, it’s still too… I don’t know… Too “magazine-insert” ish, if that makes any sense? I will have to pass it on to someone else.
Avene Eau Thermale Spring Water – A cult classic in Europe, thermal spring water sprays can be found in every girl’s purse. I’ve only tried four so far, but this one and Evian are my favorites, because they are very gentle and feel super refreshing. Something in Vichy makes my skin sting, and La Roche-Posay doesn’t do anything for me at all.
Laneige Water Sleeping Pack – I’ve been talking about Korean beauty products for years, and looks like they are finally making their way to the shelves of mass-market stores, like this Laneige sleeping mask, that you can get at Target. It’s formulated to help retain moisture in the skin overnight, and also makes the rest of your nighttime treatments more effective. I can’t say I’ve found a sleeping pack that I am absolutely head over heels in love with yet, but this one was nice. I’ll use up the sample, but probably won’t repurchase.
Alterna Caviar Repair Multi-Vitamin Heat Protection Spray – If I got a penny for every heat protection product sample I received over the past few years, I’d probably have enough money to buy lunch. Seriously, I get a lot of these, but most of them weigh down my fine hair like it’s nobody’s business. However, Alterna products always seem to work wonders for me, but I prefer their bamboo line instead. This protectant spray is okay, but if you have fine hair like me, it’s easy to overuse.
THE VERDICT: Overall, this was a pretty good box, with a few samples that were winners, a couple “okay” products, and only one real dud – the fragrance, which by the way is just a subjective opinion. I’m more curious about the whole waitlist thing, like, what’s going to happen to the program? Is it because they have more subscribers than they can get high quality samples, so they want to limit the number of people? While I don’t have any definite answers for you, this is a very intriguing development, and I’ll let you know if I find out any more deets.
Have you tried any of these products before? What do you think about this whole wait list thing? Share in the comments below!
| Product | Retail value |
|---|---|
| John Frieda Luxurious Volume 7 Day Volume In-Shower Treatment | $2.49 |
| Julep Lip Gloss in Graceful | $8.00 |
| Versace Eros Pour Femme | $9.20 |
| Avene Eau Thermale Spring Water | $6.00 |
| Laneige Water Sleeping Pack | $5.75 |
| Alterna Caviar Repair Multi-Vitamin Heat Protection Spray | $6.00 |
| Box Retail Value | $37.44 |
Disclosure: This post features products purchased by Glamorable and may contain affiliate or referral links. For more details about my product review policy, copyright, and information about affiliate links, please refer to Disclosures & Content Use page.
I want to try the long-named John Freida product! I need volume!!!
It’s amazing, I used up my sample already and I want more 🙂 Going to look for it at Target next time I go shopping.
I’d love to try the LaNeige overnight sleeping masque
Some people really like Laneige, but my skin is kind of indifferent to them. You never know until you try!
I’m going to try out that John Frieda product! Sounds like what I’ve been looking for. I tried the Laneige masque and it broke me out so unfortunately I had to get rid of it.
Girl, come back and tell me what you think if you do. I already finished my sample, and it’s already on my shopping list. Love this stuff!
I NEED to try the John Frieda Luxurious Volume 7 Day Volume In-Shower Treatment if it’s cruelty free. Gotta research it!
I hope they are, because it’s amazing. I just finished my sample, and it’s already on my shopping list.
I really want to try the John Frieda 7-day volume treatment. I wonder if they have trial sizes in stores.
Hopefully they do – I got two uses out of this bottle, but I have very long hair. You use it every 3rd wash and it actually keeps the volume through washes!
I feel like I need to sign up for this box. So cheap and it looks like they are including brands that other boxes aren’t!
They have a really great selection of brands. I remember even receiving Sisley skin care and Diptyque fragrances from them, too.
I was curious about the Laneige mask, but not so sure now.
Well, everyone’s skin is different, and I can’t really say it’s bad. It just did nothing for me, but I heard many people rave about this brand.
I love reading your assessment of the products. The fragrance wouldn’t make me happy and I agree about getting so many of those hair products.
Yeah, seems like hair care is a cheap way to fill the box with large-looking samples.
Nothing makes people want something more than knowing that they can’t get it! Allure is getting EXCLUSIVE, people! lol. I want to try the sleeping mask, but most of these samples are nothing I’d get super excited over.
I was bleh about the box too until I tried the John Frieda product – life changing experience for my fine hair. I know I would have *never* thought of even trying it if I didn’t get a sample.
Awww it’s a shame that signing up for the program is up in the air right now.
Yeah, kind of a bummer, but I hope it’s a sign that they want to curate better boxes, if they know exactly how many samples they’re going to need every month.
I know what you mean w/ magazine insert-ish perfumes. For some reason, they do smell differently, more like yuck, lol!
Glad you understand, Kath, I had no idea how else to put it. It’s almost a tacky fragrance? At least to me it is because of the way it plays with my body chemistry.
Anything with Avene is good for me!!!
Me, too! Love their skin care – it’s so gentle <3
This was a good box, now I regret cancelling my subscription. I love the Avene spray.
It’s fantastic, I’ve been using it every day since getting the box.
Overall, it seems like a good box! I’m going to try the volume rinse. It sounds too interesting to not try! 😉 I agree with you on the scent. I thought it was too masculine for my tastes when I tried it at Sephora. The little bottle is cute though!
Girl, trust me, you’re going to love it! It’s a game changer for fine hair <3
I would have loved this whole box.
I’m glad to hear that! It’s a rare thing for sample boxes when one is happy with everything.
That’s a good box. I love that they sent a mini perfume, but bummer that the scent was off. You’re right, there are too many heat protection and styling sprays in beauty boxes.
I feel like it’s a cheap way to fill the box 🙁 I do like Alterna though, but I just have so many hair samples that I’ll never use.
This is such a nice box. I love that Thermal spray – now if I can find what I did with mine, I’d be a happy person 🙂 I haven’t gotten any Allure Sample Society boxes yet but I alwasy see great things.
Glad to hear that you liked this box as well, Honey 🙂 And go find your Avene spray, girl, it’s calling your name!