When I received my sample choice email for Birchbox January 2016, I knew exactly what to do. Picking a pre-curated box was a no-brainer this month, after all the theme was Korean beauty, and I’m all about that right now! Curated by Soko Glam’s Charlotte Cho, the box included a nice variety of samples plus a full-sized sheet mask – a perfect introduction to the dangerously addictive world of Asian cosmetics for anyone unfamiliar with the trend.
HOW IT WORKS: At $10/month Birchbox subscribers receive 4-6 luxury samples and full-sized beauty products, tailored for them by a team of curators according to a personalized beauty profile. The value of each box usually ranges from at least $15 and can be as high as $70. Click here to join Birchbox.
IPKN Flash Cream Radiant Primer was the first sample in the box I decided to try. It turned out to have a wonderful whipped texture and gave my skin a lovely rosy glow. It worked well as a primer, evening out the skin surface just enough to make it look smooth but not overly dry. If i didn’t already have a couple similar products in my stash I’d consider buying this one.
Manefit Beauty Planner Mask Cucumber promises to soothe and moisturize the skin in under 20 minutes. As much as I love sheet masks, I am actually trying to eliminate the ones with Alcohol Denat in their formula from my routine, and this one lists it as the third ingredient. I discovered that my skin looks and feels a lot better on days when I completely exclude bad alcohols from my routine, so I am slowly phasing it out of my stash but it’ll take some time. I’ll use this mask, but definitely won’t repurchase.
We also got a few samples from goodal, which was one of my favorite brands that I discovered during my Memebox obsession phase. One of them was a duo of foil packets with Phytowash Yerba Mate Cleansing Foam and Phytowash Yerba Mate Bubble Peeling. The first one probably has high pH [most Asian and Western cleansers do], but I’ll give it a try eventually. The other one bubbles up on the skin and leaves it feeling super clean afterward. I like using this type of cleanser to remove BB cream and physical sunscreen from within the pores – it works like a charm!
goodal Waterest First Essence sample was fairly large with roughly one week worth of product inside. The ingredient list shows so many amazing extracts, but I was bummed when I saw the dreaded Alcohol Denat. I will definitely use up the bottle, and I hope my skin doesn’t rebel against me too much. P.S.: typically first essences are used after cleansing and toning, and prior to serum and moisturizer.
TONYMOLY Delight Tony Tint in Red pretty much defines Korean makeup trends. It helps create the popular ombre lip as well as matte just bitten look in one swipe of a wand. This tint smells like cherry pop and lasts all day on the lips. However, since mine are always super dry, the pigment wore off in splotches which wasn’t pretty to look at. #2016goals – take better care of my lips!
I’ve been wanting to try RE:P Bio Fresh Mask with Real Calming Herb ever since I stumbled upon it in Birchbox store. It seemed like a really cool product, plus my combo skin responds well to kaolin-based products. What can I say, it’s a pretty nice mask! Makes my skin feel calm and clean without overdrying it too much, like some other clay masks might.
THE VERDICT: While this wasn’t a creme de la creme of kbeauty products, I was thrilled to try everything and even found a nice clay mask! I’m guessing, Miss Cho had a very limited inventory to work with because I bet she would have picked different products for her ideal sample box.
Are you on board with Korean beauty trend? Have you tried any of these brands or products before? Let me know in the comments below!
| Product | Retail value |
|---|---|
| IPKN Flash Cream Radiant Primer | $4.97 |
| Manefit Beauty Planner Mask Cucumber | $2.00 |
| goodal Phytowash Yerba Mate Cleansing Foam | $2.00 |
| goodal Phytowash Yerba Mate Bubble Peeling | $3.30 |
| goodal Waterest First Essence | $1.20 |
| TONYMOLY Delight Tony Tint | $2.45 |
| RE:P Bio Fresh Mask with Real Calming Herb | $6.30 |
| Box Retail Value | $22.22 |
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.
