Gothamista x Boxwalla Box: Renée’s Winter Luxuries
One of the reasons I will never stop raving about Boxwalla is how thoughtfully each box is curated, but their latest holiday offering was probably my all-time favorite. As a special treat to their subscribers, Boxwalla collaborated with Renée Chow aka The Gothamista, one of the OG creators in the skincare & k-beauty space on Youtube, to bring three very special products that add a touch of luxury to your winter beauty routine.
HOW IT WORKS:
Boxwalla Skincare Box is a bi-monthly beauty subscription service that offers expertly curated skincare bundles for $59.95. Each box showcases 2 or more full-sized, luxurious botanical-based products from artisanal brands that are passionate about equitable sourcing of ingredients and mindful of their impact on the environment. With an average retail value of $200 or higher, you are always getting a great deal! Click here to check it out.
The Gothamista x Boxwalla Box included three products with a total retail value of $296:
- Saro de Rue x Gothamista Essence ($68)
- WYLYS Double Rose Luminizer ($188)
- Pink Moon x Gothamista Jade Gua Sha ($40)
You know how sometimes celebrities slap their name on a product that has nothing to do with them? I totally believe that Saro de Rue x Gothamista Essence is Renée’s baby through and through. She is very passionate about hanbang (ancient Korean beauty techniques) and fermented rare botanical ingredients, so I expected no less from this essence – and it delivered! This hydrating toner-meets-serum is filled with skim-quenching humectants, vitamins, and natural extracts, but the antioxidant-rich black ginseng extract is the star of the show here. When used twice a day, it can help strengthen the skin barrier, brighten, boost radiance and overall skin resilience. In a way, it reminds me of Sulwhasoo First Care Activating Serum, which is one of my all-time favorite skincare products and a frequent re-purchase. This formula feels very gentle and I believe it can work for all skin types, even sensitive.
P.S.: If you want to learn more about what is an essence and how to use it, you can read my old blog post that goes into great detail on that. It may be 8 years old, but the information is still relevant.
Ingredients: Panax Ginseng Root Water (62%), Water, Glycerin, Niacinamide (4%), Butylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Sodium PCA, Hydroxyethylcellose, Propanediol, Lycium Chinese Stem Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Rehmannia Glutinosa Root Extract, Lycium Chinese Fruit Extract, Artemisia Vulgaris Extract, Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract, Melisa Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Paeonia Lactiflora Root Extract, Scrophularia Buergeriana Root Extract (50ppm), Panax Ginseng Root Extract (50ppm), Betaine, Coccinia Indica Fruit Extract, Corallina Officinalis Extract, Zinc PCA, Maltodextrin, Persea Gratissimia (Avocado) Fruit Extract, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Ceramide NP, Ceramids NS, Cholesterol, Phytosphingosine, Ceramide AS, Ceramide AP, Ceramide EOP.
WYLYS Double Rose Luminizer is a luxurious oil-based serum blend that consists of ten plant oils and three botanical extracts. The formula contains mostly balanced oils and oils rich in linoleic acid, and a couple fragrant essential oils at the bottom of the list to give it that subtle aroma of freshly cut roses. Due to this chemical composition, it rapidly absorbs into the skin without clogging the pores, so it can work even for people with oily and combination skin types. You can use it directly by gently pressing a few drops into the skin right after the essence, or, like me, by adding a few drops to your favorite moisturizer to make it even more nourishing. My face always feels extra dry in the winter thanks to low humidity and indoor heating, so even though I don’t normally use many oils in my routine, I make an exception for the winter months.
Ingredients: Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil, Calendula Officinalis (Calendula) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Rosa Rubiginosa (Rose Hip) Seed Oil*, Evening Primrose Oil*, Geranium Flower Oil, Rosa Damascena (Rose) Flower Oil*, Pimenta Acris (Bay) Leaf Oil, Salicornia Herbacea Extract, Lavandula (Lavender) Stoechas Extract, Citrus Paradisi (Grapefruit) Seed Extract, Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Leaf Oil. *organic
Pink Moon Custom Jade Gua Sha was created exclusively for Gothamista & Boxwalla by a reiki healer Lin Chen. These days you can find gua sha tools made of many different materials, but Renee wanted hers to be made out of jade, a precious stone with centuries of imperial history. The practice of gua sha massage dates back over 4000 years when it was used not only as a beauty ritual, but also for the medicinal benefits. Proper gua sha massage encourages lymphatic drainage, promotes skin elasticity, and helps decrease facial puffiness. It pairs beautifully with WYLYS Rose Luminizer, as the latter helps the tool glide over the skin with ease, thus helping the serum absorb better and giving you instantly refreshed, radiant, and luminous complexion. Here’s a link to Renee’s gua sha massage video so you can try it, too.
BOTTOM LINE:
If you were looking for a reason to sign up for the Boxwalla skincare box, this is it! You will receive products that are high quality, luxurious, thoughtfully curated, and it’s delivered bi-monthly so you wouldn’t feel overwhelmed with too much skincare. Also I noticed that Boxwalla keeps in mind the products sent in the prior months so you aren’t stuck with 5 moisturizers in a row. I’m really impressed with the December products and already incorporated all three into my routine. The February box spoilers are already posted on Instagram, I’ll link it here if you want to check out what’s coming. But if you want to keep it a surprise, I’ll just say that the products pair beautifully with what we just received in Gothamista x Boxwalla box and you won’t be getting duplicates. February subscriptions already sold out once, but Boxwalla reopened them today for a short time so don’t miss out!
Have you heard of Gothamista? What do you think about the products in this box?
