Cravebox: Summer Beauty Limited Edition Box

So, I've been really annoyed with Cravebox lately. Cravebox is a company that puts out monthly boxes, like many other subs, but Cravebox is not necessarily focused on beauty products - rather, they've sent out everything from food to bbq supplies to skincare to office supplies. I was on the waiting list for MONTHS to join their monthly subscription program, and I finally got a spot in May. And in this amount of time, I've gotten exactly two regular "monthly" boxes, one of which was actually a limited edition bbq box that they decided to send to regular subscribers in lieu of a regular box, as well.

Cravebox has been putting out these limited edition boxes fairly regularly. In addition to their regular service (which used to be monthly, but now is apparently every 6-8 weeks, though they never officially notified customers about this...) these limited edition boxes are not sent to subscribers, rather, you enter for a chance to purchase one and they have a set number of each.

I feel strongly that all of the focus has been put on these Limited Edition boxes, which in my opinion, have not been very impressive, and the regular boxes are just an afterthought. That aside, I find it unbelievably unprofessional that they did not at least officially notify subscribers that what they originally signed up for had changed - that a box a month would suddenly be something more like "one every couple of months or so..."

That said, I signed up for the Summer Beauty box, and I received it last week. What was inside?

As always, the box is a good size. It's always fun to get a big package in the mail, for some reason. The shipping on this one was very, very slow. I am not sure, but I think that past boxes got here a lot more quickly than this one did.

As always, the packaging is fun, with a ton of paper confetti. I do have to say that their packaging isn't the most eco-friendly. It's still fun and colorful, and I have saved most of it for reuse in my own gift wrapping/packaging. 

There are five products in the summer beauty box.

The first item I pulled out started off this box on kind of a bad note. It is a thinkThin protein bar in brownie crunch. Okay, first of all, what exactly does this have to do with summer beauty? I am tired of getting nasty food bars in beauty boxes...I've gotten several from Birchbox, as well. I signed up for this box to try beauty products. If you want to include something like this, it should be a bonus, not a main item. 

Second, even if it made sense in the box, this is disgusting. Some bars I've received have been pretty good - the granola or nut based ones at least taste like food. This one is like a gritty piece of fake chocolate flavored chalk. How is this even edible? thinkThin is a very good name for the product, because the idea of it could put me off food for a week.You'd have to pay me to eat it again.

This is an Oatmeal Peppermint Body Bar by Garden Botanika. A bar of soap isn't the most exciting thing to get in a beauty box, but I do have to say this is a nice one. The oatmeal gives it a slightly scrubby texture, and the peppermint oil makes it really soothing. I've been using it on my feet and legs, especially before and after shaving. It's not too drying and leaves my skin smooth. It's soothing on bug bites and other irritation, as well. Garden Botanika is a new brand to me, but I'd be interested in trying more of their products.

This is a Bic Soleil Bella razor. It basically offers the benefits of reusable razors like the Venus in an affordable disposable. This one has 4 blades. I did find that it does its job well, and I was happy to get a razor since I didn't receive the one that Birchbox was supposedly sending to everyone. For the price, these razors are nice and I'd likely buy them again.

This is an Intensive Eye Treatment by puristics. I love eye creams, so this was a welcome addition to the box. It's a nice thick cream that feels good going on. It feels refreshing and hydrating without being too heavy. Obviously, it's too soon to say if it is effective when it comes to anti-aging, but I am happy with the consistency and feel, and will continue to use it. I'm told that Cravebox had already sent out this product or a very similar one by the same brand before, but that was before my time, so I'm fine with it!

And finally, Tropical Mango sugar scrub by Tree Hut. This tub is huuuuge and it smells amazing, but I do have to say I was a little disappointed to get this from Cravebox, simply because they sent out the same scrub in a different scent just one box ago. That said, this is an amazing product and is probably my favorite body scrub I've tried to date. It leaves your skin silky and soft and is perfect for summer. I just wish I wasn't already getting box repeats, considering the small number of boxes I've actually gotten from them.

So, in all, the Summer Beauty Limited Edition Cravebox is okay. I am happy with most of the products received, but I do feel that very little effort was made in putting this box together. There are two repeated products (the scrub and the eye cream) and one cop-out product (the protein bar). Had I known what was in the box, I wouldn't have signed up for it, and that is how I generally decide if a subscription is worth it for me or not.

I do believe this will be my last Cravebox for a while. I am just unhappy with the lack of communication and clarity from them and the dwindling quality of the boxes offered. When I was on the waiting list, they sent out several amazing boxes I lusted over (Valentines colored sharpies?? YES PLEASE. ) Frankly, I've yet to receive a box from them that I truly find exciting, so it's not worth it for me at this time.

Have you tried Cravebox? If so, how do you like it?

Cravebox - Summer Spruce Up Limited Edition Box

Ahh. I actually received my Summer Spruce Up Cravebox a couple of weeks ago, but real life has been so crazy that I kind of...forgot about it. Until this morning when I bumped it, knocked it over, and had to spend a while trying to clean up all the confetti I had dumped as the contents stared at me sadly. Whoops!

Anyway. this is one of the new limited edition Craveboxes. These aren't part of the subscription that you pay $10 a month for. Instead, they introduce these themed boxes, and you enter a drawing to win a chance to buy one. They cost $10 as well, and if you win one, you still get your regular monthly box, as well. This is the first one that they've sent out, but they list the themes of future boxes as things like beauty, dog lovers, cat lovers, and back to school. I signed up for the Summer Spruce Up one because I love cleaning products (no, I'm not crazy...), and because I'll be moving by the end of summer so heaven knows I'm going to have some serious cleaning to do. So, what did I get?

The packaging is the same as the regular Craveboxes, and it arrived to me quickly and without issue. With some of the other subscription services having some major shipping issues lately, I appreciate this simple fact.

I love the way Cravebox is packed! Every box has different colored confetti cushioning it. It's always fun to open, and I like to save the confetti for future use in gift bags. The box of course has the usual welcome card, talking about the theme and the contents. As usual, everything received is full sized.

The first thing I pulled out was this Dawn Duo Sponge Cloth. This is just what it sounds like - a cross between a sponge and a cloth. It reminds me of a large, flattened sponge. This is going to get some major use here - I always wear out the scrubby side of sponges, and this is basically a giant version of that. I had never seen this product before, so I'm glad to discover it now! This sponge cloth retails for around $3.

This is another new product to me - Sprayway Glass Cleaner. This is an ammonia free aerosol glass cleaner. I tried this out already, and I really like it! It sprays on kind of foamy, and it has a nice fresh scent. It left my windows and my computer screen nice and shiny and it really is streakless. This retails for around $5.

These are bliss gloves by Mr. Clean. I only recently discovered the benefits of using gloves for tough cleaning jobs after I tore my hands up cleaning the oven. As far as gloves go, these are nice ones! They are super soft and velvety on the inside and feel nice and durable. I appreciate that they're latex free. These retail for around $4.

This is a coupon, not a product, but it is for a free product, so I appreciate it! It's a coupon for a free box of Glad trash bags, which will definitely come in handy. The coupon has a max value of $5.49.

And finally, this is a product I remember from my childhood - Bar Keeper's Friend cleanser and polish. This is a versatile all-purpose product that can be used on stainless steel, porcelain, copper, tile, and just about any other surface you can imagine. It is great for general cleaning and removing rust and stains. I appreciate that it doesn't contain bleach! This tin retails for around $4.

In all, this is a really nice box. I got more than $21 worth of full sized cleaning products, and most are new to me. I can't wait until Cravebox releases more of these Limited Edition boxes...it's fun to get a bonus box in the mail.