My Cotton Bunny March 2014

This is my last My Cotton Bunny Bundle. I'm just so sad about this subscription service. I feel like there's so much potential there but they are not changing with what's demanded in this market.

I did change it up this month with what I could choose. It is so easy to update your profile to select what brand of products you want if you want a little change. This month, I decided to get the O.B. regular tampons. Here's a picture of the whole box:

I can say that I have always felt that I got what I paid for. My Cotton Bunny is $16/month. In the top left you can see a bracelet-that was the bonus for completing last month's challenge. To the top right are 3 yoga headbands. You can see the 18 ct. regular o.b. tampons, a luna protein bar, A KurFoods Delights in Dark Chocolate Mint, some bow hair ties, and a wipe? I'm not sure that is a wipe. There wasn't any information about it on the card but given the nature of the box-that would be my best guess. 

The bracelet. I got the same bracelet in a different color in my bundle last month. I am not really into pink. I'm sure I can find someone to give it to. Sharing with a friend is what the card suggests to do with it-give it to a friend. This is supposed to be a present to spoil myself with during my time of the month and you want me to share with a friend? I will. BUT, that is NOT the point of this box. Obviously, they had leftovers from last month. This is the bonus so I don't mind but isn't my idea of pampering. There is no brand associated with this bracelet. Last month I assigned a value of $7.00 to this bracelet because I saw a similar bracelet online. This is being generous to the value but I will do the same this month.

The headbands are always great. I frequently use things like this so these are a welcome addition to my collection. There was no brand associated with these but I found some Goody Headbands at Walmart that I will compare these too in the sense of price and quality. The quality of these was not so good. I will have to cut the strings off on all three! I will use them and am happy I got them.

The Luna Protein bar. I am excited about this. I love bars. Sometime's I am just not very hungry but sill want to make sure I will have some energy. This bar is packed with protein so it will be a good one. I haven't eaten it yet but I sure will! The flavor I received was Chocolate Peanut Butter.

The KurFoods Delight in Dark Chocolate Mint. I ate this as soon as I opened my box! I love chocolate and mint together. These bites are vegan and I'm not sure but I believe the majority of this treat is made of dates. I love things like this that are healthy but packed with flavor. I even looked online to purchase more-maybe in a different flavor to try them all out!

The bow hair ties. Whomp whomp. What in the world are these? Are things like this in style? I think they could be cute if carefully planned with an outfit. I couldn't find anything like these though to compare and determine a price for my box total. There were some DIY hair ties that people had posted as arts and craft projects. They are supposed to have a little star charm on one end but my charms were missing and there was just little rings. I pulled the rings out and if I wear them, I like them without the charms anyway. There is no brand associated with these hair ties.

The possible wipe. Believe it or not, I am most excited about this wipe. The fact that this was included hints that My Cotton Bunny is starting to change and get in the TOM box competition. There are quite a few TOM boxes and all of them include little extras like this.

Here's what I estimate the box to be worth:

O.B. Regular Tampons 18ct.	$4.99
Bracelet	$7.00
Luna Protein Bar	$1.25
Hair Ties 2ct.	???
Yoga Headbands	$2.39
Delights Dark Chocolate Mint	$1.00
Wipe	???
TOTAL	$16.63

You get what you pay for with this box and that's great! However, with subscription boxes the expectations are higher. Well, my expectations are higher. I really enjoyed My Cotton Bunny, I enjoyed the concept. For me, the value just wasn't there. My Cotton Bunny is a small business and I am all for supporting small businesses but there are many more small businesses out there that I'm ready to give a try! 

My Cotton Bunny's bonus challenge this month was to e-mail them for any improvements or suggestions. This tells me they really do care what their subscribers want and are attempting to get that information. Even though I won't be getting another box, I still plan to e-mail them and give my suggestions. Who knows maybe I will give My Cotton Bunny another try in the future!

Do you have any suggestions for what I should try out next? Let me know in the comments but please do not bombard me with referral links. If I am interested, I will ask you! 

XOXO,

The Redheaded Life

Beauty Box 5 February 2014

Ok, I am finally getting around to these last couple boxes. I suppose it's hard for me to write about them because I am just not too excited about them.

First off, I should say that this box has extremely loyal followers and the majority of their subscribers are pleased month after month. So, this box might just not be my cup of tea. However, I will get a March box to give it a fair shot.

Hmm....Beauty Box 5, what can I say? This box was recommended highly on the internet. It was really hard to find any complaints but I do have a theory about that after this month. I got a couple coupons, I used one. I am waiting for a good sale to use the others. This box is $12 a month and comes in a relatively small box. There are minor variations from subscriber to subscriber. In some unboxings, I noticed that the nail duo color varied and that there were a couple alternatives to the Aveeno body wash.

Okay, can you see what I got? I got some Elizabeth Mott mascara, Aveeno body wash, Rockstar nail caviar duo, John Freida shampoo & conditioner samples, and a couple coupons. I did use the coupon to Mynamenecklace. The coupon was for $10 off with promo code: BEAUTYGIFT The site never charges shipping from what I can see. I did use the coupon so I will include it in my box break down. However, that also means that I can say I paid $26.95 for the box this month. 

I ordered a monogrammed sterling silver bracelet with the coupon. I do really like the bracelet. Monogramming is very "in" right now and getting something personalized for only $14.95 (including shipping) was in fact a good deal in my opinion.

The Rockstar polish duo-the color is cute and pretty but felt like a cheap formula, almost plastic. The caviar is not really my thing. I did try a cute black and teal manicure, but it was ugly so I immediately took it off. Beauty Box 5 made this product the "feature" product this month and it was February's sneak peak. Beauty Box 5 was intentionally misleading concerning this product. These bottles are most definitely full size. However, the printed cards said full size retailed for $14.99. This duo does not cost $14.99. A set of four polishes, four caviars, and a caviar funnel retails for $14.99. Companies trying to be sneaky is really off putting. 

I have received the mascara before through Ipsy and have yet to try it.

The shampoo & conditioner is the volumizing version. My hair needs no extra volume. These were foil samples and there were two of each. In addition to the samples, a $2 off coupon was also attached to each set. So, there was a coupon total of $4 on these samples. I haven't used these coupons so they will not increase the product value for this post.

Here's what my box was worth:

Elizabeth Mott Mascara	$8.48
Rockstar Nail Duo	$3.74
Shampoo & Conditioner	$0.82
Aveeno Body Wash	$0.87
Mynamenecklace	$24.95
TOTAL:	$38.86

With my bracelet, I paid $26.95 for this box and it ended up being worth $38.86. The Mynamenecklace coupon and bracelet really saved this box. I did not get the bracelet with the box, I placed a separate order and waited until the bracelet came in. When it came in, coupon codes for 10% off were included. Those codes were: NOW10 or SAVE10 

Do you want to see a picture of the bracelet? Leave me a comment and I will gladly put it up for you! Do you think you will try this subscription out? If you do, use my referral link. I am not sure what the rewards program is for this box but I'm sure it would benefit me slightly! Until next time!

XOXO,

The Redheaded Life