November 28, 2011

Birchbox Man -- the very first box! Limited Edition - November 2011 -- pics & review!

Hello, Beautiful!

As most of you know by now, I receive two Birchbox shipments each month; one for me and one for my husband. I signed him up for a subscription after realizing he was taking and using some of the products from my Birchbox shipments (the non-makeup items, of course). We basically give and take from each shipment, using the products as needed. I was hoping Birchbox would come out with a man version and found out a few months ago that yes, they were indeed working on one. I was so excited and couldn't wait for it to launch. Birchbox Man finally launched with great success, selling out within an hour or so. For just $45 you received a box full of manly items valued at $240! I actually paid just $35 for it because I redeemed some of my Birchbox points.

The Birchbox Man shipment arrived at my doorstep today, but I waited until my husband came home so he could open it first (even though I was dying to tear that box open and take photos earlier in the day). I'm really happy with what they put together, and so was my husband. I'm excited to see more! Check out my pics of everything included in the very first Birchbox Man!

CLICK HERE to purchase this Birchbox Man shipment! For more information on Birchbox, or to sign-up and start receiving your own Birchbox every month, CLICK HERE to visit http://www.birchbox.com?raf=eops9. Just $10 each month!

Birchbox Man -- the very first box!
Limited Edition - November 2011




 SHIPMENT QUICK-STATS:
  • Value of September's Birchbox Shipment: $240.16 (value is approximate and does not include the value of the gym bag)
  • Total # of Items Received: 13
  • # of skin care items: 2
  • # of body care items: 2 (lip balm and toothpaste)
  • # of hair care items: 2
  • # of fragrance: 1
  • # of other items: 6


Skullcandy Earbuds - Holua Gold
  • MY THOUGHTS: This is the one product both myself and my husband were equally excited about. I was shocked to look this set up on the Skullcandy website and see the price... $69.99! Wow! I can't wait to put these to use.
  • VALUE: $69.99


   








Jack Black Double-Duty Face Moisturizer SPF 20
  • MY THOUGHTS: Jack Black is a brand my husband already uses, and he just happens to need moisturizer. This will go to good use right away. The size in this shipment is 1.5 fl oz; a full size is 3.3 fl oz @ $27.00, available in the Birchbox store.
  • VALUE: $12.27
 






Anthony Logistics For Men Shave Cream
  • MY THOUGHTS: Anthony Logistics is another brand my husband already uses. I believe he already has this, but he can always use more. The size included in this shipment is 2 oz; a full size tube is 6 oz @ $16.50. You can pick up a 2 oz size on Sephora's website for $10, or a full size in the Birchbox Store for $16.50.
  • VALUE: $10.00
 







Kerastase Homme Capital Force Daily Treatment Shampoo
  • MY THOUGHTS: Sometimes my husband only uses shampoo and will skip conditioner all together, so I know he'll use this for sure. It smells manly; definitely not a girly scent. The size in this shipment is 80 ml; a full sized bottle is 250 ml @ $36.00, available in the Birchbox store.
  • VALUE: $11.50
 







Kerastase Homme Capital Force Densifying Modelling Paste
  • MY THOUGHTS: My husband always says he needs a paste/wax like product, but do I ever see him use it? No. This will come in handy, should he decide to style his hair or tame down some fly-aways. This also smells manly, just like the Kerastase shampoo. The size included in this shipment is 75 ml/2.55 fl oz - which is full sized and available for $30 in the Birchbox store.
  • VALUE: $30.00








Kerastase Homme Gym Bag
  • MY THOUGHTS: My husband doesn't go to the gym, but he still uses smaller bags (instead of luggage) when we travel, especially on trips out of state to visit family. With an upcoming trip he has planned to visit his parents, this will be a great way for him to pack everything he needs for an overnight trip. Not sure of the value; just seems to be a gift-with-purchase type of item.
  • VALUE: ?






Field Notes Mixed Three-Pack
  • MY THOUGHTS: Not something my husband would use, but I like to keep little notebooks in my purse. I may keep one (the one with lined paper) and give the other two to my son, who will love to use them. A set of 3 is available in the Birchbox store for $9.95.
  • VALUE: $9.95
 







 EBOOST Super Berry Shots
  • MY THOUGHTS: My husband was really excited to receive this. With our schedule, and his early work hours, coffee is his form of energy and Red Bull is mine (I hate to drink coffee, but love how it smells and prefer coffee scented candles, body scrubs, etc.). However, these little energy shots are always something worth trying. You can pick up a box of 12 shots on the EBOOST website for $39.00.
  • VALUE: $3.25

 




Anthony Logistics For Men Advanced Formula Lip Balm SPF 25
  • MY THOUGHTS: This is a lip balm I purchased for my husband a year or so ago and he never used. Yet he complains when he has dry lips and will then go and use something I have lying around. That's why I wanted him to have his own. Well now he has two, and I know how cheap he is so he won't be able to look at two tubes and let them go to waste. Hopefully he will begin to use it. This is a full sized tube, available for $7.50 in the Birchbox store.
  • VALUE: $7.50
 






Supersmile Professional Whitening Toothpaste - Original Mint
  • MY THOUGHTS: I have to admit that my husband didn't even have a chance of claiming this item. I was a long-time Supersmile user years ago, then switched to a cheaper toothpaste (Aquafresh) when we were looking for ways to cut back. Then last month, in October, I received Supersmile toothpaste in my QVC New Beauty Test Tube. I totally fell back in love with it -- it tastes great and does an excellent job at whitening -- so that's the toothpaste I'm back to using. I even purchased a full sized tube of it using my Birchbox points (making it just $1), so this is my third tube in 2 months. I won't need to purchase toothpaste for awhile! The size included in this shipment is 1.75 oz; a full sized tube is 4.2 oz @ $21.00, available in the Birchbox store.
  • VALUE: $8.75

 




BVLGARI Man Eau de Toilette
  • MY THOUGHTS: I'm not a fragrance person... or should I say, I'm an extremely picky person when it comes to fragrances. I usually like men's fragrances way more than a women's fragrance -- although, I absolutely fell in love with the Atelier Cologne Vanille Insensee Cologne Absolue from my November Birchbox shipment; and I asked my husband to purchase it for me as a Christmas gift. Anyhow, back to this fragrance... I actually didn't get a chance to get a good smell. I'm sick again, and my nose just doesn't have much smell-ability left. Regardless, my husband rarely wears cologne. He has one that we both picked up nearly 7 years ago, but I think he's worn it three times. He's just not into all that. The size included in this shipment is 5 ml; a full sized bottle is 100 ml @ $79.00, available in the Birchbox store.
  • VALUE: $3.95

 




Bonobos Pocket Square
  • MY THOUGHTS: My husband doesn't own any suits, so he really doesn't have a use for this. It's one of those things that will remain in his closet just because we have it and maybe one day it will get used. Don't get me wrong, my husband has a great job where he has to dress nice but he doesn't have to go all out with a suit jacket and pocket square. On the Bonobos website, this pocket square sells for $48.00.
  • VALUE: $48.00





Bonobos $25 Gift Card
  • MY THOUGHTS: I honestly thought this would be one of those "minimum purchase of $100 required", but it's not. It's simply $25 to spend at the Bonobos website. Now don't get too excited because Bonobos is not cheap. Their clothes look nice but definitely not a place we shop regularly. We're really cheap; or should I say, we're smart about our money. We buy sales, clearances and use coupons whenever possible. Buying a pair of pants for over $100... yeah, not our style. We still dress nice; my husband has a lot of great designer name dress pants, but we get them during incredible sale events -- usually paying less than $50 per pair. Regardless, I'm sure we'll put this gift card to good use. If not for my husband, for someone else.
  • VALUE: $25.00


Now let me know what you think...
What do you think of Birchbox Man? Would you purchase this for a guy in your life? Discuss in the comments below.



17 comments:

  1. That is a ton of stuff! I almost ordered for my husband but then realized he probably wouldn't use most of it. In fact all that he would use from that would be the ear phones and the field note books.

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  2. Holy crap, the box is insanely amazing!! Im assuming its a one-time thing, but that is incredible. And none of our boxes have ever been near that status of glory!

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  3. If only woman box limited had those values

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  4. wow! that was a great box for men! I love the way you review this stuff!

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  5. @ Sarah: They're working on creating future shipments and even a monthly program like we get. Not sure when all that will happen though.

    @ Soul Seeker: I agree! I'd love to see a specialty box for women that has an insane value like the Birchbox Man.

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  6. Thanks for the heads up! I never got the e-mail that the box was available again. I was able to take advantage of the bonus point offer today! :) I added the tea sampler with the Birchbox Man box and ended up getting a total of 100 points :) My bf will loveee the box along with the Zhena herbal tea sample set.

    Christmas shopping is done!

    Since i had 100 points...I bought some lipstick and tea for myself :)Yeahhhhh. Haha, thanks again. This was the post I was obsessively checking for everyday.

    Btw I've been meaning to ask you: Have you used the Oluv scrub from your GGG box?

    <3 Steph

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  7. @ Anonymous (Steph): I'm glad you were able to purchase one! I see that the Skullcandy earbuds are assorted styles, so I wonder what styles other people received. I also read that the Bonodos pocket squares are in limited quantity... but then wouldn't the whole kit be? They couldn't just leave that out, right?

    I took advantage of the Birchbox points today too; I ordered the perfume from last month's shipment that my husband is buying me for Christmas and I picked up the Stila Lip Glaze set, as well as two Birchbox reusable bags to keep in my purse when I'm out shopping. Getting the bonus points was awesome ($25 back basically), so I'm saving my points up and will probably redeem for something else after my December box arrives.

    And nope, didn't use the Oluv scrub from the GGG box. I honestly don't know if I will. The smell really bothers me for some reason. Plus, I've been using up the last my of Victoria's Secret body scrub that was sold over the summer. The tube busted open at the top, so I'm trying to use it up.

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  8. Oh they're assorted styles? Cool. I'll let you know which one I get :) Where did you read the bit about the pocket square? I'm not sure if my bf will use it, so if BB does run out, I hope they replace it with something else. I wonder if he'll buy something from Bonobos, haha. Maybe in the sale section.

    I had my eye on the lip set too! But I ended up getting Lipstick Queen in Medieval. I bought it from BB over the summer and ran out. :( Love love the bonus points today. I wish they had that free box promo again :-p

    I actually just received my BB purchase from last week, haha. The Caudalie quenching creme has a really strong smell...takes some getting used to.

    And I reluctantly used my Oluv scrub and I'm actually really impressed by it! It left my face feeling super clean and then I used it to shave my legs and had a much smoother shave. It did, however, leave some of the leaves in my razor :-p but overall I liked it. If you don't end up using it, sell it to me! :D I cancelled my GG membership, but wish I had bought the 4oz scrub before I did...

    If only their shipping wasn't sooooo slow...

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  9. @ Anonymous (Steph): It says about the limited availability right on the Birchbox Man page, next to the Bonodos square info. I don't really see why they would mention that because it just confuses people... at least it confused me, lol.

    I almost bought Lipstick Queen in Medieval, but was too hesitant and went with the Stila set instead. I also purchased some Stila from their warehouse sale on their website; I mostly purchased items I can use in an upcoming giveaway I have planned.

    I wish they offered that free promo box too! I missed out on that; I didn't realize it would sell out so quickly!

    I almost cancelled my GGG membership yesterday actually, but decided to go forward and see what December is like. But that's my cut off month. If my December box shows up and I'm not happy, I'm cancelling the same day. I have some points there too, which I will redeem for a free box of stuff or maybe order a product or two... the only thing right now that I would even want is that lip balm set for the holidays. And yes, their shipping is so slow. I don't understand why they take forever! Oh well, one more month, then it's live or die for GGG, lol.

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  10. Ohhhhhhhhhh, I see now. Honestly, I was so scared the box would sell out that I basically added it to my cart, added the tea and hit "submit" in less than a minute :-p

    I'm gonna check out the Stila sale RIGHT NOW. I didn't even know about their warehouse. Once again, thanks for filling me in on all these great things. You rock! :)

    I wore my Baublebar bracelet today and got compliments. Made me love BB even more, haha.

    I'm really curious about the December GGG box. Knowing my luck, the box will be amazing and I'll kick myself in the head for cancelling. I actually really like the Camille Beckman glycerine cream. I would have gifted the set to a co-worker, had it not looked so cheap.

    Why did you almost cancel yesterday? Because of the shipping or did something else happen? LOL @ live or die. Maybe the typos will do it for you :-p

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  11. Wow! Just the Skullcandy earphones would be worth the entire box! O__O

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  12. That is alot of great stuff!! I dont think my BF will use it, but then again, maybe he will lol!

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  13. Wow the male version is so convenient!

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  14. Inviting you to my fun fashion giveaway
    http://beautysecrets-reviewed.com/2011/11/enter-christmas-celebrity-pageant-contest-giveaway/

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  15. @ Anonymous (Steph): I'm just like you when it comes to ordering things that I think are going to sell out! I usually add to cart, pay, then go back and see what I ordered, lol. You should have seen me when the Sephora Black Friday specials went live at midnight. My husband was laughing at me because I'm over here freaking out because the site won't work and all I can think is they're going to sell out, when really everyone can't get into the site but in my head it's just me, lol. Thankfully, after 2 hours of refreshing non-stop, I was able to order all the specials I wanted.

    The Stila Warehouse Sale happens every now and then; it's better than their regular sale because there are usually really deep discounts on products you'll actually want. I don't remember everything I ordered, because I was in one of those "add to cart NOW" modes because items were selling out fast when I was on ordering.

    As for why I almost cancelled GGG, it wasn't any particular situation that really set it off. I was just kind of looking around the web, went on their site again and started to think "why do I even pay for this if I'm not happy". With so many sampling programs out there I need to invest my money into something else. I'm hoping the December box will be a good one... we'll see soon enough (well, not so soon if it's up to the GGG shipping schedule lol).


    @ LauraLeia: I agree! I had no clue they were sold for $70! My husband thought they were like $30 or $40 tops, but was also shocked to see how much they were sold for. His cheap thinking was "let's sell them and make our money back" -- um NO, lol! I know I will use them, he will too, and our son will use them in the car when playing on the phone and we don't want to hear all the crazy sounds.

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  16. WOW!! Ok the earbuds alone are awesome! But I couldn't pay my husband to get this lol he is so low-maintenance (I try, I really do).

    I cancelled my BB because I was so terribly underwhelmed by them. I do agree that personalization is great but when I'm getting a cheap sample and others are getting nail polish and chocolate? Yeah there is terrible disparity on who gets what.

    However I LOVE Eco-Emi, if you haven't tried it, it's pretty cool, and your husband might like some of the stuff as well.

    Congrats on the coolness! That's a bit steep to pay every month even though you do get alot of things.

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  17. @ Manicured Headache Slayer: My husband is low maintenance too, so I'm lucky when he actually uses something, lol. The good thing is I know he has to shave so I can at least get him to use a good shave gel and all the other products that go along with taking care of that. I'm lucky if he'll use a moisturizer. I usually can only get him to use stuff when I force him through a pampering night... we we actually just had last night. I did a pedicure on him and the Dr. Dennis Gross Extra Strength Alpha Beta Peel. He needs a mani too, but it was late so we only had time for so much.

    Sorry to hear you were underwhelmed by your Birchbox. I've been underwhelmed only a couple of times and mostly have been really happy with it. I don't understand how they divide up who gets what, but I know something like 15 different boxes go out every month so it's either completely random or they have some other way to divide them. My Birchbox profile is set differently than my husbands and we get a different box, so I do know that what you put in your profile does effect what you receive but I don't know any more than that.

    I haven't tried Eco-Emi, but I've wanted to. It looks like you get some food items though and I'm more into wanting beauty items, so not sure if I'll try it or not. Still on the fence.

    And the Birchbox Man isn't a monthly subscription, at least not yet. It's just a one-time buy for $45. I'm hoping they start a monthly program for men. I know there is one out there for men, but I forget the name. I'd rather wait for Birchbox to make one :)

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