September's You Beauty Discovery box arrived a bit late for me due to a delivery fail. I'm not sure what happened to the little parcel (maybe one of the other people in our building took a fancy to it? Maybe it was put in a 'safe place' and got taken out with the rubbish? Who knows!) but the lovely people at YBD were kind enough to send me another box, no questions asked, when I emailed to say it hadn't arrived weeks after being dispatched. But this late arrival meant that I got both September and October's boxes around the same time. So So here is what I picked for the last two months' You Beauty Discovery boxes.
September's box was the Skincare collection. It featured two brands that were completely cruelty free - Skyn Iceland and Urban Veda - as well as one that I wasn't sure of - Earth Kiss (I later contacted them to confirm that they were cruelty free, but their website was pretty confusing: long story short, they are accredited, just under a different name). The box also contained a sample from The Body Shop, another cruelty free brand, which was a nice surprise. Other than those brands, the others were either known testing brands, or I just couldn't find any information about anywhere.
The first product I chose was Skyn Iceland Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels, and I received two pretty large sachets. This product is supposed to work intensively to help firm, de-puff and reduce premature wrinkling. I don't really have an issue with puffy eyes, but I haven't tried many eye creams or gels at all, so I'll be excited to try this out.
The second product I chose was by Urban Veda. They had a variety of face creams to choose from, all dubbed as 'day creams', such as 'purifying', 'soothing', 'radiance' and 'reviving'. I went for the Urban Veda Radiance Day Cream, and was surprised to see how big the product was. This particular face cream contains a bled of botanical extracts, peptide amino-acid complexes to help correct signs of hyperpigmentation, boost complexion and balance skin tone. On the little tub it says tat it is a botanical infusion to revitalise lack-lustre skin, which is what mine is like at the moment to be honest!
The box also came with a few extra goodies that are 'good for you and your skin'. This included a little sachet of Linwoods Chia Seeds, a miniature bottle of The Body Shop Oils for Life Revitalising Facial Oil, a Love Your Body Club card, and a small make-up sponge. I was pleasantly surprised to see a Linwoods products in this box as I've used their seed mixes before (I used to religiously add sachets to porridge every morning) but haven't for a while, so this is a nice reminder. I was also really excited to see a Body Shop product in this box, as I didn't think they would ever collaborate with a beauty box! This little oil is from their new range, and is supposed to revitalise skin and reduce the signs of ageing, so I'm excited to try it to see if it could be a cheaper alternative to the Nude Skincare Rescue Oil. I used to be a Love Your Body member, but my card ran out earlier this year, so I was excited to re-join. But I was a little disappointed to see that the scheme has changed - no longer do you get 10% off purchases, it's a points card, but I still signed up.
October's box was called the Perfectly Polished Edit. Once again it featured quite a few cruelty free brands - such as Scentered, Kore, La Roche Possay, Eye of Horus, Elemental Herbology and Argan+ - as well as a few brands known to test. It also featured some free samples of perfume from The White Company and a sample of Vichy Dermablend foundation (I can't find any information on the policies of these brands). It's a shame the extra little bits in this box are not cruelty free, but I may pass the perfumes onto a friend instead.
The first product I chose was the Scentered Stress Less Therapy Balm, a 100% natural theraputic balm designed to ease tension, soothe the mind and life the spirits. I was excited to see this product in the line up as I've been noticing I've been getting stressed a lot easier recently, and anything that could help would be fantastic. I like how this product is so portable - I can see myself sticking this in my bag for uni or work.
I also picked the Eye of Horus Goddess Mascara, which is marketed for sensitive eyes - perfect for me, as especially in the wind and cold my eyes become super sensitive. It claims to volumise without clumping, running or smudging; while the formula also nourishes lashes with organic moringa oil. I've never heard of this brand before, but I'm always interested to try out new cruelty free make-up.
I like the fact that these boxes introduced me to new brands I didn't know were cruelty free, and let me try products I wouldn't normally choose. However, of late, the products that I can choose (the cruelty free brands) haven't completely been products that I would choose - meaning that though it's lovely that I've got so many cruelty free samples, they aren't all things I need or would have chosen myself. Also, the little extras that you don't choose have also often been from tested on brands, meaning that I've been inadvertently supporting them by receiving the box.
I know that this box isn't supposed to be cruelty free, but the first few boxes were so promising that I was hoping mainstream beauty boxes were finally incorporating more ethical products - but it looks like it's more likely just 'luck' that they're included. As such, this is the last month that I will be receiving this subscription box for the time being.
Did you get this month's You Beauty Discovery Box? What did you choose?
PS| If you want to read more about the cruelty free policies of the companies featured in this post, click here (Skyn Iceland), here (Urban Veda) and here (The Body Shop).
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