Another month, another Birchbox! Since it's Christmas time, mail seems to be particularly slow at the moment, so this is a lot later than I was expecting it to be. That said, a certain other subscription isn't even close to being here yet, so.... Anyway! I missed out on Sample Choice this month, which was a little annoying since I was fairly sure it was supposed to open on the 27th, but was already completely full when I went on the 27th - and I know I'm not even close to the only one. A little annoying.

How I feel about this month's box is a bit of a mixed bag - made infinitely worse after seeing all of the PR boxes that were sent out that contained things like the Sunday Riley Good Genes in a VERY generous sample and the Balance Me Eye Cream. I'd really have loved to receive either of those - especially since I got 2 hair products in this month's box. Anyway, keep reading to take a look at what was in my box this month!

Coastal Scents styleEYES Eyeshadow Palette Sampler - formalEYES - Value $2 (???)

A bold, beautiful eyeshadow palettes in always-fashionable pinks and mauves.

I'm very, very glad that these are the shades I got, because they are the shades that I would have picked. The shade on the left is your standard matte cream shade, but it's almost shockingly smooth and pigmented and I can't wait to try it out to set my primer. The shade on the right is a gorgeous shimmery mauve pink that looks somewhat unremarkable in the pan but actually swatches a little more unique. Also, what makes this a lot better than previous CS samples is the packaging. It's in a sturdy cardboard package with a suprisingly functional magnet to keep it closed, rather than just pans glued into a shitty plastic case like in the past. This ABSOLUTELY makes a difference. Happy with this!

Kate Spade Live Colorfully Fragrance Sample - Value $1.80

This bright fragrance has notes of Hawaiian blooms with coconut water, Tahitian vanilla, and mandarin.

This is a weird fragrance to be included in a winter box, if you ask me, but it's quite pretty and I have a feeling I will use up this sample come summertime. That said, I probably wouldn't buy a full size because it's just not to my particular taste, but it is a very, very nice scent.

RUSK Heatshift Re-Styling Cream - Value $6.47

This cream allows you to restyle any look without having to rewash your hair so you can easily change up your style.

After I heard fantastic things about this in a Youtube video, I was dying to try it, so this is probably the most exciting thing about this box for me. Also, it has that very rich salon smell that I absolutely love in my hair products. Very, very happy with this one!

Obliphica Professional Seaberry Hair Serum for Medium to Coarse Hair - Value $10.36

This nourishing serum revives damaged, colored and all-around unmanagable hair without weighing it down.

So... I don't have "Medium to Coarse Hair" even a little bit... But I suppose I will still give this a try since it does claim that it won't weigh it down. I wish I had gotten the fine hair version... Did they ask about that in the Birchbox survey??? Anyway, I'm reserving judgement on this sample, but I would have much preferred to get one of the skincare samples I mentioned above rather than another hair product.

Lord & Berry Pailettes Glitter Eye Pencil - Value $5 (???) Value to Me: $0

This blendable pencil from the Italian brand is studded with bits of silver shimmer.

UGH. I do not like getting these dinky little Lord & Berry eyeliners in subscriptions and when I get one, it makes me salty. I mean, seriously. Could it be ANY smaller????? Also, I don't use shimmer eyeliner personally, because I find it tends to look less shimmery than just like I can't apply my eyeliner smoothly. I may be being unnecessarily harsh about this, but I just hate these puny pencils and I've gotten them in other services before. No. Probably going to toss it on principle. (It is pretty smooth and pigmented though, so I suppose that's good.)

Total Value: $25.63

Okay, here's what really bothers me... I actually don't mind getting the tiny eyeshadow samples like this in subscriptions, especially when they're well packaged, so I'm not mad about that. What I'm kind of annoyed about is that I got that along with a puny eyeliner pencil AND a fragrance sample. Any of the 3, if included on their own with 4 deluxe samples, would have been fine, but when 60% of the box is shit that I could get for free pretty much any day of the week... what am I paying for?????

Anyway. As much as Birchbox has been stepping up their game the past couple of months, this box is quite a letdown, so I'm really hoping that the first box of 2016 will wow me more - Of course, the Sample Choice for January isn't giving me the highest of hopes.

If you're interested in joining Birchbox, I'd love if you used my affiliate link! The box costs $10 (Plus $5 shipping) and contains 5 samples of various beauty products delivered to your door every month!

Thanks for reading!