Sample Society: May 2012

I've been on the waitlist of Sample Society since they opened. I randomly decided to try and sign up in April and somehow I was able to! So if you are on the waitlist, don't wait anymore! You can sign up!

Don't know what Sample Society is?
Sample Society is a monthly subscription service that delivers a box of premium beauty samples to your doorstep. Each month you will receive 5 samples each month. The samples are backed by Allure and their team of beauty experts. The samples may range from make-up, skincare, body, hair, and fragrances. Plus, with your subscription you will receive a free year subscription to Allure! And each box will have a mini advice guide that relates to your products. Currently all boxes are the same, but they expect to have variations in the future. Sample Society costs $15 a month, and your box will always be valued way above!
Click here to join Sample Society.

May 2012
This was my first month of Sample Society! I had wanted to sign up, but the $15 price tag left me unsure. And by the time I decided why the hell not, subscriptions closed. I originally had opted-out of the Allure magazine subscription since I already have Allure for a year from DermStore, but they said that opting in would extend my current Allure subscription another year. Their customer service was amazing and fast! Plus, shipping was unbelievable. My box shipped out May 3rd and I received it the next day!

 Information Cards:

Products:
StriVectin: StriVectin-SD Concentrate
Full Size: 5 oz ($135.00)
Size Received: 0.75 oz ($20.25)
I've already tried this exact sample in my February Beauty Army kit. I learned then that this product was meant to rebuild skin layers of cancer patients. But instead they realized that it worked wonders on stretch marks and wrinkles. I've also heard that this works well on acne scars. My skin has been unbearable the past few months and Im thinking Ill try this out on my acne scars. Since this is a 3 week sample for face, I'm pretty sure that this will last me 5-6 weeks for just spotting marks.

Bond No. 9: Bleecker Street Parfum

Full Size: 0.057 oz ($175.00)

Size Received: 1.7 oz ($5.87)

Bond No. 9 is a New York perfumery that has a goal of marking every New York City neighborhood with a scent. They don't just have one for the 5 boroughs, no no they currently have over 50 different men's and women's and unisex fragrances. Some examples are Madison Square Park, Brooklyn, Central Park, and Bleecker Street the scent I received. I loved how the sample was wrapped like a bon bon, a really cute touch. I've never heard of the Bleecker Street neighborhood having not spent much time in NY, but is apparently in Greenwich Village and famous for nightclubs and Alicia Keys lives there. The fragrance is described as "art, fashion, seduction, and dessert in liquid form. A warm sensual aprodisiac that glides from day into evening." It has notes of violet leaf, cassis, jasmine, cinnamon, and oakmoss. I have to say this one was not for me. It was way too heavy on the woody/leaves and I could barely sense the jasmine. I would be opening to trying different fragrances from their collection, maybe I'm more of a Bryant Park or Madison Square Park.

Colorscience Pro: Loose Mineral Travel Puff in Illuminating Pearl

Full Size: 0.035 oz ($10.00)

Size Received: Full-size! 0.035 oz ($10.00)

When I saw this month's advice booklet prior to the release of the box I got so excited that they were going to feature mineral makeup. I was not too excited when I read the ingredients and realized that this puff has pearl powder which is ground up fish scales. Yuck. Even if I wasn't vegan I do not want to put fish on my face. The idea of a travel puff is a great idea, mineral powder gets everywhere, but even before I ever used this one I can see powder in the plastic pouch. I'd still be worried that this would get all over my purse. 

stila: forever your curl mascara
Full Size: 0.24 oz ($22.00)
Size Received: 0.12 oz ($11.00)
Am I the only one that is not impressed by stila products? Every single stila product I have tried I haven't been over the moon about. This mascara didn't look like it would beat out my favorite mascara (blinc) so I decided to not even try it out. It is a polymer formula that has some kind of curling memory ingredient. Huh? I think they mean that it keeps your curl all day long. The reviews online do not look stellar and people who tried the sample said they ended up with raccoon eyes even before the end of a normal day. I tried looking up the mascara on the stila website, but I couldnt find it. I wonder if they are planning on getting rid of this product completely...

Alterna: UV+ Fade-Proof Fluide

Full Size: 2.5 oz ($24.00)

Size Received: 0.25 oz ($2.40)

I love that they featured a brand that free of all the nasty chemicals and uses organic, natural ingredients. But I do not color my hair. What this fluide is meant to do is to lock in color and shield hair with a UVA/UVB barrier. Although Im always interested in sun protection, my hair is not something Im interested in protecting, since um its not really necessary... I'd rather a scalp protector. Because my hair is so thin to begin with, the number of hair products that it can handle is few. I'll be giving this to a friend.

Total value of my May 2012 Sample Society box:$49.52
So disappointed in my first month of Sample Society. The past month of crappy beauty boxes have made me realize that I need to step back from them. I cancelled Sample Society while I attempted to finish this post. It took me two weeks after I got the box to finish the post when normally I finish beauty box posts in a few hours... It shows that it doesn't matter what the value is, as long as I actually like the products. 

What do you think of my May Sample Society box? Do you think I should have given them a second chance? Let me know in the comments below!