My daily makeup routine is pretty simple, a little mascara, some concealer, and a dusting of powder and I am ready to go. I don't feel the need to really go all out with myself if I am just running errands, volunteering at schools, or just hanging out at home. When we have a date night or some special occasion, I take more time and give myself a mini makeover. I love the products I use, they are basic store brands, ones that I trust and can justify buying. I have always been afraid to try out more expensive or even different brands, but wish sometimes I could find a way to do that.

Beauty Box Five, founded in 2011, is a company that offers beauty sampling with a subscription. They understand that we all have different beauty needs and lifestyles and want to help find perfect products for you. Beauty Box Five finds the best products, new and older that will help satisfy all your cosmetic needs and shares their tips on the best ways to use them.

Beauty Box Five shares products that really work. You will be able to find luxury, drugstore, niche, eco-conscious, and even vegan brands among their selections. The products are truly for everyone and anyone to try and enjoy.

How Does Beauty Box Five Work?

BB5 is a quick, simple way to get beauty products delivered right to your door each month. By following these easy steps, you can be on your way to finding new and amazing things from BB5. First, you must choose between a Monthly ($12), Quarterly ($30), or Yearly ($99) delivery subscription. After selecting your subscription, you fill in your shipping and billing information and then you patiently wait for your BB5 box to arrive. If you sign up before the 21st of each month, you will receive the current month, if you sign up after the 21st, you will get the next month. Boxes ship USPS from Texas, and should arrive within 8 days of shipping. Shipping is free for US members and costs just $3 for Canadian members.

What Comes in a Beauty Box Five Box?

Each month, Beauty Box will send 5 deluxe samples and full sized products. These can be anything from makeup, beauty, skincare, perfume, body, nail, or haircare products. To see a list of brands that have been used by BB5 before, click here. You can also see and shop other months from BB5 here.

We were given the opportunity to review the August 2014 BB5 box, thanks to Kelsey for getting everything set up for us! I was really excited to see what products I would get and try.

My Beauty Box Five box is here!

I really like the packaging, the colors and fonts really pop and clearly show what the company is. It was also a nice smaller sized box, but don't let the size fool you, they filled it to the brim.

I opened up the box to find a shiny information card with the August 2014 theme:

Radiant and Remarkable

"The golden days of summer may be headed to an end, but you're still shining! This month we're recognizing the brilliant beauty that you are and adding the finishing touches to carry your carefree attitude well into the fall. Embrace beaming skin, dazzling lips, and lustrous locks to keep your glow going!"  

The front of the card also contained all the links to social media and the BB5 site.

The back side of the card is something I think every subscription service should have, an information about the box page. This side showed a small photo and brief blurb about each product that was in this month's BB5 box.

A box filled with goodies, I couldn't wait to try them out.

Our August 2014 BB5 box had the following items:

Item #1: Purlisse Pur protect SPF 30

Retail Value $55/1.7 oz or approximately $15/.5 oz

"Shield your skin and soak up some rays, without guilt or greasiness! This lightweight moisturizer has the perfect amount of SPF to protect your pretty face and won't upset sensitive complexions--bring on the sunshine! #purlisse"

Wow, that is some expensive sunscreen, so I am not sure I would buy it in real life, but this sample is pretty fabulous. The sample size I received was .5 oz, the price listed above is for the 1.7 oz container, so probably more like $15. I really like the scent of this sunscreen, it is not overwhelming like most sunscreens. It also is very smooth and creamy, super lightweight, and not oily at all. It does not leave a white residue like some sunscreens tend to do either, and is something I could and will use daily.

Item #2: La Fresh Travel Lite Makeup Remover Wipes

Retail Value $19.99/48 packets or approximately $2.50/8 wipes

"We love to pile on the products, but when it's got to go, there's no need for a delay! These wipes take away all our favorite makeup fast-even waterproof formulas-without irritating our faces or leaving any residue behind. Ahh-quick, easy, and refreshed. #lafreshgroup"

These came in super handy last week on Fall Break when we were staying in hotels. I hate to lug all of my full sized makeup and cleansers just for a few days, so these travel-lite wipes were perfect to stick in my travel beauty bag. The scent is a little strong for my liking but the wipes really do the trick. I only needed one for my basic makeup of concealer, mascara, and powder.

Item #3: Nanacoco Lip Gloss

Retail Value $3.99/.22oz  

"Your lips deserve a rush of color and shine with no stickiness attached. We adore Nanacoco's gloss because it's packed full of pigments and vitamin E to keep your sassy pout poppin' and nourished at the same time. #nanacoco"

Let me tell you, this is one brightly colored gloss. I am not normally this bold, so I won't be wearing this shade, which is called "Popular". I will say though, it isn't as bold once it is on your lips, but still too much for me. I would like to try out some of the other colors available, maybe the "Secret Crush".

The container is easy to open and use and seems to contain quite a bit of gloss for the price. The gloss is slightly sticky, but glides on the lips well. It has a very gentle, nice scent to it too. It also has a really nice shine to it when applied and left my lips feeling soft.

Item #4: Novex Brazilian Keratin

Retail Value $19.50/2 lbs. or approximately $1/1 oz package

"Is your mane hungry for nourishment? This intensive treatment works on all hair types, so you can renew and reinforce your strands right away. BB5 tip: massage this into your tresses post shampoo, leave in for 25 minutes, then rinse for smoothness and shine. #novex"

My hair is a nightmare, thick, coarse, curly, ick. I am not a fan of my hair most days and love salon days with my stylist. I have been abusing my hair for years, so products like this, that do a great job, are always a plus. This cream treatment really seems to nourish and calm my hair. I don't usually have 25 minutes, post shampoo, to let my hair sit though, so I guess that could be a negative.

Item #5: Style Essentials Nail Polish

Retail Value $7.00/4 pack or approximately less than $2/bottle

"Bored with plain polish? Wave hello to shiny, exciting nails! This lavish lacquer adds a pretty dash of color and fun finish to your digits, and the easy to apply brush makes switching to new hue simple.

This was my favorite product from my BB5 box. It is a black nail polish with sparkles, perfect for Halloween! It went on smoothly and dried rather quickly, I even let my girls put some on their toes. It did chip about the same as pretty much every other polish, so no plus there. I really like the color options available, a little unique and totally affordable.

Overall the BB5 box was filled with new and unique products to me. I don't think I would run out and purchase any of them today, but enjoyed the chance to try them out and if I happen to see them in the store, I will definitely give them a look. The BB5 subscription service is a reasonable price for what you are getting, you can see the value of the box in this breakdown:

(Because these are sample sizes and approximate prices, I can't give exact numbers)

Purlisse Pur protect SPF 30 $15

La Fresh Travel Lite Makeup Remover Wipes $2.50

Nanacoco Lip Gloss $3.99

Novex Brazilian Keratin $1

Style Essentials Nail Polish $1.75

Total=$24.24

If I paid for just one month of Beauty Box Five, it would run me $12. I do think the sample sizes are not as great a deal as the full sized products, but it is overall still a good value. The more months your subscription is for, the better the deal. As with most subscription services, some months are better than others, but overall this month was a good one and I got to try all new products for myself.