Tiny Tweaks | January Birchbox [Plus Free Box]

17 February 2014


For the month of January, I was kindly offered to try the first Birchbox of 2014. The box themed Tiny
Tweaks focusses on New Year's resolutions and how to achieve certain goals. I like to set myself realistic goals for the New Year which are obtainable. There's nothing worse that aiming too high and realising your goal is unattainable. This box has handy tips and tricks, and products to help you on your way. 

Products In Box
S Philip Kingsley - Moisture Balancing Conditioner
S Benefit - POREfessional
S Rodial - Bee Venom Moisturiser
S Vasanti - Detox Nutrient-Rich Purifying Facial Cleanser
S Premae - Anatomy Nutrients Instant Renewal Body Oil

Lifestyle Extra
S Itsu - Miso Soup


I was so pleased to receive the Benefit Porefessional primer as I had heard such amazing things about it. I'd heard that it smooths out visible pores and helps control oil which is something I'm always battling with. However, I have not yet been convinced. I have been using it underneath my foundation and have not seen any oil control. It is a dream to apply and I do think it evens out the appearance of pores but I worry my skin is too oily that the primer itself slides off after a while, therefore having no effect on oil control. I am unsure as to what New Year's resolution this would help achieve but it's a good sample product to have if you're looking to smooth out pores.

The Philip Kingsley conditioner received seemed to be underwhelming to me. While I struggle to find conditioners that fully restore the moisture to my dry ombré ends, most seem to at least de-tangle. This however didn't seem to even do that. Perhaps I didn't apply enough? But this to me ranks below the conditioners that come in box hair dyes, sadly.


The body oil from Premae has come at a good time. I returned from Australia in January and had unfortunately been left with some bites and dry skin. This oil has helped to soothe my skin and provide it with a bit of moisture. However, I have found a fault in the packaging. It has the type of pump that does not allow you to regulate how much product is dispersed. Perhaps this is just the case with the sample size pump and not the full size pump but I found myself having an excess of product at times.

The bee venom moisturiser, I was initially quite apprehensive about. The sound of a moisturiser having 'venom' in it quite frankly scares me and the first thing I thought was that I would have an allergic reaction to it. Turns out, it was harmless. As for its moisturising properties, I didn't notice anything remarkable but will be sure to bring it with me whenever my skin needs a little pick-me-up. While the sample was again, not full 100%, it was marginally better than the Skinlife sample received in the August Birchbox from last year.


I had the pleasure of trying the Vasanti cleanser while in the shower the other day and while it did leave my skin feeling clean, I had to fault the packaging. I would imagine the full size of this product would have packaging that is better made but I had dropped this sample in the shower and the bottom of it completely shattered.


Alongside the Benefit Porefessional, I was most taken back by this sachet of paste. It's a Miso soup paste by Itsu. There were no instructions on the sachet unfortunately, but I just emptied the sachet into a bowl and added boiling water to it until the paste had dissolved. The soup was delicious and while I made this at home, this would be great to bring to work when you've forgotten to bring lunch or haven't got time to make it. It's also a fairly healthy option too. 

Overall, the box was good. Nothing ground-breaking with the conditioner, cleanser and moisturiser but it did include some items that were of interest to me like the Benefit Porefessional and the Miso soup. I know Birchbox is primarily a beauty box so if this is more of a box you'd subscribe to then it's a great way to try new products out. For me, I'm more a lifestyle girl and am more likely to subscribe to a box that offers things like food, homeware etc.

Birchbox have kindly offered my readers an extra box for free, for the first month you subscribe. Just use the code BBXSOH but hurry as this expires on the 20th February 2014.

3 comments:



  1. Thank you for enjoying Premae Anatomy Nutrients Instant Renewal Body Oil, hope it worked well on the bites ;-)

    http://premaeskincare.com/shop/anatomy-nutrients/instant-renewal-body-oil/

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  2. Thank you for this great review :)

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  3. I would love to try the amazing benefit primer.

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