*Spoilers* October 2013 Popsugar Must Have Box

[AshJs3]

Anyone interested in StitchFix, we have a thread in the General Sub section! You can see a sampling of what we've gotten recently.

 

[wisconsin gal]

Did the bracelet fit?

 

[wisconsin gal]

Quote: Originally Posted by JessP /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  Here is my box!

I guess I was so excited that I forgot to put the NYX palette and Gorjana bracelet back in the box lol. But all colors/variations are the same. PS Do you see how huge this rice krispie cake thing is?? I want a whole box of just these I think teehee 

Meant to quote you.  Did the bracelet fit?

 

[trin0183]

This box is disappointing. I know some people really like NYX, but it's really not a favorite of mine. I'm not a fan of cookbooks because that's what Pinterest is. I like the bracelet and the julep nail set will make a nice gift. I have been subscribing since May and this is the worst box. It is also making me rethink buying even 6 months in advance.

 

[Momsgotmail]

Quote: Originally Posted by plumplant /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  I submitted this email to PS. I'm not super bummed about this box, but I'm not crazy about it either. Thought I'd contact them about the price increase:

Hi there,

I have been a subscriber for a while now and was initially not upset
by the price increase, because I assumed with the new preference option
that boxes would be getting better/more valuable, thus the increase in
price, and planned on purchasing a 6 month subscription to lock in my lower
price. However, after seeing the October box, I'm left feeling kind of
disheartened with POPSUGAR. Normally I expect high line "splurge" items
that I would talk myself out of purchasing, and usually I'm not
disappointed. But Octobers box has a bunch of drugstore makeup and cheap
nic-nack stuff (bobby pins & NYX eyeshadow? A hairbrush? ), and it falls
RIGHT before the price increase.

Is this box telling of what is yet to come
with POPSUGAR? Or is it just a fluke? I love receiving my MUSTHAVE box
every month and normally look forward to it, but I'm afraid to upgrade my
subscription if the quality of curation has fallen by the wayside to allow
for "fuller" boxes. If I'm paying more I'd like to see some sort of
representation as to why when I open my boxes. Are the value of boxes
changing?

Thanks!

Hopefully I don't get a canned response

I love it, my thoughts exactly!  I was about to up for 3 months at least...and now I am wondering.  I will email them also!  Maybe if all of us who feel this way email them, the holidays will be out of this world to make up for it.

 

[lauren2828]

Quote: Originally Posted by Ann Tucci /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 

Same. 

Btw someone said this was the worst box ever.  I beg to differ....January, the box that sent a fitness stability ball and hot chocolate pops and grocery store marshmallows in the same box, was the worst box, in my opinion.
You forgot to mention the giant flashing watch in Jan!

 

[wisconsin gal]

You forgot to mention the giant flashing watch in Jan!

It flashed? Or was flashy? I thought it was a cool looking watch, but never got to see it in person.

 

[Momsgotmail]

Quote: Originally Posted by wisconsin gal /img/forum/go_quote.gif


It flashed? Or was flashy? I thought it was a cool looking watch, but never got to see it in person.

 

[TheNewMrsRivers]

Quote: Originally Posted by plumplant /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  I submitted this email to PS. I'm not super bummed about this box, but I'm not crazy about it either. Thought I'd contact them about the price increase:

Hi there,

I have been a subscriber for a while now and was initially not upset
by the price increase, because I assumed with the new preference option
that boxes would be getting better/more valuable, thus the increase in
price, and planned on purchasing a 6 month subscription to lock in my lower
price. However, after seeing the October box, I'm left feeling kind of
disheartened with POPSUGAR. Normally I expect high line "splurge" items
that I would talk myself out of purchasing, and usually I'm not
disappointed. But Octobers box has a bunch of drugstore makeup and cheap
nic-nack stuff (bobby pins & NYX eyeshadow? A hairbrush? ), and it falls
RIGHT before the price increase.

Is this box telling of what is yet to come
with POPSUGAR? Or is it just a fluke? I love receiving my MUSTHAVE box
every month and normally look forward to it, but I'm afraid to upgrade my
subscription if the quality of curation has fallen by the wayside to allow
for "fuller" boxes. If I'm paying more I'd like to see some sort of
representation as to why when I open my boxes. Are the value of boxes
changing?

Thanks!

Hopefully I don't get a canned response

I recently contacted them about a bum set of cookies from the Fall box (they were possibly spoiled under closer inspection) and had a pleasant (but not BirchBox wonderful) experience with their CS. Hope this makes you dread it less! 

And to anyone else who feels less than satisfied with a CS response, replying will re-open a closed complaint.

 

[normajean2008]

Yay, my box showed up a day early than tracking projected!  If I hadn't of read the thread this afternoon I'd have gone spoiler free, lol.

Overall, I like the box this month.  I am still on the fence about value/curated collections as others have already said.

I did not sign up for a bunch of drugstore makeup, but having said that, at least I DO like what I happened to receive this time. Sometimes it is nice to have more cheaper items (as long as they are good quality) rather than one high dollar item.  Just because something is expensive or a big fancy brand, doesn't mean it is worth that price/would work for you.  I just don't want drugstore stuff every box going forward...mixing it up I'm fine with.  I got the smoky eye kit in combo 1 (the same as the first spoiler pic posted), and also the brown eyeliner.  I prefer liquid liner, and especially the kind with this brush, thin skinny brush end.  My current brown one is almost gone, so this NYX one is a good item for me.

I do wear bobby pins, and happen to love Jan Tran ones, because they are slightly curved and fit my head well.  I have thin, fine hair, this really helps me, and they stay in like glue unlike the cheapo straight ones.  These are neat style wise, instead of just the solid stick design.

The bracelet was iffy at first.  I have a large wrist, and this isn't adjustable.  If it were any smaller it wouldn't fit, but it is comfy as I wear it now. (and I like pink)  Charity or not, this bracelet is NOT worth the listed value.  I don't think the boxes should have such a huge chunk of its value being the cheapest quality/actual worth product, aside from the snacks.  l would like to see PopSugar branch out from g&g jewelry, but at the same time, this brand seems to have pretty good quality.  I don't want some piece of crap that is cheaper by another brand, just on the effort of changing it up.  There are tons of good brands, but you never know what the company would pick to put in the boxes...or what companies would partner up with PopSugar.  Kind of like the drugstore makeup...I don't want something from Claire's etc in my box.  I just always keep hoping for NO bangle bracelets.  Not only do I have a large wrist, I have huge hands, and bangles don't fit past where my fingers connect to my hand, my bones are just too big, lol.

I love rice crispy type treats, this will be gone tonight and my husband likes when I share the snacks. This sucker is HUGE and perfect for sharing!

I'm already a Julep Maven, but have refused to buy anything since they switched to DHL shipping.  I was actually debating which is lesser an evil for a new bottle of top coat (cheaper/free shipping...but DHL through Julep--OR--more money, fast shipping, not directly padding up DHL's pockets through Sephora).  This top coat is superb (at least on me) and I'm almost done with my current bottle.  The timing of this box couldn't have been better, and just saved me a lot of money.  My color polish I got was Myrtle (a rich red), which I already have, but a backup never hurts when it is a classic color.

I flipped through the cookbook, and there looks like several good ideas in it.  I wouldn't have bought it on my own, but I'm okay with it in the box.  I'm an excellent cook, but lately I've been lazy from being uninspired.  This will hopefully be a good reason to get busy in the kitchen again.

StitchFix... I doubt I'll use it.  I don't wear the sizes they offer, and it sounds like a general pain in the butt.

 

[missm08]

I'm not exactly thrilled with this box, but I will use all of it. I have been subbed since June, and I wasn't super excited about the September box either. I'm disappointed in the price increase, but I get excited about the surprise element of the curation. I think that excitement is enough for me to want to lock into a 6 month subscription. We'll see how it goes after that.

You would think that with a price increase starting with November/December boxes, that they are wanting to up the ante with higher priced items.

My wish list:

- Higher-priced items with fashion and beauty that are also VARIED...i.e. while I like most of the Gorjana stuff, they have this relationship where they include the items too much. I want to be exposed to other companies that I might not normally look into.

- I would love another scarf or other wearable fashion item other than jewelry.

- Items for multi-tasking on the go - I'm thinking travel mugs, cool water bottles, other office supplies that make multi-tasking at the office a breeze

- Actual new or newer bestselling novels that go beyond the genre of just basic chicklit (The Devil Wears Prada was a nice touch with the hardcover, but it wasn't really my style)

- I would be okay with not having as many gift cards or codes. I would rather have a physical product. More often than not, having the codes for $20 or $25 off some website means that you still end up having to spend money to get something you really like. This isn't really worth it to me.

 

[Bizgirlva]

Quote: Originally Posted by lauren2828 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  You forgot to mention the giant flashing watch in Jan!

Ah yes, I didn't mind the watch so much, but it was like a rave on my arm.

The fitness item combined with the all the food items in that box was a huge contradiction.  

 

[lauren2828]

I actually like this box less now that I have it in my hands than when I saw spoilers...

My thoughts:

Spoiler

The cookbook isn't that bad.  There are a lot of pictures (a must for me with cookbooks) and detailed instructions.  The recipes aren't super original or amazing, but the presentation of the cookbook is nice.  It would make a good gift for someone living on their own for the first time or someone getting married.

The makeup palette colors are pretty and the eyeliner is a neutral brown color.  I've never used this brand for eye makeup, so I'm not sure what the quality will be.  Personally, I wish the eyeliner was a fun color, like purple.

I was most disappointed with the Gorjana bracelet.  It is NEON pink and the cord is a really thin nylon type of string (i.e. super cheap looking).  I don't think it is adjustable and it is big on my wrist.

I like the Julep nail polish and top coat.  The nail polish is a pretty dark blueish color.  There also is a code to get a free Julep box (not like there aren't any codes like this out there already).

The bobby pins are cute, a great small add on in the box, but nothing super exciting.

I'm happy to get the wet brush because I have long thick hair.  Although this isn't "fun," I like getting useful items like this.

The crispycake is huge and yummy!  I already took a bite out of it (I couldn't resist) and it is pretty tasty for a packaged rice crispy treat.

The stitch fix card expires at the end of November 2013.  I'm on the fence about using this...I really don't like "having" to spend more money.

The booklet says "colors/flavors my vary" for the eye makeup, the nail polish, and the crispycake, but I got the variations pictured.

Not my favorite Popsugar box, but hey you win some, you lose some!

 

[sparklesgirlxox]

This box is really cheap  to me. I don't want to pay  40 dollars for a box with nyx in it plus I think the bracelet is kind of ugly. I  don't mind getting nyx in a ipsy bag with 4 other products in this bag I expect more. I think  they will lose a lot of people  over this being that I think its an insult to  us being that we are getting a price increase.  This is my last box with them. This box is not for me at all. I actually liked most the other boxes in t he past.  I know some of you love the box and I am happy for you.

 

[lauren2828]

Quote: Originally Posted by wisconsin gal /img/forum/go_quote.gif


It flashed? Or was flashy? I thought it was a cool looking watch, but never got to see it in person.

The watch literally (Chris Traeger voice...haha) flashes rainbow colored lights when you push the button!

 

[plumplant]

as far as jewelry goes in Popsugar, I'm actually okay with all the Gorjana stuff because its my favorite brand ( I love dainty jewelry) but id also love to see more Baublebar pieces. I was part of the minority in July that loved the rose gold chain. It WOULD be nice to get something other than jewelry though.

 

[cobainrls]

I am just glad the eyeliner isnt black.

 

[Shauna999]

I wore the watch for a pop of color ( I had the hot pink)- it was ridiculous how many compliments I got every time I wore it. One person actually asked me if I got it at Nordstroms- she had just saw them on display. I never would've guessed that the watch would turn into one of the PS items I used the most...lol. It's so silly & flashy & awesome all at the same time. The real funny part is that I have some killer expensive watches that I never wear & I choose to wear the pink plastic 80s flashing obnoxious watch - hmmmmm go figure

 

[Shauna999]

& the only items I'm really not excited about are the palette & eye liner. There not even an item that I feel that I can re-gift. Don't get me wrong- ill have a desperate moment trying to throw a gift together this holiday season & it will be gifted to someone at last moment. There comes a point every holiday season that I get cleared out of my trade list basically .. Lol!

 

[greenflipflops]

Quote: Originally Posted by Shauna999 /img/forum/go_quote.gif

I wore the watch for a pop of color ( I had the hot pink)- it was ridiculous how many compliments I got every time I wore it. One person actually asked me if I got it at Nordstroms- she had just saw them on display. I never would've guessed that the watch would turn into one of the PS items I used the most...lol. It's so silly & flashy & awesome all at the same time. The real funny part is that I have some killer expensive watches that I never wear & I choose to wear the pink plastic 80s flashing obnoxious watch - hmmmmm go figure

Haha I was surprised at how many of my co-workers complimented it! I like just pressing the buttons and letting the lights flash.