Out of the Box Sampler July 2013 Review!!

I love etsy, farmer's markets, and anywhere else I can get homemade items. I just feel like they are healthier and better for the environment. So when I heard about Out of the Box Sampler I had to get one. This is actually the second one I've gotten from them (I got one in March or April), and I really wanted to show it to you guys!

Out of the Box Sampler isn't really a monthly sub. Instead they have a limited amount of boxes and at a certain date and time they are released and you buy them individually. This month they had mini, regular, and Bodaciously Bigger boxes. I got the regular which is $25. Some months they have different types of boxes (like last month they had an edible and a men's box), but it seems like they always have the Regular and the Bodaciously bigger boxes.

The boxes are a mix of different things: food, beauty items, and jewelry all made by different Etsy sellers.

They ship in a Priority Mail box and it was heavy!

First look.

Look at the packaging! I love taking pictures of the packaging!

This the card that it came with. It says the theme of the month which is "Firecracker" Patriotic Themed Box

Then there is a separate paper that says all of the different stores that are featured in the box this month, plus any coupons they offered. It also says when the August box goes on sale which is August 5th at 8 pm EST.

Now let's look at what I got!

First up the Edibles! Look at all that stuff! The edibles were wrapped separately in the paper bag so they wouldn't smell like the candles.

First off I got two American Flag shaped suckers from Ju-C Suckers. (jucsuckers.com). These are in the flavor Marshmallow. These melted a little bit, but I'm sure they'll still taste fine! I'm not the biggest sucker fan, so these probably won't get eaten until I have a sore throat since I find sucking on suckers helps that. They go for $1.00 for both.

Then I got a Life Saver from Yummilicious Treats. (YummiliciousTreats.Etsy.com) At first I was a bit disappointed to have gotten a Life Saver, but after looking at the store it seems like she sells store bought candy in different assortments for birthdays. My fiancé loves Life Savers and stole this one from me right away (:

Then I got something that I smelled as soon as I opened the bag (and initially thought was tea) Yummy Curry Powder from Alexia Coffee, Tea, & Spice Company. (www.etsy.com/shop/alexiatrader) My dad loves Curry so I'll probably end up giving this to him. I do like that they included a recipe though in case you had no idea how to use it.

Then I got some Celebration Rock Candy from www.homeandfamily.etsy.com. I love rock candy and I can't wait to eat this! Plus it is quite a generous amount at 4.5 oz. It did melt a little bit, but I don't really mind since I'll just break off little pieces. This goes for $1.50.

Then I got a Marshmallow Sparkler Pop from How Sweet It Is by Melissa (http://www.etsy.com/shop/HowSweetItIsByMeliss). This is basically just a marshmallow with a vanilla coating and sprinkles but man was it awesome! I do adore marshmallows though and I think I might have to get more of these (and the chocolate covered pretzel sticks, yum!). These go for $1.

 

The last food item I got is a Scotch Shortbread Cookie from Hobin Hotel Favorites. (www.etsy.com/shop/HobinHotelFavorites) This has to be the best homemade shortbread I've ever had! It tasted exactly like Walker Bros, which since those seem hard to find, I'll probably end up buying some of these ones from her etsy store. They were nice and buttery and totally not choky. Love! This goes for about $.75.

Now for the only paper item I got.

This is just a cute little piece of Fantasy art by Terra Bidlespacher. (www.WhiteStagArt.com) It is of a fairy dressed in Patriotic clothing and styled like the Statue of Liberty. I think it is adorable! I'll probably tape it to my mirror in my closet or use it as a bookmark, since I'm not really too sure what else to do with it. This goes for $3.25.

Now onto the hair accessories and jewelry!

I got an adorable hair bow from Little Ladie Bowtique. (http://www.etsy.com/shop/LittleLadieBowTique -there is currently nothing in her store) This is printed with apples and would be great to wear since school is starting soon. However I don't have a daughter, so I'll be giving this away.

 

Then I got another bobby pin from www.ThatsTheCutestThing.etsy.com. Again I don't have a daughter so this wouldn't have been used even if I did get it in time for the 4th.  However this store has the cutest pumpkin style hats and I know I'm going to get one for G's fall pictures!

Then I got a hair clip and a pin from the box's sponsor this month Eclectic Aims. (www.etsy.com/shop/EclecticAims) I love the patriotic pin and I think the hair clip is adorable, but I don't really have a use for either sadly

Then I got a pair of earrings from The Jewelerey Box. (www.etsy.com/shop/TheJewelereyBox) These could have been very pretty if they both would have had a rhinestone on them. However only one did (and then it fell off pretty quickly while I was taking pictures so now there is just an ugly silver patch on one). I think I might try glueing other rhinestones over the silver patch (and on the other one) so they are wearable, but I probably wouldn't buy anything from the store since the quality totally seems questionable.

The last jewelry item I got and one of my favorite items in the whole box is a pendant from Rubey Shea (www.digart1.com -store isn't open yet) I just really like the look of this! It looks and feels like a quality item and I think it will look great with my lacey tops!

Then onto the candles and tarts!

I got a candle from Angela's Candles (www.etsy.com/shop/angelascandles) This is in the scent Fudge Brownie and smells exactly like chocolate candles smell like! (That fake chocolate like scent). Also they are made of soy wax, which I'm not exactly sure what makes them different from regular candles, but I thought I'd point that out in case anyone looks for that type of thing.

Then I got a tart from Melty Melts Handmade Soy Melts (www.meltymelts.etsy.com) This is in the scent Black Irish. This smells exactly like the Old Spice Figi! I love the scent, but it is very manly smelling. This goes for $2.

Then I got a Tart cup from Candle Confectionery. (www.CandleConfectionery.etsy.com) This is in the scent Hot Apple Pie. This smells like spiced apples and I think it would be great to burn in the fall! I love the smell of apples so I can't wait to use this.

The next tart is from www.Scentillusion.com. This is in the scent Bakery Sensation. This ended up melting quite a bit, but one side had red and blue wax chips in it. This smells almost like burnt bakery goods, so I'm not sure if I'll use it or not.

The next tart is from Ugly Duckling Designs (www.theuglyducklingdesigns.com) This is in the scent Tutti Fruitti. This is very fruity smelling and is great for summer! I'm going to be checking to see if they have them in candle form, since for me candles are a lot easier to deal with, but I will be using this. This goes for $6.95.

Then I got 3 mini star shaped tarts and a lip balm from Bubblina's Soap Boutique (www.bubblinas.com) I
thought these were soaps at first, but upon a closer look they are definatly tarts. These are in the scents summer breeze (and are also made from soy wax) so they have a nice fresh scent. Plus they are sparkly! Also the lip balm is in Pistachio Pudding, but it doesn't have much of a smell. It is super nourishing though and I do really like it. Both of these items go for $4.50.

Now onto the beauty products!

The first one is a Pink Grapefruit Facial Scrub from Mineralicious (www.mineralicious.com) This is a very gritty scrub, which I really like! Also it smells like a mix of grapefruit and bug spray. I was excited to get this, but I just wish it would have been a bit bigger since this is probably only good for one or two uses. The packaging on this was really cute though!

Then I got  4 cubes of a Sugar Cube Face Scrub from Down Right Sweet. (http://www.etsy.com/shop/DownRightSweet) This has goat's milk in it and I adore goat's milk based lotion, so I'm excited to try this. According to the directions the 4 cubes are good for 4 uses, one cube per use. You just crush one in your hand and then rub it in, so that's pretty interesting! These go for $.70

Then I got 2 packets of Willow Bend Pink Grapefruit Body Scrub. (http://www.etsy.com/shop/WillowBendBodyScrubs) I haven't tried this yet, because I'm currently trying out a different body scrub, but this will totally be next. I really like body scrubs and I don't think I've ever tried a homemade body scrub before, so I'm excited to try this. If its good I will totally be buying her orange and brown sugar scrub next!

The next thing I got is a face scrubbie from Taylor May's Handmade Crafts. (www.etsy.com/shop/TaylorDreessens)  I love that she tells you how to use it and everything, because if I had never seen one of these before I would have probably been like what is this? Since I did know what it was, I was super excited to try it since I've wanted to try using one, but I wasn't sure I really wanted to buy one. They are pretty much like a washcloth, but this one feels so much softer then any other washcloth I've ever used.

The next item I got is Nourish from Touch.Restore.Heal (www.touchrestoreheal.com) I'm really interested to try this! This says that it was formed with surgical scars in mind, so I'm wondering if this works for scars or just for places that need some extra help healing? Either way this sounds like something I could totally use! I just wish it didn't smell quite like a super strong tea.

The last item I got is an American Apple Pie All Over Body Lotion from Breezy Quarters. (www.BreezyQuarters.com) I adore this stuff! It smells just like apples, which is probably one of my favorite scents, and it is super moisturizing! I have pretty bad eczema on the backs of my knees and this stuff made it almost go away. I refuse to use Eucerin cream, I hate that stuff because it feels way too oily to me, so I'm always trying to find other good creams. Sadly she doesn't sell it in her store, but she does accept custom orders so I'm wondering if I could ask her if she'd make it? If she would I'd totally buy gallons of it. (:

 I can't really do a total value because it is hard to put a price on homemade samples. However I do totally think it was worth the $25 (I got 25 samples so that's about $1 per sample and I'm sure a couple are worth a bit more then that). I'll use pretty much everything and I'm thrilled that I got no soap and only 1 lip balm. Plus I love trying out all the new beauty products and food especially! I was happy with what I got, but I'm not sure that I'll get another month. I know that there are a few companies I will probably buy from in the future and that's great! But I think for $25 I'd rather get Umba box or a different sub that helps support small businesses. I know that the curator of this box gets what she gets sample wise, but considering I didn't get the Bodaciously bigger box it would have been nice if she could have asked if you have a son or daughter (or both or none) so those people that don't have a daughter didn't get 3 bows that they had nothing to do with. (Yes I could give them away/trade, but none of my friends have kids and I'm not sure how I'd feel about giving something to a neighbor when I don't even know their names!). Overall I'm happy, but at the same point I'm probably not going to get another box.