Subscription Boxes – December 2014

Bulu Box

Bulu Box is a subscription box that sends you samples of health, nutrition, and weight loss products.

Funnbar Protein Candy Chews – I loved the idea of this product, but the taste was just awful.  It left an aftertaste in my mouth that didn’t seem to go away for hours.
Berry Sleepy – a sleep aid that is supposed to work in 30 minutes, but it didn’t seem as effective to me as my usual melatonin.
Zestra Essential Arousal Oils – I could see this definitely working for some people.  It definitely made this area more.. sensitive… but it was a bit much for me.
Justin’s Peanut Butter – I’m not a huge peanut butter fan, but this one was really good.  I’d buy it again.  It had a natural taste, which I enjoy.
Sport Tea – I haven’t tried this one yet, but I hope it tastes good.  The idea of extra energy is nice, and I do enjoy tea.

This box had a better variety of items than the past one, but I’ve currently put my Bulu Box subscription on hiatus.  I like it, but it’s definitely not worth $10 a month to me.  When I got the groupon it was a great deal, with each box costing less than $5.  For just samples I can’t see spending more on it, and I’m not sure you can get a discount more than once.  If I find a way to get it cheaper again I will be back!

November 2014 subscription boxes

Bulu Box

Bulu Box is a subscription box that sends you samples of health, nutrition, and weight loss products.

Rutaesomn Sleep Aid – I got this in my last box too, so I think there might have been a mistake.  Luckily, I liked it last time!
Supreme Protein bar (strawberry banana) – I was excited to see a full sized bar in the box – unfortunately, I thought this tasted awful.  So dense, I just couldn’t finish it.
Sweet Wheat – supposed to be the pill form of a superfood, providing nutrients and energy.  My problem with samples like this is that you can’t really tell if it works or not from taking it one day.
Probium Probiotics – a dietary supplement to help digestion.  This was a couple of pills, so same problem as above.
Simple Being Simple Diet – another dietary supplement.  I’m not a fan of these.
Clean Series Veggie Protein – protein powder that I can hopefully give a try in a smoothie sometime soon – or the package also suggests mixing it with almond milk.

Overall I wasn’t thrilled with this box.  I hate the dietary supplements because they’re pretty much useless – you can’t tell if they work from taking them one day, and there’s no flavor or anything to get used to.  I’m hoping my next box will have less pills and more other things.

Ipsy

Ipsy is a make-up bag subscription with 5 items per month for $10.  You also get a bag every month – this one was sparkly to go with the glitter theme!

Bulu Box Review

Bulu box is another subscription box that I’ve started getting.  It is a box that will deliver samples of health, nutrition, and weight loss products.  I love the fact that they make it very clear that they are providing samples, so you don’t expect full size products from them.  Other boxes, I’ve found, have been a bit ambiguous when it comes to that.  When you sign up you can choose from either a general health box or a weight loss box.  I’m getting the weight loss box.

I will admit that this isn’t normally the type of thing I would try.  I’m not hugely into miracle weight loss pills and that sort of thing – I’m much more an advocate of healthy eating and exercise.  But I got a groupon deal where a 3 month subscription to Bulu Box and a year long subscription to Women’s Health magazine was only $15 – so I figured I’d give it a try!

I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised by what I received the first month.  Only one item seemed less than legitimate.

Rutaesomn Sleep Aid

So I’m one of those people that often lacks energy throughout the day, and all I can think about is taking a nap or going to bed… but then when it’s actually time to sleep I’m wide awake.  I take melatonin every night, which helps a lot.  This sleep aid claims to not only help you sleep, but to negate the effects of caffeine.  I tried it one evening in place of my melatonin.  I had caffeinated soda around 9pm, took this pill at 11, and was asleep by midnight.  Since it’s a sample I only got to try it once, but it seems to have worked!

October 2014 Subscription Boxes

Bestowed

Bestowed is a monthly subscription box that is filled with mostly healthy snacks, and other healthy living items.

Peeled Cinnamon Apple Clusters ($5.49).  A little disappointing since we just got these in the August box.  This was a bigger bag with “4” servings, but while they taste good they are not filling at all.  I ate the whole thing in one sitting and was still starving.  Probably a good snack for kids though.
Little Miracles ($2.50).  I actually really enjoyed this energy drink, but was disappointed that it’s not a US product and therefore not available any way except by ordering online (expensive).
Glee Gum ($0.29).  I liked the watermelon flavor and the idea of a “healthy” gum, but the flavor only lasted for about 3 minutes.
Fiber Love Bars (About $o.90 each for the sample size).  I got the cinnamon raisin and peanut butter chocolate.  They claimed to taste like cookies but they really just taste my fiber bars.  I much prefer Clif bars for texture, though the flavor was fine.
Crunchmaster Crackers ($0.75).  I actually did enjoy these crackers.  There were only 7 in this bag (half a serving size) and they were a bit salty, but I liked the flavor and ate them with some mozzarella cheese.
Hooray Puree Spinach ($5.00).  I don’t think I’ve ever used pureed spinach in my life, so I don’t really plan to use this.  I always have fresh spinach around, and would puree that if need be.
Numi Organic Tea (two tea bags, $0.65 each).  I haven’t tried this yet but I’m hoping it will be good – I got the chocolate mint flavor, which seems unusual for tea.  I enjoy tea but usually use loose leaf if I can.

I calculated this box to be worth $17.13, which is definitely better than the last two boxes but still not even worth as much as they charge for it.  That fact, combined with the fact that I didn’t even enjoy all of the items, convinced me to cancel my subscription.  Goodbye, Bestowed!