What if No One's Watching? Reviews

It's Little Black Box time again!

I was both very excited by and a bit disappointed with this month's Little Black Box. The big downside I saw was the similarity of all the items--it was all either candle stuff or bath stuff, no edibles or cat toys or treats or anything like that.

That said, I loved a lot of the items in this box. Shall we go through them?

First, things from companies I already knew:

From Lemon Lollipop, a lemon lolly and a sample of perfume oil. Their stuff has always smelled too sweet to me in the past, but I like this one--it's the original lemon lollipop scent. I'll likely hold on to it for summer. And I'll definitely eat the lollipop.

From Metropolis Soap Co., a sample of The Black Soap Horror. This is a great scent--lime, tea tree, and lavender. I'll use it immediately. The website also indicates it is a good facial soap, so I might try that.

Whiff & Sniff Candles always has an entry in the Little Black Box. This month, it's a "scent shooter" in "Angry Aphrodite." It smells so good I'm going to put aside my anti-melt sentiment and find a way to use it. The scent is sugary and fruity, tempered with bergamot. So yummy.

From Orglamix, a sample of mineral eye shadow in Pupil Basil. The color, despite its odd name, is a nice medium purple. I'll definitely give it a try.

From Silver City Scentsations, the usual offering of a wax melt. This one's scent is "Earth and Sky," and I don't like it at all. It is very artificial. Probably going to go in the trash.

And the new stuff I was thrilled to see:

Silk Naturals sent a container of mineral eye shadow in Unique (which is a medium silver). Shadow is the only mineral makeup I really like, and I like silver, so I'll use this.

From Mainely Naturals, a little bag of four heart-shaped glycerin soaps, in "Awaken." I like the smell a lot--it's got grapefruit and eucalyptus and geranium in it--and it's this is a generous size for a sample. One thing that does bother me a bit, though, is that the sample is of something that doesn't seem to be sold on Mainely Naturals' website. What good is it to let me sample something if I can't buy it if I love it?

From Cassia Candles and Fragrance, a sample of shea body frosting in "Love Spell." Another nice scent--cherry blossom, peach, and jasmine, and the texture seems really nice too. I think I'll keep this little container at my desk to use on my hands--the cold weather here is really hard on them.

Mainelement: love also included body butter in this month's sample box, a little jar of le'amour body butter in "Rise and Shine" scent. Rise and Shine is your basic citrus scent, and I love citrus. This little jar will serve the same purpose as the Cassia one.

Apparently I'm not the only one thinking a lot about dry skin, because Simply Tempted sent yet another moisturizer, a hand and body cream, this one in "Pink Sugar." Just like it sounds, this is a super-sweet, cotton candy-like scent, and I think it's a bit too sweet for me.

Things That Make Scents offers another scent tart, this one in soy. The scent is "The Coffee House," which is, as you'd expect, a slightly sweet, slightly spicy coffee scent. I like the smell, and since I'm going to have to figure out how to burn tarts for this month's Whiff & Sniff melt, I may as well give this one a go as well.

Capella's Garden Soap Co. sent a very generous addition to the box--a full sized 3 oz bar of lavender essential soap. It smells awesome. I'll probably actually pass it on to Mark, who quite likes lavender and is always out of soap, but it will definitely get used.

So Stinking Sweet also sent a full sized bar of soap, this one glycerin, heart shaped, and orange, with "Kiss Me" imprinted on it. It's a citrus scent, mostly orange. I'll probably pass this one on.

Finally, Hippie's Creations included a generous sized shampoo bar sample. It smells awesome--tea tree, fir, and lemongrass. I've tried bar shampoo before and not liked it, but I'll give this one a try.

In general, I thought the items in this month's box were of a much higher quality than I'd expected, with no real duds. Makes me VERY excited to have a subscription to LBB for the next eleven months.

Recently, a good online friend sent me a wonderful package of stuff from Daybreak Lavender Farm. She's been using one of their facial care lines for her rosacea for a while and is a big fan.

And now I know why.

Two of the products she sent me are absolutely wonderful. The Rose N' Rhassoul Gentle Oat Cleanser smells great (a nice, natural rose scent), feels great on my face, lathers up in a comfortable, non-drying way, and rinses clean. My skin looks fantastic after using it for two weeks--not out-of-this-world, this-is-a-miracle fantastic, but really good. I like it enough that even at $35 a jar I am seriously considering buying myself some more when the sample my friend sent runs out.

The second product there is no question about--I will buy it when I run out. It's the Deluxe Shea Intensive 5x Body Moisturizer. I'm not being hyperbolic here--this is the best body lotion I've ever used. It's made of great ingredients--goat's milk, unrefined shea butter, aloe gel, whole oat infusion, glycerin, old comb beeswax, essential oils--and feels wonderful going on. I have no idea what it is scented with, but it's a great smell. What's best, though, is that it's super-whipped, making it really really moisturizing AND fast to soak into my skin. It's the first body cream I've found that moisturizes me enough for winter and doesn't leave me feeling greasy. The website says it "positively melts into your skin" and it does. It's not cheap either--$30 for 8 oz--but a little goes quite a long way, and it's worth it.

The one major criticism I have about Daybreak Lavender Farm's products is the labels--they look like they were run off on a Xerox machine. Given the price point at which they're selling their products, I think they should do a better job with making them look as luxurious is the package as they feel to use. All said, though, that's a small thing. I'm very thankful to the friend who turned me on them!

After having such a good experience with the December Out of the Box Sampler, I ordered myself up a subscription to the OOTB service for 2010. I thought it would be really great to get the boxes at what would feel to me like random, having not ordered them each month. The first one came yesterday, and I was right!

As was previously the case, the sample box came wrapped very nicely, as shown, with a separate paper bag for the stuff that wouldn't fit inside the box, or would get smushed. Definitely giftable. The package also contained a very handy list of all the participants in this month's box (some of which I didn't receive samples from, obviously--not all boxes are the same), along with coupon codes. This cheat sheet is so handy, I wish all sample boxes would include one.

And on to the contents!

Paper Goods
Three companies included their paper goods in my box this month. From Rita's Creations, I got a cute mini-card and matching envelope, with a cut paper flower design on it. A Penny for Your Thoughts included a cellophane bag containing a shop advertisement magnet, a glitter and drawing gift tag, and a matching card and envelope. Finally, from Kreativ Xpressions, my box contained three greeting cards with envelopes, all tied with a ribbon--a colored floral blank card, a stamped thank you card, and a colored floral card stamped with "friend."

Verdict: I have to give props to Kreativ Xpressions for the generosity of their inclusion, even if the cards themselves aren't quite my style. The little Rita's Creations card is really cute, too. I'm not at all impressed with the quality of the card and tag from A Penny for Your Thoughts. None of these are companies I'll buy from.

Edibles
Four companies included edibles in this box--more than I think I've ever gotten in a sample box before. From A Thyme to Bee Comforted put in a small bag containing a largish cinnamon-scented, rose shaped hard candy. From RhodaRose, I received a pretzel with white and dark chocolate fillings. From The Bees Knees Bakery, I was pleased to find a dark chocolate peanut butter cup. Finally, Sweet Crescendos submitted a full-size mini chocolate chip brownie lollipop.

Verdict: I liked all four of these inclusions. Some people might be a little leery about receiving food in sample boxes, but I think it's great. I particularly liked the offerings from The Bees Knees Bakery and Sweet Crescendos, which are things I can buy more of at their Etsy stores if I like them (and they were both REALLY good). One criticism I have of the hand candy from A Thyme to Bee Comforted is that it is unlabeled, so I'm not 100% sure what it is, and there doesn't seem to be anything like it in the Etsy store.

Bath & Body
My box included four bath and body offerings. The first, which surprised me, was a full size bottle of ginger lime shampoo from Pepper Bay Natural Soap Company. Next, I got a regular sized soap sample of "Mountain Sunrise" glycerin soap from The Bubble Room. Rocky Corner Soap Works included a sample as well, of their Moisturizing Skin Care Soap. From daisy B's, there was a little bag with two trial-sized heart-shaped bars of lavender & oatmeal soap.

Verdict: The daisy B. soaps are both adorable and great smelling--giftable or usable for guest soaps. I'm also curious to try the Rocky Corner Soap works soap, as it's intended for very dry skin. The Bubble Room sample I am less interested in--you've kinda seen one glycerin soap, seen them all. FInally, the shampoo. It's a generous addition, to be sure, but I find it kind of odd that I don't see it on their website--makes me wonder if it's an old product? I'm also just really kinda picky about shampoo, so I won't likely use it, and it would be an odd gift.

Candles and Tarts
The largest number of offerings in this month's box were from this category. I received candles or tarts from five different companies. From Lee's Crossroads Candles, there were two flower-shaped Blueberry Muffin wax melts. From The Ugly Duckling Designs, I received a an apple butter scented wax melt in a shape I can't identify. Camp Candles sent two melts, a larger one in frostberry scent and a smaller velvet vanilla one. Anam Cara Candles sent a tiny (like, thumbnail sized) butterfly-shaped black linen and amber soy wax melt. Finally, from T&D Candles, there was a lavender votive candle.

Verdict: As I mention in every one of these reviews, I don't have a burner and I hate wax melts. That being said, the offering from Anam Cara is just embarrassingly skimpy, It's not really even enough to test. The melt from The Ugly Duckling Designs is oddly shaped and weird smelling. The Camp Candles and Lee's Crossroads Candles melts are nice enough--I wouldn't be embarrassed including them in a gift to someone who does use melts. The lavender votive from T&D Candles is definitely usable.

Misc
The one inclusion in the box not covered by another category was a "Primitive Snow Ball" from Angies Raggedy Patch. I got one of these in my last Out of the Box Sampler too. Maybe I just don't understand "primitive," but as far as I could tell, this thing is a spray-painted foam ball. So I looked it up on the website, and yeah, that's what it is. Apparently, I am supposed to put a whole bunch of them in a bowl for winter decoration. Not really my thing.

Overall, I didn't find this box nearly so impressive as the December offering. The food additions were definitely the strong point, as were the generous offerings from Kreativ Xpressions and Pepper Bay Natural Soap Company. Unfortunately, neither of the particularly generous additions quite work for me. I hope to be more excited about next month's box.

I'm so behind on these reviews! I got both the Little Black Box and the Sweet Delight Divalicious Sample Box for November and didn't tell you about either of them! I apologize! Let me rectify that.

Both boxes arrived quickly. I've been extremely happy with the shipping time from both of these companies every time I've ordered. The Divalicious box takes a bit longer, coming from Canada, but it's always here in a very reasonable interval.

The Holiday Divalicious box, which cost $25 Candian, including S&H, contained:

• A cute Christmas gift tag from Papertivity. Not really something I'll use, as I don't wrap gifts in paper much, but still very nice.


• A really nice blank card from A Flair for Paper, which I will definitely use.


• A blank card from Lindy Gruger Hansen. Not my style, but nice.


• A sample Cleansing Sugar Cube from Vixen & Venus. I don't love the scent (Strawberries & Champagne), but I've wanted to try these, so that one's a win.


• A bag of bath tea in "Satin Sheets" from Zhi Bath & Body. Smells truly awful. So bad that I threw it away rather than even considering re-gifting it.


• A bag of very nice smelling Spiced Cranberry bath salts from Kootenay Bath Products. I used these already and they were wonderful. I will definitely consider buying from this company.


• A small bottle of nice white tea lavender lotion from Birdy Botanicals. Nice scent, good sized sample. I'd probably try something else from this company was well.


• Also from Birdy Botanicals, a good sized sample of Anti-Aging Facial Serum. I'll have to see how their stuff works, but based on scent and packaging, I'm totally a convert to this company.


• A mango soap slice sample from Sanibel Skincare. Not fond of the scent, or the fact it has rice bran in it (WTF?).


• A very strange Cup of Cocoa wax melt from Country Home Scents. It seems to have real marshmallows on it. And I don't have a burner. Re-gift.


• An espresso flavored lip balm from Natural Fix Cosmetics. Smells really good. I'll use this.


• A couple of tasty gingerbread scented tea lights from Crystal Lights. Burned these already and they were lovely. Great holiday smell.


• A very nicely packaged geranium guest soap from Cupertino Soap Company. Not a smell I enjoy, but it's a nice soap. I'll re-gift.


• An awesome smelling bath tea bag from Luken Girls Botanicals. Definitely will use this.


• A really cutely packaged (in a little blue and white box) pair of guest soaps from Smelly Monkey Soap. One is lemon verbena, one is rosemary orange. These are GREAT. Fantastic packaging and a great product.


• A little wax tart that seems to be disintegrating from Jennuine Candles. Didn't hold up well at all.


• Two very small samples of Winter Grapefruit soap from Lost River Rags & Candle Lights. These smell great, but the samples are too small. Really kinda cheap seeming.


• A lovely pair of red Czech glass earrings, packaged well in a little jewelry box and tied with a ribbon, with no indication where they're from. Totally giftable.


• A pair of pewter earrings I don't much care for from Zerbena Boutique. They're just kinda ugly.


• A little green glass beaded key chain or cell phone charm from Susan Kay Designs. It's pretty, but I don't know what I'd use it for. Giftable, maybe?


• A cute little copper swirl ring from a.w.e Jewelry. Too small for me, but cute. Giftable, for sure.


• Some really nice smelling small solid lotion bars in Cocoa Sandalwood and Orange Vanilla Cream from Paradise Potpourri. I think I'm more likely to use these as bath melts than lotion bars, but they smell great.


• A generously sized and awesome smelling Spicy Pumpkin Pie soap sample from Juicy Bath. This is going in my shower, and I'm picky about pumpkin scents.


• A full size blueberry mineral lip balm from The Mineral Owl. I haven't opened it yet (it's wrapped), because I think I want to use it a stocking stuffer, but great labeling and a full sized product, so that's awesome.


• A raspberry lip balm from Mountain Sky Soap. Again, I didn't open it, but it's full size and has a good label. They included a brochure, too, and it looks like a cool company.


• A little magnet made from a bottle cap from Scaredy Cat Primitives. This is kinda hokey.

Not a bad haul, huh? This box seemed particularly strong on soap, which I don't think you can ever have enough of, and included at least two companies I plan to check out further, so it was definitely worth while.

The Little Black Box was also excellent in November! It was $17 including S&H and contained:

• A sample of lotion in Dragonfly Dance from Gaea Blessings. I can't quite describe the scent--pleasantly herbal hippy?--but the lotion has good, natural ingredients. I'll use it.


• A green and pink polka dot bird applique patch from Designs by Vanessa. Not something I'll use, but completely cute--I'll pass it on to someone who'll love it.


• From Just Right Candle Co., a Sun-Ripened Raspberry air freshener. I don't like that this is just a rectangle printed with their logo--seems a bit like they'd be asking me to advertise for them--but I do like the smell. I may hang this in my closet.


• Packaged really excellently inside a Christmas cracker, an adorable fabric-covered hair clip from Flying Frog Apparel. Way too small to hold my head of hair, but I'll definitely pass this along to one of the little girls I know.


• From Gems by Jerri, a really nice pair of fancy jasper earrings, which I know my mom will love, packaged up nicely with a little rhinestone-encrusted clothespin fridge magnet. Nice.


• A little Scrabble tile magnet from Playing With Fiber. Not something I'm terribly excited about.


• From Sassy Soaps N Such, a small bag of chocolate covered espresso beans (and I'm a fan of those even if you do insist on labeling them "reindeer poop") and a Christmas tree shaped spruce-scented guest soap.


• A sample of mineral eyeshadow in Glitz, from Mixology Makeup. Glitz is apparently an all-over shimmer, so I may try it as a top coat. The website is intriguing, too, if a bit overwhelming.


• From 3 Little Monkeys, another little ribbon hair clip. This one isn't quite as nice as the other one in the box, but the little girl I have in mind will love it all the same.


• A set of three red-and-green Christmas decorated clothespins from QueenVanna Creations. They're nicely made, but what would you use them for?


• Nicely packaged in a little paper bag, a sample of Luscious Lemon Cake soap from SV Soaps. I'm not crazy about this particular scent, but it's a nice looking and feeling soap.


• From SBS Teas, a little red organza bag containing a sample bag of blueberry cream tea (ew), a flowering green tea (yay!), and a piece of Toblerone (I already ate it).


• A sample of peppermint tea tree dog soap from Lucky Dog Treat Company. With Ata's size and amount of hair, washing him with bar soap just doesn't work, but this is still a cool product.


• From Lathered Up, a good sized sample tub of Mango Butter. This is good stuff, even though I'm not 100% on the mango fragrance.


• A very nice smelling and decently sized soap sample from Angelic Soap & Gifts. The packaging on this one is nice, too--it's wrapped in purple tissue paper and inside a little purple gift bag. Unfortunately, the scent isn't labeled. It's got a great cinnamon smell. After looking at their website, I'm definitely interested in buying from this company. Their soaps look fantastic, and they are buy two, get one free!


• From Whiff & Sniff Candles, a Harvest Delight melt. There is something about this scent I really don't like. Like, it almost turns my stomach. I think it's just me, though. I'll pass it along.


• From Barb's Homemade Soap, a really cute little Shea Loves Me Orange lip balm. Smells fantastic. I'll use this. Like soap, there is never too much lip balm.


• A pair of really gorgeous simple black glass ball earrings from Brilliance Found. These are gorgeous and simple and elegant. I'll definitely wear them.

Again, a wonderful haul. I feel like both boxes outdid themselves this month. In fact, I was so impressed that I went ahead and took the plunge and ordered a 2010 Little Black Box subscription. That's right, I'm getting one every month! I'm so excited.

At Meghan's suggestion, I got this month's Out of the Box Sampler. And I am VERY impressed. It was shipped super quickly, priority mail. I opened it up, and there is a nicely wrapped package inside, as well as a few loose things. Big score for the wrapping--definitely giftable.

The loose things were:
-An astonishingly intricate hand-drawn/collaged Christmas card from A Penny for Your Thoughts. Not exactly my style, but really well done--I'll definitely use it.

-A bag from SBS Teas that includes samples of Sweet Cranberry loose leaf tea and black tea formed into a heart. I imagine I'll be getting into that as soon as this afternoon. The cranberry tea contains black tea, blackberry, rose, and cranberry and smells wonderful.

-A sample sized bag of Winnie's Wheat Cakes pancake mix from LipSmackinCreations. This is a very interesting inclusion and one I've never seen before, so I'm pretty excited to try it out.

-A little package containing three chocolate covered and decorated pretzel bites, from RhodaRose. Again, I'm glad to see something not typical, and I'll gladly nom on these later.

-A cute yellow fabric catnip toy from Colorado Catnip Toys. This was in use before I even had it out of the bag. Any box with one of these in them goes over well here.

-An extremely handy list of all of this month's participating businesses, whether they were included in my specific box or not, with their coupon codes. GREAT idea.

And all that before I even got to the big package!

In the big package, I found:

-Two pipecleaner candy cane ornaments from Angie's Raggedy Patch. These are just silly. They look like a first grade craft project.

-Also from Angie's Raggedy Patch, a little "snowball" made, I think, from styrofoam. Really? The cats are playing with it, though.

-A small bag containing a gingerbread boy scent tart from Ugly Duckling Designs. In general, I am against wickless candles, however, this is so cute, smells so good, and was so well-packaged I can't complain at all.

-A pink organza bag containing a very good sized sample of very nice smell lavender & chamomile pedi fizzing sea soak, from Mrs. Sterling's Bath & Body Boutique. Very nice and very giftable.

-From Deaf Chick, a good sized sample jar of Tahitian Waterfall Foaming Bath Whip. I really don't care for the smell, but I'm intrigued by the product, which has little vitamin E beads in it and is recommended as a shave cream. I may try it in another scent at some point.

-Two decently sized soap samples, one in Candy Cane Lane and one in Cranberry Fig, from Rocky Corner Soapworks. Both smell fantastic. Definite score.

-A frankincense soy votive candle from Deborah's Candle Magick. This smells fantastic and I much prefer soy candles. I'll use it right away.

-A good sized, well packaged, and very nice smelling sample bar of Spiced Forest soap from Byrd Bath Soaps. This is a great scent mix--just manly enough, without being overpowering. Mark will love it.

-From J. Norahz Collections, something that looks very much like a twisted up paperclip. Honestly, I have no idea what it is. Some kind of wire pendant, maybe?

-From Stampin' and Scrappin', a very nice stamped Christmas card. I can definitely see putting a gift card in this and hanging it to my mail person in a couple of weeks. Excellent.

-From Not Your Everyday Cards, a small stamped birthday card. It's fine, but not something I'd probably use. It's too small for the mail, so it would need to be attached to a package, and I just don't see that in my future.

-A Christmas mulberry scent tart from Mylingy's Purr-fect Candles. This smells awesome--why can't these scent tarts have wicks? Is this just a battle I am going to lose? Should I give up and get a tart burner?

-A whole little bag of stuff from the fantastically named Farm Hussy! It includes a 1.4 oz lotion sample in "Sissy's Christmas Kettlecorn," a "Blitzen Shitzen" bath melt, a little package of "Snowballs" bath salts, and a little package of peppermint candies. All with really great labels. Full of win.

This is a great sample box. This may be my new favorite sample box. At least until the next one comes...

There are still a few left, too, so run, don't walk!

I know, I'm super spoiled, but I got yet another new sample box this month. This box is from The Sample Gal. The Sample Gal's box sells for $12.99 plus shipping--mine totaled $17.74. I ordered it on November 7, got an order confirmation right away, and received it seven days later.

When it comes to packaging, you can see The Sample Gal has a leg up on her competition. The box is an actual one, secured with a ribbon and a very nice label. Because of this extra attention to packaging, I might be more likely to send this box as a gift than the LBB or the Divaclicious box.

As for the contents, here's what my box contained:

*From DiamondCreek Candles, which does not have a website, a Creme Brulee scent tart and an Angel Wings scent tart. As we've discussed, I don't use these (though clearly I should, since they're so common). They both do smell good, though. Into the gift box.

*From Seriesse International, which seems Amway-esque, a small sample packet of some sort of facial cream and one of wrinkle cream. Fail.

*Unlabeled, a bar of pink soap proclaiming "It's a Girl!" This seems nice enough, though odd as I can't connect it to a particular company. The bar is full-sized, though.

*Sample packets of Arbonne Intelligence Daily Self-Adjusting Shampoo and Conditioner. A little bit of research tells me this stuff might be good for a dry scalp, which I've got, so I'll definitely give it a shot. Too bad it's only enough to use once, though. Arbonne also sent a sample packet of moisturizing sunscreen.

*Again, unlabeled, a loofah glove.

*A good sized sample of "Body Butter a Go Go" in Sweet Tooth, from Retro Bungalow Bath & Candle Company. This is a great product. It's body butter in a roll-on deodorant type form--excellent for hands and elbows. The scent is super sweet, which isn't great, but not bad, either.

*A really cute little Hook Up Lip Gloss in "Pink Crush" and a Good Glowing Powder Blush in After Glo, from mark, which seems to be a line of Avon.

*From Bungalow Girls, a Zen Christmas Holiday Scent tart. Once again with the scent tarts. This one smells pretty good, too.

*A little tea light in Cider & Spice from AtHome America. Smells OK--not great, but not bad.

*A Cinnamon Cider tea light from For Every Home. This one smells really good--I'll use it.

*From The Angel Company, a little mylar envelope of scrapbooking stuff--a stamp, a couple of embellishments, and a very little scraps of paper. Not my thing, but super cute. I've been wondering how long until something like this shows up in one of these boxes.

*Much of what is in the box is from a href="http://www.mineralgirlz.com/">Mineral Girlz . These items include:
-A good sized sample jar of -A good sized sample of "blank" (uncolored and unscented) body wash. Though this is a bit of an odd inclusion, I think it's a good idea. It has a little label instructing the user on how to color and scent it. I'll definitely pass that on to one of the younger people on my gifting list.
-A full sized "Bubbly" lip gloss. This I'm keeping.

So what's wrong with this box? Well, there's not a whole lot in it that's really indie. Mostly, it's samples from independent consultants working for larger businesses. That's all good and well, but it doesn't so much in the way of introducing me to new products made by small, indie businesses. For that reason, it's likely I won't buy this one again.

I got a package from Lush today. I gotta say, it was disappointing. I mean, I'm sure I'll enjoy the things I ordered (and I'll let you know about that), but in general, when I opened the box and saw what I got for my $80 or so, I was kinda "eh."

Why? Because other people do it way better. One of those people is Kate Von Wagner from bath not bombs. A few weeks ago, I ordered her you-pick half dozen bath bombs. $16 for 6 bombs. I got the following scents:

• sooth: lemongrass + lavender


• tempt: ylang ylang + pink grapefruit


• winter wellness: rosemary + eucalyptus + lemongrass


• change: ginger root + lemon


• suck it, cramps: clary sage + chamomile + ginger root


• glee: sweet orange + bergamot

So far, I've used glee, suck it, cramps, soothe, and winter wellness. And they're all awesome. They are smallish bombs, but they pack a full-size bath punch. The scent combos are spot-on, the amount of scent is just right, they're all around perfect. The only thing I could wish for is that there were more scent combo options available. Still, I'll be ordering another half dozen in the near future.

As you have, I'm sure, already figured out, I'm a big fan of the sample box. As such, I was a wee little bit thrilled to find out about the Snowberry Creek sample boxes. On Monday, I ordered one of the boxes. They're a bit more expensive than the other sample boxes I've purchased--$22.95 including shipping. Given that the box was sent Priority Mail at a cost of $9.85, though, the price seems good. And shipping was fast! Even though yesterday was a holiday, the box arrived today.

And the contents?

*A lovely little bag from Heaven & Earth Essentials, an old favorite of mine, containing a little matchbook notepad, a 2 oz jar of Berry Bliss Whipped Sugar Scrub, and a little sample jar of Healing Lotion. These are definitely useful for me.

*A full size, sweet pea scented, butterfly shaped bar of soap from Delightfully Wed. Not a scent I love, but it's nice soap--good for re-gifting.

*Two small bags of fruit shaped and scented mini melts from Just Right Candles. Again, not my thing (I don't use melts), but definitely re-giftable. There is also a 20% off code on each of the bags.

*From Lathered Up, a sample of white tea & ginger Purely Shea Body Butter. This smells really good--I'll definitely use it. Also a small sample bar of unscented oatmeal soap, which I'll also use, probably as hand soap or in the guest bathroom. There's also a 20% off coupon code.

*From Funky Little Shop on the Square (whose website doesn't seem to work right now). a full-size heart-shaped pink soap in a scent called "Witch's Brew." It's a strong, herbal smell. Not my thing, but again, very re-giftable.

*A lovely little bag from another of my favorites from other sample boxes, SBS Teas. The bag contains a good size sample of peach melba black tea, a sachet of jasmine phoenix pearls tea, and a small chocolate macadamia nut biscotti. There's also a 15% off coupon code, which I'll likely use. This is a fantastic addition. Probably my favorite thing in the box.

*A full size bar of Pink Topaz soap from Snowberry Creek soaps. The scent is too floral for me, but the soap seems to be very high quality. It's also vegan, which is a nice bonus. This is another re-gift.

*From Ye Olde Chandler Handmade Soy Candles & Soap, a very nice smelling Blueberry Muffin votive candle. The scent is probably not all that seasonally appropriate, but I love it anyway.

*A great smelling sandalwood mini muffin melt (scent tart) from Tuxedo Enterprises. This one makes me want to rig myself up a tart burner.

*From The Soap Corner, a cute little bag with two sweet pea melts in it. Don't like sweet pea, don't like melts--these are going to be regifted. There's also a coupon for a free coffee soap with any purchase from the store.

*A "Costa Rica" perfume sample (the kind you get in a magazine) from Shop 323. I have to say, this seems like kind of a chintzy addition.

*In a muslin bag, a vanilla soap sample from Dagmar's Goat Milk Bath & Body Products. This smells great, but the sample is too small to be useful, which is a bummer.

*A good sized sweet pea body bar with no maker indicated on it. If I could stand the sweet pea scent, I'd be all over this one. Since I can't, it is easily regiftable.

*Finally, a lovely little box from Revive, containing a sample sized pot of fresh lemon essential oil balm/salve, a sample packet of mineral skin care detox cleansing gel, a sample packet of mineral skin care brown sugar scrub/mask, and a small hydrating mineral body spray in "sweet essence." The spray smells awesome. I'll definitely use all of these items.

All in all, I'm very excited by and impressed with this box. I'll buy it again for sure.

I have recently not been wanting to make my own bath products (after packing all of my supplies up to move I haven't had the urge get it all back out and make a mess again yet). I have, however, been really wanting baths and taking them on a near-daily basis. So, of course, I needed bath products. Excuse in hand, I started shopping.

The first place I tried out was Moon's Harvest Bath & Body Shop. Moon's Harvest is a Texas-based business. I don't see a biography page on the website, but the feel, at least, is that of a small business. The selection is fantastic, with a huge fragrance list. Given that list, I had a hard time narrowing down my order and ending up with a cart containing thirteen bath bombs, the "bag of marshmallows" collection of bubble bars, and a single blueberry lemon with butter ball bomb (that's the one you see int the photo here).

My order was received and confirmed quickly. I received a Click N Ship confirmation six days after ordering, and my order arrived two days later. The packaging wasn't great--the bombs were all nicely individually shrink-wrapped and labeled, but they weren't well-padded and two of them were disintegrated during shipping (making for a very nice smelling garbage can).

For the total I paid ($78.50 plus $8.95 shipping and handling), it was a huge haul. The bombs are large enough that they could easily be split and used in two baths, and they're only $3.50 each (compare that with Lush's bombs, which are much smaller and start at $4.65). The bubble bars were $27.50 for the package of 10 3.5 oz bars (again, probably usable for two baths each, though I gorge out and use a whole one). Bought individually, they're still a pretty reasonable $3.50 each. The only spendy thing was the butter bar bath bomb, which was $5.50. My order also came with a large free bottle of Lather Up Body Wash.

The products are a lot of fun to look at--clearly, Moon's Harvest isn't afraid of dyes, as everything is brightly colored. What's great, though, is that even though things color the water, nothing has colored my bathtub. I don't know how they're managing that, but it's a big bonus. Everything has also been really skin-friendly, moisturizing, and pleasant to use. The bubble bars create a ton of bubbles, the bombs fizz and fizz. My favorite product is definitely the bubble bar with the melt inside--it's genius. First you get the bath bomb fizz power, then the soothing cocoa butter goodness of a melt. Makes for a great bath.

Scent-wise, I was thrilled with some of the choices I made and less excited about others. The blueberry lemon was unexpectedly nice. The lemon and fig was also fantastic. The lavender lemon doesn't work quite as well for me--something about the lavender is a bit too strong. I was also not a huge fan of the snickerdoodle, which just smelled sort of generically sweet. The general scent profiles seem to be well-done though--nothing reeks of perfume. And there are a ton more appealing-sounding scents I didn't try with this order, so the ones that I didn't care as much for can easily be replaced.

There are also products I didn't try this time that intrigue me. Bling bath desserts are combination milk bath/bath bomb/bath melt, which can't possibly be a bad thing, so I'm definitely going to try one of those next time around (the iced pear scent sounds wonderful). They've also got cupcakes, which are huge bath bombs shaped and decorated like cupcakes and individually boxed--wouldn't that make a great gift for a Secret Santa or a stocking? I think I'd also like to try the sugar cubed, which is exfoliating sugar scrub in a cube form (another stroke of genius I haven't seen elsewhere).

All in all, I definitely recommend Moon's Harvest. The value for quantity and quality is excellent, and they have a ton of choices, which is important for the jaded bath consumer. I'll be making another order in the near future.

I love the LBB. You already knew that. But the October Little Black Box? Rocking. On sale for $17 and amazing.

And you want to know what's in it, right?

From The Sage Grove Vintage Autumn Candle Collection, a Pumpkin Cookie Crunch scent shot and a 15% off promotional code. I don't like aroma melts much, since I don't use a burner, but the packaging is nice and it's a nice pumpkin scent.

From The Metropolis Soap Co., a One Night With Rosemary Mint soap sample. Smells great, and I love the packaging of the full bars on the website. This may be something I'll buy in the future.

From Pegg Macko Designs, a bookmark and a coupon code for a free card. I'm not all that impressed with it--it's a stamped and has a little cutout on it. Pretty easy to put together.

From Moonlight Eternal, a bright pink beaded bracelet and a 20% off coupon code. Not to my style, but nice enough.

From underglass, a really great kaleidoscope pendant. Packaging is nice, too. And I'm bookmarking the site for a future purchase, for sure.

From Lemon Lollipop (new LBB favorite from what I can tell--been in several times), a Sultry Summer perfume sample and a coupon code. This particular scent doesn't work for me, though.

From Soap That Makes Scents, a sample of Pumpkin Spice Body Souffle Soap Whip. I'm not a huge fan of pumpkin-y smells, but this seems like a nice product and it was packaged very nicely.

From zany hoopla, a cute matchbook notepad and a 25% off coupon code. I don't use these--can't figure out what I'd use them for since I write so big--but it's very cute and it will make it's way into someone's gift at some point, I'm sure. I love the larger altered composition books made by the same Etsy store, though.

From Sweet Pickles Pottery, a hand-painted ceramic tree topper. We don't actually have a tree topper, and I don't hate this one, so it will be used.

From Gaea Blessings, a nice rosemary scented/flavored beeswax lip balm. There is no such thing as too much lip balm.

From The Just Right Candle Company, a pumpkin vanilla mini melt and a 20% off coupon code. Again, I am not a melt fan, but this one smells fantastic. I think I prefer pumpkin smells when they are sweet like this, rather than spiced.

And my favorite things:

From FMC Alchemy, an awesome What's Your Spell Lip Potion in AmarredeAmor. This is a really gorgeous product--lovely packaging, smells great, tastes good. I'll use this all the time. It's also a generous inclusion in the package--retail value is $5.99.

From Sheba's Secrets, a full-size Angel Wings bath bomb and a 10% off coupon code. I'm always on the lookout for new bath bomb suppliers, at these are only $1.99 each, so I'll definitely be making an order. The Angel Wings scent is nice, but not the type I'd usually choose.

From Shea Loves Me (I can't find a website for it?), a really yummy smelling Sweet Pumpkin shea butter sugar scrub sample and a 50% off coupon code. If anybody knows where this came from, please let me know. I love a good scrub.