*post contains affiliate links which means NAT receives a small commission for each sale made
Sips by is a monthly tea subscription box. In addition to their customized tea subscription they also offer one time boxes. Today I’m reviewing their Bridal Tea Box that features four tea worthy of walking down the aisle, along with discounts good for future purchases. This box can be purchased in their shop for $15. NAT received this package at no cost for review purposes.
Subscription Box Unboxing
Subscription Box Review
Everything that came in my box from Sips By. I have to say that I really love how aesthetically pleasing this assortment is. The pastel pinks and purples all really work well together.
So what is all this stuff?
The first box insert is the one that lists each of the teas included in this box along with discount codes good for future purchases at these retailers.
Our second tells you how to give yourself a tea bath facial!
Every box from Sips by comes with a pouch full of disposable tea bags since some of the teas that you’ll receive in this box are loose leaf.
Wedding Tea by Harney & Sons
The first tea in the box is from Harney & Sons (whom I love). This Wedding Tea comes in a cute little tin!
Inside there are four sachets. This low caffeine tea includes white tea, rose petals (y’all know how much I love floral teas), vanilla and lemon flavor. There was also a 15% off coupon code included for Harney & Sons
Breakfast In Paris Tea by Stash Tea
The second tea in our box is this Breakfast in Paris Tea from Stash. This high caffeine tea includes; blended black teas, lavender, bergamot extract and vanilla extract! There was also a free shipping coupon included for Stash Tea!
Tuscan Dreams Tea from Tea Fiori
Next up we have a Tea from Tea Fiori who has been in my Sips by boxes a bit and I have come to really enjoy! This Tuscan Dreams Tea is caffeine free and boasts a medley of lavender blossoms, rose petals, orange blossoms, lemon balm, silver linden tree blossoms, sweet blackberry leaves, apple pieces and mallow blossoms. There was also a 20% discount code included for Tea Fiori.
Cinnamon Rose Black Tea from Miss Tea
The final tea in my box for the month is from Miss Tea. This high caffeine loose leaf tea includes; black tea, orange peel, cinnamon, cocoa nibs, and rose petals. There is also a 15% off coupon code for Miss Tea.
So in summary
Presentation: I love the aesthetically pleasing quality about this one time box and everything arrived to me in perfect condition.
Quality: I feel like each of the teas that was included in this box was of really great quality
Curation: This assortment high every note as far as I’m concerned. It looked like a bridal tea box, it included lots of floral notes and it included a variety of different concentrations to suit any brides moods!
BoxyCharm is a monthly beauty subscription box. Each package in their base subscription includes five full sized items valued at $120. You do get to select one of the items in your box each month. This subscription is $25 with the option of upgrading to BoxyLuxe which is a once a season package that includes 8+ items of which you will select two. Boxes have a value of $250 for just $49.99. BoxyCharm also offers a Premium Box month that is $35 and includes 6-7 items one of which you will choose with a value of $175. NAT pays for this subscription.
Subscription Box Unboxing
Subscription Box Review
Everything that came in my box from BoxyCharm for October. I have to say that I really like this box.
So what is all this stuff?
My box insert.
The reverse lists each item that is included in our box along with their retail values and our box variation (68)
Beauty Bakerie Breakfast in Bed Eyeshadow Palette
$38
First up in my box is the palette for this month. It’s from Beauty Bakerie, I was so excited to see this!
The color story doesn’t match the packaging but I’m not mad at it… these colors are excellent for Fall!
The swatches are nice and I did create a pretty look with a few colors in this palette already!
Next up we have the big ticket item for our box. This moisturizer from Grown Alchemist is lightweight and leaves your skin with a matte finish. I personally love this minimalist packaging!
Murad AHA/BHA Exfoliating Cleanser
$40
Next up we have an item from Murad. I am never sad to see these products even if I won’t use them, as I’m sure someone in my life will! This cleanser will definitely be a part of my periodic regiment as it’s great for once or twice a week exfoliation! I was surprised at how large this is – it’s sure to last quite a while.
Sol De Janeiro Brazilia Kiss Tinted Cupuacu Lip Butter
$20
Then we have an item from beloved brand Sol de Janeiro. This tinted lip butter smells a little like their bum bum cream! This boasts some really nourishing ingredients like cupuacu butter, acai and coconut oils. I also love the super cute packaging!
Spongelle Cherry Tonka Musk Body Wash Infused Buffer
$20
Finally in our box for October is a buffer from Spongelle. I haven’t seen one of these in a while and was really happy to have gotten one. The smell is nice – and while not one I would have selected if I purchased it I will still use it!
So in summary
Presentation: Everything arrived to me in great condition and was packaged well in my box from BoxyCharm for October
Quality: I feel like Boxy does a great job of curating high quality makeup and skincare items for subscribers.
Curation: I really enjoyed my items this month and the best part is that I forgot to select my item for the month, so Boxy did all the work for me!
Box Economy: For the price of this box ($25) I received $187 in items which is a fabulous deal!
*post contains affiliate links which means NAT receives a small commission for each sale made
Mindvalley is an online platform for personal growth. They have classes that teach anything from mind expansion, fitness, self love and entrepreneurship through their “Quests”. Each Quest is taught by a world class teacher with other classmates – and you have the ability to communicate and discuss each class with your “tribe” (or class). Mindvalley offers free courses in addition to courses that you have to pay for. Today I’m reviewing their Longevity Blueprint Quest taught by Ben Greenfield an author and biohacker. The course is taught in 7 weeks and introduces the user to different ways to get the optimum beauty and longevity out of their fitness routine. You can choose to take just this course from Mindvalley or you can opt for Mindvalley all access where you can access each Quest that Mindvalley has to offer. NAT received this course at no cost for review purposes.
Self Improvement Course Review
The first day of the program is an introduction to the Longevity Blueprint. I chose this course because fitness is really important to me but I often get caught up in weight goals and the focus of this course is being the best you and living the longest… which is really why we work out to begin with. Something about this that I really like is that they break the course up into small, digestable pieces. The commitment as far as time goes is about 10 minutes each day (sans workout of course). This first week of the course walks you through the many different layers that this course encourages you to implement.
Each day of the Quest you’ll also have a task that you need to complete. The first day you simply write down three values that are important to you and connect them to your longevity and beauty goals.
The second day of our Quest we are taught how this program works in layers and you can add the things that work for you with different daily, weekly and periodic practices. This is a great way for people that are more sedentary to gradually incorporate better lifestyle choices without burning themselves out!
For this day you’ll use the PDF workbook that comes with this course and you’ll fill out your Pre Quest Assessment. This will help you to track your understanding from the beginning of the program through the end.
On day three of the Quest we talk about Minimum Effective Dose Exercise – I personally love this concept. This breaks fitness into three areas – Strength to Muscle Mass Ratio, which is the explosive lifting of weights that give you optimum muscle to body mass. Super Slow Training which uses heavier weights and does common movements very slowly. This form of exercise helps with resistance and longevity and finally Isometric training is holding certain movements that can lead to better blood pressure, increased growth hormone and strength (and decreased injury risk). On this day we figure out what equipment we will need or use (but no worries if you don’t have access there are substitutions given).
On day four we are presented with Muscular Endurance and Anaerobic Capacity. There are three areas included in this sort of working out. Tabata, Core Planks and Hypoxic Training (holding your breath while walking for short periods of time or underwater). I’m familiar with Tabata already – these workout consist of 20 second intervals of different HIIT exercises. The Core Plank routine is one that Ben Greenfield put together to get the best core strength possible. The breath holding walks teach your body to not have as much oxygen. The task for this day is setting up a suitable workout space for yourself and mapping out routes for the various walks you will do throughout this Quest.
On day five we talk about Cardiovascular Fitness, Mitochondrial Density and Stamina. For the cardiovascular portion we learn about VO2 Max, which is maximum oxygen utilization. For Mitochondrial Density – which is linked to longevity. We can achieve better Mitochondrial Density with short high impact workouts and long rest periods. Stamina is training your body to go long periods of time using your fat as fuel. Today’s task is mapping a route for your HIIT training and finding a local sport to join.
On day six we cover Metabolic Efficiency and the importance of Recovery. Here we talk about a Fasted Fat Burning Walk – which takes place in the morning before you eat. Hormosis which is intermittent hot and then cold showering other combos of heat with cold (ie going outside then getting in a sauna). We cover Ben’s Prehab and Mobility routine as well as Decompression Breathing and Weekly Foam Rolling. The task for this day is reviewing the first five days and making sure that you have all the equipment you’ll need once we get into the actual workouts.
Day 7 is Test Day but it also gives us a few methods to track our fitness (if we so desire). Ben points out quite a number of different scans and apps that you can use to track your muscle mass, body fat percentage, blood glucose and recovery. The test serves as a baseline to see overall improvement throughout the Quest. It includes just four exercises – push ups, planks, squats and burpees and we MUST record our recovery time (to measure against later tests).
On day eight we will actually begin completing things that we talked about in the first week of this course. We start with a Fasted Fat Burning Walk. You’ll do this in the morning starting with five minutes and then increasing five minutes each day until you walk 35 minutes. This fasted fat burning walk is great for longevity, mood and weight. Ben encourages us to use a reminder trigger like an alarm to keep ourselves on task.
Day 10 delves more into the Hormosis that we talked about above. Hot & Cold Therapy is used to enhance fat burning and metabolic efficiency. To do this we shower for 20 seconds in cold water and for 10 seconds in hot water done 10x equalling five minutes. Ben encourages us ( I love that he uses his own experience to guide us through this quest) to control our breath when we may want to sharply intake oxygen in the cold shower.
On day 10 we listed to a recording of Ben answering frequently asked questions.
There are 39 more days of this Quest but I’m going to sum this up by saying it’s a life changer. It’s not just the what to do, it’s the why you do it. It’s someone with years of professional experience detailing ways to live longer and more beautifully in simple easy steps! I can’t recommend this program enough to anyone looking to be their best self!
*post contains affiliate links which means NAT receives a small commission for each sale made
Subscription Box Spoiler Alert
The October Loot Anime Box will have an Undead theme and include items from MobPsycho100, How to Keep a Mummy and Junji Ito, Angels of Death and Yume.
Not familiar with Loot Anime? No worries, find out more information below.
The What: Monthly assortments from some of the best and most popular anime and manga out there. Boxes will feature official, exclusive items with a $60 value
The When: Monthly
The How Much: $28.95
The Shipping: Varies (calculated at checkout)
The Coupon: Use code WELCOME25 and the link below to save 25% OFF
*post contains affiliate links which means NAT receives a small commission for each sale made
Subscription Box Spoiler Alert
The October Crunchyroll Crate will have a Supernatural School theme and include items from MobPsycho 100
Not familiar with Crunchyroll Crate? No worries, find out more information below.
The What: Every month, you’ll get a crate of 4-6 items from the best Crunchyroll featured titles, celebrating classic series and original favorites with licensed collectibles, apparel, figures and more
Jeffree Star is releasing some mystery boxes for the Halloween season! These will launch when the Velvet Trap lipstick launches on October 16th!
What’s Available
Mini Mystery Box is $25 – Will include three items
Premium Mystery Box will include 5 items including an exclusive JSC item made just for this box – $60
Deluxe Halloween Mystery Box costs $100 and includes 8 items including two exclusive items.
*post contains affiliate links which means NAT receives a small commission for each sale made
Subscription Box Spoiler Alert
There’s a new course from Masterclass! Annie Clark who goes by the stage name St. Vincent will teach creativity and songwriting in her new Masterclass, available now!
Not familiar with Masterclass? No worries, find out more information below.
The What: Online courses from leaders in various fields like fashion, music, business and more. This one is with Anna Wintour and cover 12 lessons and includes a downloadable workbook.
The Winter 2020 Cubscription Box will have a “Can’t Stop Pawsome” theme.
Not familiar with Cubscription the Build a Bear subscription box? No worries, find out more information below.
The What: Each package includes a stuffed animal in each box as well as 6-8 items that can be used to dress your friend. These items can’t be found int stores!
*post contains affiliate links which means NAT receives a small commission for each sale made
Subscription Box Spoiler Alert
The Fall Welcome Box from Causebox will include your choice of a vegan leather tote from Pixie Mood or these nesting bowls from Pepper & Vetiver.
Not familiar with Causebox? No worries, find out more information below.
The What: Boxes from Causebox include a limited edition curation of beautiful and useful products from socially Concious brands. Each box has a value of $200+ !
The When: Seasonally (4x a year)
The How Much: $54.95 per season reduced if you subscribe to the annual box.
The Shipping: Free shipping within the continental US. Additional charges to AK, HI or CAN
