Hey friends!

How’s the weekend treating you? I had really grown up adult expectations of going to bed early to do work on Sunday. And then Mr. Danger decided to brew and we stayed up until 1:30 in our garage, bonding with our next door neighbors, instead. Adult life choices, right here.

Due to this lack of sleep, I have a change in plans for my Subscription Sunday post. I’m pushing my Hello Waffle Visage Box review back until tomorrow morning. I hadn’t finished my FOTD look with the Visage box yet, and now that I have massive bags under my eyes, I’m going to wait until I look better to photograph my face. Vanity, thy name is Exhausted Rebs.

This means that I have a brand new subscription box to review for you today! Black Violet’s Blackbox! I’ve been stalking this box since I first heard of it’s creation in January, and I was so thrilled to grab one. It’s a mixture of skin and hair care products, plus perfume! 

There will be more slots opening in May, so check out what I thought!

Love the label. All the packaging was just excellent.

General Information:

Blackbox is a brand new quarterly subscription being offered by Black Violet Perfume and Bathory, and indie company from Maryland. Each box will feature beauty and skin care products, plus a full size perfume. There may be guest indie pop ups, sneak peaks to upcoming releases, and early access to launches.

For US customers, the box is $34 plus shipping, and it came out to $40 for me. If this was a monthly box I probably wouldn’t be able to budget it, but since it’s quarterly I was able to find some wiggle room for it. The release was March 5th, the box shipped March 17th, and I got it on March 21st.

At the release there were only 50 boxes available, but on May 9th there will be more slots available, so if you’re interested make sure to check it out. (Just a heads up, the site does not accept Paypal-so come ready with your credit card. I have a feeling these guys are going to see out quick.)

Fun Stuff:

Unboxing! This was what I found upon opening the actual Blackbox box.

All the goodies layed out in their green tissue paper wrapping. I thought it was definitely a nice little haul.

Closer picture of the info card, where you can really read more about the products and the Clue theme.

The product descriptions are written very much in the style of Clue. BV doesn’t ever come out and say exactly what the scent is, but you can get an idea from the clues.

More extras in the box:

Inside the confidential envelope, (nice thematic touch!), there was a discount code for the entire Black Violet store, a ticket for a drawing, and a coupon for the Phyto Mist. I also thought the little key was a really cute Clue themed item.

So the important part: let’s get sniffin’.

Crimson Kiss Perfume Oil, full size, $16-She plays the part of a Hollywood starlet too well. Dressed in slinky red silk, she makes it hard to keep your eyes away from here. Never without a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon, with a disposition just as bold yet smooth and refreshing. 

I broke one of my cardinal rules of perfume reviewing today: I did not let this perfume set for a week before smelling it. Because of that, I might edit this review in a week if my opinion changes any. I just got really excited and wanted to share Blackbox-so pardon my premature perfume sniffing!

When wet, this smells like fizzy blackberry and vanilla. I picture a delicious sangria or even one of those bottled Izze’s in Blackberry flavor. (I love Izzes. LOVE.) As it dries, it fades into a pleasant, berry scent. This lasts about 4 hours on me, but I’ll give it another try in a week to see if anymore notes come up when smelling, or if it lasts longer.

Mister Green Phyto Mist (sample, $4.50) As a wise “businessman”, he claimed to have the key to a new venture with a quick return. With a sharp edge, it’s hard to figure him out. To earn your trust, Mr. Green shows his grounded earthy side.

I do wish there were more detailed directions on how to use this other than just, “spritz on hair”, because I am very clueless. I ended up trying just a spray of this this on my dry hair, (though maybe you could use it on damp?), and it definitely made my hair smooth and less frizzy. It also smelled nice, kinda like bay rum or a spruce forest, that nice clean woods smell, which was a bonus. I have short, fine hair so I don’t think I’ll need a lot of this, but I like it.

Bluebird Body Oil (sample, $5)- The grande game of all socialites, she’s a classic beauty. A touch of powder here, a fix of feathers there and bribe to round out the event. Though a fit of a fading flower, Mrs. Peacock lives a flamboyant lifestyle, enjoying the fruits of her labor.

This really does smell a bit like powder, fading florals, (maybe Violets or a hint of Jasmine?), and maybe just a touch of something fruity. (Though if that’s Violet I’m smelling, my nose likes to turn that fruity, so it could be that.)  I like the concept of a spray-on body oil. I’m an oily person in general, so by lightly spraying it, I can enjoy the moisturizing effects, without becoming a grease monster.

Detective Notes Body Butter, (sample, $4.50)-Suspects gather in the Study with accusations and wine flowing. Pipes are nervously lit while Scarlet lounges on a chaise like a panther.

This reminds me of Solstice Scents’ Vanilla Pipe Tobacco perfume, I’m really getting a vanilla pipe tobacco scent. I personally think it leans a more towards vanilla and almond extract, with just a hint of the tobacco in the background. The scent is powerful too, about 30 minutes after putting it on my hands, I was talking to Mr. Danger and he could smell it from an arm’s length away.

The lotion itself is very creamy and light, with the consistency of soft butter. It takes a few minutes to really soak into the skin, it’s not a fast absorbing lotion on me. However, it feels really moisturizing,and I’ll probably be using this before bed.

Secret Passage Creme Soap, (sample $4.50)-Locked behind a false armoire, a hidden door leads to a room and a bed with garnet covers. Candied sweets waft through a cracked window from the baker’s kitchen.

This smells so good, it’s fizzy and sweet like a sparkling lemonade or Poprocks. I know that’s a weird comparison. But really good Poprocks, sweet, fruity, and fun.

The texture of this soap is indeed very creamy, hence it’s name, and lathers up pretty well with a bit of water and a loofah. This fizzy candy smells comes across quite strongly when used, and it really brightens my mood when I smell it.

Tonique in Rosemary Geranium-Facial toner

I’m on a pretty strict facial care regime per my dermatologist, so I’m not exactly supposed to be using toners, but I had to at least try this once.

First, I was kinda expecting this to spray a mist, but it’s more of a pea sized amount of liquid that comes out in one spray.

I wasn’t exactly sure how to use this and there aren’t really any directions on the package, so I ended up googling toners for ideas. I tried gently patting Tonique on my face after I washed it, and then applied moisturizer on top. I didn’t really notice anything, other than the pleasant Rosemary smell.

(Since I only used this once, fearing the wrath of my dermatologist, it makes sense that no changes would happen overnight.) You guys will have to let me know if Tonique worked for you!

Professor Plum- blush by Blackbird Cosmetics, (full size $13.00)

I just adored my Blackbird Cosmetics Blush I got in the Hello Waffle Visage Box, so I was excited to see another blush here in Blackbox. While the formula is still amazing, (easy to blend, easy to build, silky and smooth), this color is unfortunately too dark for my skin. You can see in the picture, it looks like a have a bruise. Boo. However, I think this blush would be absolutely gorgeous on someone with a darker skin tone, and I’m going to pass it on to a friend who needs it in her life. (She doesn’t know it yet, but she does.)

Overall: This was such a fun subscription box, and it felt like a special treat to receive. Aside from Fortune Cookie Soaps, I don’t really have any other indie subscriptions that are offering skin and hair care products like this. So it’s nice to get a variety of new products.

Also, I really liked pretty much everything. The only items I might pass on are the Tonique, just because of my dermatologist, and the blush because it’s not my skin tone. Everything else smelled nice and was enjoyable to use.

I do hope the next box will have a few more descriptions on scent, and how to use the products, but I liked the packaging and Clue theme, overall.

All in all, I felt this box was really worth the money and I can’t wait until the next one!

Questions of the Day:
-What do you think of Black Violet’s Blackbox?
-How would you use the hair mist?
-Who’s your favorite Clue character? I like Tim Curry as Wadsworth. That counts.

Love,

Rebs!

See you tomorrow for Hello Waffle’s Visage Box!