Beauty box from HQHair unboxing, review

Some days ago, HQHair.com, one of my favourite online shopping destinations for makeup, had an irresistible offer - a free beauty box as a gift with purchase, containing their editors' picks from high-end brands, if you buy for £45 from their website.
Who can possibly resist a free beauty box, especially a beauty box addict such as yours truly? I was going to get myself the full-sized GlamGlow YouthMud Tinglexfoliate Treatment anyway, after loving the sample, so I ordered the pack and the GlamGlow Brightmud Eye Treatment (will review after using).
British-based HQHair ships worldwide and has express shipping with full tracking, so my order arrived within a week - just after the Easter break - and I didn't pay customs'duties for this. Best of all, HQHair - and their sister website LookFantastic - have similar offers from time to time. I got the entire Real Techniques Core Collection free once, and several other goodies.

Here is my free Editors' Picks skin care beauty box from HQHair.com.

The silver grey external box is somewhat battered in the post. Inside, I received:

1. Redken Iron Shape 11 Finishing Thermal Spray
2. Nuxe Creme Fraiche 24Hr Soothing and Moisturising Cream
3. Cowshed Knackered Cow Relaxing Bath and Shower Gel
4. Phyto Paris Ultra-Repairing Hair Mask
5. Caudalie Premiere Cru La Creme Riche

Is that all, you ask? Hold on - only one of those is a foil sachet. Here is a quick look at each product.
The Redken Iron Shape 11 Finishing Thermal Spray is a decent 50ml bottle. You are supposed to spray it on dry hair, and then flat-iron or curl the hair. I stopped heat-styling and blow-drying about a year ago after extreme damage, but it is good to have a bottle by, in case I need some style and hold for a night out.

Who doesn't adore Nuxe, the French luxury bath, body and skin care brand? I absolutely cannot do without the Nuxe Multi-purpose Dry Oil reviewed here, and have a large stock of other Nuxe must-haves, from Micellar Water for makeup removal, to the hand cream. I received the Nuxe 24Hr Soothing and Moisturising Cream in this box. Feelunique had sent me a one-time sachet sample of this back when their packages used to arrive safely, and I had loved it. This is a travel-sized tube and goes straight into my travel bag. And did I tell you Nuxe never uses parabens?

I have been dying to try out Cowshed products but keep hauling other brands. Now I have no excuses - they've sent me the Cowshed Knackered Cow Relaxing Bath and Shower Gel. And this is no foil sachet, but a decent 10ml pouch. This contains lavender and eucalyptus essential oils and no parabens, sulphates, mineral oil or petrolatum and is vegetarian. I know I am going back to HQHair.com and buying quite a few Cowshed products, especially the shampoos.

The story is the same with Phyto Paris - the Ultra-Repairing Hair Mask is my first product  from the brand. This contains phytokeratine and is meant for weakened, damaged hair. After using sulphate-shampoos every single day for more than 15 years, you should see my straw-hair to believe how badly off it is. This is a 12ml sample, which should be enough for one use on my hair. Again, no parabens, and everything is of natural origin.

Finally, here is the Caudalie La Creme Riche, which is for deep wrinkles, dark spots and firmness, and provides nutrition to the skin. I do have a few acne spots, and I hope this works on them. No parabens here either - for that matter, no SLS, phtalates, mineral oils, phenoxylethanol or any animal derivatives.

Sorry about the embarrassingly appalling photographs. I was trying something new with my lightbox by placing the light on the side instead of above, and it bombed. Ah well, my photography mantra has always been "Points, shoots and leaves" but as long as you can tell the lipstick apart from the eyeliner, I'm pleased.
Bottom Line
HQHair.com should consider selling regular beauty boxes! I would subscribe without batting an eyelid. Every brand they sent out is high-end and entirely paraben-free. I can use everything they sent me. And four of these products have natural ingredients.
I would not like sachets in beauty boxes that I pay for, but this box was absolutely free. And, I love the brands they picked. I have to go buy a large sack of Cowshed products from HQHair soon, when they have another offer like this. Right now, they have a free full-sized CID Cosmetics primer when you spend 50 quid on site....
Disclaimer: Gift with purchase, not PR sample.
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