Over the last year, I have tried a variety of Subscription boxes. My first was Birchbox, which I took out in March – receiving for March, April and May. At the same time, I also subscribed to Discovery Club, by The Fragrance Shop, though this was a quarterly subscription – which I received from March (Spring) and included Summer (July) and Autumn/Winter (September). After I cancelled my Birchbox subscription, I tried out Glossybox. Sadly I didn’t really enjoy that subscription, cancelling it after only two deliveries and actually only posting about it once!

Deciding I needed a break from Beauty boxes, I made the move to Geek boxes instead. My first one was Nerd Block, which I started to receive in May and continued through June and July. After that, I tried out Loot Crate. This subscription I received July, August and September. During this same period of time, Chris subscribed to My Geek Box. This is one I had been considering, so instead of subscribing myself, I just documented his. He received My Geek Box for the first time in September, then again in October and finally in November.

Having still not quite found the right box for me, I decided to try out a completely new subscription called My Little Box. It was brand new in September and I subscribed straight away (though I didn’t receive my box till October). At the exact same time as September’s box arrived, so did October‘s. I then received November‘s and later December‘s. I’m still currently subscribed to My Little Box and probably enjoy it the most out of any, but perhaps will cancel – just due to finances.

Anyway… I wanted to look back on what I’ve enjoyed and which products I actually ended up keeping and using. So here is my recap for 2014 subscription boxes!

Birchbox was by far my favourite Beauty Box. The products felt high end and interesting – it felt like I was genuinely sampling something I wouldn’t have otherwise. In March’s Birchbox I discovered English Laundry as a new scent, along with Pores No More as a new product. While I haven’t used either recently, I definitely would purchase both in the future. In April’s Birchbox I liked Lord & Berry eyeliner, discovered Color Club nail polish (in a beautiful mint shade) and fell in love with Tommyguns – Pomegranate & Orange Flower Shampoo. While I don’t think I would purchase the eyeliner again (only that eyeliner is really just eyeliner to me), I would love to try some other shades in Color Club nail polish and I would absolutely purchase Tommyguns shampoo again. In May’s Birchbox I tried (and loved) They’re Real Mascara, by Benefit – a product I now use the majority of the time. I also discovered Siogne nail polish in a bright orange shade, along with Beauty Protector shampoo and conditioner. I’ve never seen Siogne polish to buy, though at £11 a bottle, I can’t imagine I would. I do think its a great polish though. The shampoo and conditioner were almost too small to really sample, but the smell was great and I’d be interested to try again!

Glossybox was a real let down for me. Of all the boxes I’ve tried, it was by far my least favourite. The products seemed very ordinary and didn’t seem like a treat. While you did get full size products, rather than sample sizes (in most cases), I felt like I could easily pick up the products at a reasonable price in Superdrug, Boots, Tesco etc. if I had wanted to try them. From my first Glossybox in May, I honestly don’t think I used anything. The nail polish was added to our ever growing collection and the lipstick when it my box of lipsticks, but I don’t think either have been tried. Majority of the rest went in the sample swap at #LincsBlogMeet, when we held that in July. Again, with June’s box, the only thing I actually used was the makeup brush. So as you can see, not that great!

Overlapping with these Beauty box subscriptions, was my quarterly subscription to the Discovery Club. It was incredibly reasonable at only £5 every 3 months and seemed like a good way to discover new fragrances. In each box was 2 male samples, which I passed on to Chris. I know some of them smelt nice but I can honestly say that neither of us have made a note of which ones they were. To be absolutely honest with you, from the Spring box, I don’t really remember which I liked. Looking back I think that perhaps Alien was okay and maybe Very Irresistible. Luckily in Summer’s box, I made a note of which I liked – these being Givenchy Dahlia Divin, Agent Provocateur Fatale and Prada Candy Florale. I do know that I’ve used Agent Provocateur and Prada loads since and sadly both samples are gone! If I was the type to treat myself to new perfume, it would be definitely one of those two. Finally in the Autumn/Winter box, I noted that Loewe Quizás and Jean-Paul Gaultier Classique Intense were my favourites, but that none were really “me”. I can honestly say I don’t remember using any of these, despite all the samples being in one big box to just pick at randomly.

Then came the turn of the Geek boxes and first up was Nerd Block. I picked this because it was one I’d had emails about and I had also received t-shirts from their sister site, Shirt Punch. While I definitely consider myself to be a Geek, I do appreciate that I’m not into EVERYTHING geeky, as I’m sure can be said for a lot of people. I like Star Trek but not really Star Wars, I like Doctor Who but only certain Doctors, I enjoy a variety of TV shows and Computer games, but certainly not with wide scope. My first Nerd Block in May, was very heavily Star Wars themed. As such, majority of the box wasn’t of interest to me. One item was saved for a Christmas gift, Chris took the plush, Nat took the comic and I gave Rhiannon the t-shirt. This left only a Mario dangler, which the girls currently have hanging on their bedroom door.

May’s box was a little more successful. There was a blind box of Doctor Who vinyl, that turned out to be Matt Smith – a Doctor I actually like. A Minecraft sticker and a Mario Kart race car, that the girls both took. Two t-shirts, both of which I like. And finally a pin art thing (I don’t really know how to describe it), that you place your hand or face into and it makes the shape in blunt pins. All of the box stayed within our house, so a fairly successful haul!

Finally came June’s box and this was a mixed bag. The t-shirt was TMNT and that was fine as I loved it. There was a Comic Con dvd that I’m interested to watch (though haven’t yet), which more importantly came with a Stan Lee figure. However a Star Wars magazine and another Star Wars plush, both got given to Chris, along with a Zombie Nerf gun. The gun was fun for a little while, but it doesn’t really serve a purpose and just sits by Chris’ desk. This saw the end of my Nerd Block subscription!

Next up came Loot Crate and by far my favourite thing about this subscription, was the attention to detail with the design. The packaging/logo was sleek and modern looking, which was a big plus, but inside of the box was always awesome.

I once saw that someone kept all of the boxes and stuck them on the walls, using them then to display the cool stuff that came in the Loot Crate. I thought this was a great idea and perhaps as a student, or even pre-kids, this might have been something I would have loved to do.

In July’s box (which was Villain themed) majority of my box went to Chris. There were some Deadpool socks, along with a Joker and Harley Quinn poster, both of which are things he likes more than me. There was another comic – which I passed on to Nat, a Darth Vader keyring – which I think I maybe gave my brother and a Bowser magnet which is currently on our kitchen fridge. The only thing I properly kept and liked, was the Joki t-shirt, a cross over between the Joker and Loki.

August’s crate (Hero themed) was a mixed bag as well. The main thing I loved and still have, is a Loot Crate Exclusive Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy, in a POP Funko figure. I hadn’t even seen the movie at the time, but I knew I would love it so this was a great find. Otherwise there was a TMNT figure, some flash “shwings” for your shoes, a chimichangos magnet and a Mega Man air freshner, all of which went to my brother. Finally there were some TMNT sunglasses, that are now in the fancy dress box.

Finally came September’s box and while I kept a couple of things, majority of the box is gone. The theme I guess was Space, though I don’t honestly remember. I got a Tribble plush (which while cool, doesn’t really have a home), a blind box vinyl again (which luckily had Mal from Firefly in it) and some Firefly money. I liked all three, but other than the vinyl, the others are a little pointless and don’t really have anywhere I can display them. As well as that, there were some pop rocks, a poster, a magnet and an Alien figure, all of which Chris had (or if not, the bin). This was the end of my Loot Crate subscription.

Chris took out a My Geek Box subscription and honestly, from my point of view, majority of it was rubbish. All three boxes had t-shirt inside them, none of which were very good (in yellow, red and then white). In the first box was a book he already had, a Walking Dead blind box vinyl (which happened to be Daryl and was given to me), a twinkie and a glowstick. His second box had a POP Funko figure of Jason Vorhees, which while it isn’t something we would have picked, was added to our growing collection. It also had a Zombie Zity figure and a blind bag Zombling, both of which I think went in the bed. There was also a poster, a magnet and some popping candy. I assume Chris ate the candy and the magnet is one the fridge, but I have no idea what happened to the poster. Finally was the last box and this was possibly the best. A Baker Street sign, a talking Darlek plush keyring and some Thunderbirds shot glasses, were all kept (two of them by me). The t-shirt was also the best of the three, Red Dwarf themed and in white rather than a foul bright colour. There were Weirds (like Nerds) that got eaten and a comic that I’m not sure what became of it. For the most part though, the best of a bad bunch.

Finally that brings me to my last and current subscription box – one considered to be a Lifestyle box (containing beauty, fashion and lifestyle items). I’ve actually had four of these boxes now and enjoy them the most out of everything I’ve had so far.

The Parisienne themed box was first and I loved the stickers, postcard, notebook, tablet case/cover and makeup – a full house! I will admit however, that I haven’t used any of the three products, or the Paris stickers. I’m sure I definitely will at some point though.

Next was the Diane von Furstenberg box. Again the postcard in this box was loved, but sadly the scarf was not! I believe there were a variety of scarves available, but the one I happened to get just wasn’t me. Luckily my mum liked it, as I gave it to her as a little extra this Christmas. There was also a little pin badge in my package and while it was cute, I can’t honestly see myself pinning it anyway. The three product in this box, were definitely a good discovery for me – or at least one of them specifically. L’Occitane vanilla hand cream is now my ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE beauty box product and I’ve even treated myself to a larger version of it. I doubt I’ll use the hairspray but hopefully I’ll definitely get around to the makeup remover.

The third box, was Cosy themed. There was an espresso cup which I won’t likely use, unless to decorate (just that I don’t drink strong coffee) and a heated wheat bag which is just perfect colours and I’m sure to get some use from. As before, I love the postcard and while I haven’t tried any of the three products yet, there are all fairly everyday basics, so I’m sure to give them a go at some point.

Finally came December’s box which was Fleur De Force and Christmas. I loved the headband that came as a present but it isn’t really my style – perhaps one of the girls will like it. All the Christmas bits included – like string and gift tags, were all used up this Christmas and I loved that some were quite girly, rather than Christmasy. Of the three products sent, I haven’t had chance to try any yet, but I’m looking forward to the L’Occitane cream, seeing what colour the lipstick is and possibly using the body lotion too (if it smells nice).

So this is my round up of all my Subscription boxes! Congratulations if you made it to the end of the post, as its taken me HOURS to write up. I have no idea what I might try out this year, but what I do know is… it will have to wait till after Florida!