Honeybee Gardens: December and January Buzz Box - A Review

I have to admit, after the November Buzz Box I was completely in love with Honeybee Gardens! I was so impressed by their wide range of products, and definitely the ones they put in the box.  I instantly knew that I wanted to get another of their boxes. I purchased both the December and January Buzz Boxes and I was overall impressed. I did not have time to post a separate review of the December box so I decided to review them both at the same time.The December box contained a full sized pressed foundation powder, two pressed eye shadows, an eye shadow compact, peppermint foot crème and an incense leaves set. I was highly impressed with this box. I found the powder shade to be perfect for setting my under-eye area. I hadn’t tried any of their other foundation colors before this so I think it turned  out pretty well for me just guessing at a shade.The pressed shadows came in taupe and antique cream color. The box also contained a neat little compact to keep them in. I find the shadows are highly pigmented and last for a long time if I prime my eye. The two colors really complement each other and look great on me.I found the peppermint foot crème to be a little on the greasy side. I probably wouldn’t purchase again, although it was nice the few times I tried it. I don’t ever use incense, but I could easily gift the package. It would make quite a lovely present for someone special.The January Buzz Box contained a full size mascara, a sparkly grey eyeliner, a set of three lip colors, kabuki brush and a beautiful artisan silver/faux-pearl necklace. I was sadly underwhelmed by this box. First off the necklace is absolutely beautiful and I’ve already worn it on several occasions. However, the other products really didn't impress me in the slightest.The mascara is adequate, it colors my lashes but does little to shape or volumize them. This is a fine mascara if I'm just using a BB cream and don't want any real shape to my lashes. If I'm trying to do any sort of look though, this mascara is not up for the task.Sadly like the eyeliner in the November box, the grey liner irritates my eyes to no end. I also had a TERRIBLE time getting it off, there was glitter around my eyes for days even though I cleansed several times with different products trying to remove it. However, I really did love the color when it was on. It is a deep sparkly grey that really accentuated my eye color.The lip colors I couldn’t even try because they contain carmine. It really bugs me when companies are listed as Vegan and they still occasionally use carmine in products. I am carmine sensitive, so when I purchase from a vegan company I really expect carmine free products. I plan on giving these to my sisters if they would like to try them.Lastly, the kabuki brush is nothing worth writing home about. I found the bristles too long and too sparse to actually nicely spread liquid product and too short and too sparse to nicely spread powder. I also found that it left streaky marks all through my foundation. I much prefer my Root kabuki brush since the bristles are slightly shorter and it is plumper.Overall Honeybee’s Buzz Boxes are a great product. I did contact the company and they said you can email them ahead of purchasing the box if you’re worried about certain ingredients (carmine) being contained. I think this is what I’ll do in the future.While I can’t suggest you go and purchase the January Buzz Box, I do suggest you try one in the future! They are a great value for what you get and it is a way to try new products from Honeybee that you might not think to try on your own.

Honeybee Farms – November Buzz Box

I love trying new green beauty products and when a company offers a sample box I typically jump on it. I found Honeybee Farms a couple of months ago but it took me forever to decide exactly what I wanted. When I saw their November Buzz Box I decided this would be the perfect way for me to try some of the products out. Honeybee’s Buzz Box contains 4 full-sized cosmetic products, 1 body/face/hair product and 1 gift (non-cosmetic).In the November box I received their Cosmopolitan Eye Shadow Quad, Jojoba Eye Liner in Belgian Chocolate, Pumpkin Spice Soap, a four sided nail buffer and Eucalyptus – Spearmint Tea Lights. I was very excited about this box since I was very interested in the eye shadow quad.The tea lights smell amazing. I am excited to try them. They are GMO free – soy wax candles made with essential oils, so they are perfectly safe for you to burn! The nail buffer looks interesting. I haven’t found a good, safe nail polish or polish remover so I rarely do my nails. I’m not sure when I’ll use it, but it will be nice to have it on hand. The Pumpkin spice hand soap smells very nice. I haven’t broken it out yet, but I look forward to doing so. The jojoba eye liner is luxurious! It goes on silky smooth and the color is great. It lasts for pretty much the entire day. However, my eyes were super irritated by the end of the day. I’ve never had that issue with the other green beauty brand liners I use, so I’m not sure what is in this one that I’m allergic to.The eyeshadow quad is my favorite thing in the entire box! I’d had my eye on  it before ordering this box and it was a dream to receive it. The shadows are silky and super long wearing. They blend incredibly well and stay all day long. You cannot go wrong by ordering one of these shadows or quads. The brush that comes in the quad is pretty useless though. It doesn't blend the shadows well at all. I did find it made a great lip brush in a pinch.Honeybee Farms is a gluten-free, vegan, non-GMO and cruelty-free company. HOWEVER, they do list carmine as one of the ingredients in their Party Girl Eye Quad. When I emailed the company about this they said:

“Two of the palettes are vegan.  But the one shade in the Party Girl palette (Cupcake) MAY contain carmine.  There was an issue in its manufacture, and this is why we can't list it as vegan. Our three palette offerings – The Cosmopolitan, Rock the Smokey Eye and Party Girl – all list the same ingredients because they use the same general formula.  The only one that has carmine is the Cupcake shade in the Party Girl palette, so it is listed in the “may contain” section of the ingredients list.  The Cosmopolitan does not have carmine.”

This is something you’ll need to consider if you decide to purchase from them. It would also be very easy just to avoid that palette/color until they get the manufacturing issue resolved.I am a fan of this company and the products I received in this box. I have already purchased their December box in order to try more new products. I highly encourage you to try them out if you're as interested in green beauty as I am!