my subscription addiction quarterly co. box

As someone who loves subscription boxes and reading blogs about those who share my interests, My Subscription Addiction is like the Mother Ship of all subscription box blogs.  Liz Cadman, the amazing woman who writes the blog, subscribes to approximately every subscription box ever known to man (aka one gazillion) and basically lives out a Christmas morning version of Groundhog Day every afternoon when she opens the door to her mailman's arms weighted down with boxes full of delightful surprises.  Those of us obsessed with subscription boxes all wish we could be Liz, or at least be one of her close friends, so we could have the privilege of being invited over to browse her enormous discard pile.  That being said, when she announced that she had been working with Quarterly Co. to release her own curated box, everyone signed up so quickly that the box quickly sold out.

For those not familiar, Quarterly Co. is a subscription box that is unlike any other.  Boxes are sent out every three months from a "curator", or person you choose to subscribe to.  Curators are people that are interesting, engaging and that Quarterly Co. thinks have good taste.  The curators represent all types of interests from fashion (Nina Garcia, one of the more popular curators), travel (Andrew Zimmern), science (Bill Nye), and cooking (Ludo Lefebvre).  They also have more obscure curators that I have never heard of, but that offer promising boxes, such as toys & collectibles, most helpful travel items, tech & gadgets, and art.  Boxes range in price from $30-100, and the most popular boxes sell out quickly.  For reference, Liz's box is priced at $50.

Anyways, once I found out about Liz curating a box, I immediately signed up.  After reading her blog for quite some time, I know that (like me) she is a stickler for good packaging and items that are both useful, luxurious, but also make you feel special and that they were chosen with you in mind.  She values a box that thinks about its customers needs and wants while also balancing its price point.  Everyone loves a subscription box that is double the value we paid for it, but nobody wants one that is full of cheap items, either.  On the other hand, getting a high value box with only two items is also quite frustrating.  Liz often experiences both ends of the spectrum (you know, because of her connection to the subscription box Santa and receiving so many), so I knew right away that this box would be something that I couldn't miss.  She also prides herself on using items that are free of parabens, phthalates, or any other preservatives that are bad for you.  I myself don't only stick to using products like that, but with all of my health problems, I certainly try to gravitate towards using products like that, choosing organic items, and generally reducing the number of chemicals I put into my body, so that was another reason I was looking forward to this box -- I knew that all of the items Liz selected would be good for me, as well as things that I would enjoy.

Throughout the journey, she updated us about its progress and some "behind the scenes" features, which I thought was really cool.  On the consumer end, we certainly don't think about or appreciate all that goes into creating the boxes that we tear into like hyenas as soon as the mailman drops them on our doorstep.  Getting a glimpse into the creating process provided some interesting insight, and I hope that Liz continues to update us on it as she goes along.  If you want, you can read her articles about the box here (a lot of information is in the comments), here and here.

Despite a small shipping delay, the boxes shipped on Wednesday, and mine arrived on Friday, which I was very surprised about since they come from the West Coast.  I am usually the last one to get any boxes shipping from there, like Ipsy, so I was very thrilled when I got it on Friday!  Let's take a closer look into what Liz chose for her first My Subscription Addiction Quarterly Co. box.

I had high expectations for the packaging given the priority that Liz has for it on her own, and I was not disappointed.  What a beautiful box to open, and how great that everything is individually wrapped!  It truly makes it seem even more personal, and that everything was specially chosen just for you.  One of the reasons for the shipping delay was that boxes had to be re-ordered due to one of the items not fitting in the previously chosen box size.  I wonder which item it was?  My guess is the scarf!  Along with each Quarterly Co. box comes a letter from the curator, and Liz explained that this box is focused around her "Fall Favorites."

Fig + Yarrow Cardamom + Coffee Body Scrub ($22)

Coffee body scrubs are all the rage these days, and this one is made with all natural and organic ingredients, including fair trade coffee.  I haven't tried a coffee body scrub before, but I am looking forward to trying this one.  I didn't notice much of a cardamom smell to it, mostly just the overpoweringly delicious smell of strong coffee grounds.  Although it does say that the cardamom essential oil does have aromatherapy properties, helping to uplift the emotions... You know, good for those days when I feel like a giant puddle of lard and wish I too had connections to the subscription box Santa.  Word!

Raw Naturals Candle in Chai Latte ($24)

Not being able to drink chai lattes is one of the saddest parts about the IC diet because yummmmm.  I have tried so many times, and just like clockwork, within about five minutes my bladder is all I TOLD YOU NO, WHY DON'T YOU LISTEN TO ME?!  Ugh.  This candle might just be the next best thing.  I'm not a big candle burner, mostly because I forget to blow them out thanks to the fibro fog and don't really want to burn the entire house down (although I think Drew Barrymore would portray me excellently in a movie), so I just stay away.  But this bad boy... I might have to make an exception for this guy.  Not only is it made with natural ingredients and soy wax, not only does it smell like giant vats of the amazing goodness that is a chai latte, but it has -- wait for it -- a wooden wick.  Yes, that's right, a wooden wick.  So it crackles like a real fire!  How amazing is that?!

Simonetta Infinity Knit Scarf ($25)

So, I really wish that instead of coming up with obscure technologies that nobody really uses (really, solar bikini?), someone would get crackin' on Smell-o-vision, and more importantly, Touch-o-vision. Because in Liz's note, she describes this beautiful herringbone infinity scarf as "super soft."  But, that's a lie.  More accurately, this is the softest scarf I've ever felt.  It says it's just a knit scarf, but I feel like that can't even be right, because it just so ridiculously soft that I'm not even ashamed to admit that I spent a good ten minutes just rubbing it against my face like a creeper after I took it out of the packaging.  I also then made Hendrix wear it, and he agreed that it was the best scarf ever.

On a side note, this was available in four colors, and I got the red version (obviously).  It's a great greige and brown herringbone combo, which makes a pair of boots that I have perfectly, so I'm pumped to wear it with a solid colored sweater, some jeans, and those boots.  I am also wondering what other colors it came in.  And how they got it so damn soft!  (And why I'm so weird....)

Tatcha Polished Classic Rice Enzyme Powder ($65)

I don't know about you, but sometimes I get things in subscription boxes that are so freaking fancy, they make me nervous.  Like, I'm not at that level of fancy.  I will most certainly mess this up, and look stupid.  This is one of those things.  This Tatcha Rice Enzyme Powder just smells fancy, and it was wrapped up in about five different gorgeous boxes like a Russian nesting doll.  It is a face cleanser that is made from rice enzymes, papaya enzymes, pearl (see, fancy!), and a special complex of rice bran oil, red algae, and green tea.  It comes in a finely milled powder that you rub into wet hands to create a foam and then massage onto your wet face to cleanse it.  This was the one item that was revealed as the spoiler item for the box, because Liz loves it so much and wanted to share it with us.  I am excited to use it.. if I can get past my awkward kid fears.

Juice Beauty Reflecting Gloss ($15)

The last product of the box, this was included as one of Liz's lifetime Holy Grail products.  It's made with all natural and organic ingredients, and has zero stickiness (one of her biggest lip gloss pet peeves, as well as mine, and I'm assuming many ladies').  This was also available in four color variations, and I got the 'guava' color.  It appears quite dark in the tube, so I was surprised to see that it only leaves a subtle, flattering wash of color on your lips.  It does, in fact, smell like guava!  As soon as you put it on, you can tell how conditioning it feels, which is so rare from a lip gloss.  It just feels nice on the lips.  I love this already and can understand why Liz chose it.

In addition to the products, Liz also included three coupons -- one for Tatcha, one for the Fig + Yarrow company that made the body scrub, and a special 75% off offer from the company JustFab.  JustFab is a subscription box that offers a $39.95 credit each month that you can use on a pair of shoes, or you can skip the month and still earn the credit, saving it up for use at another time, or you can skip that month entirely.  I have been looking at the company for a while, and with this coupon, I will be signing up to get a new pair of boots for fall!  I love it when boxes include coupons as well -- it's such a nice touch.

Overall, I think this is such an amazing box, especially for her first one!  With the subscription costing $50, the value of the box ($151) was almost three times the amount we paid, which is insane. Talk about a great value!  The items she picked are perfect choices for fall favorites and not necessarily typical items I would choose, which makes it even better.  One of the best things about curated boxes or boxes coming from companies that are more experience or person-based are that they introduce you to new perspectives, new brands, and new items that you may not have picked out for yourself.  I would say that Liz did an excellent job with this.  I'm sad that we have to wait another three months to get her next box -- I wish this was a monthly one!  Excellent job, Liz.

What did you think?  Did you subscribe to the first box, or will you be getting her next one?  Which color options did you get?  I would love to hear your thoughts!  Leave me a comment down below.