Memebox Scentbox #5 Tropical Fruits Unboxing and Review + Coupon

As I mentioned in my last post, I bought the latest three Scentboxes from Memebox (see my review of the Floral box here).  The second box was themed around tropical fruits, and without further ado, here it is!

This round of scentboxes was advertised (I believe) as having at least 3 full sized products, so it's nice to get a couple extra products in there.

The first item is the Boutique Bebe Coconut Pack (Memebox says $20, but I see it for about $9 on Gmarket).  Memebox says this pack (i.e. mask) is made "entirely" from all-natural extra virgin coconut oil, though the packaging itself lists quite a few other ingredients, including olive oil, argan oil, shea butter, vitamin E, rice bran oil, snail extract, propolis and salicylic acid.  This looks like soap, but Memebox calls it a "soap-like pack" and it's only meant to be used 1-2 a week, for deep cleansing, treating enlarged pores and improving skin elasticity and firmness.  Per the instructions, I lathered this up, massaged on my face for 2 minutes, and then rinsed off.  I didn't notice much difference in my pores, although some of the little sebum plugs seemed very close to the surface (if that was the work of the pack, I would still need a nose strip or something to actually get them out).  Although my face felt pretty clean, I tested the ph of the foam afterwards, and it's pretty alkaline, at a ph level of about 9.  This would dry out my (or anyone's) skin, so I don't think I will keep using this, sadly.  On the plus side, I always see the silver lining in unusable products in that I don't feel so bad wasting them, and I can take them out of the loong line up of things I have to use up!

Anyway, the second item is the Ladykin Twinklight Soft Foam Cleansing in Kiwi (full size, $10).  Unfortunately this was also more alkaline that I'd like in a face cleanser (less so than the coconut pack, but higher than 6, though I don't remember the exact number).  It's unfortunate, because this one smelled nice, and seemed to cleanse my face just fine.  It's supposed to be rich in anti-oxidants and vitamin C, but the high ph and drying effects mean I won't be using this long enough to test out those claims.  Sigh.

The third product is the KONAD niju Mango Moisture Hand Cream ($6).  This hand cream is enriched with argan oil, shea butter, olive oil and vitamin E and smells pretty much like mango.  I wouldn't say it's the most wonderful, real mango smell ever, but it's pretty decent.  The lotion itself leaves a slightly waxy feeling on my hands though, so it's not my favorite out there, but it will get used.

The next item is interesting in theory - it's the KONAD Scented Nail Polish in Orange.  The name pretty much says it all, but this is nail polish that, when dried, is supposed to smell like oranges for up to 7 days after application.  Unfortunately, I don't really wear orange nail polish, so I don't have much use for this, though the color was actually nicer than I expected from looking at the bottle.  As for scent, it did smell kind of like oranges right after I applied it, but it faded away very quickly that same day.  It most definitely did not last 7 days!  Interestingly, Memebox says that if you want to scent to last longer, you should apply top coat after the scent wears off.  I'm not sure if this is just a bad translation, but I'm not sure how applying top coat after the scent is gone would make it last longer...I'm also not sure why it's a desirable thing to have your nails smell like fruit, but hey, to each his own.

Swatched on one nail because I didn't need a full hand of mini oranges:

Finally, the last item is the Evasa Vitamin Body Wash in Papaya ($6).  I never really loved vitamin water that much, but I'll drink it if it's there and I'm thirsty.  I feel pretty much the same way about this uncannily familiar-looking body wash.  I would have preferred most of the other scents (pomegranate, lemon, strawberry and grape, which I would not have wanted).  Papaya isn't a fruit I love, and I don't love the scent of this.  It's not unpleasant and it's fairly mild, it just isn't necessarily something I would get excited about bathing in, so I will probably give it away.

Overall, this box ended up being a bit disappointing for me, with two face products I can't use, a waxy lotion, a nail polish I won't use and a body wash I have no desire to use, but I guess you win some you lose some.  At least they generally stayed within the theme of tropical fruits, so I can't complain too much.

If you're interested in trying out Memebox, you can use the code O4UP for $5 off your purchase.  Enjoy!