Fortune Cookie Soap Box Review + Coupon – August 2018

ByJessica HapakAug 24, 2018 | 27 comments

FCS box

The Fortune Cookie Soap Box is a monthly subscription that offers bath and body products centered on a new theme each month. Each month FCS will create new products to fit that theme, and then will offer up the extended collection for sale later in the month.

FCS box 2

FCS open box 1

This month’s theme is "The Goblin King", inspired by the David Bowie movie Labyrinth!

FCS open box 2

My Subscription Addiction paid for this box. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

FCS group shot

About Fortune Cookie Soap Of The Month

The Subscription Box: Fortune Cookie Soap

The Cost: $28 a month + shipping

New Deal: Use code FIRSTFCSBOX to save shipping on your first box!

The Products: FCS exclusive products centered around a new theme each month. The products will be a mix of full size and deluxe sample sizes, but the total box value will be at least 50% off the retail value.

Ships to: U.S. for $6.95, Canada for $24.99, and Worldwide for $29.99

Good to Know: Sign up by the 9th of each month to get the next month's box.

Fortune Cookie Soap “The Goblin King” August 2018 Review

FCS info sheet 1 FCS info sheet 2

This box comes with a mini handbook detailing the products, how to use it, the unique scent, and ingredients. New to the handbook is pricing details for each item! One thing of note — I have purchased from the FCS website several times, and all of the listed prices match up with what I have seen available for sale once the collection becomes available.

FCS perfume 1 FCS perfume 2 FCS perfume 3

Crystal Ball Crystal Infused Perfume Oil, 10 mL - Listed Value $12.99

This perfume oil has some gorgeous sparkle inside of it, and it smells delicious with notes of golden apricot, pink peonies, candied pomegranates, and a hint of praline. It is a sweet scent that is perfect for everyday use when I want to smell fresh but reach for one of my heavier fragrances.

FCS room

Voodoo, Who Do? Room Spray, 2.5 oz - Listed Value $8.99

I am a big time candle burner, and I also recently got into wax melts as well, so I am getting a bit tired of seeing room sprays. Fortune Cookie Soap has such an amazing lineup and I wish they would include more of their products rather than perfume oils and room sprays. This has notes of cotton blossoms, wild red raspberries, and cedar, and it does smell good—I just don’t know if I will be able to use it.

FCS deodorant FCS deodorant 2

The Bog of Eternal Stench Veggie Protein Deodorant, .7 oz - Listed Value $7.99

I am a daily antiperspirant user, so while this smells great it will be used sparingly. It has notes of golden amber, vanilla coconut cream, and honeycomb, and if you're not a heavy sweater or you're just going to be hanging out in the air conditioning this would be a great choice. This is another instance where I wish FCS was including a wider variety of their products—this is the second deodorant I have received in the past few months, but there are so many products (like laundry detergent, bubble scoops, shower steamers, toners, and wax) that haven't been included at all in the six months I have been subscribing.

FCS face

Cutest Monster Face Ever Charcoal Cleanser, 4.3 oz - Listed Value $12.99

This is described as a deep cleansing face wash thanks to the activated charcoal, and I did find it to be a little too deep of a cleansing for my face. It didn’t irritate my skin per se, but my face did feel tight after using. This has a light fragrance of spiced rum, jasmine petals, pink sugar, and Tahitian blond woods.

FCS aloe 1 FCS aloe 2

Chilly Down Cooling Aloe Me Whipped Cream, 1.8 oz - Listed Value $7.99

I LOVE the 'Aloe Me' whipped cream line from Fortune Cookie Soap and Chilly down is the absolute perfect pairing to this fab lotion. Chilly down has notes of zesty lemon rind, peppermint, and vanilla, and it smells SO good. I store all of my aloe me whipped creams in the fridge (and I recommend you do too!), and while it always feels amazing when I apply the cold lotion when I step out of a hot shower the lemon and peppermint of Chilly Down makes it even zestier.

FCS shampoo 1 FCS shampoo 2

Fireys Volumizing Shampoo, 5 oz - Listed Value $14.99

This is about the worst possible way to package shampoo. This sea salt shampoo doesn’t have the thick consistency of a deep conditioner, so dealing with this big open tub while trying to scoop out shampoo is messy and ineffective. Volumizing is never really something I seek for my hair, so I wasn’t sure what to look for once I used it—I felt my hair looked normal once it dried. I did like the scent of peach, pear, flowers, and musk, however!

FCS shimmer 1 FCS shimmer 2

You Have No Power Over Me Shimmer Body Wash, 4.2 oz - Listed Value $7.99

This is so sparkly that it reminds me of a crystal ball! This is made with aloe vera and hemp seed to pack on the moisture, and though the shimmer is strong in the bottle it is very subtle on my skin. The scent notes are grapefruit, Valencia orange, lily of the valley, tobacco, and spice, and I really enjoyed the way the citrus played with the heavier scents of tobacco and spice.

The Verdict: I enjoy Fortune Cookie Soap as a whole—they have such creativity and attention to detail. I just wish they included a bit more of a variety in their products. Maybe I am alone in feeling this way, but I would just love to have a bath bomb in my box (according to prior reviews, a bath bomb was included 7 months ago—aka, the month before I started subscribing). There is a such a large and fantastic offering from Fortune Cookie Soap that I just want to have the chance to experience more of them. Value-wise, this continues to be a great deal every month – I calculated a value of $73.93.

To Wrap Up:

Can you get this box if you still sign up today? No. If you sign up today your first box will be the October box (which is Wreck it Ralph themed!)

Coupon - Use code FIRSTFCSBOX to save shipping on your first box!

Value Breakdown: This box cost $34.95 and contains a listed retail value of $73.93. That means you are paying approximately the following per item:

Perfume Oil: $6.14
Room Spray: $4.25
Deodorant: $3.78
Cleanser: $6.14
Aloe Me Whipped Cream: $3.78
Shampoo: $7.09
Shimmer Body Wash: $3.78

Check out all of our Fortune Cookie Soap Reviews and the Beauty Subscription Box Directory!

Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!

What do you think of the Fortune Cookie Soap Box?

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Fortune Cookie Soap Box

4 overall rating

31 Ratings | 7 Reviews

The Fortune Cookie Soap box is a quarterly subscription box for bath and body products. All subscription boxes will include 8 exclusive FCS products in adorable mini-sizes. The box is $19.99 for US subscribers, $28 for Canada, and $34 for Worldwide subscribers.

Reviews

Read customer reviews >

Posted in Subscription Box Reviews

Jessica Hapak

I am a staunch believer that pineapple doesn’t belong on pizza and when I’m not working as a family law attorney I enjoy hiking the Louisiana trails (alligator sightings are a favorite!) or relaxing with Duchess, my cat. I’m a sucker for anything labeled a mystery box and I’ve never met a bath bomb I didn’t like.

Read More By Jessica Hapak >

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27 comments

Anna

The Avengers box had the Hulk bath bombs btw, I thought you reviewed that box. I bought them during the launch because I loved them.

DawnS

After seeing all the negative customer service issues I am rather turned off by the company. I had been eyeing the sub and some of the products on their site but don’t want to do business with companies that are not good in the customer service department.

Anna

I’ve had nothing but good customer service from FCS and even on the Halloween box and other review comments you’ll see comments about their customer service being good. I have ordered from their shop and I get their subscription too so I’ve interacted with their customer service over email quite a few times and they’ve always been courteous and helpful.

Michelle

I tried this for few months but honestly the packaging turns me off. I found myself reaching for anything other than these because of it. I cancelled.

Annabella

I noticed the negative and defensive tone of their CS even before having to contact them – just go their FAQ page and read the copy – they already attack you before you even call. Lol.

Sarah

I hadn’t looked at that. Thanks for validating me. 🙂

Mariek

Wow I just checked it out and agree. Talk about attitude. Nope not dealing with a company that I might struggle getting help from. I subscribe to alot of boxes, and things go wrong more than once. Wouldn’t like to reach out to them and have them accuse me of things already before even knowing me or the situation.

Kathi

I had a problem and they got back to me ASAP and solved it immediately. They have been nothing but pleasant and helpful. Sorry to hear you didn’t get the same. I am still subscribing BECAUSE of the great customer service.

Chanell

I thought it was just me! I remember taking advantage of their coupon as I had been eyeing the subscription for awhile and making a first time buy. I waited for about a month and then wrote an email asking about my order and the response was sort of rude, insinuating I was dumb when the wording on their website about shipping was confusing……..I really wanted to experience their products so I let it pass. That was the only time I ordered from them.

Sarah

I’ve subscribed to these boxes for over a year and I really like the option you have to skip boxes – and if you follow some o the facebook groups, you can see the scent descriptions/theme (but not product type) ahead of time so it makes the decision easy. Their items are almost always really great quality and if getting things you don’t like, you can usually sell or swap for them on the FB groups.

Overall, their customer service is good and they have a fanatical fan following – in part because of the fun activities they do n facebook and when they have product launches. They also often listen to fan suggestions (theme ideas, product types) and that’s really great.

However, while I recognize that this is a smaller company – there are some really annoying things about their service. The back end of their website is not ideal. Launches are very busy and while the site doesn’t freeze up or crash, the inventory issues are so frustrating. Basically things sell out quickly – and if it’s while they are in your cart, you have to manually adjust each item separately to “0” quantity. Then while you do that and the page refreshes, something else will sell out and you have to do it all over again. This also happens while you are making and processing payment. I understand inventory sellouts but I have never had this experience with any other site and they’ve refused to address this issue.

Secondly, while they do fix errors on their part – the wording in their cs communications usually makes it seem like they either do not really want to do so or it’s somehow your fault if the product you received was less than expected (ie. well you can fix this by putting it in the microwave for two seconds, but ok, we will send another – or – damage is to be expected during shipping, sorry, it still works). They always seem suspicious if you have an issue (you must prove it) and can be really stingy in my experience (ie. shipping costs – once asked to combine shipping for two small/lightweight orders I made within minutes from each other and – “sorry, we can’t do that.” No, you can, you just won’t (and, sorry, if I’ve spent $1,000 on your stuff in the last year and have never asked for this before – just freaking do it). Also, if a shipment gets stolen you are completely out of luck there – which, again while I understand it to a great degree, is not something I’ve experienced with other companies.

And for background purposes – I have spent probably close to $2k on their stuff in dozens of orders over the last two years and love their items and have had very few issues overall (one theft, maybe 5-6 product issues out of hundreds of products ordered) – but when I DO have issues or requests, I never come away from it feeling like they wanted to help me or fix the problem and are doing so only begrudgingly. Now, they have such a cult following that I’m sure subsequent posts here will be defending them and/or tearing me down because saying the company is less than 110% great is like committing some crime. lol I have noticed good changes as they’ve grown more popular, but also negative changes as well.

Jess

Haha – Yes, all of this!

I ordered about $100 worth of things yesterday including pre-ordering their special Halloween box. This morning I got an email that was like, “As per the product page no other items can be order with the Halloween box, I have just refunded you for the extra items.“

So they canceled all my other items and didn’t even give me a choice of making it a separate order – or like why did the website even let me order them together? but it’s my fault because I didn’t read the fine print. oh well. They’re stuff is good but yeah they are weird sometimes.

Sarah

I have also ordered a ton of their products and been a subscriber on and off for a couple years. While I love everything I receive, I’ve stopped ordering from them for things that I need in pristine condition, like gifts. The last time I ordered gifts from them (my mom and MIL for mother’s day last year), their orders arrived damage beyond gifting. The items included some heavier bottles, wax tarts, and 5-6 bath bombs. Every single bath bomb was destroyed and because they weren’t packaged well, the dust from the bombs had gotten all over the other products (including inside the wax tarts to the point that they looked terrible).

I wrote them upset that this had happened. It was obvious that it was because someone hadn’t taken the time to pack this well (and that their choices for packaging were not great at keeping things contained). I asked them to replace the items asap as I needed these for a gift. I also asked that they allow me to return the wax tarts or they replace them etc because they were no longer giftable. If it were for me I’d have just rinsed them off and used them but these were gifts! They wanted pictures of every last thing in the box before they’d replace anything and they were slow as heck about responding. By the time it was all said and done I had to go out and get last minute gifts at the store for my giftees and never did get the issue resolved with FCS. I just went ahead and used the stuff for myself and ate the cost of the busted bombs.

I still order from them, and like their products…but I definitely don’t order as much as I used to. I’ve found some other companies with fantastic CS (shout out to LuvMilk) to buy gifts for my family.

Kim

I agree with your experience with CS, and I think it’s the tone of the wording. It always seems to be phrased as though it’s your fault somehow (or more specifically, not their fault).

I give them the benefit of the doubt that it’s lack of professional communication training and not real attitude, but it does leave a bad taste in the mouth!

Kris

While I love the items that I receive each month from FCS I too wish that I would include some of the other amazing products that they make. I loved the toilet cleansing tablets that they included a few months ago and I even ordered additional ones from their website. I’d love to try some more of their wax to use in my warmer, as it’s been almost a year since they sent the last and it was fabulous….as always, I’d love more bath bombs as I think that it’s impossible to have too many!!

Anna

It’s because the Halloween box is a preorder that ships for free and it won’t ship until close to Halloween. They had the same red text warning with the Easter Toy Story box.

I actually skipped the wrong month for FCS box and they offered to refund me so that I wouldn’t be receiving a box I didn’t want. They’ve always been courteous when I’ve had to email for questions.

Jess

When ordering on a phone, like I did, the fine print or warning about combining items is below the add to cart button. So you’ll only see it if you scroll down.

Jess

Also in my defense, the fine (red) print is below the Add to Cart button, so I didn’t scroll down that far and just didn’t see it (easy to do on a phone screen). 🙂

jenn

yeah but my point is that they could do two shipments at different times from the same order. Other websites don’t have a problem doing this. And if they can’t, then their system should be set up to not allow you to checkout in the first place. Whatever the case, the system is antiquated.

Drminniecooper

I wonder how many people are too young to get the theme reference?

Mandy

I’m not sure what age group they are targeting with most of their boxes, and this one in particular, but the theme felt flat for me.

The charcoal facial wash wasn’t a good match for me, but might be OK for a teen…but really, if it’s out of the 5.5 to 6.0 pH range, it’s too harsh. This tested out at above 6.5, which may strip the skin’s acid mantle from any skin ” type’..

I’m kind of afraid to use their hair products.. I’m not sure why but they are so highly fragranced and the conditioner or hair mask a month or two ago had an overwhelming scent as well. I don’t have time to read the hugely long ingredient lists but the sheer number of chemicals kind of bothers me.

Any other subscribers have good luck with these ” branch out” hair care items?

Jenn

With the themes – they usually do polls on Facebook with suggested themes and tend to go forward with the most popular ones (plus also do some of their own, not suggested). But the majority the last year or so have been suggested by customers.

I’d like a candle too! I think the last one was almost a year ago in the monthly boxes. I’m guessing they’ll send one either in the fall or christmas seasons.

The bath bombs are pretty good and I like the deep conditioners but have to thin them out a bit because they are too thick for my hair (which is fine – it means it lasts longer then!).

Jessica Hapak

Hi Mandy!
My curly hair loves their deep conditioners. I’ve used the Star Wars one to the very last drop and I am halfway through my CYO deep conditioner as well.
Hope this helps!

Mandy

Hey, Jessica H.,
I’ve never said much, but I have had, all my life, the thickest hair most any hair stylist has ever seen ( they even say so in major salons in the largest cities and have used me for a hair model when I was a bit younger) and my hair is naturally wavy ( about a 2.5 but not a spiral ” perm” look).

It’s to my waist in a long soft graduated feathered layered cut around my face with layers in the back too which really just cuts out some of the heaviness so the natural curl is now coming through. I have brand new light blonde highlights on top of the dark blonde with some auburn base color and all this has to be treated gently because there’s so many processes going on, the main one being AGING.

I have never left a salon with a bill less than $300.. and that’s my local stylist.

So, I am very very careful about what brands I use and what the ingredients are for the particular products. It has always mattered, but now that we’ve put in some long layers and added the pale blonde highlights this month, I feel like I have different hair with very gentle requirements.

Thanks for your feedback. I’m OLD ( 60) so all my hair is gray underneath the golden- reddish brown and light blonde, which means it frizzes like crazy. I woke up one day to frizzy hair and thought my colorist had switched to a cheaper brand of color but nope, the grays grew in proportion to the dark hair.
One day, they’ll fix that gene which causes hair to age but in the meantime, it requires diligence, patience and a lot of time to find the best hair care products for all my hair needs. ;).

I REALLY liked the FCS red clay facial masque, though. Did you try it? 😉

Anna

I’ve been using their shampoo bars and I really like them, the hair mask I only use twice a month and have used it mostly in the ends of my hair.
My sons are both using the shampoo bars now, I skipped the August box because I had ordered several items during the July sale.

Mandy

I’m having to give those shampoo bar things to my hubby. I have the hair of about 4 average scalps. Always have had, and now it’s frizzy if I don’t use the best possible haircare with anti-frizz products because there’s so much gray. I’m 60, and my hair’s waist length in the longest layer and has to be layered in soft layers to cut down on the sheer weight.
When I was younger, and had stick straight hair, I might could have used the shampoo bars, but now, everything tangles up the ends of my hair, possibly because of the light blonde highlights I have gotten recently. IDK, my hair is like this garden of good and challenging properties now. 😉

Jody

I agree with you Jessica. It does need some variety. I would love to see a candle. Maybe they are too heavy to ship? I do love the room sprays. I just don’t care for the scents in this box.

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Fortune Cookie Soap Box Review + Coupon – August 2018

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Fortune Cookie Soap “The Goblin King” August 2018 Review

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