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Laurel & Reed Subscription Box Review + Coupon – May 2019

Marne Orenich
ByMarne OrenichJun 10, 2019 | 8 comments

Laurel and Reed review

Laurel & Reed
4.3 overall rating
9 Ratings | 3 Reviews

Laurel & Reed is a cruelty-free and non-toxic beauty subscription for $49.95/month + $6.95 shipping to the U.S. You'll get 4-6 full-size products each month that have a minimum total value of $100+. This month they've selected four items from some new and familiar brands.

This box is being reviewed thanks to an MSA reader request!

open Laurel and Reed box

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

contents of may Laurel and Reed box

About this All-Natural Cruelty-Free Beauty Subscription

The Subscription Box: Laurel & Reed

The Cost: $49.95/month + $6.95 US shipping. Discounts available for longer commitments.

The Products: A mix of 4-6 full-size makeup, hair care, body & skincare, wellness, and lifestyle products with a minimum total value of $100+

Ships to: US for $6.95, Canada for $18.00, International for $34.00

Laurel & Reed May 2019 Review

Laurel and Reed in shipping box

Your box will ship in a plain outer box to preserve the lovely ribbon.

 

There's a card which simply states all of the things you can expect from the subscription and another info card that features a lovely print on one side with the items clearly listed out with retail prices and short descriptions on the other.

 

Yuni Glow Between Jelly Micro Mist, 1 oz. - Retail Value $25.00

I've always really like Yuni's packaging when I've got it in the past and this item is no different. Soft yet clean design always draws me in. This jelly micro mist is 100% plant-based using ethically sourced mica as well as licorice root, hibiscus oil, and an anti-pollution complex that utilizes marine algae. Together they refresh, tone, help lessen dark circles, and restore your skin's natural glow that environmental stressors take away. It has a pleasant scent and a light hydrating consistency that slowly seeps in while feeling really fresh. My only complaint is that the spray that comes out isn't very fine so it just sort of squirts a concentrated mass onto the part of your face you point this at instead of gently covering your skin.

 

Provision Manifest Body Oil, 3.4 oz. - Retail Value $75.00

I am up to my ears in body oil right now. Is it a hot item in the sub box world for summertime? I'd think something like this would be more needed in the dry winter, but it seems to be popping up everywhere at the moment. The glass bottle is gorgeous and makes me want to keep it out on a bathroom shelf instead of hiding it away in my medicine cabinet. You can use this on both damp or dry skin depending on whether you want to lock in moisture or rehydrate throughout the day. Just one pump of this delivers quite a bit of product which has the slightest cinnamon scent to me (although I'm not seeing that as an ingredient). This body oil contains a boatload of oils from sweet almond, avocado, sunflower, rapeseed, and sesame to name just some of them. On dry skin, I found this to feel a bit overwhelming unless I spread it over quite a large area of skin. However, it did leave my skin feeling wildly soft, looking glowy, and smelling spicy and pleasant.

 

Apothecary 90291 Royal Jelly & Enzymes Hydrating Mask, 1 oz. - Retail Value $60.00

Once again, I'm here to pledge my love of masks. With a name like "jelly mask" I was expecting something much wetter and gelatinous, but this one begins in powder form. I'd be remiss if I didn't note the gorgeous minimal packaging and glass container, but will leave it at that. This powder is SUPER fine and reminds me of the masks I used to get from Face Mask Alchemy (RIP). Only a small amount of water is needed to get this to a more jelly-like form and it turns a deeper mustard-yellow color. It's made with 100% food-grade organic ingredients with heavy hitters like royal jelly powder, goji berry powder, and bee pollen powder so it has a very edible scent to it. Once hydrated, this makes a lovely damp paste that's easy to spread onto the face and feels a bit cooling. This mask doesn't fully dry to a matte like a mud mask but still stays somewhat moist which means your skin will be too. Once removed (with a damp cloth), it reveals hydrated, soft skin that feels refreshed. I'm really enjoying this mask!

 

SopranoLabs Age-Defying Beauty Elixir, 1 oz. - Retail Value $24.00

This beauty elixir is an oil made of all of the greats like camellia seed, passion fruit, vitamin E, castor, and avocado among others and it has a light floral scent due to the Moroccan rose. There really isn't anything that makes it stand out completely to me from other beauty oils out there, but I like how they've listed other uses on the side of the box. In addition to using on damp skin in the morning and evening after cleansing, they suggest using it on lips for hydration before wearing lipstick (you know I love my mattes so I like this idea), mixing with foundation, to soften cuticles, or even adding to a hair mask. I'll definitely be adding those to my beauty knowledge arsenal.

The Verdict: This month's offerings from Laurel & Reed were not exciting me as much as some past boxes but only because I am a bit overloaded on body and facial oils. I was happy to learn of more "out of the box" uses for the beauty elixir though. The mask enchanted me and pretty much pays for the box on its own so I'm content knowing that I have plenty of back up product waiting in the wings in addition. This is a great box full of lovely brands regardless and L&R always introduces me to new ones. With a total retail value of $184.00, you're definitely getting your money's worth.

Looking for more skincare boxes? Check out our Best Niche & Specialty Beauty Boxes list!

To Wrap Up:

Can you still get this box if you sign up today? Boxes ship immediately for first-time purchases (if the current box is available, which this one is) with subscriptions shipping between the 15-20th of the month moving forward. You can also purchase any past boxes still available on their site for a one-time purchase of $49.95 (+ shipping).

Value Breakdown: For $56.90 ($49.95 + $6.95 shipping) here’s what you are paying approximately per item:

  • Jelly Micro Mist: $7.73
  • Body Oil: $23.19
  • Royal Jelly Mask: $18.55
  • Beauty Elixir: $7.42

Read all of our Laurel & Reed reviews if you're still wanting more! You can also keep track of your subscriptions by adding this box to your subscription list or wishlist!

What are your thoughts on this month's Laurel & Reed?

Starting at $43.95
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Laurel & Reed is a clean beauty subscription box that features only full-size, non-toxic and cruelty-free products. Consciously curated, each month you will receive 3+ products with a minimum value of $125. From indie and small batch brands to cult favorites, each month we will delight your d... read more.

Marne Orenich
Marne Orenich
Marne is a lipstick connoisseur, record collector, and twice over cat mom. She loves discovering new clean beauty brands and has quite the collection of beautifully packaged serums and moisturizers.

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8 comments

Luna

FYI: Code CLEAN20 will get you 20% off any of their sub box plans!

I’ve been eyeing this box since it started to be reviewed on MSA, but for some reason I could never bring myself to pay full price. Maybe two or three weeks ago, Laurel & Reed had a 20% off in-store code (I think it may have been the same one above), and I tested it on their sub boxes, and it worked(!), so I decided to sign up for a 3-month sub. What was so cool was that L&R reached out to me and offered any past box as my 1st box (with June & July still being my 2nd & 3rd boxes), or I could still get May’s box if I wished. I thought that was so cool. I chose the November 2018 box, and I received it super quickly. The packaging felt like a luxe treat in itself, and just experiencing the curation of the box in person was so much nicer (and luxe feeling) than I was expecting. It actually made me think to just let my 3-month plan renew. lol I can’t wait to see what’s in June’s box!

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Claudia

Excellent review Marne! I love reading your experience and thoughts on the products. That said, as appealing as you’ve made this sub I’m totally on product overload so it would be a bad idea for me to sub to yet another box.

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Mouthycole

Yeah, I say there is NOTHING micro about that mist. It shoots out of the spray nozzle like it’s being shot out of a fireman’s hose. Ridiculous if you ask me.

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Cjchav

Been eyeing this box for a while,but am tired of face and body oils! Need to use up my stash first. Great review!

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D

Interesting that they’re cruelty-free branded but not vegan… do they just not send animal tested cosmetics? The claim is too ambiguous imo.

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Julie1

I agree on skin care overload, this is an amazing Sub.. I kinda wish it came every other month so my boxes wouldn’t pile up…

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Luna

I feel like there’s a new trend with beauty boxes, particularly green beauty boxes, where they’re starting to lessen the number of boxes that are sent each year. I can only think of three off the type of my head (Clean Beauty Box, Clean Routine Beauty, and Maple Blume) that went from monthly to bi-monthly or bi-monthly to quarterly. They’ve each cited the reason was because their subscribers requested it since receiving the boxes monthly or bi-monthly (in Maple Blume’s case) was too much product, which I’m assuming is one of the main reasons for people cancelling. I don’t know if there were other “truer” reasons for the switches, but from what I’ve read in comments (not just on MSA) it does sound like the reason cited by the boxes could be true. The beauty junkie in me is sad with the less frequency of boxes, but my sub box budget and the logical side of my brain is quite happy with the changes. lol! I also like how boxes are allowing subscribers to skip months now too or subscribe on a bi-monthly plan instead of a monthly plan.

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Dani

Me too! I’m quite overstocked right now but love this box from reading the reviews. If it was every other month it would also be easier to justify spending even more money on sub boxes than I already do. 😄

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