subscription addiction

during the holidays, while i was vexing about what presents to get people (ANOTHER sweater?), i stumbled upon the concept of subscription boxes. 

and completely became enamored. 

and a little subscription box crazy.

there's something about the idea of getting a surprise box every month that's SO fun. there was a promotion going on for Julep so i decided to purchase an intro box and 1 month for my sister as part of her christmas present. 

and that's when the trouble started.

since i wanted the gift to be a surprise, and i wanted her to be able to receive it before the holidays, i decided to test out the subscription on myself and create one for her as well. as it turns out, you cannot receive more than 1 Maven box per address. so color me surprised when, although i purchased my subscription (and they charged me) on December 9th, more than a week later i had not received any confirmation of shipment.

a quick call to their customer service reps cleared up the misunderstanding and my sister received her introductory box in time for me to wrap it for christmas morning. and she received her January box shortly after the new year.

however, my boxes for December 2012 and January 2013 were still yet to arrive. another call to their customer service assured me that my boxes would be shipped out right away.

tick tock, tick tock. and hooray! my January 2013 box arrived! and it was a Gold Box, which means i received extras in addition to the January It Girl colors.

i haven't used any of them yet (i have a weird system when it comes to wearing clothes and make-up. probably something to do with having been scolded once as a child about only liking "new" things vs. "old" things).  but 7 polishes (and 2 neon hair ties-the type that supposedly won't leave a crease in your hair) for $19.99 is not bad. not bad at all.

except for the fact that my introductory December box still hadn't arrived.

so another phone call to their customer service, a weird e-mail regarding a failed shipment, and 5 days later, i have my December Boho Glam box.

fun nail glitter and a cuticle balm in addition to the nail polish. for the introductory price of $4. again, not bad. but the hassle of getting these 2 boxes, and the fact that i have enough nail polish to last me the next 20 years, means i'll be stopping my subscription. 

plus i still have other subscriptions to think about...