Everybody has a favorite Christmas movie. That one movie they have to watch over and over again every year in order to really feel like it's the Holiday season. For some people it's "It's a Wonderful Life", for some it's "Miracle on 34th Street", for some it's the Peanuts or Rankin/Bass specials. For me, it's "Elf". Yup, that movie about a 30-year old "elf" played by Will Ferrell, who travels to New York City in order to meet his real father. For some reason, it just speaks to that part of me that still gets unreasonably excited about the holiday season. "Santa!! Oh my god, Santa's coming!! I know him!! I know him!!!"
Ahem. So that brings me to this quarter's Soap Box from Fortune Cookie Soap! The theme for winter is "Welcome, Santa!" and it's based on the movie "Elf"! In case you aren't familiar with the Fortune Cookie Soap Boxes, they are a way to sample upcoming Fortune Cookie Soap collections before they are launched on the website. The cost is $19.99 per box, including shipping to the U.S. The boxes come out quarterly and include sample sizes of bath and body products, plus a $10 code to use on the Fortune Cookie website. Fortune Cookie scent collections are all limited edition and often sell out quickly. This particular collection will go on sale on the website on Friday, November 13th.
Before we dive right in, let me put a little disclaimer here - scent is an intensely personal thing, it is different for everyone. Something that works for me may not work for you and vice versa. So please don't be upset or offended if I hate a scent that you love, or think I'm completely whacko if I love a scent that you hate. I mean, I am completely whacko but for different reasons.
So the first thing I pulled out of the box was, of course, the information card. This holds the name and usage information on each product, plus the scent notes. It also includes a tiny picture of each product next to the descriptions so you know which is which! It also includes information on the back about the launch of the collection. The card used to contain the $10 off code, but they now send that via email. Shamefully, I spent mine the day it arrived on a "Get What You Get" grab bag promotion. I'm seriously a sucker for mysteries.
The soap box contains eight different bath and body items this quarter, including some new products that FCS has not released before! Exciting. First of those is a bath bomb, aptly named "Yellow Snow". The card describes this scent as "A juicy blend of ripe plums, whipped caramel, vanilla jasmine, with just a squeeze of zesty mandarin orange". Definitely has a very fruity scent to it, with the florals in the background. I don't know if this is going to be enough for a full size bath, but I'll give it a try.
Next we have a Whipped Cream, FCS' version of a whipped body butter in the scent "World's Best Cup of Coffee". This scent is described as maple syrup and coffee, and I can definitely detect both, though there does seem to be a kind of... sharply powdery undertone? Anyway, its a nice scent but the undertone keeps it from being a total win for me. Unfortunate, since I adore coffee scented things.
I love the name of the next item! It's called "Cotton Headed Ninny Muggin" and it's a dry shampoo. The card describes the scent notes as "lillies, freesia, jasmine, and bayberry, muddled with fresh blackberries and plums, garnished with a sprig of peppermint." I don't use dry shampoo,so I can't tell you how well it works, but I really like the scent - it's very refreshing floral/fruity combo. I also love that it comes in an adorable little shaker bottle!
Next up we have what I think is another new item from FCS, though I could be wrong. These are called "Face Plant" and they are tabs you drop into hot water, then put your face over the water for a nice steam bath. The scent is called "Christmas Gram" and its described as lavender, sea salt, sage, and vanilla, but I can mostly pick up the nice lavender and sage combo.
This next item might be new as well - in any case it's new to me! This a a shave oil in the scent "Shower Duet". At first I really didn't like the scent, but then I kept going back and sniffing it and it really grew on me. The card describes this scent as "Spruce and vanilla, fir and fruits, hyacinth and mint". I think this actually makes a pretty good unisex scent - useful for a shave oil.
One of the items FCS always includes with their soap boxes is a sample of their OCD hand sanitizer. I've said it before and I will say again - love the formula, not the name. This one is in the scent "Swirly Twirly Gumpdrops", and as the name suggests its a sugary scent described as "cotton candy, lemon drops, and fresh pear nectar, dancing with tart cranberries and black currants." I can't quite pick out the individual scents, but it's definitely fruity and very sweet.
The next item is a perfume oil in a little spray bottle. The scent is called "FCS Cheer" and the notes describe it as pound cake, frankincense, patchouli and cedar. This is another one I thought I wouldn't like, but then I ended up not being able to stop sniffing. My husband commented that I smelled like cake while I was wearing this, so I guess that is a good thing?
And finally, not FCS soap box would be complete without the signature fortune cookie shaped soap. This one is the perfect shade of elf green with a red pom pom, in the scent "Buddy". It's described as "fruits, candy, crushed vanilla, and a hint of mint". I imagine this is what an elf actually smells like.
Final Thoughts: This box was a lot of fun, but there were no real stand-out scents to me that I feel like I must be on hand at the launch party to buy. I will enjoy using the products I received, but I don't feel I need to stock up on any of them.
What do you think about the Winter Soap Box? Do you have a must-watch holiday movie? Let me know in the comments!
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