Get all the Goodies from a Subscription Box

Julia Meehan

Are you deprived of consuming the same old beauty and skincare products or possibly drained of wearing the same clothes to class? Perhaps you’re a college student that has difficulties cooking up something special in the kitchen. Luckily there’s a solution to this pestering problem. Sponsored ads are continuously popping up on Instagram about a new trend, subscription boxes. College students can subscribe to a variety of different subscription boxes, particularly specializing in fashion, beauty or health.

BootayBag

The new way to shop affordably for underwear is as a subscriber for BootayBag. A quick, few steps is all it takes to subscribe online. The order starts off with how many undies you’d like in your monthly bag. The cost for one pair is $9 a month while two pairs costs $13 a month. There’s an option for your size and style, such as mix it up, never a thong, or always a thong. A bonus is adding on a matching bralette for $14 a month with the package. According to BootayBag themselves, they recommend donating your undies to someone in need if you’re not satisfied with your purchase. In your next shipment they will include a replacement pair. Always an awesome random surprise to come home to after a long, busy class day.

“The advantage of being a subscriber for BootayBag is receiving a cute pair of underwear for a cheap price every month,” said Hailey Christoph, freshman in biology.

Ipsy

Before heading out to your nearest personal care and beauty store and splurging on high end products, subscribe to Ipsy for a monthly box. With the subscription the customer will receive five products as a sample size for only $10 a month. There’s a quick two-minute quiz to tailor your Glam bag so it fits perfectly for you. A  few questions it’ll ask is the color of your hair, how comfortable you are with makeup, types of skincare, haircare and nail care products you enjoy using, any skin concerns you have and lastly how you would describe your hair, extreme curl or in need of volume. Subscribers will open the box to a small makeup bag, perfect for travel size items. Monthly customers will get high end products based off of their preferences at an affordable cost.

“My last Glam bag came with a hair product, a highlighter, a blush and some eyeshadow,” said Hailey Christoph, a freshman in biology. “The best part is more exposure to a lot of makeup, hair and skincare products.”

For some students they’d rather subscribe somewhere else rather than receiving monthly samples from Ipsy.

“A lot of times I threw away the products besides some lotions, lip-glosses or brushes,” said Kristin Jensen, a graduate from Iowa State in public relations and event management. “Most of the stuff I received I would keep in the bag and would tell myself I’d use it but then I never would.”

The best part about Ipsy is testing out different products before spending ridiculous amounts on a product you may not like or ever use.

FabFitFun

Want in on a seasonal box for $49.99 that is filled with $200 worth of a wide variety of products? FabFitFun is the ultimate subscription box to subscribe to. On average customers will receive 10 full size items rather than samples. Everything from food to makeup and if you’re lucky, some items that are reusable, such as coffee mugs, scarves, bags or towels. The customer has the opportunity to take a quiz beforehand to customize their box specifically personalized to them. Unlike other monthly subscriptions, FabFitFun is a every season ordeal, fall, winter, spring and a summer box.

“It’s like a present every season,” said Erin Patterson, a freshman in animal ecology. “You’ll never know what you’ll get inside, and you’ll love everything because it’s monogrammed to fit you.”

Another feature is the box comes with $10 coupons from ambassadors and social media influencers. As stated on the FabFitFun website they’re the best beauty, fashion and fitness products all wrapped up in a box.

“I was impressed with the good quality and content that I would actually use,” said Jensen. “I would do FabFitFun again over Ipsy.”

As Christmas shopping rolls around, this is a wonderful gift to give a loved one. 

HelloFresh

Not in the mood to make weekly trips to the grocery store or have no clue on how to cook for yourself, HelloFresh is right for college students. HelloFresh caters to subscribers on a weekly basis. They have different meal plans of three dishes to fit your lifestyle, a classic plan, a veggie plan and a family plan. There’s a variety of meals to pick from, such as enchiladas to sirloin steak to ravioli. Some meals are deluxe meals, which cost extra.

“For me there weren’t many healthy options to choose from,” said Jensen. “I’m lactose intolerant and gluten free so it was difficult since most dishes had gluten or cheese in them.”

The meal plans are about $50 a month to have food delivered to your door. Within the meal plans there’s a step by step instructions with pre-measured ingredients. As a subscriber you’ll never have to go to the grocery store and spend on $15 on vinegar that you only need a teaspoon for.

“HelloFresh made grocery shopping easier and cooking easier,” said Jensen. “The option was right there, and the recipe was right there.”