This review is for the Luxury French Subscription Box called OuiPlease! Just so you know, I pay for all my subscriptions, and the reviews on this site are my own personal and honest opinions whether I am an affiliate or not. I am not currently affiliated with OuiPlease.
Straight from the OuiPlease Website:
OUIPLEASE IS A FRENCH LUXURY SUBSCRIPTION BOX AND GIFTING SERVICE. Every other month, OuiPlease delivers, in the United States and Canada, the best in French beauty, jewelry, apparel, accessories, home and epicure to your doorstep. Unlike other subscription services, OuiPlease boxes feature full-sized products that are curated by a team of French influencers. We arrange your unique selection with a meticulous eye for quality, aesthetics and innovation.
Bi-Monthly Membership $150 or Annual Membership $650
I ordered the bi-monthly membership and was not charged for tax or shipping, and used a (public) discount offer code for $30 off my first box. The annual subscription is clearly a better deal – $108.33 a box vs. $150, that boasts $300+ product value!
OuiPlease Vol. 2.2 Joie De Vivre Box Review, May 2016
The OuiPlease Box theme for May 2016 was “Joie De Vivre” which means “Exuberant Enjoyment of Life”. I did not know that until I looked it up on Google because I literally know three French words/phrases: ‘Oui’ means Yes, ‘Merci Beaucoup’ means Thank You Very Much and ‘Ménage à trois’ means Threesome. That’s it. I’ve never been much of ‘French-Loving’ person – I’m more of an Italian-Obsessed kind of girl – however – this really hot and very sweet man entered my life who swept me right off my feet, and apparently he is of French descent. So I changed my mind. French stuff rules!! LOL! Although he is American all-the-way and knows less about the French than I do. So there you go.
Before we get into the details of this lovely box, let’s get the negative stuff over with. I signed up for this subscription on 5/18/16 with the impression I would be getting the “MAY” box which was supposed to start shipping the last week of May, according to their website. Well…I didn’t get the box until 6/27/16! Since this is a bi-monthly subscription, I was wondering if I would then get the next one (the July Box) in August. The answer is YES, they are shipping it in the first part of August (so they say), and I anticipate actually getting it at the end of August. Funny thing is, they are now advertising this next box (Vol. 2.3 “Summer Escapade”) as their “August Box”, so it looks like their shipping issues forced them into changing their official schedule. In the grand scheme of things, this doesn’t bother me a whole lot unless they start charging me for two boxes when I’ve only gotten one – which hasn’t happened – so I’m not that upset. When dealing with foreign suppliers, I can understand that things can get dicey, and beyond their control. I think I sent 2 or 3 emails to their customer service during this time inquiring about different things (including ‘where the hell is my box’), and in their defense, they replied right away each time and didn’t ignore or lie to me like some companies do.
This is the ‘outer’ box; all black and nicely branded. I’m going to spend an OBSCENE amount of time talking about their packaging because it is the most beautiful and professional subscription box packaging I’ve ever seen! I am BEYOND impressed, and probably spent over an hour just photographing it. A big part of the allure of this whole subscription box thing for me is the curation, themes and presentation – not just the stuff inside. Anyone can shop online and buy a bunch of crap, but it is an art form to put together a well-curated box that is truly luxe and special. I really feel like I’m receiving a gift with this one, or being pampered by an anonymous stranger. Let’s go with a handsome rich French stranger that wants to seduce me by feeding me chocolates and telling me how sexy I am while additionally trying to lure me into the sack with expensive boxes of shit I don’t really need that has super awesome packaging! That’s way more fun.
After you open the outer box, you are socked in the eyeballs with a French greeting printed on a large cardboard sign (suitable for framing or placing on a bookshelf or something as decor if you are into that sort of thing). Apparently the word or phrase on the card is different each time. This month it is BONJOUR! I just now realized that I actually know FOUR French words – ha-HA!!
BONJOUR! BONJOUR! BONJOUR! BONJOUR! BONJOUR! BONJOUR! BONJOUR! BONJOUR!
Here is the ‘inner’ (and much awesomer) box! A box inside a box! It keeps my anticipation going…
This is the coolest box on the planet. Hands down. The box alone has to cost $10 or more.
You pull the little silk ribbon tab to open the box, and then an attached ribbon arm keeps the box top and bottom connected together (look to the side on the photo below), and THEN you will find all of your little French goodies wrapped in black tissue paper and tied in yet another silk ribbon – this one in a pretty blue! Ahhh! So fancy-pants!
Look at it..LOOK. AT. IT.
Next we find the beautiful OuiPlease Magazine that comes in each box. This magazine has over 40 pages of information and pretty photos of the products and other fun French things. I think you already know how I feel about pretty photos. AH-MAZING!
The first page discusses the meaning of “Joie De Vivre”. Guess I didn’t need to research it on Google – it’s all right here!
Table of Contents and a beautiful photo overlooking France. I could be happy sipping wine with that handsome stranger right here…
OK, don’t show us cool-looking candles if you aren’t going to include one in the box…damn it…
Bangle up, peeps! I received the yellow one on the far right. If I had my choice, I would have chosen the striped one in the middle, but the yellow one is nice. Since I did not have a single yellow jewelry item in my stash (actual gold doesn’t count), this piece got me out of my rut. This bangle is made from an iron base and coated in gold enamel! It is a nice, sturdy and well-made bangle, but it is made for dainty little French girls, not thick Czech girls like me. It is a bit tight on my gigantic wrist, but it does fit and I will wear it. It looks stunning with black. RETAIL: $90
I got the black (yay!) Les Interchangeables with Swarovski Crystals (which I love!), and this is my favorite thing in the whole box. It fits just right and looks good with every single thing I own. Totally my style, too. After about a week of wearing it, though, the little crystal overlay started peeling up off of the band. BUT, I fixed it with a little super glue and it’s as good as new. I saw the spoiler for the August Box and ‘Les Interchangeables’ is on the list again as a supplier! I’m excited – but there’s no guarantee I’ll get one again. Every box gets a different and unique selection each time. Fingers crossed, though! RETAIL: $45
I didn’t get one of these. 🙁 This is part of their thing – you get a unique selection, not everything. So it’s kind of a tease. Fuckers.
I didn’t get one of these, either. But I liked the Les Interchangeable one better anyway, so NYAH!
On to French Apparel…
Lingerie for skinny bitches. They didn’t send me any delicate lingerie because they looked at my style profile sizes and laughed. It looks like nice stuff, though.
Everyone got one of these custom Sencha & Bourbon Silk Beach Stoles with their personal initials stitched into it. They come in different colors like the other items, so it was a surprise which one you would get. I was happy with my olive green/cream one. I would never in a million years pay this much for a scarf/cover-up if left to my own devices, but that’s why I love subscription boxes! RETAIL: $130
Love the packaging. Always with the packaging.
At first glance I was all “Who the fuck is NRF?”, but then I saw the “C.W.” underneath. Whew!
A little break from products for a moment to read about the “20 Steps to Recreate a Summer in France”! All good advice if you have the time and resources. I especially like the recommendation on indulging in icecream/gelato and exploring an unknown part of town. They also make a point to tell you that even the “fittest” French women eat dessert at the end of a meal. Whatever.
French Beauty time! Wheeeeee!
All boxes included two (out of six different) David Jourquin fragrances. All of his fragrances are based on the aroma of leather and complimentary notes such as Bergamot and Cedarwood. I received the blue one (Cuir Caraibes) and the red one (Cuir R’Eve). Both scents are very sweet-smelling and I don’t have anything remotely like either one of them in my perfume collection. I do like the way they linger, however a little goes a LONG way. I don’t wanna to be smellin’ like a (French) whore in church! (Something my mother used to say all the time.) Side note: the model in the magazine looks a little like Denzel Washington, and now I’m envisioning HIM as my handsome French stranger accompanying me on a picnic with gelato. RETAIL: $30 (for 2)
I received two of these three beauty products – the Kalys (all natural) Face & Body Exfoliant, and the Harem Des Sens Luscious Shower Cream. I love the names of French products. Having the words “Harem” and “Luscious” in anything of mine makes me smile. The shower cream smells AWESOME! I get asked ALL THE TIME where I got such a lovely-smelling lotion, to which I reply “Paris” even though I’ve never been. I’m evil like that – don’t want to give away my secrets. 😉 RETAIL: $50 ($25 each)
The other item is a soap that will be discussed a little further down.
French EPICURE! FOOD!
I did not receive this tea, but that’s OK because I have approximately 300 unopened teas at my house that I need to drink up before I acquire any more.
The people over at OuiPlease saved themselves by sending me the Chocolate Fruit Petals. If I had gotten the ball candies I would have revolted, but they didn’t, so disaster averted. It was a tasty five minutes (that’s how long they lasted), but they were melted a bit and all stuck together. I live in sunny Southern California, so this happens sometimes. Obviously it didn’t hold me back. The cute little tin can be re-purposed, but $20 for a tin of chocolates is a little much IMHO. RETAIL: $20
Instructions for the tea I didn’t get. Another blogger who reviewed this box wrote that this magazine just showcased “all the items she *wished* she had gotten”, which I thought was hilarious. And true. Hehe.
Lastly, we have French ‘Home’ products.
This is the soap pictured with the shower cream earlier. This tiny little soap is made by a ‘master soap maker’ in France using traditional techniques with all natural, high quality products. To me it’s just…tiny little soap. Not thrilling, but I haven’t tried it yet, so you never know, my next lather-up could be extraordinary. RETAIL: $10
My stuff in all it’s glory!!!
My unique selection added up to a retail value of $375. I paid $120 (with the $30 discount on my first box), and if I consider what I would have paid in tax (8% = $30), that’s a total added value of $285!! Not too shabby! The retail prices listed on subscription boxes are usually kind of inflated, but I do feel like I got a great value for what I paid. I had not heard of any of the brands, but am really enjoying all of the items! If I like the next box as much as this one, and the shipping issues don’t get any worse, I will consider the annual subscription for the better discount.
And that wraps up another box review! I have one more little (unnecessary) tidbit to share. I noticed someone on the staff is named ‘Sandrine’, which totally reminds me of that “Friends” episode where Ross and Rachel are arguing over what to name their baby, and Rachel suggests the name Sandrine, and Ross veto’s it because it sounds like an industrial solvent. LOL! The things you remember! No offense intended toward this person, of course.
Au Revoir!! (Look at me learning French words!!)
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