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HopeBox Review (The Gift Of Self-Care Series)

Subscription boxes are gaining in popularity, there are thousands of different options out there. There are boxes for everything from clothes to meal kits and everything in-between. Did you know there are many self-care box options? In this new series I will be reviewing five popular self-care boxes. 

Related: 7 Acts of Self-Care You May Not Realize Are Self-Care

How It Works

Each month I will be reviewing a self-care box. When I receive each box I’ll be doing an unboxing on either my Instagram or the GenTwenty Instagram. Then I will try out the products and write my review. Each month I will review my overall thoughts of the box, as well as the products.

A the end of the series, I’ll be writing a big comparison post. I’ll be rating the boxes in categories such as value, packaging, use of products, brand engagement, and more. By the end of the series, it is my hope that you’ll find a box that you love that will remind you to take time out of your busy day to take care of you. If you missed the first review, you can check out my thoughts on Therabox here

December 2019 HopeBox Review

Hopebox is unique in the fact that all of the products featured are hand-made. It also includes a personalized note sent with the box which is a special touch.

Before we get into the products I first want to talk about two of the biggest aspects that stuck out to me about HopeBox:

  1. Their focus: It is a self-care subscription box, so of course you can buy it for yourself, however, Hopebox offers a different approach. They make it very obvious, from the moment you go to their website, that Hopebox would make a great gift. Whether you just want to let someone know you are thinking about them, or you want to cheer someone up, Hopebox wants to give you a way to do that. I love this because you don’t really see that on most subscription box websites. Sure there is always an option to check the “Is this a gift” checkbox when you are checking out, but Hopebox makes sending one a major selling point.
  2. Their customer service: Hopebox ships your order soon after you order the box. You don’t have to wait for a shipping date, which means you can send or receive a box at any time during the month. I consider this great customer service. It doesn’t stop there though. I made a mistake with my address and didn’t realize it until after they emailed me about it. They got the problem fixed, but there was confusion about whether they had sent it out already or not. I had emailed them a week or so later to figure out why I hadn’t gotten the box yet. Once we figured everything out they sent it that day.


The Products

Along with the products was a list of what they were and where they came from, which I thought was interesting. These products come from all over the world. Some examples are Portugal and Germany and states in the US like Virginia and Arizona.

The box I received was the December 2019 box. Here is what I thought of the items inside:

Cobblestone Candle: This candle is called Winter Wreath. Its scent was cashmere and white birch. I think this is an amazing sized candle to come from a subscription box. It smelled amazing and the design was super cute. I’ve used it multiple times since I first tried it out. 

Castelbel-Designer Holiday Soap: This was another great sized product. The design on the front is a Christmas Sweater with the word joy on it. The soap is also a cashmere scent and smells amazing. I was pleased with this product and given the scent and the size of the soap, I’ll be using it for a while.

Miss Kitty’s Paper Oddities-Nativity Lantern with Battery Tealight: I couldn’t exactly figure out how to make this. It comes with directions, but I’m not good with papercrafts. I do appreciate including a DIY decoration, because I love the process of creating decorations when I can accomplish them. It even came with a tealight so I didn’t need to buy one.

The Christmas Shoppe-Christmas Tree Hope Ornament: If I would have opened my box sooner I could have used this product. I got sick during the time the box was sent to me so I couldn’t do the unboxing. It’s a cute ornament though so I’ll be putting it in storage to hang on my tree next year.

Gwen’s Handmade Gifts-Holly Jolly Crocheted Candy Cane: Even though I don’t usually collect products like this, I can’t deny how cute and well-designed it was. It would make a great Christmas decoration for anyone that uses those types of decorations.

SpaLife-Holiday Anti-Aging Face Mask: I don’t use sheet masks often because, unlike peel-offs or other masks, you have to sit still while using it. I like to do chores or get ready for the next day while doing my mask. However, I ended up enjoying this mask because it reminded me of the importance of resting. We all need that reminder sometimes, don’t you think? I never realized how busy I make myself before doing this mask. It also made my skin feel smooth so that was a bonus.

Mini Bubbling BB Snowman Bath Bombs: These bath bombs were little but cute. It came in a package of two and had little a little snowman face on them. I have just recently started using bath bombs more often. This one was relaxing and extremely fizzy. 


I think this was a pretty great box overall, but I probably won’t be ordering again for myself, just because I don’t use/collect handmade items too often. However, I think it’s a great option for me to keep in mind if I ever want to send it as a gift.

If I were to rate this box I’d give it an eight out of ten. I love their customer service and vision, and the products that come in the box are a great size, but I didn’t really use/have a use for some of the products. 

What do you think? Have you ever gotten, or sent someone, a Hopebox? Stay tuned for the next review.

And as a fun bonus, be sure to check out this 30 Day Self-Care Challenge

About the Author

Kelly Clark

Kelly graduated from Liberty University with a degree in Advertising and Public Relations and a minor in Journalism. Even though it took her a little while to find her career path, she was always meant to be in Communications. She remembers writing poems and songs when she was a little girl and pitching to my parents the reasons why I should have a cell phone when I was a teenager. She currently has a blog (budding-joy.com) where she talks about her weight-loss journey, mental health and personal development. Her hope is to encourage and inspire readers and let them know they are not alone. Reading blog posts like that are what helped her in tough times and she wants to pay it forward. She loves dance fitness, listening to music, and creating layouts in her bullet journal. She's a big fan of planning, especially when cute notebooks and pens are involved. Her dream job has changed so much over the years; right now she'd love to co-own a dance studio.

Website: budding-joy.com