Free Birthday Beauty Goodies 2018.

I have to admit to being rather negligent of C&C of late. I've been exceptionally busy and somewhat stressed due to aforementioned busyness which all added up to not having the time to blog. If I did have any free time I found that I wasn't in the mood to witter on about books and beauty things, either because I had pressing things that I should be doing (laundry, errands etc), or I needed to totally relax and simply sit and watch tv/play candycrush/flip through a magazine etc.

However, during my birthday month (August) I did manage to find a little time for myself and gather up a few beauty related freebies.

Ulta offer members of its Ultamate rewards program a different birthday gift each quarter. No purchase is needed to reclaim your birthday gift from Ulta but you do need to pick it up in a store as they won't add it to an online order. Summer's gift was a mini It Cosmetics Superhero Mascara. I must be one of the few people who hasn't tried the CC Cream from this brand, but I do have an eyeshadow palette from them that I love so I have high hopes for this mascara. I love mini mascaras! Not only are they a great way to try out new mascaras, they are such a handy size to pop in your bag or take on a trip. I'm always excited to get a mini such as this and get them from goody bags and GWP's so frequently that I rarely need to actually buy a full sized mascara!

Sephora offer members of it's Beauty Insider program a choice of birthday gifts. This year the choice was either Glamglow or Bite Beauty. There's something about Glamglow that I find off-putting for some reason - perhaps it's their glittery masks or their cartoon tie-ins? I don't really know - but it was easy for me to choose the gift from Bite which contained a sample of their amazing Agave Lip Balm along with a mini Amuse Bouche Lipstick and a mini Matte Cream Lip Crayon.

Space NK has upped their birthday gift game and now offer members of their NDulge program a little gift bag with three minis of their best selling products. You can add this birthday treat to an online order or collect it in store (I'm not sure if you need to make a purchase or not to reclaim in store, you do need to to do so online). I feel like I lucked out as my bag had a handbag sized Oribe Dry Texturising Spray which is always a great freebie to receive, a generous 10ml sample spray of Diptyque Philosykos EDP which is my favourite summertime scent, and a 15ml jar of Rodial Bee Venom Moisturizer which alone is worth a whopping $60.00!

Kiehl's offer their 'Kiehl's Family' members a #1 Lip Balm free with any purchase during your birthday month. I know that it's better than nothing but I do feel that this offering from Kiehl's, who were once known for their generous samples and promotions, is a little lame. Every year it is a #1 Lip Balm (which I don't even find to be all that great, its basically a petroleum jelly bal with a very small amount of sunscreen), you need to make a purchase to claim what is a low-value item, plus you can't combine it with any other offer. I actually didn't even claim mine this year as I didn't feel the need to buy something I didn't really need just in order to get a lip balm I don't even like all that much!

Anyhow enough of my complaining...

Diptyque is my favourite perfume house so I was thrilled when I found out that if you subscribe to their emails in the U.S. they will send you a birthday email that you can use in any of their standalone stores to claim either a mini candle or a 10ml EDP spray, no purchase necessary. I opted for the perfume spray and chose the fragrance Tempo which I believe is a Limited Edition of theirs. The Sales Assistants are always so nice at Diptyque and they also gave me a couple of their regular perfume samples which was a kind touch.

CVS recently overhauled their Beauty Rewards program and it now offers a free birthday gift to pick up instore, no purchase necessary. This year it was a Poparazzi Nail Polish and I picked out a wearable nude/greige.

In addition to my mini birthday haul pictured above, I also received a coupon code for 15% off orders during my birthday month from Cult Beauty and Caudalie added 30 points to my MyCaudalie Rewards account. 

I'm very happy with my birthday freebie this year, there are some nice treats here and the best thing is that they didn't cost me anything! Let me know if there are any birthday beauty treats I have missed out.

These offers are available in mainland USA. Other countries may have different gifts and conditions. Gifts and conditions may change and are subject to company policies and rules.