Julep July 2014

Julep July 2014 Review

Now that Julep is in its second month of "customize your own box" boxes, I have to say, I am just as happy fully customizing my box as I was when the colors were set in pairs already.  Also, I apparently have boring polish color choices.

Julep July 2014

The beauty item this month was the Bare Body Milk lotion.

Bare Body Milk lotion and bonus Tootsie Rolls.  Because 'Mur'ca.

This lotion is light and smells very, very faintly like something tropical.  Other than that, it is pretty unremarkable.  I like it, and I needed a new bottle of lotion, so this is working out nicely.

The Chosen Ones

This month, Julep released the Poolside collection.  It was filled with brightly colored creme polishes, with a stardust (matte textured glitter) thrown in as an add-on option.  Bright chartreuse! Bright fuchsia! Bright cerulean!  ...And the colors I chose.

Lorenzana and Kelsey

I think I picked the two colors closest to neutrals in the collection.  This is why I can't be left up to my own polish-making decisions.  I'd just pick neutrals, every time!

They are pretty, though.
Lorenzana, top, and Kelsey, bottom

Lorenzana is more greige than purple (like it looks above).  Julep calls it a "shiitake creme" to sound fancy.  It is a nice understated color, and it is on the unusual side for a neutral, therefore I like it.  I've been more into demure nail looks in the past few months, and this will be a nice polish to wear year-round.  Julep does cream finishes really, really well.  They barely need two coats, never are streaky, and last for almost a week without chipping on me.

Kelsey is a pale peach creme (yeah, like I need another one of those), and it made my skin look a little redder than I would like.  I think this would look fantastic on someone with a darker skin tone than me.

I decided to use them both at once in a Ruffian-style manicure that I wore for a full week.  Yup.  A whole week.  That's how busy I have been! I don't even have time to do my nails any day other than Sunday!

Julep Lorenzana over Julep Kelsey

Julep is now a minimum of $19.99 per month if you prepay for 3 months at a time.  New customers also only get to skip twice per year.  If you want to sign up, you can try a starter kit with the code FREEBOX and you only pay shipping!  Julep polishes last almost a week on me without chipping (and that's without a base or top coat) and are some of my favorites.  I think the quality is worth the price.

To try it, please use my link here.  I'll get a discount on my next box for each referral.

No special consideration or compensation was received for this post and all thoughts and opinions are my own. All items mentioned within were paid for by me.

Julep April 2014 Classic with a Twist Review

Julep April 2014 Review

I had some Jules saved up, so I decided that I wanted this month's featured product enough to spend them on a box!  I liked the polish colors in the Classic with a Twist box the most, so I chose that option.  Julep also gave you a choice of two blush and two bronzer colors.  I went with the lightest blush, called Peach Bellini.

The Vivid Collection
Julep April 2014

First look!  Julep included 2 hard candies as an extra this month, and they were gone within 10 minutes.  Non-chocolate candy doesn't last long around me!

Caitlin, pink, and Mariska, orange

As you can see from the bottles, Caitlin is a bright hibiscus pink with golden microshimmer, and Mariska is a tangerine with a more subtle shimmer.

Caitlin and Mariska

These will make great pedi polishes this summer! Nice and bright for the beach :)  Now, if only the weather would get the notice...

Caitlin with Mariska accent- 2 coats, no topcoat

These went on really well, and dried to a rubbery finish.  Mariska looks more rubbery than Caitlin, which has more apparent shimmer to add some dimension.  They dried fast, and needed two coats for evenness.  There is still some visible nail line under Caitlin, but it didn't bother me enough to do a third coat.

Caitlin and Mariska, 2 coats with Julep Freedom Polymer Top Coat

With top coat, these polishes really come alive! I love them!  The above picture was taken on day 2... some tip wear and apparently my cuticles are really awful at the moment.  Sorry.

Glow Blush

The blush is the reason I got this box.  I have to say, the hard plastic packaging with included mirror is a HUGE improvement over the packaging that the eyeshadow palette came in a few months ago!  That cardboard isn't holding up well to my abuse.  This, however, is sleek and stylish and is way classier!

Glow Blush in Peach Bellini

The plastic protector layer is a nice touch, and the blush is gorgeous.  It is very shimmery, though, so beware!

Peach Bellini swatched once over bare skin

This is a really light color, but the pigmentation is good.  It is hard to apply too much with a color this light, but it looked very natural on my super-pale skin.  It is a very soft, smoothly applying powder.  I really like it, and am very glad that I opted in this month.

Peach Bellini on my stupid face in the stairwell at work

Julep Classic with a Twist, April

Overall, I'm definitely satisfied with this box!  The nail polishes are fabulous as always, and Julep has seriously stepped up their makeup game with the blush packaging.  It was the great quality I expected, but the compact added a nice touch.

Julep costs $19.99 a month, and you can sign up with my link here.  Use code FREEBOX to get your first month for free, just pay shipping!  Cancel at any time by calling Julep.  You can skip once every few months now, which is unfortunate.  The people who signed up prior to December 2013 can skip any and all months. You do build up points every month you take, and can redeem them on boxes in the future, which is what I did for this one.  You also get discounted pricing on regular items in Julep's online store.  Julep allows you to pick which box style you receive each month, which is nice.  You always know what you are getting!  Selection windows are from the 20th-24th of each month.

No special consideration or compensation was received for this post and all thoughts and opinions are my own. All items mentioned within were paid for by me. This post contains a referral link; I will get 1000 Jules for each signup through my link (1/2 of a Maven box).

Julep Maven January 2014

Julep Maven: Classic with a Twist, January 2014

Wow, it looks weird to be writing 2014 on everything! I went to work today and managed to get it right every time... not a 2013 in sight ;)

My January Maven box came a few days ago, but things have been pretty chaotic with the holidays.  I've been working a LOT to try to get things ready for the two weeks I'm going to be out.

Oooh, Purple Box!

When I opened my mailbox, I was pleased to see a fuchsia Maven box!  They are normally black, and this was a nice surprise.

I did not notice that my picture of all the items together came out blurry until after I had already unwrapped everything and put away the packaging to reuse later.  Sorry :(

Julep Ta Da! Quick Dry Nail Drops

The new item this month was a cuticle remover liquid... and it was not the item that was included in each Maven profile.  Bummer!  Instead, Julep sent out a reissue of their quick dry nail drops.  I didn't already have these, so I'm not *too* disappointed, but it is kinda lame that they would spend all this energy marketing a new product, and then not send it to everyone.

The drops smell like lavender (like their cuticle oil).  In fact, these drops have a lot of similar ingredients to the cuticle oil, with the addition of some silicone oils (specifically, hexamethyldisiloxane and cyclopentasiloxane).  The drops work pretty well.  You wait a minute for your polish to start to set, then drop it on.  I haven't really done anything crazy after using the drops, but they did help me not get dents or smudges in my polish whilst typing or getting into my coat and into the car.  I approve.

Julep Mona (top) and Abigail (bottom)

This month's polish collection featured two new finishes: Satins and Silks.  I chose the Classic with a Twist box, and received a graphite gray creme (Mona) and a peony pink silk (Abigail).

Julep... orange things

The extra this month was a set of two orange things.  I think they are buffing sponges?  I don't know. Let me know what to do with these if you have any idea what they are!

Julep Abigail

Abigail is a soft pink silk.  Julep's silk finishes are semi-matte with "a hint of opalescence".  I guess that means it is not a flat matte?  I'm not sure.  I AM sure, however, that this polish is amazing.  Most of the mattes and suedes (semi-mattes) that I have chip really easily.  They just don't last long.  This, however, does.  The picture above is my third day of wearing this, with no top coat, and there aren't any chips or tip wear!  This color was very subtle and lady-like.  I was wearing it for a New Year's Eve party and felt pretty darn classy holding my champagne flute with these nails.  This was two thin coats.

Julep Mona

Julep calls Mona "storm cloud gray," but I think it looks more like graphite.  I pretty much only wear gray, black, and white in the winter, so these nails will match anything I wear! ha.  I'm boring.

This is a very pretty color, though.  I usually use Julep Meryl as my go-to gray, but that is nearing the end of its life.  I'm almost out!  This is a good replacement.  It's a little darker than Meryl, but I like it just as much.  Two coats is almost unnecessary, but I never like to do just one.

If you want to try out Julep, use my link here and the code FREEBOX to only pay S&H for your first box.  Julep polishes are all 4-free and in my opinion, are good quality.  They go on nicely and last a long time before chipping.  Maven boxes are $19.99 per month and being a Maven gets you a discount on their site as well as access to sales and specials.

This post contains items purchased by me.  All opinions are my own, and no special consideration or compensation was received for this post.  This post contains a referral link; see above for details.

Julep September 2013 Review: Classic with a Twist

I have the best sister! For my birthday she gave me 6 months to Julep.  She didn't know I was already a Maven (but I skip every month since it's out of my price range) so she signed me up through the waitlist.  It took from May until mid-August for me to become active.  I'm not complaining, it's an awesome gift! Julep makes some great long-lasting 4-free polishes.

Gold Paper, Orange Crinkles

There was a lot of concern this month because Julep was changing its shipping method to DHL.  However, it seems like they added a warehouse in NJ (which is closer to RI than WA).  I can't confirm if my box went through DHL or not, since the tracking link I was sent was through USPS anyway.  However, Julep has now changed their expected shipping times to correspond to the carrier change.  The free shipping now states it will take 5-8 days.  I received a shipping confirmation on the 28th and I had my box on the 30th.  This was no different from the two days it previously took to get my Maven box.

Julep September 2013

My little bonus extra was a one-step polish remover pad.  These are so handy for traveling.  The grey thing is a little card telling you what you get for referring people (1000 Jules per person, with 2000 Jules getting you a free monthly Maven box).

Julep September 2013

Julep has also changed their polish packaging.  They now come in individual boxes and I've seen sleeves for two and for three polishes.  I've never had a problem with nail polishes being broken or damaged during shipping with Julep, so to me this is just for the aesthetics.  They do look nice and professional, especially for a full price of $14 for only 0.27 fl.oz. (a little more than half of the normal polish size of 0.5fl.oz).

Left, Padma.  Right, Florence.

Padma is described by Julep as being a royal plum creme.  It is not a creme.  It has microshimmer which in my opinion makes it even better.  It adds depth to the color.  This reminds me a lot of OPI Russian Navy.  However, that polish is a dark navy blue with blue and red microshimmer, which makes it look purple.  Padma is a dark purple color with purple microshimmer, which obviously makes it look purple.  

Left Florence, Right Padma (check out that microshimmer in the bottle!)

Florence is a classic camel creme, according to Julep, and I think that's about right.  This one is definitely a creme finish, there is no shimmer at all.  It's a great nude color and I can see myself wearing it a lot when I need something subtle.

Florence with Padma as an accent

Cleansing oil close-up.

This month's beauty item is their new Bare Face Cleansing Oil.  If you picked the American Beauty profile this month, you got the cleansing oil and a mattifying face cream.  The It Girl style profile gets 3 polishes and no beauty products each month.  Any other profile (including my Classic with a Twist) receives 2 polishes and the main beauty product.

The cleansing oil has a mild, pleasant smell that is almost citrusy, but not quite.  It's a little woodier.  It feels like the other oil cleansers I have used, and washed off cleanly with water. My skin was nice and smooth and free of makeup after using it.  I already have a sample of an oil cleanser open, but I will definitely use this when I've finished the other one!

Julep is a monthly nailpolish and beauty product subscription box.  Julep costs $20 per month and gets you an every-day 20% Maven discount for the products on their site.  This brings the polishes down from $14 to $11.20.  You have the option of skipping any and all months if you would like to.  If you do this, you won't be able to access their "secret store" every month with products at an additional discount.  You will, however, still be able to take advantage of their mystery boxes and other special deals.

If you would like to sign up, use the code FREEBOX to get your first month for free! (I think you just pay a few dollars for shipping and handling).  You can use my REFFERAL LINK if you are feeling nice :).

No special consideration or compensation was received for this post and all thoughts and opinions are my own. All items mentioned within were paid for by me (or my sister, in this case, since it was a gift!).