Julep Maven Boho Glam Box :: November 2012

  

 Hello Marvelous Marshmallow Mavens! It is time for my first Beauty Box review and I am starting with the November Julep Maven Box in Boho Glam. So as this is my first Beauty Box review let me just give a brief blurb on what Julep Maven is all about and why I decided to try it.

 Ok so I didn’t know much about the Julep brand before deciding to check out their box. According to their website they basically derive from a group of salons on the east coast and sell mostly nail polish and other mail related items online.  The part that drew me in was the fact that they produce high quality polish without a lot of the harsh chemicals found in other polishes.

 The other thing that helped me decide to try this out was the fact that since money has been tight I’ve been trying to find ways to curb my impulsive shopping habits. Before I could easily spend quite a bit each month on nail polish alone and it tends to be incredibly easy for me to just toss a few new colors into my shopping cart every time I go to a Target or a Drugstore and that adds up at the end of the month. 

 Along with Julep’s $19.99 a month price tag, which is easily far less than I normally spend on nail products a month, you get 20% off and free shipping for all the products on their website. The other nice thing is that you are not locked into spending $20 a month. You preview your box before its sent via email and you are given the option to either switch to another style profile box you may like better, you can gift your box to someone else, OR you can even skip it all together and not be charged than month…awesome right?!? AAaanndddd you can get your first month for a penny if you use the code COLOR2012. Now what excuse left did I have to not at leeeast try it out for a month??? That’s right NONE, so I did…and now on with the review!

  So first off I was far to excited with my first box to take pictures of the packaging and little cutesie tootsie boxiepoos that the products came in and honestly it’s the products themselves that matter right? I don’t know maybe next month I’ll include the packaging shhtuff but eh…whatever. Maybe let me know in the comments if you’re into that and would like to see the whole shebang K? Ok So right into the goodies:

 When you first join Julep you take there style quiz to determine which of the different profiles fits you best. Mine was Boho Chic. Not sure if that is really me or not but it doesn't really matter because you always have the option to opt out of your box and pick a box from a different profile each month. First impression on my box was that I liked the color choices but not to sure about the glitter....seems messy to me but what the heck I'll give it a try :)  

 This is the first color in Tori and I was really excited about this one because I had been wanting a sort of neutral taupey color that seems really popular with a lot of bloggers and vloggers this fall.

 Now I don't know if everyone got this color or if since this was my first box Julep was being a bit cheeky but the name of this color is Michelle. My name cool, look at you Julep making a new subscriber feel all special! I actually quite like this color too. In the picture is looks a lot lighter than it is on the nails. You'll see below in the swatch pictures that the color comes off as a really dark navy black. Neither of the two colors I got had any shimmer which I don't mind. I recently purchased a Matte Finish top coat from Butter London that I think will work great with these creamy nonglitzy colors. Let me know in the comments if you would like to see swatches in another post or a review on the Butter London Matte Finish top coat.

 This product is something I've never really tried before but no time like the present right? This is a basic cuticle oil. Can't really tell from the pictures but I did rub a little bit into my cuticles and it feels nice enough. We'll see if it really makes a difference in the quality of my cuticles.

 And lastly the glitter pots. Now this in a beauty box I'm honestly a bit meh about. I like glittery polishes and all but this is just a mess waiting to happen. I can see it now...Koi (the kitty) pouncing up on the table as I try to sprinkle this crap on my nails and the fairy dust explosion that results.

 Here are the polishes on the nail. The Michelle comes out a bit darker and the Tori looks like it has some purplish undertones which is nice. So far so good. I will have to let you know with my next box how the wear is on these when combined with my Essie All in One base and Essie Good To Go top coat.

Finally, I went ahead and tried out the glitter for you guys. It was pretty simple application. After the second coat of polish was applied I just poured the glitter straight from the pot onto the nail and the tapped my finger to shake off excess. I also very lightly pressed the glitter into the polish just to make sure it was sticking well. Then when it was dry I followed up with a generous layer of Essie Good To Go top coat. Oh FYI I layered the silver over Michelle and the white over Tori. I'm not sure I like this look. It's grainy to touch even with the top coat, maybe I just need a few more layers but eh too much work. I think I'll just stick with polish with glitter already inside the formula. You may also be disappointed to hear that there was no Koi fairy dust explosion....whew!

Ok that's all for this post. Let me know what you think. I'd love to hear from other's how their Julep experience has been if they've tried it or I anyone has any questions on the process let me know too!