June Julep Maven Box

Back last year, when I first joined Julep Maven, I had plans of showing you my monthly Maven boxes.  Then life got a little topsy-turvy and I just never continued past my first box.  

However, as I now have a Julep Maven giveaway in the works (link below), I figured I would show you this month's box because I think it's particularly awesome!

All Maven Boxes come in a pretty standard black shipping box, but the fun starts when you open it.  Here what I found inside June's Classic with Twist box...

Such cute packaging.  I love that the boxes always follow a theme.  I loved the orange tissue paper and the Pixie Sticks were a nice touch.  

Bonus lip balm!

Unless you choose the all-polish box, It Girl, then you will receive on product.  This month's product was Daylight Defense Hand and Nail Cream (sorry for the out-of-focus picture).

Normally, I'm a Bombshell, though I will often pick It Girl because of all the polishes, but I switched it to Classic with a Twist simply because of the names of the polishes.  Lauren is my sister's name and Claire is my daughter's name.  Plus, the colors were super pretty and summery.  Here they are swatched...

Claire - turquoise blue creme.  Gorgeous color.  I love this kind of blue and Claire is no exception.  Fantastic formula.  2 coats.

Lauren - bright fuchsia pink creme.  This one is a beautiful bright pink.  I loved this one on my nails.     Plus, hot pink = instant tan.  Same formula as Claire.  2 coats.

For me, this was my favorite Julep box in a while, and that's saying something because there have been some good boxes lately.  I adore both of these colors, and while I'm usually not a product-girl, I figured this face cream would come in handy because I'm out in the sun so much this summer.

If you are interested in becoming a Julep Maven, I am hosting a Maven introductory box giveaway.  To enter the contest, click here.  

Don't want to wait? You can go to Julep.com and use code MAVENINTRO to receive your introductory Maven box for $0.01!  

I received the products within my post through my Maven subscription.  The above links link to my giveaway blog post and to Julep.com.  The Julep.com link is an affiliate link.  If you become a Julep Maven using that link, I will receive a credit and for every 2 credits, I receive a free month.  You will receive your own link referral link when you become a Julep Maven.

Julep Maven Giveaway

I am so excited to share with you a fantastic Julep giveaway!


As you all may have guessed, I am a huge fan of Julep and the Julep Maven program.  I just love my monthly box of nail-mail, and I would like to share that with you.  Thus, I have paired with Julep to give away an introductory Maven box.


Like all Maven boxes, this box is a $40 value, and you can see examples of what you will find inside the introductory Maven box by clicking here.  Personally, I'm a Bombshell, that occasionally switches it up to It Girl, but if you win, you can select your own Maven personality.


To enter the giveaway, simply click below using the Rafflecopter widget.  All entries must be made via Rafflecopter and giveaway will end on 6/29/2012.


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Good Luck and thank you so much for entering!

For more information about becoming a Julep Maven please click here.  Also, be sure to use code MAVENINTRO to receive your first Maven box, including shipping, for $0.01!   




Giveaway prize provided to me by Julep.  The above links link to Julep's website and the second link is my Julep Maven affiliate link.  If you join the program using my referral link, I will receive credit and for every 2 people that join, I receive a free month.  When you join the Maven program, you will get your own referral link to share.  :)

Oscar Day!

If you are like me, then the day of the Oscars is like your Super Bowl.  I absolutely love the Academy Awards, have since I was a child.  I remember watching them completely facscinated with the ceremony.  Now that I've gotten older, I also like to watch the pre-shows and make snarky comments about bad dresses, but it still all comes down to the awards for me.  I love them.

So when, as part of my Julep Maven Box, I received 2 colors from their Oscar collection, I was so excited to try them.  I've finally been able to carve out some time for my blog, so in honor of Oscar day, I bring you Julep Viola and Julep Oscar...

Viola is a rich, dark aubergine creme that leans a bit brown.  It's a gorgeous vampy color.  I love the name of this polish.  I think Viola Davis is one of the most incredible actresses of our time.  I could seriously watch her read the phone book.  As for the polish, as much as I love the color, the application left something to be desired.  The formula on this was very thick.  I had to go slow and be very specific about my strokes.  The color is so pretty, though, that I think it's worth trying a few drops of thinner to see if it's more manageable.  Picture is 2 coats.

Oscar is a golden glitter topcoat.  I'm calling this a topcoat, but in all honesty, this is so saturated with glitter that you could probably use it alone.  It will probably take 3 coats to reach opacity, but unlike Viola, the formula on Oscar wasn't thick or goopy, so you should have no problems with multiple coats.  I really like the contrast of Oscar over Viola, but I also think this would look amazing over a gold polish.  Picture is one coat of Oscar over Viola on my ring finger.

All in all, I like both of these polishes.  The color on Viola is amazing.  I haven't compared it to my collection to check for dupes, but there is a richness about it that makes it quite special.  I just wish the formula was a bit easier to use. 

Both of these polishes are available at Julep.com and retail for $14 each. 

These were sent to my in my Julep Maven Box.  You can sign up for Maven on their website.

Julep Maven - Box 1

So last week, right after I showed you my review for Julep polishes, I caved and joined the Julep Maven program.  I thought it was a great deal at $19.99, and also, as nail mail is one of my guilty pleasures, I figured it was a good way to get a box of nail goodies every month.

I received my first box today, and I am very happy with it.  Here's what I found when I opened the box (it was all in a gift bag, btw)...

And here are the 2 colors I received...

Samantha - bright pink.  This one is amazing.  It has a jelly-ish finish, but it was opaque in 2 coats.  

Zoe - bright copper.  Seriously.  This is like the color of new pennies.  This is one of their not-yet-released fall colors.  3 coats.  

This is the "Bombshell" box.  Honestly, I had to do a little manipulation to get this box.  I took the "style quiz" at least twice, and it each time it came back as "All American Beauty".  Well, while that may fit my fashion sense, it's not exactly what I prefer on my nails.  So, I chose the strappy shoes instead of the platforms, Chanel as my designer, rather than J.Crew, and picked Colin Farrell over George Clooney (what?) and voila... I'm a Bombshell.

Also, keep in mind that Julep has a few coupon codes for the Maven program floating around.  I think there is one on Facebook, and also, when I took the quiz, I got a code in my email box to for 1/2 off my first month.  Unfortunately, I had already joined by that point, and I'm still trying to see if I can get that retroactively applied.  So be sure to check for those codes before joining.  

Even with paying full price, I still think this is a great deal.  I know Julep polishes get a bit of a bad rap for being such a small amount (.27 oz, compared to .5 for OPI), but as I have NEVER used a full bottle of polish, I think I'm good.  LOL.  Plus, there are other goodies, and 20% off all other items that you order (I am eyeing Stella) and free shipping (which when I get free shipping, I feel like I've won the lottery, so that's awesome!).

And, if you refer your friends to Julep, you will get $15 when they become a Maven as well.  You can join the Julep Maven program on their website, or by clicking here.

I paid for my own membership to the Maven program.  However, the links within this post are affiliate links.  I will receive $15 when you join by using my link.  When you join, you will get your own link.