Julep - August 2013

GARDEN PARTY COLLECTION
FULL UPGRADE

Welcome to Cookie's Garden Party! Here we have a delectable arrangement of blossoming beautiful polishes and products. From soft and subtle shades to vivacious brights, there's a color for everyone. So grab a basket, it's time to do some polish pickin'!

Speaking of baskets, this is what I have in mine this month! (Yes, yes, I know it's a box...just be nice and play along, sheesh!) 

This month is a gorgeous Garden Party theme and you would THINK it sounds very Spring, but the colors definitely surprised me as I think they could be a beautiful mix of all four seasons! A whole garden throughout the year combined into one box. 

and here the little fascinating flowers are....

 See what an absolutely stunning variety there is? 

What I really love about them is that this particular collection looks even better ON the nails than it does in the bottle! They're also each so lovely in a very unique way, in my opinion.  

A very special feature of this month is that it's Julep's two year anniversary of their Julep Maven program! 

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY JULEP MAVEN!

In celebration of this, Julep had a special limited edition add-on for this box consisting of these three fabulous polishes in a set. You will get to see these polishes below!

     

On to the beauty products for this month!....

MOISTURE MASK TRIO

"Smooth your hands, soften your feet, and nourish your nails with these easy-to-use hydrating masks. Each Trio includes three single-use treatments: Nail Moisture Mask, Hand Moisture Mask, and Foot Moisture Mask." - from julep.com

First of all, I positively ADORE masks of any kind. Spa day at home, aaaaabsolutely YES! So I was very excited to try these out.

 Here are the individual packets with the masks inside. 

HANDS:

All of the masks are made with dual-layer sheets. One is the inner fibrous sheet with the lotion inside and an outer layer made of plastic material to lock the moisture in. The Hand mask are shaped like gloves that you just slip on and close shut on the wrists by using a sticky tab and pulling across to tighten and tape shut. It's recommended use is about 20-30 minutes. I absolutely loved the hand masks, albeit it was a STRANGE feeling to have them on. However, they were still touchscreen phone and laptop mousepad friendly! I had no trouble whatsoever scrolling and tapping through the mask. Immediately upon removing, I rubbed my hands together to work in the remaining moisture as there was quite a bit inside the gloves. Afterwards my hands felt slightly sticky, but not terribly so. The next day though, goodness! did my hands feel soft! I also noticed how smooth the skin appeared in the direct sunlight. I definitely wouldn't mind trying these again!

NAILS:

The Nail Mask, instead of the gloves, were tiny little finger sleeves that fit over each finger and extended up to right between the distal and proximal interphalangeal joints. As cute as these were, I did feel the need to constantly readjust them to make sure they felt secure and weren't going to slip off (which you wouldn't think would happen since my fingers aren't slender and tiny!) Once again, the recommended use is 20-30 minutes. Afterwards I rubbed in the remaining lotion, and noticed that my fingertips felt nice and soft, although a bit wrinkly! The next day though, I was a bit surprised to see my cuticles were peeling a bit. I thought for sure that would seriously moisturize them, not peel them. They didn't look as dry, but still. For future use, I'd probably exfoliate them very very well before using the mask, and see if that helps.

FEET:

Ehhhhh....well, I was a brave girl and tried them. ::giggles:: Being a dancer, I'm not keen on pedis or having my feet touched or pampered in any way. I proudly wore pointe shoes for years and now proudly teach pointe, as well as modern/jazz (barefoot), etc, so I LIKE to keep my calluses and toughness. HOWEVER, I wanted to give you a good all-around review, so I slipped those babies on! It just like putting socks on, you slip them right over your feet (same material and dual-layer as the Hand Mask), and secure it closed on the ankle with the sticky tab as well. It felt SO weird! Haha! Definitely an odd sensation, having lotion between your toesies and all over your foot. I left it on for 30 minutes, but before the 20 minute mark I started to get a tad uncomfortable. Because of the material and lotion, it made my feet very cold, and since it HAS lotion in it, I didn't want to put a blanket or anything over it. Now, I keep my house fairly cool, so you may not have the same problem as I. I'd actually recommend maybe getting some large socks that you can put on OVER the mask if your feet start to feel a little chilled. I think I prefer pedi fuzzy socks with the aloe and oils, they seem much more comfortable, however this mask definitely made my feet feel very soft! Even 24 hours later after walking around all day! 

CONCLUSION:

I probably won't be purchasing this Trio, unfortunately, only because I really only liked the hand gloves, plus I don't like the fact that I only get one mask of each per pack. I feel for the price and for what it's for, there should be at least two of each type (hands, nails, feet) in the set. It is excellent for a spa day though, and would probably make an excellent item in a gift basket for bridesmaids, besties, etc!

DOUBLESTEP FOOT TREATMENT AND FRICTION STICK

"This no-mess shea butter treatment nourishes and moisturizes feet, stimulates circulation, and prevents blisters." - from julep.com

Well....::sigh::....I try so hard to be easy-going, positive, upbeat and creative when it comes to products that other people might not like or might have difficulty with...but I'm at a loss with this one. Where to begin...first of all, mine is broken. You see that ridged twister at the bottom? As you probably know, you twist it to make the product go up and down, well mine doesn't. It twists and twists and the product stays stuck exactly where you see it in this picture. I tried twisting it a LOT in both directions, then at some point I turned it upside down and the inside product fell right out! I then looked at the inside to see what might be wrong and I can't see anything out of the ordinary! I put the product back in and now it doesn't even pop out as much as it did in this picture, so it's flat against the rim. That means if I want to ever use this product I have to use my fingertips to apply or take the product out and put it back in again. ::le sigh:: What's worse, is that this stick did nothing for me anyhow! It has the consistency of a stick deodorant, and I tried putting a good layer on my heel where a particular pair of shoes of mine rubs against and can cause blisters and guess what....I got a blister! I also tried using it ON the blister afterwards and no dice...I didn't notice a difference at all. Neosporin ended up working much better as usual. I also tried this all over my foot as a moisturizer and there wasn't any difference with that as well, neither on top of my foot nor bottom. Then again, I DO have rougher feet from dancing, so your results may vary from mine, but as I said....personally, I'm at a loss with this product. I'm even one of the Julep Mavens that ended up loving the DD Cream that they sent out in a monthly box a few months ago that practically everyone disliked! It's hard to disappoint me, but by golly....::speechless::....this was one of the hardest items I've ever tried to review!

BONUS ITEM - FORGET-ME-NOT SEEDS

While I think the idea of these seeds as a reminder of how Julep has grown in these two years is great and it DOES go perfectly with the Garden Party theme....I'm just not excited about them. I am not a gardener, nor do I ever really do any gardening. I also live in a very hot, very humid city where it's difficult to grow plants. Not that Forget-Me-Nots are hard to grow, from what I understand they are a very hardy flower....I think the heat and humidity may have been more of a Things-Cookie-can't-stand comment! ::Teehee:: I will be gifting these to my wonderful Mama who can grow anything she desires as she has the greenest green thumb that I know! (Seriously, her green peppers and azaleas are AH-mazing!) 

Now on to the polish profiles! Which bouquet would you pick?

BOHO GLAM - LOIS & FRANCIS

Lois (top) - dusty rose frost

Francis (bottom) - celery green creme

First off is my chosen profile that was recommended for me by Julep! I have yet to not be just enamored over the Boho Glam picks, as I find them to be unique, unusual and so charming. I love how these two are so different but look so amazing with each other, and certainly fit the theme excellently. Soft, delicate, but whimsical. 

I am the saddest Cookie that I had to cut down my nails so far, as my pointer finger nail was ripped off! I couldn't even stand to file the rest down as short as her, so for now, they are a bit uneven, I do apologize. As per usual, I used two coats in all of my swatch photos and as you can see Francis is an excellent two-coater but Lois is a bit thin and definitely streaky. If you don't mind having your polishes be a bit see-through you'd probably be happy with three coats for her, but I'd venture to go with four for full opacity and to help with streaking. Francis is not as thick as some Julep cremes are, and it glided on smoothly and easily evened out. Lois was, as I said, a bit on the thin side, but I did not have any issues with pooling or runnyness. 

BOMBSHELL - BEA & LACEY

Bea (left) - lemonade creme

Lacey (right) - midnight blue with purple shimmer

Can I mention how fascinated and excited I was that Bea matched the teensy flower on the tip of the flower in this picture? I'm much too easily amused, methinks. Anyhow! Another outstandingly gorgeous couple for this collection, Bea and Lacey suit each other perfectly as they are complimentary colors. I do love the contrast between the soft and smooth and deep, dark and shimmery! I can see a day and night in the garden mood here, which I think is divine.

Bea turned out to be a bit lighter on the nail than it looks in the bottle, but I love it! It's a perfect soft pastel yellow. It's a tad dull once on the nail (as you can see in the picture, but I did not add any top coat as I wanted you to see what the colors look like by themselves) but I think a good shiny top coat or even nice matte coat would enhance it immensely. I think two coats works just fine for decent opacity. My pointer finger nail is a bit ridgy towards the tip which made it smear and thin a bit in that one spot, but without that I had no problems. If you do have ridged nails, then I'd recommend a good ridge filler base coat before using this shade. I think the consistency of the creme formula was excellent though! Not too thin and not too thick! As for Lacey, it is showing up a tad bit darker in this picture than it does in real life. The shimmer is much more apparent than you can see here. This is a super-easy two coater and it evened out perfectly and dried quickly. 

CLASSIC WITH A TWIST - SYLVIA & VERONICA

Sylvia (top) - lilac purple creme

Veronica (bottom) - modern mauve creme

 This month's Classic with a Twist couple are much brighter and more colorful! Both cremes and analogous colors, they blend so nicely as a pair. Classic with a Twist is probably one of my favorites in this month's box!

LOVE IT. Sylvia is so incredible vivid and it goes on a bit darker than what the bottle looks like. Two coats were perfect for full opacity, you might even be OK with just one. The formula was excellent as well, very very easy to work with. Veronica was a bit trickier formula-wise, you just have to take your time with it, but it still evened out well and was opaque in two coats. 





IT GIRL - MARJORIE, NELLIE & FIORE

Marjorie (bottom) - citrus orange frost
Nellie (middle) - pink fuschia creme
Fiore (top) - espresso brown creme

These three make the perfect Summer into Fall set and compliment each other so well! A special note on Fiore...as most of you might know, Julep uses girl's names for their polishes...so you might be thinking: Fiore? Is that really a girl's name? Well not quite but it does have special significance! It's named after the coffee shop that was close by the original location of Julep that the Julep employees use to hang out at! So this too, like the Champagne Trio, is a special celebration for the Maven 2 year anniversary! Check out this video here for more info:

  Isn't that sweet? and oh my goodness, how much do I WANT some COFFEE now!

Nellie matched my flowers perfectly! (See what I mean? Easily amused). Majorie is positively beautiful, and was a bit on the thicker side for a frost. It only needed two coats for decent opacity, but you could even use three slightly thinner coats if you wanted. Nellie applied like a dream, evened out excellently and could easily have been a one-coater, but I went ahead and went with two to give it a brighter hue. Fiore is actually SO much prettier in person than it photographs. It looks much more brown in real life, but for some reason in all the pictures, it looks black-ish. When you hold your hand further away, though, it does look quite dark. I still love it! The formula wasn't as nice as Nellie, but I still had no problems with pooling, streaks, etc. It's a tad trickier to clean up though, so it's best to work slowly. I can imagine it would be stunning with some stamping on top! It Girl is a wonderful trio this month!





FEATURED ADD-ON - THE CHAMPAGNE TRIO

Amity (Friendship) - Classic with a Twist - white gold metallic
 Clio (Celebration) - Bombshell - silver, pink & lavender multidimensional glitter
Reiko (gratitude) - It Girl - rose gold metallic

Here is the divine special 2 year anniversary set for Julep Maven and couldn't you just DIE with this sophistication? This limited edition trio all have a special silver cap, instead of the standard black glossy cap, and are even named with certain meaning...

"We created this limited-edition trio to celebrate the second anniversary of the Julep Maven program. We chose these gorgeous polish names to share our joy at having reached this milestone, our appreciation for everyone who helped us get there, and the connection we feel with our Mavens." - from julep.com

On my pointer and middle fingernails are Amity, and on my ring and pinky, are Reiko. Then I put Clio on top of Reiko and Amity on the ring and middle fingers. Amity is a gorgeous white gold, but it is THIN. You may need a good four coats to reach nice opacity, but I still think it's gorgeous. I think it'd even look lovely OVER other polishes as a top coat. Reiko was much easier to work with as it only required two coats to be opaque. It's positively stunning in person! 

Here is a better look at the gorgeous Clio! This is ONLY one generous coat! It is packed with glittah! As you can see, it has multiple sizes, but it spreads very equally and evenly, which I really love. When I brushed it over Reiko and Amity, I pressed harder and did several strokes so it thinned it out a bit in order to see the color underneath. You can choose to either wear it this thick or thin it out some! Adore! This by far, is my favorite glitter than I've ever received from Julep!

WORTH AND PURCHASE:

Moisture Mask Trio:  $20

• Or $16 for Maven subscribers

Doublestep Foot Treatment and Friction Stick:  $22

• Or $17.60 for Maven subscribers

Forget-Me-Not seeds packet:  

• Not for sale on julep.com, but average price of seed packets are:  $0.50

Nail Polishes (not including add-on): $14 each (9 total) =  $126

• Or for Maven subscribers - $11.20 each = $100.80

The Champagne Trio:  $42

• Currently on sale for $28!

Total Paid for Box:  $54.99*

Total Worth of Box:   $210.50

*I used my Julep Jules (points) on The Champagne Trio, so it was free. If not, I believe it was an extra $15 on top of the $54.99 ($69.99 total). The box by itself is $19.99 (single profile), then it's an extra $35 to upgrade, plus any additional add-ons! Still! Getting this whole box worth over $200 for around $70 is still a bargain!

FINALE

What a fabulous box and theme this month! I think the variety of colors and the unusual products really made for a fun and interesting month. I'm so excited to see a theme that ISN'T beach related finally, as well! I was a tad disappointed in the beauty products and beauty extras (doesn't Julep know I wouldn't mind some fabulous nail tools, or more lipsticks?!), however they still were lots of fun to try out! I'm already looking forward to next month's box!

Happy Makeuping and Polishing! ::goes off to pick more flowers::

Love, Cookie