March Julep Maven Box & Sunday Manicure<3

Yesterday I received my second Maven box from Julep, and again I was completely happy and satisfied with the colors I received and the beauty product as well as the free gift! I get excited for the box to arrive, I think it is so fun! What I received in my box was: Rock Star Hand Cream, Strawberry Mint Lip Balm, and 2 nail polishes: Minnie & Adrianna….both are really pretty spring colors! I have tried out the Rock Star Hand Cream- it leaves my hands feeling so soft and moisturized, but I am not too fond of the smell. I have also used the lip balm which I LOVE! I liked the other lip balm I received in my first box as well, it was a different kind, but I love both….I am really picky when it comes to lip balms and lip gloss so I was shocked, yet happy that I liked the Julep lip balm I received.

Today I decided to try out one of the colors, Minnie, so I gave myself a manicure and tried it out….I adore this color! It is perfect for the spring time!! I chose to paint my nails this color, and then for the accent nail I painted Essie’s “Beyond Cozy” over it. I absolutely love it! I can not wait to try out the other Julep color I received in this months Maven box- Adrianna, I will be posting about it when I do try it. The only downside I have found with the Julep polish I tried today was that it seems to be really thick!! Other than that I am a happy camper 🙂

ULTA Mini Haul & My Nails this past week…

On Sunday I had to go and get my taxes done, which I was DREADING to do! Luckily I found an amazing accountant who helped me get money back rather than having to owe (like I thought I would have to!) After I was done with that I stopped by ULTA to get a hair product I use everyday by Oscar Blandi- Glossing Cream (which I mentioned in a previous post), and while I was there I came across O.P.I.’s Euro Centrale collection. I decided to purchase the Euros Mini collection set, which I got for $12.95 (US). I was going to just purchase two colors I had been eyeing, the “Suzi’s Hungary AGAIN” and “You’re Such a Budapest”…but then I saw it would just be cheaper to buy the mini collection set, which includes BOTH of these colors along with two others. All of the colors that are in the mini collection set are:

Suzi’s Hungary AGAIN!- a yummy pink

You’re such a Budapest- periwinkle purple

Can’t Find My Czechbook- aqua

OY-Another Polish Joke!- shimmery gold

I have yet to try any of them out, but I plan on doing so the next time I paint my nails (tomorrow or Thursday probably.) I will do a post with a picture at that time 🙂

After I went to ULTA I decided to go get a manicure, only because I honestly hate shaping my own nails….I feel like if I tried my nails would turn out looking disgusting, so I’d rather let a professional do it. I guess I should have just done them myself because I had the WORST manicure ever! This guy did not know what he was doing, first of all- he was SO rough when filing and buffing my nails, I thought he would end up breaking one of them and during my arm/hand massage he was so rough and not gentle at all, second of all- he made my cuticles bleed like they have never bled before…and not just one, but about 6 of them! I wanted to cry….my cuticles looked better BEFORE I had gone in then when I left there, and that is not how it should be…especially when you pay money to get them done. He also got little fuzzies on the white polish from my french manicure that dried with the polish and are still on my nails AND an hour after I left two of my nails where already chipped! I complained to the manager before I paid but all he said was sorry and he would make sure I got somebody different next time…cmon! I should not have had to pay for that manicure….it was horrible and I literally was in pain when I left…my cuticles still hurt and sting and bleed and are all red…they look disgusting! Never again!!

Here is my “good” hand (the one with the least amount of mistakes and bleeding cuticles):

and the “bad” hand:

You see what a horrible job this guy did?! My poor cuticles 😦 they look disgusting!

Here are what my nails looked like PRIOR to this horrible manicure, and the polish that I did myself- The gold is called “Kathleen” bu Julep, and the Black Crackle is O.P.I.’s Black Shatter. I applied 2 coasts of “Kathleen” and then waited a few minutes and then applied the “Black Shatter” followed by a top coat (Fast Forward by China Glaze, of course ;P hehe.) I should have just left my nails like this and not even bothered to get a manicure done by someone, but I was wanting a french manicure and am horrible at giving myself one.

I guess I learned my lesson ;D

Why So Blue?

I was not sure what to do with my nails on Sunday when I got ready to paint them for the up-coming work week…I was so indecisive. I tried a couple colors out but was not feeling it at the time so finally I decided to paint them previous color combo I tried a few months ago and loved. It does remind me a little of winter time but it is super pretty!

I painted my nails first with O.P.I.’s Nail Envy (2 coats) and then once that dried I painted them with Essie- Where’s My Chauffeur- a really pretty turquoise (2 coats) which retails at $8.00 US, once that dried I painted over with one coat of China Glaze- Optical Illusion (not sure how much I paid for this one), and then finished it off with a topcoat by China Glaze called Fast Forward (this is my go to top coat because it literally makes my nails dry in 5 minutes AND it smells good!)

Here is the final outcome:

First Julep Box Has Arrived!!!

I was SO excited yesterday to come home from a long dreadful day at work to receiving my first ever Julep box! Yes, I am now a Maven, so totally excited!! 🙂 I wasted no time with opening the box; there was a little note in the box that said “Welcome Maven” which just explains what Julep is, on the back of that there was a “Maven Tips” note that talks about what you get from being a Maven. I also received a cute little welcome card with my style type which is “Bombshell”- a confident thrill seeker an upbeat attitude, you love playful prints, fun cuts, and saturated colors. My polishes were wrapped up so cute in pink with a black bow around…super girly!

Here are the MAVEN TIPS:

Perks of being a Julep Maven: Mavens enjoy 20% off all products plus FREE shipping on julep.com

Want more each month: You can add on products to your Maven Box starting at just $4.99

Want to try a new style? No problem: Each month you will receive an e-mail from Julep previewing your upcoming Maven Box on the 20th of each month. Do nothing if you love what they have chosen for you. Want to try a new style, send your box to a friend, or skip the month? Just log in and contact them and let them know 🙂

There are 5 different styles, you can take a style quiz on the web site to help you determine what style you are OR you can just read each style description and choose which one is best for you. I took the quiz and got “Bombshell” but when I read the style profile it was a toss up between that and the “It Girl” which I may switch to at some point (with the It Girl you get 3 polishes instead of 2 polishes and another product which you get with the others.)

So now for the fun part! What was in my Julep box?

-Nail polish in the color “Kathleen”

-Nail polish in the color “Chelsea”

-Julep Essential Cuticle Oil

-Julep Daylight Defense Lip Balm with SPF 15 in vanilla mint (an extra goodie that was included in my starter box)

I already tried out the lip balm and cuticle oil and I am liking both! I absolutely LOVE the lip balm, which is weird because I usually hate lip balm or chap stick and only use lip gloss (from Victoria’s Secret only!) So me liking this lip balm was a shock to me, but I am glad I like it! It smells really good and leaves my lips feeling moistened and soft after and does not leave a bad taste if you accidently lick your lips or something. The cuticle oil is nice, I don’t love it, but I don’t hate it either! It does the job, but just not as good as another cuticle oil I am currently using….but I definitely will not let it go to waste 😉 I use cuticle oil once or twice a day so this will come in handy. When I try out the nail polishes I will be sure to do a review on it (hopefully sometime this week or this weekend!)

Want to SIGN UP to become a Maven as well? It is super easy to do, and only costs $19.99 a month to receive a box. Here is what will be included in your subscription if you choose to sign up (taken from the julep.com website):

• Hand-picked trendsetting new nail colors and cutting-edge beauty products that match your style profile and ship them directly to your front door
• Get three full-size products customized by season and style profile for only $19.99/month (up to a $50 value!)
• Be the first to hear about our favorite deals, new tips, and upcoming trends
• Unpack delightful surprises in every box
• Save 20% on everything in our store
• Enjoy free shipping on every order

To become a Maven yourself just CLICK HERE

Sunday Nail Color Choice….

My Sunday nail polish choice for the up-coming work week is “Zara” by Zoya. Zoya Nail Polish in Zara can be best described as: A vivid blue-toned light purple with strong golden duochrome shimmer. Gives a magical look to nails.

It is my first time trying this color out and I have to admit I am loving it!! It is a very pretty girly color and will be perfect for the spring time!

I bought this color at Ulta for $8.00(US) but you can order online at http://www.artofbeauty.com

Saturday Nail Polish Picks!

I usually paint my nails on Sunday for the upcoming work week (and have to change it mid week for the remainder of the work week) but I decided to do them today instead. I did not want to get the gel polish removed, they had not chipped AT ALL after 2 weeks of having it on, but the grow out I could see was bothering me, plus I was so anxious to try out the Zoya- Aurora nail polish I had ordered with the try 3 for free deal. So I went to a local nail place to have the gel removed, get a manicure, and have the polish on my toes changed.

My color pick for my finger nails: Zoya’s AURORA and STORM on my ring finger(s) (retails at $8 each)

My color pick for my toes: China Glaze’s CREATIVE FANTASY, part of the Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away collection (retails at $7.50)

Zoya Nail Polish Deal…3 for FREE!

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine who is a manicurist was doing my nails for me and told me about this amazing deal that Zoya was having at the time….it was this Try 3 for Free deal, and of course I was all about it! As soon as I got home I went to the http://www.artofbeauty.com website and began to look at all the colors they have, it was so hard narrow down my choices! At first my shopping cart had about 22 nail polishes, which I of course had to narrow down to only a few. I knew for a fact I wanted this one called “AURORA” because my friend had it on her nails when she was doing mine, and I absolutely fell in love with the color! It is stunningly gorgeous!! The others I chose were just on a whim and by looking at the pictures online (not the most accurate way to see the colors, but oh well.) So I ordered 4 nail polishes and got 3 for FREE, PLUS I got a nail polish remover as well as a 2013 Spring Color Chart of all the Zoya spring color, not to mention FREE shipping! I was one happy camper!!!

I was so anxious to get my nail polishes in the mail, luckily it only took about 6 days to get here (pretty good for free shipping.) As soon as I got home from work I tore open the package they came in to check everything out and take pictures of the polishes to post on here 🙂 I am pleased with almost all of the colors, although some look slightly different than the pictures I looked at and there are one or two I could have done without, but overall I am completely happy with my choices and this amazing deal.

 

 
All the nail polishes I got plus the nail polish remover:

Roxy:

Aria:

Mischa:

Zara:

Julieanne:

Aurora:

Anaka: