Review & Swatches: Julep Maven's Stefani

Stefani was the other polish in my August Julep American Beauty box (the other is Dakota which I reviewed yesterday). Stefani is described as a "Gold Flecked Grey Metallic" on the Julep website.

Can you see the gold flecks in this picture? It was really hard to capture them but they are there! So pretty.

Stefani applied to my nails like a dream. This is the perfect colour for fall, a moody stormy grey. My mom told me I looked like the wicked witch with these on but I like it (and that's all the matters right?) It looks like a metallic version of Nars Storm Bird. Unlike some of the other polishes from this month's Julep box this one didn't make my ridges stand out too much.

Overall Rating: 4.75/5 I love this polish and I see myself wearing this a TON this fall. The only thing to be careful of is make sure to use a base coat as this is a dark polish and it will stain your nails if you don't.

Review & Swatches: Julep Maven's Dakota

Dakota was one of the two polishes in the August American Beauty box which I switched to from my usual Boho Glam box (which I never actually like to receive, I always switch...) Dakota is described as a "Rose Gold Metallic Chrome" on the Julep website. I've been loving rose gold lately so I thought this would be perfect for fall.

I really had high hopes for this one, and honestly was a little disappointed with the colour payoff. This was definitely more copper than rose gold in my opinion and I really didn't like it on my nails. It just looked blah next to my pale skin tone and it really showed off the flaws in my nails.

Overall Rating: 3/5 I didn't dislike this as much as Felicity but I still prefer Sienna and tomorrows polish, Stefani to any of the others I received this month.

I really like the idea of Julep, and I love love love that you can preview/switch your boxes to colours you like and if there are none that you want you can just skip a month. I think in terms of value Julep delivers every month, while other beauty subscriptions leave me feeling let down some months.

Review & Swatches: Julep's Felicity

I added on Felicity to my August Julep Maven box because I needed a 3rd colour. Felicity is described as a yellow-gold metallic chrome which I think describes this polish perfectly. This is my lease favorite of all the polishes I received in August.

Unlike Essie's Good as Gold, this is a much brighter gold almost too bright for my tastes. I find it feels a little too 'Vegas Show Girl', not a look I'm dying to project. Even after two coats of this you could still see my nail, something I've never had with Julep polishes.

Overall Rating: 3/5 I think I'm going to relegate this polish to accents, such as dots or hearts on my nails. Having my whole hand painted in this is just a bit too much.

Review & Swatches: Julep's Sienna

So this is the last add on I got with my August Julep Maven subscription and it is described as a sophisticated gold metallic. The only thing I don't love about this polish is that it's a little gritty to take off, more like a sparkle polish then a metallic.

This is a gorgeous shade, kind of like a mix between silver and gold giving your nails a really sophisticated look. Honestly I couldn't stop admiring my nails with this colour on, it's going to be amazing for fall. I achieved bottle colour with two coats.

As you can see in the picture above you can see the ridges on my nails (especially my thumb) but it doesn't make it stand out as much as Felicity does. This truly is just a gorgeous colour, I can't get enough of it. 

Overall Rating: 4.75/5 the only thing that I don't love about this is the amount of scrubbing it took to get it off my nails.

Review & Swatches: Julep's Alfe

I decided to add on 3 extras to my August Julep Maven box and Alfe was one of them. Alfe was part of the Classic with a Twist box and is described as a royal metropolitan purple metallic. I would describe it as a cool, silver toned purple metallic.

Alfe applied very smoothly though you could see noticeable brush strokes from it. It's a very cool toned purple, with a definite silver tint to it. It has a metallic sheen to it and if your nails have any ridges (like mine do) it makes these flaws more apparent.  Like most Julep polishes it reaches bottle colour in two coats.

   
I can't say that this is my favorite colour I received in August from my Julep Subscription, this also isn't my least favorite. It's just not a colour I would choose to wear on a regular basis. 

Overall rating: 3.5/5 while it applies easily I really don't like how it magnified flaws in my nails or the fact that brush strokes where so visible. 

Review and Swatches: Essie's Cute as a Button

I picked this colour up on a whim, as I really really don't need more nail polish (thank you Julep Maven) but when these went on sale for $7.99 at Shoppers Drug Mart I couldn't resist. Normally these retail for around $12 depending on where you buy it from and this is the cheapest I've see it (other than buy one get one deals around boxing day).

This is a really cute summery pink/coral colour. Perfect for summer days by the beach or pool. This is definitely going into my regular rotation of nail polish colours. I think I'll turn to this when I want a less intense pink than OPI's Strawberry Margarita.

The one thing that bugs me about buying these at Shoppers is that the packaging is slightly different than if I get this a beauty supply store. There's a sticker on the top with the name (most times it comes on the bottom) and a white Essie sticker on the side that I always peel off because it looks tacky.

Rating:

Packing: 4/5 There is nothing wrong with the packaging per se, it's just nothing to write home about.
Pigmentation: 5/5 I got the bottle colour with two coats
Texture: 5/5 This is a nice creamy polish
Longevity: n/a*
Application: 4/5 I prefer OPI's larger brush, but nothing particularly bad about the smaller brush.

Overall I would recommend this colour, it's a perfect summer polish. This would look great on toes as well. Overall Rating: 4.5/5

* I can't wear nail polish to work so I only wear polish on the weekends. Sorry I can't test this for wear time. 

Nail Love

On my nails are Julep's Daphne and Mila polishes for a bit of a twist on the french manicure. I received both colours in my July Julep Maven box, which I will post about once I've tested the colours a bit more. So far I'm loving them though :)