Julep Maven: try it for a PENNY!

 So I finally got a chance to try Julep nail polishes that I've been seeing so often around You Tube. I signed up for Julep Maven which is a monthly subscription service where you receive a box of new Julep nail polishes and beauty products each month. A good thing about this subscription service is that you are not committed to purchase/pay every month. You can choose to skip months. When you do choose to receive monthly Maven box, you get to choose one from five packages with different types of products. The monthly subscription is $19.99 per month but I was able to get my first Maven box only for a penny by using a promotional code (the promo code and link for you sign up for Julep Maven for a penny is posted at the end/bottom of this review post!) For Canadian residents, it really does cost just a penny to receive your first Maven box, but for U.S. residents it's a penny plus a small shipping fee. So here's what I received in my first Julep Maven box... (definitely worth more than a penny!)

I chose the package called "Classic with a Twist," which came with two creme nail polishes, a glycolic hand scrub, and a nail file. Classic with a Twist wasn't the package chosen for me by the survey given in process of signing up for Julep Maven. The survey result recommend Bombshell package for me but after looking into details of what products comes in each packages, I went with Classic with a Twist.

The nail polishes are pretty decent. I like how small sized they are, yet the applicators are similar to standard regular sized nail polishes. I don't actually end up finishing a lot of the nail polishes I purchase, there's just too much in each bottles for one person to finish using unless I only wear one color for few months. I sometimes like to buy those mini sized nail polishes, but the tiny applicators in those mini polishes makes application more difficult than it needs to be... So these Julep nail polishes are perfect solution to that little dilemma!

Kelly, the light baby pink color creme polish, applies bit streaky, but most light creme color polishes are like this... With three full coats, and a good top coat on top to even everything out, Kelly is such a pretty light pink color on the nails.

Anne, the violet-purple color creme polish, applies evenly and pigmented. Two full coats are enough to get the color that appears in bottle.

I throughly enjoyed both polish colors. Kelly is a perfect polish color for everyday work, job interviews, or anywhere where you need to appear polished and professional. Anne is a fun color to wear on couple of your finger nails as accent and/or lovely to wear on toe nails! A good top coat polish is a must for both: to even out and finish/polish up as well as extend the wear of colors. I wore SecheVite top coat which made my colors stay un-chipped and great looking until I removed them about a week later. *SecheVite top coat makes most nail polishes so much better than they would be without top coats or with other top coats. So since I used SecheVite on top of all my Julep nail polish applications, I can't confidently vouch for lasting power or strength of Julep nail polishes on their own.

The Glycolic Hand Scrub feels very much like Freeman Apricot Scrub but bit water down. I suppose the "water-down" part could be due to addition of glycolic acid? It's an okay hand scrub. It does the job of scrubbing your hands, rids rough dead skin cells, makes your hand softer than before you used it. But nothing extraordinary... (as in, no different from any other hand scrubs or Freeman Apricot Scrub)

Overall, my Intro Julep Maven Box that I got for a penny was definitely worth it! Would I pay $19.99 for it? Yes, I would! Which is why I chose to receive the next month's Maven Box. (You can cancel your subscription after receiving your first box for a penny which is what I initially planned on but upon being satisfied with the intro box I wanted to try another one) I chose American Beauty Maven box for month of May and below picture is what I received: two frosty nail polish colors (one being one of those magnetic polishes), Pedi Prep, a foot file, and a lovely makeup bag. For some odd reason that I can't figure out, the nail polish applicator brushes of these two polishes are different from the first two creme color polishes. The brushes on these ones are rough edged, not as smooth and fine as the other ones... Odd. I've emailed Julep inquiring about the difference... When I get a reply from Julep and have had chance to try all the May Maven box products, I'll post a follow up review.

If you want to receive your first Julep Maven Box for a penny, simply use the promo code "PENNY" during checkout after you sign up for Julep Maven. Here's a link where you can sign up for Julep Maven: http://julep.com