Julep Maven Intro Box & Program Review

Good morning lovelies! Today I have my first Julep Maven box to show you all. Now there has been a lot of drama behind the Julep brand, but before we get in to that & my thoughts on the whole situation, let's check out the polish!

If you aren't familiar with the Julep Maven program, it is a monthly subscription based program started by a salon located in Washington state. When you first sign up, you take a "style" quiz that will determine what colors will be selected for your box. Every month, you get an email with your color choices, which you can opt out of if you don't like them. You also get a few extra goodies, like skin care or manicure essentials, or glitter! Along with your box picks, you can selected add-ons at a greatly reduced price.

 

My introductory box packaged all pretty.

 

 

Julep (Boho Glam) - Toni

 

Toni is a purple leaning dusty taupe cream. At first I didn' think I would like this color, but after I put it on, I changed my mind. It ended up being very flattering. It is a very pigmented polish and I needed just barely 2 coats. I could have gone with just one, but I can't help myself. Formula was excellent, thin, and flowy. The only issue I had, was the dry time was on the longer side. The bottle design has been a big complaint & I can see why. While they are pretty to look at, the long skinny design isn't very practical. It can pose a problem with tipping over (tho I haven't done that) & the brush is a bit longer, which can cause random drips, if you aren't careful.

 

 

Julep (Boho Glam) - Michelle

 

Michelle is a dark, muted navy cream. I am such a sucker for blue polish & this one is not an exception! Exact same formula as Toni, and even a bit more pigmented. I had some staining around my cuticles when I removed it.

 

 

Julep Cuticle Oil

 

The cuticle oil was the nail care item in the box & I can say, that I am so happy that it was! Love this stuff! It works really well, and smells like fruity pebbles! Also, a little goes a long way. I use it every day after I shower, and wash the dishes or give my daughter a bath. It also has a roller ball! I can't believe more oils don't come packaged this way. I never get oil all over my hands anymore.

 

 

 

 

Here's a break down of the pros & cons of the Maven program:

 

Pros:

 

- Nice selections of colors

- Fun packaging & extras

- Good price ($20 a month, plus add on polishes are $5. First box is $.01 cent with code PENNY)

- Flexible program

 

Cons:

 

- Previous drama with customer service

- Pricey w/o subscription ($14 for 8ml)

- Bottle design flaw

 

A lot of people are anti-Julep as they had a pretty big scandal involving Maven rewards (you can read more about it on The PolishAholic. From what I have found, it seems that Julep has since made up for that mistake and work very hard to keep current Mavens happy. I can honestly say that I did a lot of research before making the decision to sign up & I am very glad that I did. Thank goodness for the polish community! For me, it's always fun to get Nail Mail, and that's a big part of the reason I signed up. Also, I honestly wanted to try out the brand for myself, & for now, I am pretty happy!