Julep August Mystery Box BOHO GLAM Review and Swatches

Ah, the illusive mystery box! I don't have the power to resist you. This month Julep released not one but FIVE different categories of mystery boxes. Each category is based on the different style profiles such as It Girl, Bombshell, Boho Glam, American Beauty, and Classic With A Twist. Each category will only have polishes from that style and there will be no cross overs. Julep Mystery boxes cost $19.95 and contain items worth $60-$200 dollars! Considering the polish alone at Sephora is close to $15 dollars each, these are a steal.

I decided to buy one of each! The final one to arrive was Boho Glam.This box was a happy medium of everything i expect in a mystery box. Product, tools, and polish. Who's ready for a fall pedicure? I am! The toe separators hare both colorful and work perfectly! The giant file is perfect for imperfect feet. It is also much easier to hold on to than the ped-egg (such a fail). The Best Pedi Prep Ever makes my feet feel so soft and combined with the foot file my feet actually look like they did pre-mommy hood.

This right here is the power couple. Want soft, callous free feet, here are your tools! Pick them up as a bundle here!

Time for fall ready colors?

What i received in my Boho Glam mystery box.

Julep Blake, Michelle, and Alyson.

For some reason many of the polishes i have been getting have had the lable on the side. I hate this.

Michelle-
A deep, opaque, navy. This is the perfect nail shade for a nautical themed outfit (in my opinion). This picture is shown with only one swipe. Yes these colors are that pigmented. One other note, if you have seen/heard about Ciate's velvet you can use this color as a dupe for their navy and just use matching flocking powder to create your own Julep Velvet nails. Find flocking here! (apply one coat of polish, let dry, apply a thick coat to one nail at a time, sprinkle flocking powder over the tops of the nails while wet and press gently let dry, do not use a top coat)

Blake-
A creamy, pastel, yellow. This yellow is so soft it will look great on any skin tone. It is a little less pigmented than other shades i've tried. Two coats gets this shade mostly even. I got a little messy with it so excuse my pictures. This looks like a great shade for spring, Easter, accent nail, or stamped on a darker color. It is also just soft enough to still give a pop of color to fall.

Alyson-
A nice and neutral taupe. This brownish nude is great for days when you decide to wear a smoky eye and nude lip. (Am i the only one who matches makeup with other parts of my outfit?) I was able to achieve full color with only one swipe.

I have noticed some blogger's complaining about chipping. The solution is to swipe a top coat on the tips of your nails everyday and touch up with a full top coat every 2-3 days depending on how much you use your hands for cleaning etc. Of course always use a base coat.

In case you don't know what Julep is, it is a nail polish subscription service where every month, delivered free to your door, is a box filled with polish, products, and other goodies. Each box is worth at least 40$. Why pay almost 20$ each at Sephora for these when you can have a beautiful box filled with multiple polishes and products for 20$? Plus being a Maven (what you are once you sign up) you are given a discount on all polishes through the Maven boutique or add on polishes for only $4 dollars! Best of all you can get your first box for only a PENNY use promo code PENNY! Sign up here!

Lime Crime- The Grand Copycat Brand

Just a few moments ago i published a post about my drugstore disappointments, click here if you haven't seen it yet.  This post is to address an on going issues i have with Lime Crime. For a while now i have been posting about my issues and problems with the brand that range from selling vastly over priced shadows that are just pigments they bought from TKB trading that have been relabeled (some are selling for more than 5 times their worth), Liquid Eyeliner being sold for $14 dollar in sample sized bottles .04 oz vs .24 oz for a normal (L'oreal brand liquid liner, thats SIX times less product!!!!!!!), Nail Polishes sized at .3 oz which is also sample sized, and now they are blantly copying drugstore brands (isn't that a little backwards???)

After buying a Covergirl palette called Tropical Fusion, which has been out since 2008, i noticed it looked very similar to Lime Crime's Aquateania Palette (released 2012). How similar? These are the exact same colors! The only difference is Lime Crime is a little more pigmented and they added an additional purple. I know brands can draw inspiration from seasons (most brands doing purple for fall), or color themes (like pairing yellow and purple (complimentary colors), but this is straight out copying!

These colors are so similar that when swatched the Covergirl simply looks like a blended out/lightened version of Palette Aquateania. While Covergirl is crap, Aquateania blends well, has great pigmentation and, has little fall out. Still this is all no excuse!

This is pretty blatant copying. Covergirl Tropical Fusion vs. Lime Crime Aquateania Palette.

This is pretty blatant copying. Covergirl Tropical Fusion vs. Lime Crime Aquateania Palett

This is pretty blatant copying. Covergirl Tropical Fusion vs. Lime Crime Aquateania Palett

If you want the same colors as the Aquateania palette, Tropical Fusion would make a good dupe but be prepared to work hard at making it work. Lots of primer, a fan brush to remove fall out, and patience for the hard work of making this blend.

Drugstore Dissapointment

It feels a little soon to talk about drugstore dissapointments when i just talked about fabulous finds, or maybe they even each other out, either way this is going to be a post of meh.

Let me start off by saying i am a sucker for a good cupon, buy one get 1, 50% off, even 20% off. When i found a $3 dollar off any two covergirl products i was pretty happy. My local Duane Read is severly overpriced and leaves me little option or desire to try new things when i know they may not live up to the quality. Why pay $10 dollars for covergirl lipstick that may be terrible when you can pay $15 (MAC has raised their prices again) for a high quality one. Don't get me wrong some Covergirl has great products, their foundation and face powder are great. I even recently fell in love with one of there lipsticks, but just one. So i figured, maybe, just maybe, i would try something new and be blown away. It is that kind of expectation that really makes one fall hard.


Covergirl Tropical Fusion 205 Eyeshadow Palette-
I chose this palette for it's tropical look and well it was suggested in the magizine i got the cupon for. They wouldn't reccomend a completely crap product would they? Yes of course they would. Now to be complrelty fair if you like very low pigmented, unblendable, soft, fall-outty (this is so bad i am making up terms now!) eyeshadow, then this is for you! If you have bought this and had great luck with it then maybe i just got a bad one, but i would not recomend this to anyone.

In order to make these swatches visible, since they are very sheer except for the last blue, i had to use a sponge applicator since a brush wouldn't pick up the color. These are over primer and with about 4 coats of color. There is a difference between sheer, and little to no pigment. This palette color range does not seem something that someone would want sheer color for, maybe if one was sheer as a lid base, but this fails on all levels. Not to mention that there was quite a bit of fall out as you can see on the bottom of blue, i tried to wipe it all away but apparently i missed some. These colors do not blend well, i tried to make them lead into one another but they kind of just sat on top of each other. I guess each color alone, advertised as sheer or hint of color (which they were not). I would have had a less harsh opinion on these. So if you like the colors and are willing to work hard to make these work, pick this up. If not pick up it's over priced, but higher pigmented twin Aquataenia from Lime Crime.

Covergirl Tropical Fusion Eyeshadow Palette swatch. Swatched over primer without flash.

Covergirl Tropical Fusion Eyeshadow Palette swatch. Swatched over primer without flash

On a side note, in the store i kept having this gut feeling like i shouldnt get this palette, not only because i was so iffy on the qaulity but also because i felt like i had it. Like the exact same colors, arranged very similaryly. Once i got home i figured it out, it is the exact same palette colors as in Lime Crimes Aquetaenia. You will be hearing a rant from me about that shortly after i post this!

 Covergirl Perfect Blend Pencil in Cobalt Blue-
To go along with my crap palette i decided to buy a blendable blue eyeliner. I have been getting into the smokey look latly just to step out of my bold, pop of color, comfort zone. While this color looks amazing as a liner, it is a matte navy blue, the smudge brush, which actualy is just a sponge applicator disguised as a smudge brush does nothing. It does not blend, it does not smudge it does not make smokey. What does it do? Well it kind of removes the color. It would make a great makeup mistake corrector. Isn't that sad? This product doesn't do what it says it will, and half of it will remove itself. It's almost as if it is aware of it's own bad quality. While it is a pretty color, it is very dry and tugged at my eyelid. I also had to go over the line 3 times to achive full opaque color. This would have worked if it was softer. It would have felt better on the lid and also would have been bendable.
 

 Covergirl Perfect Blend Pencil in Cobalt Blue

 Covergirl Perfect Blend Pencil in Cobalt Blue

 Covergirl Perfect Blend Pencil in Cobalt Blue, blend end.

 Covergirl Perfect Blend Pencil in Cobalt Blue, pencil end.

 Covergirl Perfect Blend Pencil in Cobalt Blue swatch without flash

 Covergirl Perfect Blend Pencil in Cobalt Blue after being "smudged" It did not blend at all, just got lighter.

 Covergirl Perfect Blend Pencil in Cobalt Blue after being "smudged" It did not blend at all, just got lighter.

There is a moral to this post. If you don't need it, don't love it, don't really want it, then don't use a cupon or sale, no matter the discount.

September Julep Maven Boxes

Maven's are you ready for this months box! This month Julep Mavens will be receiving colors designed by Trina Turk. They have a bit of a 60s feel to them and while i am not in love with every color i have found a few favorites within this collection and have chosen American Beauty with a few add on's. I, of course, can't wait to try the mascara! Also this month Mavens had the opportunity to purchase the entire collection for $30. Naturally it sold out quite quickly.

Would you like to get an awesome box of nail polish delivered to your door every month for only $20 dollars? Then sign up for Julep! It is only a PENNY for your first box. Use promo code PENNY! Click here!


Julep Maven September Boxes-

 

 If you are a Julep Maven which box did you choose? How do you feel about these colors? Excited about the mascara?

Julep August Mystery Box AMERICAN BEAUTY Review and Swatches

Ah, the illusive mystery box! I don't have the power to resist you. This month Julep released not one but FIVE different categories of mystery boxes. Each category is based on the different style profiles such as It Girl, Bombshell, Boho Glam, American Beauty, and Classic With A Twist. Each category will only have polishes from that style and there will be no cross overs. Julep Mystery boxes cost $19.95 and contain items worth $60-$200 dollars! Considering the polish alone at Sephora is close to $15 dollars each, these are a steal.

I decided to buy one of each! The fourth one to arrive was American Beauty. Now i know that there was quite a gap between this post and the last post and that was due to my post office reporting it delivered even though i never received it. Julep replaced the box (once again A+ customer service!) but the post office kept not delivering it. I am just glad i finally got it! This is the best box i have gotten so far since I love julep hand creams. This mystery box included Julep Age Defying Hand Brightener, Julep Glyoclic Hand Scrub, Julep Daylight Defense Lip balm, and the polishes Pippa, Natalie, and Amy.

Aren't these colors just gorgeous! The combination of all three remind me a bit of toned down 80's shades. When i saw them i already started to think of bright colored french tip manicures.

Pippa-
A creamy light beige. This is a great nude shade for the nails. I think it would make a perfect base color, perfect french manicure color, or just a color to offset some brighter colors. It was not streaky, dried fast, and this color swatch was achieved with one swipe!

Natalie-
A creamy soft coral pink. I like how soft this color looks on my nails. This applied creamy, evenly, and i was able to achieve this color in one swipe.

Amy-
My favorite of the three colors i received in this box. Creamy, dark, turquoise. I am not sure if it's because i am native American or because i love the color turquoise but i love this shade. As always this was creamy to apply, even coverage, and i was able to achieve an opaque coverage with only one stroke.

Julep Age Defying Hand Brightener, Julep Glyoclic Hand Scrub, and Julep Daylight Defense Lip balm-
I already have these from a mystery box i got in June. These are the perfect size to throw in your purse, the Glyoclic Hand scrub really exfoliates the hands and makes them feel soft. The Age Defying Hand Brightener made my hands look less worn especially after all the dishes and cleaning after my son. The Lip Balm is always good to have and it is a great base to use under drying lipsticks!

Are you a Julep Maven? Would you like to be? You can sign up now for only a PENNY. Click here and use promo code PENNY!

Fabulous Drugstore Finds

Earlier this week my mom came to visit. We headed out to Target where my mom decided to treat me to some cosmetics. I picked three items that i don't yet own and have been wanting to try for a while. As you may have noticed I've been on a more luxury brand kick but i will always love my drugstore steals. Thanks Mom!

L'oreal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Light-
Is it sad that i do not yet own a B.B. cream? I own every other kind of cover up, concealer, corrector, and foundation, but no B.B. cream. I was a bit skeptical over these all in one, do it all, magic face creams. My skepticism was put aside once i tried this out. If there was ever a product to break your B.B. cherry this is the one. This product appears white and feels a little grainy, however, as you rub it in it starts to change to skin tone. It is very smooth, feels moisturizing, and covers up really well. I love how it feels like a great base under my makeup and cuts out some steps in my morning skin regiment. Best of all it looks very natural. I am usually light to olive and this suited my skin tone perfectly.

L'oreal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Light

L'oreal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Light. Click to enlarge. You can see the small bits of color mixed into the moisture.

L'oreal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Light. After rubbing over once.

L'oreal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Light. After rubbing in 3 times.

L'oreal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Light. After rubbing in 4 times.

L'oreal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Light. After rubbing in 5 times.

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in Pink Frosting-
The first thing i noticed about this blush was the texture. It is super springy and sponge like. It literally is bouncy. The color pay off is just pigmented enough to show on the cheeks but light enough to not overwhelm the face. The texture when applied is moose like; very velvety and blends so easily especially over the above mentioned B.B. cream.

Maybellline Dream Bouncy Blush in Pink Frosting

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in Pink Frosting

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in Pink Frosting

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in Pink Frosting swactched over L'oreal B.B. CREAM

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in Pink Frosting swactched over L'oreal B.B. CREAM

 Maybelline Color Tattoo 40 Tenacious Teal-
I have tried creme shadow before and had all sorts of problems such as creasing or fading but i didn't have this issue with Color Tattoo. It felt creamy and soft and staid even for over 4 hours. There is a bit of shimmer in this shadow. You can apply it thick or thin. The only downside is this product does not come with a brush. I wouldn't recommend a sponge applicator. A small shadow brush would work well and make sure to wash thoroughly afterward. The upside to this product is you do not need a primer under this shadow! You can achieve full pigmentation on dry skin.

 Maybelline Color Tattoo 40 Tenacious Teal

 Maybelline Color Tattoo 40 Tenacious Teal

 Maybelline Color Tattoo 40 Tenacious Teal

 Maybelline Color Tattoo 40 Tenacious Teal

You can find these products and more at your local target or drugstore!