Julep Maven: February 2013 It Girl (Joan, Marion, Rebel) Swatches

The amount of photos I have from London/Paris is quite intimidating, so I haven't taken the time to sort through them just yet.  While I'm procrastinating on that, I thought I'd share with you my February Julep Maven box.  This came while I was away, so it was nice surprise when I got home.

I actually debated getting the full collection this month because I liked quite a few of the colors AND there were several holographic polishes.  Also, I kind of wanted to try that Oxygen base coat thing.  But in the end, I decided on the It Girl box because it had the color I really wanted (Joan) and the holographic color that I really wanted (Rebel), and also because an upgrade wasn't quite in the budget for me.

(Side note: my profile is supposed to be Boho Glam, but I can't even remember the last time I got that one. I'm really glad they let you choose which box you want, and also that they let you skip.)

Anyway, on to the pictures!

All the February boxes came with the Freedom top coat which is supposed to be like a gel top coat without all the hassle.  I think all the boxes also came with an eyelash curler (in the pouch) and some chocolate (hidden under the eyelash curler, lol).

I think these Swatch Me stickers are quite handy, but you can't really tell from the swatch that Rebel is holographic.  You can't really see the pretty gold flecks in Joan either...But I still like the idea of these stickers. :)

And this time around, I actually had time to swatch all of the colors.  I feel so proud that I'm really working on swatching more now.

First up is Rebel.  I had a hard time photographing this one.  It's a silver holographic polish, but I find the holo-ness to be quite subtle compared to other holo polishes I've seen.  Still very pretty though!

Click through for more swatches of Rebel, plus swatches of Joan and Marion!

REVIEW + SKITTLE SWATCHES: Blue Cross Holiday Lights Polishes & Candy Shop Polish Set

I stopped at Rite Aid at the end of my Black Friday run and while I was there, I noticed that they had put out a new Holiday Lights nail polish display and it had the two colors I couldn't find before (I had previously picked up the 3 Nouveau Cheap posted about here).  So I picked up those two colors and it turned out they were buy 1 get 1 50% off!  That was pretty cool.  Always nice to save money unexpectedly, haha.  And in addition, I also found the Candy Shop set also mentioned in that Nouveau Cheap post, and I decided to get that too because I'm loving milky glitter polishes a lot lately and I wanted to compare them for you.  Warning: picture heavy post ahead!  :)

bought the middle polish and right end polish this time around!

So as you can see the five full size polishes I have look almost exactly like the set, with the exception of the last polish on the right and the fact that the glitter in the full size hot pink polish (middle) is not multi-colored.  Now for some comparisons of the three that do look like dupes!

this is the one that's supposed to be a dupe of Deborah Lippmann's Candy Shop, I think

The pinks are the same for the most part, but I did feel like the glitter was denser in Lollipop than in its full size counterpart.  Now the blue is a different story.  They're not the exact same polish, at least in my set the blues are different.  I feel like Blueberry Swirl leans more green than its full-size counterpart, and the glitter is denser and easier to apply, though still quite sparse compared to the pinks.  As you can see in the swatch below, the glitter from the full-size blue polish did not want to come out at all.

I used 3 coats for the colored glitters and 2 coats for the holo and flakie

some close ups:

You can better see what I mean about Blueberry Swirl (left) being more green in this swatch!

I wonder why they decided to make this smell like a chocolate cupcake?

I did not have the same problem with the flakie eating my base color, like Nouveau Cheap did here.  I wonder if it could be that there are batches that were mixed differently? Or maybe it could be the polish used as a base.  Who knows?  I used 2 coats of the flakie over 2 coats of China Glaze VIII.  The flakies are sparse, but the small multi-chrome round glitter still gives it a pretty effect.  I think this is best layered over dark polish, so that the colors in the flakie and glitter can show up more.  The holographic glitter on the other hand looks good over light or dark polish.

The brushes are not much different.  The handle on the mini polishes are obviously smaller, but the brush is a little longer and a little thinner.  That difference didn't really affect application for me, though.

Overall, these applied pretty well and had nice glitter payoff, with the exception of the blue.  I've only seen these at Rite Aid, with the full-size polishes priced at $4.99 each and the Candy Shop set, which is scented, retailing for $5.99.  The Candy Shop ones kinda do smell like what they are labeled as...very sweet smelling!  I definitely recommend the Candy Shop set over the full-size polishes because you get more colors for less and Blueberry Swirl performs better than full-size blue (I wish the full-size ones had names!  It would sound less awkward when writing about them, lol.)  Blueberry Swirl is actually probably one of my faves from the set!  As for that flakie, I think you could pass due to the sparseness of the flakes.  You really have to fish them out and dab them on the nail if you want more coverage.  I think there are better ones out there!

IN THE RING: Julep Daphne vs. Julep Miranda

As I mentioned in my last post, I've already found a dupe for Julep Daphne!  It just so happens that I had Julep Miranda, from my introductory Julep Maven box from August of last year.  These two polishes are almost identical!

julep miranda vs julep daphne

You can already tell just by looking at the bottles that these two polishes are very similar.  I think Miranda, on the left, is just a tad bit greener, but maybe that's just me.

Sometimes polishes may look differently when applied, even though they look similar in the bottle, so I decided to swatch them side by side:

pinky+middle = miranda & ring+index = daphne

You can see there is a slight difference in this photo.  Miranda is slightly lighter, and still looks a tad more green to me here.

index+ring = daphne & middle+pinky = miranda

pinky+middle = miranda & ring+index = daphne

But as seen in the last two pictures, the difference is really hardly noticeable.  It's definitely not a big enough difference to need both these polishes in your collection.  I'm kind of disappointed, since these are both Julep polishes and they are SO alike.  It's almost like they took Miranda and slapped another name on it, and then called it a new polish.  So if you have one, skip the other!

SWATCH: Julep Daphne

Ok, let's start swatching my July Julep Maven polishes! :)  First up is Julep Daphne which is a pretty dusty teal color with a creme finish, but it's not very unique.  I've already found a dupe for it in my collection, and it's a polish from Julep too!  Post on that coming soon~  But for now, here's is Daphne:

This applied very well!  It took two coats to reach this opacity, and the formula was neither too thick or too thin.  I like it, but it's not a must have for me, especially because I already have a polish like it.

Julep Maven: July 2012

Hello there!  It's been a while hasn't it?  I got caught up in school and my internship and just let this little ol' blog go.  Basically, I got lazy.  All I pretty much wanted to do was bum, when I wasn't at school or my internship, lol.  But I'm back!!  Summer is here, and I've got quite a bit of time to swatch and take pictures.  Yayy!

To start off, here's my Julep Maven box for July!

I usually get Boho Glam, but this time I decided to go for It Girl.  I didn't want the lip gloss the other boxes came with, but I wanted the America polish, so it kinda seemed like my only option, haha.  I wasn't thrilled with the polish colors, since I'm not a big fan of white polish (usually streaky) and I already have several colors like the dusty teal that Daphne is, but I could live with them.

l-r: Daphne, Kate, Mila, America

If you notice, America looks like it's not filled to the top.  It seems like the polish settled, but I think it's like that because it's a very thick polish.  It doesn't move at all when I shake the bottle!  And when I opened the bottle, it was goopy and you can hardly tell there are any stars in it.  I was quite disappointed by this, since this was the polish I was most looking forward to.  Also, I was hoping to wear it for 4th of July, but it arrived this past Friday, the 6th of July.  Bummer.  I've contacted Julep about it, to see if it's truly supposed to be like this.  We'll see what they say!  Maybe when I swatch it I'll like it better.  But for now, I'm sure there are better star glitter polishes out there...

add ons: O Canada! and Chelsea

I decided to add on O Canada! and Chelsea because I really liked the look of them.  I liked all the glitters this month, so it was tough to choose which ones to add on.  This was my best solution. xD  I'll just have to get Yumi some other time, I guess!

Swatches coming soon.  And lots of other things I want to post about, like my IMATS haul!  I'm going to try posting at least twice a week, starting now!  Stay tuned~! :]

Jesse's Girl Julie G Collection (Part 1) - All Things Girly, Fashion Friday, Mermaid's Lagoon

Today, I have swatches of 3 polishes from the Jesse's Girl Julie G Collection.  I was super excited when I heard that Julie G would be collaborating with Jesse's Girl to release her own nail polish collection.  In case you don't know, Julie is a beauty guru on YouTube and a nail polish lover, creating makeup tutorials as well as nail tutorials.  She was one of the first gurus I subscribed to, when I started my makeup adventure, and I think she's great!

There are 8 colors in this collection, and all were created by Julie personally.  Each color and the name of each have meaning, which Julie talks about in her video.  Though all the colors are pretty, I only walked away with 6 out of the 8.  I didn't get Party Dress, because I don't usually wear red, and Cupcake, because I feel like I have that color already.  Anyway...I actually only wanted two at first: Beauty Guru and All Things Girly.  But after looking at swatches, I decided I liked other ones too, lol.

First up, All Things Girly:

in the shade

in the sun

This was one that looked absolutely gorgeous to me, when I first saw Julie's video revealing her collection.  It is a nice peachy creme color.  Unfortunately, I didn't love it so much on me.  My nails did not want to play nice with this polish, and I ended up with streaky polish on.  It did kind of even out after I applied Seche Vite as a top coat.

Next is Fashion Friday:

in the shade

in the sun

Fashion Friday was not even on my radar, when I first saw this collection.  But after seeing some swatches, I changed my mind.  And I'm glad I did, because now I love it!  It's a bright magenta purple creme, and I think it's gorgeous.  I don't usually gravitate towards this type of color, so I don't own anything like it, but I may need to rethink which colors I pick up, haha!  The formula and application with this one was great!  No problems here!

Last, but not least, Mermaid's Lagoon:

in the shade

in the sun

trying to capture the shimmer

Mermaid's Lagoon was another one that I thought was pretty, but didn't plan on picking up.  I wasn't going to get this because it's a bright teal color that I feel I've seen a lot, and also own a lot of.  BUT, as I saw in several swatch pictures, it has hidden golden shimmer which makes it different!  The shimmer gives it extra depth, and makes it that much prettier.  The formula and application with this was okay.

All swatches are 3 coats of polish and 1 coat of Seche Vite top coat.

Jesse's Girl Julie G Collection is LIMITED EDITION.  It retails for $3.99, which is $1 more than regular Jesse's Girl polishes.  This collection is EXCLUSIVE to Rite Aid.

What do you think of this collection? Have you picked up any colors?   

Happy Birthday to Me! + NOTD

Today is my birthday, and just happens to also be the birthday of one of my closest friends, Tiffany. :) We have been friends since elementary school.  So I just wanted to wish her HAPPY BIRTHDAY one more time!  It's pretty amazing that we are so close AND share the same birthday.  Another of my closest friends is born just ONE day before Tiffany and I, and the three of us are always having adventures together.  TRAVELBUDDIES4LYFE! lol :)

Anyway, I started my birthday celebrations a little early...having a birthday lunch this past Saturday, because my brother couldn't make it today due to work.  I've kind of had a birthday tradition to have lunch at Olive Garden with my Mom and brother.  My Mom would take off of work and take us.  Then, when my Dad got home from work, we'd go out to dinner and have cake after.

I kind of forgot to take a picture of my food, but I did take one of my brother's, lol.  This is what I usually get, anyway (just switched it up to Chicken & Shrimp Carbonara this time):

Braised Beef and Tortelloni

Today, I had a chill day and spent the day with my Mom, who is, of course, a big part of why I'm here today and why this day is possible.  Gotta appreciate your Momma!  We spent it mostly at the mall.  Had lunch, and then did a little bit of shopping.  I also got my free birthday pretzel from Auntie Anne's!  I love their almond pretzel with caramel dip...nomnomnom!!  Also stopped by ULTA for the free birthday brow wax at the Benefit brow bar.  And I actually left without buying anything! Go me!  Unfortunately...I did not take any pictures today...FAIL. =.=;;;  But I did take pictures of my cake...

I had actually mentioned wanting an Ube cake from Red Ribbon earlier in the year, when my cousin had it for his birthday.  It was really good!  But that was a few months ago, so it became a forgotten comment, lol.  Instead, I got this cake, which is good too!  And besides, I'm a big fan of Tiramisu. :)

And finally, here's my birthday NOTD:

What I Used:

ORLY Ridgefiller

Julep Basecoat

2 coats Julep Miranda

(from my Julep Maven box! post on that coming soon! :])

2 coats China Glaze Atlantis (on ring fingers only)

1 coat Nubar 2010

I'm really loving this combination!  And really loving layering Nubar 2010 over everything, lol.  I don't think the pictures do it justice though...let me know what you think? :)