Julep Maven Review – February 2014 Box

ByLiz CadmanFeb 4, 2014 | 25 comments

Julep maven Review - February 2014 Box Review

Julep Maven is a monthly nail polish and beauty subscription box. They make all their own products, so subscribers get a good value each month – over $40 retail worth of product for only $19.99 a month.

Each month Julep releases a new collection on the 20th, and you can decide which box you want, you can upgrade to the entire collection, or you can skip that month. (They recently changed their skip policy - If you're a new subscriber, you earn a skip every 6 months).

For the February 2014 Julep Maven box I decided to splurge and upgrade to the entire collection. They were featuring liquid eye shadows this month, and I couldn't pick just one!

Julep maven Review - February 2014 Box Items

The Subscription Box: Julep Maven

The Cost: $19.99 a month (+$30-55 if you upgrade. This review is of the $55 upgrade)

The Products: Nail polish plus beauty items.

Ships to: US and Canada

Check out all of my Julep Maven reviews and the Beauty Subscription Box Directory!

Julep maven Review - February 2014 Box Eyeshadow

Julep Eye Sheen Liquid Shadow in Dusty Taupe Shimmer - Value $18

Julep Eye Sheen Liquid Shadow in Deep Bronze Shimmer - Value $18

I was so excited to try out these liquid eye shadow shimmers! Overall, I'm very happy with the product. At first I thought the pots of shadow looked a little small, but I used just a dab from inside the lid and it was more than enough coverage, so I think these pots will last me a while.

Julep maven Review - February 2014 Box Liquid Shadow

Julep Eye Sheen Liquid Shadow in Warm Fig Shimmer - Value $18

Julep Eye Sheen Liquid Shadow in Pale Nude Shimmer - Value $18

I tried these shimmers without a primer, and I'm impressed with their staying power so far. The finish is slightly tacky though - maybe that's why they stay on the lid so well. I had to blend them pretty quickly too because once the liquid dries it stays put!

Julep maven Review - February 2014 Box Eyeliner

Julep Angled Liner Brush - Value $18

Julep Shader Brush - Value $18

Julep Ink Gel Eye Liner - Value $22

This eyeliner was super easy to apply with the angled brush - so much better than a pencil for me. The formula also goes on very smoothly. I just tried it out, so I can't weigh in on it's staying power yet, but I'm hopeful!

Now onto the polish!

Julep maven Review - February 2014 Box Love

Julep Nail Color in Love - Value $14

This polish was the bonus gift included for all Mavens this month. I love the romantic pink shade, and there's something about that golden cap that just makes it feel super special!

Julep maven Review - February 2014 Box Polish

Julep Nail Color in Judi - Value $14

Julep Nail Color in Greta - Value $14

Julep Nail Color in Octavia - Value $14

I'm loving all the bold colors this month!

Julep maven Review - February 2014 Box Green Polish

Julep Nail Color in Diamond Theory - Value $14

Julep Nail Color in Glam Rock - Value $14

Julep Nail Color in Roc Solid - Value $14

(These three polishes were curated and named by Jay Z's ROCNATION).

Julep maven Review - February 2014 Box Stardust

Julep Nail Color in Cameron - Value $14

Julep Nail Color in Rooney - Value $14

Julep Nail Color in Kristen - Value $14

FYI - the stardust finish is described as a matte glitter - I'm excited to try it!

Verdict: This is one of my favorite Julep Maven boxes, and I'm so glad I upgraded! All the eye makeup products have been fun to try, and so far I'm very impressed with the formulas!

Which box did you get this month? Any add-ons?

Posted in Beauty Subscription Boxes, Nail Polish Subscription Boxes, Subscription Box Reviews, Subscription Boxes for Women

Liz Cadman

Liz is the founder of My Subscription Addiction. She's been hooked on subscription boxes since 2011 thanks to Birchbox, and she now subscribes to over 100 boxes. Her favorites include POPSUGAR Must Have, FabFitFun, and any box that features natural beauty products!

Read More By Liz Cadman >

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25 comments

Marilyn

I am STILL waiting for my box that was shipped on Dec 26th!!!! they have told me they would resend the box but still nothing…. so frustrating. has this ever happened to anyone else?

Cole

My first box either got lost or stolen =/

Kristina

I love this box! I did not get my eyeliner but they say they will send it when more are in stock. I only want it because I paid for it. I do not know how to use eyeliner and I want this for practice since it came with the upgrade. I splurged because I wanted all of the eyeshadows. I hope they expand this line in the future. The warm fig is my favorite. The nail polish is great also.

Julia

Hmmm, maybe I’m the only one who has had an negative experience with the eye shadow. I got the color Warm Fig, and was so excited. I used it with my Urban Decay primer, and also used the new Julep black eyeliner. I went out to dinner with my boyfriend, and by the time we got home several hours later, it looked like I have zero eyeshadow on, and the black eyeliner was smeared all over my eyelids up to my eyebrows!!! How embarrassing. I’ll have to give it one more try, but now I’m scared, haha!

Chris

I upgraded as well! I just got the polish, but I absolutely loved the colors. Def. my favorite month so far.

Are your upgrades cheaper because you’re a longtime subscriber? When I saw it was only $30 to upgrade and you got so much, I was wondering why I didn’t. But I looked it up and now I remember why! My upgrade was an additional $55 :(.

Liz Cadman

No, my upgrade was the $55 one – I’ll make that more clear in the review. Sorry!

Oh, np! I was just thinking, “Wow, if I had signed up earlier, I would have gotten MUCH better deals!” Haha guess not.

LizM

I really like the eyeshadow. I didn’t upgrade because I didn’t know if I would like them and just wanted to try one. You have to be careful and just use a TINY amount. It definitely stays on longer with a eye primer.

As for polish, I went with Boho. I really like the pink glitter and can’t wait to try it on.

Erin

You’re 100% right about a little going a long way. And with a primer (I’m devoted to my UD shimmer primer), you have a little bit more time to play with to spread it around so to speak. I applied a dot with my pinkie to the outer corner and blended inward. It definitely had staying powder since I fell asleep in it last night and it hadn’t budged by this morning, lol!

caitlyn

Disliked the eyeshadow… idk… it didn’t look great. It smeared and was horrible on me… And I shouldve gotten the purple and got the taupe instead

Sandy

Mine hasn’t arrive 🙁

Anyways, have you guys seen the video on the Plie Wand? http://www.julep.com/idealab/plie-wand
What do you guys think? Will you be getting it?

LizM

I got the email and was going to reserve mine but first decided to go and read their FB page. I didn’t know that you would have to replace all your polish tops at your cost. It took them years of R&D and they couldn’t come up with a cap that would be able to be placed on top of the original caps? I also haven’t liked their business policies for the new year so I didn’t reserve one. I figure that everyone will eventually have to get one.

Judy

I’m pretty sure you don’t have to replace all your caps if you get the plié wand unless you have all older polishes. The caps are already removeable to allow for swatching the stickers on the top of each polish. It was my understanding that you remove the cap like you would to swatch and use the one that comes with the wand instead. You should be able to use that one cap for the majority of your polishes if not all.

Erin

You can sanitize/clean a single new wand to use with first generation bottles, and not replace old ones according to what I read on one of their Q&As online. It’s what I do with my acrylic powder applicator brushes so it is doable. They also mentioned adapters so that’s another option. I paid the pre reservation fee since I think it’s a great idea. Plus it’s pre paying for the May box so it’s not really an out of pocket cost overall. They plan to provide one or more to all Mavens in the months ahead so it’s not like it will be an additional expense in the dollar and cents way. The pre pay option just gets you one guaranteed in May is all. I’m impressed with their business model so I’m happy to support their R&D efforts since I’m in it for the long haul. Not many “kitchen” startups are partnered with Sephora in such a short time so I’m happy to support a business like this however I can. Maybe someday that karma will come back to me, should I ever get to realize my dream of having my own fashion line 😉

Angela

Wow–six months to earn a skip!! Definitely glad I’m an “old” subscriber (by only like 4 months lol). It would be a waste for me since I’ve skipped most months… I couldn’t justify being a subscriber in that case!

Sneaky Burrito

That’s kind of what’s kept me from subscribing. Of course I see the reviews here and love all the pretty colors. But then I come back to reality — I don’t paint my nails often enough to get 2 or 3 or 10(!) new colors a month. So not being able to skip is kind of a big deal for me, too.

Erin

I couldn’t imagine skipping, but I’m a total polish junkie! I could see where that would be off putting to some, having to earn a skip. But since they’re a start up business I can understand why they did it. Overall I’m impressed with how well they’ve managed everything so far considering how big they became so quickly.

Lynne

I splurged as well! How many brushes did you get, or did you order extras? I love all of the polish colors. The stardust colors are great, however I don’t like the look/texture. I will be having to put a clear coat on these for sure. I haven’t tried the shadows or liner yet. The shadows were frozen solid when I retrieved my package out of my mailbox, lol.

I’m so glad I decided to upgrade my order!

Liz Cadman

Oh, yes I forgot to mention that in the review, I did two extra brushes as add-ons that are pictured in the second photo.

Hopefully your shadows unfreeze soon and you can try them out! 🙂

Robyn

Like you, Liz, I splurged and got the whole collection! LOL I just got my shipping notice today, so in a few days I will be as excited as you were to open it! What a great collection this month, finally. 🙂

Liz Cadman

I hope you love it as much as I do! 🙂

Jenn @ hello, rigby!

i think you’ll love the stardust finish – at least I do! i think i’ll eventually be picking up cameron (i went with it girl this month).

xo.
jenn @ hello, rigby!

Erin

I LOVE the stardust finish! I used it as soon as it arrived last week (Julep is my only sub I receive on the first of the month–love that!!). And I really like Love, too. It’s a perfect Valentines polish with the red flecks in gold. It makes a great accent nail with reds or golds, too.

Erin

And FYI, the stardust finish removes pretty easily too, which was a pleasant surprise. Not like a typical glitter finish. It goes on more like a sand finish but with a glitter like texture if that makes any sense.

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Julep Maven Review – February 2014 Box

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