Julep Leah + Pretty & Polished Bayou Blitz

Hey dolls, I finally decided to take Pretty & Polished Jawbreaker off after wearing it for three days. It wore perfectly; I didn't have any chips and very minimal tip wear. Another Jawbreaker plus was that I didn't even have to use the foil method to remove it, which is always a positive in my book.

I decided to use my other purchase from Pretty & Polished since I'm on an indie kick. Bayou Blitz is a neon green glitter filled with large purple, pink, and green hexagonal glitter. I had a lot of difficulty getting the larger pieces of glitter out of the bottle and placing them on my nails. The base was relatively thick, but not problematic. I dabbed one thick coat of Bayou Blitz over Julep Leah.

shade

The verdict is still out on Bayou Blitz. I like it because it's a very unique polish and I like the shade of green. I'm not really sure how I feel about the hexagonal glitter and the process it took to get it to this point. I've been looking for a green polish with pink glitter and I thought Bayou Blitz fit the bill, but it's not what I envisioned at all. Maybe I'll attempt this with a different base color before swapping it out.

As mentioned earlier, I layered Bayou Blitz over Julep Leah. Leah is a gorgeous grass green that is filled with shimmer. The formula was a little bit thinner than what I expect from Julep, but it was opaque in two coats.

Now this one I love for sure! The shimmer in Leah is gorgeous. I almost wish I would have worn it alone for a day before layering Bayou Blitz over it. Leah is definitely a keeper!

What are your thoughts on Bayou Blitz?

Pink Wednesday ~ Essie A Cut Above & Julep Diane

Happy Pink Wednesday dolls! Today I'm wearing Essie A Cut Above, which is the pink multi-shaped glitter top coat from the Luxeffects collection. Although the formula was a little thick, the glitter disperses very evenly over the nail. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it dries relatively quick to a smooth finish. The glitter looks super chunky, so I just knew it would have a gritty finish and require lots of top coat. Here is one coat of A Cut Above over Julep Diane.

shade

This polish has huge a bling factor! It really looks like some gems were crushed over my nails. I'm not sold on this shade though; its a little too chunky for my tastes. I would wear this again only as an accent in the future.

Julep Diane, a jelly forest green, is a great shade for this season. The formula was easy to work with and two coats were needed for opacity.

Happy hump day!

October Julep Maven Box & Julep Leighton

I just realized that I never posted about my October Julep Maven box. What makes it even worse is that I just got my November box today. Oh well, I just wasn't very thrilled with this one. Here's what it included.

The It Girl box contained Leighton (silver metallic), Jaime (blue creme), and an Age Defying Hand Brightener. The only color I really liked was Jaime, but I read on several blogs that it stained horribly. I may try this one for stamping, but I don't want to deal with blue fingers/skin. The Hand Brightener went straight to my swap list...I didn't even try it. I don't need anything to block melanin in my skin...lol.

I did give Leighton a try though. I've said before that I don't like silver foils/metallics on my complexion; Leighton was no exception. While it went on nicely, I was left with lots of brushstrokes. The formula was not as pigmented as the other Julep polishes I've tried, so I applied two coats.

Meh...the shade doesn't really do anything for me. Yet another silver polish bites the dust. This one is heading to my swap list. My box wasn't too great this time, but I'm looking forward to trying the three colors I got for November. If you're interested in signing up to be a Julep Maven, here is my referral link.

How do you feel about silver foils/metallics?

Snakeskin Stamping with Julep Sienna

Hey dolls, this is just a quick post to show you some semi-successful stamping that I did over Loreal Cockatoo's Mystery. I used Julep Sienna, an antique gold foil, and Bundle Monster image 215.

the sun was setting

the right hand that usually gets no picture love :)

shade

This is the first set of stamping that I'm actually relatively proud of! Far from perfect image transfers, but its decent enough to wear out. My right hand actually came out better. I love how subtle the colors are together. Sienna was so close to going into my swap pile because I didn't like the color on me, but its just perfect for stamping. Its very opaque and dries quickly.

What do you think of my stamping efforts???

September Julep Maven Box & Julep Stella

Hey dolls, I received my Julep Maven "It Girl" box early last week. I was really excited to try out Stella when I first saw the picks for the month. Here's what was in my box:

I am a sucker for nice packaging and I have to give it up to Julep...everything comes wrapped so nice and neatly. Even hubby noticed how nice the packaging was and said it would be great to send to a friend. The "It Girl" box included:

• Stella
• Essential Cuticle Oil
• Everyday SPF Hand Cream
• Glass nail file and combo lint roller/comb/mirror case as extras

I was pleasantly surprised to see the extras. I have yet to use the glass file though. I've been using the cuticle oil every other day or so at night and I love the way it smells.  Someone described it as fruity pebbles and I would agree. The rollerball on it keeps the oil from being messy. This is actually my first time ever using a cuticle oil. I don't typically have any major cuticle issues, so I'm not sure if its doing anything special but at least I'm moisturized. I was not a fan of the hand cream. It had a weird, sunscreen like smell. I've actually already swapped it with a nail buddy for some polish. 

Now onto my favorite of this box: Stella. Stella is a gorgeous mustard yellow. While Stella was not as problematic as other yellows I own, it gave its fair share of difficulty. Stella is rather pigmented for a yellow, but I still needed 2 coats to even out the patchy areas. This polish did not self-level well either. 

I really like the way this looks on my skin (I know I say that often, but I believe it)! It's a yellow that I'm sure I'll be reaching for to wear again and again. Yellow is my favorite color. I had an obsession with Tweety Bird growing up and I used to wear yellow polish all the time. When I looked at my nails this morning, the first thing I thought about was Tweety and how my grandmother told me I better not wear yellow polish for my wedding! Even though I've been wearing crazy polish for the last 15 years, she still hasn't gotten used to it. I did obey though; I wore purple polish for the wedding. :) Happy Monday and I hope you all have a great week!

Julep Emilie & Poshe Top Coat

Julep Emilie

Hey dolls, today I'm wearing Julep Emilie. Emilie is a gorgeous forest green and its pretty unique in my collection. I knew I would love this color as soon I polished the first nail. I really like the brushes on Julep polishes...they are wider than the norm, but not OPI wide. The formula of Emilie was extremely pigmented. I only used one coat which is always awesome.

with flash

I absolutely love this color. I think it would be very easy to wear on most skin tones. I would be remiss if I didn't mention some of the issues people have been having with Julep. You can see this post from The Polish Aholic for more details, but it involves the referral link not working and uninformed members. I had debated whether I was going to cancel my membership, but after what seemed like a genuine and apologetic email from the owner, I think I will stick around for a few more months. If you'd like to join Julep you may do so HERE, but I like to keep my readers informed so you can make your own decisions about the company. I received my September box today and I will be reviewing it soon.

A few weeks ago I mentioned on my facebook page that I was looking for a new quick dry top coat. Even though I'm not pregnant or trying to be, the birth defect warning on Seche Vite doesn't sit well with me. I've been going back and forth between Out the Door and Poshe top coats. Today I'm wearing Poshe and I'm starting to realize that it causes some shrinkage if I don't apply it perfectly even, especially closest to the cuticle. It gives off the appearance that I didn't polish evenly which is not cool at all. It is thicker and dries faster than Out the Door though.

What is your favorite quick dry top coat? 

Julep Maven "It Girl" Intro Box

Julep Sienna

Hey dolls, a couple of weeks ago, I posted here that I had signed up for a Julep Maven box. My box arrived on Thursday and I was super excited to see the goodies in person. The box comes nicely packaged in a sleek black box. Inside of the box is a Julep bag that contains your nail goodies for the month. Here's what I got:

Your intro box comes with a welcome letter from the founder and a summary of the Maven program. Pictured above is Sienna (gold), Emilee (green), base coat, Facial for Hands Glycolic Hand Scrub, along with samples of the hand scrub and hand cream. I used the hand scrub this morning and my hands still feel great. It has a nice citrus-like smell that isn't too overwhelming. I'll give a full review of this product once I've used it more.

First, I used the Julep base coat, which dried quickly and very shiny. It would be great if you wanted to go "naked" for a day or so. I chose to apply Sienna first because I wanted a lighter shade as I've been wearing dark colors all week. Sienna is described as a sophisticated, shimmery gold. The formula was very pigmented and was nearly opaque in 1 coat. I applied 2 coats to try to even out some of the brush strokes. The brush on this polish was amazing...it allowed the polish to go right where I wanted it. I barely had to do any clean-up. Dry time was relatively quick as well. I was worried about the shape of the bottle and it being unstable, but its fine as long as you're working on a hard surface. Onto the pictures:

sunlight

shade

I love this color in the bottle, but I'm not a fan of it on me. It reads more silver on my skin which I tend not to like. Because of how opaque it is, I think this color would be good for stamping. Who am I kidding though, I barely stamp. I may try this again in some simple nail art or it may go onto my swap list. I'm pleased with the Juelp Maven program so far, just not this color on me.

If you'd like to sign up for the Julep Maven program, HERE is my referral code. Leave a comment if you decide to join!