Julep - Miranda

Let me introduce you to Julep's Miranda.  It is a creamy teal color.  I only have two polishes by Julep and that is mainly because they are a little on the expensive side.  I also hate how the bottle is shaped.  It is really long and narrow.  I always feel like the bottle is going to tip over when I'm painting my nails.  Also, with the brush so long, it is difficult to have great control and accuracy when putting on the polish.  Other than that, the formula is incredible.  It only needed two coats and it is very opaque.  Julep nail polishes are toxin free, which I love!  They also donate $1 for every bottle of nail polish that is sold to different organizations that support women.  Super cool!

 For an accent nail, I just put a few dots with white polish.  I like it!

Julep has this awesome program, called Julep Maven.  It is much like Birchbox, but it is for nail polish and hand and feet products.  It is $20 a month, but your first month is one ONE PENNY!  No joke!  When I first signed up, my first month was $5, so only paying a penny is a steal!!!  You usually get two or three polishes along with some other kind of product.  I have only gotten one month simply because I have so much nail polish, I don't think I need to spend $20 a month to get two more bottles.  If another great month of Julep Maven pops up, I might continue my subscription.  By the way, did I mention, your Julep Maven subscriptions come in the cutest packaging with a hand signed letter?  Yea.  :)  If you are interested in signing up for a penny, use my referral link here and look at their facebook to find out what the current promotional code is to get the 'penny' deal!  *NOTE:  I just found the code COLOR2012 that should work.  :)

polish. impress. repeat.

Essie - Fair Game

Here is Essie's "Fair Game" polish from their Resort collection which was released last year.  It is a nice metallic greyish blue.  I've had the polish for a year now and I've used it quite a bit.  The formula was great when I first got it, but I need to get some thinner to put in it; it's gotten a little thick over time.

 

Metallic polishes were 'in' last year, I hope that trend comes back...  :)

-polish. impress. repeat.

April 2012 Birchbox - One Year Anniversary

I have officially been a part of Birchbox for a year!  They sent me a special pink colored box and a little extra treat inside my box to celebrate.  I have to say, this was a great Birchbox.  If you don't know what Birchbox is, please check out this post to get more information on it.

Here's what I got this month:

Birchbox's focus this month was "Natural Wonders."  They chose products that were natural and didn't have a bunch of weird chemicals and additives in them.

These laundry detergent pacs by Dropps was the 'lifestyle extra' this month.  I'm interested to see how well these work.  I hope they smell amazing.

I got a tube of Herbal Recovery Night Cream by "Jurlique".  I'm excited to try this, but I do not like the packaging.  It is in a metal tube much like those cheap nasty toothpastes that are handed out on airplanes.  I hope this tube doesn't bend and break easily.

This product I'm not sure how I feel about.  I already have a cuticle treatment that I really like, but I'm willing to give this one a try.  I just really dislike the smell of lavender.  A LOT. 

I'm pretty sure everyone got this perfume sample in their Birchbox this month.  I haven't smelled it yet, but I've heard awesome things about this perfume.  I wish the manufactures would make perfume sample bottles with the spray tops instead of the little lids where you have to dab on the perfume.  I found my new favorite perfume through Birchbox (Viva La Juicy) and purchased the full size off their website.  Maybe this will be a new favorite too!

This product is FULL SIZE!  It's interesting to say the least.  It is a beauty balm by Revolution Organics which you can use on your lips, cheek, and face.  I'm not sure I would take this particular color and rub it all over my face, but it would make a good cheek and/or lip color.  This is actually a HUGE stick.  Look at the collective picture above to get a better idea of its size compared to the other products.  Below are some pictures of the produce swatched.

It is very creamy and there were some chunks that came off at first, but it blended out nicely.

This product I am most thrilled about.  It is a scrub by June Jacobs.  Specifically it is the "Perfect Pumpkin Enzyme Polish".  Why am I most excited for this one?  PUMPKIN!  I love love love pumpkin.  It smells delicious. 

This was my anniversary gift from the Birchbox team!  They are cute little Post-It notes that say "Thanks for sticking with us".  Needless to say, I don't regret this purchase at all and have renewed my subscription for yet another year.  It's been neat to see how Birchbox has evolved throughout the last year.  They even have Birchbox Man now!  Check out their website for more information.  If you are interested and want to subscribe, please use my referral link here:  https://www.birchbox.com?raf=gafkf

-polish. impress. repeat.

China Glaze - Re-Fresh Mint & Turned Up Turquoise

Here's a fun manicure I did this week.  It's a twist on the 'every other nail' pattern.  The two colors I used were China Glaze's "Re-Fresh Mint" and "Turned Up Turquoise".  My thumb nails are the color that my middle and ring finger are on each hand.  I've gotten numerous compliments on this!

"Re-Fresh Mint" is a wonderful mint pastel green.  I've been on the search for a color like this and finally got this one.  It isn't as opaque as I would have liked.  I used three coats and there were still some thin spots.  Other than that, no complaints.  I LOVE the color.

 "Turned Up Turquoise" is STUNNING.  Unfortunately, my camera doesn't pick that up.  It's neon and my camera doesn't like that.  I need to get a better camera.  This color is vibrant, bold, and has just the right amount of shimmer.  It dries with almost a matte finish that looks like a nasty highligher look.  With a clear top-coat, this polish comes to life.  I highly recommend this color for Spring and Summer.  I'll be rocking it frequently.

Do you like the twist on the 'every other nail' pattern?

-polish. impress. repeat.

China Glaze - Dress Me Up & Luxe and Lush

Sorry for the delay.  I recently took a long term subbing job and it's kept me rather busy to say the least.  I'm finally able to tread with my head above the water and can do some postings.  :)  I have a lot of pictures I've taken, and now I can actually get around to posting them.

These are two more polishes from the Hunger Games collection by China Glaze.  The base color is "Dress Me Up" which is the color for District 8 the textile district.  It is a muted pinky mauve color.  It's gorgeous to say the least.  Classy and sophisticated.  The formula was great and all I needed was 2 coats.

The color I used as a topcoat for an accent nail is "Luxe and Lush" which is the color for District 1 in all of it's 'luxury'.  It's beautiful, but very difficult to work with.

It seems as though the little particles are plastic flecks.  Needless to say, they didn't all lay flat on my nail even after an additional clear top-coat.  Because of this, the little pieces stick up and peel off easily.  It's also difficult to get a good coat and even layer of the glitter flecks on the nail.  Here is what the polish looks like on the brush in the picture below.  The pieces tend to stick to the brush and not go on the nail. 

It's a shame it isn't very user friendly because it is a gorgeous polish.  I guess it's worth the trouble.  ;)

What do you think of this duo?  Would you buy a polish that is stunning yet hard to work with?

-polish. impress. repeat.