I love the idea of subscription boxes, but I’m always a little wary of them.  I do know that they are almost always a good deal, but are the items things I actually want, or is it ‘swag’ that’s just going to lay around the house?  When I subscribed to LootCrate back in the box’s infancy, it normally ended up being the latter, and while I enjoyed having some neat little stocking stuffers and gifts beyond the T-shirts I didn’t have a reason to continue the subscription.

But, since those days, subscription boxes have blown up in a huge way, and there’s a whole range of options for anything you could possibly want.  One of the boxes that caught my eye is Julep Maven’s box, a beauty box that focuses more on nail polish… and I do love my nail polish.  More importantly, though, you get to choose what items you want in your box, so that means I can’t complain about getting anything I don’t want!  But in the end, was Julep’s box worth it?

The package label was on the top of the box, so here’s a side view of my Julep box.

Before we get into the contents of my box, let’s talk about Julep’s process and how they get their boxes to you.  Julep Maven’s beauty box is $25 a month, or $20 a month if you pay for three months at once.  On the 20th, you get an email about choosing the items for your box.  Julep typically has an ‘item of the month’ that’s pretty much the feature item, as well as some new nail polish colors to choose from.  You don’t have to pick any of those items, though, and can also scroll through their inventory of older items, including nail polish, make up, and other beauty items.  You pick three items by the 24th, then Julep ships out the boxes and you get your box by the 10th.

It’s all very easy, and I love how the boxes can be customized.  January 2017’s box theme was called ‘Future Fresh’, and in good spirit of the review I chose the item of the month, as well as two of the new nail polish colors.

The box came with a nifty leaflet for this month’s featured items.

As such, the Julep box only came with three items, which seems a little lackluster compared to some boxes, but all three of these items were full sized, and the value of the box came to a whopping $64 dollars, making it a great deal over buying each item separately from Julep’s online store.

However, saving money is not always a win if the items were overpriced or of lower quality in the first place.  Let’s look at the items individually to see if the Julep box is really worth your hard earned money:

Boost Your Radiance: Reparative Rosehip Seed Facial Oil

The featured item for the Julep Maven box for January was the Boost Your Radiance oil, which, according to the leaflet, uses three main ingredients to moisturize your face.  There’s the rosehip seed oil, which moisturizes, heals, and regulates oil production; vitamin E, which helps in absorbing the rosehip oil; and bergamot oil, which brightens the skin.

I was really wary of getting this oil, honestly.  Other than a consistently greasy nose, my face rarely gets dried out, and as such I was worried that putting oil on my face would make me feel greasy, or worse, I would breakout.  However, with this being the main non-nail polish item for the month, I wanted to give the oil a fair shake for my review.  So, after a shower, I got two drops of the oil and applied it to my face… and I was very surprised by the results!  My face felt normal, but more importantly my nose was far less oily than usual.  Additionally, my skin tone seemed a lot more evened out, giving my face a nice and healthy sheen.

Since I live in Florida, I can’t really comment on how the oil might help against the cold and dry winter, but I imagine it’ll be a godsend during this time of the year for anyone whose face feels raw from the rough weather.

Julep Nail Color (x2)

I went with getting two of the new colors that were promoted for the Future Fresh box–Evan, a dark creamy red, and Yulia, a sheer and sparkly blue.  The two polishes are very different overall, with the red completely covering my nail in one coat (and dying my finger slightly if I happen to miss my nail), while the blue was still quite see through after a single coat.

I am pleased with both of these polish colors.  The polish lasts a long time; I’ve had two coats of Yulia on for over a week and only now am starting to see chipping at the tips of my nails.  Julep’s nail polish also covers quite well, usually only needing a single coat for total coverage (the sheer colors being an exception).  If nail polish is your thing, it’s definitely worth getting some Julep polishes in your collection.

Here are the colors after a single coat of polish.

The Julep Maven is a beauty box that is definitely quality over quantity.  While there are only three items a box, they are all high-quality full-sized beauty products, and the value of the box itself is through the roof in savings.  However, this box won’t be perfect for everyone… while Julep does offer more than just nail polish, that is the company’s key product, and those that aren’t as interested in painting their nails might think the pickings are a little slim after a few months.  But, in many ways, Julep Maven offers a great beauty box.  If you’re on the fence about it, give it a try–it’s not likely to disappoint!

Order the Julep Maven Beauty Box here!

Julep Maven Subscription Box Review

They say that “beauty is pain”, and while that may be true in some ways (I will never pluck my eyebrows, thanks), it doesn’t have to be true in finding your beauty products in the first place.  With the explosion of subscription box options over the years, there are plenty of boxes out there for pretty much anything… and that includes boxes for makeup and other beauty products.

But, the choices can be a little overwhelming… worry not, here’s a list of six beauty subscription boxes that may be right up your alley:

Ipsy

In all of my subscription box research, by far Ipsy is one of the most popular beauty boxes available.  While it is on the cheaper side of the spectrum, Ipsy manages to be well worth the $10 a month by offering five beauty items (some full sized, some samples) and a nice new makeup bag.  That’s every month.  If you want to dip your toe into subscription boxes but are worried about price, Ipsy is one of the best options available.

Julep Maven

Julep Maven’s beauty boxes focus more on their high end nail polish.  Julep’s box is a little on the higher end of the scale at $25 a month, but you are able to pick each item in your box, from old polish colors to new, or even other types of make up and beauty products.  Additionally, if you don’t want your box that month for whatever reason, it’s easy to skip a month of the subscription. Julep makes sure that you get exactly what you want in each box.

Target Beauty Box

Target’s Beauty boxes are just a little different from the others on the list–Target doesn’t actually offer a subscription, and the release times for these boxes aren’t always consistent.  However, these particular boxes come relatively cheap, and are packed with makeup and beauty goodies.  The Target box mostly contains samples, but all the better to learn what items you like and want to get more of (probably at a Target, like a clever advertisement scheme!).

Vegan Cuts Beauty Box

The Vegan Cuts Beauty Box, as the name suggests, is a beauty box consisting of all vegan beauty products, that were not tested on animals nor have any animal products in them.  There’s a surprising amount of beauty products that can contain items derived from animal parts, so Vegan Cuts makes it great for vegans to easily find beauty products that match their lifestyle.  Most items in the Vegan Cuts box are samples, but it goes a long way in raising awareness for animal free beauty products.

Boxycharm

Boxycharm is like a higher-end Ipsy box.  Like Ipsy, Boxycharm sends you five items a month, minus the makeup bag.  However, all of these products are full-sized, and the value of the items easily values around $100.  Boxycharm is one of the best values on the market right now, and a great way to build up your beauty product collection.

eSalon Hair Coloring

eSalon differs from the beauty boxes by providing high quality hair color.  eSalon has an extensive quiz you take to help determine your hair type and how you want to color it, and specialists create a perfect formula just for you and mail it to your door.  Any person that dyes their hair somewhat regularly know that with over the counter dyes can be difficult to match to the color on the box, but eSalon takes the guesswork out of it.  Better yet, the subscription model helps to keep you stocked up on your color, so it will never fade out.

There it is, a beginner’s guide to the first beauty boxes you’ll want to try out… or maybe one or two you missed along the way.  Are there any beauty boxes that you recommend?  Let us know in the comments!

6 Beauty Subscription Boxes Worth Your While