Julep || November

After the shipping issues from my October box, and being issued a full refund (!!!), I decided it would be worth it to just use my refund to purchase the November Maven box :) Julep explained to me that they switched mail couriers, so that there should be minimal issues with future shipping. Were they ever right! I don't think I've ever received my box so early in the month. 

First off, the colours are a nice blend of Winter and Summer, in my opinion. The nudes/pastels, the pretty purples, and that gorgeous blue on the left side! They added in a little booklet as a holiday gift guide, and I have a few ideas for some friends now - Thanks Julep!

I promptly took Shari out of the box and repainted my nails. I still love the look of an accent nail, so I used one of my old favourites, Missy, for that. Shari is definitely one of my new favourites, it's such a gorgeous pink creme!

Do you have a favourite polish colour right now?

xo. Nicole

Julep || October

It had been a couple months since I hadn't clicked the "skip box" option, as we've been trying to save every last penny for some big things happening in the new year, but I had to order my maven box for October! I was running low on my darker Fall colours, and they had some cool options for add-ons!

I was most excited about the chevron nail stickers! I can finally do some nail art tutorials that include my favourite pattern. I also got an oxygen top coat, which I'm curious to try out. I received some free polish for adding on 3 items to my box.

The box was definitely oversized for what I received, but my guess is that they just ran out of smaller ones for the month. I also didn't receive my box until October 22, and I contacted Julep on the 20th. They explained that they are no longer doing business with APC, as they've had nothing but complaints and APC never sent Julep any tracking codes for the boxes going in to Canada. That means I also didn't receive a tracking code this time, which had me concerned that they didn't send my box. They did, and Julep felt bad that my box was taking so long and processed a refund.

My box came the day after they processed the refund, but they said to keep the box on them. I promptly used the refund to order the November Maven box, as the window to order opened up 2 days later! I'm looking forward to the November Maven box!

If you're interested, there's an affiliate button to the right (it says "I'm an IT Girl"). If you click it, you and I both get rewards if you order a box! Your first box is free with the code "FREEBOX"!

xo. Nicole

Weeks End || September 23

SNAPSHOTS:

1|| Oh how I love Julep nail polish. This red is the perfect colour to start off my nail polish choices for Fall. It didn't last very long for some reason...but it looked really good with the knit cardigans that I wore all week!

2|| Another perfect colour for Fall! More Julep, of course. I also put a stardust finish on my ring fingers, as I hadn't done an accent nail in a while. Hoping that it last a little longer than the red.

WHAT YOU MAY HAVE MISSED:

1|| Part 03 of my Fitness Journey is self love (though really, that's all parts of the journey).

2|| Mmmm, a yummy gluten free apple pie filling! 

GOOD READS:

1|| Raw til 4: tips for avoiding soreness.

2|| I seriously couldn't agree more with Amanda. Gunner and Koshka are definitely my babies, just extra furry.

3|| A heavy topic, but a must read. I think we'll all go through this experience, be it ourselves or a friend/family member, or even just someone you know.

4|| A giant portion of losing weight, or maintaining a healthy body is what we eat. Exercise can only do so much! Jessica shared what she eats during the day.

Yesterday, Rob's sister and her family came over for a BBQ lunch, because my car broke down (again!) and his brother-in-law was diagnosing the problem. This is the 3rd car that I've gone through in the past year! All of our vehicle troubles started when we moved to Alberta. I'm so done, and ready for a new vehicle that won't break down every couple months. Though, it turns out the problem was a loose cap on the coolant reservoir. D'oh!

As always, I'm linking up with Beth from Oak & Oats. So many new blogs to read on my Monday evenings, I love it. :)

xo. Nicole

What's in my Makeup Bag?

I'm not one to wear a ton of makeup, but I do keep a bag! Apparently, I like the colour pink when it comes to this stuff, though. I never wear foundation, as I hate how it feels and I've always rubbed it on something to the point of embarrassing myself, be it a sleeve or something. I only wear white eyeliner in the corners of my eyes, and some mascara. I have some lip stain that I've never touched, but it feels good knowing that I have it just in case. 

My makeup bag also mostly contains hair accessories and necessities. Ponytails, little elastics for those small braids and subtle hair styles, bobby pins galore, etc.. The red and white bobby pins are from Little Honey Pies. I bought these so long ago, and now she makes floral pins and headbands! So cute!

The necklace is from outsideeverywhere. I won a giveaway and used some shop credit. I like keeping it in my makeup bag instead of with my other jewelry because it makes a great last minute accessory if I really feel like dressing up. On the right, it's my favourite eye liner, ever! It's Annabelle, and it works like a dream. I've tried NYX and others, and none of them blend as well, or are as white. I just put some in the corner of my eyes, and smudge to try and make my eyes look bigger.

My actual bag was a gift from my friend at work, who also did my makeup at my wedding. She surprised me with it when she came by the morning of my big day, and it was so nice. She stuffed it with all sorts of goodies, including the nail file pictured above. I'm not sure where she got it, but it's lovely and fits quite a few items.

I'm a huge creep and would love to know what you keep in your makeup bag!

xo. Nicole

July Maven Review

My Maven box arrived a couple days earlier than expected! I always get super excited when I receive mail that isn't a bill! It's nice timing, too because I just shared my nail polish collection the other day with you. The colours this month are SO nice! I received two extra polishes because I put 3 add-ons on my box. That blue is such a pretty colour in person (my crappy iPhone camera doesn't do it justice). It's next on my list!

I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I added on the Clean Slate Polish Corrector Pen. As soon as I opened my box, I took off the pink polish and put on a new nude colour. I wasn't too bad at applying my polish, so I only used the pen once or twice between both my hands. It did take the excess polish off of my skin, though! I'm happy that it came with extra tips, too!

Overall, I'm pretty pleased with July's maven box! I can hardly wait for August's :)

Did you review your July goodies from Julep?

xo. Nicole

Collections

One of my favourite past times is painting my nails. It's such an awesome moment after you spend all that time painting them and they're finally dry. It can also really put that finishing touch on your outfit! I wanted to share my nail polish collection with you today. When I laid it all out, I realized that the only polish I really have is by Julep! 

I receive Julep every month, as it goes on so smoothly and you often only need one coat of polish. My favourite colors have got to be nudes and pastels! Sometimes I go out of my comfort zone and rock a bright pink, like Nellie (top left). In the top left picture, you can also see a chevron print! I received a sample at a trade show of a new product called Jamberry Nails! They're like nail stickers, but they're applied with heat and pressure. So far, so good!

I always finish off with O.P.I's top coat! It goes on really well and prevents chips for up to a week (depending on what I'm doing with my hands). I've shared how much I love Julep polish on a la Maxfield before here, and I guess not much has changed!

What does your nail polish collection look like? I'd love to see!

xo. Nicole

June Julep Review

Wasn't this month's maven box just completely awesome? Last month, I think we all received the Plie wand in our maven boxes, so this month, I purchased the striping and dotting tool to go with it! It came with some pixie sticks that I haven't eaten yet (I'm waiting for a time when I need that sugar rush) and some GORGEOUS colors! I was also surprised to see a box within a box, and all full of nail polish! That was exciting!

My definite favorite color from the bunch is "Ramona". It's a pretty pastel purple, and it's just subtle enough to go with anything in my wardrobe. I don't remember ordering this many polishes, but I'm not complaining! I also polished my toes with "Veronica" (the pinky-coral colour) and I love it. The Ramona polish was a bit goopy when I first painted my nails, so I had to shake it a bit more and redo my nails. Other than that, my only ":(" about this box is deciding which colour to do next!

Did you know that if you click my affiliate link and take the quiz, your first box is free with the code "FREEBOX"!

xo. Nicole

Favourite Things

Happy Thursday! It's only one more day until Friday, and that also means only 5 more working days until my summer break! Anyways, today I wanted to share some of my favourite things with you. I always love reading your posts about what you use every day for make up, and other things, so I decided to share some of my every day items with you.

• NYC Big Bold Mascara: I am totally loving how long it makes my lashes! I had a $1 coupon for it, and it was already on sale for $4. $3 mascara? Sure! It comes off super easy when I want it to without flaking and rubbing off during the day. Definitely buying it again!

• Color Energy Immune Booster: My mom does aromatherapy (and all sorts of other fun things) and she gave me this. When you feel a cold coming on, rub it on your neck and the bottoms of your feet. I choose to also put a tiny bit of it on my cheeks by my nose. It helps me breathe and relieves the ache that comes with clogged sinuses.

• Anniversary Flowers: It was our first wedding anniversary on Monday June 16, and Rob got me this beautiful bouquet of a variety of flowers. They smell SO good and are such pretty colors! Flowers are a rare treat for me, as he reserves buying them for special occasions :)

• Julep: My June maven box arrived on Tuesday. I think that it was my favorite box yet! I received more polish than I thought I would (or remembered purchasing) and they're all gorgeous colors (review coming soon). I promptly put on this pretty pastel purple color.

• Garnier Fructis Damage Eraser: I've been using this hair mask that I received from Influenster a while back, and it really does help my damaged hair. I am in desperate need of a haircut, but after I use this, my hair feels super soft for a couple days. I've had to resort to this more than once a week because the conditioner from this set just does NOT come out of the bottle. If you're in the market for a good hair mask though, this is a pretty good one to buy!

Have you tried any of these products? 

What have you been loving lately? Link me!

xo. Nicole

PS. Have you entered my giveaway? It ends on Saturday!

Julep May Maven Review!

My Julep monthly Maven box for May FINALLY arrived on June 5! It was totally not Julep's fault, just the crappy postal service they used. It was supposed to arrive between May 15-17, but that was sadly not the case. My June box is already on it's way, though. I'm excited! I emailed Julep, wondering if they could do something about how long it had taken for my box to arrive (before I received it) and they were in the process of giving me enough Jules for a free box. It arrived, so I emailed them back saying not to worry. Shawn, you were excellent at your customer service! Thank you!

I received Jules (pink) and Kam (green) in my It Girl box! They are both perfect colors for spring! I bought a mystery polish, and they sent me Bess (light blue). I already had Bess, so I'll be giving that one to a friend. It is also a really good color for spring.

I also added on some rockstar hand cream! I haven't tried it yet, but it smells so good. My hands are always super dry from the terrible weather in Alberta, so I hope it works!

My plie wand also came in my maven box! So exciting! I think I added on the dotting tool in my June box to make some super good polka dot nails. I haven't used it with my nail polish yet, but I took it out of the box and played with it! I'm definitely going to use it when I paint my toes, as I have more trouble with them.

Do you receive Julep monthly Maven boxes? Did you like May's?

xo. Nicole

Julep Golden Mystery Box Review

After a long wait, my Golden Mystery Box #3 arrived on Friday! I was so excited to open it! I usually get the Maven box and received 3 polishes and a little treat, but this time I received 5 polishes, 2 lip glosses, and some more flower seeds (I had received these before).

Sorry about the quality of the photos, I still only use my phone. I'm too broke to buy a good camera!

I tried on the lip gloss, and it's a nice subtle color and shine. It's a bit sticky, but it doesn't taste bad at all. My vote is for the clear, but the red one will be nice for a date night!

Red Gloss.

Clear Gloss.

To tell you the truth, I'm a little bit disappointed in the colors. It's May, and it feels like they just dumped a bunch of winter overstock on us Mystery Box buyers, which I was a bit hesitant about when I bought it. I think I'm for sure going to try out the red (Scarlett) and the grayish blue one (Stevie) (far right). Maybe I'll try out the other 3 colors in the fall and winter, but it's definitely not the season to wear them right now.

If you want to try out Julep, your first month is free! Just click my affiliate link below, take the quiz, and enter 'FREEBOX' at the checkout!

xo. Nicole

Lately

So far, my spring break has been so relaxing! It's a bittersweet time because it's time off, but I'm also not paid for that time. My step mother is a manager at a drug store and is doing me a huge favor by letting me work a couple days. We're both helping each other out in that way. 

Saturday morning, Rob and I took Gunner for a walk to Starbucks. The weather is slloowwwlllyy getting warmer, which I'm excited for! I've never been a fan of summer, especially the heat, but I'm looking forward to all that day light and taking Gunner outside more. 

I forgot how fast nail polish chips compared to salon gel nails! I'm still using my favorite nail polish, Julep! I have a basket of different kinds of polish, but their colors are so nice and it goes on usually with only one coat. This color is called "Nellie." It's super girly and spring-y, so I love it! It's probably going to get chipped like crazy today, so I'll be sure to share the next color I choose ;)

Since moving to Alberta, Rob and I have mostly kept to ourselves, except for the occasional visit with family. It's been wonderful to finally be so close to most of our family, but boy oh boy, do we ever miss our friends. We haven't meant to be homebodies but our jobs are exhausting and the weekend is usually time for us to catch up on errands and sleep. This week was a bit different for me, though! A friend from work came over on Wednesday night to bake some gluten and dairy free banana bread, and she came over again on Sunday for a yummy living room picnic. We completed our picnic with some David's Tea, pink lemonade to be exact. It was delicious! It tasted even better in my new mug.

On Friday morning, Rob, Gunner and I are off to Canmore for a little relaxation with his dad and sister. I'm excited for relaxing, but it means my spring break is almost over! Rob's mom and stepdad are coming from BC on Saturday, and I can't wait to see them on Sunday. So many things to do and see, and so little time!

How was your weekend?

xo. Nicole

My Favorite Nail Polish || Julep

Note: This is NOT a sponsored post! I just want to share something awesome that I found :)

Since coming across Julep a couple months ago, I've been in love. It's a subscription where you receive roughly 3 three nail polishes in a box (Depends on your style maven pick! Some boxes give you two polishes and a beauty product) and they always add in a little extra something.

So far, I have had about 5 months of Julep and I accumulated enough Jules to redeem so that last month's box was free!

They have a lot of really cool colors and usually the ones they send you are the major colors, or variations of them, for the season. At first, I thought the polish chipped really easily, then I realized it wasn't the polish and it was just the crappy top coat I was putting on. Now I don't use a top coat (except on the sparkly ones like Missy above) and the polish lasts for almost a week! I also only have to do one or two coats and it looks awesome :)

Since subscribing to Julep, I've come across some people who complain about how expensive Julep is. I saw it that way at first, too. Only $20.06 would come out of my bank account on the 25th of each month, and that included shipping. I realized how inexpensive it was when I was ringing a lady through at work who was buying 2 O.P.I nail polishes at $10.99 each. There are cheaper polishes in the drug stores but I really like Julep and I don't think it's that bad of a price for what you're getting.

I don't remember how I came across Julep, but I'm sure it was browsing around some of my favorite blogs. I was not paid or compensated at all for this post, I simply want to share with you something awesome that I came across! I hope you try it out and love it just as much as I do! 

If you click the button below (my affiliate link), it will direct you to their website. I'm pretty sure your first box is free, too! :)

xo. Nicole

Our Change

Well, we made it to Alberta! I moved with the animals 2 weeks before Rob did. Although it was a rough 2 weeks, the animals and I survived long enough to welcome Rob to Alberta in the middle of September. I started work at a drugstore with my Step-Mom, and Rob starts his electrician apprenticeship tomorrow! I'm going to start looking for jobs in my field of study...it's just finding the time and energy, or just not procrastinating. 

The weeks I was without my husband was eventful to say the least. Gunner got sick twice, where he couldn't even keep water in him and woke me up through out the night needing to go outside pretty quickly. Rob and I agreed to wait and see what happened, and both times Gunner got better after 12 hours. Our theory is a change in the water, and just the change in general. He's doing awesome now!

My car decided one day on my way to work that it would just lose it's engine plug and stop working. Thankfully my dad is a tow truck driver and was able to pick up my car when he started his shift. The only payment was a hug! Today, it got towed to my sister-in-law's house so her husband can so graciously fix my car. 

Two nights ago, Koshka got out through our bedroom window and she was nowhere to be found. Rob was sure if she wanted to, or was able to come back, she would have. All I could think of was my poor baby trapped somewhere, attacked by an animal, or just lost in general. Thankfully this morning at around 6:00am, Rob woke me up because he heard Koshka meowing outside our window! It was like a movie how I ran outside to get her! We made eye contact and ran towards each other, haha! I'm glad and so relieved to have her back inside, safe and sound.

My goal is to have some more wedding posts up pretty soon! Thanks for being so patient with me! :)

xo. Nicole