Julep Maven December Box Opening Part I

For December, I chose the Ultimate Upgrade box which includes everything for the month of December.

December's quote card.

The extra for this month was a set of Twistbands and there is a 25% off code for the Twistband Club.

The first product for December is the Blank Canvas Mattifying Eye Primer.

*Our new reparative, anti-aging eye primer masks shine while extending the life of your eye look. Light diffusing diamond powder minimizes the appearance of lid discoloration while our Power Cell Complex™ promotes collagen production to smooth and brighten the skin.

*Features & Benefits:

• Extends wear of eye shadow, liner, and concealer
• Prevents creasing and evens color appearance
• Mattifies oily eyelids
• Smooths and brightens areas around eye, diminishing appearance of fine lines and wrinkles
• Easily blends into all skin types and skin shades Spatula-shaped applicator delivers easy, crease-proof coverage.

*Information from Julep.com

The eye primer is nude colored and has a texture similar to the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion but is more pigmented.  While the extra pigmentation helps cover discolorations on the eyelids very well, the nude does not go well with my coloring and looks a bit orange on my skin tone.

The eye primer blends well and has excellent coverage, but is too warm for my skin tone. I used it as a base for the eyeshadow palette and together the products felt a bit heavy on my lids. I might have applied a bit too much primer which may be the culprit.

The second product for December is the Sweep Eyeshadow Palette in Neutrals. The fact that the palette is named "neutrals" suggests that there may be the possibility of future eyeshadow palettes by Julep.

*Create looks as bold or as soft as you’d like while smoothing lids and promoting collagen production. Formulated with anti-aging ingredients including Power Cell Complex™, these five classic shades are:

*Shades:

• Tiramisu - nude satin
• Glow - golden shimmer
• Dusk - mauve satin
• Toffee - bronze shimmer
• Cocoa - chocolate brown with gold shimmer

*Information from Julep.com

The front and back of the eyeshadow palette.

Inside the eyeshadow palette from left to right: Tiramisu, Glow, Dusk, Toffee, Cocoa.  Each powder eyeshadow is approximately 0.02 oz. of product.

Eyeshadow swatches.

Using the eyeshadow primer and eyeshadows (with flash.)

I started with the eyeshadow primer on my eyelid, crease, and undereye area as a base.  In hindsight, I would not use it again on my undereye area because of the pigmentation and texture (it made fallout from the eyeshadows stick to my undereye area.)  I swept Tiramisu all over my lid up to the brow bone, then I blended Glow over my eyelid.  I applied Dusk over the outer half of my eyelid and blended it up into the crease and just above the crease fold.  I blended Toffee into the outer third part of my eyelid and into the crease to deepen.  I applied Cocoa into the outer triangle and lined my upper and lower lash lines with it.  I applied Tiramisu into my inner corners and just under the inner lash line for highlight.  I finished with Julep Volumizing Mascara (I did not curl my lashes.)

Using the eyeshadow primer and eyeshadows (without flash.)

Using the eyeshadow primer and eyeshadows (without flash.)

My overall opinion of these items is ... Meh. 

I wasn't expecting the best of the best but they could have done better. The eyeshadow primer is nice, but I would have preferred it to set colorless or to match my skintone. It did prevent the eyeshadows from creasing. I was pretty disappointed with the eyeshadows; They are completely lacking in pigmentation. I can barely tell that there is anything on my eyelids. Hopefully, Julep will release another eyeshadow palette in colors with an improved formula.

You can purchase these products on Julep.com.

FTC Disclaimer: All products shown were purchased through the Julep Maven subscription service.