Beauty Bit: Members Only

Beauty product subscriptions! I want in!!!!  I have recently been turned on to this novel concept where different companies have membership programs that you join and receive monthly gift boxes FULL of goodies.  Yea - Mr. Mailman soon begins to take on a portly shape and grow a white beard in this mirage.  Is that a sleigh or a mail truck?  Who cares - he's got a package with my name on it!  Here's two of my newest finds: Julep Maven program and Birchbox. 

I stumbled upon Julep nail products while perusing Vogue.com.  The rich purple shade they were featuring for spring was just gorgeous - and the bottle was incredibly chic.  So on the hunt I was - to find these julep jewels and see if I would love the rest of their colors.  To my dismay, they were not sold in NYC (imagine that - isn't NYC the center of the universe? says all New Yorkers), but since I do have a black belt in online shopping - I was pleased to find I could buy them direct from their website.  Founded by Jane Park, a former Starbucks executive, Julep is a small chain of nail salons in Seattle that now carries their own line of nail and beauty products.  And here is where the story gets good - while browsing (hunting) through their website, I came across their Maven program - a membership program that sends you pre-selected full size nail polishes monthly accordingly to your style.  I chose the $19.99/month program and each monthly box contains over $40 worth of full sized nail and beauty products.  My first box arrived just a few days ago - and it was just a little piece of beauty junkie heaven.   

Birchbox is an online beauty company that sells various beauty products, but also offers this simply addictive monthly sampling program.  Frankly, I am not a sample gal.  Don't want 'em, don't need 'em - I put them in the knick-knack, doo-dad category of crap that can clutter my apartment and subject me to a future submission on an episode of Hoarders.  BUT - when I took a look at this lil' diddy of a program - I gladly found space for more stuff.  Though they have many different membership programs available, the one that I chose was the $10/month deluxe beauty sample program.  And while they say sample - these buggers are often full sized or a large travel size - and run the gamut of products.  My first box that arrived this evening contained a full size Essie nail polish, full size Tarte lip stain pencil, travel size Shiseido blotting papers and a Annick Goutal fragrance sample.  Knick-knack patty wack - give Maree a Birchbox!!!!