Olive & June Review: Quality Manicures at Home
On the hunt for beautiful nails
For me, beautifully manicured nails are like an elusive unicorn. Between taking care of kids, pets, cleaning, and everything in between at-home manicures lasts me about 2 days before they start chipping. Unfortunately, I do not have the time or money to be able to go to the nail salon to get my nails done every 2 weeks. In my quest for beautiful-looking nails, I feel like I have tried everything. From glue on nails, nail wraps, different polishes, dips, and more. Nothing seems to last as long as I would like. Dips came close, but I did not like how brittle they left my nails underneath. So, I finally decided to try out Olive & June. After using the Olive & June manicure system for the last several weeks I have some thoughts I wanted to share with you. So, here is my Olive & June review!
Disclaimer: I do have a referral link in this post. If you use it to make a purchase I do receive a small commission.
A little about Olive & June and what comes in the Olive & June Mani system
First, one of the things I like about Olive & June is their products are free of 7 harmful chemicals, vegan, and cruelty-free. (Free of dibutyl phthalate (DBP), toluene, formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, camphor, TPHP, or xylene.) Olive & Junes has many options when it comes to their manicure system. You can buy the system with 1 polish, 6 polishes, or the seasonal nail polish set. The mainstays you get with their manicure system though are their nail polish remover pot, nail file, nail buffer, clippers, the poppy, cuticle serum, clean-up brush, and topcoat.
Olive & June Manicure Steps
To get the most out of your Olive & June nail polish they have a recommended set of steps you should take to get a long-lasting manicure. The first is to trim/shape your nails to your liking, remove old nail polish, buff your nails, paint your nails, clean up any mistakes, apply topcoat, and then when nails are dry apply the cuticle serum.
My Olive & June Review: How well does it work?
The big question though is how well does it work? Pretty well, and their nail care products are good quality. (i.e. buffers, nail files, etc.) I have actually gotten the best at-home manicures I have ever had with the Olive & June Mani system. I will be honest with you. Haha! I am not the greatest when it comes to painting my nails. Nail polish gets all over my fingers because it is hard to keep the brush steady. (I have psoriatic arthritis which often makes it painful and difficult for me to handle things sometimes.) It is frustrating, but the Olive & June main system has helped me in a lot of ways.
First is their poppy. The poppy is a cap you put on the top of the nail polish to help you hold it better, and so you can paint your nails easier. It works. I highly recommend the poppy if you have issues grasping things. Another tool that has helped my manicure look better is the clean-up brush. It is basically a small paintbrush that you dip in the nail polish remover and you use it to clean up around the edges of your nails when you make a mistake. I also love their Dry Drops. 1-2 drops on your nails after you have put on the topcoat reduces drying time.
Biggest Plus
The biggest plus for me though is the Olive & June nail polish and topcoat. I don’t think I have ever owned nail polish as nice as Olive & Junes. (Is that sad? Haha!) The nail polish is self-leveling so you get a more even-looking manicure, and the polish already has a base coat in it so technically you do not need to purchase one. The topcoat is super glossy and both the topcoat and the nail polish dry super fast.
Overall Results
My overall results with Olive & June’s mani system have been positive. I have used the system for several weeks now and I have been able to give myself a pretty manicure in about 30-40 minutes. I have also been able to get my Olive & June mani to last on average 5 days. Which is over twice as long as it usually lasts. I am still trying to get the hang of not painting over my cuticles, but I know that will come with practice. I am super happy with how nice my at-home manicures have looked that I just ordered Olive & June’s pedicure system because my feet need some help. (Another Olive & June Review for that coming in the future.) I highly recommend the Olive & June Mani System if you are a beginner at doing your own at-home manicures.
Tips/Tricks
Over the last several weeks I have learned some tips/tricks to help make your Olive & June manicure last longer. (I know those who give themselves manicures all the time will probably know everything I am about to say, but for beginners these tips/tricks are important.) Nail prep is key when getting your Olive & June manicure to last. Before applying the nail polish make sure you swipe your fingers with the nail polish remover again to remove any remaining oils that might be on your fingers.
Another way to help make your manicure last longer is to apply the top coat every 2 days. Also, make sure to cap the ends of your nails. Swipe the nail polish and topcoat over the edge of your nails to help prevent chipping. Lastly, give your nails time to dry. As a mom who does not have a lot of time I am guilty of not letting my nail polish dry and then it smudges. While Olive & June nail polish and topcoat do not take long to dry you still need to give them time.
Cost, and where to buy
Olive & June is a little pricey so I would look at it as an investment. The easiest place to purchase Olive & June products is of course on their website. For $80.00 (plus tax) I purchased the Olive & June Mani System with 6 nail polishes. Also, because they were running a special I got the Dry Drops for free. (They run specials a lot so be on the lookout.) But there are ways to save some money.
How to save some money
You can also purchase Olive & June products at Target. This is nice because you can save money on purchasing Olive & June products if you have a Target Red Card, or they are running gift card specials, etc. If you are interested in trying Olive & June then I also have a referral link HERE. It will get you 20% off your first purchase of any Olive & June System. (As an Olive & June ambassador I do receive a small commission if my referral link is used.)
The other way to save money is to know what products you need and those you don’t need. If you already have buffers, nail files, clippers, nail polish remover, cuticle oil, etc. then you can just spend $28.00 and get the Olive & June Starter Set. (Comes with the poppy, 1 nail polish, and the topcoat.) Also, some products, such as the Olive & June Primer are not necessary since it is basically just a nail polish remover in a different container.
