Julep and I are having a sort of love-hate relationship right now. I keep getting suckered into buying mystery boxes with the promise of beautiful polishes and goodies, and I keep getting disappointed. But they seem to take much more care with their Maven boxes; I’ve gotten two so far and absolutely loved them. So clearly I need to stop buying boxes if I don’t know what’s in them.

Julep Nan: Nantucket red crème

The Julep June Maven box I chose was “It Girl,” which gives three polishes, and I added on two more for a reduced price. Bess is a pretty sky blue and Char is a lovely rich navy blue. I’m sure Char is short for “Charlene,” but it makes me think of a char woman, the old English term for housecleaner — not what I want to do with pretty manicure of dark blue! (Also, since I’m a Stephen King fan, char means death. But I digress.)

For me, the standout of the three in the curated box is Nan, a faded red. Becca tried hers first and told me I’d love it, but I wan’t sure when I started to apply polish. Reds are iffy colors; I’m cool-toned, so a red with too much yellow in it makes me look awful. The more I looked down at my nails, though, the more I fell in love with this soft, summery shade.

I should have done this for my red-inspired manicure.

Nan is the shade of iconic Nantucket red faded shorts or pants; supposedly Julep modeled the color on an actual swatch of the fabric. I’ve never been to Nantucket, but that preppy style is all over New England in the summmer. I’m not the right size and shape to really rock that style, but it’s burned into my consciousness as the ideal summer look, probably from watching Dirty Dancing as a kid over and over. On my nails, I find Nan to be soft and wearable, muted without being neutral, and complimentary to pretty much everything in my closet.

The formula was nearly perfect: almost a one coater! I did two thin coats with no trouble, topped by Seche Vite in these photos.

Nantucket red shorts. It really is an exact match.

All I need is a white cardigan and a boat.

What’s your summer style?