Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Polish Pickup November 2019: Fairy Tales Swatches and Reviews

*press samples*


Hi guys! I've got three PPU shades to share with you tonight. Can you believe it's almost November?! I've been so bad about doing Halloween manicures this year. Does adding glow-in-the-dark topcoat to all polishes count? This month's theme is Fairy Tales, and I think my collage above really demonstrates how diverse the polishes are this month. New to PPU? If so, here's how it works:

Definitely join the Polish Pickup Facebook Group. You don't necessarily need to actively participate in the group, but it will give you a look at the polishes that will be available in the coming month. PPU themes are chosen by the people, often a few months in advance (brands need time to find their inspiration and test their polish). Any indie brand that has been around for at least a year can participate and each has their own specific inspiration picture and polish for that month. All you need to do is go to the Polish Pickup site during the pre-order window (the first Friday-Monday of the month) to make all of your purchases of these exclusive polishes. There's no need to pay for multiple shipping charges; since this is a pre-order, all polishes get sent to Polish Pickup and they send you the polishes you ordered. Yup, it's that simple. Oh, and shipping is a flat-rate of $3 to the US ($5 for Canada and more for international). Recently they also opened a UK site which you can find here. Since all orders are pre-orders, shipping will take place about 3 weeks after the end of the pre-order.

PPU starts Friday, November 1st at 11:00 AM ET and ends on Monday, Nov. 4th at 11:59 PM (but if a polish has a cap and sells out before the end of the pre-order, it's gone, unless you get lucky and the cap gets raised...which is rare) on the PPU website.

The website is currently open for wishlisting, so go check out this month's offerings STAT. Time for swatches!


Tuesday, October 29, 2019

PI Colors Cotton Candy Collection Swatches and Reviews

*press samples*


Hi guys! I can't believe how the year has flown by. I swear it was just January a couple months ago. This isn't the last you'll see of me this week as I'll be posting the upcoming Polish Pickup shades. Tonight I have a brand I've never featured on the blog, and it's PI Colors. I've really admired other soft shades Trish has featured before, so I was very excited to try her upcoming Cotton Candy Collection. You may be asking yourself, "Wait, it's fall! Cotton candy?" Right now the NC state fair is going on, so it's still fair time in many parts of the US, especially the south. It's way too warm to have the fair during the end of August like we used to have in Ohio. 

This is a 5-piece set that features pastels with iridescent glitters, chameleon shimmers and some occasional flakies. These will be available tomorrow (October 30th) in the PI Colors website for $10 each, or get the whole set for just $42.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Maker's Dozen November 2019 Wine Labels: NeVerMind Polish Raving Red

*press sample*


Hi guys! I hope things are going well for you. I've been busy as always, but I have a bunch of posts to share with you in the next week. Tonight I have a shade from NeVerMind Polish from the Maker's Dozen group collaboration. This collab is a bit different than others (i.e. Polish Pickup), so give me a few moments to give you an overview. It is indeed a dozen different makers each month with one guest maker each month. It just so happens that this month doesn't have a guest, so it's just the 12. The core brands are as follows: Jior Couture, Sassy Pants Polish, Zombie Claw Polish, PI Colors, Copacetic Cosmetics, Baby Girl Lacquer, LynB Designs, Leesha’s Lacquers, NeVerMind Polish, Alter Ego Nail Enamel, Ms. Sparkle, and Inspurrrations.

There's a different theme each month, and this month is wine labels. Each maker gets a particular color they have to work with every month, and it rotates. For example, if one brand has the color blue in January, then they won't have blue for the next 13 months. They can use any shade or finish as long as they adhere to the core color. Also unlike Polish Pickup, there is no main store from which to shop. Forty bottles of each polish will be available throughout that month in the maker's shop (unless they sell out of those 40 bottles) and any leftovers will be available until they are sold. Tonight I've got NeVerMind Polish's shade to show you, and they had red this month. Shall we get to see some more photos? 







NeVerMind Polish Raving Red (3 coats)
Cap: 40 bottles
Price: $10

Raving Red is a warm red crelly base with loads of copper/pink/purple multichrome flakes, and red to orange aurora shimmer. I used 3 thin coats for my photos, but you may be able to get away with 2 if you use thicker coats, or you have short nails. I had no issues with the formula, and it dried with minimal texture because there was no glitter. You can also use a thinner topcoat with this one because of that lack of glitter. 

Yet another beautiful flake bomb from NeVerMind Polish! This one will be available on November 1st until the 40 bottles are sold. Make sure to join the Maker's Dozen Facebook Group for more information and swatches from other brands. You can find out more about NeVerMind Polish on their websiteFacebook Fan GroupInstagramTwitter, and Pinterest pages. 

*These polishes were provided by the company or PR representative. All reviews are based solely on my opinion. For more information, please see my full disclosure at the bottom of the site*

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Pepper Pot Polish Destination: The Desert Collection Swatches and Reviews

*press samples*


Hi guys! The Fall Collections keep rolling in, and tonight I have a very special collection from Pepper Pot Polish to share with you. If this set doesn't scream "FALL!!!!" in your face, I don't know what to tell you. This 5-piece collection is inspired by all things desert, and features creme finishes with shimmer. Somehow Mackenize was able to give us interesting fall shades in a place that doesn't experience fall in the way that many of us experience it every year! 

These are available now in the Pepper Pot Polish Etsy store for $10 each, or get yourself the whole collection for just $45 with free shipping (you'd be saving so much!). This is going to be another picture-heavy post, so shall we get to some swatches? 

Monday, October 7, 2019

NeVerMind Polish All Hallows Collection 2019 Swatches and Reviews

*press samples*


Hi guys! Whew, Monday's are always crazy at work. Not much else is going on around here except for working out and having fun with polymer clay. The main issue I have with working out is having enough time in the evenings. After my hour commute home, workout, shower, and dinner, it's time to go to bed. There just aren't enough hours in the day! 

Tonight I have a brand I've never shared on the blog, but I'm not new to wearing their polishes. I've purchased several polishes from NeVerMind Polish through Polish Pickup, but I tend not to show the polishes I purchase through PPU because they are no longer available. I try and keep the blog for polishes people can get their hands on. The All Hallows Collection is a 4-piece set with shimmers, flakies, and an intense glow-in-the-dark topper. These will be available this Friday, October, 11th for $10 each. Also being released this Friday is Mattefy Me, a matte topcoat for $7.50. I added Mattefy Me to each of the polishes so you can see it with different finishes. Without further ado, let's get to swatches!

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Polish Pickup October 2019: Urban Legends Swatches and Reviews

*press samples*



Hi guys! OMG, can you believe it's October already? It feels like yesterday it was July, am I right? Polish Pickup is coming up this weekend, and this month's inspiration is Urban Legends. There are sooo many urban legends out there, so I am super interested in seeing where makers go with this one. In case you're new to PPU, this is how it works: 

Definitely join the Polish Pickup Facebook Group. You don't necessarily need to actively participate in the group, but it will give you a look at the polishes that will be available in the coming month. PPU themes are chosen by the people, often a few months in advance (brands need time to find their inspiration and test their polish). Any indie brand that has been around for at least a year can participate and each has their own specific inspiration picture and polish for that month. All you need to do is go to the Polish Pickup site during the pre-order window (the first Friday-Monday of the month) to make all of your purchases of these exclusive polishes. There's no need to pay for multiple shipping charges; since this is a pre-order, all polishes get sent to Polish Pickup and they send you the polishes you ordered. Yup, it's that simple. Oh, and shipping is a flat-rate of $3 to the US ($5 for Canada and more for international). Recently they also opened a UK site which you can find here. Since all orders are pre-orders, shipping will take place about 3 weeks after the end of the pre-order.

PPU starts Friday, Oct. 4th at 11:00 AM ET and ends on Monday, Oct. 7th at 11:59 PM (but if a polish has a cap and sells out before the end of the pre-order, it's gone, unless you get lucky and the cap gets raised...which is rare) on the PPU websiteI have a whopping five PPU shades to share with you this month, so I decided to combine these into one post. Go ahead and hit that button to see these beauties.