Noodles Nail Polish Jan. 2021 Polish Pickup: You're Such a Gem

 *press sample*

Hi folks! With all the unknowns with the postal system right now, I didn't know if the Noodles Nail Polish shade would arrive before the sale, so I went ahead with the others I posted about a couple days ago. Luckily, my package came last night, so I'm able to give you some quick swatches and review of this month's polish. This will be available tomorrow at 11:00 AM ET through Monday, Jan. 4th on the Polish Pickup website.

Noodles Nail Polish You're Such a Gem (3 coats)

Inspiration: a photo of alexandrite under a UV light

Price: $12

Cap: no cap

 website | Facebook Fan Group | Instagram

I'm going to be completely honest here, this color was extremely hard to capture. I 100% had to do color-correction, despite my attempt to color balance my camera multiple times. I do, however, feel pretty happy that it's really close to accurate now. It's a magenta-leaning purple crelly base with subtle blue/purple shimmer and magenta, fuchsia, and neon pink hexagonal glitters. It did dry with a little texture, but less than I expected. You'll still likely need a second coat of topcoat to get a glass-like finish though. What do you think? What are you picking up this month? 

*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*

Polish Pickup January 2021 Birthstones, Gems, and Minerals Swatches and Reviews

 *press samples*

Hi folks! I know, it's been a while, but it's that time of year where not a ton of new polishes are being released. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas if you celebrate. My husband and I spent it by ourselves which was the first time we've done that since we've been married. It's so sad we weren't able to see our families, and I hope vaccines become more readily available soonish. I can't wait for 2021, even though I know it will take a while to see any real changes. On a much lighter note, can you believe Polish Pickup starts this Friday? This month's theme is Birthstones, Gems, and Minerals which is near and dear to my heart. I used to be a soil scientist and there is a lot of overlap with minerals which are components of soil. 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 (more for international and they just had to increase the pricing to Canada). 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, Jan. 1st at 11:00 AM ET and ends on Monday, Jan. 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 now open for wishlisting, so go check out this month's offerings STAT. Time for swatches!

Noodles Nail Polish 2021 New Year's Polish: NYE Skies

*press sample*

Hi, folks! I hope you're staying safe in this crazy world right now. Shipping is backed up for days (perhaps over a week?), so who knows when the holidays will really "end," you know? I think we're all hoping for a better year, right? I'm not going to jinx it or anything, but it almost HAS to be better than the dumpster fire that was 2020. Natalie of Noodles Nail Polish releases a yearly New Year's polish, and this year it is a gorgeous glitter topper. I'm a little late posting this, but it will be releasing today (Friday, December 11th) at 6 PM ET in the Noodles shop for $9.50 each. 

Noodles Nail Polish NYE Skies (1 coat) over Cuticula Coconut Milk Sorbet (2 coats)

This time I went for something a little different as a base color. I thought the off white Cuticula would work well with the gold and black. NYE Skies is a clear-based glitter topper with various black and gold hexagonal glitters and gold holo stars. I found it best to turn the bottle upside down about 30 minutes before application to ensure you'll have a few gold stars without needing to fish for any. There's just something really classy about the combination of black and gold don't you think? Don't worry, other bloggers used this over other base colors, so you should be able to get a good idea of how this changes over other colors on the shop page later today. It had a good amount of glitter density and needed just 1 thin coat for my swatches above. To get the stars to stay where I wanted them, I did some little short brush strokes to apply and move the stars. 

Again, this one will be available today at 6 PM, so set your alarms! And may 2021 not be an absolute shitshow. You can find out more about Noodles Nail Polish on their website, Instagram page, Facebook page, and Facebook Fan Group.

*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*

Polish Pickup Dec. 2020 Everything is Fine: Swatches and Reviews

*press samples* 

Hi folks! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving for those of you in the US. It was a really quiet one with just me and my husband celebrating at home. Luckily the food turned out well and nothing was burnt. Tonight I've got several items for this month's PPU to share with you. This month's theme is Everything is Fine which can be taken many different ways. 2020 has been a terrible year for everyone. Makers came together for the good, bad, and ugly that was 2020. 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 (more for international and they just had to increase the pricing to Canada). 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, Dec. 4th at 11:00 AM ET and ends on Monday, Dec. 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 website. The website just opened up today for wishlisting yesterday, so go check out this month's offerings STAT. Time for swatches!

Noodles Nail Polish Holiday 2020 Swatches and Reviews and Black Friday Info

 *press samples*

Hi folks! I'm such a productive blogger! It's been a hot minute since you've gotten 3 posts in 3 days am I right? American Thanksgiving is coming up later this week, so there's a good chance you won't hear from me for the rest of the week (if you listen closely, you may hear the faint sound of my mouse clicking as I make all my purchases on Black Friday). What do you plan on getting? If you are interested in any Noodles Nail Polishes, there will be a Black Friday sale starting at the same time as the Holiday Collection release. Here's what Natalie had to say about the sale: 

"The sale starts Thursday, November 26th at 9 pm EST and ends Monday 11:59 PM EST. 20% your entire purchase (excludes new holiday collection, mystery grab bags, and mystery christmas duo) no code necessary or minimum. Discount will be automatically applied at checkout so you are still able to use the free shipping code over $75. To view all polishes included in the sale you can click on the tab Black Friday Sale.

Every order of 5 or more polishes will receive a FREE Black Friday mystery polish (pictured above in black and white).

No code necessary for this, it will be added when shipping. It can be any 5 polishes, whether they are discounted or not. Mystery grab bags and mystery Christmas duo count as one bottle since they are prepackaged and 1 listing. So if you order 1 of those sets, you would still need 4 other polishes to earn the Black Friday mystery. If you do not purchase 5 or more polishes but want the mystery, I will list some overpour in the weeks following. One mystery per customer.

I can not combine orders during this sale due to high volume of orders. I apologize for the inconvenience. I will not be able to restock anything that sells out, as shipping orders takes priority during the sale. I will restock what sells out as soon as I can, but nothing will restock during the sale. I am going to try my best to have a lot on hand, but you never know what will be most popular!"

I do not have the Christmas duo or Black Friday polish to share with you, so those will indeed be a surprise for us all. The Holiday Collection features 7 different polishes filled with crellies, toppers, and shifters which will be available this Thursday, November 26th at 9 PM EST and CANNOT be used with the 20% discount. All polishes will retail for $9.50 except for & to All a Good Night which will be $10. This is going to be a picture-heavy post, so shall we go ahead and get a look at these warlocks?

Fanchromatic Nails Swatches and Reviews: I Am the Bat and Fistful of Latinum

 *press samples*

Hi folks! I told you I wouldn't be away for long! Tonight I have 2 polishes from a brand I featured a few month's ago during Static Lacquer's California Lovin' Indies collaboration. Lynae from Fanchromatic Nails has been around since 2012 (!!!) making polishes and bath and body products with sci-fi, fantasy, and pop culture themes. She has a wide variety of colors and finishes as well as a Nail Polish of the Month subscription which features an exclusive new polish every month with some custom stickers. The polishes I have to share with you tonight are currently available on the website, so no worries about having ninja fingers to get your hands on these. 

Fanchromatic Nails I Am the Bat (2 coats) (Full-$11 Mini-$5.50)

Fanchromatic Nails I Am the Bat (w/ topcoat) (2 coats) (Full-$11 Mini-$5.50)

I Am the Bat is, of course, inspired by Batman! This is the brand's most popular color, and I'm not surprised. This one has a matte finish, but I found it to be a little more of a satin finish which is what I actually prefer. I find that some true matte finishes dry too quickly and get streaky finishes, but this one takes an extra minute or 2 to dry down, giving you time to even it all out. I found that it mostly covered in just 1 coat, but I did 2 due to photographs and my nail length. You very well may get away with just 1 coat of this one. Want a great polish without the matte finish? Just add a coat of topcoat! You can really see how that transforms this color into a completely different polish. 

Fanchromatic Nails Fistful of Latinum (1 coat over I Am the Bat) (Full-$11 Mini-$5.50)

Up next we have Fistful of Latinum which is inspired by Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and the fictional currency worth much more than gold. It's a clear-based glitter topper with various sizes of holo hexagonal gold glitter and fine gold sparkles. So. Much. Bling. The largest hex glitters settle slightly, so make sure to turn the bottle upside down about 30 minutes before application if you want more of these bigger glitters. I didn't do this and still had at least 3 of each on each nail. It dried with the normal amount of texture due to the glitter, so you may need to double up on your topcoat to smooth it all out. 

There you have it, folks! Do check out the site as there are so many other things I want to try! I can't wait to make an order for her scrubs, whipped soap, and whipped body butter. I am a huge fan of indie bath and body products, too! 

*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*

Static Lacquer Nov. 2020 The Indie Lab Swatches and Review: Clockwork Angel

 *press sample*

Hi folks! Things have been quiet on my front, but things will be picking up again on the blog with the influx of winter/holiday shades being released in the near future. I've seen lots of upcoming Black Friday deals being promoted on social media, and I'm gonna do my best to be good this year. It's going to be a non-traditional Thanksgiving and Christmas for me; it's always been Thanksgiving with my family, and my husband's family for Christmas, and we will not be partaking in any get-togethers this year to keep everyone safe. I do hope you consider doing the same. This also means I'll be sitting at home shopping online which may be trouble. Tonight I have a shade from Static Lacquer for this month's The Indie Lab collaboration. This month's inspiration is Steampunk (!) and the store will be open from Nov. 21-26 so you still have a few days to decide what you will pick up. There are 18 different offerings this month, so do make sure to check them out. 

Static Lacquer Clockwork Angel (3 coats)

Inspiration: Cassandra Claire’s the Infernal Devices and Tessa Gray’s clockwork angel

Price: $12

Cap: No cap

I hope you're ready for some shifty goodness, because Stacy really brought it this month! Clockwork Angel is a blackened blue base with red/bronze/copper shift, holo pigment, gold shimmer and crystal flakies. This one looks like 3 polishes in 1 depending on the angle and lighting. I really don't think I have anything like it in my collection. I ended up using 3 thin coats for my photos, and it had a perfect formula. It dried with very minimal texture (just what you normally get with some flakies) and it was easy to remove. 

So what do you plan on picking up from the shop? I'll be back soon with a few more posts from some new and old favorites. 

*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*

Polish Pickup November 2020 Red Carpet Swatches and Reviews

 *press samples* 

Hi folks! I've been such a bad blogger lately, and for that, I apologize. I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a bit of the Covid blues right now. And with us losing an hour for Daylight Savings Time, I'll be driving to work and coming home in the dark. Boo! I truly hope things have been going ok with you. On a much lighter note, I've got several items for this month's PPU to share with you. This month's theme is Red Carpet which can be taken many different ways. 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 (more for international and they just had to increase the pricing to Canada). 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, Nov. 6th at 11:00 AM ET and ends on Monday, Nov. 9th 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 just opened up today for wishlisting, so go check out this month's offerings STAT. Time for swatches!

Polish Pickup October 2020 Animation: Swatches and Reviews

 *press samples*

Hi folks! It was indeed a manic Monday today. It was so manic that it feels like it should be Wednesday already. Tonight I've got 5 items from the October Polish Pickup which has a theme of Animation this month. I'm not going to lie, I must not watch many animated shows because I didn't know the inspiration for many of the products this month while going through my wishlist. That doesn't matter much to me; if the polish is pretty, I'm gonna buy it. 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 (more for international and they just had to increase the pricing to Canada). 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. 2nd at 11:00 AM ET and ends on Monday, Oct. 5th 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!

Static Lacquer INK Quad 2020 Swatches and Reviews

*press samples*

Hi folks! I bet you don't know what to think with a new post THREE days in a row, right? Are you sick of hearing from me yet? I hope not, because I have a Polish Pickup post coming up in a few days. I know, so many good polishes have been coming out! Tonight I have a quad from Static Lacquer which goes hand-in-hand with their September Polish Pickup shade, Early to Bed, Early to Die which is inspired by songs from Ice Nine Kills. This quad is available now for just $35 for all of them, or $11 each. Shall we get a little more acquainted with this set? 

Noodles Nail Polish Fall Sightseeing Collection 2020 Swatches and Reviews

 *press samples*

Hi folks! I told you I'd be back tonight with the Noodles Nail Polish Fall Sightseeing Collection! Instead of the usually 6-piece set, Natalie gave us a collection with 8, all inspired by popular North Eastern towns to visit in the Fall. I'm gonna be totally honest with you: I've never been to any of these places 😬 I've been to lots of states in my day, but I've missed several states in the Northeast. I've heard that it's super popular for leafers in the fall. I lived in Knoxville, TN for about 5 years which is right next to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, so I got my leaf-seeing excursions there. The Fall Sightseeing Collection will be available tomorrow, September 25th at 5 PM EST and each polish will retail for just $9.50 each. Shall we get a closer look at them?