[Press Samples – Post Disclosure Page]
Hey friends! Today’s blog post is a big one AND for an amazing cause! I am so honored to share these swatches with you all, I can’t even explain it. Today I am sharing swatches for this year’s Breast Cancer Awareness Box. I have been a customer/fan of this box since its inception so it’s really surreal to be officially blogging about it! I have quite a few new to the blog brands, a few regulars, and a few new to me brands as well.
This box is hosted by Chrissy of Hearts & Promises (formerly known as Turtle Tootsies). A portion of proceeds for each and every item sold will go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. The 2021 BCA box launches on September 5th on the Hearts & Promises website. As always, full sale details will be at the end of the post.
And yes, you saw the thumbnail correctly, I will have some short nail (for me at least) swatches in this post. September is going to be a month full of shorties!
Live Swatch Video
The Breast Cancer Awareness box is an annual charity box.
77 Lacquer – A Cure Worth Fighting For
Description: A deepened fuchsia with various shifting shimmers, copper shimmer and silver holo micro bar glitter.
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
A Cure Worth Fighting For had a pretty good formula. It was a little bit streaky and sheer on the first coat but the streaks even out with the next couple of coats. The shimmer gives this an almost metallic look and the holographic bar glitters are right up my alley! The bar glitters do not poke up and spread out nicely without needing to work them.
I think this is going to be a solid 3 coater on pretty much everyone to get full opacity as well as to even out some of those streaks. In 3 coats, you will have a TON of shimmer and bar glitters on the nail. This polish does dry a little dull so you will want top coat for a glossy finish.
Note: I did notice a bit of VNL with this polish in bright lighting.
77 Lacquer
15ml & 5 Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Alter Ego – Simple Pleasure Goat Milk Soap
Description: unscented goats milk soap shaped like a heart, pastel pink
Price: $8.50 for 3.75 ounces Cap: 10
This was my first time trying out a goat milk soap bar. I was VERY impressed by it! This lathered up really nicely and when I rinsed (and dried) my hands off, they didn’t feel dry or like I needed to immediately lotion up.
This is unscented so it has a natural scent to it. The scent vaguely reminded me of clay but that doesn’t linger and it isn’t strong. I was slightly concerned this would smell like milk or worse barnyard-like, but it doesn’t. I live on a property that has a barn full of cows and while I love them, I don’t want to smell them in my house. So if you are worried that this will smell like a farm, it doesn’t!
Alter Ego Body Care Products
17ml, 5 free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Anchor & Heart Lacquer – Determined To Win
Description: A holo base with both linear and scattered qualities, tinted pink by pink micro flakies and tiny pink glitter.
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
Determined To Win had a wonderful formula. It had a perfect consistency. This applied beautifully and I was very impressed with the coverage in 1 coat. It wasn’t quite a 1 coater but it was close. This polish is VERY holographic.
This polish will be a 2-3 coater depending on your nail length. Short nails will be potentially good in 1 thick coat. I used 2 coats for my photos.
Anchor & Heart Lacquer
15ml, 5 Free, Vegan & Cruelty-Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Black Dahila – Pink Carnations
Description: a mint jelly with pink/teal/silver shifting flakes.
Price: $12.50 for 14ml Cap: None
Pink Carnations had a really nice jelly formula. It was a little bit on the thin side so I did have some issues with it running down the stem of the brush. So I would recommend keep an eye on that so that you don’t accidentally go in for thicker coats than you wanted. This polish is also on the sheer side so you will want to build it up for opacity.
I think this polish will be a solid 3 (or more) coater on pretty much everyone. If my nails had been longer, I would have been tempted to go in for a 4th coat. As this polish is sheer, you will have very obvious VNL. Pink Carnations also dries dull so you will want top coat for a glossy finish.
Note: This brand’s bottle is very tall. If you store your polishes in helmers, these will fit BUT the top of the bottle will bump when you open and close the drawers. If you use glass cabochons on your bottles, these might give you some issues.
Black Dahila Lacquer
14ml, 5 Free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Colores de Carol – Boobtastic
Description: A neon pink with micro holo glitter, holo micro shreds,red hex glitters and navy holo glitters.
Price: $12.50 15ml Cap: 150
Boobtastic had a really great crelly formula. This went on very evenly and easily with no application issues. Boobtastic is B-R-I-G-H-T!! I did not need to hold a bottle upside down to get great glitter covered with this polish.
I think this will be a solid two coater on pretty much everyone with people like shorter nails potentially be able to get away with one thicker coat. I use 2 coats for my photos. I would recommend using a glitter eating top coat with this polish. My photos show it with 1 coat of top coat but I noticed about an hour after application, there was some texture.
Removal will be on the tricky side due to the glitters. Soaking this off is recommended.
Colores De Carol
15ml, 5 Free, Vegan & Cruelty-Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Crystal Knockout – Vital Spark
Description: A lavender to white crelly thermal with matte pink and white glitters
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
Vital Spark had a really nice formula. It was on the thicker side of normal but I did not have any problems with application. The glitter is all spread out evenly and easily on their own without needing to do anything special.
I found the thermal component in this very reactive. It started changing on me right away. The cold state is a beautiful lavender and the warm state is a slightly pink toned white. While I was swatching this I noticed there was a periwinkle blue shade that also appeared inbetween the two shades.
I used 3 coats for my photos. Removal will be difficult due to all of the glitters.
Crystal Knockout
15ml, 5 Free & Cruelty Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Cuticula – No One Fights Alone
Description: a pink jelly base with tons of green and pink shifting iridescent flakes, scattered green to gold shimmer, metallic rose gold flakes, and silver holographic flakes.
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
No One Fights Alone had a great formula. The base color for this is on the darker side of medium pink. The flakies all spread out evenly and easily on their own without any texture.
This will be a 2-3 coater depending on personal preference and nail length. I used 3 coats for my photos. Nothing in here will dry textured or be difficult to remove.
Cuticula
15ml & 5 Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Fair Maiden Polish – Treasured Chests
Description: a soft peachy pink with iridescent flakes and shimmer that shift red-golden-green
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
Treasured Chests had a great formula. The shimmer plays so beautifully with the base color! It didn’t feel overly thick or thin and I did not have any application issues. The shimmer is also very color shifty.
The flakies in this seem to show up most in lower lighting situations. Nothing in here dried down textured or will be difficult to remove. I think this will be a 3 coater on most nails. I used 3 coats for my photos.
Fair Maiden Polish
15ml & 5 Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Hearts & Promises – Faith Over Fear
Description: A cream colored crelly loaded with assorted pink glitters and flakies and pink shimmer
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
Faith Over Fear had a great crelly formula. It did not feel overly thick or thin and I did not have any application issues. The flakies and glitters all spread evenly and easily on their own without needing to do anything special. This is a soft creamy color and the pink shimmer gives it a pinkish tone.
This has pretty good coverage and two coats but it is still on the sheer side. So to get the best opacity, I would recommend 3 thin coats. This didn’t dry textured on me but there is a metallic rose gold flakie in this that I think depending on the size of the flakie and how it lays on your nail, could potentially dry textured. The shimmer comes alive with top coat!
Note: I did notice that you get a tiny bit more flakies and glitters out on the nail if you hold the bottle upside down between coats.
Hearts & Promises
15ml, 5 Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Jen & Berries – Yes Ma’ammogram
Description: Deep pink loaded with red/gold aurora shimmer and scattered gold flecks
Price: $12.50 for 12.5 ml Cap: 100
Yes Ma’ammogram had a beautiful formula. The base is a very bright and vibrant deep pink that looks gorgeous paired with the shimmer. The gold flecks are very delicate but give this a nice sparkle. The shimmer is the star of the show in this polish.
You get pretty good coverage in 2 coats with this. I did have a tiny bit of VNL so I used 3 coats for my photos. While I didn’t experience staining, I would still recommend base coat with this polish.
Jen & Berries
12.5ml, 5 Free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Leesha’s Lacquer – Mujer Fuerte
Description: A blush pink crelly with gold flakes and flakies that shift from pink to green
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: 150
Mujer Fuerte had a pretty good formula. This is a soft and delicate looking polish that screamed weddings nails to me. I did find that it applied a little unevenly/patchy but in 3 coats pretty much all of the unevenness settles out. If you really look for them, you will see some light spots though.
The flakies and shimmer are very soft and delicate. They do not dry textured. I used 3 coats for my photos. Nothing in here will be overly difficult to remove.
Leesha’s Lacquer
15ml, 5 free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
Website | Etsy | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Psst.. You can use my code NicoleLovesNails25 on the Leesha’s Lacquer site to save 25%!
LynB Designs – Tough Titties
Description: A fuchsia based multichrome that shifts from pink to yellow to green and even blue at extreme angles loaded with linear holo and holo micro flakies
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
Tough Titties had a great jelly like formula. It starts off on the sheer side but builds up nicely. In person, I was seeing the pink, yellow and green color shifts. I wasn’t really see the blue. The holographic effect in this polish is VERY strong.
I think this polish will be a solid 3 coater. It was still just slightly on the sheer side so I had some VNL with this polish. I included a photo of this on my thumb using a VNL blurring base coat.
LynB Designs
15ml, 5 free, Vegan
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Music City Beauty – Never Give Up
Description: A berry pink jelly with strong green to gold shimmer
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: 150
Never Give Up had a great and opaque formula. This did feel slightly on the thicker side but it was very easy to work with. The shimmer does show brush strokes but they don’t distract from the beautiful golden glow.
Short nails will probably be able to get away with 1 coat. Longer natural nails will likely be good in 2 coats. This does dry down dull so you will want top coat for a glossy finish. Because this was so opaque, I would recommend a base coat to prevent staining. I didn’t experience any staining.
Music City Beauty
15ml, 5 Free, Vegan and Cruelty-Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Nailed It – Think Pink
Description: a very pale pink linear holo with a touch of pink shimmer
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: 150
Think Pink had a really great opaque formula. It went on very easily and was buttery smooth. This is extremely holographic! In normal not-holo friendly lighting, the pink shimmer gives a beautiful glow.
This is going to be a solid 1 coat wonder for shorter nails. I used 2 coats for my photos. It does dry down dull will want top coat for a glossy finish.
Nailed It!
15ml, 5 free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Paradox Polish and Soap Co – I Love Boobies
Description: Pink with a silver magnetic and scattered holo
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
I Love Boobies had a great formula. This polish is very opaque on its own and has the potential to be a 1 coater on short nails. The pink base is a deep cooled toned pink and the magnetic effect is very easy to work with.
I used 2 coats for my photos. My middle nail shows this polish unmagnetized. This polish is very pigmented so I would recommend doubling up on base coat if your nails are prone to staining. I only had this polish on for a few minutes but when I removed it, my nails looked a little pinker than they normally do. I did a quick scrub with acetone and that seemed to remove any staining.
Paradox Polish and Soap Company
15ml, 8 Free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Pepper Pot Polish – Simply The Breast
Description: Fuschia pink with contrasting gold shimmer and mixed pink glitter(some holo), in a variety of shades.
Price: $12.50 for 13ml Cap: None
Simply The Breast had a really great formula the glitters all spread out evenly and easily and you do not need to do anything special to get great coverage. The gold shimmer gives it a really pretty sparkle. This does have a jelly like base so you’re going to want to build it up for the best opacity.
You get pretty good coverage in two coats so I can see shorter nails potentially getting away with that. I used 3 coats for my photos. I did have a tiny bit of VNL but I don’t think that will be an issue for natural nails. Removal will be on the tricky side but not overly difficult.
Pepper Pot Lip Gloss
Description: Pink leaning coral w gold shimmer
Price: $8.25 for 10ml Cap: None
This lip gloss looks so beautiful! It doesn’t feel sticky or heavy on the lips. I did notice it has a slight cooling feeling from what I *think* is some type of mint? That feeling and the light scent disappears after a few minutes. I found this is a more subtle/sheer lip gloss.
You get a nice wash of color on the lips and it seems to last pretty well too. So far the longest I have worn it has been about 5 hours and my lips still looked very glossy.
Pepper Pot Polish
13ml, 5 free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Poetry Cowgirl – Not Just Women
Description: A vibrant blue jelly packed with pink-gold-green shifting shimmer and iridescent flakies, and silver holo micro glitters.
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
Not Just Women had a beautiful formula. The components look amazing paired with this base color. Since this is a jelly, you will want to build it up for opacity. The flakies spread evenly and do not dry textured.
I think this polish will be a solid 3 coater on pretty much everyone. It is sheer enough that I think it could also be used as a topper. I used 3 coats for my photos. Nothing in here will be difficult to remove and I didn’t experience any staining.
Poetry Cowgirl Nail Polish
15ml, 5+ free, Cruelty-Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Psyche Minerals – Stronger Eye Shadow
Description: a sparkly pink to coral shifting loose eyeshadow with gold and pink sparkles.
Price: $5 for 3 grams Cap: None
This was my first time trying out both an eyeshadow by this brand as well as using a loose eyeshadow. I wasn’t 100% sure what brush to apply this with so I applied it with my finger in a tapping motion. It went on very easily. I didn’t really prep my eyelids other than an eye cream and face primer.
I really love how this looks. I feel like it’s so soft and shimmery that you get a really pretty eye look with minimal effort. If you are like me and are inexperienced with makeup, this will be very easy to use! I plan on trying this out with some more makeup looks in the future.
Psyche Minerals
5 Free, Cruelty Free
Website | Etsy | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Red Eyed Lacquer – I Pink You’re A Warrior
Description: A bright pink crelly with pink/gold shifting shimmer and tons of holo micro flakies
Price: $12.50 for 13ml Cap: 100
I Pink You’re A Warrior had a great formula. It starts off on the sheer side but it builds up nicely in three coats. The shifty shimmer is very color shitty I was seeing a pink to orange to gold shift in person. The holographic flakies spread out very evenly and do not dry down textured.
To get the most opacity, I think this will be a solid 3 coater. Depending on thickness of coats, you may or may not have VNL. I had some very slightly VNL but it was largely distracted by the shimmer and flakies. Nothing in here dried down textured nor will it be difficult to remove.
Red Eyed Lacquer
12ml, 5 free & Cruelty-Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Rogue Lacquer – Kick It To The Curb
Description: rose gold metallic flakes
Price: $12.50 for 13ml Cap: None
Kick It To The Curb had a beautiful formula. In person what I was seeing was a clear base with rose gold and silver holographic flakes. This polish is very sparkly and beautiful. The flakes do not dry textured and spread evenly on the nail.
This will be a 2-3 coater depending on your nail length. I used 2 coats for my photos. Longer nails will likely want to go in for a third coat.
Rogue Lacquer
5 Free, Cruelty Free & Vegan
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Sassy Pants Polish – Pink Ribbon
Description: A light pink crelly with assorted pink and magenta holographic glitters with a red to purple shifting shimmer.
Price: $12.50 for 15ml Cap: None
Pink Ribbon had a beautiful crelly formula. The glitters all spread out evenly without giving off much texture. The shimmer was mainly flashing the purple color shift to me in person. It was a little difficult to photograph but I was seeing it in person.
I think this will be a solid 3 coater. It has very even coverage so if you don’t mind it being sheer, it’s passable in 2 coats. Removal will be slightly difficult from the glitters so I would suggest soaking it off.
Sassy Pants Polish
15ml, 5 Free & Cruelty Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
The Soapy Chef – Sweet Pea Hand And Nail “Snow” Scrub
Description: This hand and nail “snow” scrub is a gentle exfoliating scrub for hands and nails. It emulsifies and lathers when you add water to it. It will condition and brighten nails and cuticles and leave your skin feeling refreshed and silky smooth
Scent notes: Pear, berry, raspberry, spring florals, musk, light woody
Ingredients: baking soda, soy wax, coconut oil, avocado oil, citric acid, fragrance oil & mica colorant
Price: $9 for 4oz Cap: 75
This was my first time trying this product out. It is completely different from any other scrub that I have ever used. The texture is very smooth (it feels like baking soda) which I was confused about, to be honest!
Actually using the product feels very nice on my hands. I probably exfoliate my hands more often than the average person so I have actually been using this in between using more textured scrubs. I like how it makes my hands feel and look.
The Soapy Chef
Website | Instagram | Facebook
Under A Hola Moon Wax Melts
Description: 2 wax melt bars
Scent Notes: Strawberry jam, rich vanilla, and caramelized brown sugar. Summer berries, poundcake and buttercream.
Price: $6.25 for 3.6oz (each bar is 1.8oz) Cap: None
These wax melts smell so sweet, fruity, and summery! While I personally have already started melting Fall scents around my house, I was very excited to try these as I LOVE fruity fragrances. These did not disappoint. They smell exactly like how they are described as.
They have a great scent throw. I have had the same cube in my warmer for about a week now and it is still going strong with using it a few hours each day.
Under A Hula Moon
Website | Facebook | Facebook Group
Zombie Claw Polish – Hakuna MaTaTa
Description: a holo base that glows in dark white with pink metallic flakies and sapphire, pink, magenta and fuschia micro glitters.
Price: $12.50 for 13ml Cap: 100
Hakuna MaTaTa had a really great formula. It didn’t feel overly thick or thin and I did not have any application issues. This is a VERY holographic base! I found the glow in the dark pigment charged up very easily with my blacklight flashlight. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to really test how long this glowed for.
This polish will be a 2-3 coater depending on your nail length. I used 3 coats for my photos. Nothing in here dried textured or will be overly difficult to remove.
Zombie Claw Polish
10 free, vegan & cruelty-free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Sale Information
The BCA box for 2021 goes on sale this Sunday, September 5th Noon Eastern time through September 12th, on HeartsAndPromises.com. All items are available individually and as a complete box. The complete box will be available to purchase for $265. You can also purchase a polish only box for $215. There will also be a few more items than what I have shown available.
Breast Cancer Awareness Box
Website | Facebook Group
$1.50 from each polish, $30 from each full box, and 10% from non nail polish items will be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. For more information on the charity check out their website here.
A note on thermal/solar polishes…
I want to note that thermal and solar polishes do have a shelf life on how long they will change colors for. Generally, they are guaranteed to change colors for 6-12 months. My oldest thermal that still transitions is from 2018. To get the most out of a thermal (all nail polish really) you’ll want to store them in a cool, dark place.
I store my thermals with my other nail polish in the Ikea helmers. Once a thermal no longer changes color (aka dies), you can still wear them! The thermals that I own that have died, all stayed in the warm state but it’s not guaranteed to stay in the warm.