[Press Samples – Post Disclosure]
Hey readers! Today’s blog post is for the January Hella Handmade Creations.
Just a headsup, it was brought to my attention that some of the pages on my blog weren’t showing up. I’m currently troubleshooting but to be honest I have no idea what the problem is or how to fix it. Individual posts are loading but trying to access pages 2-7 in archives/tags is a no go. I’ll try to get it fixed asap.
Anyways, the HHC shop opens a little after midnight tonight. As per usual, links and sale details can be found at the end of the post.
Live Swatch Video
Hella Handmade Creations is a monthly indie polish collaboration. Makers each pick their own theme and make a series of polishes based on that theme. Each month brands have a new polish, that is exclusive to the Hella Handmade Creations website.
Hearts & Promises – Be My Valentine
Theme: Year of Holidays
Description: a purple linear holo polish with reddish undertones
Price: $12.50 for 15ml | Cap: 200
Be My Valentine had a gorgeous jelly formula. The base didn’t feel overly thick or thin and I didn’t have any application issues. I found it was on the more sheer side but it built up nicely. The purple base is on the warmer toned side and the holographic effect was very strong.
I swatched Be My Valentine in 3 coats. I found that in 2 coats, it was still fairly sheer. In 3 coats, I did have some slight VNL on the clear part of my nail but I couldn’t see my natural nail line. Nothing in here will dry textured but you will want top coat for a glossy finish.
Hearts & Promises – Ridge Assist Base Coat
Description: a ridge filling base coat helps fill those stubborn nail ridges as well as helps to mask nail imperfections. You can do one or two coats, depends on your personal preference. This base coat also helps hide nail lines when you use sheer polishes and helps brighten nail polish finishes as well!
Price: $7 for 15ml | Cap: 100
Hearts & Promises will also have their ridge filling base coat available during this month’s HHC. This base coat is really great for smoothing out any imperfections your natural nail might have. There is also a *very* slight shimmer/pearlized effect within the base.
I have been playing around with this base coat for a few months now. I particularly like it a lot for my pedicures since I have very obvious ridges on a couple of my toes.
Hearts & Promises
15ml, 5 Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Heather’s Hues – It’s All About What Makes You Feel Good
Theme: Billie Eilish (new series)
Description: a blush rose filled with silver reflective glitters and a kiss of pink-coppery gold shimmer
Price: $12.50 for 15ml | Cap: 120
It’s All About What Makes You Feel Good had a gorgeous formula. It didn’t feel overly thick or thin and I didn’t have any application issues. The reflective glitters give this a really pretty sparkle. I found they all spread out very evenly and easily. This wasn’t the most textured reflective polish I have tried but it does dry down with some texture.
The shimmer effect was on the subtle side but easy to see. I think the base color would be a good palette cleanser.
I swatched It’s All About What Makes You Feel Good in 3 coats. It applied very evenly but I found in 2 coats I did have some obvious VNL. If you don’t mind having VNL, it is passable in 2 coats.
As I mentioned, this polish did dry down with some texture so I paired it with a glitter smoothing top coat (Glisten & Glow’s Glitter Grabber) before going in with my usual quick dry top coat. Removal will be fairly messy if you try to scrub it off. I soaked it off with no issues.
Heather’s Hues – WiTS Peppermint Butler
Inspiration: Adventure Time
Description: a mix of cool peppermint, sweet vanilla buttercream, and a hint of musk
Ingredients: avocado oil, sweet almond oil, rice bran oil, babassu oil, jojoba oil, oat extract oil, buckthorn extract, kukui nut oil, chia seed oil, vitamin E, vegetable glycerin, BTMS-50 (emulsifying wax), stearic acid, shea butter, aloe vera, distilled water, and Optiphen (preservative & skin-safe fragrance oil.
Price: $7.50 for 2 ounces | Cap: 25
***note this lotion contains oils derived from seeds/nuts***
Peppermint Butler At first I was a little iffy on the peppermint (I don’t generally care for mint fragrances) but the sweetness from the vanilla buttercream and the musk made it enjoyable for me. My first sniff of it I immediately thought the mint was akin to a menthol or Vicks Vaporub but the second sniff I was able to pick up the other fragrances.
The Heather’s hues WiTS is my favorite lotion in the world. It’s hydrating without feeling greasy and soaks in quickly but not too quickly.
When going outside in the winter months. I like to pair it with a thicker balm to really keep my hands looking nice. For balms I use the Heather’s Hues Fluffer Butter (which is back in stock on her website btw) and recently I have been pairing it with Red Eyed Lacquer Da Balmer. Both work great for this purpose and it’s something I swear by in the winter for keeping my hands looking/feeling nice.
Heather’s Hues
15ml, 5 free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
LynB Designs – Circle Of Trust
Inspiration: Properties of Polygons
Description: a green based pastel multichrome with green to blue to purple shift and linear holo
Price: $13 for 15ml | Cap: 100
Circle Of Trust had a fantastic jelly formula. The base didn’t feel overly thick or thin and I didn’t have any application issues. This polish starts off fairly sheer but builds up nicely. I did have some pretty obvious VNL in direct lighting.
Because it is so sheer, this will work really well as a topper over a variety of colors. I saw all of the described colors in multichrome shimmer and this was also extremely holographic.
To get the most opacity, I would recommend this polish in 3 coats or paired with another polish as a topper. My photos show Circle Of Trust in 3 coats on its own plus top coat. This polish did dry down a little dull so you will want top coat for a glossy finish.
LynB Designs
15ml, 5 Free & Vegan
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Zombie Claw Polish – Goddess of the Night
Series/Inspiration: House of Night books
Description: a loaded holographic flakie polish with blue, black, & gold metallic flakies with a touch of black base
Price: $13 for 13ml | Cap: 100
Goddess of the Night had a really great formula. It was just slightly on the thicker side but it applied very evenly and easily. I was so surprised at how opaque this polish was! If you have shorter nails, you will likely be able to wear this polish in 1 coat.
The flakies all spread out very evenly, this is a very flakie dense polish. The holographic flakes in here are very holographic and look super sparkly even under my normal indoor lighting.
This polish does dry down a little textured so I would recommend pairing it with a glitter smoothing top coat for the glossiest finish possible. I used 1 coat of top coat for my photos but I found that the flakies did seem to suck up the top coat. I feel like my photos came out a little less glossy than I would like because of that.
Removal on this polish won’t be overly difficult but if you try to scrub it off, it will likely be a pain. I soaked it off with no issue.
Zombie Claw Polish
10 Free, Vegan & Cruelty-Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Overstock
Don’t forget to check the overstocks section on the HHC website! Quite a few of the polishes that I reviewed back in June of 2021 will be making a return.
Sale Info
The Hella Handmade Creations store opens on the 14th of every month at 12:01am Eastern Time and closes on the 21st at 11:59pm HST (4:59AM Eastern time on the 22nd). All items sold are on a pre-order basis and won’t ship until around 4 weeks after the sale period.
Hella Handmade Creations
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group | Facebook Chat Group
Multiple orders to the same name and address are combined and shipping overages are refunded. Shipping price is based on weight. Shipping is available internationally and there is a Facebook group for international group buys.
