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Hi friends! I am currently going on day 7 of being sick but I feel like I am finally starting to feel a little bit better. Yay! I was able to finish recording some voiceovers last night so videos will be going up later today. I am still coughing a lot so sadly we won’t have a live stream today but I feel confident Friday’s members only stream and the normal Sunday stream will be happening!
Today’s blog post is for the April 2023 Polish Pickup. The theme for April is Flower Power. I do believe that I have one more item on the way to me for April but I wanted to get this post up nonetheless as wishlisting goes live later today on the PPU website. As it turns out, I am a week off, wishlisting doesn’t happen until next Sunday. I goofed, blame the cold.
The April shop opens on Friday, April 7th. As always, I will have links and sale deets at the end of the post.
Update on April 9th: the Heather’s Hues items came a little late this month but I have now added them in!
Live Swatch Video
Polish Pickup aka PPU is a monthly collaboration of indie polish and other handmade product makers based on a chosen theme. There’s a new theme with new products each month from dozens of makers. Items are available the first Friday – Monday of each month for pre-order.
Bee’s Knees Lacquer – Belladonna Berries
Inspiration: the book Belladonna by Adalyn Grace
Description: a deep turquoise polish with purple to green multichrome shimmer
Price: $13 for 15ml | Cap: None
Belladonna Berries had a beautiful formula. I love turquoise/teal bases so much and this was no exception. The base didn’t feel overly thick but it was just slightly on the thicker side.
I thought with all of my heart that this was going to be a serious stainer. Thankfully, I didn’t experience any staining with it but I was wearing base coat and I only had it on for a few hours.
The shimmer is a more sparkly particle one so you don’t get any brush strokes or texture like you would a glitter. I was seeing all of the described colors in person.
My photos show Belladonna Berries in 2 coats plus glossy top coat. This will likely be a 2-3 coater depending on personal preference and nail length. Indoors, this seemed opaque on me in 2 coats but once I got outside (in bright lighting), it looked a little patchy. If that kind of thing bothers you, I would suggest doing 3 coats.
Bee’s Knees Lacquer
15ml, 5+ Free, Vegan & Cruelty-Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Cameo Colours Lacquers – Can You Dig It?
Inspiration: Fun and funky floral print
Description: An ultramarine crelly base with pink/red/copper/green shimmer, gold/pink shifting flakes, a variety of small neon hex, neon circle glitters, and silver holo micro flakes
Price: $12 for 15ml | Cap: None
Can You Dig It? had a great formula. It felt slightly on the thicker side but overall very easy to use. I LOVE shades of blue like this! Since this polish is a jelly, you do need to build it up to get the most opacity.
The larger neon glitters do seem to get stuck to the sides of the bottle. So holding this one upside down between coats and giving it a really good shake before using will help with that. I actually ran my bottle through my nail polish shaker 3 rounds to try to get more of the larger glitters out. I didn’t get out nearly as many as I thought I would which was a little disappointing but the polish did still look gorgeous.
I mentioned this to the maker and according to them, the neon glitters are supposed to be less dense so that the shimmer and flakies don’t get overshadowed. I was told that they will also be slightly increasing the amount of glitters to make up for the ones that got stuck to the sides of the bottle.
My photos show Can You Dig It? in 3 coats plus glossy top coat. Coverage is pretty good in 2 coats but the depth of the base color wasn’t quite there for me. Nothing in here will dry down overly textured so one coat of top coat smoothed everything out nicely. Removal will be on the difficult side but not too terrible. No issues with staining to report.
Cameo Colours Lacquers
15ml, 5 free, Vegan & Cruelty-Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Clionadh Cosmetics – Celosia
Inspiration:
Description: A pink linear holographic with pink-red-orange-yellow shifting shimmer
Price: $13 USD for 11.5ml | Cap: None
Celosia had a fantastic but thicker formula. It was the kind of thickness that adds to opacity but not difficult in application.
I was pleasantly surprised that this polish was just shy of being a one coater! If you don’t have much of a free edge or aren’t bothered by VNL at some angles, this will be a one coater on you.
The shimmer and holographic were both very strong. In indirect lighting, you will see the color shiftiness that is the shimmer best. In bright, direct lighting, you will see the holographic. I found in my own home lighting, this wasn’t super hologrpahic but I could still see rainbows indoors.
My photos show Celosia in 2 coats plus glossy top coat.
Clionadh Cosmetics
11.5ml, 10 Free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
Use my affiliate code NicoleLovesNails to save extra!
Website | Instagram | TikTok
Crystal Knockout – Allium For the Ages
Inspiration:
Description: A pink-lavender crelly base with blue, purple, and pink iridescent flakies, purple-blue shimmer, and black micro glitter
Price: $12.50 for 15ml | Cap: None
Allium For the Ages I found the color of the base paired with the black micro glitters a little trippy. For whatever reason, the colors together made me think of the fungus from The Last Of Us.
The base of this polish is pretty thick. I ended up adding some thinner to my bottle just to make applicaiton easier. The polish was still thick but easier to work with.
Colorwise, this one wasn’t really for me but I did love how the flakies looked.
My photos show Allium For the Ages in 2 coats plus both glossy and matte top coats. The glitters do not dry down super textured so I only did one thick coat of glossy top coat to smooth everything out. Removal is going to be on the more difficult/messy side, soak off method is recommended.
Crystal Knockout
15ml, 5 Free & Cruelty Free
Website | Etsy | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Fair Maiden Polish – Dilly-Dahlia
Inspiration: a multicolored Dahlia
Description: an orchid based purple with blue purple green shifting shimmer
Price: $12.50 for 15ml | Cap: None
Dilly-Dahlia had a fantastic jelly formula. The base is more jelly-like so it is on the sheerer side and will need to be built up to get the most opacity.
The shimmer in here is super strong and color shifty. This is a very beautiful polish and it does seem sheer enough that it could be used as a topper if sheers aren’t your thing.
I will fully admit, this was reminding me of at least 4 different Bee’s Knees Lacquer polishes. I have some comparisons up in the live swatch video, nothing was an exact dupe though.
My photos show Dilly-Dahila in 3 coats plus glossy top coat. Nothing in here will be difficult to remove and I didn’t experience any staining.
Fair Maiden Polish
15ml, 5 Free & Cruelty Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Heather’s Hues – Late Bloomers
Inspiration: the colorful blooms of hydrangeas
Description: a sheer white base with a strong blue-violet shimmer and flakes. It’s filled with a mix of glitters in various shades of purple, blue, and green
Price: $13 for 15ml| Cap: None
Late Bloomers had a fantastic formula. The base didn’t feel overly thick at all and I didn’t have any application issues.
As we all know, I love me a glitter crelly and Heather’s glitter crellies are some of my favorites. I didn’t need to hold the bottle upside down or do any fishing. I did run this one through my nail polish shaker as I do all glitter polishes but the glitter coverage for this one was really great.
The base is on the more sheer side so depending on how you feel about VNL and glitter, this will be a 2-3 coater depending on personal preference. If you’re like me and on Team Glitter, you’ll want to go in for 3 coats to get the most glitter bang for your buck. If you like the sheerer milky look, coverage will be good in 2 coats.
My photos show Late Bloomers in 3 coats plus one thick coat of top coat. Long term wear would benefit from a second coat of top coat to keep everything smooth. The glitters will give you some difficulty on removal so use the soak off method or a peel off base coat.
Heather’s Hues WiTS in
Inspiration: the beautiful tropical flowers often found in a Haku lei
Description: a blend of tropical flowers and fruits, with top notes of dragonfruit, pineapple, and berries, middle notes of hibiscus, flamingo flower, plumeria, and bougainvillea, and base notes of exotic musk
Price: $9 for 2 ounces| Cap: None
Heather’s Hues
15ml, 5 free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
KBShimmer – Rose Were The Days
Inspiration: roses
Description: a deep, magenta-leaning polish with pink and red tones. This vibrant, cool-toned shade is amplified with an orange to gold shifting shimmer. Depending on the lighting and viewing angle, this polish can skew pinker or more red. Holo glow flakes add a dewy holographic sparkle to this two-coat shade.
Price: $12 for 15ml | Cap: None
Rose Were The Days is the kind of polish that is love at first sight for me. It had a fantastic formula, just slightly on the thicker side but again that kind of thickness that adds to opacity.
The base color is one of those tricky pinky magnetas that can lean red depending on your skin tone and lighting. I found on me, it mainly looked like a pink leaning magenta.
The shimmer gives this a beautiful glow that looks amazing in all light sources. The holo flakies are, as per usual for this brand, super holographic without any texture.
My photos show Rose Were The Days in 2 coats plus glossy top coat. Longer nails will likely want to go in for a third coat.
For comparison, L-R Rose Were The Days, Pitcher This (RV There Yet?), What’s Poppin & Totally Stoked (Polish Pickup December 2021).
KBShimmer Pink Lotus & Lime Hand & Body Scrub
Inspiration: bright pink lotus blooms are such a beautiful pop of color
Description: With top notes of green and citrus like the lotus blossom, this semi-sweet sugar scrub is brightened with notes of key lime, kiwi slices, and pineapple. Hints of sultry jasmine add depth to this floral scent. A vibrant mix of pink, lime, and cream swirls borrow their hues from the lotus blossom for the perfect flower-inspired scrub
Price: $10| Cap: None
This month’s scent is very floral leaning with a hint of sweetness. As someone who doesn’t like floral, that added sweet makes this very appealing!
KBShimmer
15ml, 5 free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
Website | Etsy | Amazon | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group
Night Owl Lacquer – Pink Moonstone
Inspiration: Pink Moonstone Orchid
Description: a clear base filled with bright blue micro flakies and vibrant fuschia/peach/gold shifting shimmer.
Price: $13 for 15ml | Cap: None
Pink Moonstone Oh my stars this polish is pretty. Pink Moonstone had a fantastic formula, if just slightly on the thicker side.
The blue micro flakies make it seem as if this as a blue base paired with a ridiculously color shifty shimmer. You get almost a rainbow on the nails from the shimmer effect. This is a very sheer polish, as all of the opacity is coming from the shimmer and flakies.
My photos show Pink Moonstone in 3 coats plus glossy top coat. For personal wear, I would likely wear this one in just two coats. This is sheer enough that it will work really well as a topper.
The flakies do not dry down textured so nothing in here will be difficult to remove.
Night Owl Lacquer
15ml, 5 Free & Cruelty-Free
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group | TikTok
Sale Information
The April 2023 Polish Pickup goes live on April 7th at 11AM Eastern time. The sale period closes the following Monday at 11:59PM. International shipping is available and all items are sold on a pre-order basis, for more information do check out the PPU website.
Polish Pickup
Website | Overstock | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group | Chat/BST Group
There will be a TON more items available than what I have shown. The website will be open to preview next Sunday.
