Author: Lara
Inner Balance
This polish is giving C-3P-HOE!
Baroness X “Inner Balance” is from November’s Polish Pickup and is inspired by the need to balance emotions within ourselves. The gold with silver shimmer is totally spaceworthy AND holidayworthy. It’s also a magnetic polish, but either it’s VERY subtle or I didn’t leave my nail on the rare earth magnet long enough. I think I’ll try again with the neodymium magnet…
This is two coats of “Inner Balance” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Tropical Oasis” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Huckleberry“.
Naked Shaped Black Friday Haul
…before you ask – YES, there were gifts in my Ulta Black Friday Haul. But would I be me if I didn’t pick up a lil’ sumthin’ for myself?
I’ve been eyeing the new(ish) Urban Decay Cosmetics Naked Shaped Multi-Tasking Eyeshadow Palette Cool for a while…and 30% all Urban Decay brought that $56 palette down to $39.20. I absolutely LOVE this palette – it includes 4 cream eye shadows, as well as 5 mattes, 4 shimmers and 1 glimmer topper. I’ve been using the lightest cream eye shadow (“Faux Snow”) as a primer and the rest of the shadows glide over it like butter. I’m considering getting the Warm version the next time I see a sale or have a coupon – it’s the best Naked yet!
Ulta products were 40% off, so I got Ulta Exfoliating Round Cotton Pads ($2.39, down from $3.99) – I probably should have stocked up on a few other things…oh well.
I remembered to use my Diamond Bonus to get a FREE DIME Beauty Hyper Glow Antioxidant + Brighten Serum (worth $32). I definitely didn’t need another Clinique foundation that I would never use. I also used my $25 off beauty services coupon this weekend – feels good to not miss out on freebies.
Speaking of freebies, I got three gifts with purchase with my order! I got an Ulta Beauty Collection Free 9 Piece Gift with select $65 shipped purchase, which includes an eye shadow palette, cream blush, lip stain, lip gloss, Matte Veil Eyeshadow Primer, Matte Veil Face Primer, Makeup Sponge, and Eye Shadow Brush in a Pink Satin Makeup Bag.
Inside my Free 7 Piece Gift with select $75 shipped purchase: CHI Infra Silk Infusion (I just gave two of these to Caty – I hope she wants more); Sol de Janeiro Bom Dia Bright Cream (I don’t have this one yet – yay!); Yves Saint Laurent “Black Opium” (ew); Dermalogica Dynamic Skin Strengthening Serum; Lolavie Glossing Detangler (Barbie is getting this one); Origins Youthtopia Refining Apple Peel; La Roche-Posay Toleriane Purifying Foaming Cleanser; and a green velvet drawstring pouch to put it in!
Inside my Free Diamond & Platinum Exclusive Gift with select $100 shipped purchase: Bioderma Sensibio Soothing Micellar Cleansing Foaming Gel; Gucci “Guilty” (blech); Redken Acidic Bonding Concentrate Shampoo & Conditioner (yay! both!); Virtue Healing Hair Oil; bareMinerals Original Mineral Veil; Sunday Riley Good Genes; Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base; and Olaplex Weightless Nourishing Mask.
Is this my last Ulta order of the year? Only time will tell…how good the sales are between Xmas and New Years.
Polish Pickup November 2025 – Mood Rings & Emotions
“Mood Rings & Emotions” was November’s theme for Polish Pickup. I still have my mood ring from the 90s – it came with my Fossil Mood Watch, which I still have somewhere…because I’m a hoarder – and PROUD of it.
This was a light month – is it me, or do all the polishes just look like a variation of one you already have after a few years of Polish Pickup?
Cuticula didn’t offer a base coat this month, so I decided to try KB Shimmer Fillin’ Groovy Ridge Filling Base Coat ($8.50).
I run through top coats rather quickly, so I got Cuticula Limitless Quick Dry Scented Top Coat in “Vampire Blood” ($10).
Chamaeleon Nails “Emotional Metamorphosis” ($14) is a thermal polish (haven’t gotten one of those in a while) inspired by emotional transformations.
Baroness X “Inner Balance” ($13.50) is inspired by the need to balance emotions within ourselves – and it’s a gold/silver magnetic!
I’ve already tried one of these – review coming soon!
Psychedelic Glow
Cuticula “Psychedelic Glow” is from October’s “Optical Illusions” Polish Pickup. It’s inspired by a flower that looks like it’s moving when you stare at the center of it. But to be fair, when you are on psychedelics – everything looks like it’s moving when you stare at the center of it.
“Psychedelic Glow” is a purple jelly base with pink/green/yellow/lime shifting crystal flakes, and black flakes. The shiftiness is amazing – it was hard not to get lost staring into these nails. I will admit that – like all flakies – the edges tended to lift and chip more than regular polish. It was frustrating, but still looked nice with the edge wear.
This is two coats of “Psychedelic Glow” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Tropical Oasis” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Huckleberry“. I was in Washington State a few months ago and had a few different Huckleberry-flavored things and I concur that this top coat absolutely hits that Huckleberry scent.
Turkey M&Ms
The past few Thanksgivings, I’ve done variations of ‘Skittles’ Manicures – a different color on each nail. This year, I went with bold cremes in autumn shades – and the result looks more like a handful of M&Ms. Specifically, I’m picturing one of the weird holiday flavor bags…Pumpkin Pie M&Ms, Pecan Pie M&Ms – you get the idea.
This year’s polishes are ALL Sinful Colors. Can you tell I’ve been missing them?
From thumb to pinky, the polishes I used are Sinful Colors “Candy Coated Mint”, Sinful Colors “Bye Felicia!”, Sinful Colors “Hit the Spot”, Sinful Colors “Hot Toffee”, and Sinful Colors “Raisin the Roof.” I used two coats of each, over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Tropical Oasis” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Froot Loop“.
Lost to Eternity
Guacamole. FAIRY guacamole is what this polish is giving me.
The fairy guacamole is Pi Colors “Lost to Eternity.000”, which is inspired by the cover of a Star Trek novelization of the same name. I assume it is a time travel story, since the polish is from August’s Time Travel PPU.
This is my first Pi Colors polish and I found it to be a really nice formula – lots of shimmer and long lasting.
This is two coats of “Lost to Eternity.000” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Tropical Oasis” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Froot Loop“.
November 2025 Ipsy Ultimate – Natasha Denona
Ipsy Icon Box (previously Ipsy X) is now called Ipsy Ultimate. Nothing like a rebrand, huh?
At least I’ve heard of Natasha Denona. I prefer the boxes curated by brands (like Natasha Denona) or by actual celebrities. I have wasted too much time googling celebrity makeup artists, or worse…influencers…and I literally do not care.
The biggest surprise of the box was the Natasha Denona Yucca Palette ($69). I was expected to look like a tumbleweed, but all the earthy desert tones really pop on my skin. Who knew that my best eyeshadow color would be mustard yellow? The box also came with Natasha Denona Hy-Glam Concealer ($30), but I haven’t tried it yet. I should…I’ve been eating macadamia nuts all week and my skin is garbage.
My product choice were pretty good this month. I picked Tatcha The Matcha Cleanse ($40 – I would never spend $40 on face wash…but this is a nice fucking face wash); Salt & Stone Black Rose & Oud Body Lotion ($20 – I am in love with this woody rose scent); and Dr. Jart+ Ceramidin Skin Barrier Moisturizing Eye Cream ($44 – a bad pick, I think I thought it was face cream – boo!)
Also in this month’s box: Lithe Beauty Soft Fill Lip Pencils in “Dusk” & “Scarlet” ($32 – nice, soft lip pencils); Bisha Essential Eye Designer Duo Set in “Downtown Black” & “Uptown Brown” ($58 – haven’t tried yet); and Persona Cosmetics Volumizing Tubing Mascara in “Black” ($24 – haven’t tried yet).
$317 worth of products this quarter!
I subscribe to the basic ipsy bag for $14/month (recently increased from $13/month) and Icon Box (formerly Glam Bag X) for an extra $60/quarterly (recently increased from $43/quarterly). If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my referral link.
Vampire’s Blood
Penelope Luz “Vampire’s Blood” is the final polish I got from September’s PPUWEEN. It’s one of the most amazing magnetic polishes that I’ve tried…
Not only does “Vampire’s Blood” magnetize well, it also changes colors with a top coat. You’ll notice that my pinky is more of a pinkish mauve – that’s the polish without a top coat. Once I added a top coat to the rest of the nails, they turned more of a blood red shade. I used a round rare earth magnet to give a velvet french manicure effect.
This is two coats of “Vampire’s Blood”, magnetized with a rare earth magnet, over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Tropical Oasis” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Froot Loop“.
Hydrating Ulta Haul
My purchases from November’s Diamond Love List are all about hydration – my hair, my body, my legs – all of it.
I was hoping that the NatureLab. Tokyo Saisei combo would help with my flakes, but I’m not seeing any improvement. I saw good things online about CeraVe Anti-Dandruff Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner ($11.99 each). I haven’t started them yet – but I’m about 2/3 of the way through the Saisei…maybe another week or two.
I have been wanting Sol de Janeiro Beija Flor Elasti Renewing Body Wash ($26), so I got it (with an Xmas gift) and qualified for a free 3-piece gift, which includes a makeup bag, with deluxe samples of Bum Bum Cream and Firmeza Body Oil.
Have I mentioned lately how much I love the scent of Tree Hut Tangerine? There was a sale, so I restocked on Tree Hut Moisturizing Shave Oil in “Tangerine” ($9.99, down from $10.99) and Tree Hut Serum-Infused Hand Wash in “Tangerine” ($4.89, down from $5.99).
I always need more deodorant, so I decided to try megababe Soapy Pits Aluminum-Free Clear Gel Deodorant ($14).
Even though I used a $20 off $100 code, plus $9 in Ulta points, I still qualified for a free 11 Piece Hydration Gift with select $75 shipped purchase (what did I say about ‘hydration’). Inside the gift: Knours. Be Kind Hydrating Jojoba Oil + Aloe Vera H2O Double Duty Mist (I have no idea); Lancome Renergie Yeux H.C.F. Triple Serum; philosophy hope in a jar smooth-slow multi-tasking moisturizer; belif The True Cream – aqua bomb; DORE La Creme All-in-One Daily Moisturizer; Tula Skincare 24-7 Ultra Hydration Serum; Drunk Elephant Bora Barrier Repair Cream; Peter Thomas Roth Water Drench Rich Barrier Moisturizer; Origins Ginzing Glow-Boosting Gel Moisturizer; and COSRX The Ceramide Skin Barrier Moisturizer. I will use every one of these, except maybe that weird jojoba oil.
Cheshire Cat Grin
My first try from October’s “Optical Illusions” – Lemming Lacquer “Cheshire Cat Grin”. This polish is inspired by the optical illusions of the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland. I loved it so much that I brought it with me to my last pedicure.
This is only the second polish I’ve tried from Lemming Lacquer, but I am really liking their formulas. They go on smooth and they self-level very nicely. I didn’t even need Glitter Grabber!
This is two coats of “Cheshire Cat Grin” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Tropical Oasis” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Froot Loop“.