These twelve shades were worn between mid April all the way through May. A bit more light and bright shades to accompany the move towards sunnier weather. The lineup this time was an even mix of smaller and bigger brands; A England, Smitten Polish, Mentality, Barry M, Revlon, H&M, Ciaté, Essie and Butter London. The verdict is as follows..

Hell yes!

Maybe

Gold Chroma Chameleon by Revlon is nice but how many similar items do I have? Takes quite a few layers to get good coverage as well.

Snow Globe (here pictured over Masala Chai) is pretty but I think it only looks good on darker polish. The shape of the glitter particles is unique but I need to think about how many glitters topper I own in relation to how infrequently I wear them. Which ones am I most likely to use?

Hell no!

Tanzanite is just not my shade. If the murky shift that was prevalent in the bottle had been stronger on the nail it could have worked, but that is sadly not the case.

Rigoberta is just not my speed. At tad too light I think and something about the shade itself does not speak to me.

Frilly Knickers has sadly dried up on me. I’ve gotten a lot of use out of this polish over the years and I’m a bit bummed to see it go.

That was the final polish in this instalment of The Twelve! I ended up with seven keepers, two maybes and three noes.

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After wearing darker shades for several months I wanted to take a different route. I was also eager to crack on with the audit and get rid of some older and unloved shades. First I considered to do a whole batch of only blue or green polish but then opted for the usual “two shads per drawer” from my somewhat colour coordinated nail polish drawers. These shades were worn between mid March to the beginning of April.

Hell yes!

Maybe

This glitter polish is a mix of silver and gold and I think it is very pretty. I want to se how many similar polishes I end up with before I decide to keep this one.

Hell No!

Chopped Lavender is a Sugar Laquer aka a matte textured polish. I simply don’t enjoy this anymore.

A pale grey blue with bright blue shimmer. I love this and it’s mainly used up. It’s goopy now due to repeated use and its time has come.

I rarely wear glitter toppers nowadays and this is one I never reach for. I have some other toppers I know I will always favour over this one. It smells really strongly as well so I’m glad to see it go. That was the last one of the twelve!

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During the autumn months I’ve been really inconsistent with wearing nail polish. This lot of polishes were worn from September and all the way through November. Three whole months!

Again we have a mixed bag when it comes to brands, three shades from Pahlish, two from Barry M and one each from A England, China Glaze, OPI, Powder Perfect, H&M, Mentality and Crows Toes.

Hell yes!

OPI – Nein! Nein! Nein! Ok fine!

Nein! Nein! Nein! Ok fine! is a solid grey cream polish by OPI from the Germany collection dating from 2012. It’s a dark grey with a slight green tinge and I always enjoy wearing this shade and it is superb to layer glitter and shimmer polishes over.

Mentality – Teacher

I cannot get over how much I enjoy the colour of Teacher from Mentality. When I look at the bottle I feel nothing (could be due to the downfall of the brand) but on the nail the shade speaks for itself. The polish dries down matte, and I do not enjoy that look, but it can easily be fixed with a glossy top coat.

Powder Perfect – Borders of The Forest

This picture does not in any way shape or form show off how stunning Borders of The Forest is. The shimmer flakes look amazing in this muted green base.

H&M – Cream Saffron

Cream Saffron is a stunning yellow cream. It is difficult to find flattering yellow shades for my skin tone and this is lovely. I also enjoy the H&M brush a lot.

CrowsToes – Indian Summer

CrowsToes – Indian Summer

Indian Summer is such a beautiful shifter that I had to include more than one picture of it. It shifts from purple to pink to red to orange. This a shade I usually bring out at least once each autumn and I’m always mesmerised by its beauty.

Barry M – Block Orange

Block Orange is a great orange shade on me. As well as with yellows, oranges can be difficult to find for me and this is a good one.

Barry M – Rasberry

Rasberry is a very unique shade and I have nothing else like it. A very juicy berry colour. I tend not to gravitate towards this pinker alternative to a bright red, but when I wore it now I really liked how it looked.

A England – Sleeping Palace

A England makes such elegant polishes. The bottles, themes, formulations and shades always feel so luxurious. Sleeping Palace is no different, a very elegant shade.

China Glaze – Trendsetter

Trendsetter is such a stunning and popping colour, I really love wearing it.

Maybe

Pahlish – Shallow Lands

Shallow Lands is more interesting in the bottle than on the nail. All the fine pink, purple and gold glitter particles are just not that visible once applied. It looks nice but I’m not sure if it is special enough to keep.

Hell no!

Pahlish – Mad Man With A Box

In theory I should love this Doctor Who themed Pahlish polish, but shiny metallic blue is just not for me. I would have loved Mad Man With a Box when I was 15, I remember loving this type of blue then.

Pahlish – The Ghost Shift

The Ghost Shift is ok but I have other silver shades that intrigue me more. I am not to glad to let any Pahlish polishes go but I have to be realistic. If I did not enjoy wearing it now, I will not reach for it later.

So this round of the Twelve ended up in mostly keepers. But I am a bit surprised that the no’s and maybes ended up being from Pahlish, one of my favourite indie brands.

Thanks for reading!

This lot was worn during July and early August, a time during which I had my summer vacation. In large it did not affect my nail polish wearing much but I did purposefully chose a team of more summery shades, an approach I will continue in the months to come. The mindful choosing that is, not the summery shades. Of course I want to weed out the duds from my collection but I also want to wear pretty colours and choose what shades appeal to me in the specific moment. So a mixed bag should be the most effective approach and this round of the Twelve is a good example of that mix. There was also extra brand variety in this lot, and quite a few indie brands, with shades from Indigo Bananas, LilypadLaquer, Il était un vernis, Polish Revolution, Pahlish, Nostalgic Nail Laquer, Zoya, OPI, IsaDora and Deborah Lippmann.

Hell yes!

Indigo Bananas – You Get Nothing! (good day, sir!)

Dark grey holographic polish with magenta and blue glitter. So beautiful and wearable.

Pahlish – Who Loves Orange Soda?!

Who Loves Orange Soda?! is a lovely squishy and juicy shade that I love to wear during the summertime. It has these colour shifting flakes running through it and it is a very bright and “happy” shade.

Indigo Bananas – Electric Unicorns

Electric Unicorns is another “happy” shade and it has a light blue shimmer running through it that I do wish was more visible on the nail. The polish is not transparent enough to let the shimmer shine to its full potential but I still think it is a pretty polish all in all.

Polish Revolution – What Alice Found (worn over Rowan)

I enjoy this glitter and that’s enough for now. I suspect that many of my glitter shades are drying out, but this one was in perfect condition. It has a clear base and can be worn over a variety of colours.

LilypadLaquer – Gemerald

I initially thought I would not enjoy Gemerald but I really did. It has this depth and richness to it that was a joy to wear

OPI – Y’all Come Back Ya Hear?

I really love this shade. It’s my perfect orange. This OPI polish is a jelly formula and quite a few coats are necessary for a higher opacity. I’m wearing 3-4 coats in this picture. But I do not mind the work, since the final result is amazing.

Deborah Lippmann – Glitter in the Air

This is a pure nostalgia polish for me. There is something in the name and the shade that still pulls at my heart strings. It’s delicate and a bit odd. The pale blue and slightly transparent finish makes my nails look a bit off. And I enjoy it immensely.

Maybe

Il était un vernis – #hellosunshine

#hellosunshine is one of those shades that makes me very indecisive. Do I find it ugly cool or just plain ugly ugly? I remember disliking it when I first wore it back when I purchased it, but wearing it now makes me question how I feel. It will stay in the maybe pile and I might have to wear it more to get a clear opinion. I have a soft spot for yellow polishes but find it difficult to find flattering shades.

Il était un vernis – Chardonnay

Chardonnay is a pretty flakie polish but somehow I’m not overly drawn to it. I did enjoy wearing it but there is something that makes me hesitant to keep it. We shall see….

Hell no!

Nostalgic Nail Laquer – Possibly Maybe

This glitter polish has served its purpose and can now safely leave my collection. I have other weird glitter shades that are more flattering. This base colour make my nails look badly stained and it is not an appealing look.

Zoya – Rowan (Satin)

Rowan is not special enough of a shade to be kept and I do not enjoy a satin finish. I have similar shades that are more unique and that I prefer.

IsaDora – Metal Crush

The shade is beautiful but I’m just generally over this type of textured polish.

That was all of them! I ended up with seven keepers, two maybes and three noes. A solid run.

Thanks for reading!

Twelve new shades were worn and audited during June. Brands included OPI, Zoya, Barry M, Kiko, Indigo Bananas, Formula X, Pahlish, China Glaze, Bourjois and H&M.

Hell yes!

Barry M – Bright Purple

This is such a stunning purple shade. Really bright and fun. The formula is great too.

Indigo Bananas – Countdown To Extinction

I adore Indigo Bananas as a brand and the Summer Rains collection from 2014 was such a stunning jelly flakie lineup. This is one of the shades, Countdown To Extinction, and it is beautiful. Complex shimmering layers and a luscious green shade.

OPI – Care To Danse?

This pale lilac jelly shade is a great shade on me when I prefer a more light look.

Kiko – 296

Not the green I initially wanted (391 Grass Green was the sought after shade I think) but since that was sold out/discontinued at the time of purchase, the friend who got the Kiko items for me picked this instead. 296 is a beautiful shade as well, albeit not the same, but I do enjoy wearing it.

OPI – Mermaid’s Tears and Zoya – Dove

Mermaid’s Tears is a stunning muted turquoise and a very flattering shade on me. Dove is a little less original cool sand but it is a very useful shade and the Zoya formula is great.

Zoya – Opal (on top of Mermaid’s Tears and Dove)

Opal is a peach to orange shimmering flakie in a transparent base. Love this!

Maybe

H&M – Intergalactic

Intergalactic is a stunning shade but it did require quite a few layers to look good. This really needs to be compared to any similar options before it can stay permanently.

Hell no!

Bourjois – Pamplerousse

I want to love this shade on me but it is not the effect that I want. It’s a bit too delicate a look.

China Glaze – Hanging in the Balance

I love this colour. I do wish I could keep it. But there has been some leaking from the bottle that has let too much air in and it is not possible to save it.

Pahlish – Lullaby Without End

Another Doctor Who polish by Pahlish. This intriguing blue and red concoction has sadly become goopy beyond salvage.

To round this post up we have a golden glitter polish by Formula X that I did not get to wear at all, so no pictures. It was completely dried up so into the bin it went.

A total of four shades are leaving my collection, one is a maybe and we have seven keepers. Not the best round in terms of letting things go but I enjoyed wearing all the pretty ones.

Thanks for reading!

Catching up with the nail polish part of my audit will also be a bit of a hurdle to overcome. These shades were worn during May and one can probably tell from the selection of shades. Quite a few bright shades including brands such as Zoya, China Glaze, Deborah Lippmann, Polish Revolution, Nails Inc., Pahlish and Smitten Polish.

Hell yes!

Nails Inc. – lilac polish for InStyle

This is a lovely lilac shade and it feels like the epitome of Spring. Very crisp but never boring. The formula was lovely and despite being a no-name shade I want to keep using it.

China Glaze – Igniting Love

Igniting Love is a stunning tomato red. A classic shade in a good formula.

Zoya – Charli

Charli is such a lovely shade. A murky cool green that compliments my skin tone nicely.

Zoya – Opal (layered over Charli)

Opal is a green flakie top coat in a completely clear base. Stunning and very useful.

Zoya – Tilda

Tilda is slightly less bright than the picture alludes but a great popping green. Very flattering.

Maybe

Zoya – Ziv

Ziv is a pale gold with tiny silver flecks mixed with the gold. I have mixed feelings about this. I’m not a 100% enjoying wearing it on its own but somehow I still appreciate the aesthetic function it provides and I might enjoy having it for effect. But if I have other remotely similar shades that I enjoy more I might get rid of this further on.

Pahlish – This Song is Ending

This is a Doctor Who themed polish (!) and the shade itself is beautiful. The reason I am unsure of This Song is Ending is because it has these copper glitters throughout but those are not very evident on the nail because the base colour is so dense. Great potential but not overly exciting on the nail.

Pahlish – Drink the Sea

Pretty colour but I’m a bit unsure of how much wear I will get out of it. Getting this glitter polish off my nails was a bit of a bother (as with all glitter polishes) and if I have another shade similar to Drink the Sea I might let this one go later on.

Polish Revolution – Zombie Gardens

Zombie Gardens is undeniably pretty, but I wear this type of shade so seldom that I should only keep the absolute best ones.

Hell no!

Pahlish – Electrique

Satin finish and barely visible glitter. I’ve enjoyed using Electrique in the past but I’m not loving it anymore. The fact that it is goopy in the formula makes the decision to part with it easier.

Smitten Polish – Audrey’s Rainbow

Pale Tiffany blue I presume, a pretty holo polish that just does not do it for me. Pale and the wrong shade to be interesting on me. The formula is very thick with this one as well. Sad to let Audrey’s Rainbow go, I initially had high hopes for her.

Deborah Lippmann – Pop Life

Pop Life is a shade I am not sad to part with. This was a gift with purchase many many years ago and I’ve kept it mainly because I have nothing like it and thought it might be useful for nail art or whatever. Truth is I do not need it and I do not enjoy wearing it at all.

So a total of five shades are being kept, four are hanging loose and three are definite noes.

Thank you for reading!

I paint my nails more often now when I’m working from home and several of these were such duds that I removed them straight away. This lot were worn during the month of April.

Hell yes!

Gina Tricot – Concrete

Concrete was a bit of a surprise favorite for me. I had no warm feelings for it before this audit but now it has shown its true colours. It is not a simple grey but a ghostly purple tinged grey and it was very flattering on my skin tone.

OPI – Never A Dulles Moment

Yellow is a hard colour for me to find flattering shades of. This is not perfect but Never a Dulles Moment is very pretty and a slightly faded bright yellow. I loved wearing it and I’m glad to keep it.

OPI – Can’t Find My Czechbook

Another fun and interesting shade. I would describe Can’t Find My Czechbook as a slightly faded bright as well and it is a keeper.

China Glaze – Def Defying

Def Defying is another happy bright but there is nothing faded or dusty about it. It’s very perky but not a neon (I don’t like neons) and I love this type of green. Definite keeper!

All four keepers layered with a semi-transparent beige shade

Maybe

Barry M – Satsuma

Satsuma is very pretty but it’s so bright it is bordering on neon. I suspect I have similar shades that are a bit more up my alley, but I will keep it as a maybe until I have audited more shades. I really want to keep something close to this shade.

Two of the many faces of Revlon – Pink Quartz

Pink Quartz is such a chameleon that it divides my opinion. Up front I felt that the effect on my nails felt very not me. But when I’d worn it for a few days I started to appreciate all of its shifts. So I can’t make up my mind right now.

Hell no!

H&M – Amaranthine

Such a poor purchase, Amaranthine. I do not know what I was thinking. I have no use what so ever for a shade like this.

H&M – Beloved

Beloved is another poor purchase, but one I could have liked. It’s a milky pink cream with a pink and purple colour shift. However I think the opacity is what bothers me, if it had been more of a translucent shade it might have worked better on me. But that’s just a theory that will never be tested.

Zoya – Aurora

Aurora is stunning and I’ve used it on many occasions. BUT, I do not enjoy it anymore. It’s too much of a red leaning purple to look good on me. The shade is pretty in isolation but not as pretty on my hands, you know?.

Polish TBH – Floo Powder

Floo Powder has gone goopy and I needed many many layers to make it opaque and it did just not look good. If I look in the bottle the polish looks amazing, the colour, the shimmer, everything. But on the nail, not so much.

IsaDora – Papagayo Blue

Another bad decision. This metallic bright purple is just not my jam and I should never have purchased it.

Zoya – Nyx

Last up we have another Zoya polish. I might have enjoyed the Nyx shade more if it was a cream finish, or just a regular shimmer polish, but this PixieDust formula is not exciting me in this light blue. It just looks flat.

Wow, another great cull! Four keepers (all creams), two maybe and six discards. I feel that I have really found my stride with auditing my polishes and look forward to the next team.

Thanks for reading!

There are quite a lot of discards from this round of The Twelve and it feels very satisfying indeed. Since a lot of my makeup audit rounds often end up with me keeping more than I let go, it feels extra gratifying to have a category where I am more clear on what I love and want to keep.

This lot were worn between early February and all the way through March. During this period we had two birthdays in my family, including parties, and went skiing for a week up in the north of Sweden. Then followed a period when I was ill a lot (stomach bug and then a bad throat infection) before Covid-19 entered everyones life. I started working from home and keeping a distance from loved ones. A surreal period filled with so much and so little at the same time.

Painting my nails and doing my makeup as usual is very grounding and soothing to me. If it feels a bit therapeutic normally it is extra much so now. I have not changed my pace with makeup related things and my audit feels as meaningful as ever. On to the result from this round of The Twelve.

Hell yes!

Zoya – Misty and L’Oréal – Confetti

Misty by Zoya is a stunning cool almost green tinged beige and I love it. It flatters my skin tone and it’s lovely to wear on it’s own or topped with something else. This time I wore it with a black and white “glitter” and I highly enjoyed the result. The topper polish, Confetti, on the other hand was quite dried out and will leave my collection.

China Glaze – Fade into Hue

Fade into Hue is not an overly exciting shade, but as a pale blue leaning purple it was fun to wear and it’s rather unique to my collection. A surprise keeper from this audit round.

Maybe

Mentality – Gertrude

Gertrude is a very pretty shade but somehow I feel like I have other greeny golds I would choose over this. But since I’m unsure I’m keeping it safely in the Maybe pile for now.

Gina Tricot – Power Green over Mentality – Gertrude

Power Green is a lovely dusty green and I can see myself wearing it. But the Gina Tricot polishes are not dear to my heart and I want to see if I have any similar shades from brands I love more before I decide on this specific shade.

China Glaze – Elephant Walk

Elephant Walk is a weird green tinged grey and I kind of like it. But I’m a bit unsure of how much wear I will get out of it.

Hell no!

Depend – 353

Nice shade, old bottle with a goopy consistency I can not be bothered to dilute.

Formula X for Sephora – Atom + Eve

Ruby red slippers on my nails is a pretty idea in theory but this lit from within red shade is just not my favorite to wear. It looks amazing in pictures but if I want a sparkly red nail someday this is not how I would get it.

Zoya – Logan

It’s rare that I want to get rid of a Zoya polish and a green one at that. Wearing Logan makes it clear that a Christmas green polish with gold shimmer just isn’t for me.

China Glaze – Tongue & Chic

I contemplated putting this blackened teal in my Maybe pile because it made me nostalgic of the shades I used to wear when I was a teenager (not this specific polish though). But I would hardly reach for a shade like this now and keeping it would be a step in the wrong direction.

IsaDora – Wine Crush

I’ve worn Wine Crush quite a bit over the years. It’s perfect for traveling because when it gets chipped or worn you just add another layer, it dries quickly and no need to for a top coat. But I’m done with this shade.

Pahlish – Sitting in a Tin Can

I can’t believe I’m getting rid of a Pahlish polish. I love this brand a lot and I have so many unique shades from them. But this specific shade is not exciting to wear anymore and the formula is getting thick. It’s time.

So a total of two shades will be kept for sure, three are maybe staying and seven are leaving (counting Confetti). As I mentioned, quite exciting results!

Thanks for reading!

These twelve shades were worn between mid December and early February, a period of time including my birthday, Christmas and New Years Eve. When I picked them I knew what season it was obviously, but I still tried to pick interesting shades and not only easy-to-wear ones. l posted this lot to Instagram in the middle of January and my prediction then was that I would use all twelve in quite a short period of time. That ended up not being true, maybe because one shade was worn three times in a row (and despite that I did not get one single shot of me wearing it) and quite a few days I simply wore nothing at all. Sometimes I just can’t be bothered.

This round included quite a few indie brands and mainly shimmers and glitters. Let’s see how this lot fared in the audit.

Hell yes!

Only five shades made it out of the audit as definite keepers. The five that made it are polishes that intrigue me in some way.

MAC – Submerged

Zoya – Katherine

Pipe Dream Polish – Feed the Monster

A nice jelly sandwich with Katherine and Feed the Monster

Colors by Llarowe – Pine Boughs

Pahlish – The Virgin Queen

Maybe

Polish Revolution – Zombie Christmas

Zombie Christmas on top of Stylenomics

This grey jelly polish with red/green/white glitter is so unique that I have a hard time letting it go. I wear it from time to time but I’m unsure if that is enough.

Hell no!

H&M – Have a Nice Clay

In theory this polish was a great idea and I understand why I was drawn to and consequently bought it. An interesting muddy jelly shade, my favourite finish. In real life though..it just did not suit my colouring and I disliked wearing it.

Essie – Stylenomics

I love this murky dark green shade a lot. But it stains, badly. Staining is common with green shades but in this case it was severe and will keep me from using it.

LilypadLaquer – Waterworld

Not the best picture of me wearing it but Waterworld is just not the right shade of blue. There is something garish about it that I do not enjoy.

Mentality Nail Polish – Cloudy

Cloudy fell a little flat with me. It’s a matte shade but even with a glossy top coat it felt boring.

Shimmer Polish – Mary

Mary worn over Waterworld

Mary is a glitter polish that is so beautiful, but sadly it has dried out beyond the point where I can save it. So this was its last hurrah.

Deborah Lippmann – Ray of Light

And finally we have Ray of Light – a beautiful polish and the one I wore three times without getting a single picture with it on my nails. It takes many layers to build up any opacity with this polish and then it flakes quite easily. It’s such an old shade and I never wear it anymore despite it being so pretty. So it’s out!

Thanks for reading!

Sofia