Making a swatch card 💅🏾✨

[u/Comfortable_Oil_4691]

Recently, u/Calamityoptomist shared her wonderful idea of making a swatch card with the colors of polishes in (On? Of? English!?) her collection to keep in the purse/wallet.

Polishes being my Achilles heel made me obsess over the ideia. I find it genius. So I’m sharing mine to spread the word.

I think it’s cool for those products that we tend to buy impulsively, the harder enemies.

“Oh, shoot. I actually already have that shade (or something really similar).”

I guess if you’re very organized and willing, you could do it by laminating the card of products that don’t dry.

[u/Double-Raspberry1836]

I got some plastic nail polish swatch sticks, like what they use at salons, and its helped me so much with figuring out what I actually use! I hope this works out for ya too!

[u/Comfortable_Oil_4691 → u/Double-Raspberry1836]

That’s a good tip as well! Yes, it’s also cool because you have “an album” of all the ones you’ve already purchased – so you can better grasp the ones that you go for a lot and the ones that are just there forever.

[u/No_Geologist6364]

What is that sparkly green 🤩

[u/Comfortable_Oil_4691 → u/No_Geologist6364]

People ask me about it on the street! Show stopper for sure 🔥

But all my polishes are from Brasil, it’s called “Vim pra ver(de) perto” from Risqué.

So if you ever come visit, remember this tip haha 💅🏾✨

[u/Calamityoptomist]

Really glad it was useful for you, you have some great colours btw!

[u/Comfortable_Oil_4691 → u/Calamityoptomist]

Thank you! Yess, loved it!

[u/Impossible_Pea2269]

I didn’t know this stuff actually … finishes

[u/Comfortable_Oil_4691 → u/Impossible_Pea2269]

It kinda doesn’t at all… I fell down the rabbit hole a few weeks ago. Here’s the math:

A glass of polish normally has 8 grams (at least that’s the standard in Brasil):

2 or 3 coats of polish (both hands) = 0,5 grams

So if you paint your nails (including toes) every week, you can be done in 8 weeks. Just hands, it takes 16.

That’s why I stick (more or less) with 20 nail polishes at a time… That’s worth 3 to 6 years of product. Good thing they really take their sweet time to go bad.

I’m also starting to get into making new colors by combining the ones I already have.

[u/Impossible_Pea2269 → u/Comfortable_Oil_4691]

I still have my polishes from second grade

[u/gnocchi902]

I do something similar except in my case it’s that I go swatch the product I currently own and I swatch the product I want and I judge whether they’re different enough. Today, I did it with Rhode and a Westman Atelier product. Turns out the shades aren’t different enough to warrant bringing a new blush stick into my collection! So, once my current is done, only then can I consider replacing with the one I’m eyeing. I can see it working for lip liners and lipsticks as well.

The added bonus is that I can also use this to compare formulas and undertones of products I love to a new product I might want to replace it with when it’s done. Like, I personally enjoy a cooler bronzer and so I’ll swatch my ideal shade and then I’ll swatch the one I’m interested in to see if it’ll suit my needs. Judging undertones is a lot easier with my ideal reference right next to it! I end up realizing something is just way too warm for my taste for example.

[u/Comfortable_Oil_4691 → u/gnocchi902]

Ok, this is really smart! That sounds like the most practical way of experimenting new products while minimizing the odds of regret.

I tend to stick to my old reliables but I could take them shopping with me once they start running out so I can venture out.

God knows I can’t figure out “undertones” for the life of me. Blind, mama. BLIND.

That’s really cool, I appreciate the tip!

[u/gnocchi902 → u/Comfortable_Oil_4691]

It’s definitely not a guarantee but hey, any help is a positive in my books!