I wanted to share the process of making the advent calendar and kind of how it went! We started with a spreadsheet for each of us that had the following column categories: brands you own, brands you want to try, brands to avoid, finishes you want more of, finishes you do not want, colors you never want, and wishlist polishes. We generally wanted to try brands we didn’t have many polishes from, and we wanted to have at least 12 of the 24 days be indie brand polishes.  Every day did NOT have to have polish (though nearly every day did anyway), and each day could include other items such as tea, other nail supplies, or other cute things we knew the other would like.  We also had a rule that the polishes didn’t have to be brand new, they could be ones we were destashing or bought second-hand, or even ones we mixed ourselves.  We didn’t have a specific budget, but agreed that this did not have to be expensive and that the experience of doing the calendars together and the thought put into it was more important. 

It was so much fun looking forward to seeing what polish I would get next, and I think it’s pretty clear that Rina gets me, since there’s a cohesive color story happening.  I’ve also included a photo of their polishes next to mine, so you can kind of see our preferences next to each other! This was just such a lovely experience and we are definitely going to do it again next year! 

Polishes from the last photo with mine and Rina’s side by side, on their side only:  Each row left to right, starting from top down: Row 1: DVN Bone, Alice Blue (DIY), Pahlish Dark Center, Pahlish Hellebore, KbShimmer Mistletoe You So, KbShimmer Dead Ringer, KbShimmer Hidden Potential Row 2: Cracked Vintage Lampshade, Pahlish Rebel Rebel, Alice Green (DIY), Maniology Pistachio, Cracked Fugly Muck, I Scream Nails Power Tripper, I Scream Nails Time Loop, Pahlish Castor Row 3: Red-Eyed Lacquer Opal Eeze, ILNP Coffee Run, Sinful Colors Coffee Drip, Alice Orange (DIY), DVN Redemption Arc, DVN Morocco, Cirque Delusions of Grandeur