I am so happy to post and publicly thank /u/liquidmelatonin for being a wonderful exchange partner and for becoming a cherished friend. I also want to thank the organizers for giving us the opportunity and for donating their time and efforts.

What I hoped for this year was a fun partner and an excuse to do some shopping. I try to temper my expectations with things like this - you just never know. But what I got was an amazing experience, endless chatter about scents, polishes, IMAM, and anything else we find interesting, and a true friendship. Absolutely beyond anything I could have hoped for and I couldn't be happier.

On to the goodies. As we share a lot of tastes and opinions, I knew I would be getting a perfectly curated selection of things I'd be eager to try. And that is certainly the case. I have done some drive by sniffing but no real tests as the package just arrived, but I was eager to thank /u/liquidmelatonin asap.

Nail Polish:

Death Valley Nails - Born With Thorns. I've only swatched this so far, but it's a stunning sparkling teal green. We sort of discovered this brand together and I imagine we will both be adding a lot more to our collection. Also now I have a bottle from their old branding, which I love!

Lyn B Design: Bathing in the Light Around Us and Carina. This is my most collected brand and somehow she found 2 shades that I had overlooked and love!! Wearing Carina right now, and it's fabulous.

Scents:

Haus of Gloi - Snow Wolf, Moon Dog, His Sweater, Snow Flower (one of the first houses I fell in love with, but one I haven't tried anything new from in quite a long time - really looking forward to it)

Morari - Santalle Vanille, Sunflowers, Cardamom Vanille, Hinoki woods, Siddhi, Mount Minthi (We both have a favorite from this house and were excited to try the new vanillas in particular)

Red River Apothecary - Ozark, Hearth, Medeina, Samhain, Holmesian (my first time with this house. No skin tests yet but every single one smells amazing from the bottles)

NAVA - Lilac Kobalt - I love lilac - very excited to try this.

Osmofolia - Chincilla With a Knife. Another that smells great sniffing the bottle.

Bath & Body

Haus of Gloi - Rosy Cheeked Sugar Exfoliant

Blinking Toad - Lilac & Lilies lotion bar and Citrus and Sage bar soap. I didn't know lotion bars existed, how neat! Both the bar and the soap smell incredible.

Our supplemental destash swap includes:

BPAL Black Cherry, Oakmoss, Red Amber, & Wild Tobacco, Bastet, The Sun Rising, Ouija

Possets: Frou Frou, Bar Sinister (Rev 1)

Solstice Scents Desert Thunderstorm, After the Rain

Alkemia - Les Mysteres, Auguries of Innocence, L'encens a la vanille

Morari - Woody Cashmere, Treefolk

Black Baccara - Wraithwood

NAVA - Tobacco Amber, Eternal Ankh, Bois de Santal Rouge Vanille, Eclipse Phantasma

Nui Cobalt - Veil of Spidersilk

Sorcellerie Apothecary - Fuckery

As you can see, I'll be testing things for a good long while. I've enjoyed every moment of getting to know my partner, and now understand how wonderful it is to have someone to chat with about these shared hobbies. If anyone reading this has been nervous about participating, please give it a try next year. Start on a low tier or just do a destash swap if you're not sure.

Thank you again, /u/liquidmelatonin. You are the best, I've had the best fall exchange, and feel so lucky to have been paired with you. Happy holidays, everyone!

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