Press Sample of A Box, Indied
June 2016 Campfire Tales

Tonight I have A Box, Indied June 2016 Campfire Tales to share with you. This is a bittersweet post. If you hadn’t read yet, this will be the final A Box, Indied to be released. I have been showing A Box, Indied swatches since the beginning, sometimes just 1-3 polishes or as a whole box. It was the first Indie Box to be released, and I still remember Leah Ann playing a game on her page before announcing it was being created. It was a really fun run, so I am sad to see it come to an end. I do understand Llarowe’s decision to close this chapter though, and I’m grateful for having had the chance to share it with so many of you.

The final month’s theme is Campfire Tales. Basically Urban Legends and scary stories you tell around the campfire. I use to go camping all the time, so I’m all too familiar with several of these stories!

The makers involved in this box are Contrary Polish, Takko Lacquer, KBShimmer, Darling Diva Polish and CrowsToes Nail Color.

As always, at the end of this post you will find a list of other bloggers who will also have this box up on their blogs or IG channels so you can check them out as well. In 5 random boxes there will be a $25 Gift Certificate from one of the makers! So 5 lucky people will get an extra $25 to spend in one of the shops featured in the box! It’s always fun to see people post that they received one of the surprises!

So let’s take a closer look at A Box, Indied for June 2016.

KBShimmer A-Blazing

KBShimmer A-Blazing is a heavily orange leaning red creme base with copper microglitter mixed in. The sparks of microglitter aren’t as obvious on the nail as in the bottle, but they give a fiery effect on the nail that’s really nice. You can see it more in person than my photos show though. I used 2 easy coats and a glossy top coat for these photos.

This one stumped me, so I asked Sheila of Pointless Cafe about which tale this went with and it’s actually the campfire!

Darling Diva Polish – The Hook

Darling Diva Polish The Hook is a silver flake polish with holographic microglitters sprinkled in. This is a smooth polish and I only needed 1 coat of top coat to smooth it out. I used 2 coats of The Hook.

A teenage boy drove his date to a dark and deserted lovers’ lane for a make-out session. He turned on the radio for mood music, leaned over to whisper in the girl’s ear, and began kissing her.

Minutes later, the mood was broken when the music suddenly stopped mid-song. After a moment of silence an announcer’s voice came on, warning in an ominous tone that a convicted murderer had just escaped from the state insane asylum — which happened to be located within a half-mile of where they were parked — and urging that anyone who notices a man wearing a stainless steel hook in place of his missing right hand should immediately report his whereabouts to the police.

The girl became frightened and asked to be taken home. The boy, feeling bold, locked all the doors instead and, assuring his date they would be safe, attempted to kiss her again. She became frantic and pushed him away, insisting that they leave. Relenting, the boy peevishly jerked the car into gear and spun its wheels as he pulled out of the parking space.

When they arrived at the girl’s house she got out of the car, and, reaching to close the door, began to scream uncontrollably. The boy ran to her side to see what was wrong and there, dangling from the door handle, was a bloody hook.

Source: UrbanLegends.About.com

CrowsToes Nail Color – Headless Bride

CrowsToes Nail Color Headless Bride is a medium grey crelly base with purple iridescent flakes, silver, grey and black glitters in various sizes, and holographic shimmer. I used 3 thin coats and a glossy top coat for these photos.

This one is a long one.

Once there was a lovely young woman growing up in a wealthy shipping family in New York.   In those days, wealthy young women were expected to make their debut in society and to marry a wealthy young man from a good family.  But our young lady was a bit of a rebel.  When she grew old enough to marry, she scorned the wealthy young society men in favor of an older man who was working as a servant in her house. 

Once there was a lovely young woman growing up in a wealthy shipping family in New York.In those days, wealthy young women were expected to make their debut in society and to marry a wealthy young man from a good family.But our young lady was a bit of a rebel.When she grew old enough to marry, she scorned the wealthy young society men in favor of an older man who was working as a servant in her house.

     Of course, there was a big argument within the family when the young woman announced her choice of husband.  Her parents were furious, particularly her father, who accused the servant of courting his daughter in order to gain a prominent position in the shipping company.  When the young lady insisted upon the marriage, her father gave the couple a lump sum of cash with the stipulation that they leave New York after the wedding and never come back.

        By the time the young couple reached the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone, the new husband had gambled away all of the money that his wife’s family had bestowed upon the newlyweds.  There was barely enough money for the couple to finish their honeymoon trip, and nothing whatsoever with which to buy a house or start a family. 

      The young woman was upset with her husband.  They had quarreled often about money during their honeymoon journey, and by this time, she knew that her father had been right about the greed of her new husband.  He was obviously more interested in her money than in her.  Still, the couple was flat broke and needed something to pay the concessioners here at Yellowstone, so she telephoned her father to ask him for some money.  Her father refused to give her a penny. 

      That night, the couple had a terrific fight in the relative privacy of their bedroom at the inn.  The husband stalked out of the Inn in a fury, leaving his bride locked in her room.   The bride did not emerge for days, and finally the staff of the Inn sent someone to check on her.  

      No one answered when the housekeeper knocked on the door.  Using the housekeeping key, the staffer sent stepped into the room and gasped in shock.  The room looked as if a hurricane had swept through the interior.  Clothes were strewn everywhere, and the bedclothes were partially on the floor.  Worse, the housekeeper was overwhelmed by the metallic odor smell that permeated everything.  There was no sign of the bride, but the stink that wafted from the attached bathroom hinted at what the housekeeper might see.  Lying in the bathtub in a pool of congealed blood was the body of the unhappy bride, which ended grotesquely in the ragged stump of a neck.  Her head was nowhere to be seen.   

      The housekeeper’s screams summoned the rest of the staff.  The authorities were summoned, the family was notified and the room cleaned.  Everything was done to locate the murderer, but the husband was never apprehended.  Finally, the whole story was hushed up to avoid scandal to the prominent family. 

      A few days after the discovery of the murder, a foul smell up in the Crows Nest where the musicians often played for the evening dances was traced to its source:  The bride’s severed head.  Tousled blond curls framed the wide-eyed, horror-twisted face; already beginning to rot.   

      The burial of the poor, murdered bride should have been the end of the terrible incident.   And so it proved, until one midnight when a staff member who was up late reading a book heard a strange noise coming from the lobby.  It was the stroke of midnight when he hurried out onto the balcony and looked upward, seeking the source of the noise.  He looked up towards the Crows Nest, far above, and saw a glowing figure in white slowly descending the stairs from the Crows Nest.  Tucked under its arm was a tousle-curled, wide-eyed head!  Frozen with horror, the man watched the bride descend the steps and float along the corridor until she reached the door of her room.  Then she vanished!    

      From that day onward, there are people who say they can see the headless bride walking down the stairs from the Crows Nest at the stroke of midnight; sadly seeking for her lost husband and her lost dreams.  Myself, I’ve never stayed up to see.

Source: American Folklore

Contrary Polish – High Beams

Contrary Polish High Beams is a deep blurple jelly with silver holographic shimmer, as well as purple and pink microflakes mixed in. I used 3 thin coats and a glossy top coat for these photos.

‘High Beams’ is also known as “Always Check The Backseat” and has several variations. I included the one I was most familiar with.

One night a woman went out for drinks with her girlfriends. She left the bar fairly late at night, got in her car and onto the deserted highway. After a few minutes she noticed a lone pair of headlights in her rear-view mirror, approaching at a pace just slightly quicker than hers. As the car pulled up behind her she glanced and saw the turn signal on — the car was going to pass — when suddenly it swerved back behind her, pulled up dangerously close to her tailgate and the brights flashed.

Now she was getting nervous. The lights dimmed for a moment and then the brights came back on and the car behind her surged forward. The frightened woman struggled to keep her eyes on the road and fought the urge to look at the car behind her. Finally, her exit approached but the car continued to follow, flashing the brights periodically.

Through every stoplight and turn, it followed her until she pulled into her driveway. She figured her only hope was to make a mad dash into the house and call the police. As she flew from the car, so did the driver of the car behind her — and he screamed, “Lock the door and call the police! Call 911!”

When the police arrived the horrible truth was finally revealed to the woman. The man in the car had been trying to save her. As he pulled up behind her and his headlights illuminated her car, he saw the silhouette of a man with a butcher knife rising up from the back seat to stab her, so he flashed his brights and the figure crouched back down.

The moral of the story: Always check the back seat!

Source: UrbanLegends.About.com

Takko Lacquer – The Yellow Ribbon

Takko Lacquer The Yellow Ribbon is a sunny yellow crelly with gold holographic microglitters in various sizes mixed in. I had some trouble getting the larger pieces out, but I managed to get a few. I used 3 thin coats and a glossy top coat for these photos.

Jane wore a yellow ribbon around her neck everyday. And I mean everyday, rain or shine, whether it matched her outfit or not. It annoyed her best friend Johnny after awhile. He was her next door neighbor and had known Jane since she was three. When he was young, he had barely noticed the yellow ribbon, but now they were in high school together, it bothered him.

“Why do you wear that yellow ribbon around your neck, Jane?” he’d ask her every day. But she wouldn’t tell him.

Still, in spite of this aggravation, Johnny thought she was cute. He asked her to the soda shoppe for an ice cream sundae. Then he asked her to watch him play in the football game. Then he started seeing her home. And come the spring, he asked her to the dance. Jane always said yes when he asked her out. And she always wore a yellow dress to match the ribbon around her neck.

It finally occurred to Johnny that he and Jane were going steady, and he still didn’t know why she wore the yellow ribbon around her neck. So he asked her about it yet again, and yet again she did not tell him. “Maybe someday I’ll tell you about it,” she’d reply. Someday! That answer annoyed Johnny, but he shrugged it off, because Jane was so cute and fun to be with.

Well, time flew past, as it has a habit of doing, and one day Johnny proposed to Jane and was accepted. They planned a big wedding, and Jane hinted that she might tell him about the yellow ribbon around her neck on their wedding day. But somehow, what with the preparations and his beautiful bride, and the lovely reception, Johnny never got around to asking Jane about it. And when he did remember, she got a bit teary-eyed, and said: “We are so happy together, what difference does it make?” And Johnny decided she was right.

Johnny and Jane raised a family of four, with the usual ups and downs, laughter and tears. When their golden anniversary rolled around, Johnny once again asked Jane about the yellow ribbon around her neck. It was the first time he’d brought it up since the week after their wedding. Whenever their children asked him about it, he’d always hushed them, and somehow none of the kids had dared ask their mother. Jane gave Johnny as sad look and said: “Johnny, you’ve waited this long. You can wait awhile longer.”

And Johnny agreed. It was not until Jane was on her death bed a year later that Johnny, seeing his last chance slip away, asked Jane one final time about the yellow ribbon she wore around her neck. She shook her head a bit at his persistence, and then said with a sad smile: “Okay Johnny, you can go ahead and untie it.”

With shaking hands, Johnny fumbled for the knot and untied the yellow ribbon around his wife’s neck.

And Jane’s head fell off.

Source: American Folklore

A Box, Indied June 2016 Campfire Tales Overview

And there you have it. The final A Box, Indied. I really REALLY loved the theme this month and I love Urban Legends and scary tales. Truthfully, I am a wuss and hide my face during more scary movies and even dramatic music can make me jump, but I still love them.

This whole box has a very Halloween feel for me. The colors, the theme, it’s very fun (I love Halloween) but it’s very fitting as a Campfire Tales theme as well.

I had no application issues with any of the shades.

Price: $50.00 (no limit on how many boxes you can order)

Preorder Date: June 1st through June 4th

Where To Buy: Llarowe’s Shop

For More Swatches & Information Visit These Pages:  A Box, Indied Facebook | KBShimmer Facebook |  Crowstoes Facebook | Darling Diva Polish Facebook | Contrary Polish Facebook 

Check out A Box, Indied on Instagram for your chance to win this box as well!

Right now there are 5 bloggers receiving the box that you can keep an eye out for their reviews.

Ermahgerd Perlish
My Nail Polish Obsession
Nailed the Polish
Pointless Cafe

and me.

Cosmetic Sanctuary

Make sure you check them out for more photos/reviews/box information.

And with that, I leave you with the last A Box, Indied. The original Indie Subscription Box. To look back on previous boxes over the last couple years, you can check out earlier blog posts. I’m happy to have been able to be part of it for so long.

Will you be grabbing the June 2016 A Box, Indied?