Showing posts with label nude. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nude. Show all posts

April 1, 2020

Zoya Calm Spring 2020 Swatches & Review!

*Sent for review*

Zoya couldn't have picked a better name for their Spring 2020 collection. I'd say the entire world could use more than a little bit of Calm right now. If binging Tiger King isn't helping you stay calm, check out these polishes in various soothing spring colors. Let's start off with Zoya Colleen, a beautiful warm peachy pink creme. I have been hunting for a polish just like this that isn't sheer and I'm pleased to say this hits the spot! Colleen is a completely opaque pale peach that doesn't look chalky, just creamy. This is a perfect spring polish alone or with some beautiful floral nail art added on top.



I did three thin coats of Colleen, but two medium coats would also be full coverage, depending on your polishing style. It's nice and smooth with no streaks and was easy to apply. All swatches in this post are shown with one layer of glossy top coat.



You already know that Zoya Emerson is my favorite of the collection. Blue polish forever 💙. This pastel blue creme has hints of periwinkle and maybe even a tinge of gray too, making it more complex than a standard baby blue creme. I own three Helmer drawers full of blue polish and I can't find one exactly like this and I'm loving it! It's pale but also bright if that makes sense. An instant spring classic.


This was two coats of Emerson. Even though I would typically do a third coat out of habit, I finished the second coat and there was no need for a third. Lovely formula, fully opaque and nary a streak in sight, despite being a pastel creme.




Zoya Leif is a lovely light green creme with some slate gray tones. It comes across as more neutral than a mint green creme would be and more wearable I think for many people. This was the base color for my St. Patrick's Day mani. This is a very soothing color for me and I think I'll be wearing this again sometime soon. 


I did three thin coats of Leif. It's very opaque, not a hint of sheerness or patchiness. The formula is lovely and easy to apply.



Zoya AJ is a really interesting color. It's a pale blush base with copper shimmer flecks. It has a great sheen to it and up close you can really see the copper flecks sparkling. I really like the contrast between the smooth pink base color and the gleaming bits of golden coppery sparkle.


This was two coats of AJ. Excellent formula. Colors like this tend to have very visible brushstrokes and I mostly managed to avoid having them here!



Zoya Laura is described as a "soft, pink-toned ivory cream". I see a lot of the ivory tones on myself and a bit less of the pink, although they are definitely there. This could be a really stunning neutral polish for someone, just not sure it's the best on my skin tone. If you've been looking for a more yellow toned neutral with a slight hint of pink, Laura's your girl.


Three thin coats and so smooth! Zoya has really perfected the art of having very opaque pale/pastel cremes that aren't streaky and uneven. Many brands still struggle with this, so hats off to you Zoya.



Zoya Vee is a very pretty muted purple creme. This is a sophisticated work-friendly purple, not a flashy, loud purple. It feels like a classic neutral, but the dusty warm lilac shade is more interesting and feels fresh for spring.


This was two easy coats and great formula. Vee was very opaque, so if you do thick coats, you may have a one-coater on your hands.






As an aside, the box this collection came in is SO pretty! I love the white and the bottles dripping with polish! I also LOVE that Zoya personalized it with my Instagram name! Thanks Zoya, I feel so special!

My top favorites from this collection are Emerson and Leif, but I really enjoyed the whole collection. Very wearable, pretty spring colors and easy to apply formulas all around!

The Zoya Calm collection is available now on Zoya.com.

February 1, 2019

Zoya Jubilee Holiday 2018 Swatches

*Sent for review*

I am so late with these swatches, but the good news is that this collection is filled with polishes that are perfect for year round wear. Forget your usual holiday collection with 6 red cremes, 5 red shimmers, and a green, this is a modern holiday filled with sparkle and unexpected pops of color. I'm going to start this post off with Zoya Astrid, a flashy gold foil. This is a great true gold polish and I love the finish. It almost looks like it's made up of real gold flakes. Astrid is a real eye-catching polish for sure and probably the most typical "holiday" shade in the group.


This is three thin coats. You could probably do two thicker coats, but I felt the tips of my nails needed a bit more coverage after two coats. It was easy to apply and very smooth to the touch, not chunky at all. I used one layer of quick dry top coat on all swatches in this post.



Zoya Leigh is a nice warm-toned pale beige creme. It's a flattering mix of yellow and peach tones in a buff colored base. Very work appropriate, and sort of cozy looking for winter.


This was two easy coats. I found most of the cremes in this collection to be opaque in two coats and very nice to apply.



Zoya Carson is described as a "muted nude pink creme". This is a mix of pink and brown and it's the kind of color that is never flattering on me. I have a feeling if you have a darker or even much lighter skin tone than I do, this would look amazing!


This was three coats. I felt the formula was a little thinner and I needed the extra coat.



😍 Zoya Taryn is my favorite from this collection! Taryn is described as a "fiery fuchsia micro-iridescent shimmer with blue undertones". It is absolutely glowing and so gorgeous! The blue flashes are very strong and the shimmer is so smooth looking, like pink lava. I am not a big pink polish fan, but I'm in love with this one! If you only order one polish from this collection, make it Taryn.


In addition to being gorgeous, Taryn is easy to apply and only needs two coats to be opaque!



I really enjoy this holiday collection because a lot of the colors are unexpected for the holidays (i.e. not all red and green), yet perfectly party ready. This also makes the collection more versatile for the rest of the year. I will be wearing Zoya Maxine now, in the spring, and of course in the summer. Maxine is a juicy coral pink toned red. It's bright and warm and everything that January is not, so I love it. This watermelon red is going to live on my toes until it is warm enough for people to actually see my toes.


Two effortless coats and just all around excellent formula!



Zoya Allison is described as a "plum-toned ruby cream". It is a pretty good mix of plum and red/pink tones. It's very flattering on my skin tone and I think it would look great on a wide variety of skin colors. It brings some warmth, but it also has a little cool plum. Again, this shade is perfect year round, not just for the holidays.


This is two coats, but I did have a little bit of transparency at the tips. If you want full opacity, I'd go with three, but I didn't mind the little bit of VNL with this glossy shade.



COOOKIE *in cookie monster voice* Zoya Cookie is a stunning amethyst PixieDust with plenty of gold flecks. This is a party on your nails for sure. I love Zoya PixieDust polishes and this one is up there with my favorites. I was really happy to see Zoya include two PixieDusts in this holiday collection and even happier when they turned out to be gorgeous! 


This is two coats of Cookie. I always find PixieDusts to be easy to apply very quickly and this is no exception.



Zoya Chiara is a nice deep blue-toned purple creme. It's a great jewel-toned purple and I like the depth of the color for the winter months. Maybe not the most unique shade in the collection, but it's beautiful!


Chiara also has a great formula, so if you need to add a deep purple to your collection, this is a winner. Two easy coats for full opacity.



Be still my green-loving heart 😍. Zoya Danica is a moody dark peacock green creme. It's the perfect deep green with blue undertones that Zoya describes as a "new twist on a holiday green". I love this for the holidays, but I will also love it in the fall and winter months too. It will make a lovely base for nail art of any kind. Gorgeous!


Two coats to greatness! Isn't it just perfect looking?



Zoya Kateri is a vampy dark brown creme. It can look almost black in low lighting, but has a little more warmth to it. Yummy dark chocolate!


This was also two coats and applied well. It was a bit thinner consistency, so just don't load up the brush too much or it will run towards your cuticles.



Zoya Juniper is a sparkly dark rainforest green PixieDust. Zoya calls it teal, but I think it leans more on the green side, with definite blue undertones. If you're a fan of the PixieDust formula, you will want this one for sure, it's stunning. I don't think I really let it dry down enough before these pictures. When it's completely dry, it's much more sparkly.


This is two coats and the application was easy. I think it took a bit longer to dry fully than other PixieDusts, just worth noting.



Last but not least, this is the new Zoya Leopard Spots Topper. This is a fun addition to the Zoya range and creates an interesting look with many of the polishes in this collection. Zoya suggest trying it over Juniper, the deep green PixieDust. I tried that combination, but found Juniper to be so dark that it didn't really make the Leopard Spots pop. So I tried it over Maxine instead and LOVED it! 


The key to the Leopard Spot Topper is to apply a really thin coat. On my middle nail here, I accidentally put on a slightly thicker coat and you can see it doesn't look as good as the other nails. Make sure you wipe that brush off a couple of times before applying. You can wear this alone for a matte spotted look like I did or layer on glossy top coat for a shiny leopard finish,



Overall, I love this collection for any time of the year, not just the holidays. There are great picks in here for the holidays, of course, but it's not exclusively a holiday look. My favorites are Taryn, Maxine, Cookie, and Danica. I've already worn a couple of those as full manis and have really enjoyed wearing them. Great job Zoya!

The Zoya Jubilee collection is available now at zoya.com.