My Picks from OPI California Dreaming

*Purchased by me*

I think these are the last of the summer polishes I still have hanging around waiting to be swatched! I only picked up two polishes from the Summer 2017 OPI California Dreaming collection. These are the two that stood out to me, even though I probably have similar shades in my collection already. First up is OPI Don't Take Yosemite for Granite. This is very pretty shade, it's a shimmering warm slate gray. The shimmer is almost iridescent in the sun and has little hints of pink. I am a big fan of this color and very glad I picked this up.

This is two coats of Don't Take Yosemite for Granite. It has a pretty nice formula, easy to apply, but it is a little brushstroke prone. If that's something that bothers you, you may not enjoy this one. I find I don't notice the brushstrokes as much in person.

The second polish I picked from this collection is OPI Sweet Carmel Sunday, a shimmering bright copper. I definitely have at least 20 similar copper shimmers, but I do love them! This one is almost rosy toned and very shimmery.

This is also two coats. Same easy to apply formula, and also a little brushstroke-y.

I'm curious- what polishes did you get from California Dreaming? I'm surprised I only ended up with two from the OPI summer collection, that's unusual for me. Good thing fall is much better!!

OPI California Dreaming is available in salons and at Ulta.com.

Zoya Sophisticates Fall 2017 Swatches, Part 1!

*Sent for review*

I look forward to the Zoya fall collection every year. It's always so well done and really puts me in the mood to start wearing fall colors. This year is no exception- the Sophisticates collection is a group of rich, cozy, and slightly moody polishes that will kick your fall off right. Zoya Joni is a deep purple mauve creme. It has hints of pink in it's dark plum base and it reminds me of a comfy fall sweater! It's dark enough to feel a little edgy, but still classy.

I'm only going to say this once so that I don't sound like a broken record- all of these polishes only needed two coats. They are very nicely pigmented and the formula for all of them ranged from good to superb. Joni's formula was in the superb category, just flawless application.

Leave it to Zoya to get me excited about a taupe! Zoya Presley is a "smokey mauve taupe creme" and it's that smokiness and hint of plum that are setting this one apart from countless other taupes. It almost could be a dusty lavender when you look fast, but it's a little more neutral. Great shade for the fall and should be work safe, without being boring.

Very good formula, nice smooth application.

Zoya Beth is the color of wet sand on a stormy beach. It's a shimmering deep champagne with a little ribbon of gold here an there. Very pretty and a little understated. 

I did two coats of Beth, but the formula was a little thinner feeling. So depending on how you apply, it's possible that you could need a third coat. Still a good formula though, very easy to apply.

I always love a good berry hue in the fall and Zoya Padma is an excellent fall berry creme. Zoya calls this a "deep vermillion red", but I always think of vermillion as having some orange tones. This definitely leans toward the pink side of red.

Superb formula again, A+ Zoya!

Zoya Hera is a classic mauve creme. It's a nice rosy mauve, not too grayed out, and should be flattering on a number of skin tones.

Great formula and application here. I really have no complaints about any of these!

Zoya McKenna is a surprising favorite for me in this half of the Sophisticates collection. It's a beautiful almond off-white with a smooth pearl shimmer. Usually I am not too excited about colors like this, but the pearl shimmer makes this so gorgeous and soft looking. The almond hue is very flattering too.

I am also surprised that this light of a color was perfectly even and opaque in two coats! I had no problems with streaks or any of the typical off-white struggles. Love!

I think my top picks from this half of the collection are Joni and Presley. But you can't go wrong with any of these. They are great fall colors and all have a stellar formula.

The Zoya Sophisticates collection is available now at Zoya.com!

Lynnderella Friday, Vol. 79!

 *Sent for review*

I'm trying to get back into a regular fall schedule... seems difficult this year! I'm also trying to get back to a regular blogging schedule! I know I have been letting the blog slide for sure. Today's post contains some stunning recently released limited edition Lynnderellas. Lynnderella Juicy Ruby Rainbow Juice is a striking red purple holographic microglitter. Lynnderella describes it as "multishimmered magenta violet holographic microglitter with green shimmer and red metallic flakes. Translucent violet base.". Somehow this color is better and more exciting than just magenta to me. It's like a rich purple that glows hot pink from the inside. Love this one a lot!

This is two coats of Juicy Ruby Rainbow Juice and it was a dream to apply. I used two coats of top coat to really bring out the shine. It was smooth to the touch with one coat, but I think the holographic sparkle shows up better with two.

Lynnderella Pink Sandcastle is a unique and complex shade. It's a warm pale pink holo microglitter with hot pink shimmer, but in some lighting it leans more taupe or even more like a copper pink. On the right skin tone, it might even read like a nude. The holo sparkle really pops in this one too.

 Two easy coats again! This was nicely opaque and only needed one layer of top coat for smoothness.

I already posted Lynnderella Picnic awhile back, but I revisited it and wore it for a few days. I was able to get some pictures of it in the sunlight, so I thought I'd share those. Picnic is a juicy watermelon holo microglitter. A perfect shade of pink with some bling!

This is two coats of Picnic with two layers of top coat. Again, it was pretty smooth with one layer of top coat, but the second layer really brings out the holographic flare.

These lovely Lynnderellas are available now at http://stores.ebay.com/lynnderella-lynnderella. Lynnderellas are also available at lynnderella.com and Amazon.

Dr.'s Remedy Fresh Start Collection for Fall 2016!

*Sent for review*

Dr.'s Remedy has three lovely new cremes and I have swatches of them for you today! First up is Dr.'s Remedy AMITY Amethyst, a smoky purple creme. This is one of those purples that has a good amount of taupe-y-ness to it and feels like a neutral with an edge. It's more exciting than a standard neutral, but is still appropriate for a wide variety of situations and some work place environments as well. This is a great color year round, but I especially like it for the winter months. It makes me feel cozy!

This is two super easy coats. AMITY Amethyst is so pigmented, you could most likely do just one coat, depending on your application. It was perfectly self-leveling and has a great smooth formula. I used one coat of Dr.'s Remedy top coat, but it was shiny enough on it's own.

Dr.'s Remedy KINETIC Khaki is a taupe creme with hints of green and gray. This is pretty much my perfect taupe creme. It's in that mystery zone- is it gray? Is it greenish? It's a really great neutral with some interest.

This is also two coats and again, if you do thicker coats, you could possibly get away with one coat. Application was a breeze. I used Dr.'s Remedy top coat for that extra shine, but again, it was fairly shiny alone.

 Lastly, we have a great shade for autumn and the coming holiday season, Dr.'s Remedy ALTRUISTIC Auburn. This rusty red creme reminds me of old tobacco barns here in CT. It's very warm and has both burnt orange and rust red tones. In person, I think it's a little more murky/dusty feeling than it comes across in these pictures. It has a more earthy feel.

 Two easy coats again! These really have a great formula and are so pleasant to work with.

Dr.'s Remedy polishes are 5-free and contain a special blend of ingredients to promote nail health. They are available on http://www.remedynails.com.

Zoya Urban Grunge Cremes Fall/Winter 2016 Swatches!

*Sent for review*

Are you ready to drool today? I hope so, because if you love cozy fall colored creme, you are going to love the Zoya Urban Grunge cremes! Zoya Courtney is an oxblood red creme. It's a little lighter than some of the oxblood colors we saw last fall. Zoya describes it as "beet root" red, but I always think of beets as much more purple. This has a hint of purple, but it is mostly a strong deep red.

This is two coats. Courtney is a little on the jellyfish side, so I sill had a lot of VNL after one coat. You can see I did a thinner second coat on my index finger and still have some VNL there. For the rest of the nails, I used a slightly thicker layer for the second coat. The formula was great though, super nice to apply. Get used to that because I'll be saying it for this whole post!

Zoya Wyatt is a hunter green creme with a nice moody fall edge. It has some blue tones to it, almost like a deep wintergreen. Green is usually a fresh color, but this manages to feel a little dusty and grunge-y. If you're a green lover, you should definitely grab Wyatt!

This is two buttery, flawless coats. It could definitely be a one-coater, depending on your application. I actually prefer to do two thinner coats, so I very rarely find one-coaters that I like at only one coat. But it is beautifully pigmented and the perfect consistency.

Zoya Mallory is a bright cobalt blue creme. This is the one polish in the collection that doesn't feel like fall as much as the others, but I love a good cobalt blue, so I'm not complaining! I sometimes need a kick of vibrant blue in the winter, and I'll be reaching for this one when I do.

This is one coat of Mallory. It is very pigmented and coves well in one coat. I probably should have done a second coat for the camera, but it looked completely opaque to my eyes. The formula was a little thinner than the others, though still easy to apply. I would also double up on base coat. I had some staining on my skin, so this could be a possible stainer (I haven't worn it yet for a mani though, so I could be wrong!).

This plum creme might be my new favorite purple. Zoya Tara is just delicious looking, it's a perfectly balance plum, just enough red and purple mixed together. It's dark enough that it looks perfect for fall, but not so dark that it looks muddy or black. This is the perfectly plummy creme I've been looking for!

This is two coats of Tara and the formula was awesome. Nice and pigmented, great consistency and smooth application.

I don't usually think of taupes as interesting shades, but Zoya Noah is a pretty interesting taupe. It's a little bit of a yellow-beige, but it has some gray tones to it to grunge it up. It is pretty complex looking in person, you have a hard time figuring out what color to really call it. It's a neutral, but it has some edge so it won't be boring. I like it a lot and will be wearing it the next time my life calls for a neutral.

This is one coat, even for me! It is very pigmented and doesn't need a second coat, even with my tendency towards thin coats. It is a little on the thicker side, but very easy to apply and the thickness helps it cover evenly in just one coat.

Zoya August is a gray creme that reminds me of seagulls at the beach. Maybe that just came to my mind because I've been spending so much time at the beach recently, but seagulls really do have beautiful gray colors in their feathers! Zoya calls this a "full coverage gray like a fine, expensive leather with a mid-ranged, balanced tone". It is nicely balanced, not too blue-toned, so it will be great for a wide variety of skin tones.

This is one coat. It is perfectly opaque in one coat, like Noah, but I feel it shows any imperfections in my nails. When I actually wear this, I'll probably do two coats. The formula was really good though, very easy to apply. Zoya really knocked the formulas out of the park in this collection. They are all super pigmented and have a great consistency that makes them easy to apply.

*Sent for review*

Overall, I think these cremes are all really beautiful for fall and you can't go wrong with the formulas. Zoya is calling them "one coat" cremes, and honestly, they are probably correct. I just personally prefer applying two thinner coats, so you may be able to do one coat of almost all of these. I would say Courtney is the only one that needed two coats. My favorites are Wyatt (no surprise there, it's green!) and Tara, but I really like the whole group of them quite a lot!

The Zoya Urban Grunge cremes are available now at zoya.com.