Zoya Naturel Swatches And Review

Hey there lovelies! Is everyone done with their Christmas shopping? Surprisingly, I am actually done ahead of schedule for once! I'm SO the type to be buying gifts on Dec 23rd!

The lovely people at Zoya sent me their new Naturel collection to review for you. I really loved the idea of this collection. Zoya has been putting out a lot of really bold, saturated, gorgeous polishes lately so this soft neutral collection was a really nice departure.

That being said, I don't know that you need to own every polish in this collection as there are some very similar shades. All of the photos show two coats of polish topped off with a coat of Seche Vite. The formula on every one of these polishes is exactly the wonderful formula we've come to expect and love from Zoya. So without further ado, here are the swatches!

Chantal:

 This pretty little lady is a yellow based nude polish. I think that this one was my least favorite of the bunch just because my skin has a yellow undertone to begin with and this brought that out which wasn't a good thing for me! I think this would look lovely on some darker skin tones though!

Taylor:

 

 

This one is SO incredibly similar to Chantal that I kept wondering why it was put into this collection. The only thing I can think of is that it's a little more friendly to different skin tones. This definitely has a more neutral base to it and I prefer Taylor to Chantal. That being said, I think you would only need one or the other, depending on your coloring.

Rue:

 

 

This one is sort of a lavender-based nude. It was a little odd for me though because it wasn't quite light enough to be a nude but it also didn't have a lot of color saturation. I think this is another one that would look better on a darker skin tone. It's a lovely color, just not so much on me.

Brigitte:

 

Brigitte is a really lovely lavender-grey type shade. I'm not 100% sure how exactly to classify this one but she is pretty! It's a great answer to how to wear a pastel in the Fall/Winter season and I think it would go amazing with any neutral outfit. 

Odette:

 

 

This little girl is definitely my favorite of this collection. This polish looks much darker in the bottle than it is once it's on the nail. In fact, I found that to be true about this entire collection! The colors are wonderfully opaque in two coats without that bold saturation of recent Zoya collections. The great part about that is that every single polish in this collection is perfect for the office!

Normani:

 

  

Normani is a taupe/grey color that is very professional looking. I don't really have a lot to say about this color because I'm not all that fond of taupe/grey polishes but I know that it would look incredible on the right skin tone - olive perhaps?

In conclusion, I think that this is a fabulous collection by Zoya but definitely not one that needs to be purchased in entirety. The last several collections (especially the Cashmeres) from Zoya have contained such different polishes that you could most definitely own the entire collection. The Naturel collection is one that has something for everyone but not necessarily everything for everyone, know what I mean? 

 

Zoya Fall 2013 Cashmere Collection Swatch and Review

Hello beautiful people! I meant to have this post up sooner but my 'puter broke. I had to shell out the dough to buy a new one and that kind of hurt but I likey my new laptop a lot!

Let me just get this out of the way and tell me that these polishes were provided by the awesome people at Zoya for my reivew! This will not affect my opinions in any way - you can count on that!

I have NEVER fallen in love with an entire collection like I did with the Zoya Fall 2013 Cashmere line. LORDY - just look at it will you? The colors are insanely rick and beautiful and I'm just going to tell you off the top that they all applied like a dream - no lie! I'm pretty sure I oohed and ahhed during this entire swatching session!

I'm listing them her in order from least to most favorite... not to say that this has any real meaning as even my least favorite is a gorgeous polish and something that I will wear again!

First up is Pepper. I feel like this is the most "Fall" of all of the colors and I'm not really a Fall person. That being said, this was two dreamy coats even though you could get away with 1 if you were careful. It's a true brick red and I felt like it was more brown in real life - these photos give it a bit more red than I saw. I don't know how Zoya does it but doesn't it look like a gel polish? *sigh*

 

Then comes Louise. This is one coat only - woohoo! Usually brown would be on the top of my list. Even though she is a real, rich beauty, the others in this collection were a little more unique! Either way, I love that this is a chocolate brown that even though it's deep in color, won't be mistaken for black. Also, there aren't any undertones to it so it really is a neutral and will go with any color!

Then comes Hunter. The name says it all - it's a true hunter green. Normally, I can't stand dark greens but there is something about this one that I really liked! This photo is two coats but this one could be a one-coater if you were in a hurry!

Then comes the classy lady of the bunch - Livingston. A PERFECT red that would be flattering on any skintone! I found this one to have an almost crelly finish to it and for me, that only added to the depth of the color and richness. This one does need two coats but you certainly won't mind with this formula!

And hello Sailor! Wow, just wow. I know a lot of you are blue fans and I'm normally fairly "meh" on them but this little lady really took me in and held me captive - WOW! This navy creme is amazing. Have you ever seen a blue look this classy? I dare say I haven't! This color finds the balance between really dark blue and bright, cartoonish (I know, weird) blue and is a highly wearable color for any occasion! This baby was a one-coater for me.

 

And finally, at the top of the polish pile is Flynn. I honestly never thought I could love a nude polish this much but she is amazing. Nudes usually have a yellow or pink tint to them that make my skin look terrible or they are so close to my skin color that they give me mannequin hands - blech! Not only will Flynn make a fabulous base for nail art but it can be worn all on it's own without looking weird or unfinished.  This was two coats and was just as amazing as the others to apply!

  

So, what do you think - do you love them all? Some of them? None of them? (If you say none then I can't be your friend anymore - I'm sorry.) I'm sure you will be seeing these polishes in many more posts to come. 

Zoya - good on you!

Nails4Dummies GIVEAWAY!!!!

I am sooooo excited to share today's post with you because it's a GIVEAWAY!!!!

 

I really debated whether or not to do one of these. I initially thought that I didn't feel right asking people to follow me just to be entered in a giveaway but when it comes down to it, if you don't like what you see, you can always unfollow but I love the idea of getting more people to see my work. I started a blog so that I could share, so I should share with as many people as I can, right?? And who doesn't love free stuff? Crazy people - that's who!

 

So who wants to see the prizes?? I know I do!

 

Prize pack #1 includes the Zoya Fall 2013 Cashmere collection, 2 Jordanna Glitters - LA City Nights and Gemstones. Revlon - Heavenly, Whimsical and Girly and OPI You Only Live Twice. A 16 pack of diamond-shaped glequins, some hole reinforcements (I know, weird!) for helping with French tips and ruffians! Some Nutra Nail Speed Dry Top Coat, some adorable animal fimo cane slices, 3 pots of shaped glitter thingies (don't quite know what you'd call them!), an adorable set of mini stamps, and and owl notebook and some pointy orange sticks that are great for watermarbling! Then I also put in some of my handmade goodies which includes a Coptic stitch notebook (that pink & black swirly thing!), 8 paper-pieced gift tags (the pics don't do the detail on these justice!), a set of 4 SUPER strong magnets that you will wonder how you lived without! Finally, you will also receive 3 pairs of handmade earrings - phew! That's quite a lot of stuff...can I enter my own giveaway! ;)

Then for lovely prize pack #2, you will receive a Color Club - Poptastic Collection (yes, those are full size!), Sally Hansen Diamond Strength - Moonlit Dance and Honeymoon Red, Sinful Colors Sinful Shine - Pragmatic and All The Rage, Sinful Colors - Irish Green and Green Ocean, Pure Ice - Come Closer and Freedom and Wet 'n Wild Megalast - Telescope Vision (sorry there's a glare on that one, it's a mega-glittery polish with a bluish jelly base!). You will also receive some pointy orange sticks which are great for watermarbling, a cute little clipboard notepad, some colorful shape-thingies and some hole-reinforcements perfect for French tips and ruffians! Then you will also receive some handmade (by ME!) goodies that include a Coptic stitch notebook (that cute thing with deer and owls on it!), a set of SUPER strong magnets (seriously - they are AWESOME!) and two pairs of bead earrings!



 

 

Wow - pretty prizealicious isn't it? I thought so! I will be making this open INTERNATIONALLY!!! I'm only leaving it open for 2 weeks though because I'm really impatient! The winner will be drawn randomly from the entries. If you are not 18, I will require a parent's permission to receive a prize but other than that - go! Enter at your own risk, muahahahahahahaha!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

I am so excited to bring you the lovely Fall 2013 PixieDust collection from Zoya! To get all the disclaimer stuff out of the way, these polishes were sent to me for review but trust that will not affect my opinions! So without further ado, here they are!

I honestly didn't think I was going to like these at all! I'm not a fan of textured polish. I have never owned a crackle or a sand or a sugar or any of those other interesting textures that polish companies come up with to entice us. In fact, I'm not even a huge fan of using glitters - GASP! I love they way they look, I hate working with them and cleaning them up!

Even though I was fully prepared not to like these, I was more than pleasantly surprised at the amazing formula on these polishes and how easy they were to apply. I like the look of these PixieDust polishes more than the sand or sugar polishes because of the micro glitter. It makes them look less like spackle on a wall!

First up is Chita. I have to be honest about the green and let you know that I'm not a big fan. Even though it went on really smooth with no issues, I have a couple of issues here. The first is that I don't like green (unless it's lime green!) and the other is that I don't really like the silver glitter in with the green polish. These are really more of personal preferences though, so if you like green, don't hesitate to pick this one up! I used two coats but with this one, you could certainly get away with one!

And here it is with a coat of Seche Vite on top. Much better in my opinion, what do you think? Then again, I'm a sucker for a gloss!

Then comes Sunshine. Am I the only one that's a little bothered by the fact that this blue polish is named Sunshine??? I feel like it should be yellow or gold with that name! Either way, this one is a lovely deep sapphire color!

You could definitely get away with one coat but I used two because I like the deeper blue color I got with the second coat. I was disappointed that this one had the silver micro glitter like the green. The blue is absolutely gorgeous, I just wish the glitter was blue too, I think it would have give it a really rich look. Formula-wise, it was amazing!

So I added some Seche Vite to this one too and oh my goodness, isn't Sunshine gorgeous??

 

Next is Dhara. Orange has to be my least favorite color ever. That being said, I didn't actually mind this one! It's got a gold and red-orange shimmer to it and it's quite pretty even though it doesn't play well my skintone! Formula is lovely once again and this is two coats as one just isn't quiiiiiiiite enough!

I think I actually liked Dhara better matte but I had to gloss it up anyway!

Then comes Tomoko, a gorgeous champagne polish. Even though Zoya describes it as a champagne silver, it felt more gold to me. Regardless of what you call it, she is a beauty! It looks more like a foil than anything and sparkles like crazy! Two coats are a necessity with Tomoko but it's so smooth that you really won't mind! Be careful with getting her on your skin, that micro glitter is very friendly and likes to stick around and cuddle!

The addition of Seche Vite didn't change the look of it too much, that's how sparkly it was to begin with! This baby sure dazzled in the sunshine though! It's such a soft and lovely shade that I think it would even be work appropriate!

Next up is Arabella, a beautiful fuchsia pink with fuchsia glitter and mayyyybe just the barest hint of purple sparkle in their too! I was actually kind of surprised at how dark this one came out on the nail after a necessary two coats but she's still a pretty lady!

I much prefer Arabella with a coat of Seche Vite on top, would you look at that?? So incredible - I could stare for hours!!

 

Finally, I saved the best for last. This amazing beauty is Carter! With a cool name like that, how couldn't she be a stunner? This was actually the first one I applied and I was completely amazed at how smooth these PixieDust polishes applied. That being said, this was actually the thickest but not to the point that it caused any issue with application. In the bottle, I didn't notice the fuchsia micro glitter but once it was on the nail, WOWEE! This is definitely a new favorite of mine...sigh!

And then, after Seche Vite - SHUT THE FRONT DOOR!!! I wanted to lick my fingers!!

All in all, a fabulous line from the lovely geniuses at Zoya. I highly recommend leaving a good margin between the polish and your skin during application as the micro glitter is REALLY hard to get off the skin! Also, it dries really fast as long as you use thin coats. I accidentally used too much on one finger and it would not dry!!! But using two really thin coats not only made application easier, but it dried awesome too. So which one is your favorite?