Zoya Song

purchased by me

Song was part of Zoya's 2012 Diva collection, and it's a stunner.  A bright blue glassfleck/foil type polish, it was opaque in two smooth coats, with none of the problems you expect from a diva!  It's also mad shiny even before top coat.

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 Song is available for $8 plus shipping and any applicable tax on Zoya's website, in salons and in some Ulta stores.

Zoya Zenith Winter/Holiday 2013: Seraphina

press sample

Last but definitely not least of the Zenith collection polishes is Seraphina, a pale, icy silver foil.  The formula was thin but not runny, and opaque in three thin coats.  Seraphina just screams ice and snow and winter wind, and it's super-shiny even without top coat!

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Seraphina and the rest of the Zenith collection will be available on October 1st at Zoya's website.  I'm not sure when they'll hit salons and Ulta stores.

Zoya Zenith Winter/Holiday 2013: Peyton

press sample

Dear Zoya,

From Aurora to Blaze to Dream, you've made so many beautiful jelly polishes with holo glitter!  Please make more. *puppy eyes*

Love,

Jammies

*clears throat*  Okay, now that I'm done begging, I will tell you that my friend Caro described Peyton as "wine with sprinkles" when she saw a thumbnail.  She's right.  Peyton is a gorgeous burgundy jelly with tons of holographic glitter, a perfect two-coat formula, and it's super-shiny even before top coat.

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If you only get one polish this holiday season, get Peyton.  It's love in a bottle, from the color to the formula to the sprinkles.  :)  Peyton and the rest of the Zenith collection will be available on October 1st at Zoya's website.  I'm not sure when they'll hit salons and Ulta stores.

Zoya Zenith Winter/Holiday 2013: Mosheen

press sample

Mosheen is the sole top coat in the Zenith collection, and it's a barely-blue-tinted jelly base full of tiny holographic bar glitter.  It showed up well over the dark grey of Zoya Cassedy and less well over Zoya Seraphina (but it did impart some sparkle to the latter.  All swatches are one coat before top coat.

Over Mosheen, indoors with flash:

Over Mosheen, indoors without flash:

Over Seraphina, indoors with flash:

Over Seraphina, indoors without flash:

Mosheen and the rest of the Zenith collection will be available on October 1st at Zoya's website.  I'm not sure when they'll hit salons and Ulta stores.

Cult Nails give you ALL ACCESS for Fall 2013!

press release

PRESALE EVENT BEGINS THIS FRIDAY, SEP 27! For Fall 2013, Cult Nails gives you All Access!  All Access is a new 5-piece collection inspired but the grunge music scene of the 90's while providing a modern twist.  The collection brings you three new, season appropriate, cremes and two fun and explosive toppers.  Cult Nails custom created each of the cremes in this collection for use on the runways of New York Fashion Week's Fall 2013 shows. The collection, which will retail for $60, will be available Friday, September 27th, for the preview price of $48!  Preview pricing will be available through October 5th.   The colors will be available for individual sale following the presale event. Colors shown above (l to r) FEEDBACK, GRUNGE, WACK SLACKS, DISILLUSION, and LAMESTAIN.

CULT NAILS BLOG!Read about the creation of this collection, and see Maria's swatches on the Cult Nails Blog by CLICKING HERE!

Zoya Zenith Winter/Holiday 2013: Dream

press sample

Dream is a dreamy polish--a bold blue jelly with scattered holo glitter which is insanely shiny before top coat.  The formula is smooth-flowing, not too thick, not too thin, opaque in two coats.

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Dream and the rest of the Zenith collection will be available on October 1st at Zoya's website.  I'm not sure when they'll hit salons and Ulta stores.

Zoya Zenith Winter/Holiday 2013: Cassedy

press sample

Cassedy, from Zoya's Zenith collection, is a gorgeous dark foil which appears more storm-grey in bright light and more greenish-grey in low light.  The formula was lovely--not too thick, not too thin, pigmented enough to be opaque in two coats.  I love the change in the tone of the grey, even if the greenish tone does give me lobster hands!

Indoors with flash:

Indoors without flash:

Cassedy and the rest of the Zenith collection will be available on October 1st at Zoya's website.  I'm not sure when they'll hit salons and Ulta stores.

Zoya Zenith Winter/Holiday 2013: Belinda

press sample

Zoya's Zenith collection for Winter/Holiday 2013 is full of gorgeous polishes in different colors and finishes.  First up is Belinda, a warm, dark purple shimmer.  Belinda is darker and more blue-toned than Zoya Hope.  It's also insanely pigmented--I got full coverage with one easy coat!  Some thinner spots did show in the up-close flash photos, but trust me, they weren't visible at conversational distances.  If you like purple shimmers, Belinda is a must-have!

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Indoors with flash:

Belinda and the rest of the Zenith collection will be available on October 1st at Zoya's website.  I'm not sure when they'll hit salons and Ulta stores.

Sneak peek: Week of September 23-27

press samples

Coco Allure Cherry Sorbet

purchased by me

Cherry Sorbet is my first polish from Coco Allure, but given how nice it is, it won't be my last!  It's a red jelly sister to Cosmic Forces and Ocean Forces--red glitter and silver holo circles in a bright, pink-toned red jelly.  The formula was thin enough to flow easily even with all the glitter, but pigmented enough to be nearly opaque at two coats, and I didn't need to fish for glitter, just stood the bottle on its head for an hour before I used it.  Cherry Sorbet did stain, so next time I'll double up on the base coat.  I still think it's worth the hassle.

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Coco Allure's Etsy shop is closed right now, but you can buy some of her polishes at Llarowe (which is where I got Cherry Sorbet).

Emily de Molly Oceanic Forces

purchased by me

Oceanic Forces is another stunner from Emily de Molly, a royal blue jelly stuffed with all kinds of blue glitter and silver holographic circle glitter!  Like Cosmic Forces, Oceanic Forces is very easy to use.  I didn't fish for the circle glitters because I wanted to show you what it looks like if you just apply three coats, but I did turn the bottle upside-down for an hour before using it.  It did dry a bit bumpy, but a coat of Gelous followed by regular top coat smoothed it out.

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If you're lucky enough to live in Oz, you can order Emily de Molly polishes from her Etsy shop.  If not, you can buy from one of the following stockists:

http://shop.llarowe.com/ 
http://meimeisignatures.com/
http://www.norwaynails.com/
www.sallymagpies.co.uk/

Emily de Molly Cosmic Forces

purchased by me

Cosmic Forces is a gorgeous purple jelly stuffed with all kinds of purple glitter and silver holographic circle glitter!  As glitter-filled as it is, it's not overly thick and very easy to use.  I didn't fish for the circle glitters because I wanted to show you what it looks like if you just apply three coats, but I did turn the bottle upside-down for an hour before using it.  Cosmic Forces did dry a bit bumpy, but a coat of Gelous followed by my usual top coat for jelly polishes (Zoya Armor) fixed it right up.

Indoors with flash:

In the sun:

If you're lucky enough to live in Oz, you can order Emily de Molly polishes from her Etsy shop.  If not, you can buy from one of the following stockists:

http://shop.llarowe.com/ 
http://meimeisignatures.com/
http://www.norwaynails.com/
www.sallymagpies.co.uk/

A England Rose Bower

purchased by me

The second A England polish I bought is Rose Bower, a medium pink-red scattered holo.  The formula was identical to Briarwood, down to being a one-coater with an easy formula.  Unfortunately, even in bright sunlight, the holo was weak.  If I could go back in time, I'd skip this one.

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A England polishes are available on their website and at stockists world-wide.  I got mine at Llarowe.

A England Briarwood

purchased by me

This is a week of first for me--my first A England polishes and my first Emily de Molly polishes!

First up on "first week" is A England Briarwood.  Briarwood is a brown scattered holo with a lovely formula, thick enough to be opaque in one coat but not lumpy or prone to dragging.  This brown goes from cooler to warmer depending on the light, and the holo is middling-strong in the sunlight but invisible in low light.

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A England polishes are available on their website and at stockists world-wide.  I got mine at Llarowe.

Sneak peek: week of 9/16-9/20

Incoco Fall 2013

The Incoco Fall 2013 collection, A Tailored Fit, features the chicest fabrics pulled from the Fall 2013 runways to make your nails look trendy and fashion-forward for the fresh new season. The nail colors and nail designs of this collection make for one beautiful and effortless compilation of rich hues and classic prints. Shop the Fall collection here!   FREE SHIPPING ON ORDERS OVER $50 WE PROMISE YOU'LL LOVE IT. FREE RETURN SHIPPING ON ALL ORDERS.