Zoya Winter/Holiday 2015: Matte Velvet

purchased by me

Sorry it took so long, but finally, here are my swatches of the Zoya Winter/Holiday Matte Velvet polishes for 2015.

All six had the same flawless formula, opaque in two easy coats, flowed perfectly and dried quickly.  Pics after the jump!

Nyx Cosmetics Prismatic Eyeshadows

purchased by me

Over the last year or so, I've come to a bigger appreciation for Nyx products, so when they came out with their Prismatic eyeshadows, I bought nine of the twelve.  I love eight of the nine, because they are reasonably priced, smooth, pigmented, soft and long-wearing.  The only failure is Frostbite, which is less because of the shadow itself than that it's just too close to my skin color!

All swatches are one swipe over bare skin.

Left to right: Punk Heart, Blue Jeans, Bedroom Eyes, Girl Talk

Punk Heart is a deep plummy brown.

Blue Jeans is a denim blue.

Bedroom Eyes is a medium brown.

Girl Talk is a pale beige.

Left to right: Frostbite, Smoke & Mirrors, Liquid Gold, Mermaid, Golden Peach.

Frostbite is a very soft white.

Smoke & Mirrors is a dark grey.

Liquid Gold is a medium copper.

Mermaid is a mint green.

Golden Peach is a pink-peach.

If you'd like to indulge in one or a dozen, the Prismatic shadows can be found on the Nyx website for $6.00 each (told you they're reasonably priced!) plus shipping.

Zoya mystery minis reviews and swatches

gift with purchase

Reviews and swatches after the jump!

Got my Zoya mini mystery polishes!

purchased by me

Left to right, Severina, Anais and Charlotte.  None of these names come up on the website, so I wonder if there's a new collection on the way...

Swatches and reviews coming next week!

Coca-Cola by OPI 10-Pack of Style

purchased by me

The OPI and Coke collaboration came out a bit ago, but it took me a while to get all 8 colors swatches.  Yes, that's correct, the collection has 9 colors, but the mini-pack has 8 colors plus base and top coat.  Pictures and reviews after the jump!

photo courtesy of Ulta

Sinful Colors Beaches and Cream

purchased by me

Beaches and Cream was a limited edition color that came out in July with the Practice Your Accent collection.  I swatched it and then gave it away because it was much too yellow-toned to flatter me.  So here are some late swatches--three coats, no top coat.

Indoors with flash:

Indoors without flash:

Beaches and Cream is no longer available in stores, but you can still find it on ebay.

Zoya Magical Pixie Dust polishes for Summer 2014

press samples

I know it has been Texture Central around here for the last few weeks.  What can I say?  I'm in love!  And I'm just as in love with the new Pixie Dust polishes as I've been with the rest of the line.

Lots more pictures after the jump!

Zoya Naturel collection

press sample

Six pretty palate cleansers are available from Zoya right now.  The Naturel collection contains three neutral cremes and three soft color cremes, all in the typically wonderful Zoya formula.  More details after the jump!

                                       

Shelter dog nails!

purchased by me/press samples

Thanks to the lovely and talented Erika of Icy Nails, I now know that October is Adopt-a-Shelter-Dog month!  Of my four dogs, two have been rescues, one is a foster dog, and one is a shelter dog.  Inspired by Little Miss Piggie Pie, aka Smoky, I've done a manicure intended to give the impression of her fur.  She's mostly black, with orangy-tan eyebrows and a tan belly and lots of scattered white hairs which inevitably show up on my black pants!

I started with a base of Zoya Raven, then added sloppy small moons of e.l.f. Desert Haze, then a coat of Sally Hansen Tweedy, followed by a coat of Ulta Salon Formula matte topcoat for a satin matte finish.

So how'd I do? :-)

Ruby Wing Cupcakes & Champagne collection: Doux

purchased by me

Ruby Wing is a division of Color Club, and their fall collection, Cupcakes & Champagne, is full of scented, color-changing polishes.  The first of three that I got was Doux, which is a pale champagne base with pink-to-purple shifting shimmer.  There is a lot of shimmer, and even indoors, it doesn't matter that the base is still transparent after three coats, because the glow hides all the flaws in my nails.  Outdoors, it changes to a medium greyed-purple base with the same color-shifting shimmer.  It smells like grape candy, but not so strongly as to put you off if you don't like the scent.  I love this polish--it's work-safe with a hidden twist!

In the sun:

Indoors with flash:

Indoors without flash:

Ruby Wing polishes are available at a number of etailers, and I've seen them in person at my local Rite-Aid

Picture Polish Majesty

purchased by me

Majesty is just gorgeous.  Full stop, no-holds-barred exquisite, it's a pale rosy-beige sheer base loaded with superfine gold shimmer with a touch of green and a sprinkling of holographic micro-shimmer bits.  It's not a true duo- or multi-chrome, it simply has a ton of depth.  This is the polish that made a bling-loving co-worker swoon and ask to borrow it!

Indoors with flash:

In the sun:

Indoors without flash:

Picture Polish can be purchased on their website or through a number of stockists.  I got mine at Llarowe.

Zoya Cashmeres & Satins: Flynn

press sample

Zoya's Autumn 2013 collection, Cashmeres & Satins, has six beautiful crèmes, six gorgeous shimmers and a striking glitter top coat.  I'm starting with the Cashmeres, because they are fabulous fall colors in a flawless formula.

First up is Flynn, a medium, slightly yellow-toned beige.  The color is work-safe and quite flattering and doesn't disappear into my pale skin.  The formula was flawless, a perfect consistency, extremely pigmented, opaque in two coats and shiny without top coat.

Indoors with flash:

Indoors without flash:

The Cashmeres & Satins are available now at Zoya for $8 each + shipping (and tax if you live in Ohio).

OPI Oz the Great and Powerful collection: Glints of Glinda and When Monkeys Fly

I'm starting to wonder if I even know myself anymore.  First I fell for a nude holo, then a nude matte glitter, and now I'm thinking maybe a nude crème polish is kinda pretty. o.O  Glints of Glinda, from this year's OPI Soft Shade collection, is a peachy beige that was opaque in three easy coats, and is basically the perfect mannequin hands or my nails but better shade for me.

Indoors without flash:

Indoors with flash:

When Monkeys Fly is a glitter topper with large, slightly curled gold hexes and small and medium holographic glitter.  The curl on the gold hexes doesn't bother me, but I wish there were a bit more glitter, because this feels quite sparse.

Indoors without flash:

Indoors with flash:

OPI's Oz the Great and Powerful collection is scheduled to premiere with the movie on March 8, 2013.

Zoya Pixie Dust Collection: Godiva (and an inspiration by Kayla Shevonne)

Every now and then I have to yell "But I don't like nude polishes!"  That usually happens right after I've fallen in love with one.  Butter London All Hail the Queen was the first, and Zoya Godiva was the second.  I love the finish, the texture, the sparkle and the color (which, btw, is my perfect "mannequin hands" color).  And not only do I love it, but two of my co-workers borrowed it today for quick lunchtime manicures!  The formula was easy to work with, opaque in three coats and has worn well.

In the sun:

More pics, and my take on a gorgeous mani by Kayla Shevonne after the jump!

Butter London All Hail the Queen

"...shoot on sight anything wearing BEIGE."

So says my darling friend angelkitty, and while I would agree with her most of the time about beige, especially nail polish, All Hail the Queen is an allowed exception.  You see, this is a gorgeous, warm, dark-ish beige nail polish with a tiny hint of pink and a ton of scattered holo!  It's just lovely, and very unique, so it gets a free "Don't Shoot Me!" card. ;)  All swatches are two coats, no top coat.

Indoors with flash:

Indoors without flash:

If you're looking for a work-safe or mother-of-the-groom safe polish that still has the power to make you look at your nails and smile, grab a bottle of All Hail the Queen. :)

Water Marble Wednesday: Fluffernutter & Jelly Sandwich

This is certainly not my best water marble, but it's far from my worst, and I really adore the color scheme. The inspiration was a fluffernutter (peanut butter and marshmallow fluff) and jelly sandwich, and the colors are dead-on. I used e.l.f. Desert Haze, China Glaze White on White and Revlon Mystical.

In the sun:



Indoors without flash:



Indoors with flash:

Zoya True Collection Swatches and Review

Happy New Year, lacquered loved ones! I am starting the new year off with a bang, as a real beauty blogger. Zoya sent me the new True Collection to swatch and review, my first ever nail polish gift for review. I'm blown away that Zoya takes me and my blog seriously, and I'm especially thrilled because they are a local company. These polishes will be available for purchase on January 13, 2012 at Zoya.

Thank you so much, Zoya!

The press release:




Now, on to the swatches:

Zoya describes Cho as "Full coverage, vanilla shimmer metallic" and I would say that it's on the yellow side of beige, and the shimmer is extremely subtle. It adds a tiny bit of glow rather than being in your face. It took three coats for full coverage and dried in a reasonable time.

With flash:



Without flash:



Zoya describes Farah as "Full coverage, latte beige cream" and color-wise it's a browner version of Cho, with a tiny hint of rose. Like Cho, it took three coats for full coverage, but dried quickly.

With flash:



Without flash:



Zoya describes Bevin as "Full coverage, pale sage green cream" and I would add that it's perfect. I didn't think from the press release that I would be able to wear this, but it's not at all a yellow-sage, but leans just slightly blue-grey, and it's dusty and lovely and beautiful. It was an easy two-coater, and dried quickly.

With flash:



Without flash:



Zoya describes Skylar as "Full coverage, silvered slate blue metallic" and I would say it's in the same family as Barielle Falling Star, but with silver shimmer instead of copper. I used two coats, and while the pictures show some bald spots that could have been covered with a third coat, they were not visible from typical conversational distance. Dry time was a bit slower than the others in this collection, but still quite decent.

With flash:



Without flash:



Next up is Lotus, which Zoya describes as "Full coverage, light lotus purple metallic" and I say it's a red-purple the exact color of the buds on my lilac bushes, full of fuchsia shimmer. It was an easy two-coater, dried fairly quickly, and absolutely defeated my camera when it came to getting pictures of the shimmer. It's completely amazing.

With flash:



Without flash:



Last and definitely not least, Tru. Zoya describes this beauty as "Full coverage, gilded purple orchid metallic" which is true but inadequate. This is a dark reddish purple with copper and fuchsia glitter, which I may have to re-swatch when I get my new camera. It's a two-coater and frankly stunning. This is the polish equivalent of New Year's fireworks!

With flash:



Without flash:



So to sum up, Zoya knocked it out of the part with four of the shades in this collection and added two pretty neutrals with the other two. If you like purples, Tru and Lotus are don't-miss colors!

And a little teaser for my next series of posts...

Barielle Buddha-ful review and swatches

I have to say that my first Barielle polish was not a wild success. The flakies are very pretty--they go from gold to green to blue depending on how the light hits them. Unfortunately, the polish was very sheer, and removal was an absolute nightmare. I'm talking the foil method didn't get all the glitter off nightmare. I think I'll put the rest of the Barielles on hold and wear a few nice creams for a while...

Three coats, with flash:



Three coats, no flash:

Sorry for the lack of sunshine pictures, but that's been in short supply here in NE Ohio the last few days!

The trend I just don't get

Because I am job hunting, it is sometimes necessary for me to wear bland colors I would not otherwise bother with. Today it was Desert Haze, a mushroom beige from e.l.f. cosmetics.

I do not understand the whole "edgy neutrals" trend. Frankly, if it's a putty, taupe, beige or similar color, it looks boring to me rather than edgy. Maybe I'm not young enough or hip enough to get the idea, but all these neutrals just put me to sleep. Give me a strong color, or a holo, or glitter or something interesting, but please stop boring me!

That said, I will not be buying anything else from e.l.f. While Desert Haze was semi-sheer, it was fairly easy to work with, and I had minimal VNL after three coats. However, all of their products appear to be made in China, and after the multiple contamination problems, it just seems too risky to be putting something made in China on my face. And since what I mostly bought from e.l.f. with my first and last order was eyeshadow and powder, I probably won't be getting any more polishes from them either. That was my own fault for not reading their website more carefully and checking with customer service if necessary.

Here's Desert Haze on its own:

And then saved from neutralhood with one coat of Nubar Opulent Pearls and one coat of CND Copper Shimmer:

I think I can live with the latter look for a day or two.