Zoya Yana Review and Swatches

So, Zoya Yana is getting its own post.

Zoya Yana, outside in sunlight

Why? Because I REALLY love this polish right now, and I want to. That, and I don't have any of her friends. She's part of the Sunning Collection from Summer 2013. I think I only have Tinsley from the sister Irresistible Collection. It was the early day's of my manic obsession with Zoya. I didn't really know that I would fall this hard. Honestly, I didn't even buy Yana until this past weekend, so I'm really out of excuses there...

Zoya Yana, outside in shade

Yana is beyond words, really. Zoya describes her as a "full coverage, Geranium pink cream." I don't really know if I've ever really seen a geranium before. I'm not into flowers on any level. I kill any plant that I come into contact with (I don't try to!) I'm just not good with them. I'd call it a pretty pink with a hint of coral. It actually reminds me of OPI's A Definite Mouse-t Have. There's a very subtle line of shimmer running through it that catches the light every now and again.

Zoya Yana, indoors in natural light

This was a two coats to opaque for me. I saw a definite visible nail line after one coat, but two coats took care of that, no problem. The formula was super smooth, and, as always, Zoya just nailed it. I really love their polish. So premium. I found a shop in the mall that sells Zoya (where I actually bought Yana), and there was a girl debating whether to buy a gold colored OPI or Zoya Ziv, and I inserted my opinion. Clearly, go with Zoya. Not only is it Big5Free (yay non-toxic!), but your mani will last a good week without any chipping, and OPI lasts MAYBE two days if you're lucky.

Zoya Yana, indoors in artificial light

If you think I'm exaggerating about Zoya's staying power, I'd like to draw your attention to these photos. I painted my nails on Monday. These were taken on Saturday. That's FIVE DAYS. Note the lack of tip wear. I didn't touch them up. I know some people like to reapply topcoat to keep the polish looking fresh, but I don't actually bother with that. Frankly, I even forget 99% of the time to wrap the tips. So yeah... Zoya lasts for a really long time. It's why it's all I ever really wear.

Zoya Yana, flash

(Except for the really cute bottles of Yves Rocher that my neighbors brought me back from their vacation in Paris, but that's because they're presents, and I'm not mean, and it's PARIS, people. That stuff lasted oddly well, too, actually...)

So, the moral of this post is to go to zoya.com and pick up a bottle of Yana. It's worth it. As always, hit up blog.zoya.com and zoya's twitter page to see if they have any promos going on, or just to see what is going on in the world of Zoya. It's a magical place, people. I promise you won't be disappointed.

I'm going to be posting a bunch for a while, I think. I have some pics of polish that I've been sitting on, and I should get them up for you all to see, so expect to see me fairly regularly. I also may have gotten my hands on the fall PixieDusts, and will try to preview them for you as soon as I get my hands on some press material from Zoya (like descriptions. We've had zero communication from Zoya about this, so I'll get this up as soon as I'm able. Suffice to say, they're incredible.)

Soon, my darlings,
Emily, the Manic Paintress

Zoya Naturel Deux Announced!

Did you love Zoya's super popular Naturel collection like I did? Well, get ready for the fabulous Fall-ready sequel, Naturel Deux. The collection will consist of three mauve based creams, and three rich brown creams. Gorgeous! Here's the run-down:

Spencer is a Camel cream

 Emilia is a Dark Chocolate cream

Chanelle is a Toasted Almond cream 

Madeline is a muted Rose cream

Marnie is a  deep, warm Plum cream

Aubrey is a medium Mauve cream

So, what do you plan on picking up? I think Emilia, Aubrey, Marnie, and Madeline are necessary for my stash. Beautiful. I also am really intrigued by Chanelle. Honestly, I think Spencer is going to be like Taylor and Chantal from Natruel Une... lovely, but not on my skin tone, but I will have to swatch to be sure. I am excited to see for sure, though! Yay!

Hopefully, I will have something up for you soon. It's been a manic summer so far!

Until then,
Emily, the Manic Paintress

Zoya Hudson Review and Swatches

Today, I bring to you a seriously fabulous polish, Zoya Hudson. I actually can't believe that I haven't reviewed this polish before. I think, honestly, that I forgot, because I've had the photos done for a while. It's part of the Spring 2014 Awaken Collection, along with Rebel and Dillon.

Zoya Hudson, shaded sun

Zoya describes Hudson as a "full-coverage, purple orchid metallic with a silver shimmer." This is one of those polishes that I think wanted to capitalize on Pantone naming Radiant Orchid as the color of the year. Really, I don't see this as an orchid shade. I've said this on other posts, but my mom actually grows orchids. I think her totals are in the 80s, and most of them aren't even in the purple range, but they tend to be more red-based purple than Hudson is. Hudson has a lot of really rich blue undertones, and the shimmer is nice without being overwhelming.

Zoya Hudson, direct sunlight

Orchid purple or not, I think Hudson is a seriously lovely color. It's balanced, so it doesn't read blurple like so many purples can, and it isn't too silvery, so it's more wearable than some metallic polishes. I think purple tends to toe the line between traditional polishes and the more edgy colors, like blues and greens, and Hudson is bright and metallic enough to fit in perfectly with Dillon and Rebel (the green and blue metallics in the Awaken collection), but soft enough to wear everyday and in more traditional settings.

Zoya Hudson, indoors in natural light

I hate to say it, but there's not really much to say about most purples. It's a mid-range purple, which is generally quite versatile. It's a polish that I'll wear a lot, and that will be in my regular rotation, but I really don't have an awful lot to say about it. It's a color I get complimented on when I wear it; it's not the sort that will turn lots of heads. Perhaps that's actually a plus, though. There are definitely times when I want a nail that will be beautiful, but not necessarily be too flashy or bold.

Zoya Hudson, indoors in artificial light

As always, Zoya is Big5Free (of formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, toluene, dibutyl phthalate, and camphor), and natural. It also will give you a good week or so of chip-free wear. Be sure to follow Zoya's blog for contests, giveaways, and promos. They also will tell you about new products and trends. It's worth checking out. Also, follow @ZoyaNailPolish on twitter. Same reasons, and because the fairies are frequently adorable beyond words. You can also follow me on twitter, @manic_paintress. Clearly, you know where my blog is. If you don't, I feel really bad about your internet skills.

Zoya Hudson, taken with flash

That's all for now. I'll be posting about Zoya Dillon soon. Promise.

Until then my darlings,
Emily, the Manic Paintress

Zoya Rebel: Review and Swatches

Today is brought to you by the color blue... Zoya Rebel blue.

Zoya Rebel, shaded sunlight

I've said it a few times in recent posts: I find it very hard to find blue and green nail polishes that I'll actually wear. I love blue and green as actual colors, but when I put them on my nails, they just look sort of weird. And teal is generally the oddest. Notable exceptions include all other Zoya colors: Muse from the Bubbly collection, Tilda from the Tickled collection, and now, Rebel from the Spring 2014 Awaken collection.

Zoya describes it as a sky blue, which is pretty accurate, if not a bit vague, seeing as how variable the sky is. I'd also go for Robin Egg blue, or Spring blue, but life isn't a box of Crayola crayons, and that's why I take pictures in different color lighting. You can see it for yourself. It has a silvery shimmer to it that runs throughout the polish, picking up light without being too obtrusive.

Zoya Rebel, direct sunlight

To be really honest, I passed up Rebel even after seeing it in press releases. I ordered Hudson, Lux, Vega, and Cosmo, and didn't order Rebel. I also didn't order Dillon. As I said earlier, I frequently order blue and green polishes, only to be disappointed and not wear them. Rebel looked almost Tiffany blue on Zoya's site, and it reminded of a disastrous essie purchase, in the cabana... I still have nightmares. Then, my mom ordered some Get Even, Fast Drops, and a Minicure during a promo, and they sent her a set of Awaken color spoons, and I saw Dillon and Rebel, and was able to put them up against my skin. I don't even think it was an hour before they were in my cart.

Zoya Rebel, indoors in natural lighting

I'd like to say that this was NOT a press sample. I've done a few of those recently, so I wanted to let you know that while I did get Rebel, Dillon, and Dot on a $1 shipping promo through Zoya, I bought the polish myself. That way, when I rave about the polish, you know that I'm doing so because it's just that gorgeous. I actually bought Dot for my mother...my grandmother was named Dorothy, or Dot for short. It's a really sweet light pink that looks lovely--just not on me. It was a nostalgia purchase as much as anything else. I might swatch it if someone says they really want to see it on me, but I don't think it'll look good at all, and Zoya might beg me not to. I wouldn't even touch Cole with a ten-foot pole. Not my color. At all. I winced when I held it up to my skin.

Rebel is the opposite. It flatters my skin to no end, though I have a feeling that it would flatter most skin tones--the undertones are really well balanced, and it's fairly neutral. It's a bright blue that isn't too bright, too pale, or too shiny, though it has enough shimmer to let it get noticed.

Zoya Rebel, indoors in artificial lighting

I don't think I've ever received so many compliments on a nail polish in my life. I was at the mall on the third day of wear, and I had SEVEN people stop me to comment on it in three and a half hours. Three worked at Sephora, and two were at the nail polish section when they stopped me and asked what it was. A couple people actually stopped, got paper, and wrote the company name and shade down so they could buy it. I mean, it inspired more interest than I think any other color I've worn ever has. I love it myself, but it's not even my favorite Zoya.

Zoya Rebel, taken with a flash. Surprisingly accurate.

If you're like me, and love the color blue, but really think that blue nail polish is usually a waste of money, I think you might want to consider Rebel. Of course, if you're like me, you might find yourself singing "Rebel, Rebel" whenever you look at your hands (not that there's anything wrong with David Bowie), or even the Manicanparty song, "Rebels in the Light". I'm pretty sure they've already used Rebel Wilson as a Tune Tuesday clue over on Twitter, so those songs are probably safe for a little while yet...

Which reminds me. Follow @ZoyaNailPolish on Twitter if you don't already. And check out their blog. I got Dot, Rebel, and Dillon on promos, and saw them on the color spoons because my mom had received them after she got her own promo. They run a ton, and contests, and specials. Tune Tuesdays (#TuneTues) are a weekly contest where Zoya gives away free polish for knowing their colors and music. Zoya's all natural, Big5Free, and a great company to boot... Go, play. I'm telling you to.

Until next time, which will likely be a post on Dillon,
Emily, the Manic Paintress

Zoya Perrie--A True Radiant Orchid

Today, I'd like to share my favorite Radiant Orchid polish: Zoya's Perrie. 

Zoya Perrie, outdoor, sun

Zoya Perrie, outdoor, shade

 My mother loves orchids. She is a member of several different orchid societies--national, international, and local. My neighbors probably thought we had some strange illegal growing operation because of the T5 light she had to assist in growing some of the currently 88 orchids she owns.

Zoya Perrie, indoor, natural light

Zoya Perrie, indoor, artificial light

Zoya Perrie, flash

This year, Pantone's color of the year is Radiant Orchid, so everyone and their mother is pushing the color. Even Zoya, my fave nail polish company, is including colors that can be considered "Radiant Orchid" in their collections. If you go on their site, Radiant Orchid is searchable within the color family groupings. I'm pretty sure that if a polish is purple, companies (Zoya included) are attempting to call it Radiant Orchid.

If I've learned anything by watching my mother's orchids bloom, it's that orchids come in almost every color. Lots are white, pink, red, orange, yellow, green, and purple. If you find a blue orchid in a store, it's usually dyed that color--you can get close to blue with some species of orchids, but they're usually a shade of purple. So, aside from black and blue, orchids show the rainbow of colors, so I sort of raised a skeptical eyebrow at there being a single "Radiant Orchid" shade. However, there is a particular shade of light purple with strong leanings towards pink that is most synonymous with orchids. That color is exactly mirrored by Zoya's shade, Perrie.

Zoya Perrie, indoor, artificial light, next to an orchid of the same shade.

I love this color. It always helps my opinion of a color when it actually looks fabulous on me, but Perrie is simply lovely on its own. Zoya calls is a beautiful, soft, and glossy lavender. I'm of the opinion that it's too pink to be lavender, but it's exactly what I think of as a classic orchid shade. I'd even call it lilac before I went to lavender, but that's just me. They bothered to add orchid to the description of Odette from the Naturel collection; I would have changed Perrie's description. It is beautiful, soft, and glossy, though, so they got that right. Zoya lists it as a 3 in intesity (on a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the most opaque) but the photos I took are all with only two coats, and I think it's perfectly opaque. The formula is perfect; it applies smoothly and without any hints of streaking.

Zoya Perrie, with an orchid with the same color, flash

Zoya Perrie, outdoor, sun, with an orchid

Perrie is one of my top 5 favorite polishes ever. Even though it's a trendy color, it earned top marks from me before Pantone's designation was issued. It's soft enough and close enough to pink for it to be considered office appropriate. It's elegant and refined, while being bright enough to be fun. It's perfect for spring and summer, but I also totally wore it during the winter when I first got it without a second thought. It's just a beautiful shade.

Seeing as my mom has so many orchids, I checked out some that she had in bloom currently. Lo and behold, a couple matched Perrie, so I snapped some pictures of them together. Even if the main part of the flower was white or yellow, it still had strong showings of that quintessential Radiant Orchid shade.

Zoya Perrie, with an orchid, indoor, natural light

Zoya Perrie with not one but TWO orchids with the same shade. Seriously.

If this isn't part of your polish stash yet, I suggest you remedy that shortly... perhaps during the 2014 Zoya Nail Polish Exchange. You can purchase from 6-24 bottles of Zoya's nail polishes for half their normal price (from $9-10 down to $4.50-5) until April 28. Just use the code ZDAY2014. In addition to getting an awesome deal on Zoya polish, you also then can send Zoya as many bottles of polish from other brands as you purchased, and they'll dispose of it in an environmentally friendly method. It's a total win in my opinion. Check out Zoya's blog for more details.

I'll see you soon, my friends. Until then, happy polishing.
Emily, the Manic Paintress

Zoya Magical Pixie Summer 2014: Arlo, Ginni, Bar

Hi kids,
Tomorrow, I'll have a post for you about Zoya's Spring 2014 Magical Pixie collection. I'd have it today, but the sun has been hiding behind clouds, teasing me. Today, I have the pleasure of telling you that Zoya is releasing a new set of Magical Pixies for Summer 2014! Yay!

Zoya Magical Pixie in Ginni

Arlo, Ginni, and Bar are the newest additions to the Zoya PixieDust family. I'm super excited.

From left to right: Zoya Ginni, Bar, and Arlo

Arlo is a violet amethyst textured polish with hex holographic glitter.
Ginni is a pink tourmaline textured polish with hex holographic glitter.
Bar is a nude topaz textured polish with hex holographic glitter.

All of Zoya's PixieDusts are matte, textured, and glittered, though the Magical Pixies are lighter on the matte, and heavy on the glitter. The holographic glitter is super pronounced in them, and they shine like diamonds. No joke. They're super fun. It's hard to find a light where you don't get at least some shine from the Magical Pixies, if the summer colors follow spring's pattern.

I should note that if the formula is the same as in the Spring 2014 group, the Magical Pixies are significantly more textured than the original PixieDust formulas. It feels more similar to OPI's liquid sand polishes. I think it's the hex glitter, to be honest--it seems more likely to not lie flat on the nail, and create more bumps.

Zoya Bar, Zoya Ginni, and Zoya Arlo

I actually am excited for all three colors. I love me a good nude, and Cosmo from the Spring collection is truly a silver bordering on white, so Bar should be a nice cousin to the regular PixieDust nudes of Godiva (one of my all-time favorite polishes), and Tomoko. Ginni seems much pinker and darker than the Spring Magical Pixie, Lux, which almost leans towards a silvery lavender pink. Arlo is a light purple, which is much darker and less bright than the regular Summer 2013 PixieDust, Stevie. It look substantially lighter than the Fall 2013 PixieDust, Carter.

Zoya Magical Pixies- color spoons in Bar, Ginni, and Arlo. Photo of nails features Arlo.

They all are pretty distinctive. I'll be swatching them when I get them, and will likely post comparisons of similar colors. The only one I'm really even suspicious for a dupe is Bar, but I firmly believe that anything holo won't fully resemble any other color. Even then, Tomoko and Godiva themselves are similar, but still distinctive.

Get excited, my fellow addicts. Get excited.
Until tomorrow,
Emily, the Manic Paintress

New Zoya Summer Collections Announced

You heard me right--Zoya's new Summer collections, Ticked and Bubbly, are coming out!
They'll be available soon on zoya.com for pre-order, which I actually really recommend. They tend to sell out very quickly, and if you pre-order, they ship as soon as they are available.

They have two collections this summer, and both are designed to be feel-good and happy:
Tickled, which is a full coverage, creme finish polishes, and Bubbly, which are metallic finishes with holographic glitter particles. This makes me so incredibly happy, as I've been DYING for a summertime holo from Zoya, especially since their winter holos are so incredible. Bubbly is described as being "buildable," so I'm guessing they're not fully opaque in one or two coats. I'll know that better when I see it.

Tickled includes:

Ling, a true blue cream
Tilda, a mantis green cream
Rooney, a Hollywood Pink cream
Kitridge, a Carnation pink cream
Wendy, a tickle pink cream
and Rocha, a folly red cream

Bubbly consists of:

Muse, a mermaid blue holo metallic
Stassi, a jade green holo metallic
Harper, a Mexican pink holo metallic
Binx, a purple orchid holo metallic
Jesy, a coral orange holo metallic
and Alma, a golden peach holo metallic

I'm particularly excited about Wendy, Kitridge, and Rooney from the Tickled collection, and Harper, Binx, Muse, and Stassi from the Bubbly collection.

I'll actually be bringing you swatches of all of these beauties as soon as I get them, so keep an eye out. The polishes will be available May 15 (and you can pre-order before them), and I'll have swatches up before that day, to help you fall in love decide.

Just as a tease, if you love the Magic that Spring 2014 brought to Zoya, you should be prepared to love the Summer as well. More to come on that in a couple days.

Get excited, my darlings! Get excited!
Emily, the Manic Paintress

Zoya Dawn

Okay my friends,

I have returned from my stint AWOL, and am completely inspired by this color: Zoya Dawn. It's pink--there's really no way around it, but it's such a perfect color for right now, that it's share circle time.

Zoya Dawn, shade, outdoors

I'm beyond excited about the new summer collections from Zoya that are coming out, but I think this is the perfect shade for both spring and summer. It's also shockingly appropriate for either toes or fingers, too, which is something I don't frequently say about a cream finish polish. Honestly, I'm not usually one to have a cream finish keep my attention for more than a hot minute, but Dawn really has. Another notable exception is one I'll be talking about later--Zoya's Perrie.

Zoya Dawn, outdoors, sun

I have to admit--I almost flounced the color after the first coat. Let's just say that there was a reason I started singing "The Electric Slide," and doing the dance in my room. Boogie-woogie-woogie. It was beyond hot pink on me, which I found alarming, but I convinced myself to wait until I did a second coat, because I really don't like giving up on a color before really giving it a chance.

Zoya Dawn, flash. This is not terribly close to how it looks in real life--it's almost at the electric side in this photo.

I'm so glad I didn't. Seriously. In and out of shops and offices in Boston/Cambridge today, I received tons of compliments on my mani, and it was warranted, if I do say so myself. Just as an FYI, all of these pictures were taken three days into the mani, so I'd say Zoya's formula is as amazing as always. Definitely no chips--not even tip wear yet, and I abuse my fingers pretty thoroughly.

Onto the description. Zoya says it's "a soft dark pink-berry with purple and mauve tones in a smooth creme base." Despite the first coat, I think it's a pretty accurate description. I don't know if I find the purple in it, or even mauve, but Dawn does manage to be both soft and dark simultaneously--at least in so much as it is NOT electric pink. It mellows a bit on the nail when dry, which is also very nice.

Zoya Dawn, indoors, natural light. Probably the closest to how I think it always looks.

I have to admit, when Zoya had the flash promos near Christmas, I sort of went a bit crazy in the purchasing department. Dawn was a product of that frenzy. I got some amazing deals, which Zoya is incredible about, and so far, I've been happy about most of them. Some of the neutrals I bought were a bit on the yellow or orange side, and were given to either my mother or my neighbor. I have a very unusual skin color--it's very pale with a lot of pink. Yellowy neutrals just look like I'm wearing bananas on my fingers. Some pinks can be way too bubble gum on me, as well, or too dusty in tone.

Zoya Dawn, indoors, artificial light. Kind of makes it look a little coral in this pic, but it really isn't.

Dawn is bright and fun, which I love for warmer weather, while not making me think I turned into a teenaged girl from 1986. It's happy, but sophisticated enough to wear to an office. It also is unique in its ability to look good in any light...just look at the pics.

Okay, kids.

I'm heading off for now, but will be back soon--likely with a review of Zoya's Perrie. I hardcore love that color--so lovely. I also want to post on the three Magical PixieDusts from the Spring, as they're all super adorable shades. Holo+textured=HappyEmily.

Until next time, my darlings,
Emily, the Manic Paintress

A soft dark pink-berry with purple and mauve tones in a smooth creme base - See more at: http://www.zoya.com/content/item/Zoya/Zoya-Nail-Polish-Dawn.html#sthash.GrbHynyG.dpuf

A soft dark pink-berry with purple and mauve tones in a smooth creme base. - See more at: http://www.zoya.com/content/item/Zoya/Zoya-Nail-Polish-Dawn.html#sthash.GrbHynyG.dpuf

A soft dark pink-berry with purple and mauve tones in a smooth creme base. - See more at: http://www.zoya.com/content/item/Zoya/Zoya-Nail-Polish-Dawn.html#sthash.GrbHynyG.dpuf"

O.P.I. Vesper and Zoya Maisie Fix-Up

OPI Vesper and Zoya Maisie, outdoor, sun

You all may be surprised, but I actually decided to try and improve a nail polish with something OTHER than Zoya Godiva. I know. Heart attacks may happen.

OPI Vesper and Zoya Maisie, outdoor, shade

I was really unhappy with O.P.I.'s Vesper Liquid Sand. It just was... blah. It was vampy, but flat. Not my favorite. I decided a glitter would be fun to put over it, hoping it would work. I settled on Zoya's holographic mylar "Fleck Effects" polish, Maisie. I need to put out the disclaimer that I didn't buy this from Zoya directly--they don't sell it any longer on their website, so I sought other venues. Amazon magically found this for me.

OPI Vesper and Zoya Maisie, indoor, natural light

Maisie is really a top coat polish, or what Zoya calls a glaze. Alone, it can read a bit strangely, as the base is a blue-tinted translucent jelly, with mylar holographic glitter. The holo flecks in the polish are actually green in color, despite the fact that the polish looks blue in the bottle. You can still get Opal directly from Zoya. Honestly, based on my experience with Maisie, I think Opal will have the same results. Particularly over other polishes, Maisie simply looks green, and loses the base color.

Unlike with Blaze and Aurora (and, I assume, Storm) from the Ornate Collection, Maisie's holographic glitter really only reads monochromatic. Even in the bottle, Maisie looks like a blue polish with green holo flecks.

Zoya Maisie, shade

Zoya Maisie, sun

On Vesper, I have to say that Maisie did just what I wanted. It transformed it from a dark purple (almost black) polish to a dark polish with funky green glitter on top. They're very appropriate for Halloween, or even just autumn. It's not a look for the faint of heart, but it really works for a funky pedicure. It was a success in that it is certainly better than Vesper alone, but I still don't think Vesper is something I'll be wearing much. It's just not for me.

OPI Vesper and Zoya Maisie, indoor, artificial light

 
If you have any successful experiments, feel free to share them. I'd love to hear your thoughts! I'll be back with you guys soon with a new manicure.

OPI Vesper and Zoya Maisie, flash

Until later,
Emily, the Manic paintress