Tag: Zoya
Whore Red
Zoya “Rehka” is a stunning whore red. It’s deeper than Zoya “Sooki” – if “Sooki” is a like a delicate drop of blood running down the neck, “Rehka” is a carotid spray.
I started with Zoya Anchor, then two coats of “Rehka”, finishing with Zoya Armor. Wham, bam, thank you Ma’am.
I’m guessing “Rehka” is named after the Indian Actress. Never heard of her, but she’s gorgeous.
The Wicked Witch of the East
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OK – this is it – the last Halloween manicure you’ll have to see this year!
We’re that lame family that sometimes does theme costumes. Not every year, but we’ve done it more than once. This year – the theme is The Wizard of Oz. My son is a flying monkey, my husband is the Tin Man, my daughter is the Wicked Witch of the West and I am the Wicked Witch of the East. Oh yeah, the dog is Dorothy. By far, I have the easiest costume – all I needed was a witch hat, striped socks and ruby slippers. Oh…and my nails did.
I used Jamberry Stripes and Chevrons on my thumb and pinky. I used Zoya “Chyna” on my middle three fingers. (This is two coats over Zoya Armour.)
Do you like my doorstop? My little sister got it for me a few Xmases ago…
Gorgeosity
I have been dying to try Julep “Mila” – charcoal multi-colored glitter, an add-on to my August Julep Box. Since the base is clear, I decided to use a color underneath it. I chose Julep “Annemarie” – warm cocoa crème, a polish I picked up over a year ago from Julep’s Red Marker sale. It’s just been sitting there, waiting for me. I can’t believe I’ve let it sit there that long!
I started with Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat. I did a single coat of “Annemarie” and a single coat of “Mila”. I used “HK Girl” on all my fingers, EXCEPT my ring finger. I couldn’t resist seeing what it looked like matte, so I used Zoya Matte Velvet Top Coat. My nails are the height of gorgeosity.
So my husband says that “Annemarie” is skintone. As I tried to argue that it wasn’t, he made me hold the bottle up to his arm…and it matched fairly closely. (He’s a whiteboy, but that 1/16th Cherokee comes out in his – and my kids’ – skin.) I would highly recommend “Annemarie” as a nude for olive and darker skintones.
A Galaxy of Toppers
I couldn’t let this black manicure (Zoya “Anais”) go to waste before I took it off – I decided to play with top coats.
From left to right – Sinful Colors “Pinky Glitter”, SpaRitual “Opaline Luminary” Matte Top Effect, Zoya “Monet”, SpaRitual “Citrine Limunary” Matte Top Effect and Sinful Colors “Green Ocean”.
The 5 different polishes look very different in the bottles, huh?
I was shocked at how similar in tone and palette these polishes looked on my nails. I used those polishes in the very same order from thumb to pinky. There’s not a hint of pink in “Pinky Glitter”. I was disappointed in how subtle “Opaline Luminary” was. “Monet” took on a rainbow of colors. “Citrine Luminary” was fantastically striking. “Green Ocean” came to life with blue and greens – I’d always been unimpressed with it before.
Each fingernail is like looking into a different galaxy with different stars.
Pewtery Black
Is it me, or do all blacks look the same?
Pick your jaw up off the floor…I’m talking about NAIL POLISH. Although you can’t tell from the picture, Zoya “Anais” is not your average black. It has a pewter shimmer to it that is wholly unique. A tiny bit of that glimmer is evident on the bottle. This is just two coats of “Anais” with Zoya Anchor and “HK Girl”. (I would have used Zoya Armor, but it was 30 minutes before bedtime and I needed my nails dry immediately.)
I love the way black polish looks against my skin, but it’s so hard to apply neatly – every flaw is immensely visible. And normal edge wear appears abnormally shitty. Even so, I keep doing it.
Matchy Matchy
I found the perfect polish to match all my new lipstick – Ulta “Sunset Bronze” – a tiny little bottle from one of my old gifts with purchase.
Although it was thick, the polish went on smoothly, but there were a few bubbles on the second coat. I couldn’t decide on shiny or matte, so I did both – “HK Girl” and Zoya Matte Velvet Top Coat, with Orly Bonder as the base. I like the matte better, but my husband likes the shiny better.
I found an eye shadow that matches perfectly – theBalm “Flirty”. I even wore a sweater and shoes to match – matchy matchy!
On a Mission…
When you’re on a mission and you still don’t find what you’re looking for…but still come home with several bags of goodies…
My mission – to find some dupes of Kat Von D “Lolita” (Sephora exclusive) and Anastasia Beverly Hills “Veronica” (Macy’s exclusive). As painful as it would be to spend $20 on a lipstick, it’s more annoying that both are very hard to come by – forever out of stock in stores and online. So I did some googling and found some cheaper alternatives. I hadn’t used my 20% off Ulta coupon, so I went in search of some NYX and Essence dupes. I saw online that NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in “Cannes” and NYX Intense Butter Gloss in “Chocolate Crepe” were close. Nope – no luck. I did, however, pick up another Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz in “Soft Brown”, another Zoya Remove+ and Ulta Dual Tipped Foam Applicators (I can’t quit foam applicators). I also hit a Target and HEB looking for NYX, Essence and wet n wild dupes – but no luck.
That was Saturday. On Sunday, I scammed my husband into dropping me off at a different Ulta – I did manage to find NYX “Chocolate Crepe” – but no “Cannes”! I did grab NYX Butter Lipstick in “Pops” – it looks close, too. And then I saw the Fall Ulta Gift with Purchase (a leatherette bag with the usual – eye shadow quads, blush, mascara, polish, brushes, eye liner, lip gloss, etc.)…I picked Ulta Shiny Sheer Lip Gloss in “Smoky” (I thought it would be darker, but it just made my lips vaguely gray and glittery) and Ulta Liquid Liner in “Black Pearl” (Glittery black eye liner is good, but they were out of the Rose Gold I wanted). That was only $19 and I needed $19.50, so I grabbed Ulta Cotton Pads.
Last stop, HEB to grab some soda for my M-i-L…and I found wet n wild Megalast Lip Stick in “Spiked with Rum” ($1.93). Still no “Cannes”, I’ll keep searching, but look forward to some lipstick swatches coming soon…
Matte Mia
You know what happens when you let your husband pick out your nail polish? Good things…good, good things. Technically, he didn’t pick it out – the only guidance he gave me was “dark red” and “matte”.
For “dark red”, I chose Urban Decay “Mrs. Mia Wallace”. I’ve had it not even a year and it’s already getting clumpy. I had to fight a few clumps, but I managed to smooth them out. I guess it’s time to invest in polish thinner.
I used Orly Bonder as the base coat. To make it matte, I used Zoya Velvet Matte Top Coat – it’s the best…although I haven’t tried any other matte top coats, so I’m just guessing.
I’m going to bug my husband about my polish more…I’m sure he’ll LOVE it.
Ulta Adventure
Oh the disappointment when one opens up an online order and one of the items is damaged! I ordered 2 NYX AVANT POP palettes (BOGO50%off) – and the “Art Throb” palette was shattered. Luckily, the “Surreal My Heart Palette” was in fine shape. I also ordered a clearance Urban Decay 24/7 Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner in “Woodstock” (hot pink!) for $10 and 2 Palladio lip stains – “rose” and “mocha”.
Because my order was over $40, I got the NYX Beauty Break Set, with Love in Paris Palette in “Merci Beaucoup”, Doll Eye Mascara in “Extreme Jet Black”, Butter Gloss in “Maple Blondie” and Slide On, Glide On, Stay On & Definitely a Turn On Waterproof Extreme Shine Eye Liner. (I like this set better than what I actually paid for.) For samples, I chose skincare and got CoTZ Face Sunscreen and Garnier Nourishing Cleansing Oil.
This morning, I went on an adventure to replace the shattered palette and use my $10 off ANYTHING coupon to get another Urban Decay Naked Skin BB Cream. The Copperwood Ulta didn’t have the paletter OR the BB Cream. I did pick up another Zoya Remove+.
The Willowbrook Ulta did have the NYX palette – phew.
Lily also begged for Sally Hansen “Sweet Nectar”. It was 79 cents on the clearance aisle, so why not. It’s sickeningly orange, but you never know when it will come in handy.
It’s not Saturday without a quick trip to Bath & Body Works. I’d been jonesing to experience the Semi Annual Sale in person, since I’ve been ordering online.
It was a fairly conservative trip – 2 50% off 3-wick candles, plus a metal candle holder. Just 5 50% off Hand Soaps – I just needed enough to use my $10 off $40 coupon.
I need a nap – I am plumb tuckered out.
Reflecting Skin
It’s glittery, but not. It’s…breathtaking, like skin that reflects pure light.
I decided to do a new version of my old naked rhinestone suit manicure. After Orly Bonder, I used RUFFIAN “Sahara” as my skintone – just one coat. A thick coat of essie Luxeffects “Set in Stones” and then finished off with Zoya Matte Velvet Topcoat. Just four quick coats and dry within minutes. The perfect “before bedtime” manicure!