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Hi friends! Today I have the 4th and final (for now) blog post featuring nail polishes from Zoya. Zoya has been a busy bee and made a few changes in their release schedule this year mainly the introduction of the Colors Of The Month polishes. I have reviews up for all of the COTM polishes already on the blog.
I think the most exciting change Zoya made for the year is FINALLY making the Z Wide brush the standard brush in their nail polishes! Ever since the Beachy Brights polishes, everything Zoya has released has included the Z Wide brush as the default brush. I know that probably sucks for those of you who actually liked the old brush but the rest of us are rejoicing!
For Fall 2023 we have 12 polishes with a variety of pretty atypical finishes for a mainstream brand. These are all available right now on the Zoya website. I anticipate that BeyondPolish.com will also be getting these at some point. If you want to pick up the release at a discount (best price outside of Zoya’s sales!) use my affiliate code NicoleLovesNails to save an extra 10%.
As always, more links can be found at the end of the post and if you would like to see these in natural lighting do check out my live swatch video!
Live Swatch Video
Zoya is a US based mainstream brand. Their polishes are in 15ml bottles, 10 free, vegan and cruelty free.
Brianna
Description: A sophisticated toasted pink cream
Brianna this feels like a very office-appropriate fall mauvey pink shade. While this is not the color for me personally, I think this would look amazing on people with my skin tone.
This had the perfect smooth self leveling cream formula that Zoya is known for. While this was on the thicker side, it again self leveled perfectly. If you aren’t super picky I think coverage is good in two coats. I did find that I had a few dark spots so I opted to add a third coat but I don’t think it’s completely necessary.
My photos show Brianna in 3 coats plus glossy top coat. Super easy removal and I had no issues with staining.
This made me think of Holo Taco’s Lowkey Blushing (Down To Earth Collection), other than both being office-appropriate they aren’t particularly similar.
Brynlee
Description: An intense mulberry cream with a hint of magenta undertones
Brynlee had an interesting formula. It dries down a lot sheerer than it applies and dries down pretty flat. Zoya creams usually don’t dry down like this, with the exception of their neons at least.
Other than those two things, the formula and application were pretty great. Because it dries down sheerer than it applies, it doesn’t look great after two coats. It’s fairly patchy looking so I do think this will likely be a three coater unless you are the least picky polisher or maybe go in for thicker coats.
My photos show Brynlee in 3 coats plus glossy top coat. This seems to dry down a tad darker than it applies. While I did not personally experience staining, I would double up on base coat with this one.
This is pretty similar to last year’s Dogmar (Classic Leathers Fall 2022). The formulation of Brynlee leans more jelly/crelly like that Dogmar but I feel like these might be so similar color wise it might not be worth it owning both.
Eleanor
Description: A dark cinnamon mahogany crushed velvet finish
Eleanor was pretty much a one coater! Coverage and application were both fantastic. I feel like the official color description makes this sound like it has a lot of brown in it.
In person, it looks to me like a dark but warm eggplant. I ended up looking up to find out what color mahogany is (I thought it was brown) and much like “brick red” there are apparently 40 different colors that count as mahogany. Several of which are the color of this polish.
My photos show Elenor in 2 coats plus glossy top coat. This dries down fairly flat so you will want top coat for that. Removal won’t be difficult.
Frenchy
Description: A warm beige pink cream
Frenchy is another shade that I think classifies as an office appropriate fall neutral. On my warmer skin tone, I found it leans as a pink with beige undertones.
I don’t generally have high hopes for pale pinks as it’s not a color that I love on myself and I usually find the formulas more trouble than they’re worth. I was surprised to find that this had a pretty great formula.
It applies fairly evenly and self leveled well. It was streaky on the first coat but thanks to the slightly thicker formula, I was able to float the second coat on and that got me to full opacity.
My photos show Frenchy in 2 coats plus glossy top coat.
I went through all of the recent pinky nudes that I swatched and Orly’s Shaky Alibi (Plot Twist Fall 2023) was the closest to pinky beige but it’s too dark to be a dupe.
Jean
Description: A rich indigo periwinkle with a shimmering holographic finish
Jean words can’t describe how much I love this color! Why Zoya doesn’t work with glitters more is really beyond me.
The shade of blue is more of a denim blue to me than an indigo. I found that since this is in a jelly base with the silver holographic glitters, you will want to build it up to gain opacity. Trust me, it is worth building it up. The sparkle factor is next level!
I found that in two coats, this wasn’t quite the color on the nail as it was in the bottle so I opted to add a third coat. While the base is slightly on the thicker side, I didn’t find adding a third coat made my nails look bulky.
The glitters do give this polish a lot of texture so pairing it with two coats of a thicker top coat would be your best at having a smooth and glossy finish.
My photos show Jean in 3 coats plus one thick coat of top coat. Removal will of course be on the more difficult side if you choose to scrub this one off, so don’t do that. Use the soak off method or a peel off base coat for the easiest removal.
Just in case you were thinking this was similar to Sparrow from the Y2K collection, you would be wrong!
Lennon
Description: A deep pacific teal with a shimmering holographic finish
Lennon holy moly this polish is freaking beautiful! The base color gives me ocean vibes, is an oceany kinda turquoise? I honestly have no idea but those are the vibes I’m getting.
The holographic glitter is SO. FREAKING. SPARKLY!!! They do dry down with a little bit of texture, to get the smoothest finish possible I would recommend doubling up on your top coat. I used one coat of the Salon Perfect Plumping top coat and that smoothed this out okay but not 100%.
My photos show Lennon in 2 coats plus glossy top coat. While I could see some part of my nail through the glitter, there was just so much sparkle happening that I didn’t think it was enough to warrant a third coat. You might need a third coat depending on your personal preference.
Much like the other glitters in this release, I wouldn’t recommend scrubbing this off to remove it. While I didn’t personally experience any staining with this one, I have been told that it is a stainer.
Again, this isn’t anything like Sparrow either so YES you do need it.
Murphy
Description: An ultra-dark army green crushed velvet finish
Murphy had the same formula and application as Eleanor. Part of me wants to say that this is too dark for me personally, but there was something about this dark green base that I really loved.
Coverage was pretty good, if you go in for thicker coats I can see this being a one coater. I opted for 2 thinner coats.
I can’t figure out what the ‘crushed velvet finish’ is supposed to mean. At first, I thought it meant the polish was matte but it doesn’t seem to dry down with a matte finish? It’s not textured either so I can only assume it is some kind of shimmer?
My photos show Murphy in 2 coats plus glossy top coat. Removal will be easy but a little messy.
Pamela
Description: A darkened imperial purple cream
Pamela is the catfish in this release. In the bottle, it is a bright and vibrant purple but on the nail, it dries down to a deep and dark purple. Oddly enough, on the Zoya website the bottle shot color looks completely different than how the bottle looks in person.
Other than the complaint of this being a bit of a catfish, I am a little annoyed that when I brought this outside it looked a little patchy in direct sunlight. I’ll call this a 2-3 coater depending on personal preference.
My photos show Pamela in 2 coats plus glossy top coat. While I didn’t personally experience any staining, I feel like this is another potential stainer.
I thought this would be more similar to Essie’s Underground Ball from their Fall collection this year, it seems to be not quite as dark and maybe a touch warmer.
Precious
Description: An orchid mauve purple infused with a hint of micro rose gold
Precious I just love the micro flakies in this polish! I do with they were a little bit more obvious but they are so pretty nontheless.
Both formula and application were perfect for this polish. The rose gold flakies paired perfectly with the mauvey base. While coverage is prettty good and even, I do think this will likely be a 2-3 coater depending on personal preference. I had a little bit of VNL after two coats but nothing bad enough that I had to add a third.
My photos show Precious in 2 coats plus glossy top coat.
Twinklette
Description: A glamorous rose gold holographic infused with micro pink shimmer
Twinklette was the only glitter in this release that was in a clear base so it really needs building up in three coats to reach full opacity. However since it is in a clear base, this will work really well as a topper too.
Like it’s fellow glitters, the sparkle level is unreal! I think the baby pink tone you see in the nail is due to the shimmer. Mainly you see a ton of sparkle from the glitter but the shimmer adds a little somethign extra.
My photos show Twinklette in 3 coats plus glossy top coat. I also swatched it in one coat over Brynlee without top coat.
Venus
Description: A vibrant and sparkling rose red with a shimmering holographic finish
Venus is the least in your face holographic out of all of the polishes in this release. Which I think is due to the base color being so saturated/opaque. It’s a beautiful juicy berry toned red.
The base is slightly on the thicker side but still applied very easily and evenly. The glitters unsurprisingly do give this polish some texture so doubling up on your top coat will give you the glossiest/ smoothest finish.
I feel like this polish is another potential stainer. I found coverage pretty great after two coats but folks with longer nails might want to add a third coat.
My photos show Venus in 2 coats plus one thicker coat of top coat. Again, I would recommend doubling up on your top coat for the smoothest finish possible.
One more time for the people in the back, do not scrub this polish off.
Vera
Description: An enticing bright mulberry cream
Vera I was surprised at how light this polish is. It looks a lot darker on the website than it appears in person. The color in person is more of a warm berry, it initially reminded me a lot of Holo Taco’s Feeling Fiendish. While I don’t think the two are dupes, this would be a good alternative if you missed out on that one.
Vera had a really great formula, it applied buttery smooth and self leveled perfectly. I found coverage also to be pretty great and even. I reached full opacity in two coats.
My photos show Vera in 2 coats plus glossy top coat. This seems to dry down slightly darker than it applies.
I had hoped that this was going to be a lot more similar to Feeling Fiendish from the recent Holo Taco collab, sadly they aren’t that similar.
Final Thoughts
I thought this was a fantastic release. I do kind of wish there were a few more colors added, half of this release is made up of pinks, reds and purples for crying out loud! BUT that aside, the color story does look great and cohesive.
If anyone knows what the ‘crushed velvet’ finish is supposed to be, please let me know. I am kinda bummed it wasn’t a new type of textured finish!
I am really happy that Zoya is FINALLY making the Z Wide brush the default brush. I feel like it has been a long time coming. I don’t know what that means for those of you who liked Zoya’s skinny brush as it doesn’t seem that that brush is for sale on the Zoya website.
I would have appreciated it if the Zoya website did a better job of showcasing the polishes in color accurate ways but it is what it is I suppose. Prior to blogging this brand’s new releases, I didn’t use their website as a way to determine what to buy anyway.
I am sure everyone can guess that Jean, Twinklette and Lennon are going to be my top picks.
Zoya
15ml, 10 Free, Vegan & Cruelty Free
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Sale Information
The Enamored collection for Fall 2023 is available right now on the Zoya website. This collection is available in both mini (8ml) and full size (15ml) bottles. Both sizes come with the z wide brush.
This collection is not limited edition so it should be around for a while. Zoya now ships internationally!
I anticipate BeyondPolish.com getting this release any day now. I have found that website to be the cheapest place to pick up this brand outside of Zoya’s amazing sales. If you shop on Beyond Polish, feel free to use my affiliate code NicoleLovesNails to save an extra 10%!
