Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Zoya Awaken Collection & Monet - Spring 2014

Hi, you guys! Hope your week is going well. :) Is it me or is this month just flying by so fast? I love this time of the year, with all the flowers and trees blooming, and the extended amount of day light every day. I think my hubby, who does all the mowing, disagrees with my love of spring. We get just the perfect mixture of rain and sun so that the grass is growing like crazy weeds this time of the year lol.


Today, I've got Zoya's Spring 2014 offerings—the Awaken Collection and Monet special effects topper—to share with you. I always look forward to Zoya's spring collections with their fresh, understated colors and soft finishes, so I was super excited for this.


Dot
Dot is a light ballerina pink with a creme finish. The formula is a little on the thin side, patchy and somewhat hard to control. I did three coats for the swatches, and for that final third coat, I had to dollop on the polish to fill in the uneven spots. It's a pretty shade, but not very unique, so you can probably find a similar color with better formula.

Cole
Cole is a peachy orange with a creme finish. It was originally released under the name "Stella" as part of the limited edition Peter Som NYFW SS14 trio late last year. The formula is similar to Dot, though thankfully a lot better. It's still a little patchy and uneven, so I did three coats for the swatches. It dries to a squishy, glossy shine that, combined with the color, reminds me of a ripe cantaloupe.

Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a pale golden yellow with a shimmery metallic finish. The formula is smooth and easy to apply, and I needed just two coats for total coverage. With this type of finish, it's typical to see some visible brush strokes, especially in macro pictures. In person, if you're careful to use a light touch, the brush strokes will be minimal and they look even less noticeable after the polish dries. I know yellows tend not to be a universally loved color, and they can be a bit tricky to wear, but I love this one! It's soft with just the right amount of color, and against my skin tone, it pulls gold enough that it looks surprisingly sophisticated. It's definitely a surprise favorite of the collection for me. :D

Dillon
Dillon is a mint green with silver and gold shimmers in a foil finish. I did two coats for the swatches, which is about 95% of the way there in terms of coverage, and that's how I would wear it. Maybe you would need a third coat if you want that last 5% for total coverage. This is another standout from the collection! I haven't seen another foil with this color. I love mint, and to have this be a foil and a warmer mint shade... well it's obvious that I was going to love this from the start. :)

Rebel
Rebel is a medium sky blue with silver shimmers in a foil finish. It has a great formula that is easy to apply and, two coats is all you need for opaque coverage. This is such a pretty blue, so intense and saturated... one of those perfect tropical vacation blues.

Hudson
Hudson is a medium lilac-purple with silver and gold shimmers in a foil finish. This is a two-coater. The first coat is a little thin, but the second coat filled in everything nicely. This is another beautiful foil from the collection, a must-have for purple-lovers.

Monet
Monet is a special effects topper filled with medium-sized hexagon-shaped holographic glitters in a pink-tinted sheer base. In the swatches, I'm showing it over Cole. The formula for Monet was really thick, so application was pretty hard. The base was so thick and goopy that it felt almost like a gel, so all the glitters kind of clumped together. I would gently dab it on and then try to brush it out to distribute everything, but it still looks really clumpy and thick on the nails. I think some drops of thinner would probably help make this more workable. The holographic glitters seem like they would be really pretty in concept and they do sparkle like the rainbow, so it's too bad that it's so difficult to work with.

Overall, there are a few standouts for me from Zoya's spring offerings. Brooklyn is the clear winner in my book. The yellow is subtle and pretty, with enough gold tones to look elegant and posh. It's a color I would wear again and again. Dillon is a close second... I can never pass up a good mint, especially one with a foil finish. Rebel and Hudson are also gorgeous. Really, I think Zoya can do no wrong with its foil finishes. :)

Now that you know my thoughts on this collection, I'd love to know what you think. Which colors jump out at you? And will you be taking any home? Currently, Zoya's annual Earth Day polish exchange promo is going on, so it's a great time to pick up the spring colors you've been eyeing.

You can find the Awaken shades on Zoya.com for $9 and the Monet special effects topper for $10 for each 0.5 fl oz bottle.

** This post contains product(s) provided for honest consideration.

32 comments:

  1. They are beautiful all of them, Cole is not a favorite color for my skin - but really gorgeous anyhow!
    Great swatches!

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    1. Thanks Maria, I'm glad you like them! Cole's a really fun color, very juicy-looking hehe. :)

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  2. I really like the shimmers, and I even bought Monet myself. I'm not happy to hear about the gloopyness of it, but am looking forward to trying it on :)

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    1. The shimmers are my favorite too. Yea bummer on Monet being so goopy, but hopefully some thinner will really help with that. :)

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  3. I agree, I can't believe how fast this month has gone by. Beautiful swatches as always, Dillon is my favorite!

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    1. Thank you so much! Dillon's a stunner for sure. It's hard for me to not love a mint. :)

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  4. I really like this collection! The cremes and shimmers are gorgeous!

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    1. Yay I'm really glad you like the collection! The colors are so soft and lovely for spring and the finishes are really pretty. :)

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  5. Hi Yun - they look beautiful on you - the whole bunch of them but then Brooklyn indeed looks stunning on you. Zoya really knows how to do foils and I love the softness of Cole!!!

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    1. Hi Christine! Yay I'm glad you approve of Brooklyn on me. It totally surprised me with how gorgeous it looks. :) Zoya's foils never disappoint, so I'm always super excited to see them in a new collection. :)

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  6. <3 for that pastel orange! And this topper looks great too:)

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    1. Thanks, I'm glad you like those two! The pastel orange is super cute... reminds me of a juicy melon hehe. :)

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  7. Your swatches are always so beautiful!

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  8. I really like the shimmers in this collection. I am sad that Monet is so problematic though. I like the idea of it.

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    1. I'm always drawn to shimmers in any collection. :) Maybe Monet can be helped with a good dose of thinner. I like the idea of it too and the holographic glitters themselves are quite pretty.

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  9. Brooklyn really is beautiful on you! I messed it up with Monet (don't try that duo, trust me on this one, lol) and haven't worn it alone but you're making me want to! Cole is my fave; I've been wearing the heck out if it this spring. The foils are growing on me and I definitely appreciate Dillon for the fact that it doesn't pull all the red from my hands. A mint shade we can both wear-- what's up with that?! :)

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    1. Thanks Liesl, I'm glad you like Brooklyn on me. You should definitely try Brooklyn by itself. I also wore it with Chloe (the flakie) on top and it looked smashing too. :) Cole's gorgeous and it looks really pretty on you! And yay for Dillon looking fab on both of us... there's a first for every mint shade. ;)

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  10. Beautiful swatches.I like all of the colours a side of the gold. For some reason at the moment i feel baby pink polishes look terrible on me :)

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    1. Thanks! I love pink, so it's hard for me to imagine it looking bad on anyone. :P

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  11. Hudson and Rebel look fabulous on you, and I've always loved pink on you, so it's a shame about Dot's formula. :/ I've been wanting Dillon quite a lot, but you make me want Rebel too! Blast you, Yun!! :P xxx

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    1. Ah, I'm always happy to be helpful and enabling. :P Hehe I'm glad you like them... I thought all the foils (Dillon, Hudson, and Rebel) are just so gorgeous. You can't go wrong with them. :)

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  12. Dillon is amazing! Or maybe I'm just a sucker for mint. Either way...:P I really thought I would like Monet more, but the swatches I've seen just haven't convinced me it's something I need.

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    1. Heh, I'm a sucker for mint too. It's just such a fresh, happy color. :) Every time I see a new mint polish, I'm like "I must have it NOW!" lol. :D

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  13. All look so beautiful, especially the first one :)

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  14. These all look so pretty and spring-y, especially Dillon! Beautiful swatches, as always!

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    1. Thanks so much, Lucy! I'm really loving this collection too... the soft colors are amazing for spring. :)

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  15. I love Rebel and Hudson very much. Beautiful shimmer (:

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    1. Yay I'm glad you like those two. Zoya always does the best foils. :)

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  16. I guess I'm a slight opposite of you, since Dillon stood out to me most in this collection. Such a unique shade! Next comes Brooklyn which is just beautiful in pastel gold yellow! Haven't seen a gold like that! :) Following closely behind is Rebel. It's well, blue. Hahahahhaaha! I love blues, it's very hard to say No to a blue shade. And I'm pretty sure I don't have any like that XD Hahahahaha!!

    I'm quite fascinated by Monet. The glitters in it looked like gorgeous bokeh of lights. And I find it quite unique too. Looks like one I'd pick up as well. ^.^ Hehe!

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    1. Hehe Dillon, Brooklyn, and Rebel are all so gorgeous and unique. Whenever I see greens and blues, I'm always just so drawn to them. Rebel is definitely a stunning blue and unique in my collection. I don't have another shade like it at all. :) And I wore Brooklyn with a flakie top coat the other day (Zoya Chloe) and was blown away by how pretty it is. :)

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