Manicure Monday: Zoya Naturel Collection

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, spent some nice quality time with family and friends, and maybe even got a few nice gifts in the process. This holiday season was rife with fantastic beauty releases. One that I was coveting was Zoya's Naturel Collection, which was released just in time to find its way under my Christmas tree. As soon as they released it, I had to order it. (Then I wrapped it and waited to open it because I'm silly that way)

The neutral is making a massive come back guys. We can't say it was ever out, but it's certainly getting some prominent attention lately. We've had a great array of lovely neutral-themed makeup collections and nails aren't getting left behind.

Zoya's Naturel collection includes six rose-based neutral shades: Chantal, Taylor, Rue, Brigitte, Normani, and Odette. They were all so classic and pretty, I had to break my nail polish no buy. Check out the official photo of the collection that I borrowed from Zoya's site:

Photo credit: Zoya.com

Now here's my kitchen table shot:

From left to right: Chantal, Taylor, Rue, Brigitte, Normani, and Odette

Let me tell you, succumbing to this collection was worth it. I love every single polish in this set. The neutrals are elegant, though far from boring, and will take you from office to weekend with little effort.

Plus, if you were one of the many people out there who scored Urban Decay's Naked 3 palette, this collection and it's similar rose-toned theme will compliment your makeup fabulously.

Each polish retails for $9. But I ordered my collection in the Dream Box promotion that Zoya offered, so I got six polishes for $48 (that's $8 each).

Every single polish in this collection is a creme with a completely opaque finish. They all performed better than I expected. Since some of these colors are on the milky side, I thought at least the first coat my show just a hint of streaking. But something even better happened: No streaking at all. Every polish was really easy to work with, gliding on to the nail smoothly, offering excellent pigmentation (totally opaque on first coat), and drying down to a beautiful glossy finish.

Chantal

Zoya Chantal (2 coats), Seche Vite top coat

I'd describe Chantal as a vanilla hued nude polish. If this polish were an eyeshadow it would be a matte version of MAC's vanilla. It' nearly matches my skin tone. When I held it by my foundation and skin-toned powder it was practically a perfect match. As you can imagine, when I wore it, it really elongated my fingers.

Taylor

Zoya Taylor (2 coats), Seche Vite top coat

When photographed side by side in the bottle (or even in person) Taylor and Chantal look nearly identical. However, Taylor is a slightly deeper nude. I'd describe it as almost a cafe au lait color, albeit one with a generous amount of cream. Zoya describes it as a toffee cream, which I agree is quite fitting.

Rue

Zoya Rue (2 coats), Seche Vite top coat

Rue was the first color I tried on and also the first polish where the rosy undertones of this collection became obvious. It's a delicate blush nude shade that's quickly become one of my favorites in the collection. 

Brigitte

Zoya Brigitte (2 coats), Sache Vite top coat

I hesitate to call Brigitte a mauve cream polish because when someone says mauve I start to snore. But this color isn't boring.  I think Zoya describes it well by calling it a bombshell mauve, because this is definitely not your grandmother's (unless your grandma is a cool granny) nail color. 

Normani

Zoya Normani (2 coats), Seche Vite top coat

Normani is a pretty deep grey purple polish that reminds me slightly of a mauvish version of Zoya Kelly. This is possibly the vampiest color in the collection, although it's more of a dusty shade than a vampy one. 

Odette

Zoya Odette (2 coats), Seche Vite top coat

Odette is my other favorite shade in this collection. It's a pretty grayish orchid hue that actually looks a little deeper in photos than it did in person, where the pink tones are more obvious. Zoya describes it as a sultry orchid maroon cream, although I don't notice the maroon as much myself. And with orchid being the next pantone color of the year, Odette is quite on trend.

I'm particularly smitten with this collection and think the shades will compliment many people. How do you feel about the neutral trend? Are you likely to try out any of these colors for yourself?