9 posts tagged "Zoya"
The Fab Five: Fade To White
White nail polish got a big boost at the Spring shows last September when it turned up on the runway at Rag & Bone and Moschino—and an even bigger boost when Rihanna rocked the stark opaque color to an L.A. Lakers game over Christmas with Chris Brown, which turned out to be the couple’s unofficial “we’re back together” announcement (they have since split. Again.) It’s an unexpected, albeit wonderful alternative to more predictable pastels as the warmer weather graces us with its presence and while it does come with its fair share of application challenges, they’re nothing a good base coat or ridge filler can’t fix, according to Jin Soon Choi. Once you’ve nailed down the perfect, streak-free application technique, the only task that remains is sifting through the myriad alabaster lacquers currently on the market. Here are five of our favorites to get you started.
Snow Day
Essie Nail Lacquer in Blanc, $8, www.essie.com
Billed as the perfect counterpart to a French manicure, this full-coverage, soft white is just as effective on its own, and can be topped with a matte or high-shine top coat.
Sheer Genius
Priti NYC Nail Lacquer in Bristol Fairy
To add to the “dream-like, ethereal” mood backstage at Thakoon’s Fall show, Priti NYC’s Kim D’Amato applied this sheer, shimmering white to models fingertips. It’s not as noticeable as an opaque white lacquer, but it makes a statement all its own.
Bling Ring
NYX Precious Pearls in White Pearls
A new take on Ciate’s uber popular “caviar manicure,” NYX’s Precious Pearl collection features a pure white varnish with a corresponding bottle of tiny opalescent baubles that blur the line between nail polish and jewelry.
Mallow Out
Zoya Nail Polish in Purity
A super versatile milky white, Zoya’s marshmallow-hued lacquer makes for a great contrasting tip, a gleaming full-coverage color—and can also be used to lighten up your favorite darker polishes for Spring. Never be afraid to do some at-home custom-color mixing.
Bright Future
Butter London Nail Lacquer in Cotton Buds, available July 2013
One coat of this creamy, bright white will give you a very clean look while two coats serve up a finish of the 100-watt variety.
The Festive Five: Manicures For Making Merry
The holidays are coming—and fast. We hate to be the bearer of this shocking piece of news, but Thanksgiving is in two weeks. Two weeks! If the surprisingly early decorative window displays and all the cheeky retail merchandizing haven’t yet gotten you in the mood for the fun with family and friends that’s about to consume your life, perhaps the onslaught of shimmering, glittering, sparkling-to-the-max manicure options that are now at your disposal will. Here, we’ve singled out five of our favorite new nail offerings for some much-deserved festive finger-painting.
Heavy Metals
Deborah Lippmann Cleopatra in New York
You could say the glitter nail craze started with Deborah Lippmann’s Happy Birthday polish back in 2009, which has been oft imitated, but never replicated—except, of course, by the backstage regular herself: In the last three years, Lippmann has made a habit of reimagining her original hexagonal glitter formula in a range of colors and sizes. Her latest masterpiece puts pieces of chunky gold sequins in a sheer, obsidian base.
In Rainbows
MAC All That Glitters
Part of the beauty behemoth’s Glamour Daze collection, MAC’s All That Glitters varnish is a somewhat more subtle, colorful play on the same idea. The black polish itself has a medium sheer finish, but when applied in three coats, you get a rich lacquer with beautiful blue, fuchsia, gold, and emerald flecks that reflect the light with every well-intentioned finger flick.
The Scarlett Bottle
Essie Leading Lady
Nothing says “the holidays are here” like rich shades of garnet—which Essie Weingarten knows better than anyone. The manicure mogul has debuted her fair share of variations on the rich hue and tries her hand at another one this month in the form of the limited-edition Leading Lady. The ruby-flecked lacquer is more of a deep raspberry-tinged crimson when applied and packs a super sparkly punch to boot.
For Gold and Glory
Zoya Gilty Topcoat
Crackle polishes are a bit played-out at this point, as far as we’re concerned, but this clear topcoat with pieces of 18-karat gold made us rethink the appeal of their degradé effect. Worn alone or on top of the other two colors in Zoya’s limited-edition Gilty Pleasures trio, it imparts scattered bits of gilded flakes for a haphazard, albeit gorgeous, finish.
Gray Matter
Givenchy Vernis Please! Enchanted Mat Grey
Slate gray just may be one of our all-time favorite Fall polish colors; it’s less severe than black but still sends a tough-and-chic message. The latest from Givenchy adds a hint of superfine sparkle to the mix that wears with a barely noticeable foil quality. In a word, love.
Peter Som Paints It Mint Green And Orange
“Nail art is not going away,” Deborah Lippmann told us last season, and if there’s one thing we can already report from the backstage trenches after two days of shows, she continues to be correct for Spring. Lippmann brought her own high-design touch to Kate Spade today, where she churned out a series of multicolored gingham prints with polish, but it’s a continuation of the artful French manicure that she previewed at Donna Karan for Fall that seems to have staying power. A mattified, black-on-cream iteration stole the show at Tanya Taylor yesterday, and this morning at Peter Som, it was an orange-on-mint green version that had everyone talking. Custom-created for Som, two coats of Zoya’s pastel lime Neely were topped with a bold stroke of the mandarin Sharon. Both will be sold in a trio kit with Jacqueline, a creamy beige, starting…now: The limited-edition collection launched right after Som’s 10 a.m. show and will be available at www.zoya.com while supplies last.
Crazy For Cola
It’s official; I am ready for fall. A combination of this latest East Coast heat wave, an air-conditioner that’s been on the fritz, and the consistent flow of cooler-weather-appropriate nail lacquers to recently cross my desk has pushed me over the edge (all right, it was mostly the latter). We’ve already mentioned China Glaze’s seasonal polish offerings of berries, deep purples, and warm earth tones on this blog, but another color you’re going to want to put on your radar for September is Cola, the latest from Zoya. Part of the brand’s Wonderful collection of cream polishes, the varnish is not quite Bordeaux and not quite chocolate but rests happily in between the two. All potential contenders are not in yet, but so far, the warm, mortarlike hue is the front-runner for my first post-Labor Day manicure. Whether or not I will be topping it off with some choice nail art remains to be seen.
Red-Flag Chemicals For Natural Beauty Novices
This column features weekly tips and advice from a revolving cast of industry leaders, on hand to discuss your beauty dilemmas, from blemishes to Botox. To submit a question, e-mail celia_ellenberg@condenast.com.
I’m thinking about greening my beauty routine, starting with go-to’s like nail polish and foundation. I’ve seen a few products that claim to be “organic,” but what does that mean as far as something like lacquer is concerned? Are these formulas really better for me?
Polishes like those from Zoya and SpaRitual are not really “organic” in the same way that some other cosmetics or foods are labeled as organic, but they are better for you, because they’ve been formulated with safe ingredients. These polishes are free of toxic substances like toluene, dibutyl phthalate, and formaldehyde, and rely on nontoxic solvents and polymers to create a nice, durable finish. So yes, it’s worth switching to a natural-based polish if you’re concerned about any chemicals and you paint your nails frequently.
In the case of foundation and things like primers, many are formulated to be silicone-free, which is what gives them their “natural” connotations. Yet silicones provide a variety of benefits in makeup products, including lubricity, silky skin-feel, and wrinkle-hiding effects. Some people are concerned that silicones are damaging to the environment, though. Considering the amounts used in makeup products, the impact on the environment is negligible compared to the amounts that come from other industries. But if you are an organic or green-friendly consumer, you might want to switch to a silicone-free formula, regardless of any added health benefit.
James Hammer is a cosmetic chemist who analyzes and formulates products for the beauty industry. He works with the Pharmasol Corporation in Easton,
MA.