Zoya Ornate Collection

Hey dolls! I have an amazing collection for you tonight! Several months ago, the Zoya fairies posted on their facebook page that holos would be coming to us soon. Well, they are finally here in the winter collection! The Ornate collection consists of three scattered holos (which you all know I prefer over linear holos), a shimmer, a foil, and a bar glitter. The formula on the entire collection was great and all applied well. The Ornate collection is full of win, so let's get to the photos.

Blaze is a cool-toned medium mulberry red with a high concentration of micro fine diamond holographic glitter. I know I love a color when I'm constantly telling my hubby how pretty it is as I apply it. Two coats were used.

 

Storm is a holiday black with a high concentration of micro fine diamond holographic glitter. This color is absolutely stunning! You all know I've been into dark colors lately, so Blaze is right up my alley. Two coats were used.

Aurora is a medium sugarplum purple flecked with a high concentration of micro fine diamond holographic glitter. Holo lovers, this is the one you NEED! Once again, I was saying out loud how gorgeous this polish was. By this point, hubby was probably tired of hearing me say it! The sparkle is crazy in this polish. Aurora is not quite as pigmented as the rest of the collection, so I used three coats.

Electra is a micro fine diamond holographic glitter mixed with large silver holographic bar tinsel in a clear base. Oh Electra. I would have been perfectly fine with this collection if Electra was not included. I'm sure those who like bar glitter will be pleased though. Electra surely provides the bling factor. I am not a fan of bar glitter; especially bar glitter that is this dense. Only one coat was used over Aurora. 

Logan is a yellow-toned forest green with dense, foil-like yellow-gold and blue-green duochrome shimmer. This is one pretty green! I love how heavy the gold shimmer is. I didn't realize until I went outside that there was a little balding in some areas, so three coats (as opposed to the two I did) are needed for opacity.

Ziv is a yellow-toned metallic gold foil with silver highlights and warm gold flake glitter accents. I adore Ziv! This gold foil is so complimentary to my skin tone. I love the depth that the flakes add, which makes this a really unique shade. Two coats were used.

Excluding Electra, I absolutely love the Ornate collection! The best thing about the three holos is that the sparkle is visible in all lighting. Zoya has really impressed me this time around! If you'd like to purchase any of these Zoya polishes, you can find them here for $8 each. 

Which shades are you loving from the Ornate collection?

*Products featured in this post were provided by PR for review.*

Mentality ~ The Metallics Collection

Hey dolls! I have a new indie brand to share with you called Mentality. The first collection from this wife and husband duo is called The Metallics and consists of five shades, described as the colors of the rainbow meet the wealth of gold. All of the pictures below are with top coat.

Envy is described as a bright yellow green with gold undertones and flakes. The formula was very pigmented and was almost opaque in one coat, but two coats were used for depth. I liked Envy in the bottle, but I'm not a fan of it on my skin tone.

Crave is described as a light purple with gold and blue undertones and gold flakes. This shade pulled very pink on me. Crave had the sheerest formula of all of the polishes in the collection, but it wasn't problematic. Two coats were used in the photos below.

Covet is described as a blue green with gold undertones and flakes. I had no issues with the formula and opacity was achieved in two coats. Covet is an interesting color; I like the way it looks on me.

Desire is described as a golden orange with gold undertones and flakes. You all know I like oranges, so  Desire is fine by me. Two coats were used in the photos below.

Lust is described as a coppery red with gold undertones and flakes. Lust is hands down my favorite in this collection! The gold shimmer really stands out, which I adore. Lust reads more orange on me than red, so it's a winner in my book. I took so many pictures of this one! Two coats were used in the photos below and these were taken in my light box due to rainy weather. As a side note, I did have slight staining with Lust, so be sure to use a good base coat.

I like that Mentality is bringing us indie creations that aren't just glitters. If you are interested in learning more about this brand, please check out the facebook page and the online store where you can place your orders now. Full size bottles (15mL) are currently available for $6 each.

*Products featured in this post were provided by PR for review.*

Reader's Choice ~ NY Summer Hot Green & Cult Nails Happy Ending

Happy Monday Tuesday dolls! I apologize for the reader's choice mani being a day late, but I spent the weekend back home in SC for my ten year high school reunion. I had lots of fun hanging out with old friends and didn't get back home until after midnight on Sunday. Needless to say, I struggled at work yesterday and did not feel like doing my nails until about 10pm. The good news is that KBShimmer Don't Teal Anyone held up perfectly except for minor tipwear and visible growth at the cuticle.

Onto what I'm wearing now, NY Summer Hot Green was the winner of last week's poll with 55% of the votes. Hot Green is a bright, grass green jelly with a smooth formula. It dries a bit darker on the nail than the bottle, but I like the look. I haven't created a jelly sandwich in awhile, so I had all sorts of glitter combinations in my mind for this one. I decided on adding a coat of Cult Nails Happy Ending, a multi-colored shard glitter. The formula on Happy Ending was a little weird; it seemed to have a lot of base and I had to dab on the glitter. Because of the nature of shards, you have to make sure they are all flat on the nail. For the jelly sandwich, I layered one thick coat of Hot Green, a thick coat of Happy Ending, followed by another coat of Hot Green. I did a lot of typing at work today, so please excuse the tipwear in the photos below.

I love Hot Green, but I'm not crazy over the jelly sandwich. Happy Ending is cool, but it's not really my type of glitter. This combo definitely looks like something we would see on the indie market.

For this week's poll, I have three turquoises/teals for you. Please take a second to vote and the poll will be open until Saturday, September 29.

Vintage Velvet, Victoriana, Turquoise & Caicos

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Fall Trends ~ Military Metallics

Hey dolls! The next trend for fall as noted by Refinery29 was Metallic Military. I'm kind of on the fence with this trend. Not too many brands have put out these type of shades this season. I ended up choosing only a few recent ones and a couple oldies from last year. I actually like the military trend more for fashion then for polish. Maybe one day I'll be able to afford a Proenze bag like the ones above.

Pink Wednesday ~ Candeo Colors Melonball

Happy hump day dolls! Today I have pictures of Candeo Colors Melonball, which is a Llarowe exclusive color. I first saw a bottle shot of Melonball on Instagram (follow me @refinedandpolished). Pink and green glitter is ALL me! Melonball is full of various shades and sizes of pink glitter, red hexes, and smaller green glitter. The formula was extremely thick; I had to dab the glitter onto my nails, so I can't really say how many coats it was. This is Melonball over Essie Mojito Madness.

I really love Melonball! It's almost at my chunky glitter limit (you guys know I don't really do super chunky glitters). Mojito Madness was the perfect base color, but I do have a complaint. I got the most horrible staining I've ever had from Mojito Madness. It's extremely weird because I wore it last month and had absolutely no staining. I used a base coat both time, although I can't remember which one because I rotate between two. So weird! Has this ever happened to you?

Essie Mojito Madness

Happy Friday dolls! Today I'm wearing Essie Mojito Madness (I always want to call this polish mint mojito).  This gorgeous green creme went on my wish list as soon as it came out. I finally purchased it on Copious last month. The formula was good and is extremely pigmented. I almost got away with one thick coat, but I did a second just to level out some areas of patchiness.

Love, love, love Mojito Madness! This is actually my second time wearing it. I wore it for graduation, but failed to take pictures because of how crazy busy I was. Here are a few pictures from that big day, since I forgot to share them last month!

You can see the the polish in this one!

I hope you all have a great weekend!

Reader's Choice Mondays ~ American Apparel Army Jacket

Hey dolls! Today I have pictures of American Apparel Army Jacket, which won last week's poll with 44% of the votes. Army Jacket is a gorgeous army green creme that was opaque in two coats. The brush on AA polishes are very long and slim, which took a little bit to get used to. I was very impressed with the formula on Army Jacket. Please ignore the bubbles in the pictures; my top coat was getting low and it's sticky with a mind of its own.

I love the way Army Jacket looks on me! You all picked a great one. Now I see why so many people rave about AA polishes. Many thanks to my polish friend Tiffany for adding these into our swap!

On to the poll for the next Reader's Choice Monday. I have three A England polishes that I have not worn as full manis. Please vote on the one you'd like to see next week. The poll will close on Friday, August 10.

Galahad, Holy Grail, Lady of the Lake

Reader's Choice 8.6.12

A England Galahad

A England Holy Grail

A England Lady of the Lake

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Zoya Diva Collection

Hey dolls! Today I have the final fall 2012 offering from Zoya, the Diva collection. This collection consists of several different finishes including shimmers, glass flecks, metallics, and frosts in an assortment of jewel tones.

Elisa is described as a bright shining medium crimson red with subtle gold shimmer and a glowing metallic finish. The formula was very easy to use and Elisa was opaque in two coats. Red lovers will enjoy this shade.

Song is described as a bold, vibrant medium primary blue with silver and blue glittery metallic sparkle. It's filled with glass flecks and is definitely what I would consider to be a year-round blue. There were no issues with the formula and it was opaque in two coats.

Ray is a dark, blackened pine green with smooth, delicate silver and green frost shimmer. This is the only color from the collection that fell flat for me. I wish it was a little more vibrant like the rest of the polishes. Two coats were used in the photos below.

Suri is a medium blue-tones purple with delicate red and blue shimmer and smooth metallic finish. The flashes of red and blue in Suri are absolutely gorgeous in person. Two coats were used for opacity.

Daul is a medium red-toned purple base with heavy purple and gold iridescent metallic sparkle. This description is on point; the gold shimmer is extremely heavy! The formula was thinner than the previous colors, but not problematic. Three coats were used in the photos below.

FeiFei is the most complex shade in the collection. It is a medium steel blue base with heavy gold, blue, and pink iridescent metallic sparkle. Upon applying this polish, I kept saying out loud how gorgeous it was. Three coats were used for opacity. Pictures do FeiFei no justice; you need to see this one in person.

Overall, I think this is a strong set of polishes. The Diva collection offers an assortment of colors and finishes that most could chose from. My favorites are FeiFei, Song, and Suri. I hope you all have enjoyed seeing all three Zoya fall 2012 collections. Zoya polishes can be purchased for $8.

For those who like to pin.

Which collection was your favorite from Zoya: Diva, Designer, or Gloss?

*Products in this post were provided by PR for review*