Zoya Megan — Feel Collection Winter 2011

(UPDATE: Here's my review of the entire collection, with all the swatches together.)

Hey there! Continuing with the Feel Collection, here's Zoya Megan. I'm finding this color tough to describe. It's very delicate, light gray with a hint of lavender. (I guess I just described it!)

Like the other polishes in this collection, Megan needs two coats for opacity. I recommend same technique of one thin coat and a second thicker coat for applying this color. Even though these pastels can be a little annoying and thick, I'm becoming more and more impressed with this collection because despite any application issues, you really can get this polish right in two coats. If you have any leftover lumpiness, the topcoat will smooth everything out.

Zoya Carey — Feel Collection Winter 2011

(UPDATE: Here's my review of the entire collection, with all the swatches together.)

Here's the next color from the Zoya Feel Collection, a pale gray creme called Carey. This is a fairly neutral gray, although I would say it leans a tiny bit to the cool side.

Like Kristen, this polish only needs two coats for complete opacity. Since it's a pale color, the formula is a little tricky to work with. I found it was best to make the first coat thin, and to not worry about how streaky the coverage was. Wait at least two minutes, then make the second coat a little thicker. It also helps to apply the color in as few brush strokes as possible.

Zoya Kristen — Feel Collection Winter 2011

(UPDATE: Here's my review of the entire collection, with all the swatches together.)

I got the Feel collection in the mail yesterday. I rarely buy full collections, but I was totally drawn into this one by the promo picture. I do not regret my purchase, each color is lovely! First I'll show you Zoya Kristen, which is a slightly blue-tinged pale gray creme.

The formula for this color, and this whole collection, is simultaneously impressive and frustrating. I'm super impressed that it only took two coats to get full coverage and opacity. This is pretty rare for such pale colors. The texture is chalky and tricky to work with, but still a major improvement over pastel colors that came out a couple years ago. Only two coats! I don't think I've ever encountered a pastel that worked in less than three coats before. So that's a big plus.

The first time I applied this color, I found it irritating and difficult to keep the surface smooth. I decided to try again a few hours later, and for whatever reason it seemed pretty easy that time. The first time I applied this color the brush seemed so small and skinny, and I couldn't for the life of me find the wider side of it. The second time the brush still seemed too small but I was able to make it fan out better. I think most of the application issues would be easily solved by Zoya adopting a nicer brush. If it just had a few more bristles, and was a tiny bit flatter, I think I would love the brand even more.

L'Oréal Cockatoo's Mystery — New LE Project Runway Collection

I love finding the limited edition drugstore collections! I think it's the thrill of the hunt. Yesterday in CVS I came across a whole series of Project Runway collections from L'Oréal. There were four mini collections, each with a wild theme: Charming Cockatoo, Watchful Owl, Audacious Amazon, and Sultry Raven. Each collection had two nail colors along with some other makeup products. I picked out one each from the Cockatoo and Owl collections.

First, here's Cockatoo's Mystery. It's an elegant, warm gray. I have a feeling there's probably an Essie dupe for this color, but if you can believe it I don't own any grays aside from this one now!

This may not be the most unique color, but I'm really loving it. This swatch is three coats. The formula was really easy to work with. I was expecting it to be a little chalky because of how pale the color is, but in fact it was completely smooth. I also really like L'Oréal's brush. It's flat, but not huge and mop-like! It's one of my favorite brushes out there.

Next, I'll show you swatches of Owl's Night!