Lo was released by Zoya as part of the Gossip collection for summer 2008. Officially described as a "bright warm medium pink creme with strong coral undertones," it is a very bright medium creamy summer pink with delicious melony nuances, the sort of color that reminds me of pink Gerbera daisies. It is brighter and warmer on the nail than the bottle color would lead you to believe. I adore pinks like this, they are so full-bodied and rich! Unfortunately, they freak my camera out big time -- film at eleven.
Application of Lo was ok. The consistency is in line with the best of Zoya's cremes, fluid and creamy. Pigmentation isn't a problem and this polish goes on smoothly enough but is not the best self-leveler and tends to show dark streaks and patches where the polish is uneven. I hate that! And my ridges wreak havoc with formulas like this. Two coats would probably provide good opaque coverage for those with shorter nails or smoother nail beds than mine, but I would definitely add a third coat were I to wear this alone. Since I was going to layer over it with Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment, I left my manicure at two coats and hoped that a thin topcoat of HK Girl would help even things up. It evened up the surface, but you can still see visible nail line and other thin areas in some of the photos. C'est la vie. Lo dries naturally in good time to a smooth glossy finish.
Photos show two coats of Lo over treatment and basecoat with a light topcoat of HK Girl. As I've mentioned before, my camera goes all histrionic on me when attempting to capture rich vivid pinks and reds, with a tendency oversaturate them and make them look harsher and screechier than they actually are. Just know that Lo is actually a little gentler in person than it appears here.
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| Zoya Lo |
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| Zoya Lo |
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| Zoya Lo |
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| Zoya Lo |
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| Zoya Lo |
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| Zoya Lo |
Despite the fluorescent look in some of the photos, I think Lo skirts neon territory with some room to spare. While certainly intense, it's not as eye-searing as a true neon and the formula doesn't reflect the use of neon pigment. I adore this shade, it makes my eyes happy!
Now, to the pièce de résistance!
Tropical Moments was recently released by indie polish maker Loaded Lacquer as part of the Hula Girl collection. Heather, the owner and creative force behind Loaded Lacquer describes it as having a clear base with a violet/gold shift and flakies in hot pink and gold. I see some blue/pink iridescent shardy sparkles in there too. It is gorgeous gleaming lacy flakie goodness in a bottle, is what, with topper or build-to-opacity versatility. I first saw this awesome creation swatched by Jenny on Lavish Layerings and totally caved to my covet response by making a beeline to Loaded Lacquer's online shop and pouncing on it.
I seem to be doing a lot of that lately. Hmm.
Application was a delight. The consistency of Tropical Moment is suspensiony (you know what I mean, kind of gel-like) and dense with flakes and therefore a little thick, but in that good, stay-where-you-put-it kind of way that makes it very easy to use. I applied two thin, trouble-free coats over the Lo manicure above and topped it with another light coat of HK Girl.
In retrospect, I think I could done better by Tropical Moment with a different layering combo. Perhaps a pink that's a little cooler than Lo, or a fuchsia or red-violet. Or a darker polish period. Lo feels a little forced under Tropical Moment. The melony warmth that I so adore doesn't treat the pink flakies in Tropical Moment as nicely as they deserve. But you be the judge!
You'll notice that I did not photograph the labeled side of my bottle of Tropical Moment. Loaded Lacquer uses metallic holographic labels that are sensitive to solvents and oils and somehow I managed to swipe through the middle of the logo, essentially cutting it in two. Rather than distract with a smeared label, I took pics using the unlabeled side.
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| Zoya Lo and Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment, bottle shot |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo |
Whee-yew! I showed this to Fuzzy, whose enthusiasm for pink hovers around ground level: "Well! That's a look isn't it!" *lol* I think it was a bit overwhelming. It IS a bit overwhelming, the intensity of Lo underneath the shimmering pink iridescence of Topical Moment! But kind of in a good way. This is definitely not a look to keep to oneself, it begs for exposure, preferably in a cabana by a pool or other body of water with fruity rum-laced beverages and towel boys nearby. Sadly, I am not in a position to offer it the kind of publicity it deserves. Instead I decided to couch it underneath a matte topcoat and to see how that suited it.
I used OPI's Matte Topcoat. It rocks.
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo, with matte topcoat |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo, with matte topcoat and bonus kitteh hair on index finger |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo, with matte topcoat |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo, with matte topcoat |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo, with matte topcoat |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo, with matte topcoat |
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| Loaded Lacquer Tropical Moment over Zoya Lo, with matte topcoat |
Love! With the addition of the matte topcoat the ethereal blue/pink iridescence of the flakies in Tropical Moment really comes into its own. I'm wearing this right now and in the cool cloistered dimness of my office my nails are literally glowing along the axis of light. Matte, the combination of cool and warm pinks seems more collaborative and fresher than with a glossy topcoat.
If you enjoy pink and flakies, you will have a blast with Tropical Moment. It would be out of this world with a tan. I can't wait to try it out on Eleanor's little brown wiggly digits!
love,
Liz
Bright,
warm, medium pink creme with strong coral undertones. - See more at:
http://www.zoya.com/content/item/Zoya/Zoya-Nail-Polish-Lo.html#sthash.exTHl6Ib.dpuf
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