Natural Born Thrillers — Check out the Zoya Naturel Nail Lacquer Collection

I’ve never been a huge fan of nude nail lacquers — in fact, I was on the verge of unleashing a torrent of disappointed tears when, after going backstage at several fashion shows during New York Fashion Week FW14, I learned that buff beige and tulle pink manis would be a dominant trend come autumn. And so, while I adore Zoya, I  admit I wasn’t as excited as normal when I realized that Naturel, their Spring 2014 collection, revolved around neutral shades. But, in typical Zoya form, they gave nude shades a twist by incorporating unexpected undertones — mostly rose, mauve, and lilac hues. These six creamy shades (each $9 at Zoya.com), then, seek to breathe new life into the nude nail lacquer  realm — much in the same way that Urban Decay’s Naked palettes reinvented neutral eye shadows.

Sure, the shades aren’t riveting in their boldness, but that wasn’t the intention with which they were formulated — instead, they’re meant to be demure, understated, sophisticated, and versatile. Meet Zoya’s new neutrals via the swatches below!

ODETTE

This creamy nail lacquer is described as a full-coverage orchid maroon. It kind of reminds me of grape Play-dough, but there are clear brown-ish and grayish undertones that make the shade appear earthier and muddier.

CHANTAL

Chantal is one of two true nude hues in the collection — both warmer and more beige-like. The shade is described as a French Vanilla creme, which is pretty accurate, but it has slightly more yellowish undertones that also render it reminiscent of sugar cookies, almond biscotti, and butter pecan ice cream.

RUE

This is one of my absolute favorite nail polishes in the collection. The Rue nail lacquer is described as a blush creme, but I’d say it’s more of a languid lavender shade, so that the light pink tones are fused with grayish lavender hues to create a moodier but subtle and feminine final result.

TAYLOR

Described as a light toffee creme, the Taylor nail lacquer is very reminiscent of the Chantal shade, but it’s slightly deeper and features nuttier, more caramel undertones.

NORMANI

Brigitte is described as a full-coverage sable mauve creme shade. As you can see from the photos above, it’s the darkest of all the colors in the collection and the earthiest of the shades, with the biggest concentration of brown undertones. It reminds me of a rum raisin shade of paint which, as we all know, blends together taupe and sable tones with grayish and purple shades.

BRIGITTE

Aside form Rue, this is my favorite shade in the collection. Like every other shade in the collection, it offers full coverage and has a classic creamy finish. The color can best be described as an opera mauve, fusing together a mauve hue of medium intensity with a blush rose shade.