Zoya America - A Summer Red

Nail Polish

Jun 10

Written By Lots of Lacquer

*Zoya America swatch on tan marble background with nail polish bottles to right*

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A tomato red nail patriotic nail polish, perfect for 4th of July nail looks -

Zoya is a nail polish company founded in 1986 and owned by The Art of Beauty.

Zoya is currently located in Bedford, Ohio and they focus on producing eco-friendly products that are Big 10 Free.

Big 10 Free means the Zoya nail polish formulas are without:

Formaldehyde
Formaldehyde resin
Dibutyl Phthalate
Tolene
Camphor
TPHP
Parabens
Xylene
Ethyl Tosylamide
Lead

Many of these ingredients are heavily researched in animals for their health and environmental effects, but they are included in some standard polishes, for various reasons.

These ingredients are thought to help preserve nail polish, make it more flexible, give it more shimmer, or prevent thickening and chipping.

For example, Dibutyl Phthalate is a plasticizer where the health effects in humans have not been studied but in other mammals, there are reports of exposure contributing to developmental and reproductive effects.

So some nail polish brands, like Zoya, play it safe and find alternate ingredients that do not currently have these associated adverse links, but can still give the nail polish that beauty you crave and provide lasting power.

In Zoya’s America, these ingredients are listed via enails.eu:

Butyl Acetate, Ethyl Acetate. Nitrocellulose, Adipic, Acid/Neopentyl Glycol/Trimellitic Anhydride Copolymer, Acetyl Tributyl Citrate, Isopropyl, Alcohol, Stearalkonium Bentonite, Acrylates Copolymer, Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer, Trimethylpentanediyl Dibenzoate, Benzophenone-1.

Thankfully, none are considered irritants or as safety risks when run through a chemical analyzer like CosDNA.com.

Now that we’ve covered the eco-friendly ingredients, let’s focus on the beautiful Made-in-America color that is America, product number ZP474.

America is listed as: a bright, bold, medium retro tomato-red creme. This unique red screams retro pin-up girl glamour.

It definitely has the color of a ripe tomato skin, and the formula is thin and easy to apply.

When applying Zoya’s America there is no streaking or big, chunky lines you have to smooth out, because of how thin the formula is.

With the formula being so thin, you would expect it to need three coats to be opaque, but that is not so.

This is such a pigmented red that two coats is all you need to get full coverage, saving you both time and money.

The fewer color coats you need, the longer your polish bottle lasts, and the more quickly you can move on with your day.

Let’s look at some Zoya America swatches up close!

The swatches you see below are with two coats and these products were used:

Zoya Get Even Ridge Filling Base Coat

Zoya America Professional Lacquer

Zoya Armor Top Coat

*Zoya America swatch on tan marble background with nail polish bottles to left*

*Zoya America swatch on tan marble background with nail polish bottles on top*

Now a few cool things unique to Zoya:

The Zoya Brush Upgrade

Each of these bottles comes with a standard thin brush, which is great for getting the sides of a curved nail, and the nooks and crannies of your nail bed.

But for those who like to appreciate ever faster polish applications, Zoya gives you the option to upgrade to a Z Wide Brush cap.

The Z Wide Brush, which is common in some of Zoya’s newer collections, such as Zoya EasyNeon, has a rounded top, making it easier to get a smooth line at the top of the nail near the cuticle.

It also covers the whole nail in 1-2 swipes, as opposed to 3-5 swipes needed with the thinner, standard brush.

This Z Wide Brush add-on reduces both potential streaking with more swipes and room for error - as the more the brush touches the nail, the more chances for a mistake.

That said, the swatches in this post were accomplished with the stock brush, and even though it took 3-5 swipes per nail to get full coverage on each coat, the finish still turned out to be smooth.

To end, Zoya America is an uplifting, bright red that looks incredible on a sunny, summer day, though it can lean on the pinker side of red in some lighting. It applies thin and dries quickly with a creme-shine finish.

To get the best results with this polish, as with all polishes, you will want to pick up a matching Zoya Top Coat and Base Coat to go with America.

Whether or not you upgrade your brush or get these polishes on sale, America is worth a try especially if you’re environmentally conscious and love a shiny summer red.