So I had high expectations for Zoya’s Color Lock System. I’ve read some great reviews, and I am always looking for something that will make my nail polish last longer. For my review, I planned on taking pictures every day to show the wear, and imagined that I would be tortured with having to wear the same polish for a week or longer. But that fear didn’t last long, as my manicure with color lock started chipping just as quickly as any other.
First, swatches of Zoya Payton. This one is from their winter collection, and it is beautiful. Zoya describes it as cranberry, but it’s more of a purple, with holographic glitter. The formula was great and I’m showing 2 coats with Zoya Color Lock.
Now, for the Color Lock System. The first aspect is Remove+, Zoya’s nail polish remover. I have used this before, and it really is a great remover. It melts the polish right off with minimal effort, and is moisturizing unlike pure acetone. It is a bit pricey, otherwise I would use it exclusively. There are several recipes around the internet to make your own Remove+, and as soon as I stop being too lazy to go out and find glycerin, I will be making my own.
The next step is Zoya Anchor, a base coat. There is nothing remarkable about Anchor, it’s a base coat and does it’s job as such. Armor is the top coat, and is meant to be used with fast dry drops. I have never tried quick dry drops before, always opting for quick dry top coats instead. As a top coat, Armor isn’t bad. It is shiny, and with the aide of quick dry drops, it dries pretty quickly. However, it doesn’t dry as quick or solid as other top coats I’ve tried, and I have managed to smudge every single manicure I’ve done with Zoya Color Lock. As for the quick dry drops themselves…hate ’em. Not only is it an extra step, but I find them very messy. One drop on each nail results in my cuticle area and fingertips being covered in the drops, and I can’t wash them off since my polish is still drying.
Overall, I would skip Zoya Color Lock. Remove+ is awesome, and Anchor is a decent base coat, but the system as a whole did not deliver on it’s promise of longer lasting manicures. Their nail polish, however, is fantastic, and after my Black Friday haul, you can expect to see a ton of Zoya swatches coming up!
You can find Zoya here. Have any of you had experience with Color Lock?
theCosmetical 