Maybelline Sweet Thing polish swatches, Sally Hansen news and Zoya sale reminder!

I've got lots of nail polish news for you today, so I thought I'd condense it all down into one neat little post!

First of all, TODAY (Friday 2/19) is the last day to get two free bottles of nail polish at Zoya.com with a $10 purchase. The code to use at checkout is NYFW. I haven't purchased any Zoya polishes in a loooong time so I'm having a difficult time narrowing down my choices (but I think I'm finally going to get the much-coveted Roxy!). If you haven' tried Zoya before, not only are their polishes absolutely stunning, but they have amazing staying power and a great texture. So definitely don't miss this sale if you've been wanting some new Zoyas to add to your stash. And a huge thanks to my Twitter follower, slgkag, for the heads-up about this code!

Second, I wanted to give you some early info about a new (yes, new!) collection from Sally Hansen. As many of you already know, fashion designer Tracy Reese has been working with Sally Hansen for many years and has brought us many of our favorite Sally Hansen nail colors. This season's collaboration looks like it might feature some grays (or greiges) because, while the info below doesn't list exact colors, it does state that Tracy Reese is working with "natural tones, urban inspiration and layering" (you're speaking my language, Ms. Reese!). Also, I'm excited to see that this season's Tracy Reese collection will be rolled out in the new Complete Salon Manicure formula instead of the usual Salon Nail Lacquer formula (square bottles) of years past.

(from Happi.com)

The new neutrals are deep, smoky nail shades inspired by modern runway designs - and the next fashionable collaboration between nail color expert Sally Hansen and designer Tracy Reese. For the ninth season in a row, Sally Hansen has joined forces with fashion icon Tracy Reese to develop the season's essential accessory: stark nail lacquers inspired by Reese's fall collection.

For Fall 2010, the shades in the Tracy Reese for Sally Hansen Collection reflect this emphasis on natural tones, urban inspiration and layering. On the runway, Reese layered black lace over the nude shade "Wet Clay" to create a custom textured look.

The five new shades in the nail color collection are made with Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure, an all-in-one formula that combines the benefits of a base coat, strengthener, growth treatment, rich color and top coat in a single multi-tasking polish. The patented formula features the most advanced lacquer technology, concentrated high-intensity color, and encapsulated treatment sphere of Vita-Care Technology.

"We're so thrilled to be joining forces with Tracy Reese once again," says Bill Boraczek, senior vice president of cosmetics marketing, Coty Beauty U.S. "We love working with her season after season because she always brings her uniquely feminine sensibility to Sally Hansen shades, creating a fashion-forward collection that truly works for every woman."

And finally, I wanted to show you some swatches of the two polishes I bought the other day from the Maybelline Limited Edition Sweet Thing Collection (click here for pics of the display):

Maybelline Express Finish Nail Color in Goody Gum Drop

Maybelline Express Finish Nail Color in Pie in the Sky

I am delighted to tell you that I finally learned how to adjust the tint and color saturation of my photos so, after a bit of tweaking, the colors that you see in these pics are as accurate as I can possibly make them. If you pick up these shades at the drugstore, hopefully you'll be pleasantly surprised to see that the colors here are pretty darn close to the colors in real life. Yay!

By the way, both shots were taken after two coats of color. Goody Gum Drop applied effortlessly in two coats, while Pie in the Sky was streaky on the first coat, which scared me, but then became totally opaque on the second coat. Yay! Also, it looks like Maybelline has switched to a flatter brush in this new collection (it's not anywhere close to how wide, flat and firm Sally Hansen Insta-Dri brushes are though). They're just a bit flatter than I remember, but they're still on the thin side. I personally love this type of brush so I'm pretty excited about the change!

That's it for now, but please check back a little later for an exciting surprise....:)