If zombies saw China Glaze Zombie Zest, maybe they wouldn’t spend so much time moaning about braaaaainssss and more time painting and moaning for polissssssh! (Actually, that sounds more like me.)
This kind of swampy-green is what I reach for when I don’t know what to wear. It’s totally in my comfort zone. A general rule of thumb: If my mom wouldn’t like it, I probably would love it. When it comes to nail polish, makeup, and fashion, we are polar opposites.
Zombie Zest comes from last year’s China Glaze Awakening Collection, which I really enjoyed. Y’know, although I love their Christmas collections, I always get giddy with anticipation over their Hallowe’en collections.
China Glaze Zombie Zest Pictures
China Glaze Zombie Zest Swatches
All swatches have:
- Nubar Foundation Base Coat
- 3 coats of China Glaze Zombie Zest
- Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat
Natural Light
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- Natural Light
Flash
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Bright Natural Light
Dim Natural Light
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Claim: TRUSTED
√ Mossy green shade with gold flecks of micro glitter
Key Notes
- Name: China Glaze Zombie Zest
- Collection: China Glaze Awakening Collection 2010
- Colours Available in the Collection: Zombie Zest, Mummy May I & Ick-A Bod-Y
- Amount: 14 mL (0.5 fl. oz.)
- What I Paid: $2.75 USD
- Where to Buy: Victoria Nail Supply & possibly the clearance bins at some beauty-supply stores
China Glaze Zombie Zest Review
Colour
This green got down and dirty without any regrets about ruining its reputation. 😛 It’s not cheery or bright, but swampy with a slight antique feeling. The name, Zombie Zest really fits this hue perfectly.
I imagine that this murky green is what old, polluted algae looks like. Haha, I’m really selling this, huh? 😛 These are actually nasty descriptions that would make me buy this polish, to be honest!
Finish
Zombie Zest by China Glaze has depth. It’s not just your typical glitter polish. It has that something extra. I do believe it’s the yellowish-green jelly base that allows the green and golden flake glitter to shine through. And what’s great about the flakes is that they lie flat on your nail, so the finish is smooth, not gritty.
Application & Formula
It applied very smoothly and easily, but the formula was on the watery side. Because Zombie Zest is a jelly, it was sheerer, so I needed to use 3 coats. You could even use 4, but I rarely use 4 coats unless the polish absolutely needs it.
I noticed that the formula was also very thin, so if you’re planning to use a thick fast-drying top coat like Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (which is what I used), I suggest waiting about 10 minutes before adding your top coat. If you don’t (I didn’t wait long enough), then the top coat will dry and shrink the polish, and the white tips of your nails will peek through a bit.
I find that pretty annoying, so next time I’ll either wait longer or use a thinner top coat. (This doesn’t happen for me with Seche Vite and most other colours, so it’s specifically with Zombie Zest’s formula.)
Pros
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Cons
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Final Verdict: 9.5/10
I would’ve given Zombie Zest a perfect 10 if the formula weren’t so watery and sheer. But I had to give it a high score because when I wore this, I absolutely loved it! China Glaze It’s Alive still holds the Number One spot for my favourite green polish of all time, though.
Do you prefer China Glaze Zombie Zest or It’s Alive? What colour(s) fall within your comfort zone? When you get nail-polish shrinkage, do you try to fix it or just wear your manicure as is?
Is it weird that every time I hear/read Zombie Zest I get the mental image of a zombie being grated? You know, like lemon zest…? Or maybe I cook too much. 😛
Strangely enough, I prefer the base color of It’s Alive but love, love, love the flakies of Zombie Zest. I guess it’s because I naturally gravitate towards cooler toned colors. They both have the swampy feel except Zombie Zest is warmer and It’s Alive is cooler. Plus, of course the glitter vs the flakies. Flakies win over glitters every. single. time. So really, I can’t say which I prefer more. BUT if China Glaze does one next year with a cool toned swampy green with flakies, that trumps both for sure! 😀
I hate shrinkage more than visible nail line. It bugs me when I see white tips right after I just did my nails that I have to take it all off and do it over. Sometimes, I’ll try to salvage it by either painting just the white edges or finding something (crackle, glitter, flakie, sheer) to layer on top of the existing color. I might even stamp over it with one of those french tip designs but I’m not a fan of the french (tip) so that very rarely happens.
Excited for Halloween yet? 😀
Carmela recently posted: L’Oreal Owl’s Night
Hey Carmela!
Haha, no, not at all! I always think of a zombie getting shredded, too! 😀 Some people think the name’s gross, but that’s why it’s more appealing to me. Plus it IS from a Hallowe’en collection, so it makes sense. 🙂
You know what would be cool? Combine the best of both worlds. How about 1 coat of It’s Alive with a coat of Zombie Zest on top? I wonder how that would look. (It’s probably been done before. I’ll need to see what I can find online.)
VERY EXCITED FOR HALLOWE’EN! (Just a smidgeon.) 😉
Will you be dressing up this year or hosting a party?
One of my favorite, if not THE favorite, green glitters I own. It is one of those polishes/shades that mesmerize. Great review!
Kimberly recently posted: A Dirty Little Orange Number
Hey Kimberly!
Thanks! I’m glad that you found my review enjoyable/useful! 🙂
Definitely it’s a gorgeous polish with an awesome name! 🙂 It reminds me a bit of Orly It’s Not Rocket Science, except I remember Orly being more pigmented. Both are very fun to wear!
this is a great green glitter for halloween and other seasons and holidays to! it has a great sparkle to it. ot also looks kind of like a gold in some of the pictures! that make it even more better in my opinion!
Hey maddy!
I agree with you – the green-golden flakes really takes this colour to the next level! 🙂
This is really nice!!! OMG I want it!
Hey Tari!
Seems like it’s a little harder to find than it was just a few months ago. It’s too bad. More people should have access to it without resorting to eBay.
Mary, you know this one wins over It’s Alive for me! Haha. I do love the other, but this one just makes me swoon like nothing else. Hey, you managed to capture the blue flash this has! Good job, I couldn’t do it on camera but I could see it at weird angles.
Nicole recently posted: Pink Wednesday: BB Couture Scorching Strawberry
Hey Nicole!
Thank you! 😀 Although…my camera may be dying. *Sniff sniff* It conks out a lot more these days, so it’s becoming unreliable. I need to purchase a new camera probably in the next few days. Most likely it’ll be just a slightly upgraded version of what I already have (an ancient Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200). Can’t afford a major investment like a DSLR (my dream camera) right now. One day!
I love love love this polish! Its my fave green polish I own. I could never get tired of looking at this color.
Hey MissMidnightBlue!
Glad you love it! 😀 And the name is just so much fun, too.