Adventures in Polishland

Author: Adventures in Polishland

Zoya Nail Polish Khione | January Color of the Month

Posted on January 19, 2026 by Adventures in Polishland

Winter is in full swing here in New England, and with the snow falling over this weekend I wanted a winter-inspired manicure to match the overall mood. Luckily for me, the Zoya Color of the Month for January is absolutely perfect for this time of year. Today I have swatches and a review of Khione, along with a bonus review of Boo from the Tutti Frutti Collection, which I used as a base shade for this manicure.

The products in this post was provided for my unbiased review. This post includes an affiliate and referral link. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Because Khione is a special effects topper, I began with a cool-toned blue shade as a base. Boo was released as part of the Tutti Frutti Collection this past summer, and is described as a serene Carolina blue cream polish. It has a great formula that applies smoothly and is opaque in two coats. Boo is a stunning polish on its own. I am wearing it without top coat in these swatches since I am layering on top of it.

After Boo, I applied one coat of Khione, which is described as a luminous white overlay with vivid pink-fire reflect. Khione applies easily and is packed with reflective glitters that really sparkle. I really love the icy finish that Khione gives to the nails. It looks stunning from every angle! Plus, the pink glitters make this topper different from the others in my collection. To complete the manicure, I added the Zoya Glossy Seal Top Coat.

Overall, I am loving the January Color of the Month from Zoya. Khione is a beautiful nail polish, and I feel like I have a really fancy manicure even though I just painted my nails at home. Khione is currently available on the Zoya website for $14.00. You can save $5.00 off your first Zoya purchase by using my referral link.

Holo Taco Combo | Zoya Nail Polish West and Holo Taco Freezer Burn

Posted on December 3, 2025 by Adventures in Polishland

This week I wasn’t sure what nail polish I wanted to wear, so I looked through my recent packages from Zoya Nail Polish and noticed a beautiful green shade from the Fall 2025 Muse Collection that I hadn’t yet tried. I decided to pair it with Holo Taco Freezer Burn, and I was so pleasantly surprised with the results! I thought I would share a review of Zoya West with you, and also show you how a nail polish topper can really transform any manicure into a new and unique shade.

Zoya Nail Polish West | Fall 2025 Muse Collection

Some of the products in this post were provided for my unbiased review. This post includes an affiliate link. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

I began my manicure with Zoya West, described as a dusky pine cream polish. This is a very dark green shade with blue undertones. West has a great formula that applies smoothly and is opaque in two coats. I really like the shade of green in this polish, and I like how shiny it is even without a top coat. You can purchase West on Zoya’s website for $14.00. You can save $5.00 off your first purchase from Zoya if you use my referral link.

Next up I added one coat of Holo Taco Freezer Burn. This is a special effects topper that is a blue iridescent shimmer. I am absolutely loving how my nails are now a deep blue shade with blue and purple shimmer. Freezer Burn is so fun to use, because although I never know what the end result will look like, it always ends up being so cool (pun not intended)! You can purchase Freezer Burn on the Holo Taco website for $14.00. I also used the Zoya Ultra Glossy Top Coat to seal in the look, which is available at Ulta for $17.00.

I am so happy with my nail polish combination this week! Adding a few special effects toppers to your nail polish collection can help you create so many fun manicures, and I love reaching for Freezer Burn in particular. If you would like to see how Freezer Burn looks over some other shades of nail polish, I have a post where you can see it over purple, and a post where I use it in a holiday themed manicure.

What is your favorite nail polish topper? Let me know in the comments!

Regional Theatre Review | Fun Home

Posted on November 23, 2025 by Adventures in Polishland

Fun Home

Playing at The Huntington Theatre

Musical or play? Musical

Lottery or Rush tickets? Discount ticket options available. Details online HERE.

What I Paid: n/a [PR Invite]

My Rating: ★★★★

Official Website: https://www.huntingtontheatre.org/whats-on/fun-home/

Winner of five Tony Awards including Best Musical, Fun Home is a beloved, groundbreaking, and emotionally rich story of seeing your parents through grown-up eyes. Based on Alison Bechdel’s best-selling graphic memoir, the musical traces Alison through childhood, college, and adulthood as she unravels her coming-out story, and her complex relationship with a brilliant, volatile, and closeted father. How have the mysteries of her father’s life shaped her own understanding of love and acceptance of her lesbian identity? With a soaring score by Jeanine Tesori and a sharp, heartfelt book by Lisa Kron, Fun Home is a beautiful, can’t-miss theatrical experience, directed by Logan Ellis.

REVIEW

One of my favorite things about regional theatre is being able to see shows that I missed on Broadway. That is the case for Fun Home, now playing at The Huntington Theatre in Boston through December 14, 2025. This musical is based on Alison Bechdel’s graphic memoir of the same name. While you can certainly see the show with no pre-existing knowledge of the storyline, I did read the book in advance and I’m glad I did, as it adds a rich layer of character development to an already complicated family drama.

The musical opens with Alison, now in her forties, attempting to create her memoir while struggling to put her story down on paper. We flash back to her childhood and college years, while the present day Alison shadows her younger selves throughout key moments in her life. From her unique childhood growing up in the funeral home business, to her coming to terms with her sexual identity as a lesbian, Fun Home showcases the complexity of life. There are moments replete with anger and sadness, and others full of joy and epiphany. The musical itself captures these emotions through its dark humor, which invokes both laughter and tears throughout the course of the show.

One of the strongest themes in this production of Fun Home is reflection. The set utilizes a mirror at several points, with the characters gazing upon their reflections. This not only encapsulates the feeling of seeing your true self mirrored back at you, but we also see this theme at play when Alison interacts with the younger versions of herself. She spends the show literally reflecting on her life, but we also see the physical representation of how all of our lives are made up of different versions of ourself. It is both moving and endearing to see Alison feel embarrassed of her college-aged self, for example, as I’m sure many of us can relate to cringeworthy moments from our youth. Of course, Alison is also trying to grapple with whether or not she is a reflection of her father, who unbeknownst to her, was a closeted gay man who had several affairs with men, some of them underage.

Moreover, I was very impressed with both the direction and acting performances in Fun Home. The characters balance the complex emotions of the show well. For example, Middle Alison (Maya Jacobson) is charming with her naivety as she accepts her newfound lesbian identity, while Small Alison (Lyla Randall) puts up a brave front while loving, yet being fearful of, her father. Bruce Bechdel (Nick Duckart), however, is truly the most intriguing character in the show. The audience can empathize with his decision to live in a fraudulent marriage, yet still detest his violence. Seeing these incredible performances really gave a lot of meaning to Alison’s memoir, which was difficult for me to relate to in book form.

Overall, I highly recommend seeing Fun Home if you have the opportunity. My favorite scene in the show was “Come To The Fun Home,” in which the Bechdel children make a commercial for their family’s funeral home. It is hilarious, and showcases the talents of the child actors. Similarly, “Ring of Keys,” is another powerful moment that demonstrates how important the story Fun Home is. At the end of the day, this piece of musical theatre depicts why it is vital to uplift and celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community, so that no one feels the need to hide their true selves, or fear to live authentically.

Watch my vlog of seeing Fun Home on Instagram HERE.

Zoya Nail Polish Phoenix | November Color of the Month

Posted on November 9, 2025 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy November! Today I have swatches and a full review of Zoya Nail Polish Phoenix, the Color of the Month for November 2025. I have mentioned this many times before, but I really love Zoya’s Color of the Month polishes. They are not part of a subscription service, so you can pick and choose which months to make a purchase, but the polishes themselves are usually perfect for that time of year. That is certainly the case with Phoenix, which is sure to take us from fall and Thanksgiving, all the way through the end of the year.

Zoya November Color of the Month Phoenix

The product in this post was provided for my unbiased review. This post includes an affiliate and referral link. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Phoenix is a crimson red nail polish with gold micro-glitter. It is opaque in two coats and applies really smoothly and easily. I absolutely love how multi-dimensional this nail polish is, and how the gold glitter really catches the light. I added the Zoya Ultra Glossy Top Coat, and I think it makes the polish even shinier.

Zoya Nail Polish Phoenix November 2025 Color of the Month

What I really love about Phoenix is that it really is a great nail polish color of this time of the year. The warm, red shade is not only suitable for the fall, but I can definitely see this polish working well for both Thanksgiving and the Christmas season. You can wear Phoenix on its own for a stunning manicure, but you can also pair it with a shimmery green for a holiday look. Now that I’m thinking about it, this polish also works well for Valentine’s Day! If you like nail polishes that can be used over and over, I think Phoenix is a solid addition to your collection.

As I write this blog post, Phoenix is not currently available on the Zoya Nail Polish website even though it was scheduled to be released on November 1, 2025. I recommend visiting the Color of the Month page online HERE to see if it is for sale.

Musical Manicures | Honeymoon in Vegas Inspired Nails

Posted on October 12, 2025 by Adventures in Polishland

Today I have the eleventh installment of my Musical Manicures series to share with you. If you are keeping track here on the blog, you may realize I did not post about the tenth installment, as it featured Operation Mincemeat, which I just shared a review of not long ago. However, you can visit me on Instagram to see the manicure! This time around, I picked Honeymoon in Vegas out of the random jar of shows, and got to work picking multiple polishes from my nail polish collection to create a manicure inspired by the show.

I saw Honeymoon in Vegas back in November 2014 with my friend who was visiting me in the city. I was especially keen to see this show because it starred Tony Danza, who I loved watching in Who’s the Boss? growing up. We bought $32.00 rush tickets, and had mezzanine seats on the left side that were so uncomfortable I can still remember how squished our legs were. Unfortunately, this is one of those situations where I remember more about our seats than the show itself! Looking at the Playbill, I know we saw an incredible cast, but the music is so forgettable that I could not tell you a single song. I do remember a number with the cast all dressed as Elvis, and notes from my old blog let me know I overall had a good time. Sometimes shows just do not stick with you even if you enjoyed them in the moment!

Musical Manicures | Honeymoon in Vegas Nails

The products in this post were originally provided for my unbiased review. Some links are affiliate links. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

For the Honeymoon in Vegas nails, I definitely wanted to focus on the sparkly gold background of the Playbill. I also decided to incorporate the iconic red and white Las Vegas sign, so I used an accent nail for that purpose. For the gold nails, I actually used three different nail polishes. I started with a base of Zoya Moki, which is a metallic gold polish. Then I added one coat of Holo Taco Gold Flake Taco, a yellow gold glitter polish, and one coat of Zoya Vienna, a gold metallic polish with holographic glitters. Layering all three shades really gave me the glittery look I was hoping to achieve!

As for the accent nail, I did one coat of Zoya Soko, a red cream polish. Then I layered LVX Fantom, a white nail polish, on top leaving the red peaking out like a reverse french manicure. I had to apply 2-3 layers of the white polish letting it dry in between so I did not smudge it with the red shade. I then added a “love” nail sticker from the Le Mini Macaron Joli Emoji set. Finally, I sealed my entire manicure using the Zoya Ultra Glossy Top Coat.

Overall, I think my manicure does a great job at capturing the essence of the Honeymoon in Vegas Playbill. I may not remember much about the show itself, but at one point I will listen to the Original Broadway Cast recording and see if it rings any bells. For now, I will spend the week admiring my gold sparkly nails!

Take a look inside the Playbill in this week’s Reel video on Instagram!

Zoya Nail Polish Tempest | October Color of the Month

Posted on October 6, 2025 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy October! Today I have swatches and a review of the Zoya Nail Polish Color of the Month for October, Tempest. If you are new to Zoya, it is a cruelty free brand with vegan nail polishes. Most months, they release a Color of the Month that is a seasonal shade only available for purchase during the month of its release. I really enjoy this feature because it is not a subscription service, so you can choose to purchase the Color of the Month if you like the polish, but you do not have to sign up for anything. I often really enjoy the monthly polish, and that is true of the October shade. I wanted to put it on my nails as soon as it arrived in the mail!

Zoya Nail Polish October Color of the Month Tempest

The product in this post was provided for my unbiased review. This post includes an affiliate and referral link. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Tempest is described as a deep blackened green polish with golden shimmer. It has an excellent formula that applies smoothly and is opaque in two coats. Similar to Octavia from the Muse Collection, Tempest looks very sparkly, but it does not have a gritty or textured formula like a glitter polish would. I really love the dimension in this nail polish, and love that is applies so easily. To complete the look, I used the Zoya Ultra Glossy Top Coat.

Zoya Tempest | October Color of the Month

Tempest is such a great pick for the October Color of the Month. The deep green shade is very autumnal, and works well for the Halloween season, but it is perfect for the holiday season, too. I really like the combination of very dark green with the shimmer mixed in, as when the light hits my nails the color is transformed. If you like shimmer polishes, Tempest is a great option! It is available on Zoya’s website for $14.00. You can use my referral link to save $5.00 on your first purchase.

Dark Purple Fall Manicure featuring the Zoya Nail Polish Muse Collection

Posted on September 22, 2025September 22, 2025 by Adventures in Polishland

Today is the first official day of fall, so I thought I would share with you my current manicure featuring two nail polishes from the Zoya Nail Polish Muse Collection for Fall 2025. I received this collection in the mail over the weekend, and was immediately drawn to the dark purple shades. I wanted to get both of them on my nails right away, and decided to combine them together into one look that is perfect for ringing in the autumn season.

Zoya Muse Collection | Daphne and Octavia

The products in this post were provided for my unbiased review. This post includes an affiliate link. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

The Muse Collection contains twelve nail polish shades ranging from warm pinks to deep jewel tones. I love that the polishes compliment each other really well, so they can easily be worn together in different combinations. I used Daphne and Octavia for this manicure. In the above photographs, I’m wearing Daphne on my pinky, pointer finger, and thumb, and Octavia on my two middle fingers.

Zoya describes Daphne as a smoky blue-violet cream. It is opaque in two coats and has a perfect formula that applies smoothly and evenly. I think Daphne is just slightly darker on my nails than it appears on the Zoya website. Octavia is described as a shimmering violet magenta pearl polish. It is also opaque in two coats, and the formula glides on with ease. I completed my manicure with the Zoya Ultra Glossy Top Coat.

I am really happy with this manicure. While simple to create, the deep purple shades look very rich and elevated, especially with the shimmer of Octavia. For some reason I have been really drawn to the color purple this year, and that is extending from my wardrobe to my nails. Obviously, I always appreciate when the nail polishes I use have great formulas, too! I definitely recommend both of these shades, and I look forward to exploring more of the Muse Collection throughout the fall season.

The Muse Collection is available on Zoya’s website. Each polish is $14.00. You can use my referral link HERE to save $5.00 on your first purchase.

Musical Manicures | Hairspray Inspired Nails

Posted on September 20, 2025 by Adventures in Polishland

Today I am excited to share the ninth installment of Musical Manicures, the series where I create a nail polish look inspired by a Broadway show that I’ve seen in the past. This week I picked Hairspray out of the jar, which is another show I got to see with my dance class on a trip to New York City. We saw the musical in March of 2006, and were super lucky to see an amazing cast that included Diana Degarmo, Tevin Campbell, and Andrew Rannells. We also took a dance class with a member of the Broadway company before we saw the show, and learned the choreography to You Can’t Stop the Beat. It was such a fun experience!

Me, Diana Degarmo, and my friend at the Stage Door!

Not only did I really enjoy the upbeat music, joyful choreography, and colorful costumes of Hairspray, but we had a wonderful stage door experience as well. I remember many of the actors thought my friend and I were sisters, which we got a kick out of at the time. We were able to get a picture with Diana Degarmo, who had recently been in American Idol. I remember we wished we had taken a photo with Andrew Rannells, as we loved him as Link Larkin, but selfies at the stage door were not as popular back then! Fun fact, the above picture was taken on a regular 35mm film camera I was still using!

The products in this post were originally provided for my unbiased review. Some links are affiliate links. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

For my manicure this week, I decided to create a simple skittle inspired by the colorful Hairspray logo. I had a lot of fun finding nail polishes in my collection that matched up with the colors in the lettering. I will list the polishes I used here, and link to them if they are still available for purchase.

Zoya Nail Polish Janie, a bright pink
Priti NYC Fireglow, a pumpkin orange – BUY
Zoya Nail Polish Willa, an onyx black – BUY
Zoya Nail Polish Hattie, a blush mauve pink – BUY
Zoya Nail Polish Becca, a deep plum purple – BUY
Zoya Nail Polish Tucker, a bright sky blue
LVX Fantom, a bright white – BUY
Zoya Nail Polish Chiara, a jewel toned purple – BUY

I added two coats of each shade on my nails, and sealed in the manicure with a layer of the Zoya Ultra Glossy Top Coat. This manicure was so easy to create, and I really enjoyed looking at my nails all week long. I never would have put together this color combination if not for this project!

This week reminded me how much I love skittle manicures, as it can be quite fun to paint each nail a different color. Plus, I got to revisit a Broadway musical that I really enjoy. Now that it’s been over 15 years since the original run of Hairspray closed, I hope that we will see a revival production at some point in the near future. I love listening to the Original Broadway Cast Recording, and I think the story is evergreen, too.

See inside the Playbill and learn more about my manicure on Instagram HERE!

Off-Broadway Review | Heathers

Posted on September 16, 2025 by Adventures in Polishland

Heathers

Playing at New World Stages

Musical or play? Musical

Lottery or Rush Tickets? $38.00 Digital Lottery and Digital Rush

What I Paid: $140.00

My Rating: ★★★★

Official Website: https://heathersthemusical.com/

Welcome to Westerberg High, where popularity is a matter of life and death, and Veronica Sawyer is just another of the nobodies dreaming of a better day. But when she’s unexpectedly taken under the wings of the three beautiful and impossibly cruel Heathers, her dreams of popularity finally start to come true. That is until J.D., the mysterious teen rebel, teaches her that it might kill to be a nobody, but it is murder being a somebody…

REVIEW

When I heard Heathers was making a return to New York City off-broadway at New World Stages, I knew I had to check this cult classic musical out for myself. All I knew about Heathers was that it is set in a high school, starred Carrie Hope Fletcher in the West End, and had a controversial scene depicting suicide. Otherwise, I managed to avoid spoilers, and boy was I in for a surprise! I can only describe Heathers as Mean Girls meets Stephen King, as the show got very intense very quickly.

I purchased a full price ticket for Heathers online from the box office. Thankfully, the prices are not too steep given the off-broadway venue, and even though I was farther back in Orchestra Center, I had a great view as the theatre is on the smaller side. Because this show is selling quite well, I do recommend buying your tickets in advance if you are looking for specific seats or a specific date.

At the center of Heathers is the classic story of a bullied high school student who just wants to fit in with the popular crowd. Here, Veronica Sawyer (Lorna Courtney) decides to befriend the top clique, the Heathers, so that she can get through high school unscathed. However, Veronica quickly realizes that popularity isn’t everything, but instead of simply breaking off the friendship, Veronica ends up in murderous situations with her new boyfriend, J.D. (Casey Likes). What follows is a terrifying tale where the teenagers of Westerberg High start dying off in quick succession.

It is undeniable that the cast of Heathers is fully stacked. Courtney is incredible as Veronica, with vocals that left me beyond impressed every time she hit a run. She also captures the essence of an intelligent yet naive teenager well. Her facial expressions during the song Our Love is God are so perfect. Similarly, anyone who saw Likes portray Marty McFly in Back to the Future will immediately recognize his acting ability, as he is downright scary in Heathers! As for the Heathers themselves, understudy Sara Al-Bazali was on for Heather Chandler, usually played by McKenzie Kurtz, and she, Olivia Hardy, and Elizabeth Teeter have the crowd in the palms of their hands from the moment they appear on stage. It’s worth seeing Heathers just to experience the immense talent of this cast alone!

Moreover, I will say that the content of Heathers did feel a bit dated to me. Yes, the show is set in the 1980s and based on a movie from the same time period, but do we really need to keep gay slurs in the script? In the same way, while I understand that the show is meant to be satire and a social commentary on the high school experience, the fun, upbeat, and poppy songs sometimes feel as if the show is marginalizing topics such as violence in schools, bullying and suicide. Heathers therefore feels similar to The Book of Mormon, where in the process of using dark comedy to joke about serious issues, negative ideals are perpetuated. Perhaps if the theatre wasn’t filled with cosplaying young folks who joyfully scream at the conclusion of each song, I wouldn’t be as concerned with whether the messages of Heathers are being received literally or figuratively in today’s social and political climate.

That being said, Heathers is an electrifying musical with very catchy songs. The set functions well as it transitions from the high school to the students’ homes to even a 7-11. I also really enjoyed the lighting in the show, specifically in Candy Store, where the Heathers are drenched in their signature red, green, and yellow colors. While I would love to see some rewrites to the Heathers story to strengthen the satire and update it for a 2025 crowd, I was very impressed with this off-broadway production. If you enjoy dark comedies, Heathers is certainly an excellent option, especially considering the current cast. However, I would strongly recommend looking up content warnings in advance, and keep in mind this show is not appropriate for kids.

STAGE DOOR

The Stage Door at New World Stages is on 49th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues. It is on the opposite side of the main door to the theatre on 50th Street. I typically take a right when I exit the theatre and cut through Worldwide Plaza before taking another right. You will see barricades and security set up at the Stage Door itself. Most of the cast came out to sign Playbills and take selfies with those who asked. Casey Likes stopped to wave and say hi to everyone before heading to another event, and Lorna Courtney did not come out to sign. The crowd was very polite and respectful, and all of the actors were very friendly and gracious. It was a great way to end the evening!

Follow me on Instagram to see my vlog of seeing Heathers HERE.

Musical Manicures | Movin’ Out Inspired Nails

Posted on September 13, 2025 by Adventures in Polishland

Welcome back to Musical Manicures, the series where I create a nail polish look inspired by a Broadway show I’ve seen in the past. This is the eighth installment of this series, and I am really enjoying revisiting so many of the amazing shows I’ve seen all while using polishes from my collection that I may not reach for on a regular basis. This week I picked Movin’ Out from the jar of musicals, which brings me back to January 2004. This is the second show I ever saw on Broadway, and I got to visit with my dance class on our first trip together to New York City. Not only did we get to see the Movin’ Out, but we also got to take a master dance class with one of the Broadway dancers, who taught us choreography from the show. I wish I could remember which performer it was, and I also wish I had photos to show you from the time. Alas, this was over 20 years ago before I had a digital camera!

Movin’ Out is a jukebox musical set to songs by Billy Joel and with choreography by Twyla Tharp. Although there is a Piano Man who sat above the stage and performed all the music, the show is otherwise told through dance. I remember that we did not have the best seats in the Richard Rogers Theatre, and I also remember that the show was definitely a bit too mature for us at the time. Looking back, I think Movin’ Out it a musical I would appreciate a lot more now as an adult than I did as a middle school student!

The products in this post were originally provided for my unbiased review. Some links are affiliate links. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

For my manicure, I decided to do an abstract take on the Movin’ Out street sign logo. I began with a bright blue shade as the primary color using Zoya Sia, one of my all time favorite nail polishes. For my accent nail, I used LVX Fantom, which is a white nail polish, as the base. I let the white nail polish dry completely before I sectioned off my nail using striping tape. I then used Zoya Soko, a bright red nail polish, to act as the top of the street sign, along with more of Zoya Sia as the bottom of it. Make sure to let your nail polish dry completely before adding a top coat! Unfortunately, I wasn’t patient enough and smudged the nail art when I added Zoya Ultra Glossy Top Coat to seal in the look. Luckily, the Movin’ Out street sign is a bit banged up, so I don’t think my manicure needs to be perfect!

Overall, it was really fun to revisit a Broadway show that I saw over 20 years ago with this Musical Manicures installment! I feel like Movin’ Out is a more niche show that you may not have heard of before this post. It will be interesting to see if this musical ever gets revived on Broadway. Musicals that are primarily dance revues are not as popular, but they can be really beautiful to experience. You will have to let me know in the comments if you’ve seen or heard of Movin’ Out, as I would love to know!

Join me on Instagram to see the behind-the-scenes of this manicure HERE!