onmynailstoday

Ciaté Mini Mani Month - Day 6

Behind door number 6 is ‘Angel Wings’, a light silver shade with a pearl finish. I think this replaces ‘Halo’ as my least favourite polish from the calendar so far. While the formula is good (the below photos show two coats), I can’t get past the shimmery finish. My boyfriend said, ‘oh, it makes you look healthy’ (cheers mate), but it's definitely one I’ll be palming off on a sister or friend. Can I pass that off as a Christmas gift..?

Ciaté Mini Mani Month - Day 5

Today’s treat is ‘Cabaret’ - a purple berry / grape colour which reminds me a little of Vimto. I really love the colour and it’s a nice addition to the burgundies and reds in my collection. I found the formula a little thin, although I've read great things about this polish elsewhere. After 2 coats, it looked a little streaky and thin, so a third coat was needed to smooth it out and make it fully opaque. For me, the prettiness of the colour makes up for the poorer formulation and I think I'll reach for this a lot.

With 2 coats

3 coats and fully opaque

Ciaté Mini Mani Month - Day 4

Behind door number 4 was the first Caviar blend in the calendar. ‘Prom Queen' is a mix of hot pink, silver and dark blue pearls, with pink and silver glitter thrown in. I’ve been really looking forward to trying the Caviar blends and wasn’t disappointed. I had expected it to be an arduous job, but it was surprisingly easy and mess-free thanks to the included funnel. I opted for an accent nail with 'Cupcake Queen' (two coats) to complement it. I like the look of the Caviar blend, but I’d prefer a more neutral coloured / toned down version. It’s definitely not the most practical manicure, it doesn’t lend itself well to washing the pots or putting your socks on (the latter is a must, it's freezing outside), but it would make a nice special occasion nail.

Ciaté Mini Mani Month - Day 3

Today's polish is 'Halo' - a clear-based, purple / blue holographic shimmer, which I think works best as a topcoat. I used one coat in the pictures below, though with two or three, it could look nice by itself. Layered over 'Dangerous Affair', the colour is transformed from a deep red to a purple shade, with the blue shimmer clearly visible (although somewhat difficult to photograph!). I'm going try this as a topcoat over some other polishes to see the effect it has and will post any nice combinations I come across.

Overall, I'm not that keen on 'Halo', though I will try it out some more before donating to my sister, or some other worthy cause. Shimmery nail varnishes are not something I wear, preferring solid colours or all-out glitters, so for me, 'Halo' is just an odd middle ground...

Are you a fan of this nail varnish? Any suggestions on how to use it?

Ciaté Mini Mani Month - Day 2

Door #2 revealed ‘Dangerous Affair’, a deep red, almost burgundy colour. The formula was really good, although two or three coats are a must to get the true colour pay off. Below is two coats in natural light. Next time I wear it, I'll go for three to amp up the intensity. I think I’ll get a lot of wear out of this polish as it’s rich and autumnal (my favourite type), but not as dark and gothic as a lot of my other seasonal shades.

Ciaté Mini Mani Month - Day 1

I don’t normally bother with advent calendars; I’d rather just buy a Twirl when I fancy it. However, when I saw that Ciaté had created the Mini Mani Month, my interest was piqued. At £38, it’s pretty pricey, but you do get 24 5ml nail varnishes, and with a full size (13.5ml) Ciaté polish costing £9, it works out to be somewhat of a good deal. It contains 17 of their best-selling colours, 4 Caviar blends and 3 shades which are exclusive to the calendar. I can’t wait to try the Caviar blends and am thinking a festive Caviar manicure might be nice for Christmas day.

Door number 1 revealed ‘Cupcake Queen’, a bright pink with a slight blue shimmer running through it. I don’t normally go for bright pinks on my fingers (it makes me feel like Barbie), but I think it’d be a nice pedicure colour. The formula is really good; one coat would suffice if you were in a rush, although I did two to show the colour’s intensity.

A full size Ciaté nail varnish (in the shade 'Bon Bon'), and the mini

Happy December!

Nail varnish haul

OPI 'Get in the expresso lane', Essie 'Stylenomics', Essie 'Recessionista', Essence 'Circus confetti' and Essence 'Holo topping, please!'

More duty free and general continental madness. While en-route to Munich recently, I decided to take advantage of duty free shopping and buy my sister’s birthday present (2 months in advance, check me). While wandering about, I came across an OPI stand. I’ve got a base and top coat from the brand, but have never tried any of their colours, so was very easily tempted. ‘Get in the expresso lane’ caught my eye – a coffee-esque brown (durr) with a dark, olive green tint to it. I was really looking forward to trying it out and had high hopes, seeing as OPI is such a popular brand. However, the formula of the polish is one of the worst I’ve come across. The consistency is very thin and goes on pretty streaky and uneven. Two coats, if not three, are definitely needed. I like the finished look of it on my nails (nice and shiny!), though I wish the green tones were more noticeable.

I was excited to be on mainland Europe again and planned on picking up some bits and bobs from those brands we can’t get in the UK. Wandering around a rainy Munich town centre, I came across a shop called Douglas, which seemed like a cheap and cheerful Sephora. I was giddy. Pottering around and getting excited about exotic sounding names (saddo? me?), I came across Essence. I’d heard this brand mentioned on a few blogs before but didn’t realise how affordable it was. I picked up two nail varnishes – a sandy coloured, holographic microglitter called ‘Holo topping, please!’ and a chunky, multicoloured glitter called ‘Circus confetti’. At €1.79 each, they were a bargain! I was tempted to buy more, but had already put two Essie nail varnishes in my basket, so exercised some self-control. ‘Holo topping, please!’ isn’t a colour I’d normally go for; I had this idea that nude shimmers would look cheap on my nails. This polish has changed my mind. Two coats of this by itself give a lovely opaque, but subtle shimmer, while one coat layered over a nude polish looks equally nice. ‘Circus confetti’ would be harder to achieve an opaque finish with. The clear base is shot through with different sized purple, pink, gold and turquoise glitters. I really like this layered over dark colours, makes my nails feel jazzy.

At €7.95 a bottle, I reasoned that the Essie polishes worked out cheaper than in Boots and Superdrug, where they sell for £7.99 a go. My choices were very autumnal; ‘Recessionista’ – a beautiful dark berry, and ‘Stylenomics’ – a very dark, forest green. The formula of both is great and they could easily be worn with just one coat (particularly ‘Stylenomics’). I’ve really been loving wearing these and feeling very season-appropriate.

My nail varnish obsession continues... I've treated myself to the rather expensive (but amazing) Ciaté Mini Mani Month advent calendar (Day 1 post to follow). I'm sure my nail varnish bag will be overflowing by the end of the month. My boyfriend’s suggestion of a ‘one in, one out’ policy is definitely not going to happen though, 29 is a big ask!