12 Days of Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 4

Today's nail art challenge was based on the song 'Frosty the Snowman'.

I used Blanc by Essie and Miss Sporty's Twinkle Shine (my current glitter polish favourite) as a base colour. I then used a black striper and dotting tool to create the snowman's (snowmen's?) hat, coal eyes and mouth. I used a silver glitter striper to add detail to the hat and George's Sunset Orange to draw sideways triangles for the nose.

I hope you like it!

Ciate Advent Calendar - Day 7, 8 & 9

I've been a little behind on my daily Ciate calendar updates, so I thought I'd do a collective post on what I got behind each door over the past few days.

On day 7 there was Cutie Pie, a pale baby pink colour. It is very sheer so would need 2 or 3 coats to see any colour on the nail.

Ciate Mini (5ml) - Cutie Pie

Vintage, a creamy grey polish, was behind door number 8. It has a thicker consistency so only requires one coat for complete coverage. 

                                                

Ciate Mini (5ml) - Vintage

Today I found Mistress lurking behind door number 9. It is a orangey red colour but has a very thin consistency, it took 3 coats of polish to achieve the full effect of the colour. 

Ciate Mini (5ml) - Mistress

I have been a little disappointed with the colours over the past few days, so I am looking forward to finding one of Ciate's new mystery colours (exclusive to the mini mani month calendar). 

I am particularly enjoying reading the little notes on the inside of each of the doors. My favourite was the fact about when nail varnish was invented - fascinating!

Until next time...

12 Days of Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 3

Today's nail art challenge was based around the song 'Oh Christmas Tree'. I wanted to do something slightly different from the traditional block colour design with a decorated tree, so I opted for a winter Christmas tree snow scene instead.

I used a clear glitter polish as a base coat, and then I painted the tips of my nails white to imitate snowfall on the ground. I used two green polishes to create the trees; Camouflage by Rimmel and Emerald City by Revlon. To finish I used a small dotting tool to create white and silver snowflakes over the top of the design.

Until next time...

Ciate Advent Calendar - Day 5

Behind door number 5 of the calendar was Cabaret, a warm creamy purple with a hint of pink. The consistency of this one is definitely a lot thicker than the others, it only took one coat to achieve an opaque look. 

Ciate Mini (5ml) - Cabaret

Until next time...

12 Days of Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 2

My second nail art design was based on my favourite Christmas book; How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr Seuss.

I can always remember Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone 2 watching the cartoon version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. A few years later (although I'm sure in reality it was a good 10 years or so after) I can vividly remember watching The Grinch starring Jim Carey at the cinema.

However, it wasn't until recently I actually read the book. I instantly loved it and now I reread it every Christmas.

The Grinch took a little time and a lot of patience but I am pleased with the result :)

Until next time...

Ciate Advent Calendar - Day 3 & 4

Hidden behind door number 3 was Halo, a pretty pearlescent white with an irridescent sparkle. 

Ciate Mini (5ml) - Halo

Today's door, number 4, concealed a bottle of Ciate's famous Caviar Manicure nail pearls. This particular caviar combination includes pink, silver and purple beads with hints of pink and silver glitter.

Ciate Caviar Pearls (10g) - Prom Queen

Until next time...

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas...

Usually I spend my Sundays working and preparing things for the following week, but I really wanted to go to a Christmas fair to see if I could buy some one-of-a-kind stocking fillers. We went to the breathtaking Newstead Abbey, somewhere I haven't been since I was a child. The weather was perfect; a crisp winters morning with beautiful blue skies.

Newstead Abbey, Nottinghamshire

Although the sun was shining it was still very chilly (-1°C according to the car's thermometer), so I tried to wrap up warm...

I wore my red jeans from Republic (with tights underneath), a cardigan from Monki, and my black knee length boots from New Look. My coat was a steal from George at £19 a few months ago. The red fairisle gloves, which were from La Senza last year, are most definitely my favourite part of the outfit! 

Until next time...