Ciaté Mini Mani Month 2019 // Days 15 - 21

Day 15
Gelology Top Coat

This was Day 5 in last years Calendar and I don't think I've used it since. I should really start using it more often.

Day 16
Rose Gold Mini Glitter Filer

I think I preferred the decals from last year. It's cute but impractical as my go-to filer. I'll put it in my handbag though for emergencies.

Day 17 
Paradise Lost // Pink to Gold Duochrome Shimmer

This was Day 21 in last years Calendar and one of my 'mystery shades'. I've realised now though that all the 'mystery shades' are just left over polishes from last years calendar. But anyway, I'm not really bothered about this repeat because I love it. I now have 2 mini's and a Full Size version because it's just such a beautiful pink to gold shimmer. I'm wearing two coats but you could possibly get away with 1 if applied slowly enough. The gold shift really makes this shade, it's one of those where you can't stop moving your hand back and forth in the light.

Day 18
Palm Springs Pool Party // Royal Blue Jelly

I'm really upset because this shade was the reason I bought this years calendar but, this mini was messed up in packaging and I received a blue jelly instead of the glorious blue shimmer that is Palm Springs. This is actually the shade "Pool Party" with an incorrect label on it as that polish is a blue jelly in this exact shade. It's very streaky and something feels wrong with the formula; like it's missing some key ingredient. It was nightmare to apply as well and went everywhere. The second coat makes it look like glass and it's a nice shade but not what I wanted (nor what was advertised).

Day 19
Splash! // Green/Gold Shimmer

This is the same formula as Supernova but instead of a pink shift, it has a green shift. I don't know if I would wear it by itself as it's not really my shade but it does look good on top of a dark base, which really brings the green to life. I'm wearing two coats.

Day 20
Summer Haze // Orange/Red Crelly

Not quite a creme but not quite a jelly, I actually quite like this shade which is a first because I usually detest red shades. I think it's the warm orange tint; it goes well with my skin tone. This is a proper holiday shade (both summer and winter). One shade covers the nail with no streaks and with the tips slightly peaking through. Two coats give full coverage though. This is extremely similar to one of their other shades; Red Hot Chilli Pepper.

Day 21
House of Mirrors // Silver Linear Holo

This isn't A-England quality (which is surprising given they're the same price point) but it's not half bad for a mainstream polish brand. The first coat can be a little streaky but two coats does the trick. It does take a while to dry though.

// Verdict

An interesting week but overall not my favourite. Apart from Paradise Lost I can't see myself reaching for these shades all that often.

Days 1 - 7
Days 8 - 15
Days 22 - 24

Ciaté Mini Mani Month 2019 // Days 8 - 14

Day 8

Royal Reign // Midnight Blue Creme

This is a cross between Knee Highs and Total Eclipse; it's a super dark blue/grey creme that's ready in one coat if applied slowly. I'm really impressed with the formula on this one as it was super easy to apply and no clean up was required.

Day 9

Cyclone // Purple/Green Shimmer

This was Day 1 from the 2018 calendar and one of my 6 mystery shades. I love how this looks in the bottle but I still stand by the fact that it looks like a bruise when on the nails. It's just not a great combo. The first photo is the swatch from last year which is two coats on bare nails. The second and third swatches are one coat on top of a black base. I much prefer this as it appears more of a green/blue shift with the purple only coming out at certain angles. It's reminiscent of oil on water. Also, my nail photography skills have gotten so much better lol.

Day 10

Iced Frappe // Dusty Pink Creme

This was my very first Ciaté shade way back in the day. I got it in a Glossybox and it was my introduction to Ciaté and I fell in love with the formula and the bottle shape. I now have 2 mini's and full size as this was Day 6 in 2018's calendar. I'm wearing two glossy coats in the swatch.

Day 11

Pepperminty // Mint Creme

This was Day 17 in last years calendar and one of the days in the 2013 calendar. I swear every time I get this shade though it's a different colour. The 2018 is lighter, more sage-like than the 2013 (in the swatch my thumb is the 2018 and the wheel is 2013) and this 2019 one is lighter than both and more minty. The formula is also slightly watery for a creme and needs at least 2 coats but it's nice and shiny.

Day 12

Total Eclipse // Dark Grey/Blue Creme

This was Day 15 in last years calendar and is another one of my 6 'mystery shades'. I actually use this shade quite a bit as it's a lovely dark blue/grey that's not quite black but dark enough. One coat is almost enough by itself but two does the trick.

Day 13

Phantom // Blue/Purple Shimmer in Sheer Black Base

Finally! I a new shade for me and an absolute stunner. This definitely falls into the "starry sky" type of nail polishes with it's dark jelly base filled with blue and silver shimmery pieces. 1 coat on top of black base gives a beautiful blue shimmer with a hint of purple every now and then. By itself, 2 coats is more than enough to build up the shimmer and cover any streaks.

Day 14

Gilded Goddess // Gold Flakie in Clear Base

This is a simple gold flakie in a clear base. It's cute but nothing to write home about, I already own a few like this. I'm wearing it on top of Ice Cold Milk from H&M and it's a perfect party look.

// Verdict

This week was a bit boring for me as I already have four of the shades. Phantom is definitely this weeks winner though and it'll be perfect for space looks.

Days 1 - 7
Days 15 - 21
Days 22 -24

Ciaté Mini Mani Month 2019 // Days 1 - 7

Sing it with me now! "It's the most wonderful time of the year". That magical time when we all sit down with our family and argue about whether or not Die Hard is a Christmas film. Also it's the time for another Ciaté Mini Mani Month! I loved last years and when I saw that at least half of the shades were brand new (and I managed to snatch up the box for half price) I couldn't resist.

Day 1

Mineral Positivity // Dark green with gold and green textured glitter

This is a textured glitter that dries matte in the same way as the Zoya Pixiedust collection. This shade is actually similar to Chita from that collection but it's much darker and the gold pieces shine more. I never used to like matte textured polishes but now I love them; they're just perfect for winter. This shade is also ready in one coat and dries very fast.

Day 2

Tutu // Sheer Pale Pink Creme

I love this colour! It's beautiful and one of my favourite shades of pink. It's a little streaky at one coat but still wearable if you're looking for a sheer pink wash of colour. If you want a solid colour though it needs at least three coats but it does dry quite quickly, a few minutes depending on your temperature. It is nice and glossy though without a top coat but I imagine it will have nice gel-like shine with Barry M's plumpy top coat. Once you build up those three coats though, it kind of has a peach-feel to it, similar to Nails Inc Peach Tease. I'm a little obsessed with this shade and I'm going to have to buy it full size.

Day 3

Paparazzi // Deep Crimson Jelly

This is so dark after two coats it's almost black. It is the kind of red shade that I like though. You definitely need two coats as one is streaky but it's nice and glossy by itself. I'd say this is a bit darker than Dangerous Affair but is almost identical to Raising the Barre (both by Ciaté). Just be warned though, all these shades stain the skin easily and it's hard to get a clean edge when doing clean up.

Day 4

Tempest // Blue, Purple and Green Sheer Shimmer

This was Day 18 in last years calender. The first photo is the swatch from last year using 3 coats on bare nails. The second photo shows 3 coats again but on top of three different bases; black (middle), blue(ring) and white (index, the pinkie is just 3 coats for comparison). On top of the black, this shade really comes alive and the shift is much easier to see. It's definitely the worst on top of lighter colours.

Day 5

White Heat // White Creme

I already own this shade but another is welcome as this is my go-to white shade. I love it, even if it isn't a one coat wonder. I'm wearing two coats in the swatch with no top coat. My bottle is quite old so it's nice to have a fresher version available on hand. This polish though has one of the best formulas and 9 times out of 10, I don't even have to do clean up because of how easily it glides across the nail.

Day 6

Kiss Chase // Dark Pink Jelly

This is not my kind of pink shade. I prefer more pastel/dusky shades. This flamingo pink though is nice and bright for those who like their pink mani's super pink. The formula is thin but not streaky; a true jelly. I'm wearing two coats with no top coat and it's still nice and glossy.

Day 7

Sweet Treats // Pink and Gold Sheer Shimmer

If you want to transform your pink polish, this shade is how you do it. I stuck it on top of Kiss Chase and I much prefer the combo over Kiss Chase alone. It reminds me of Sailor Moon magical girl nails. By itself is just as pretty and the gold shift gives it an almost foil effect when the light hits it. This doesn't look great on top of black though; it's just a bit too obvious.

// Verdict

Whew! What a week. I already own 3 of the shades this week (Mineral Positivity, Tempest and White Heat) but they're all fantastic shades and two-thirds of the way to a full size bottle with them now. Tutu is definitely my favourite from this weeks shades and I've already done a christmas look using it. I want my walls painted in this colour.

Days 8 - 14
Days 15 - 21
Days 22 - 24

ROUND UP // All The Nail Polish Advent Calendars for 2019

So, as a little bit of break, I thought this post would do a round-up of all the Nail Polish advent calendars I could find for 2019. Last year I bought the Ciaté and OPI ones and with the beauty calendars sold out, this years nail ones have finally started appearing. So, read on to check out what the nail polish world has to offer this year!

Ciate Mini Mani Month 2019
£50 - 24 items

First up is the calendar I'll probably end up buying as I'm a sucker for Ciaté products and it has quite a few shades that I need for my collection but almost 50% are repeats from previous calendars. I already have 47 Ciaté shades so £50 is a little steep to end up with so many repeats.

The main turn off though is that you receive "6 mystery shades", so you could in theory end up with 12 repeats in total.

If you haven't already signed up to their newsletter, you can do so for 15% off and I also found a voucher on the internet for 20%, use LIB20. It still works as of posting this.

OPI Hello Kitty Collection

£65 - 25 Items

After last years OPI calendar I knew I wasn't going to order again and 12 of the shades are repeats from last years Nutcracker box...yes they put the exact same 12 shades in as last years. OPI have hundreds upon hundreds of interesting and unique shades but they chose the same boring 12 as before.

It also contains 10 out of 13 mini shades from their new Hello Kitty collection and just like with the Nutcracker one, they missed out the best 3. I wouldn't recommend this one, it's pricey, the tiny 3.75ml bottles have no names on them and the formulas from the repeats are severely disappointing. Such a shame as their summer Neon collection was excellent and I enjoyed a few shades from their Spring Tokyo range as well. 

24 Days of Essie

£45.98 - 24 Items

It's currently out of stock but Amazon are still allowing you to order it for delivery when it comes back in stock. £46 isn't too shabby for 8 full size shades, 9 mini 5ml polishes, 1 mini bottle of polish remover, a sticker sheet and then "5 mystery surprises". What's with all the surprises this year? As I've never had an Essie calendar before the repeats will be low, especially because I don't have many Essie shades to begin with (I just never got on the craze).

Technic Perfectly Polished Advent Calendar

£25.50 - 24 Items

Oh Technic, you strange, bargain bin rip-off of similarly bargain bin W7 who's ripping off OPI...£25.50 though for Technic? I think they got their prices wrong. Apparently, Technic say all their items are cruelty free and suitable for Vegetarians and Vegans. If your product is suitable for Vegans then it will be suitable for Vegetarians, no need for the double clarification. That said, they do not state if their polishes are at least 3-free, so it's a no from me. I accidentally bought a W7 shade once and when I opened it, my eyes almost melted out of their sockets; it smelt just like the creosote mum uses to protect fence panels with. If you order this for a young niece/nephew/sibling/child, just make sure that you can give them a sniff first for formaldehyde as, wouldn't you know, there are no ingredients lists anywhere...

Mavala 12 Days of Christmas for Nails and Hands

£45 - 12 Items

Back to a 'real' polish brand this time and Mavala have two calendars again this year and they look hella cute. This slightly different version features 6 polishes, top coat, base coat, quick dry top coat and cuticle oil along with some handcream and tweezers. I think I prefer this one just because I like having more polishes and the rose gold glitter shade looks nice.

Maval 12 Days of Christmas for Nails and Skin

£45 - 12 items

Though the names are confusing because they're practically the same, this one does contain different products but I can only find it available on Amazon. That said please be careful when buying this as many reviews have stated that 2 drawers have been missing items. Not usually the standard set by Mavala. In this set you may notice that 14 items are being shown, the other boxes contain what I'm guessing is matching day and night creams in a 5ml size which is a bit stingy for face cream.

Essence Make Your Own Advent Calendar

£19.99 - 24 Items

Although it only contains 9 nail products, I actually quite like Essence products anyway and for £20, this is an absolute bargain. I would've have bought it for myself if I didn't already own all the shades included...

// Last Thoughts

And that's as much as I can find! If I do come across some others from actual brands (not just random £5 ones of eBay or Amazon) I will update this post but I think I'm most likely to buy the Ciaté one ('cause I'm sucker for gluttony) and one of the Mavala calendars. Nails Inc haven't released anything new yet but I imagine that should come out in the next few weeks and Orly have stopped doing their "Quo by Orly 12 shades of Christmas" calendar. I've checked with China Glaze, Sally Hansen, Cuccio, Morgan Taylor, Zoya and Barry M but to no avail. If I had my own polish brand I would be on that shit. Even W7 haven't done a nail one this year.

In non-nail related news though, I think my favourite beauty advent calendars are the ridiculously expensive ones from Harrods and Liberty...isn't that always the case? One can dream. In the more affordable range, the Rituals one is pretty enticing as is the Lumene...oh will power, please don't fail me.