Ciate Floral Nails | Makeup

I'm back! After a brief hiatus due to an unforeseen change in plans I took a little break from blogging, but now I back at it and I have the nails to prove it! To really kick off my spring nails I have gone back to an old favourite. Last year Ciate (one of my all time best nail brands) brought out a nail varnish set with real pressed flowers included and I snapped it up straight away.  After using it a few times I must have stored it away and lost sight of it, until the other day when I spotted it again.

The kit contains a mini pastel blue nail varnish in the colour Ferris Wheel, a full size Speed Coat Pro topcoat, 2 pots of pressed flowers (purple, blue and red), a pair of tweezers for ease of application and a nail file for the removal of excess flowers. The set I have is named Baba Bloom, but there is also another named Strike a Posy containing blue, white and yellow flowers and a pink polish. 

First of all, as always, the packaging is lovely and stores well alongside other nail varnish sets. The full sized topcoat is certainly a generous addition, and the tweezers and file are a particularly handy addition (as there is no searching with wet nails for your own). 

I've also found the staying power of this very good. As with all additions to the nail, whether it be studs or pressed flowers, I get a little dubious about the duration... I frequently change my nail varnish as I quickly get bored of the patterns, but I like to get as much out of prettier designs as possible, so longevity is a must. Especially being an artist I am often covered in paint, scrubbing my hands and splattered with ink, so poor nail varnish is a big no no. This however with the aid of a couple of layers of topcoat lasts a good 5 days at least! Very good in my opinion. 

Illustrated instructions are included on the back of the box adding even more ease than there already is. I simply applied a couple layers of a Ciate base coat, 2 layers of Ferris Wheel (allowing to fully dry), one layer of topcoat and applied the flowers one nail at a time, and finally once all nails were flowered applied a further 2 layers of topcoat to make sure they were steadfast. 

All in all I love Ciate and this certainly was no exception. Their vanishes have a beautiful formula and apply very well. I'm so glad I found this especially being as it is perfect for this time of year! 

Cheerio x 

Ted Baker Nail Wraps Reveiw and Tips | Makeup

Ted Baker Nail Products

Now first of all I have to say I am very sorry, I am about to get overexcited about a product that is no longer available. I got these Ted Baker wraps around Christmas and am not sure if they are a seasonal product but certainly cannot find them for love nor money now. Rather disappointing! I didn't even take a photo of them all packaged up for you, but I love them so much and really wanted to make a post. Here is to hoping they bring out some more this year!

Firstly I really love the pattern. Recently I have become rather infatuated with botanical floral prints (aka. have recently purchased various clothing items in the pattern) and then remembered I had these nestled away!

I was firstly a little concerned as I have tried nail wraps before and it did not go as planned... I followed the instructions to the tee and still ended up with that strange wrinkly look they sometimes get. Because of that when I tired these out I wasn't really hoping for the best, but loved the pattern and had to hope. It seems to have worked rather well though!

I firstly removed my previous nail varnish with a Ciate Chocolate Pot, one of the swirly nail varnish remover pots, this particular one leaves your finger tips smelling of chocolate too which is rather pleasant.

Then I washed my hands and scrubbed out my nails using a Crabtree and Evelyn nail scrubbing brush and Johnsons Baby Shampoo. I use this for the same reason I and many others use it on makeup brushes. It is soft and natural so doesn't strip my nails, yet washes them clean.

I then filed my nails down and used a base coat of Ciate Nail Super Hero. I'm not sure whether wraps require a base, but I really do not like going without them as my natural nails are fairly long so demand quite a lot of care.

I then applied the nail wraps by placing them in line with my cuticle, pressing them down, and filing the ends away. I recommend you file in a downward motion angling the file underneath your nail, so as not to file off any of you nail while still removing all the excess wrap (you can also trim them down first before applying).

Finally I used Rimmel London Finishing Touches Ultra Shine Top Coat (whoo, that's a mouthful) to seal them. Having read up a little though make sure you don't use a fast dry top coat as this can make them go awfully wrinkly, evidently a non desirable result. I also made sure to do a couple of extra layers around the tips to really ensure they don't start to peel away too soon. So far so good! I've only been wearing them 2 days but no signs of wear and tear (literally) just yet.

As you can see they apply incredibly smoothly, and don't add bulkiness to the nails. The pattern is also beautiful, I know I keep saying it, but it is true! The only issue I have with them is my fault too, I didn't apply them quite as close to the cuticle as I really needed to, so I maybe won't get as much wear out of them as I could. Saying that lets hope they bring out another lovely set this year! I am kicking myself a little for not buying more when I had the chance...

All the best and,
Cheerio! x