As the days get shorter, darker and colder, I find myself even less inclined to get out of bed in the mornings, if that is even possible.
In fact, really and truly – the only month when I am excited to get out of bed (mainly because I’m still a big kid at heart) is December, when our advent calenders await us, ready with a little chocolate treat to start the day.
I know realistically, we can’t have chocolate each morning, every day of the year but if you too are struggling getting out of bed and need a small motivational treat (without the calories) – then I might have just found the solution!
Ciate, the brand behind the famous Caviar nails have recently brought out a gift set (or as I like to call it – a treat set), which is rather suitably packaged like an advent calender. Each day, you can leap out of bed and into the arms of a brand new nail polish which sits behind a numbered door on the calender. Having been in complete awe of Ciate and it’s Caviar and Velveteen creations for the past few months, I am amazed that it has managed to bring out yet another completely amazing product – which is so unlike what is already out on the beauty market.
Suitably named ‘Mini Mani Month’, the calender is packed with twenty of Ciate’s best selling mini paint pots and mini Caviar blends, and after just a few days you have amounted enough polishes to experiment! Whilst, I am yet to properly master a professional looking Caviar manicure, I am getting there – and fixing the tiny beads onto your nail is actually much easier than it initially looks. Honest!
Since receiving the Mini Mani Month set a few days ago, I have experimented with several different caviar and paint pot blends, all of which I’ve absolutely loved! However, when googling ‘How to do a Caviar manicure’, I was surprised to find that there was no real help online from other bloggers/websites regarding how to apply your caviar nails – so I’ve decided to write one up myself. Of course, I am no expert (and Ciate do provide instructions with every purchase), but I thought I would try and be helpful and pop up a quick ‘how to’ guide.
You will need: a clean, empty (preferably circular) dish to collect any excess beads, a metal funnel (included), a Ciate paint pot in the colour of your choice and a Caviar blend pot.
1) Remove any leftover nail polish, making sure your nails are clean and smooth. It might seem like an obvious instruction, but the first time around I tried it, I was lazy and left a little bit of nail polish on, meaning the final result looked a little bumpy.
2) Apply one coat of your chosen paint pot colour. If you have the Mini Mani Month set and are struggling to find combinations, I have suggested a few above. I eventually decided to go for Cupcake Queen (bright pink) and Prom Queen Caviar Pearls as I was feeling girlie, however there are lots of combinations to experiment with!
3) After the first coat is fully dry, apply a second coat to just one nail (it’s advisable to do one nail at a time otherwise you end up in a mess) and hover your nail over the empty dish. Gently pour the Caviar pearls slowly over your nail, making sure to cover the nail completely. Any excess beads (and there will be a few) will be caught by the dish below, so you won’t have to hover them up later – and you won’t waste any! Gently shake your nail over the dish, so that any un-fixed beads drop off. Repeat for each nail and wait 15-20 for them to dry completely. I would advise that you do one hand at a time otherwise you end up smudging them by mistake.
4) When you are happy with the desired look, simply pop the included funnel over the Caviar nails pot and tip the excess beads from the dish into the funnel. Although this could potentially go very wrong, the beads surprisingly all dropped neatly into the funnel – and the pot was ready to use again for next time.
So, although the Caviar nails look rather fussy and difficult (and not to mention – AMAZING), they are surprisingly easy to apply. Colours and pearls can be mixed and matched accordingly and since you receive a nail polish each day – you could experiment dependent on which polish you open. The Caviar manicure seems to last a good 3-4 days before the beads start to look a little sparse. However, since there are so many options – I found myself changing my nails each day!
Available exclusively from Selfridges, the Ciate Mini Mani Month set costs £38 and contains twenty of their best selling mini caviar and nail paint pots. I personally think £38 is fantastic value for money considering the larger pots cost in the region of £18 – £20 each. This would make an ideal treat for a Ciate lover, or a great alternative (and calorie free) to an advent calender this festive season! Visit Ciate’s website – here.