Ciate Velvet Manicure

Ciate Velvet Manicure - £10.50 (currently only available in Blue)

I've never been particularly adventurous with my nails- a dotting tool is as far as I've ever gone- but when I spotted this Ciate Velvet Manicure in 'Mink Cashmere' set I was intrigued. It comes with a great nail polish, a matching crushed powder and a small brush to use neaten up the distribution of the powder. 

The way it works is by applying your normal base coat, then the Ciate Paint Pot in 'Cream Soda' and then sprinkle the Crushed Velvet on top, using the little brush to brush off any excess powder. The Paint Pot applies really nicely and the brush is a lovely shape, making that part pretty simple. Even the application of the Crushed Velvet isn't too tricky, but a steady hand is definitely needed! 

One of the really great parts is how long the actual set will last, you'd think that the powder would run out really quickly. In fact, you can see how little has been used but I have painted my nails with them at least 8-10 times- pretty impressive, right? Surprisingly, the lasting power is pretty great and, although you can't use a top coat, I didn't find it to chip at all. It dries really quickly and isn't as messy to apply as you might think.

I think this a really lovely set to buy for somebody (or yourself) who wants to be a bit more adventurous with their nails, and considering the price of Ciate nail polishes, then this isn't too much more. At first I thought it was a bit of a novelty product and I wanted to try it out of curiosity but I am really quite impressed with it! The manicure really does look great when it's all done and I would recommend this to anyone who loves a good ol' manicure.