Ciaté nail polishes = my clear favourite

If there is one thing I love, it is freshly painted nails. I am still devastated that, because I work with food, I can't have my finger nails painted anymore. I used to have them painted virtually constantly and loved playing with nail art. I have only just really thought about starting to apply nail art to my toe nails instead (it is not so great, especially on my feet, as my big toe nail is the only one of any real size at all, so is the only I can really do anything major with). I did recently try a pokemon design though, with a fab half red and half white nail (complete with black dividing lines and the centre circle) and a yellow pikachu on my other foot, with little red circles for cheeks and drawn on features. Hopefully I will be applying many more different designs soon and maybe showing them on here. My nail art pens are missing me! (well, ok, it is definitely the other way around...)

Anyway, one brand of polish I love to pieces is Ciaté. I got my first ever polish by them free with Marie Claire last year, and on using it found it to be a virtually perfect nail varnish, The colour was strong and vibrant, with a nice gloss, the brush (a 250 bristle, flat brush) was good and meant it applied evenly and well, the bottle was oh so cute with the little bow around the handle and, most importantly, I had it on for 5 days with no top coat, totally chip free. That is very rare for me. I since begged my mum to invest in some more for my Christmas gift and received another 3 bottles. It is a shame I can't paint my fingernails for long at a time, if I do at all, as it is a waste to put on a polish that lasts so well. On my toes the polish lasts until I have to trim my nails, so it still gets a good airing on there.

Anyway, I wanted to share my love now as a) I rarely get any slightly expensive beauty items to recommend and b) Marie Claire is again giving away a free polish this month. I have opted for the lovely nude colour 'My Fair Lady' (ok, I am hoping I can get away with it at work occasionally, although doubt I will actually end up trying), but may buy a second copy for the purple shade 'Wait Until Dark' too, since the cover price of £3.60 is pretty good if you get a £9 polish free- you effectively get 2 full size bottles for the price of less than 1 from their official shop. Bagain! You also get a 25% off discount code if you register on the site before September 30th. Roll on pay day :D

I really do love the brand and can't recommend them enough. They do every shade you could ever really want, apply and wear brilliantly, and look great lined up on your dressing table. Here is their shade 'Knickerbockerglory' from the website, for those who do not know what the bottles look like.

A tip I heard as well is that Amazon sell the polishes at £7.99, so slightly cheaper than Ciate themselves. Worth considering if you like them from trying the freebie. Go snap up the magazine today and try it for yourself, or else browse the extensive range online :)