Ciate in Serendipity

Brand: Ciate Paint Pots

Shade: Serendipity
(rose pink color, glitter finish)

Cost: $$$$

The Scoop:
This one is a party in a bottle. Girly, flirty, sparkly, and expensive. What more could your fingers want in February? Ok, okaaay. Maybe there's one other thing... but this is a nail polish blog, not a fairytale blog. xoxo

Ciate in Spending Spree

Brand: Ciate Paint Pots

Shade: Spending Spree
(rose gold color, metallic finish)

Cost: $$$

The Scoop:
I think Ciate is at the leading edge of new nail techniques. Problem is most of them are pretty but impractical. I do like their paint pots, though. Nothing fussy, just great shades.  This one is even prettier in person. The fact that I picked this up while on an actual spending spree at Lord & Taylor is purely coincidental...

Next Shade: Maybelline in Blue Blaze

15 Christmas Nail Polish Gift Sets

Santa brought me 15 nail polish gift sets.  Best.  Christmas.  Ever.

Brand: Butter London Luxe Rock 12-piece mini set

 

Shades: Yummy Mummy & The 444
(nude color with glossy finish & clear with gold glitter finish)

 

Cost: $$$$

 

The Scoop:

Pretty box, great shades. On a scale from 1-10, a 12. 

 

 

 

Brand: Ciate Mini Mani Month 24-piece set

 

Shades: Boudoir & Christmas Tree Caviar
(candy apple red color with glossy finish & gold, green, red caviar balls)

 

Cost: $$$$

 

The Scoop:

A nail polish advent calendar? Genius. 

 

 

 

 

 

Brand: Deborah Lippmann Starlight 6-piece mini set

 

Shade: Twilight Zone
(greenish black color with multicolor glitter finish)

 

Cost: $$$$

 

The Scoop:

Can the holidays ever have too much sparkle?   

 

 

 

 

Brand: Dior Golden Winter Holiday Collection 2-piece full-size set

 

Shade: Diorific
(gold color with metallic finish)

 

Cost: $$$$

 

The Scoop:

Didn't like the pearls, but the polish was nice. 

 

 

 

 

Brand: e.l.f. Nail Polish Collection 15-piece mini set

 

Shades: Sea Escape & Love Me
(dark green color with shimmer finish & clear color with red glitter finish)

 

Cost: $$$

 

The Scoop:

Awesome value, great set. 

 

 

 

 

Brand: H&M Nail Polish Collection 6-piece full-size set

 

Shade: $$

 

Cost: Petrol Sky & Skyscraper
(blue green color with glossy finish & clear with silver glitter finish)

 

The Scoop:

Festive shades for the holidays.

 

 

 

 

Brand: Hard Candy Cube of Color Nail Polish Collection 24-piece mini set

 

Shades: Green Glitter & White
(lime green color with glitter finish & white color with glossy finish)

 

Cost: $$$

 

The Scoop:

Lots of colors, but man, these smell horrible! 

 

 

 

 

Brand: Julep 2013 Gen Holiday Collection 12-piece full-size set

 

Shade: Kenya
(fire engine red with metallic finish)

 

Cost: $$$$

 

The Scoop:

Beautiful gift box, irresistible shades. 

 

 

 

 

 

Brand: LA Colors Nail Polish Collection 18-piece mini set

 

Shades: Silver Glitter & Gold
(clear with silver glitter finish & pale gold color with metallic finish)

 

Cost: $$

 

The Scoop:

Surprising drug store find, another keeper! 

 

 

 

 

Brand: Lila Grace Nail Polish Collection 7-piece full-size set

 

Shades: Red & Gold Glitter
(orangey red color with glossy finish & clear with gold glitter finish)

 

Cost: $$

 

The Scoop:

Really low quality polish, skip this one. 

 

 

 

 

Brand: Lord&Taylor Deluxe Nail Polish Collection 18-piece mini set

 

Shades: Green Glitter & Silver
(clear color with green glitter & silver color with metallic finish)

 

Cost: $$$$

 

The Scoop:

A bit expensive, but a nice set. 

 

 

 

 

Brand: Nails Inc. London My Nail Polish Diary 12-piece mini set

 

Shade: Fibre Optic Belgravia Square
(clear color with metallic red & silver feather finish) 

 

Cost: $$$$

 

The Scoop:

Just what this 13 year old girl (in a 40 year old body) needs -- a diary! Cute. 

 

 

 

Brand: OPI Take Ten 2013 Nail Polish Collection 10-piece mini set

 

Shades: German-icure, Tickle My France-y & Pirouette My Whistle
(burgundy with metallic finish & pale pink with glossy finish & clear with silver glitter finish)

 

Cost: $$$

 

The Scoop:

Their best-selling shades, a great collection. 

 

 

 

Brand: Sephora X The Twenty Two Nail Polish Collection 22-piece mini set

 

Shades: Flashy & Wham!
(cherry red color with glossy finish & clear with white splatter finish) 

 

Cost: $$$$

 

The Scoop:

I was on the fence at first, but I'm glad I got it for the neons, chromes and splatters.

 

 

 

Brand: Zoya Build Your Own Dream Box 6-piece full-size set

 

Shade: Hunter
(mossy green color with glossy finish)

 

Cost: $$$$

 

The Scoop:

The perfect way to get the exact colors you want.  

 

 

 

 

 

 For more behind-the-scenes scoop on these presents, check out my other blog.
 

Ciate Caviar Manicure in Fit for a Queen & Stop the Press

Brand: Ciate Paint Pot & Caviar Pearls

Shade: Fit for a Queen & Stop the Press

(light silver color with metallic finish, gray/silver/raspberry caviar pearls with textured finish)

Cost: $$$$

The Scoop:

The effect of a caviar manicure (which these super creative gals invented) is stunning.  Much like beauty, though, this too is fleeting.  Why?  The pearls pop off.  As in, I think I accidentally ate a few when I had a cookie.  Still, a very festive holiday look.

Next Shade: Chanel in Cinema

Ciaté Velvet Manicure in Blue Suede

&nbsp

Brand: Ciaté Velvet Manicure

Shade: Blue Suede
(navy blue color, matte textured finish)

Cost: $$$$

The Scoop:
Adorable package and cool technique but velvet powder is messy to apply.  Kind of looks like my nails have sheet marks all over them with a little layer of peach fuzz -- and after a few days my nails looked terrible -- dull, weird texture, and chipped.  It's an interesting effect, just not sure a novelty is worth the expense.

Next Week's Shade: Essie in Meet Me at Sunset

Welcome to My Medicine Cabinet

Ever been tempted to look in someone's medicine cabinet when using their bathroom? 

Well, this is mine. 

You'll notice there isn't any medicine here.  Just rows and rows of nail polish.  Look at those beauties!  From Essie to OPI and Sephora to Sally Hansen, the girls are all here.

Clearly, I never get manicures or pedicures.  I like to handle my own business.

Years ago, I went to a local beauty supply store near my hometown in Pine Brook, NJ.  I spent over a hundred bucks on polish.  Crazy, right?  It amounted to about a dozen bottles.  The girl who rang up my order had one, completely non-sarcastic question for me:

“Where is your salon located?”

Um, yeah.  I don't have a salon.

Hello.  My name is Jen.  And I’m addicted to nail polish.

It's true, Jersey Girls love their nails.  I never feel “done” without them.  A peek inside my medicine cabinet makes me happy.  Pretty colors, easy to switch, based on my mood.

Now, just because I’m from Jersey and I like my nails doesn’t mean I’m down with the fakes.  I just say no to stick-on, press-on, glue-on, artificial nails of all kinds.  Just like my boobs, lips, and lashes -- my nails are always au naturel (assuming you agree blue nails exist in the realm of natural).

Anyway, I figured I must have at least 52 bottles -- one for every week of the year -- so I started this blog to share each shade with you.

Enjoy!