suit & tied, ring in the bling, new year, new hue, be cherry!, on your mistletoes and social-lights (L-R)
With everything so festive around us, nails have to follow suit. And of course, essie has the perfect collection to make sure your talons are ready to join the party.
For the first week of December, start light: suit & tied is a warm sand beige, almost toasted, that is neutral but at the same time interesting enough to keep my unusual nail polish taste satisfied. Great for those who like nudes, but with a little difference.
The second week welcomes be cherry!, a bright crimson red with a hint of pink to brighten up the darkest of days. It is a versatile and fun red, slightly different from the ones I usually go for and yes, it is rather cheerful.
As Christmas approaches, and the parties are in full swing, why not go for on your mistletoes, a dense oxford blue with a hint of green – looking like a dark, funky teal to the untrained eye.
I’m a fan of all shades of blue on my nails and this blue-green is super festive and a little bit edgy.
So it’s Christmas! Yay! For the oh-so-festive fourth week, ring in the bling: a gorgeous metallic ruby red, tinged with a little bit of cobalt making it magically hot, cold and pearly.
It is red, it shines and will look amazing under the tree.
My favourite will have to see the new year in. The fifth week begs for social-lights, a fabulous pearl slate grey with a subtle, glistening amber warmth.
I adore a colour shifting nail polish and this is the deal. It looks strong on the bottle but a bit more subdued on the nails. And apart from the warm hints, it also produces some great blue-ish sheen on movement. Great colour depth for new year’s eve!
essie be cherry!, ring in the bling, on your mistletoes and social-lights
And to kick off January, the sixth week begs for a very wintery, and appropriately named new year, new hue. Write those resolutions with this luscious magenta purple on your fierce claws.
essie new year, new hue and suit & tied
So, what’s your favourite? How would you spread the shades over the six weeks?
You can buy the essie nail polishes from major retailers nationwide, including Superdrug and Boots, for £7.99 each. Remember, it is limited edition, so hurry up! 
There was a time in my life I was all about the nail art. Not elaborate drawings, but details and ombrés were my favourites.
The finish is not glossy, but not totally matte, with a discreet metallic sheen. Some shades even have a slight texture that can barely be seen.
My favourite has to be the super pale grey lilac Push The Envelope. It’s super versatile, so close to white with a silver glimmer but not harsh. And easy to apply. Love.
Then there is the lavender shining mauve Cross-Body Heat, blood red Tote-ally In Love and indigo blue In Hot Purse-uit.
You will all know how much I love essie nail polishes: the formula, the fabulous brush, the great colours, limited edition collections and even the quirky names, so no surprise I have used each polish for a whole week!
There no secret I am a 90s person (late 90s, I’m not that old). I’m secretly unashamed of the terrible fashion sense and even worse – makeup habits I had at the time.
For the more discreet out there, Saved by the Belle is a lovely baby pink, creamy and a slight blue undertone and Mixtaupe is a fabulous warm ivory with a tiny dash of pink.
Of course, I cannot rave enough about the essie brush, which delivers a perfect at home mani so effortlessly. Lately, that is all you see on my nails.
The collection has barely launched but being the lucky bitch I am, I was one of the first to get my talons all over it and I’ve already wore four of the six shades to near exhaustion. Nah, not really, I can’t get enough.
Nails nail nails. I went from a through and through red nail polish gal who could never picture a nude on her nails to a lover of all colours, shades, finishes and art.
The new shades are inside scoop, a pretty sheer tea rose pink with a slight blue undertone, v.i.please, a deep, berry violet hinted with red, style stunner, a super bright orange with an underlying red, sizzling hot, an opaque saturated hibiscus red with a pink undertone and finally, my eye-catch shade, front page-worthy, a dark royal blue with a pearl overcast.
First of all, I feel I have to explain the month long absence: I have moved houses. Bought a flat and been like a maniac between closing the deal, moving and furnishing and now I’m starting to settle. Although I have no wifi yet, tethering to my mobile has been useful. And the means to this post!
Second, I cannot see a better way of going to back to blogging than essie‘s retro revival 2nd edition limited collection nail polishes. The six shades embody the flawless chic vibe from the beginning of the brand in 1981 Las Vegas – in fact the caps have the original Stardust Casino gold star sign.
My favourite has to be the stunning sweet tart (oh how appropriate!) a pearlescent nude with mauve undertones. Just gorgeous.
That doesn’t mean I am not in love with the other shades: pure chiffon is the perfect warm beige which will suit most skin tones; flawless is a delicate pink that feels quite neutral; chastity is a lively cherry blossom pink and bold beauty is a fabulous and seductive mid-century deep red. All sorts of love for this collection.
Apart from the neutrals and a killer red, that never goes out of fashion, pinks were all over the catwalk for the new season.
Imagine a gorgeous place where your favourite beauty brands come together. That would be enough, right?
Then, top it off with a real shop full of friendly and approachable professionals in the counters.
I was about to place my order at 
Now to the order. The site is clean, well categorised, so it is easy to use and find what you’re looking for. You can also look for specific brands, skin concerns, the Marie Claire edit and specific filtering within categories.
At 
As a lover of all colours on my nails, I am not one to say there are summer and winter colours, but let’s agree that some colours for better in certain season.
Six extremely wearable shades (it’s not always that a full collection feels like that to me) will take you through the new season.
They are gorgeous alone or mixed. Follow that up in your season timeline with a shade I fell in love with: Now and Zen, the perfect safe grey.
On the warmer spectrum, a classic berry shade, quite vivacious, Maki Me Happy and the biggest surprise for me, Playing Koi, an almost vibrant bold orange rust colour, which looks amazing on my nails.
After the Olympics opening ceremony last night, the essie Rio Collection makes even more sense: and explosion of colour and shine to get you well into the mood of the wonderful city.
Not only that: apart from essie’s six boldest shades, the collection counts with essie’s 1000th VIP shade: a Brazilian charged bright metallic yellow called aim to misbehave. Quite a scandalous colour, it looks so hot on the nail.
The vibrant tangerine coral, sunday funday also has a lovely shimmer; aruba blue is a frosty metallic sapphire; bahama mama a deep, creamy and warm plum; naughty nautical a gorgeous shimmery blue-green, pure pearlfection, a delicate topcoat the create instant iridescence and jazzy jubilant, another topcoat with hexagonal blue and pink glitter in various sizes, that looks like carnival confetti!
And because it has green, yellow, blue and white, it matches the country’s flag! Being Brazilian myself, I approve!
You can get essie nail polish from major retailers nationwide.
I am a huge fan of colour and my nails are usually the place this love manifest itself fully.
To be in with a chance, just enter the competition by the 28 April – it’s easy:
So Many Lovely Things 