If you asked me one of the things that relax me the most in the evening I’d say get my nailcare kit out and have a manicure. I love watching the last episode of my favourite TV series on Netflix (or I should actually say an unnecessarily big amount of episodes in a row – I’m all for binge watching) while applying a glaze of the latest nail varnish I thought I couldn’t live without. To me, the whole nail varnish thing can really turn into a calming ritual as the game is all in slowing down, holding your breath and reaching the perfect brush stroke. And then I’ll spend the rest of the evening watching my newly done hands and congratulating myself for the beautiful, polished and linear result. Oh yes, I’m such a narcissist. And hands up who doesn’t do so!
As buying nail varnishes is something I can’t help with, I thought I’d share with you my four Autumnal/Winter shades all made by Kiko Milano. If you don’t know Kiko, they are a massive high-street brand down here in Italy. They have a huge selection of make-up and nail polishes in all the colours you could imagine + a touch of skincare products with refined packagings and relatively low prices – a blessing for us beauty junkies. So you can imagine what it means for me to enter a Kiko store.
So here you have my 4 picks when it comes to Autumn and winter. What I love the most about these 4 buddiescoming from the permanent Smart Nail Lacquer collection? In a word: great price performance – they are a high quality product for being priced only 2€ each. They are easy to apply, so I never get those annoying stripes that happen when a nail varnish is too liquid. In fact, these are super pigmented, so that the second coat usually just serves as the final touch to fix the colour, but wouldn’t be 100% necessary to get a nice shade. Also they have a fast-drying formula and they packaging reminds the iconic Chanel Le Vernis, very elegant indeed. All in all, I love them.
NUDE BEIJE (No 03)
Let’s talk nudes. I’m not joking when I say I probably own 10 different shades of nude but I find this warm beigy one is the most interesting in my collection. I like the fact that it isn’t as high maintenance as dark colours and yet it looks beautifully sophisticated – can you imagine wearing it with a coat of glitter during Christmas? It is perfect with jeans but also for parties and it is so bon-ton! Also, it certainly fits all type of skin tones, but I love it more for winter as it doesn’t stick out too much compared to wearing it with tanned hands.
ROSSO RUBINO (No 13)
Red is a great classic over autumn and the festive season so I had to choose this year’s shade. I think this ruby red is such an interesting colour as it deviates from the usual bright red for a more mysterious, dull colour that makes it easier to wear. I’d say reds usually are a bit demanding and really attention-catching, which is great if you have perfect hands and plan to hit the next festive party in town, but if during cold months you are more about fluffy clothes and hygge evenings, then this is the right shade to go for.
EMERALD (No 82)
On the cold-toned side, I’m totally talking about this beautiful dark blueish green. I’m never been much of a bright green and blue nail-polish lover, so I find Emerald the perfect compromise between the sparkling greens that have been selected by many brands for their winter collection this year and not wearing green at all. I probably wouldn’t use it for a night out as it is quite informal and sporty, if you want, but I think it’s perfect for office days.
DENIM GREY BLUE (No 79)
Again a daylight kind of nail varnish, I am completely in love with it. As I said, I’ve never been much of a blue-nail kind of person but it got obsessed with grey-blue shades when I saw Lily Pebbles wearing Maximillian Strasse Her by Essie in spring 2016. Honestly guys love at first sight! Again, even if casual, if think Denim Grey Blue is such a sophisticated colour which I reckon I’ll be waering all year round. A great deal!
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