The Body Shop and Ciaté Advent Calendars: Dec 1st- 5th

If you follow me on Instagram, you'll probably be aware that I'm counting down to Christmas with  a couple of beauty advent calendars this year.

I managed to get my hands on The Body Shop's advent calendar "24 Days of Joy", and I also picked up a Ciaté calendar, although it's last year's set and won't contain the same treats as the new Mini Mani Manor. I'm featuring the set anyway because Ciaté sell all of the nail polishes individually.

You can keep up with my advent loot every day on Instagram, but I'll also be reviewing them on the blog each week, every five days or so. (I'm a little behind this week!)

The first five days of Advent brought some gorgeous nail products...

... and some fantastic products from The Body Shop, too!

So, what was behind door number one?

December 1st

Dec 1st: The Body Shop

Behind window number one of The Body Shop's calendar was a full sized (30ml) tube of Almond Hand and Nail Cream. Yes, full-sized! It retails for £5, which is a pretty damn good prize for day one!

I'm already a big fan of these hand creams (I love the satsuma version), so I was excited to receive a new scent to try. I'm pleased to say it didn't disappoint. The almond cream contains almond and brazil nut oils, which smells quite like shea butter to me! I can smell the almond fragrance, too, although it's subtle, As a whole, the scent is clean and fresh, and not over-powering; and that gets a thumbs up from me! It's also works pretty great as a hand and nail cream; it's non greasy, moisturising, and immediately gives me the softest skin, so I'm sold! I love this product!

Dec 1st: Ciaté

The first polish from Ciaté was a top coat called "Snow Globe" which contains holographic flakes and couldn't look more festive if it tried! It can be worn on its own for a delicate look, which leaves a clear iridescent shimmer in ice blue, light green, and gold, depending on how the light hits it. It can also be worn over other nail polishes to create different looks. I tried it over a dark purple polish earlier this week, and it added turquoise glittery flakes to my manicure! It looked so festive. It can be tricky to get a smooth finish because one brush stroke doesn't like coming in to contact with another, but with a little patience, it does cooperate. Overall, I really like this polish!

December 2nd

Dec 2nd: The Body Shop

I'll be honest, I wasn't at all impressed with receiving a nail file on Tuesday. I'm sure it works just fine for what it's designed for, but let's face it- it's just plain boring! I can't even pretend to be excited by a plain yellow emery board. Sorry!

Dec 2nd: Ciaté

Thankfully, I loved the nail polish waiting for me in the Ciaté calendar; a gorgeous deep red by the name of "Boudoir". It's a blue-based red just a little darker than tomato, and it's a perfect classic red nail colour. I'm ever so slightly addicted to red nail polish, and I think I've found a new favourite!

December 3rd

Dec 3rd: The Body Shop

On Wednesday, I got a heart-shaped strawberry soap, which was really sweet. It smells so good! I've been a fan of The Body Shop's soaps for years, because they make my hands so soft, but I can't remember the last time I treated myself to a strawberry soap; I almost always go for satsuma. It's actually nice to enjoy a different scent for a change.

Dec 3rd: Ciaté

Wednesday was a good day for nail polish, too. Behind the window was a nail polish in a  bright and cheerful shade of orange, called "Hopscotch". The name is so fun and playful, which suits this bold sunshine orange colour to the ground. This will be a great colour to wear when the sun is shining next summer! I know orange nail polish can seem too daring for some people, but Hopscotch is tasteful and just the right shade of orange to remain wearable.

December 4th

Dec 4th: The Body Shop

I look forward to the seasonal cranberry range every Christmas, so I was really excited to find a mini frosted cranberry shower gel in the calendar on Thursday. It has the most delicious berry fragrance, which I can't stop sniffing, and I'm looking forward to using it in the run up to Christmas. The Body Shop shower gels are my favourites because they lather well, and always leave me with the softest, silkiest, cleanest skin, and I'm sure this one will be no different.

Dec 4th: Ciaté

Thursday brought with it a pot of red and gold nail sequins by the name of "Miss Mistletoe". This was a new experience for me; I'd never tried using sequins on my nails before yesterday. I was a little unsure of how to use them at first, so I experimented. I painted my nails with a clear top coat, and used a pair of tweezers to get sequins out of the bottle and on to my nails. They went everywhere. The trick was getting them on to the nails before the topcoat dried; not easy! I had to apply a second layer on top of the first to add sequins to the bare areas I'd missed on the first try, and then just finished with a couple of coats of top coat. It wasn't as difficult as I expected, but I did get sequins all over the place- on my bed, on the floor, on my laptop, all over my clothes... Next time I'll remember to put some newspaper down!

Dec 5th

Dec 5th: The Body Shop

Behind door number five was a frosted cranberry shimmer lotion, to go with Thursday's shower gel. Another great product from The Body Shop! I've always wanted to try their cranberry lotions, and I'm impressed with it so far. It gives me super soft, moisturised skin, and if that wasn't enough, it also leaves a festive shimmer which really sparkles when the light hits it. I wouldn't use it as an every day lotion, but it's perfect for Christmas time when you can get away with a bit of sparkle! It also has the most amazing sweet fragrance, which to me, smells like red berries with a sweet grapefruit-like undertone.

Dec 5th: Ciaté

Friday's nail polish was an unusual burnt sienna or terracotta coloured polish called "Encore!" It's a colour I don't think I've ever tried before, but it turns out, I actually really like it on my nails! I think it goes well with my pale colouring and freckles, and it makes a fresh alternative to red or orange. This would be a perfect nail colour for Autumn.

And here are swatches of all five Ciaté nail products; I think they work well together, too! Sorry for the state of my manicure; I was rushing to finish so I could take photos before the sun went down.

I'll be back with the next five products in a few days.

Have you used any of these products?

How are you counting down to Christmas this year?