33 DC: tape

So I'm a little late on this one, but I felt better when I saw that none other than Ms. Debbie Crumpet was late too :)
I had this mani done last night but was just too wiped out to photograph, upload and post.  Learning takes a lot more energy than I remembered!
Tape is quickly becoming as comfortable for me as dots.  I received my first roll of striping tape in a giveaway and it has lasted forever!  I think I'm going to order some more, though, because I love using it and want to try using it on its own as well, instead of just for clean lines.  I used to always use Scotch tape for lines, and it works okay, but striping tape never lets any polish seep under and is just so crisp!  Using it for this look has become a bit of a favorite of mine:

*1 coat Yello-Out
*2 coats Zoya Aurora
*Zoya Storm
*1 coat Out the Door

Really, these can just speak for themselves!  Gratuitous  holo shots are always welcome, right?  I used Aurora as my base and taped off the tips and then left a little gap before taping off the bottom of the area I polished, and then used Storm as the tip.  LOVE it!

I don't want to get too cocky here, but I'm feeling pretty comfortable with striping tape at this point.  Do you have any cool tips or techniques for me to try?  Do tell!

New 31DC: Inspired by my favorite color

Yesterday's challenge is still coming, I promise.  I have gained some healthy perspective through this month's challenge.  I am hard on myself and a life-long perfectionist.  I am unforgiving.  Nail polish is so trivial, and so important at the same time.  Every instinct I have wants to berate myself when I don't get a challenge done on the day it's "due."  But I've learned to let it go.  I feel a little bad still, but I would rather take a nap and talk with my dad on my afternoon off than polish.  There is a time and place for both, and yesterday polish was not the priority.  It is relaxing and something that I do for myself, something that I find grounding when I feel overwhelmed, but my family is more so.  So it goes.
Today was such a toughie for me!  These "favorites" are hard because, as I mentioned earlier, my favorites change.  Different colors make me happy at different times, and different looks spark my interest.  Today I decided to dive back into my Pinterest board and try a look that I've had saved for a long time.  And it does use my two favorite colors: pink and glitter.  This is inspired by Crystal's Crazy Combos.

*1 coat Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Hardener
*2 coats OPI Pedal Faster Suzi
*2 coat OPI Teenage Dream
*1 coat Out The Door

Pedal Faster Suzi is pretty sheer, but because I knew I was covering my tips, I didn't use a third coat.  This is such a pretty, pale pink with amazing silver shimmer to it.  It's calming, to me.  I like it when I need to feel girly and quiet.  Weird, I know, but it just feels nice when I wear it.  Like Crystal, I used the amazing Teenage Dream on half the nail, taped off.  The light pink glitter actually looks perfect with Pedal Faster Suzi!  The sparkle and holo pieces are stunning in this polish--I never get tired of it!

New 31DC: Tape

Now, tape is something I feel much more at home with.  I have gotten better at using it for clean lines (when I rally my patience) and like the help it give.  My big problem was settling on a design using tape.  As I browsed through my nail board on Pinterest I remembered this look from My Vanity Basics that I fell in love with and had to make my tape mani.

*1 coat Yello-Out
*2 coats Zoya Storm
*Cover Girl Boundless Color City Lights
*Wet 'n Wild Stars & Stripes and Icing Written In The Stars
*1 coat Hoof Lacquer
*1 Coat Out The Door

I used Storm for the first time after admiring it in the bottle for so long. A-mazing! I used 2 easy coats of this for my night sky. The black is loaded with tiny silver holo particles. My only regret is that this takes away from the star tails in the photos, but in real life it's perfection!

City Lights is a fine silver holo in a clear base (sorry, I forgot to snap a picture).  This bad boy dates back to high school!  I had to work pretty hard to open it and then dumped quite a bit of thinner.  Voila!  I used Scotch tape to tape off the edges of my star trails and then striping tape inside.  When I do this again (not "if," because it's amazing and I am dying knowing it has to come off tomorrow) I think I'll lay down the two pieces of striping tape first, then the edges to make sure that I have enough space for my little wedges.  Other than that, these are just as awesome as I hoped they would be!

I used a paint brush to scoop out a star for each nail, using the silver ones from Stars & Stripes for all but my ring finger.  Because I couldn't figure out which stars I liked best, I used a little blue one from Written In The Stars on my ring finger.  These little glitters were perfect (though if I ever get start rhinestones I can't wait to try them!) and are holo too!  This is just one awesome, glittery holo-fest.  LOVE it!  What do you think--is there such a thing as too much holo?  I think my feelings are clear...

New 31DC: Geometric

I was very unsure about what to do for today's challenge.  I looked for ideas on Pinterest (sense a theme here?) and tried to think of something that suited me.  Geometric really isn't something I'm drawn to, when it comes to designs.  Then, it hit me--a flash of genius.  The ultimate in geometric shapes:

TETRIS!

*1 coat Yello-Out
*2 coats China Glaze Fast Track
*Color Club Almost Famous (pinkie)
*China Glaze Gothic Lolita (ring)
*Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Sun Kissed (middle)
*China Glaze Aquadellic (index)
*Zoya America (thumb)
*Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Black Out
*1 coat Out The Door

I LOVE Tetris!  My favorite was Tetrisphere for the N64.  In my current retail hell, people are always amazed at how well I pack bags and carts.  Tetris!  I could not decide on the right base for these and was going to use my go-to nude by Julep, but it's a little bottle and takes 3 coats and I don't know that I want to spend the bucks to get a new one if I run out, so...I went with another gorgeous neutral.  I love Fast Track for so many reasons, not the least of which is that amazing shimmer!

I was really sad when I outlined these because those skills need some work.  I taped off the shapes and did such a great job that I almost left them alone (my tape skills are getting SO much better!), but I had to get those iconic boxes in. 

Really, away from the cruel macro setting of a camera, these don't look bad at all!  I wish I had the time, patience and skill to do these on my right hand too so I could wear them tomorrow, but that would just be disaster.  I can't wait to give these a go when I get some striping tape because I think those sharp lines will make these little pieces awesome!
 

Rockin' around the Christmas tree

This is a post where I wish my photography skills were better.  I am learning little by little, but still not so great with the pictures.  These nails were so much better in person, mainly because I killed them with my auto flash.  As soon as I saw Nailslide's Abstract Trees, I knew I wanted to try them (and apparently everyone else does too because they are awesome and popping up all over!).  I'm glad that I went back and looked at them again before I painted.  I had planned to do a gold base and green top, which would have worked out just fine, but I really liked the little gold trees!

*1 coat Hard As Nails Hardener
*2 coats OPI Skip the Gift Wrap
*1 coat China Glaze Winter Holly
*Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Golden-I
*1 coat Out the Door

 I was going to just layer Winter Holly up, but decided to use it over a base.  I used 2 coats of Skip the Gift Wrap (a dark, shimmery green that dries to a foil finish) for opacity and then 1 coat of Winter Holly for all of its glittery goodness.  I don't know if I will ever get tired of this green, gold, holo beauty!

I taped off triangles like she suggests and then tried out striping tape for the first time, which I won in a giveaway.  I was really surprised by how thin it is, laying very close to the nail, and how much comes in one little roll.  I made the strips long enough to stick to the Scotch tape, which made removal so easy--one careful pull and they were done!
Golden-I was a good cover, one thick coat over the tape and it was set.  I was a little unsure of myself, so I didn't get too creative with the garland/tape, but I really liked how they looked today.  I added a little rhinestone for the tree topper and, despite everything that screamed "add some more glitter on top!" (I know, I have a problem), I let them be with a good, thick top coat. 
In person, the definition of color is much stronger and sharper, but overall I really liked how these turned out!  Now I not only have rhinestones and new dotting tools to play with, but a whole lot of striping tape to try new designs with!