I absolutely love playing around with my nails and changing the color…frequently.  Mostly because the second I get a chip, my OCD takes over and the polish must be removed and redone.  Yesterday when I was picking out a new color to put on my nails, I decided to try something new.  I was in the mood for a nude, so naturally I reached for my Essie Sand Tropez, but since it’s fall, I wanted a little something extra.  I toyed around with the idea of adding a bit of glitter to the ends, but wound up liking the idea of a color blocked nail instead.  So I grabbed my polishes and some Scotch Tape and got to work!

For this look, I used these nail polishes:
– Nailtiques
– Essie Sand Tropez
– Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Commander in Chic
– Seche Vite

When you’re doing your nails, it’s always important to start off with a base coat.  This protects your nails from yellowing, especially if you like to wear dark or bright polishes.  My base coat of choice is always Nailtiques, which I’ve been using for ages.  I love it and it can also be used as a top coat as well!  It’s a bit pricey though at $20/bottle, so you’re welcome to start this look off with a different, more inexpensive base coat of your choice.  Seche Clear is actually pretty good too and is only $8.

Next I put two coats of my Essie Sand Tropez and topped it with Seche Vite.  I wasn’t sure about putting a top coat on after only the first step, but it proved to be necessary when applying the tape.  I tried it out on one nail without the Seche Vite, and the polish lifted off when I removed the tape.  No bueno.

Once the Sand Tropez and Seche Vite were dry, I taped my nails off at a diagonal.  You can have your diagonal going any way you want, but I wanted the darker color to be on the inner half of my nail.  Make sure you press down the edges, especially near the cuticles, so that the polish doesn’t bleed under the tape.

Once all of my nails were taped, I applied two coats of my Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Commander in Chic.  I carefully removed the tape before the polish had completely dried.  When I pulled off the tape, some parts of my Sand Tropez seemed to pull up a little (like there was a little bubble under the polish), but another coat of Seche Vite fixed that right up and set my design with its clear, shiny goodness.

And that my friends is how you color block your nails!! Before I go, I’m going to leave you with a little trick that I found on Pinterest and put to the test.  If you’re ever in a hurry and can’t wait to properly let your nails dry, AFTER applying your top coat, spray your nails with PAM and then wash your hands.  The oil sets your nails in just a matter of seconds!  Pretty nifty, huh?

Hope y’all are having a great week so far!! Hubs and I are off to lunch and the shooting range with some friends, so I’ll have some pretty nails to be shootin’ with!  Be back soon with the Urban Decay Vice Palette review!

XOXO