*This post has been sponsored by Social Fabric and Sally Hansen but all opinions remain my own. Full disclosure is at the bottom of the post.

I have what some would call an obsession.  I’m a nail polish fanatic.  Hoarder even.  I’m too embarrassed to show you just how many nail polish bottles I actually own.  I love experimenting with nail designs and adding a fun splash of color to my nails to accentuate my outfit.

I’ve been eager to try a new design so I set a date, invited friends, and went shopping at Walgreens.  They have the biggest selection of Sally Hansen products that I’ve ever seen!  I was impressed.  I tried to think of what colors I had at home and which ones would be good to buy to match those.  I decided to let my daughter pick out which ones she wanted and I would make it work.  She loved picking them out and holding a few as we went through the store.  You can check out my entire Walgreens shopping trip to see all of the great varieties of Sally Hansen nail polish…and more pictures of my little girl!

My little basket was full to the brim with everything I needed to host an excellent manicure party, that is, except for nail design tape.  I knew I could order some online but I wanted it quicker than that.  I searched up and down the isles but I couldn’t find what I was looking for.  I wanted to do color block nail art and to do it neatly I wanted tape.  Scotch tape works but I wanted the good stuff.  I asked a Walgreens associate if she knew if where I could find some.  She immediately stopped what she was doing and joined me in my search.  We could both picture it but we couldn’t find it.  She found some thin craft tape that we thought might fit the bill.  I’m happy to report that it worked wonderfully.  If you’re store is ever out of nail design tape (or you just can’t find it) check the craft isle!

When I got to the check out the cashier told me about two $5 coupons I could have used on my purchase if I had only gone to Coupons.com.  Being a teacher of couponing I felt like smacking myself on my head.  Even though I missed out on the coupons, I did get the 2/$5 deal w/ 1,000 points added to my Walgreens Balance Rewards Card (3/31-4/27).

If you have a smart phone, I recommend downloading their app to your phone.  They have several different handy services they offer including bar-code scanner, coupons, and you can keep track of your Balance Rewards right on your phone.  I really racked up on the reward points during this trip!

I had simple snacks for our “block party” so that we could eat while painting our nails.  Yep, you can tell I’m experienced at this!!  We had gummy bears, popcorn, and a few other little goodies.

The nail designs were so much fun to experiment with.  I wanted to get brave enough to do a complicated design like a stained glass window or a bunch of bricks each with a different color.  I decided to mix it up a little and do puzzle piece nail art.  Not too complicated but still kind of classy.

This simple stripe design was made using our craft tape.  It held strong enough not to let the paint bleed through but not strong enough to pull off the original color.

Here is a diagonal stripe with the most amazing sparkle polish over top!  Trust me, this photo doesn’t begin to show it’s beauty.

Here are a few simple steps that I think make for a great at home manicure:

1. Trim, file, buff, & push back cuticles.  Buffing might seem like a waste of time but it will help your nail polish last longer!
2. Apply a base coat.
3. Apply your base color of choice.  I recommend starting with your lightest shade.
4. Allow to fully dry.  This could take a while so I usually add a quick drying top coat here so I can get to designing my nails (the fun stuff) right away.
5. Apply tape and paint the remaining areas.
6. If you’re doing the puzzle design that I did, take a dotting tool (or a toothpick) and dip it into the polish and then onto your nail on the  opposite color.  Repeat with each square.
7. Apply a top coat.
8. Take a picture and post it on Instagram with the tag #EmbracingBeauty so I can see it.  (Really, I want to see!)

I had a great time and I hope you enjoyed reading about my latest nail art adventure.

If you end up catching the “color block bug” feel free to share your art with Sally Hansen on Facebook for a chance to win some great prizes.  Check out the Pinterest Party Walgreens and Sally Hansen are hosting where you could win a year’s supply of Sally Hansen!  You can always purchase Sally Hansen in Walgreens stores but did you know that you can also get it online?  It’s true, you can!  You can also connect with Sally Hansen on Twitter and Walgreens on Twitter.

*UPDATE! I have posted a step by step Puzzle Nail Art Tutorial here for those interested!*

What’s a nail design you would like to try?

*Disclaimer – I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias®  and COTY #cbias #SocialFabric.