Tape Mani Tutorial

Hey lovelies!! So I posted a pic of my notd (nail of the day) about a week or so ago on Instagram [enjeliq] and received a comment on my picture asking if I had thought of doing a tutorial. I honestly had thought about it after I had already finished one hand, but because I was rushing made a couple booboos. You know the type- bump your nail = dent, rush the second coat of paint = not as crisp a line, too much remover on the clean up brush = take extra paint off that you'd rather stay... so yeah... I was not happy. At heart I am a perfectionist and initially my thoughts were oh well, I'll do a tutorial on a mani that turns out better than this. However, when I sent Dom a pic showing her my notd she asked the same thing. At this point I only had the undies for the blue done, so basically the perfect starting point to take some in progress shots... so thank you to the unknowingly combined efforts of a lovely Instagram follower and Dom for this tutorial!

This is NOT always an easy or quick nail art technique, so please do not stop trying if it doesn't turn out as lovely as you'd like. It has taken me at least 10 times doing tape manis to get anywhere close to having them turn out nice. I started when I saw a picture on this blog that came up from a random nail art type Google search. I honestly didn't need to read a tutorial once I saw the tape. It was like a lightbulb went off in my head! Through trial and error I've come up with the way that *I* do my tape manis. That doesn't mean that you won't come up with your own version too, but I hope that this is a starting point of sorts for you too. Just please don't stop trying!! This is seriously an endless tool of awesomeness!! Harness the power!! :D

Top pic L to R: Sally Hansen - Blue Me Away!, Color Club - Sky High, Nicole by OPI - Save the 1st Dance,
Seche Vite Scotch Tape, X-Acto craft Scissors

What you'll need:

• Tape (Scotch tape/satin finish/giftwrap tape is my personal fave)
• Scissors or Craft/Scrapbooking shape scissors (just remember the larger the scissors the harder it'll be to do tiny cuts and nails are only so big)
• Nail polish remover
• Qtips or brush for clean up
• Papertowel or some other surface to get dirty/protect your work table
• Base/Top coats
• Nail polish color(s)
• and, last but not least, AN IDEA!! :)

Step 1: Rip off a strip of tape. I am a more is more type of person in this particular area... so I usually rip off a strip about 2 or 3 inches.

Now, if you're using craft scissors like I did this time, you'll need to lay the tape to where it is half hanging out/off of the side like in the photo. You need the tape to still have "structural integrity" once you take it off the scissors so if you cut too much into the middle and there isn't enough left it'll just rip into pieces. I hope this makes sense... trial and error people ;)

Step 1a: Once you've cut your tape in the desired design place it on your palm once. This helps to make the tape just a SMIDGE less sticky and will help in the removal process later. (I colored the edge of the tape with a sharpie to show you the edge of what I cut- this is not a necessary step- was purely for visual)

Step 2: For this mani I wanted to use some really shiny/metallic colors and on a recent purchase I picked up Sky High from Color Club's Take Wing collection. While it is absolutely beautiful it is a bit sheer and I didn't honestly have time to wait for 3 or so layers to dry before doing my tape mani. So I used Sally Hansen - Blue Me Away! as undies (1 coat) and then slapped the Sky High (1 coat) on top. These two were perfect together and it was oodles faster!

Step 2a: TOP COAT! lol this is very important... if you have time, apply your regular top coat. If not, apply a fast dry top coat, I personally like Seche Vite. ***IMPORTANT*** your top coat has to be dry before you lay down any tape... so seriously let it dry, give it a couple mins or you'll regret it and there is no do cover up other than complete re-do.

Step 3: Apply your tape in the manor of which you'd like the other color/effect to be on your nail. Remember, the tape is just a guide to give you a crisp edge to your design. I wanted mine to be on the side or angled on my nail. 

Step 3a: Paint the exposed area with your color/effect. If it appears thin and not opaque enough do a second layer immediately.

Final Step *Not Pictured* REMOVE! :D Remove the tape while the paint/effect is still wet! If it dries too much you'll run the risk of the underneath part (that is still damp) not being crisp and the top layer that is slightly drier pulling away with the tape. The result (I've totally done this) is a weird and ugly smear that is not fixable other than starting over from scratch. 

And ta-da! You're done! Again, this isn't one of my fave tape manis but it is a fun effect. My faves are the shredded look. You can view photos of other tape manis in our Facebook page HERE! Don't forget to send us some pictures of your tape manis!! We love seeing your manis too! Oh, and be sure to like our Facebook page to keep in the loop of all our happenings and to see lots more pictures!

Good luck and happy taping!