I didn’t have a web presence when the ABC Challenge started. I’d picked up nail art as a hobby back in July 2014 (because: color!), but I hadn’t started a blog or posted pictures anywhere. I’d neglected my old web site so much that I stopped paying for hosting and was just hanging onto the domain. I started following the challenge, but I was always late. My photos were often terrible because I wasn’t looking at them after taking them. I took a quick picture whenever, not moisturizing first or even cleaning up the edges. Frequently I’d wait so long to take a photo that the manicure was already pretty damaged (let’s be honest, I still struggle with that one sometimes).
But I wanted to participate. And so I got new hosting. And then I set up the barest of bones of a WordPress blog. And then I tried really hard to finish my manicure on time. I finally made it with ‘H’ is for Hogwarts. And, oh man, if you actually look at that first post you’ll see how dry my skin was. Cuticle oil? Way too high maintenance for someone whose hands would crack and bleed during the winter and lotion was still too much effort to put on. Seriously wouldn’t use it even if a bottle was sitting right next to me.
As the challenge progressed I edited my old photos and slipped the posts in alongside the new. But for ‘A’, ‘B’ and ‘C’, I chose to re-do them. Maybe someday I will dig back through my old photos and show y’all how it all got started in 2014. Until then, this is a pretty good record of my progress over the past year.
![A is for Apricot - ABC Nail Art Ideas - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/A-is-for-Apricot_01-150x150.jpg)
![B is for Breakfast - ABC Nail Art Challenge - 26 Great Nail Art Ideas (winter warmth) - Hermit Werd](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/B-is-for-Breakfast_01-150x150.jpg)
![C is for Crane - ABC Nail Art Challenge - 31 Day Challenge (honour) - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/C-is-for-Crane_01-150x150.jpg)
![D is for Dinosaur - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/D-is-for-Dinosaur_01-150x150.jpg)
![E is for Equestria Girls - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/E-is-for-Equestria-Girls_01-150x150.jpg)
![P is for Pair - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/P-is-for-Pair_01-150x150.jpg)
![G is for Grain - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/G-is-for-Grain_01-150x150.jpg)
![H is for Hogwarts - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/H-is-for-Hogwarts_02-150x150.jpg)
![I is for Icing - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/I-is-for-Icing_02-150x150.jpg)
![J is for Jackalope - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/J-is-for-Jackalope_02-150x150.jpg)
![K is for Koi - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/K-is-for-Koi_03-150x150.jpg)
![L is for Lemons and Limes - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/L-is-for-Lemons-and-Limes_01-150x150.jpg)
![M is for My Little Pony - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/M-is-for-My-Little-Pony_04-150x150.jpg)
![N is for Neko - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/N-is-for-Neko_01-150x150.jpg)
![O is for Opal - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/O-is-for-Opal_01-1-150x150.jpg)
![P is for Pair - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/P-is-for-Pair_01-150x150.jpg)
![Q is for Quack - ABC Nail Art Challenge - 31 Day Challenge (Red) - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Q-is-for-Quack_01-150x150.jpg)
![R is for Rubber Ducky - ABC Nail Art Challenge - 31 Day Challenge (Stripes) - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/R-is-for-Rubber-Ducky_01-150x150.jpg)
![S is for Steampunk - ABC Nail Art Challenge - 31 Day Challenge (delicate) - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/S-is-for-Steampunk_02-e1517520446910-150x150.jpg)
![T is for TIme - ABC Nail Art Challenge - 31 Day Challenge (color) - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/T-is-for-Time_01-150x150.jpg)
![U is for Undead - ABC Nail Art Challenge - 31 Day Challenge (supernatural) - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/U-is-for-Undead_03-150x150.jpg)
![V is for Vixen - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/V-is-for-Vixen_01-150x150.jpg)
![W is for Whale - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/W-is-for-Whale_01-150x150.jpg)
![X is for X-files - ABC Nail Art Challenge - 31 Day Challenge (tv show) - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/X-is-for-X-files_01-150x150.jpg)
![Y is for YOLO - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Y-is-for-YOLO_01-150x150.jpg)
![Z is for Zeppelin - ABC Nail Art Challenge - Hermit Werds](http://hermitism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Z-is-for-Zeppelin_01-150x150.jpg)
One last look at the old prompt graphic:
That’s it! My first major nail art challenge finished in 2016.
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