Introducing: Sarah's Sparkles

Hiya lovelies!  Today I'm taking a little break from normal posting to briefly introduce you all to the other nail-related part of my life - Sarah's Sparkles.  Now, some of you may already know this (If you're friends with me on Facebook you may have seen it linked on my profile, or even just heard me mention it in a polish related group), but many of you won't know, that I also run a very small business selling hand painted false nails....................

A2Z - H is for.....Holographic

 Hiya lovelies!  So I'm back today with my post for this weeks A2Z, and we're up to H is for Holographic.  As you can imagine, I've been really looking forward to this week. :D  After seeing the lovely Narmai of PiggieLuv playing around with the sheer tints a lot recently, I was inspired to dig mine out and do something with them myself..........

A2Z Nails - G is for.......Gold

 Hiya lovelies!  Just a quick post from me today, as I only have about 20 minutes to get this typed and posted.  It is Thursday though, so that means it's time for another A2Z post, and this week we're up to G is for Gold............

52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge - Dark Green & Camo, and Red & Gold

Hiya lovelies!  So, it's still very quiet around here, but today I have 2 mani's to share with you.  I painted a mani for last weeks Pick 'n' Mix challenge prompt, but I didn't get around to posting it in time, so I figured I might as well post it along with my mani for this weeks prompt.........

A2Z: F is for.......Fashion

 Hiya lovelies!  I'm back today with this weeks A2Z mani, and we're up to F is for Fashion.  Since I don't keep up with mainstream fashion, I decided to go with alternative fashion and paint something that's to my own taste.........

A2Z: E is for....Elegant

 Hiya lovelies! It's been deadly quiet over here for a little while, but I was determined to get a mani in for the A-Z even if it killed me. This week (read:Thursday) we're up to the letter E, and the prompt is Elegant.  I actually ended up doing this mani twice, as the first time my base was a bit too similar to the pastels, and you could barely tell they were there.  I think it was worth it though, this looks way better than the other version.....

Born Pretty Store - 2mm Silver Spikes Review

*2 products in this post were provided in exchange for a 100% honest review.

Hiya lovelies!  I recently received 3 more items from Born Pretty Store to review, and today I'm showing you the 2mm x 2.5mm silver spikes.  It's no secret that I love using my larger spikes now and then, but they're completely impractical, so I was looking forward to trying out these smaller ones..........

52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge

 Hiya lovelies!  I'm back today with my mani for this weeks Pick 'n' Mix Challenge, and this week the prompts were "brown", and "book".  I decided to just go with the brown half of the prompt.  I only own a couple of browns, so didn't have many polishes to choose from, but I went with OPI - OPI Scores a Goal!, a lovely raisin cream with a stunning formula...........

A2Z - D is for.....Dark

 Hiya lovelies!  Sorry for the lack of posts around here of late, I'm still trying to get caught up on work stuff during my "holiday", which hasn't left a lot of time for nail painting.  Nonetheless, I had to make sure I put something together for this weeks A2Z.  We're up to D this week, and the prompt is Dark.  I had a few ideas for night time scenes in my head, but due to time constraints I had to think of something a lot simpler.........

A2Z - C is for Copy Cat

Hiya lovelies!  So, today we're up to C in the A2Z, and the prompt for this week is Copy Cat.  Now, I really really loved the outlined chevrons mani that Charlie did for A, (here) so I decided to copy her, but still trying to put my own spin on it.........

52 Week Pick 'n' Mix - Yellow & Animals (wild)

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have my mani for this weeks Pick 'n' Mix Challenge.  The prompts are "Yellow", and "Animals (wild)", so I decided to keep it simple, and went with some monochrome leopard print, with a splash of yellow thrown in............

52 Week Pick 'n' Mix - 3 shades of blue

Hiya lovelies!  So, I'm feeling quite a lot better now, and while I'm not totally 100% yet, I have the energy to actually do stuff, which is more than I can say for the last week or so.  So, I'm literally just squeezing in my mani for this weeks 52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge, which has been sitting in a folder on my PC, waiting to be posted for ages.  (as you can tell from the fact my nails aren't nubbins here)   The prompts this week were animals (domestic), and/or 3 shades of blue.  I spaced out on ideas for combining both, so just did the 3 shades of blue.......

A2Z - B is for Bold

* Purchased by me

 Hiya lovelies!  Just a quick post from me today, as I'm still feeling pretty rough, but I didn't want to miss the A-Z, so here we are :D  We're up to B this week, and the prompt is bold.  I decided to go with some super sparkly animal print, with a strong colour contrast..............

October.......in mani's.

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have a quick round up of all the nail art I managed to post during October.  I didn't think there would be many at all this month, but actually there's a lot more than there was in September. So, let's get stuck in shall we?

(click on the titles above the images to go to the original posts.  (opens in a new tab)

MoYou Nails Review - Part 2

*Stamping plates and stamping polish were provided in exchange for a 100% honest review.

Hiya lovelies!  So, I was hoping to have this post up at least a few days ago, as you may have guessed from the Halloween-y vibe of the stripes, but tonsillitis is a cruel mistress, and I just haven't had the energy for large amounts of typing.  Still, better late than never, and there's still a mani here that isn't at all seasonal, so I hope you'll all forgive me this little seasonal faux pas.......

52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge - 3 dark colours

*Purchased by me

Hiya lovelies!  So, today I have a second mani for this weeks 52 week pick 'n' mix challenge, this time choosing the "3 dark colours" prompt.  But before we get into that, lets address the tiny little elephants in the room - I'm back to rocking nubbins!  I had a really bad break on my middle finger, and there was no hope of patching it, since I don't know where the tip went, so I just had to cut them all down to match.  It feels, and looks, really weird, I haven't had nubs since about this time last year, but I've decided to just embrace them until they're stronger...........

A2Z - A is for Angles

 Hiya lovelies!  So, today sees the beginning of a brand new A-Z of Polish!  We have a whole host of lovely new ladies joining us this time around.  The wonderful Charlie did an really cool "meet the bloggers" post the other day if you'd like to have a look at who's joining in.  (see it here) It's a little different this time around too.  Whereas last time we had to find a polish starting with that letter, this time, we have one word assigned to each letter, and it's down to us to interpret that however we want.  Which is just awesomesauce..............

52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have my mani for this weeks 52 week pick 'n' mix challenge.  The prompts this week are 3 dark colours, and 80's.  I chose to just go with the 80's prompt for this mani, since I was struggling to find a way to put the 2 prompts together...........

A-Z of Polish Round-Up

Hiya lovelies!  So today, I'm doing a round up of all 26 mani's from the A-Z of Polish.  I figured that since this challenge has been running for about half a year, it would be cool to go right back to the beginning, and remind myself of what I came up with.  It'll also be interesting to see how I feel about these mani's months down the line.  (or at least I hope it will)

This will be a very picture heavy post, so be warned, you may need a beverage or 2 and a comfy chair......

52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge - 70's

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have my mani for this weeks 52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge.  The prompts for this week are 70's, and Grey + Colour.  I decided to just pick the 70's part, so I could do a red and black punk mani.  I know that some people associate punk more with the 80's than the 70's, but I like to think my mani is a celebration of the birth of punk, and therefore still very much in the 70's :p

A-Z of Polish: Z is for........Zoya!

 Hiya lovelies!  So, can you believe we're on the very last letter of the alphabet now!?  I can't believe I've been doing this challenge for practically half a year, it really doesn't feel like it's been that long.  If, like me, you're sad that this challenge is over, don't fret, as we will be starting A2Z next week.  Yup, we're doing the whole alphabet AGAIN! :D  It's going to be a little different this time though - if the last one was the A-Z of Polish, then this one is more like the A-Z of mani's.  Each letter of the alphabet is assigned a word, and our job will be to interpret that word in any way we see fit.  We also have a few new ladies joining us, so expect a post from me to introduce the new A2Z, and everyone involved in it :D

Dark Metal Lacquer Cuticle Oil Review, & Halloween Nail Art

*Cuticle Oil was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have a 2 for 1 post to share with you; a review of the Dark Metal Lacquer Cuticle Oil Pen, plus some Halloween nail art that I did a couple of days ago.....

Barry M Glitterati Collection

*Purchased by me

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have swatches of the whole Barry M Glitterati Collection to share with you.  It's not very often that I want to/can afford to buy an entire collection, but I really loved all 6 of these in other peoples swatches, and since Barry M's have a very affordable price point, I was able to do exactly that.  So, let's get straight into it then shall we?

52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge - 60's & Matte/Texture

Hello again lovelies!  Today I have my mani for this weeks 52 week pick 'n' mix challenge.  I've put both prompts into the same mani again this week, and those two prompts are 60's, and matte or texture.  Now, I know that tie dye is one of the most obviously 60's manis there is, but I haven't done one before, and I've wanted to for ages.......

September, in mani's...........

Hiya lovelies!  So, I wasn't initially planning to do a collage for last month, as I was struggling with the image mapping last time.  (I know literally nothing about coding)  However, after managing to get one to work yesterday I was feeling a little braver, so here it is.  Better late than never I guess. :D

This are all the mani's I posted on the blog throughout September.  Not really that many for an entire month, but there are a couple in there that I was very proud of.  Namely the neon star/mosaic mani, the pink and purple fairies, and the kawai clouds and rainbow.  How about you guys, which one is your favourite?

To view any of the original blog posts, just click on the mani and it should take you straight there.  I've tested it quickly myself, and it all seems to be working, but if you have any issues, please let me know and I'll see if I can fix it.

MoYou Nails Review #2 - Part 1

*Products in this post were provided in exchange for review

Hiya lovelies! You may remember that a while back, I reviewed a couple of stamping plates and a nail polish from MoYou Nails.  Well, they've kindly offered me a few more items for review from their new releases......

The Nail Arcade Review - Part 3

*Glitters were provided in exchange for a 100% honest review.

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have the third part to my review for The Nail Arcade.  Today I'm using these little ellipse shaped holographic glitters.........

52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge

Hello again lovelies!  Just a super quick second post from me today, I'm just squeezing in this weeks pick 'n' mix challenge mani while there's still technically a couple of hours of the week left :p

Dark Metal Lacquer - Mystery Box Review (September)

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have something exciting to show you all.  Last month, Dark Metal Lacquer launched a monthly mystery box, where each month there will be a theme, and the box will include polishes to fit that theme, plus a few little extras (some of which may be beauty items, or even something edible.) The polishes are exclusive to the boxes, and the price will vary from month to month, depending on what the theme is for that month. (For example, a holo themed box would be a little pricier than others, due to the cost of the supplies) The theme for the first month was Glitter, and the box was only £12.  Even if it had been a little pricier I probably would have still bought it, but £12 is a heck of a bargain!

A-Z of Polish: Y is for.....Your Choice :D (Dark Metal Lacquer - Flashy Sparklies)

*Purchased by me

 Hiya lovelies!  Sorry this post is a bit late, I've had a super busy week this week and didn't get around to it yesterday.  Nonetheless, we're up to the penultimate week of the A-Z of Polish, and the letter is Y.  I didn't have anything for Y in my stash, so I decided to do "your choice" for this prompt, and just pick something I really wanted to wear............

The Nail Arcade Review (part 2)

* 1 product in this post was provided in exchange for a 100% honest review. 

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have the second part of my The Nail Arcade review, and the second item I'll be showing you is these silver holographic triangle glitters...........

Dark Metal Lacquer - Dreaming & Heurt

*Purchased with my own money :D

Hiya lovelies!  Hope you're all having a great weekend so far.  Today I have a couple of Dark Metal Lacquer swatches to share with you - Heurt, which was one of Kamila's first creations, and Dreaming, which is from the more recent Autumn collection.......

Crumpet's Nail Tarts 52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge

Hiya lovelies!  An exciting post today, as this is my first mani in a brand new challenge! It's the 52 Week Pick 'n' Mix Challenge, being run through the Crumpet's Nail Tarts facebook page.  (You can find us here if you'd like to join in).  As the name would suggest, the challenge runs for a total of 52 whole weeks.  Each week, there are 2 prompts; one is a colour prompt, and the other is a pattern, or style of nail art.  Each week, you can pick to do a separate mani for each prompt, one mani that combines both, just one of the prompts, or even sit it out altogether that week if you need to.  Debbie was trying really hard to find a way of allowing more freedom in this nail art challenge, while still keeping some form of structure, and boy oh boy did she find it.  I love the way this is being run, it's such a good idea!

A-Z of Polish: X is for........Xtreme Wear!

Hiya lovelies!  I'm back today with my post for this weeks A-Z of Polish.  We're up to X this week, and since I didn't have any polishes in my stash with names starting with X, I decided to do Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear instead.........

Born Pretty Store Review - Part 2

*All the decals in this post were provided in exchange for a 100% honest review.

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have the second part to my Born Pretty Store review.  In part 1 (here), I showed you a stamping plate, and today I'm showing you the second nail art product I chose - some neon water decals (here).  I've only ever tried water decals once, and it didn't go very well, so I was really interested to see if I got on better with these ones.......

Colour me Crazy: Contrasting

Hiya lovelies!  Today I have my final mani the Colour me Crazy challenge, and the prompt is Contrasting.  Totally unplanned, but today's mani features the same polish I used in last weeks Complimentary mani - Barry M Key Lime......

The Nail Arcade Review (part 1)

* 1 product in this post was provided in exchange for a 100% honest review

 Hiya lovelies!  Recently, I was contacted by the lovely Rachel from The Nail Arcade (formerly Winterberry Nail Art) to see if I would like to review a couple of products for her.  I really loved the bits I got from her last time (see here, here, here, and here) so naturally I said yes.....

Colour me Crazy (and caught up): Complimenting

 Hiya lovelies!  Today I have another catch up mani for the Colour me Crazy challenge.  I keep missing a week of this challenge, but I'm determined to get them all done.  This week is actually the last one anyway, so I have just one more mani to show you after today.  Just in time to start the Crumpet's Nail Tarts 52 week challenge! :D

A-Z of Polish: W is for.......Wendy

Hiya lovelies, and welcome to another letter in the A-Z of Polish.  We're up to W this week, and it just so happens that I received something in the post the other week which is perfect for today.  This is Shimmer Polish - Wendy, which is a beautiful mix of purple, copper and turquoise glitters in a clear base.

Born Pretty Store Review - Part 1

*One product in this post was provided in exchange for a 100% honest review

Hiya lovelies!  I was recently contacted by Born Pretty Store and offered the chance to review a couple of items from their online store.  If you're not already familiar with BPS, they are a website selling all sorts of nail art stuff, jewellery, clothing, some pretty cool phone cases and tonnes more, as well as their own nail polish lines.  They offered me a choice of 2 items from their store, so I picked a stamping plate, and some neon water decals.  Today I'm showing you the stamping plate.....

A-Z of Polish: V is for...........Vortex Remnants

 Hiya lovelies!  Sorry today's post is a little bit late.  I've just been so tired recently and haven't really had the energy to blog much.  Luckily, I have some time off work now, so hopefully I'll have time to rest up, and even get ahead on a load of blog posts.  
But back to today.  It's Thursday, so of course I have my mani for this weeks A-Z of Polish, and this weeks letter is V.  Amazingly, I actually had a few choices in my stash for this week, but really, there was only one - Femme Fatale - Vortex Remnants............

Colour me Crazy - Pastels

*The stamping plate in this mani was previously provided in exchange for a 100% honest review.

 Hiya lovelies!  Today I'm just about squeezing in my mani for this weeks Colour me Crazy challenge, and the prompt is Pastels.  A few weeks ago, Elicia from Deliciate Nails did this mani with this cute little cloud, inspired by @iscreamnails on Instagram, and I've been dying to try it out myself ever since.........

Theme Buffet - Marbling

 Hiya lovelies!  Today I have my mani for this weeks Theme Buffet prompt to show you guys, and the prompt for this week is Marbling (dry or water).  I decided to go with water since it's still something I need to practise at..........

A-Z of Polish - U is for..... Unconditional Love

 Hiya lovelies, and welcome to another week of the A-Z of Polish.  This week we're up to the letter U, and this was the polish I chose today: Fancy Gloss - Unconditional Love, a pink to red thermal with gold  iridescent flecks.  I purchased this polish from Rainbow Connection UK ages ago, but it is still in stock at the moment........

Dark Metal Lacquer - Gas in Veins

*Purchased by me

 Hiya lovelies! Today I have another gorgeous Dark Metal Lacquer to show you.  This is Gas in Veins, a teal holographic polish. This was actually one of the first polishes Kamila released, and it is a stunner.......

Colour me Crazy Catch-up: Neon

 Hi again lovelies!  So, here is the second prompt of the Colour me Crazy challenge that I missed - Neon.  You guys have probably noticed already that I LOVE using neon nail polish, so I had to put something together for this prompt.......

Colour me Crazy Catch-up: Black and White

Hiya lovelies!  As promised yesterday, I'm getting caught up on the couple of prompts I missed in the British Nail Bloggers Colour me Crazy challenge.  So, first up is Black and White, and as you can see I went with something very simple for this prompt.....

Dark Metal Lacquer - She's Like Heroin

*Purchased by me.

 Hiya lovelies!  Over the next week or two, I'm going to be showing you a few Dark Metal Lacquer's, and today I'm starting with one of my absolute favourite's.  This is She's Like Heroin from Kamila's autumn collection, and boy is this a gorgeous pink!

A-Z of Polish - T is for..........The Siren (Dark Metal Lacquer)

*Purchased by me

Hiya lovelies!  It's Thursday once again, which means it's time for another post for the A-Z of Polish series.  This weeks letter is 'T', which is another letter I had a fair few choices for.  In the end I decided to go with one of my untried Dark Metal Lacquer's.  This is The Siren, which is a total orgy of glitters, predominantly blue.........

MoYou London Rainbow Contest - Pink

Hiya lovelies!  So sorry I haven't posted in a couple of days, especially since I was hoping to double post on Sunday.  I went on an impromptu cleaning spree on Sunday, and it really took the wind out of me.  I really can't wait for the week off I have coming up this month, I just seem to be tired all the time these days.  Anyway, that's enough complaining for now, lets talk about the nails..........