Beauty by Krystal Giveaway Goodies

So my goodies from Beauty by Krystal arrived on Monday! I was so excited to see the box in the mail! My cat Spike was very interested as well :)

Everything was packaged very well and individually wrapped. It was like a mini Christmas in July! Or a late birthday gift, depending on how you look at it :) I couldn't wait to open everything up and start using some of the products. Krystal even included a little card with some extra Target coupons! Those will come in handy.

I've had the pleasure of using the matte shade from the CND The Look - Perfectly Bare Nail Polish duo pack and love it! The CND Sentsations Hand & Body Lotion in Mango Coconut is amazing as well. I apologize for my lighting, my apartment receives no direct sunlight. It's nice to not be woken up by the sun at 5am in the summer, but when it comes to natural light it's no good.

I managed to snag e.l.f. products I didn't have yet but was itching to pick up, so that was a total score! The 141 piece Master Makeup Collection will last me for ages and I love all the options it has! I can't wait to try out some new looks with it. I've really been wanting to test out some different bronzers with my skin and this is perfect!

Thank you again to Beauty by Krystal! This prize is amazing and I am so happy to be able to try out these new products!

e.l.f.

I recently discovered e.l.f. (eyes-lips-face) makeup. They're a company that produces inexpensive cosmetics that are supposed to compete with the high end brands such as Urban Decay, Smashbox, MAC, etc. I didn't know anything about them until Groupon had a deal last week for $35 worth of makeup for $15. I decided to take a look at their website to see what they had, and I immediately wanted so many things! Their products range anywhere from $1 - $6 for individual items. They also have kits and packages you can purchase, that are more expensive, but I’ve noticed they’re not necessarily a better deal. They cost the same as buying the items individually, so if there’s something in the kit that you’re not very interested, search for the items and add them to your cart separately. Then you can still have all the items in the kit, but you at least have them in your choices of colors, styles, etc.

So, after discovering e.l.f., I called my mom and asked if my parents had any plans for my upcoming birthday gift yet. She said no, so I asked for money to buy their makeup. My current makeup collection is several years old and makeup can go bad, and I had been hoping to update/overhaul it anyway, so it all worked out! After signing up for e.l.f.’s mailing list, I was sent a code for 50% off their Studio line of products so I wanted to order before the code expired. 

I hear from a lot of different people  on their message boards and fb page that their basic shipping was pretty terrible. It’s $6.95, you have to wait approximately 5 days for processing, then another 5+ days for the item to ship to you. I paid and extra $4.95 ($11.90 total) for the 3 day shipping, which was 1 day processing time, then 3 days to ship FedEx Priority. Unfortunately, they won’t deliver on weekends, so this extended my ship time, but I think it was worth the extra money not to have to wait 2 weeks for my order to arrive. My shipment came in yesterday and this, ladies, is what you can get for $100 (plus shipping) and 50% off the Studio line from e.l.f.:

My dear boyfriend went down our apartment complex's office to pick up the package for me and he was very surprised by the size of the order also. He was expecting a small box, but nope! This is everything:

e.l.f. Studio Endless Eyes Pro Eyeshadow Palette – Limited Edition

e.l.f. Essential Professional Complete Set of 12 Brushes

e.l.f. Essential Nail Polish Sets (5 piece) in Hot

I wasn’t able to order everything I needed to revamp my makeup collection, so I went back and placed a much smaller order to pick up a few more things. That should be here on Tuesday. I also lucked out because e.l.f. also has a special coupon code for their facebook fans on their fb page that gives 52% off of the Studio line. The code expires Monday, June 27th, so if you’re interested, hurry on over there!

I’ve tried a few of the items and so far I’m in love! The foundation is fabulous. It doesn’t feel greasy or heavy on my skin. The e.l.f. Essential Super Glossy Lip Shine in Pink Kiss (#2806) is great. It’s a bit sticky, but it smells and tastes great. I’m wearing my e.l.f. Essential Waterproof Eyeliner Pen in Plum (#7307) and I found that it was easy to apply and have had no problems with it. The e.l.f. Studio Blush in Candid Coral (#83133) looks great with my complexion. I was iffy about this, thinking it would be too pink, but it’s not. I’m so excited for my other products to arrive! If there’s anything you would like me to review or take more photos of, just let me know!


Thank you mom and dad for helping me get all this! Great birthday present!