Recap of my New Years Eve and First Post of 2015!

Hi Loves!


Just wanted to say Happy New Year to all of you! I know there are very few of you who read my blog posts, but wanted to share with you how I spent my New Years Eve. Also, this is going to be my first post of 2015. YAY! Hope you enjoy it and letʻs get it started!

This year, I spent the whole day at home relaxing and then I spent some time with my best friend and his roommates. We basically just went out to Chiliʻs and then went back to their place to watch "Dark Skies" on Netflix. Yes, weʻre pretty boring. NO, we were being responsible and sensible people by staying at home and not contributing to the craziness of the New Years Eve celebrations! Well, thatʻs what we told ourselves anyways. Doesnʻt seem like anything special, but I enjoy moments like these.

Anyways, at Chiliʻs we had dinner, dessert, and tons of laughs. We mostly laughed at the fact that the waitress was going all in with hitting on me and how I played it cool. *DISCLAIMER* I have nothing against LGBTQ people, my best friend is GAY and I also have another best friend who is a LESBIAN. I just laugh it off when women hit on me and kind of take it as a compliment when both genders are attracted to me. We also laughed at the various topics of conversation we had as well which included pap smears, dating, food, life, etc. We ended off the dinner with the infamous Molten Chocolate Lava Cake. I had a picture, but I deleted it! Ugh. LOL.

After dinner we went to Longs, which is Hawaiiʻs version of CVS, to get some firecrackers. For those of you who donʻt know, Hawaii is one of, if not probably the only State that has made fireworks illegal due to the number of incidents where people where getting injured because of their idiotic attempts to create an ultimate firework or wanting to make the hugest bomb go off. So with that being said, we got pop pops and those champagne streamer ones. I forget what the name of them are.

After our trip to Longs, we went back to my best friends place and watched "Dark Skies" on Netflix. It was an okay movie. It had some trippy or suspenseful parts, but overall wasnʻt something that I would have watched on my own. Does that make sense? Here is a pic of me that I took while watching the movie during one of the more boring parts.

Please donʻt mind my brows. I think I made them too thick and too dark. Iʻm still practicing ;)

When the movie was done, it was already 11:30 and me and my bestie quickly hurried back to my place. I live where I can see multiple firework shows either from my balcony or from my rooftop. Of course, I would rather prefer to watch it on my balcony. My bestie and I cheered the New Year with a glass of white wine and saying "Goodbye sh**** 2014 and Hello 2015!" Here is a pic from my balcony and no, itʻs not zoomed in, but I did post this on Instagram with a filter to bring it out more.

Cheers to 2015! Thank God 2014 is now over!

After I yelled out "Goodbye sh**** 2014 and Hello 2015!", my neighbors yelled "Amen" and I had one of my first conversations with them. I know this is going to sound absolutely weird and crazy, but I have lived in my apartment for 3 years and they have lived in theirs for 2 years and we BARELY have spoken to each other. Living in an apartment building is definitely weird in itself and how disconnected we are to one another. We literally live next to each other and park side by side as well, but donʻt see each other often. We talked about that as well and how we have different schedules, how we canʻt hear each other since we have a concrete wall between us, and saying how it was weird that we never did really talk to one another. Hopefully 2015 will bring me more opportunities to chat and say "hi" to my neighbors.

2015 is the Year of the Ram! Love this pic!

I hope that you all had a great New Years Eve and New Years celebration. I know that 2014 was not the year for many people, but I hope that you were still able to end it off on a good note. I know that I personally went through a lot of different things that tested me in ways that have made me stronger. 2015 is the year of the Ram, Goat, or Sheep (whatever you want to call it). This is supposedly my year (1991 baby, whoop whoop!) and I hope that is true. I also wish that it will be your year too! I wish you all a year filled with magic, laughter, joy, happiness, peace, positive vibes, many memories to cherish with family, friends, and loved ones, love, good health, prosperity, and everything that you can wish for. Let us all start it off with the intent to make it a great year and to wish the same for others. 

Now letʻs get out there and have a good start off to the New Year! I still need to take down my Christmas Tree! Have a great day and see you all later!

<3 Crystal 

Last Blog Post of 2014!

Hey Loves!


Well, let me just start off by saying that I have not been able to upkeep with this blog at all. Although I have wanted to, I have just not have had the time or the ability to do so. I have been really busy with grad school and work. Ahh, adulthood at its finest!

The year is coming to an end and my goal for 2015 is to at least post a few times a month here on my blog. Also, I would like to have more readers and more people follow this blog. My hope is to have at least 50 followers by the summer of 2015. Is this a realistic goal? Maybe and maybe not. Lol, weʻll just have to see!

I would like to have reviews of products that I have been testing out, show my ipsy glam bags for the month, show some hauls, and maybe even do some monthly favorites. Another thing I would like to do is have you all get to know me more as well. Maybe even post a video here and there. Who knows?! The skies the limit!

I am looking forward to what 2015 has to offer and am hoping to be able to talk to some of you or follow some of your blogs! I wish you all a very Happy New Yearʻs Eve and a prosperous New Year!



Take care and see you loves next year!




<3 Crystal

Suggestions

Hey Loves!


I hope youʻre all doing well and are ready for Summer 2014! I am soo sorry I havenʻt been on here for a while. I have just been soo busy and have been going through some things within the past few months.

I now have some time to be able to dedicate my passion for writing and doing reviews for you all. I have been doing little mini reviews on my Instagram, @rawresilience_808.

Do you loves have anything that youʻd like for me to review? Do you like my mini reviews or more in depth reviews? Or would you rather pick from the list below?

• ItsJudyTime Eye Shadow Pallet
• ThatsHeart Eyeshadow and Blush Pallet
• Nars Sun Kisses Set
• Max Makeup Cherimoya Matte Lip Crayons
• Loreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara
• Compare and Contrast of the Maybelline Baby Skin and Benefit Porefessional
• Maybelline Foundation Stick

Please let me know what you would like to see from me and I will be working on some more in depth reviews in the meantime on some of these products. 

Love you all!

Crystal <3 

Maybelline Fit Me Liquid Foundation

Hey Everyone!


Sorry I havenʻt been on here lately. Iʻve been going through some personal things lately, but I am slowly getting myself back to where I would like to be and am excited to be posting numerous reviews!
I just wanted to say thank you for being so patient with me and for sticking around! Please be on the look out for many more reviews and also, if youʻre on Instagram, you can now follow me @rawresilience_808. I post some first impressions on products, pictures, and mini reviews if you feel thatʻs better for you.

Letʻs get started!

I recently bought the Maybelline Fit Me Liquid Foundation. I have the stick version of it which I LOVE. I got the color 220 in "Natural Beige" and it has an SPF of 18. The price was pretty decent. It was $6.54 + Tax at my local Target. The liquid comes out semi-watery, but manages to not be runny. It has an average foundation smell, floral, and itʻs easy to blend on the face.

While testing this out, I made the mistake of using this on a REALLY humid day and my face felt like it was going to melt off. I noticed that it looked like it wasnʻt going to be my color even though I am a 220 in the stick. It seemed to be a tad bit darker, but once I let it set, it turned out to be my skin tone. I used a setting powder and within maybe 15-30 minutes after application, the oils from my skin and foundation ate through the powder. Here is a pic of when I first put it on my face.

I know in the picture, it looks darker than my neck, but in person it matched up perfectly. Also, on a side note, I am in major need of a tan :P

I left the foundation on for over 8 hours and had about enough afterwards. My face felt itchy, it was red, and I could see that the pores on my nose were all clogged. Here is a pic of my face at the end of the day.

As you can see, it looks like itʻs pretty much gone and that Iʻm pretty shiny. I posted a video on Instagram and you can see my skin is red and that my nose pores are clogged up. 

I will be testing this out once again on a better day because I feel that the humidity affected the foundation greatly. I just wanted to let you all know how it was for someone who has oily combo skin on a humid day and how it lasts.

Overall, this product provides light to medium coverage and seems to be true to match in color. I like that it wasnʻt that expensive. Again, I will be testing this out on a day where it isnʻt so humid and post an updated review if there are any changes.



Take care and see you next time!



<3 Crystal

BH Cosmetics 88 Matte Eyeshadow Pallet Review

Hey Everyone!

Iʻm back with another review on something that Iʻve had for about a year now. I use it for special occasions, when I want to add a pop of color to my look, or just to play around with when Iʻm bored at home. Iʻm sure you all know about it and maybe even have it in your collection. Itʻs the BH Cosmetics 88 Matte Eyeshadow Pallet! Yes, again, I know this has tons of hype on it, but I feel that itʻs worth talking about. 

I ordered the 88 Matte Eyeshadow Pallet about last year around this time to help me prep for Valentines Day and got it for about $10-$12 with shipping included in the total. I took advantage of their pre-valentines day sale last year. They have great deals on pallets if you want to check it out http://www.bhcosmetics.com/new. Itʻs also the place where you can get the ItsJudyTime Pallet http://www.bhcosmetics.com/products/eyes/its-judy-time and the Thatʻs Heart Pallet http://www.bhcosmetics.com/products/eyes/thats-heart. Iʻm waiting for pay day to get my hands on them! As soon as I get them, I will post a review as well!

The pallet claims that all 88 eyeshadows are matte, but there are some with some shimmer in them. When I first purchased it, I was kind of irked that it came with some shimmer and that it claims to be ALL matte, but I learned to get over it! The shimmer helps to give some definition along with dimension to an eyeshadow look and where else am I going to get 88 colors for $10-$12? They have light pastel colors, neutral colors, and pops of bright color. I like how I can create a natural look or a bold look with the colors in the pallet too!

I created an all matte black look last year for Valentines Day and I loved how the colors came out. Most of the colors are very pigmented, but of course, there are some that need extra effort to get a color payoff from. I do use the Urban Decay Primer Potion on my eyelids every time that I use eyeshadow, but that still doesnʻt help. I just have to keep dipping in the color or use another eyeshadow to help give me more of a base color depending on the color Iʻm using.

Alright, letʻs get into it shall we?


These are the photos of what the packaging looks like, what the colors look like in the pallet, and the color payoff from the swatches on my forearm. Please donʻt mind my hairy arms. LOL.

The packaging is a black, shiny, hard plastic. It feels cheap, but itʻs good for what I paid for. Also, the pallet comes with 2 double ended eyeshadow sponge brushes which arenʻt very good. I tried it once to know it wasnʻt good. I just use my brushes I bought at Ross to do my eyeshadow looks.

This is what the colors looks like in the pallet. Thereʻs 11 colors in each row and there are 8 rows which make 88. I will be listing the colors from left to right by rows 1-8.

Row 1

Row 2

Row 3

Row 4

Row 5

Row 6

Row 7

Row 8

As you can see, the color pigmentation of the colors become better as you go further down the pallet. It seems to me that the darker colors give off more pigmentation. Itʻs kind of a "duhhh" thing, but you never know sometimes or sometimes the lighter colors give you more pigmentation. Some of the colors look really similar too and you canʻt really see the shimmer in the ones that have shimmer in them. In the photo of them all in the pallet you can see the sheen on some of the colors, but it doesnʻt come up in the swatches all that well. Another thing you can probably notice is that some colors are chalky or chunky which mean fallout. With those, just use a lighter hand or lighter application to work the color onto the eyelids.

Overall, I am happy with this pallet and I feel that it was worth the money for all of the colors that I got. I also like that I get all the colors of the rainbow at least once in terms of good pigmentation. The pallet is versatile and can give you multiple looks. Like I said earlier, I would like to purchase the ItsJudyTime and Thatʻs Heart Pallets as well as maybe purchasing at least one blush, one bronzer, and on lip product to do a full look using BH Cosmetics. Would that be something that youʻd want to see?

Hope you all enjoyed this review and please let me know how I did!

<3 Crystal  

Product Review: Wet ʻnʻ Wild Megaslicks Balm Stain

Hey Everyone! 

Happy New Years and I have soo much planned for this year. I will be focusing on doing more product reviews and trying to stay in the beauty/makeup direction for this blog. I hope you all have been enjoying it so far and are looking forward to whatʻs to come as much as I am! 

ANYWAYS, letʻs get started!!!

I am soo excited to share with you all my FIRST product review EVER! 

First, Iʻll talk about where I found it and the cost as well as the selection. Then I will go into my experience with using the product all day and my overall opinion on it. I will have photos that go along with this posted below this review.

Okay, so I walked into Don Quixote, itʻs a grocery store chain here on Oʻahu, and I decided to check out their makeup section since I heard soo many great things about it. I havenʻt been in Don Quixote in a hot minute too! I was amazed to find JESSIEʻS GIRL Cosmetics products AND the JULIE G nail polish collection! I thought I would never find it. I bought a Julie G nail polish and I will be posting a review of that later.

Okay, so the balm stain was $2.99 and had a $1 off coupon attached to the packaging. The selection seemed to be pretty good. There was a red, berry, nude, and the pink color that I chose. The packaging is plastic and looks decent enough. I think it doenʻt look or feel too cheap. Itʻs just right.

I put the balm stain on this morning around 7:30 before I went about my day and I only used 2 swipes on my bottom lip then rubbed my lips together to spread it evenly and it was superrr pigmented! It stained my lips right away. It was crazy! Then I started to have a tingling sensation on my lips and I wasnʻt sure if it was the stain soaking into my lips or if itʻs supposed to do that. I will need to go do some research on that one. If you try this product or have this, could you please let me know if it did that for you too? 

I did the kiss test to see if it transfer and it didnʻt budge! It did budge when I rubbed it off on a napkin to  get it off of my lips, so that is a bonus when you are looking to remove it! 

I had this product on for a total of 9 hours today and here are the photos to show you how it went. 

.  

This is what it looks like and the packaging. I think itʻs pretty decent and nice for what itʻs worth.

How much product is in the tube. This is a lot considering I only used like 2 fast swipes.

The color I had was 127 "A Stiff Pink".

This is how it looked in natural lighting at 7:30 am.

Here it is at 10:30 am and it started to get dull in color.

Here it is after lunch at 1:30 pm and it seems to be really light on my lips. It was faded or completely off in the center of my lips from eating and drinking water. 

Then here it is at 4:30 pm where it is almost completely off my lips. I wiped it off shortly after this since now I will just been chillin at home. 

Overall, I would recommend this product if you are looking for an affordable stain lip balm. Also, itʻs pretty affordable. I mean, you canʻt go wrong with it being $2.99 and then having that $1 off coupon. Itʻs like $2! I think itʻs worth it and it did its job. The only thing about this product is that you would have to reapply it, but thatʻs not too bad unless youʻre looking for a long wearing product. Another thing is that it loses its shine after about an hour so you can top it with a lip balm or gloss which kind of defeats its purpose, but it still has color pigmentation to it. If you like the matte look then you wonʻt need to worry until you reapply it.

 I donʻt have any other product that I can compare this too, but I will probably be on the hunt for another drug store brand that offers this to do a comparison instead of a high end one.

How did I do?! Please comment and let me know what I could improve on!

Thanks for reading this and hope this helps you in deciding whether or not to purchase this product!

<3 Crystal 

My YouTube Channel Recommendations

Hey Everyone,


This post is going to be me talking about the different YouTube beauty gurus that I enjoy watching and a blurb about why I enjoy them. I will also be putting their channel links as their YouTube names so you can click on the link to check them out. Their names will be in bold in purple and some videos I wanted to share with you will be in pink. I suggest you check the channels out if I haven't put a link to a video within the blurb :)

I find all of these ladies to be entertaining and they all have individual personalities. They all also have different things that they do related to beauty, fashion, and some even have DIY projects that are pretty easy to do or achieve. These ladies give me inspiration to recreate their looks or tweak it to my own liking. They give great tips and reviews on different beauty products that are both high end and drugstore brands, which I can appreciate since I like to "ball on a budget".


You ready? You sure?! OKAY. Let's get started!


Akaydoll has her own unique style. Kayla has makeup looks that are simple, yet make a statement and has some natural looks as well which I like! I LOVE her eye brow tutorial the most! It's fab! Click here to watch her brow tutorial! I also like how her looks are wearable which appeals to me. She has great reviews on handbags and products as well which I enjoy.

BeautybyBrandi92 is a girl from Hawai'i who loves makeup. We actually went to the same high school, so I know her. She is a freelance/self-taught makeup artist and has great makeup tutorials and has some reviews as well. Brandi is down to earth and has a passion for makeup. She's just starting out, but she has a lot to offer. Click here to watch my favorite tutorial!

Bredazzled is an angelic and semi-hyper YouTuber who likes things that have lots of bright colors and glitter. I love my fair share of glittery items, but she is the queen of glitter. She is also really goofy and silly. Breland is really great at making her videos animated and interesting instead of just watching her sit there and show you products or give a tutorial, she makes it entertaining. I watch her to gain inspiration on how I could make videos interesting if I were to start my own YouTube channel as well as how to create makeup or fashion looks. 

Cutepolish is someone that I watch to keep up with the latest in nail trends and what the newest look is that I can achieve at home. Also, in nail care too. I find myself always checking out her channel to see what I can do to treat my nails or give them an extra boost. I rarely go to the nail salon and don't really find a need to because I can achieve almost any look myself at home. She has some really cute designs and also finds creative ways in achieving them. You will most likely find at least one video that you are going to try and copy, I garuntee it! 

Emilynoel83 is a YouTuber who makes you feel as if you are talking to your best friend or someone who you seek for trusted advice on beauty and makeup. Emily is such an amazing woman and is soo down to earth it is ridiculous. I love how she just gives off a good energy and doens't make you feel like you need to be an expert to have makeup or do makeup. I value her reviews and love that she loves to try all kinds of different products related to beauty. I absolutely love her and she is one of my favorite YouTubers. 

Farahdhukai is a channel I discovered while on a quest to hunt for natural DIY beauty tutorials. Farah has found lots of natural and organic ways in treating your skin, hair, and body. I love how I can find most of these items in either a grocery store or drug store and be able to make it at home with hardly any hassles. Some tips that she gives may be common sense, but they are nice reminders in how simple and easy it is to take care of ourselves while making ourselves look and feel a little bit more beautiful each day. Check this out!

Grav3yardgirl is a one of a kind person that you rarely meet. Bunny is the queen of thirft shopping, ice tea, as seen on tv product reviews, anything spooky or creepy and enjoys some interesting things in life. I find her to be unique in many ways, espcially in terms of style, and I commend her for always staying true to herself. Bunny has some great reviews and is pretty funny. Some may find her to be a bit overbearing or "too much", but I like that about her. I like how she has never changed since I have been watching her, which is almost a year now, and that she is not afraid to be herself. She reassures me that if I were to start a YouTube channel that it doesn't matter who you are or what you are, just be comfortable with it and don't change for no one. 

Itsjudytime is someone who I have been watching for a few years now and love her reviews on products. I've watched her get married, have a baby, and now pregnant with twins and she hasn't changed a bit! Judy is famous for her "first impressions" videos and that's what drew me to her channel. I really enjoy watching her videos and really value her opinion in drugstore products. Judy just recently came out with an eyeshadow pallet with BH Cosmetics and it looks amazing. It radiates Judy. It has lots of neutrals as well as a pop of color that are either shimmers or mattes. Click here to view the swatches of her pallet!

Julie G is another YouTuber that I have been watching for a long time now. I love watching her for her eyeshadow tutorials. She does some amazing tutorials that are anywhere from being flirty and girly to bold and daring. Julie has her own nail polish collection through Jessies Girl Cosmetics and can be found on their website. Click here to view her nail polish collection!

Lisa Pullano is a person I like to watch if I want to know how to make my own lotion, soap, perfume, home decor, inspiration for gift ideas or learn how to do different DIY projects. Lisa also has a great sense of fashion as well, but I find myself always looking out for her next DIY tutorial. I highly recommend her if you are searching for something to recreate at home or 

Melissa Raymond has got to be one of my favorites on YouTube. I just recently found her about two weeks ago while searching for MAC dupes and dupes in general for high end makeup products. Click this link to view MAC Lipstick Dupes video! It seems that she likes to purchase more drugstore products which I really like since that is mostly what I buy. She is extremely hilarious and is outspoken as well. I haven't watched all of her videos, but I will save that for a rainy day or when I have all the time in the world to do so because I absolutely love her! 

MissJenFABULOUS is a great YouTuber to watch if you are looking to do something new to your nails or are looking to try out a nail polish. She has some great swatches and reviews on nail polish as well as nail art tutorials that beginners can do as well. I love to watch her based on that reason and I have even tried out some of her looks or they have inspired me to create my own. She also has some great haul videos and makeup tutorials as well. 

Mrslolalynn is also a channel that I recently discovered. I really like the reviews that she gives on various beauty products. She has some great dupes for some MAC lipsticks (that's how I found her). Click this to view her MAC Lipsticks Dupes video! I am considering going out and purchasing some of her dupes that she has found because I cannot afford to invest $15-$20 on MAC all the time or even at all. LOL. 

Nitraa B is hilarious and is yet another one that makes me feel that I am having a conversation with a good friend of mine. Nitraa has some great tutorials on makeup looks and does some great hauls where she finds some deals! Check out this tutorial! She is a true diva and knows how to work it out! I also love watching videos where she features her now husband, Colton. They are absolutely adorable together and reassure me that there is true love out there in this world.  

Saaammage is someone that I have also been watching for a while now and appreciate her reviews on products. She helps me in making the decision to purchase an item or bypass it. Come to find out, we're the same shade and have similar skin types. I finally found someone that I can actually trust their advice 100% because we have similar skin color and type. I find it rare since my skin has a yellow undertone and I can't really match it all the time based on that. Check out one of her reviews!

ThatsHeart is the epitome of sweetheart! She is soo sweet and I love how she is genuinely a nice girl! She has a cute sense of style and has makeup looks that I could wear if I wanted to just add a dash of daring or a pop of color to my looks. Also, she just came out with a makeup pallet with BH Cosmetics. I would totally purchase it and I'm going to wait til the hype dies down to ensure that I can get my hands on one of her pallets. Check out her pallet here!

TymetheInfamous is one fierce mama! She has very bold and dramatic makeup looks that may not be for everyone. I personally, do not have the courage to wear most of her looks, but I love them regardless! I love her video on her eye brow routine and ombre red lips. It is by far, one of my favorite videos from her and a look that I can be easily worn. Click here to watch it!


I hope that you will enjoy these ladies as much as I do and let me know what you think in the comment section below!



Thanks for taking the time to read this and I'll catch you guys soon!




<3 Crystal