Crystal Cattle Beauty Swap!

I own a TON of beauty products...this is not an exaggeration. I'll prove it...

Before you scoff and say that I really don't have that much, you have to understand something; I DON'T WEAR MAKEUP! So, this is a lot of makeup for me; and this doesn't even count the gobs of makeup I have sold and given away. I have ridden every bandwagon: Bare Minerals, Mary Kay, Beauty Society (which was a VERY expensive bandwagon), Joppa (which is a locally produced makeup similar to Bare Minerals), and Younique. When I jump on a bandwagon, I go all in...you gotta admire my dedication right? My wallet suffers and my husband has multiple strokes; it's not good for any party involved.

So right now I'm straddling Mary Kay and Younique...even though I wear makeup about twice a year, our annual FFA banquet, and the State & National FFA Conventions, and that's only if I have students receiving awards and will have to be photographed. My sister tells me I should at least wear mascara so you can see my eyes (not sure how you can't see my eyes...they're in the middle of my face).

Anyway, my sister Taysha (check out her blog, she's more beauty savvy than I am), has been participating in a beauty swap for awhile and this time around I thought I would give it a try. If you've read my Christmas in the Country Gift Swap post, it's kind of the same concept, only you weren't required to have a blog, so the next beauty swap that comes around, check it out! It's super fun!

The beauty swap is hosted by Crystal Cattle, and I was paired up with a gal named Lacy, from Indiana. We e-mailed back and forth for about a week and clued each other in on our likes, dislikes, and must haves when it came to beauty products. If you know me in real life, you know the only products I swear by are hair products. So I sent her some awesome Mary Kay products that my consultant hooked me up with, as well as a couple Younique products. In hind sight, I wish I would have sent her some of the hair products I swear by...maybe next time.

Here's what she sent me:

Lacy is clearly way more beauty product savvy than I am! Here's a run down of what was in the box!

1. EOS lip balm in sweet mint, EOS hand lotion in cherry blossom, and ELF super shiny lip gloss

The lip balm is divine, and I keep it in my desk at school and use it frequently. The hand lotion is surprisingly light and is kept in my desk as well. I generally have a "no lotion" rule, and always have; it makes me feel like I'm suffocating in my own skin. The lip gloss is a fun way to add some color to my face, and makes it look like I put in somewhat of an effort to do something with my face.

2. Big Sexy Hair hairspray, Big Sexy Hair volume powder, Bodycology toasted sugar body lotion, and Younique eye pigment in confident and angelic

I've used Big Sexy hair products before, and while they're not my go-to, they're a good quality product. The volumizing powder is pretty cool, and a good way to pump up my second day hair. I keep the hairspray at school in case my hair needs an afternoon pick up. The eye pigments are awesome and I did wear them over Christmas! The body lotion was a little too thick for my liking, triggering my anti-lotion reflex, but it smelled really good!

Lacy also included a couple samples of Plexus Slim drink mixes, as she is an ambassador for Plexus, and a couple samples of Young Living Oils' peace and calming oil. I'e dabbled in both Plexus and essential oils, so these were fun little extras to receive. Oh, there was also a really nice emery board that is taking up residence in my desk at school for when I need it!

This was so much fun and I can't wait to participate in the next one! Thanks so much to Crystal, over at Crystal Cattle for hosting such a fun event!

Check back as I still plan to post about the awesome things I made people for Christmas!

Christmas in the Country Gift Reveal!

Jumping back on the blogging bandwagon for 2015! This year I'm ACTUALLY GOING TO DO IT!
Back in November, I signed up to participate in a blogger gift swap, hosted by COUNTRY LINKed and several other fabulous bloggers. My sister Taysha has participated in quite a few of these, so I thought I would give it a try. The only qualification is that you have a blog or some kind of social media account...I have both...one more active than the other, but nonetheless I qualified!
So I was assigned to a blogger and was to send a gift to them, and a different blogger was assigned to me. The idea is to send handmade items and things that represent where you're from; so first, a little about who I was assigned and what I sent!
I was assigned to Jacky, who blogs over at Dicky Bird's Nest, make sure you check her out! She's from Ringle, Wisconsin, which I'm assuming is REALLY COLD right now! She had some really neat interests and it was so much fun gathering goodies to send her! I didn't take a picture of what I sent her, so I poached a picture from her Instagram so you could see it. If you want more detail of what I sent, check out her blog, as she has pictures of everything I sent.

I hit a crafty streak this Christmas and made quite a few of the gifts I gave. The sign I sent her was similar to one I had pinned on Pinterest. I love the way it turned out and want to make one for myself when I find the time. To see what else I sent, please check out Jacky's blog.

I was sent a gift from Julie, over at Dirt Under My Fingernails; she is from Missouri and wears many hats; greenhouse grower, grandma, mom, and farm wife. She sent the loveliest card, as well as a recipe for Apple Crunch Loaf! I'm not a baker; I love to cook and will read cookbooks and the Food Network Magazine all day long, but don't ask me to bake. I haven't made the recipe yet, but it looks easy and my mouth is watering just thinking about it because it sounds delish! You may turn me into a baker Julie! Anyway, Julie sent me some beautiful handmade jewelry from a gal that works with her daughter. I haven't had an opportunity to wear it yet, but hope to when a fashionable opportunity presents itself!

Thank you Julie for the beautiful jewelry! Also thank you to COUNTRY LINKed and the other bloggers that set up the Christmas in the Country Gift Swap! This was super fun and I can't wait to do it again!

Check back often as I hope to at least post once a week. I'm going to be showing you all of the things I made over Christmas break when I decided to get my "craft on" as well as what I received as part of a beauty product swap I also participated in!

Happy 2015!