Chronically Badass Beauty

Hey beauties! I'm sure you all have seen or heard about the new eclectic, ethereal collection from Smashbox known as the Crystalized Collection. This is a collaboration with crystal guru Bri Luna, also known as The Hoodwitch on social media. Each product is infused with crystals to enhance your own magic! The whole collection revolves around crystals and their metaphysical properties, which is something I have always been a fan of. I've been collecting crystals ever since I was a little girl and still do to this day, so when I saw this collection was being released, my jaw dropped. This is my dream collection! I cannot even describe how insanely excited I was when I saw it in my local Ulta store the day it was released.

I actually won the collection from the insanely talented designer Jill Tomandl, & let me tell you, I could not believe it! She also threw in two foundations in the lightest shades(I'm ghost white lol) which was such a nice surprise because I've never tried Smashbox's foundations before! 

Is this not the most beautiful packaging you've ever seen? There are 16 pieces consisting of a crystalized highlighter($39), eyeshadow palette($29), liquid eyeshadows($24 each), lip glosses($19 each), primerizer($42), primer waters($32 each), & shimmer drops($25).  

Let's start off with what I assume is the most well known item from the collection, the highlighter. It is absolutely stunning, and honestly almost too pretty to use. It has a dazzling gemstone design and is called Opti-Mystic. It is a light peachy-pink iridescent shade that is inspired by Spirit Quartz, and can be worn as a sheer wash of color or built up for a more prominent glow. The formula is pretty unique, described as a powder-gel formula and once you get past that top layer, you really start to feel the gel! It's soft to the touch and so easy to blend out.

There are three glosses but I only have one of them to share with you, which is Practical Magic, a beautiful peachy-pink iridescent shade that is inspired by Pink Tourmaline. When you apply it, it's more of a clear gloss with multicolored glitter throughout. It pairs perfectly with the highlighter above. The other two glosses are Free Spirited which is a pink coral shade inspired by Fire Opal & Ya Heal Me which is a light purple with multicolored pearl inspired by Aura Amethyst. The formula of this gloss is incredible, not gritty whatsoever and it has insane shine!

Next up we have the shimmer drops in the shade Moonstoned, and let me tell you, it really does resemble moonstone! It has the most gorgeous shift of color and is insanely pigmented. The formula is nice and isn't too gritty, and it dries down quickly. Once it dries, it won't budge! In certain lighting it looks pink or blue, but when you use flash it looks green and yellow. It truly is a rainbow in a bottle. 

There are three primer waters, each is infused with diamond powder and fragrances inspired by rose quartz(Love Ritual), amethyst(Crystal Clarity), & black tourmaline(Aura Shield). Love Ritual has notes of Jasmine and Rose, Crystal Clarity has notes of Lavender & Sweet Orange, and Aura Shield has notes of Clary Sage & Tea. If you love the original Primer Water and love essential oils, you will love these! 

I also have the eyeshadow palette, which has the same beautiful crystal packaging as the highlighter and has 8 shades in it just like the rest of the Cover Shot palettes from Smashbox. Each shade in the palette is inspired by a different crystal, which I really love. There are two ultra foiled shades that are best applied with fingers. I haven't gotten to play around with it yet as I've been really sick with bronchitis and a sinus infection so I haven't really even worn makeup in around a week, but I'll make another post for it whenever I get the chance, or update this post!

There are six liquid shadows and I have five of them to share with you. Each shade is inspired by a different crystal, just like the palette. And the packaging!! Look at those crystal tops. Fun fact: they are modeled after a real crystal point! Shades from top to bottom: Bronzite Bruja(Bronzite), Mindful AF(Lapis Lazuli), Rhodonite Stand(Rhodonite), Dream Prism(Aura Amethyst), & That's Fire(Fire Opal). The one shade I don't have is called Rich Craft, which is an antique gold shade inspired by Pyrite. 

Each of the swatches have two swipes for full opacity. Some can be a tad patchy(especially the blue shade, Mindful AF) but when used on the eyes, they perform so much better! Swatches do not do them justice. Stila's glitter & glow shadows are my favorite liquid shadows and these aren't all that similar. They aren't packed with glitter like the Stila shadows, they're more shimmery. Which I don't mind! They're all so beautiful and very versatile.


I'm sure you all know of the original primerizer from Smashbox, well this is the same formula, just with rose quartz inspiration. It has a peachy iridescent sparkle to it and smells like sherbet! It has the exact same formula we all know and love, with that extra added glow.



Did you pick up anything from the collection? Are you on board with all of these crystal launches or are you completely over them? I will always be excited for new beauty launches including crystals. Let me know your thoughts below!

Hello my badass beauties!

Today I have a very exciting (and pretty long) first impressions review for you. I have this stunning steampunk themed eyeshadow palette, lipstick, lip gloss, & a loose highlighter all from the Etsy shop EmbyBoutique. She makes custom eyeshadow palettes that contain glitter, duochrome, shimmer, blacklight, and matte shades. You can also find highlighters, lipsticks, & lip glosses in her shop. However you want it, she can do it for you! The best part is, all of her products are vegan & cruelty free. Plus she has some of the fastest *FREE* shipping I've ever received. 

15 pan palettes like this one run for $40 but she also makes huge palettes with 28 pans that range from $70 to $100 depending on if it's a magnetic palette or not.

This particular Steampunk Palette has 6 glitters & 9 Shimmer/Duochrome shades.

Now that you've seen the inside & outside of the palette, let's get to swatching!

While you're drooling over these beautiful shades, let's talk about the formula. I have to say these are some of the best glitters I have ever tried. The texture is smooth and velvet like(not gritty at all), and are very easy to apply. I purchased NYX's Glitter Primer specifically for these glitters, so that is the primer I used for the swatches.

The pigments themselves have a formula like no other, and are also sort of velvety in a sense, but a hard velvet if that makes any sense. It's hard to explain, but it's a really nice formula. You get such amazing pigmentation with one swipe, and if you foil them they become even more intense. I had a few slight problems with the black shade(nothing too major, I've had the same problem with dark shades from other brands) but once I wet my brush, it really came to life and it's honestly one of my favorite shades out of the palette. I have had so many people complement me from these eyeshadows and continue asking me where I got them, and that always makes me so proud.

Now onto the rest of the products, starting with this gorgeous deep red shimmer lipstick.

I love the creamy formula of this lipstick, plus it smells like peppermint! Peppermint anything is my absolute favorite so that was a nice touch, and it's not overbearing either. You get full opacity in one swipe but I did two coats for the photo below to make sure I didn't have any skin peeking through. This lipstick is long-wearing, moisturizing, comfortable on the lips, and I couldn't even feel I was wearing anything(which is a major bonus).

The next two items I have are sample size, but she also makes them in full size.

First we have this gorgeous loose blue highlighter that has a violet shift. This jar is a sample size, but she has full sized highlighter palettes available in her shop.

Blue & violet are two of my absolute favorite shades for highlighters so this is easily going to become one of my favorites. I have never used a loose highlighter like this before but I will definitely be buying more in the future. The pigmentation is on point and I love the iridescent shift in color depending on the angle you look at it and the lighting you're in.

Here's a finger swatch of this beauty:

Last but not least is a gorgeous pink-purple iridescent lip gloss. This is also a sample size, regular sized tubes are available.

I really like this lip gloss. It's not too sticky like some glosses can be, and the pigmentation is insane. Usually I don't like lip glosses in containers like this because they can be pretty messy sometimes but I barely had to use any product at all to get the result above, so the ease of application was great.

My final thoughts:
I really love everything. I highly recommend you check out Emby Boutique & give her a like, maybe purchase something from her shop! Her products are seriously such high quality and I can't get over how beautiful these are. Don't take it from me, you need to try them for yourselves!

All of her palettes are custom made(including the palette I'm reviewing), but if you'd like a palette made just like this one or similar to this one, message her on her Etsy shop or Instagram! She's super sweet and can make just about anything you'd like.
I love supporting and spreading awareness for Indie makeup brands! You can find so many beautiful, affordable, high quality products like these.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them down below! As always, thanks so much for reading.

Hey badass beauties!

I recently went to 5 Below with my boyfriend and as always, I checked out their makeup section.  I don't have a 5 Below where I live, so it's nice going shopping there whenever I'm staying with him. They have a wide arrange of products other than beauty as well, and the entire store is $5 & under(hence the name). Their makeup selection is a nice size and includes nail polish, contour kits, eyeshadow palettes, mascara, eyeliner, lipsticks, highlighters, & more! It's a real treasure, if you have a store near you. They also have a website where you can order online if there's not a store near you!

The two main products that caught my eye were the Smoke & Mirrors Mermaid Face and Body Glow Stick($3) & the Mermaid 5 piece Iridescent Lip Gloss set($5). I apologize but I cannot find the glow stick on their website.

The glow stick really reminds me of Milk Beauty's holographic stick. Perhaps it's a dupe? I cannot confirm this, as I unfortunately do not own the Milk holo stick.

Unblended swatch.

Now onto the five iridescent lip gloss toppers. 

These lip glosses are pretty sheer and hard to see on their own, so you'll have to try and build them up if you're wanting a lot of coverage on bare lips. A lot of the colors look very similar; however if you use them as a top coat over a lipstick the color really begins to pop, so I've included some swatches over a black matte lipstick.

From left to right: white, peach, pink, blue, & purple.

As you can see, the first three look extremely similar. They are in the order that they are in the box, so as you can see the white one does not look white, the peach one doesn't look all that peachy, the pink one looks more purple, the blue one looks green, and the purple one looks blue... SO CONFUSING. 

However considering it was 5 lip glosses for $5, I do think these are worth the money spent. 

For the price of both the highlighter & lip glosses, I believe these are a good addition to your collection! Besides, they're iridescent and sparkly, so that's always a plus.

I hope you all enjoyed this review. Do you have a Five Below near you? Have you tried any of their makeup? Let me know what you think in the comments below!

As always thanks so much for reading!