KEP Designs Giveaway!

Happy Monday, lovelies.

Can you believe it's already the week of Thanksgiving?

I can't, but am accepting it with open arms!

How could you not?

Amazing food. quality time with family. a short work week.

and most importantly: taking the time to count all the blessings in your life.

This weekend was very low key for the "K" household. Since my parents house sold and they have to be out of their house in a week, we helped them move things over to their "new" house. I say new because technically it is, but they are just renting it for a year while they are waiting for their actual home to be built. In the midst of moving, I came across some old school items of mine from when I was younger that I couldn't help but share.

{left: Billy, my Dad, and his brothers}

right: See that American Girl doll? Meet mini Katie. She totally looks like me, right?

Back when designing an American Girl doll that looks like you was cool.

This is a classic case of "driving while dear-dairing"

Ooh yes...that would be Dear Dairy you see.

Please tell me someone else was equally obsessed with that thing like me!!!

I'm thinking about bringing it back. It has similar features as the iPhone, no? ;)

Anyways, the rest of the weekend was spent watching my favorite football team lose (Buckeyes + Bengals), putting up Christmas decorations (not the tree yet!), making my girlfriend Marissa a Christmas wreath for her birthday, and going over to her house to have dinner.  We also watched the movie The Change Up and really enjoyed it. It was hilarious. All of this was exciting to me since we got a lot of rest, but probably not too exciting for all of you to read about....

Instead- I decided to start this week off on KC&CO with an awesome giveaway.

Week of Thanksgiving + a giveway?

What more could you want?!

Do you see that beautiful chocolate shell bangle {far right} that I wore all weekend? Well, I love it. It's so perfect to create the stacking look that is all the rage lately and it pairs so well with my MK watch and F21 chain link bracelet.

It's from KEP Designs.

I know there are some of you who are already loyal fans of KEP Designs, but if you haven't heard of them yet, allow me to introduce you to some super cahute jewelry!

KEP Designs is a well known boutique in my all time favorite place...

New York City.

The designer, Kelley, moved from Chicago to New York and eventually created KEP Designs in 2004. Kelley began to design simple, fresh jewelry, using semi precious stones allowing her young shoppers to be able to afford the stylish pieces and start building a collection. Whether you need a statement necklace to wear to a big event or you are on vacation at the beach, KEP Designs has a little something for everyone. :)

Kelley has graciously offered to give one of my readers a chance to win a piece from her collection.  So exciting!!

The lucky winner will get to pick between these 2 fabulous cuff bracelets:

Option #1: 1 1/2 inch elephant cuff in navy

Value: $65.00

or

Option #2: 2 inch anchor cuff in navy

Value: $75.00

Here's how to enter:

-Must be a follower of Keep Calm & Carry On (1 entry)

-Follow me on Twitter @ katiewkrysh (1 entry)

-"Like" KEP Designs on Facebook and leave a post telling Kelley I sent you (1 entry)

-Follow KEP Designs on Twitter (1 entry)

-Blog about this giveaway & leave me the link (1 entry)

-Tweet about this giveaway mentioning both KEP Designs & myself in it (1 entry)

Please leave a comment with all of your entries below on this post. Make sure your EMAIL ADDRESS is listed/on your blogger profile or I will not be able to contact you if you win. This giveaway will be open until Sunday, November 27 and the winner will be notified on Monday, November 28th.

I have seen these bracelets in person and they are so cute.

Either one would be great to keep for yourself and show off or to give to a loved one as a gift for Christmas :)

I hope this make sense...

...because I'm on 5 hours of sleep!

When my alarm went off, I thought it was a cruel joke.

5 mins longer? 10 mins longer?
Pahlleasseeee.

Since there are so many of you that are going to see Breaking Dawn this weekend, I won't ruin it for any of you and mention anything about the movie last night.

Well, except that it was amazing and more amazing.

and more amazing.

Here's what I will share on this frigidly cold Friday....

1. Does anyone else think that Starbucks drinks aren't served nearly as HOT enough as they should be? I've recently started asking for them to be EXTRA hot, especially because it's 30 degrees today.



{I want that coat}

2. Ohio State plays Penn State this weekend. I would love for all my bloggy friends (you!) to CHEER them on for a win tomorrow. We need it and I really want to crush them!!!!

GO BUCKS.

Also, did anyone notice that Ohio State mens basketball is ranked #3 this year?!?!

WOO-HOO!

They are a truly amazing team and I hope they go all the way!

3. Demi Moore has officially filed for divorce from Ashton Kutcher. There have been speculations for months now about their marriage being on the outs, but it was never confirmed. So sad! I loved them together. Demi released a statement yesterday pretty much confirming that Ashton did cheat and because of her vows and values, she isn't able to move forward in the marriage. That's what I took of it, atleast.

My thoughts about Hollywood marriages is this: It would be extremely hard to be an actor/actress and have your spouse in movies where they are not only kissing other people, but also doing sex scenes with them. I mean, I don't think anyone would particularly enjoy seeing that and it would def put a strain on your relationship. Also, if the other person is remotely good looking or a good person in general, it would be hard to not form SOME type of connection with them after being in such intimate settings with them, no? I'm in no way saying that cheating is acceptable, but I can see how in Hollywood it is much harder to make marriages work and last. This has nothing to do with Demi and Ashton, but just my general opinion. If Billy was makin' out with other broads left and right, I'd probably go legit crazy... {some of you are probably thinking "you already are!", right? Actually, don't answer that.}

Ashton is so hot. so, so, hot. Just had to get that out there.

4. I NEED all of you (yes, all of you) to help give me some ideas for my Dads' 60th birthday {which is NEXT WEEK}. I have been trying to come up with a clever gift idea for him for the past month, and have failed miserably. My Dad is seriously the hardest person to shop for {like most parents}. He has everything and will never give me any ideas on what to get him. To give you some info about my Dad: he enjoys movies, golf, football, books, sporting events, and isn't very "with it" when it comes to technology {he still types with 2 index fingers} so an Ipad, for instance, wouldn't be something up his alley.

Since I have around 600 readers, I'm expecting 600 comments giving me an idea of a gift for him. Please, pretty please :) It could be something you've gotten your Dad in the past, or just an idea you think would be extra wonderful.


Ready.......Set.....GO!

5. Me and Holly have planned a Columbus Blogger meet up for Saturday, December 3rd. The location and plans are finalized and I am SO excited. I'm already stressing to figure out what I will wear! I want to make sure I'm not leaving anyone out that would like to come. I know that some of you Cbus girls have only recently starting following my blog, so if you're interested, please leave me a comment with your email address and I can send you an invite!

6. I have recently discovered KEP Designs, based out of New York City, and am crushing on their jewelry {especially their bracelets & earrings}. Who's to say this isn't a sneak peak to my next giveaway? Not I. You may want to check them out.



and stay tuned for Monday

...just sayin'.

I leave you with that.

HAPPY WEEKEND DARLINGS!

A Festive Pizza Party and BREAKING DAWN!



Last night, me and Billy went to my girlfriends Jessie and Ashley's

 "Make Your Own Pizza" slash get in the holiday spirit par-tay.
it says Christmas decorating, but there was no decorating done, so I will just say it was festive.

Isn't that such a cute idea?

 Who doesn't love making your own pizzas?!

They told me they had multiple bottles of wine and plenty of veggie toppings for me to put on my pizza so I better come because it ain't a party without Katie...

so naturally, I said "ok, ok, FINE...I'll go!"

{and what I meant by that is: you don't have to ask me twice.}

They had quite the little setup: their Christmas tree {PINK mind you...} and decorations were up, music playing, and all the fixings for a great pizza party {aka cheese dip, garlic bread, toppings, and fresh dough.}

Ashley {go follow her, she's a sweetheart!} preparing our dough for us

&

Billy fixing up his mini meat lovers pizza

{and Jessie sexting in the background, who are we kidding?}

Who are those handsome pups you ask?

Mr Wilson {left} is Jessie's dog

Maxwell {right} is Ashley's dog

...aren't they adorable?

I love them.

They asked me to bring Rocky, but I told them I really didn't want Rocky to be the dinner. I mean, Rocky is the size of their heads.

PS-See those boots? 

1 of the 3 UrbanOG pairs I ordered a while back. :)

hi there Maxwell, nice to meet you again.

no, you may not eat my husbands food.

So... in the past month, we've gone to a make your own pizza party and a chili cookoff party. I'm loving all of these parties filled with good food and our closest friends! Cheers to the next one. Maybe me and Billy will host an Ugly Christmas Sweater party? We'll see. :)

TONIGHT is THE night, people......

YES!!!

Breaking Dawn Part 1.

A group of girlfriends and myself {along with our men-they claim to not like it but deep down I think they do} have started a mini tradition of going to each of the Twilight series midnight showings. We go out to dinner & then head to the theatre around 8pm (yes, you read that right) to have some drinks and get in line. The theatre we go to is ALWAYS packed and a line is formed typically by 7pm. However, we pick this theatre because they have a bar and serve beer, wine, and margaritas {oh, and food too.}

Yes, please.

They even name their drinks after the characters

like

the "Edwardtini" and so on.

I'm such a nerd SO excited and am really trying to convince Billy to dress up as Edward and Bella with me. He did say though if he agrees to do it there will be ZERO pictures.

damn.

I'll have to sneak it somehow.

We'll see.

Who's going to see Breaking Dawn this weekend?!

#TEAMEDWARD!!

What's New Wednesday?

This week is flying by and it feels great!

Yesterday was the first time in a month {yes..a month} that I've stepped foot in the gym since my knee injury. From the beginning, I never anticipated that a month later I would just be feeling better. So far I've missed half of my soccer season and it has truly made me very sad. You all know how much I love soccer and being active...it's been a real buzz kill. I thought I would be out for a couple weeks and that would be it. Shows you how much I don't know about knee injuries! Anyways, I was able to walk on the treadmill yesterday for 25 minutes. This was huge for me! While it was difficult seeing everyone run next to me, I was so appreciative that I was just able to walk. Baby steps, I thought. I was nervous that my knee would hurt last night or today after it, but I'm happy to report it doesn't, and I'm going to try and walk again today. SO happy.

thank you for all your positive thoughts!

...and when I'm able to run again, I'm never taking it for granted and am getting this booty back into shape.

Today I'm going to share some of my favorite beauty products I've used this past month. I am always very interested to see what products you all love, so I figured I would start posting more regularly about what I try and end up loving. The products I'm sharing today are all winners!

First up is my favorite of the bunch {don't mind my chipped nail polish}.

It's a 10 miracle with keratin

$18 -Ulta

you can also find it on Amazon for $14.

Don't be fooled by the price tag. It's worth it. I'm not one to continously buy hair products that are more of a splurge, but I will if I want to try them that badly. I have heard amazing things about this product and just had to try it for myself. Some of it's features? Adds shine and controls frizz, protects hair from heat {so important!}, enhances natural body, and seals and protects hair color. Let me tell you, it has done wonders for my hair! I've noticed that my hair is stronger, the frizz has gone down, and I have less split ends. I spray a good amount of this on my towel dryed hair before I go to blow dry it. I would highly recommend this product!

Mac Paint Pot

in "Painterly"

$17.50

Some of you may be familar with Mac paint pots. If you aren't, here's what MAC has to say about their paint pots--"A highly pigmented eye colour that goes on creamy but dries to an intense, vibrant finish. Long-wearing, colourfast. Creates seamless coverage without weight or caking. Blends smoothly over the lids. Cream-based, can be mixed with M·A·C shadows and liners."

This was my first time using a paint pot. I wanted to get a very neutral color that could be used by itself and also under other shadows. Painterly is the perfect nude shade. It blends very well and stays put, but I'm not so sure I like it better than some of my other shadows. I'm glad I bought it, but I'm undecided if I would buy any more of these because I can get others I like more for cheaper.

Clinique Lash Doubling Mascara

$14.50

You guys, I LOVE this mascara! There isn't much else to say other than you have to try it. I got it as a free sample when I bought another product from Clinique and have been using it ever since. It is at the tip top of my list for mascaras right now. This mascara makes my lashes look so long and gives them so much volume. In the month that I've used it, I have yet to notice any clumping from it. Another huge plus is that it is so easy to put on my lower lashes, which I find is hard to come by!

I'm interested--have any of you tried these products? If so, what are your thoughts on them?

and if you haven't, go getcha some good beauty products, ladies!

Oooh..what do we have here?

See those boxes?

I have some exciting things to share soon on KC&CO!

...and that top box?

It may be for YOU ;)

hmmm....what could it be?!

{{I love secrets}}

PS-

my little man.

he slept in my lap like this for so long on Sunday...

makes me so happy.

{I linked up with Jamie to share WILW!}