June 2017 – The Hustlin’ Homemaker

Quarterly EMPTIES | Products I’ve Used Up

It is the end of June, meaning it’s time for my quarterly empties! I haven’t used up a ton of things, but a few things worth mentioning.

AND, it’s been six months of my NO-BUY, and lemme tell ya, it’s been a piece of cake. And how much money have I saved? No more VIB Rouge.

Seeing myself use up things, declutter things, and give away things I am not using is so, FREEING. Sure, I do have a list started of what I’m gonna purchase Jan 1st, but I don’t really feel the urge to purchase every new product that comes out. How many highlighters does one face need?! No need to collect makeup anymore; I want to keep only the products I love.

Alright- onto the empties!

Let’s start with haircare.

One of theeee best dry shampoos out there – Batiste is my jam. Smells good, gets rid of oil, gives volume, and makes my hair feel clean. I will definitely repurchase this drugstore gem.

Next is a clarifying shampoo from Bumble & Bumble- their Sunday Shampoo. I LOVE this. It has a slight vanilla mint smell and has a tingly feeling on my scalp when I use it. It gets out all of the buildup, lathers up so nice, and makes my hair feel squeaky clean. I use it once a week so it lasts forever. Definite repurchase.

Another product I use in the shower is my beloved Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Moist deep conditioner. I use this every time I wash my hair- it detangles, softens, and it’s cheap!

Lastly, is this Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum. This smells like yummy Jolly Ranchers and really smooths the hair. I really don’t have a problem with frizz though, so it took me a while to use this up (YEARS). I find that it kind of weighs my hair down, and I don’t really go for the sleek straight look often, so I probably won’t repurchase.

Next, skincare.

First is this Burts Bees Radiance Eye Cream with Royal Jelly. I used this every night and sometimes under my makeup for like, a year…and I don’t notice any difference in anything…but what do eye creams really do? It’s hydrated under there, so I’m not sure if I would repurchase.

Next, a favorite of my husband’s (and mine!) this Clinique For Men Face Scrub. We both love this tingly minty super gritty exfoliant. It really makes my face clean and refreshed. Already repurchased.

Lastly, the Smashbox Photofinish Primer Water. Ok, so this stuff was seriously my fave, but after I ran out and couldn’t repurchase, I don’t find myself missing this at all. I sprayed it on before makeup and I didn’t notice it helped with the wear or longevity of my makeup. It added hydration, but so would a squirt bottle of water! I’m not gonna repurchase.

Onto the makeup.

I used up three mini mascaras. I only keep these little babies for about a month each – I notice they dry out quick and I’m trying to get through all my samples. They’re Real is a great mascara, but I cannot get it off my freakin face at night. I like the rubber bristles and it gives length and volume, but it is so hard to remove no matter what I use. I won’t repurchase this one.

UD Perversion is one of my favorite mascaras, and it’s actually really similar to the Too Faced Better Than Sex. They both give a ton of volume, length, and they keep my curl. I’d repurchase both.
The NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer is one of the best concealers ever, and I’ve repurchased this numberous times. I use the shade Vanilla, and it corrects my undereye circles and conceales them perfectly. I set it with powder and it doesn’t crease at all throughout the day. I will definitely repurchase this. Another concealer that is really nice is the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind in the Brighten shade. This has a pinky tone to it and helps brighten and conceal my circles. Repurchase for sure!

Next is one of my favorite lipsticks ever, See Sheer by MAC. This is a pinky coral red lipstick with a moisturizing and shiny lustre finish. I have had this in my bag and I’ve been using it everyday. I will repurchase this!

Lastly, the Estee Edit Double Ended Kajal Liner in Extreme Black / Gunmetal. This is the best pencil liner I’ve ever used. Better than the UD 24/7. The formula is so creamy and just glides over the eyes and is so pigmented. These are in the sale section of Sephora online so I really hope they aren’t being discontinued! They are awesome.

That’s it for my empties!

xx amy

Yellow Nails For the Summer

Hello! Today’s post is about a yellow nail color. Up until just recently, I had NEVER tried a yellow nail polish. Yellow is a pretty color, but on my nails…? I thought having fair skin it would just look totally horrible on me, and it was pretty much out of my comfort zone. As you can tell from my Nail Polish Collection, I tend to stick to pinks, purples, blues, and metallics for my nails.

I was recommended this color by my friend, @theworldofcos on Instagram. She is amazing at doing nails, and has so many colors! Go give her a follow!

She recommended this muted, pastel yellow color, OPI’s One Chic Chick to try as my first yellow.

I LOVE IT, and it reminds me of butter!

It’s not super bright or anything for being a yellow. It is just the prettiest, springy yellow.
It went opaque in three coats, which is usually how many I do for light and pastel colors. I topped it off with one of my favorite top coats, Seche Vite.

I can now say I am a yellow nail lover! Do you like yellow nail colors?

xx amy

EAT | Popsicles 3 Ways

My girls recently saw these popsicle molds for $1 at Wal-Mart, and they wanted them so that we could create our own popsicles. You can get these from the dollar store, grocery store, etc. I can’t find these exact ones, but I’ll link some here.

We tried a ton of different flavors for our pops, and these are our 3 faves.

Peach/Blueberry

What you’ll need:

peach flavored yogurt
blueberries

Just stir together some peach yogurt and blueberries, and fill the molds.

Freeze for about 4 hrs.

So yum and creamy.

Strawberry Lemonade – my favorite!

What you’ll need:

Lemonade made sweeter than usual
Strawberries

Cut up your strawberries super small, and fill the molds with them.

Pour lemonade over top. I like to use lemonade sweetened with stevia because it gives a sweeter taste. I just use this packet and about half of the water that it calls for. The iciness will water it down a bit.

Freeze for about 4 hrs.

Delish and so refreshing!

Chocolate/Strawberry Milk -my girls’ favorite.

What you’ll need

Strawberry flavored milk
Chocolate flavored milk

Just mix up your flavored milk and pour into molds. We do two chocolate and two strawberry.

Make sure your milk has more chocolate/strawberry than usual, because the ice tends to water it down.

Freeze again for about 4 hrs.

Soo good!

*to get the pops out of the molds without pulling out the sticks, run them under hot water for about 20 seconds and they’ll pop right out *

Enjoy!

xx amy

EAT | Unicorn Ice Cream

There is a major unicorn craze going on and I am loving it! I decided to make a summer treat inspired by the bright colors. This is our “unicorn” ice cream that my girls LOVE and also love to help me make. This ice cream might look super sweet, but it actually has a very light and sweet taste – the only sugar in it is from the condensed milk.

What you’ll need:

4 cups heavy whipping cream
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Food coloring
Sprinkles

Beat whipping cream on high until stiff peaks form; two to three minutes.

Fold in condensed milk and vanilla.

Separate into 5 different bowls and dye each bowl a different color. We did pink, purple, green, yellow, and blue.

We use these food coloring gels so that they don’t water down the mixture, and they are also a lot stronger. A little bit goes a long way.

Place one scoop at a time of each color into a freezer safe container (I just use a Pyrex glass one). Just layer them all on in no order.

Continue scooping the colors on top of each other, and then swirl together with a knife.

Add your sprinkles. We did pink sugar crystal sprinkles and sprinkle stars.

Cover and place in the freezer for 5-6 hours.

Voila! Delicious and creamy ice cream that is so easy to make, and really isn’t as sweet as it looks. I hope your kids scream when they see it like my girls did! Haha.

You can add ANYTHING to this basic vanilla recipe, and create all kinds of ice cream. As I am typing this, I think that cotton candy flavoring added to this would be so good! You could add hot fudge, caramel, nuts, fruit, or whatever you like to the plain vanilla recipe and freeze it in a regular bowl (no layering or swirling needed).

Enjoy!

xx amy

5 Minute Summer Makeup| No Foundation

Hello! Today I am sharing my 5 minute makeup routine that I like to do day to day. This makeup is good because it’s not heavy, and it’s good for going outside to play, or to the pool. It’s basically a no-makeup makeup kind of look.

Only 6 products.

I like to start off with concealer.

I have undereye circles that need covering, so I use the Sephora Collection Bright Future Concealer in Meringue and just lightly dab it on my circles with my finger. This concealer has a pinky tone to it, so a it subtly brightens as well.

Next, the cheek products.

I like to use a matte bronzer, so I apply my Benefit Hoola all over the perimeter of my face, concentrating it in the hollows of my cheekbones and around my jawline. This gives my skin some dimension and warmth so I don’t look so pale and one color. I also like to use a blush with a little bit of sheen to it so I can skip the highlighter. This blush is Covergirl Tru Blend in Medium Rose. It is a very pretty natural pink with a pearlescent finish.

I have to fill in my brows, so I take this L’Oréal Brow Stylist pencil in Brunette, and just lightly fill them in with short quick strokes so that they look natural.

Mascara makes such a huge difference on me, so I can’t skip that. I curled my lashes and then applied a few coats of YSL Faux Cils Babydoll Mascara. This one really holds the curl and volumizes. If I’m going to the pool, I’ll use a waterproof mascara.

I top off the look with a shimmery candy pink gloss like NARS Istria, and there we go! Took 5 minutes, and I don’t have to worry about my makeup sweating off my face.

So quick, so easy, but I still feel put together. This makeup is the least that I ever do- and I sometimes feel naked without eyeshadow/eyeliner, but sometimes I just can’t be bothered! It’s so hot already, and there really is no point in sweating off a full face of makeup.

How do you do your summer makeup?

xx amy