Weekend Tips and Tricks

Sometimes the weekend can't come soon enough, and this was one of those weeks that just seemed to drag on and on. I found myself redoing the same paperwork over and over because I was so burned out and tired. So this Tips and Tricks will be about destressing and unwinding from a looooong week.

Tip #1: Make your last work night an at home spa night. Put on some soothing music, use a mask you love, and relax in a warm, soothing bath for a few hours. Don't have a tub? Turn your shower into a mini steam room and let the steam relax your muscles while you sweat out all the bad stuff.

Tip #2: Need a massage but don't have that much free cash? Massage schools often offer massages at a discounted price (typically around $25) so their students can get in all the hours of practice they need to get their licenses.

Tip #3: A good nights sleep can do wonders to erase a bad week. To help soothe you to sleep, use lavender products like lotion, linen spray, or essential oil to help you relax.

Tip #4: Journaling is a great way to get all those feelings out of you and reflect on them as well. Plus a piece of paper won't give you crappy advice when you really just wanted a shoulder to cry on.

Dollar Shave Club Review

Shaving is expensive, no matter where on the gender spectrum you are. Between my husband and I we use to spend about $30 a month on just razor blades alone. That is a lot of money for something that is basically just a sharp edge and a handle. While poking around on Twitter one day someone I follow mentioned signing up for a subscription program called The Dollar Shave Club. The Dollar Shave Club works like this, you choose the plan you want (more on that in a bit) and every month a fresh pack of razors is shipped to your door for a fraction of that it would cost me at the store.

There are three options to choose from, a $1 plan, a $6 plan, and a $9. The $1 plan consists of a regular handle that holds a 2 bladed razor head and 5 cartridges a month. This isn't a bad deal and if it was just me ordering it I'd probably do this plan. And for a buck you can't beat that, these are way nicer than the crappy disposable ones you can get for cheap.

The next plan up, the $6 a month plan, is what we have. You get a really nice handle, comparable to the ones my husband use to pay $30+ on, and 4 of the 4 bladed razor heads a month. We share these since my husband doesn't shave very often (though he should, dude can grow a FULL beard in just over a week or feel like a cheese grater just a few hours after shaving) so we go through a cartridge a week, which works out perfectly. And about every year or so they seem to send out new handles, though you can purchase a new one from them at any point for just a few dollars.

The final plan, the $9 a month one, is a 6 bladed head that has a personal trimmer edge built in. This is also a 4 cartridge a month plan, and is basically the Chanel of razors. If my husband shaved on a regular basis he'd use this one for sure.

No matter which plan you choose you'll be saving money and you can even have it delivered every other month if you want. They have other add ones too, like shaving cream or adult wet wipes. We are super happy with our subscription and have had it for almost 3 years now and will continue using them.



*This post contains referral links. All opinions expressed are my own and we are not compensated by the company for this review.

Thursday Thoughts

Another week has gone by, summer is slowly coming to an end. I for one am ready for cooler weather, this summer was way to hot for my taste. Thursday means Thursday Thoughts with Ramblings of a Suburban Mom, if you aren't reading her blog you really should be.

• I've been doing a lot of reading and research into how to run this blog better and more efficiently. I highly recommend reading Blog Inc by Joy Deangdeelert Cho if you have your own blog, there is something in there for everybody no matter what stage they're at. I'll be slowly implimenting some changes to both the look and how I run this blog so keep your eyes open for exciting things ahead!
• One new change I'm excited about is my new update schedule. From now on Best Beauty for my Buck will be updating Monday through Saturday! That means an extra Tuesday post each week, which will from hence forth be known as Tutorial Tuesdays. Each week I'll show you how to make your own bath and beauty products.
• I'm hoping to find time this weekend to sneak away and see Guardians of the Galaxy, has anybody else seen it yet? I'm a huge Marvel fan so I've been eagerly anticipating this movie for a while now. And Vin Diesel as Groot cracks me up to no end.
• Anybody else massively underwhelmed with this month's Ipsy selection? I haven't seen what I'm getting yet but I'm not holding my breath. The only things I'm excited to maybe get is the Urban Decay Perversion Mascara, the Glam Glow mask, and that dry shampoo. Everything was was just....meh. This may very well be my last month unless something seriously wows me.
• I've recently gotten into nail art and am having a blast looking at all of the creative nails on Instagram. So far the only thing I've attempted are polka dots (way easier than they look) and colored tips. But I'm looking to try my hand at something a bit harder next paint job. Who does nail art? Any tips or tricks you'd like to share? 

DIY Chocolate Mint Lip Scrub

Yes, you read that right. Chocolate mint lip scrub that you can make at home out of things you probably already own. Why pay big bucks for something when you can make it for pennies on the dollar? And the best thing about homemade is you can customize it anyway you like! And this is so simple my 3 year old helped me make it, plus it took more time to gather the supplies than to actually make the scrub. So let's get started!

To make homemade chocolate mint lip scrub you will need-

• white sugar
• oil (I used almond oil, but you can use olive, avocado, jojoba, pretty much any oil you want)
• cocoa powder
• mint extract
• a spoon, a fork, and a small bowl for mixing
• a container to put the finished product in (I used an Altoids tin, but a small glass jar or Tupperware container would work just fine.)

Fill your container about halfway up with the white sugar, you don't want to make more than your container can handle. Once you have the correct amount dump it into the bowl and add about a teaspoon and a half of cocoa powder. I eyeballed it, the proportions aren't super important for this recipe.

Give everything a good mix with the fork, you want it blended evenly so there aren't any clumps of cocoa powder once you add the oil.

Add a few drops of the mint extract to the mix, being careful not to overdo it. Give it a quick mix then slowly drizzle on the oil. You want the mix wet but you shouldn't have a pool of oil sitting there once combined. I recommend you add the oil a little at a time, the amount will depend on the size of your container and personal preference. 

See how mine is nice and wet but you can't really see any of the oil? That's what your goal is. Once you reach the right consistency transfer it to your container and voila! You have chocolate mint lip scrub!

To use it, just scoop a little bit out and rub your lips with it till they're smooth and soft. The best part is you can just lick up the extra scrub from your lips, no nasty chemicals to make you sick! Now this won't keep forever, but so long as you store it in a cool, dark place you should get at least a month out of it, maybe two. Just keep an eyeball on it and if it starts to turn funky toss it out and make a new batch.

Want to customize it to your tastes? Use a different flavor extract (I'm going to do orange next time), increase or omit the cocoa powder completely, or even use brown sugar instead of white. The possibilities are endless! Look in the candy making aisle of your local craft store for unique flavors (root beer, bubble gum, or even watermelon) to use instead of extract. Add a little food dye to give it a pop of color. Like I said, the possibilities are endless!

July 2014 Empties

Wow, is it just me or did July go by really fast? This was a pretty decent month as far as empties went, more than I expected to be truthful. Keeping track of what I'm actually using and liking on a monthly basis has been fun and informative, that's for sure. Let's dig into my empties for July!

As you can see, I finished up 9 products in July. The breakdown is 2 hair products, 1 makeup item, 3 face products, 3 body products.

OGX Moroccan Argan Oil: Repurchase I love this product, I use it every time I wash my hair. I'm planning on doing a full review of this product so I won't say any more till then, but I've already repurchased it (Ulta was doing a buy 1 get one 50% off sale during July).

Eva NYC Hair Mask: Repurchase I received this in my May Ipsy bag and I love it. It smells amazing and really makes my hair super soft. I originally wasn't interested in buying it because of the price Ipsy listed for a full size ($40!!!) but when I was at Ulta the other day I saw they had it for $15, which is still a bit more than I normally spend, but with a coupon it wouldn't be to bad. I will wait till it is on sale again then I'll stock up for sure.

Kirkland Brand Makeup Removing Wipes: Already Have As I mentioned last time, I buy these at Costco so I'm set for a few months still. Once I've used the last one I'll debate whether to try a different brand or stick with this.

Dove Deodorant: Already Have This is another item I always get at Costco, so I'm set on these for I think another few months at least. I really like this type though so I'll always repurchase it when they're on sale.

Sea Breeze Astringent: Not Repurchasing I'm almost embarrassed to admit that this bottle is like 7 years old at least. I bought it to help with some nasty acne and never really liked it. It smells bad, makes my skin sticky, and any little cut stings like hell when I use it. It works great for acne, I will admit that, but now that I'm older my acne issues are slowing down a bit.

Coppertone Spray Sunscreen: Not Repurchasing As I said last month, if this was on sale I'd get it but it was just to much money for not enough product.

Coppertone Sunscreen: Already Have I received a large lot of these to review for a company so I still have plenty left. But as I've said before I really like this sunscreen and I'll do a more in depth review at a later point.

Mary Kay Face Serum: Not Repurchasing Way to expensive for my budget, no matter how much I liked it. If I could get some for cheap I'd snag it in a heart beat

ELF Hypershine Lipgloss: Not Repurchasing I got this in a big package deal, so in reality it cost me nothing, which is good because I hated it. The color (Vixen) and shine level were fine, but it tasted VERY strongly of plastic. And I hated the paint brush twist applicator, I would either get nothing or two much every time I twisted it, there was no happy medium.

That's it for my empties, see anything you guys use? I'm expecting my August empties to be low, mainly makeup that's almost done and hopefully some lotion I'm trying to use up.

Weekend Tips and Tricks

Its the first weekend of August, can you believe it? Hopefully you'll find a tip or two to help your weekends (and weekdays) run a little smoother.

• Summer sun leave your skin a little rougher or drier than you'd like? Look no further than your kitchen for a solution. Sugar, olive oil, and a bit of lemon juice is all you need to make a fantastic scrub that will leave your skin looking and feeling amazing.
• August can be an incredibly hot and humid month so keep that in mind when applying your makeup. Cheek stains will last longer than powder blush, and many cream eyeshadows have incredible lasting power. Humid days may be the best time to let your natural beauty to shine through.
• Some skin products, like anti-aging creams and prescription acne medications, can leave you photosensitive and easily burned in the bright sun.  If you are using these products, make sure you always wear sunscreen and probably a hat as well just to be safe.
• Suffer from sweaty underboobs? I do during the summer, so I use my deodorant to help keep me dry and sweat rash free. Cornstarch lightly dusted under there can work as well, just don't use to much or you'll be a mess.

June 2014 Empties

This is my last super late post (YAY!), I'm finally all caught up after the extra long hiatus. My June empties surprised me with what all I finished and what I liked or didn't like. 

As you can see there were 11 items in my empties bag, 3 makeup, 4 skin care, 2 hair care, 1 tools, and a miscellaneous item. 

Cotton Swabs: Repurchase I buy a container of these about every other month from my local dollar store, no reason to spend big bucks on something I use once and then toss.

Bath and Body Works Pocketbac in Peony Scent: Repurchase I actually really like these and will pick up a few more next time I'm at the mall and they're on sale. I doubt I can get another in this particular scent but so long as it smells nice and works I'm pretty open to whatever they have. Speaking of Pocketbacs, there's apparently a large group of people on Instagram who collect these. And when I say collect I really mean hoard. When you've got over 1000 of them and you refuse to use them you're a hoarder. Its weird right? I think its weird.

Neutrogena Body Lotion: Not Repurchasing I don't even remember where I got this, it was just the little lotion I kept in my purse. I have a ton of lotion though so I will not be purchasing any lotion till I finally get through that pile. In my defense people keep gifting me lotion, I haven't actually bought any in years.

Clarisonic Cleansing Cream: Not Repurchasing I didn't actually buy this, it came in a big swap I did with someone. I don't actually own a clarisonic so I just used this with a rough washcloth. About half the time this gave me a rash, so even if I owned a clarisonic I'd be leery about buying more of this. If you have sensitive skin I suggest you skip this.

Coppertone SPF 50 Continuous Spray Sunscreen: Undecided I received this in a product sampling thing and I really liked it, but it is REALLY expensive I discovered. Almost $20 for a regular sized bottle, which is about twice as much as the lotion sunscreen. If I can find it on sale for a good deal I'll snag it but I'm not paying that much for something we'd use up in a month or two.

Mary Kay Night Time Emollient Cream: Not Repurchasing This is that Vaseline like stuff that comes in the pampered hands kit. I love love love the scrub and wish I could buy it by itself instead of in the set, but alas it isn't so I'm stuck with the lotion and the heavy, over scented, greasy cream. It took me about 3 years to finish this one tube, and I used it on everything. Knees, elbows, hands, arms, legs, nails...everything. 

Pantene Pro-V Conditioner: Not Repurchasing I got this on sale at Target and it just really didn't do anything for my hair. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't good.

Lee Stafford Hair Growth Treatment: Repurchase I'm currently attempting to grow my hair down to my butt (currently just below the middle of my back by about 2 inches) due to a bet between my husband and I and part of the deal was he had to pay for nice hair care stuff while I'm growing it. I found this stuff at Ulta and it's suppose to give your hair all the things it needs to be healthy and maximize your hairs growing potential. First, it smelled AMAZING and left my hair so soft. Did it increase the length of my hair? I'll say it helped it finally get past the middle of my back and helped prevent damage that would hinder growth. So next time this stuff is on sale I'll be stocking up for sure.

Mary Kay Lip Something: Not Repurchasing So this is either the lip mask or the lip balm, I can't remember and apparently I took really terrible pictures of my empties in June. Either way I won't be repurchasing. For the price they just weren't that great.

ELF Lip Tints: Haven't Decided Yet I love ELF Cosmetic's lip tints, the red one is my favorite thing right now. The two in the picture are a pink and a darkish red-brown color. The pink didn't show up great on my lips so I'll skip repurchasing, but the other one I really liked. It was like a dark neutral color and looked great under certain glosses. So next time I place an ELF order I'll more than likely pick another one up.

I'm slowly but surely making my way through products I should have used up a long time ago, which is kind of cathartic to be truthful. My July empties bag is getting pretty full so that should be a good post for sure. What items did you use up in June that you were glad to see go?