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Thrifty Wife Happy Life

Helping women love what they wear on a budget

Beauty on a Budget- What’s in My Makeup Bag?

February 18, 2017 by Katie Haller

I love makeup and I love trying out different products.  As I’m sure you already know, I’m a huge fan of affordable makeup.  I buy mostly drug store makeup products, with the exception of the occasional splurge or gift of higher-end makeup.  Right now, my make up bag is full of mostly Maybelline makeup.  I don’t get a chance to get over to my favorite makeup store, Ulta as much as I use to, because it’s hard to make a special trip with a baby.  That’s why most of my current makeup supply comes from the grocery store.  Today I thought that I’d go through and share the affordable makeup products that are currently in my makeup bag.

1.) Ulta Mineral Powder Foundation- I used to use Bare Mineral Foundation all the time when I was in college and I loved it, but it got too expensive for me to continue buying after college when I had lots of student loan bills to pay, that’s why I started experimenting with other foundations.  My skin has been very dry and sensitive right now, so a few weeks ago I switched over to my Ulta brand mineral makeup and ever since then, my skin seems to be improving.  I really love mineral makeup, because it’s so light and gentle on your skin.  If you’re looking for a good brand that is very comparable, but less expensive than Bare Minerals, I’d recommend Ulta’s line.

 2.) Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Concealer- This is by far my favorite concealer!  I’ve been testing out a lot of different drug store brands and this is the best one I’ve found.  As a new mom, I don’t get the beauty rest that I used to, so this concealer is perfect for making me look fresh in the morning.  It hides the dark circles under my eyes and brightens up my face. 

3.) Maybelline FaceStudio Master Contour- I just started using this kit and I love it!  I really like the bronzer and blush colors.  I just love how it’s all in one set, I don’t need to pull out a separate blush, bronzer or highlighter.   

4.) Maybelline The Nudes Eyeshadow Palette- There is not a color in this palette that I don’t like, however, the thing I always hate about big eyeshadow palettes like this is that you always run out of the colors you use the most.  That’s why I like to buy a separate eyeshadow of the color champagne fizz.  It’s the color I use the most of every day. 

5.) Maybelline Define-A-Line Eyeliner- This has been my favorite eyeliner for a while now.  I always buy the eyeliner that rolls out, instead of the kind that you have to sharpen.  I’m also afraid of liquid eyeliner because I never have any luck with it, so this is always my go-to eyeliner for any look.

6.) L’Oreal Voluminous Mascara- I always come back to this mascara, because it’s the best one that I’ve tried.  I always get sucked into trying a new mascara, and I never like it as much as this brand.  I just love the full lash look that it gives you. 

7.) L’Oreal Colour Riche Lipcolour- Carmel Latte- I’m not big on lipstick, but I had a coupon for this lipstick and I ended up picking out the perfect color for me.  I love the Carmel latte color, it’s the perfect color for winter.  It just gives my lips the perfect tint of color and it also doesn’t dry out my lips. 

8.) e.l.f Eyebrow kit- I am not big on the whole eyebrow craze.  Personally, I don’t like my eyebrows, so I just use the eyebrow kit to help fill in my brows and make them look semi-normal.  I really love this eyebrow kit for that, because it’s cheap and it gets the job done.
So that’s what’s in my makeup bag at the moment.  What’s in yours?

Filed in: Beauty • by Katie Haller • 10 Comments

Baby Update- One Year Old

February 13, 2017 by Katie Haller

It’s hard for me to believe that I have a one-year-old already!  It is so true that the first year flies by.  It has been such an amazing year being Jack’s mom.  I used to get sad whenever Jack had his monthly birthdays because I wanted him to stay that little baby I held in my arms for the first time at the hospital forever, but now I’ve learned to just embrace his age because I know how fast he grows.

Jack loves his new basketball hoop he got for his birthday!

 Right now, Jack is at a great age!  He started walking right after he turned 10 months and he’s been on the go ever since!  He loves to play with balls.  Playing catch with daddy after school is a daily game for him.  He also loves music and dancing.  He is building up a pretty good vocabulary for his age.  He can say “Jack”, “mama”, “dada”, “baba” and his favorite word “no”.  He ‘s trouble and loves to get into all the cabinets in the kitchen, but he tells on himself as he does it, saying “no, no” and waving his hand around.  It’s so cute!  He also just picked up waving “bye-bye”.

Jack has a great personality, but he can be stubborn sometimes.  He is already starting to show toddler signs.  When I take something away from him he throws himself on the ground and screams.  But on the other hand, he loves to bring me a book and sit on my lap when he wants me to read to him.  He wants me to hold him all the time, which can be annoying sometimes, but I also love feeling needed by him, so I don’t mind doing things with one arm.

Jack is a great eater and eats pretty much anything that I give him.  He really loves fruits, especially strawberries and peaches.  He is also getting pretty good with a sippy cup.  I’m slowly starting to eliminate bottles.  I’m a little nervous about getting rid of them altogether because he really loves his evening bottle.  I’m ready to do away with the bottles though, I’m so sick of cleaning them and I can’t wait to be done with formula.

Running to Mommy.

He’s such a big boy now!

Jack is starting to get better at sleeping through the night.  He’s still not the best sleeper, but it’s getting much better than it was before.  I really don’t think I was prepared for the lack of sleep I would get in the first year of having a baby.  That has definitely been one of the biggest challenges for me, but I feel like my body has just adjusted to the lack of sleep and I just power through and make it work.

Overall this year has been amazing!  Even though I wish I could keep him little forever, I look forward to the next year.  I can’t wait to hear him talking more and gain independence.  I’m so grateful to be this little guy’s mom.

Filed in: Baby, Mom Life, Motherhood • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

Making the Most of Your Non-Maternity Clothes- Casual Style

February 6, 2017 by Katie Haller

It’s hard to believe that I’m getting ready to celebrate my little guys the first birthday!  This year has just flown by!  I feel like it was just yesterday that I was pregnant and anxiously awaiting his arrival.  I have to admit that it’s nice to have my body back and not be pregnant anymore, but there are times when I really miss having that baby bump.  I had a lot of fun playing around with my wardrobe while I was pregnant, that’s why I decided to look back on a few of my maternity looks from last winter.

I recently was feeling stumped on putting together my outfits.  I was running out of ideas on how to wear my clothes.  I decided to take a look back on some of my maternity outfit posts from last year to draw some inspiration for what to wear now.  I ended up trying a few of my maternity looks on, this time without the bump, and I liked what I found.  One thing that I knew I did not want to have happened when I was done being pregnant was to have a big box of maternity clothes that I would only wear maybe one more time before getting rid of them.  So I did my best to wear what I already had in my closet by wearing non-maternity clothes.  I think I did a pretty good job of it, because I only ended up with 2 actual maternity items, the rest of my clothes I can still wear.

Here are 4 of my casual looks from last winter.  I know I’ll be repeating these looks this winter without the bump.

I’ve had this LC Lauren Conrad blouse (exact) in my closet for a while now.  It’s still one of my favorite tops and it was perfect to wear throughout my pregnancy.  Here is how I wore it when I was 7 months pregnant and how I wear it now.
This striped long jersey tank top from H&M (exact) was one of my favorite tops to wear when I was pregnant.  I couldn’t have had a better maternity top. 
I bought this grey tunic last winter at Nordstrom Rack.  It was so perfect to wear during my last month of being pregnant.  It also was my favorite top to wear after I gave birth.  I wore it a lot while I was on maternity leave when many of my tops were too tight to wear. 
I bought this mustard colored t-shirt at Target (exact) when I was 8 months pregnant.  I wore it with my favorite navy blazer from Target (similar).  These jeans are actually one of my skinniest pairs, but I wore them right up to the end of my pregnancy.  I won’t lie, they weren’t super comfortable at this point, but they looked better than my maternity jeans, so I just wore them unzipped with a belly band. 
Was anyone else able to style non-maternity clothes when they were pregnant?  I’d love to hear if you have any tips or tricks to making it work. 

Filed in: Affordable Fashion, Maternity Style, Motherhood • by Katie Haller • 3 Comments

Instagram Outfit Review- Winter Looks

February 1, 2017 by Katie Haller

Hey everyone!  I can’t believe that it’s February already!  Time is just flying by!  I’m sorry about the lack of post lately, but I’ve been super busy.  Ever since I went back to work after Christmas break it’s been one thing after another with doctor appointments, a sick baby, work stuff and preparing for a move.  It seems like there is always something, but hopefully this month things will start to settle down.  My family and I just moved into a new house, which was definitely a challenge to do with a baby.  It’s all worth it though because I love our new home.  It’s the perfect place for our little family!  It’s always fun to have a fresh start, but it always comes with lots of projects and of course a wish list of all the new home accessories that I want to buy.  I know that it will all get done eventually.  Until then, I can’t promise that many blog posts.  I have lots of ideas in my head of all the things that I’d like to write about, unfortunately, I’m lacking in time.  Until I can get together some time to put together some new posts, I thought that I’d do a quick round-up of my Instagram outfits.  
I have found this winter to be hard to dress for.  I think one of the problems with the winter in Las Vegas is that it’s not cold enough to wear actual warm winter clothes, but it’s still too cold to wear non-winter clothes… if that makes any sense?  The mornings have been in the ’30s, so it gets kind of hard to take an outfit selfie on my way to the car, that’s why I’ve been slacking on sharing my outfit of the day.

Here are my looks from this winter so far…

Coat- Old Navy
Sweater- Target
Jeans- Meijer
Boots- Burlington Coat Factory
Purse- Neiman Marcus Last Call
Top- Target
Jeans- Nordstrom Rack
Purse- Coach
Shoes- DSW
Top- Nordstrom Rack
Cardigan- H&M
Leggings- Forever 21
Scarf- Banana Republic Factor
Boots- Target
Sweater- Express
Necklace- Nordstrom Rack
Jeans- TJ Maxx
Purse- Neiman Marcus Last Call
Tunic- Old Navy
Jacket- Meijer
Leggings- Last Call
Shoes- Nordstrom
Sweater- Express
Jeans- Nordstrom Rack
Sweater- Meijer
Top- Target
Jeans- Target
Scarf- Old Navy
Purse- Savers
Those are my winter looks.  Hopefully, with the weather warming up a bit, I can get some more of my outfit of the day posts on Instagram soon!

Filed in: Affordable Fashion, Daily Outfits, instagram review, My Closet, outfits • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

Weekend Wardrobe- Casual Mom Style

January 16, 2017 by Katie Haller

It’s been so long since I last did a weekend wardrobe post.  Lately, my weekends are spent around the house and running errands.  We are moving at the end of the month, so I feel like I am just preparing myself for our move.  I also had a sick baby this weekend.  My poor little Jack had his fourth ear infection since September.  It’s so frustrating because I hate seeing him sick.  He doesn’t eat or sleep well when he’s not feeling well and it makes me sad to see.  Luckily he’s getting better.

To go along with my non-eventful life, I’ve been embracing a very casual mom style lately.  I’ve been really obsessed with a couple of my accessories from my closet that really help to dress up my casual looks.  I recently bought a pair of converse tennis shoes (here) and I’m loving them!  I’ve also been using my black satchel purse (here) that I bought this past fall.  I haven’t had a chance to use it that much, because it’s smaller than my other purses and I’m always needing to lug around a bunch of baby items.  But as Jack gets older, I’m able to run to the store without bringing all the extra diapers and bottles that I used to.

Here is what I wore…

Saturday  

Top- Target (similar)
Leggings- Forever 21 (exact)
Denim Top- Target (similar)
Scarf- Nordstrom (similar)
Sunday
Top- Nordstrom Rack (similar)
Cardigan- Macy’s (similar)
Leggings- Kohl’s (exact)
Those are my looks this weekend!  I hope everyone has a great week!

Filed in: Affordable Fashion, Daily Outfits, Mom Style, outfits, Weekend Wardrobe • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

Making the Most of Your Wardrobe- Blush Long Cardigan

January 7, 2017 by Katie Haller

Happy New Year everyone!  I know I’m a week late, but it’s been a busy couple of weeks.  We were in Michigan over Christmas and then I went back to work on Tuesday.  My month is only going to get busier because we are moving into a new house at the end of January.  I’m so excited, but I have so much to do to prepare.  I apologize in advance for the lack of a blog post this month.  

As you can see, I’ve made a few changes to my blog for the new year.  One of my new year goals was to make some changes to improve my blog this year.  I still just enjoy blogging for fun, so I’m not ready to make any major changes yet, but I thought a new look might freshen it up for the new year.  This blog is always a work in progress.  I just want to thank everyone for your emails, pins likes and just for reading Thrifty Wife, Happy Life!  I felt like 2016 was a major year for my blog.  I gained so many new readers and followers, so thank you!  It means a lot to me!  I look forward to making 2017 an even better year! 
Today, I thought that I would share a post that I started working on before Christmas.  I bought this blush long cardigan sweater at Target (exact) while I was doing a bit of Christmas shopping.  My closet is full of neutral colors, so I thought it might be nice to have a blush cardigan to add a touch of color.  I love how versatile cardigans can be.  You can layer them over almost any top.  Here are four ways that I’ve styled my blush cardigan. 
For this first look, I layered the cardigan over a black LC Lauren Conrad top from Kohl’s (similar).  I like how the blouse dresses up a simple look with leggings. 
I feel like I’m always wearing stripes, so of course, I layered the cardigan with my stripe tunic from Old Navy (exact).  I like to cuff my long sleeve shirts when I layer them with a sweater.  I just like the look that it gives. 
For this look, I added a green statement necklace to add some more color to the look.  Pink and green are 2 of my favorite colors, so I always like to mix them together.
I always love a good scarf layered look.  I really love this simple silver scarf.  I found it at Five Below for $5 a few years back.  I always say that I will buy my clothes and accessories from any store, as long as it’s cute and a good deal.  Sometimes you never know what you will find at stores like Five Below or the Dollar Tree.  This simple scarf is one of my most worn scarves because it’s so basic and matches every outfit. 
That’s how I’m styling my long cardigan.  How do you style your cardigans?

Filed in: Affordable Fashion, Making the Most of your Wardrobe, My Closet, outfits, Winter Fashion • by Katie Haller • 1 Comment

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Hi I'm Katie! Welcome to my blog! I am on a mission to help women build a wardrobe that they love without spending a lot of money doing it. I believe that everyone has the right to feel good in their outfit, no matter what your budget is! I am excited to have you here!
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thriftywifehappylife

Affordable everyday petite (5’1) mom style
A mix of affordable retailers + thrifted fashion
👨‍✈️Wife + Mom of 2 💙💗
💌 katie@thriftywifehappyllfe.com

Are you looking for some cute affordable workwear Are you looking for some cute affordable workwear pieces? I have have covered! I’m loving these looks from @amazon! 

✨Check out my stories for discount codes!! 

🛍️ Comment WORKWEAR and I will send you the shopping link to this post! 🔗https://liketk.it/5iXy1

c/o @gracekarin_brand 
#amazonfashion #amazonfinds #founditonamazon 
#outfitideas #workwear #workwearstyle #summerworkwear #affordablefashion
👗Wearing a dress is an easy way to make it look 👗Wearing a dress is an easy way to make it look like you put a lot of effort into your outfit, but the truth is it’s the easiest way to get dressed! You don’t even need to put on pants! 😂 Not to mention they are super comfortable! 

🛍️Comment DRESS and I will send you the shopping link to this post! 🔗https://liketk.it/5iYbp

#amazondress #amazonfinds #summerstyle #effortlessstyle #outfitideas #momstyle
How to wear a linen vest this summer! I’ve bee How to wear a linen vest this summer! 

I’ve been waiting for the right linen vest to come along to try. I found this one at @walmart and I’m not going to lie, I’m loving this trend! 

This vest definitely can elevate your style this summer!! Here’s some ways I styled it with the clothes in my wardrobe! 

🛍️Comment VEST and I will send you the shopping link to this post! 🔗https://liketk.it/5iRSR

#walmartfinds #walmartfashion #outfitideas #howtowearit #affordablefashion #outfitideas #summeroutfits
Healthy (and easy) summer meal ideas! Part 2! Tod Healthy (and easy) summer meal ideas! Part 2!

Today I’m sharing sweet potato taco bowls. This is a great week night meal and easy to modify for picky kids! (My kids eat this one on flour tortillas instead of the sweet potatoes. 🌮) 

Sweet Potato Taco Bowl Ingredients:
2 sweet potatoes 
Garlic powder 
Salt and pepper 
1 lb ground chicken or turkey 
3 Tbs taco seasoning 
2/3 water
Tomatoes 
Avocado 
Cilantro 
Lime juice

#summermeals #cleaneating #easymeal #summerrecipes #summermealideas
What I wore this week as a 40-year old mom of 2! What I wore this week as a 40-year old mom of 2! 

Summer life is in full swing! Here’s what I wore this week! 

🛍️Comment OUTFITS and I will send you the shopping links to all my daily outfits! 

#wiwtw #dailyoutfits #momstyleblogger #momoutfits #momootd #momoutfitideas
I don’t share my husband much on here, but this I don’t share my husband much on here, but this trend felt like a fun way to look back at our story! I had to dig deep on Facebook for some of these photos! 💕

He was the one who told me that shopping wasn’t a hobby and I needed to find a free hobby to keep me busy when we were first married. 😅 So I started a blog about living life to the fullest and dressing my best on a super tight budget.

Little did we know that “free hobby” would not only one day turn into my job, but it would also be a way to fund my shopping habit. Even helping me become a smarter shopper along the way! 😉

Fun fact: The name “Thrifty Wife, Happy Life” came from him. When making big decisions, Kevin always said “happy wife happy life”. So when I was brainstorming a name for my blog that popped into my head and I decided to do a little play on words. The original name I was going to pick was “Katie’s Closet”. I’m glad I went with the name I did!
I’m loving this beautiful blue floral dress from I’m loving this beautiful blue floral dress from @amazon! Here are 6 ways to wear it and yes it is on sale for Prime Day!! 🙌🏻

🛍️Comment DRESS and I will send you the shopping link to this post! 🔗https://liketk.it/5ircc

#amazonfashion #amazondress #founditonamazonfashion #howtowearit #howtostyle #amazonfinds
I finally posted all my outfits I wore on my cruis I finally posted all my outfits I wore on my cruise vacations and realized that most of them are from @amazon and on sale for prime day!!

🛍️Comment VACATION and I will send you the link to my blog post with all my cruise outfits! 🔗https://thriftywifehappyllfe.com/2025/07/what-i-wore-on-my-caribbean-cruise-family-vacation/

#amazonfinds #amazondress #vacationoutfitideas #cruisevacation #cruiseoutfits #momstyle #outfitideas #amazonbathingsuit
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