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Sephora Beauty Dupes at Costco

beauty dupe

??DUPE ALERT: COSTCO COPYCATS ?‍♀️ SEPHORA??
Have you seen the beauty section at Costco lately? All of a sudden it’s full of amazing beauty treasures and the prices are incredible ? These are the Costco beauty dupes that Sephora doesn’t want you to know about. You can shop more of them HERE, even if you don’t have a Costco card ?.

 

beauty dupes

Let’s start with my favorite! These lip balms are a FANTASTIC dupe for the Tarte juicy lip balm without the price tag!
Tarte Juicy Lip Balm: 1 for $26
Costco NYX Dupe: 3 for $15

 

beauty dupes

Three words… Sol de Janeiro! Because it’s so expensive, we might as well call it Sol de Dinero. This Costco dupe is a great way to save money while smelling amazing.
Sol de Janeiro: 1 for $25
Costco Nutrius Dupe: 3 for $30

 

beauty dupes

If you are a fan of the Laneige sleep mask, let me tell you about a fantastic dupe I found at Costco.
Laneige Lip Sleep Mask: 1 for $24
Costco Glowiest Dupe: 3 for $20

 

beauty dupes

This next guy right here is a GREAT dupe for the the super pricey Elemis Cleansing balm and even comes with a headband to go with.
Elemis Cleansing Balm: 1 for $40
Costco Versed Dupe: 2 for $30

 

beauty dupes

This last item right here isn’t a dupe.. it’s the ACTUAL thing but for a great deal at Costco. You can get this entire set of snail mucin for way less… run to grab it!
COSRX Snail Mucin: 1 bottle for $25
Costco’s Price: 4 item kit for $38

 

Have you tried any of Costco beauty items? Comment and LMK which ones and how you like them ?


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Low Carb Diet Hack: Taco Bell Edition

DIET HACK: LOW CARB TACO BELL

How often do you find yourself ordering on the run? With my work schedule and an unpaid job as a personal chauffeur to my teens I find myself in the drive-thru more often than I’d like, so l had to figure out some better choices. Here’s my latest edition of TASTY LOW CARB ORDERS- all from Taco Bell✅

First up is the cantina chicken bowl, my personal favorite! This guy went from 44 carbs down to 5 carbs. Here’s how I ordered it:

 

Next up we have the loaded beef nachos. These guys are usually 44 carbs but if you order ‘em this way, we’re talking around 10 carbs. The secret? Skip the chips! Here’s the order:

 

 

Here’s the beefy five-layer burrito without all of the carbs! We even left the beans and brought it down from 65 carbs down to 10 with this order hack: just no tortilla! Order it this way:

 

 

 

When I ordered the Nachos Bell Grande, I took off the chips and the beans. This one isn’t going to win any beauty pagents, but it tastes incredible! Keep in mind we took this puppy down from 80 carbs to 10… wow! Here’s the order:

 

 

BONUS: All of Taco Bell’s hot sauces are carb free! Also low or no carb: their sour cream and guacamole ?

Which one would you order? Comment and LMK! The Cantina Chicken Bowl is my pick ?


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Dollar Tree Dupes: Cleaning Edition

cleaning dupes

🤩🚨 DUPE ALERT: DOLLAR TREE 💰🌳 COPYCAT 👯‍♀️ CLEANERS

Do you like to clean or do you dread it? Honestly, I have a love/hate relationship with it…that hardest part for me? Wasting money on the actual cleaning products! Wouldn’t you rather put that money towards food..shoes…your vacation fund? Me, too! Here are some incredible cleaning DUPES for a FRACTION OF THE COST 🥳

 

cleaning dupes

Dollar Tree’s Pink Stuff dupes get INCREDIBLE reviews! These guys have almost everything those folks make- the only difference is, Dollar Tree’s version costs 75% less.

cleaning dupes

If you are a fan of the Mr. Clean erasers, this is the dollar tree dupe. They are the exact same thing! Run to grab these and save over 70%! Same sponge… different box.

cleaning dupes

Same thing over here for the Shout Wipes! The dupe looks exactly the same with 70% savings.

cleaning dupes

This little guy over here is a dupe for the Dawn Power Wash. Honestly, it’s getting incredible reviews, and best of all, it’s going to save you over 50% buying it this way.

cleaning dupes

Online, there’s an incredible fancy high-end cleaning brand. It’s SO expensive… 3 products for $75! This dupe line is getting such incredible reviews, and it’s 95% less!

cleaning dupes

Don’t forget about their name brands! If you are buying these any place else, all that money is just going down the drain.

What’s your “can’t live without” cleaning product? Comment and LMK! 🥰


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Sugar: Hacked!

sugars

🍯🤩 SUGAR: HACKED! 

 Am I the only one or did you also think honey and molasses were exponentially better for you than a plain old white sugar? While both honey and molasses contain some form of micronutrients, they are both still sugars! But when it comes to plain old calories and carbs you may be shocked at which sugar comes out on top 🤯

 

sugars

The truth is, your body can’t tell the difference between sugar. Added sugar is… added sugar!

Here’s the kicker, though. White sugar actually has fewer carbs and calories than honey. Turns out a teaspoon of the white, brown, and the raw basically have the same amount of calories (around 15 per 1 teaspoon) and carbs (around 4 per 1 teaspoon).

BUT, when you move over to the molasses and honey, they actually have higher calories (around 20 per 1 teaspoon) and carbs (around 5 per 1 teaspoon).

sugars

The bottom line? Use the one you want! It’s really the amount, not the kind.


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LORAfied On-the-Go: Low Carb Diet Fast Food Hacks Pt. 1

Sharing the best low carb hacks to help guide you the next time you’re ordering at your favorite fast food chain!

 

LORAfied List to Low Carb Fast Food??

 

 

Low Carb KFC Order?

  • Buttermilk Ranch (2 g net carbs)
  • Buffalo (2 g net carbs)
  • Hot sauce (1 g net carbs)
  • Chicken Wing and Drumstick (3 g net carbs each)
  • Green beans, add butter spread (2g net carbs, 0 carbs for butter spread)

 

Low Carb at Taco Bell?

  • Chicken Power Bowl (21 g protein, 4 net carbs (with no sauce), 240 calories)
  • Nacho cheese sauce (and most sauces)
  • Lettuce wrap or bowl option

*SKIP: bread, wraps, biscuits, anything fried (chicken, fries, desserts), rice, beans, chips

 

McDonald’s?

  • Double quarter pounder with cheese, no bun, and no ketchup (42 g protein, 4 net carbs (with no sauce), 540 calories)
  • Mix buffalo and ranch (low carb and tasty)

*SKIP: sauces can be tricky and add unnecessary carbs. The sweet & sour, hot mustard, tangy bbq, and ketchups are not low carb friendly!

 

Chick Fil A?

  • 12 count grilled nuggets (38 g protein, 2 net carbs (with no sauce), 200 calories)
  • Mix their zesty buffalo sauce with their house sauce for a delicious low carb hack
  • Cool wrap in a bowl (42 g protein, 5 net carbs (with no sauce), 350 calories)

*SKIP: the spicy chicken sandwich, and sauces can add up the carbs here again…2 Polynesian sauces have as many carbs as a bun!

 

Starbucks☕️

  • Low carb latte hack: large cup of ice with 2 shots of espresso, then I add my own low carb, high protein shake to the cup. The regular way Starbucks makes it has 49 net carbs! Adding your own shake will make it so it only has 5 carbs (and my shakes have 20g of protein!)

***Click HERE to shop my favorite Low Carb Snack Bars and Shakes?


 

LORAfied On-the-Go: Low Carb Diet Fast Food Hacks Pt. 2

 

low carb

?? DIET HACK: LOW CARB FAST FOOD ORDERS Pt. 2 ?

How often do you find yourself ordering on the run? With my work schedule and an unpaid job as a personal chauffeur to my teens I find myself in the drive-thru more often than I’d like, so I had to figure out some better choices. Here’s my latest edition of TASTY LOW CARB ORDERS ✅

 

McDonald’s

If you are craving a Big Mac, this is the way to do it! Guilt free, and it’s absolutely delicious. Plus, it’s only 6 net carbs!

I ordered a Big Mac with NO bun and extra lettuce. You can include the sauce on this guy… it only has 1 carb! She’s not going to win any beauty pageants but it tastes SO good. This order has 6 carbs, 18g protein and only 330 calories.

 

Starbucks

My lowcarb starbucks order only has 6 carbs! I order a grande shaken espresso with almond milk, blonde espresso, 1/2 caramel syrup, 1/2 cinnamon dolce syrup, and 1 stevia. The key to this guy is NO classic syrup, meaning no surgar. It has 6 carbs and only 45 calories.

 

 

Chick-fil-A

Here, I ordered their cobb salad but flipped out the crispy chicken for grilled. I opted for the light italian dressing and tossed the cripsy bell peppers, which are fried and full of carbs. My order comes in at just 10 net carbs, 42g of proten and 465 calories.

 

Did you know many Starbucks drinks include what they call “classic” which is simple syrup whether you want it or not? Comment and LMK! I make sure to always say “no classic” when ordering anything at Starbucks, even the most simple drinks come with it which adds carbs and calories ?


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Costco Food Court Diet Hacks

Costco

🤩🍕COSTCO FOOD COURT: DIET HACKS 🌭🍪

Have you ever grabbed something from the Costco Food Court? Their food is a deal and it’s delicious! While it’s tricky to find options that aren’t “cheat day status”, there are some delicious workarounds. In fact, there’s one item on their menu that’s a low carb standout…and I’m not talking about their chicken salad 🥗😉 The big question is… how do we eat at Costco on a diet? I’m here to help ya out!

Between the pepperoni and cheese pizza, the cheese pizza has fewer carbs and calories. However, both are super high in carbs! My hack? Cut out all the carbs and just eat the toppings!

Is the chicken bake or the fully loaded hot dog the way to go? The chicken bake comes in at 840 calories and 80g of carbs! The hot dog comes in at 621 calories and 51+ carbs. Both are not great, but the absolute best thing to do on this menu is make yourself a fully loaded hot dog with no bun. This brings it down to 411 calories and only 14g carbs!

Now, onto the desserts. The cookie comes in at 69g carbs compared to 84g of carbs in the sundae. The sundae however does come in with a little less calories. While the cookie has 11g of protein, it’s not worth it if you are dieting!

In regards to the drinks, you will want to avoid these if dieting! The cold brew mocha freeze comes in at a whopping 115g of carbs!

Skip the drinks and try my low carb creation instead: a bite of the no bun hot dog with some of the pizza toppings on top! It’s the perfect low carb bite at the Costco food court.

 

What’s your favorite thing at the Costco food court? Comment and LMK! Mine is the pizza without the crust 🤭


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Cutting Board Kitchen Hack!

hack

🤩👩‍🍳 KITCHEN HACK: CUTTING BOARD TRICK 🤯

 How many times have you chopped up something only for it land on the counter or worse, the floor when you’re trying to put it your bowl, the sink or compost? Here’s a handy kitchen hack that will give you a slam dunk every time 🎉

Have you ever wondered what the hole in your cutting board is for? Let me tell ya sis- it’s for an easy transfer from the board to the bowl!

hack

Not only is this trick handy and keeps you from spilling, but it’s also fun! How great is this hack?!

 

Follow along for more handy hacks!


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My Story: 3 Jobs, 1 Dream

dream

❤️ MY STORY: 3 JOBS = 1 DREAM 🍔✈️📺 

Struggles are real! But so are DREAMS 💭 There is something to be learned in every job, even if it’s not your ultimate goal, there’s a takeaway from every experience. I spent my time working the McDonald’s drive-thru practicing my news live shots 🎤😂 and that was only the beginning 😉

 

1st Job: McDonald’s

When I was a senior, I used to work at McDonald’s. I loved it because I got to work the drive-through. It was my first real job, and it came with a microphone!

 

 

2nd Job: Flight Attendant

In my 20s, I was a flight attendant… for five seconds. I flew for Delta and although it was fun, my ultimate dream was to work in TV news. Just two weeks into my job, a very popular news anchor here in Los Angeles walks onto my flight. When I’m taking his order, I say to him… I know this is going to sound crazy, but I’m really a journalist. He said call me Tuesday at 2:30! I landed myself an internship at NBC sports. Being a flight attended ended up landing me on TV. The moral of that story? You are going to miss 100% of the chances you don’t take!

 

 

3rd Job: The Side Hustle

Flash forward to when I’m in my 30’s. I’m a divorced single mom trying to make it, working in TV news as a reporter. There’s not a lot of money being made in TV news! I took this job on Ripley’s Believe It or Not. Dean Cain was the host, and I would write segments that Dean Cain would track. Then, I would go into the news station at night and work to 3-11 going live! And now… I’m here with LORAfied!

 

✅ Start visualizing WHAT YOU WANT, no matter how out of reach it may seem, no matter how crazy others tell you it is.
✍️ Write it down! See yourself doing it and block out the negative “noise” from others.
🥰 Always remember: YOU are special, you are here for a reason, you deserve to be happy!
💪 Let’s do this, sister 👯‍♀️

I’m so glad you’re here, YOU make LORAfied possible and I’m beyond grateful 🙏


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Genius Kitchen Hack!

kitchen

🤩👩‍🍳 GENIUS KITCHEN HACK: BAKING SECRET 🤫

It’s not your recipe, it’s the temp of your oven 🤯 What’s the average baking temperature called for when making baked goods? Around 350F right? Kid 2 and I always joke “when in doubt add a teaspoon of vanilla and preheat the oven to 350F” 😂 While your muffins will look fine at that temp, if you want bakery worthy muffins there’s a SUPER EASY TRICK that will forever change your muffin game and it’s FREE + EASY!

What if I told you these muffins came from the same batch? One looks so much better than the other! This trick I’m about to share with you works with any recipe- your batter doesn’t matter whatsoever… it’s how you bake ’em!

Instead of 350 degrees F, we are going to start one batch at 425 F. Then, at the 5 minute mark, we are going to lower the temp back to 350F to finish. The high heat actually gives them a head start.

Although both batches are great, the kitchen trick makes them turn out so much prettier! Since we eat with our eyes first, I love using this trick for my baked goods. Follow along for more kitchen tips and tricks.


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Amazon

Save Big: Food that Never Expires!

food

🤩💰SAVE BIG: FOOD THAT NEVER EXPIRES 🚫🗑️

How tied to expiration dates are you? I used to think the milk magical knew to go bad by the date printed on the top 🤭 Boy was I wrong! While milk is an easy read when it takes a turn, there are some things in your kitchen cabinets that NEVER GO BAD! Here are the things that LAST FOREVER! Forward this to someone who needs it 💕

There are probably a dozen things in your cabinets that never go bad. No more tossing these items sis, and it will save you so much money! Check out this list and see what you have right now.

food

 

 

XO,
Lora


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Genius Rice Hacks: Does Washing It Matter?!

LORAfied Rice Hacks

 Do you wash your rice before you use it? If yes, how many times? And do you soak your rice? Is any of this really necessary? And is brown rice better for you than white? What’s the best way to cook it? 🤔 SO many questions, luckily, I have the answers 😉

 

🤩🍚 RICE HACKS: DOES WASHING IT MATTER?! 🍽️

Did you know all rice contains ARSENIC? That means rinsing is a MUST! The absolute bet way to remove arsenic from rice is to soak it. Soaking it overnight is the best way! The most effective way to cook it is like pasta because the extra water allows the arsenic to escape!

 

Pasta Rice Method:
To cook your rice like pasta, bring a pot of salted water to a boil, approximately 6 cups of water to 1 cup of rice. Pour rice into boiling water and cook until desired texture. Start checking at around 7 mins…may take much longer, like 20-25 mins depending on the type of rice you use. Drain, rinse with cool water and let it sit for a few minutes to let the steam escape. Eat immediately or refrigerate for later.

TIPS: Not all rice is created equal. Long grain rice tends to have more arsenic than short or medium and white rice has less than brown because white rice is basically brown rice with the husk removed. If you’re looking for the lowest arsenic in your rice, look for rice coming out of California, India or Pakistan!

 

Do you prefer white or brown rice? Comment and LMK! I’m a sticky white rice gal 🤍Click here to check out my favorite rice cooking essentials & other kitchen picks! 👩‍🍳


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