Vintage-y

Dress: Forever 21. Belt: thrifted. Socks: H&M. Boots: my old horseback riding boots. Purse: Target. Necklace: vintage.  

I really love this outfit.  It's got a really vintage-y feel to it, and it makes me feel kind of cute and sweet, but in a confident way.  I love the lace peter pan collar and how the skirt flares out when I twirl.  Seriously, you are never too old to put on a pretty dress and twirl.  Try it next time you are feeling down; it's a major mood lifter.

Thankful

This Thanksgiving, I have so very much to be thankful for.  I have an amazingly loving and supportive family, friends who brighten my life, a wonderful education, a roof over my head, and food in my stomach.

I hope that everyone spent the day with loved ones and had lots of delicious food!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Silky Smooth

Top: thrifted. Pants: TJMaxx. Shoes, bracelet: Target. Sunglasses: H&M.

Lately, I've really been into thrifting silk tops like this one.  I almost feel like I'm cheating the system when I get something luxe like silk for $3.  But I really don't mind that feeling considering how amazingly comfy silk is.  The pants are a more structured take on harem pants and are this great satiny material.  This outfit looks polished, but I feel like I'm wearing pajamas.  Really fancy, expensive pajamas.  If that's not a win-win, I don't know what is.

Bleary Eyes

Top: TJMaxx. Jeans: Old Navy. Jacket: Forever 21 via Plato's Closet. Belt: Target. Shoes, watch: thrifted.

So the secret's out: I have terrible vision.  I wear contacts 99% of the time mainly because I prefer the way I look without glasses and because I have an obsession with sunglasses and wear them every day.  That 1% of the time is made up of days like today, when I wake up and my eyes do not.  They complain that they are tired and won't open wide enough for me to put in contacts, and certainly won't open wide enough to look decent in a photograph.  So please excuse my sleepy eyes.  Oh, and the sleepy rest of me.  I was quite tired.

Sock Feet

Dress: TJMaxx. Blazer: Thrifted. Scarf: H&M. Shoes: Kohls. Sunglasses: Old Navy.

Today I tried something I've never done before: an unconventional shoe/sock pairing.  I've seen a lot of socks with more open style shoes around the blogosphere, and I've been really interested to try it.  I like the pairing for the indecisive weather we've been having; I can still work bare legs, but the socks make the outfit feel a little bit more like fall. 

This dress was an interesting find on the clearance rack at TJMaxx.  It was marked down to $3 due to a reasonable size tear down the side.  I figured for that price, I didn't really even need to like the dress, I could use the material to make something else for cheaper than I could buy fabric.  But I actually did like the dress, so after a quick stitch up the side on the sewing machine, it was good as new.  That is, until I discovered that the bodice was separating from the waistband in a way that was not a simple fix on the sewing machine, at which point I begged my mom to work her fixing magic.  Then it really was good as new.  Thanks, Mom.  

Caught off Guard

Top: thrifted. Jeans: Target. Blazer: H&M. Shoes: Payless. Watch: my Grandpa's. Ring: Charlotte Russe.

There's a funny story behind this blouse.  I found it in a thrift store in my hometown a while back and really liked the wrap design of it because I hadn't really seen anything like it before. If I had to guess when this blouse had it's original hay day, I'd have to say the late 80's or early 90's, based on the colors, print, and gigantic shoulder pads that I cut out of it.  

When I took everything up to the register to pay, the lady ringing me up took everything off the hangers one by one and said nothing until she got to this shirt.  She paused, looked at me, looked back at the shirt and its shoulder pads, and said "This isn't for you, is it?"  I was caught off guard by that question and quickly tried to form a response.  All I could manage to say was "I like to change things up a bit before I wear them."

2 quick snips later, and I've had a perfectly wearable (at least in my opinion) top.  I think the 80 year old woman who must have owned this before me would have her heart warmed to know that it is still well loved.

The Key to Successful Thrifting

Today was the first day since the school year started that I didn't have a huge assignment or project to work on, so I decided to treat myself to a day of much needed thrifting.  I didn't really need anything else to stuff in my already full closet, but I did need some 'me time,' and what better way than to sift through the racks and racks of insanely low-priced clothing?

A really decent portion of my wardrobe is thrifted, and I was asked recently how I have so much luck with it.  After a good amount of time thinking about it, I came up with a pretty simple equation to answer that:

patience + focus = thrifting success

Walking into a thrift store for the first (or even the thousandth) time can be really daunting.  There is usually a ton of inventory and it can be hard to figure out where to start so I find it really helpful to have a particular item in mind going in.  Today, for example, I was looking for a gingham button down blouse, so each store I went to, I started at the long sleeved blouses and moved on from there.  Once you get past that initial jumping off point, you're gonna need patience and focus.

In my opinion, the key to successful thrifting is looking through every item in the store.  Patience and focus.  I know it sounds crazy, but how else will you find that diamond in the rough?  Thrifting takes more effort than traditional retail shopping, but that work makes amazing finds that much more worth it!  

Writing this made me realize how much I have to say about thrifting, so I might just have to write up some more tips and tricks for future posts.  In the mean time, I can't wait to incorporate my 'new' clothes and accessories into my wardrobe!

2 of my favorite finds from todays thrifting trip: Purse, $2.99. Sheer silk leopard print blouse, $3.99.