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Ahhh, there's nothing like the start of Fall! The trees are ablaze with yellows, orange & crimson red. It's beautiful! To celebrate the fall I have started bringing out my boots.
Today's outfit is compliments of the thrift store and my favorite shoe outlet store. The red peacoat jacket is Bromleigh ($8 thrift store I bought this back when I was a single woman in my 20's), the jeans are Mudd ($5 thrift store), a brown long sleeve Old Navy shirt ($3 thrift store) and my FABULOUS faux lace-up boots from Frye ($15 shoe outlet!) and the purse is my Lucky Brand Vintage Leather ($24 thrift store) and a cute crochet hat for $9 for a grand total of $64.
Today we went to see Madagascar 2 with the Superstars and laughed hysterically. I can't help it. I LOVE the penguins. They are so "clever" as Superstar #1 says. I'm thinking they're a little psychotic, but I'm not sure how to explain that to her so clever will do just fine for now.
Hope y'all are taking time to check out thrift stores out there. I'm telling you, it's goldmine of fun fashion.
Today's outfit was a shout out to my California days. When the weather is like it was today (70's in the day & a cool 50 degrees at night) it reminds me of fall and football in southern California and bonfires on the beach.
Thanks to Belk's, Target, Rave and my girlfriend Jenn (who gave me these totally comfy and machine-washable boots as a birthday gift) for helping me with this look. Mossimo purple sweater (Target $14), Red Camel denim skirt (Belk's on sale $7), off-white tank top (Rave $4), LIVs crochet boots (FREE - woo-hoo!) and a Lucky Vintage Leather purse ($24 thrift store).
I'm not a "trendy" person in the sense that I pour over the latest fashion magazine to see "What's Hot" and "What's Not" when it comes to what to wear. I prefer classic, clean lines and gravitate to solid color-matchings. It's easier that way! I do however, like to change out the shoes and purse to give each outfit it's own little flair - like today's outfit.
I could have also paired this look with a smaller, under-the-arm purse and a little pair of wedges or even ballet flats for a more conservative look. Truth is that I just missed California and the beach. The last time I wore these crochet boots I was walking the sands in Rosemary Beach with my Beloved. I can hear the waves and taste the salt air even now as I type....
Today's outfit is brought to you by Belks, Target and the thrift store. The pants are Hydraulic straight-leg light denim trousers ($12 Belk's on sale), Mossimo black sweater shirt ($5 Target on sale), Nine West kitten heel shoes with buckle ($4 thrift store) and the purse is Scarlett Blake ($8 thrift store) for a grand total of $29.
I did have to hem the pants but it was a simple job, otherwise I would have had to add another $8 to the total. I also had to glue the front of the sweater for no other reason than it kept buckling out by the buttons and showing everyone my bra! With a little bit of fabric glue I no longer button this shirt up, but pull it over like a sweater. Fabric glue is a great way to help those who have this problem from time to time and it's machine washable. All in all today's look was a comfortable outfit that was update on the classic "jeans & sweater" look.
I toyed with the idea of adding a red purse to this look for a pop of color, even red shoes would have worked, but I was feeling a little more low-key today so I went with black.
Here are just a few basic tips when thrift store shopping. Actually, come to think about it I would say most of these tips are great for any type of shopping, whether it's a TJ Maxx or the end-of-the-season sale at Nordies!
Don't buy it just because it's a great deal.
"A pair of Armani/BCBG/Free People/Banana Republic/fill-in-the-blank pants for only $5!!!! Oh wait, it's a size 0. Maybe if I don't ever eat again work out, I might be able to fit into these...someday..." STEP AWAY FROM THE PANTS. Unless you've got a great friend that is a size 0 and doesn't mind you thrifting for her, those pants are only going to sit unused in your closet/drawer mocking you. Believe me, I have heard them do that. Size 0 pants are just that way.
Be realistic about "little" fixes.
I sew. It's one of the savvy skills I learned when nesting with my second child. I can hem pants. Well, not the lined ones or ones that need invisible hems, but jeans and khakis I can do. If a pair of pants does not fit into those two categories then I have to decide whether it's worth the $8 it's going to cost me to get them tailored. As for everything else, it's a case-by-case basis. Button missing - I can do. Seam a little loose - usually an easy fix. Tiny rip in a lining - I'll try if the price is right. Anything bigger and it's usually a pass.
Sometimes, however, the tailoring cost is justifiable. For example, one year I found a gorgeous new-with-tags formal gown and it cost me only $20...until I factored in the $45 for the tailoring. Now I needed the gown for a black tie, $250 a plate benefit that a friend of ours invited us to attend so it was definitely called for given the circumstance, but I wouldn't have dreamed about spending that on a day-to-day dress. Truth is, I would have kept shopping for another dress, but we were invited a week before the event and I just did not have time (or a large budget) to shop for a formal I would only wear once. Believe me, $65 is A LOT for me, but I was able to donate the dress to a local organization that used the dress for high school students who can't afford a dress for prom, thus the $65 became a tax write-off as well! Oh, and the dress must have looked good, my friend and I ended up in the local "society" magazine's photo spread!
When in doubt, don't get it.
Sounds harsh, doesn't it? It doesn't if you end up with piles of clothing you are not using. If you're hesitant about it before buying it, you'll be hesitant before wearing it...if you wear it at all. The ideal situation is being excited to pull the thing out of the closet because you look so good and feel so good wearing it!
Check carefully for stains and rips. Check even the new-with-tag items you find. Sometimes they are returns from stores or just a manufacturer's error. Either way, it's best to find any flaws before you buy it because most thrift stores do not issue cash for returns. They just offer store credit.
Try it on.
I know this is where I may lose some of you. I have a friend who NEVER tries on clothes and well, the result is a bunch of clothes in her closet with tags and a to-do list that always has "return X,Y,Z" on it. Being a Savvy Suburban Supermom means saving time AND money. But there is hope, the more you try clothes on, the more you will hone a sense of what works for your body and what doesn't and you'll find that you actually do less trying on.
Take chances.
You'll know when you've found something that really works when a) you get unsolicited compliments from other women or b) people keep asking you if you've lost weight. Sounds crazy, doesn't it? But I promise, watch What Not to Wear and you will see that almost every single person on there ends up looking AT LEAST 5-10 pounds lighter than when they first got there.
Up until two years ago I never wore faux wrap shirts even though Stacie & Clinton recommend them for most body types, mine in particular. I wasn't even sure I liked them. Come to find out after trying it on at the thrift store and spending just $5 for one, I got TONS of compliments, including one from my husband when he got home from work. THAT alone was worth the hassle of trying it on in the first place. A thrift store is a great way to try new styles at a price that won't break the bank if it doesn't work. If money is really an issue and you have a Goodwill store nearby, try their Monday Bag Sale: that's where you get 10 items of the featured tag color for $5. That's $.50 a piece. This is a great way to not only find things for yourself, but your kids, your husband, your friends, your extended family...you get the picture.
Be patient.
Being patient is probably the number one piece of advice I would offer. Most people will go to a thrift store once, maybe twice, and write the experience off as a failure if they don't walk away with a great bargain. They will say that I have some sort of special bargain radar that they are not equipped with, but I say, "Poppycock!" Ok, maybe not that, but nonsense! Anyone can find a great deal at the thrift store, it just takes a little time and patience. The payoff is definitely worth it!
Final word.
If there is anything that thrift store shopping has taught me is that it's all just "stuff". Yes, I know there is a quantifiable difference in quality between a leather Coach handbag and a pleather XOXO bag and the amount someone will pay for them - but the chance that they will both end up in thrift store somewhere at some point is HIGHLY likely. I've found Prada, Gucci as well as Coach, Free People and Abercrombie & Fitch, Armani, etc. so there are people out there donating them and fairly regularly!
One woman's "so last season" is another woman's "OMG, look what I just found!" but the truth is that today's great discovery usually gives way to a newer and greater discovery in a relatively short amount of time, regardless of whether it came from a high-end department store or a thrift store. There are very few women I know that will regularly carry the same bag for 10 years, much less 1 or 2 - even the women who own Louis Vuitton's that WILL last long enough to pass them down to their daughters. Fashion changes, styles change and WE change.
That's what I love best about Savvy Shopping. I have the freedom to change my style whether it's because of preference OR weight and not feel guilty about it. We all already do it to varying degrees, whether we are trying to figure out what our style is or what our 'end weight' is going to be. That being the case, we might as well do it with a bit of savvy shopping. Don't wait until you reach your ideal weight or find "who" you are stylistically in order to buy clothes that look good on you NOW. It will eventually change anyway. Take a little time and little money and find some great clothes. You will be happier for it. I know I am.
So, what does one wear on Super Tuesday? Red, white and blue? Too obvious. A shirt with my candidate's face? Uh, no. How about pink! 'Cause nothing screams politics like a hot pink eyelet jacket, right? Anyway!
Today's outfit is a little departure for me. Those who have known me for a long time know that I grew up a tomboy in a surf town in Southern California. Shorts and sweatshirts were my outfits of choice, usually by outfitters like Rip Curl, Op, Quicksilver, Billabong or O'Neill. I didn't really explore my feminine side until I became a sorority girl at Pepperdine University. Even then the change was slow.
I don't think I really embraced my feminine side until I had girls. That's when pink entered my wardrobe. This from the woman who asked that people DIDN'T buy pink for my first born daughter. I registered for every color BUT pink.
Anyway, on to the good stuff. The jacket is by Style & Company (Macy's sale $12 - regularly $79!), white tank top (Rave $4), Metro 7 jeans ($4 thrift store), Bandolino black leather pumps ($5 at thrift store, TJMaxx sticker still on bottom when I bought it) and a gorgeous Kate Spade purse for $10 at the thrift store. Grand total: $35.
Metro 7 jeans can be found at Walmart. Yes, Walmart. Shhhhh - don't tell anyone. I sure won't!
Today's outfit is courtesy of Belk's, eBay and the thrift store. Miss Chievous red striped hoodie ($6 Belks), Route 66 long denim skirt ($4.29 thrift store), Nine West camel colored leather boots ($9.99 thrift store) and the piece de resistance my yummy, oh-so-soft Banana Republic leather purse ($41 eBay).
A word about this outfit. So, uh, yeah, Miss Chievous. I didn't even know the brand existed. I found it in what would probably be classified as the Junior/Young Miss section, but the zip-up form-fitting hoodie looked cute on the hanger and for $6 I was willing to give it a try. Low and behold, it turned out to be kind of cute!
Route 66 for those who might not know the brand name is found at Kmart, someplace I don't usually frequent for my clothes but paired with grown-up boots & a stylin' purse, the outfit is nice and kid-friendly - and I'd like to think, more expensive looking than just $62.
As a Mom I want to be practical. I don't want to throw money away on something that my kids (or my own clumsy self) could ruin in just one meal. But I want to look nice. I want to look like I'm "together" even when I don't feel it. I want to be comfortable. I want my husband to think I look cute!
Now take out whether or not you have kids or a husband and doesn't it sound like what every woman wants? Great style for less? The "luxury" of changing your style without throwing out all your clothes and charging up the credit card? Sounds like a dream, but it's not, Savvy Shopping is for every woman, not just a suburban Supermom.
Savvy shopping can apply to high schoolers, college students, single women, married women without children, workplace Supermoms, anyone who wants to look good but doesn't or can't spend a lot of money. It can apply to the Superwoman who likes the bohemian look or the one who needs to dress for the board room.
Both the skirt and boots came from the thriftstore. I chose to go with the denim long skirt and heeled camel boot look, but for the same price a high school girl might choose a short little A&F skirt and Emus (a brand comparable to Uggs that I did find for $10 at the thriftstore). The college student might get a Free People bohemian skirt and a pair of leather slouch boots. The workplace Supermom might choose the Ann Taylor skirt and a pair of Ferragamo pumps (and yes, I found those too at a thriftstore, brand-new too I might add for $4). I'm sure you'll see them in one of my Savvy Outfits of the Day.
That single fact changed the way I dressed. I could spend $4.29 on a pair of Ann Taylor pants OR $4.29 on a pair of sweats/yoga pants. I know which I would look better in, it's just that in the past I wouldn't spend the extra money because in the "real world" it would cost $40 for a casual pair of Ann Taylor pants and just $20 at Target for a pair of yoga pants. It's not that I didn't think I was worth the extra $20 I just couldn't justify it.
Nice clothes seemed like a luxury that I wasn't willing to pay for when the extra $20 could be another pair of yoga pants or maybe lunch out with the kids. I know that isn't the case for everyone, but it was for me. Savvy shopping is what I finally found that allowed me to reconcile my desire to look nice and to be wise with my money.
I think that's one of the main things a savvy shopper needs to keep in mind, is that it doesn't matter WHERE it comes from. If it looks good and fits well, no one needs to know that you spent next-to-nothing...or what the brand name is.
We all know that Halloween items are always 50-75% off the day after Halloween. Or at least I thought so. A last minute run to Kroger for candy (yes, I had TOTALLY forgotten to get candy) landed me the deal of the day. ALL the candy was 75% off at 3pm the day of Halloween.
My $10 bags of Hershey goodness were only $2.50 each - I bought 2. The Hershey's snack bite bags, only $.75; combined with the $1.00 off 3 bags coupon I found lying on top of the bags I got 3 for just $1.25.
THEN when I didn't think it could get any better, upon checking out the machine spit out a "Thanks for choosing Hershey's, here's $5 off your purchase" making my Halloween candy total just $1.25 and I got the GOOD STUFF, the candy children fight over and adults take out of unsuspecting toddler's bags for their own stash. NOT that I would ever do that...I've just HEARD that some moms & dads do that...
Combine all the with the nifty Black Widow spider punch bowl I bought last year at Kroger for $1 (normall $19.99 since it's a punch bowl set complete with ladle & cups) we were ready for a night of fun Savvy Suburban style!
Of course we had SO much candy left over I sent Hubby to work with a ziploc bag full for their "candy jar". Just think, if I hadn't been so greedy and bought less, I could have gotten my candy for FREE! Does anyone know if candy freezes well?
