Savvy Outfit of the Day - $44 Here's to Hot Kiss(es)

Today's outfit was a mini celebration for the warmer weather we are having. It's a touch of Spring in February, and while in California it wasn't unusual to have warmer weather, it's a little dicey here in Music City where it can range from 70 degree to freezing.

The Breakdown.
Hot Kiss Jacket (free from Plato's Closet - I exchanged clothes/ARP $30), white tank (For Love 21 $2.50), B. Laguna jeans ($15 Belk's/ARP $50), Anne Marino black leather wedge ($8 Parisians/ARP $70 ), The Sak Reyes ECO Crochet Tote crocheted green purse ($17 Dillard's/ARP $90), silver leather belt ($1.50 thrift store/ARP $20).

Grand Total: $44.00
Approximate Retail Cost: $263
Savvy Savings: $216

Ancient Chinese Secret...

No, it's not a new and improve laundry stain remover, but this wonderful little saying I found on my Good Earth, Earl Grey teabag this morning.

Flowers leave some of their fragrance in the hand
that bestows them.

Savvy Outfit of the Day - $23 Banana Republic Beautiful

Banana Republic is one of those stores that I could probably spend all my money in. I love their classic styles & cuts in everything: their jeans, skirts, tops, jackets, purses, shoes and accessories. I didn't realize till I did The Breakdown that most of these pieces are from Banana Republic, but I felt pretty pulled together and for $23, I felt pretty savvy too.

In truth, this skirt has been sitting in my closet for a while waiting for a warm enough day to wear. And well, Mommy needed to put something nice on because she was tired of the late nights, the hives breakouts and the several days of ALL-DAY-PJs that represented last week.

The Breakdown.
Banana Republic skirt ($4 thrift store/ARP $60), Banana Republic black sweater ($6 thrift store/ARP $80), white tank top ($3 For Love 21/ARP $3), Banana Republic suede & leather hobo ($10 thrift store/ARP $200), Franco Sarto suede boots (birthday gift from my sister/ARP $150).

Grand Total: $23
Approximate Retail Price: $493
Savvy Savings: $470


I love these boots. Even my conservative suit-and-tie brother-in-law admitted they were pretty hot when my sister and I stumbled upon them on our Christmas Gift Shopping Trip. I call them fierce, and truth is that I've had women stop me to ask me about them. They are comfortable and just wearing them makes me happy. I'm easy that way.

This Banana Republic purse represents my first great purse find at the thrift store, and is one of the reason I started taking thrift store shopping more seriously. I think I petted it all the way home the day I bought it. It's lovely and that it matches the boots is just bonus.

Shaking Things Up Savvy Style

So, it's been a week! Turns out Superstar #2 had something that caused hives. Nothing major and yet three nights last week, around 9 o'clock she's complained about itching all over and next thing you know, she's breaking out in hives! As the daughter of a nurse, I tend not to freak out right away, and yet it's NEVER fun to see your child in distress, but a dose of Benadryl stopped the itching and allowed her to go back to sleep in each case.

We went to the Dr after having spoken to the on-call physician the first night it happened. I was pretty sure it was an allergic reaction, but wanted to be sure, and hey, that's why we have a Dr, right? I explained that there has been nothing out of the usual with her diet, no new detergents, no new soaps. Nothing except a tiny drop of a new hand lotion I had gotten, which I have since put away and would therefore not account for the other bouts we experienced. The Dr said that it could be a virus and that it could mean the hives cropping up here and there in the next few days but not to worry. Sigh. What can you do but worry a little and pray a lot!

Then Superstar #1, not to be left out, had a Dr's visit (on a separate day) for this crusty yucky stuff in her eyes. It wasn't conjunctivitis, but has since come and gone with no explanation. The Dr said it was probably drainage from her recent cold and since her ears and lungs looked/sounded clear, she was just fine. At any rate, between the mom-on-call and the mom-on-the-go-with-a-meeting and helping my neighbor by watching her 3 children one day, my week was gone before I knew it. During that time, however, I have been plotting and planning my return and so, without any further ado....

Today's topic - SHAKES!

So my husband, while not an unhealthy eater, has never been one for breakfast. And really, when he gets busy at work, he has been known to skip lunch. Of course, I keep telling him that doing that only puts your body into survival mode and can cause your metabolism to slow, but what do I (daughter of a German nurse who use to MAKE plain yogurt and mix it with wheat germ for breakfast as well as roommate & bestfriend to a woman who earned a degree in nutrition in college) know? I'm just his wife.

At any rate, I stopped nagging long ago since it doesn't help anyone, and he really had been trying with breakfast shakes in the morning using some supplements from Whole Foods and frozen fruit. I had used our big blender but found myself getting resentful for cleaning the durn thing every morning. I mean, yes, I want my husband to be healthy but he seemed to "need" my help making the shakes or he wouldn't do them (could it be because cleaning the blender afterward was such a pain????).


I solved that dilemma in savvy style a week ago when I bought a "magic bullet" type of mini-blender at Macy's. Belle Cucina is the brand name, and whereas the Magic Bullet runs around $79 retail, this runs $49 retail. It was on special for $19! The great thing is that I put all the "stuff" into the container at night (powder, fish oil, yogurt, frozen fruit, etc.) and he just pulls that out in the morning and sticks it in the nice small blender and Voila! A healthy, DELICIOUS shake and VERY easy to clean. It has to taste good or my husband will not drink it. He could be dying and he would not drink it. Me, on the other hand, will stomach just about anything if it's good/healthy for me. That's what happens when you are the daughter of a German nurse.

The blender comes with several cups, in 2 different sizes and with different attachments (a rim for easy drinking, a shaker top, a cover, etc.). "A shake top?" you ask. While I didn't buy it for this reason, you can grate things like cheese in this little guy too! In fact, the other night I did use the mini-blender to make a Shrimp & Feta dinner; first to chop the parsley and secondly to dice the diced tomatoes a little smaller. It was easier to use AND clean than my KitchenAide mini-chopper.

From what I understand, this thing makes a MEAN Mudslide too. I'll let you know once it gets warmer outside!

Savvy Outfit of the Day - $48 Steve Madden & Winter White

Today's outfit of the day is variation of something I wore a couple weeks back. Yes, I do wear my clothes more than once! I went to a 'hood party that night and though it was just at a neighbor's house down the street, I wanted to dress up a little more than jeans without being over-the-top.

The Breakdown:
Old Navy puff & fur coat (thrift store $15/ARP $40), Banana Republic argyle sweater ($6 thrift store/ARP $70), turquoise tank ($3 For Love 21/ARP $3), winter white American Eagle cords ($5 thrift store/ARP $40), Steve Madden white leather boots ($7 thrift store/ARP $100 ), cashmere pashmina ($6 hospital sale/ARP $10), MAXXimum leather & suede purse ($6 thrift store/ARP $75).

Grand Total: $48
Approximate Retail Price: $338
Savvy Savings: $290


I LOVE the Steve Madden boots! Using What Not to Wear rules and continuing the white of of the cords to the point of the boots, helps to make my legs look longer, and what woman doesn't want to have longer looking legs? And even though white can be a rough color to wear with children running around, the cord material is more resilient and I love the fact that I don't have to iron it. Really, worse case scenario is if the pants get stained, and then I only spent $5 on it so I didn't waste my money. I've had these pants for over a year now and they're still going strong!

Savvy Outfit of the Day - $27 Rafe Retro & a mini Rant

Today's outfit is another one of those questionable What Not to Wear moments. Can one wear a full length sweater and have it NOT look like a robe? I think maybe, just maybe.

I found this gem at a thrift store for $10 and I've gotten so many compliments. Of course after watching enough WNTW I know that's not always a sure sign that you've hit a home run. Although I will say that one woman hung out of her car to compliment me as I was walking with the Superstars in a parking lot! The jacket is by Kenji Natural, which I had never heard of before, but it fits well and it sure is cozy (I did NOT say "comfortable").

The Breakdown.
Kenji Natural full length sweater jacket ($10 thrift store/ARP $40), black Banana Republic wool turtleneck ($4 thrift store/ARP $50), winter white American Eagle cords ($5 thrift store/ARP $40), black Nine West leather boots ($8 thrift store/ARP $150), Rafe for Target black "patent leather" purse (trade with a friend/ARP $50).

Grand Total: $27
Approximate Retail Price: $330
Savvy Savings: $303


I'm not sure this is What TO Wear, but what good is the freedom savvy shopping brings if you can't try something new without breaking the bank? I felt good wearing this. And well, at 40 I've finally decided that there's a small part of me (growing bigger every day) that just doesn't care what other people think.

Of course I don't mean that in a bad way, but if the 30's taught me anything, it's that no matter how "decently" I think I dress for a stay-at-home mom who sometimes stays in her PJs all day long, there will be someone out there who does it better...and for less money. Conversely there will be someone who spends more money and feels superior for it because it's new, improved, more stylish or more eco-friendly and you know what? It's ok!

In life there will always be someone who is prettier, richer, smarter, funnier, thinner, or all around more together than I am, but no one has it all together and no matter what strong points we think we can boast in, there's another area of our life that is sorely in need of work. We're ALL that way. It's part of being human. It's what makes us U-nique and sometimes U-nusual, but overall it's about being U, flaws and all (sorry, kinda cheesy but I like the alliteration).

So to quote Ms. Frizzle in The Magic School Bus (can you tell I have an elementary school child?) "Take chances, make mistakes, get messy!" And even as that statement makes me cringe (I'm German and we're tidy, organized people!) I get it, and there's a lot of freedom in that statement. I hope you see that too.

Savvy Consignment Store Score - Betsey Johnson

Oh how I love Plato's Closet. It's the place I bring the clothes I no longer wear and they give me money (if it's not too "old" or "dated"). I always look around while they check out my clothes to see if there's any savvy shopping bargains, and today there was!


Behold, my new Betsey Johnson charm bracelet watch. Now, I do have several nice watches. As you can guess, I find them at the thrift store and sometimes on clearance in retails stores. I thought this would make a nice little addition to my collection. Considering it retailed for $150 and I got it for a mere $9 ($14 with a 40% off coupon for bringing clothes in) I think this counts as a SCORE!

The watch was too big for my wrist and needed links taken out. Anyone who has done that before knows it costs about $10. Having bought several watches at thrift stores before, I had invested $10 last year and bought a watch repair kit on eBay. In it I have all the tools to take out links and, ha, ha, change out batteries! I was able to take out the links I needed no problem at all. I've also used it for sunglasses, toys, and other teeny things.


Unfortunately the battery was also rundown, and I didn't think I would be able to take the backing off this watch without scratching it (some backs are easier to take off than others), so I scrolled down through the "coupon" section of our local coupon site (for my Savvy Nashville Suburban Friends check it out here) and printed up a coupon for a $4.99 battery change; that's battery and labor so I didn't have to take the time to figure out what size battery it needed and where to get one.

Anyway, $15 later I am the owner of a cute, working Betsey Johnson watch! Of course, TECHNICALLY I spent only $5 since I traded in clothes and didn't spend a single dime of my own money!