What We're Wearing Today: Hippie... Zebra Chic?

Another long skirt. We're aware it's not the best length for petites and yet we love it so.

How do you like the uncropped mirror view for a change? (Still promising real photos in mere weeks...) You get a glimpse of the extra-purple condo and some of the power tools lying around during demo (cutting out walls to open up hallways to make the place a little bit more livable and that sort of thing).

Here's the zebra-striped scarf we got free with a black t-shirt at Marshall's recently, with a turquoise Mossimo tee and a linen skirt from TJ Maxx we've mentioned before, with a new slip (also from Marshall's) since it's a wee bit see-through.

We wore turquoise sparkly flip-flops (sorry, A, who hates them) for some super matchy-matchy (aaahhhh), until we got to the office, when we changed into these embellished silk with suede and wood heeled slides (OK, still matchy):


...except then we walked a block in them and they gave us the biggest blister we've ever had (seriously! Ever! One block!) so we went back to the flip-flops. Sadly, these ones are destined for the bin, however cute. We kind of despise both wood and kitten heels anyway, and can't exactly figure out why we would have purchased these in the first place (they've been under the desk for a long while now). Oh, right-- they have sequins. And they're teal! Case closed.

Accessories: earrings by us (silver/turquoise mini chandeliers in Swarovski and Czech glass) and a turquoise butterfly charm stretchy bracelet we probably got in an egg in some machine or something... Really :)

What We Wore Monday: Orchid Hippie Chic

You can take the girl away from Shakedown Street, but you can't take the hippie chick out of the girl.

It's pouring rain and yet we couldn't resist this ankle-length tiered cotton lovely that we found at Marshall's a few weeks back for $15. Our new favorite color seems to be orchid, which isn't particularly extraordinary considering that it's always been one shade of purple or another...

The hot pink lace-trim cami underneath was another Marshall's find, discussed recently. The black top is by b-slim and was a splurge at $30 from Macy's for the bachelorette party in April.

We sported our cute new rain boots, which we scored at Famous (you may see a trend here) for $5! Down from $80 originally! They're shearling lined and absolutely perfect with their pink and purple and stars! So us. We swapped 'em for the Hot Kiss black peeptoe slingbacks once we got to work, though.

Aren't they adorable?
We were excited when wellies became trendy, since we have hundreds of days of precipitation here in Boston, but we'd hesitated to spend as much as they tend to go for. $5 was more our speed :) Hooray Famous Footwear clearance!

Sunday Steals and Deals: The $15 Store

Have you heard of this place? (15dollarstore.com). Are we late on the uptake?
It's geared toward juniors, and as we've mentioned we probably shouldn't be looking for that kind of stuff, but $15! Every single thing. They seem to be remnants from somewhere-- they have original prices and everything is marked way down. Even if it's just a marketing ploy, Wow.
We won't vouch for the quality until we order something, but when we get paid at the end of the month, we're pretty sure we know where at least $45 is going:

This ombre empire-waist dress with beaded trim, in two gorgeous colors, looks pretty short, but for those of us who aren't teenagers anymore it could look adorable over a contrasting longer skirt or petticoat, yes?

ombre dress $15 store by ThriftyStylist on Polyvore.com

We're always on the lookout for a bargain for next season, so even though we detest the idea of a sweater actually on us at this moment, these gorgeously saturated fuchsia and purple options-- one cashmere, the other two so girly it slays us-- have us awaiting our paycheck with the zeal of a giddy child on Christmas Eve.

Fall Bright Sweaters $15 by ThriftyStylist on Polyvore.com

If you're in the market for a new coat for fall, can you even believe they're selling a real suede trench for $15? In sand and "almond" brown, we're not sure we can personally pull it off, but dear readers, you do have to snap it up. Actually, it might look snazzy over an interview outfit so perhaps we should take the plunge. It's not a very painful one.

Suede Mini-Trench $15 by ThriftyStylist on Polyvore.com

We mentioned that we've been seeking another alternative to our regular black lace cardigan; we do have a few shawls and pashminas, but we're definitely eyeing these three options (especially that burnout velvet, oh, my).

Romantic Cover-ups by ThriftyStylist on Polyvore.com

We suspect the junior sizing will run small. We haven't gone so far as to see if they have a sizing chart. We're still giddy from browsing. Although we admit that we're sharing the creme de la not much at all. But maybe your tastes aren't as specific and you'll find more... However, these deals are a good enough start to have us excited for a new place to order. We'll report back.

Let us know if you enjoyed the finds, and definitely if you've ever shopped there!

What We Wore Friday: Roses and Peonies

It was a flowery day. We've posted about this lovely circle skirt from Vicky's before... oh how we love it! (We think this print is peonies? Anyway, it's gorgeous. The mirror streaks are lighting-related. Pardon)

We paired it with too much black (probaby), but the rose-embroidered Chinese slippers (from Rocket Dog via Famous Footwear for less than $10) are just precious, right? We felt the need for flats after too many days in high, high heels!

Earrings are by us, something that was intended for the shop but ended up making its way into our own jewelry box before ever being listed, as things are wont to do :)

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Thursday's Look for Less: Kate Winslet

We love Kate Winslet, owing greatly to the time that she called up Vanity Fair to bitch them out for over-photoshopping her thighs for the cover- they'd cut too much off! You go, curvy sister!

Kate Winslet's Look for Less by ThriftyStylist featuring Forever21

This is not quite a splurge vs. steal since we didn't try to do the whole outfit with accessories, but we found this blue dress absolutely stunning and had to feature it as a look for less! What appears to be almost the exact same one- although Kate's has a bit more detailing at the bustline (couture vs. ready-to-wear, we imagine?) - retails for a whopping $1250.00 at BCBG. Can anyone who isn't a movie star imagine spending that on one (non-wedding) dress? We surely can't.

Also, if you don't have Kate's phenomenal figure, this skin-tight silhouette might not be the best for you (it sure wouldn't be for us!) so we include a couple of more flattering a-line skirt options. Those of you blessed with no lumps and bumps could definitely pull off the Goddiva version second from the right, though!

Which is your favorite?
Also, have any of you ever actually shopped at Forever 21? We just noticed a brand-new and enormous one in our town mall, but didn't venture inside. Is the quality crap? Is it all for juniors? Let us know if you have insight!

What We Wore Thursday: Dressing Down

We don't mean casual exactly- we were just trying to take this dress we wore to a wedding a few weeks ago and dress it down enough for the office, since it was one of the only things available in our scant at-the-man's-house-wardrobe!


So we added the jacket from the suit we wore to the interview yesterday, and our beautiful new red stacked heels (see this post if you're not familiar!)

Here's a fairly decent representation of the outfit in its entirety:

Outfit Thursday June 25 by ThriftyStylist featuring Miss Me shoes


The jacket is really much more grey and the dress clearly has a different print, but you get the idea. We would feel a little boring in all of these neutrals if it weren't for the fantastic shoes!

Do you ever wear something that isn't really for the office but make it work with structured layers? We have been dying to do so with our lace-overlay dress from the consignment shop trip with a cardigan or blazer, but with the nude lining we're not so sure. Thoughts?

Interview Panic!

The Thrifty Stylist was blindsided by a sudden interview when we had only size 8 suits at that time to our name (jackets fit OK but we're fairly sure camel toe isn't exactly a great first impression... for THIS sort of occasion, anyway). So... we headed to Filene's Basement to see what they had to offer us. Sad. There was no longer a suit section per se, just racks of separates and a few suits under different designer labels. We despise shopping by designer (as we mentioned regarding Macy's).

We almost went home with a true monstrosity; since there were no petite pants, we were resigned to skirt suits, and there was only one even close to our size: a double-breasted, hideous-colored, VELCRO-belted travesty-- of which the skirt fit but the jacket made us look like a little girl playing dress-up in a linebacker's closet (one with no taste)...

So... we headed back to the separates rack in desperation and tried on the last Calvin Klein jacket that matched the skirt in our size... and it fit! Even though it's technically a couple of sizes too small. And it only has one button. And it was waaaay not thrifty (~$120 for jacket and skirt). But hopefully it'll last us, even if it is one of our least favorite colors.


Orchid button-down was $5 at Goodwill; it's from Chadwick's.
We can't recall where we got the shoes, but they're not very attractive so we couldn't possibly have paid more than $15 for them. They're interview shoes only.


In order to make it a little teeny bit less obvious that we're dressed for an interview while at our current job today, we hid the jacket, rolled up the sleeves of the shirt, and threw on that purple tie-dye scarf we mentioned, from Marshalls (free with a T-shirt!)



...and these fabulous peep-toes which have served us well but are obviously on their last legs:

These were another not-so-thrifty purchase at $120, from Marshall's. We would normally never, ever pay that much for shoes unless they're really high-quality boots. But, we did. They're by Rebecca Sanver (?) and they're lovely plush velvet. And that trim! Oh how we love them.

We're seeking opinions (although we're at 3-to-1 in favor so far) on whether to leave the collar out of the jacket. It's supposedly the preferred method but we kind of enjoy it inside a little more, as it doesn't scream '70s to us quite as much. Please leave comments before 3 pm EST when we head off!



What horrible lighting! The suit is most definitely grey and the shirt orchid. We're fairly sure olive and pink would instigate nausea in our interviewer.

Please opine! Your thoughts are most appreciated :)

P.S. We are heading out to get some black tights to hide the tattoo later, and wearing our hair up in as professional a french twist as we can manage since we overslept and had no time to flat iron. Le Sigh.

Tuesday Croc Love

Did we scare you with that title? We're talking about the only acceptable "Croc" on feet that aren't 5 years old, nursing, or gardening: Croc-embossed!


Today we're wearing nearly the same outfit as this one from last week, except with a black top instead of the turquoise, and purple tights and (different) purple heels! Sorry for lack of a photo but it's better this way- that mirror at our man's house is so.freaking.awful. We do promise that once we figure out where we're living in September, we'll create a proper space for taking real photographs with a real camera so you don't have to squint anymore!

We used to have a thing against pointy-toed shoes, until we discovered that they elongate the legs of stumpy folks like us. Always a good thing. Hopefully the monochromatic tights/shoes will make us look a million miles tall. Ha.

These beautiful Sam & Libby pumps were a Famous Footwear find, if we recall, probably $15 or so. We can't turn down a cute pair of heels, even if they're a bit on the snug side in the toe box. These are sitting-at-your-desk shoes, not walkin' shoes. But that's OK.

We are so done with black shoes for a while. We'll always love our black boot collection best of all, but summer is for color!!! Are you trying to buy more colorful shoes?

There's No Place Like... Marshalls

Much to our man's dismay, we were not able to stay out of the shops this weekend. It was rainy; we had nothing better to do-- and besides, we are going on vacation in a week or so and needed to round out our wardrobe! We got some lovely bright basics, like three lace-trim camis in hot pink, kelly green and this deep purple here!

Plus, as you may notice peeking out from the pants there, these amazing, gorgeous red patent pumps!

*Dies*

They were on clearance at $25! They're real leather! They're by Me Too (never heard of 'em but who cares?). We have red shoes!!! We feel a little bit like Dorothy, and they're so horrendously high as to require a change into the fake Vans when walking any distance at all, but oh how we love them.

Other scores: two t-shirts with built-in removable scarves, $7 each (two free scarves! One turquoise/black zebra, the other lilac/white tie-dye; both we'll totally wear!), quite a bit of adorable underwear and a purple bandana-print pashmina we just couldn't say no to ($7.99 didn't hurt that much).

We're wearing black corduroys from Kohl's (which should be illegal in June, but it's bloody freezing and drizzling nonstop out there!) and our little lace jacket again. We really need to find some more cardigans and blazers, stat.

We couldn't resist a little bit of matchy-matchy, so we have purple eyeshadow and red glass butterfly shoulder-duster earrings by us (one of the first pairs we ever made!).

Sunday Experiment: Dress over Jeans

One of our co-workers rocks this look all the time and we decided to give it a shot for a hanging-out-with-the-fiance-while-the-kiddo-spends-Father's-Day-with-his-dad outfit.
This is not the thriftiest of ensembles, as the dress was an Etsy purchase and is a soy/organic cotton blend- it's by Dancing Tree Creations of Eugene, Oregon, and we wanted to support what was then a brand-new shop. We are so pleased to see her doing so well! And sometimes handmade and eco-friendly trumps bargain. It's a versatile little piece which looks great over a longer, heavier skirt and thermal longsleeve in the winter, adorable on its own when it's nice out, or evidently pretty decent over jeans during this questionable June we're having in Boston.

Jeans are Vicky's fancy backlifters (on clearance for $30 and in our opinion not as advertised, as the nylon panel in back does nothing but make them hotter) which we don't really like because they're too light and emphasize our thighs, but they work pretty well here.

Scarf, from a street booth in Salem, $15. It has little smiling skull & crossbones all over it! But it can be reversed to pure purple with merely a hint of a black print, for the office. Peeptoe slingbacks by Hot Kiss, $15 at Famous Footwear.


We think we'll do this again... unless our dear readers advise otherwise. Thoughts?

Saturday: The Thrifty Stylist Wears Jeans

You may have noticed a lot of skirt action in our posts up until now, and it's true that we wear skirts nearly all of the time when we're not hiking or camping (and even then sometimes a nice hippie skirt and some flip-flops are perfect fire-tending gear... No?) but we do occasionally foray into denim territory.


This is our running-around-doing-errands outfit. We bought these dark-wash bootcuts at Old Navy a few weeks ago for about $30 (oh, it hurts. We miss AmVets!). They're unfortunately large in the waist which is causing a good deal of "gapping"in the back and makes our belt go all wonky. Why is it that they can't make jeans for girls with big hips who aren't necessarily big all over? Sigh. (Side tangent: what is up with their sizing these days? We swear every shirt was a tent, although a friend claimed the opposite problem last time she went. Bizarre.) However, we do like the wash and we're glad at least someone still makes a petite length under 30" (have you noticed how they've all been creeping up?)

The aforementioned wonky belt is from a pair of cropped pants we bought ages ago and has out-survived them in our wardrobe (apparently us shorties cannot rock the capri). We love it for how it doesn't add bulk to a fitted silhouette like a leather belt would. And when half of it ends up on our lower back, failing mightily to contain the extra fabric of the waistband, it doesn't chafe. ("Get thee to a tailor, Thrifty!"-- we agree that this would be advantageous.)

We have to admit here, dear readers, that we have an addiction to (a collection of, really) butterfly t-shirts. Having just passed out of our twenties this year, we're fairly sure we should never, ever be drawn to sparkly butterflies in the juniors section, but quite honestly we can't help ourselves. Granted, on a day like this when we are out and about with our almost-teenage son and people assume we're siblings, we do question our own judgment ;) We did get a shouted compliment from an older lady while crossing the street... Hmm... Besides the butterfly, we love the layered look of the tie-dye patterned sleeves. The bottom band of purple is a heathered bra top cami from Vicky's, of course (we probably have 15 of the things).


The shoes are American Eagle or somethingorrather from Payless. Love the little skulls and heart crossbones! We hope girly punk continues to dominate the teenage retail landscape. We don't really do sneakers or flats (it's so difficult to find sneakers that aren't hideous and flats that don't make us look stumpy), but fake Vans, we can handle.

What do you wear to do your errands? We can't abide sweatpants or pajamas in public... how has that suddenly become completely acceptable? The Thrifty Stylist needs some smelling salts.

Friday Steals and Deals: MetroStyle

We're sort of hyperventilating over here. While searching for a cheap velvet blazer, we came upon MetroStyle.com and their amazing clearance section. We wanted to share some of our crazy-thrifty finds...

How about $10-$15 for jeans? (Depending on color- they come in several! Different lengths, too!)

$10 converible sandals that you can wear as slides, or attach the ankle strap (ingenious!)

$8-$10 for this adorable ruffly sundress (just look at those princess seams! Phenomenal)!

Only $8 for this incredible vegan patent corset belt which would really funk up an outfit!
$10 for velvet jeans? (These would so be ours if didn't need the petite length!) Wow.

Moving out of the $10 range, this $15 linen/rayon-blend maxi dress has wood bead detailing at the neckline for a double-trend-whammy (maxi length + ethnic detailing = score!)


Stock up on sexy sweaters for fall now, since you really can't beat the $13 price tag and 6 color options in this surplice version:
If you, too, are trying to add a little bit more bold color in with your fondness (obsession?) for black, try this skirt with bright goring at the hem, also only $13:


How about a $12 jean jacket in one of the hottest colors for summer, coral? (Also in bright yellow "gold")
Here's another stunning sweater option at $15, although sadly we can't promise that it will do anything this incredible for your ass. *Sigh* don't we wish.
And $20 for a skirt suit! The jacket has 3 buttons and the seaming we discussed last post... it's polyester, and only the ivory is lined, but it's $20 for two pieces!
Lastly, why not liven up your boring black pump collection with some gorgeous teal or purple platform peeptoes for $20??

Now please excuse us while we go fill up our shopping cart :D

Let us know what you think of these finds and if you buy anything!

Reader Question: How to Choose a Blazer?

Dear Thrifty,

Please help. I'm terrible at being able to pull off that polished look. I see so many women who wear blazers/jackets and they always look great. I however can never seem to find the correct style to go with the outfit. Can you help me? I'm 5'3" and pear shaped in build but not overweight.
Thanks.


Blazers are faaaaabulous-- the very best way for anyone with any kind of issues with their body (and that's all of us, right?) to look amazing and feel smokin' hot! Stacy and Clinton call it being "locked and loaded," because if you buy the right one it will flatter your figure endlessly and camoflauge any less desirable aspects..

For your height and shape, Dear Reader, you'll want to always look for at least two buttons (one-button jackets are for the straight-up-and-down girls), and single-breasted (unless you're trying to go nautical or military or something...), in a structured fabric-- that is, something that has enough weight and "stiffness" if you will (not meaning it has to be uncomfortable) to it to basically hold you in. We love a nice lined velvet, but lined wool suit jackets, corduroy, heavy cotton or cotton blends are all great, too. Avoid big boxy front pockets, but most angled or curved pockets (especially if they lay flat) are fine. You want obvious princess seams or tucks underneath the bustline to ensure that what's emphasized is directly under the ribcage, which is the narrowest part of your body. You can button one or two buttons, depending on which is more flattering. Make sure you're wearing a good, supportive bra to keep the girls up (they should be replaced at least yearly as they stretch irrevocably)! Look for lengths to the hip and no longer, or you'll make your legs look shorter. (Don't try to hide your bum! You'll just look wider at the hip.) Try jackets in the petites section-- they may fit better-- but if you hold your arms out straight and the sleeves come up past your wrists, it's too short. Sleeves should fall to the base of your thumb when your arms are at your sides.

Investing in a suit is a great idea if you really want to look really pulled together-- we got our Anne Klein suit at Filene's Basement (sort of like a Marshalls only so much more wonderful, for those who don't have one) for $30... always be on the lookout for a cute one in your size when you're in bargain shops. We love pinstripes, particularly in pink or baby blue!

You can, however, take it much more casual than a suit-- blazers look particularly incredible with jeans and heels, if you want to sex it up a bit, or with a cute fluttery skirt to romance up the strong lines of a structured blazer (or conversely, try a Victorian-esque blazer with some ruffling or another with interesting details with a straight pencil skirt-- yes, pears can do pencil skirts! If you emphasize that narrow ribcage, you'll look hourglassy!)

You can add a skinny belt over the top button at the ribcage if you're feeling adventurous... and always have fun with color! A pop of color in a shoe, scarf, belt or cami will add personal flair to a suit or other professional attire
.

Blazer Ideas for Petite Pears by ThriftyStylist featuring Nine West shoes

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Hope this gives you some ideas! Good luck finding the right fit!

Thursday Splurge Vs. Steal: Get Drew's Look

We have loved Drew Barrymore for as long as we can remember... she is beautiful and elegant but always retains a playful personal style even when she glams way up... Here, we're imitating (yes, although we advocate finding your own look, sometimes we do encourage taking direct inspiration, if it's as hot as this!) this look from Drew's recent appearance on Regis. The dress is Narcisco Rodriguez, the bracelet Tom Binns (we looked him up. Expensive.) and the platform slingback peeptoes from Miu Miu. We, like Stacy and Clinton, love a red shoe.


Here are two interpretations, high-end and thrifty. We actually think the thrifty version is a little bit more fun! We took some liberties with the texture on the shoes and the drop earrings; Drew's are much more understated, but the little zebra hearts here picked up the dress's pattern so well that we couldn't resist!

Splurge vs. Steal: Get Drew's Look by ThriftyStylist featuring Miss Selfridge

Which outfit do you like better? Do you think the high-end version is worth $2800 more?

What We Wore: Lace Overload

These pics are horrifying. Our apologies. Our man's mirror sucks even worse than ours for proper lighting. But we wanted to share anyway...


We're wearing the green lace skirt we discussed in this blog, a white shelf-bra spaghetti strap tank from Vicky's ($30 for 3-pack), and a little black lace ruffle "jacket" (really more like a cardigan) that we bought on sale also at Vicky's, several years ago- we think we paid $30, down from $79. We thought it was going to be cold (it's not) so we threw this pashmina around our shoulders before dashing out the door (TJ Maxx, for a wedding last month, $12.99).

The jacket thingy is one of the most versatile pieces we own and it was a great investment (at $30; $79 was just obscene). It can be worn as a dressy dress cover-up, with jeans, with skirts... it really just looks great with everything. It's a nice summer tattoo-cover-up for the office, as well (we have a gigantic dragon on our bicep and while they don't mandate that it be covered, we prefer not to answer too many questions about it!)

We are not wearing any of our own jewelry today (for shame!) Our earrings are from Target. Shh! (If you don't make your own, it is a great place to find inexpensive accessories... but they do tend to fall apart).

There's a lot of lace going on here, possibly an overload, but we like it anyway. Do you?

What We Wore Tuesday: Hibiscus and DOTS

By dots we don't mean polka, we mean those little semispheres of candy stuck to rolls of paper that we used to eat as a kid. The colors in this outfit remind us of those wretched little sweets, although we are not actually consuming any fibrous bits with it (thankfully!)

We're being AWFULLY adventurous today, venturing not only into print-land, but also wearing three (count them! 3!) colors besides neutrals today! Usually it's black and one solid. We're not sure whether the print on this Skirtology skirt is overwhelming our petite but curvy frame... we loved it at the shop (and especially loved its $8 price tag) but maybe it's a tad big? Is it making us look shorter and fatter? Hmmm... This might be one for passing on to a taller friend, even if it is quite lovely.

We do love the turquoise and hot pink, though, even if it took us a while to come around. This is a cropped sweater we found at Marshalls in the junior clearance for $8. We love the saturated color. Our man calls it our "miniature sweater" but it really does fit... we think anway! Layered underneath, a short-sleeved knit top with lace ribbon detailing at the gathered shoulders (we let the lace peek out around the cardigan for a little extra girliness). And... we kicked up the candy-liciousness (although you can't quite make it out in the photo) with those purple pumps we discussed earlier. (Turns out they're microfiber, not actually suede, but they were cheap and had never been worn and they're luscious so we're not complaining).


We think we'll definitely be trying some more outlandish color combinations in the future... Trinny and Suzannah (of the UK original What Not to Wear) say that any colors can go together as long as they're tonally matched-- i.e. have the same quantity of black in their shades. Who knew?!

For accessories, we picked up the pink in the sweater with hot pink and black chandelier earrings by us (of course)

And then echoed the print in the skirt with our David Anderson leaf bracelet again:


...as well as matched the turquoise with a beaded cuff (we absolutely adore coordination), also a gift from mom but not vintage... which we've now tried to transfer from the phone approximately ninety-seven times and have now given up. But it's quirky and fun, trust us- you can sort of see it in some of the outfit pics.

Wish list: tights in super fun colors. This outfit would have been kicked up to 11 with some hot pink, turquoise or (gasp! What have you done with Desiree?) yellow tights. The black are so blah, even with the purple shoes.

What do you think of our foray into more-adventurous-land?

Thanks to Emily's Box of Fun!

Awww... we've been given a blog award. That's so sweet!

One of our recent follows, Emily's Box of Fun, posted this lovely little award for us and some of her other new favorites. Check out her blog and the post here!

Here are "the rules:"

1. when you place the award on your post, make sure to name the person who gave it to you..and a link to their blog.

2. Pass the award onto 15 new blog sites, that you recently discovered..and list the blog with a link in your post.

3. Contact the people you chose to give the award, to let them know.

We'd like to present this award to some of our new discoveries, too!

1. Struggling to Be Stylish
2. Work With What You've Got
3. I Get Dressed
4. Diary of a Young Designer
5. Pixie's Purpose
6. Wardrobe Adventures
7. Centsational Girl
8. Fashion for Nerds
9. Imperfectly Beautiful
10. A Cat of Impossible Colour
11. Thrifty Decor Chick
12. Fashion Philosofy
13. Track Town Girl
14. The Blue Kimono
15. Sunshine Girrl

You are all inspiring, entertaining, and making our day at work much, much better :) So, thank you!

Lots of Blog Love!

What We Wore Today: Mac n Jac 'n' H&M

If you're like us, the second you buy something new you must.wear.it.

It's probably horribly sketchy to put on used clothes without washing them, but they looked clean enough and at least they don't have nasty factory chemicals all over them like new clothes (which we do wash first, promise). We don't really do dry cleaning unless absolutely necessary (it's not really thrifty).

So, although we had quite a difficult time deciding just which of our new treasures to wear today, we settled on the most "fun" one- the silk shantung skirt with beading and silk chiffon trim at the hem. We almost passed this up, by the way, as it was marked quite larger than our usual skirt size. However, once we tried it on, we discovered that worn on the hips rather than the waist, it's a perfect fit.



It's "Mac n Jac" brand, which we'd never heard of, but is apparently carried at Nordstrom. This fact, along with the beautiful (100% silk) fabric and exquisite beading detail, suggests to us that the $15 we spent (down from $28 originally at Raspberry Beret) is kind of like an obscene steal. We dig it.

We paired it with the new (to us of course) $5 slinky sweater which is from H&M, and some divine turquoise chandelier earrings we made for ourselves during our last craft fair (good to stay busy when absolutely no one is stopping at your table- le sigh). With earrings this big and a fairly interesting neckline to the sweater, we decided against a necklace. We are wearing a beaded bracelet with turquoise cat-eyes which we made long ago, as well as our Norway Silver leaf-print David Anderson bracelet (consignment shop, gift from mum, one of our most treasured pieces) which echoes the leafy sequins in the beading on the skirt (see detail).

Please pardon the lousy cell phone pictures. We promise that one of these days we'll get around to learning how our camera's self-timer works and leaving time in the morning for daylight outfit shots. Our bathroom mirror stinks. Sigh.

What do you think? Are the black boots too boring with it? We considered the purple pumps since the sequins have some purple iridescence to them... Maybe next time!

High on Bargains

Oh.My.God.

We went to Raspberry Beret. It was amazing. Truly. We're still a little light-headed.

The boutique is beautifully and absolutely perfectly arranged-- by color and size! We could just die. The entire place is gorgeously decorated, from the giant vintage mirror to the dressing rooms filled with silk embroidered throw pillows and wrought iron hooks... Just a pleasure to be there and take in the exquisitely designed wall displays. But the clothes, of course, are the main event...

Pictures will follow but we just had to post about what we got, right this moment.

8 items, $102.00 (most things were marked down further than the price tag because they had been at the store a certain amount of time! Score!)

Lace plunge-neckline evening gown, $16
Forest green faux leather megahandbag, $17
Black & white floral a-line skirt with ribbon belt, $8
Black tiered crochet-trim summer skirt, $10
Black chiffon-trim beaded shantung skirt, $15
Multi-chain teal & turquoise glass bead necklace, $17
Purple suede pointy-toe pumps (marked 6 but fit my 7 feet perfectly!) $14
Turquoise lightweight boatneck sweater, $5
We are so absolutely thrilled and can't wait to drag our man back to the store (haha). A bonus for him, they had a lovely ottoman between the fitting rooms; a provision he calls the "man corral" and one that we rather enjoy for its prolonging of the disinterested shopping companion's patience!

We have no idea to what event we'll ever wear the nude-with-black-lace-overlay evening gown, but it fit so magnificently and was so inexpensive that we had to have it. Surely we'll go to some sort of fancy event someday? It is a classic style, with a tulip skirt and some serious decolettage, so we're pretty sure it won't look dated in a few years. We're thinking of it as an investment piece. For not much of an investment :) (Oh how we love second-hand!)

We were hoping to find a few more bright accessories, but the green handbag and purple shoes should go a long way to livening up our regular black-centric outfits (which we further propogated, heavily, we're aware).

You should absolutely check out this store if you're in the area. Next stop, the Cambridge branch...

Thrifting Weekend!

Just a quick post here- wanted to mention what appears to be an AMAZING consignment shop here in the Boston area that we're going to check out this weekend: Raspberry Beret (two locations: Wakefield and now between Harvard and Porter Squares on Mass. Ave!), named after a Prince song, painted bright fuchsia and, from the looks of it, totally awesome.


We absolutely can't wait to peruse their stock and hopefully come up with some fun new pieces in bright colors and some terrific accessories... reading other daily wear blogs, we're starting to feel a little boring. And boring is the last thing we ever want to be :(

We will report back! Has anyone else been there? What are your favorite thrift shops? We wish we lived in the Pacific Northwest for Buffalo Mercantile, easily the best, biggest resale shop we've ever seen. Here in Boston we're quite partial to Oona's in Harvard Square, even if it's more of a vintage shop (read: expensive) than thrift per se... and we can't wait to check out the new Goodwill in Davis and Poor Little Rich Girl and Artifaktorie, too-- any reports on those? Lastly, Urban Renewals in Brighton is purportedly an amazing source of vintage costume jewelry (according to InspiredVintageJewelry) and also well-organized and not-too-expensive clothing. We miss the AmVets that was a few doors down, and haven't found anything comparable in terms of prices at any of the shops (even Goodwill wants $7 for jeans these days!)

Please leave any tips or reviews of your favorite!