The Look for Nearly Nothing: Pink Minidress a la Elizabeth Hurley

Having been rather obsessed with pink lately, and always on the lookout for cute summer dresses, I found Elizabeth  Hurley's outfit at Valentino quite divine:

(Just a word to the wise, though; if you're not Elizabeth Hurley, bubble hems and ruffles on enormous boobs will probably not do you any favors.)

In different light the dress looks purple, but this orchid-y hot pink interpretation was the picture I was working on. So, for your clearance shopping pleasure (most are on final sale!) here are the very cutest, cheapest little pink minidresses out there:

Wicked Thrifty Pink Minidresses by WickedThrifty featuring Wet Seal dresses

Aren't they stunning? And soooo cheap.Sweet.

Liz paired her lovely floaty dress with some (vaguely metallic) leopard-print platforms. Leopard goes with everything and is a fantastic counterpoint to the brightly-hued dress. Check out these inexpensive (under-$35) versions (also mostly on clearance so limited sizing is an issue):

Wicked Thrifty Leopard Pumps by WickedThrifty featuring Charlotte Russe shoes

I kind of love those slutty ankle-strap ones, from a site I've never heard of called MakeMeChic... They are  'coincidentally' only still available in my size (6.5). It's like a sign, right??

I trust you can find your own clutch or use one you own (I have a leopard pony one with optional chain that I picked up at a church yard sale) but in case you want some inspiration, some of the options reminiscent of Liz's nude exotic-skin clutch, all under $40:

Wicked Thrifty Exotic Clutches by WickedThrifty featuring Miss Selfridge bags

Enjoy these picks & let me know if you end up purchasing any of them!

Happy shopping for the look for less!

Dream Interiors: Home Office

Hello lovely Wicked Thrifty readers! Sorry to have disappeared on you for so very long. Living and work have kept me extremely busy lately. There are some major changes in store for my life and for this blog, too... first of all, you may notice I just said "me." Yep. The Royal We was definitely fun to write in, but after that (single, granted) negative comment I really started to wonder if it bothered people. According to the poll, a third of you loved it, a third of you didn't care one way or the other, and a third of you hated it. Not a very helpful poll :P But, since half the time when I was writing I had to go back to edit "me" to be "we," perhaps it was time for the change.

As far as life goes: that new title I'd mentioned a few times finally materialized (perhaps it was the Dress Smart book? Or a year's-plus worth of thinly veiled impatience?), so work has gotten even busier. Plus, during the past month I've been trying to climb back on the super-healthy bandwagon after noticing the scale creep up and the bad habits start to turn into a lifestyle. DANGER! Also, my fiance is moving into my apartment in two months-- I've lived there over five years now, so it's a major, major change involving the need for a massive yard sale and re-thinking everything. Not to mention that he wants to sell ASAP because he hates the place, so it's going to be a scramble to renovate and redecorate in order to attract either a renter or buyer so we can move into a place that wasn't built in 1860 and might have a closet to speak of or a doorway he might not smash his head into.

So... to that end, I've been obsessing rather inordinately over home decor, as well as food and exercise. Much less than fashion. (Although I do suspect that as soon as Spring shows itself, my singular fiend will be for a new wardrobe, having filled out the coffers with a dozen wool skirts but realizing the lighter options are meager!) You can expect that this blog will focus much more on those kinds of things (and my health-nuttiness when it comes to eating!)-- I hope you'll stay with me!

Today I thought I'd share a little inspiration board I've been working on (with clippings at home, re-created via Polyvore) for my "someday" home office.

This rug has been calling to me for many months. I could definitely also go zebra though (faux, of course). The general theme is obviously super-girly, hot pink, a little bit French provincial and a little bit goth, with feminine details but BOLD color. No pastels here, thank you. Most of the items pictured are decidedly NOT thrifty, but when and if I actually have a spare room to make into an office, I'll DIY most of these projects... Surely I can find a crap thrift store armchair and cover it with some sort of amazing flocked velvet. Tables with beautiful legs and lines can be sanded down and painted black or stained a deep, deep ebony. I'm sure I can create some kind of funky chandelier and spray-paint the whole shebang magenta, too. No doubt the curio will be the biggest investment, but maybe my fiance's friend will be done with his cabinetmaking course and will want to show off his new skills for a song... My biggest desire for this room, though (and actually for every room in my house) is a gigantic mirror with some kind of awesome frame on it. Sadly, large mirrors are hard to find and inordinately expensive. *Sigh.* Let me know if you have any suggestions for a great source!

A girl can dream... and will! Happy home-decor daydreaming to you, too!

Fashion Book Review: Dress Smart Women

The used bookstore is the best place to spend a lunch break besides Goodwill, if you ask us. So many lovely tomes at half price or less... Delicious! One of the most fun sections to browse in our local shop is Fashion. As you know if you've been reading, a major challenge of late has been the adjustment of trying to look more professional (and sadly, less young/punk/hippie/fun) in the workplace. While obviously anyone can put on a twinset and pearls or a suit and white button-down, we are seeking ways to put forth a confidence-inspiring facade while still retaining a significant amount of personality (i.e. you'll never catch us dead in a navy double-breasted skirt suit, no matter how "professional" it may be). So we were excited to find this guide, called Chic Simple Dress Smart Women: Wardrobes that Win in the New Workplace.

We've had some good scores at Goodwill since reading the book-- unfortunately no suits, but some great wool pencil skirts, blazers and blouses that are much more professional than what we usually wear. Which prompted a VP to ask if it was "for Halloween." AUGH. Here are a couple of the looks:

New Work Looks for New Haircut by ThriftyStylist featuring Marc by Marc Jacobs jackets

Of course we didn't pay any of this ridiculousness. All from Goodwill except tights and shoes (purple- Payless; black- Famous Footwear.) and striped shirt (which has more pinky purple in it- from Kohl's?)

(Oh, yeah, and we lopped off 6-8 inches of curls in favor of an angled bob that has to be flat-ironed every day or put up. Madness. But, on the other hand, it's far more polished than the long hippie chick curls we were rocking.)

The idea is classic and still feminine, more serious than sexy (this can be difficult when you have DDs, as Suzannah of what not to wear points out), while trying not to lose too much of "us". While we lament the fact that purple hair and multiple piercings just don't get taken seriously in an office, even an academic-ish office, (sigh. Miss the lip ring.), it's clear that something had to be done to up the game, because much of our wardrobe came from the juniors section at Filene's Basement or the Vicky's catalog and it's a little bit tooo sexy (or just plain tight).

This book's philosophy is to pare your wardrobe down to essentials and accent pieces instead of buying a whole bunch of crap you're not going to be able to-- or probably shouldn't-- wear.

They suggest four suits as the basis for a full wardrobe, while fully acknowledging that many of us can definitely not afford that to start. Nevertheless, thrifting is mentioned as an alternative to buying new, expensive suits. We hope that the days of "ew, someone else wore that" are gone as we move in to attempted-planet-saving mode!

Happy thrifting and reading!

What We Wore: Fabulous Fuchsia

We have discussed this skirt before, and it remains one of our all-time most amazing scores: Calvin Klein, three tiers of silk, for under $10 at Filene's Basement. We gather that no one else has the cajones to rock hot pink crushed silk with frayed hem detail?

No clue where the sweater came from, but we love the scalloped neckline (we left our neck bare as we figured the detailing was enough). Boots, same as yesterday, under $30, Famous Footwear.

We're wearing two flower clips from Claire's, pink and purple, $2.99 each. Earrings and matching bracelet in dyed pink and purple jade by us complete the look, along with our most recent purple handbag purchase, Mondani New York brand, $28 at Off-Broadway Shoe.

Closeup of earrings and a hint of the pink & purple eyeshadow situation we have going on:


Ooh! and you can see the brocade coat discussed yesterday in more detail here, since the light on the bus is practically blinding. Yay!

Let us know what you think! Happy awesome-score-hunting!

Cute and Cheap: Old Navy Clearance

We love clearance (in case you hadn't noticed). In-store clearance, online clearance-- it doesn't matter, as long as we're getting something for close to its actual fabric cost, or 90% off original price, or anything else brag-worthy (we want people to know we didn't spend a lot to look so awesome ;) ). We were not aware that Old Navy had online-only deals, nor that they offered expanded sizing there (hello, petites and talls!), so we were excited to see (after a fellow blogger recommended them) these cardigans, normally $26.50 , on clearance in the petite length for only $9.99!

4 colors! 5 sizes! Just make sure you click "petite." In a sweater, surely you could get away with pretending it was made to be cropped and elbow-length, if you're taller?

We can't help but love this non-clearance front-page offering (does that mean everyone will have it like that lavender haphazard-tier Target skirt we have that we see all of the time? Ack) of a tiered, smocked -waistband prairie skirt with lovely white embroidery (although 'twould be nice if one could be confident said embroidery was done by someone who was compensated fairly for their work... :worried face: - they don't give country of origin online.)


Someone on Etsy makes something just as cute or way cuter, but probably not for $26.50. Ah, the perpetual juxtaposition of conscience and wallet...

Maybe something vintage instead? There is this cool vintage ribbon-trim one from PastandPresents for $25...


But back to the clearance... the maxi dresses are starting to go on sale so even though people are starting to talk about fall (heaven forbid), you might want a hot pink or black one in a tie-tube-top style at $19.99 before the dog days of summer.

We love lace-trim camis for layering and these (below) come in an astoundingly terrific 10 colors (all of which we adore); they're 2/$15, and in tall and petite several (other!) colors are discounted even further! They're jersey knit with 6% spandex, so they probably feel totally fantastic against your skin. (We hope, 'cause we're grabbing a bunch if they're still around come next pay cycle).

They've also got 6 colors of Hawaiian-y floral burnout-pattern scarves for $10:

Or if you're more of a solids kind of a girl, this one is also $10 (down from $12.50) and in 12 colors:



$6 for shelf bra camis (15 colors!) isn't bad at all- Vicky's and Express' are usually $15 or so.


Who knew ON carried yoga mats? Guess we haven't been in for a while. These hibiscus-print mats in 3 colors are on sale (slightly) for $12
We think this flower-print fabric hobo bag is pretty adorable, for only $10 too (also available in some stripey-preppy situations that are... "NOS" [not our style], shall we say):


We didn't even know they had shoes that weren't flip-flops, so imagine our surprise at encountering these covet-worthy espadrilles, shown here in our favorite color combo of course but also in neutrals, black & white stripe- $12.99- and then black, and yellow stripes, $15.99.

Hope we found some steals you might not have otherwise. Happy shopping!

Today's Outfit (via Polyvore): Bold Color

You would never have seen us in this color combination pre-blog, but we're becoming much more adventurous thanks to our fellow daily fashion bloggers! Sorry for no pictures today-- our bathroom is a construction site at present and that's the only full-length mirror-- but we re-created as best we could on Polyvore.

Outfit August 3 by ThriftyStylist featuring Forever21

We got our cute cropped cardigan (minus the flower detail here, sadly), $7, and crepe-y crinkle skirt at Marshall's, $15, our silver strappy sandals at Payless, $15, blue T-shirt at Old Navy, $10, and the pink flower hair clip this weekend at Claire's, $2.60 (we told you we needed to start wearing flowers in our hair and made good on the promise with 6 clearance clips for under $10 this weekend!). We are giving the tucked-in T-shirt a shot, too (another something we never do!)... Our earrings are actually by us, not the ones in the mock-up, but these:


(We like 'em way better anyway), materials (?)~$7. They were destined for the shop but, as things are wont to do, ended up in our collection before photos were ever taken.

Cost of entire outfit: approximately $56.60

Just in case you feel you must duplicate the look because we are so totally rad you can't help yourself, here are some other thrifty options! (Has anyone else noticed, by the way, that the UK seems to have all of the cute, cheap clothes? We keep finding awesome deals- if you click through to the listings on Polyvore we suspect you'll see what we mean!).

Copy My Oufit! by ThriftyStylist featuring Dorothy Perkins

Happy color-mixing!

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?

Today we talk about scarves.

Scarves are one of our favorite accessories. Since we wear a lot of all-black and we live in New England, they serve the twofold purpose of jazzing up an outfit and keeping us from getting frostbite of the neck. While we're not big fans of the pinned-or-tied-kerchief scarf (reminds us too much of our mom), we do like to use a cool scarf as a big necklace, hair ribbon or belt.

If you've been reading, you know we like to buy vintage when we can. It's not only thrifty, but good for the earth. Here are some bright, eclectic vintage options from Etsy, several on the super-cheap, all totally gorgeous!


From left to right, top to bottom:
Maggie Rouff Paris collection, silk, $60 at GeneralWhimsy2
1960s geometric print, silk, $10 at RoomForCake
Psychedelic "Warhol" print, unknown material, $10 at DriveThruVintage
Silook Japan, polyester, $8 at VintageEmbellishment
Pink japanese print, acetate, $10 at PetiteKaloo
Oscar De La Renta, silk, $15 at TheCuriosityShoppe
1970s geometric mod print, silk, $8 at TheLuckyFish
Large rainbow shawl/sarong, polyester, $14 at TheKoruBranch
Oscar De La Renta striped teal with gold threading, silk, $15 at Autumnie

We know that it's quite nearly summer (or, if you're in Boston, quite nearly spring), but that doesn't mean knit scarves are out of the picture completely. The chunky wool ones should probably go back in the closet (if only to promote the power of positive thought!), but think about lighter textures and fabrics... These finds from Etsy are a few of the beautiful handmade textured scarves available. On the left, from alonalona, a UK fiber artist, sari remnants that would otherwise be thrown away are spun into luscious yarn and then hand-knit into this beautiful, airy long skinny scarf, $16. On the right, in a gorgeous peacock- colored blend of designer Italian yarn and microfibers , a fluffy, fun, light decorative option from Maine-based designer Cathy of BabbidgePatch, handknit, $35.



Three of our favorite other sources for cool scarves are the bargain stores, of course- we often find cute ones for about $7 at Marshalls, street and craft fairs, and Oona's vintage resale in Harvard Square. Happy accessorizing!

What we're wearing today

Today we are wearing a FABULOUS hot pink silk skirt from Calvin Klein that's very similar to this little tamale by Ralph Lauren, which apparently retails for $755! 0_0
We got ours for, as we recall it, less than $10 at Filene's Basement, due to this flamboyant color, which some people might feel a bit meek about pulling off, and also its having accidentally been marked a size 2 (never trust the labels in markdown stores- just learn how much fabric you need to get 'round your arse!)

We paired it with a silk/cashmere blend black square-neck decolletage sweater (hey, there's a cute guy in our office; flaunt 'em if you got 'em) from Vicky's online clearance. We doubt we paid more than $30, but it was years ago (thrifty tip: take care of your fabric and it will last!). There is scarcely a place we like to find sexy bargains more... you did know they had more than just unmentionables, right?

Tall black boots from Famous Footwear, $30. They're not real leather, but new leather uses so much water to finish, that synthetic is fine by us. Fabulous argyle-pattern fishnets, CVS, $5. Yes, CVS. It's not just your mother's L'Eggs in an egg anymore. Black-and-silver chandelier earrings (made by us, quelle surprise!) finish everything off.

You walk a little differently when you're wearing a piece this fantastic :D