Wicked Thrifty Shopping Spree: Arsenal Mall

It's been a long, long time since we set foot in a mall. Secondhand only, for a long while. Too long a while. Kiddo was at a birthday party this fine chilly Saturday afternoon, and with no fiance around to complain about the browsing time in the clearance section, it was an ideal shopping day. The Arsenal Mall in Watertown, run by the Simon company like many of the Boston area malls, is certainly not the highest-end nor classiest shopping center, but it has a couple of our favorite discount stores, and we could walk to it. Theoretically. If it weren't freezing out.

The elusive grey boot we found at Famous Footwear (finally!!!). Amiclubwear never sent the suede we ordered, but did send a refund. Sigh. These Steve Maddens were in the clearance section, a bit steep at $40, but we had a $10 off rewards coupon, so really $30:


Another view:

Yummy!

In order to qualify for the $10 off we did have to find another pair to get us up to $50, and we spotted these quite-unlike-anything-we've-ever-had cone-heeled brogue-inspired lace-up slingbacks by Hot Kiss for $15:



They're a little bit Fleuvog-y and librarian-nerdy without being too over the top with the crazy heel-- this one is a bit more timeless and less daring. Love the classic slingback shape and wingtip detail, and the hidden platform. They seem very comfortable, too-- we'll see after a long day hustling around managing an office!

Filene's Basement was a treasure trove for us today...

How about a gorgeous fall coat for $7.76??


Detail:



Ahhh... favorite colors, long-beloved pattern, cheaper than a skein of the poly/wool blend yarn it's made of... yes, please. Thank you, clearance goddesses.

Also, a divine teal float-away hem cardigan by Energie for $4.16!



This silhouette seems to do really well for camouflaging a bit of a mommy belly. Necessary sometimes.

Going with the bright theme, we couldn't resist this hanging-out-at-home top by Seven in a sheer hot pink cotton/poly blend with burnout velvet detail, at $3.19:


We also picked up some incredibly comfortable jeans in a deep aubergine heathered denim. So soft, so perfect a fit-- wow. They're a bit high-waisted compared to most modern jeans, and that seems to be the idea-- they're Not Your Daughter's Jeans brand, $11.96 No low-rise. But they're not really mom jeans either-- they're crazy comfortable but fairly flattering-- no major pooch. They have some kind of space-age flattening mechanism up front. Woot! .

Following the one-in, one-out theory (well, maybe not precisely, but in this case), we're going to toss (Goodwill bag) the $10 bright purple jeans from Metrostyle ordered not too long ago, which we really never wear. This is a much lovelier shade of purple and more flattering cut.

This lace tunic from DKNYC was marked down to a criminally low $6.79, down from MSRP $90, so even if we don't wear it and end up cutting it up and refashioning it for Edge of Seventeen, it was a good investment piece:


Detail:




From the clearance bin, some gorgeous tights-- purple butterfly-embroidered fishnets, $7.98, and 2 pairs of footless opaque for $5.96:




Then, on to Marshalls, where we found another long-coveted item (joy!), the black-and-white patterned cardigan, also in a float-away hem, by Kenar, $20:



...and also a great black tiered lacy sequined gypsy skirt by Max Studio that will most certainly be re-used to create something fabulous, for $7, which did not photograph at all, sadly.

Lastly, we finally gave in (though we weep inside) to the whole granny-panty-shaper-thing that Trinny and Suzannah (of the BBC's What Not To Wear) advocate. We have a couple of shorts-shapers, but what the hell, we'll give the Spanx-type panties a try. We reserve the right to not throw out all of our lovely matching bikini/bra sets just yet :( (It seems a bit extreme). Leopard $3.99, by Native Intimates "Confident and Beautiful," Black $7.99 each, by Maidenform.



We hope this isn't too bad for the soul, owning unattractive undergarments. At least they're not white or nude. And as the girls say in "What You Wear Can Change Your Life," while seduction is not a possibility whilst wearing these, they can be whisked off in the bathroom, and the mere mention of negatory (we coined it) knickers is likely to send any potential man-friends into a swoon that will incapacitate them from noticing any potential lumps and bumps under your dress ;)

Incidentally, a wickedly-figured Spanish chick saw us browsing the shapers (she was a customer, not an employee) and basically told us, with gestures and "Comprendo, Si?" which ones to get that would help with the muffin top. With-- um, demonstrations. On both of us. Erg. She was super nice, though... but she did pull up her shirt, and pull the waistband of her leggings to reveal that she, too, was wearing said shapewear and did not in fact just come into this world rocking flawless curves. Thank you, senorita!

Total shopping high!!! Some major wardrobe holes filled, some potential creations underway, and a few staples and long-coveted items gotten for a ridiculously low price. Lower than Goodwill, much of it.

We were sad to not have a chance to hit the new-ish 2-floor F21 nor the brand-new Ann Taylor Loft Factory Store (!)... But... next time....

Hope you had some great bargains this weekend if you went shopping!

Tell us all about them if you did!

If you're from or have visited the area, have you been to the Arsenal Mall? What do you think?

What We Bought: AmiClubWear

We have been singularly obsessed with finding a pair of grey boots lately, with no luck whatsoever in the shops. Lots and lots of tan (ew) and plenty of black (which we would usually love-- we used to think that there was no point in grey when black existed!)... but no grey.

Remembering that AmiClubWear, featured a few times in Lucky mag, has a great selection of super-cheap boots (mostly incredibly slutty, which is somewhat disturbing given that the site's tag line is "The Positive Place for Girls!"), we headed over to check out their clearance selection. And indeed, we found just what we were looking for! Amid the towering platform clubbing options were these two pairs of high-shaft flat boots, $10 each (click pics for listings):


We went with the suede. We were digging the kind of pirate thing going on with the cuffs. At $10 we doubt that these will be frequently worn or last particularly long, but boot season will be over before we know it, anyway, and we're sure we'll get some good use out of them before then. Certainly ten bucks' worth!

We also stocked up on more tights-- they carry a terrific selection of colored, printed and fishnet stockings, most from Leg Avenue, and many at super-clearance prices. We picked up bright nylon tights in kelly green and fuchsia for $2.99! (Available in eleven colors!!)




We disagree with whoever said that the printed stocking trend makes people look like they have "some sort of skin rash." We love it. So we grabbed these unusual flower-printed ones for $4.99:


Who knows if they'll work or just look bizarre, but we kind of love them.

They have a terrific selection of fairly-inexpensive lingerie, just as cute and trashy as Frederick's for about a quarter of the price. We picked up a cute little punk bra-and-mini set for $12.99:

As you may well know if you've been reading (or if you know us!), we were bitten hard by the floral/feather hair-accessory bug. We've been making our own after picking some up on clearance at Claire's and some on Etsy, but the selection and prices at AmiClubWear are pretty incredible. We scored this lovely grey feather version for just $10.99:

They have so many colors & sizes; floral and fascinators and feathers... 120 gorgeous options all under $25!

The last item we have been fixated upon finding for ages-- powdered facial blotting papers. We have combination skin which is dry in the morning and shiny in the evening-- adding pressed powder to try to combat the shine just exacerbates the dryness and makes us look flaky. Uncool. We had previously tried the blue plastic Clean & Clear version-- which does work but not quite as well as the powdered rice paper-- but the Burt's Bees Wings of Love that we once found and loved have proven nearly impossible to find. We located a great version on Amazon the other day for only $2.99, but they wanted $5 shipping for EACH ONE! No way. AmiClubWear to the rescue! NYX 50-packs of genuine paper pulp blotters are $2.99:


The best part about this order was that they are offering free shipping right now if you spend $50. Shipping would have been $29.95 or something ridiculous (watch out for that) but with the code given on the front page (AMISHIPPED) entered at checkout, UPS ground was FREE!

We are well aware that we shouldn't be shopping at all, but $10 shoes and staples like tights are things we feel we can sneak in without too much damage. And surely no boyfriend would complain about the punk schoolgirl outfit?

Have you ever bought anything from AmiClubWear? If so, tell us about it... we suspect the quality isn't terrific, but the prices belie that...

Happy shopping and enjoy the rest of your weekend!

What We Wore: Neutrals that Are NOT Black!

We have already received a staggering number of compliments on today's outfit (along with repeated questions about whether or not we have an interview!), so apparently it is a success. No pictures today, sadly, but we recreated as best we could:

Outfit 10-22-09 by ThriftyStylist featuring Miss Selfridge

Planning began with the new blue shoes, $11. We don't seem to have much in the way of skirts at the moment, so the obvious choice was the Vicky's floral circle skirt ($30). Instead of doing all black for the rest, as we normally would, we made a concerted effort to try some other neutrals! For some pattern-mixing, striped grey tights (in a 2-pack from Marshall's, $5 for both). To tie the tights in, our grey Calvin Klein suit jacket (an emergency splurge at $79.99). To pick up the white in the skirt, a v-neck tee from Vicky's ($10), which we promptly spilled coffee on (sigh- this is why we so rarely wear white). We threw a bit of turquoise into the accessories to add a bit more interest to the all-grey-and-royal (cuff bracelet, gift from mom, chandelier earrings by us, flower hair clip from Claire's clearance, $2.99).

The shoes are indeed super high, so we wore our black velvet ballet flats in on the way to work, which still looks cute but not quite as killer.

We are ready to cast off the shackles of our black-centric, patternless wardrobe and move into a new era where we don't eschew all other neutrals. Don't hold your breath to see us in brown or navy anytime soon, though :)

Happy playful outfit-building (and crazy fun Polyvore-set creating!)

What You Need: Patterned Tights

The most exciting thing about fall, in our opinion, is the opportunity for tights (and boots). We pored over Marshalls and Filene's Basement this summer looking for bright colors and fun patterns to supplement our tights arsenal. The sad thing about stockings is that you cannot expect them to hold up for very long, even with careful wear and washing, so you always have to be on the prowl for more! (OK, so that's not the worst thing on Earth...)

Patterned tights are all over the magazines and runways. Some have the distinct magical properties of making legs appear longer and thinner (see fishnets!) and others just add fun or color to an outfit. We rounded up our favorites $25 and under (we don't particularly like to pay more than $5, but we'll make an exception occasionally-- perhaps for Betsey ;) )
Here's a set via Polyvore featuring chiefly Tilly's (right-click the pic to open in a new window for the links!)

Patterned Tights by ThriftyStylist featuring Betsey Johnson accessories

We don't normally go in for orange (or leggings!), but how fabulous are those zebra leggings? We had to include them. We love a little bit of animal print! (Or a lot, as the case may be).

If you're feeling a little bit more adventurous, or perhaps just a bit poorer, here are options from Yandy.com, via Polyvore, under $9. Technically these are costume accessories, but when you are a bit eccentric, that's a great place to seek out unusual things!

Funky Patterned Tights by ThriftyStylist on Polyvore.com

We're most enthused about the triple-diamond-patterned ones- they'd look divine on anyone, we think, and are ridiculously sexy but still professional enough to pull off for work! And the tattoo pattern ones are pretty freakin' awesome, too. Hoisery doesn't count for the shopping embargo, because it has to be replaced, right?? (Self-justification process commence!)

Happy tights shopping :D

What We Wore: Aubergine Explosion

Outfit-planning for today began with our favorite poufy silk taffeta skirt with flouncy gusseting; taffeta isn't exactly a summer fabric, so it's been hanging up, awaiting a day when it could be released to rustle like the leaves as we walk. A delightful TJ Maxx score, under $30.

Then came the tights. Which tights?! We quickly decided on the aubergine/burgundy Givenchy patterned silky sweater tights (from Marshalls, $5 on clearance, down from jaw-dropping). They're so divinely cozy and soft... We bought three pairs even though they were only available in the one color!

We could have color-mixed, it's true, but we went totally matchy-matchy. We do love purple more than anything, after all. Top: sequined aubergine mesh, $14.99, Filene's Basement (~5 years ago?); eggplant sequined mohair-blend sweater, no clue (?) but probably Marshall's~ under $15. We like how this makes a twinset-- a flashy one, which keeps it out of the preppy-soccer-mom arena-- even though the pieces were purchased totaly separately.



We made a couple of changes to the outfit, both as pictured and as originally envisioned... we had planned to wear the new teal trench coat, but discovered upon donning it that with the poufy skirt we just looked... um... big. Ack. Observe:



Wethinks (teehee) the trench will work better over trouser jeans or a slimmer skirt-- there is just too much volume going on!

Much improved, with shorter leather jacket (if you missed its story, read this!) instead:


These faux-patent buckle boots (Famous Footwear, Etienne Angier, ended up being $8 with BOGO half off plus $10 customer rewards!) thoroughly cut us off in the leg, making us look stumpy and linebacker-calved, so as soon as we got to work we switched them out for our Hot Kiss peeptoe slingbacks (thoughts on tights showing through peeptoes or even *gasp* sandals? It's all over the magazines. We remain somewhat skeptical). Doesn't this work much better?



Jewelry: All gifts (and therefore free); Amethyst handmade beaded necklace from mom; the ubiquitous David Anderson leaf bracelet, and moonstone/amethyst earrings from the bro (traded for at barter fair at the Oregon Country Fair).

Handbag: FREE faux leather plain black tote from Lucky magazine for subscribing :D
We love free. This isn't the best bag-- nary a pocket-- but its lovely streamlined shape and plain color are perfect for toning down an outfit with a lot of elements already!

Hope you like it... let us know what you'd do differently!

Happy tweaking-until-it's-perfect!