What I Wore: Summer Dresses

For a few weeks this month I wasn’t really feeling the thrift. This, to me, is a sign that I’m happy with my current wardrobe.  Although I am a thrift blogger and it can feel a bit counterintuitive, when I feel this way I embrace it and skip the thrift store because it’s a sign that I have ENOUGH.

I held out and waited until I actually felt excitement about the idea of thrifting before I went – and lo and behold that delay coincided with finally finding a couple of blue dresses to tick an item off my thrifting wish list.  So, you know, karma and flow and the universe smiling and all that.

Here are the two dresses: Continue reading “What I Wore: Summer Dresses” →

Friday ReBlog: Thriftanista in the City + Unclaimed Baggage

Did you know there is a magical thrift-like land where the insides of lost luggage goes to be cleaned and put up for (very decently priced) sale?  Neither did I!

It’s called Unclaimed Baggage and I learned about it from Troy of Thriftanista in the City.  Also a denizen of the great metro ATL area, she made a pilgrimage there last year and recently rocked one of her unclaimed finds with a pair of originally $178 j. brand white jeans she found at Goodwill.  My kind of woman.

Troy has a great sense for color and shape and the ability to use a sewing machine to patch up pieces that need a little love.  I love seeing what she puts together on her Instagram feed and her blog.

Pretty sure Unclaimed Baggage is now on my (thrift) bucket list.  3 hours+ driving time isn’t too crazy for a secondhand pilgrimage, right??

 

Where would you LOVE to go thrifting?

Have a great weekend, Thrifters!

 

A DIY / Thrifted Statement Pendant Necklace

Pendants are one of my favorite kinds of necklaces because that dangling pop of jewelry is dramatic and fun; the length also handily draws your eyes down the entirety of the outfit and won’t crowd your face/neckline.

Luckily for us, pendants are also the easiest kind of necklace to DIY, because you can pop a few beads and baubles together, slip it on a chain you already own, and BAM!  You’re ready to go.  That same chain can be used to showcase different pendants depending on your outfit and your mood.

You can thrift the chain, of course, but you can also thrift the components of the pendant. I did one here that I’ve been wearing a lot this spring, and today I’m going to show you another one I recently created for the winter wardrobe I’ve been revamping this summer – but surprise, it works great for summer, too!

Click through to see what I made and general guidelines for making your own thrifted/DIY pendant. Continue reading “A DIY / Thrifted Statement Pendant Necklace” →

What I Wore: Coral & Grey

If I had photo editing software or was not lazy, I would edit these to reflect the true color of this shirt: it’s a slightly orange-y coral, not the highlighter hue of papaya it looks like.  I say that because I love this mix of grey and coral and want you all to revel in it with me.

Also let us notice:

  1. The Side Pony.  Super simple and instantaneously puts a little sass in your day.
  2. The crepe myrtles in the background.  They are just ridiculous in our neighborhood – pink, white, red, purple… Mother Nature just showing off like no big deal.

IMG_3784

Closeup on that print – I love that white/yellow/light taupe on the coral: IMG_3783

 

As you probably can tell from Instagram (@thriftshopchic), I’m a little addicted to this DIY necklace. Post on how I made it coming Thursday:IMG_3780

 

The wedges, to dress it up just a bit:IMG_3782

Coral top: Old Navy, thrifted

Grey cigarette pants: Vince Camuto, thrifted

Wedges: Clark’s, thrifted

Cuff, earrings: heirlooms from my grandmothers

Necklace: DIY from thrifted finds

Friday ReBlog: Checking in with Into Mind

Anuschka at Into Mind wrote a great post on thinking about your closet not just a collection of cute outfits but as a cohesive wardrobe, and using those lovely, stylized images of capsule wardrobes we talked about the other week to help evaluate your own closet.

She’s also got an example of said visual inspiration for summer.  It’s a great demonstration of how to do a unified closet with more color and polish than the neutrals/casual basics vibe we so often see in capsules, so if you love color or need a more work-appropriate look, check it out.  Bonus: the broad terms she uses (chic work top, fun work top, accent pants) help you think of your closet in terms of categories that work together instead of making you lust after specific pieces some blogger loved.

Last but not least, 5 Ways to Build a More Ethical Closet tackles ethical dressing from a broader perspective than the oft-touted “save up to buy Everlane even if you don’t love grey t-shirts.”  Anuschka outlines 5 different approaches to curating a more ethical closet that remind us not to “let perfect be the enemy of good.”  Approach #4 is “shop secondhand or vintage” – yay!

 

Happy Weekend, Thrifters!

 

 

 

Currently on My Thrift List

Here’s what I’m looking to thrift these days as I head to my neighborhood thrift stores:

  • Sleeveless or short sleeve shift dress in a blue anywhere from robin’s egg to “medium” blue – royal is a bit too deep for me.  Other qualifications: cotton would be nice (like this placeholder I shrunk in the wash); just above knee; no cap sleeves (someone please explain to me why these
    Something like either of these would do nicely:
    ZaraShiftDress59.99 _10986473
    source; source
  • Pajamas for my toddler.  She’s busting at the seams of the 2 footie pairs we have (1 gift, 1 thrifted) and doesn’t like to sleep in the short-sleeved Red Sox bodysuit I thrifted for her.  (To be clear: she does like to wear it awake. We’re raising a big time baseball fan; “Go Red Sox!” and “Go Cubbies!” are frequent refrains in our house.)
  • Corduroy pants in a medium-dark blue.  This is part of my top-secret* strategy for Phase 2 of revamping my winter wardrobe.  (*Not really that secret; just haven’t written about it yet.)  Other qualifications: not “skinny” but fitted, or tailorable to be fitted (I’m still stubbornly refusing to wear flares); mid-to-high waist (am I the only 30-something who can’t stand low-cut waists anymore?); thick luscious texture.  These need to keep me warm, not feel like cardboard!
  • Legging shorts.  You know, the above-the-knee kind that give you some extra coverage for shorter skirts but don’t make you feel like you live in an oven?  I want them to go with this dress which I love but which is a tad too short for work, and which sadly has not been worn much since June started (hello ATL heat).

 

What are you currently keeping an eye out for during your thrifting excursions? Scroll down to share!

 

One Year of Thriftshop Chic

Happy Birthday to the blog!

Last month marked a whole year of blogging on Thriftshop Chic, and I was having too much fun writing posts to notice that the actual date had ticked by.  A good sign, methinks.

A word of thanks to my spouse, Chris, who encouraged me to start writing this and provided technical support as I waded into the world of html. Thanks to friends like Sheena and Caitlin who have showed interest in the blog and been willing to be featured in posts.  Thanks to Rachael who introduced me to Canva as a fun, free way to make graphics (btw Rachael is a badass web designer if you’re in need).

And the biggest thanks, of course, to YOU all, Thriftshop Chic’s readers, who have made this a worthwhile and engaging journey.  Thanks for reading, sharing your thoughts and encouragement, and contributing to the conversation.  My purpose from the inception of this blog has been to create a space for folks to be inspired in their thrifting, and you’ve made that purpose come to life.

For a little birthday throwback, here is one of my very first posts – my thoughts on strategies for a quality thrifting experience.  It’s a pretty broad overview, pieces of which I have covered in more detail in subsequent posts.  But since many of you are more recent readers and may have missed this the first time around, I thought y’all might enjoy the more comprehensive view.  Part 1 (general strategies) is below and there’s a link to Part 2 (more specific tactics) at the bottom.

Continue reading “One Year of Thriftshop Chic” →

Friday ReBlog: Updated Wardrobe Planner at UnFancy + Year-Round Capsule Wardrobe at Paris to Go

Check out Caroline’s new and improved free wardrobe planner (printable download) at UnFancy.

If you are like my friend Caitlin and feeling a bit at sea with your wardrobe, this handy little document will help you suss out your style, starting with what works and doesn’t in the clothes you already own and building from there.

I haven’t tried Caroline’s wardrobe planners before but have used some similar concepts to help folks think through their own style revolution.  I’d love to hear from you if you’ve tried her planners or something similar – what have you learned?  Do you like having a place to write it all down?   Scroll down to share what you’ve found helpful!

 

Meanwhile across the pond, Arianna at Paris to Go has updated her year-round wardrobe capsule to give you an idea of how she makes one wardrobe work in all seasons.  Her style is dressier and almost entirely secondhand, including several couture dresses.  Check it out for visual inspiration/un peu de lèche–vitrine – a little window shopping, or “window licking” as the French say.  I think it gives a sense of how drool-worthy her closet is…

 

Happy weekend, Thrifters!