Category: Friday ReBlog

Friday ReBlog: My Current Favorite Minimalism and Style People

Long time no see, fellow thrifters! Turns out life with two little kids and a full-time job is…well… full! In lots of good ways, but also in ways that don’t leave much time for long-form creative pursuits.

These days I’m more likely to have time for an Instagram post. To get a more regular fix, you can find outfit pics and thrift finds at www.instagram.com/thriftshopchic. (You can also see my latest IG posts – at least the picture part – on the sidebar at right.)

But I did want to pop in here to share a few resources I’ve been really enjoying lately.

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First up, in the category of simplifying your home, closet, and life (aka minimalism), there’s The Minimal Mom on YouTube. Dawn has a sunny, down-to-earth personality with loads of pithy questions and game-changing shifts in perspective to help you get rid of all the stuff (literal and metaphorical) that gets in the way of how you want to spend your time and energy. She’s married with four kids and thus knoweth of what she speaketh re: streamlining your life.

Oh! And her house has color in it! Rare for minimalist types with an online presence.

Read the comments on this post for great tips on simplifying your closet.

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Then, in the category of personal style inspiration, are two people who’ve put some thought into a small wardrobe with COLOR.

Remember when I thought I could/should fit into the IG capsule wardrobe look where everything is neutral? Ha:

 

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Orla Sheridan is an Irish stylist who shops retail but very thoughtfully, encouraging her clients and followers to only buy pieces they can see themselves wearing at least thirty times. (If that number seems really low…like we should be wearing well-made pieces for 30 YEARS instead of 30 times…well yes, we should. But since the average American throws out 81 pounds of clothes each year, I think aiming for 30 wears is a good step in the right direction for many of us.)

What I like about Orla’s style is the clean, unfussy lines paired with beautiful colors. She looks current but not overly trendy; patterns are well-chosen and not too visually distracting; and she does oversize blazers SO well.

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Signe at Uselesswardrobe.dk is similarly skilled at blazers. Personally, she tends toward the neutral cool-girl aesthetic, but she did us color-lovers a solid and made a color-heavy capsule wardrobe I can’t stop staring at (I even bookmarked it for easy reference #stylenerd):

    

All the heart-eye emojis for this smorgasbord of color! I would wear almost all these outfits (especially if that mustard sweater magically morphed into more of a lemon shade of yellow).

Signe is also doing a “low buy” challenge for 2020 as a way to push back against the consumerism of influencer-driven style climate. Because, speaking of climate, she is committed to sustainability via secondhand and ethical shopping. (Watch this delightful thrift-with-me video!) I’m joining her in this challenge (hashtag: #2020wehaveplenty, awww, it rhymes) because I realize how often in the last year I’ve used perusing Poshmark or Etsy as a way to kill time and how much I’ve ended up buying (even secondhand/vintage/handmade) as a result. Time to take a break!

That’s all for now, folks – hope your year is off to a great start!

 

 

Friday ReBlog: RV Living with 5 People + an Epic Closet Purge and more

It’s been a minute since our last Friday ReBlog, a spotlight on articles/posts/podcasts I’ve recently found interesting. This week I’m sharing some good minimalism-related reads and listens I came across while recharging my enthusiasm for keeping my stuff to a dull roar.

First up, here’s a fun read on the principles of psychological economics behind Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. The article puts some words on phenomena we’ve all experienced – like finding it a lot harder to give something away once we’ve let it live in our closet/house/bookshelf for awhile.

Next, here’s a few tips on really paring down in order to live in a smaller space – and some amazing pics of a family of 5 who live in a converted RV: Living simply, going tiny.

These two Brooke Castillo podcast interviews with Shira Gill (episode 216 and episode 217) are short and sweet bursts of inspiration for decluttering. Shira’s approach is basically the opposite of Marie Kondo’s massive tidying spree (while also overlapping in some ways). Some of my favorite parts were the discussion about how much mental space clears up when you don’t have to manage excess stuff; the glory of empty drawers; and consuming as a way to numb our feelings. PS Shira’s blog is full of great decluttering ideas, too.

Last but not least, pop some popcorn for this excess-to-edited account of a closet purge of astounding magnitude. I’d wager most of us have never spent $25,000 on clothes in one year, but if you’ve ever bought something to soothe some unprocessed emotion, you’ll relate.

Happy Friday!

Friday ReBlog: Why I Own Wooden Hangers

Janice over at the Vivienne Files had a post this week on making your closet feel like the clothes shopping experience you love most – in other words, bringing light, space, and visual appeal to your clothes storage area.

One of the big ways she achieves this is with wooden hangers, and I have to say, I agree with her.  Having my clothes all on similar, lovely-looking hangers helps make me feel closet-happy. Wooden hangers take up enough space that you’re reminded not to crowd the rack, which is also a big contributor to me loving the way my closet looks.

Another surefire closet-happiness booster? Having a cohesive color palette. Our closet is open, so I see it every time I walk into the master bathroom; I notice when a color is glaringly out of place or the racks are packed to the gills, and take a moment to decide whether it’s time to weed through my wardrobe again.

Going back to hangers: best of all, all my lovely hangers are thrifted – folks cleaning out their closets tend to donate in packs so I’ve been able to assemble very similar hangers for all my hanging garments.  Check your local thrift store to see what you can find!

Read more about my love for wooden hangers here.

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Have a great weekend, Thrifters!

Friday ReBlog: What to Wear to be Kind to the Planet

Edited:  Ha! This is what happens when you fall asleep at night next to your toddler instead of getting up to make sure your blog post is ready to go for the next day.

At any rate, check out this New York times article about what kinds of fabrics are most (or rather more since it’s all relative) environmentally friendly.  It ends with the no-brainer thrifters and capsule wardrobe fans have long embraced: “the most effective solution may be to keep wearing that old T-shirt that your family hates, buy used clothes or just make do with fewer articles of clothing.”

Happy (long for the US) weekend, Thrifters!

Friday ReBlog: Wardrobe Inflation

Here’s a good read on Adina’s blog about lifestyle inflation. Or, more specifically, since hers is a clothes blog and so is mine: wardrobe inflation.

As you have gotten older and either earned more over the years or gotten more used to the idea of spending money on clothes in order to get quality, have your price points for various items changed?

I’ve pretty exclusively thrifted the bulk of my closet for 10 years now, so I wouldn’t say my price points have gone up – if you don’t count the fact that my local Goodwill’s prices have gone up a dollar or two in most every category.  But my “quality point” has gone way up. I don’t buy crappily-made stuff anymore just because it’s a bargain, and I am buying less and less in general these days.

A few areas where I’m willing to spend more than I used to:

Shoes. I need narrow shoes with good arch support – and those ain’t cheap. About 40% of my shoes are retail (vs. thrifted); in the last few years I’ve spent $90-$100 on retail shoes when I previously wouldn’t have forked over more than $50. What changed? I decided that spending more on shoes I love and will wear for a long time is better than getting a “bargain” pair that are only so-so.  (But I also ask for quality shoes as gifts so it’s not always my money… does that make it wishlist inflation?)

Sunglasses. All my sunglasses are currently from Goodwill, from a 5K swag bag, orrrrr I found them buried in the sand at the beach – classy.  I am thinking about purchasing some high quality sunglasses secondhand (read: eBay or other e-consignment) because most of the ones that end up at Goodwill are flimsy and there’s no way to tell whether they have UV protection. I’ve read enough warnings on blogs by women a few decades older than I am to know that I don’t want UV-induced macular degeneration.

Winter boots. The last time I lived in the cold was 10 years ago and my footwear left over from that era is laughable. If I ever move somewhere cold again, I will invest in proper, water-proof, cold-weather boots. They may still be secondhand, but I’m gonna do it right.

 

Have you experience wardrobe inflation (or maybe deflation)?  If so, in what areas, and what’s your reasoning behind it?  Scroll down to share!

Friday ReBlog: Uniform Dressing

Thought you all might enjoy this take on uniform dressing from Kelly at Alterations Needed. If you’re wanting permission to wear the same outfit formula “pretty much every damn day,” this post is for you!  Plus her gentlewoman/garçonne style is so well done and so beautifully photographed. (And she’s got great alteration advice for petite-sized people.)

And here’s a profile of a real-life literal uniform dresser – a real estate professional who wears the exact. same. thing. every day.

Totally unrelated but too good not to share: the story of a thrifted green jacket that ended up selling at auction for almost $140,000.

Thanks Adina J at Blue Collar Red Lipstick for those last two recommendations, and Happy Weekend, Thrifters!

 

Friday ReBlog & My 10×10 Wardrobe Challenge

I think I’ve mentioned the 10×10 Wardrobe Challenge before; it’s the brainchild of Lee from Style Bee but I found out about it through Caroline at Un-Fancy. Starting on Monday they’ll be teaming up for a spring 10×10 wardrobe remix and I’m playing along. You can, too!

What’s a 10×10? Both of the links above explain in more detail (and have helpful tips and examples!), but basically you pick 10 pieces from your wardrobe and wear nothing but those items for 10 days.

There aren’t super strict rules – you can count shoes in your 10 or not; you can do 10 straight days or two work weeks; if you have a special event during the 10 days you can leave your formal outfit out of the 10; etc. The point isn’t rules for their own sake, but limitations that spark creativity. Creating 10 different outfits out of only 10 pieces will likely produce new combinations you’ve never thought of, give you new insights into your style preferences and wardrobe versatility, and assuage some of your “I have nothing to wear” and “I need to go shopping” feelings.

Today I’ll share my goals for the challenge, the parameters I’m following, and the 10 pieces I’m including. Next week and the week after I’ll feature shots of how I put them together as outfits. And I’ll follow all that with a post on what I learned. Teaser: I may have had my biggest epiphany of the whole process before I’ve even started!

A tip before you get started: check the 10-day forecast and try to cover all eventualities with layering. My temps will (likely) run from the 50s to the 80s every day so I’m aiming for lightweight long sleeved blouses with a blazer/spring coat for early mornings and AC.

The Goals
I really like the general types of clothes in my closet (slim pants, pencil skirts, etc.) and feel like my wardrobe is already very mix-able, so I’m not looking to discover radically new combinations or silhouettes. What I would like to do is get over the hump with a few pieces I’ve been excited to try out but just haven’t worn yet. Do you ever have that problem in your closet or, say, with a new recipe or a new book? You know you want to incorporate it into your life but until you put it on/cook it/crack it open for the first time, it feels easier to go with tried and true favorites. I’m gonna just go for it with some new pieces that have been sitting on the bench for too long and see how they do.

I also want to challenge myself to post legitimate outfit posts every day for two work weeks. So far I haven’t found a camera set up/photo op time that consistently works for me, which means I haven’t used my Lenten thrifting hiatus to share more outfits/how-I-styled-it posts with you like I wanted to. This challenge is a good excuse to change that.

The “Rules”
Like Caroline’s, my remix will run next Monday through Friday and the Monday through Friday after that so I can focus on my work wardrobe. Although both Lee and Caroline count shoes in their 10, I won’t because I only ever wear the same two or three pairs of warm-weather work shoes that go with everything (you can see them in my spring wardrobe; click the link below) and I don’t think I’ll learn anything new from including them.
Also, accessories definitely don’t get counted in my 10. :)

The Players
All from my spring wardrobe.

Four blouses:
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Banana Republic; Chico’s; Forever 21; Banana Republic Heritage. 

I’ve only worn the muted red BR shirt once; including it will give me a few more test drives to figure out how to style it. I want to find out if the Chico’s top feels too casual for work with its lovely light cotton and tie neck. And I broke the BR leopard print in during cooler weather so I want to deliberately pair it with skirts to get myself out of the mindset that its darker colors belong in fall/winter.

Two skirts:
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Ann Taylor; J. Crew

I haven’t worn the white one yet at all since I tend to associate all-white clothes with hot weather, but I want to find out if it’s a keeper. It’s labeled two sizes larger than I normally wear but is actually tighter fitting than I’m used to; I’m guessing it shrunk in the dryer, which also explains why the lining is peeking out the bottom. I’m on the fence and need to give it a few good wears to decide.

One pant:
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Vince Camuto

One dress:
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H&M

Haven’t worn this puppy yet; it has interesting structural details I’m a little unsure about (aka weirdness in the chest), so I’m excited to see how I like wearing it.

Two finishing layers:
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Arthur S. Levine; Merona

I definitely won’t need these when it hits 80 outside, but my office runs cool and mornings will still be brisk.

Have you ever done a 10×10 (or similar) challenge?  Want to join in on the fun? Check Un-Fancy today for the hashtag to share your outfits on Instagram, or just document your challenge for yourself – you may be surprised by what you learn!

 

Friday ReBlog: Capsule Wardrobe Discussions

Wow, this week had my number – the flu hit my kid and my spouse just as work cranked up. Then my kid got strep yesterday.  Bah!  Apologies for radio silence/skipping my regular Tuesday/Thursday posts – fingers crossed that today marks a return to sanity and routine!

This post by Caroline at Un-Fancy is a few weeks old but I’m still making my way through the comments, which showcase a wide variety of approaches to capsule (or capsule-ish) wardrobes.  I read collections of different perspectives like this like I eat popcorn – I can’t get enough!  They’re great for inspiration both in the particulars (hey, I could try out that idea) and in general – as I read I felt myself getting excited to do a spring wardrobe cleanout, so stay tuned for that.

She’s also done a Q&A about her own capsule wardrobe and a closet tour if you’re interested.

 

Have a great weekend, Thrifters! And here’s to a healthy household Chez Thriftshop Chic.

 

Friday ReBlog: Decluttering by Color

Janice over at The Vivienne Files is doing a two-parter on decluttering, and her first method is based on color. (No surprise given she’s a master at building capsule wardrobes based on color palette!)

It’s worth the read-through on your own, but a few highlights that caught my interest:

“You’ve got to WANT to accomplish something – your own personal something – when you plunge into this process. If you’re currently perfectly happy with your wardrobe as it is, don’t do this; there’s nothing to be gained!”

I think where the impact lies in this great insight is not avoiding a cleanout when you’re happy with your wardrobe, but defining your “personal something” when you’re unhappy with your closet but don’t know why. No one wants to spend a lot of time and effort decluttering according to someone else’s rules or approach only to still be unsatisfied with the results!  Take a few minutes to write down (or talk through, or Pinterest, depending on your style of learning) what you’d like to achieve from a closet makeover: a consistent color palette, a style refresh, to end up with only clothes you thrill to wear, etc.

That brings us to her second observation I want to engage:

“With all the respect in the world to Marie Kondo, I’m NEVER going to feel joy from a black tee shirt, but having a handful of them is really important to being well dressed, in my life.”

I don’t particularly care about defending Marie Kondo, but I do think (depending on your personality and style) that it’s possible to have an entire wardrobe composed ONLY of things you love – right down to your knickers. (Maybe underwear’s especially important in this category since only you will see it, but it can brighten up your whole mood to know you’ve got Animal underpants on under an otherwise somber or formal ensemble!)

An undershirt I thrifted at one point comes to mind. No one was ever going to see it, since it was designed to be worn as a base layer.  But it was made of the softest Pima cotton, and it felt luxurious every time I put it on.

My point isn’t to be dissatisfied with your wardrobe if your really practical pieces don’t “spark joy,” but to encourage you not to settle if you feel rather “blah” about a practical piece – it’s scratchy, worn out, cheap, doesn’t fit quite right… There’s likely an alternative out there just waiting to be thrifted that will give you, if not joy, a little more pleasure when getting dressed.

 

What are your thoughts on making sure you have figured out your raison d’être before decluttering, or about having your mundane pieces “spark joy”?  Scroll down to comment!

 

Thursday ReBlog: “Dressing Like a Grown Up” and the Crème de la Crème

It’s Thursday, yes, but I’m posting my Ireland packing list tomorrow so you get a “Friday” ReBlog today.

First up, Duchesse at Passage des Perles responds to Vanessa Friedman’s New York Times article “How to Dress Like an Adult.”  Some good food for thought in both categories.  I just went in for a (thrifted, of course) dress-coat as a topper to replace a long slouchy sweater in part because it felt more put-together, more “grown up” for my work life (post next week!).  And to Ms. Friedman’s point #3 – essentially, take care of your clothes – I also just bought a travel-sized steamer to reduce that “sat under a pile of clothes” look things get when I don’t hang them up right away.  (I’ll write a review in a few weeks when I’ve tested it out a few more times.)

 

Second, Adina at Blue Collar Red Lipstick waxes eloquent on wearing only the crème de la crème of her wardrobe and how she’s moving from a wardrobe full of 7s out of 10 that worked just fine to 10s all the way.  (She now says she gets the Marie Kondo “spark joy” thing.)  While I’m not holding on to so-so work horses in the same way she was, I am holding on to some “meh” pieces that I just don’t wear/like because they are interesting/unique/good quality.  Great inspiration if you’re looking to really go for the gold, wardrobe-wise.

 

What are your thoughts on making a wardrobe out of 10s and dressing as a grown up?  Scroll down to comment!