Other Fashion Rules to Break

Reader (and friend!) Sheena spotted this Old Navy advert featuring bloggers busting the myth that “certain jeans are for certain body types.” (Let us take a moment to celebrate that Old Navy didn’t select a bunch of skinny white women as their featured style bloggers.)

It reminded her of one of my “Can I Wear This?” posts where young women felt restricted and shamed by these very rules.  That post also features a picture of Sheena!  Isn’t she gorgeous?

Inspired by their take on things, Sheena asked me to do another post on fashion rules you should break – particularly ones that say that certain kinds of people “can’t” wear certain kinds of clothes. Continue reading “Other Fashion Rules to Break” →

Travel Wardrobe: Asheville, NC

A few weekends ago we packed up and drove the 3 and a half hours to meet friends in Asheville, North Carolina for a mini break.  What follows is what I packed (and what my kid packed), what I wore, and what we did, including a thrift visit (sadly only one; I saw at least two more but we didn’t make it to them.  Next time, Asheville!).

If that sounds like a lot to cover, it is!  Buckle up, folks, this is a long one (but there are photos to help you make it through!). Continue reading “Travel Wardrobe: Asheville, NC” →

Friday ReBlog: Two Canadian Thrifters

O Canada! (gratuitous pics of stylish and delicious prime minister Justin Trudeau and his wife, the equally stylish and delicious Sophie Grégoire-Trudeau, here.)

Today we’ve got 2 Canadian bloggers who, from all I can gather, know each other IRL and sometimes thrift for each other.  Sigh.  My dream.

First off: thanks to reader Kathleen S. who alerted us to The Spirited Thrifter. (Note: you, too, can suggest your favorite thrift bloggers in the comments below or here on the original “help me find more thrift blogs!” post).

Author Nicole sounds like my soul mate.  Evidence:

“Last week, I *helped* my friend Karlynn at her excuse to buy more Pyrex garage sale, and while *helping* her drank sangria.”  (The “Spirited” in her blog title refers to her personality but also her love of spirits.)

Or: “What’s a mom to do with 3 hours to herself but go thrifting”?

Plus she makes her kids thrift and puts thrift stores on her vacation sight-seeing list.  My kind of lady.

 

The Spirited Thrifter led me to Blue Collar Red Lipstick, where Adina isn’t afraid to style herself up while living in a dress-down kind of city.  She’s got a tailored look I love livened up by lots of color.  Many of her things are consigned/thrifted, and she has a whole section on work capsule wardrobes if you need some visual inspiration on how to put together a dressier or more colorful capsule wardrobe.

 

Happy Friday, Thrifters! I’ll be back next week with a fun travel wardrobe from a recent trip to Asheville, NC.

 

I Don’t Wash My Hair

With shampoo, at least. (I do wash sometimes with natural ingredients and/or water.)

Today I’ll tell you what I’ve tried in my no-poo adventure and how it has worked for me.  I’ll also point you in the direction of some resources I found helpful.

But I can’t tell you how to go no-poo.  (If you’re interested.  You might also just be grossed out.)

My hair is different from your hair and yours is different from your friend’s and your sister’s and your dad’s and your co-worker’s.  And even your same hair will likely behave differently with different climates, seasons, stages of life, and air/water qualities.

So read up if you are interested in giving no-poo a try (or if you’re just weirdly fascinated).  I’d love to hear how it goes or, if you already do it, what works for you!

Continue reading “I Don’t Wash My Hair” →

What I Wore: Office Sick Day

Yesterday I had a head cold from Hades. (I still have it, but now it’s from, say, Hoboken.)

I spent a good 15 minutes in bed trying decide whether to go to work or stay home.

But yesterday was my boss’ first day back after 4 weeks out of town. And a new program year is breathing down our necks. And I had 3 meetings scheduled. And someone had to drive the kiddo to daycare regardless.

So I went to work, but in the most comfortable work-appropriate clothing possible, which I had most fortuitously thrifted over the weekend due to my inability to say no to comfortable dresses and stripes (and this shade of blue!):

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Continue reading “What I Wore: Office Sick Day” →

Friday ReBlog: Too Cheap Blondes

Thanks to reader Kiki for recommending a new blog I think y’all will like: Too Cheap Blondes.

(A grammar pun? I’m already on board).

Pippa and Jen are Houston thrifters with a great variety of posts on all things thrift: tips, DIYs/rehabs, styling ideas, recreating trends, how to tell quality vs. quackery, capsule wardrobes, thrift makeovers, cowboy boots (the native born Texan in me is swooning), etc.  I have a feeling it’s gonna take me awhile to get through their archives.

Hint: to find their blog scroll down the home page about 3/4 of the way.

If you don’t have time to binge read right now, their list of tips for thrifting is a great place to start.  I love their point about not limiting yourself to the designer/boutique section of the thrift store; you can find great stuff there but often designer/brand names slip through the cracks and end up in the regular areas for a fraction of the price.

One personal caveat vis-à-vis the above list: they advise skipping lower end brands, and generally that’s wise.  But some of my longer-lasting thrift finds are by Merona [Target], Forever 21, George [Walmart].  I find it’s really about the quality of the fabric and construction, which oddly is sometimes good even with cheap labels and conversely is not necessarily great even with name brands.
Any Houstonians out there excited to find these local ladies?  Any other great posts in their archives to which you want to direct our attention?

Remember, I’m sharing this blogging goodness thanks to Kiki’s recommendation; do your fellow thrifters a solid and list your favorite thrift blogs in the comments below, or, better yet, in the comments on last week’s cry for help where others can find them!

As always, happy weekend, Thrifters.

 

In Which I Attempt to Clean Clothes in Downton Abbey Fashion

I read somewhere that you’re really not supposed to wash suits – you’re supposed to brush them.

This brings to mind various Downton Abbey scenes in which the servants discuss some gossipy bit of upstairs news whilst cleaning their employers’ clothing in the boot room (or was the boot room only for boots?) – particularly that time that Lady Mary and one of her (unsuccessful) suitors got filthily dirty saving the pigs:

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I was almost as glad for the poor pigs as I was put out that Anna had to clean Mary’s dress. Continue reading “In Which I Attempt to Clean Clothes in Downton Abbey Fashion” →

Friday ReBlog: What Are YOUR Favorite Thrift Blogs?

Thrifters, I need your help.  The last few weeks I’ve been stuck in a rut where I’ve read all my favorite style/thrift blogs (and even ventured into some new ones that didn’t stick) and I can’t find anything thrifty enough/wardrobe edit-y enough/fresh enough to share with you in a Friday ReBlog.

So instead of wallowing in my sorrows, I’m asking YOU all to share your favorite blogs or posts about thrifting and/or creating an edited, stylish wardrobe.  Take a sec and scroll down to leave your faves in the comments so that I, and most of all your fellow thrifters, will benefit from a communal spotlighting of your gloriously thrifty/chic reads.

Thanks in advance, and happy weekend!

 

The Lazy Person’s Guide to Wrangling Pant Hems

What do you do when your pant hems fail you?  Maybe they’re too long, or the thread comes undone leaving you with a sloppy one-sided pant mess.

If you are a whiz with a sewing machine, just ignore this.

But if, like me, you can barely remember how to thread one (Ms. Drust, my Home Ec teacher, is pulling out her hair somewhere), this crib sheet is for you.

Obviously, if you have time you should take ’em to your tailor.  If your tailor is kind of out of your way, like mine is, or you keep forgetting to put your pants in the car so you can actually bring them to tailor (ahem), I’ve got a few options for ya. Continue reading “The Lazy Person’s Guide to Wrangling Pant Hems” →