Thursday Thrift Score: Sweater Weather

I love that it's finally sweater season! Unfortunately, I recently cleaned out a bunch of winter wear I haven't worn in a while, so it's time to restock! That's one of the best things about a thrifted wardrobe - if you're sick of last year's garments, you don't have to feel guilty about replacing them.

I stopped by my local Goodwill store a couple weeks ago and picked up a few necessities.

1. Grey Merona (Target) cardigan for $4
2. Turquoise J Crew pullover for $6
3. Grey American Eagle pullover for $6

And yesterday I visited Thrift City for a few more solids...

4. Beige Gap pullover with button detail for $4
5. Charcoal slouchy Gap sweater for $4
6. Purple 100% cashmere deep-v dolman pullover for $4

...and some stripes too!

7. Pink and grey Aeropostale sweater for $6
8. Navy and green slouchy Gap sweater for $6 (This one still had the original $45 tags on it, and it's exactly the same sweater as the charcoal one above but with stripes)
9. Coral and peach Gap cashmere blend pullover for $3

As you can probably tell, I'm quite fond of v-neck and wide-neck pullovers. They're great for layering with tank tops or camisoles. Now into the wash they go so I can start wearing them!

Thursday Thrift Score: Fall 2014 Clothes Swap

Monday evening, I was so excited to be able to attend the semi-annual Echo Theatre Clothes Swap once again. And with good reason! I always come home with fabulous treasures, as well as ridiculous refashionables. This swap was no exception! Here's the list...

Thursday Thrift Score: LBD

Yesterday was my birthday! We had reservations at a fancy sushi place downtown, so I needed to class it up a bit. I threw on this LBD I found for $20 at Buffalo Exchange a couple months ago.

It's all-over black lace with a nude-colored layer underneath (except the arms - that's my actual flesh). I paired it with some black and nude wedges I got on the clearance rack at DSW a couple years ago. I don't recall the price exactly, but I believe they were around $20 as well.

It was a fantastic meal that was in no way thrifty. Good thing I saved money on my duds!

Thursday Thrift Score: Putting on the Ritz

Thrift scores come in all shapes and sizes - and prices. It's all relative really. You'll see what I mean.

This past Friday, my husband and I got all spiffied up for a charity gala for his company. He warned me weeks in advance how fancy it would be - that he would probably be in the minority by not wearing a tux. I hadn't been to an event that formal since prom, so I knew I had some shopping to do.

I was hoping to find a old bridesmaid/wedding/prom dress at the thrift store and refashion it. I really loved making my Cinderella costume last Halloween and have been itching to do something extravagant again. In fact, I was recently honored to be included in Paris Ciel's 55 Intelligent & Fun Ways to Refashion Prom, Wedding & Formal Dresses, and some of the other projects on that list are so inspiring! Makes me wish I had more excuses to go all out!

Alas, it was not in the cards. I went to all my usual haunts, searched high and low for the gown of my dreams (or perhaps nightmares), but I just didn't find anything suitable. My last resort was a consignment store in a pretty wealthy area of Dallas. I knew they would have something - maybe something that might only needed slight alterations since I was starting to run out of time to do a lot of reworking. I also knew I would be paying more for that luxury, but I figured, "What the hell! I don't get all dolled up very often. Might as well splurge a little!"

Not only did I find the perfect dress that needed no alterations, but the tag just happened to be the color of the day, so I got an extra 40% off the ticketed price. Behold, my Carolina Herrera black chiffon gown.

I can't find this exact dress online, but the least expensive CH dress I saw was about $2500. So I feel like my $171 post-tax price was well worth it.

And, of course, we can't talk about fancy outfits without mentioning the shoes, right? I picked up these Tory Burch strappy heels at Nordstrom Rack for a mere $75 (retail $399). Just so we're clear though, these are not dancing shoes. They are not even walking shoes. They are by no means gracefully-descending-the-stairs shoes, though I was forced to at least attempt the feat (after a few glasses of champagne to boot!). I'm proud to say I did not fall on my ass, though I was certainly not graceful about it either.

Now that I was properly clothed, we still had to address the hair and make-up. Being the cheapskate I am, I like to go to the nearby Paul Mitchell beauty school for all my coiffing needs. My thinking is, I could go to Super Cuts and get my hair cut by someone who just graduated beauty school, or I could get my hair cut by someone who is about to graduate and has an instructor there to fix their mistakes. Plus, I feel like my super thick hair offers the students a healthy challenge. Three hours later, I left with my hair styled and my face painted for just $50, including tip. So if you're keeping track, that brings the total for this whole night to just under $300.

Sadly, we were a bit rushed to get to the party on time, so there was no time for pictures. But as luck would have it, there was a professional photographer there taking complimentary portraits for the attendees. So here you go, probably the only chance you'll get to see me in full make-up. I threw on pale pink pashmina (thrifted of course!) to cover the tattoos, and accessorized with a handsome hubby.

In other news, tada!

That's right! The peyote bracelet is complete! I finished it Tuesday night, meaning it took less than a week - a lot better time than I thought it would be when I first started it. It was super tedious, but I really loved the process. I definitely see myself doing more peyote work in the future.

Be sure to follow me on Instagram, where I'll be posting something pink every day during the month of October for Breast Cancer Awareness Month!

Thursday Thrift Score: Coral Wedges

Yesterday did not feel like Thursday at all. This week has been... frustrating at work. Plus I've been a little under the weather the past couple days. And to top it all off, my sewing room is currently out of commission as we attempt to push a small home-improvement project over a minor speed bump.

In the meantime, check out these cute shoes I picked up at Buffalo Exchange last week! Only $13.50 and in pristine condition.

Together with my free denim/chambray shirt, my recently skirtified khaki shorts, and a me-made necklace, they create a nice transitional outfit for this awkward time of year when it's still hot as hell here in Texas while the rest of the northern hemisphere is claiming it's autumn. I'll believe it when I stop insta-sunburning upon exiting a building.

Thursday Thrift Score: Shoe Love

I fell head over heels (ha! heels!) for today's thrifty treasure: a pair of denim wedge sandals with little cut-outs on the toes and woven fabric around the soles. As soon as I saw them, I knew they had to be mine.

The brand is Volatile, and I'd guess they would have originally been in the $60-80 range. So at $5, these were definitely a bargain. Plus, they looked brand new - the bottom tread was pristine!

And the fact that were big enough for my huge feet has got to be a sign, right?

Yesterday, I paired my new shoes with my J. Crew toothpick jeans, rolled up a couple times, and my refashioned Butterfly Kisses tank top. I thought this was particularly fitting since the toes, with their tiny little straps and cute cut-outs, kind of resemble butterflies. Kismet, eh?

Of course, the shirt's a little wrinkled as these pics were taken at the end of the day, but whatever!

eShakti Coupon Code & Thursday Thrift Score

First off, I must beg your forgiveness. When I posted about my new eShakti dress a couple weeks ago, I failed to mention the most important part. You see, this morning I found an email from in my spam folder from eShakti's media relations manager... from two weeks ago. How it got in my spam folder, I do not know, but inside I found something special, folks. Something just for you.

It's 10% off at eShakti!

Just use the coupon code "KNITES" at checkout. It's valid until July 3, 2014

Please note:
Code has to be entered in the ‘promotional code’ box. It is not case-sensitive. This discount code is not applicable on clearance/sale, gift cards and overstock categories. Not applicable on previous purchases.



And now, since I seem to have inadvertently begun a series of blouse refashions, I may as well follow suit with this week's thrift score.

I went to Buffalo Exchange a couple weeks ago with a friend. It's one of my favorite places to find gently used, recent trends at better-than-retail-but-not-quite-as-good-as-Goodwill prices. This time, I got pretty lucky too. I found this brand new blouse, with the original tags still attached, for just $4 on the clearance rack.

The back is super low-cut (or as low as possible without showing my bra) and has buttons all the way down.

And the collar is totally cute too, right?

For work, I threw on my white cardigan (thrifted) and some purple flats (Target clearance). Tada!

Thursday Thrift Score: Black & White Party Dress

Sometimes I come home from the thrift store with what I think will be my favorite new garment only to realize upon wearing it for a day precisely why the original owner set it free. Then it goes in my refashion closet to be recycled into something awesomer.

Then there are times I grab something and toss it in the cart without a second thought, just because I like the fabric and I know I could turn it into something lovely. But lo and behold, weeks if not months later, I stumbled upon it in my refashion closet and think to myself, "Did I ever even try this on?"

This dress falls into that second category. I snatched it up at the most recent clothes swap with only vague notions of how to use that beautiful sequined floral fabric. Then, this very afternoon, having run out of thrift scores to post about, I found myself rummaging through my closet for a quick refash to share with you guys instead, when I noticed this dress hanging there. I pulled it out and held it up. I could probably chop off the top and make a skirt lickity-split. But wait, did I ever even try this on? Did I ever even look at the size tag? Hhmmm... a size smaller than I usually wear... but hey, it doesn't hurt anything to at least try, right?

Well, color me surprised.

And check out those sequins that originally caught my eye. Well, they're difficult to photograph, but trust me, they're there.

Thursday Thrift Score: Linen Flowers

I snatched up this sweet flowered dress at the most recent clothes swap I attended.

It's a linen/rayon blend, so it's nice and cool as the days get warmer.

I paired it with my awesome orange suede pumps (Buffalo Exchange) and some purple beaded earrings (Etsy).

Of course, it does get cold in my office (plus visible tattoos are frowned upon in Corporate America), so I threw on a little red cardigan I picked up at the same swap meet.

Apologies for the wrinkles. These photos were taken at the end of the day, after sitting at my desk for 8 hours, and you'll have forgive the linen. It's just doing what linen does.

Thursday Thrift Score & No-Sew Refashion

This dress, if you want to call it that, came to me through my local Freecycle community, which is to say, it was free. Because seriously, someone paid money for this originally? I've seen the blouse-under-a-sweater-vest fake-out a thousand times. That part, I get. What I don't get is making the faux shirt tail into a full circle skirt. It's short enough that one feels compelled to constantly tug it downward, making the stretchy knit vest hug all the wrong curves (and rolls and bulges). Plus the stripey polyester was so staticky I could feel it riding up with every stride. And the final straw? It was so shoddily made, the thing lost three buttons the first time I washed it!

Thursday Thrift Score + The Red Herring Dress

Before I jump into the next series, I thought I might knock out a few refashions I've had in mind which don't really fit into any theme. So without further ado, I give you The Red Herring Dress.

Thursday Thrift Score: Clothes Swap Edition

This week, I had a lovely time perusing other ladies' cast-offs at the spring clothes swap hosted by Echo Theatre. I totally lucked out too! Apparently, someone my size was unloading lots of garments, so my wearable-to-refashionable ratio ended up a lot higher than it usually is.

First, let's tally up the good-to-go pile!

Six sweaters (one Gap)
Five t-shirts
One tank top
Two button-down shirts
One dress
One pair of Gap jeans
One Fossil bag

And in this corner, we have the refashionables:

Five skirts
Two dresses
One pair of slacks (which might be wearable as is, I haven't decided yet)
One blouse

All for just $20 and a box of donated clothes lacking refashion potential. Now to do some laundry and get to work!