tuck it in

I’ve been a tucker lately.

Like the look? All you need are a few key things and you can be a tucker too!

You need:

• A pair of pants. Any pair will do but I prefer this look with a pair of wide legged or trouser jeans.
• A shirt. I think a patterned shirt or blouse looks best.
• A skinny belt. The key here is skinny – we’re trying to look fashionable, not look like we’re wearing our 1980’s pair of Sears jeans that comes with a belt. Am I the only one that bought those? A pop of color in the belt is ideal, look for color or metallics.

Now put it all together and just tuck, tuck, tuck. You can throw on a cardigan for some rear-end coverage or go without and let that backside shine!

*tip* - scour your local thrift stores for skinny belts - I haven't paid more than $1.00 or so for any of the ones I have. 

$1 cardigan

You know I love a good bargain but an exceptional bargain is something I get really excited about.

The other day when I was in Wal Mart I happened past a $5 clearance rack and saw these cute grey cardigans. I love me a cardigan so I stopped to take a look. I am on a shopping hiatus right now as there is nothing I need and I don’t wear all of what I’ve got. But a cardigan, there’s always room for a cardigan. I liked the fit and the light grey is versatile so I thought that for $5 this was allowed to come home with me. Wouldn’t you believe my surprise when I took it to the till and it rang through at $1! One dollah! I thought a $5 cardigan was a steal but a $1 cardigan is a joke, a purchase my deal-attracting-mother would be proud of.  She always takes things to the till just to have them ring in cheaper and I’m pretty happy she’s passed on those genes to me.



What’s your greatest bargain story? I once bought an $85 toaster oven for $30 because it was priced wrong, that was a good deal. Or the $20 jeans I loved so much I went back to buy another pair and they were marked down to $10. Or the jacket I bought for $15 when the original tag was for over $60.  I love a bargain.

purses: out with the old, in with the new

I bought this purse last year around my birthday. I have used this purse solely for the year. I love the style, color and it's nice and big to fit everything I need to carry (like toy cars. and orange peels? True story.) I still love it but it really has seen better days. The bottom corners have almost worn all the way through and the straps are cracking and spitting.




My wonderful in-laws gave me some birthday money and this is what I purchased with it.

(click on the photo to enlarge to see detail)

An adorable new purse. I love the three separate compartments, the neutral color and the sophisticated and feminine style. It's big enough to carry the things I actually need and not the extras I don't, *cough cough, orange peels*

Love it.

Do you have a purse that adds a 'pop of color' or a neutral one that goes with everything?

thrift store score(s)

On the weekend I went thrift shopping with two of my many fabulous sister in laws. We went to Catholic Charities as the last 2 days of the month everything is 50% off. I love treasure hunting thrift shopping because you feel like you've really lucked out when you find a piece you like, in your size, and for a great price. It's like every time I want to say, "what are the chances?!!" I thoroughly enjoy rummaging through racks looking for hidden gems. 


This weekend I really hit the jackpot with a few items. This was one one of the very first items I saw when we walked into the first store. I thought it was a youth size but walked over to try it on anyway. Turns out it's a ladies small and it fits like a glove, er, jacket. It's a Billabong coat in excellent condition (minus a couple tears in the lining) and I got it for, wait for it.... $7.50. Wicked right?




The next item I feel I really lucked out with is this pair of skinny jeans. I liked the wash but was a little indecisive as they are too long and will need to be hemmed and do-I-really-want-to-bother-with-that-trouble-for-a-cheap-pair-of-jeans? I really liked the way they fit and since they were only $3 I decided to get them as really a hem job isn't the end of the world. I noticed I was unfamiliar with the name brand and decided to look them up out of curiosity later that night. You can imagine my amazement when I realized this is a high end brand and this same pair of jeans is online for $178 and I had just purchased them for $3. THREE DOLLARS. Bahhhaaaaaaaa. I win.

 (pre-hem)

This is another item I purchased for $2, a cute little top with so much fun detailing I could just cry. Love. It.



How do you feel about thrift shopping? Have you ever made a really great find?

thrift-store shirt alteration

When I uploaded these photos I had a little bit of a panic attack. Looking at these pictures I suddenly really liked the ‘before’ shot… BUT it’s too late!

I have to remind myself that while I have had this shirt for some time now I rarely wore it, and when I did it was always with a cardigan over top, to hide the baggy sleeves and poorly fitting body. Every time I put it on I committed to alter it some day soon. So with that said, even though I like the look of the shirt in the ‘before’ photo I know in reality I wasn’t comfortable wearing it like that.

Here is the before – a shirt I purchased from a local thrift shop for a few bucks.

 

And here is the after – I removed the extra large sleeves and took it in in the body and under the armpits. 

 

I added a belt for extra definition and the cardigan ‘cause I’m cold hearted blooded. At least now I add the cardigan for comfort instead of trying to hide under it.

I'd like to know your opinion – are you a fan of the before or do you prefer the altered version?

DIY boot socks

Let me preface this post by saying if I had taken time to plan this project out I would have purchased socks that actually match. I used what socks I had on hand and realize now that this was a successful job if I don’t intend on taking my boots off when I go anywhere. Really, I’m going to come over to your house, take my boots off and walk around like that? Well actually I probably would.

I have been ogling boot socks lately. I see them everywhere and decided I must get a pair. Because I have put myself on a shopping ban for the time being I decided I had either make some (as seen on pinterest) or go without. I remembered this little beauty who had been dissected for this project and figured she’d work perfectly for boot socks.




I cut the arms off, stuck my sock inside one so right sides are together and then serged the 2 together in sock-making-matrimony.

  


As I have mentioned the intermediate result is a little unattractive but picture a matching sock and that is remedied.




The end result however is fantastic: cute boot socks, in 3 minutes and for free – well, for free if you don’t ever want to take your boots off. Add a few bucks for a matching pair of socks and it’s still an inexpensive alternative to purchasing new ones from the store.



Think of all the thrift store sweaters just waiting to be turned into boot socks!