Tag: thrifting fun

I had off for three days last week for spring break (perks of working at a university), so I had some glorious thrifting time! I spent a few long hours on Monday at one thrift store, and came home with a bunch of great items. Then, on Tuesday I spent about an hour at a second thrift store and scored big on shoes!

{Pssst, you can read about my previous thrifting adventures here}

While my favorite thrift store has special sale days where certain colors of tags are on sale, the majority of the time I don’t end up with anything that special sale color. However, when I went on Monday, all blue and pink tags were 33% off AND all violet and yellow tags were 50% off!

Anthropologie Cartonnier blazer, size medium, $4.69 ($6.99 blue tag)

I typically don’t thrift items to sell, but occasionally I’ll pick up an Anthropologie item because they tend to sell pretty quickly. This Cartonnier blazer is great and I actually own it in a size large. I decided to buy this for $4.69 because I love mine and identical blazers are currently selling on Poshmark for around $40.

Anthropologie Moulinette Soeurs Linnea Velvet Dress, size medium, $6.69 ($9.99 pink tag)

I love Moulinette Soeurs dresses and would totally keep this one for myself if I were a few inches shorter. As it is, the medium on me is a bit too short on my 5’7” height. The dress is gorgeous though and in perfect condition. It retailed for $228 and is currently listed on Poshmark for $130 – $150. I’m going to list it soon and add any earnings to my vacation funds account!

Talbots 100% linen cardigan sweater, size large, $5.36 ($7.99 pink tag)

I really like this pretty blue ‘boyfriend’ sweater and the linen weave is perfect for spring. This one was a steal for less than $6 and I’ll certainly get my money’s worth out of it!

Loft dotted cardigan, size XL, $3.50 ($6.99 yellow tag)

I loved this lightweight dotted cardigan when I picked it up, but then once I realized it was half-off with a yellow tag, I loved it even more. I like the dots a lot and it looks great with as simple t-shirt and jeans. I actually already wore this one once and will be wearing it again and again this spring!

Elle floral dress, size 16?, $10.05 ($14.99 pink tag)

Once again, a lesson in trying on everything you like no matter what the size tag says! This dress was marked a size 16, but fits like a size 10/12. I like the darker floral pattern along with the tucked neckline and tie-waist. This will look great with a pretty cardigan and flats for work.

Talbots striped spotted ¾ sleeve top, size 1X, $5.00 ($9.99 yellow tag)

I love the mixture of dots and stripes on this soft cotton top. It must have been designed to be worn more fitted, but I like that by sizing up it’s a little roomy for a slouchy fit. I’ll certainly be pairing this with jeans and maybe even some shorts in the summer. I wore it for a hot-minute this morning, before I found out my meeting was cancelled (so I changed back into sweatpants).

Ann Taylor dress, size ? (tag ripped out), $10.05 ($14.99 blue tag)

I picked up this dress and immediately liked the fabric colors. I was cautiously optimistic though because it doesn’t have a size tag and the thrift store had marked it an 8. I tried it on anyways and it fit great! This will be perfect for work with a cute cardigan or on vacation down at the beach with sandals. Such a steal for $10!

Ann Taylor wrap dress, size 8, $14.99

I was on an Ann Taylor roll with the dresses and picked up this wrap dress because I really like the colors and pattern. This one is also marked as an 8, but since it’s a wrap it’s a bit more forgiving. I love the look of this one and it will be added into my work dress rotation asap. And yes, I find it absolutely ridiculous that I picked up a size 16 dress and a size 8 dress that fit pretty much identically…

Lucy exercise leggings, size large, $4.99

I typically don’t bother sorting through the exercise legging section because it tends to be a lot of crap. However, these were hanging by the end of the aisle so I grabbed them up to try. Lucy is a great brand that was recently purchased by The North Face. These leggings are made of extra thick but stretchy fabric, so I’m happy to have gotten them for just $5.

Chicos The Platinum Boyfriend jean, size 1.5, $5.36 ($7.99 blue tag)

I freely admit that this purchase was an oops purchase. I liked them when I tried them on in the fitting room, but once I got them home and washed them, they are no longer winners in my book. Luckily this was just a $5.36 mistake. I’ll add them back in to my re-donate pile for another thrifter to enjoy.

Brighton Summer of Love Tote, $12.99

I saw this tote from across the aisle and it was LOVE at first sight. It’s brand new with tags still on, in perfect condition and a great size for hauling a bunch of crap around. I did a quick search and found that the retail value for this bag was $100, which seems crazy high. However, once my friend suggested it might have been a gift with purchase, I honed in on an old Brighton Facebook post from June 2017 announcing the limited edition bag as a gift with purchase for anyone who spent over $100 on jewelry. Any which way, I love it!

Gap driving moccasins, size 8.5, $4.99

I love the bright green colored suede of these fun Gap driving moccasins/loafers. These are a little preppy for my typical outfits, even though the pop of color is fantastic.  I’m thinking I may use these as my summer slippers for around the house.

Kate Spade suede chukka boots, size 8.5, $12.99

Another total shoe score… these fantastic blue suede Kate Spade chukka boots! I love, love, love this find and apparently they retailed for somewhere between $250 – 300. They are my size, super comfortable and will look great with some rolled up boyfriend jeans this spring!

Did you have any luck thrifting this month? Share your scores!

I ended up stopping by three different thrift stores during the month of February. First up, a local Goodwill that is very hit or miss, but typically has great prices. Second, my favorite thrift spot (2nd Avenue) in a not-so-great area of town, and third the pricey thrift store (2nd Avenue) right in the middle of Columbia.

I ended up with six great items, but I wanted to remind you that I literally went through each entire store in order to find the *good* stuff. Well, good stuff for me… there were plenty more great items in sizes, styles or fits that didn’t work out for me.

Anyways, if you are thinking about trying out thrifting… don’t get discouraged when you see a bunch of crappy stuff. It takes time and patience to find things that you’ll end up loving!

{Pssst, you can read about my previous thrifting adventures here}

Let’s look at what I found this month:

Chaps jersey dress, size large, $8.99

I really like the dark purple Aubergine color of this dress and I picked up because I don’t have many solid dresses in my collection. It is currently sitting on my sewing table because I think I’m going to chop the length to knee-length and add a tie-belt with the extra fabric. While it is very pretty in its current design, hemming it shorter will make it more work appropriate for me. I can see me wearing this to work with a pretty embellished sweater and patterned flats.

RBX activewear top, size XL, $5.99

I love a good workout/laze around the house top. This one is oversized with a high-low hem and has thumb holes! I thought this would be good as a topper on the way to the gym, or for those chilly work-from-home days with leggings. I’ve already worn it twice and I’m sure I will get my money’s worth for the $6 I paid!

Silver Glitter Vans Sk8-Hi sneakers, size 7.5, $6.99

Yeah, they pretty much HAD me at glitter and high tops… the $7 price tag was just the cherry on top. I love fun shoes and these silver glitter Vans are perfect for me. Depending on the brand/style, I wear anywhere from an 8 to a 9… so I was bummed when I saw that these were a 7.5 I tried them on though and even with my warmer socks on they didn’t feel too tight. I figured I’d give them a try and googled some tips on how to stretch sneakers. Only the left one was a bit tight in the toe-box area, so I tried the ‘put four socks on your foot and shove it in there’ method.

I also aimed the hair dryer at it a few times throughout the day. Last, I stuck a shoe stretcher in there and left it over the weekend. The stretched just enough and are now perfect. These look so cute with leggings and a comfy top for a casual day.

UGG Emalie Waterproof Leather Wedge Bootie, size 8, $24.99

OH my gosh you guys, this is basically the score of the day! I went over to the more expensive thrift store and found these mint condition UGG wedges thrown in with a bunch of cheap plastic boots. I did a bunch of googling and this style was sold at Nordstrom in 2015 for $180 and a very similar pair is still being sold. This particular thrift store usually prices known brands high, so I wasn’t surprised about the mark-up. These are my size, comfortable and in perfect condition… so I was quite happy to get them for $25. I wore them to my sister’s bridal shower over the weekend for about 9 hours and they were actually pretty darn comfy!

Talbots cape $17.99

I was looking in the cardigans section for a striped sweater to replace one of my favorites that is starting to look kinda sad. I saw this striped cape and it is a brand-new with $89.50 tags still on it from Talbots. I wear my Causebox cape all the time and this will be a perfect spring option. You can see a dressing room pic of this cape and the next dress here (click the little arrow).

Loft dress, size large, $14.99

I love the colors in the pattern of this pretty Loft dress. It’s got elbow-length sleeves and a knee-length skirt, which is exactly what I like in a dress for work. I threw it in the wash immediately (washed in cold and then hung dry) so I could wear it to my sister’s bridal shower over the weekend (see it here).

Did you have any luck thrifting this month? Share your scores!

I had a hair appointment this month, so I decided to take the whole day off as a mental health day. Which, to me, means THRIFTING! I had a bunch of other errands to run too, so I was only able to stop at one thrift store and found three great items to bring home with me.

{Pssst, you can read about my previous thrifting adventures here}

Since this month’s ‘haul’ is so small, I decided to do a quick little styling photo for each item. Let me know if you like this in addition to the hanger pics and maybe I’ll start regularly including them in my monthly round-up post.

Charles Gray London swing coat, $14.99

The best I can determine; Charles Gray London is a brand that was sold at Nordstrom and now appears to be rebranded as Helene Berman London. I did find a few Charles Gray London coats on Poshmark and such. But when I searched Helene Berman London, a couple options came up at Anthropologie for $240ish. Of course. Because I am the girl who can spot an Anthro brand from a mile away at the thrift store!

Anywhoo… does it really matter? I mean LOOK at the cute pattern on this coat! I checked the inside seams and it seems brand new. There isn’t a spot on it and the front pockets were actually still sewed shut.

How I plan to wear it:

I’ll probably just throw this on as a topper in the spring when it gets a little too warm for my current coat. For my styling photo, I just stuck on a black t-shirt, dark jeans and red flats. This fun coat makes even a simple look like this one look awfully stylish!

Kirna Zabete for Target dress, $17.99

To be quite honest, I don’t normally go for those designer compilations with Target. I wanted to love the Toms x Target line and the Lily Pulitzer x Target lines, but the quality was pretty disappointing. I’m not familiar with Kirna Zabete at all, but apparently their collaboration hit Target’s shelves in 2012. I decided to try this on because I really like the pattern and thought the shirtdress design with a cinched waist could be flattering.

How I plan to wear it:

You can see the interesting sleeves in the first photo, but they can certainly be toned down a bit by adding a blazer to the look. I actually wore this outfit (with the blazer) to a work event last week and thought it was comfortable, yet professional looking. I don’t love the dress with bare legs, but think it looks cute with the black tights and booties… so this one is a winter winner for me.

Talbots sleeveless vest, $9.99

This one is totally outside my comfort zone. I don’t own any sleeveless sweaters, but I have admired them on other people. This pretty gray knit sweater has a flowy front and some handy pockets. For $10 it’s not an expensive way to decide if I like the trend.

How I plan to wear it:

I love this graphic t-shirt, but it is awfully thin so I usually get kind of chilly. I thought adding the sleeveless vest would be a nice way to keep a little warmer and also add some interest to the outfit. What do you think, is it working for me?

Did you have any luck thrifting this month? Share your scores!