coulda, woulda, shoulda

top-H&M; vest-vintage Danier; shorts-?? via Winners; boots-Spring; socks-H&M;clutch-vintage; watch-gifted; earrings-thrifted

I could've worn this today because the weather has been super cooperative and we've hit the 22 degrees mark a couple of times this week ( which I thoroughly enjoyed, of course) but...these pics are from about 2 weeks ago. I haven't quite stopped getting dressed since then; I've just had no time to photograph anything... including/especially outfits (which is where I need assistance since I can't take outfit photos by myself...tried, and failed miserably...twice, and then gave up...)

The thing about warm weather in the fall is that no one really dresses for it anymore... we all get into the whole fall-mood, and even when nature gives us a bone...we don't chase it. We wear jeans, boots, scarves, and sweaters, because the calender says it's October (and shows us pictures of orange and yellow leaves, cinnamon flavored drinks, etc.) I know I might regret not seizing the opportunity to wear sandals one more time in 2011, but....let's face it, I've rarely taken the time to reflect on an outfit and actually regret it.

Happy Weekend!:)

Style File: Cream

1.Lace Blazer via Free People; 2.Alfajores Cookies Bag via ModCloth; 3. Hutton Tubular Metal and Resin Choker; 4. Cascade-Front Knit Vest via Charlotte Russe ; 5. Matt & Nat Bone 'Varela' studded shoulder bag via Bluefly; 6.Cubes and Spikes Necklace via XXI; 7. Belle Noel by Kim Kardashian 14KT Gold Large Leather and Nugget Cuff in Cream via the Trend Boutique ; 8. Cafe Capri via J.Crew

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  Just some fun and pretty ways to add a touch of cream to your fall/winter wardrobe. I'm not one to gravitate towards the lighter tones through the 'rough months' (what I refer to as the interval November-April), so I thought I'd challenge my self to choose a few ways I could see myself wear cream; easy-peasy!
  
  

why I thrift shop: trends

I wouldn't say I'm a pro thrift shopper or anything of the sorts (I prefer to hold back on the titles ;)) but I do partake in second hand shopping a fair amount (fair is debatable, depending on who you ask...). In past posts I've shared some thrifting successes, and heck I've even bragged about them, but I've never really talked about why I choose to thrift shop, and figured there's no time like the present!

Thrifty Trends

I'm a student, and as such I do live on a budget. I wouldn't call it too restrictive, because I seldom feel 'poor', but I also have priorities when it comes to spending whatever cash I have. For example, I'd prefer to spend $50 on a great night out with friends, as opposed to on a piece of jewelry (which says A LOT, considering how much I love jewelry...).
When it comes to clothing, I'd always opt to pay more for a classic piece I'll wear again and again, instead of overspending on trendy items that may or may not make it till next season. So, bearing that in mind, thrifting just makes perfect sense when it comes to adding some trendy pieces to your closet, sans the guilt and crazy Visa statements.

Aaand, to demonstrate, here's an example of a thrift buy I scored some months ago vs. a strikingly similar item retailing for over $50.

bottom image via J.Crew

If I could offer a tiny bit of advice on thrift shopping for trendy bits, it would be to stay open minded! You can't go in a thrift store expecting an exact replica of a piece you saw on Vogue, but you can try and find something similar that projects the same trend or something you can DIY into that coveted trendy item.

Thoughts?

never say never

blazer-vintage; top-H&M; jeans-XXI; belt-Nine West; flats-Old Navy; clutch-vintage; ear rings-thrifted; scarf-Suzy Shier; watch-gifted

I think I shocked a few people (friends and family) with this top; let's just say this is the most leopard print I've ever worn. Lately I've just grown fonder of the beloved pattern, and I figured for 17 bucks, it can't hurt to try it out ;) I'm really starting to see why it's such a wardrobe staple, considering it can be a great neutral to remix and at the same time it can easily be a striking focal point.
It's been 2 weeks since I got it, and I've worn it 5 times already...I suppose I'm a convert now.

Oh, and here's a close up shot of the pretty, pretty earrings I snatched at a thrift store for only 50 cents!!!:) I know; I was quite excited myself! And the best part was that the 50 cents actually went towards a child that the thrift store sponsors in Central America; it's a win-win-win.

p.s.- first time wearing jeans in 3 months...I guess I'm kind of looking forward to fall, what with all the layering options and all (but really this is just my 'glass-half-full' response to what was the coldest day of this entire summer)

pink plaid and new rules

shirt-thrifted; skirt-Smart Set; flats-Payless; purse-vintage; bracelets-selfmade; watch-gifted; ring-XXI

Growing up I went through several 'style stages' (if you can call them that when you're 5 or 8 years old): I was into frills, pinks, and anything flower-y until about age 8, when I entered my 'tomboy' period where I pretty much lived in t-shirts and leggings (super classy, I know). I probably didn't wear or own anything pink for the next 6 years; then that awkward high school age kicked in where I had all sorts of rules as to what I swore I'd never wear (and yet I fashioned myself some random accessories that seemed very cool, such as a paper belt made out of comic strips....yeah...i've shared too much now!) most of which I've broken a million times since then.

The moral of this little story: if my 8 year old self saw me in this outfit, she wouldn't believe her eyes ;)...and that's probably a good thing.

pretty things

rings-XXI, vintage, and gifted; bracelets-self made using this tutorial; clutch-Calvin Klein; scarf-vintage

Sometimes when I spend pretty much the whole day in my comfy/but not really stylish 'lounge-wear' I like to put together things that look pretty; as sort of a way to get dressed up without actually doing it. It's a sham, really. ;)

Lately I've been kind of intrigued by the whole mixing metals trend. I'll admit, I'm very much new to the idea, and I generally admire people who can wear all sorts of metallics and look like it's no big deal. I know I'm suppose to think of metallics as neutrals, and neutrals can be mixed all kinds of ways, but I guess this is just taking me a little longer to get used to. So, on a quite Sunday afternoon, I stepped outside my comfort zone (a big achievement for a Sunday afternoon...considering it's usually when I take a leisurely nap) and mixed a bunch of my favorite metals with a few other accessories that seemingly fit the theme of 'pretty things' ;)

thoughts?

by accident

top-thrifted; skirt-thrifted; belt-vintage; necklace-vintage; shoes-thrifted

Every time I put on this skirt a whiff of wind pops out of nowhere and you get to witness facial expressions like the ones on the last photo... And, you'd think, that a skirt that long wouldn't reveal my undies to the world anytime some wind blew, but nope...it's as light as air, so it pretty much flies wherever (kind of glad we took these photo's on the balcony, as opposed to outside, because my awkwardness may scare some people ;))

p.s.- I did NOT mean for this outfit to be an entirely thrifted/vintage one, but hey, when it happened, I just rolled with it. ;)

maybe

shirt-thrifted; shorts-Suzy Shier; belt-vintage; purse-vintage; flats-Joe Fresh; bracelets-gifted & vintage

On my last trip to the thrift store I walked out with 4 silk garments, each in a bright, bold color. I didn't plan it, but that's all that stood out to me that day, and when I got to the checkout, the sales lady said "oh, I see you're adding some color to your wardrobe"... I chuckled and said "umm, yeah" realizing that she probably isn't familiar with my closet (unless she stops by here, lol) and it's bountiful color selection. I suppose next time I'll go in wearing my red pants, cobalt blue top and purple flats ;)

p.s.- perhaps I should've ironed this shirt... but it's been super-duper hot and I didn't feel like it was worth it, so I tucked it in, and pretended that's how it's supposed to be :)

no need to fear

blazer-ZARA; romper-Promod; sandals-Nine West; clutch-vintage; watch-gifted; necklace-XXI

It took me a little while to warm up to rompers, but their practicallity has officially won me over. I love a good summer breeze every now and then, and I also tend to dress as light as possible during the (awesome) summer months, BUT those two don't always mix well. There's garments in my closet that I constantly have to hold down as I walk down a breezy street, from fear that my undies will be exposed. That's why rompers are ideal summer wear: light and airy, and the shorts-like bottoms are perfect for those gorgeous summer breezes :)

All that being said, this color is really not my most favorite, but I stepped a little out of my comfort zone and chanced it. (it was also only available in this color and on sale...so really, there wasn't much of a debate)

B-day lunch date

dress-H&M; cardigan-H&M; sandals-XXI; clutch-thrifted; watch-gifted belt-H&M

I wasn't 100% sure about this outfit as I put it together, and my bf even cracked a few jokes about me checking it by sitting down and stuff, but all in all, it was a great choice for the perfect Birthday lunch date :) I wish I had taken pictures of the food we had too, because it was absolutely amazing (but then again, I wouldn't want to make you all drool ;PP) I will say this, a sweet potato/coconut with citrus and pineapple soup is probably the most genius combination of ingredients I've tasted!

p.s.- also, 2nd time we've taken pictures outdoors, and this time in a residential area! Really stepping things up, huh?! (I will admit I was sort of tense that someone would come out of their homes and ask us what we're doing...because explaining outfit shots is no easy task) We did get a few pass by-ers give us confused looks, but that's all part of the fun, right? ;)

technical difficulties...

blazer-H&M; top-Joe Fresh; pants- Pieces; sandals-Nine West; clutch-vintage; watch-

I'm not gonna lie, I'm not the most tech savvy girl you'll meet. In fact, I kind of avoided using a computer until my teens, because I much preferred doing other things. The thing is, I can't deny all the pros for the technological advancements we've all grown accustomed to, but I will say this: sometimes, SOMETIMES, technological advancements can make you feel like a caveman/woman!

Take for instance last week, when in my attempt to change the banner of this blog I proceeded to mess it all up and then spent hours trying to figure out a solution, without any success. In the end, I gave up, slept on it, didn't even think about it till about an hour ago, and finally realized the simplest solution. I'm still not a 100% pleased with the turn out, but it'll do, until my html knowledge improves (or until I get some).

My technical difficulties did not end there though...oh no; my lovely (and very tech-savvy) boyfriend decided that shooting raw files is absolutely amazing, and he got some new program to edit them with, and all these fancy-shmancy shananigans I knew nothing about. Of course, that resulted in me spending nearly an hour on editing the 4 pictures you see above (in comparison, on Photoshop it usually takes me 10min, max!) and in the end, Blogger took 40 minutes (FORTY!) to upload them...

If I wasn't an incredibly calm person, I'd probably have given up and spared you all this little rant...but oh well, at least you've got 4 pictures to look at ;)

Happy Sunday!

enough

There's things I think I can't ever have enough of; summer, milk chocolate, and blazers are all currently on that list. To be completely honest, I probably wouldn't have bought this blazer if it didn't have the super awesome lining which you can see on the rolled up sleeves. Some would argue if that is a good enough reason for a purchase; but I've got no doubts.

blazer-?? via Winners
top-H&M
pants-H&M
flats-Old Navy
watch-gifted

for realz

Going thrifting doesn't always end successfully; a well known fact to many, I'm sure! But, sometimes, SOMETIMES, you luck out so awesomely that it makes up for all the times you've browsed and browsed and strikes out completely. These printed Nine West heels were a total score; so much so, that I had to pinch myself to make sure they're really an 8.5!

dress-H&M

blazer-Jacob

belt-vintage

bag-Aldo

shoes-Nine West thrifted

scarf-gift