My Closet - Part One

I've been doing The Great Fall Clean Out for about a week now. It started when I was packing for the Beach Trip That Got Postponed and continued through many dark and powerless hours when little miss Irene decided to drop by over the weekend. I figured, as much as I love summer and never want to see it leave, I may as well get used to the idea that Fall is a-comin' and take the time to sort through my closet.

I'm doing this in two parts because I want you to see my closet as it is now (clean) and then I'll show you some of the things I'm parting with, which are going to the swap party that's in the works.

Note: we should begin with the back story of my closet:

My husband, the lovely O, has a weird and crazy shift schedule at work. Sometimes he gets up at the crack of dawn, other times he gets home around the crack of dawn. My work schedule is routine: a regular old desk job that happens during daylight hours. That being said, I don't want to be woken up in the middle of the night. So one of the spare bedrooms in our home has become a giant walk-in for my husband's clothing so that he can turn lights on and get dressed to his heart's content WITHOUT waking me up. I originally thought it was pure craziness that HE should have what amounts to a small living space full of clothing, etc. But it has worked out much better in the long run because I get our whole bedroom and because of that, it stays much cleaner and more organized than his space does.

Okay, so what we did in our room was take an entire wall, plus some, and hang shelving and rods for my clothes, then curtain it off. I have a small dresser for pjs, t-shirts, tanks, lingerie and a drawer full of socks, tights, bathing suits and the like. I also use baskets for my underoos. This area is curtained off and I have two hanging shoe racks (both have shoes, but one also holds sunglasses, special occasion purses and extra wallets) plus a shoe rack on the floor for the pairs I wear most often. I do switch out my shoes seasonally, so the rack will display whatever is most useful for the weather right now.

I use the top shelves for tennis shoes that hardly ever get worn, and pants that are not denim, as well as shorts, denim mini skirts, capris and the like. Structured bags are up there too.

Across the room is where the original closet was. We took the old accordian-style doors down, removed the tracks in the floor and ceiling and hung curtains to match the other side (which coordinate with my window curtains). My jewelry chest in there, as well as a huge cube organizer from Ikea that holds sweaters, hats, scarves, more bags, belts, perfume and body spray, etc.

I have an amazing feathered headpiece that a friend of mine made me - we go to the local Renaissance Festival every year and I wear that along with my corset to get into character, lol. I also have a Carnivale mask that I bought when I was in Italy last year on display, along with a few black and white photos I took while there. There's also artwork that I bought during the same trip.

It's not quite complete; I'd like to hang some more artwork and I need to organize my hanging clothes, but for now it's functional and I can see just about everything. Having space for everything is important and I'm working with a limited area so I've definitely been purging a lot.

More to come, kids! Part Two will go up soon!

Beach Threads

Due to playing the packing game, I didn't take photos of everything I'm hauling down to the beach this weekend, but most of the big stuff is here.

*NY&Co wedges, knot heels from Target, Jessica Simpson wedges. ($6/ hand-me-downs/$5).

*Olive green Loft skirt, Charlotte Russe knit sweater, aqua cardi from Nordstrom, pink leopard-print bathing suit cover up. ($5.75/$4.75/$13/$15 @ Walmart).

*Deep teal Banana Republic 3/4-length button down, Apt. 9 long-sleeved ruffle blouse, NY&Co blue and white striped cap-sleeve button down. ($2.50/$4.75/$7).

*Indigo empire-waist mini dress (no label), white eyelet dress, blue paisley French Connection dress. ($3.38/$10/$3.38).

*Nine West canvas tote, black leather crossbody minibag, hot pink clutch. ($6.20/$10/$2).

*Belts: polka dot skinny (came with a sweater years ago), arrowhead wide stretch ($2), black lattice ($12 @ NY&Co several seasons ago), striped wide stretch ($5 F21).

I have cami-style tank tops in the same colors as the print on the tote, plus one in aqua, as well as navy blue leggings, a black halter top and my bathing suits going with me. I'm sticking with a mostly natural palette, with a bit of black and white thrown in for good measure. And as you can tell, I wear a lot of blue. I love the way blues blend together: navy and aqua, powder and indigo. I think the hot pink and bits of olive, purple, coral and mustard will stand out quite nicely against all the blue.

I'm excited, but I've got to finish figuring out how to get it all in my suitcase. Good times!

Please Allow Me To Amend My Previous Post

The beach trip that Hurricane Irene postponed is on for this weekend. Therefore I'm playing the packing game again - you know the one: pack, think, unpack, repack. Hope for the best. I checked the weather for Labor Day weekend at the beach and it's gonna start out nice and then turn into fall real quick, perhaps with a bit of precipitation thrown into the mix. Which means I have to pretty much pack for all four seasons.

I started the packing game last night. Had my head full of ideas about what I wanted to wear and how all those boardwalk/ice cream fantasies would go. So I tried things on and eliminated A LOT. Which was a super bummer because my head thought all those things would be cute. My head was wrong.

I actually packed my bag to semi-completeness. (Once the game is officially over, I'll post a picture of what I decided on). Most of my recent buys are rolled or folded in my suitcase awaiting my final verdict. I'll give you the breakdown though:

2 skirts (1 A-line, 1 mini) - both thrifted
3 dresses (2 casual, 1 for going out) - 2 thrifted
2 jeans (1 skinny, 1 jegging) - those are NY&Co
Several tanks in lots of colors - F21
3 button-downs, varying sleeve lengths - 2 thrifted
1 tunic - got it at Ross
1 cozy lightweight knit sweater - thrifted
1 cardi, 1 pair of leggings, 1 halter - all bought new
2 wedges - 1 thrifted
1 pair of heels - hand-me-downs
1 tote bag - thrifted
1 crossbody bag - bought new
1 clutch - thrifted
belts - some thrifted
jewelry, sun hat, fedora, bathing suit.

BTW, I'm only going for three nights. But I'm like the Boy Scouts. Prepared. And besides, a girl's gotta have options, right? Right.

Hurricanes, Thrift Trips, and Power Outages

The lovely Irene passed by the Baltimore area this weekend, making a fuss all Saturday afternoon and evening and through until Sunday morning. She was not as messy as we all thought she'd be, but the hubs and I did lose power for about 24 hours and I've come to realize that I'm an okay camper - when I'm prepared for the trip - but I'd have been a terrible pioneer. At least campgrounds have hottish water. This has been a ponytail weekend as the blow dryer was out of commission and the showers were so quick (and dark!) that I barely had time to rinse the shampoo out.

But alas! We survived. I did go shopping Saturday morning and the little sister-in-law did go with me! Hooray for finally making it to Goodwill together! She got some amazing pieces - working her way into mall brands that are above her allowance grade: an adorable top from The Limited, a super sweet t-shirt from New York & Company, a great pinstriped vest (Charlotte Russe) and this amazing bright teal suede skirt which she loves but will be learning how to get creative with. I've already convinced her to go subtle on top (but quirky - tiny polka dots, perhaps?) and pair it with a killer bag or bright pair of shoes. She's only 15 so her shoe collection is still forming, but we're working on it :o).

I brought home a fabulous polka dotted ruffle blouse, a j. crew skirt, a loft skirt, a cozy sweater and a creamy lightweight swing jacket that came from Chicos. I've never worn any of their clothing before and was unsure of the sizing but this is roomy enough for a sweater underneath when the weather starts to turn. I also snagged a really pretty pair of Jessica Simpson wedges, a cute pair of chunky pumps for work days, a hot pink clutch, a bag the color of raspberry puree and a cool canvas tote with a pretty floral print. I'll get photos taken tonight hopefully. The sweater and blouse are both handwash items, which I cleaned while the power was out (laundering by candlelight is quite the experience) but they're not quite dry yet.

Speaking of the power being out, I got bored between the hours of 10 PM and 12 AM Saturday and lit some candles in my room in order to reorganize my closet and accessory wall. I made a quick list of supplies I need to get to finish putting things in order, but for the time being it looks pretty good. I went through an entire drawer of jeans that I haven't worn in forever - years, for some of them. I have a pile of jeans that are pretty much all my go-to/everyday pairs and then there was this drawer of jeans I've worn over the years but stopped wearing for one reason or another. There were maybe 8 pairs to go through; I kept 2. The other six went into a bag for the Swap Party I'll be hosting this fall. I also let go of two dresses and another pair of heels that I just do not see myself wearing.

I grabbed an old wine rack that we retired after buying our new combination wine rack/buffet for my scarves. I rolled all my pashminas and stacked them like wine bottles. My bags and purses have been organized according to type and my hats have a home. I even got some photos framed and the carnivale mask I bought in Italy is prominantly displayed next to photos of me and my love. I have one more drawer and shelf that just needs to be neatly organized and I'm totally finished. I'll try to snap a few pics of all that as well.

Alrighty, well the power is back and I've got laundry to do so I'm off. Happy Monday, y'all.

Pesky Irene!!

See that? See all that nonsense up in those photos? That nonsense is a little lady named Irene and she's wreaking HAVOC! My beach trip this weekend has been cancelled ::sad face:: and I'm not very happy. Instead I'll be replacing the batteries in my flashlight, stocking up on TP and cleaning my deck off of all loose or lightweight things.

I am still going shopping on Saturday. Come hell or high water ... which it very well may.

In other news, I've got a dress and pair of leggings in the washing machine being dyed. They're both black but soooo faded. So I thought I'd bring 'em back to life with some black dye. Love that.

Well, stay dry this weekend East Coasters. I'll be battening down the hatches!

Earthquakes and Irene

A 5.9 earthquake rattled all of us here on the East Coast yesterday, stretching as far as North Carolina to Toronto to Chicago. It was a tad unsettling as we ECers don't face much in the way of natural disasters and such. In the Baltimore area we see the occasional small tornado or heavy rain from a hurricane down south. So this was sort of a big deal.

I admit I was a tad freaked out. It took me a second to figure out what was going on but when my brain finally processed that the giant church I was in was actually MOVING I definitely had a slight moment of panic. I remember thinking, "these may have been the wrong shoes to wear today." Cute though my purple wedges were.

In addition to the earth moving under my feet yesterday, I checked on the weather for my beach trip this weekend and a little storm named Irene is making her way up the East Coast, scheduled to hit the Northeast on Sunday. She'll be a Category 2 by then, only throwing hundred mile an hour winds at us, but still. It puts a damper on my wardrobe. And my time in the sun. Since there won't be any. ::sigh::

I started packing this morning, actually, so I can figure out what I still need to wash, etc. I wanted to take flowy skirts and pretty dresses since really, there's only two more weekends left of traditional summer. I had these fantastic little fantasies of walking the boardwalk, ice cream in hand, in my sweet white eyelet dress all fancied up with wedges and a cute belt. I pictured playing mini golf in a fabulous mix of stripes and florals.

But no. I'll be in jeans and a hoodie all weekend since dashing to and fro in the pouring down rain is what's presently on the agenda.

Anyone ever notice how beach towns have zero indoor activities for rainy days? I may have to pack movies and plan to bake something.

Nothing I can do about hurricane season so I'll make the best of it and take photos of all the palm trees bent over in the wind.

Thrifty Picks Pix!

Here's a taste of the thrift finds I've been telling you all about. I apologize for my failure to deliver photos to you before this. I'm going to find someone or something else to blame my procrastination on ... tomorrow.

From the top!

THE cutest little black velvet boot-ays in the universe. Complete with velvet flower.

Wedges.

Anne Klein croc pumps, Isaac Mizrahi croc slingbacks, supercute heeled loafers.

Express pants, no-name mini dress (has a sweet vintage-y look and I love the pinstripes), Banana Republic top.

Banana Republic button-down, cute top that ties in back, H&M wrap blouse.

No-name blue, no-name empire waist and Nine West corset bodice dress. How amazing are those colors!

No-name swirly skirt that I canNOT wait to wear with those black booties!!

Outfit of the Day!

This is my progressive outfit. I started the day in the dress, with belt, wedges and bracelet. After wandering around Nordstrom Rack this afternoon I found this cardigan, marked down to less than $13. The mall was cold. I put on the cardigan. Look complete! I carried a black crossbody bag, that's actually kinda big, but I tend to lug quite a bit of stuff around so it's works.

Also, I really love dressing completely in one color family with a wildcard color tossed in there. All the shades of blue and teal and aqua made me really happy and I am in love with these mustard wedges.

Dress: French Connection, thrifted ($3.38!!!)

Cardi: Nordstrom Rack ($13)

Wedges: New York & Co ($6)

Bracelet: got it at the beach ($10)

Belt: belonged to my grandma! (free)

On The Hunt

Today I'm joining my bestest friends on a little shopping adventure (this will be the third trip out this week) to continue looking for accessories that said bestest needs for an upcoming wedding. We went out last night to search and I returned that too-big romper. So now I have a little store credit gift card in my wallet crying to be used up. Methinks I shall gladly oblige the little bugger.

I'll be taking photos today - of my thrifted items and maybe of some cute things we run into today. If all goes well, I'll have 'em up this weekend.

I'm off to get in a quick workout and cuppa joe. Enjoy your Saturday!

Wouldn't You Know It

I had an hour or so last night of spare time and decided to finally get some good shots of my thrifty threads now that everything is back from being altered, dry cleaned, etc. I was excited. I created a backdrop (my closet is actually a whole wall in my bedroom that is "walled off" with deep red curtains), started pulling little numbers out of their warm and cozy places on the hanging bar and got my camera out of my purse (I just use a little run of the mill digital, but it gets the job done).

I hang a swirly skirt.

I adjust the curtain/backdrop.

I turn on the camera and snap! A photo is born.

I remove swirly skirt and reach for a dress.

I adjust the curtain/backdrop.

I point and get ready to click ...

. . .

Aaaaand my battery is dead!

::shakes head::

It's charging now. Been charging that bad boy all night. There will be no dead batteries for what is sure to be the photo shoot of the weekend once I get everything all lined up and pretty again.

On another, less action-packed note, I was killing time in the mall yesterday, and I wandered myself into Forever 21. I got a belt that I adore - and am already imagining with that swirly skirt, a swishy red skirt that hits about mid-thigh, a cotton romper that I'm returning since it's a tad large on top, and a pair of navy leggings to go under my French Connection dress come autumn. Nothing like being able to transition from one season to the next, eh? I bought everything on sale (only spent myself twenty-nine precious dollars) and will be returning the romper (but probably buying a straw fedora. Or a floppy hat. We'll see).

I've got another big thrift trip planned for next weekend (hittin' the half off sale) and the sister in law is actually going this time. It's gonna be a quick trip though since we're heading to the beach right after for a few days. Kinda can't wait for that!

Hi. I'm Sarah And It's Been 11 Days Since My Last Post

I have been sort of uber-busy the last week and a half so I apologize for the lack of posts. I had an out of town wedding last weekend (which required me to do ALL the laundry in the house so I had something to pack. And then I packed, decided I didn't like what I packed and then re-packed. It was a mess). Then I got home and the A/C wasn't working - still isn't - so I feel like doing a whole lot of nothing when it's 90 degrees in the house. On top of all that, I got a Kindle recently (I know, I've gone to the darkside, but it's for a legit reason) and I've been a tad obsessed with it. You know how it goes.

So anyway, I felt the need to post today 1. to catch up, and 2. because I need to rant for just a sec. See, I went shopping with my best friend on Monday - the hubs went too, it was an adventure - and we went to the mall. My bestie is going to a wedding in a couple of weeks and needed shoes and jewelry to go with the bangin' dress she's wearing so we were on a mission. I did manage to only spend a total of $12 on two pairs of wedges at New York & Co., which is a massive accomplishment for me. I have a weakness for shoes. (As a PS to that statement, I definitely found a pair of oxfords that I LOVE for fall, and have a discount coupon to apply them to - score! - and also found the most amazing platform heels that are like jewelry for my feet but full price is a bit steep. However, we're going on vacation in a few months, to a tropical locale and I might just splurge on these bad boys because, OMG are they amazing.)

But I digress. The point of all of this is that I discovered that since I started thrifting I suddenly have a horrible case of sticker shock. And this is in no way a good thing since my local mall just recently opened a Francesca's, which is one of my favorites. But the fact that I managed to find a French Connection dress on my last *major* thrifting trip for a whopping $3.38 ... well, now I have a hard time shelling out $40 for that polyester blend number from Wet Seal. Do you see my dilemma?

My bestie came back to my place after our shopping excursion to show me the dress and put the whole outfit together in a little mini fashion show. While we were hanging out near my closet I showed her a few of my thrift finds - some of which I can't wait to wear this fall, and others that I have massive plans for remixing - and it really hit home the idea that I could feasibly, possibly, potentially give up retail shopping pretty much for good. (This would be difficult, but a challenge worth tackling). She seemed impressed with my finds and even went so far as to ask what size the cute velvet booties were. Nah uh, sister. Ain't happenin'.

So here I am ... loving so many of the things I saw in the store windows, but having a hard time opening the wallet for any of it. Except the shoes maybe ;o). And my fall wish list definitely has things on it I'll be searching for in the thrift stores, but some of it I think I may need to just buy new. Like the flat brown boots I want. And the leopard print trench.

What do you think? Do you get sticker shock after thrifting? Or are you a retail shopper all the way?

Fall Wish List

Here's what I'm in the market for:

Flat brown boots - preferably in a cognac shade and knee-high.

Colored tights - lots of colors.

Cardigans in all styles

Colored bottoms - denim? cords?

A leopard print belt

Chunky brown wedges or sandals

A brown leather jacket

A brown cross-body bag - messenger style maybe?

More skirts!!

What's on your wishlist??

Photos!

Okay, here are some pics of things I've styled lately.

The top picture (excuse the fact that I cropped the people around me out of it) was from a night out with friends. I wore an empire-waist top with little cap sleeves that tied behind me (I think I got it at Ross), with wool shorts (no clue where they're from), a blazer that used to belong to a suit I got at JC Penny about 8 years ago and Steve Madden thigh high boots (my valentine's day gift this year).

The bottom photo is a day at work. Pencil skirt and button-down are from New York & Company, the shoes are from a Boscov's closing sale, the belt is vintage - made by my grandmother.

I'll put more up later :o)

I Am 0% Good At Blogging!

For the life of me, I cannot get it together! I need to take photos of my thrifty things and probably show you what they look like on. But because I suck at this you're gonna have to keep waiting. I actually have four things out getting altered - all of which are awesome and share-worthy, but I really need to get on the ball.

In addition to that I spied a blogger (forgive me, I don't remember who it was) who was sporting a skirt as a dress and now I have been obSESSED with trying this. I'm going to the beach next weekend with some lovelies so I may have to pack my sweet little eyelet skirt and a pair of darling wedges to stroll the boardwalk in. I have to belt it to give it any kind of waist - my embroidered brown leather one looks kinda country so I may go with a thick corset belt - but it's insane how cute the whole thing looks when I'm playing dress up in my closet. I really hope it transitions to "the real world."

This weekend has been ever-so lazy. (Obviously, since there are still no photos to show you). I did manage to spend an unfortunate amount of money at the grocery store today - but that's legit since I gotsta eat. And I'm holding off on more shopping (gasp) until the end of the month because I'm planning to purchase a Kindle in the very near future. (This is painful for me to admit, since I am a lover of books and the smell of bookstores, but we're going on vacation in the fall and there is a weight limit to what I can carry on the plane so an entire tote bag of books is a no-no, thus making the Kindle one of those things that just makes sense. Please, don't judge me).

Alright, I'm going to go through my photos and try to find SOMETHING to show you ...

Apparently I'm A Pathological Liar ...

as well as an addict and a hoarder. My character traits just gleam, don't they?

I went to the thrift store on my lunch break today (that would be the addiction - it's only been 4 days since my last trip. And really only 1 if you count the fact that I went with my husband yesterday. Not getting anything made me sad so ...).

Again, I didn't take my sister-in-law (there's the liar. I'm really bad at this, but in my defense I was working so that completely justifies it. Right?).

And I bought 4 pairs of pants that I don't need to go with all my other clothes, which I'm supposed to be purging but am putting off in the hopes that I just forget about it all together (aaand there's the hoarder)!

It saddens me that I'm such a low-life, but at least my clothes are cute. I did set aside some things over the weekend to put in my "to be donated" bag, but really they're just sort of in that weird out-of-sight-out-of-mind place which means they most likely will get "found" again in a few months and then get thrown right back into rotation. And, for what it's worth, not only did I buy my SIL those wedges and that skirt the other day, I actually GAVE them to her and didn't keep them for myself, which I briefly considered (wow, I'm mean!), but I also gave her a second pair of shoes from my own collection that she'd worn during an overnight stay and loved.

I've actually given her several pairs of shoes that have come to me through another wonderful friend who showers me with all of her unwanted clothes and shoes but no longer or have never fit me. My policy is this: If I can find a home for a piece of clothing I will. If not, I donate it. Seeing as I buy donated clothing I like to contribute to the cycle of giving clothes to those that need them. But if I personally know someone who will appreciate my things, they get first dibs. That's where the little sister come in.

On another note about sharing - I'm interested in being part of a clothing swap. Has anyone done this? My thought is to host one, invite my friends to bring gently used clothes and shoes and accessories and set up some spaces for trying on, etc. I haven't really read up on how this is done but I'm considering rules: you can only participate in the receiving if you bring something to swap. Swaps must be equal unless agreed upon by the parties involved (like, bottom for bottom, top for top, etc.) and whatever is left must be donated to a local charity/thrift store/shelter.

Thoughts? Ideas? Suggestions?

PS. I know I still need to post pics. A few items are being altered, and a few things are being washed. I'll try to find a cute photo of something else to post in the meantime, mmkay?

I'm Pretty Sure I Saved 95% ... At Least, In Girl Math I Did.

I went thrifting with some girlfriends over the weekend. Boy, did we make out like BANDITS! We hit a thrift store in a higher tax bracket hoping to score some really great brands and managed to do just that - all while being part of a 50% off all apparel sale! WOO HOO!

Some of my finds, which I'll try to take pics of and post sort of soon, were:
*A beautiful, floral / impressionist painting / 50's housewife dress by Nine West that was a whopping $3.38.
*The cutest black velvet ankle boots with this super cute velvet flower thing going on on the side.
*A French Connection dress that is going to end up being my ultimate go-to summer dress; I can see it now.
*This crazy teal ankle length skirt. It's sort of chiffon-y with really loose pleating that hits at my natural waist and looks AMAZING with those ankle boots.

I did a little research on similar items from the brands I bought and when I did the math on what I spent versus what I would have paid retail ... OMG. I do believe I'll be hitting the 50% off thrift sale from now on, thankyouverymuch.

I even managed to be minorly selfless and buy a skirt that was just a tad too small and a pair of wedges that pinch the very edge of my pinkie toes (really, I could suffer through if I had to) with plans to give them to my sister in law who is officially at that age where clothes are not just necessary but actually really fun. And her love of shoes makes me proud. A girl after my very own heart, she is. So I got a brilliant amount of clothes for me - much of which will transition nicely into fall - AND still managed to think of others. My awesomeness knows no bounds.

By the way, the reason I purchased the skirt and wedges for my SIL is because the last time I did a thrift run I told her about it and she asked to go 'the next time.' I agreed and then made plans without her. Which I felt bad about. *sad face* So I'm trying to buy back her love and affection by plying her with gifts. And I'll definitely take her next time. Hopefully.

Anyway. I'll put some photos up soon - I might be wearing my finds, I might just show you how nicely they all sit on their hangers. Who knows? But at some point, I'll share. Promise.