Thrifted Thursday- A"dress"ing the Issue

Good morning! Time for Thrifted Thursday! Hooray!! :)

Today, I don't have a lot of "tips" really, but I do want to show you a dress that I found while M was here for a visit. I was saving it for cooler weather, and last night ended up being a little cool, so I thought it was perfect! 

When I found this dress at Savers, it was marked $8, BUT it had a 1/2 tag on it!! Woot woot! When I tried it on, M told me I should wear it with turquoise (she's rather bossy... kidding!), so I took her suggestion when I wore it to church. This dress is very comfy, and the kind of material that I won't have to iron. Yay! And I love the ruffle detail on the shoulders. I'm so glad M convinced me to get this dress!

I'm planning on going to some thrift stores on the other side of town soon, so I'll let you know if I find anything! :)

Happy thrifting!

                                                                                                                            -J

Givin You the Boot(s)

I know I've been talking about it a lot lately, but fall really is my favorite season! I'm making myself wait until October 1st (well, that's the plan anyway) to get out all of the fall decorations, but I have been able to sneak in some boots and cardigans... and even my denim jacket! 

For today's post, I thought I'd share some boots that I think are perfect for fall with you. I tried to find affordable ones, so all of these are under $50. Enjoy!

Source: jessicacaudill.polyvore.com via Jessica on Pinterest

Doesn't that make you want to run out and jump in a pile of leaves? I'm not sure that's going to be happening much here in El Paso, but still... ;)

Clockwise from the upper left hand corner- *The red boots are from My Hot Shoes and are $34.99- can you believe it? *The brown cowboy style boot  is the Trisha boot from Delia's and sell for $42.50. *For some reason, I really really love the look of the knitted cover on the next boot- you can find it at J C Penney for $50. *The next boots are from Boohoo and are $40- they actually have a really cute cuff on the top that I now see I cut off when I was arranging this. *The black boots are the Mackenzie boots from Alloy, are on sale for $24.99 right now, and also come in brown and chestnut. *The ruffly lace up boot is from Charlotte Russe and is $38.50- I think this boot has a cool old-fashioned-y vibe. *Last, but not least, the black strappy boot is the Portia boot, also from Delia's, is $42.50, and also comes in taupe and cognac.

Hmmm... I wonder how many pairs of these boots I can get away with buying... ;) 

                                                                                                       -J

Recipe Party

Who: J

When: 9/14/12

Where: Pinterest recipe party at a friend's house

What: *Sweater- Target *Top- Target *Skirt- thrifted *Scarf- made by me *Boots- Ariat

First off, let me just say that I know that these pictures are not some of the best ones I've posted. I really need to learn to wear my sunglasses when it's even a little sunny outside. If I have to squint even a little, you seriously can't see my eyes at all. So, that's what I blame my weird faces on in this post!

Now that that's out of the way.... I'm so excited that fall is starting to show itself around here! Last week, it was super nice every day- we didn't even have to turn our air on several days.  I've also been able to break out some boots and cardigans. Yay!

Last week, I went to a Pinterest recipe party at a friend's house. The way it worked was that all of us were supposed to find a recipe on Pinterest that we've been wanting to try and bring it to the party. It was a lot of fun and I got to try a lot of different new dishes. Yum! I made this sweet potato souffle from Paula Deen (love her!). It turned out AMAZING- so delicious! I'm thinking sweet potatoes shouldn't be just for Thanksgiving anymore! ;) 

Speaking of Pinterest, I also found the idea for this scarf on Pinterest as well. I ended up making two... so far! I might have to make even more in the future... If you want to see what other fabulous things I find on Pinterest, make sure to check my boards out!

Thrifted Thursday- Fall Skirt

It's Thursday again! For this Thrifted Thursday, I don't really have any tips, per se, but I did want to share a find that I'm really excited about!

I haven't actually been thrifting for clothes in a few weeks, so I decided to run by Goodwill really quickly yesterday. I ended up spending about an hour in there- phew! But, I did find an orange and navy striped polo for N (we're HUGE Bears fans in this house!) and an awesome chocolate brown corduroy skirt from Croft & Barrow (which I know is a Kohl's brand, thanks to my training from M). Another tip I remembered from M was to TRY STUFF ON, so I waited in line to try on the skirt, and lo and behold- it fit! Yay!! So, I have myself a new fall skirt... that I wore last night... after I washed it!... even though it's not technically fall... but it's always cold in church... which is my excuse... ;)

I hope everyone is having a great time getting ready for fall- putting up harvest decorations, eating lots of pumpkin stuff, etc... ;)

Happy thrifting!

                                                                                                               -J

Rocky Mountain High

Who: M

When: 8/20/12

Where: Hanging out with my sister and brother-in-law, visiting neat little towns in CO, dinner with old friends

What: *Navy skirt-NY&C, thrifted $4 *White shirt-Old Navy *Shoes-thrifted *Necklace-Premier Jewelry *Earrings-gift

So this was one of those bitter-sweet days! It was the last day of my visit with my sister in Colorado. I was really kinda sad because I am pretty close to my sister, but at the same time, I was kinda excited because I was headed home. The best part is my sis will be here in a few weeks to celebrate my baby brother's wedding! So at any rate, it was a fun day! We all slept in, some of us longer than others... Then we headed up to Estes Park, which is like a little touristy town in the mountains of CO. I added a pic of me on a bridge, even though you really cannot see ME, but the picture shows some of the beauty surrounding me. Then it was off to an old family friend's house for dinner. Once again tucked into the mountains of Colorado, we enjoyed a nice meal and reminisced of days gone by :).


Oh, almost forget about my outfit! Which I must say, I loved! On my recent visit with J, she introduced me to the maxi skirt! I am in love!! This skirt was soooo comfortable! I am so looking for more of these! That about sums it up:)

Fiddlesticks!

Who: J

When: 9/10/12

Where: Ladies' fellowship at church

What: *Brown cardi- thrifted *Green tee- Old Navy *Plaid skirt- Cato's *Shoes- Walmart in IN *Earrings- hmmm... I can't remember... maybe Beall's Outlet? *Scarf- borrowed from N- it's his Army scarf... shhhh! Don't tell! ;)

Ok, so does anyone else have those days where they fiddle with every element of their outfits endlessly and still don't get it how they want? That's what happened to me with this outfit... This was like the 4th combination of top, skirt, sweater, scarf, and jewelry I tried. And I'm still not sure I liked it... grrr! I'm not just saying that in hopes that someone will comment and say "oh, it looks good"... I really ended up not being crazy about the results. But, I decided to still post it to show that everyone has those times when things don't work out exactly how they want them to... ;)

Over at Everybody Everwear, they're sporting back to school styles todays, and I wanted to participate, but I was pretty stumped. I finally decided, since I used to teach, to go for a "schoolmarm" look... hence the long plaid skirt and messy bun... and glasses (which I do actually need)... and fall colors... maybe I should have held an apple ;). Anyway, this is my version of a back to school outfit!

P.S. Head on over to check out what everybody else is wearing!

Thrifted Thursday- A Few of My Favorite Stores

Hello! Welcome to another Thrifted Thursday! I just realized that I don't have any pictures for you today... hmmm... maybe I need to make the rounds of some thrift stores in the near future!

In lieu of pictures, today, I wanted to share some of favorite stores with you:

*Goodwill- Since moving here to El Paso, I've come to LOVE Goodwill! And lucky me, there's one about 2 blocks from my house!! 
Some things to remember when shopping at Goodwill:
1. Clothing is organized by color, not size... which is nice if you're looking for a particular item (like a navy top), but not so nice if you have only a short amount of time and just want to look for your own size.
2. Every week, there's a certain color of tag that is 1/2 off. Always check when you come in what color that is- I've based several decisions about whether to buy something on if it was half off or not (I know, I know, I'm a cheapskate).
3. At least here in El Paso, Tuesday is military discount day!!! I don't know if that applies to anyone else reading this, but I can get an extra 15% off of regularly priced items on Tuesdays. Yay!
4. I've noticed that Target donates a lot of their "surplus" stuff to Goodwill, so sometimes you can find brand new Target brands at Goodwill for WAY less!
For a location near you, check out the Goodwill website.
Best finds- oh my goodness, I have found a TON of stuff at Goodwill... I guess the things that cmoe to mind are some Ralph Lauren leather pumps for $4 and a Kathy Van Zeeland purse for $2.

*Savers
1. Clothing is organized by size, which makes shopping a little faster.
2. Savers also has 1/2 off colored tags and military discounts (Wednesday).
3. Savers stores are usually a little more well organized, and have a larger inventory (at least that's what I've found here in El Paso).
4. The prices differ from item to item (instead of "all shirts are $4.75," there's a range depending on brand and condition), and I've found that sometimes, prices are a little high. For instance, at a Savers I went to recently, I found several items of clothing from Target that were over $10 a piece, but a Diane Von Furstenburg wrap dress for $6. So you just have to keep an eye out for good deals and pass on things that might not be a bargain.
5. The Savers here in El Paso have racks of jewelry at pretty good prices- I love combing through their selection for great finds!
6. If you take a bag of clothes with you to donate, you get a coupon for 20% off at that store! When M was here visiting, I had a couple of bags that I needed to take, so I took one and she took one, and we both got coupons. If you're going to donate something anyway, it's nice to get a little something in return. :)
Find out more about Savers here.
Best finds: A J. Crew leather jacket for N for $12.50 and a Jessica London dress for $3 (which I haven't worn yet because it's a "fall" dress, but when I do, I'll share pictures!).

*Consignment stores
When we lived in Sierra Vista, I loved Twice as Nice, and here in El Paso, I like Designer's Encore. 
1. These stores tend to be a little more "picky" in what they buy, so you're getting nicer things, but you'll also pay slightly higher prices. This takes away some of the "excitement" of a treasure hunt, but you can still be thrilled that you're getting great stuff for WAY less than you'd pay at a regular store.
2. You can take clothes in to sell and make a little money or get store credit. Twice as Nice buys your clothes outright, while Designer's Encore sells them and gives you a part of the selling price.
Best finds: Old Navy dress from Twice as Nice for $7 that I wear ALL the time, and Kate Spade sandals from Designer's Encore  for $14.

Of course, there are many other places to thrift- yard sales, online (ebay, threadflip, etc.), but I just picked a few of my favorite places. What are your favorite thrifting spots?

Happy thrifting!!

                                                                                                         -J

Thinking Cap

Who: J

When: 7/29/12

Where: Church, dinner with N's family

What: *Straw fedora- Marshall's *Top- Kohl's *Skirt- thrifted *Scarf- Beall's Outlet *Belt- Walmart *Shoes- Payless *Purse- gift from N

This is it- the last of my outfit pics from our vacation to Indiana! Now I guess I have to start taking regular outfit pics again... ;)

I had the hardest time finding this hat! I have a rough time finding hats to fit me because I have a huge head a lot of hair. I finally found this one in the MEN'S SECTION (sigh) at Marshall's for $7. It was a little smashed, so I took the red, white, and blue plaid band off and ran the whole thing under hot water, then left it in the sun over a bucket to dry. It was still shaped a little funny, but not as smashed as it was. I'm sad to say that it got smashed again on the trip home, so I'm probably going to have to do another little reshaping. Oh, I also added a black grosgrain ribbon and bow to it to "girl it up" a little.

I hope everyone is having a great time getting ready for fall! I was in Bath & Body Works smelling all of their fall candles this past weekend... yum! It's still pretty hot here, but I can definitely feel fall coming!!

Basketball, Bagels, and Baking!

Who: M

When: 8/17/12

Where: Lunch at Red Robin, teen activity at the park, and sister baking time while watching Batman

What: *Skirt-DKNY jeans, thrifted, $7 *Shirt-Suburbia $10 *Sandals-Naturalizers, thrifted, $2 *Undershirt-gift *Earrings-gift shop in New Mexico, $5 *Rings-gifts

 First, I want to say that this great skirt I found while thrifting with J!! We had a blast out shopping, I went a little wild...ok, I basically bought everything that I liked which was A LOT of stuff!!! Any how, back to the outfit of the day... I wanted something casual but nice, so I thought I would match the sequiny (my own made up word) tank with the black button-up. I thought it paired up really nicely!

The outfit turned out to be pretty practical also. I had no idea that I would be playing basketball and kickball. SO I could totally have used some different shoes, but then I decided just to not wear any shoes at all... After a grueling 2 hours of playing with teenagers, we headed home to watch a movie and do some baking! We made bagels and cinnamon rolls. OH, forgot to mention that I was at my sister Jamie's house in Colorado. The rolls were for a going away party and they were a HIT! So I thought I would share the link for the easy to follow recipe! The icing is TERRIFIC!! Try them, they are delicious! So my fun day ended at 2 am!