spring trends a to z: n.

n is for:


nature



kenzo




carolina herrera






giles


where to buy:


i'm sure you have heard at least one person say 'put a bird on it'. we may not all know where it came from (portlandia) or what it really means, but i sure can see how cool it looks on springs hottest silhouettes. but this season, it is not just about prints. this is the new version of animal print. we are no longer just looking like we are wearing an animal's coat, but the entire animal itself. 



all runway photos from style.com.

thrifty thursday: goodwill buy the pound.

as of last night, i am no longer buying clothes. so it only made sense to spend my last day being able to shop shopping. it was the first chance i had to check out the goodwill buy the pound store and i was so excited to see what it was all about.



if you don't know what this store is, it is the newest edition to goodwill here in southern maine. it is something like an outlet. located right next to their distribution center in gorham, it is a prime spot for items that may not be top choice to go out to stores. it also carries things that didn't sell in their stores over a certain period of time and hopes to reduce waste. unlike their other retail stores, you pay by the pound. some heavy items are individually priced, but a much deeper discount. the more pounds you buy, the lower the price per pound is.



i knew it was going to be a lot of digging, so i went prepared. i ate breakfast and had my coffee before i went. i wore comfortable clothes and a cross body bag, so my hands would be free and i could move around easily. i wanted to get their as close to the time they opened as possible, so it would be a little more organized. when i arrived about 10 minutes after 9am, there were already about 8 other people there. i sort of had an idea of what to expect, but still wasn't sure. there were about 20 blue bins set up holding clothes, shoes, bags, and other knick knacks. there were a few bins of records, movies, and kids games. there were housewares and furniture lined up against the wall. since it was my first time here, i wanted to look at everything. i started to the left and worked my way to the other side of the room. i grabbed a few records for the first bin, but moved quickly on to the important items, the clothes. after the first few bins, i was beginning to worry. i hadn't found anything and was hoping that my first trip here wouldn't be a bust. but as i got going, i started to pull out some gems.

i will be honest, this is not for the faint of heart. you have to dig and it does seem a little unpleasant at times. but it was totally worth it. there was lots of really nice ll bean pieces ( mostly men's), gap, and other well known labels, but there were also a lot of cool things that didn't need a name brand.

i spent $19.94 and with over 13 pounds in my cart, here is what i got:

household items:
blue ball jars, big and little.

two records.

diy project in the making. love the wheel.

clothes!
shirts:
white embroidered blouse & striped sheer ralph lauren blouse.

 outerwear:
floral blazer & neon spring jacket.

 sweaters:
cable knit cardigan & vintage varsity sweater.

 dresses:
stripe shift dress & floral romper.

bottoms:
printed pants & polka dot culottes.

polka dot pleated skirt.

gap & ll bean overalls. 
(i have been obsessed recently. looking forward to seeing what i can do with them!)

shoes:
ll bean boots.

so basically i got 19 things for $19. there is nothing a little laundry detergent can't fix to make this shopping trip well worth it! now i want to know who else has been and what you scored!

it's challenge time again..

i started this blog as a challenge. i was changing jobs and i had more freedom in what i could wear. after so many years of collecting clothes, i wanted to put them to use. i challenged myself to 30 days without wearing the same outfit more than once while not buying anything new. it was easy and i went on to do it for a year. this blog was started so i could keep track of my outfits, something like a personal fashion diary. 

at this point, you may be wondering about this trip down memory lane. well, a couple weeks ago my wonderful sister, kim, came over and helped me go through all my clothes. yes, even me, who helps other people sort through their clothes, needs a second set of eyes. we spent hours going through everything i owned and with some tough love, i was able to fill up multiple ikea bags to donate and/or swap. even after pulling A LOT of things out of my closet, my sister was still shocked at the amount of clothes i had. to a fashion lover like myself it didn't seem like such a big deal. but for a fashion lover like myself with zero closet space, it is getting to be a problem. after helping me, my sister gave me a new challenge. well, it actually started out as a demand: YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO BUY ANY MORE CLOTHES. seeing as this is a hard thing for me (i mostly blame goodwill and of course, my place of employment urban outfitters), it needed to be a challenge. so here were my sister's ground rules:

1. no buying anything.

2. anytime i feel like buying anything, go to my closet and put together a look that is similar to what i want to buy or just wear something i've never worn.

3. figure out on average how much i spend a week on clothes and transfer that amount each week into my savings account to pay off my debt and save for things like a new bed and couch.

4. if i crack and buy something, i have to get rid of something in my closet and give my sister $5.

after chatting about my challenge, she came up with a new idea. i can't buy any new until i pay off my credit card. the plan is to be aside the money each week to go towards my credit card. all the extra money will go towards making me debt free and start to get creative again with my existing wardrobe. 

i know i have lots of clothes and don't need anymore, but i know this is going to be hard. we are at a place where the seasons are changing and i am going to want new things. the thing i am going to miss the most is the thrill of the hunt at places like goodwill. luckily for me, i work on side jobs that allow me to shop without spending my own money, so hopefully that will be able to tide me over. 

so here's to becoming debt free, wearing every piece in my wardrobe, and igniting my creative fire once again. let's see how this goes and please, feel free to join me or show my some of your ways to get creative with your wardrobe.

spring trends a to z: m.

m is for:

mesh
house of holland

rag & bone


mint
marc jacobs

louis vuitton


metallics
rodarte

rick owens

balmain




all runway photos from style.com.

get ready for spring.



what a cute commercial from target to us ready for spring. let's break out the bright colors and stripes for the weather this week!

spring trends a to z: l.

l is for:

lace
louis vuitton

alexander mcqueen

valentino

oscar de la renta

where to buy:





leather

maison martin margiela

celine

rick owens

chanel


where to buy:


leather and lace, like naughty and nice, when put together shows just what happens when opposites attract. of course, they are both fun styles to wear alone, but for the boldest effect possible, wear them together. the mix of sweet and edgy makes for a fun, sexy outfit. 

spring trends a to z: k.

k is for:
killer kicks

wedge sandals

splurge:
mulberry $865
charlotte olympia $565

save:



open toe booties

splurge:
maison martin margiela $825



christian louboutin $1295

save:



pointy pump

splurge:
gucci $525

christian louboutin $795

save: