Once in a Blue Moon

Okay so this is my place to share, to contribute and to have my say on life, fashion and style. And it has honestly been a great way to assert myself and find some individuality that was lacking in my life. Through this I've realized how much time and energy I put into what I wear, how I wear it, how I prepare to wear it and what I pay to wear it. Fashion is fleeting and I'm sure fashion bloggers come and go everyday. I don't want to be just another fashion casualty. I want this blog to be a true reflection of my style, my life. 

I recently took inventory of what I have thrifted this year and in that recount it occurred to me that I've only shared a fraction of these pieces in my outfit posts here. So, to be honest with myself, and my "need" to thrift I am not going to purchase anything more until I have showcased what I have here on this blog. I originally thought that I would just set out to do this and you would be none the wiser if I thrifted a bit here and there and then I realized I wanted to keep myself accountable and in doing so I am sharing this with you.

So today is a blue moon, the second full moon of a month, and this is my once in a blue moon post where I am actually focusing myself and looking critically at my fashion and my style habits. I will probably come back to this over the course of this journey and hopefully I will come out of this with a more keen thrifting eye, a better sense of  my style and a relevant, organized closet! 

So, along the way you may see these Earnest Sewn jeans,

This amazing vintage, printed pencil skirt,

This vintage maxi skirt and blouse ensemble

and this vintage, black leather jacket.

And about 25 more pieces, stay tuned!

Not much of a Statement?

I pulled this necklace out to participate in the Marion Berry trend of the month style challenge for August: Statement Necklaces.

And then I thought "Is this a statement necklace?".

It makes a statement about me, I like classic colors and proportions and shapes. And

It will have to do since this is what I wore!

I know it must look like I ripped the sleeves off my jacket mid photo shoot but, that was not the case. I put the vest on in the morning and went out to photograph this outfit when I decided I was too chilly and I changed to the jean jacket instead of the vest.

Dress: LOFT
Shoes: Target
Jacket: Old Navy-thrifted
Necklace: local store in Hamilton
Bracelet: J.Crew

Country Girl

After I cut the sleeves off of my dark wash denim jacket, I thought awww shucks, maybe I shouldn't have done that.

Well wouldn't you know, I was out thrifting at the salvation army half price day and found this great dark wash jean jacket for $3.00!

Now I have a dark wash denim jacket that fits better!

And I can wear the vest, too.

Jacket: Old Navy-thrifted

Dress: Faded Glory (old)

Sandals: Target

Wishin' for...

I have been thrifting all over looking for a cargo type vest to integrate into my fall wardrobe and with out luck.

I think this one from Old Navy is the one I want!

I'm also want a leather jacket, NOT pleather or vegan friendly...but, the real deal! I can't decide...black or brown...bomber or biker?

 Choices, choices, choices....

My thrifting luck has been okay with leather but... 

this peplum leather one I thrifted for $6 is nice but I think I want something, tougher!

Transitional

I've been absent from my blog as I try to prepare for the beginning of the fall semester and transition myself out of summer living. 

All that I can say is that it is harder than you might think!

The morning was cooler so I put on a military inspired jacket with these shorts and added boots to make the look less summery.

By the afternoon, I had shed both the boots and the jacket and added some gladiator sandals.

Jacket: Lucky Brand-thrifted
Shirt: F21-thrifted
Shorts and sandals: Target


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Thrift away

I've had the opportunity in recent weeks to thrift a few really nice items. I've been out on three thrifting trips with the intention of getting some items for my daughter. Not much luck for her but, I've picked up some nice pieces.

One of them being this handmade, vintage maxi skirt and blouse.

I'm not sure when or how I will get the opportunity to wear it but, I will! It may be as separates...I've already tried on the skirt with a close fitting striped shirt and I love how it looks and feels...stay tuned!

I also thrifted the collar type necklace.

Late Summer

I've fallen behind in my style posts and this is due to the harvest of late summer. 

I'm very fortunate to live among a lot of generous people. So, even though I do not have the space for a garden, I'm never with out fresh produce through out the summer.

Lots of cucumbers...so
I made pickles!

Jelly!

And so this is some of what I've been doing with my time as well as trying to hang on to every last second of summer that I can: swimming, biking, kayaking...before I have to send my daughter off to kindergarten! I'll spare you the blubbering and sobbing that are inevitable...

Forward thinking...

Now, I'm not one to push time on too quickly or wish away a moment. I really try to live one day at a time and savor what I have.  

All that said, I was thinking about fall and the trends we'll be seeing in this new season so I did a Google search and came up with a list of some trends for fall that I'd like to try. I wanted to share some of those trends that I felt I could embrace and shop my closet for and this is what I found:

Pale Gray Dresses

image from marieclaire.com

And in my closet: J.Crew silk sheath dress.

Blue With Black

image from marieclaire.com

And in my closet: Alice Temperley (for Target) blue with black wrap dress with high low hem.

 Burgundy

image from marieclaire.com

and Black Leather and Peplum.
And in my closet a thrifted leather jacket with peplum and a LOFT burgundy pencil skirt.

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Tulip Skirt

 I thrifted this mustard tulip skirt this week and wanted to share it here, it has a lot of detail that doesn't really come out in these photos.

It is made of 100% certified organic cotton and when I first saw the skirt I thought it was probably too short for me. But, I decided to give it a try and I really like the way I eventually styled it.

I could also see this working easily with a pair of flats and a T-shirt. So stay tuned you'll see this again!

Skirt: Ethos Paris-thrifted

Shirt: Splendid (old)

Sandals: Sofft via TJ Maxx

Clutch: thrifted

Belt-thrifted

Not so Girly?

I love feminine and girly things like floral, lace, silk and crochet skirts but, I can't seem to wear them literally. 

I always pair them with something not so girly, like this denim shirt.

Lots of women out there can rock head to toe floral or lace or crochet...and all I can think about is how great a recently thrifted lace skirt (stay tuned) would look with a black leather motorcycle jacket (gotta find one).

Skirt: TJ Maxx

Shirt:  Old Navy-thrifted

Shoes: thrifted

Made in the USA

I didn't intend to ever post a swimsuit picture here on my blog but, this outfit warranted the lapse in judgement.

This is an outfit I wear commonly since I live on a lake and I like to swim, boat and essentially have fun in the water.

It was only a week ago that I realized that all of these garments were made in the USA. A real rarity these days.

The swim suit is from J.Crew and I think I've had it since the mid 1990's. I love the color and fit although the bandeau top is starting to lose elasticity and fade, I still wear it. The skirt is Fresh Produce and is about 10 years old and I thrifted the lace top earlier this summer and it is American Apparel.

So this is a plug for thrifting, for keeping your clothes in your closet and for knowing that someone was paid a decent wage to bring these to me. And I'd like to think that the obvious durability was the result of excellent workmanship.

Shirt: American Apparel-thrifted

Skirt: Fresh Produce

Swimsuit: J.Crew

Sunny Monday

I love this top I thrifted, it is so classic and the fabric is a nice weight and feel. I haven't featured here because it is too heavy to wear when the temperatures are in the 90's.

The 100 degree temperatures of the weekend left us with a rain storm and much cooler and comfortable temperatures. I pulled out my white denim skinnies and was happy to get another wearing from them this summer.

Shirt: L.L.Bean-thrifted

Jeans: Fragile-TJ Maxx

Sandals: Target

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