September Budget

I recently found myself getting reacquainted with shopgoodwill.com, Goodwill's auction style site that operates like eBay circa the early aughts. If you were an eBayer back then, you might recall the anxiety of constantly needing to refresh the page to see if you'd been outbid and trying to stratigize how close to the last second you could place your bid and still have it go through. After losing an auction for the most beautiful and unique mother of pearl hoop earrings I'd ever seen, I was licking my wounds and determined not to get outbid on the next auction. This was foolish on me. The ram hoop earrings are far more widely available than I'd realized, I definitely should have let the other bidder win that one, and I feel like my determination to win led me to pay more than I'd have liked on the other two pairs of earrings I bought as well, especially since I wasn't considering they would charge upwards to $10 to ship them. Suffice to say, I hate shopgoodwill.com. 

Meanwhile on the comfort of eBay.com, I submitted a 'best offer' for a leather blazer and got it for $30, which included shipping. Win some, lose some, right?

I also found myself seeking a pair of caned leather pumps (naturally, to keep on theme with the three caned bags I already procured this year) and ended up liking the pair on JustFab the most. I decided to take advantage of their introductory offer of $10 for the first pair of shoes. They ended up being a little too long for me, but since it would cost more to send them back, I placed both toe and heel cushions in them and have decided that will suffice. Worth noting - to cancel JustFab, you have to call, and the customer service rep will offer pretty much anything to get you not to cancel. Stay strong. Get your $10 shoes and get out.

Isabella Bird Leather Blazer, $30 via eBay
Madewell Black Straw Packable Hat, $18
JustFab White Caned Pumps, $10
14k Gold Hoop Earrings, $31 via shopgoodwill.com
Ray-Ban Nina Tortoise Cateye Sunglasses, $90 via Saks off Fifth
Sashi Gold Plated Coin Necklace, $20 via TJMaxx
J.Crew Silk Collection Pants, $36
Joie Leopard Print Janeli Slip Dress, $97
Aritzia Wilfred Pearl Button Cardigan, $28
Joie Light Floral Pharra Silk Dress, $87
14k Gold Jade Hoop Earrings, $50 via shopgoodwill.com
Musse Mint Green Singback Heels, $30 via Marshalls
14k Gold Ram Hoop Earrings, $127 via shopgoodwill.com
1 State Leopard Print Booties, $30 via TJMaxx
Loft Tortoise Buckle Belt, $10
Nanette Nanette Lepore Button Front Skirt, $10 via TJMaxx
Treasure and Bond White Wrap Dress, $47 via Nordstrom

Petite Problems

There are at least half a dozen pieces in my closet which need to shortened in some way, and as much as I would like to be able to wear them, I tend to procrastinate. A lot. It seems likely that some of the more summery dresses might not be dealt with until next summer, (hours before I want to leave the house in it) and maybe the jeans will just don a raw hem instead of a rolled one. Also if hemming your jeans simply by taking a pair of scissors and cutting them seems like a challenge, I've seen dozens how how-to posts addressing the subject. I find it remarkable how many steps (with photos) can be extrapolated from what I would consider common knowledge of using a ruler and a pair of scissors. But what do I know? I'm sure those who created such tutorials did so having studied trending google searches and are reaping the benefits of their SEO prowess.

I come to you only with the mention that when I finally mustered up the energy to chop three and a half inches off of this dress, rather than toss the selvage as I've done countless times before, I decided to make a hair scarf scrunchie instead. (So no, I'm not capitalizing on the trendiness of scrunchies and including a tutorial on how to sew a tube of fabric, SEO be damned.) Past the age of thirteen I was fairly certain I would never wear a scrunchie again, let alone one to match my dress, but I wont deny that I'm enjoying it. For once I turned the annoyance of being short and needing to hem everything into a bonus; a tall person could never have done this.

      
The Rundown
Floral Maxi Dress Cynthia Rowley via TJMaxx similar
Sandals J.Crew similar
Caning Bucket Bag Tommy Bahama via TJMaxx
Loop Earrings Mejuri
Gold Chain Necklace Etsy
Aries Pendant Necklace Mejuri
Gold Croissant Ring Etsy
Thin Gold Ring Etsy
Sunglasses Ray-Ban via TJMaxx

 

Summer of Dresses

Sometimes I have to wonder why I even bother to buy summer separates, a dress will always be my first choice, especially if it's white. It might be boring if I just wore a different white dress everyday, but why deny myself what I love? Perhaps next summer I'll give it try...

 

      
The Rundown
Floral Maxi Dress Rachel Zoe via TJMaxx
Raffia Wedges Loft similar
  Round Raffia Bag Sun n' Sand
Rattan Hoop Earrings Loft similar
Thin Gold Ring Etsy
Sunglasses Ray-Ban via TJMaxx

Last Sip of Summer

 To say I've gotten behind on the blog would be an understatement, though I feel like I've gotten behind in every facet of life this year. The 12th anniversary of this blog came and went earlier this month - I had every intention of dedicating a post to it as I've done in the past, which clearly didn't happen. It's easier to be in denial of time passing right now. 

 

I have a few more summer looks to share, so let's pretend the air is still warm, the nights are still long, and we don't need to buy new sweaters.

       
The Rundown

Striped Linen Dress Max Studio via TJMaxx

Espadrilles Soludos

Macrame Bag Vintage via Poshmark similar

Hair Scarf J.Crew

Rattan Hoop Earrings Loft similar

Thin Gold Ring Etsy via Ellyn Blue Jewelry

Chevron Ring Etsy via Silver Canyon Jewelry

 Blue Topaz Stacking Ring Hirajule via TJMaxx

Sunglasses Ray-Ban via TJMaxx

Nail Color "Pre-Show Jitters" Essie

Sea of Sunflowers

A familiar sight this time of year, it's hard not to be drawn to the sunflowers. A local farm plants these every year. To the best of my knowledge, they do not cut them and sell them, they don't charge for entry, they don't advertise, and there is no where to park other than the side of the road; but those who know it's there show up year after year to take photos.

After snapping away in the field, beads of sweat dripping off my face, bees buzzing may be a bit too close for comfort, it was off to a local vineyard, where the remainder of the afternoon could be spent with a bottle of wine and a cheese plate. While I'm sad to have missed so many social events this summer, at least sitting outside with a companion or two was still possible. While I may never miss the feeling of my makeup sliding off my face in the heat, I suppose it's a fair exchange for the luxury of getting to spend the day out of doors.

         
The Rundown
Gingham Maxi Dress Old Navy similar
Caned Leather Tote Anthropologie
Espadrilles Soludos
Straw Fringed Hat Romwe

Monica Hoop Earrings S.V. Decker

Charm Necklace c/o Grand Avenue Jewelry

Thin Gold Ring Etsy via Ellyn Blue Jewelry

Cat Eye Sunglasses H&M similar

Nail Color "Pre-Show Jitters" Essie

 

After Labor Day

It's already been September for a week, but somehow it didn't feel official until yesterday, Labor Day. When inexplicably the temperatures shift, the gradual shortening of the days become suddenly more pronounced, as if we'd lost the time all at once, and the leaves which insist on turning early come into sharp focus amidst the swaths of green.

 

The usual dilemma of hitting the breaks on summer fashion in favor of embracing all things autumnal arises, even though I know I'm planted firmly in camp summer and wont vacate until forced by something far colder than a morning chill.

 

Even though I know beautiful summer-like days can continue to crop up through mid October, once Labor Day has passed, the mindset changes, and little can be done to reverse it.

      

The Rundown

Poplin Square Neck Dress Banana Republic

Huarache Mules "Camila" Rebecca Minkoff similar

Raffia Ark Bag Mango similar

Loop Earrings Mejuri

Necklace S.V. Decker

Simple Pearl Necklace c/o AUrate 

Charm Necklace c/o Grand Avenue Jewelry 

Gold Croissant Ring Etsy

Thin Gold Ring Etsy via Ellyn Blue Jewelry

Sunglasses Ray-Ban via TJMaxx

 

 

Invested in the Hunt

 How many times have I walked into a secondhand shop thinking to myself "Today will be the day I find *insert mythical fashion item here*, and it will fit." And on as many of those days, I've left empty handed, or with something entirely different, unable to will what I was looking for into existence by thought alone. 

Math is far from my strong suit, so I wont even try to ponder the odds that I could walk into the Goodwill in my town and just happen to find a near pristine vintage "Save the Tiger" belt from Banana Republic just when I decide I need to have it in my life. Though the internet has changed the secondhand market, and people scour the racks of their local stores to find items they can flip for a profit. With that, the odds have shifted, and there are at least three other listings for this belt on Poshmark right now; the hunt is digital, and I am committed to it. 

While this belt had quite the blemish on it, front and center, no doubt from a careless person at a secondhand shop slapping on a large price sticker with little regard to how such an adhesive could mar the leather, when I saw the belt listed for $5 I decided to take a chance. Other current listings are from $25-$35, while sold listings range from $10-$38, thus further swaying my decision toward the flawed belt. When it arrived I found the leather cleaner and conditioner I'd been gifted many years ago and got to work, first removing the sticker residue with a pencil eraser, then carefully cleaning, and once the conditioner had set, the leather was darker, gleaming, and the discoloration from the sticker nearly unnoticeable. 

Of course what initially prompted this hunt was that Banana Republic had reproduced some of their heritage pieces and the belt was included, so you could always buy that, however I tend to think they did a better job with it the first time around. 

       
The Rundown
Dress Banana Republic
Sandals Ann Taylor Factory
Straw Bag with Bamboo Handles Thifted similar
Leopard Silk Scarf Ann Taylor
Leather "Tiger Tooth" Belt Banana Republic

Necklace TJMaxx

Gold Croissant Ring Etsy

Thin Gold Ring Etsy

Sunglasses Ray-Ban via TJMaxx

Nail Color "Pre-Show Jitters" Essie