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Mixed Florals and Casual Coral

Mixed Florals (A mixed bag of emotions) and thrifting

 

Today, I wanted a comfortable outfit for shopping, plus I was feeling really blah, so comfort was key. I reached for an old trusty floral skirt that I've had for several years. My mom actually gave it to me, six years ago or so, so it is probably ten years old when you add it all up. It does not at all look dated, it is a classic, and I love that it is in black and ivory. I have paired it with every color shirt under the sun. However, I wanted to be a little more creative for blogging purposes, so I paired it with a floral tank. Mixing florals and other prints is a daring endeavor that I have seen be done on other blogs, so I thought, "Why not?" I am still not sure how I felt about the outcome. I didn't hate it but didn't love it either. It was, however, a nice comfy outfit for hitting up the thrift shop.

 

 

                                               Top: Arizona jeans, 2011, I like this mint green option
                                             Skirt: Old (I'm seeing lots of comparable items on ebay, like this
                                            Necklace: F21, Winter 2012
                                         Shoes: Old Navy, this option and more on DSW.com

So, off we went to our favorite thrift store. As I said, I have only recently gotten into thrifting. Before that, I was always kind of skeeved about buying used clothes, but I have gotten over it. I wash everything in warm to hot water with detergent and oxyclean when I get home, and it makes me feel better. Plus, this thrift store is clean and organized. Finally, I still refuse to buy used shoes, and obviously undergarments are also out of the question. That being said, I went in with a budget of 40 dollars and found about 80 dollars worth of stuff I could have bought. After whittling down my selections, I ended up with this pile, totaling 45 dollars. The extra five was for a Halloween dress that didn't count towards the overall budget, hee hee.

$$

So much good stuff in there! See the blue and white striped blouse? It was on my "must-haves" list, and I found it at the thrift store! That definitely doesn't always happen. This pile of clothes contains Target items (the blue blouse), Gap jeans, and more. That green number is a thick t-shirt dress that looks like it was expensive, although I did not recognize the brand straight off. I will have to look it up. And yes, that is a neon shirt right on top, also an expensive brand. There's a couple of Loft tops in there too! Anyway, these pieces will all be used soon, I am sure.

Day 4: Casual Coral

 

So, the next day, I decided to go ahead and wear one of my finds. This blouse is made of a gorgeous linen blend that is so comfortable! And the color...one of the prettiest corals I have found. It was all of five dollars. What a deal. I paired it with my comfy boyfriend shorts that I recently got from Old Navy, and a pair of floral sneaks that I picked up at Target last year. I wore the same sparkly necklace as the day before (I don't have nearly enough necklaces, so you will see repeats a lot.)

 

 







 

 

Man, I am in love with that shirt. And those shorts. And sneakers. Ha, this might be my favorite outfit of the project thus far! If I were to estimate, I would say this outfit cost me 34 dollars total!

 

Blouse: Thrifted, this is not far off!

Shorts: Old Navy Boyfriend, found here (I believe mine are Deep Sea Blue)

Shoes: Target, summer 2012;  here are some Keds that look similar

Necklace: F21, Winter 2012

 



Neons, Neutrals, Lace, and Tiers.

I got this skirt from my sister, who got it from someone else and deemed it too big for her. The waist is a little too big for me as well, but it was wearable. I loved it and am sad that it will not fit me for long if I continue to lose weight. Paired it with a lace-backed tank from American Eagle Outfitters. I love this look and bought some lace-backed bras just for it off of Ebay. Cheap bras, but they did the trick for the day. If you're small-chested, which I am not, Target sells some cute lace bralettes for tops like these. I have to wear a strapless underneath them or else I look sloppy.

 

Tank: American Eagle found here

Skirt: Old Navy, old

Flip Flops: Montego Bay, old

Necklace: Old

 

 

Day 2: Neutrals and Neon

 

I am digging the resurgence of neon. I walk into any store and I feel like I have been transported back to my childhood. I am not usually one to shop at Wal-Mart, for so many reasons, but every now and again I have to go there for something I cannot find elsewhere. Trust me, it pains me. And even worse, the last time I was in there, I saw the best neon yellow shorts. I could not resist. I just couldn't. I've worn them several times this summer because they are so comfy, but I wasn't big on the almost Bermuda length, so yesterday I rolled them up a bit. I paired them with a neutral charcoal gray shirt and some white wedges, and my necklace had the same pop of neon. My camera washed out the shorts but they are very vibrant in  person and I got oodles of compliments.

 

I REALLY wish the color came through better here, but I will link to the shorts or similar ones to give you all (if anyone) a better idea of what they look like.

 

T-shirt- Old Navy Vintage V-neck (my favorite tees!) here

Shorts: No Boundaries, not available online, similar here

Shoes: Old

Necklace: Burlington Coat Factory

 

 

What I'm About...and a one year challenge to myself.

Hello out there, if anyone starts to read this blog at any point! I'm a 30 year-old who has returned to school for a new career. I can't wait to finish and obtain said career, so that I can finally hopefully have the type of job where you can dress nicely. My previous career was as a teacher of very young kids, and that job would destroy nice clothes. I'm recently married and have no kids yet. I have always loved clothes. When I was four years old, my mother would ask me what I wanted to wear, and I would give her answers like, "I want to wear my fuchsia shirt with my turquoise pants" (yes, it was the 80s, but that actually sounds like it would be cute today!) I've been inspired to begin blogging again after a years-long hiatus because of all of the amazing fashion blogs that are out there. I don't even expect to come close to the caliber of those blogs, but I'd like to do this mostly for my own records. I want to look back in a few months, and then a year, and see what I was wearing and also perhaps be inspired to try those looks again. However, I am the type of person who rarely wears the same exact outfit twice, so probably not.

I am a bargain shopper through and through. If you're looking for a high-end fashion blog with lots of labels, this will not be it. My favorite stores are Target, Forever 21, Old Navy, Kohl's, and anywhere with a clearance rack and a steal. I've actually recently gotten into thrifting, so if there are ever any fancy labels, that's probably where they came from. I'm going today, armed with 40 bucks, so I will share my finds later.

I also lost some weight for my wedding and then promptly put it back on, so I will be sharing any successes, struggles, and perhaps an occasional recipe on here. I want to focus primarily on clothing, though. That being said, since it is hard for me to stick to projects, I am issuing to myself a one year challenge. By the time I reach a year, I want to be able to say I've lost 25 pounds. I feel like that is a realistic goal. Any outfits shown here will unfortunately not be shown on me...when I get dressed, my hubby is not around to take a photo, so it is hard to take one of myself. I may buy a full-length mirror at some point to help me with that, but until then, I'm just going to take ghetto pics, Polyvore style. ... So here goes, until July 29, 2014, goodness willing.