Saturday togs & fave thrifted sweater

Happy Saturday! The hubby's home and life is good, good good ... so I hope you'll understand if I keep this short, short short! When I'm scragging around home, I tend to live in leggings and my suede booties. This wool-blend tunic is a major thrifty fave - picked out by my gal pal Nadia in at Stretch Thrift in Toronto's Pape Village (where I used t live). Man, I miss that shop, and the people who work there. Anyway, I love the Nordic pattern and the semi-circle pockets - so cute! It's chilly today so it's the perfect sweater to snuggle up in with hubby ... on that note, I've got to go - have a great day!

Read More

Saturday afternoon outfit

Ahh, gorgeous fall days spent wandering in Toronto's Greektown, having coffee, visiting with a dear gal pal and generally having all sorts of adventures that a Gemini and a Sag can get into!! 

I threw this Saturday afternoon outfit together in a hurry but I like the look: everything but the statement piece Anthropologie scarf (which a man even commented on yesterday!) is thrifted. 

Angel jeans, $5.99; sweater, thrifted but I've had for years; bag and boots from CTS and Coach shades from Canadian Thrift, both in Toronto. And the major score: Alfani pink sheeny leather crop jacket in mint condition - a mere $6.50 at a recent Stretch Thrift 50 percent off sale.

Love it how thrifting can allow you to experiment with looks you never would if you had to buy the pieces for full price. I never would have purchased this jacket for the retail, even the sale retail, price.

BTW, I am wearing my thrifted booties with everything from dresses to jeans - did a quick cuff roll on the fly yesterday and thought it looked pretty cool!

Read More

Fall look, thrifted

Yeeks we went from 40 degrees with the humidity this last weekend to mornings of 11 degrees C and cool days! I love fall, but when you go from wearing sundresses to jackets methinks it'll take a while to get my fall fashion legs on, if you know what I mean. Here's my first attempt:

Thrifted designer Angel jeans out of L.A. ($5.99 if memory serves but perhaps less) and a thrifted mass market style jacket (a couple bucks). The scarf (Anthropologie) was new and expensive but worth every penny, and the C'est Moi top was new and I actually paid full price!

My latest and greatest find I know I am going to wear with absolutely EVERYTHING this fall: these leather booties, picked up used for $34.99 (high price pour moi but je love) at CTS on Queen St. W at Spadina Ave. in Toronto. They have this cowboy-boot feel crossed with a semi-Victorian feel and a wee bit of 1990s thrown in, what with those tassels and all.

I also picked up this leather bag at CTS for about 20 bucks. I love the colour and it's so soft (not telling what kind of leather it is) - plus the long strap, as you can see in the pic, means I can wear it diagonally across my body. Think this will be my casual bag du jour this fall season .....

Read More

Sunday morning and a new cuppa

I love Japanese stoneware - its simplicity yet elegance of design. Recently I found a trio of retro Mikasa cups, plus creamer, at my local thrift shop, Stretch Thrift, for 99 cents each. Way nicer than the cheap dollar store mugs I have that are now going in the 'donate' pile.

They complement the bronze ironstone cups by Primastone that I thrifted a few years ago - similar in shape and the colours work. Now I'll just have to have a cappuccino party!

Read More

My 1990s Phoebe from "Friends" look

I can't believe I like this outfit - but I really do! The look, 100 % thrifted, is tres 1990s a la Phoebe from the sitcom "Friends" (the character would wear this type of dress, which was big in the 1990s). Key to the look is the drop-waist jumper-style dress (made in Canada) that I thrifted for less than four bucks (Stretch Thrift).

I'm wearing it with a thrifted white crop tee - again, so retro 1980s and 90s! (Stretch Thrift), a thrifted jean jacket (a few bucks at Canadian Thrift), and a thrifted costume jewellery pendant (by Miracle, an England maker) found at Goodwill last summer for six bucks.

Is it creepy I am so digging a look that I typically hate? I'm not a big fan of 1990s tent-dress style. But I felt good in this garb, and it was so - gasp - COMFY. Jeepers this is a sign I'm getting old! But I don't care - a colleague gave me such a compliment the day I wore it (you're so stylish, she said) that it can't be a complete fashion disaster!

Read More

Thrifting adventures this week

It's been super busy, so here are some highlights from this past week's thrifting adventures!

Here's my gal pal and fellow thrift/vintage style maven, Nadia, at the 50 percent off Stretch Thrift sale yesterday (sale continues today). Nadia struck an oh-so-chic pose in this crazy hat with basket to match! We laughed so hard ... Nadia and I always seem to go crazy in that store. I think we provide comic relief to the customers!

I picked up this little guy - a lama "piggy" bank, of all things, for 99 cents at the sale. Every time I look at it, I smile. What personality! I saw it a week ago and had a pal hid it under piles of stuff so no one would buy it and also so I could get it at the 50-off sale.

It wasn't that I didn't want to pay full price for it - I'm thrifty, not a cheapskate! - but I was in the shop with Nadia, and we were in such a silly mood that we thought it'd be a hoot to hide the little guy and come back for it later. I think our partner in crime, the person who did the hiding (who shall not be named) had fun too, so the shenanigan was def worth a good chuckle.

Last night after snapping the pic of Nadia and picking up the lama, we left the shop and saw this across the street - a retro 1970s car (I'm a chick, so don't ask me what make), replete with faux wood paneling and semi-grotesque 1970s colour! Love it!!

Read More

Pretty mystery pendant

Here I am sporting my new summer do - I've decided to go shorter again as it's so hot and besides, I think it looks better on me. Hopefully my beau doesn't think I look like an alien (that's what the cheeky-pants said when he saw a pic of me from a few years ago with quite short hair). Anyway that's not the subject of this post: this thrifted silver-tone pendant and chain is!

I thought it was so pretty, almost like a medal, but with a feminine twist. The chain has three tiny chains entwined, to give it extra girl-power oomph. Not surprisingly, I found it at my friendly neighbourhood thrift shop where I dig up a lot of my jewellery, Canadian Thrift.

It's stamped "NR" on the back, which would be so fab if it stood for Nina Ricci. But my guess is it's an Avon piece. Apparently some such pieces were stamped "NR" to signal one of the manufacturers that produced for the company. Whatever it is, I love the piece and as usual I got it for a steal!

Read More

1980s High Fashion

I just love the shape of this bag I dug up for under five bucks at Stretch Thrift. It's a 1980s or 90s shape for sure, made in Canada by Toronto company High Fashion, which I'm pretty sure is still around and still has annual sales, so I've heard.

You know I'm a fan of neat hardware on bags. Just look at the clasp in this baby!

Love the triangle motif attached to each zipper!

Read More

Sondra Roberts bags, thrifted vs. sample sale

When I saw this bag at the thrift shop, I fell in love. The hardware, the leather, the ruching down the front: divine. Especially when the price tag was under 5 bucks. The bag is by Sondra Roberts
New York, an affordable luxury brand - which seems like a bit of a paradox to me, but that's what the website says and hey, I'll buy that - even better when thrifted!.

SR bags range in price from $100 or so (USD) to $500, depending on what they're made of. I'm guessing this one, being leather, would have retailed for $400+.
 
The olive greenish colour makes it a neutral in my books, and game for pairing with just about anything. I just have to figure out how to clean the black dirt off the strap. I'm assuming a leather cream cleaner will do the trick.

After my thrift buy, I realized that I had another SR bag, under the SR Squared label, which I bought last summer at a sample sale for 50% off (about $60). It's a reversible thick (weather-proofed?) canvas tote. Note the amazing hardware, just like my thrifted bag. This is my go-everywhere-summer-bag. The other borders on all-season.

It doesn't happen often, but sometimes the thrifting and the not-quite-retail worlds intersect!

P.S.: These bags rock. I don't want this to sound like an ad, but I've had the blue one for over a year and it hasn't worn A WHIT. Quality matters to a thrifting grunger like me!

Read More

My thrifty balcony

It's the long-weekend in Canada so today's post is going to be about thrifty leisure spaces - namely my wee patio. You know my penchant for orange these days. I found this gorg linen tablecloth (plus nappies) for $5.99 at my local thrift shop, Stretch Thrift.

The big handpainted, slightly cracked pot that's holding the lavender was found curbside, while the white pot was thrifted for a few bucks. The English jug was a gift from my best pal, and the wee glass tea light holder was also a present, from a family friend. The rose glass tea light holder was thrifted for $1.99.

I found the retro wrought iron patio set for $40 at a garage sale a few years ago; ditto for the seat cushions. I've had the stripy pillows for years, bought new at The Bay department store when I worked there eons ago.

The flower box was a gift (found by an ex in the trash - nice to know I inspire this kind of gifting!), as was the lovely cut-out ball (given to me by a friend - it used to be a lamp but it wasn't functioning so I cut off the cord - I could put a tea light in this if I wanted to but the piece can stand on its own). The stool is pretty ugly - I thrifted it for a few bucks and always meant to jazz it up - but one of my kitties loves sitting on it while outside, so I leave it like that for her.

Happy weekend!

Read More

Sometimes it pays to go back

I tried this ethnic-esque pendany necklace on at Canadian Thrift last week, and left it there as I didn't think it was my style.

But then I couldn't stop thinking about it. Jeepers, it was only 6 bucks and I left it there!

I went back a couple days later and dug around, but couldn't find it. Two days later, I went back again, not expecting it to be there. But it was! Someone had put it on hold and never returned, so back to the case it went!

I'd like to think this episode was a prime example of what I call my Thrifting Karma, but perhaps it demonstrates only that I'm tenacious to the max when it comes to bling! And I'm pretty sure the piece is vintage - just look at how well the chain is constructed. I really love it, and I hope it forgives me for abandoning it on first sight!

Read More

Am I going tribal?

Yeeks, I think today's outfit matched the pillow from yesterday's post!

It's the end of the day, I'm on my balcony, and it's been a real stinker today - about 50 degrees C with the Humidex - so I'm looking a bit wilted, granted. My soul is a wee bit wilted too, as I have just returned from an industry event full of 20 and 30-somethings in chic downtown garb. I felt like a semi-frumpish aging boho hipster. But hey, I gotta be me, right?

I guess when I think of it, it's rather apt I donned a tribal-esque frock today, given the gruesomely oven-like temps in the Big Smoke. I don't often do looks of this sort, but the dress, which you can't see in its entirety here alas, is long and straight, with a darling empire waist and these cute ruched cap sleeves. The pattern isn't something I'd typically wear, but hey - it's ORANGE and therefore fitting into my aesthetic of late.

Plus it was a whopping $5.99 at my local thrift shop, Canadian thrift!!

There's a great thrifting lesson behind the ethnic-looking pendant I just thrifted at the same shop, too. Will take better pics of it and reveal the deets very soon.

Read More

Orange, thrifted

I'm really into orange these days (see my post from last week, "A Look at a nook"). I bought this sundress (new, but only $20) before my holidays and never wore it as it was so cold in England, alas.

It's been so fab weather-wise in Toronto that I wore the dress today with these Espadrilles I thrifted for $7.99 this past weekend. They're by Nine West, they're satin and they're in mint condition!

You know, normally I don't go for the whole matchy-matchy thing, but I liked the orange on orange look of my outfit today. And, with a painful broken foot of late, the shoes cover my vulnerable toes so they don't get crunched as I bustle about my day. Plus, they're surprisingly comfy.

Orange. It's happy. If you want to wear a particular colour and it doesn't look all that hot on you, you can still get your colour groove on by experimenting with accessories, or wearing the hue on the lower half of your body so it's not too close to your face.

Read More

Boho bling, not yet worn

I'm supposed to be hanging around the Blackpool Tower today, but alas, the Holiday Gods want to give me more nesting time with my Brit mannie, who has not only been looking after me and my broken foot, but is as of this morning flaked out on the couch after an emergency tooth-pulling episode.

Aren't we a pair of sad sacks.

So, in honour of the Glastonbury Festival that just wrapped up in England (which is the new millennium version of Woodstock, I'm gathering) I'm showing you a fab piece of boho-inspired bling I bought the day I left Canada for England (which I haven't had a chance to wear here yet as I've been living in yoga pants).

I loved it on sight when I plucked it out of the case at my fave neighbourhood thrift shop, Canadian Thrift in Toronto, as the chunky, rough-hewn chain reminds me of the 1970s pendant necklaces designed by Raphael. The large disc pendant also has a distinctly boho vibe to it, and you know my penchant for bohemian chic. Not sure if it's vintage - what do you think?

It's quite large, which could be a style challenge as all I'm seeing in my mind's eye is some Woodstock hippie dude from the 1960s wearing it with super wide leg jeans ... and nothing else --- but perhaps it's the painkillers.

On that note, back to the couch.

Read More

Scrag-about England outfit

I wanted to show you all the fab outfits I had planned for my holidays. Alas, the weather has been so chill in northern England that I've been living in my scraggies. No matter. It has been rather nice to put the Blackberry-toting glam girl in me on hold and just hang, sans makeup, with my British mannie.

My scrag-about outfit, though, is pretty thrifty. The jeans, by Angel Jeans, were $3.99, if memory serves, at a Toronto thrift shop. They look like premium denim to me although I can't find much info on the California-based company as all the links I find are dead.

Both tops are thrifted and the Kenneth Cole ballet flats were picked up at the $2 Sale in Toronto. The sunnies are vintage 1970s made in Italy and were about $30.

Read More

More 1970s bling

I found another one of these 1970s mosiac-inspired pendant necklaces at the thrift shop the other day. I liked it way better than the plain oval one I found a while back, so I bought this one and sold the other one at my recent garage sale.

I can't make out what the design is but it reminds me of Native Canadian art.

Read More

Colour my world, bigtime

Today I saw the world through orange-coloured sunnies, literally. Quite the experience. Don't try this if you have a headache as I bet it will hurt. Aren't these 1970s shades super funky? I found 'em for $1.99 at my favourite local thrift shop, Canadian Thrift.

I wish I could show you the sassy outfit I wore them with, but alas, I have no dedicated camera person to snap my looks. But you can see I matched the shades with my purse, a thrifted Matt & Natt beaut that's just perfect for the summer that we are now finally enjoying!

Read More

BCBG dress 20 years old, $5.99

Notice: hips in this picture appear larger than they actually are.

Joke. Well, the pattern does make one look bigger. But I do love the mosaic print of this cute BCBG dress, found for $5.99 at Canadian Thrift. I wore it with a hot pink knit bolero and sassy strappy heels.

The neat thing: I work in Toronto's design district on Wingold Ave., where all the fashion brands wholesale to retailers. I walked into a cafe for lunch today and a woman said, "That's BCBG. I sold that dress to stores in 1992."

Who would have thought? The dress is in such great shape, and so stylishly applicable, that I thought it was somewhat current. Wonder if the BCBG brand is so timeless and as good a quality today?

Read More

Like, groovy shades, man

Peace, fellow groovy hipsters. I'm here with my $1.99 thrifted 1960s (70s?) shades to spread the word of harmony and happiness through thrifting. It, like, saves the world, man - I mean woman! I'm an equal opportunity thrifter! And I've been working all weekend so I'm in a bit of a silly mood - can you tell? And what do you think of my shades, btw?

Read More

More 'Easter' bling

Picked up for a song at Canadian Thrift. I thought this brass pendant was just so boho!

It didn't come with a chain but I just fixed it up on one I had. My philosophy with bling is the same with all my other accessories, including lamps and pillows: just change things up! Alternate chains and pendants as you would lampshades with different lamp bases!

Read More