Brilliant Behind

Colored bottoms are huge this season.  They are in every store in every color imaginable. What is so great is that this is not a new trend.  And since fashion is cyclical, a great place to pick up this look on a budget is at your local thrift store!

If you know me, you know I love the Goodwill.  New merchandise comes in frequently and each store is going to have something totally different.  On my last adventure I scored big in the colored rear department with these 3 great pieces!

Strawberry J.Crew Skinny Cords-How can you not fall in love with these pants! The color is so cheery and since they are corduroy, they will bring a fun brightness to the colder months.

Rust Colored High Waist Jeans-I love the color of these pants.  The shade is almost a neutral and will be great in the transition months of spring and fall. I also think that the straight leg cut is really flattering on me. Great for sneakers, sandals, and boots!

Bright Red Jean Shorts- I usually shy away from red, it is a little too loud for me; however, there is something quintessentially summer about a pair of red shorts. These are great because the color is so saturated that I can wear them casually with a white tee and sandals or dress them up at night with black heels and a black top.

Some great online places to score your own color denim are:

Ebay

Forever 21

Gap

Nordstrom

Fayettechill Style

Fayetteville, AR is amazing! The first thing I saw after getting off the plane were cows in a pasture directly across from my airport terminal.  My original assumption that I was in the middle of nowhere seemed correct, but I definitely underestimated Northwest Arkansas. I expected it to be a little more remote, like Ithaca is, but they had everything and more. Multiple movie theaters, every type of food I could ever want to eat,  a beautiful public library, the most adorable park, and the Crystal Bridges Art Museum.

But as my sister knows, SHOPPING is my passion, and boy did we shop! I apologize in advance for my lack of personal pictures from AR.  I was too busy shopping to snap photos, so all my photos were stolen borrowed from the web.

Thrifty Style:

Cheap Thrills. Follow them on Facebook!

There were a plethora of thrift and consignment stores in Fayetteville.  I honestly think that small town has more consignment stores than all of Baltimore! Our first stop was Cheap Thrills.  They had a great selection of both recent items and timeless classics.  I loved the area where they split the clothing by era! Diana got a fantastic new blue party top (tags on) and I got tan Ugg clogs for $35.  I can’t express how much I love these clogs.  They are comfortable with the fur at the toes, a great height with the platform and heel, and the color is perfect for the spring.  I plan to wear them with jeans and adorable sundresses. (They also had some purple Ugg boots which I almost scooped up for Raven’s season, but I thought they were still a little too high priced.)

Ugg Abbie Clogs

Another notable consignment spot was Grey Dog, which was in an old Airstream!  Made over with clothes racks and hardwood floors Grey Dog had a great selection of vintage dresses, all of which I fell in love with!  My mom also got this fabulous 70s style shirt in a shiny, liquidy, pink hue which she wore to Diana’s birthday dinner.  (Sadly, no picture of the cool shirt, maybe mom will post one if she reads this.)

Grey Dog. Follow them on Facebook! 

Pop-Style:

I bought the same print on a brown long sleeve. Follow them on Facebook!

Mustache

There were so many great little boutiques and I can’t remember all of them.  My favorites were Mustache and Riffraff.  I got my two Arkansas souvenir t-shirts at these stores.  They both had a great selection of accessories, clothes, and gifts.  My sister described Mustache as having an independent Urban Outfitters vibe, which is accurate.  A lot of their clothes were emblazoned with cute little mustaches. They did have a variety with men’s and women’s clothes and shoes as well as quirky gifts. Riffraff had a beautiful home section as well as very chic clothes, accessories, and shoes.  A very girly-girl vibe.

I bought the green one on the right. Follow them on Facebook!

Fashion Dos From Fayeteville:

I have been in a total shoe craze lately, so while I did notice some fabulous above the ankle style, there are 3 definite shoe trends I clearly need to get in on. (I realize that I am kind of late to these, but can you blame me, I was focusing on boots all winter?!?!)

Olive Green Toms

Toms- the hipster foot necessity. They look so comfortable and easy for the summer.  I think the most difficult part will be what color to choose.  I am currently leaning towards the classic olive green color, but red and blue also seem fun.

Minnetonka Mocs

Moccasins-Again, I love super comfy, laid back looks.  I want a cute pair in classic tan with a little fringe or maybe a little embroidery.  I am thinking some Minnetonka like these or these. I also think with the right pair of slacks, I may be able to pass them off for work once or twice.  FYI, my sister just told me she scored an awesome pair at the T.J. Maxx in Owings Mills, so I am super jealous.

Chaco Sandals

Chaco Sandals-I can’t figure this out.  I kind of think they’re dorky, but at the same time attractive and incredibly practical.  Everyone was wearing these in AR.  Maybe they are more outdoorsy than we are here, but that’s ok because I want to be more outdoorsy this summer.  I want point out though that I will only buy them in all black, and I want a pair with a back ankle strap so if I get the urge to go rafting I have shoes to wear. The big question will be what strap variation around the top of my foot to choose!  There are so many options.  I will probably have to go to a store (or go crazy with Zappos) and try on the different styles to see what looks the best on. 

Have you been on vacation recently?  What were some style trends you picked up from your recent getaway?

Goodwill Haul

In honor of the last Saturday of the month I decided to post about my Goodwill haul from last week.  For those of you who don’t Goodwill has a ½ off sale every last Saturday of the month, but R.H. was over last weekend and we thought a Goodwill outing was in order.  I purchased the following three items, and showed you how I would style them in different situations.

White and Black Stripe Talbots Blazer (New)-$13.50

Black Flowy Xhilertation from Target Blouse (New)-$8.00

Kimchi Blue Dress (Thrifted)-$6.75

 

Casual Look:

This white and black blazer was a little pricey from Goodwill, but it’s Talbots (high quality) and new (all tags were still attached.) Added benefit is that it is a petite!  Sometime you really can find your size at thrift stores J I paired it with a plain tank and jeans.  This look is super chic and perfect for running around doing errands or going out to eat.  I didn’t experiment with any jewelry for this shoot, but I would probably pair this blazer with this awesome red African beaded statement necklace I bought from a street vendor in D.C.

 

Work Look:

To make this blazer work appropriate I paired it with a black t-shirt shift dress I purchased from Talbots Outlet when I was in high school and my black flats.  To make this more winter friendly I would pair it with tights and boots. I love that this blazer has a little stretch which makes it super comfortable!

 

Casual Look:

Again with flair jeans this floaty top looks great and gives the look a 70s vibe.  A great arm-party of bangles would really finish off the look.  A necklace would interfere with the lace action going on up top, but a great pair of feather earrings or large gold hoops would probably work as well.

 

Night Out:

The black top looks badass with black leggings and black boots. I actually wore this last night with black nylon leggings from American Apparel (Yes, AA is expensive, but I was thrifty enough to get the Groupon the last time it was available; $50 worth of clothing for $100.  It was an amazing shopping trip with D.S.) In this pick I am wearing it with my H&M leggings and I think it still works.  If I may say, I look hot, without showing too much skin!

 

Casual Look:

This dress is pretty; pretty awesome.  I love the print, the princess bust line is amazing, and I love that it has sleeves for the winter.  The chest was a little too deep for me, so I stuck a plain tank underneath with some lace trim to add some interest.  Burgundy Hue brand tights and awesome Steve Madden boots finish off the look. To dress this up for more of a date night or party I would pair it with heals and more sparkly jewelry.

Goodwill How-tos:

Goodwill is great for finding more than just costumes and ugly Christmas sweaters, but you do have to dig.  It’s hard to go and look for a specific piece, but it is great for browsing and being open to whatever catches your eye.  Be on the lookout for everything, and do not be nervous if the tag says one size, but it looks another; a lot of clothes end up in Goodwill because the sizing is off.  Try on EVERYTHING you like, and be sure to look over every item for stains, working zippers, and that all buttons are attached. For pants double check that the bottoms aren’t worn, unless you are like me and will probably need to hem them anyway J Goodwill is a lot of digging, but it can have amazing wearable results.  The trip before this I got a VERY gently used pair of Joe’s Jeans for $10.  Beat that!

Let me know about awesome finds you have gotten from Goodwill!