february budget

1. Burberry Jacket, thrifted: $8
2. Barbour Vest, thrifted: $4
3. Ralph Lauren Oxford, thrifted: $4, $0 with Goodwill points
4. Forever 21 Lace Tee (seen here): $22
5. Nicole Boots via DSW (seen here): $110
6. J.Crew Tee (seen here): originally $45, $20 on sale
7. Blazer, thrifted & DIY altered (seen here): $8
8. Urban Outfitters Jeans: $40 with coupon code + $8 alterations
9. Christian Dior Blazer, thrifted: $8 + $25 alterations
10. Nine West Flats (seen here): $18, $0 with a Christmas giftcard from my girl Hannah

= $252

Well. I did not do that great this month. Even if I take the $25 "leftover" from last month, and the $25 I made from selling two things on eBay, I'm still about $50 over my self-established budget of $150. I do feel guilty about that because although I purchased some of these items before I found out I got into school, I didn't really try that hard to stick to my budget afterwards. My new boots are largely at fault - they're 2/3 of my entire month's budget! Besides that purchase though, I feel I found some really great deals. I found a Burberry jacket for $8, a Christian Dior Blazer for $8 (it needs to be altered around the sleeves though, so that jacks the end price up), and a Barbour vest (although I'm debating selling it on eBay as they go for around $60 on there) while thrifting. I also added ribbon piping and a new button to another thrifted blazer, so it was like a craft project/entertainment and a new clothing piece in one ;). I ordered the high-rise Urban Outfitters cigarette jeans in a size longer than my last pair so I can get them hemmed to the perfect length, so I'm really excited to have black skinny jeans again.

So in the end, I did fill a few holes in my closet with the boots and the jeans and I found some once in a lifetime thrifting finds. Like I mentioned, I'm really going to work towards saving money the next ~4 months while I'm still working. I am allowing myself $250 (around 10%) from my tax return (the rest is going straight into DO NOT TOUCH savings) to shop next weekend in Chicago. There are so many stores down there that we obviously don't have in Madison, so my goal is to find some of the following items:

- dark wash boot cut jeans, hopefully at Nordstrom Rack (like this pair, this pair, or this pair)
- tweed/boucle blazer (like this one, this one, or this one)
- Hunter rain boots (this color, this color, or this color?)
- bright floral scarf (like this, this, or this beauty)

I think having a list of things will curb my "throw money at all the stores and buy all the unneeded things" feelings I will have having that "free" money in my wallet. Hopefully I'll find a few things I'll really get some use out of. Of course, none of those items are actually necessary in the sense that food and water, and only having one pair of pants is necessary, but they are items I am hoping to add to my closet as I know I would get a lot of wear out of them, unlike some of my impulse buys in the past have.

So how did you do this month? Better than I did? Just as horrible and guilty? Link up below with budgetting bloggers! Please make sure you link back so your readers can discover and be inspired by all of the other bloggers who budget (even if they fail at it ha)



P.S. Linking up with Thrifters Anonymous, Random Wednesday, and Penniless Socialite.

ketchup and mustard

I'm ready for this week to be over. Two people of 4-person team were pulled into a different department so now we have to cover their duties as well so this week has been a little (a lot) hectic. We're also supposed to get a huge snow storm tomorrow - gross. I seriously hate snow so I ask myself why I live in this state every winter.

The good news is once Friday comes, I get to fly off to the Gulf for a week to spend time with the entire family. Plus Chris will finally be home for a while :) God I've missed that guy.

linking up with wiww.

Sweater: Thrifted  {save / splurge}
T-Shirt: Gap
Scarf: DIY
Belt: Madewell  {similar}
Jeans: Joe's Jeans  {similar}
Shoes: Tory Burch  {exact}
Watch: Boccia
Nails: Deborah Lippmann Stormy Weather {exact}

After my last post about my thrifted Grandpa sweater (did you guys like the song?), Bri asked if I had any tips for thrifting.  To be honest, I haven't done a ton of thrift shopping in my life so I don't have years of experience to tell you how the best way to go about buying clothes second hand. I've only gone to our local Goodwill, Savers and St. Vinny's but here are a few things I've learned from those experiences and from around the internet:

- Take your time. The thing with thrift stores is that there is no display or giant racks of the same thing. Look through each rack piece by piece.

- Try on anything that catches your attention. You'll never know until you try!

- Find out when your local stores have discounts. Our Savers store is 25% off on Mondays. Goodwill has weekend sticker percentages off. St. Vinnys often has a certain type of item on sale. A $4 sweater becomes a $3 - we all know how much I love a bargain!

- Don't forget to wash anything you buy. 

- For all your experienced thrifters, I would welcome any tips you have as well!

I wear your granddad's clothes, I look incredible

A little fisherman, a little old man, a lot of comfortable. I got this sweater this weekend while doing a little thrifting and although some may not be as enamored with it as I am (I was called a fisherman twice today), I'm excited to add it to my closet. Plus for less than $3, a grey wool sweater can't really be beat.

Sweater: Thrifted

Button-up: Gap  {save / splurge}

Jeans: American Eagle  {exact}

Shoes: Crown Vintage  {save / splurge}

Watch: Kate Spade  {exact}

...and if you've spent any time thrifting, you'll appreciate this song. plus it's so damn catchy!

 

Night Time...Day Time!

When I'm thrifting, I try on anything that catches my attention while looking through the racks because you never know until you try it on! I grabbed this top and ended up really liking it...even though I'm unsure if it's originally a real top or a pajama top. Good news is that those in the know say that PJs as real clothes are totally fashionable right now so that makes me fashionable too, right?


All kidding aside, I do really like this top. It's soft, slightly oversized, and a color that isn't in my closet. I'm excited to try it with a blazer over it, or with a skirt like Tierney suggested.

Plus for $3.99, how could I say no?

All day today I had this stuck in my head: Night time.....day time!

Blouse: Thrifted
Necklace: Forever 21  {similar}
Pants: Urban Outfitters  {exact}
Shoes: Tory Burch
Watch: Fossil
Nails: OPI My Throne for a Cranberry Scone

Altering Thrift Finds

In an effort to save some money and to be a smarter consumer, I've been trying to buy more clothes secondhand. As I've mentioned in the past, my mom is a huge thrifter which has been a great influence in my own thrifting. My rules for buying second hand clothes are the same for buying clothes new - it has to be something I can see myself wearing multiple ways, and it has to fill a hole in my closet.

Even though I live in Wisconsin and our winters are brutal, I don't have that many thick sweaters. I did just buy a maroon (NOT oxblood!) sweater, but wanted a cream colored one as well. I found this sweater at Goodwill this weekend for $4. I loved the color, the neckline, and the length...but I hated the sleeves. Luckily I still am in possession of my mom's sewing machine, so with a few stitches and snips I had myself the perfect slightly oversized sweater.
















Sweater: thrifted and altered
Scarf: Forever 21
Purse: Gift from my best friend
Jeans: Gap  {very similar}
Boots: Frye  {exact}
Watch: Target  {only in stores}
Bracelet: DIY (you can win one here!)






Linking up with Real Girl Glam, Work Clothes I Suppose, and wiww.

IRL

Documenting what I wear daily on this blog has been a really valuable experience so far. I'm building a workable wardrobe, I'm learning what works and what doesn't, and I've become more aware of the money I spend.

The problem with taking pictures of yourself and putting it on the internet is that I feel it has to be special/pinterest worthy/worth remembering. I would love to accessorize more, wear cuter shoes, spend more time on my hair, wear skirts. But the reality is that this is what I wear in real life. I like simple and clean, I have to wear pants, I can't wear rings that can't be worn with gloves, and after almost 25 years, I still don't know how to do my hair. I can't pretend to be something on this blog that I'm not in real life. This may not be the most special outfit ever posted on the internet, but it is what I actually wore to work today.

Shirt: Thrifted Ralph Lauren  {similar}
Jeans: Joe's Jeans  {similar}
Belt: Gap {save, spend, splurge}
Shoes: Rocket Dog (that need to be replaced...)
Necklace: 18th Birthday Present
Bracelet: J. Crew  {similar}

Thrifted

My love for getting a good deal is well documented. I rarely pay for anything full price - I always shop the sales at stores I can't really afford full price items (J.Crew, Banana Republic, Ann Taylor), and try to use coupons/codes at stores I can afford to pay full price but try not to (Gap, Old Navy, Loft, Express).

You would think with all of that I would be all for thrifting for clothes...yet I never have. I go to Goodwill and Savers lots, but it's to pick up house items. I went to Goodwill specifically to buy a frame for a print I bought down town, and wandered into the clothing section...and found this blazer waiting for me. It's more of a cardigan blazer and I'm positive it previously belonged to someone's sweet grandmother but with a snip of the scissors to remove the shoulder pads, it became the newest member of my closet. I also found an old leather purse whose straps I  removed to make an awesome new clutch.

All for less than $10! What took me so long?!

Blazer: Thrifted {similar? haha}
Shirt: Buckle
Jeans: Urban Outfitters  {exact}
Necklace: Present  {save, spend, splurge}
Watch: Boccia  {similar}
Shoes: Simply Vera Vera Wang {save, spend, splurge}


Do you thrift a lot of clothes? Any tips for a newbie?


Linking up with wiww and harper's happenings