Thrifty Shopping

I hate to spend money on clothes. I hate clothes shopping.

I think what retail stores charge for clothing is downright ridiculous.

That is why I LOVE stores like Old Navy, Target, and Ross for clothes shopping.

I also recently found several consignment shops in Medford and have enjoyed shopping there and finding deals!

Here are some pictures of things I have picked up recently. Please forgive the picture quality. I tried. I really did. I used different flash and tried different rooms and I am just a bad photographer. Sorry. I really should take a class.

First up:

I bought this dress at a consignment shop for $15. It was in perfect condition, fits great, and has a pretty dark brown, light brown and teal blue floral pattern on it. I have already worn it several times and am looking forward to dressing it a bit differently for fall. For summer, at work, I wore a tan half cardigan, and dark brown wedge sandals.

For fall, I'm thinking something more like this:

I bought the jacket at the same consignment shop for $8. Yes. $8. It is a GAP brand, fully lined, structured jacket. It is in perfect condition, in fact it looks like it has never even been worn. It might bee "too" structured for this lightweight dress, but I can also see it with jeans and boots. It is a nice fall jacket. Below that I have an awesome pair of brown knee-high boots I picked up at Ross for, I think, $24.99. They are a beautiful chocolate brown, with a gold round buckle and a nice chunky sole. I also, though it is hard to see in the picture, have a pair of brown leggings on the chair. I bought those at Ross for $5.99. They are ankle-length, and more opaque than tights, but are not for wearing alone like pants. Even if I don't wear this exact outfit, you get the idea of how this dress can be made more versatile by adding a little jacket and some leggings.

Here is a closer shot of the jacket:

Here are two dresses that I recently bought at Ross for $15.99 each. I love the stretchy fabric and the draping across the waist which is figure flattering. I think both of these can be dressed for fall as well, with the addition of a black jacket/sweater, tights and the right shoes or ankle boots maybe.

The patterns are both figure flattering as well, giving the eye some diversion and masking the lines of the body somewhat. The color on the floral is a very pretty lime green. Chris really liked this dress.

Next we move more definitively into fall and winter with some dresses that are heavier material and styling. I can imagine these with some great jewelry, long-sleeved shirts underneath, leggings, boots, maybe scarves. The pictures suck, but the dresses are cute! Oh, Ross, $15.99 each. Yup. Can't beat the price tag!

This sweater dress is probably my favorite of the three. I totally wasn't sure about it, but I tried it on and then paired it with the leggings and boots and am almost excited for cooler weather so I can wear it! *almost*.

Here is an idea of the styling:

Sweater dress with grey leggings and black boots. Could add a grey or black long-sleeved shirt underneath. Could also potentially add a big belt, although I'm not much of a belt girl.

The dress has lots of colors in it...grey is kind of the predominant color, but there are also a lot of brown undertones. I think, depending on how it is styled, brown boots, leggings, and a brown long-sleeved shirt could also be worn.

It is hard to see in the pictures, but this dress has a black/white tiny check pattern. It looks more black in person, but more grey in the photo. I think it could be styled with grey or black leggings, boots, a grey, black or white undershirt...or for someone a little more adventurous with their clothing than I am...red or yellow accent pieces. I see black tights with some bright red mary jane style heels, and some great accessories.

Here is a closer shot of my boots. The black pair I bought from Target last year. They are not terribly comfortable (no cushion inside) but they are super cute!

And lastly, a sweater with an original retail price of almost $50 that I purchased at Ross for $14.99. I love bargains!!

It is a big chunky knit with that structure-less look that is so popular right now. The draped neckline is huge, big enough to wrap over my head like a hood if I wanted to. It is very soft and comfortable. I see this paired with some great jeans, boots, any number of undershirts with some awesome necklaces to set it off. It is done with black and white thread giving it this grey/neutral tone. A very colorful undershirt could be worn without being overwhelming, or a neutral tone shirt with bright jewelry, one of those statement necklaces everyone is sporting.

Oh yeah, I bought ALL of this stuff, every piece, including the leggings and  both pairs of boots for less than $250.  If you average it out, that means I paid less than $18 for each item, and actually a bit less than that because I rounded up to $250.

While I hate clothes shopping, I love finding great bargains. I also love finding clothes that are versatile and can create multiple outfits, with just a little bit of accessorizing.

With these items, plus a few more I am looking to purchase over the next few weeks (another pair of jeans, some long sleeved shirts) I will be more than ready for fall and winter.

Do you love or hate shopping? Are you a bargain shopper? I hate garage sales, but discount retail is my idea of shopping heaven!