Where I've Been and Thrift Updates

I wish that I could say I've been on vacation to an exotic island, however, that's not the case. Long story short -- nothing serious -- I have an old neck injury that will occasionally cause me grief. When that happens, I need rest and that includes very little time on any of my electronic devices (computer, phone, tablet). Right now, I've been on my computer for about 10 minutes and I'm already experiencing neck discomfort, so this will be a very short post. To the bloggers I follow, please forgive my absence. I hope to visit your blogs again very soon. Norma VanV

Quick thrift finds

Vintage suede handbag, suede pumps (never worn), houndstooth jeans, and a silver, blue and green necklace. I replaced the old worn strap on the handbag, but I need to track down a more substantial gold chain strap to replace the current thin gold metal chain strap I'm using.

Dark cherry red leather handbag, blue paisley scarf, and purple/lavender/gold striped scarf. (Yeah, I finally found scarves!) I bought the handbag just because of the great color!

Oversized wool jacket with silver metal trim, slightly askew on dress form. Is it dark purple or dark blue? In reality, it's really hard to say.

  Your standard leopard cowl neck sweater, poorly displayed on dress form, sorry.


The correct color of this 3/4 sleeve cardigan with black pick-stitching is dark cherry red. Sorry it is not aligned on the dress form!

 Again, this short sleeve wool turtleneck sweater is dark cherry red.

 This vintage dark brown coat does not photograph well -- it's really awesome!

Sorry, that's lint on the coat. I've already had it drycleaned, but it seems to attract lint. In this photo, I've attempted to show the back pleating. I did not need another winter coat, but I could not leave Goodwill without this incredible coat. I wish my pictures did this justice.

The details:
Vintage suede handbag: Unmarked, I think 60's, $9.00
Suede pumps: Nine West $12.99
Houndstooth jeans: Pure Color $9.99
Necklace: Unmarked, $4.97
Cherry red leather handbag: Aigner $19.99
Blue paisley scarf: Unmarked $5.00
Purple/gold striped scarf: Unmarked $5.00
Oversized wool jacket: Doncaster $14.99
Leopard cowl sweater: Jones New York $9.99
Red cardigan: Ann Taylor Loft $6.49
Red t-neck sweater: Talbots $6.50
Vintage wool coat: Lilli Ann (early 60's label) $8.00

Thanks for stopping by! Forgive my absence.

Norma VanV

The Sgt. Pepper Jacket

I recently thrifted what my husband called "The Sgt. Pepper Jacket". (See here.) This oversized jacket is vintage and I'm uncertain of the era; because of the ginormous shoulder pads, I'm guessing '80s. I tried three styling scenarios, but eventually chose this look.

The details:
Jacket: Thrifted Vintage Julian Taylor (see here)
Skirt: Thrifted Papillon Blanc (see here)
Shoes: Naya from my closet

These are the other two choices. First, with skinny jeans (I like this look, also).

I think the tights and the Naya peep toe shoes would work with the skinny jeans if it was an occasion where I didn't need to wear flats.

The details:
Skinny Jeans: White House/Black Market from my closet
Booties: Nine West Vintage American Collection from my closet

Then, just the ruffly Papillon Blanc skirt and the Nine West booties.

Not liking this -- the black tights with the booties may have looked better. For now, I'm pleased with the first and second options.

I think I'll visit the fabric store -- they have shoulder pads and I think smaller more rounder pads would look better than the existing pads. The jacket won't hang right if I simply remove the existing pads, so I'll need to replace rather than remove.

Comments are always welcome! Thanks for viewing!

Norma VanV

3's Not Always a Crowd and Last Tuesday's Thrift Haul

First off, my attempt to go quasi-cowgirl with some previously thrifted items.

I'm looking for a thin western belt but haven't found one yet. I tried a wider belt, but that look didn't work for me; it really accentuated my pear-shape. I think one more necklace would look better -- 3 isn't always a crowd. Adding a coral bracelet, or just moving the turquoise bracelet to the watch arm, may also look better. Thoughts, comments, critiques are welcome!

The details:
Jeans: Thrifted Ann Taylor Loft see here
Shirt: Thrifted Talbots see here
Belt: Talbots purchased years ago
Watch: Fossil purchased a few years ago
Bracelet, Necklaces: Lucky Brand (relatively new)
Boots: Sofft (one or two years old)

Now, last week's thrift haul.

A lighter weight off-white sweater and a brown wool houndstooth skirt.

A dark navy wool skirt with large button pocket closures.

A ruffly black skirt and an off-white sweater with a velvet neckline ruffle. The sweater is Peck & Peck, not the original Peck & Peck but the SteinMart version; it was never worn and has its original tags.

A vintage turquoise wool skirt. This item really exemplifies what has happened with vanity sizing.  It fits like today's large size 4 or small size 6 but is sized 11-12.

An Oscar de la Renta black & white graphic silk blouse, slightly askew on the dress form. :-)

Off-white trousers, which look great with the Oscar silk blouse, but are in serious need of cleaning and pressing. These aren't a perfect fit, but better than many thrift and/or new that I have tried.

A Kate Spade handbag and  black suede Nine West flats, slightly reminiscent of pilgrim shoes, but I like them anyway. The handbag has some wear and I'm not certain whether I will actually use it; I may just display it with my other Kate Spade items.

I hope this Anthropologie skirt can be saved; it has a few minor (I think) tears to the open cutwork. At the price I paid, it was worth the chance; I'll take it to the alterations shop and see what the owner thinks can be done to save this gorgeous skirt.

And last:

I'm not certain exactly what these are -- they're too long and wide legged for capris, too short for trousers, not short enough for gauchos -- but I couldn't resist. When I stepped out of the dressing room at the Goodwill Boutique to see if there were strappy sandals to try with the ?trousers?, everyone in the shop exclaimed at how fabulous they looked. One woman told me if I didn't buy them, she would. I'm working on a way to style these and hope it works.

Thrifted details:
Lightweight sweater: Talbots $3.49
Brown herringbone skirt: Talbots $3.49
Navy skirt: Talbots $3.49
Ruffle sweater: Peck & Peck $14.99
Ruffle skirt: Papillon Blanc $9.99
Vintage turquoise skirt: Joyce Sportswear $1.99
Silk blouse: Oscar de la Renta $3.49
Off-white trousers: Talbots $1.99
Handbag: Kate Spade $3.00
Shoes: Nine West $3.00
Cutwork bird skirt: Anthropologie Lithe $1.99
?Trousers?: Chico's $12.99

If anyone knows anything about the Chico's ?trousers? (they are marked Travelers), let me know.

Thanks for stopping by! Comments are always welcome.

Norma VanV

Camo Shirt and Thrift Finds

Busy week this week. I did find time for thrift shopping on Tuesday and will post the found items next week. Since the temperature was a little cooler this week, I wore trousers, a t-shirt and a sweater for thrifting. Next time, I'll leave the heels at home. ;-)

The details:
T-Shirt: Simply Vera, Vera Wang
Trousers: FDJ French Dressing
Sweater: Nic + Zoe
Shoes: Thrifted Nine West (see below)
Bracelet: Relativity

The following items were found on Tuesday, September 24.

A beaded collar shirt and a black a-line skirt, nothing special but good basics for fall.

My favorite this week: a brown tweed skirt with brown crochet trim.

 A red rag weave cardigan,

 an oatmeal v-neck, and

a black leather and sweater knit jacket. I'm seeing leather sleeves with knitted bodices this fall, but hope I can make this opposite style work instead.

The only sleet/snow repellant coat I own is a sporty parka, so this dressier coat will be a great addition for midwest winters. (What's with all the spots on this photo? Sorry.)

I think I can find lots of uses for this versatile gold beaded sweater.

I'm not certain how I'll use this denim duster ... I'm having a little buyer's remorse ... but I hope I can figure out how to use this. Ideas are welcome!

This is a vintage velvet vest and I'm really excited to own it!

I think this is a vintage jacket; it's oversized for me, but I hope I can make it work. My husband called it the "Sgt. Pepper Jacket".

Two pair of shoes -- the Nine West are (poorly) pictured at the beginning of this post. The Nina pair are ankle-strapped and have a really fun painted heel.

Finally, a pair of jeans that fit! But how to wear this style? Only one way to make these jeans work -- get my Cowgirl on.

And, finally, I found three pieces of jewelry: a bracelet and two broaches; none are vintage. I already own an identical bracelet.

I also purchased a 70's vintage outfit that I'll wear for the birthday party of Sheila of Ephemera. That's it for last week.

Thrifted details:

Beaded collar shirt: Talbots $9.99

Black A-line skirt: Talbots $9.99

Crochet trim skirt: Talbots $9.99

Cardigan: Talbots $9.99

V-Neck sweater: Banana Republic $9.99

Leather and knit jacket: Ann Taylor $14.99

Coat: Drizzle $8.00

Beaded sweater: Designer Original $3.49

Denim duster: Gap $14.99

Velvet vest: Dino Ricco Original "Bell Boy" $4.00

Sgt. Pepper jacket: Julian Taylor $2.00

Brown shoes: Nine West $3.00

Black painted heel shoes: Nina $3.00

Embellished jeans: Ann Taylor Loft $12.99

Bracelet: $2.38

Bunny broach: $1.19

Vintage-look broach: $1.49

Oye como va? -- A Santana Homage

I'm not a stranger to skinny jeans, rock 'n roll, or a little edgier look. It's just not always appropriate for every day wear in my life -- not at the allergist's office, the market, the thrift shops, some luncheons, meetings, etc. Friday night cervezas with my husband before a quiet dinner at home -- you betcha!

I've read that Marilyn Monroe, after dressing, would always remove one item. I didn't think of Marilyn at the time, but I removed 2 items before we left home for the local pub.  The above picture was taken before I removed the leather banded watch.

And the picture above was taken before I removed the necklace. I also fixed the wonky seams of the skinny jeans and the uneven pushed up sleeves of the blazer before I left home!

Close-up photo of my Santana shirt, above. Manufacturer and date unknown.

I don't often wear jeans/trousers because it's nearly impossible to find a pair that fit! I mentioned in an earlier post that I have a love/hate relationship with trousers and would discuss in a future post. It's still something I want to discuss in a future post, but I'll supply a brief explanation here: plumber's rear is very unattractive and most trousers give me that effect. These jeans, as long as they are belted and shirt tucked, work for me. Of course, the longer jacket provides additional confidence.

THE DETAILS

Thrifted items:
Jacket: Vintage J.G. Hook here

Belt:  Brighton here
Shoes:  Carlos Santana here

Other items:
Santana Shirt: Unknown from my closet
Jeans: White House/Black Market
Necklace/Cuff Bracelet: Relativity

Thanks for viewing! Comments/critiques are welcome.

Norma VanV

Rafael Sanchez Belt, Vintage 80s

Vintage Rafael Sanchez Belt here.

Must be a spot on the lens.

But spot doesn't appear in this photo. Darn poltergeists.

Back view only to show the exposed zipper in the skirt, which doesn't show.

Intended to take pictures of the olive tiered dress (seen here), but ran out of camera battery life.