Festive special

Have you ever had a day where you had less than 10 minutes to go from work to an evening out?

Welcome to my life.

Warning, this post is looooong.

I wore this one evening when we went out at a comedy club.  I remember dashing home after work with only a few minutes to change.  Slipping on the velvet maxi (or is it velour?), and layering on my long shearling vest.

And then I started putting on necklaces.

Lots of necklaces.

I absolutely love everything I'm wearing. We had a ridiculously good time that night, and I'll forever associate the things I wore with those fond memories.

shearling vest, le chateau $100
vintage black maxi-dress, thrifted $2
elephant necklaces, thrifted $10
off-white beaded necklace, thrifted $3
black heart necklace, Icing $3
lace-up flats, Ardene $5

The  le chateau vest was a splurge.  I rarely buy things that aren't on sale.  But I fell in love with this ultra-soft vest.  And I had a birthday, gift card, so what the heck, I bought it.

The next event was the office Christmas party.  Absolutely everything was thrifted...and it was mah-velous!!

I had started scouring thrift stores for party dresses back in September.  October and November have the darkest, longest nights, so I was looking for something bright and festive.

This red floral dress was snapped up for $4 at the Sally Anne.  So was the blazer and shoes.  The purse was a Value Village buy.

I dithered over whether to buy this pretty gold and enamel necklace.  

I spotted the necklace dangling off a rack of jewellery.  I held it for a while, then I thought of all the jewellery I had, and I put it back.  Then I thought about it some more...I really liked the geometric design and the careful construction.  So it came home with me.

I was glad I did.  In the flurry of getting ready, I auditioned it with the dress.  It flattered the V-neck of the dress nicely!  

Velvet blazer, thrifted $2
Liz Claiborne dress, thrifted $4
Trifari necklace, thrifted $6
Liz Claiborne purse, thrifted $14
shoes, thrifted $7

When I was putting the necklace away the next day, I noticed it was signed Trifari.  I knew from my ebay selling days that Trifari is a coveted brand.  Imagine my surprise when I Googled "Trifari Kunio Matsumoto"  and saw that this necklace was selling for more than a hundred dollars on the resale market. Wow!

I immediately rushed back to Value Village hoping to find the matching earrings and bracelet. 

This is what I wore to Thanksgiving dinner.  It was crucial that I wore something that would allow me to eat large quantities of food and laugh a lot :)

The sweater is from Cleo, I really liked the chain details.  The black skirt is a nice, heavier weight knit skirt.  The label is Lapis.  It was another $2 deal from Salvation Army.

Cleo tunic sweater, $70
Lapis knit skirt, thrifted $2
DSW boots, $40

The boots were bought a few years ago when I visited Shoe Warehouse in Duluth. I like them because they comfortable, and the metallic studs are subtly decorative.

I was thrilled when magazines started featuring glittery, sequined or beaded sweaters.  I have a collection of 80's sweaters which were cheaply purchased second-hand.  It's especially gratifying wearing something unique, high-quality and trendy.

I wore the black sweater with gold sequins and beads to a surprise birthday party.  I didn't want to be burdened with a coat.  So this lambswool sweater was paired with some glittery flats, and jeans.  It kept me warm and comfortable enough that I could park and walk to the venue in chilly weather.

The lace blouse and vest to the right are also thrifted.  The pink rhinestone broach was an ebay find.  I keep combinations like this ready to wear on hangars.  It's a lifesaver on days when I have to change outfits quickly.

Embellished sweater, thrifted $2
Pink lace blouse, thrifted $5
Vest waistcoat, thrifted $3
Pink rhinestone broach, ebay $25

Shiny footwear is excellent for amping up an outfit.  The glittery flats were a thrift store find from 2 years ago.  The shiny boots were a hand-me-down from stylist.

I love shine.  I was especially glad to find this shimery, lurex blouse at the Salvy Army.  I paired it with a vintage, lambswool tube skirt and wore it to a Christmas party.  For the picture I also added this gold link belt.

I also love plaid. The red plaid shirt is made of shiny velour.  I wore it with stretchy jeans to on Christmas Day.

Both outfits were thrifted.  They cost less than $15 from head to toe.

everything is thrifted

Here is another 80s beaded sweater.  It's IB Diffusion, a label I coveted back then.  It's a beautifully made, lambswool and angora dress with carefully sewn bugle beads.  I bought it for very little (like $5 or so).  I volunteer with the Salvation Army Kettle Campaign and sometimes I work in very cold areas.  So I layered this dress over another sweater, skinny jeans and boots.

The fabulous red velvet drss was $5 (wow!).  It has a neat embossed design.

It makes me sad when I shop at the mall with stylist.  The clothing that is made now doesn't have this quality anymore.  One of the many reasons why I enjoy shopping vintage is the quality of the material and superior workmanship.  

These dresses would have cost a small fortune back in the day.  It was anti-fast fashion.

Haha! It looks like the black dress is touching the red dress.

The fun part of cold weather is cute, novelty sweaters!  

Check out the rhinestone bow-tie!

I bought this sweater and a bunch of other stuff at a heavily discounted sale at Kohl's.  Back in the day, when the Canadian-US exchange wasn't punishingly high, we would shop in Duluth as an annual treat.

I wore the novelty sweater with RW leggings.  RW is one of my favorite, retail places to shop.  The quality and style is great. Their stuff lasts for years, and the colours are brilliant.

It's difficult to see in the picture, but the dark blue leggings have a really cool diamond design. I adore anything that reminds me of vintage neckties from the seventies.

I won't lie, I like my sweats and jeans.

If you like sweats, check out Roots.  Their stuff used to be made in Canada. Nowadays not so much.  Yes their stuff is eye-wateringly expensive, but they do have an outlet.

Back to parties.  I paired this dress with a velvet blazer and hung it on a hangar so that I can quickly grab it the next time I have to go out. The dress is RW, the blazer is INC International (both thrifted for a few dollars).

The last outfit I'm going to show you came from Value Village.  I gasped when I found the kilt.  It's green and brown and it's ultra-long.  It's vintage and the quality is fantastic!

The brown top was found further down the aisle and it matches the skirt exactly. 

Wow, I wonder if the same person donated both items!  If so, thank you!

the brown sweater has a touch of Lurex

Luurrrve this kilt!

Whew! Thanks for reading this extensively long post.  I'm going for a walk.

happy thrifting ;)