Category: Thrifting Fun

June Thrift Haul

This month was a big thrifting month for me, but honestly I made some missteps and they aren’t ALL winners. Luckily thrifting mistakes are relatively inexpensive mistakes to make, so let’s go through what I found during the month of June.

LAND backpack, $7.49

Okay, stick with me for a moment because YES I am aware that this is a diaper bag backpack. I was looking for an insulated bag that we could use for the beach, as we currently stick food and drinks in a grocery bag and then shove them into either a larger beach bag or the back of one of our beach chairs. So, when I saw this insulated diaper backpack I was intrigued. It has a bunch of organizing pockets, an insulated area, it’s huge inside, water resistant and even has padded straps. I feel like it will actually be pretty fantastic for a beach food/drink bag, and I can’t wait to give it a try when we go to Ocean City later this summer.

Max Studios skirt, $6.99

Okay, don’t sleep on the high-low skirts because it’s such an easy fix! I loved the fabric weight, print and fit of this skirt, and it took less than 10 minutes to cut it, pin it and sew a new hem:

I love this skirt for summer and I’ve already worn it to work once so far.

Workout shorts, $4 (sale)

I grabbed these workout shorts and crossed my fingers that they’d fit because they got rid of all our fitting rooms. These have built-in bike shorts, with the floral portion fitting a little looser. I’ve worn them once so far and they’re okay. A little *too* fitted for me, but okay. I may put these in the back of a drawer to see if they fit better when my weight fluctuates down a little.

Lacy/Crochet cardigan, $3 (sale)

Once again, I was using my imagination for this one. I liked the lightweight lace, but fully acknowledge that it looks super dated when put over a top and shorts. Which is why I chopped it off at the waist to try it layered over dresses. And honestly, it’s not great and will most likely make its way back to the donate pile.

Chana dress, $30

I think this came from Anthropologie based on the tags that were still on it for $170. I love the fit of the dress and the weight of the heavy cotton fabric. I was a little flummoxed about that deep v though, until I realized that I can style it like a pinafore for work! By layering it over a blouse and topping it with a straw belt, it makes it much more casual and I can get so much more wear out of it. I think this one will also look fun styled for cooler weather with a black blouse and knee-high boots. Or a sweater on top, tights and ankle booties.

Kate Spade Viva Colores Sidney skirt, $11.29

I was super excited to find this colorful cotton skirt from Kate Spade, but when I got it home and tried it on it’s not really doing much for me. Weirdly, the waistband is way too loose (which yes, I can fix), but the length is also a little short on me. I tried it over top of a fluffier slip-like skirt for a two-toned look and it’s okay, but just not thrilling me. This has been added to my Poshmark closet and I hope someone else finds it and loves it.

Starbucks ceramic mug, $3.99

I have two Starbucks ceramic travel mugs and they are great for mornings that I want to sip my coffee on my way into the office. This one was pretty and in perfect condition, so I figured I’d add it to my cupboard.

Dona Joe Running skirt, $7.99

Another day, another running skirt. I’ve been very into skorts for our evening walks lately, so I scooped this one up (once again, without trying it on). It’s cute and I think it may also be a fun swim coverup later this summer.

Anthropologie skirt, $5.29

Sigh. Another skirt bummer. This one is new with $130 tags on it from Anthropologie and it’s too tight in the waist for me. I hate that they got rid of fitting rooms, because this particular thrift location is about 45 minutes away from my house. As it is, this one has been added to my Poshmark closet too.

Leota dress, $11.99

I love a good Leota jersey dress and the fit and colors of this one are fantastic. This is a great workhorse dress and I especially love them for packing for conferences since they don’t wrinkle. This one will be great in the fall alone, or topped with a blazer or denim jacket.

Coach Dakota purse, $29

I’ve been so jealous of the thrifting girlies who find vintage Coach bags and rehab them… and I’ve been keeping my eyes out for months/years(?) for a vintage Coach of my own from the thrifts. On this particular trip, I actually saw THREE leather Coach bags, but this one was the winner for me. Even though it was in absolutely terrible condition with scratches, pen marks, overall yuck and even paint splatter(?!) on the back. You can have a peek at my rehab on this video, but I’ll be doing a full blog post soon since I’m so pleased with the results:

I researched the heck out of this bag and found that it is actually pretty rare in that it’s from the Dakota collection and each purse was made by hand in 1992. While some of the purses were shown in a Coach catalogue, it doesn’t appear that they did a full roll-out to the public. I found this version in a navy blue and a green, but haven’t found any others listed for sale or sold in the exact version I have in red. With that being said, I’m not looking to resell it, but to enjoy it’s classic design for many years to come.

My Style: May 2024

This month was a wonderful mix of cooler and warmer days, and it was so nice to finally fully pack away the tights and boots for the summer. However, I haven’t *quite* gotten all the summer stuff out yet and I’ve really been enjoying those days where I don’t need heat OR air conditioning in the house (and so does my wallet).

Let’s take a look at my May looks:

All the jewel tones at the beginning of this month! I am not a pastel-loving kind of girl, so give me some saturated colors and I’m pretty darn happy. While I typically go for patterned skirts and dresses, for these three outfits I went with the solid skirts and then worked in the patterns with my tops.

Out of these three outfits, the middle blouse may be hitting the donate pile. I’m going to try it again with some denim shorts this summer before making up my mind.

More skirt combos — I’m basically working my way through my entire skirt collection to decide what stays and what goes. And I like all of these combos, so it looks like nothing gets purged from this set out outfits.

Three more casual outfits for my weekends — I’m kind of obsessed with that first skirt. I thrifted it in Tuscan and I’ve been wearing it on repeat because it makes me so happy! Also, with the warmer weather I’m switching to ‘crossbody purse season’ and I’m excited to start using my vintage Coach finds!

Once again, nothing gets purged from this set of outfits and you will be seeing all of these pieces again and again this summer.

Last outfit — which is what I’m wearing to work today. I thrifted this skirt over the weekend, washed it, hemmed it (it previously had a high-low hem) and couldn’t hold off from wearing it ASAP! No purge items here either!

New vs. Secondhand Talley

This month, I count 14 items that I purchased retail and 21 items I purchased secondhand! And wow, it was a month of skirts — out of the 10 skirts from this post, 5 were purchased retail and 5 were purchased secondhand.

May Thrift Haul

This month was another extra fun thrifting adventure, as it includes scores from our trip to Naples, Florida.

As I mentioned, my husband found so many amazing treasures that we had to zip open our carry-ons wider so that he could fit them all in! I think there was around 6 pairs of golf/fitness shorts, 2 polos, 2 t-shirts and 2 hats. He’s been wearing everything since he came home and it tickles me to no end that when I compliment him, he responds enthusiastically with “THANKS, I THRIFTED THESE SHORTS FOR $5!”

I was very, very picky with my thrifting treasures, but I came home with a few winners:

Lou & Grey joggers, $6.99

I’m pretty sure these are the Lou & Grey Signaturesoft sweatpants that retail for $69.50. They are incredibly soft and fit like a pair of leggings and a pair of joggers had a baby. I absolutely love them and have already worn them a bunch of times. Love, love, love these and after seeing how they wear for a while, I might even purchase another pair at retail prices. On sale, of course.

Jofit skort, $6.99

I love a good skort for running or even for our afternoon/evening neighborhood walks. There were skorts a plenty in the Naples thrift stores (thanks to all the local golf courses and tennis clubs), but this one was a winner for me. I loved the bright orange accents and the pleats make for some sassy twirls. Similar skorts retail on the Jofit website for $98.

Madewell Walker Chelsea suede ankle boots, $5.99

These Madewell booties were my best score in Naples! They are in fantastic condition, fit me perfectly and retailed for $178 on the Madewell website. If I were shopping retail, I’d be hesitant to purchase suede shoes since they can get ruined by rain, however at $6 there’s not much to lose and these will look fantastic with some dresses and jeans in the fall.

Athleta v-neck lightweight sweatshirt, $9

This is a score from home, but I love the v-neck Athleta sweatshirts (I own two, one in navy and one in green). So when I saw this black one for $9, I figured I might as well add it to my closet. I love them as a layer for hiking and I also wear them regularly on chilly days in my house.

Pyrex “Zodiac” casserole dish, $8.50

I’ve never seen this pattern in Pyrex before, so I was intrigued. It was in TERRIBLE condition though, so I thought it would be a fun gamble to see if Bar Keepers Friend could really magically restore it. Spoiler alert, it did NOT save it. However, olive oil helped a lot: