I am SO cleaning out my closet!

So, I think it's been just about a year since I started thrifting and now my closet is starting to overflow.  I have a pretty decent sized walk-in, so when I started having trouble maneuvering about, it was time to clean house.  Well not really...it was more like organize house and set aside a few things for donations.

Cleaning out my closet was a three man job so I recruited my mom and son to help.  Y'all know he dipped out on me after only a few minutes! Geez...good help can be so hard to find.  But my mom, bless her heart, is a beast when it comes to cleaning.  It took us several hours but now I have plenty of space to go in and twirl!  Seriously! I literally went in and twirled from room to room in my closet!!  I think it will be my new hideaway.

Everything is organized pretty much by color.  I have separate sections for my work and casual clothing.  You know the saying " a place for everything and everything in its place" this now describes my closet.  Let's hope I can keep it that way!😕

Are you cleaning out or organizing your closet for the New Year?  I'd love to see your before and after.  Here are a few of mine.

              @~~~~~ I'm SoRosie
                  Stay Rosy Y'all!

A Red (B&W) Christmas

I don't know about you but it can be hard at times to figure out what to wear to work everday.  My very old school parents  would say that's because "you have TOO much choice".  I guess this is a ridiculous 1st world probem but nonetheless IT IS A PROBLEM.  Especially when it impacts your ability to get dressed and out the house in a reasonable amount of time. 

I often seek motivation from Pinterest and my favorite Facebook groups such as #thriftingatlanta and #thriftingdivas.  The ladies and gentlemen on these social media platforms are so creative and provide a good  source of inspiration. 

When I find something I like, sometimes I just recreate it over and over.  Right now, I'm loving the pairing of red, black and white (or sometimes blue) in an outfit.  So much so, that I've been wearing these colors to work everyday this month.  I talked about this in my last post. I must say having a theme makes it soooo much easier to narrow down those choices. Another perk is that red seems so festive and appropriate for this time of year.

The one draw back is, it makes it obvious as to what I don't currently have in my closet; which means more shopping.   Ughhh!!- Not shopping!  We all have a LBD that is office appropriate but I just realized I don't own a single red dress nor a white one, much less one that would be work appropriate.  Oh well...two more items for the thriftlist!

Total random thought as I'm typing: I feel like my themed outfits should have  a theme song.  Anywho!!!

What tricks do you use to help get dressed?  Do you ever utilize a theme for a period of time? Am I just crazy?  Is anyone out there?  I'd love to hear from you!!

                      I'm (still) SoRosie in Red!
                            Stay Rosy Y'all!

                          HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

My thrifted items:
Red Cardigan- Eddie Bauer
Black Pencil Skirt - No name
Blue Sweater - Knitwear
Red Pants - Kasper

P.S.  I ended up wearing a pair of black tall boots with the skirt because...Baby it's Cold Outside!

So_Rosie in Red

Quite unconsciously my outfits this week had a hint or more of red.  I love how red, black and white complement each other in an outfit.  I think I'll carry this theme through  the month of December.  It's very fitting with the holidays in my opinion. 

P.S. I'm still loving my polka dots!!

Thrifted items:

-Banana Republic plaid pants

-Polka-dot skirt

-Talbots Hounds tooth Blazer

-Red Nine West Patent leather shoes

-Red Necklace 

                      I'm SoRosie in Red
                        Stay Rosy Y'all

SO Blah(nik)

I stopped in to my local Goodwill last week in search of teacups for the teaparty I'm planning for my kids and their cousins.   It was 7:52pm as I pulled into the parking lot. The store was closing  in 8 mins.  I quickly made my way to the wares section. No luck!  With a few minutes to spare I make my way around the store seeing if I might check any items off my mental thriftlist.  Polka-dot pencil skirt (nope), camouflaged skinny  jeans  (nope), red trench or wool coat (nope); I was striking out  big time. The trip appeared to be a total bust.  Last stop, Shoes.  Taupe  pumps  (better luck next time) Grrrrr!

But wait...eye spy from the corner of my eye.  8 minutes well spent!!!! MANOLO BLAHNIK!

                        @~~~~I'm So Rosie
                             Stay Rosy Y'all

So Color Blocked

I recently had one of those days I've heard thrift addicts speak of, when your vehicle just seems to navigate itself to the nearest thrift store despite your stern objections to the rerouting of your predetermined destination.

Have you had one of those days???  It's ok to admit to it!!!  Just nod slightly or blink two times fast; we've all been there.

See what happened was...Ruby (my car) set off on her own course and rerouted me to the Salvation  Army.  "But Ruby it's not  Wednesday, we won't  find  anything  for 50% off," I challenged to no avail. A challenge to which Ruby responds, "You have arrived. "

So, I begrudgingly walk in and begin to peruse, all the time thinking  "I told you  this was a waste of gas."  Until...I arrive at a section of dresses.  I've  had a long-sleeved dress on my thrift list and now that an artic blast is upon us a long-sleeved dress would be perfect.

I spot black knit long sleeves and make  my way  over, as I slide the other garments to the side a lovely treasure is revealed.   Now, this dress is very much out of my comfort  zone.   If you read my previous  post you know thrifting has caused  me to step outside of that zone.

The dress is $9.99 with a yellow tag...not the color  of the day. (Boooooo)  I try it on anyway and (HOORAY) it fits beautifully.

I don't normally photograph myself for posts, but, this dress makes me want to pose in the nearest  intersection pretending to hail a cab (or catch a snowflake) while Color Blocking traffic!

                   @~~~~I'm So Rosie
                       Stay Rosy Y'all

What do you think about my find?  How would you style this piece? 

100% Thrifted

I've been thrifting for almost a year  now and one of the things I love most about  my new found  passion is how versatile my style  has become.   Most people  who know me know that I never repeat outfits.   I don't  put something  together and then wear it the same way ever.  One reason  being,  I won't  remember  the  combination.  Well then you might be wondering  "how do you know  you haven't  repeated  an outfit?"  Trust  me I just know.  The second  reason is, its just more fun to find news ways to wear an item.  I've been reading  lots of blogs that suggest identifying 3 ways to style a piece before  deciding to buy.   That's a really good tip but honestly  if I'm  thrifting  and I love it I'm  buying it regardless if I can figure out right then and there how to style it in  3 ways.

Thrifting has made not repeating outfits  easier on my purse for sure.   So now I find myself purchasing items I ordinarily  wouldn't purchase at retail.  It also makes  trying out a Pinspired outfit  that much more palatable. 

I'm  still new to posting  my ramblings but I hope to one day figure out how to post my pinspirations without  fear of some copyright infringement concerns. I may never get to that stage but if anyone  is reading this just know most my outfit posts  are usually a recreation of some  sort. 

Anyways on to the outfit.   I Thrifted all 3 pieces.  The blazer (100% wool) is so awesome,  when I set eyes on it, I didn't give it a second thought.  The pants are Ann Taylor skinny corduroy.  I hated wearing  corduroy as a kid because  of that noise  they make when your  legs rub together.  You know the noise!  The boots are  Nine West.  I added  a little  sparkle  with a sequins tank and a red necklace  to break up the black.

For some reason  it felt  very  New Years eve(ish)!  I just may repeat  this  one after all !

                      @~~~~I'm So Rosie

                           Stay Rosy Y'all

I SO_LOVE Chocolate!

We still have a lot of leftovers from Halloween as a result of the rain in my neck of the woods.  We have lots of chocolate leftover and while I love me some TWIX, Kit-Kats and of course Snickers...

I love this kind of chocolate even more.

Can I tell you I got a serious sweet tooth going on right now?!

               @~~~~ I'm SoRosie
                    Stay Rosy Y'all

So Bootie(ful)

I've fallen victim to the fall bootie craze and I blame Pinterest for my latest indulgence! I picked up these booties from Ross dress for Less.  I love that they look a bit cowboy bootish.  I've always wanted a pair but haven't been brave enough to actually follow through on purchasing any.

You know how you see things on other people and it looks good, but you feel like it looks weird on you.   That's exactly how I feel about cowboy boots and up until recently about booties.   

I scored this black suede Carlos Santana pair and a brown Nine West pair from Ross Dress for Less, both were less than $60 including tax.  I tried finding a thrift pair but feared the season would be over long  before I found a suitable pair.  I mean who would just give a away a pair of booties that are in good enough condition to wear with a skirt.

I paired my new booties with:

-Burgundy ("Oxblood" as some may say) Cropped Sweater (Velvet-Thrifted)

-Tweed look skirt (it has pockets! Do you know how much I love skirts and dresses with pockets? A lot! It's so functional. (Ann Taylor - Thrifted)

-Donna Karan Opaque tights

The sweater and skirt were purchased at a Goodwill Outlet during my recent weekend getaway.  Who goes thrifting on vacation?  This girl! Everything was a $1.83/lb.  Talk about a good haul! I picked up about 76 items that day and spent $65. Good times!

So my 10yr old walks in, takes one look at me in my outfit and says,  "WOW MOMMY, you look young."  He said this with a serious emphasis on the young.  How RUDE!?! But THANKS!

@~~~~I'm SoRosie

Stay Rosy Y'all!

BAG Lady

I've always been a sucker for a cute but functional bag.  In college, I had a variety of bags to tote all my necessary stuff around New York City; you know my CD player and CDs, my Walkman & cassette tapes (I still have  my Sony Walkman - Dont judge me).  Oh...and my textbooks, of course my textbooks were packed as well.

I was particularly fond of messenger bags and I had a beautiful green leather backpack.  I still have a few of my bags from college.   (I'm not a hoarder or anything, I just take good care of my stuff and I'm pretty sentimental).

Just a few days ago I was reminiscing about my favorite bag from college... a United Colors of Benetton (Whatcha know about that?) tote bag in all the primary colors.  Is that company still around?  Anyways, I think its still at my mom's house. At least I hope it is.

Anyways my love for bags hasn't changed.   But now I look for versatility.   Bags that serve double duty are usually at the top of my list.  It needs to be roomy enough for a baby bottle, a diaper and wipes  Here are a few of the bags recently scored from the Goodwill :

Love the Doone & Bourke it was a Twofer!!!

Ooh No La La

The day I put this outfit on I was feeling confident and loving my look.   I wore stockings with it, oh how I hate stockings, but it was much too cool out to go bare legged.   Anyway, I was feeling quite lady like.  My pleats were swinging with every elongated stride.  You couldn't tell me I wasn't working it. Ooh La La!!
But wait,  as I'm strolling, wait... what the... Ooh NO La La.  I can see through my skirt.  *blushes*  Ok, check my surrounding (whew) the coast  is clear.  I sure hope that guy in line behind me waiting to pay for his parking doesn't have a story to tell!
Lessons learned/To Do ASAP:
(1) Check clothing for translucency before strutting down the street.
(2) Buy a half slip (do they sell these any more?)
(3) Activate my So(Sew)Rosie persona and sew a lining in that little flirty skirt.
Other than accepting a co-worker's invitation to lunch, I stayed at my desk all day.  Knowing my plight, he was kind enough to go out in search of a slip on my behalf.  Upon his return he declared himself my savior.  "5 stores later," he boasted proudly and handed me a small bag. "You know, the women in the stores said people don't wear slips anymore, but they said this would work," he added.
As I opened the bag I busted out with laughter...I was holding a pair of boyshorts!!!
I thanked him for his thoughtfulness (come on how nice was that) but regretfully informed him that those same women duped him out of a few bucks.
Luckily, I brought along my new favorite jacket.  I scored this lovely Talbot's trench from the Goodwill for $7, the perfect cover up for my trip home.
                   @~~~~ I'm SoRosie
                        Stay Rosy Y'all

Pleated Skirt, Sweater (NoName-Thrifted) Shoes (Nine West-Thrifted

Trench (Talbot's Thrifted)

October Thrift Haul!

I've had some good days,  I've had some hills to climb...but when I look around and I think things over, all of my good days outweigh my bad days, so I won't complain.  If you listen to gospel you recognize these lyrics.  (Marvin Winans Lyrics)  These words apply to many areas of my life, my thrift life is not exempt. Sometimes my runs are a complete bust but mostly I score some cool stuff,  so no complaints here.
 

Here are a few of my faves:

Plaid Ralph Lauren Blazer ~$5  I have a serious obsession with blazers, I would be ashamed to say how many I have but I actually haven't taken count.  But promise put them to good use.  I wear one at least 4 out of 5 work days. Oh snap, I just realized I scored a RL necklace that matches the buttons on jacket (whatacoinkydink)

Red Leather Jacket Guess ~$6

Ralph Lauren Tie ~$1

Utility Blazer J.Crew~$9 retails for~100-130

Faux Fur Utility Vest Old Navy ~6

Lucky Brand Crop jeans $.25 Too chilly out but for a quarter??

Brown Sperry TopSiders ~$6 I bought a retail pair and paid about $80 but I like these much more(SMH)

Spense Vest~$4 (For my menswear inspired looks)

Alfani Leather Jacket ~$30 I may have over paid for this but it was well worth it because it ends my search for a brown leather and I absolutely love it.

Talbots Shirt ~5

J Crew Shirt~5(Goes nicely with leggings and these boots)

Ralph Lauren Silk Sweater (Soooo Soft)

 

Do you think any of my finds are a hit or miss?
What have you scored for the fall? 

 

P.S. I also picked some fall decor for the front steps,  which I've already set out.  I would go take pic but it's a little brisk outside and I'm feeling quite cozy.

 

@~~~~I'm SoRosie

Stay Rosy Y'all!

Salvation Army Soldier

I went marching into my local Salvation Army with my battalion in tow ( my 10y and 8mo. old.) on "Customer Appreciation Day" .  All clothing items 50% off.  

I readied myself for a battle with the crowds... to my relief there were no crowds, no crowds=at ease soldiers.  I was free to peruse at me leisure.  * Well, that is, until baby boy gets fussy and then you know its time to go - and there's mad dash to the register*

I had specific items in mind:
Plaid Shirt
Booties
Polka Dot Pencil Skirt
High Waisted Pants
Camo Pants
China- Tea Cups (really pretty ones, I LOVE tea and so I'm going to have a tea party!!)

I came up short on all these items but I did manage to score a few nice things; including 3 pairs of Aldo shoes.  I left behind a pair of Yves Saint Laurent boots,  a little too worn for my liking.  Some items I'll keep, others I'll give away or sell. 

If anyone is actually reading these post you may recall that I recently took up sewing.  Well, I found a cute little brown (Banana Republic) corduroy skirt during this visit.  The zipper was spoiled so I managed to get it for $.99.  My plan is to use this to learn how to replace a zipper on a garment.   If I do well, this cute skirt will be rocked this fall with printed opaque tights and booties. If not, you may just be picking up a D.I.Y gone wrong from the Goodwill (and saying "WhattheEff").  It may look a little like a tote bag with a crooked zipper!!

              @~~~~I'm So(Sew)Rosie
                       Stay Rosie Y'all

SEW Rosie!

I found a new hobby!!! I'm learning how to sew!  Learning how to sew will be a real compliment to my other new hobby...thrifting!  (Can you tell how excited I am by all the exclamation points?!)

A few months ago, I purchased a sewing machine from Wally's a.k.a Walmart in preparation for a sewing class I registered for a few months ago as well.  I started out with a simple machine, a Singer Simple, to be exact. I paid less than $100 for it.  Although the Goodwill always has sewing machines, I opted to get something new; not being familiar with sewing machines, I had to be certain I got all the parts.

I opened the box this past weekend on the morning of my lesson.   I saw no point in opening it any sooner as I hadn't the first clue how to even thread my new gadget and I certainly didn't want to break it. 

Well duh! Of course I could've read the instructions!  (I know that's what you were thinking) I find I learn best by practical application (by doing) not by following incomprehensible diagrams.  Have you ever tried putting together a piece of Ikea furniture???  But I digress.

My sewing 101 lesson was great and I'm super excited to get sewing.  Pretty soon I'll be able alter all those great thrift finds I usually walk away from because they were too big or too short.  Not to mention  too expensive to get tailored.  Tailoring can cost a grip and in the words of Ms. Sweet Brown herself "Ain't Nobody Got Time For That!"

Ambitious... I know.  But sewing is in my blood my uncle was a tailor, my mom's first cousin is a seamstress and my mom assisted her in making wedding dresses.

Osmosis!?!- NOT!

I've already borrowed a bunch of sewing books from the library.   I thrifted a super cool book from Goodwill and a coworker whose mother recently passed away gave me a bunch of his mom's sewing books.   Apparently, his mother was a skilled seamstress who made all her own stuff.   I feel honored to receive these gifts and pray that an ounce of her talent rubs off on me.  (Rest in peace Ms. F)

I'll be taking my 102 lesson soon. Stay for tuned more updates on my journey.

    @~~~~I'm So "SEW" Rosie!
              Stay Rosy Y'all

So_Rosie: Week 3: Giving Back

So_Rosie: Week 3: Giving Back

Week 3: Giving Back

Today I heard a wonderful testimony of perseverance.  A story of triumph in the face of adversity.   A story of a person who received a hand up when he was man down.

That hand up came via the United Way.  Hearing this story made me feel good about my donation and pledge of support to help others in my community.  I fought back tears but I was smiling on the inside because know I'm doing my part.

It's week 3 and I'm still rocking my jeans @ work thanks to my donation.  I'm also proud that my pledge will go towards helping victims of domestic violence, a topic that is near and dear to my heart.

How do you give back to your community?

Denim Rocks

Week 2 of the campaign Jeans for a. cause!
This challenge is much more difficult than I thought it would be.  Perhaps its all in my head and I'm making it more difficult than it needs to be.
See the problem is I'm so accustomed to dressing in a business casual (no jeans allowed) fashion, that I think it makes me feel a bit out of my comfort zone.  This discomfort is further exacerbated by the fact that not everyone has elected to participate in the full campaign, so not everyone is wearing jeans every day as I've so boldly chosen to do.  That means when someone sees you in jeans they do the dreaded double take to be sure you are displaying your donation symbol.  Then there's the quick check to make sure your jeans meet the rules, followed no doubt by an assessment of said ensemble.  Talk about being under pressure!  WHEW!
Despite the PRESSURE I think I've done well.  Here are a few more of my outfits...
I apologize in advance for the crotch shot...

Giving Back - Dressing For A Cause

I'm rockin' denim this month for a good cause!  It's not very often I get the opportunity to wear jeans to work.  So I'm thrilled to be doing so this month in support of the United Way, via my company's Jeans Day campaign.  

A win win for everyone!  I get to wear jeans and do my philanthropic duties, my community benefits from my individual contribution and hopefully my company has a successful campaign.

There are rules, of course, about the type of jeans that can be worn. Obviously, they must be clean, nothing skin tight, NO HOLES, etc.

Wait a minute have the rule makers been shopping lately?  It is dang near impossible to find a pair of jeans that don't look like they're about to fall apart.   Everything is distressed, ripped, frayed and just plain ole' holey. 

This is going to be quite a challenge.  Well, I accept your challenge and raise you 20 outfits styled with work appropriate jeans. Side note: big shout out to Pinterest and all the pinners for inspiration.

How does thrifting fit into this you may ask?  Luckily, during my adventures in thrifting I've picked up a few jeans and accessories to create office appropriate looks that are casual but professional. 

I'm 3 days in and here's what I've pulled together so far.  I've gotten a lot of compliments; in part, because people still can't believe I just had a baby.  *I guess that's a good thing- color me flattered*

I fully plan to put my blazer collection to good use during this challenge, but, I have a few thrifted chambray shirts, denim dresses and even a denim skirt that I plan to wear.

If you have any suggestions I would love to see or hear them.  I'd especially like to hear about how you've dressed for a cause.

@~~~~ I'm So Rosie
Stay rosy y'all.