Frugal Follow-up

[FrugalFashionista]

We've hopelessly lost the old thread. How are you doing ladies?

I need to reawaken the thread as I need to get back on the wagon. I decided to temporarily suspend my shopping ban - it's summery here and I've started wearing summer clothes and I decided to make some purchases now so that I can wear them all season long (in low 20s it's still a bit too cool for my routine sleeveless dress/bare legs summer look). Most of my old summer clothes are in great shape but this is what I needed to update them -

1. white jeans (have lots of denim shirts and blue tops) - straight-leg, non see-through
   
2. colorful printed cigarette pants (my wardrobe is mostly solid colors - I want to wear prints but not near my face) - found a pair in my favorite colors from MSMG
   
3. sandals (bored of ballet flats and Havaianas) - black cage wedges, low-rent child-friendly version of the Altuzarra look
   
4. slingbacks (found a lovely two-tone white/taupe pair on sale)
   
5. a few bracelets to liven things up
   

I'm still looking for a couple of high-quality white or cream tops, scoop neck if possible. They seem to be the hardest item to find, but my refound Zara poly-viscose top is surprisingly versatile. Still thinking about a long and narrow snakeprint silk scarf in my best blues and also need to make a decision regarding nude/taupe courts (to go with my summer cocktail dresses).

Spring lasted for 3-4 weeks here and coincided with my 1-month shopping ban. By thinking a bit harder and digging a bit deeper I was able to find all spring outfits I ever needed without any spending! Summer will be around until the end of October so I hope that I will get quite a lot of wear out of my mix of old and new. But I think I'm almost done with wardrobe updates and might go back to tight-fist mode very soon

[CeeceeBloomingdale]

I'm not sure FF, yesterdays jeans and a smeared top courtesy of the two year old could be repetitive!

Today it is raining and I'm getting the boiler fixed between school runs. I'm wearing indigo skinnies, a grey slash necked long sleeve tee with a grey ombre leopard print scarf. I have a tinybamount of makeup on which is progress (blush, powder, grey eyeliner and lip gloss). I'm letting the look down by wearing a navy duffle with a hood and black knee boots on the school run though!

[DigWeedSow]

Hello, dull and rainy here today with temperatures due to drop further, I might be getting my jumpers back out tomorrow!

My JL order arrived today and was very disappointing

The lace t shirt was a very strange fit and huge around the bust area, I'm a 30f and ordered a size 10 so should have filled it however it gaped horribly around the top and sizing down would make it too small around the hem.
The navy t shirt is ok but has shiny marks on it like the ones you get from ironing something at a too high temperature!
The taupe top is more of a nude colour and I look horrendous in it, nude is a really bad colour for me.
The undies are ok
All in all a real disappointment, however I do think as a result of this thread I am getting more selective about what stays and what gets sent back.

[teta]

Wearing now:Indigo skinnies,Orange cowl neck cashmere sweater with drapey tulip/cape sleeves,sparkly fitflops and navy parka with leopard lining.Not the height of sartorial splendour but comfy and colourful.The Leopard hitops have arrived.They look lovely-bronze coloured printed leather and quite a subtle pattern.I do have a confession to make though.They are Fitflop trainers and are so comfortable.I can't walk up and down my hill in high heels anymore.

[FrugalFashionista]

Teta your outfit sounds fab
Dig do return sub-standard stuff - we all should!
CeeCee yy to having made a bit of effort.

An article on low-heeled shoes from NY Times Style pages. Personally, I don't find them frumpy (if fashion means red soles and platform stripper shoes, count me out, plus most women can't walk properly in stiletto heels) - loving the shapes. They are so sleek and modern in a 1950s and 1960s optimistic sense of modern

Cooking pesto from scratch (one of my favorite spring meals, so fragrant), wearing old golden Havaianas customized with tiny white enamel butterflies - they look great with white jeans.

[foxysocks]

where are your white jeans from, frugal? i still haven't managed to find the right pair for me. lots have gone back!

am doing well overall with my targeted list this year. have found and ticked off some great items and, most importantly, i absolutely ADORE everything i have bought

[FrugalFashionista]

Foxy J Brand pencil leg (very slim straight leg) on sale on Yoox a couple of weeks ago - I also tried lots and went for the thickest denim I could find as I hate see-through white. With these, you could wear black knickers and nobody would know I bet Zara has good contenders too, found good colored straight-legs there last year.

Many premium denim brands have started mixing cheaper fibers (say high quality viscoses like tencel and rayon) into their jeans. My long and loving relationship with MiH ended when I tried on the first fabric mix batch. Some premium labels even overdose polyester; you'll also find that a high dose of elastane/lycra will make jeans strangely shiny.

Someone I know works in a jeans store and a few frugal tips from her: if you want the pair to retain its stretch, never use fabric softener, it kills lycra (as do warm washes). Wash as sparingly as possible (obv not possible with white jeans) - air them instead. If you need to shorten them, wash them first, an average pair will shrink 1cm during the first wash. She has good access to all imaginable brands but prefers Cheap Monday; Frame Denim is apparently the new 'it' label.

[Fluffycloudland77]

So that means that really fab softener is also damaging other clothes with elastane then doesn't it? Time to buy some white vinegar for my nice stuff I think!

[CeeceeBloomingdale]

I never use fabric conditioner and can't say it makes the clothes any less soft and does seem to make clothes last longer. The washing machine drawer doesn't get all gungy either.

[DigWeedSow]

Another one who doesn't use fabric conditioner, in fact I've recently had a go at making my own laundry powder and can report it does just as good a job as any I've used before.

At last the sun is shining here today and I'm just getting ready to pop out to the shops (and post office to send back returns) to pick some things up for DS, he's going to Paris next week. I am sooooo

Today I'm wearing
Dark blue skinnies (recently revived thanks to dylon)
Taupe vest
Stone linen biker jacket/cardi
Leopard print ballet pumps

Have a great day everyone

[FrugalFashionista]

We've been fabric conditioner free for about five years too and don't miss it. Lycra is a tricky fiber, sensitive to heat and sunlight and UV - bleach is particularly bad (but oxygen-based whiteners/brighteners can be used). Vinegar is a good natural color brightener.

Facing a busy day so wearing a cookie-cutter outfit - the convenience of formulas:
White jeans
Bright green (think St Patrick's) cotton V neck sweater (last year, nearly unworn - it didn't work with blue jeans)
Multicolored green-red-blue-white-yellow Madras check scarf (several years old, very preppy, haven't worn it much)
Steel cuff bracelet (new)
Golden Havaianas (old), to be replaced with white or tan loafers (both old) if I go out.

White really work hard with my existing wardrobe! I think I love white jeans because they add contrast - green-denim blue or green-gray are very low contrast combinations that can look a bit dull in the high-contrast bright sunlight. Green-black tends to look tawdry, whereas green-white is dazzling. I find that bright sky blue is a good summer neutral jean color for me as well - fantastic with white and watermelon for example. Will need to wash the white jeans tonight , so will definitely explore other options tomorrow...

Teta the leopard hitops sound really nice! I love bronze in shoes, it's an often overlooked shoe color that can look fantastic. My daughters were playing in my shoe closet and found a couple of pairs of silver and bronze jeweled sandals I had forgotten about. As soon as my feet have picked up a little bit of color (this is what the running capris are for) I will start wearing them...

[FrugalFashionista]

Sorry about spamming the thread but Recovering Shopaholic has another great post. If you are into clothes-self-psychoanalysis well worth reading and maybe even charting your favorite outfits.

[teta]

Yes,i do think Recovering Shopaholic talks sense.I have some clothes that are favourites [especially summer linen shirts/kaftans/dresses]and i pull out every year.There are lots of discounts on at the moment and i was tempted to buy a few things.I had to remind myself that i already have similar items in my wardrobe.For some reason i'm always really tempted to buy duplicates.I've also just read her post on shopping more with weight/shape changes.I do this to make myself feel better and anaesthetise myself.Even if clothes look awful[because i'm so fat] i will buy scarves in multiples.
I have a beautiful enormous creamware jug full of lilac and pink double tulips in front of me.Plus a small celadon jug stuffed with pink hyacinths for scent.Inspiring.

[QueenofWhatever]

Is it just me, or are a lot of Recovering Shopaholic's clothes actually not that great? Considering she's spent so much money and works as a stylist, I find a lot of them quite boring and think they don't really work for her shape.

I know it sounds a bit judgey, but that's not how it's intended. It's almost as if, by her own admission, she's become so caught up in the the process of shopping than the clothes themselves are almost incidental.

[OneLittleLady]

I kinda felt that way about her clothes too QueenofWhatever I think it's a common problem with over shoppers though, I know during my worst stages of over shopping, I'd buy the same things over and over again because I somehow forgot that I already had half a dozen of the same thing in my wardrobe already.

[DigWeedSow]

I thought exactly the same thing and find the outfits she posts quite underwhelming, she talks sense though.

Teta your flowers sound lovely, spring flowers are my favourites and I love the scent of hyacinths.

[teta]

Americans dress very differently to the British i think.The clothes seem terribly old-fashioned to me.I'm shocked at the number of people who don't use fabric conditioner.I love it,as it makes clothes smell so nice especially when they are drying indoors[it also disguise the smell of muddy spaniel].But then i still use Johnsons baby bath on my kids, because i love the smell,as well as the baby fabric conditioner.
Frugal i like the sound of your outfit. I also wear a lot of green Fruga lbecause Its such a good colour on me.I always wear it with indigo or faded jeans though or a favourite pair of wide legged white linen trousers from Warehouse that i've had for years.The contrast issue is interesting one.
Spring flowers are my absolute favourite too.We have got numerous pots of scented layered bulbs all flowering at the moment in the garden,and they just smell delicious[especially the hyacinths].

[OneLittleLady]

I'm so at all your talk of flowers. I live in a first floor flat so no garden to grow any and I can't have any inside as the kitten keeps eating them and then vomiting

[FrugalFashionista]

I agree ladies! Poor Rec Shop - she is gorgeous and shopping has been a major focus in her life, but the clothes look like the opening chapter of 'Overdressed'. This is where you see the point of guest wardrobe editing - she has countless multiples, but most of them are formulaic and pointless and I think she has a tendency to pick stuff that is too 'old' and shapeless for her. An outsider would get rid of all that in an hour and explore a couple of alternatives (I'd try shorter skirts, less loose trousers, better materials and get rid of the b&w chevron stuff - maybe also arrange her lovely long hair in a different way - and adopt a few trends!). But she sounds like a genuinely lovely and thoughtful person and I admire her courage and insights and great writing. Not many people have the guts to talk openly about these processes...

A scary thought for everyone - if someone catalogued your wardrobe, would it look like the real you?

A friend's mother recently died and she had to clear out the apartment and sort through the belongings. She said the saddest thing was finding half a dozen identical black quilted jackets with tags still on

[OneLittleLady]

How sad FF it was hard clearing out my mums wardrobe as she had so many lovely things that in the end she couldn't wear as the cancer had just brutalised her to the point where she couldn't even lift her head to drink

[DigWeedSow]

OneLittleLady at your poor kitten, my cat got really ill last year after licking lily pollen off her fur. She fine now and is curled up on my knee as I type this. I would quite happily give some of my garden away at the moment as it takes up far too much of my time.

[FrugalFashionista]

OneLittleLady your poor mother

Teta your tulips sound lovely I've lived in many parts of the US and agree that small town America can be a fashion wasteland all about Old Navy and Forever21. But like anywhere else, you can find some of the sharpest dressers on this planet in certain cities. Incidentally New York crosstown traffic killed my high heel habit - it was faster and more convenient to walk and I've preferred low heels and flats ever since

Re the green-blue contrast, sunlight is different here: the Mediterranean sun loves brilliant colors and didn't Diana Vreeland say that pink is the navy blue of India? I can't do the ultimate contrast, b&w, because of my muted coloring, but love pairing white with brights (learned that in the tropics - nobody ever wore black there, it just looked off - white and khaki were the best neutrals there). In the North, light is softer and more nuanced contrasts can work really well.

We just had a small sandstorm. It rained dirt, literally

[OneLittleLady]

I like to wear brights with black if I'm honest. I carry black off better than white I think and I'm most comfortable wearing black with just a splash of colour. I wear black even in the heat of summer!

for the sympathies FF it was a very difficult time. Mum's at peace now so I can take comfort knowing she isn't suffering anymore.

[DigWeedSow]

Sorry cross posted, I can't begin to imagine how hard that must have been OneLittleLady

Would my wardrobe look like the real me? Hmm interesting, I think that my wardrobe doesn't reflect my creative side and is possibly a bit more conservative than I feel I am, however I'm not a girly girl and the range of colours and lack of skirts/dresses reflect this!

[OneLittleLady]

I think my wardrobe would look like the real me. I'd say it's a fairly accurate reflection of myself. Quirky but not over the top with a touch of classic in terms of shapes of things. I'm quite a quirky, creative person and I think my clothes reflect that

dig

[VioletGoesVintage]

Gosh, yes, clearing out someone's things - clothes included - after they've died is such a difficult thing to do. I remember helping my mother do my father's, and every item, no matter how mundane, seemed so loaded with memories. It really made me vow not to leave too much stuff for my own DC to deal with after I'm gone. Not sure I'm doing terribly well at that yet....

Made an unplanned purchase today but it is (a) lovely and will be worn lots and (b) cost less than I made on eBay last weekend. So that's ok, isn't it? (Seeking enablement here, obviously!)

Not 100% sure if my wardrobe reflects me. I think it does - well, all the bits I wear, anyway . Seriously, I am really trying to get rid of the unworn excess. I went to the tip this week with a carload of garden waste (my own composters had reached capacity and, really, what are you supposed to do with 40 odd decaying bamboo canes left by the previous owner?) and was quite taken aback to see piles and piles of clothes. It had all been separated out for recycling or other reuse but, seriously, there was so much of it. Such waste. I know we can't all always buy less buy better but, goodness me, it's got to be an aim, hasn't it?