Exercise? I thought you said Accessorize!

Basic black. Black pants and top are just standard issue for any wardrobe but if we wore just black or black and white every day we (and everyone else) would be bored to death of our wardrobe! So, let's add a little color! Here is the basic black look without accessorizing at all. Now, I personally use jackets, cardigans, shrugs and other tops as accessories...along with jewelry and scarves.

Add a great jacket and necklace along with some other jewelry and you've certainly stepped it up a notch!

Now, a simple cardigan and you have a lovely relaxed style. (Ann Taylor Loft cardigan was $3! Score!!)

A different jacket and you change the look once again!

Go casual with a short sleeved blouse over the tee. This adds some funky color and texture to the look for just a couple dollars.

A different blouse. A black or even colorful belt or scarf would add even more dimension to this outfit for very little money.

Another cute jacket!

Basic black and white (which seems to be huge this season) with my white denim jacket. You can really dress this up or down just with jewelry, a belt, or scarf.


The moral to this story is that you can invest in basic, but classic, wardrobe pieces and then work with lesser expensive accessories to change up the look and expand the usefulness of those pieces. With the right accessories, you could wear those pants and tee every single day and no one would know. I don't advise it, but you get my point. If you are on a tight clothing budget, shop smarter getting the pieces that will last several seasons like a great pair of black and khaki slacks, a black skirt, navy skirt, etc. Whatever your "go to" pieces are, learn to work with them to change up the look through jackets and jewelry.


As you can see in the examples posted here, some jackets will make you appear thinner while others may not be as flattering. I always suggest taking your picture in an outfit rather than just looking in a mirror. Mirrors are so deceiving but photos never lie! Try it, you'll see!!


So, play with your clothes and let me know what you find! <3

Accept freebies!

Better than the thrift store is accepting clothing from people you know. I know for me, I have clothes that are perfectly good, only worn a couple of times and just don't fit anymore. Sometimes it's kind of sad and I would much prefer to see someone I know using it than to just donate it to be sold to people like us. For one thing, we know where it came from, not that that makes a whole lot of difference, but to some it may.


So, when someone offers you their clothing or it will go to Goodwill, accept it! I've taken bags of clothing from friends before and I may not care for everything in the bag, and that's ok. I can donate those things if I choose to. But there are usually some good pieces in there that I will love! Free is good!! I give clothes away all the time to friends that I know can wear them and some have even offered me money for them. I tell them "No, just pay it forward."


Today's fabulous gray pinstripe suit was a thrift store find that Mom bought years ago and just never wore because she retired from the corporate world shortly thereafter and had no reason to wear suits anymore. So, she gave it to me. I asked her if it was below $20, because that's my intention, ya know! She said, "Oh, I'm sure it was less than $10!" but she didn't recall the exact amount. So, my entire outfit was free to me today. I'm sure it was under $10 when purchased from the thrift store originally, so SCORE!


Great find, Mom!! And keep those freebies coming my way! <3

Hot! Hot! Hot!

Great little knit dress for $5!! We are in a heat wave here in Maryland and temps hit 100 degrees today! But I was cool and comfy in my funky, brightly colored dress! I took a black cardigan to wear in the office but never needed it. Cardigan was $4, by the way, but since I never wore it, we aren't counting that today. LOL


I'm still working on a new article for my blog about how to dress appropriately for different situations, such as an interview. So, stay tuned! I'm still putting it together.


Stay cool my thrifty friends!!

Rough day!

Sometimes you just know when you wake up it's going to be a rough day. No particular reason, you just get that feeling. I was SO right today! I JUST got home from working over 11 hours today. ROUGH is an understatement! So, knowing this would be a possibility as I was getting ready for work this morning, I chose to go comfy today. At least one thing would go right. My look! As I always say, it's more important to look good than to feel good! LOL


So, I wore this cute floral dress (no name) and dark denim jacket from the Gap. The jacket was $6 with my 25% discount and the dress I got several weeks ago for $4. So, this comfy outfit was a grand total of $10 today. I don't care who ya are....if you can look this good for $10 your day can't possibly be a total loss!


Part of my bad day inspired a new idea for another blog article that I am going to work on as soon as I can recover from my long, challenging day. So stay tuned! :o)

Love getting a discount!

I have a discount card to one of my local thrift stores so that on Thursdays I get 25% off anything I purchase. So, this outfit, with my discount, was $14! That's a Talbot's jacket ($6) and Larry Levine capri pants ($5) and black tee ($3). Even without the discount, this would have been under $20 but saving even more is a bonus! :o)

Welcome!!

Welcome to those new to this blog! I've just started this recently, so I'm learning as I go but wanted to give you all a little background on why I started this in the first place.


After losing more than 100lbs due to weight loss surgery, I had to go through clothing sizes very quickly but didn't want to have to knock over a bank to do it! So, I found that recycling clothing was the way to go! As clothes got too big for me, I'd drop them off at my local thrift store and pick up a new bag of high-quality designer fashions to replace them! I didn't think much of it at first until I kept getting more and more compliments on my wardrobe. Wait a minute...I'm spending a fraction of what I used to spend and now I'm getting more compliments? What's up with that? There may be something to this!


Each day at work someone would ask where I got whatever I was wearing and I found that I was really excited to tell them, "Thrift store, $5! Can ya believe it?" It became a morning ritual...What is Suzie wearing today and how much did she spend? So, I made it my goal to look fabulous and be able to say that I was wearing $20 or less that day! Day after I day I was easily doing that. And then the inspiration to turn my passion into a blog! So, here we go. :o)


Welcome to my obsession. I have always been interested in fashion and making the most of what you have. In this economy, it's important for all of us to save our pennies and thrifting is environmentally friendly too! (I like to think I'm recycling this way.)


My goal with this blog, Pinterest, Twitter and FB page (Whoo! Where do I find the time?? I thought technology was supposed to save time! LOL) is to help people save money, look fabulous and maybe if I'm lucky, help people feel better about themselves through fashion tips. Since I have lost quite a bit of weight, trust me, I'm no stranger to dressing for many body shapes and sizes over the years. I know how to camouflage those trouble areas without looking frumpy. Accentuate the positive, I say!


What do I want from YOU? Input!! Share your thrifting and fashion tips and tricks here with us all! Show us your pictures of great fashion finds and I'll do the same! Have fashion questions? Ask them here and if I don't know the answer, someone will or I will find out!


Local peeps! If you need some help putting together an outfit or an entire wardrobe, I'm happy to go thrifting with you! So, become a member of my blog, sign up for email notifications and share this with your friends! Together we can look like a million bucks without spending more than $20! :o)

So cool!! (looking)

These capri pants and top were $9 and the shoes, which had never been worn were $6. Grand total: $15! For a 100 degree day, I sure looked cool, didn't I?