December 17, 2009

Thrifty Threads


Welcome to another installment of Thrifty Threads, AKA Most Stylish Compact-y Outfit, where readers model their favorite secondhand clothes.

A Compact-y outfit is used or recycled, from Goodwill, a thrift store, a consignment shop, ebay, Craigslist, a yard sale, or anywhere else you find secondhand clothing.

Today model is Stephanie, making her third appearance on Thrifty Threads. Thanks for helping keep the series going, Stephanie!

Stephanie and I worked together back when she was a film editor in Los Angeles, before she moved to Portland and then Dallas to pursue her dream of being a singer/songwriter. She's been doing that with great success the past four years, writing, performing, and touring around the country. You can hear her lovely voice and some great original music on her My Space page.

These days, Stephanie is continuing with her "Jill of all trades" lifestyle. She recently costumed a play called Crystal City 1969 that is receiving rave reviews, and since it takes place in 1969 almost all of the items were thrifted. She also produced a Doritos spec commercial for potential Super Bowl air time and she's starting up a company called Sweet Ruby Productions to do PR/Creative Consulting/Personal Styling projects. You can check out her blog at "Those Tricks" to keep up with all her activities!

I was so excited to post another example of a beautiful party dress to inspire those of you who need something to wear to a holiday or New Year's Eve party. You don't have to spend a lot of money on something new! Stephanie bought this velvet stunner for just $30 at Buffalo Exchange. The label is Barney's and she says it fits her like a glove. The belt was $5 at a thrift store, and the shoes are from Payless. She put together this gorgeous look for a bargain basement price. She looks amazing!

Now I know you all want to get out there to the thrift stores, or ebay, or wherever you shop secondhand, and look for a fabulous party dress for the season. Good luck! And if you find one, take a photo and send it to me at barton.angela@gmail.com. I always need more participants and we all love to see everyone's fabulous finds. It's so much fun to see what you all are coming up with!

Please leave your tips and advice for secondhand shopping in the Comments section. And click here if you want to check out previous installments of Thrifty Threads.

8 comments:

Betsy Talbot said...

Wow. She is really stunning. I'm always amazed when someone looks so pulled together, no matter what they spent on their outfit. And when I find out it was second-hand - even better!

You can tell she is a fashionista by the details, especially the stockings. I want to be the kind of woman that can pull off that look! ;-)

danielle said...

Love this. The stockings are icing on the cake. :)

Bean said...

Fit is soo important when finding something thrifted to make it look great. This fits fabulously, she looks wonderful and is an inspiration. My New Year's resolution is to actually follow through on taking up hems and doing simple alterations so things I find can fit me better. I have a few things in a pile that with a simple fix would make a world of difference. I always find great things but I am vertically challenged which can be difficult. My pants are often dragging in the mud, a cool thing when I was a teenager, not so much as an adult :)

Unknown said...

Hiptobeme, I also have trouble finding clothes that fit, even new clothes (I have to try on 30 pairs of pants to find one that fits), so I rarely look at thrift stores because I assume nothing will fit me. And I don't have a lot of time for driving around and trying stuff on. (I'm a homeschool mom with a very impatient son.) But when I see something as gorgeous as this dress, it does make me want to try...
My goal is to be on Thrifty Threads, after all! ;-)

stephanie said...

Thanks for the nice words, ladies!
I just love wearing that dress.
Almost my entire wardrobe is resale - I post items and outfits on my blog sometimes, if you are interested in other ideas :
http://thosetricks.tumblr.com

JULIE & HIPTOBEME...Re: hemmed clothes and clothes that fit - one of the GREAT things about resale is that you can find already-altered items. There are definitely other people with the same fit issues as any given person. Also, because resale draws from various seasons, years and makers worldwide there is a much more choice in fit in comparison to hitting the mall at any given time!

Good luck finding your treasures.
There are many to be found!
stephanie

stephanie said...

and thanks to Angela for making me a regular on "Thrifty Threads!"

Unknown said...

Okay Stephanie, you've inspired me. I'll have to give it a try on one of my rare kid-free Saturdays!

Angela said...

Thanks for all your comments, and Julie- I hope to see a photo from you someday soon for Thrifty Threads!

Thanks again to Stephanie! That is going to be a tough act to follow... I think I'll post our clothing swap next because that's a photo of myself and two of my friends...

So don't be intimidated- send in those photos!