I'm Back! And It's FALL!

Shopping at JoAnn's:

Dress: Young, Fabulous & Broke, new from C U E S, Downtown Spokane.
Blazer: Goodwill, Seattle $4.99
Scarf: Goodwill, Spokane $1
Tights: old navy
Shoes: Vintage Stuart Weitzman, Value Village, Spokane $10! (best buy ever)
Bag: Vintage Dooney & Bourke gifted from Aunt Kerry

THE RETURN!!!

THE TIME HAS FINALLY COME!

I AM BACK!

So, if you used to read this blog, you've probably been wondering what happened to me the last 6 months. In short: I went to Italy. But now I'm back home, I just got hired at a full-time job, and I plan on sticking around.

The BIG news is that SHOPFRUGALITY has gone eBay!!! I will try and keep the blog focused on local thrifting still, but I will also be posting the items I am selling or will sell on eBay.

So...WELCOME BACK and keep checking in!

mission: je ne sais quoi en hiver

For those of you who don't know, my husband and I are travelling/wwoofing in Italy for 4.5 months. For 1 week we will take a trip to Dublin, and for another week we will be in...drumroll please....PARIS! Ahhh...Paris. I'm pretty sure that I was not born in Korea but in fact France as I have a strange feeling it runs in my veins.

Now, my adoration for Paris fashion is unmeasurable. And I'm not just talking about the major fashion houses...I'm talking street fashion. A guilty pleasure of mine is searching for blogs that feature Parisians in their everyday garb. The prospect of trying to match that "je ne sais quoi" look that a true native has (me a lowly american) is quite frightening...I figured I should get some practice.

Here is my basic equation for the epitome (my epitome) of french style:

Red Red lips (and big earrings):

Off-beat accessories like this beaded vest and fuchsia leopard print scarf:

And funky but practical boots (after all, I am still a tourist trudging miles around town):

Add a little snow (we will be there in February) and viola!:

So how'd I do? Could I be walking the snowy streets of Montmartre?

scarf: $3 goodwill
vest: $2.50 spokane vv
boots: $9.99 spokane vv

Mission: Holiday JEWELRY

And so the holiday BLING continues. These are a few jewelry items that I picked up over the past few months specifically for the holidays. Again, the theme of black and gold prevails along with RHINESTONES! I will start to incorporate these pieces into my daily outfits so you can get a better idea of size and sparkle-tude. A piece of advice: if you have short hair, rock out the crazy earrings. If you have long hair and plan on wearing it down, stick more to the necklaces, bracelets and cocktail rings.

stars: $1.00 garage sale

flowers: $2.50 Susan's Secondhand,DeerLake, WA

rhinestone baubles: $5.00 Bobbi's, Spokane

rounds: $3.00 garage sale

black and silver rhinestone: $10.00 south hill UMC rummage sale

gold leafy/scaly: $3.00 Bobbi's

gold and pearl: $3.00 Bobbi's

black and gold plated: $5 Classy Rack, spokane

daily outfit: 2 degrees fahrenheit (-16 celsius)

This is what you wear when it's below freezing. I also had a hat.

$5 leather jacket, $2.47 green cardigan, levi jeans (new), "combat" boots from payless shoes source when I was in middle school...seriously, I haven't grown since then. I once was giant.

Mission: Holiday Bag

And here it is!

The ULTIMATE holiday bag.

Obviously this bag is not for the faint of heart. It is covered inch-to-inch in sequins and beads...and I mean INCH-to-INCH (see second picture...that's the bottom of the bag). I purchased this wonder for $6 which was WAY expensive for me. I had been staring at it for weeks at my favorite thrift store in honolulu and decided I'd better snatch it up before it disappeared and became another item in the catalogues of missed opportunities.

If you plan on using a bag this bold everything else is basic basic basic. It's the perfect touch of holiday for the LBD, or it can be worn with a cream color cashmere sweater and black miniskirt.

I love this bag.
but my husband always looks skeptically at me as I try it on with outfits...go figure.)

Wish List

In the spirit of the Holidays...

Dear Santa,

Please bring me/lead me to:

1) flat brown distressed leather mid-calf boots
2) the PERFECT red nail polish
3) chanel costume jewelry
4) leather skirt a la ashley olsen
5) mounds and mounds of sheer tights (i'm getting tired of opaque)