Upcycle on the brink

Today I bought an old Danskin shirt at a rummage sale for .50 for the sole purpose of upcycling.  I don't like the original design--way too flashdance.   I will cut the armholes to follow two nicely placed stripes and cut several inches off the bottom and turn them into boy shorts.  In the end I will have a two-piece summer-weight pajama set costing 50 cents.  I love upcycling!

Little Black Dress

Some of my favorite Goodwill finds are little black dresses.  I have at least a dozen ranging from ones that work on the Board Walk and ones that work for evening business events and ones that work for winter holidays.  And most of them are higher-end designers.  It's fun dividing the timeless designs from dated duds and figure out shoes and accessories to compliment and update each look.  I'm happy to have a dozen LBD's and I would gladly have a dozen more - and if I find the right ones, I will!

surprise find

Not every great thrift store find is about fashion - we picked up a like-new microphone to use in the home recording studio we're working on.  Both my husband and I are singer/songwriters and we've been accumulating pieces over time.  This microphone is gold plated and worth considerably more than the $4.00 we paid for it.  It was in the box at the front of the store where donations are collected prior to pricing.  The store wants as many sales as possible and is willing to price on the spot.  Woo hoo - look for us on youtube!

Great Summer Deals

I'm heading for the beach for a few days this summer and wanted new cover ups to go with my new figure (lost 2 dress sizes since fall).  I found a great vibrant-hued tropical-themed mini dress to wear on the boardwalk in the evenings.  Paired with a great pair of gladiator sandals, I'll be cool, comfortable and chic.  Cost? $3.  I'll also take my vintage Ralph Lauren t-shirt dress (think Ali McGraw).  I  have 2 retro (50's-esque) sun dresses that have great silhouettes to wear for days and evening.   Dresses are infinitely more fun on the beach than shorts or capris!

Cha ching!

The real cost of the yard sale was my sunburn - didn't hurt, but was I red!  The great news is most of the items we sold realized triple and quadruple profit - or more.  I bought a grab-bag at a flea market in town for $2 and it had a medal in it that I sold for $10.  The rest of the grab bag I sold for $1, so I realized $9 profit on it.  It was like that all day, so I was glad to know I have a relatively good eye - however now I have a lot of glassware to sell and that will be a challenge.  We're also doing well on ebay so far selling what we've picked up.  If you're unemployed, now is the time to de-clutter and take the appreciated value of your treasures.

Does it pay?

Tomorrow, if the weather holds, I'll find out whether my picks and finds will sell for more than I paid for them - we're having a yard sale.  We're raising money to publish my husband's new book.  I'm selling six Coach purses and my 'in the style of' Birkin. I'm also selling my near perfect condition Edwardian hat.  Will post what sells and what stays with me.

Shoes-not cheap!

I've been designing shoes on the KEDS website - what a 'kick' (sorry-punintended).  Check out some designs at www.zazzle.com/cafecamisia

A More Serious Thought

With recent tragedies in Pacific Rim countries, I've been thinking about emergency preparedness.  Living in the West, I learned that most people have a 'Bug Out Bag' (BOB) or 72-hour kit packed and in a handy place.  Many people also stock a year's food supply for their family. (See my button for Shelf Reliance for more information on long-term storage products).  I saw how being prepared for an emergency, whether to shelter in place or to evacuate, could buy time until an emergency responder can rescue you.  I thought of not only earthquake victims, but also of people stranded on freeways for hours waiting for roads to clear and even folks who were stranded for a few hours in the Atlanta bus station because of the snow storm.  Some advanced preparedness could make such a situation in your life somewhat easier to bear.

I recommend having not only a bag packed near your door for evacuation, but also having a bag in your car for travel delays.  My mom-in-law will be taking the train for a short trip, and I'm encouraging her to take enough food to sustain her in the event there is a long delay somewhere on her route (due to flooding, accident or whatever else might come up).  In any case, having a preparedness plan makes sense.  There are websites that give good information on what to pack.  My brief categories would include hydration, food, medical, sanitation and distractions (book, deck of cards, ipad, mp3).

Continued prayers for those who are suffering.  I hope things are better for you soon.

Newly Minted

Upon hearing the rumblings of a certain tv star, I coined a new phrase:  'I Have Aphrodite DNA'  (I have original copy rights to it).  My contribution to fashionistas everywhere.

This week my excellent finds are two vintage Coach purses I found at the local flea market for 50 cents each.  They're black leather and of an older style, but at online auctions, they're going for $10 to $40 dollars.  I also found a great YSL tie for my husband in charcoal grey.  New YSL ties go for $80 - don't know what this might be worth, but it will work for a lot of occasions for him.  Last week I snagged a Banana Republic cardigan that quickly became my favorite - it is lighter weight and works for transition weather.

If a shoe looks like a dog, don't wear it

I saw a high-heeled shoe in a recent fashion magazine that had a lot of fringe that cascaded over the entire thing making it look like the wearer had a pair of yorkshire terriers on their feet. 

I understand suffering for art or fashion, but I think wearers would suffer because of wearing these shoes.  For example, what if the shoes came face-to-face with the real thing and the real thing mistook them for a 'friend.'  Ensuing activities might be embarrassing for both the dog owner and shoe wearer.  It's something to think about.  Personally, I think if they're going to make shoes that look that much like dogs, they should come with baggies.

These shoes certainly don't classify as 'classics' and I would be hard pressed to want to spend the required price to have them languishing in my closet, or endure the laughter of my friends and family if I ever actually wore them.

Fashion extremes, while amusing may not suit everyone's lifestyle.  I cannot think of a place to wear yorkie-esque shoes where they would be appreciated and not mocked. Where would one wear them?  Sundance?  Cannes?  Tahiti? UC 87? Uncle Ming's?

Chip Bag Clutch - Silly Kitchy Upcycle

The reality is, some upcycling ideas just don't work - and there are limits to what can and should be done.  This is an idea gone bad, but I might try to modify the design.  I wanted to use the chip bag with the least amount of modification so I rounded the corners, but not much more.  Would I carry this?  Maybe with a costume....but probably not.  Just a nod to the extreme in upcycling.  Happy upcycling!

Eco Savvy Everywhere

This is an idea I found in for Women First, Feb 21 edition.  The idea is to cut off the top of a water (in this case soda) bottle,  and leave a 'collar' below the screw top.  Thread your open plastic bag through the neck of the bottle from the bottom up.  Fold the plastic bag over the neck screws and then screw the cap back on over the plastic of the bag.  The concept is that it provides a more air-tight seal than using a twist tie or other clip.  I love this. Not only is it supposed to extend the life of my frozen food, but it recycles a plastic bottle.

I needed a scoop to carry squirrel food out to the feeder in the back yard.  So I cut the bottom off a water bottle and left the cap screwed on.  I filled this 'scoop' and carried it out to the feeder.  It held just enough to fill the feeder and was very convenient.  I left the scoop in the bag for the next trip.

I would consider using a water bottle as a funnel to fill the window wash fluid reservoir in the car and in a pinch, I would probably use one (carefully) to fill the oil reservoir.  You can cut the bottle off at different lengths depending on the size 'funnel' you need.  Happy recycling!

Dapper Cat

 'Doctoring' has kept this blogger from her appointed rounds seeking thrifty chic and from crafting, so I am posting a pic of this dapper gentleman, 'Smidgen'  who doesn't remember that's his name and so goes by Mr. Pussycat.  I am at his service, 5 am - 7 am.  That means when I get up I give him breakfast, fresh water, snacks and pet him as long as he will allow.  He is curiously jumpy most of the time (even since before I knew him) and I need to tread carefully to keep his flight instinct from kicking in.  He is especially alarmed by sweeping hems of night robes and wide-legged pants, so those are to be avoided when dressing for the morning shift.  He is fond of me.  He is a wonderment in our home because of his unique personality and quirky habits - for example, he wants someone to accompany him to the kitchen to watch while he snacks from his bowl - this could be any time of day, and anyone might be 'asked' (by him) to attend to this task.  Another quirk is that when he has eaten food and the bottom of his bowl is showing, his bowl must be shaken so the remaining food covers the exposed bowl or he paces and frets until this little matter is taken care of.  I personally believe he practices telepathy on us, but we are too dense to receive his transmissions.  He is a housemate in good standing and is in attendance at household functions, meals and family meetings.

My Funny Valentine -- Jacket

I wanted to find something new to wear for Valentine's dinner out with my husband, and this is my kicker find at Goodwill today.  It's certainly BoHo and I will wear it over a black sheath.  (Maybe I can tell fortunes for other diners at the restaurant where we're having surf and turf). It is new with tags, retailing at $128.  I got it for $4.00.  I also nabbed a new with tags Lauren skirt in charcoal gray tweed - retails for $169, I got it for $6.00.  And lastly, another great cashmere sweater made by Callaway Golf.  It's so soft!  I don't usually like to wear green, but this is cashmere after all :-).  Happy thrifting!

Cheep Chic (or is it Cheap Chick?)

The wallet I've been decimating included a change purse.  I snipped it away from the remaining carcass of the wallet and used a couple of leftover bird stickers from the ones I used to embellish the blue picture frame (see second post).  It's just the right size to hold the quarter stash I keep on hand to play the claw game wherever I find them (I'm so addicted - and I have a nice little collection of stuffed toys to show for it!).

Eco-chic (Gezundheit!)

To be truly eco-chic, thread pop can tabs on a ribbon for a trendy necklace.  I'm going to wear this with my pink 'Recycling is Hot' T-shirt.  Just goes to show, everything is useful with some imagination.

Another Faux That's Go

One thing I've discovered is that it's good to know design styles of haute houses so you know a good faux when you see one.  This is a pretty nice imitation of a Hermes Birkin purse.  I foud it at a Goodwill in Pennsylvania and purchased it for $8.00.  I have been intrigued with Birkin for a long time and want some day to own the real thing.  However, until that day, I'll carry this light blue version - saw a pic of Victoria Beckham carrying this exact color of the real Hermes bag.  The inside of this bag is pristine, and I don't know whether it's real leather, but it is soft and doesn't have any marks at all.  There is no indication of the maker, but it is surely 'in the style of' Birkin.

One thing I make sure I do is keep a list in my head of designers I like - I also look at the stores around town to see what labels they sell.  I seem to gravitate toward Lauren, Ann Taylor, Loft, Tailor B. Moss, Talbots, Banana Republic, Eddie Bauer, BCBG and J. Crew.  But if something is a good design (or a little funky), I'll get it.  For purses I like any vintage Coach (I've found 4 recently), faux LV, faux Burberry, and anything with a good structural shape.  For some reason, I stay away from the faux Chanel quilted look-it never seems as nice as the real thing (I owned a real one long ago).  Happy thrifting! 

The $4.00 Cashmere Sweater - Why Goodwill Rocks

Look!  This is why I keep going back to Goodwill - some days I find a few things, some days I don't get anything.  Today, I got six sweaters for my husband, 2 new with tags (NWT).  And then I spied this gem - a pink sweater, 100% cashmere for $4.00.  I'm seeing similar sweaters at online auctions for $25-$30. 

A cashmere pullover sweater is such a good wardrobe builder I'm happy to have found it.  It will work under a cardigan or jacket.  This is the second cashmere sweater I've found at goodwill.  The other was long-sleeved in black and I already had a cashmere cardigan, so I put them together for a soft, cozy, WARM sweater set.  Our other finds at Goodwill today were a Tailor for B Moss cardigan in black with embroidery, a never-opened box of photo software, and I found a sewing box with some wonderful vintage notions.

Another Girl's Trashin' is my Fashion

When I read magazines (even the less expensive family magazines) that show examples of outfits for 'budget prices,' the pieces sometimes add up to $200 - $400 dollars for one complete outfit!  I'm always suprised that while individually the pieces cost less than designer, together they come up to quite a lot of money.  Here is an outfit I put together from Goodwill finds that cost about $12 all together.   The jacket and top were NWT (new with tags).  The grey skirt has a trumpet shape and swings nicely.  I didn't want to cover the interesting bottom of the shell top, so I used the crop jacket instead of a long one.  I carried a Paloma Picasso retro handbag that I also picked up at Goodwill.  The jacket, top, skirt and purse were each $3.00.  I'm happy people give nice things to Goodwill for me to find.  As I said, one girl's trashin' is my fashion :-).

Altered Altoids Box

This mini altoid box got a makeover today.  I once again used a piece of the violet wallet leather to top the box and then used blue scrapbook page embelishments to create a mosaic, leaving the leather to show at top and bottom.  I again used the same scrapbook monogram that I used for the luggage tag--the monogram sticker has a 3-d clear plastic 'gem' on top, so it is dimensional.  Now I have a great little pill box that cost very little and recycled the altoid box.  Altoids are distributed by Callard and Bowser, Inc.

My Upcycled Wedding Dress - A More Complex DIY

I had 2 months to put my wedding together (with great help from my now husband !).  There are three wedding shops in town, but most dresses had to be ordered and I didn't have time.  What to do, what to do!  My then fiance and I were regulars at our local flea market and a couple of wedding dresses were available.  I hoped I could find something I could 'tweak' but sadly, both dresses were circa 1980 crosses between Little-Bo-Peep and Lady Diana - voluminous, over-the-top and dated.  But I chose one, paying $50 for the dress that retailed at $1200 according to the tag.  I loved the beading and thought I would cut it up and embellish a simple white sheath dress I had in my closet.

When I pulled the dress from it's bag I nearly cried.  It had a 10 foot train, two tiers of stiff tulle underneath it all, and a huge bow with 3 baseball-sized ribbon roses on the back at the drop waistline.  The skirt would give any civil war southern bell a run for her money size-wise.  It would make the tiniest girl look 3 times her size!  What were they thinking!.

But I saw the potential.  The picture above is my end result, (sadly, I didn't take a before picture because I was certain it wouldn't work out!) with the addition of a short jacket that I made from the yardage of the train.   I viciously cut away the long, balloon sleeves and high illusion neckline, leaving just the beaded corset you see. Being my husband and I are both steampunk fans, I used an historic civil war jacket pattern embellished with lace cut from the original sleeves. I cut away the skirt from the corset and un-gathering a monstrous amount of fabric and removing all the tulle.  Then I began to reconstruct.  I first made a simple A-line skirt from the yardage but realized the material was too sheer.  So I shortened the top skirt and added an underskirt and made both of them with a final tea-length. It created a lovely double scalloped row of double sequins and lace at the bottom. To add interest at the back, I used the huge bow's tails folding them in half to create a waist band and left the angled ends to hang down the back.

You would never know that this streamlined dress was hiding in that garish monstrosity I purchased.  It was a lot of work, but in the end I had a good wedding dress and the story of how it came to be was a hit at the reception.  I 'said yes' to the DIY dress!

a quick repurposed craft - luggage tag

For this quick project, I re-purposed the vintage leather business card holder portion of a wallet into a luggage tag.  I bought the wallet for a dollar, but found it too bulky to use.  So I took the business card holder out of it and used a scrap booking template for a tag and made matching front and back pieces.  I cut out the center of the back and used one of the clear card envelopes for a window.  I even cut down the information card to fit in the new luggage tag.  I used scrap booking stickers to create the design on the front of the tag.  The stickers are quite strong and I didn't need to use any other glue to keep them in place on the leather.  I used a regular paper punch to put the hole in the top of the tag and secured thin ribbon through it.  Now I have a cute little monogrammed luggage tag.  Get those creative ideas flowing and enjoy making fashion happen!

No Upcycling Necessary

I get a lot of great basics at the two Goodwill stores in our area.  Here is a Ralph Lauren long sweater I picked up, nearly new, for $4.00.  I've worn it several times this winter.  Lauren is one of my favorite designers and I can usually pick out the distinctive designer easily on a stocked rack.  I have two other Lauren sweaters that I wear often, one cas and one dress.  The advantage of picking up classic styles is you can use them with trendy shirts, skirts and pants.  I'll be showing off a number of more classic finds - because I'm proud to have them and I didn't have to pay retail or even outlet prices for them!

wrist cuff - easy craft

One of the easiest ways to stay current with your wardrobe is through accessories.  And the best part is you can really show your personal style by crafting simple jewelry.  My public look tends toward conservative tailored, but my heart leans toward steampunk-goth-heavy metal.  Must be my husband's influence :-). 

A great find at Goodwill (which is a good time to throw in, don't forget to look in the 'craft' section at your favorite thrift store) was a bag of leather pieces for $4.00.  I got six large pieces, one black, two shades of brown, red and burgundy.  I will use these for lots of different embellishments and accessories.  Here is the first thing I've made, a cuff bracelet.  I found inspiration online, but altered the design and final product to my style.  I used a piece of leather embossed with ostrich.  First I traced the pattern on the reverse side of the leather and cut it out.  I put black velcro to secure it on the reverse of the smaller end and the right side of the wider end.  I used a scrapbook flower pattern for the leather flower addition, again, drawing the pattern on the reverse of the leather before cutting it out.  It looks great on!  The next one I plan to make will be an industrial look with black leather and silver washers.  Sky's the limit on the look you can create.  This one-of-a-kind leather accessory cost about 50 cents to make.

It's not real, so it was a steal, or, 'it's a fake, was it a mistake?'

The age old question among fashionistas - is it ok to fake it till you make it?  The duffel bag pictured here pretending to be LV is not LV, but a fake.  However, it's a nicely crafted duffel, albeit in need of some TLC, that I will use when I travel.  According to the info I have, it's not illegal to purchase fake designer merchandise, only to sell it.  So I'm not going to tell you my source, but I did get it for a good price.  I found the on-line supplier of this type of bag, and they aren't cheap, either.  It's a well-made duffel bag and should last me quite some time.  So I'm thinking I got a great deal on something that looks like the best.  I think I win :-).

Embellished Picture Frame - Easy Crafting

This is a very simple project I completed recently.  I purchased the blue padded 'leather' picture frame at Goodwill for 99 cents.  Then I found the puffy stickers in the scrapbooking department at Walmart for an additional 99 cents.  I think the end result is charming - and best of all, affordable.  I had several other ideas to embellish the frame including putting flat rhinestones along the top and bottom or embellishing it with flip-flop ribbon to use with a picture of my husband and me on our honeymoon.  No matter how you embellish it, it is an inexpensive way to be creative and personalize a plain frame.

Its my first post!

Welcome to my new blog! This blog is about creativity in a tough economy.  How do you stay fashionable on a thrift store budget?  How do you enjoy life when all the rules are changing?  And how cute are the cats in my life!  Stay tuned.