Thrift haul :)

I discovered thrifting in my late teens but it wasn't until my 20s that it became a regular affair. I've always loved the thrill of the hunt - but when you figure out you can buy vintage couture for less than $20 it becomes addicting.

This time of year I find a lot of people start to dump their closet in anticipation of Spring. As I get older and more selective I pick up more quality than quantity, and of late I've picked up a few gems.

I teased this image last week on Instagram :)

And no, that's not a Chanel, it's a Morris Moskowitz LOL. I do have to say the details are actually very impressive. It has similar details to Chanel's reissue and the quality of the leather held up beautifully considering this bag is probably older than me. Judith Leiber actually got her start working for him in the 60s. Did I mention is was only $8?

There was something about this pin. I didn't have my reading glasses with me so I couldn't make out the brand but it looked special. I keep hoping to find Chanel jewelry. This time I found a Benedikt for $2. Howard Benedikt made high-end costume jewelry from 1955 to 1973 and his store was located on 5th Avenue. Most of his pieces go for $20-50 (some higher) on eBay these days.

Then there are my $6 navy leather gloves. I usually wear a 7 or 7.5 in a glove but somehow I was able to just get into these 6.5s. They are no-name, made in Italy, and wool lined so they are super warm. I love vintage gloves because they just don't make 'em like they used to.

The same day as the Morris Moskowitz I also thrifted this large Sondra Roberts hobo for $6. It's a big beautiful bag and there is something very special about it. Feels very Alexanger Wang to me. I stopped wearing hobos when I had kids (these days I'm all about a cross-body) but I just couldn't leave this one behind. Not sure what it originally retailed for but Lyst had the last available (probably sale) price as $248 at Nordstrom.

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This linea pelle brownish-green studded leather belt was $6 and it probably retailed for around $100. I got it to belt my coats. The studs are very heavy - very Miu Miu, right?

And if you haven't figured out by now I'm a little accessory obsessed. I'm not all dresses LOL. This leather clutch was $4 and the sunglasses were $1.

 These J.Crew shoes were half-off so I got them for $5. Yes, a lot of my accessories are blue.

Marc Jacobs for $7.50? Yes, please! They need a little cleaning up but I snap up any designer shoe for less than 10 bucks in my size :)

I have picked up a couple dresses too :) The delicate lace on my Bill Blass dress needs some repair (and the waist taken in) but pieces like this are the reason I thrift. It was half off for $12.50 - I can't believe it wasn't snapped up at $25. Based on the tag and other pieces that I researched it looks like it's from the 70s. I seriously live for vintage designer pieces.

I also have a thing for the 80s and there was something about this $20 George Anthony knit Mohair dress.  Not so sure it's me but I always like to try new things. Now all I need is a wide red belt.

I've been collecting American Girl pieces with my girls for over 4 years now. My first AG thrift find  was almost 10 years ago - I picked up a set of Bitty Baby twins and a set of doll-size pottery barn chairs. I almost just took the boy doll for my son (who liked to push around a doll stroller) because I didn't really know what American Girl was yet. You really don't discover AG until you have girls :)

This is Samantha's retired commode with the top broken off. It was $5. I found it hidden with the jewelry boxes. At first glance I knew I had something - especially with the big Coconut the dog sticker on it.

That day they also had Felicity's foul, Patriot for just $3!!! The cashier looked at me and wanted to know what I was going to do with it. I told her my daughter likes horses. Never tell them anything about what you find otherwise next time it won't make it out of the back room. 

I find Bitty Baby stuff all the time - people get rid of it faster than the big girl stuff. I actually saw two of these wagons but I took this one because the door worked...until my daughter kept sitting in it and broke it off. No matter, it was only $4.

 This pram was only $6! I've seen these go for $100+ on eBay.

My daughter probably has around 20 Bitty Babies by now LOL. This one was in amazing condition and only $4.

We've also been collecting the matching girl and doll sets - we like to wear them every time we visit the store. We already have this set and now we have the girl dress in larger size :)

And that's all folks! I keep meaning to check out some new thrift stores but Fashion Week popped up. Don't worry, I'll tell you all about it in my next post :)

-Shoppinggal

Weekly roundup...hair modeling, Target and thrift hauls, penny finds & Louboutins :)

Today's my wedding anniversary. I got married 12 years ago today - it seems forever ago. I didn't get the photographer I really wanted (don't ask) so most of the pictures were pretty boring and posed.  The guy I was forced to use still owes us our digital pics and prints...not to mention the re-edit of the video because all he pretty much shot was the food LOL.
 
I love when a photographer captures a moment. This was one of my favorite pics from my album.

I tried to use my scanner this morning and of course it's not working so I took a pic of a pic.

When I woke up this morning I totally forgot it was my anniversary. I knew it this week but I didn't really think about it. Last week I picked up an orange camo Nike overnight bag (on clearance, of course) at the Rack because he keeps borrowing my pink bag whenever we go away. Not exciting as my previous gifts but I guess I'm still a little pissed that he didn't get me anything for my 40th birthday. It was that or new socks which I'll just get him for Chanukah. Truthfully, my husband is pretty bad with gifts so I wasn't holding my breath. It's ok, I'm really good at buying my own :)  I know to keep things simple so I mentioned a Fitbit to him a few times, but of course he didn't hear that. When he wished me a happy anniversary he told me he ordered me a gift on Amazon. After seeing the Louboutin clutch my friend got for her anniversary last week...I'm not going to show you what I'm getting.

Sorry, I'm always a little cranky on birthdays and anniversaries for some reason. Plus yesterday before I went to my hair modeling appointment I popped into the Rack and missed the Jimmy Choo clutch I'd been eyeing for a while - it went to a penny and they pulled it before I got there. I also I heard I missed out on an $80 Marc Jacobs collection bag. Ugh.

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I've been a hair model at various salons and programs around the City for 15+ years now. It all started when I got scouted at H&M in midtown when I was shopping - a stylist pulled me aside and asked me to be his hair model. Once I discovered the possibilities I realized I would never again be able to pay full price for doing my hair, and I started researching where to go. Some programs even pay you cash or in product! These days I check out Craigslist or salonapprentice.com and look for openings when I need a cut or color. Most salons charge a small fee but I noticed the Whittemore House Salon was looking for models for free highlights so I figured it would be worth a shot :)

My appointment was at 1 PM yesterday and I was running a little late (I always get lost south of 14th street LOL) so I took a taxi when I was 5 minutes away. Luckily they were running late too so it didn't matter. I didn't go in until after 2 and they didn't start on me until 3.

Here is my before selfie:

 And 2.5 hours later this is my after:

When they were drying my hair I noticed it was darker than it should have been. A supervisor who saw my expression told me that it was because it was wet. Being a natural blonde my whole life I know what my hair should look like wet, thank you very much. It's less lemon-y than I like. It looks a little flat and beigey for my taste. I should had realized something was wrong when another stylist came over with her brush and borrowed some of the color they mixed up for me...on her brunette client. I'm thinking they didn't use bleach highlights. When I got home the first thing out of my husband's mouth was "wow, that's the darkest I've ever seen you." Plus my niece who saw me yesterday asked me about the dark spots. Oy. On a more pleasant note, the assistant gave me an amazing blowout so I left feeling ok but me thinks I'll be needing color in another month to brighten things up.

Here you can see the dark spots at the top of my head (mostly in the front) - it looks like there are chunks missing color. You don't even want to see the big dark spot in the back...

I do have to admit that in bright light it looks ok. And I was happy to finally pull out my favorite BCBG trench that I scored at Century21 for 75% off. I paired it with my thrifted Barneys NY boots ($15), a thrifted LBD ($8) and my trusty refub Balenciaga Velo from the Rack. It's still hands down my best Rack find this year.

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My favorite Rack got more refurb shoes in this weekend so I popped in Saturday night and lookie what I found :)

Christian Louboutin Bianca, retail $875

Bianca Christian Louboutins for $229.97! They are size 41s and I usually take a 40 or 40.5 in a Loub but for this price I'll buy a shoe pad and stuff them till they fit :) These are the most comfortable Louboutins I own.

Last week was a pretty good Rack week. Lots of penny finds...

I have a few receipts like this from last week LOL.

One of my penny shoe piles :)

Mens also had markdowns last week - I found a Timberland belt for my brother for $.99 and a Ben Sherman suit for my nephew for $50.

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I also did a quick thrift trip last week - here's the best of my haul:

American Girl Bitty Baby, $2.99. I've since cleaned her up and I'll have to take an after pic for you. DD who is obsessed with Bitties loves her to death - she has at least a dozen of them LOL.

Vintage leather clutch was half-off and only $2. I'm a sucker for a blue bag.

This Arcadia red patent leather bag was just $5. I found a similar bag in TJ Maxx for $100.

Miss Sixty 3/4 sleeve denim blazer 75% off for $2.50 :)

Got this 2-pc vintage DVF silk wrap set for just $7.95!

Reiss sheath dress, 50% off for $7.50. Kate Middleton wears a lot of Reiss and they typically retail for $250-300.

Croci dress 75% off, for $5. Still has the Daffy's tag on it. I miss Daffys :(

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It's also been a pretty good Target week. My youngest has been begging me for the 'pretty horses' bedding for almost two years and it FINALLY got marked down to 70% off! I also picked up a bunch for my nieces :)

This set was for my niece Betty - I got her sister a purple set last year and I promised her a pink set :)

Set $20.98, sheets $5.38, & lamp $8.98.

 More cheap bedding; the sheet was $4.19 and the twin set was $8.98.

I actually needed some room sprays and was happy to find these 2-packs for $1.26 each :)

 Not exactly sure what this is but for if for $3.88 I can get rid of my flabby arms...

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Fans also went to 70% off - scored this Vornado for just $13.48!

Can always use cheap 70% off bulbs...

Recently on my Facebook page someone asked me where to find knee length pencil skirts. I noticed a ton of modest pieces on display all $30 or less!

#modestfashion

When I was Target hunting I picked up a ton of the Altuzarra collection for 50-70%. I'll be selling extras on my Shoppinggalscloset Instagram page this week - stay tuned! 

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Speaking of modest fashion, last Thursday I headed to the East Side to participate in modest fashion & lifestyle blogger Fabologie's 'Carbs & Cocktails' challah bake in hopes of meeting a few Jewish modest fashion bloggers I follow. While I don't necessarily identify myself as modest (I'm more modest-ish at best LOL) I grew up in those circles and I love to see what these girls do with fashion and still stay true to their beliefs.

The lighting was pretty bad in there so this was the best I could do. I'm really only sharing it to show you my Altuzarra for Target trenchcoat that I scored for 50% off :) Despite the rain, everyone else was wearing crazy, fun shoes but I decided to be sensible and wear my thrifted Aquatalia waterproof kitten heeled boots.

Each woman participating received a tin with dough to braid their own challah to bake at home. Lots of treats and vino too :)

I was going to do a flip-o-gram demonstrating my niece making a six braid challah but halfway through I got distracted LOL.

On the way home my niece snapped a few pics of me on the streets. Here are some of my faves by the subway. I really need a better camera...

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I'm very happy to share that LeHoarder finally broke 1,000 followers on Instagram :) I also decided to take a break selling on Ebay and give Insta-selling a go. Check out my stuff on my shoppinggalscloset page - I'll be starting to list tonight!

Happy shopping!
Shoppinggal