How to: Love

What makes us feel beautiful? We find beauty in a myriad of things but often times, not in ourselves. It’s easy to lose track of the things that make me beautiful when society tells me to strive to be someone else. Magazines, TV, internet and radio bombard me with confusing ideas of what I should look and act like and I stray from the things I love most about myself. Spending so many years being tall and skinny, as well as wearing second hand clothing left me feeling less than normal. Coming from a humble yet creative household, I was at first, forced to create my own style. But after a while, I started to encourage myself; to challenge myself to discover new life in old rags. It made me proud to get compliments on outfits I had bought for less than $20 head-to-toe. It felt good to know that finally I could look the way I wanted without giving into what “they” told me to be. I didn’t need fancy clothes or name brand shoes. I just needed to be me. Not many people can pull of a tie-dye dress with brown moccasins and an old leather bag, but I put it on, call it my 70s throw-back look and suddenly it’s stylish! I guess what I’m trying to say is something I’ve said 100 times; it’s not about the clothes, it’s about who’s in them. I’ve got the look to pull off a $2,000 dress, but I’ve got the confidence to find a $3 dress and make it look like a million bucks because I don’t second guess my style. Because I know I can wear anything as long as I wear it with confidence.

FEED YOUR SELF-LOVE, AND YOUR SELF-DOUBT WILL STARVE TO DEATH!
Read: Embracing Self-Love Without Promoting Unhealthy Lifestyles

Sabado!

Wonderful Saturday so far. We put our ears to the street and found what the city had to offer. First stop was the Saturday Sidewalk Sale down on Roosevelt Row. Amazing local artists sold everything you can think of plus delicious and organic local produce. I got to purchase a garment handmade by a local designer that I will feature as soon as his websiter is up! This is a ongoing event every Saturday in downtown Phoenix (we even got to watch a performance by Of The Earth featuring the USA Bellydance Champion! There was also the annual Tamale Festival featuring local fare and merch vendors. All in all, a good day. Now what's for dinner? Picnic or BBQ?...

Guns-n-Roses

It's Friday! (it actually doesn't matter to me since I don't have a weekly schedule...) But it is the end of a great week. Winter is definitely here in the Valley and its only getting colder.We've got no-snow holidays which means no scraping ice off our windshields but also no completed winter wardrobes. Parkas, puffy vests, earmuffs or fur hats; its just not cold enough! So we make due with what we've got.

 Here, I turned a April outfit into a December outfit by adding stockings ($5) and socks ($3) that I snagged from Target (they've got an awesome $1 section filled with usefull stuff!). My lightweight leather jacket (Forever 21) over my boyfriend's band tee screamed ROCK! so I rolled with it. Add a high waist jean short (Goodwill-$4) for posterity and you've got yourself a look! I tried the bandana thing this time and I think it worked. The higher-than-high stilletos and dark red lipstick make this club wear.

Baby, It's Cold Outside

The vast majority of my closet is filled with garments I found at the thrift store (its leaking over into his side of the closet, too). I enjoy this aspect of my wardrobe, but unlike our SUV, not all of my clothes are certified pre-owned. I do find things at regular stores that I like and do buy. I am a diehard second-hand soldier but even more than that I’m a fashion lover. If I find something I like, and it’s reasonably priced, I buy it. My clothes today mix free with cheap to make the outfit I like to call “winter in the desert”. I’ve layered a long-sleeve t-shirt from DEB ($8) with an oversize off-shoulder screen tee ($6) from BBB Fashion because it’s cold, but it’s also Phoenix so you can’t overdo it. These grey skinny jeans I got years ago from a good friend of mine (I’d like to think I was up on the trend before the masses were). They zip down to the ankle for an extra skinny effect. My boyfriend lets me borrow his dress socks because I’ve yet to buy my own and I found these espadrilles on the clearance rack at Wet Seal for only $5! They’ve lasted me a long time (even though my baby toe pops out the side sometimes…beauty is pain, right?) None of these items ever saw the inside of a thrift store but I still found a way to create my slightly offbeat style using pieces scrounged from a myriad of places. *Live long and trend set.*

Winter Whites

We had an all day adventure on Sunday. Lightrail, street fair, Vietnamese dinner and a movie! Cannot express how alive I felt yesterday! But it was extra extra cold last night so I bundled up in this number. Cream colored fuzzy beret ($3) white leather knee high boots ($8) and wicker/leather butterfly handbag ($3) The scarf was a gift, I got the coat for about $20 last winter in Philly and the dress is borrowed. (My mis-matched gloves I got years ago)

How not to pull your frickin hair out at the thrift store...

Walking into a thrift store is like an obstacle course. You've got to concentrate if you want to make it to the end. For someone who never shops second-hand this experience can be overwhelming. No need to worry though, because I am here to help. I'll tell you exactly how to manage your shopping adventure!

1. Breathe! Walk right in and take a deep breath. You smell that? That there is the smell of bargains. (And old clothing, but mostly bargains!) I've found in all my years that all thrift stores smell the same. I have yet to identify it but I could pick it out of a line-up blindfolded and hog tied. But this isn't about the scent in the air, this is about taking a breath and focusing on your gameplan. Take a glance around the entire store and figure out which section you want to hit first.

2. The Game Plan: Before I go shopping I already know what I'm looking for. Not to say I don't veer from the path from time to time, but planning in advance will keep stress levels low. Its winter time in the desert so my last trip I went looking specifically for knit sweaters and hats. I found some great winter wear and also some other awesome items. The key tip here is Know Before You Go!

3. Make it Fit! DO NOT I repeat DO NOT ever leave the thrift store without trying on what you've bought! I cannot count the number of times I've brought something home I thought was perfect only to find out its too short or too long or too tight or has a hole in the crotch! If you know how to alter clothing then this will make life alot easier. If not, Stick With What Fits!

Make your shopping trip fun and easy by following these simple rules. Go forth and save!

Last Weekend

I had a frickin blast on Saturday! My boyfriend and I went to PHX with one of my best friends. We'vw always hated this club but this time it was crazy fun! Open bar and lots of dancing makes for a good night! I wore my new jewel toned Asian-inspired jacket complete with shoulder pads! (that my b/f abhors) Its 100% silk which means dry clean only. I don't often buy DCO garments because I find its kind of a hassle, but the colors in this piece and the way it felt on me, I couldn't pass it up! I snagged this one for around $4.00...

The Welcoming Commitee

Good morning world! This marks my very first blog post. Ever. I've never been much for sharing my inner thoughts with seemingly unidentifiable people who may ot may not be paying attention. Its just not my style. Plus, I've never had much to say to the world. But my lovely boyfriend (whom you may see a photo or two of) encouraged me to take my tiny idea and create something real out of it. So here it is; Re-Fashioned. This blog is my new baby and I'd love to share it with you all.
 I've learned in my short but interesting life that you can't always get what you want. For one reason or another it just doesn't work out that way. For me, that reason has been lack of funds. I am the second of three children living in a one parent household. That adds up to new clothes being very low on the list. With the exception of school uniforms we almost never shopped at regular stores. I was forced as a child to wear my older sister's hand-me-downs or used clothes from the thrift store. It angered me as a teenager because while everyone I knew was emerging with the latest this or the newest that I was forced to blend in with my second hand stuff. (Blending in is not something I do willingly.) One day it clicked in me that my situation was not soon to change. I would not anytime soon be buying designer clothes or wearing the latest Nike sneaker so I needed to embrace what I had and create a style all my own. So I did. I started seeing my thrift store visits as adventures. I learned to make a game of it and through these new eyes I found my niche. I was the Goodwill Girl and I loved it! So now I offer up my suggestions for you and anyone who can't afford to shop mainstream or who just wants a new favorite stomping ground. Because every girl deserves to feel beautiful. Because fashion isn't about where your clothes came from, its about how you wear them and how they make you feel. Thank you for joining me in my life-long journey of MAKING IT WORK!