NUETP: A Hand-Me-Down

NUETP (Never UnderEstimate The Power)
My aunt gave me this dress along with a bag of other unwanted clothes of hers for me to either sell, keep or donate.  The interesting thing about this dress is that it's not something I think I would have picked out for myself.  I mean, I probably wouldn't have even considered taking it into a dressing room!  I didn't think it was me.  But, hey, if she's just GIVING clothes away, I'll give it a shot!
And I'm soooooo glad I did!  It's easy to wear.  It's got a gorgeous print.  It's buffet friendly!  C'mon! Nuff said!
And since the dress pretty much speaks for itself, I only had to had my favorite boots (which, by the way, make everything look just a little bit better) and I had a great look that felt very "elegant bohemian". 

Dress:  label was taken out, so I have no idea   Boots:  Nine West

And a couple of weeks earlier, I wore the dress as a blouse with my favorite leather skirt!  Seriously, if I ever had to make a run for it fast; I'd be grabbing this skirt on the way out the door!  I've also worn it here, here, and here.

Dress:  Same  Boots:  Same Leather skirt:  Vintage and thrifted

So the moral of the story is, hand-me-downs are good.   The price is right AND sometimes, it helps push you out of your comfort zone!

And if you're so inclined, check out my other NUETP posts here.

A small closet = BIG opportunity!

A recent move and closet down sizing has prompted Patti to reexamine her wardrobe and making the most of what she has.  

Believe it or don't, I have less closet space in our modern condo than in our historical cottage! Ohs noes, I shall have to edit the wardrobe yet some more. And the old one-in, one-out rule will still apply unless I can find a way to freeze-dry my clothing and then just add hot water to revive it! (Remember freeze-dried coffee? So cool at the time).  (source)

While initially, a smaller closet may seem cause for some serious concern; there is a pretty bright silver lining! How much of what we have in our closets are we really over the moon about?  Can we open the door to our wardrobes and smile at what we see there?  And the biggest question:  How much of what's in there do we actually wear?

The reality is that it's better to have 10 things that you LOVE to wear and feel fabulous in than 50 items that are uninspiring.  

So, on that note, when I came across this dress at a recent yard sale, I was all set to list it in my store.  Not believing it would fit, but curious, I tried it on and WOW!  I just love it....the shape, the black & white scheme, the pattern....all of it makes for a piece that makes me smile grin!


I initially tried it on as a dress and MAN!  was that thing short!  At least for me!  And while my husband does love my legs and loves for me to show them, I just don't think I'd be comfortable risking showing sooooo much more!
Paired here with J Crew leggings and flats, it feels very gamine (something I'm really not!).  

And shown here with my favorite black leather skirt (thrifted) and suede boots that I got in a recent swap with my daughter, I changed it up a bit by pairing it with a thin leather belt (thrifted).


For years now, I've been saying that I could make an entire wardrobe out of black and white and still keep it interesting.  Pieces like this make it easy!

And I just can't help but mention that I don't have $5 in this whole outfit! 

 The skirt was thrifted at a church clothing drive that I helped with and I paid $1 for the dress at a yard sale about a month ago.  The details on it are amazing....truly a boutique piece!

Suede in full! Or Don't be Suede by imitators!

And my love affair with all things suede and leather continues!  I thrifted this vintage suede skirt at a little shop that I found not long after moving here last year.  The color is so vibrant (shown better in the second picture).  And it really can be worn all year long!

Top : Hand me down from my aunt.  It has a white leather panel on the front.  Previously worn here.  

Skirt:  Thrifted & Vintage

Boots:  New!!  My birthday gift from my sweet husband!    These* boots, from Nine West, were a really big splurge!  My husband told me to go get them, and was prepared to pay $200 for them.    When we got to the mall, they had a sale!!!! and we got them for just under $150 including tax.  For us, that's a HUGE splurge.  HOWEVER, we justify this cost by the fact that about 98% of my wardrobe is thrifted at usually no more than $4 a piece.  So to invest in a FABULOUS pair of shoes or boots that will last and look great for YEARS, just makes sense to me!  What you can't see from the picture is that these have about a 5" heel on them.  So 70s chic!!

BTW, take a look at these.  Oh be still my heart, I would love to own these!  But $250?  Yeahhhhh, I just can't.  But I WILL be watching them for a sale!

Purse:  Thrited.  No brand label, but the strap is genuine leather and it's actually lined with the softest black leather you can imagine!  I washed it via my leather washing method (which I learned from a customer of my store)  and BAM!   FABULOUS!!

See?  It wears great in the summer as well!  Here's the original post.

I'm hooking up (FINALLY) with Patti and Visible Monday!  To be sure, I felt very visible today!

*No affiliate link or commission here, I just happen to love me some Nine West!  They always have gorgeous shoes and boots at a price point where buying groceries is still viable!

NUETP: The Black Pointy Toe Pump

Never Underestimate the Power of a great pair of black pointy toe heels!

Silk Blouse:  Thrifted, Leather Skirt:  Vintage Thrifted, Black Heels:  Nine West Thrifted

Patti did a great post yesterday on "Out with the drab.  In with the fab!"  in which she explores finding ways to build on great basics to start adding fun to her wardrobe....

    "One definite spicy seasoning for me is The Shoe.  And that's fairly recent in my life.  For many decades I stuck with safe choices.  In my corporate years, the nice stacked pump or sling-back.  Simple flats or brown sandals made do for casual hours." 

I think my friend is dead on!  And, in my most humble opinion, where better to start than a black pointy toe pump!  There are so many variations of this, with the upside being that you can choose your heel height for maximum comfort.

The black pointy toe is classic, reminiscent of Chanel, and just about goes with EVERYTHING!  When I put on this outfit, I originally had a different shoe....a platform strappy heel that looked great but a bit too va va voom for church!  So I grabbed my standby and POW!  What could easily look a bit funky (and there ain't a THANG wrong with funky!!), went straight to classy.

The beauty of a black pointy toe is that it can be worn with jeans, slacks, skirts, bright prints, white, longer shorts (I'm not really a fan of heals with short shorts), cropped pants.....just about everything!  And it just makes everything look GREAT!

If I had to go on a trip and take only ONE pair of shoes with me, I think it would be these.  I really think it's one shoe that would be at home in any woman's wardrobe!

Take a look a these celebrities and their pointy toe heel looks.  And while you're looking around, head on over to Patti's Visible Monday and take a peek at some gorgeous ladies sporting their very visible looks!
   

Can you REALLY machine wash leather???

From my recent experience, I'd say YES!*

A couple of months ago, I sold a gorgeous suede skirt through my store and the buyer sent me an email letting me know that, because she is allergic to perfumes, she washes EVERYTHING even her suede and leather skirts.  WHAT?  How can that be?  Everyone knows that you have to go the dry cleaner to get those skins cleaned!

Well, Kris (the buyer) was kind enough to elaborate on how she launders her leather.

     I always just use Murphy's Oil Soap.  If you haven't used it before, you can usually find it at 
     Walmart and at hardware stores.  Some grocery stores carry it.  My skirt is in the washer 
     right now.   I just use a couple of tablespoons or so.  Then I throw most things in the dryer and 
     iron them if necessary.

I couldn't believe it could be that easy, but really wanted to give it a try.  I have 3 Coach purses that have absolutely taken a beating and looked pretty bad.  Spots, coffee spills, and a stain of unknown origin on the smallest one that was actually thrifted.  I had tried everything,  leather cleaner, polish and they still looked REALLY bad.  Furthermore,  NOTHING could take that spot out of the the small Coach satchel.  

Having nothing to lose, my purses being unusable,  I started with my bright pink leather Coach purse.  I figured I couldn't make the bag look worse than it already did.  (I want to insert here that the older Coach handbags hold up much nicer than the newer ones, in my opinion.    I even purchased the Coach leather cleaner and it didn't help my pink bag that I purchased new for almost $300!)

The Experiment 

I put about 1/4 cup of Murphy's Oil Soap into the washing machine and put it on the gentle cycle.  I closed my eyes, clinched my teeth and dropped in the purse!   I was so surprised when I took it out and it looked fine, even BETTER with it still being wet.  The real test was yet to come.  The dryer.    I loaded up the dryer with a few towels and jeans to buffer the purse while it was being tossed around and set the dryer on the most delicate setting.  I decided to dry it just long enough for the inside fabric lining to dry.

I took it out while the leather was still damp and hung the bag on the back of a chair.  It air dried the rest of the way.

I can't tell you my surprise when I took the purse out and not only was it unharmed, but what an improvement!!!  So then I decided to do the next two together since they're both brown.

This brown Coach bag was already pretty worn when I received it as a very generous hand me down from a friend.  And that's cool, because in my opinion, good leather just gets better the more it's used. But it's the stains, water spots and fading that I just can't deal with.

This is the one I thrifted and can you see that?  Big greasy stain is nowhere to be seen!

The Final Step

My husband made a suggestion that turned out to be the crowning touch to the whole experiment.  He suggested that I saturate the bags in furniture polish (I always use furniture polish to clean a leather chair and ottoman that we have in our living room), and let it soak in.  Again, I was a bit apprehensive expecting all kinds of spots, but I covered the entire bag with the polish, rubbed in as much as I could and let just let it all soak in.

Worked like a charm!  Now it feels like I have 3 new bags!!  I have yet to try this with my suede and leather skirts, but I have a small suede skirt that I thrifted just for the leather to use in a project.  I'm thinking this will be my experimental skirt.  I'll let you know how it turns out!

Simple Instructions

1. Totally clean out contents of your bag
2. Set washer to gentle cycle, pour in about 1/4 cup of Murphy's Oil Soap (amount depends on size of bag).
3. Drop bag in, close lid and go have a drink to calm your nerves!
4. When washing is completed, remove bag and place in dryer along with a few other fluffy items that you don't have to worry about any fading.
5. Set dryer to the gentlest setting and keep checking about every 10 minutes, JUST until the fabric lining dries.  If there's no lining, just eye ball your bag and take it out when the leather is still damp but not soaked.
6. Reshape if needed and hang to dry.
7. When your bag is completely dry, spray the entire bag with a good furniture polish (Pledge?) and  gently rub in all over.  
8. Once again, hang to dry to allow the polish to set in.
9. ENJOY!

*Disclaimer:  This worked for me, but I can't guarantee these results for everyone who may try this.  Please launder your leather at your own risk.  Start out with something that is pretty much unusable to begin with. 

And speaking of leather, I've got some leather goodies in my store right now!  Be sure to check out the leather cross body bag that I just found!  It's like BUDDAH!

A post full of favorites....

My favorite blouse....Ellen Tracy, thrifted

My favorite skirt.....Vintage aqua leather skirt, thrifted

My favorite shoes.....Nine West, eBay

Necklace....  Vintage, thirfted

Favorite gold bracelets.....Inherited from my wonderfully stylish mother!

My favorite photographer.....my sweet husband!

Even loving the way the sun is catching my growing gray locks!

When I put this outfit together, it simply was the culmination of wearing my favorites at the same time, and lo and behold....IT WORKS!  I NEVER would have thought this color combination would work and I can't really dissect why it works, it just does.

The moral of this story is to fill your closet with items you love, that make your heart sing!  Hence, you'll have outfits that evoke the same reaction!

Love Love Love and lots of air kisses headed your way!

Why you need a leather skirt....

Skirt:  Vintage Thrifted, Top:  J Crew, Sweater:  H&M, Boots:  Bandolino

A couple of years ago, a leather skirt was no where in my closet.  I had NONE!  And I didn't know what I was missing!  Now, I can't imagine my sartorial life with no leather skirt....and for me, it simply HAS to be the real thing.  I just can't seem to get as excited about pleather or ultra suede.

You know what's great about suede and leather skirts?

*No ironing needed....anytime you can wear something without having to iron it is just a good start to the day!

*Always the same fit....barring any extreme body changes, your leather skirt will pretty much fit you the same every time you wear it; unlike fabric that seems to modify itself a little with every wearing.

*Wear it year round....Yes!  You read that right!  Why not wear your leather year round?  For this skirt, I could easily do a cute tank and a great heel and I'm out the door!  While leather pants may prove to be a hot box in the warmer months, a leather skirt still allows you to keep the breezeway!

*Makes you look like you stepped up your game....When DOESN'T leather look like your A-game?  Seriously!  Throw on a leather skirt and any top and tres chic!

Every leather skirt I have (I think 5 in all) was thrifted.  To buy a nice leather skirt new may be a bit cost prohibitive, but with so many thrifting options there's no need to mark them off your wish list!

Do you have any leather skirts?  What do YOU love about them?