Month: April 2017

Talking Myself Out of Buying Retail, Vol. 2

My last “talking myself out of buying retail” post was so successful — seeing as how I didn’t buy any of the things featured in it — that I decided to make it a regular thing. Temptation has struck again, and here we are.

Club Monaco jumpsuit
Club Monaco jumpsuit

I know this doesn’t really look like much in the stock photo, but it looks so lovely in person. I really should never visit a Club Monaco store because nothing good ever comes of it, at least as far as my wallet is concerned. I really, really covet this jumpsuit, but it’s not very practical and it’s over $300 dollars. I will say this for Club Monaco: they really stick to their guns, pricing wise. Stuff takes ages to go on sale, there are rarely “extra % off” sales, and prices never seem to hit rock bottom. If I had to guess, this jumpsuit will probably not hit the $100 mark for at least 3 months, if ever. Which means that I shall covet in vain. Sigh.

Speaking of coveting in vain, there is also this:

Club Monaco dress
Club Monaco dress

Again, this is so much lovelier in person … and also highly impractical. And much, much too expensive. You’re killing me, Club Monaco.

Along the similar lines:

BCBG dress
BCBG dress

I made the mistake of trying this one on. I shouldn’t have. It’s completely impractical, but, boy oh boy, those tulle ruffles. This is a like a very naughty version of a 50s debutante dress. As someone on Instagram said, it would probably be perfect for a (21st century) prom. Sadly, I’m 20 years too late to that party. The dress is $200, down from $700, during the last stages of BCBG’s closeout sale, for anyone who would like to be enabled.

Left: BCBG; right: Celine
Left: BCBG; right: Celine

I have been lusting after this Celine bag ever since it came out, and I am as close now as I’ll ever be to owning it … which is to say that I’m staring at it on my computer screen wistfully. Anyway, I spotted what looked like a pretty good lookalike at BCBG, and very seriously considered buying it. On sale, it’s less than 10% of the price of the Celine, and it is real leather. I like the minimalist aesthetic a lot, but the more I looked at it side by side with the original, the more I liked … the original.

BCBG tote
BCBG tote

I was more tempted by the tote version in camel. It has a zipper, which is shockingly rare in totes for some reason. I was disappointed to realize that the front flap is actually purely decorative (there is no pocket underneath), but I might still have bought if not for two things: no long strap, and no outside pocket.

almost perfect
almost perfect

This, on the other hand, is absolutely flawless:

Alexis Bittar
Alexis Bittar

I think it’s safe to say that I am obsessed with Alexis Bittar jewelry, and this bracelet is haunting me. Last I checked, it was about $150CDN on Last Call. Now, on one hand, I don’t think that’s a bad price, for the quality you get from Bittar pieces. I have a couple, and they are fantastic — elegant with an edge, always the subject to compliments. On the other hand, it has been an expensive month for me on non-sartorial fronts, and this is an indulgence I simply cannot justify at this time. Ugh, being responsible really sucks sometimes.

Tales From The Thrift: Spring Time Edition

It’s been pretty quiet on the thrifting front lately. I don’t know why that is, but after a long hot streak last year, it feels sort of anti-climactic. While there were still some good pieces to be found, they definitely did not pop up in quantities previously seen on the blog … which is probably a good thing. My goal is to have less turnover in my closet this year, and less temptation does make that a more attainable goal. Not gonna lie, though: I do miss the thrill of a killer score. I did score some amazing pieces recently, but most of them have been consignment finds.

Toms
Toms

Toms are not my thing, but I thought this Union Jack pair was kinda cute. They were a bit beat up though, and priced high for the condition.

Fossil bag
Fossil bag

Speaking of which, VV wanted $40 for this Fossil bag. The leather was buttery soft, but it had seen better days. I might have taken a chance with it if it had been cheaper, and if I felt more confident in my restoration skills. The other big drawback was the lack of shoulder/cross-body straps. With that said, I am becoming more and more of a Fossil fan, and I always keep an eye out for the brand at the thrift store.

We heart Vera dress
We heart Vera dress

Cute dress, but not for me.

cute dresses
cute dresses

More cute dresses that were not for me. Left to right: Vera Wang (pretty sure this was a bridesmaid’s dress); Girls from Savoy; Gypsy05. Of the bunch, I really liked the olive green dress on the right, but it was about 2 sizes too big.

J Crew flats
J Crew flats

These J. Crew flats are hella comfortable, and these were in decent condition for being suede; why didn’t I get them? Round-toe flats, especially colourful ones, are on my no-buy list. They don’t mesh well with my current style, which leans more towards classic than ingenue. To me, round-toe has a definite ingénue vibe; almond- or pointy-toe, a more grown-up elegance.

Tory Burch flats
Tory Burch flats

Even if round toe flats were not on my no-buy list, I still wouldn’t pay $50 for these Revas.

Marc Cain blazer
Marc Cain blazer

Marc Cain is a European (?) designer brand sold at Blu’s, where pieces run in the hundreds. The style of this blazer appears dated to me, but it’s encouraging to see the brand at the thrift store for the first time; some of the pieces I’ve spied at Blu’s are definitely lust-worthy, so I can only hope to see them pop up at VV in the future.

BDG jeans
BDG jeans

More BDG jeans, but another pass. I still intend to give this brand a try someday, but I’ve decided that snakeskin print is not for me.

Eileen Fisher coat
Eileen Fisher coat

This was a lovely coat, that I am starting to really regret not getting. It looked too big … but I really should have tried it on. Sigh.

Derek Lam for Design Nation dress
Derek Lam for Design Nation dress

I would definitely be interested in trying a Derek Lam dress, but this collab piece was not quite up my alley. I’ve been spotting a ton of designer collab pieces (mostly from Target) lately, including stuff from older collections which were never available in Canada. It always makes me wonder how clothes end up in the local thrift store.

Pilcro & Paige - a tale of inconsistent pricing
Pilcro & Paige – a tale of inconsistent pricing

VV pricing for denim is *so* inconsistent, you guys. I have never seen Pilcro’s priced this high before either; it was sufficiently egregious than I passed on this pair, even though it was my size, and the print was intriguing. You guys know I never pass on Pilcro. Luckily, VV is inconsistent enough that I was able to find a second pair of Pilcros for under $10, and that came home with me as a consolation prize.

Pilcro jeans
Pilcro jeans

Cute, right? Even though they certainly don’t look the same on as on the model. So bizarre.

J. Crew sweater dress
J. Crew sweater dress

This sweater dress is all kinds of wrong — too short, too body-con — but I could not resist that soft cashmere. The dress is, shockingly, in perfect condition (good condition cashmere is very rare in thrift stores) and for the price ($13 plus 30% off), I decided to get it. Worse case scenario, I will be perfectly cozy lounging at home. [Update: I’ve worn it out-of-doors twice. It makes a great foundation layer when you feel like wearing a dress on cold days.]

Wilfred blazer
Wilfred blazer

This is a different colorway of one of my fave blazers. For $8, it was a no brainer. I think the dark metallic is going to be a fab addition.

CarlaG blazer
CarlaG blazer

Another blazer, Adina? Well … yes. In my defence, it has a truly phenomenal fit and the colour is part of my wardrobe palette to boot. Last year, I purged my old blush blazer because I wasn’t fond of the quality. I have high hopes that this will be a great replacement. I am not familiar with the brand (CarlaG) but the label says “made in Italy” and judging from the fit, I am willing to believe it.

Plenty by Tracy Reese dress
Plenty by Tracy Reese dress

For someone who has spent as much time as I have stalking Anthro dresses on eBay, this one was a familiar sight. It’s always fun to find them IRL, for a fraction of the price. This Plenty number is fun, super soft, and very much in my colour wheelhouse. I think it’s going to be a cute dress for summer weekends. IF summer ever gets here, that is.

Rick Owens Lilies dress
Rick Owens Lilies dress

After you’re been thrifting for a while, you start to develop a feel for special pieces; certain materials really do stand out to the touch more than others. This simple black knit dress looked pretty unassuming on the hanger, and the label was hidden inside the turtleneck. Still, based on hand-feel alone, I stopped and decided to have a closer look. The dress turned out to be Rick Owens Lilies. I don’t know much about the brand, other than that it has a devoted fan base — so there must be something to it, right? This particular dress feels nice and non-scratchy, and the style holds a lot of possibilities as weekend wear. I can already imagine it with my fave leather jacket …

Alright, over to you: what were your favourite recent thrift finds?

What I Read: Netflix Redux

What have I been reading lately? Um, not much. Blame Netflix. It is the best/worst thing that has happened to me in recent memory. I am willingly risking sleep deprivation on the daily, unable to resists that “one more episode” lure every night. Nonetheless, I was able to finish All the Light We Cannot See and I really enjoyed it by the end. I grew very attached to Werner in particular, so the ending brought out all of the feels — not necessarily in a bad way, though I would not call it a heart-warming sort of ending a la Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Pie Society.

I also made my way through Crazy Rich, the Johnson & Johnson family saga. It was enjoyable in the way that biographies of the ultra rich tend to be – a kind of literary equivalent to reading Hello magazine – but it didn’t blow me away or anything. The Johnson are no Hiltons, let’s just say. A book of this kind is always better if Zsa Zsa Gabor is somehow involved.

As for what’s next, I have a long list of book in my bedside stash (it’s at least a foot tall), but none of them are calling my name quite as loudly as British TV — only reason I even have time to write this post is because Netflix does not carry all of the shows I am desperate to watch. Ahem. Next in the reading queue is probably We Two, a biography focused on Victoria & Albert’s marriage. It was recommended by one or two BCRL readers, so I have high hopes for it.

Since we may as well stop pretending this isn’t turning into a “What I Watched” post, here’s a quick rundown of my recent binges.

  • Death Comes to Pemberley, the mini-series adaptation of the P.D. James mystery novel. I highly, highly recommend both. As you know, I am a huge James fan, and this novel (based on the Austen characters from Pride & Prejudice) is perfection. I wish James had turned her pen to the other Austen novels as well. I would read all the mysteries featuring my fave Austen heroes and heroines. The mini series is also fantastic – beautifully shot (seriously, it perhaps the best looking P&P-related adaptation), wonderfully acted. Matthew Rhys is not my version of a dreamboat Darcy, but I think he captured the essence of the character so well. Ditto for Anna Maxwell Martin who played Elizabeth. Their relationship dynamic rang so true — they came alive as flesh and blood, regular people, not merely these iconic characters.
  • Oh, did I mention Matthew Goode plays Wickham? Yeah, so that sent me down a Matthew Goode rabbit hole (that sounds wrong but you know what I mean), which involved some truly terrible movies, season 6 of Downton Abbey, and then finally the mini series Dancing on the Edge. It was a bit odd in that I was expecting it to be an “inside showbiz” story when in fact it was basically a mystery (with a really, really obvious whodunit), but the acting was top notch. Chiwetel Ejiofor was superb. There were a bunch of familiar faces in it — hello, Anthony Head (aka Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Jenna Coleman (Victoria), and Tom Hughes, again. [Sidenote: British TV is incredibly incestuous. Jenna Coleman was also in Death Comes to Pemberley, playing Lydia. So, she got to pretend-shag Matthew Goode twice, lucky duck. Wikipedia tells me that most of the people on this show have, in fact, worked with each other in at least one other project. Playing 6 degrees of “British equivalent of Kevin Bacon” must be incredibly easy.]
  • Watching rich & aimless young people make a muck of their (and others’) lives in Dancing on the Edge made me want to go back to re-watch Bright Young Things with Emily Mortimer and Stephen Campbell. Also, baby James McAvoy. Well, ok, not literally a baby but definitely baby-faced. (I now feel really old because I remember this movie from back in the day). It’s a good show, definitely worth a watch (or two). I’m thinking someone somewhere is probably about to re-make this movie (based on Evelyn Waugh’s Vile Bodies). I’m already looking forward to the recasting possibilities.
  • Pemberley also introduced me to James Norton, and may I say it was an introduction that was greatly overdue. Ahem. Netflix sadly does not stream Grantchester, but I am not easily discouraged when seized of an idea. I have procured season 1 from Amazon, and will surely post an update next week.
  • I also watched the “Nosedive” episode of Black Mirror because, hello, James Norton. And good-bye; seriously, he was in the episode for all of 2 minutes. Boo. Anyway, it was an interesting premise, but the whole thing gave me terrible social media anxiety, and I ain’t got time for getting meta about social media. I do wish someone would teach me how to do my eyeliner like Bryce Dallas Howard, though. That’s some #goals right there.

That’s it … for now. As always, leave me your Netflix (and book!!) recc’s in the comments.

Finally, here are a couple interesting articles. Are younger generations reverting to old-fashioned gender norms? Click-baity topic, but some interesting theories in this article. I am familiar with the difficulties facing two working parent families, and I have ALL the sympathy for people who take them on without the support of extended family, but I am not sure that going back to “traditional” gender norms is the answer either. I think society as a whole still has a long way to go in adjusting to the changes that have been happening over the last 20-30 years. The paradigm is shifting (more or less quickly in different countries) but it seems to me that much work still has to be done; it sucks for those of us caught in the trenches, but for me the answer is to push on, rather than look back.

If you’re a PF nerd like me, you might enjoy this article that looks at median and average net worth across various demographics (US and Canada). What I found most interesting is towards the bottom of the page; there are tables showing average, good, excellent, and “rich” net worth by age group. I often wonder how my husband and I stack up to our peers in terms of financial health, if you will, and this gave me a pretty good idea, especially once I adjusted the numbers for my location using the link to the Cost of Living index. (Side note: it was also interesting to find out that the cost of living here in Edmonton is about half the cost of living in New York. That’s not bad, although, honestly, it probably should be even lower. It snows in April here, people! Ah, don’t mind me, I’m just bitter.)