I CANNOT BELIEVE IT’S ALMOST SEPTEMBER ALREADY!!!

Yes, all caps and three exclamations marks are totally necessary. A year of maternity leave just went … poof! Like Keyser Soze, it is gone. But we’re here to talk about August, which was pretty cool. It’s my birthday month, after all. I will never be too old to get excited about birthdays – or, rather, birthday presents. Consider this your warning that this is going to be a longish post.

In addition to my birthday loot, I also (finally) got around to picking up some work gear. Including pants, blessed be the consignment gods. The numbers shake out thusly: 11 items for a total of $288 (original retail approx. $1,493), plus 7 gifts.

I really liked the black schoolboy blazer I picked up last month, so when I came across this version in a consignment store, I figured it was worth … asking my husband if it was too much orange for this ginger. For better or worse, he said no, so the blazer came home with me. A blazer is never remiss in my work wardrobe, and we’ll see if I’m up to the challenge of styling this one.

Finally, some work pants. Granted, they’re bright – and I mean bright – blue, but I love the cut of the Minnie, and these looked really nice in the magical mirrors at Red Pony, so … sold.

Lots of people love the Sloan cut, essentially BR’s version of the Minnie. I stumbled onto a black pair, in my size, at the consignment store, which is a minor miracle. (Good black pants are a consignment holy grail of mine. They’re just ridiculously hard to find, unless you like those extra bottom-flappy ones.) So I bought them, even though they are a titch baggy behind the knees – a complaint you’ve heard from me before. I might get them tailored if this ends up bugging me.

It’s been a good month for thrifting Anthro pieces (see also below). Go figure. I ain’t complaining.

Obligatory impulse buy. Surely you are not surprised. Florals, you know. But, also, I dig the colour scheme – all that mustard and olive green – and I think it’s going to look great with other pieces in my closet. Plus, I found it on the same day as the next item, and it seemed like these two were just meant to be together. In my closet.

See what I mean? I’ve been casually looking for a mustard yellow bag to eventually replace my rapidly-falling-apart 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target bag since the beginning of the year. Do you know how hard it is to find a nice looking, leather bag in mustard yellow? Like, super hard. This MbMJ is pretty basic, style-wise, but the colour is lovely. I eyed it a few times, first when the price tag said $149, later when it said $99, and later still when it said $75. I hesitated … and it paid off. I didn’t think it would ever hit the half-off, final sale rack, since most people pull their unsold designer stuff before it goes on clearance. Lucky me! (Googling the bag, I realized that the strap is actually detachable, and the bag can be used as an over-sized clutch, hence its name. Bonus.)

I couldn’t resist these Swedish Hasbeens lookalikes. Nicole looked too adorable wearing hers. When they rang up at a whopping $7, you bet yo’self I did a little happy dance.

This was me being proactive, and scooping up my next summer’s Jesus sandals on mega sale.

This was me caving in, and buying the only semi-decent pair of yellow sandals I have seen. All. Summer. Long. Apparently, mustard yellow shoes (like bags) are some kind of unicorn, so I had to settle for citron yellow. Also, the quality of this pair isn’t great (I hate the faux suede material, it’s a magnet for dirt, which abounds wherever toddlers dwell), but for the price, they’ll do until I find something better.

I kept running into this skirt on eBay time and time again (not surprising when you spend a lot of time searching for “Anthro” + “florals”), and never quite deciding if I liked it enough to buy it. When I stumbled upon it at a local thrift store, the decision was made. I’m just glad Value Village hasn’t figured out Anthro brands yet, otherwise this skirt would have set me back $20 or more. (That’s me, tsk-tsk-ing VV’s current pricing approach. Love ya, but come on, VV!) I have to add – this has quickly become my favourite skirt of the summer.

All the glorious details are here.

Presents time!

Yeah, I know. I KNOW. But, uh, listen: I was really sad about how my supposed-to-be-burgundy Mag bag turned out to be not-burgundy, and I had a lead on an actually-burgundy-scout’s-honour version, and my husband felt sorry for me/was all out of gift ideas, and … here I am. With two Mag bags. In my further defence, they are definitely not the same colour. And the Mag is, like, my favourite bag ever. I rest my case.

Moving on.

Tassel necklace quest complete. Thanks, mom & dad!

I also got a bunch of birthday money and, of course, I couldn’t wait to spend it. You are not surprised. I started with these:

I’m a big fan of my Factory Anyas, so I’ve been wanting to try the retail Ceces for a while. At this price (secondhand but new), I couldn’t resist – even if the colour is a little bit wild. Oh well, who doesn’t need a bit of neon pink in their closet? Perhaps not a 34-year old? Pshaw!

These earrings were just too cute (and hella inexpensive) to pass up. I love me some art deco-inspired joolz. I also got the matching necklace ($13), this Gap Factory maxi dress ($28), and this Free People tunic ($25). And I still have a little bit of birthday loot left! And gift cards! Hurray!

As always, I’m linking up with Fran and the other budgeting bloggers, so head on over here for more shopping recap fun. And then come back and tell me whether you were as profligate as me this month.

Another month, another shopping recap. Since the only things I still really, truly need are work pants (and those damn yellow sandals I’ve been hunting all year), by rights this should be a brief one. No pants, no sandals. The end.

Hah!

It’s the little things I can’t resist. A good deal here, a good deal there, and before you know it, I’ve bought all the things again. Or, errrm, 15 of them – for a total of $371 (original retail approx. $1,037). Not the scariest number you’ve seen from me, unless you consider I didn’t really need all of these things. But, dammit, they cute.

I’ve been eyeing this top for ages, and changed my mind about whether or not to buy it about … oh, a hundred times. When push came to shove it hit the clearance rack, I decided to buy it after all. And I don’t regret it; it’s the perfect summer top. So what if I already have eleventy million peasant tops? Pshaw, reason.

So, I mentioned that I wanted a less body-con maxi dress, and this ended up being it. I was reticent about paying full price for it, because in my world $30 is a lot to spend on a dress from Target. Not knocking Target quality or style – this is just a reflection of my consignment-based price set points. I can buy any number of high end designer pieces for that kind of money, so I always seem to have unreasonable expectations when I walk into a retail store these days, Nonetheless, I bought the dress because I wanted it for my road trip to Calgary, and I didn’t want (or have the time) to spend weeks looking for an alternative at my local consignment or thrift stores.

Total impulse buy. Floral print addiction strikes again.

I’ve had very little luck with thrifting since the Manolo Blahnik score, but this skirt was a nice exception. I’ve been eyeing various anchor-print pieces at J. Crew over the past year, but never pulled the trigger; the piece I liked the most was this skirt from an old, old collection – and this L.L. Bean version was a nice substitute.

I toyed with the idea of buying a second pair of shorts for a few weeks after successfully testing the shorts-wearing waters with my Joe Fresh pair from June. I tried a few pairs, but hated every single one. I was just about ready to give up on shorts – again – and then I found this pair. The 5 inch inseam, plus the side zip, plus the thick cotton twill … perfection. I wasn’t crazy about the seahorse print at first (I would have preferred a solid colour), but … eh, it’s growing on me.

… aaaaand then I found a solid colour pair (cognac, not blue as shown). On massive sale. Of course.

I was super thrilled to find this schoolboy blazer on the J. Crew clearance rack, because I’ve heard good things about it, and I can always use a black blazer at work.

If there is one thing I probably don’t need to buy for the next decade, it’s a button-down shirt. But this was too cute to pass up – the colour combo, and that collar did me in. Also, $10 plus tax.

I have been looking for an anchor belt like Fran’s ever since … I saw Fran wearing hers. No luck, but this hook version was a cute second best.

I was drawn to this print, but I wasn’t sure if it was worth buying at first because I rarely have occasions to use a clutch … until my husband pointed out it was the perfect size to serve as an iPad mini sleeve. Which we happened to need. A double duty piece? Bonus.

Speaking of palm leaf prints, how cute is this bikini? I don’t have a pressing need for one, but we’ve been toying with the idea of taking the kids to Mexico next winter for a family vacation, so this is me being proactive. I had to get it, not only because of the print, but because the bottoms have side ties – my preferred swimsuit style, though often difficult to find. While you do get a bit more exposure than with a boy short, for example, the ties are more hip-forgiving and you run less risk of things, um, bulging over or about. The bikini top is also pretty cute, plus it offers decent support.

I have been looking for a ring like this for simply ages. I adore its minimalist, architectural look. I recently saw a similar one pop up on Baublebar but, while the ring itself was inexpensive, shipping and customs fees made it a pricey proposition. I was still mulling my options when I randomly came across this version at a Winners in Calgary. And it was the right size – a minor miracle considering Winners stores usually carry one-offs and they’re generally 2 sizes too big for my fingers. With that kind of shopping kismet at play, I had to buy it, even though it was definitely on the splurgey side.

Bargain price goggles strike again. I just couldn’t resist getting a $400 dress – new with original tags on – for $35. The colour is so-so on me, but it’s a nice dress to have for more formal events, like my daughter’s christening. Also, my friend totally talked me into buying it. Not my fault, you guys!

Speaking of long sought-after things, a plaid skirt has been on my buy list since last year. I was initially eyeing one of those 70s pleated affairs, but when I saw this 80s number, I thought “eh, why not”. It’s probably for the better – less mumsy this way.

Confession time: I almost never buy things at boutiques (other than consignment stores). I know I should support local small businesses more, but my budget is all, like, “nope”. So it was a rare occasion that I stepped foot into Avenue Clothing on Whyte Ave., and a nice coincidence that I did so while they were having a big sale. This incredibly loud print just spoke (yelled) at me from the clearance rack, and wouldn’t you know it – the last size turned out to fit me. Perfectly. Fifty bucks (plus tax) is a little bit more than I’d normally spend on a cotton dress, but this one was so pretty and office-appropriate, and I just happened to have exactly that amount in my purse after selling a bunch of things, and … well, you know how this story ends.

(Side note: I do feel guilty about continuing to feed the fast fashion industry, instead of shopping exclusively locally or US-made – even though I can’t even hide behind the excuse of ignorance of the consequences – but it’s proving to be a hard habit to break. I try to compensate by shopping secondhand as much as possible. I know it’s a distant second best, and I’m conflicted about it. And about my evident apathy to do more. Being a responsible consumer is hard, y’all. Sorry to derail the convo – I really should devote a separate post to this one of these days.)

OK, clearly, this month I bought pretty much everything. Was there anything I liked but didn’t get? Yes. Believe it or not, yes.

I love Liberty prints, and I really want to own one of their pieces, but this wasn’t it. The dress was at least a size too big, and I wasn’t crazy enough about the print to deal with significant alterations. I got my mom to try it on as well, but she wasn’t a fan of the neckline on her.

You know how much I heart Rachel Roy dresses, so I was kinda bummed out this one didn’t work. It just didn’t look quite right on me.* Bonus points, though, for including that little extra material in the cleavage area – I wish more designers would do that for these plunging-neckline type dresses. For anyone interested in possibly stalking this dress on eBay, I am wearing an XL here (same with my sari dress), so definitely size up.

{*Note: I talked my friend into buying this dress, and she looks fantastic in it. Just call me the clothes matchmaker.}

Cute tee, but I was only “meh” about it. This is what a depressed floral print looks like. No, thanks. I am wearing an XS, by the way, because LOL J. Crew sizing.

Weird cut. I liked the colours.

So. Much. Restraint. Passing up a gorgeous, leather bag for $35? Yeah, that never happens when your name is Adina. Except this one time.

This is what sadness looks like. These adorable, sparkly sandals were juuuuust ever so slightly too small. Like, I asked my mom – twice – if I could maybe, possibly get away with wearing them without looking like I stole a kid’s shoes. She said no. Both times. These were only $15 on the clearance rack of my fave consignment store, and brand new, and … waaaaaaah!

More half-size-too-small shoes. Honestly, I can imagine how Cinderella’s ugly stepsister felt. Screw Prince Charming. I wanted both of these so, so badly.

That’s a wrap, you guys. I’m linking up again with Fran and the other budgeting bloggers, so feel free to click over for more shopping voyeurism. And then tell me what you’ve spent your dollars on this month.