I’m saying ‘spring’ because it’s technically the case, but the weather here hasn’t yet made up its mind. Perhaps that explains, in part, why I’ve been rather disinterested in thinking about my spring closet edit. [The bigger reason is the fact that I’ve been obsessed with one thing, and one thing only, lately and that’s my book. Update coming soon.] I usually love the seasonal transitions each year (summer/fall and winter/spring) because it’s a chance to do a thorough review, clean-up, and switch-over of my closet and to be reunited with clothes that have been in storage for 4-6 months. It can feel like getting a brand-new wardrobe! But … it’s still too early for that now *sad face* Instead, I did a mini closet edit so I could free up some hanger space, because things were getting veeeeeery squeezy in there. The long and short of it is: I don’t need any new clothes.

Yeah, I know: duh! You’re not surprised, I’m not surprised. When you’ve been thrifting for 15 years, this was bound to happen. Over time, your closet gets to be full of incredible clothes that you adore and don’t want to part with. And because clothes are meant to be worn, rather than just stored, to buy new clothes means having to part with old ones. And that means that I’m now at a point where I can buy very, very little. Each purchase has to be an extremely delicate, strategic move — like, closet brain surgery or something. It sounds stressful, but I’m hoping it won’t be. In fact, I’m hoping it will be a fairly easy (and positive) shift. One, I’ve been training for this for a long time; if I were still a novice thrifter, the thrill of the hunt would make it much harder to be as picky and strategic as I need to be. [Been there, done that, learned the lessons.] Two, the thrift scene is getting more and more wobbly; quality finds are getting rarer, prices are all over the place and trending up. Two and a half, I have an unwritten goal this year of not purchasing any retail items (apart from undergarments, if required) and this mindset should help. Three, my creative focus has shifted almost entirely to writing, and will likely remain there for the rest of the year, so I will have less time and energy to think about or shop for clothes.

So why am I still writing a post about my spring wishlist? Manifestation, baby. There are a few things that I’ve been wanting for a while — and continue to want — and I’m hoping that by writing them down, AGAIN, I will persuade the thrift gods to finally bless me. Don’t scoff; it wouldn’t be the first time it happened. I mean, ok, fine, scoff; the law of attraction is bunk … BUT … being persistent in looking for things at the thrifts does eventually pay off and writing them down helps me remember to keep looking. Speaking of which …

Dr. Martens 14-eye mid-calf boots

This is a very sad story indeed, friends. I thought I’d bought a pair on Poshmark, except it turned out the seller was a jerk who thought it would be hilarious to string me along for two weeks, pretend to ship the boots but not actually do it, make up some half-assed story about the post office losing the parcel, then shrug and say “understandable” when I told them I was cancelling the purchase. Like, sir/madam: sincerely, from the bottom of my heart, I hope you step on a Lego every morning for a week.

Anyway, back to square one. I have a pair of lace-up boots that go just above the ankle, and I wear them constantly and adore them. I think having a slightly taller pair would be amazing, especially with my shorter skirts and dresses. I’m not hopeful of being able to find something like this at the thrifts, but I’m also a bit iffy on Poshmark now. Bit of a dilemma, but I’m trusting that something will turn up soon.

Brown cowboy boots

Yep, still looking for these. It’s been more than a year, I think. Last summer, I kept finding black and grey cowboy boots. Since then, I haven’t found many at all — nothing in good condition, my size, and/or the colour I want. Hopefully, more will hit the stores now that it’s spring, and even more going into summer which is Stampede season, so I can finally find my perfect pair. I’m willing to wait for it, all the more so since I did recently find a pair of 90s square-toed boots in a light brown/tan, and while they don’t have quite the same vibe, they’ll give me a sense of whether that’s indeed the best colour to look for when it comes to the cowboy boots as well.

Vintage tan jeans

I’m not sure if this is a very accurate/helpful description, this being a case of “I’ll know it when I find it”. Basically, I want a pair of heavy-duty tan chinos in a relaxed fit. When I say “tan”, I mean something between oatmeal (too light) and the colour of classic Burberry trenches (too yellow). When I say “heavy-duty chinos”, I mean a heavier cotton fabric, maybe but not necessarily denim. I’m pretty sure that Calvin Klein made pants that fit these parameters back in the 90s, so that’s what I’m looking for — though I am open to other brands, of course. I think a pair like this would be a good summer option, alongside my beloved vintage white Liz Clairborne pants (and my regular jeans, of course); they’d suit all of my various Ralph Lauren moods, and coordinate nicely with my wardrobe colours.

Ralph Lauren capsule

Speaking of which, I am back on the train of looking for special RL pieces to add to my collection. We are talking about stuff from the 80s and 90s that encapsulates the ethos of the brand: knitwear, patchwork, southwest-inspired pieces, tweeds, etc. Rare and hard to find at the thrifts, but not impossible — witness the dog sweater I recently found at Value Village for $8. I am also willing to allocate a bigger budget to this category, especially if I am buying fewer clothes overall. Remember those RL skirts I bought on eBay back in 2023? They were pricey (for me), but I have never once regretted the money I spent on them, because they are truly special pieces that bring me a great deal of joy whenever I wear them, and I know I will have them forever. So, my plan is to keep an eye out on eBay and Poshmark (and my local stores) for similarly special items and be prepared to splurge a little bit when a good deal pops up.

What’s on your spring wishlist / shopping strategy?

Details: Ralph Lauren sweater, Banana Republic dress, Pelle jacket, Canadienne boots, Coach bag (all secondhand)

Thoughts: Still can’t get over how lucky I was to find this sweater at the thrifts. It makes me so happy! Here, I wore it with a 90s velvet Banana Republic mini dress — a somewhat ‘out of the box’ mash-up that worked smashingly, imo. All the fun with brown!

Details: Babaton turtleneck, Jones NY jacket, Ricki’s skirt, vintage belt (all thrifted), Mia shoes (retail, old)

Thoughts: Speaking of brown, here is another head-to-toe look in a slightly more varied palette. I thrifted this vintage Jones NY jacket because I’m obsessed with tweedy jackets, and this one reminded me of the stuff that Siegfried on All Creatures Great and Small wears. [Siegfried is my current fictional boyfriend, and also kinda-maybe one of my style icons, lol.] The label says Jones New York Country, which must have been a short-lived attempt to copy Papa Ralph. I’ve never seen this sub-brand before, but you guys know that Jones NY is one of my go-to vintage brands. Probably because they were trying to copy RL. Anyway, I belted the jacket here, because it’s a styling ‘trick’ I’ve been wanting to try for a while.

Details: Gap turtleneck, French Connection sweater, Jones NY jacket, BR jeans, Fossil belt, Bata shoes, Coach bag (all thrifted)

Thoughts: Here’s the same jacket, different look. This sweater isn’t something I’d normally gravitate towards, but it spoke to me for some reason. Something about that combination of colours, together with the stripe action — it’s good stuff. The rest of the outfit is pretty basic … but, like, elevated basic. At least, that’s how I’d categorize it in my books.

Details: Tahari shirt, Denim & Supply jacket, Ralph Lauren skirt, Nocona belt, Zara shoes (all secondhand)

Thoughts: A little Ralph Lauren action, in case you were missing it. I always come back to this, no matter how much I experiment with other things, and it always makes me happy. I dug out this jacket from my archive closet while I was doing a bit of ‘editing’ (slowly starting to prep for my next clothing swap); I’d put it away a while back because it’s a bit too big for me, and I wasn’t wearing it often enough. I still love its colours and pattern, so I decided to try … you guessed … the belt-over-jacket thing again. Can confirm: still works.

Details: Harley Davidson tee, H&M cardigan, Babaton skirt, Dr. Martens shoes (all secondhand)

Thoughts: I loved this outfit so much, you guys. So much, I wore it twice. Yes, I wore the same, exact outfit more than once. That’s very rare for me; I’m a clothes-repeater and an outfit formula-repeater, but not an outfit-repeater as such. When it comes to clothes, I like mixing things up all the time. There are too many possibilities to try, and not enough time as it is — never mind if I just wore the same outfit over and over. But! Some things are too good. So I wore this outfit one evening to go and get my hair cut, and then I wore it again the next day because I felt it needed another, proper outing. Who knows, I may wear it again one of these days. It’s one of those “I want to look cool but not too dressed up and I don’t want to give it any thought at all” kind of outfits.

Details: H&M top (retail, old), Tattered Rose dress, vintage belts x 2, Thierry Raboutin shoes (all thrifted)

Thoughts: I thrifted this dress because it’s giving Edwardian/ whimsigoth vibes, and I’m feeling drawn to that lately. This outfit came about because I ended up trying it on (to see if it fit) over this exact top, which I was already wearing, and decided I liked the effect of the white sleeves and neckline. Next time, though, I think I’ll lean more into the punk side, and pair the dress with some combat boots and leather. Stay tuned.

Guys, I can’t believe we are talking about 2015 … in 2025. Already. How!? No, but, like: HOW?!? 2015 was 6 years ago, and I refuse to believe otherwise. Mind you, I look at my son now, who is just about ready to get his learner’s permit, and then time becomes more or less meaningless. Also, there have been a few times recently when one or another of my kids said “mom, do you remember that time when …” and I had to admit, sheepishly, that, no, I did not. Sigh. I’ve joked about how I’m currently in my Grumpy (Bearded) Old Dad Era when it comes to my fictional crushes (coincidentally while also being married to someone who more or less answers that description) but I am starting to think that I am turning into a grumpy (non-bearded, fingers crossed) old man myself. As my angsty 90s teenager is also alive and kicking and taking up a good chunk of headspace, I guess that makes me a walking, talking ‘odd pair’ buddy comedy. Fun!

ANYway.

2015: it was an okay year. I remember ages 35-37 being a difficult period for me, both at the personal and professional level, and 2015 was the start of that. At work, I began to ramp up and transition into a new, more demanding role — all the while hating private practice more and more. I won’t get into the details of that here, but suffice it to say that it simply wasn’t a good fit for me, and I tried to make it be a fit for much longer than I should have. But, lots of lessons learned and all that. Style-wise, 2015 was the start of my ‘settling’ into my own personal style. Or, to put it differently, the start of my developing a personal point of view. Don’t get too excited; it was a very slow start. Took years to get anywhere. But, looking back on it now, I can see the early stirrings of something recognizably “me”. 2015 was also the year when I began to pivot more towards thrifting, though I was still shopping retail a fair bit, and consignment remained my main secondhand shopping outlet. I don’t think that it’s a coincidence that my style became increasingly more experimental (which is not to say ‘avant-garde’ or anything) as my thrifting increased. Thrifting made it possible for me to experiment with fashion in a sustainable way, and in the process helped me to hone my eye. But that was later on; in 2015, I was still mostly taking my styling cues from J. Crew and Anthro.

Let’s take a look!

As always, I tried to pick 3 outfits that are representative of that era. Two were work outfits, and one (middle) was a casual look. I had to include the outfit on the left because the original post featuring it remains my most popular post of all time (in terms of site traffic and such). I think it even got re-posted on some bigger blog, and for half a nanosecond, I was almost internet famous, LOL! Anyway: those cigarette pants, wow. They were a look. I was OBSSESSED with them at the time. Now, they look so strange to me. Funny how the eye gets used to things — and unused to other things — over time.

Okay, let’s see how I’d wear these outfits now.

Again, I tried to find the closest version of the original in my recent photos folder, and I think this is actually a pretty good comparison. I recently thrifted these pants and they are a much slimmer cut than most of my other pairs — though, obviously, still a far cry from the cigarette pants of old. I like them a lot as an alternative to the wider leg pants I’ve been wearing in recent years. I’m not sure my personal pendulum is ready to swing all the way back to skinny pants, but there’s a tiny bit of pull happening, for sure. Definitely more so when it comes to pants than jeans; I do not miss skinny jeans, AT ALL. As for the rest of the outfit, a sweater is more my current speed than a cardigan — though I have added a few cardigans back into my wardrobe lately. They’re def a different style than the one from 2015, though; shorter/more cropped and chunkier.

The other thing to note is the pant rise and resulting proportions. I have a long torso and short legs, but I don’t think I knew that in 2015. Not that it would have made a lot of difference, because ‘high rise’ was not a thing back then. That’s one trend I am never, ever moving on from. Low rise pants are not kind to folks with long torsos, ok?

Full disclosure: I would probably still wear this 2015 outfit today. Like, it’s not something I’d intentionally put together now, but if I had to go back and re-wear something from that era, this would be an outfit that wouldn’t make me feel uncomfortable in my own skin, you know? But you can also see how the 2025 version is different. While I still love and wear the 2015 dress silhouette, I love a full, voluminous dress these days. Also: colours and layers. One thing I’ve done a full 360 degree turn on, however, is big bags. I used to wear them almost exclusively up until 2020, then switched to small crossbody bags, and now I’ve reintroduced some larger ones again.

This before/after was a little trickier. Since I’ve been rediscovering short skirts again recently, I thought about picking an outfit with a mini skirt to showcase against the 2015 version. However, I only wear mini skirts in casual outfits, and I thought it was important to try to match the vibe of original, which was a work outfit. So, I decided to put aside silhouette and go with something that would be a good example of a skirt outfit I’d wear to the office now. On the plus side, it’s still on theme with the green. I also thought it was neat to contrast these outfits because they are both pretty minimalist — no pattern mixing, bold colour combos, etc. — but in different ways. I do think the 2025 version is a lot more interesting, despite being simpler in some ways (no patterns at all). That’s all down to texture and colour layering, something 2015 Adina hadn’t yet figured out.