What I Wore: Shopping

I was having one of those No Good, Very Bad Days when I wore this, and at least my outfit turned out better than expected. I get zero credit, because I cheated. Well, sort of. See, I keep a running list of tentative outfits on my handy dandy iPad, and whenever I have a flare-up of holy-crap-I-have-nothing-to-wear-itis – bam, crisis resolved. The downside is that some outfits end up looking less flattering than anticipated, and I usually don’t have the time to change. Just between you and me (and the world wide web, of course), that explains 67% of the outfits on this blog. The other 33% … I don’t really have an explanation.

Back to this outfit. I disguised my un-ironed shirt (sorry, so tired, so sloppy) by tucking it in, and throwing a blazer on top. Did it work? Or are you still tsk-tsk-ing over there? A cute bag always serves to distract, when all else fails. On this we agree, yes?

By now, you guys are probably getting mighty tired of hearing about my magical $8 thrifted Jimmy Choo pumps. Seriously, though, does it get better than Jimmy Choos that are 99% free? The answer, surprisingly, is … yes.

I was back at the scene of my earlier crime, so to speak, a couple of weeks ago. I’d been struck by a sudden desire to read Game of Thrones, and I figured buying a second-hand paperback was the way to go, in case the book proved disappointing. (I should not have feared; even without Kit Harington visuals, GoT is addictively good. The computer is telling me that “addictively” is not a real word, but the computer has never read GoT, so it can just shut it.) After I found the book, I – naturally – had to take a quick look-see at the racks. Lately, Value Village has been disappointing me. I did find a nice Boss silk skirt last month (and another Royal Albert tea cup for my collection), but otherwise nada. And the prices are getting ridiculous. Everything that is remotely decent seems to be at least $15 or more. Pffft!

But then! (dun, dun, dun …)

(Don’t worry, no one is about to randomly get his or her head cut off.)

After my Choo adventure, I always check the shoe section. Always. Yeah, they say lightning never strikes twice, but you never know, right? I was kind of half-assing it (because I haven’t found anything of note in a year and a half now) when I spied a pair of pointy-toed pumps. Pulled them off the shelf. Did a triple take.

Manolo Blahnik.

I stared at my mom, who stared back placidly. She asked me if I was alright. I told her that I had found one of my shopping holy grails. I think she said something along the lines of “That’s nice, dear” but by then I was furiously Googling on my phone, trying to find out how one can spot fake Manolos.

(Let me pause here for a second. Running into counterfeit designer goods is a pitfall of shopping second-hand. Everything, and I do mean everything, can be and has been faked. Always do your homework, especially if the deal is too good to be true.)

Happily, incredibly, these looked legit. And pretty near pristine, save for a few black scuffs. My mom was skeptical that the scuffs would come out, but I was not deterred. Did I mention that these were white pumps? White patent leather pumps?

I took them home, and got down to business. I tried toothpaste, Windex, rubbing alcohol, and acetone-free nail polish remover. I scrubbed tentatively, then firmly, then even more firmly. The leather, thankfully, was not the worse for wear. The scuffs … they were a little worse for wear. Or, rather, better. Less noticeable, but not entirely gone.

I can live with this. I’m still planning to take them to a cobbler to see if anything else can be done, but I’m not holding my breath. I think they look fine, and the remaining scuffs should be pretty unnoticeable. Unless I shove my foot right under someone’s nose, which … is not happening. I think.

All in all, not bad for a $14 pair of shoes. Yep, fourteen whole dollars.

(A few words on cleaning scuffs. Always test your cleaning solution of choice on a small patch of leather that’s not super noticeable; the back of the shoe, near the heel, is a good bet. If the leather is fine, you can then go to town on the rest of the shoe. Personally, I found the best results happened with the acetone-free polish remover, but people also swear by rubbing alcohol and hand sanitizer. Basically, anything with alcohol in it. For sanitizing second-hand leather shoes, here is my routine: pour a bit of Lysol all purpose cleaner on a cotton ball, and wipe the entire inside of the shoe, tip to heel. Do the same on the other shoe, and leave to dry. Repeat. Then do the same with rubbing alcohol, and repeat. In my experience, neither the Lysol nor the alcohol should damage the inside of the shoes if they are leather or even man-made materials. Haven’t tried it on fabric, though, other than labels found on the soles of shoes like the Manolos.).

Hey, look! It’s Friday again. How did that happen? Or when? I seem to have lost track of days sometime around Wednesday, which might mean I had a lot of fun things in my calendar, but doesn’t. All the more reason to ogle some pretty things, yes?

Diane Von Furstenberg Ikat Wrap Dress

You can see this dress on Jean, here, to understand why I really, really love it. I don’t really need another wrap dress, but I would happily make room for this one in my closet. The mixed prints might be too much for most people (and, possibly, my work dress code) but I think it’s to die for. Alright, that may be a slight exaggeration; I’m not about to blow my meagre current budget on it, but if perchance you consider it … well, don’t tell me. I want us to still be friends.

Marc Jacobs Blake Bag

One thing I would most definitely blow my budget on (this month, next month, and every month) is this MJ bag. I know Adrien has been a fan for ages, but I’ve been obsessed with my MbMJ Totally Turnlock bags recently, and paid this beauty no mind. Until … I saw the way it’s all laid out inside. Check it:

It has two zippered compartments, plus an inner one with a magnetic closure. That’s very similar to my Kate Spade Gold Coast Elizabeth bag, which is my favourite bag when it comes to keeping my ish organized. It’s just good bag feng shui, OK? This means, of course, that I absolutely need a Blake in my life. I’m a woman on an eBay mission, hear me … click away.

J. Crew Factory floral shirt

I liked the green “punk floral” print that the retail J. Crew store put out last year, but I couldn’t justify the price to actually buy a piece. Luckily, the Factory store has come out with its own version this year. While I like the Clare cardigan in the (close to?) original print, I really love the blue version of this shirt. I’m keeping an eye on it, and waiting for a good sale.

RACHEL Rachel Roy floral maxi dress

Speaking of … this wouldn’t be a Weekend Shortlist if there weren’t at least two floral items featured. So. This dress. I randomly found it on eBay while looking for something else, and came thiiiiiis close to buying it. It was a tad too expensive for my taste, though, so I exercised supreme willpower and passed on it. But I still, kinda, maybe want it. It would replace a plain black, thrifted maxi dress I wore last summer (heavily pregnant). Does that sound like a reasonable plan? I’m all for plain basics (like a LMBD) in principle, but I always seem to gravitate towards the Liberace end of the spectrum in reality.

Old Navy blue top

I’m really digging this pale blue colour, and I think it would be a fab addition to my summer closet. (It looks really crappy in the stock photo, so I’m not including it – trust me, it looks waaay better in real life). I’m also digging the blouse-like features, the fact that it’s sleeveless, and the 100% rayon fabric. Not digging the retail price ($25). It’s not a lot, but, frankly, Old Navy quality is also not exactly high. But this top is definitely on my shopping list … if I can find it for under $15.

There is also this Joe Fresh top, which is a deeper blue colour but also lovely. (Again, the stock photos don’t do it justice). I’m not really sold on the butterfly cap sleeves – they favour the well-toned arms, which mine most certainly are not – or the fact that it’s 100% polyester (not even rayon, Joe Fresh?!). And it also costs $24. Boo.

Have a great weekend!