Anniversary Salvo

This Wednesday was my 8th anniversary, so you know what that means... while my husband was working, I got myself to the Salvo. I actually got a day's head start because I was in Newark on Tuesday again. My last visit had taught me to hope, so I went again, and was not disappointed.

Ann Taylor, $6

The best part here is how stretchy and soft this material is. It will be very comfortable when I am, say, sitting at a piano all day again in the very near future.

Xhilaration, $4

The best part of this one, which is hard to see in the picture, is the lime green piping around the waist. I'm gonna need some lime jewelry!

On my actual anniversary, my parents were in Rochester in the morning so my mom joined me at the Henrietta Salvo while my dad read his Kindle (his Christmas present) in the car. 

Emmelee, $5.50

 I love the neckline!

Urban Behavior, $4.50

Yup. Grecian princess, here.

Francesca's Collections, $2.50

Through my Googling of unfamiliar brand names, I found that Francesca's is a boutique that also sells Emmelee (the brand two dresses above). I think I like this boutique. I also discovered that one has opened in Eastview... might need to pay it a visit. You know, when I go to the mall again at Christmas with my choir.

$5, Criss Cross

This dress had a broken strap when I found it, but given the color combination and the pockets, I could hardly leave it behind. It took me about 2 minutes to fix. This is the second time in 2 weeks that this has happened, and I have to say, it surprises me. Because I have been known to give something away that I just don't want to dry clean, or try to take a tiny stain out of, or fix a rip that seems bothersome.  So if it's something that even I will take the trouble to fix, why did this person give it away?!? Too bad for them. Yay for me!

$4.50, Jessica Howard

This dress makes me feel like Jess from New Girl. That's what that expression is about.

$2.50, Xhiliaration

 This shirt's sleeves are broken. This may be why I like it so much. A similar shirt made an appearance in My Boys, one of my favorite summertime shows (that was cancelled a few summers ago, sniff). Plus, loose and flowy. Loving it.

$3, Banana Republic

 I don't think I ever have to say more than "Banana Republic".

$1, Banana Republic

 Like I was saying.

A&F, $3.50

I made myself buy a sweater. At least it's soft and a nice blue. But it only happens as summer is winding down that I make myself do this. Boo.

As a little bonus, my mom found this and gave it to me.

Now, this isn't exactly my usual style, but it's Man U. If my husband has anything to say about it, I'll be wearing this every day for the rest of my life.

Don't worry, I didn't just Salvo on our anniversary. My husband and I went out to The Revelry for some outstanding French Cajun food, and some equally outstanding cocktails. I give you:

and

but most importantly,

Eight years. Yup, I still like him.

Salvo Wednesday - Canandaigua Delight!

It's been a few weeks since I've made it to a Salvo Wednesday. First, I was on vacation and decided to just wait until the weekend when I would be in Burlington, VT. Google Maps assured me there was a Salvo a few miles from our hotel, so I pinned all my hopes on that. You'd think I'd learn by now not to get my hopes up like that, but no. What I found was a Salvo in a house - a tiny house, at that - with scary selections and a screaming child in a stroller with a mom who ran the stroller over my foot.

So that was a loss. Last week we were traveling, so that was a loss as well. This week, I wasn't sure where I was going to go. Nothing has really gone well, so my desire to travel to find nothing good was at an all-time low. 

Meanwhile, my husband had foot surgery on Monday. Nothing major, and hallelujah, it was benign, but he hasn't been able to drive. And he was going out of his mind with boredom, so I offered to drive him to work on Wednesday and he agreed. So I found myself in Canandaigua on a Wednesday. I haven't found much there in the last few years, so my hopes weren't high. This, it would seem, is the key to success.

Tea n Rose, $2

If you can't tell, that's a coral and blue print on my favorite knit fabric. I can't WAIT to wear this one.

Mossimo, $2

Comfy new casual concert dress! Perfect for day concerts/Cabaret night/etc. These are worth their weight in gold to a choir teacher!

Mine, $1.50

I've never heard of the label Mine, but this is a lovely peachy-orange color and soft and breathable. It will make the (extremely rare) warm weather teaching days very comfortable!

Ambiance Apparel, $1.50

 Soft and almost fleece-like, but much thinner. I can't get over how much I love loose, drape-y styles.

Poetry, $1

 Seriously. Can't get enough of drapey styles. This one is a much prettier color than it looks against the bright green wall... kind of moss green. And again, soft.

Banana Republic, $1

Banana. One dollar. Banana. ONE. DOLLAR. Yes.

Freestyle, $2

Now, this one was tricky. I have been desperate to find more maxi dresses/skirts this summer with exactly this fabric (that knitted, breathable fabric I so adore), but to no avail. Even full price, all you can find are waterfall-style skirts (I have one and that's all I need, ever). I love maxi dresses/skirts - they cover your legs if it's cool out, but are loose and cool if the sun peeks out from behind the clouds and it suddenly warms up. They're the best of both worlds. So obviously, when I saw this one, I jumped on it. I realized that the back was messed up, but for $2, I figured I could fix it. And I did...sort of. It was much worse than I'd realized. The straps were some kind of braided weaved situation, and they had ripped and started to come unraveled. So I rebraided them and just tied and knotted everything. There's dangly bits, but the top stays up, and it looks like THAT. God bless maxi dresses.

It turned out to be my best trip of the summer so far, at a store I had almost written off as a lost cause again. I guess it's always worth the trip! I was so happy with the entire haul (and can I point out that nothing cost more than $2? Way to go with the low prices, Canandaigua Salvo!). And then I spent the rest of the time my husband was working curled up on a couch on the outdoor patio at the Canandaigua Wegmans, working on my theory course. It was a very good day.

The good news is that I finished writing my course today, and I will finish up with a final video shoot on Tuesday... so by Wednesday, it will be all Salvo, no other interruptions. 

Better Late Than Never Salvo Wednesday

So, this isn't a normal summer for me. Yes, I'm on break from school and all that it entails... but I'm doing some work for my second job (out of three). I am authoring an AP Music Theory course that will be offered online throughout New York State. Now, for those of you who haven't tried figuring out how to teach music theory online, let me fill you in. It's ridiculous. Incredibly fun, if you're both a music and a tech dork like myself, but....yikes. Time consuming and baffling at times. I'm spending the better part of most of my summer days like this:

...instead of my preferred method, which goes a little more like this:

No, that's still not it. Let's try THIS: 

Ah. Yup, there it is.

Anyway, all that to say this: I am very delinquent in my Salvo Wednesday post. And it's not going to get any better, at least not until I finish the course. So, without further ado, here is what I found a week and a half ago at the city Salvo!

NY&Co, $3.50

So what happened here was that I tried it on and I wasn't sure about it, so I took a picture to send to a friend for her opinion. And then I looked at the picture, and the second opinion was no longer necessary. In fact, when I'm feeling gross and huge this summer when I put on a few pounds as I inevitably do while marathon training (crazy, right? Makes no sense at all!), I'm going to look at this picture and feel immediately better.

Wet Seal, $2.50

Adodrable, but needs a slip underneath. Which I have, but needs hemming. I swear I'm going to get around to wearing it someday!

Bebop, $3.50

I seem to have a weakness for the dresses with tank tops, thick elastic waistbands, and fun skirts. This one has a big, pronounced zipper up the back, which I usually don't like, but really works on this dress.

Express, $3.50

I feel obligated to point out here that a) the skirt looks like jean, but isn't. It's something softer and lovely and b) this had its original tags on it. The original $79 tags. Thassright.

Skirt - Picnic by CPW, $2.50

 The top is not one of the finds from this week, but rather a Goodwill purchase from a while back. But I thought it looked rather perfect with the full skirt. I saw it and realized that somehow, a full black skirt was missing from my wardrobe. No more!

I'd also like to point out that this is my sixth black skirt. SIXTH. And only one of them does not reach my knees. So, if any current students or parents of current students are reading this, be ye warned: I will lose it the next time a kid shows up to a concert in a mini skirt and tries to tell me "but they don't MAKE skirts that long!" I. Will. Lose. It.  You've been warned.

Anyway, I did get to the Salvo this week too, and I'll get around to it, I swear. Just not today. Don't know when, really. That AP course isn't gonna write itself!

Double Salvo

Last week (yes, I'm over a week behind here... I'm afraid it's going to be like that all summer) I was in Newark on Tuesday instead of Wednesday. I had pretty much sworn off that Salvation Army since I'd gone a few times in the last 2 years and not bought one thing. In fact, every May when my kids perform at the Elenbes Awards Show in Newark, I routinely pay the store there a visit... except this year, I didn't even bother. Skipped it in favor of a run and dinner.

Well, last Tuesday, I found myself done with my commitment far earlier than I expected, so I decided I might as well give the store another shot. And was glad I did! Even though nothing I bought was half off.

J Crew, $4

Express, $5

That's right, a cute summer dress from J Crew AND a sparkly new concert dress! Well worth the visit. I guess the Newark store is back in my rotation!

On Wednesday I had a ridiculous number of plans aside from my Salvo trip, so I just ran to the one that's only a few miles away. I found some workout clothes that I won't bore you with, and I found THESE.

Glory, glory hallelujah. I've been looking for white heels for years. Literally years. I found wedges a few summers back but never heels. And lo, here they are! As for the other pair... well, I don't have to tell you. You can see the epicness for yourself.

And that's it. I promise to try not to wait another week to post this week's finds! 

The Good, The Bad, and the YIKES

I made my first Salvo trip of the summer last Wednesday. Henrietta and Greece were the lucky winners of my presence. I spent several hours and bought 3 things, one of which is a slip which you shall not be seeing. Not an auspicious beginning, but at least they were a good three things.

Merona skirt, $2

I'm really into flowy skirts this summer. They're loose and cool when it's hot, and long enough to cover you up if (and when, this summer) a storm suddenly moves in and the temperature drops 10-20 degrees. Which can stop any time now, incidentally.

Maurice, $4.50

Cute stripes, nice bell shaped skirt. And, aside from the slip, that was it for me. Sigh.

While I was shopping, a thought occurred to me that I find myself thinking an awful lot while I'm in the Salvos, browsing through rack after rack in hopes of finding one or two hidden treasures. The thought is this: "HOW are there so many horrifying articles of clothing in the world? HOW?" Because, for every amazing outfit I bring home, there's hundreds of outfits I don't bring home. And I look at all of it and think how not only someone bought that new in a store once upon a time, but someone designed it, produced it, marketed, and charged someone for it. It's enough to make the mind reel. Things like this:

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Oh yes. Those are pants. For all your vertically striped pant needs.

I love crocheting, and have been known to granny square myself upon occasion... but never in a vest. NEVER.

Let's just take a moment to consider why they sell bathing suits second hand at all. This, friends, is one thing I ALWAYS buy new.

Long jean skirt, plaid pockets. I really don't know why I didn't buy it.

Someone's recycling their 80's prom dress...

...in 2 different colors, it would seem.

In case you can't tell, that's a very, very shiny metallic fabric. One step closer to being Michael Jackson.

Because you sometimes need to pretend to have a kitten in a pretend pocket.\

And also, crawling down your back.

Sometimes people need to know where you'd rather be...

...your age and the state of your mental faculties...

...your preferred method of transportation...

...and of course, they really need to know not to hate you.

Also, these are boots.

And these were just samples. Honestly, the mind reels. It does make you thankful for the days when you leave with a bag full of amazingness. Those days are bound to happen soon... right? Fingers crossed!