Salvo Wednesday: Hit-or-Miss Greece

I never have the same experience twice when I go to the Salvo in Greece. Sometimes I find nothing. Sometimes I buy a new wardrobe. I've arrived only to discover the entire area has a power outage, and once a fire started midway through my shopping and they evacuated us. You really never know. This was my first average experience. I didn't hit the jackpot, but I found several nice things. And no fire alarms went off or anything.

Banana Republic, $3

I limited myself to one dress this week, but what a dress. Banana Republic. 100% silk. POCKETS. $3. It really doesn't get better than this! 

Ambiance Apparel, $1.50

I have only ever purchased Ambiance Apparel clothing at a Salvation Army, and I have loved every single one. The material is always soft, the fit is always flowy without being baggy... I just love them. I can't even figure out what store sells these...I can only find them on Amazon. I guess I'll just have to keep getting them here!

Express, $2

My favorite colors, a nice drape-y fit, and little buttoned roll-up sleeves. Love it!

Soft Surroundings, $2

I'd never heard of this brand before, either, but upon a quick Google search, it would seem that this went for around $70 originally. For a shirt! Maybe I spend too much time at the Salvo, but that seems crazy to me. Anyway, it is as soft as the name suggests, and I bought it with the thought in mind that this will pair really well with my fleece-lined jeggings when the time comes. *shudder* 

Forever 21, $2

Something I can wear in cooler temperatures that isn't black, gray, or white. Progress.

Faded Glory, $2

There's something wrong with the Salvation Army's pricing system when a Faded Glory shirt is the same price as one that was originally $70. Not complaining, really, because I think the "wrong" part worked in my favor. Anyway, I always need cardigans to go with my summer dresses and this will go with roughly a jillion of them.

White House Black Market, $2.50

Another shirt that originally cost closer to $100 than $50... 100% silk, 100% fabulous.

American Eagle Outfitters, $2

A comfy knit top, cute from the front...

...and even cuter in the back. 

A good experience at Greece! Which almost certainly means that next time I'll get nothing. Or maybe it will get struck by lightning? I'll let you know when I go again!

Salvo Wednesday: The Triumphant Return

It's been some time since I last posted, and we have a situation. There's good news, and there's bad news. On the plus side, despite the fact that I haven't been blogging about it, I have been thrifting and buying dresses. Lots of dresses. An abundance of dresses. A plethora of dresses. This is good news for me and for the friends who have benefited from the Ann-me-downs that were required to make way for the new dresses. I cleaned out about 20 dresses, easy. 

The bad news is that it wasn't enough. I tried counting during my closet switch-over, and I lost count somewhere around 120. After disposing of the aforementioned 20 dresses. And you're about to see the damage I did today. There's nowhere left for them to go. So I'm going to have to either get rid of a lot more dresses, stop buying dresses (ha!), or figure out a way to create new closet space. It's not looking good for any of those options.

Old Navy, $5.50

I have to say that I feel like $5 is kind of expensive for an Old Navy dress. It's half off, so originally the Salvation Army wanted $10.99 for this. Which seems barely less than it would have cost in the store. There were random instances of this today - a couple of $24.99 and $17.99 prices for dresses that were not high end. I hope this isn't the beginning of a trend. Regardless, I am in the market for maxi dresses, both because they're lovely and comfy and because my puppy thinks my lap is a pretty great place to spend the summer.

Ambiance Apparel, $5

One of my friends has a dress almost exactly like this and I love it. I'm so excited to have my own!

Banana Republic, $7.50

Another steep price - at least this one was slightly more expensive to begin with than an Old Navy dress. Let's be real.... it's Banana and it's houndstooth. I couldn't possibly pass it up!

Merona, $4.50

Not as long as a maxi dress, but still back-yard approved (meaning it won't be obvious if there's doggy paw prints and she can't disrobe me when she jumps on/off of me).

Mossimo, $5

I can't believe I keep buying stripes. But maxi dresses! Can't. Resist. Maxis.

Take Out, $3

This is a sweater dress, and has adorable little buttons on the shoulders that you can't really see. I have to have something to cheer me up when it's time to wear this with fleece-lined tights and boots.

Stefanel, $2.50

The material of this one is so light and soft. Looking at the Stefanel website, I can tell I bought quality here!

Express, $3

Cute, and should hopefully keep me from only wearing neutrals all school year.

Forever 21, $2.50

Sometimes you just need a plain white shirt.

Peanuts, $1.50

And sometimes, you need a shirt that proclaims your love for your dog. Because who wouldn't love these faces:

If it ever warms up around here, it's going to be a great summer with these three cuties! I can't promise my closet will survive, though.

Cuzbud Salvo Wednesday!

On my first Wednesday home from my European adventure, my cousin Kristin decided to join me. Salvoing with a friend is always more fun than Salvoing alone (assuming that you don't want the same clothes) and anything with Kristin is always a thousand times more fun.

We headed out to my old faithful, Henrietta, since I hadn't been there in almost a month. And I was rewarded!

Apt 9, $5.50

I loved the fun pattern and the overall shape of this one! And it's a really comfortable material, so it will be perfect for those work days where I want to look nice but feel like I'm wearing jammies. Those are my favorite dresses.

Mossimo, $8.50

 Why? WHY was this Mossimo dress originally $16.99?! Do they not know what Mossimo is? Do they think it's couture or something? You could get it for that in the store!! ....and yet, I still bought it. Couldn't help it.

Axcess by Liz Claiborne (pants), $3.50

I need work clothes.  I know this. It doesn't make me like it. It means summer is almost over. But at least these are really nice work clothes.

Banana Republic, $3

These are actually a size too big, but they had tightening things on them, and they're Banana, and they were $3. And everybody needs fat day pants, right?

Simply Vera, $3.50

These are my skinniest skinny jeans to date. They make me think of the episode of Cougar Town where Jules (Courtney Cox) explains that good jeans are standing jeans... because you literally can't sit down in them. These are maybe not that tight... but that's the point, right?

Ann Taylor Loft, $3

These are the most comfortable jeans I have maybe ever owned, EVER. They are my new favorites and are making me suspect that I love Ann Taylor Loft jeans, as my previous favorite pair were the same brand.

Old Navy, $2

 Stripes. How long will I last with this set of stripes?

Arden B, $2

Kind of see-through. Cute. Perfect for orange-and-black day at school!

Between You & Me, $3

I can't get over how much I love the drape of this one. It's almost enough to make me ready for fall. Almost. But, dear summer, it's not fall. So STOP ACTING LIKE IT ALREADY.

Kristin got a few things too, that I completely forgot to take pictures of. But we got something more exciting this weekend... a new cousin/sister!

Cousins! <3

Thrifting and Dress Hunting in Spain!

We just got back from two delicious, beautiful, delightful weeks in Spain. My husband's younger brother lives there and married the most wonderful Spanish woman, now my wonderful new sister.

While we were in Spain, we ate octopus and squid in its ink...

...climbed a mountain...

...visited a beautifully amazing (ahem) clothing optional beach...

...visited neighboring cities...

...located Dunkin knockoffs...

Duffin Dagel!

...made a trip to Porto, Portugal...

Vinho Verde!!!

Port wine is gross.

...made new friends...

...and, of course, I bought dresses. The first two were from a day of shopping in Oviedo with my new sister.

The second one is actually hand-sewn and hand-beaded, and was on sale for less than 20 euros!

Then I bought another in the street market in Oviedo:

As we were leaving Spain, we took a bus to Madrid and flew out from there. Madrid is a beautiful and very hot city.

90+ degrees, 15% humidity. Hot, and more importantly, home to a thrift store called Humana.

That's right, folks, I got to go thrift storing in Spain! My poor husband nearly burnt his knees taking this picture. Totally worth it.

As I was about to check out with two dresses marked 10 euros each, the cashier pointed to a sign and said "buy 3 clothings, 15 euros!" So obviously, I went back and got a third!

I need no better souvenir! If the cheap and delicious wine wasn't enough, this makes Spain a win. I imagine we'll be back. And maybe we'll visit our family while we're there. :)