Thrift My Style Hand Knit Aran Cardigans for Seasonal Styling and Thrift Tips

Getting ready for Autumn and Winter styling!

Hi everyone! Although it's high season Summer at the moment, whenever I go to the charity shops or boot sales I'm always keeping my eyes open for alternative season pieces.

Which leads me nicely to My First Thrift Tip - Shop items that are not for the current season This really applies if they are available to buy in a charity shop or at the boot sale of course! Keep an open mind in the heart of Summer to check out coats, winter jackets and knitwear as it's a great cost effective way of adding to your wardrobe and likewise so is seeking out and buying summer dresses and swimwear in Winter too!

So to my chunky knits! My first hand knit cardigan was a gifted purchase a couple of years ago which was from the clothes market at Columbia Road Flower Market. 

I featured it on my Instagram feed in 2018 and what I really like about it is the longer length and how I can wear it as a 'coatigan' and as you can see I styled it over a denim jacket and skirt- this kind of styling for me is perfect for Autumn and transitional styling:

What drew me to it was the gorgeous olive colour and chunky style, it definitely is a 'keeper' piece in my wardrobe as it is versatile and stylish and who doesn't like a hand knit cardigan in the wardrobe!

I went to the Saturday boot sale yesterday in Chigwell again and there was a massive stall selling all kinds of different clothes which had a small selection of hand knit aran sweaters and cardigans. 

I've been looking for the traditional cream colour for a while now and have always seemed to come across sweaters rather than cardigans in my size.

Anyhow I found this one which also seems as new and unworn and on the same stall I found a vintage football shirt for the boys. 

So armed with my booty I asked how much for both. The reply was a tenner, which of course is pretty good to be fair, but I decided to put my haggling skills to good use and we negotiated and settled at £7!!

It's a real bargain buy and it's a great feeling to find something which you've actually been after for ages too!

This particular cardigan is a shorter length to the olive green one that I have and has laundered up so well- it hasn't shrunk and because of the summer heat has dried naturally very quickly!

So to reiterate on my Second Thrift Tip - Do haggle at boot sales! I tend to if I've got more than one item and I make sure I don't take liberties as I know this can also be someone else's important source of income. Sometimes I don't even haggle, if I really like an item I'll snap it up at the price given!

But it never hurts to ask and I'll always accept a no with grace and a smile, particularly if I want the said item!

Third Thrift Tip - The Early Bird catches the Good Items! I was at the boot sale before 7am yesterday and it's good to be able to browse whilst sellers have just set up their stall and you know you are one of the first to view their wares!

Fourth Thrift Tip - Buy Quality whatever the price!  So the cardigan stood me in at £3.50 which I was very pleased about- I wouldn't be able to get a cardigan on the High Street for this price plus I'm all for items that promote slow sustainable fashion, that are also preloved and also will have a long term future in my wardrobe!

I remember buying a couple of jumpers in the Primark sale a couple of years ago for £5 each and they didn't hold up well at all, so that was £10 wasted as they didn't last a full winter season.

Fifth Thrift Tip-  Get Charity Shopping now! The charity shops are all beginning to reopen now after lockdown and with donations being received thick and fast in their shops and a limited amount of people being allowed in for social distance reasons, now really is the perfect time to be checking out a new thift bargain- whether it's for this season or for Autumn and Winter! 

HAPPY THRIFT SHOPPING! 

Boot Sale Buyer and Seller Tips- The ThriftMyStyle Way!

Hi everyone!!  I hope you are all enjoying the week so far- for us mums it's Easter school holidays and my youngest is enjoying a well deserved break, where as I'm working on and off over these two weeks!

I thought I would revisit a post from last year as it's not long now for the boot sale season to be fully up and running and I for one can't wait!! These pictures are from a popular Saturday boot sale not far from where I live and is held at Chigwell Rise in Essex. As our shed is again fit to burst this Spring I don't think it will be long before we're having our next sale to clear out more accumulated clutter!

About this time last year hubby decided to do one with a selection of vintage items, antiques and general household items that we no longer wanted and I decided to go along to be an early bird to catch some goodies. This was the view from our window queuing to get in at 5 am on Saturday morning, so cold yet so lovely to see the mist and dawn rising over the fields so early:

Once he had paid the pitch money to get in (£12) he started to set up while I decided to wander around and wait for people to start setting up and selling. As you can tell from the frost, it was freezing cold and I was glad I had my layers of a tee, sweatshirt, scarf, gloves, boots, socks and parka on, with my hood glued to my head for the first couple of hours!! First tip of the day, make sure you wear layers- as the morning proceeds, you will start to lose them but they will be well needed the earlier you start. Second tip-if you are doing a boot sale then it's also a good idea to bring a thermos flask of tea or coffee and some home made sandwiches to keep you going for the duration as you won't want to end up spending your hard earned cash on food at the site.

I haven't been to a boot sale so early for years, so it was glorious to see the dawn rise and take pictures of the red sky beckoning a new day ahead:

Another useful tip is to make sure you take a fair amount of change and some carrier bags with you- no one will be too happy to be greeted with a £10 or £20 note at 6:30 in the morning and having your own bags will save time to dash on to the next eagerly sought after bargain too! So by about 6:45 a lot of stalls were set up and buyers were descending on sellers like their lives depended on it-what a frenzy!! I didn't know whether to elbow my way in or wait my turn and a crucial tip here-definitely do both to get those all important early bird bargains!!

The boot sale is held in two adjoining fields so it was good to cross over every so often to catch new sellers setting up. Make a point of checking them out as soon as possible as you may miss out if you carry on looking at stalls that are already well set up. Another tip-if it is very early don't always buy on the first price that a seller says (unless your heart is set on the item of course) as in a couple of hours they may well be welcome to a bit of haggling. Also when we actually do a boot sale we never mark up prices on our items-buyers as I well know love to not only get a bargain but haggle too, plus it gives you the opportunity to have a chat with them.

Just because items are cheap does not necessarily mean they should be bought for the sake of it-in the heat of the moment it is tempting to buy up everything you see because of the low prices but you do still need to be selective about the labels and items you choose. If you do see something that you are in two minds over, then do buy it-going back for it means it won't be there later!! Also just because something has a designer label in it does not always make it a must buy and constitute good value for money-it's only worth buying if it's going to mix in successfully with the rest of your own wardrobe and be worn regularly.

Don't be afraid to have a go at haggling yourself either- if you're reasonable in the offers you make and are polite and friendly it's odds on you will get that item for cheaper but if not, at least you asked! Don't be put off by something if it is a bit dirty or has some loose stitching-this is an ideal way to haggle and it's not hard to do some cleaning or a repair job on your chosen item when you get home.

 By mid morning the layers of scarves, hats and gloves were gone-it's amazing what a difference a few hours makes!! As you can see the sunshine there was positively glorious by midday, even if parts of the field were still waterlogged-another tip, make sure you wear your walking boots or wellies if the weather has been previously rainy, the fields can still be squelchy and muddy even if the skies are blue! If you're not in a hurry another invaluable tip is to go around the boot sale again- buyers have a habit of not putting everything out initially and a disregarded stall first time around may reap you a bargain buy on your next visit.

When I look around I tend to look at clothes and accessories- another good tip is to check out mens wear stalls as I've found really good buys such as belts and tees that can easily be unisex items. I love looking out for handbags too, boot sales are great for finding good quality leather handbags-both designer and vintage for really reasonable prices.

We packed up shortly after midday and headed to our local supermarket to stock up on some fresh crusty rolls, sausages and pure orange juice for a home made brunch for when we got home. Boot sales can be expensive for eating out and you don't always get quality food for the money, so we just had cups of tea and some fresh donuts there and ate at home. 

You can use google to find local boot sales near to you as well as checking out your local paper too- I would certainly recommend them whether you are a seller or a buyer and getting there early regardless will inevitably set you up for a good morning of bargain hunting-you can be back home again for around 1 pm to enjoy your afternoon, so what's not to love?!!

Have a great weekend whatever you get upto-I'll be checking out my local paper this week to see what ones have started up this year in my area. Do you have you any plans to visit a boot sale this season?