Thrift My Style.....Currently Trending- Denim Skirts

Florals and Denim- Always In Style

So Summer is hitting and for me its all about florals and denim- either together or separate, these are two trends for this season that never seem to date or go out of style.

I love denim skirts for summer and always try and make sure I| have denim skirts not just for work-yay- I'm fortunate I can wear denim as part of my work uniform- but of course for leisure and social occasions too! I tend to go for a shorter hem line and right now there is plenty at high street level for all tastes!

Here are my favourite looks, all sourced from Pinterest:

A logo tee and denim skirt is just effortlessly stylish

My favourite combo-floral on denim

This seasons trend-unfinished hem

Am just lusting over this gorgeous skirt currently on sale at Zara for £49.99

I picked up this skirt in Zara a couple of months ago- a very reasonable £25 and still instore:

So when I went shopping this weekend and stopped off at a larger Sainsburys as a pit stop for my mate, we couldn't help but have a browse through the TU clothing range.

I can never pass through TU without wanting something and in the larger branch I was in they had an amazingly large section of fashion and accessories at half price or less.

So two for less than the price of one!! I found this cute scalloped edged hem skirt and the studded unfinished hem skirt, what a bargain indeed and perfect for the festival and holiday season that I've got coming up!!

The one thing about denim is you can style it up or down- a pretty chiffon blouse or a faded band tee work so well with a denim skirt or shorts and paired with bejewelled or metallic sandals will take you into a casual stylish evening look too!

What summer trend are you all over this season?

Transitional Season Dressing in Leather and Chambray Denim, Plus some Autumn Shoe Buys!!

Hi everyone!! As I sit here typing, the weather is really sunny out-not hot and just nice enough for the start of September. On Sunday, London was deliciously warm with cloudy spots here and there, which was why I decided to wear my leather biker jacket as a chance cover up:

Before I went to Worthing, I found this chambray denim sleeveless dress by Oasis from the British Heart Foundation charity shop for £7.50. It's been worn regularly during August and I'll keep it in the wardrobe to pair with a sweater, tights and boots for Autumn too:

When I last met my gorgeous blogger friend Michelle of MyFashionable40s, she asked me if I was going to dip into the skate shoe trend. I remember my answer which at the time was purely seasonally influenced-it was the heart of Summer, but a typical torrential rainy day and I had at that time said to her I doubt it very much-no, in other words!! Well, it's always the way when you say no, you mull it over until you think and say, well yes! So last week the hunt was on for some Autumn appropriate styled ones.

My first pair are these navy leopardprint ones which I picked from T K Maxx at the weekend, a real bargain for just £14.99:

 

These are the buys I love-the ones where you see something and think yes-that's exactly what I'm looking for-perfect style, colour and pattern and not only that, totally versatility with the rest of my wardrobe too. 

My next find was in Primark earlier today and again a total bargain-just £8 and ticking all the above said boxes again, so I think my entry into the skate shoe trend has now been fully fulfilled!

Many bloggers are compiling their Autumn wishlists and I'm thankful that I'm not really after many things- I really just want a black merino wool crew neck sweater, possibly a grey one too. Also a couple of fine wool scarves too, in leopardprint and tartan.

School term is already with us- my youngest is back tomorrow for his final year at secondary school before college!! So proud of him as he took his Science GCSE a year early and got an 'A'!! I'm hoping this is a sign of things to come for his last year, so despite his cast still not being off his broken wrist it's a good start to 'back to school'!! 

Thanks as always for your continued support, reading and commenting- unfortunately I don't blog that regularly but through bloglovin and my own feed I do regularly read what you are all up to!! 

Wishing you all a sunny week and a lovely weekend to come, whatever you are up to!!

Outfit Post & Current ThriftMyStyle Summer Style Obsessions- Lace, Embroidery, Espadrilles and Denim

 Hi everyone! After hearing the weather report on Wednesday evening for Thursday to Saturday I was really ready to embrace summer dressing-bare legs, dress and some summer sun ready to sit out in and enjoy. Alas, the outfit was there on Thursday but definitely no summer sun to radiate in! 

Style obsessions are currently lace, embroidery and denim and in various mixes for good measure. This outfit features a thrift find from last Sunday- a Gap slim fit denim jacket in exactly the shade I've been looking for this coming summer. I was at a local boot sale on Sunday and saw it on a ladies rail, so I asked the price and she said £2. Definitely cheap enough but for some reason I said to her 'Will you take £1.50?' We both burst out laughing at the same time and I'm sure it was because of my cheek but she said yes and off I went!

I'm wearing one of my items from the clothes swap party a couple of months ago, a Topshop blush pink lace dress. It's sleeveless and backless and is an ideal length for me and so perfect as a daytime summer dress if I wear it with denim. I'm also wearing some tan sandals which I thrifted a couple of summers ago- they are Clarks and were from my local Sue Ryder charity shop for around £8:

My new pinterest board, Crafted Style-Embroidery, Lace et Al is quickly expanding with images of everything embroidered, lace and summer boho orientated:

With this inspiration in mind I stopped off in another local town for a spot of charity shop thrifting this morning as the boot sale didn't appeal weatherwise and found this charming embroidered lace cotton camisole by Fat Face in the £1 Sense charity shop:

It's a replacement for one I stupidly put in the charity shop bag a couple of years ago for no good reason and will be perfect under denim jackets and waistcoats and summer blazers too.

Another style inspiration that's been hot on my mind are espadrilles and slides so how chuffed I was to find an unusual mix of the two earlier as well- they are Pare Gabia espadrilles made in France and were in the Sue Ryder charity shop for £3.95:

Brand new too and a much needed addition to my summer wardrobe, these will get worn a lot and will go with so much that I have already.

Unfortunately the sun shows no sign of returning any time soon where I am and my feet are freezing- I may have to get the socks and boots out  ;- (

What is on your style radar at the moment- are you shopping for summer and if so do you have current obsessions of the moment?

Have a lovely Easter weekend and I hope the sun is shining for the rest of you, wherever you are!!

Thrift Inspiration....Singing The Blues in All Saints, Reiss and Vintage Yves Saint Laurent

Hi everyone! I hope you've all had a great week so far-my day today has been so up and down, I don't know if I've been coming or going! Firstly this morning saw me running late for work, completely run out of petrol on the way, problems parking which led to me being late and then on my return to the car park later a parking ticket! I was rather stressed by the time I got home early afternoon but it got better with a meet up with girlfriends for a meal and catch up at a local restaurant and with hubby cooking and washing up for himself and younger son I feel like I'm now fully calmed down, hehe!!

I was really chuffed to have been nominated for 'best thrifty blog' by The MAD Blog Awards for Mums and dads 2014 this weekend. I've displayed a 'Nominate Me' badge on my sidebar and would deeply appreciate it if you could take time out to nominate me please! IF I get through to the next stage then more voting is required and I could be in with a chance of attending a lovely finalist awards evening and winning an iPad Air, woo hoo! Anyhow, it's been lovely to have been nominated and any further nominations and votes will be much appreciated!!

Back to style matters in hand, I thought I would show you some fairly recent thrift finds that seem to be very much on a recurring theme-blue to be precise.

As you all may be aware I am very much a denim enthusiast-ok, addict might be a better word if 25+ pairs of jeans is slightly more than the norm! I'm thinking that it's not so much jeans I'm into but the colour more so? I pretty much love denim jackets, waistcoats, skirts shirts and jeans and all in different shades of blue but particularly this year faded blue has definitely been on my style radar a lot, very evident on my denim inspiration pinterest board if you fancy taking a look!

My latest thrift finds were from a couple of Saturdays ago- I found this fabulous vintage cheesecloth Yves Saint Laurent mens shirt in a neighbouring town's St Francis Hospice charity shop for just £2.50!!

It's such a great fit and is definitely my current favourite go to shirt for summer, to be paired with faded jeans, cut offs and white jeans (if I find a pair that I like):

My next find that day was in the afternoon at my own local Sue Ryder charity shop, which was a pair of Reiss high waisted skinny zip ankle jeans for a bargainous £1 in their sale!! In my size too and another pair of perfectly shaded blue jeans that I can't wait to start wearing!

The middle pair are some Gap boyfriend jeans that I thrifted in January for just £3.99-again the perfect distressed lighter shade of blue that will be perfect once ankles can be shown in warmer weather!!

The 3rd pair are some Levis demi curve straight leg jeans which if I can remember were also less than £2, thrifted last year in Autumn from a neighbouring towns Sue Ryder charity shop:

Left to Right: Reiss, Gap, Levis

The last picture features more shirts that I've thrifted and been gifted since Autumn last year:

From top to bottom: All Saints checked shirt, £2 from the St Francis Hospice,  River Island acid light wash shirt from the DEBRA charity shop for £3.99, my gifted degrade denim shirt from the swap shop party and dark wash thrifted H&M chambray shirt from the Sense charity shop for £3.50.

So you've seen a sneaky peek into my denim obsession and what sort of items are making their way and staying in my wardrobe.

What style and items are actually making their way into your wardrobe this season? Please share I'd love to know! 

Reiss, George and Primark - Recent Style Thrift Finds for this Summer

Hi everyone! I hope you are all enjoying the glorious summer weather we are having at the moment, school holidays are just arriving and it's such a nice feeling not to be worrying about ironing school uniforms, setting the alarm and making packed lunches- a nice hiatus until September for a lot of us mums!

I thought I would share some fairly recent thrift finds which I intend wearing for this summer. The first blouse featured here is a find from last week from my local British Heart Foundation charity shop for £3.75. It's a George by Asda top and is brand new. I've been after some coloured leopardprint for a while so this top really fits the bill with it's vibrant purple and red hues and with it's silky and loose feel it's a great dressy style top for right now:

This next find was in a neighbouring town's Scope charity shop and when I saw the price I couldn't believe it- £2.50 for a silk Reiss tunic top!! What made it even more unbelievable was there was a Primark top I really liked too but it had a visible run/pull on the shoulder and was priced at £4.95!! The only instance I've seen Reiss cheaper than Primark, hehe!! It's a really cute tunic top with satin buttons, pintucking detailing and lace around the front top and back:

It's an ideal evening top with a pair of  summer leggings or skinny jeans and is a great trans-seasonal piece too, one of my most bargainous quality finds of this year.

I have also wanted some coloured denim for the Summer but not in jeans- I was hoping to find either a skirt or jacket. So I was pleased to find this coloured denim yellow, fairly neon skirt by Primark for £3.50 at a neighbouring DEBRA charity shop last month. I've already worn this a few times and it's proved to be a real summer asset in my wardrobe- I just love the bright colour of it and it looks great with a black or white top:

So have you managed to plug the gaps in your summer wardrobe? Are you looking for any particular pieces or are you making the most of what you already have in your summer closet?

Why not check out your local charity shop's offerings next time you are in town, you may well be pleasantly surprised that you can pick up a real quality item for around the same cost of a large latte from Starbucks-that is how I view it and at least I've still got my item long after the coffee has been consumed!!

Have a great week ahead!!

Thrift My Style Pictures and Places This Week

Clockwise: Thursday was a meeting in London so I wore a new-ish black maxi skirt from a local high street store for £7 a few weeks ago, black vest top and a cream crochet scarf from Primark; Enjoying the heatwave earlier this week in a cool colour blocking dress by Jonathan Saunders for Topshop which was thrifted at a neighbouring town's charity shop a couple of months ago for £10; After my Thursday meeting I headed to Selfridges where the Ground Floor has their dedicated Denim section; For #denimlovers like me, the Selfridges main entrance windows were a must see as my instagram photos from last week are on rotation on Oxford Street for all to see!

Relaxing at the start of the week in a thrifted Dorothy Perkins paisley cotton top from Barnado's charity shop bought a couple of weeks ago for £4 with 7 For All Mankind cut offs; Selfridges liked my instagram photo yesterday of my authentic 70s outfit of a vintage Wrangler waistcoat and floral maxi skirt worn as a bandeau dress; Another Dorothy Perkins thrift find from the Cancer Research charity shop which is perfect for the scorching summer heat; Detailing my 90s Versace style Italian gilt belt which I wore on Thursday over my black maxi skirt:; my second instagram photo that Selfridges have on rotation in their Oxford Street store front window.

Denim obsession continues.....also, spending diary for my thrift finds and outfit post

Hi everyone!! Well this June was officially declared as the wettest and dullest since records began and I do so hope that July will not be following the same pattern. Today has been a mix of sun and showers yet again and the wind is getting my washing dry at the moment!!

Back to all things fashion related and my favourite denim find of the month is this H&M chambray denim gilet from the Cancer Research charity shop for £3.99.  I really like it as it's not pure denim so will be able to go with all jeans and summer skirts and it's super light and cosy for the current in-between weather:

The skirt was a find last week from the Salvation Army and is by Gap-it has a fine small red check print, pleated and has pockets and an ideal everyday summer skirt-only £2.99:

My tee is by Ralph Lauren from their Ashford outlet store and the sandals are from Topshop a few years ago. I'm also wearing blue hoop earrings from Primark which I bought last year.

I bought a diary at the beginning of June as a couple of years ago I used to do a spending diary for thrift finds and found it really gave me a good insight in to what I bought, what I gave away and what I spent. So far this month I have bought 3 summer skirts, 1 gilet, 1 jacket, 3 bags, 2 pairs of boots, 1 pair of shoes, 1 grey Tommy Hilfiger hoody, 1 grey Whistles tee and 1 Topshop embroidered blouse, 1 bangle and 1 scarf.

Out of all of these there are 2 bags which I didn't really need/want, but got them for the 'bargain' aspect. I have earmarked 8 items to the charity shop bag too. My favourite finds this month would be the summer skirts as they will definitely be worn, as will the gilet, the hoody, the boots, the tee and the blouse. I really try to only buy items that I will wear, as opposed to 'prettying the wardrobe'-ie-the wardrobe sees it more than what I do!!

Do you keep a budget/spending diary on what you buy and what you get rid of? It is certainly an eye opener, especially for repeat buys. I try to do a 'one in, one out' philosophy, but it doesn't always work.

I am hoping this months buys will feature 3 of these items on my thrift wishlist: a maxi sun dress, a blue denim skirt for everyday wear and a summer coloured small handbag or clutch-not black!!

Do you still have anything on a summer wishlist??

Thrift Inspiration-denim shorts Isabel Marant style. Plus #bad blogger mention!!

I should rename this blog post #badblogger- I really want to firstly apologise for not leaving comments on all your lovely blogs and also very irregular posts too. In between not been very well, starting a new job and helping my mum with her upcoming house move, blogging and my newly found tweeting have taken a very big back seat. I have become more of a 'lurker', in that I am visiting your blogs and reading posts but not commenting, lazy and so enjoyable, but true!!

So in the spirit of getting back into the swing of things, I thought I would show you another of my latest denim purchases, inspired by this seasons offering by Isabel Marant at Matches:

Isabel Marant Alex shorts, £120 at Matches

I found these Levi's shorts a few weeks ago in my neighbouring town Sense charity shop, for only £1. They will be a really leisurely style to wear and inspired by above, I would like to wear them with a grey sweatshirt, of which I am still to find!!

Denim is still a major style obsession of mine-I find it so easy to wear and it never goes out of style whether its for winter, spring, summer or autumn.

I will try my best to leave comments with you all soon and I wish you all a really lovely week ahead too!

MyStyle- Denim new season pieces,Thrifted Levis and some Ralph Lauren

Hi everyone! Picking my magazines this month, I had to go for Company-not only was it a bargainous £1, but it is is also their Denim issue-with my current denim obsession I had to have it for some style and thrift inspiration!! I also have Vogue too, which pinpoints pale denim as a main trend this summer.

I've been after some key denim pieces for a while-namely a good fitting denim skirt, a pale denim jacket and a 'perfect' denim shirt. I've managed to find all these pieces this month all for under £20.

The denim skirt is a dark denim pencil style by Levis from the Sue Ryder charity shop for £3.95. It is a great piece which will go with a lot of items I already have in my wardrobe. I picked up this Ralph Lauren striped Breton tee at the Ralph Lauren outlet in Ashford for just £16.99, which will also be a main staple for this season.  

I also managed to find a really good pale denim shirt in Primark on Sunday-I was in there shopping for pillowcase and glancing in the mens section was this fitted, pale, long sleeved soft denim shirt which is £10 and is a great fit and feel-it can be tucked in or worn out, layered up or worn by itself:

My eldest son found this pale denim Levis jacket last week in my local Sue Ryder charity shop for £9.95, more than I normally pay but its a perfect fit and I love the colour-plus I'm happy to pay that bit more to charity if I'm happy with an item!!

So my denim obsession is nicely fulfilled and now I just need to bring out the hats and scarves for the cold spell thats coming!!