ThriftMyStyle with Vintage and Preloved Jackets and Blazers

Summer and Transitional Jackets and Blazers in key basic neutral colours for a perfect capsule wardrobe 

Hi everyone! I think this post is a long overdue one from me- I really do love a blazer!

My Summer favourite, year in and year out ALWAYS consists of a good quality blazer or jacket- preferably vintage or preloved in a key colour that I know will last me for seasons to come. You can't go wrong with having a few in your wardrobe- they can either transition for Autumn or be kept again for the following Summer!

This first blazer is one I found eleven years ago- check my original post 'Ferretti and Frills' from August 2009! Its definitely one of my all time favourite finds and I always wear it every Summer. A navy blazer is a must and this one by Philosophy di Alberta Ferretti has stood the test of time in quality and style in my wardrobe for sure! I really love the longer length and double breasted style and this style never dates, so timeless and classic in cut and colour:

This next blazer was bought a couple of years ago and was found in the same Salvation Army charity shop as the one above, its a Calvin Klein steel grey light wool blazer and was £3.99.

When I thrift a blazer I always try and source either designer names or brands with a high natural material content, such as wool, silk or linen.

If you can find a good quality well made jacket that covers these bases you will have a piece that will have longevity in your wardrobe and be a keeper for many years to come! This Calvin Klein one has a white striped lining on the arms so I do like to fold them up sometimes for that relaxed 90s Summer vibe!

This Jaeger beige linen vintage blazer was also £3.99 and I found this in a charity shop last year. It's a go to jacket for wearing with shorts or a mini skirt as it is a longer length style and again I like to wear it with the sleeves pushed up. This one is unlined and a perfect cover up over a cami or a new trend season vest top and I do think a neutral colour is a must for any Summer wardrobe.

Viewers of my Instagram page will know that I purchased this Gerry Weber tobacco brown linen blazer from ebay earlier this month. I've never really worn brown much, but have really embraced this tonal colour this season and it really is a great colour to have in a neutral colour capsule wardrobe as it goes with so much. This classic single breasted style works well with jeans and floral or plain coloured summer dresses. I love ebay for preloved items- this was just £4.99 with postage and a key tip for finding a bargain is to check 'ending soonest' in your chosen colour and size, that's how I won this one!

This last jacket was a fabulous find a couple of weeks ago from my local Cancer Research charity shop- it was on the 50p rail! I love the shorter length of this black linen jacket from Marks and Spencer, it makes a change from the oversized or longer length jackets that I already have in my wardrobe. I do actually own a few black jackets but I didn't have a linen one, so for 50p I couldn't leave it behind!

A good quality blazer really does pull an outfit together and it's amazing what can be found in your local charity or thrift shops and also from the boot sale too! As I've said before, look for ones with a high natural material content, that is a neutral colour and style and choose styles that are either longer and shorter to mix and match well with pieces already in your wardrobe!

What are your favourite Summer styles, are jackets on your radar too? 

Thrift Inspiration.....The Boho Hippy Ethnic Style Summer Jacket!!

Hi everyone!! Hurrah, the 'heatwave' is officially here- two days on the trot I've been in short sleeves and not needed a jacket, which is quite ironic considering my post is about them!!

I noticed in my wardrobe that I've plenty of blazers, winter coats and jackets and denim jackets. Upto last week I actually owned just two printed jackets which is my Camo Pepe jacket and my floral River Island jacket which are both for Spring and Summer. The River Island jacket is more of a bolero shape so although I love the pattern and colour, it's not been quite long enough for what I've been after. So cue Pinterest again, to give me an idea of the sort of jacket I would like to add to my wardrobe. I knew I wanted it to be patterned and to include some red or pinks in it.

Here is what I was inspired by:

My first find was on ebay and is actually the pink version of this Jaeger jacket that I found at a vintage fair about three years ago for my birthday present. I subsequently went and sold it on again so I was really pleased to find it's coloured sister!

The styling is very much an Ethnic Ikat pattern and is also 100% wool even though it feels like quilted cotton and it's also lined. It has some minor damage which requires attention, but after selling a jacket on ebay this one has stood me in at £2.33, so any professional repair and cleaning won't add much to the overall cost!

Then earlier this week on a thrifting trip in a neighbouring town I found this gorgeous washed silk, reversible Ethnic jacket by Neeru Kumar:

Neeru Kumar is a renowned Indian fashion and textiles designer and has been in the business for three decades and her clients include Selfridges, V&A Museum, British Museum and Zara Home Spain. She has also had her work featured in Vogue, Elle and Marie Claire. A similar silk jacket in the traditional Kantha work retails at $445 and uses patches of different vintage fabric sewn together, much like the processes of my one above. It's fully reversible and the other side is all red as shown in the cuffs and edging- a real boho authentic Ethnic bargain from the Sense charity shop for only £4!!

So my summer jackets are all sorted for now and when the gorgeous hot weather does cool down- not soon though please- then I'll be wearing these with a little cami vest top and jeans as my go to daily outfit.

What type of jacket is on your Summer wishlist for those cooler days? So many styles are in trend at the moment, from denim to floral bombers to boho chic to monochrome blazers, there's plenty to choose from whatever your own style and budget!

Wishing you all a really lovely weekend whatever you are up to and thanks once again for all your kind and lovely comments and for reading too!! xx

January purchases so far and Jaeger sweater and Levis jeans

Hi everyone!! Thank you all for your kind and lovely well wishes and comments that you've been leaving for me, they are so much appreciated and I hope to be able to visit you all soon with comments by return-I'm just getting over feeling ill and with working too blogging has definitely fallen by the wayside!

I am hoping to do the odd posts here and there as I can't publish regularly at the moment. I thought today's post would be ideal to share as it is mid month and gives a running diary on what I've bought so far this month. I've tried to just stick to what I said in previous posts and just thrift or buy items that I know I will love and make use of, the first being this mini cross body bag by DKNY. A black mini cross body bag has been on my list for ages and I've been looking for a while to find the right one-this one appeared at my local PDSA charity shop in the New Year and was a bargainous £3.99. It's as new and I've been using it virtually everyday for work as it holds my phone and cards and I wear it as I work:

Another purchase was from my local TU at Sainsburys on Sunday and is this lovely glass beaded 3 string necklace which was reduced from £10 to £3-a bit of a dodgy picture, but the colours include vivid purple, blue and green crystal style beads and all in all was well worth the money:

I also picked up these chandelier style earrings, also reduced to £3, which will be ideal for dressing up a tee and jeans outfit:

My next purchase was inspired by lovely blogger Michelle over at MyFashionable40s and whose style is impeccable and very covetable!! She bought her black pom pom hat from Warehouse last month but I was unable to find one in my local one and was pleased to eventually track down a similar one in Marks and Spencer in their Limited Collection section. It was £9.50 but as I had taken back an unwanted Christmas present which was £10, I can credit 50p off my other spends!

The next item that was found on the day of the DKNY bag find was this H&M faux fur black collar which was £2.49 from my local Salvation Army. A faux fur collar always comes in handy for day or evening and will jazz up any given jacket or coat and I've been mentally wanting a black one for ages too, so another item ticked off the list!

So a grand total spend to date this month of £11.98 for 5 items. I'm still looking for the elusive and perfect longline grey jacket but as I'm not thrifting regularly I guess I'll just have to be patient before the right one comes along! 

My outfit post is from Sunday in which I wore a thrifted Jaeger striped merino wool crew neck sweater, my new necklace, distressed by me faded boyfriend Levi's jeans and my new black patent trainers which were a Christmas present from my eldest son:

I cut the hems so they are frayed and also distressed the front with my cheese grater and scissors!

I do hope you are all having a great week so far and it would be great to know what you've been buying so far this month-have you got a great sales buy or have you bought a much needed/wanted item from your style wishlist?

Thrift Inspiration, The Square Route Way-According to Vogue!!

Hi everyone! Now October is here, so is the onset of traditional British weather-wet, cold, windy, intermittently sunny and if we're lucky dry and not too nippy!

It's definitely warmer jacket weather and according to Vogue's catwalk edit for Autumn/Winter 13, 'The Square Route'- that is another pseudonym for all things plaid, tartan, checked and weaved into these said patterns is definitely the way to go this season.

Last season saw monochrome as a key look but this season all plaid colours are go-and into anything from coats to jackets to gowns to dresses to skirts to trousers!!

In Spring I acquired a couple of jackets that sit very nicely for this Autumn. My first jacket is a pure wool tweed vintage jacket which my mum brought from South Africa which had been her sisters:

Perfect for wearing with a roll neck jumper and boot flare jeans this will keep me stylish and cosy this Autumn:

 My second acquisition was this lovely houndstooth indigo blue and cream jacket by Jaeger which I picked up in my local British Heart Foundation charity shop for just £8.99:

I love the dark blue colour, it really is perfect with indigo jeans and the fringing around the lapels, cuffs and hem of the jacket is so Chanel-esque.

It always pays to nab bargains all year round even if they're not for the season you're currently in. Thrifting is a really cheap and accessible way to find bargains, such as coats and boots in the heart of summer and summer dresses when it's freezing cold winter!

What style of jackets will you be wearing this season? Will tartans and plaids feature in your wardrobe or are you hunting for leather or leopardprint?

Thriftmystyle outfit post and my sales savings and purchases!

I hope you all had a Very Happy Christmas- ours was spent eating, drinking, watching Christmas TV and relaxing and for me a first, a day at the Christmas Sales.

Younger son had a wishlist and a hole burning in his pocket so we set off to Oxford Sreet, London on Thursday which proved to be most successful and enjoyable! He managed to buy two pairs of trainers which were both half price-saving a whopping £130. We enjoyed a sushi lunch in Wasabi in Oxford Street which was my first proper Japanese sushi experience and very delicious it was too- I will certainly be having it again and it was so nice to have something so fresh, healthy and enjoyable whilst eating out. We were so surprisingly full afterwards so headed for a browse through Soho and Carnaby Street before going into Liberty's, which was amazingly my first ever visit considering the numerous times I have been to London.

I succumbed to the sales too by snapping up a gorgeous  blue wool and cashmere animal and tiger print reversible wrap by Mulberry which was half price, saving me a whopping £147.50!! 

All shopped out we headed home happy in the knowledge that between us we had saved nearly £300 on items that we truly wanted and will wear-very chez thriftmystyle!!

 

The outfit below is one I wore last weekend and shows off one of my recent thrift finds from the last boot sale before Christmas- a midnight blue buttersoft leather jacket by Jaeger for only £2. Its a great layering piece under my winter favourite faux fur gilet and I'm also wearing my Guess scarf which my older son got from their SS13 press day for me-it's animal print and stars and one of my favourite scarfs of the moment!!

 

 

I am wearing my Pavers boots from a few years back which I have been itching to replace with a lighter sheepskin version-well not replace, but have as an addition. So when Celtic Sheepskin emailed me earlier today with their upto 50% off sale on footwear I snapped up my coveted pair and saved myself £40 in the process. They will hopefully be with me next week and again I've saved on something that I've wanted for ages and wil be wearing straightaway.

 

Jaeger midnight blue leather jacket- £2, boot sale

 

So how is your sales shopping going-did you manage to bag the bargains you wanted either by shopping online or going to the sales in person?

 

In case this is my last post of 2012 I wish everyone a very peaceful, prosperous and happy new year and a successful and fabulous 2013.