Second Hand Business

As much as I love my novelty prints, they're not always appropriate for work.  But, just because things have to be a little less whimsical and a little more geometrical doesn't mean that doesn't mean you can't get creative with your style though in the workplace.  I'm a big fan of print mixing, but for today's outfit I thought I'd take two similar polka dot prints and just mix up the colors instead.  The result?  Something timeless and perfect for the office.

Outfit Info: Skirt and Top are thrifted from Poshmark, Bag is from Ecosusi, Watch is vintage, Shoes are from B.A.I.T.

Cinema with Style: Penelope

Halloween is nearly upon us and if you're not much into the darker side of this holiday, then allow me to recommend a heart warming story with some serious style.  One of my favorite films of all-time is delightful 2006 romantic comedy, Penelope, starring Christina Ricci, Catherine O'Hara, and James MacAvoy does have a bit of a Halloween theme, so I think it's totally appropriate to make it a fall selection alongside other such non-murder and gore classics as Hocus Pocus and The Addams Family. 

Penelope, played by Christina Ricci, is a girl like any other...except for the fact that due to a family curse, she is born with a pig nose.  The only way to break the curse is for her to be accepted by one of her own kind.  Locked in her tower by her over-protective mother, played by the always delightful Catherine O'Hara, her family is determined to hide her away until they find a man who will marry her and break the curse.  And you thought your dating life was complicated!

In true Rapunzel fashion, Penelope sets about making everything in her home and wardrobe as beautiful and interesting as possible.  There is not a blank space to be found, everything is so charming, detailed, and rich in color.  She makes a dream world around her.  I don't want to ruin this flick for you, so suffice to say, she meets lots of interesting people like James MacAvoy and Reese Witherspoon and has quite a few misadventures along the way.  Now to the fashion!

This movie has some serious style that even 20 years later I am still gaga over.  Prints, textures, colors and fabrics are all masterfully combined to make a film that is as much a feast for the eyes and it is a treasure for the heart.  The costumes are the work of designer Jill Taylor who also worked on films such as Me Before You and My Week With Marilyn.

Check out the buttons on this coat, mismatched and yet perfectly composed.  Everything in this film is so well thought out that it truly comes as close to a real-life fairytale as any movie ever could.

As is the case in every single one of his movies, you will see James MacAvoy stare intently into the camera as his huge blue eyes tear up and Peter Dinklage is in fine form as well in this movie. So, if you're looking for something a little less bloody and a little more heartwarming this Halloween, you won't regret an evening with Penelope.  

Tin Types

Biscuit tins have been a staple in British homes since Huntley & Palmers made the first decorative tin in 1831.  As Americans, we're more likely to have grown up with a ceramic cookie jar than a decorative tin, but there is something undeniably lovely about a kitchen shelf lined with pretty boxes filled with yummy things to eat or drink.  

It's something I have long admired about the British homes I entered during my time living there, and also remember fondly about my own grandmother's house as well.  Granted I was a tea and cookie lover long before I lived in England, but I grew a much greater appreciation for the ritual of afternoon tea during my time in that dear country.

    My tea & biscuit tin collecting days first began when I was a little girl and my mother got the notion in her head that she shouldn't go to the store and buy new tins for Christmas cookies every year when the local "junk stores" were filled with beautiful vintage tins for just pennies.  So for several years going to the junk stores to load bags with the most beautiful tins that would later be filled with cookies and given as gifts became a favorite tradition of ours.  

    Later when I moved out, I decorated my own bare kitchen in my first apartment with wooden tea boxes and candy tins as they emptied.  Something about having them on the walls made the kitchen seem so much cozier.  Sometime during all this, my mother remarked that the junk stores no longer carried tins (it had been many years at this point since we'd last looked) and she wished she had kept some for her kitchen.  And, so we searched together or I brought them home as souvenirs from my travels and her kitchen became cozy too. 

Now, all these years later, I still have my tins and have added a few more into the mix, and I use them not only for tea and cookies, but for other things around the house as well.

When I spotted this Horner Tea Tin print fabric at Hancock's I immdiately recognized some of the tins in my own collection and knew it would make the perfect autumn dress.  It was a perfect day for photos as well and I got so many beautiful pictures that I didn't get the chance to post them all last autumn, so I thought this would be a good time to share my love of tins and the unseen photos of this dress.

Outfit Info:  Robert Kaufman Library of Rarities Vintage Tea Tins Fabric from Hancock's-Paducah. YeMak Cardigan.  Sewing Pattern is Butterick Retro B5748. Bettie Page shoes.  Viviene of Holloway Petticoat.

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• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biscuit_tin
• https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/biscuit-tins-a-bite-sized-history/#slideshow=562394146&slide=0
• https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-art-of-the-biscuit-tin-171494824/

Kafkaesque Life

I stumbled across this quote the other day somewhere on the web, and it's a feeling I've had myself so many times, I wondered if I hadn't said it too.  

Outfit Info:  Son de Flor Classic dress in Venice Floral

Right On Track

It's been a while since I've done a Spending Update.  In 2024, I decided it was finally time to rein in my spending. You can't change what you don't acknowledge, so my first step was to take a whole year to track every penny and analyze my habits and patterns.   It was eye opening and extremely helpful.  Once I saw my patterns I could set a budget and start sticking to it. 

Not to give away my progress report with the title of this post, but I feel like I'm on track with my spending this year.  I've had a few slips of course, because I'm not perfect, but overall, I'm really proud of my progress and determined to keep going and do even better in 2026.  While I will admit there were some really amazing sales or bargains on items I'd been eyeing for months or years and I did end up spending more than I budgeted for, even that seems like progress because it was all stuff I'd been watching and waiting for; I made zero impulse buys for an entire year!  And not once did I sit glued to a screen waiting for the absolute feeding frenzy of a collection drop.

As far as sticking to my budget, the thing that has really made it easier is that I just haven't bought from luxury brands.  I can still thrift regularly and stay well within my spending limits by simply avoiding all my favorite but insanely pricey shops.  This little resolution has slashed my spending in half and not least of which because those are the very shops that do those mad drops.  

I've had a lot of challenges this year, some really difficult times and it's been really tough to take it all without shopping as my emotional crutch.  However, I've been working really hard at just feeling the feelings, especially the really tough stuff, and processing it without any crutches.  Do I love that?  Nope, not at all.  Is it good for me?  Well, it sucks in the moment, but in the long run, I know that I will be healthier for going through these things in this way, processing my feelings rather than using something to dull the pain or delay the difficulty.  

With only a few months left in 2025, I feel really good about how far I've come this year and am more determined than ever to keep it up in 2026.  We still have a ways to go before the start of the new year though, so I'll definitely be talking about my budgeting year again.

Outfit Info:  Rainbow Madras Plaid Belted Dress from Unique Vintage

Autumn Work Wear

Ever the avid thrifter, I found this beautiful Anthropologie dress for about $20. This dress is a muted chocolate brown and ivory plaid with an ornate beaded collar.  I added a belt just to break up the print, and since there's this lovely collar, I skipped the necklace this time and went for hoop earrings instead.  I love my Ecosusi bow briefcases for work, and the real thrill in this outfit was these thrifted blue and brown oxford heels that I just adore.  I'll definitely add a cardigan or a blazer with this dress when I wear it to work, but I took these photos in the heat of summer and hadn't really gotten out my autumn wear yet, so you'll have to use your imagination there.