Suddenly, last weekend, the thrifting gods smiled upon me and offered up a lovely {and reversible} fur vest with light pink lining. Too good! Despite the suddenly-summer turn that DC weather has taken, I'm planning to wear this baby out on the town.

Happy Black Friday to everyone! I'm currently sitting at home with a mouthful of gauze. No worries since I prefer to do my shopping in bed when I can, especially since I'm rocking some serious chipmunk cheeks.

That won't keep me from posting today's Friday Finds, which centers around my recent trip to NYC: what I wore and what I bought. Get excited.




Sunday was such lovely warm weather, so I decided to pair a a cranberry colored silk shirt dress {a thrifting find that had been floor length before a serious hemming-session} with black boots and tights. We braved the city jacket-less but I brought along with my favorite gray & white infinity scarf, just in case.
My high school BFF is lucky enough to live in a gorgeous apartment in the middle of Hell's Kitchen, so we were in close proximity to visit the Fashion District and start our shopping spree in Times Square, eventually making our way to Rockefeller Center. {Unfortunately, Tina Fey was M.I.A.}




A very conveniently placed LOFT resulted in a serious bling upgrade: thanks to a massive sale, I was able to snag a jeweled golden chain cuff, two simple stretch bands and a white & gold striped infinity scarf. Say what you want about Ann Taylor, LOFT never lets me down when it comes to the frosting. {How to Lose a Guy references will be appreciated here.}


This cuff matched my outfit perfectly--so clearly a sign from the fashion gods. I am obsessed with how perfectly it matches my dress and my favorite watch. It was too good a deal to pass up, and I was too excited not to wear it out of the store. I'm not the only who does that, right?




The rest of my sparkly loot will be making an appearance soon, with a more gold-themed outfit. Funny how everything seems to match each other. It took me longer than I'll care to admit to realize that the lightweight tan and gold striped scarf was actually an infinity scarf...and once I did, I was smitten.


A little retail shopping later and it was time for me to head home, but not without one more, less organized shopping stop....






Having felt a bit a bored during my latest thrifting adventures, and unable to afford anything at the lovely store windows I was tempted by, I had decided that (time allowing) NYC would be the perfect place to take my second-hand shopping to the next level: pay by the pound! After extensive research a quick yelp search, I came across Green Village, a warehouse of  clothing and furniture located in Brooklyn that fit my budget: pricing was $2/lb {with a 5 lb maximum.} So off we went, in search of buried treasures in the land of the hipsters.




Luckily for me, my thrifting partner in crime was down for the challenge, and so, two non-New Yorkers went off in search of adventure! After a bit of difficulty navigating the freeways of Manhattan we made our way into Brooklyn and found what we were looking for. Furniture was pilled inside and out of the two-story tall warehouse with many rows of blazers, winter jackets and various clothing by the front entrance. As you can see from the photos above, this place meant serious business and required lots o' patience to find what you had come looking for.






























When visiting larger thrifting stores, it's a good idea to walk around the place: get your bearings, and figure out which sections strike your fancy and which ones you could care less about. We were there for clothes and accessories {surprise, surprise} and decided to avoid the back rooms filled with scrap metal and furniture. After a an hour of digging through racks and scanning of the section of bags & boots, we tallied up our damage. To our disappointment, the pay-by-the-pound deal only applied to the piles of clothing in the back--a dimly lit area that was too cold to spend much time in. Instead, we opted to pay tag price for the more select pieces from the front racks. My only purchase was a good one: a light brown, unapologetically Birkin-style tote with a faux-croc embossed flap and fringe. Totally awesome at only $12.

It's a perfect handbag size: not too big to be cumbersome, but large enough to hold what daily essentials. Plus, the inner dividers will hopefully keep me more organized than purses of the past. I can't get over the fringe detail on the front and the embossed "Biki" label which reminds of: a. '70s era Biba fashion, and b. the manufacturers not-so subtle acknowledgement of the Hermes "Birkin" silhouette that this bag so clearly emulates.


All in all, my Sunday of shopping was a success! I've still got the pay-by-the-pound bug and am searching for more stores that offer it, just a little bit closer to home.

xox,

Pardon the Michael Scott reference, actually, don't. This edition of friday finds features my new favorite winter coat: a brown & tan tweed A-line jacket. I love the enamel buttons on it, which inspired me to pair it with a burnt orange sweater {with similar buttons!}

I've never understood short-sleeve sweaters or crop tops; why would anyone want cold arms during sweater season? Who would pay money for a too-small shirt and willingly bare their midriff?

Of the very few shopping rules that I follow, these two, very sensible thoughts have dictated many of my purchases over the years. That is, until I found a striped & cropped, short-sleeve sweater during my last thrifting spree that changed my mind forever. Ah, the power of stripes! 


Against my better judgement, I snagged this top thinking that I might get inspired. Cue thrift purchase numero deux: a lightweight chambray tunic in the perfect shade of blue and the perfect length to layer under my new striped purchase. C'est parfait!

 striped top: Vince// jeans: Madewell// clutch: vintage// watch: Miachel Kors// flats: Ferragamo// ring: David Yurman// shades: Ray Ban






And in other news, I'm linking up to one of my favorite resources for thrifting addicts: Thrift-a-holics weekly!  

xox,

A few weeks ago, in the midst of a massive thrifting spree, my lovely friend Amanda and I discovered a new section of the store: pochos & shawls. It may have been the fatigue or overwhelming hunger that caused us to buy matching shawls, but I like to think the thrifting gods smiled upon us! {and our closets}

So I didn't realize that it was my half birthday until my mom send me a congratulatory text at work...whatever.

It's the perfect excuse to finally show off a sheer cream dress I scored a while back. The only problem? It's sheer. Throw that sucker on over a basic black strappy dress, toss on some black peep-toe way too high heels and I'm set.

My most loyal readers will recognize that my photos look a bit different. Yeah, I upgraded. The move from bedroom to dining room was a no-brainer.

Fancy artwork? Check.
Using the flash on my camera correctly? Check.

Now if only I could figure out this pesky red-eye sit-u-ation...hmph.

So this outfit post is a day late, but image-heavy, so you'll have to forgive me. Let's move on and I'll promise to never leave you hanging again!

Among my favorite fashionistas-turned-actresses is Kate Hudson. FYI: her mom went to my high school, so we're pretty tight.

I've always admired her off-camera style: she's a bohemian princess who is a secret label whore. Her string of on-screen roles haven't been that great, but I'll always love her as Penny Lane in Almost Famous. {Although 99% of that love can be directly linked to her fabulous jacket. Remember that jacket?}

via {mg}

Pulling off as much shag fur trim as Penny Lane is quite difficult for those of us not living in the '70s. I was stoked when I came across a gorgeous tan suede jacket with white fur trim.

Drumroll please...






I am obsessed with this jacket! Not only is it in great quality, but it's got a modern fit and side pockets, all the better to keep my hands warm in the winter months.

Now for the price:

GPOY: braggy cell-phone shot of my receipt. Whatta deal.

It's quite a monochromatic outfit full of shades of cream and tan, perfect for fall.

bisous,