Thrifty Wife Happy Life

Helping women love what they wear on a budget

My Favorite Winter Coats

by Katie Haller

Must have winter jackets
It may seem strange for me to be writing a post on winter coats because I live in Las Vegas.  We really don’t need many winter coats in the desert, but a winter coat is something that everyone should have no matter what climate you live in.  Whether you take a trip up to the mountains or have a chilly day, it’s always good to have a nice winter coat.  When looking for a winter coat you want to find something that fits your style, is practical and will also last you for years to come.  I have 2 favorite styles of coats in my closet that fit all of my criteria.  So today I want to share with you my favorites.  
*This post contains affiliate links, which mean by clicking on and/or making a purchase through a link will result in a commission for this blog.  Thank you for your support!
winter jackets

winter jackets

winter jackets
Fur Hooded Parka Jacket
My black faux fur hooded parka jacket is my favorite winter coat ever!  I bought it about 5 years ago when I was still living in Michigan from Old Navy.  I can’t remember the exact price, but I know I bought it on sale for under $30.  At first, I was worried that buying a cheap winter coat would be a mistake because it wouldn’t keep me warm enough, but I was wrong.  This coat helped me survive 2 of the coldest winters I can remember.  I have only worn it a couple times since I moved to Las Vegas, but I always hold on to it, because I never know when I’m going to be in a cold place. 

winter jackets

winter jackets

winter jackets
Pea Coat
My second favorite style of a winter coat has always been a double-breasted button pea coat.  They look so classic. I have a couple pea coats in my closet, but this blue plaid pea coat is my favorite.  I love the cut and I love the pattern.  It’s also an Old Navy coat, but I bought it at Savers for $4.  

Those are my favorite coats.  What are your favorite winter coats?

3 Holiday Party Outfit Ideas

by Katie Haller

Holiday party outfit ideas
I just love a good holiday party.  It’s the perfect excuse to get dressed up and out of the house for an evening.  Every year, my husband’s company throws a pretty good party here in Vegas.  In the last couple of years, we had to miss the party, because of Jack and no baby sitter.  This year we are taking up my brother and sister-in-law on some babysitting so we can attend and I’m so excited to have a night out with just Kevin and me.

When we first decided to go to this event, my first thought was that I needed to go shopping to find a cute new outfit for the party, but then I remembered that I have tons of clothes in my closet that I never get to wear, because well… I work full time, I’m a mom and I have no life.  I might as well let some of my nicer clothes get a night out too.  Why spend money when I don’t need to?  I decided to put together a blog post to share my options, so here at 3 outfit ideas for holiday parties this season.
(I have tried my best to link similar affordable options under each look, but since my clothes are either really old, thrifted or hard to find, nothing is exact.  Feel free to leave me a message or email if you have any questions!)

*This post contains affiliate links, which means by clicking on and/or making a purchase through a link, I will earn a commission for this blog.  Thank you for your support!

Holiday party outfit ideas

Holiday party outfit ideas

Holiday party outfit ideas
 Outfit #1- Striped dress with red and leopard accessories
This striped dress is the LuLaRoe dress that I shared last month in a post (Post HERE).  Stripes are always easy to accessorize.  I always hold on to my red necklace to use as a holiday accessory.  I also like mixing it up with the leopard clutch.  For shoes, I stuck to a black bootie with a heal, because they are more comfortable for walking in.  You will also notice that I have black tights on in all these looks.  I just love black tights under a skirt in the winter.  I love how they suck everything in and make your legs look flawless.  

Holiday party outfit ideas

Holiday party outfit ideas

Holiday party outfit ideas
 Outfit #2- Metalic skirt with a black blouse
Who doesn’t love a bit of sparkle around the holidays?  I bought this silver metallic skirt about 7 years ago because I remember wearing it during Kevin and I’s first married Christmas together.  I love this skirt because it’s so easy to wear with anything black.  For this look, I paired it with the black blouse that I bought a while ago on clearance at Kohls.  These patent leather Ivanka Trump shoes are my favorite pair of shoes for special events.  They were one of my favorite deals of all time.  I found them in the clearance shoe room at Von Maur marked down to $29 from $125.  I love the height they give me.  To add a little extra sparkle I accessorized with my rhinestone jewelry.  

Holiday party outfit ideas

Holiday party outfit ideas

Holiday party outfit ideas
Outfit #3- Red houndstooth skirt with a blazer
For my last look, I have to share my favorite Christmas skirt.  This skirt was a hand-me-down from my mom’s closet.  It’s from Express and I just love it!  The red makes it the perfect holiday skirt.  I wore it with my black blazer because I figured that it could double as my jacket while out in the evening.  For jewelry, I accessorized with my rhinestones again.

The party is tonight, and I’m still deciding which outfit to wear.  Which do you like best?  I will share what I pick on my Instagram!

Like the post? Don’t forget to pin it for later!

3 Holiday Party Outfit Ideas #holidayoutfits #outfitideas

3 Must Have Scarves

by Katie Haller

I’ve always loved wearing scarves during the fall and winter, but after moving to a warmer climate, I find myself wearing scarves less than I used to.  I recently gave a bunch of scarves away on my last closet cleanout, but there are some scarves that are always worth keeping no matter what kind of climate you live in.  Believe it or not, it does get chilly in the wintertime in Las Vegas.  Scarves can offer the perfect amount of warmth sometimes.  It all depends on how you layer them.

 Today I want to share 3 types of scarves that are perfect no matter what kind of climate you live in.  These are the scarves that you will want to hold on to and not add to the cleanout bag.

*This post contains affiliate links, which means by clicking on and making a purchase through a link will result in a commission for this blog at no cost to you.  Thank you for your support!

Blanket Scarves are great!  They are still very popular and are perfect to layer over a t-shirt, sweater or cardigan.  I bought my blanket scarf I’m wearing above from ilymix, which they don’t have this particular scarf any more, but you can still find it on Amazon (HERE).

I love plaid!  There is nothing better than a plaid scarf around the holidays.  Whether it’s a blanket scarf or infinity scarf, the pattern always looks nice.  I found this grey plaid scarf at Banana Republic Factory a couple years ago on clearance for $6.  I love that you can find plaid in all kinds of colors to match whatever season it is.

Of course I was going to mention leopard.  I love to accessorize with leopard print.  A leopard scarf is the perfect way to add a little bit of print to your outfit.  I found my leopard scarf last fall at Old Navy.  Unfortunately, I can’t find it this year, but luckily Nordstrom has the almost exact scarf for the same price (HERE).

 Those are my favorite types are scarves.  Are you a scarf person?

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Thrift Store Look for $16!!

by Katie Haller

Hey everyone!  I hope you’re having a great week so far.  For today’s outfit post, I wanted to share my latest thrift finds.  I typically don’t buy an outfit when I shop, but on this particular thrifting trip, I ended up coming home with an entire look.

 On Veterans Day, I had the day off work.  I took Jack to school for the day and Kevin had to work, so I thought the perfect activity for me was to have a day of thrift shopping.  It is so much easier to thrift shop by myself, without Jack all over the place.  I went to Goodwill first, which was a little disappointing.  They didn’t have much of a selection at all, so I decided to go to Savers.  I completely forgot that Savers was having a 50% off sale for Veterans day.  Normally when I know they are having their big sales, I head over to the store right when they open because it can be kind of crazy.  That didn’t happen on this day, so I walked into the store and it was so busy.  The line was all the way to the back of the store.  I had to browse kind of quickly.  The fitting room line was ridiculously long too, so I didn’t want to try on anything.  I was excited because, despite all the chaos in the store, I was able to find 3 things that I really loved.

The first thing I found was a pair of Ann Taylor black jeggings for $2.50.  I’ve been needing a pair of black jeans for a while.  When I found this pair, in my size, for that price, I decided to take the risk and buy them without trying them on.  They ended up fitting great.  Next up, I found these cognac riding boots.  The brand is Sam & Libby and I couldn’t resist them.  They were $10.49 and they look like they have never been worn before.  I love the color!  Anything in that cognac or camel color is my favorite and it goes with everything.   Lastly, I bought another striped shirt.  This one is from American Eagle and I know it will go with everything.  It was only $3. 

*This post contains affiliate links, which means by clicking on and/or making a purchase through a link will result in a commission for this blog with no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support! 

 So there you have it, my $16 outfit!  When was the last time you went thrifting?

If you love the style of this look, I have similar affordable items linked below for you!

Striped Button-Front Shirt

by Katie Haller

I cannot tell you how many times I’ve sat down and tried to write this blog post.  I’ve been wanting to share this look for weeks, but every time I go to write, I realize that I have something else to do before I can start.  That task usually leads to another and before I know it, I’m too tired to write.  The last few weekends have been productive, but busy.  My plan was to get a bunch of blog posts drafted and scheduled for the last couple weeks of October because I’m going to Michigan at the end of the week and I know I won’t have much time for blogging while I’m there.  That didn’t happen though.  There were just more important things to get done before our trip, plus this weekend Jack decided to boycott his naps, which is not a good thing for me.  Naptime is blog time for me on the weekends.  But finally, I have a minute.  Due to not having a nap today, Jack passed out on the living room floor at 7:30, so bedtime was a breeze tonight.  With the husband sleeping too, I can finally work on a few blog posts and plan out my life a little.  Yay!

Anyway, today I want to share this super cute Amazon find.  This black and white striped button-down tank top (Find it HERE) is the perfect tank for wearing under my cardigans this fall.  This style of top is very in style right now with the buttons and the knot at the bottom.  It was only $5 on Amazon, but I don’t have Prime, so I did have to pay for shipping.  Sometimes I get nervous when ordering really cheap clothes online, but this one turned out to be a pretty good find.  Minus the poorly sewed buttons, it’s a pretty decent top.  I bought it in a small, but I do wish I would have sized up because I do like my tops a little baggier for styling. 
I thought that this top went perfectly with my new duster cardigan (HERE) from Forever 21.  I may have mentioned before that I hate going to the mall.  It’s too time consuming and too overwhelming, that’s why I’m all about mall shopping online.  I’ve been doing almost all my shopping online lately.  So I was unsure about this cardigan at first. I wasn’t sure if I should size up or down, but I have to say that I really love it.  It’s the perfect fit and It was under $13, which for a cardigan, I think that’s a great price.  I accessorized my look with my favorite leopard clutch that everyone likes so much.  I love to mix leopard and stripes.  It’s one of my favorite combos for fall. I’m also always a fan of the peep-toed booties in the fall.  These booties are the perfect color for me. You can scroll down to get all the details on this outfit! 
*This post contains affiliate links.  By clicking on and making a purchase through a link, I will earn a small commission for this blog.  Thank you for your support. 

Shop my look

Cardigan- Forever 21 (exact) || Top- Amazon (exact) || Jeans- Old Navy- Savers (similar) || Clutch- H&M- ThredUP (similar) || Shoes- Target- ThredUP (similar) || Necklace- Nordstrom (exact) || Watch- Nordstrom Rack (similar)

Pink Plaid for Fall

by Katie Haller

Hey everyone! Happy Friday! I hope everyone is having a great fall so far.  Today I want to talk about a great fall wardrobe staple to have in your closet… a plaid button-down.  I love the classic look of a button-down and the plaid print just gives it that fun falls touch.  I found this pink plaid J.Crew top on ThredUP for only $3.99.  When I saw that price for that brand, I knew I had to snatch it up.  I feel like most people go for blue or red plaid in the fall, but I thought that the pink fit my personality perfectly.  Plus I thought it would also look great in the spring as well.  My favorite way to style my button-down tops is to layer them under a boyfriend cardigan sweater.  I bought this tan boyfriend cardigan at Target years ago and it continues to be a great go-to sweater.  I’ve linked some similar items below, along with a few other ThredUP plaid shirts. 

*This post contains affiliate links, which means by clicking on and making a purchase through a link, I will earn a small commission for this blog.  Thank you for your support! 

Shop my closet

Plaid Shirt- J.Crew- ThredUP (similar, similar, similar) || Jeans- Express- Very old, I distressed them myself (similar) || Cardigan- Target (similar) || Shoes- Madden Girl- ThredUP (similar) || Watch- Jord (exact) || Necklace- Nordstrom (exact) || Purse- Last Call Neiman Marcus (similar) || Earrings- Walmart (similar) 

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