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Why I Love Thrifting my Jeans

September 24, 2018 by Katie Haller

Hey guys! Today I want to let you in on a little secret of mine. For about the last year, I have been obsessed with thrifting my jeans. To me, jeans are like shoes and purses, you can never have too many. There are just so many styles and colors to choose from and you can wear jeans with EVERYTHING!! What is not to love about a great pair of denim bottoms? I’m always amazed by the prices that people will spend on a pair of jeans. I get it, some jeans are too perfect to pass up, but owning 10 or more pairs of $80 or more jeans seems a little much to me.

In the past, I’ve bought a lot of my jeans on clearance racks and I’ve often had to comprise comfort and quality for a good price. Ever since I started thrifting my jeans, I’ve been able to spend less and find great quality brands.

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

So here are my 3 reasons why I love thrifting my jeans…

1.) You can buy name brands, like Levi’s, American Eagle and Abercrombie, but you don’t have to pay the name brand price. They still have the same quality, they are just worn, which sometimes when you’re talking about jeans, worn is best. Recently I’ve bought a pair of Hollister, Abercrombie and American Eagle jeans for under $5 and I honestly can’t tell the difference between mine and the brand new ones in the store.

2.) You can alter your thrifted jeans to fit your style and not worry about messing them up. I love to distress my jeans myself. I like to take a picture of a pair of jeans I like from the store and then I try to recreate the distressed look myself. The jeans I’m wearing above were a Savers find of Abercrombie jeans. I was inspired by the Free People jeans HERE to create the bigger holes in the knees.

3.) They are guilt-free! Being a preschool teacher and a mom of a 2-year-old, expensive clothes don’t fit my lifestyle. I love that I can wear my thrifted jeans to work and if one of the preschoolers walks past me with a paintbrush to the butt, it’s no big deal.

Here are some of the jeans that I’ve thrifted over the last year. I tried to put the brand and the store they were thrifted from.

Old Navy- Savers

Hollister- Goodwill

Abercrombie- Savers

H&M- Goodwill

So there you have it. Those are 3 things I love about thrifting jeans. Have you ever tried thrifting for jeans? I challenge you to find a local thrift store in your area and look in the jean section. You have to give yourself plenty of time to look through the racks and try on all the jeans, but if you stick with it, I know you will find something that will fit your style.

Happy Shopping!!

My Thrifting Story

August 17, 2018 by Katie Haller

Today is National Thrift Store Day, so in honor of that, I wanted to share with you my thrifting story. I always love to hear about how people get into thrift shopping because everyone has their own story, so why not share mine?

Growing up, my family never spent a lot of money on clothes. My mom was always a clearance and sales shopper. She always taught me to never pay full price for my clothes, but it was really my grandmother, who I call Mimi, who taught me about thrift shopping. My Mimi was always shopping her local thrift stores and neighborhood garage sales. She would always share her latest finds with me. She was always so proud to tell me how much she spent or how much she saved on all her finds. As a mother of six kids and married to a carpenter, money was always tight for them, so Mimi always did her best to dress her best on her budget. She still thrifts and dresses her best to this day at 93 years old.

I always remembered my Mimi’s thrifting skills, but it wasn’t until I was a young adult that I started to thrift myself. Money was really tight when I first got married and sadly my wardrobe was put on hold while my husband and I worked hard to pay off my student loan dept. I decided to check out our local Salvation Army store to see if I could find anything I liked. My first thrift find was a black limited blazer for $4. I had been wanting a blazer, but I didn’t have the money to buy one. After that great find, I started visiting the Salvation Army frequently. I learned about their sales and started to find things here and there to update my wardrobe.

When I moved out to Las Vegas, I found out that my area had lots of thrift stores. It is such a transit area, so people are consistently cleaning out their closets. Within a mile of my house, I have a Goodwill, Salvation Army, and Savers, not to mention a few local stores as well. I started stopping by often and learning the sales. After Jack was born, I turned into an even bigger thrift shopper than before, because I started thrifting for him as well as myself. I feel like once you start to find those great prices on thrift finds, it’s hard to go back to shopping at the normal discount stores. As a mom, I feel guilty when I spend too much on myself, so thrift shopping always is a guilt-free way for me to shop.

Now I would have to say that my wardrobe is probably more than half thrifted. Saving for our future is really important to my husband and me. I’ve always had my frugal ways, but I never really knew how to save my money. With thrift shopping, I feel like I can still shop and save at the same time. If I was spending money on expensive clothes as much as I thrift shop we really wouldn’t be saving all that much money.

Another reason why I love thrifting is because it’s good for the environment. I wouldn’t say that I’m a huge environmentalist, but I do believe that it’s important that we all do our small part to help our environment. I recycle my trash, so why not recycle my fashion? I’ve learned that the fashion industry is one of the largest polluting industries. It doesn’t help that people are buying more clothes than ever and keeping them half as long. Of course I buy new clothes, but buying my clothes second hand gives me different feeling.

So that’s my thrifting story. What’s your thrifting story? Below I have my latest thrift find from The Goodwill. I found this floral Abercrombie dress for $4 a couple weeks ago. I love the colors, because I think it will transition well into the fall. I paired it with my Old Navy denim jacket that I found at Savers and my strappy sandals from ThredUP.

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

Spring Fashion with ThredUp

May 9, 2018 by Katie Haller

I’ve always enjoyed thrift shopping, but it wasn’t until the last couple of years that I became addicted to it. For me, I love the thrill that thrift shopping gives me. There is nothing better than walking out of a thrift store with a bag full of new clothes that you spent under $20 for. When I became a mom, it really changed the way I shopped for myself. I started to feel guilty spending too much money on myself when I knew I could be using that money towards my family. That’s why thrifting has become my favorite way to shop. Not to mention, I really love the idea of recycling your fashion. It can be so wasteful to go shopping all the time, and then only wear your clothes for a couple of months. Why not buy second-hand clothes and donate your old clothes?

I know that thrifting is not for everyone, and I feel like the number one excuse that I hear from people is that “I never find anything good.” I hear ya! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked into a Goodwill or Savers and left empty-handed. It’s hard to pick through and find the buried treasures. Plus so many of the clothes can be very worn or outdated. This is why I love shopping at ThredUP.

*This post is part of a collaboration with ThredUP. It also contains affiliate links, which means by making a purchase through a link, I will make a small commission for this blog. All opinions are 100% my own. Thank you for your support!

If you’re not familiar with ThredUP, it’s an online thrift store that sells name brand and designer clothes and accessories at up to 90% off of the retailed price. ThredUP is the perfect thrift store for the people who say they can “never find anything good” when thrift shopping. Their filter system makes it so easy to find what you’re looking for. You can filter by size, style, prices, brands and more. Thrift shopping can be time-consuming, that’s why I love how convenient it is to sit on the couch and search through the clothes. When I like something, I add it to my favorites. If you want to hold something you like, you can put it into your cart for 24 hours. The best thing about ThredUP for me is that every item that I have received from them has come to me in perfect condition. You would never believe that it was used. Unlike other thrift stores that take all the donations and sell them in the store, ThredUP only sells gently worn items. Many of their clothes still have the tag on them.

For this post, I’m sharing 3 outfits that I picked out on ThredUP. I found 2 dresses, 1 top, 1 skirt and one pair of sandals all under $50!!

One-shoulder spring wedding guest dress

I loved this one-shoulder ruffle dress. It came with the tags on it and was $7.99. I don’t have anything like it in my closet. It has very light material, so I know that it will be perfect this summer in the heat. It’s the perfect dress for a bridal/baby shower or even a casual summer wedding.

Colorful Wrap Dress

I love the fit of an empire waist wrap dress, so when I saw this dress I knew I had to get it. It was only $9.99. I think that this style of dress is flattering on all body types. It’s also a great style for nursing moms or early pregnancy. I also found these cream-colored sandals for $6.99. My sandal collection has been in need of an update lately. I’m always nervous about buying second-hand shoes because you never know what kind of condition they will be in. Every time I’ve ordered a pair of shoes from ThredUP, they have come to me in perfect condition. You can’t even tell anyone had ever worn them.

Casual work look

Obviously, I can’t ever resist black and white stripes. It’s such a classic look, so when I came across this Ann Taylor striped skirt for only $7.99, I couldn’t help myself. It has a stretchy waist, so it’s comfortable to wear casually. I also found this white blouse from Target for $7.99, which I’m currently loving. I never knew how great a white blouse can be. You can wear it with almost anything. I wore my sandals with this look. I felt like this would be a great look for work, if your a teacher or want something a little more casual for the office this summer. It’s also a great look for church.

I want to say a big thanks to ThredUP for sponsoring this post and letting me have a shopping spree! This is not the last post you will see with my ThredUP summer clothes. I’ve just had 3 more polka dot boxes come my way, so I can’t wait to share. I highly recommend checking out ThredUP if you’re looking to update your summer wardrobe. Happy Shopping to all of you!!!

Project Remade with ThredUp

April 19, 2018 by Katie Haller

It’s no secret that I love to thrift shop. I save so much money on my wardrobe by buying my clothes at second-hand stores. I am the kind of person who can’t enjoy my clothes unless I know that I got a great deal on them. Besides saving me money, I also really love the idea of recycling my wardrobe. I don’t think that most people realize just how much pollution the fashion industry produces. It’s the second most polluting industry next to petroleum. When I shop second hand, I’m not only helping my bank account, but I’m also making a small step to help preserve our planet for the future.

*This post is part of a collaboration with ThredUP. As always all opinions are 100% my own.

In honor of Earth Day, I’ve teamed up with my favorite online thrift store, ThredUP, to help promote their campaign, Project Remade. ThredUP has selected 12 artists to respond to the statement “Climate Change is Not Real”. Their reactions were printed onto second-hand T-shirts and are currently up for sale at ThredUp HERE! All proceeds are going towards the environmental non-profit organization Cool Effects. I have picked a few of my favorite designs to share below.

I’m definitely not perfect when it comes to living green, but I feel like if we all make small changes in our lives, we can do our part to preserve our planet for future generations. If you want to learn more about sustainable fashion you can check out the Top 20 Eco-Blogger You Should Be Following.

Happy Earth Day everyone!

How to Wear a Dress After you Shrink it??

March 2, 2018 by Katie Haller

Thrifty Wife, Happy Life || How to wear a dress after you have shrunk it in the dryer?

I am totally guilty of shrining my clothes in the dryer. No matter how hard I try to pull certain pieces of clothing out of the washer to hang dry, one always gets left behind. Sometimes I get lucky and it doesn’t shrink up, but every once in awhile that cute summer dress I bought turns into a tunic. So what do you do with your clothes when that happened? Do you get rid of them, or do you try to still wear them? For me, I try to still wear them. I hate to get rid of clothes that still have life left in them.

Today I want to share 3 ways that you can wear a dress after it’s been shrunk in the dryer. This dress below was from my fill-a-bag sale at Goodwill a while ago. After I picked out a few cute things that I wanted, I just started stuffing clothes in the bag without trying them on. I picked out this striped dress and when I tried it on at home, I realized that someone must have shrunk it in the dryer and ended up giving it away. Well, I always believe that someone’s trash can be someone else’s treasure, and since the dress was basically free, I wanted to get some use out of it. Here are 3 ways that I like to wear my shorter dresses.

1.) Wear it with tights. I love the look of tights in the winter. They might be uncomfortable, but they suck in your legs and smooth everything out, making your legs look flawless. When I add tights to this dress, I feel like it gives it a Parisian look.

Thrifty Wife, Happy Life || Stripe dress with black tights and booties

2.) Wear it with leggings. Wearing this dress as a tunic with leggings gives it a more casual feel. I love throwing on leggings and boots under a dress for work. It always gives the appearance that I dressed up, but really I feel like I’m wearing pajamas.

Thrifty Wife, Happy Life || dress with leggings and boots

3.) Risk it and wear it on its own. Sometimes in the summertime, it gets so hot that I don’t care how short my dress is. If you do wear a short dress, I recommend wearing it with flat shoes. I also like to wear some shorts under my shorter dresses. What I do is take an old pair of leggings that I never wear and cut them to wear as bike shorts under my dresses. This is a great trick for moms with little ones and definitely teachers, specially preschool teachers!

Thrifty Wife, Happy Life || Stripe dress with flats and denim jacket

*This post contains affiliate links.

So there you have it. There is no need to get rid of a dress that you really love just because it shrank up in the dryer. Try out these tips and see how you like them.

If you don’t have any cute dress that you’ve shrunk up on your own. Here are some fun stripe dresses that you could style up. All under $20!!

ONE | TWO | THREE | FOUR | FIVE | SIX | SEVEN

How to: Distress Your Own Denim

October 16, 2017 by Katie Haller

Today, I want to share my latest obsession with distressing my own jeans. I love the look of distressed denim, but I’ve had bad luck finding distressed jeans that I really love. They are either too distressed or not enough. I feel like the ones that I really like are way out of my price range. I feel like you shouldn’t have to spend $70 + for a cute pair of distressed jeans. That’s why this fall I started looking over some of the jeans in my closet that I never wear anymore and I decided that I would make them new again by adding some holes to them and distressing them a bit. (sounds weird to make something new by destroying them, but hey it’s the style.)

I started searching on Pinterest for how to distress your own jeans and I was confused by some of the articles I found. Some talked about using a cheese grader or sandpaper. Luckily, I was able to find a good video on YouTube that broke it down for me.

So here are the steps I took to distress my jeans.

Step 1: Pick out a pair of jeans that you want to distress. I would go for an older pair or a cheaper pair of jeans that you wouldn’t mind if you messed up. The jeans I picked for this post are a pair of Express jeans that I’ve had in my closet for probably 10 years. They needed a makeover! I recommend that you do some research first on what style of distressed jeans you want. I personally don’t like too many holes, so I kept it simple with 2 holes on the knee and a small hole on the upper leg on one side.

Step 2: I used a white eye shadow to mark where I wanted to make the cut. (I read to use eye shadow instead of a marker or pencil because it washes out easily.)

Step 3: Once you have your spots marked, start cutting.

Step 4: After you’ve made your cuts, use your fingers to fray the material a little until you see the white fibers.

Step 5: Once you’ve frayed the ends, you will be able to see the blue fiber ends. Use a pair of tweezers to pull the blue fibers out. This is the time-consuming part. I recommend you do this part in your bathroom or somewhere you can easily clean it up because it gets a little messy.

Step 6: Once you’re done with one hole, move on to the next and do the same technique until you’re done. I was very pleased with how my second pair of jeans turned out. Now a pair of jeans that I was ready to put in my Goodwill bag a month ago are my new favorite pair of jeans.

I hope that was helpful. Let me know if you have any questions. I’d be happy to help!

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