$6 Polka Dot Dress

I picked up this polka dot dress for $6 at the thrift store the other day. I will probably be too lazy to get around to taking a picture of me wearing it in real life, so y'all will have to settle for this fitting room shot.

I wear it with a cardigan and some combat boots right now because it's cold, but I think it will be a great little dress for the summer. 

Thank you, thrift store, for always being there for me when I've have an irritating day at work and need to participate in some retail therapy but can't afford to actually spend money. 

Clearance Dress from Target

Sometimes I am surprised to find some really nice things on the clearance rack. Lately, I've been having a lot of luck with Target clearance. I highly recommend their clearance section.

I am always skeptical of anything found on the discount rack, and for good reason. You shouldn't buy clearance clothes without trying them on--that's my policy. A reason the item might be on clearance in the first place is because it might have a strange fit or weird fabric. You definitely won't know for sure until you see it on yourself!

So when I grabbed this dress off the rack, I didn't have high hopes but I couldn't resist--look at the price, for crying out loud!

 The dress actually fit quite well! It was definitely worth the price.

I wore my new dress with leggings, boots, a tie at the waist, and a long-sleeve shirt layered underneath. Very cozy!

$12 Fall Outfit

Are you looking for the perfect fall outfit for an affordable price? How about a dress and jacket for just $12? Well, my friends, look no further than your local thrift store!

I got this dress for $6. It didn't need any real adjustments, but I did sew between the buttons so there wouldn't be any gapping. The jacket was $8, and it's just perfect for days that are a little chilly, but not too cold. It also didn't need any alterations.

I'm so happy with these two pieces! I'm excited to get a lot of wear out of them during the coming months.

$6 Blue Dress

This little dress came from the thrift store a few days ago. It was $6. And look at the cute zipper detail!

As you can see, it was a bit large for me.

But it's nothing that some simple sewing (and I mean SIMPLE) can't fix. 

Voila! It fits fine now.

Pink and White Polka Dots

Thrift find! I got this at the local thrift store for $6. I love it! I didn't take a before picture, but it had these really worn out looking pleats in the skirt. I took the thirty or so minutes to iron them out, and it was a great choice! It looks so much fresher and newer now.

I also took in the top a wee bit. It was just a tad bit large for me.

So, there you have it. Two simple fixes, and this dress is perfect for me! And for just $6. I feel great about it!

Clearance Finds: Striped Dress

I found this dress on the clearance rack at Target yesterday. Target's a pretty good place for clearance shopping because they usually have a pretty large amount of stuff on the racks, so there's plenty to dig through, and they know what it means for something to be on clearance. Some stores say something's on clearance if it's 20 percent off. No way. That's no clearance.

This dress was was originally like 20-something bucks. I got it for less than 9. That's like a lot of percent off. (Am I good with numbers? No. Obviously not.) That's what I consider a clearance.

And before you think, "Well, come on, it's on clearance for a reason. What's wrong with it," let me assure you that it's actually totally fine. The dress is in great condition, it fits great, and I think it looks great.

I'm wearing it with a teal shirt underneath in this photo.

OBVIOUSLY there are lots of unsalvageable rejects on the clearance racks. That's why you've gotta dig. But when you find those gems like this one, it's so worth it.

Blue or Purple?

I LOVE this dress. I got it at the thrift store for like $5. Just like this. There were no changes needed. OK, so maybe I took in the sides a tiny little bit, but I didn't even have to do it.

This dress is awesome, and someone just got rid of it, and then I got to buy it, and now I get to wear it, and I love it. So, yeah, that rocks.

This is why it's worth digging through the racks. 

Also, this color: is it blue or purple? I say purple, but it's kind of in that weird middle ground where some people say it's blue. 

Ruffly Red

 I picked this dress up for $6, I think. It was really cool as is, but I decided to make a couple adjustments.

I shortened the dress by about four inches. In addition to hemming it, I cut out the shoulder pads and stitched together the top so it won't accidentally come open. 

Now it's time for a silly gif.

$5 Grey and Cream Stripe

I picked this dress up at the thrift store for $5. It had shoulder pads, and there was a makeup stain on the collar. 

I cut out the shoulder pads, and I was able to remove the makeup. 

I've never heard of this brand before. Also, I don't know in what universe this dress is a size six, but I like it. 

Black and White Stripe Dress

I picked this dress up for probably $4 last year.

I wanted to make it a little more wearable for summer. I had already shortened the sleeves a bit from their original state. I also added a little snap at the top of the collar so that it's got a high collar instead of a v-neck type collar. 

For summer I decided to hem up the skirt a bit. I didn't cut anything, because I haven't decided if I want to leave it this short. I do like the original length quite a lot, so I'm not committed to the hemming yet. It is totally great now for summer, though!

Altered Red Wrap Dress

I got this dress for probably.. $6 at the thrift store. It looks like it could be homemade, but there are some remnants of a tag that once was, so it seems it was purchased.

The sleeves were full length, so I went ahead and shortened them. I also took out some fabric in the neck/shoulder area because it was ill-filling before. I think I had to remove some shoulder pads. I added some snaps to the bust. Done. It was way easy, and I'm super happy with the dress. I got multiple complements on it today, so that's gotta be a good sign.

DIY: Clearance Rack Dress to Skirt Transformation

This is literally one of the easiest DIYs you'll ever do. It's all about finding just the right dress to butcher.

I found this dress on the clearance rack at Kohl's a while back. This dress is a great candidate to turn into a skirt because it has a wide elastic band in the middle (which will become the waist of the skirt) and no pesky zippers or anything complicating things.

I picked a dress that was a size or two bigger than I'd actually wear, were I to actually going to wear it as a dress. Because that elastic band is meant to sit at the waist as a dress, it will be kind of small as a skirt unless you go for a bigger size--you need that elastic to fit comfortably around your hips (unless of course you want a high-waisted skirt. That's up to you!).

A great thing about this is that it doesn't matter what the top of the dress looks like because you only need to be concerned with the skirt. So even if the dress is kind of ugly or ill-fitting, it's okay! And hey, that's probably why it was on the clearance rack to begin with, right?

Start cutting off the top of the dress where the fabric meets the elastic. Take your time to ensure you don't miss-cut anything.

And...once you've hacked off the unwanted part of the dress, you'll have yourself a lovely skirt! This is an inexpensive way to expand your skirt collection. You just have to have a good eye for ideal dress-to-skirt candidates!

Grandma Floral Alteration

This looks pretty much... exactly like something my grandma would have worn. At least the fabric does. I love this dress because the fabric also looks and feels like bed sheets. Nothing like feeling like you're wrapped up in sheets all day, right?

I altered this dress by shortening the sleeves. They were 3/4 length before, but I felt that it would be more versatile with shorter sleeves. 

A quick Google of the tag shows that dresses from this brand are going for anywhere from $15 (and probably lower) to like $50. Hm...should I not have hacked off those sleeves...? I got the dress for $6, I think. 

Closeup of the awesome bed sheet fabric.

Floral Blue Alteration

I picked this dress up at the thrift store a couple years ago, so I don't remember how much it was, but  it was probably about $5. It doesn't have a tag, so I wonder if someone made it at home. I wore it many times just as it was when I bought it. I loved it, but eventually I felt like it was just not actually that great. I don't know why or how, but one day I just didn't love it anymore. I put it in my closet for months, always meaning to wear it or alter it, but I never did until just a couple weeks ago.

Here's the only "before" picture I can find. It's literally the worst, so it might not be super helpful.

.

I shortened the sleeves. They were 3/4 length before. And I shortened the skirt. It was mid-calf, and now it's just barely below the knee.  

This skirt may not look it, but it's HUGE. Hemming it took HOURS. There was just so much fabric to deal with. It was crazy.

Anyway, I feel like it's much more wearable now, and my love fore this dress has definitely returned!

Black Floral on Sheer Purple

I picked this dress up for a whopping $8 at the thrift store. It really is a ton of money for a thrift dress, but I bought it anyway. I loved the fabric, and I felt like I could make it more wearable. The brand is called New Raves, and it seems to be from the 80s.

I should have taken a before photo... oops. Anyway, step one was of course to remove the shoulder pads. They were huge.

The dress used to have a very huge top, and the skirt was fitted until it hit about mid-calf, where it flowed out.

I decided that step two should be to unpick the skirt from the top. I cut inches off of both so that the top is now a bit more fitted, and the skirt is a bit shorter and has more movement throughout.

For step three, I decided to turn the rather high round neck into a small v, and I added a tiny collar detail to it.

I've worn the dress with a full slip under it, but it would benefit from being lined. That will be step four. Maybe someday.

Tropical Beauty

I LOVE this dress:

If I were maybe three or four sizes smaller, I would wear this beauty regularly. But sometimes, you pick up a vintage find because you just LOVE it, even if it doesn't fit.

This tropical leaf pattern dress is Joni Blair, a clothing company that started in the 1970s. I'd guess this dress is from the 80s. I adore the bodice on this--fitted in a most flattering way. The sweetheart neck is icing on the cake. The thrift-store cake. Okay, that doesn't sound appetizing at all. But I do like it.

The price tag on this lovely dress? $4!

Try it With:

Suggestions for Tropical Beauty Dress by princesszandra featuring strappy sandals

Jimmy Choo strappy sandals
mytheresa.com

Strappy sandals
kule.com

Star Trek Dress: Part 2

So I tried to find more info about the purple/black dress I just posted about. The brand is Bugardi, and I'm like 99.9% positive it's from the 80s. It's a 12. I found it sold for $10 elsewhere, so it doesn't appear to be a super valuable gem, so I don't feel so bad about washing it regularly when the tag says "dry clean only."

Here's the thing. I can't bring myself to dry clean something I buy for a few bucks at the thrift store. It just seems crazy.

I'm still considering shortening the sleeves. I had pushed them up a bit here. They are full sleeves. I think it would be nice if they were short, though. If I alter them, I'll be sure to post about it. Also, this dress is rockin' with a leather jacket.

Star Trek Dress: Part 1

I picked this rad dress up a few months back. I saw it and thought this was so unique and totally weird looking, and I cant help but think of Star Trek when I see it.

So honesty, this dress emphasizes my butt and stomach in ways that confuse me, but I still love it. 

As far as renovations on this beauty go, I haven't touched it. I'm considering shortening the sleeves somewhat--to make it a little more versatile. However, if I do that, I might lose some of the cool contrast. 

I plan to post images of me wearing this dress soon, and if I make and alterations to it, I'll post all about that as well. 

Meanwhile, what a fun find, and for only $4.

P.S. Don't you love the cat toys in the background?