Thrifty Wife Happy Life

Helping women love what they wear on a budget

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!

Why I Love Thrifting my Jeans

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!!

Hand-me-Down Bell Sleeve Dress

by Katie Haller

Hey everyone!  As usual, things have been pretty busy around here.  I recently started a new school year at work, so I’ve been busy getting my classroom all settled in.  I actually have to say that so far, this has been the best start of a school year.  I feel the most prepared for the new year.  Everything is the way I want it in my classroom and I have an awesome teacher assistant who is helping me stay organized and on track.  The kids are great too!  As each school year starts, I always have to be prepared for some kind of challenge, but so far things are going smoothly. 

At home, I have Jack who is always keeping me busy.  We also have a furry little house guest who is visiting.  My brother and sister-in-law are on vacation for 2 weeks and we are watching their cat.  Jack loves having the kitty cat around, but I don’t think the kitty feels the same way.  
For today’s outfit post, I want to share a hand-me-down dress from my sister-in-law’s closet.  A couple months ago, she gave me a bag full of clothes that I went through.  I ended up keeping a few things and this dress was one of them.  I thought that the bell sleeves were really cute and the print was fun.  I felt like this look would be a cute dress to wear on a date night…. if we ever get around to having one. 
*This post contains affiliate links, which means by clicking and or making a purchase through a link, I will make a commission for this blog.  Thank you for your support! 

I’ve linked some similar affordable dresses below for you. 

My Thrifting Story

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! 

 

 

Simple Summer Sundress

by Katie Haller

Since Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer, I guess you can say that summer is here.  That means I’m trying to buy clothes that can get me through the heat of a desert summer.  One style for me that always gets me through the summer is a simple sundress.  My wardrobe is filled with simple casual dresses. 

This dress that I’m sharing today is from ThredUP, of course!  It’s an H&M dress that was only $7.99.  The dress was brand new with the tags on it still!  I love the pattern on this dress.  I’m trying to force myself to try out different patterns, besides stripes when I have the chance.  A dress like this is easy to style.  All you need to do is throw on some jewelry and some sandals and you are ready to go!  I wore my new Madden Girl sandals that I found at Burlington Coat Factory for only $9.99!  They are my everyday go-to sandals for this summer. 

Shop Similar Styles

Simple and Classic Outfit- White Blouse and Jeans

by Katie Haller

Lately, I’ve been working on stocking my closet with a lot of basic wardrobe pieces.  I would say that I am pretty well stocked up, but there is always room for more.  This outfit above is the perfect example of how I used 4 simple wardrobe pieces to build a fun and stylish look. Read on to learn more about each piece. 

*This post contains affiliate links, which means by clicking on and/or making a purchase through a link, I will make a small commission for this blog.  Thank you for your support!
White Blouse Thrifted from ThredUP (Target) || Similar options HERE, HERE and HERE
I didn’t know how much I was in need of a white blouse until I found this one.  It’s so simple, but it goes with everything.  I used to hate wearing white shirts because I was always worried that my bra would show through, but I recently bought some bralettes at TJMaxx (similar HERE) and they have been a real game-changer for me.  I can finally wear white tops without worrying about my bra showing through.  I’m wearing my nude-colored bralette with this top. 

Dark Skinny Jeans Thrifted from Savers (Old Navy) || Similar options HERE and HERE
I love a good pair of dark skinny jeans.  They are the best jeans to dress up.  You can easily throw on some heels or a blazer and it makes it a work look or a great look for an evening out.  The jeans I’m wearing in this post are Old Navy Rockstar jeans, but I bought them at Savers for only $2.25!!!   

Strappy Heeled Sandals thrifted from ThredUP || Similar options HERE and HERE
I’ve been wanting shoes like this for the longest time.  They remind me of Barbie’s shoes because I feel like they mold your foot into the way a Barbie doll’s foot is.  I found these shoes at ThredUP.  I’ve said this over and over again, but if you’re going to buy used shoes, ThredUP is the best place to buy them.  These shoes are in almost perfect condition. 

Black Satchel Purse Last Call Neiman Marcus || Similar options HERE and HERE
I have had this satchel purse now for over a year now and I never get sick of it.  It’s such a classic look.  They no longer have this purse at Last Call Neiman Marcus, but you can find it on Amazon HERE for under 40!! 

Before I end this post, I just have to share this last picture, because while I was taking pictures in this outfit, my favorite little guy wanted to do some modeling in his outfit too.  It was just too cute, I had to share one of the pictures.  He’s the reason why it’s been taking me weeks to write this blog post.  Every time I get out the computer to write, he pulls me away to go play.  It’s okay though.  How can I resist that face!  I hope you have a great week!!

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