labor day weekend finds

 top: thrifted, shorts: free, shoes: rite-aid, hat: free, watch: thrifted, necklace: thrifted

dear diary, 

oh how this past weekend was filled with much thrifting and lots of GREAT finds!  saturday my mom and i hit up some thrift stores when we came back from san diego and we also spend a good part of labor day thrifting as well.  here is what i found:

{1} 2 super adorable mustard yellow pillows (originally $25 at target) for $5 each 

{2} a round, blue pillow (originally $25 at target) for $10 

{3} the awesome shirt in the pictures above for $5

{4} a green link necklace (originally $10 at target) for $1.50

{5} some cobalt blue shoes (originally $25 at target) that i have been wanting for a while for $4

{6} an awesome retro dessert holder (that i am using as a jewelry holder) for $5.  

aren't these deals awesome?  i was so happy :)  there is actually a funny story about the pillows.  i found ONE yellow pillow saturday night with my mom at goodwill.  they only had one and i was kind of bummed because i really would have liked to have 2, but i loved it, so i had to get it.  then, we went to a different goodwill on monday and i found another one!  it was meant to be.  we also headed over to a different goodwill while out on monday and i found another blue, round pillow that i had previously bought a few weeks ago from goodwill!  you guys, i seriously think i have magic powers sometimes when it comes to thrift store shopping.  i mean how does one get so lucky?  thank you goodwill (and my magic thrifting powers) !

{happy thrifting!}

old town fun

top: thrifted, skirt: fitted, watch: veryjane, bracelet: thrifted, necklace: target, 

sandals: thrifted, sunnies: forever 21

dear diary,

yesterday my mom and i hopped on the train down to San Diego to see my sister Katherine for her birthday.  it was so much fun.  the train ride along the coast was absolutely beautiful.  it made me appreciate the state i live in and the beauty i get to see all the time.  

our final destination was old town san diego.  it's this quaint little area full of heritage, history, and tourist trap shops.  we looked at so many shops with the same stuff over and over, but somehow it was still fun just talking and laughing together about the strange little things these shops had.  we walked through the famous haunted Whaley house, katherine found some awesome angry birds sunglasses and a pair of hello kitty sunglasses, we got some yummy & refreshing sherbert ice cream to cool us off from the heat, goofed around, and, of course, drank lots of coke and diet coke.  

a big thank you to my mom and sister for making yesterday so much fun!  and happy birthday katherine!  i hope you enjoyed yesterday as much as we did!  

  

must thrift fall items

dear diary, 

i don't know about you, but recently i have been getting really excited for fall.  i LOVE fall fashion.  boots, scarves, peacoats, umbrellas, beanies....i could go on forever.  i can't stop thinking about all of my fall outfits and it inspired me to show you some super cute items you can thrift and add to your fall wardrobe.  here are some must have, must thrift fall items....

1. fedoras.  lately i have been wearing a fedora that patrick got for free.  it's a great way to get ready without actually having to do you hair! (one of my least favorite things)  i actually just saw some fedoras at the goodwill i was at tonight, so i know you can find one thrifting too! 

2. chambray. chambray. chambray.  this is SO in right now and they are ALL over thrift stores.  you won't have a hard time finding this super comfy, yet chic shirt while thrifting.  i love the one i got from goodwill a couple months ago because i can pair it with any style, color, or pattern.  you will not regret buying one.  

3. scarves.  scarves are a MUST HAVE fall fashion item.  they are an awesome accessory that are also very practical by keeping you warm and cozy.  thrift stores always have scarves, so this should be another easy one to find.  in fact, i found one of my favorite scarves at a thrift store.  

4. maxi skirts.  this item is going to be a little harder to find at a thrift store, although i have seen ones from target at goodwill lately.  if you can't find a maxi skirt, try finding even a maxi dress and then you can just wear the chambray shirt over the dress.  i do this a lot with a maxi dress i thrifted a couple of months ago and you can't even tell i'm wearing a dress underneath.  

5. BOOTS. these are definitely my favorite fall fashion item of all time.  they look cute with everything!  shorts, skirts, pants, leggings, etc.  i prefer riding boots, but you can choose what style you like.  this is another item i see crawling all over thrift stores all the time, too.  in fact, i just saw an adorable pair tonight that were real leather, but almost identical to a pair i just bought, so i didn't buy them :(  so, if you live in the OC, go get those boots!

6.  bomber jackets.  i love this style jacket.  it, too, goes with so many things.  it can be paired with more feminine clothes, or even more edgy clothes.  you won't have a hard time finding these at thrift stores either.  it's so fun when you find one that is vintage because the leather has so much character and life to it.

so, for this fun labor day weekend head out to some thrift stores and see if you can find some of these items!  then in the comments below write and tell me what you found!  i can't wait to hear from you! 

{happy thrifting!}  

stepped out of a magazine

as many of you know i had the opportunity last night to talk to a group of women from church about "how to shop at thrift stores," and let me tell you it was so much fun!  

they started out with a cute skit about where some different women bought their clothes from and then it was my turn to share my thoughts!  i spoke for about 15 minutes about my best "thrift store how to" tricks and then opened it up for questions.  the women had some really good questions about where some good kids thrift stores are, if the outfit i was wearing was thrifted, where are some good thrift stores to get furniture, and more.  they then had a fashion show spotlighting women who bought outfits from thrift stores.  women of all ages showed of their finds.  the MC was hilarious so we all had a good laugh and enjoyed watching the shows.  we even got ice cream after! yum......

i had the chance to talk to many of the women after who told me that they, too, love to shop at thrift stores and that they couldn't wait to try out some of the tips i gave them.  i had a display table to highlight some of the amazing things i have found at thrift stores and many women stood there talking to me about how they couldn't believe i had thrifted those things.  it was so much fun to talk to these ladies and to hear how excited and pleased they were with what i had shared with them.  

my favorite quote of the night was from a young lady while she was looking at my table: "you look like you stepped out of a magazine!"  i highly doubt that, but it made me laugh and made happy to know that people are beginning to find out that you don't need to spend lots of money to be fashionable.  

{happy thrifting!}

you free tomorrow night?

hey all you ladies out there....if you're free tomorrow night you should come out and hear me speak about how to thrift store shop!  thats right! i will be speaking to a group of women from church about all of my thrift store tricks and how to get good bargains while shopping. i would love to see some of you there and to meet some of you. it's going to be fun and we're even gonna have dessert after. YUMMY!  email me at mcmulroney at gmail dot com if you want te details :)

thrifting 101: pricing

 shirt: thrifted, skirt: fitted, necklace: etsy, bracelet: thrifted, 

watch: thrifted, sandals: thrifted, hat: free

alright my little thrifing friends, it's time for another thrifting 101!  i recently asked my instagram followers what questions they had about thrift store shopping so i can answer them for you here on my blog.  first up today is pricing.  

it is widely known that thrift stores are super cheap...most of the time.  sometimes there are items that are over priced because they are designer or "popular."  most of the time you'll find this at the more well known thrift stores like goodwill or salvation army.  goodwill is probably one of the more "expensive" thrift stores (if you can even call it expensive).  the little mom and pop thrift stores are always the cheapest and they usually have really good sales.  here is what i usually pay for things that i buy.  hopefully this will provide you a little guide as to what is too expensive to spend money on at a thrift store.    

i think that over $10 for any clothing, besides a suit, is way too much money to pay.  i usually try to pay only around $5 for anything clothing related.  

as far as shoes go, i don't pay over $10 either, unless they are really nice boots or heels.  in that case $15 is usually my max.  i usually end up paying between $5-$8.    

for jewelry i typically don't pay over $5.  watches i am willing to pay more for if they look nice, but i definitely won't pay over $10.  

are you noticing a trend in the pricing?  that's because thrift stores are SUPPOSED to be cheap!  anything that is over $10-$15 is usually too much to pay.  that's even pushing it.  

i hope this helps you decipher what is too much to pay while you are out thrifting.  remember, it's all personal as well.  if you really love an item and you have to have it, then buy it!  because if you leave without buying it, and regret doing so, you usually can't go back to get it.  most likely someone else will have bought it!  so good luck and have fun! 

{happy thrifting!}          

vintage shopping spree

today was an awesome day.  i took the day off because patrick and i work on each other's days off, so we never get to spend a whole day together.  "and what did we decide to do together on our day off," you ask?  what else, but thrift store shopping!  yep, we spent the whole day hopping from one thrift store to the next to vintage/antique shops and we had a blast.  

we specifically went to long beach because some friends of ours told us about an antique mall there and a street called "retro row."  most of the shops we went to were more vintage shops than thrift stores so they were pretty pricy, but it was still fun to shop around and see some amazing pieces full of history.  here are some pictures from today.  hope you enjoy!  

{this picture makes me really happy because those were my wedding colors!}

do you guys have some favorite thrift stores or locations?  if so, i would love to know so i can go and check them out!