Phew, what a week. I am SO glad that it is over. The weather has been fabulous - hot and sunny most days. In fact it was so hot and sunny that the two outfit photos below had to be taken under the cherry trees at the end of the garden!!
For the work Christmas party I wore the cut-off maxi dress with orange and blue - blue accessories and an orange flower (top left). I had a great time. The next day I opted for an easy smock dress in polished cotton which would be nice and cool while attending to post party clean-up (primarily collecting the leftovers and using an old supermarket trolley returning it all to the office). I got some funny looks pushing the trolley (loaded with half-empty booze bottles) along the Dunedin streets in my smock but I just kept smiling.
Today I wanted to be even more casual so I wore a floaty gypsy skirt (bottom left) with a tee shirt and my yellow sneakers (top right). As the office closed early due to it being the last working day before Christmas I managed a quick trip to Toffs and to the new Hospice Shop before coming home.
Nothing today at Toffs for me, but I don't mind because I want to show you that even in Dunedin you can find designer labels on the $2 rack. A couple of weekends ago I scored a Diane Von Fustenberg brown knitted sheath dress. Sadly its a bit too small (and its unlikely I will reduce my curves over Christmas) but as it is such an iconic label its worth posting about. I imagine it will end up on Trademe. I also found a black quilted Charles Jourdan handbag with chain handles which has proved extremely useful and I have used daily since I bought it.
The following weekend I found an awesome gypsy dress (bottom left) which I think will be perfect for the wedding we are going to after Christmas. When I got home I googled the name on the label and was stunned that it is Diane Freis and that some dresses were a couple of hundred dollars on e-bay!!
Again, it was at Toffs for only $2. That same trip I found two other dresses on the $2 rack, another Osti dress and a polka dot dress both of which have already been worn and much admired.
Lastly, today, at the new Hospice Shop I found a home-made vintage wrap around bikini top (top right) for the very reasonable price of $1. I put it on over my tee shirt for the photo as I was too lazy to change.
This year has been so much fun. My "buy nothing new" clothing pledge has broadened my horizons so much. Many of my daily outfits cost less than $10. Shoes have been my only downfall. I have really loved reading all your comments on my posts and have felt supported and encouraged. I don't plan on changing my buy nothing new philosophy, although I will need new underwear in the new year. Its become my way of life and I can't imagine going back to buying all my clothes new from chain stores. Besides, it gives me the warm fuzzies to know that I have been supporting some wonderful charities: the St Vincent de Paul, Salvation Army, Otago Community Hospice, Habitat for Humanity and others.
I am not sure how much time I will have for blogging over the next week or two, so in advance, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and a safe and fun holiday season!!
Hi everyone one, I am trying to get back into the groove with regards to posting more regularly. Fortunately today there was some time for an after-work-photo-shoot:
Turquoise pleated skirt, from a school fair part of a $1 a bag
Paul Klee printed top, previously a maxi dress from Presbyterian Yellow shop for $8 or thereabouts. Now I have a skirt and a top!!
Fluoro shoes, retail. Selection of bangles all from various op shops. Yes, my hair is a bit different, I went to the hairdresser last night for some pampering.
This morning was just beautiful and as we were driving down the road to school (not late for a change) my 11 yo screamed out "Dolphins!" So, we did a quick u-turn and found somewhere to pull over and all raced over to the harbourside walkway where we had a reasonable view of a pod of bottlenosed dolphins swimming towards Port Chalmers.
Alas I was shooting blind - the camera was on the "foliage" setting which is what I use for taking photos of my peonies - and also the sun was in my eyes. So I just held up the camera and snapped off as many pics as I could. The pics are a bit over-exposed but you can definitely see fins!!!!
We are very lucky in Dunedin to live on such a beautiful harbour and it was so special to see dolphins swimming. The dolphins featured on the front page of the local paper - the photos are is fantastic and if you want to have a look click here.
I have had another busy week this week - fortunately the weather has seriously improved. Thank you to all who offered advice with the photo problem - I really appreciated the comments. I have deleted some very old boring posts to make some room and used Pic Monkey this morning. Also I am trying out a new photo layout etc, so bear with me, if things are not quite ideal in size etc.
Top left: Monday was the office Christmas Lunch so I decided to wear the very Xmasy combination of red and green. Recycled sari magic skirt bought in Ashburton, worn with $2 red tee shirt from the Hospice Shop, black waistcoat $1 Trademe, shoes retail.
Top right: I wanted to carry on the red theme on Tuesday, but mixed it with blue - blue shoes were bought new recently from Rubi, red skirt $4 and blue belt 50 cents from Hospice Shop, home-made floral top, giant pearls from Lovisa.
Wednesday was orientation evening at the school my daughter goes to next year and due to timing it was not possible to take a photo. Thursday I wore one of my favourite skirts with a retro pattern. I love the yellow orange and turquoise combination. Fluoro shoes and some bright bracelets which are out of picture added to the bright look. The tee shirt is a Breast Cancer one designed by Zambesi, it was $1 in one of the op shops I frequent.
On Friday I had a Health and Safety Study Day and it was not quite as warm so it was back into lacey tights teamed up with a black long sleeved tee shirt $2 worn with the fabulous vintage Bendon sundress from the Hospice Shop. Due to the damp weather and the fact that I had to walk back to work by mid afternoon I wore my furry shoes which have a decent sole.
Yesterday I spent a glorious time in Toffs and tried on 4 dresses and a few tops. The $2 dress rack was practically bowing to the ground it was so stuffed full. I scored a vintage Osti dress in lovely shades of blue and purple, a white sundress with navy polka dots and another dress.
Due to a serious compression problem in my side of the wardrobe I have migrated some of my winter clothes to my daughters' wardrobe and, I have chosen a few items which are too small or don't fit as well as I would like to either sell on Trademe or to give to one of the charities.
I want to sign off today with some peonies - top left is Moonstone and the fragrance is just divine. Hope you are all having a good weekend.
