friday::FASHION

For those of you that are all about comfort but still want to look stylish here are four simple things to remember when either shopping or dressing: C.T.P.S.

Color:

Even when wearing a plain cotton T-Shirt, a color is always more flattering than a black or gray. Color is more stimulating to the eye and gives it something to look at other than a blank canvas so if you’re going casual-cute, use this choice and put on some color!

Texture:

Texture can be glitter, ruffles, pleats, fringe, fur, beads-- anything that adds dimension to the garment. Texture is also very stimulating to the eye so if you want to go sort of fancy or fur-coat vintage, texture is your main element of choice!

Pattern:

Whether it’s classic pin stripes, bold cheetah spots, or a delicate floral, pattern “funifies” any outfit. Even if you’re wearing a plain black T-shirt and jeans, you can tie a bold-patterned scarf around your neck and have it look more fun!

Shine:

This is my favorite. Shine can be may things; metallic, beading, even leather. Shine obviously stimulates the eye and gives it something to look at. Anything that catches light would be considered shine.

Next time you go to your closet to pick out something to wear, try to find at least one of these wardrobe elements to incorporate into your outfit.

FRILLS FOR THRILLS - LET'S CONNECT!

Sarah

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friday::FASHION

let your lips do the talking.

I'm so happy that bold colored lipsticks are on trend this fall because it's such an easy, chic way to incorporate color into a wardrobe. Wear it with neutrals or wear it with other saturated colors, just make sure the color compliments your skin tone.

From left to right Wearing: Revlon's "Siren", MAC's "Myth", and Boots Botanics' "Rose"

Keep it classy by toning down your bronzer/blush. Also, try just mascara and maybe some highlighter in the inner corner of your eye and under your brow bone. A clean face will keep the lips from looking drag if you know what I mean!

Too timid to paint your lips red? Try a nude or pale pink lip with more dramatic eyes. This is more of my everyday look because dark lipstick tends to be a little more high maintenance on me.

If au natural is more your thang, consider spicing things up with a tinted lipgloss. Just wear something on those smoochies!

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friday::FASHION

ten things about thrifting

There's something intimidating about thrift stores.

It's not the same intimidation that you experience when you shop in an expensive store with snooty sales people and high price tags, but it's really just the opposite.

Obv.

You know that musty smell masked by a cheap, nauseating air freshener you're hit with the moment you walk through the doors?

It's that.

It's the fact that you march up and down aisles with a shopping cart the same way you do at the grocery store.

It's the massive rectangular warehouse lined with piles, racks, and shelves crammed with other people's junk--and the crazy hoarders sifting through said junk looking for a "deal".

Well, I have become one of those crazy people (minus the hoarding, of course). I was incredibly intimidated by the idea of "thrifting" at one time, but I've figured out a few things since I started, that help me have a successful shopping trip every time.

Make Sure you Have Enough Time to Stroll: Thrift stores can be over-stimulating and if you’re in a rush, you’ll be wayyyy too stressed to find anything. Make sure you have plenty of time to shop slowly. My favorite time to go is in the middle of the day or early evenings. I never go on weekends because it gets too claustrophobic in there!
 
Choose a Nice Location: Only go to a thrift store in a nicer part of town. The nicer the community is, the better their second-hand items usually are, which makes your thrifting experience a lot easier.
 
Go with Specifics: Since thrift stores are filled with a mish-mash of items, it's best if you know what you're looking for. I usually go with some sort of color-specific agenda since I know that most of the racks are organized first by size, and then by color. This helps me block out all of the chaos that I know I'm not interested in.
 
Skip the Cotton: If you are grossed out by the idea of wearing someone else's old t-shirts, just skip the "Knit Tops" section. You can find some quality items in that section, but the majority of it is stretched, stained, or stinky. Instead, head towards the sweaters or blouses.


Have a Use in Mind: The low prices and “here today, gone tomorrow” mentality are a good thing, but often lead to impulsive purchases that you’ll never wear. When you’re inspecting a garment, think to yourself “What do I already have in my closet that I could wear with this?”

Put it in the Cart: Thrift stores are a jumbled mess, so if you see something you might want, put it in your cart so you don’t misplace it! Make sure that you keep looking at it as you shop the rest of the store, and try it on before the final decision time.

Inspect the Clothes and Try Them On: Most thrift stores do not accept returns or exchanges, so it is important to inspect your garments for stains or rips before you buy them. Even if your sizing is always standard, most of these clothes have been washed and dried and maybe even stretched, so be sure to try everything on.

Don’t Buy it Unless you Love it: Even if it’s a $3 blouse, don’t buy it unless you know you’ll wear it. On the other hand, even if you don’t know what you’ll wear with it, if you love the item, buy it because chances are, it’ll be gone if you decide to go back for it later!

Clean Your Clothes: You never know how long your new old blouse sat in the previous owner’s garage before they got around to donating it, so you never know what kind of germs might be living in the garment. No big deal! Just make sure you wash it before you wear it.

Don’t Give Up: You must, must, must keep trying and shop often in order to score at these stores. It’s hard at first, but I promise that it gets easier! Maybe take a friend with you to divide and conquer!

I hope that helps everybody! Don't be afraid to check out your local thrift store. When I first started, I would only look at the "home" section for things like baskets, vases, and lamps.


So, there is definitely something for you--no matter what your comfort level is with second-hand shopping!  

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friday::FASHION

benefits of a belt

One of my wardrobe essentials is a leather belt.

I own about three and purchased them all at the thrift store for about $2 each. They are an easy way to add shape to a shapeless blouse, or coordinate with your my winter boots that you I wear. Every. Single. Day.

As you can see below, I wear my belt with a pencil skirt, over layers, or with high-waisted jeans. I think we can pretty much all agree that belts are always hip (pun intended) but instead of hiding it under your top, let the leather do the talking and wrap it up on top of your outfit like the ribbon around a Christmas present!

Three benefits of a belt:
1. Defines your waist, even if you don't have one
2. Adds visual interest right in the middle of your outfit
3. Keeps everything in place (ie. pants up, shirts in, weird pooches from wearing a bulky fur vest nonexistent, etc.)

Tip: Never buy a full-priced belt. If you’re not ready to venture into the musty thrift stores yet, try a discount store like Ross, Marshalls, or Burlington Coat Factory.

Will you consider the way you wear a belt?

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friday::FASHION

cheap? i prefer "inexpensive."

I’ve been buying my own clothes ever since I was old enough to babysit. Because of that (and my so-low-it-should-be-illegal modest hourly wage at the time) I had to learn how to make my dollars last. Even when my paycheck increased at my first real job my expenses started increasing as well, leaving minimal slack in my shopping budget. And when Ian and I got married and had a joint account? Well, that was the worst because he saw where all our money went!

Shopping on a limited budget can be totally overwhelming and not fun at all. But I think it’s important to determine on what you’ll splurge and on what you’ll save so that you don’t have to think so hard.

Luckily I’m blessed with a husband that loves when I look good just as much as I do (even though he tells me I look good when I know I don’t -- awww....). He budgets a monthly “allowance” for me to spend on clothes. I’m spoiled, I know. But the truth is I’d want to spend that money anyway so it’s actually a good thing in more ways than one...

An outfit that cost me about $40 minus the shoes (those were a splurge item)

Because I love all types of patterns, textures, and cuts, I tend to gravitate more toward inexpensive stores so that I can collect a lot at one time. Sometimes though, I’ll splurge on classic pieces like a quality pair of jeans, a winter coat, or an oversized purse. If you think you might want to splurge on an item, consider your CPW or cost per wear. Divide the cost of the item by how many times you’ll wear it and then determine if it’s worth the asking price.

When it comes to purchasing trendy items, try to buy them cheap. They may be on the hot-list this week but they’ll be on the not-list next week.

And lastly, as my mom always taught me, don’t buy it unless you love it. Sometimes you shop for fun regardless of whether you need it or not, so if there is something you absolutely adore, GO FOR IT! Too often we ask ourselves do I need this? Sometimes we just need to be spontaneous and ask will I be thinking about this item when I’m lying in bed tonight? If the answer is yes and the price agrees with your budget, get it! (And yes, that whole lying-in-bed-awake thing actually has happened to me.)

So what about you? Would you rather spend $50 on one quality item, or on a few inexpensive pieces?

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new column::LIFESTYLES

We know (from personal experience!) that being a PW is about more than just church issues. It's about marriage, family, money, politics, hospitality, forgiveness, frustration, ecstasy - and the list goes on. It's about our public life and our private lives.

As we seek to be godly women who care for our families and support our husbands and love our church members and train our children and, and, and... often we totally forget to take care of our own needs. We forget to be healthy. We forget to look nice. We get overwhelmed by pinching pennies to stay within the budget.

So we want to bring some freshness to CLUTCH. Here are three new writers who will be blogging under our new LIFESTYLES column. A slight departure from our normal content, but we hope you'll enjoy it.

Look for these writers on Fridays!

fashion::SARAH

Hello! I’m Sarah Nelson. I’ve been married to Ian, the most incredible man I know, since September 2009. Six months into our marriage we moved to Portland, Oregon to work at a church called Solid Rock and I have just loved living in the big city!

I studied apparel design at Oregon State University in Corvallis and then switched to Interior Design when I transferred to Portland Community College. Though I never finished college, my passions still revolve around design and creativity.

I'm a part-time administrative assistant at our church and a full-time wife! My personal blog, Frills for Thrills, is an outlet for me to share my passion for fashion and interior decorating, crafting and thrifting, and all the other fun things that come with being a girl! Over at Sitting Solo I also write about the blessings and burdens that come with being a Pastor's wife. Otherwise, find me right here on CLUTCH!

I am so excited to write this fashion column on CLUTCH to share affordable and creative tips to broadening your closet and style. I hope you'll share your ideas with us too!

No matter how natural, conservative, or eccentric you are -- all women long to feel beautiful. I believe fashion is an easy way to feel good about ourselves and confident standing next to our man when other women in the church try to get at him! : )

fitness::MICHELLE

Hi! I'm Michelle.

I strug­gled with anorexia and obses­sive over-exercise for four years, but was brought out of my addic­tion and restored to health through a real rela­tion­ship with God and an under­stand­ing of His plan for my life.

Because of how poorly I treated my body in the past, I am amazed every day that my job is now help­ing oth­ers get healthy the right way — through a bal­anced lifestyle of proper nutri­tion and exer­cise. You can read about my jour­ney in my book, The Look that Kills: An Anorexic’s Addic­tion to Control.

Now I'm the new mom of baby Noah, as well as a nutrition coach and fitness instructor. I'm a pastor's wife in Austin, TX.

If you’re into the aca­d­e­mic thing: In 2005, I received my Bach­e­lor of Arts in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Stud­ies with a minor in Psy­chol­ogy from The Uni­ver­sity of Ten­nessee in Knoxville, TN. In 2010, I earned my Mas­ters of Arts in Chris­t­ian Education (Women’s Min­istry Con­cen­tra­tion) from South­west­ern Bap­tist The­o­log­i­cal Semi­nary in Fort Worth, TX.

Every­thing I do revolves around my top pri­or­i­ties: my faith in Jesus Christ, my incredible family, and my com­mitment to a balanced lifestyle of fitness and proper nutrition.

finance::HEATHER

Hi there, I'm Heather! 

Growing up a pastor's kid, I always said I would never marry one, but love has a way of changing things. When the guy I'd had my eye on since middle school announced he was going to study theology, I gave in.

Andrew and I have been serving in our first two churches for almost a year. We are also blessed with a 2 year old son, Jaden, and a six month old baby girl, Lilly.

Between being a PW and mother of two little ones I rarely have time to "play," but when I do, I love to scrapbook, decorate, shop, and cook. Budgeting/Finances is another one of my hobbies that grows from lots of personal experience. Raised in a single-income home, serving as a missionary to India for two years, and currently raising a family on one income has taught me a lot about economy. I enjoy finding ways to minimize our spending while still providing nice things and creating quality experiences for my family.

During these financially challenging times I know I'm not the only one pinching pennies, so I am looking forward to sharing some of my tips with you and hearing your tricks too. My prayer is that we grow together as we seek to bring glory to God in the way we use our financial resources.

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CASTING CALL::style blogger

Being a PW is about prayer, and study, and multi-tasking.
And flexibility.
And keeping cool under pressure.

And penny-pinching. Which can be quite a challenge when you also want your wardrobe to adequately represent your husband and your church.

So CLUTCH would like to add a bit of whimsy (and economic thrift!) to our blog. What trends might be attractive yet appropriate for the fashion savvy PW? How can you keep your clothing updated without breaking the family budget? What about freshening up your house or even your husband's wardrobe?

Would you like to be our trend blogger? Got an eye for style on a tight budget?

Tell us more about yourself and why you think you'd be a good columnist for PW style and fashion at clutchtalk (at) gmail (dot) com. Include a photo of yourself in an outfit that you got on the cheap. :)


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© CLUTCH, 2009-2011 unless otherwise sourced.
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Tweets, trackbacks, and link sharing encouraged.

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