Thrifty Thursday - Cleaning Leather

I thought I'd do a little before and after today on some of the items I've found at the thrift store.  Leather shoes, purses and belts are great buys because they are easy to restore, for the most part.  As you will see in a minute, there are exceptions.  This also applies to leather you already own, but that is showing some wear and tear.

I use Leather CPR restore leather.  You can get it at Tuesday Morning or at Sam's, Walmart, etc.  We have a leather couch, and it removes scratches from our dogs nail marks on it, so I thought I'd try it on some of the more well-loved pieces I've purchased at the thrift store lately.  Use is very simple: wipe on with a soft cloth, let it soak in for a few minutes, wipe of with a different soft cloth.

 

Let's start with the successes, shall we...

Fossil Brown Leather Purse:

This purse cleaned up really well.  It had some major scuffs and scratches to the leather.  Those all came out.  There was also a dark spot on the front of the purse, but it didn't come out.  I have another trick I want to try on it, so I'll post again if it works.

Purse Back before.

Purse Back after.

Purse Front before.

Purse Front after.

White Leather No-Brand-Name Purse:
I bought this purse only because it was 75% off of $3.  I thought it would be nice to have for summer, but I really didn't expect to have it clean up very well or to use it very much.  Well, I was wrong on both counts.  It cleaned up very well.  You can't tell from these pictures, but it was very dingy.  The picture of the bottom is truer to life, dirt-wise.  Also, I love carrying it because it goes with just about everything!

White Purse before.

White purse after.

Bottom before.

Bottom after.

And now the not-so-successful attempt.

Brown Leather Frye Sandals:

I found these sandals about 4 years ago at the thrift store but never wore them. They were a little too big.  Then I had a baby and they fit perfectly.  (Thanks Emmeline!)  I love these sandals, and I wear them even though they are scuffed.  I thought I'd try to get them to clean up some. 

Frye sandals before

Frye sandals after

Can't tell a difference.  Yeah, me either.  Bummer, right.  Oh well, I do love them, so I wear them even with the scuffs.

I hope this post will give you some encouragement recondition some old leather, either something that you already own, or something that you find at the thrift store on your next adventure!

Thrifty Thursday - Latest Haul

I went thrifting a couple weekends ago and Emmeline racked up!  And I got a few things as well.

Five pairs of shoes for the girl! Two pairs of canvas tennis shoes (tan and pink), one pair of white leather Keds, one pair of red leather t-straps and a pair of water shoes.  All under $2 a pair.

White purse for me. $3

New shirts, all of which I have worn already. Grey linen Gap, bright pink v-neck, graphic print v-neck and black v-neck. All less than $3 each 

Yahoo for the thrift!

Thrifty Thursday - Some Rules about Thrifting

 
I have never really loved shopping for clothes, because I never like spending tons of money on something and then not liking it.  The thought of going to the mall to buy jeans gives me the heebie-jeebies.  What if I buy a pair of $50 jeans and they shrink funny in the wash and get all gappy at the waist and flood-water length in the leg and I can't wear them with my new sandals?  What if I buy a pair of $50 slacks and they aren't long enough for my heels, but are too long for my flats?  What if I buy a new purse for $50 and it is totally out of style next year?  See where this is going.

However, the thought of going to the thrift store to buy jeans sounds fantastic.  I can buy some trendy skinny-leg jeans for $5 and wear them a few times.  If I hate them, well... then back to the thrift for them and for me.  Then I can get some white jeans for the summer for $5 and wear them for a while.  Until I decide they aren't as cute as I want them to be and then back to the thrift store for them and for me.  See where this is going.

Going to the thrift store to buy slacks sounds great as well.  I can get two or three lengths in every color I normally wear (grey, black and brown) in summer and winter weight fabrics for the cost on one pair of slacks at retail cost.  Of course, I won't find them all in one trip, but I'll get them all eventually.  And in the same name brands I would likely buy retail.  Right now in my closet I have Rafaella, Jones New York, Gap, Nicole Miller and Good Clothes brand slacks.  All bought second hand.

Accessories are great to find at the thrift store.  I find trendy purses and clutches all the time as well as classic purses in great shape.  I have a black leather purse I love that I bought retail years ago.  It was pricey to me (at the time) at $40, but I think that I've had it for 8 years so I was well worth it.  I found a similar one (pictured above) in brown leather at the thrift store for $5 a few weeks ago. I love buying purses and clutches second hand because they are inexpensive but I can always find some with lots of life left in them.

There are some limits, but I have found that I really can't buy retail very often anymore.  Of course, if I need something specific in a short time frame, chances are I won't find it at the thrift store.  For example, I bought my Easter shoes retail this year.  I wanted a pewter sandal which, on short notice, is hard to find at the thrift store.  I bought these on clearance for $20 (but also became obsessed with a pair of heels and went back and bought them for $30, on clearance, three days later).  Did I feel bad about blowing $50 on two pairs of shoes?  Not. One. Bit.  Because I save so much on clothing that the occasional splurge is still well within my budget.

And, of course, there are a few things that I would never buy second-hand.  Undergarments should never be purchased at the thrift store, in my opinion.  I also don't buy socks there.  Bathing suits either.  Or running shorts, bicycle/spandex shorts, etc.  All of those I buy new because of the yuck factor!  And I don't even look at tank tops at the thrift store because they are usually there because they shrank funny.  They end up a crop tops that are about twice as wide as they should be.  Or camisoles end up with the elastic sprung in their straps.  I can always find those at Walmart/Kmart/Target on clearance and stock up when I do!

So that sums up my "rules" for shopping at the Thrift Store.  Anyone out there have more rules to share, or disagree with any of mine?

Second-Hand Style: Mother's Day

Here's the first post in what I hope becomes a regular category on this blog: Second-Hand Style.  One of my Lenten diciplines this year was to wear one outfit every week that was completely purchased second hand. I do a really good job of shoping as the the Thrift Store, but sometimes I find it difficult to pull those items into an everyday rotation of my wardrobe.  I thought that by consciously making the choice every week to go all second-hand, I would jump start a personal trend.  And it worked!  I had a friend suggest that I start posting some of my thrifted outfits here, so here goes!

The weekend of Mother's Day was also the weekend of the season closer at the theatre where I work.  When Sunday morning rolled around, I was tired and felt like wearing jeans to church.  Lucky for me, no one at St. Andrew's cares what you wear!  Here's a picture of me and Emmeline in our Bargain Basement finest!

Elin's Outfit
Worthington Sweater: Thrifted $1 (75% off $4) Similar
Tank: Walmart clearance $3 Similar
Jeans: Chico's Platinum Denim, Thrifted $5 Similar, but mine are dark wash
Shoes: Frye sandles, Thrifted $2.50 (50% off $5), Can't find anything similar, but Frye sandals are around $125
Necklace: Thrifted $3.50 Sort of similar
Bracelets and Ring: probably about $10, Goody's clearance ages ago, Sort of similar
Total cost: $25 my way, $264.97 retail


Emmeline's Outfit
T-shirt: Granimals, Thrifted (but brand new) $2 Similar
Dress: No brand tag, Thrifted $3 Similar
Bloomers: No brand tag, Thrifted $.25 (1 of a bag of 8 for $2) Similar
Fake Crocs: Thrifted (but brand new) $2 Similar (with princesses) or Similar (with Cars)
Total cost: $7.25 my way, $33.23 retail

Thrifty Thursday - Dining Room Buffet

Who doesn't need more storage, right.  I think that everyone I know needs one of two things: less stuff or more storage.  We are working toward both of those.  We got lots of beautiful serving pieces and table linens as wedding gifts, but we didn't have a whole lot of storage space in the china cabinet.  We have been looking for a piece to put in the dining room to store those items and to serve as a buffet.  Well, we lucked out.  Look what we found a few weekends ago.

Welcome home, Mr. Mid-Century Modern, solid wood dresser/buffet.  We've missed you.  We bought him at one of our favorite Thrift Stores, Mission Possible in Pinson.  We can usually find great deals on furniture and children's clothes at that store.

I really love the clean lines and fine craftsmanship of mid-century pieces, especially the Danish ones.  This piece was in great shape.  All the drawers work beautifully with no sticking and there are very few scratches on the finish.  I looked online for a modern equivalent, and I couldn't find one.  However, here is a link to one on eBay.

Um, $850 is a lot more than what we paid for it.  We waffled on paying $20, which was 75% off of the original $80 price! 

Looks like we got a good deal!

This is my confession...

I have an addiction.  It isn't costly.  It isn't harmful.  It isn't damaging to my health.  But it is an addiction nonetheless. 

And I have no intention of quitting.

I am totally addicted to shopping at the thrift store.  Seriously.  Clothes, shoes, furniture, home decor items, office supplies, jewelry, purses... they all find their way home with me.

 I love it for many reasons.  Here's a few:

• I get nice stuff for dirt cheep.  Leather Fossil purse for $4.  Steve Madden pumps for a friend (pictured above) $5.  Mid-century modern Danish buffet for $20.  Chico's jeans for $5.  Yup.  All at the thrift.
• I supports charities.  I shop at the Big Saver, Mission Possible, Goodwill, Salvation Army and a few other local thrift stores; all of which support great local programs and charities.
• Retail therapy is awesome.  Sometimes, blowing $10 is good for the soul.  I could go and buy two pairs of new socks, or I could go to the thrift store and buy an entire new outfit... head to toe (minus unmentionables, of course).  A little more bang for the buck, if you ask me.
• It keeps things out of the land fill.  Just because something is at the thrift store, doesn't mean that it is trash. Someone might be on a weight loss journey and only be in a size for a few months.  I know that is one of the reasons that I started shopping second hand.  I knew I was losing weight, so why buy new pants when I'd drop a size in a few weeks months.
  
• I'm not buying new, so I'm lessening the impact of consumerism on the environment.  Sure, not by much, but every little bit helps.

A friend suggested that I start blogging about some of my finds at the thrift store.  I have neglected this blog, because I really didn't have too much I wanted to write about, but I think this subject matter should help.  This week I'll start the subject out with a Thrifty Thursday post about a recent furniture purchase.  I'm also planning on posting some of the outfits I find second-hand.  One of my Lenten diciplines this year was to wear one outfit every week that was all second-hand, so now that I'm in the practice of doing that, I hope to have some good posts.

(Did I get this song stuck in your head with the title of the post?  If so, sorry...)