Cheaply Chic

So like I've mentioned before, I really try to stay away from Forever 21's stores, but sometimes that proves difficult when they offer particularly tempting goods.

Two examples:

This tunic/t-shirt dress is most likely totally flimsy, but if I wear a nude slip underneath and maybe belt it, I think it would make a nice relaxed summer look. Plus...$5.99? Come on now.


This item is actually in stores, and I have been so tempted to buy it on numerous occasions. It's a stylish windbreaker, which almost feels like it should be an oxymoron. I've seen it in person and it's made of swishy water-resistant fabric, which means it would function wonderfully as a raincoat, and where I'm going for college that would be a great addition to my wardrobe. Alas, it's 3/4 sleeved. If it's cold and rainy I'm probably going to want coverage on my wrists, and unfortunately this doesn't give it. I know it's kind of a picky detail, but if I'm going to spend $29 on a Forever 21 windbreaker, it had better have everything I need. Sigh...

Papel de Orejas

When I was little, I went through this major origami phase right around the same time I went through a large crafty earring phase. To combine my phases, I made these little dangly earrings with origami cranes on them. Of course, it looked rather ridiculous on my sixth grade self, but I've recently been warming up to the idea of more delicate fabrics as earrings. It seems like a natural idea, as I've always adored floral earrings made of delicate, paper-like metal.

At first, I thought that a more durable delicate material, like chiffon fabric, would make for better earrings.


But honestly, these paper rose earrings are so gorgeous. Leave it to Forever 21 to foray into paper accessories. They're totally impractical, but...I kind of love them.

Outfitted

Here's just a quick outfit from a couple of days ago...I'm catching up on old posts, so expect a whole slew of them right around now.

My cardigan is thrifted, my black tank that you can't see is from Old Navy, my shorts are from Forever 21, my shoes are from GoJane, and my sling bag was a gift from my mom, who got it from a Coach outlet.

I'm still trying to get the hang of these self-taken pictures...as you can see my poses are rather ridiculous so I apologize. I was trying to compensate for the slouchyness of the sweater, which obviously did not work out in my favour.

Copy Cat

I've been looking and looking for a cheaper version of this American Apparel jersey pocket skirt, which is $30.



And unfortunately, I've found one for $10.90. But I feel so wrong buying an American Apparel copy at Forever 21 that I think I'll give it a pass. In fact, after reading Childhood Flames' blog, I'm almost inspired to make my own.

Fabulous Florals

"Florals...for spring? Groundbreaking."
-Miranda Priestly, The Devil Wears Prada


Though Miranda Priestly may not look favourably on floral accessories, I would absolutely love it if these adorable little Forever 21 studs came and landed on my ears. They're $4.80 each and I am in love with the green and pink ones. I wonder if the Michigan Ave. Forever 21 has them in stock...

Forever 18

So I've done a really great job of waning myself off of Forever 21, but when sales like this pass by I usually can't resist.

I purchased three sweaters in total, each of which was $5.99. Crazy, right? I mean, they're not the most long-lasting sweaters in the world but I like them a lot.

This first one is a pretty, beaded sweater which I'd envision myself wearing to meet some friends for a lunch or with a dress to a nice dinner. But because I enjoy dressing up unnecessarily, I might just wear it on a day-to-day basis with some khaki shorts.


This next one is a pretty slouchy sweater, but I've been looking for a preppy sweater like this, with a decal on the chest, for quite sometime. It's a medium and definitely far too big for me, but I pinned the top and am planning to add an extra button so the top doesn't droop down so far that you can see what I'm wearing under it. I like the idea of wearing this with shorts as well, or just throwing it on over whatever during college to look more put-together than if I had a sweatshirt.



This last one has a colour scheme which pretty much fits who I am. At first I thought it would be way too long, but after I put it on I realized I could wear it as kind of a sweater-dress...I know it may seem kind of short in the picture but in person it's pretty wearable. I would probably have to wear some sort of short black slip under it but I think it'd be nice for summer evenings.

Neck A Statement

I've been loving these statement necklaces from Forever 21...I'm guessing this trend won't stay for too long and it would be nice to not invest in something terribly expensive. The only problem is that Forever 21 seems to have raised its usual prices to somewhere around $12 for most of these necklaces. I might consider investing in the last one, which is a tad more subtle and only $5.80. I've noticed one negative side to thrift store shopping...the thought that I can buy an article of clothing for $5.80 definitely deters me from getting a necklace for the same price. But I love the last one!

Don't Rain On My Parade

I love the rain more than anything, but today I was supposed to do two things: scout out a nearby art fair (which is actually quite an event) and attend a little garden party esque reception to celebrate my graduation (!!!). However, the forecast was gloomy showers and perhaps even a few bouts of lightning.

Thankfully, there were some showers this morning but it became sunny enough for me to have enough time to peruse the art fair nice and slowly. I was also able to attend the reception, though there was a large white tent set up, just in case the rain did return.

Here's what I wore!


The dress is an extremely old shirtdress from the shady sale section of my nearest Forever 21. It was a bit long on me, so I got it hemmed, but I accidentally asked for it to be too short. Today, I decided to wear an old Gap skirt underneath. I'm actually thinking of hemming the Gap skirt and taking the bottom and sewing it to this dress. Judging from this picture, it might not look half bad!

The skirt was a bit poufier than it looks in the picture, but that was probably just because I was wearing another skirt underneath it. I thought it looked a little Miu Miu-like, translated into daywear. Oh, and the belt is just a random thrift find...one of the few that really cinches my waist well.

Off The Wall

When I was younger, I went through a phase where I expressed myself by decorating my room. I covered it in black-and-white pictures of different destinations around the world that I wanted to visit because we lived (actually, still live) in an apartment and I couldn't paint the wall.

Now, I've been trying to think of more sophisticated ways to decorate my room lately, and haven't really come up with anything. Except for one day, when I took down some pictures while I was cleaning my room and temporarily hung some clothes on the nails left. It ended up looking quite cute. So now, I have two nails on my wall, where I interchange dresses, skirts, purses, and tops to fit my mood. It's quick and easy, and it's always nice to look at my wall and get a glimpse of something pretty.

Here's what's on my wall right now:


a thrifted purse ($4.00) which I love and adore...I don't know if you can tell in this picture but the purse is pleated black satin.

a lace dress...this is from Forever 21, back when I used to shop there all the time. I've recently made an effort to stop shopping there, and it's been much easier than I thought. Now, I find so many pieces at places like H&M, or even at my nearby thrift store, that are both cheaper and more resilient. That said, this is one of my favourite Forever 21 purchases...I love necklines like that, with a lace top and a tank underneath.

Where's Forever 21?

So some of you may have been wondering...if this is a blog for clothing styles, where are the Forever 21 pieces? A lot of people have a love/hate relationship with Forever 21, while others just plain love it or hate it. Personally, I'm on the fence, and I just wanted to let you guys know why I will be featuring little to no Forever 21 clothes on this blog.

I'm not going to go into some sort of rant about how we need to be ethical and save the world. Some of you out there have the luxury of shopping at higher-end retailers and being more picky about who you buy your clothes from, but I do recognize that there are many out there who simply cannot afford to buy "100% Fair Trade" clothing and have to look to places like Forever 21 to have wardrobes that consist of more than plain jeans and T-shirts. What I want to do with this blog for you guys is to show you how you can continue to keep style in your wardrobe while not spending tons of money. Everyone and their uncle has heard of Forever 21, and everyone is aware of the great deals and cute pieces they stock. But I want to show you guys some unexpected bargains that may not quite be as cheap as Forever 21, but will probably be quite close. I myself have transitioned from buying clothes just from places like Forever 21 to perusing the sale section at Net-A-Porter, a store that I thought I would never even dream of buying something from. Hopefully, I can help you do the same thing by scouting out some unexpected sales for all of you reading this blog.

P.S. Sorry about not posting yesterday! I had a test worth 25% of my grade and I had to study basically the entire day, so I wasn't able to post anything. But I'll definitely make up for that today, so come back later for more Recessionably Chic :)