Cheese.

Yep.

That about sums it up. :)

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

TTT: Fighting the Thrift Whooze

Definition of Thrift Whooze:
A feeling one may experience while thrifting when the room begins to spin because there is just so much stuff.

Now Thirft Whooze is tricky because it has a tendency to sneak up on you.  Typically it goes something like this:

You're walking through the parking lot, thinking you're hot stuff - you're gonna go in there and getcha some wicked awesome deals because, gosh darnit, you deserve it!
You take one step through the doors, a quick look around and BAM!
Workers are calling for clean up on aisle 3 and other shoppers can be found circled around you taking pictures to later post on Pinterest with the caption "Thrifting: Nailed it!" underneath.

Dr. Amy's 3-Step RX for Staving Off Thirft Whooze:

 (p.s. not actually a doctor.)

Step 1:

• Make sure you've eaten in the past 3-ish or so hours.

Not that that's ever been an issue for me or anything...

But just so we're clear, passing out is not cute.

Step 2:

• Take an inventory of your closet before you go. 

I can't tell you how many times I've caught Mr. Wonderful headed to try on a shirt he already has at home.

I won't lie though, I do like watching his cute-self walk over to the dressing room.  If I can catch his eye, he'll usually wink at me.  :)

::sigh::

He's dreamy...

Uh-hem.

As I was saying...

Step 3:

• Make a list of needs and then wants before you go.

There's something magical about lists.  They make "Maybe I'll try to get to this" plans so much more concrete because they're always sitting there, staring back at you, judging you...
That is, until you're able to check an item off, and then it's like "Sweet!  I accomplished something!"

Note, I purposely wrote "needs and then wants" on this step - not a typo or coincidence.  Always shop needs before wants.  It'll make you and your budget happy. :)

WIWW: Officially Color Blocked

Outfit Details:

• Cardigan:  Thrifted
• Dress:  TJMaxx
• Belt:  Thrifted
• Shoes:  Gift (they're Daisy Bluefins and they're the most comfortable shoes EVA!)
• Dogs:  Rescued :)

TT: 3 Simple Steps to Color Blocking

I have a thing for color.

In fact, I'm pretty positive if I let my creative juices flow to their lil' hearts content, I'd probably end up looking like a mash up of:

Lisa Frank:

 

And Rainbow Brite:

 

Which, you and I both know would be awesome, but apparently not appropriate for the workplace.
So, instead, I color block. :)


Step 1:  Grab your handy-dandy color wheel:

I'm a visual person, so being able to actually see color pairings together helps me avoid raiding my closet.
(As a bonus, Mr. Wonderful doesn't come home to a house that looks like a clothes bomb went off inside.)

Just to give you a sneak peek into my nerdtastic color-obsessed self, in addition to my handy-dandy color wheel, I also have my side of the closet divided by color.  As crazy as it may sound, it really does help when it comes to putting outfits together.


Step 2:  Decide how you'd like to pair colors.
Some options are:

-Neighboring
This is a grouping of 3 colors found side-by-side on the color wheel, like red, orange and yellow.
-Monochromatic
This is one color in a variety of intensities.
*Neighboring and monochromatic tend to be calmer ways to color block.*
 

-Complimentary
These are the colors you find directly across from each other on the color wheel, like purple and yellow.
-Triads
These are 3 colors equally spaced apart on the color wheel, like blue, red, and yellow.
*Complimentary and Triads tend to give a more dramatic look.*


Step 3:  Try it on.
For me, color blocking is all about how the color makes you FEEL. 
Maybe you put together a super cute orange top and an awesome blue skirt, BUT once you've put it on, you realize you just don't feel comfortable rocking blue and orange that day. 
No worries!
You can always re-try that color combo later.
Green is an excellent example of this for me.  Some days I can wear it, but other days, green refuses to work with my skin tone.   As my mom always says, "work with what you've got instead of trying to fight it."
  

Life's too short to be in a bad mood, so use your favorite colors to help brighten everyday.

"I believe in pink.  I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner.  I believe in kissing, kissing a lot.  I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong.  I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls.  I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles."

-Audrey Hepburn

MMMH: Long Overdue Color Blocking

Sorry for the late post today!
Mr. Wonderful and I spent this past weekend with my family and it's throwing me off a bit.

BUT,
it was such a good time. :)

The whole reason for the visit was because my mom wanted a family picture.

The planning of it went something like this:

Mom: I've been thinking about maybe talking to everyone to see if we could have a family portrait done.  What do you think?

Me:  Okay, sure.  When were you thinking?

Mom:  Hmmm... I don't know.  Maybe in a month or so?

Me:  That sounds good.  Just let me know and we'll try to be there.

2 minutes later...

Mom:  The picture is going to be two weeks from today at 3pm!  Tell Mr. Wonderful he has to take off work!

Me:  Um, okay... I'll let him know, but I can't guarantee he'll be able to.

Mom (who has suddenly adopted The Hulk's voice):  He HAS to take off work.  Two weeks from today.  3pm.  You WILL be there.  (and now back to regular sweet mom voice) EEE!  I'm so excited!!!

::Smiles::

Lemme 'splain.

We hadn't had a family picture taken since I was in junior high... 

and I'm 26 now.

 My brother, who lives out in D.C., also came back for it.

 It was the first time he's been home in two years.

Needless to say, we were all thinking my mom would definitely want us to somehow color coordinate.  I mean, this picture was sorta kinda a HUGE deal right??!!

WRONG.

She just wanted the memory of us all together.

'Cuz she's amazing like that. :)

What's weird though, without planning anything, we all actually ended up color coordinating anyway.  LOVE my family. :)

On Repeat at Radio Amy

Parachute - Something to Believe In

Because they're awesome.

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

TTT: The Cart Wars

Photo from versacart.com

...The cart...

Thrift store tool debated for centuries.


Okay, well maybe not centuries, but at least a few years maybe??
Hmmm....

Anywho.

There's an issue.
A Battle Royale, if you will, between...

Dun, Dun, DUUUUUN!!!!

The Carters and the No-Carters


On the side of the Carters you have:

• Sir Handsfree, who provides the ability to continue delving into uncharted spaces with both hands in order to discover hidden treasures.
• Apothecary Large Quantity,  who enables large amounts of items to be claimed.
• Prince Still Feel Your Arms, who... is pretty self-explanatory I think.

On the side of the No-Carters you have:

• Squire Takes-up Space, who frequently demonstrates excellent personal space invasion tactics.
• Sir Might B. Taken, a thief who has no problem raiding your cart while you're in the dressing room or have your back turned.
• Lord Over Budget, who denies you the ability to properly estimate the total cost of your items due to cart stockpiling.

So, young thrifter,

only one question remains...

Which side are you on?