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Hey guys! Sorry I haven't posted here in a while. I've become a regular contributor for http://thebudgetfashionista.com/ , so I haven't had much time to write anything else. If you like fashion but don't like spending a lot of money, you should check it out! :)

Disadvantages of Adulthood

(source)

Some days, I don't like being a grown-up much.

Sure, there are certain advantages. You get to stay up as late as you want (and pay for it at work the next morning), eat whatever you want (and bulge out of your jeans), or watch TV as long as you want (and generally turn into a pudgy sloth with no social life).

We’re in the process of buying a new house, and selling our current abode. It has been a great little house (emphasis on little) for the first two years of our marriage, but we’re ready for more space and a big, fenced-in yard for our behemoth dog to run free in.

I’ll be honest, buying a house while working full time and attempting to get through grad school is a little bit insane. Some days, my brain just doesn’t want to work anymore. Big, adult decisions like house-buying are scary. There’s no one else to blame if you make a mistake. What if you buy the wrong house and get stuck with a money pit a la Tom Hanks? What if we lose our jobs, or incur huge medical bills, or encounter any number of ruinous circumstances that leave us financially screwed and we can’t pay our mortgage?

If I take a deep breath, I realize that I’m overreacting. We already own a house, and owning a slightly bigger and more expensive one won’t be all that different. We’re careful with our finances, but what it really all boils down to is that God is sovereign, no matter if we have money to spare or if we’re financially ruined. We’re called to be good stewards with what we have, something I take very seriously, but the moment I start worrying and fretting and trying to hold onto money is the moment I miss the point completely.

So I’m crossing my fingers, praying, and hoping all grown-ups don’t end up like Hanks’ Walter Fielding.

Project Rewear: Recap

I did it.

I successfully went a whole year without buying any new clothes. Shocked?

I am a little bit, too.

Last year, when the presents were unwrapped, the bubbly uncorked, and people were resolving to be thinner, wealthier, and better-looking (or something like that), I decided to challenge myself to buy no new clothes for the entirety of 2009. “New” is really the key word here – I bought clothes that were new to me, just not new to the rest of the world.

I like clothes. A lot. Legend has it that I began to pick out my daily attire at age two, because something my mom had chosen for me didn’t “mats” (I was apparently aware of the color wheel long before I had enough teeth to say “ch”).

I treat clothes like souvenirs. I like to buy them when I travel, bringing a little piece of the world home with me. Currently, my closet holds shirts from Dublin, scarves from London, a skirt and sunglasses from L.A., Cubs shirts from Chicago. . . it’s kind of like World Market, without the well-coordinated décor, edgy music, and off-brand Nutella.

And, being a good, thrifty Presbyterian, I am also highly susceptible to the “itsareallygooddeal” disease. This illness can strike suddenly and without warning, usually within a tight radius of the Gap clearance racks. And no matter how cute that $12 Target bargain is, those add up fast, and were leaving my closet too full and wallet too, well, empty.

I also stopped buying new clothes to lessen the environmental impact of all those clearance rack spending sprees. If I don’t buy a new sweater, it means someone has to make one less sweater, and those materials and energy aren’t used. The consignment shop sweater has already been made, it’s already “out there” in the world, and by reusing it, I reduce my resource consumption, albeit by a very, very small percentage. While one sweater isn’t going to make a very big difference (or for that matter a whole year of clothes purchases) it is still something I can do, and in the end has changed by buying habits.

The rules of my experiment were simple. No buying new clothes. Consignment stores, thrift stores, garage sales, Ebay, and Craigslist were all were acceptable clothing sources. In an effort to learn a new skill, I was also allowed to wear anything I could sew myself (which sadly turned out to be, well, nothing). I could wear anything given to me as a gift, because I didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings (and I have a rule to never, ever turn down free J. Crew. Just sayin.’).

Surprisingly, my year-long experiment was much, much easier than I expected it to be. Probably the most difficult was when I traveled to L.A. and had to deal with the candy-shop assortment of colorful boutiques laid out before me. I bought accessories (not forbidden) and sought out some cool thrift stores and consignment shops. I didn’t get to clear out the H&M as I would have liked, but my shopping need was well satisfied. For the rest of the year, I found a few key thrift store jewels, and got creative with how I put the rest of my wardrobe together.

If I had to summarize everything I learned this year in one word, it would be this: Ebay.

No, seriously.

I never knew what a treasure trove of fashion awaited me in cyberspace! Ebay-ing for books, electronics, and Christmas presents was old hat, but clothing was a new challenge. One that takes patience, proper measurements, and some more patience. In order to be a successful Ebay clothier, you need to know your measurements and stick to brands you know and trust (for me it’s the ever-lovely J. Crew). I would scour Ebay for the particular item I was looking for (most of the time jeans or boots), add a bunch of items to my watch list, watch as most of them went out of my desired price range, bid on a couple, and maybe win one. It took me about two months before I finally found the tall, brown boots I was looking for (new shoes weren’t off limits, just more than I wanted to spend), and I had to buy two pairs before I found one that fit (after a few forlorn sighs, the other was promptly re-listed). But in the end I ended up with a great pair of brand new $300 boots for $60, that I wear almost daily. Jeans are a bit tricker, but if you find a brand and style you love, keep scouring Ebay for them. I bought two gently used pairs of (J.Crew!) jeans for under $12 each, and that is so much more satisfying than buying the same jeans out of the catalog for $80.

I ended my retail-fashion-fast on New Years Eve by stopping at an outlet mall somewhere in Indiana. Or maybe it was Kentucky. (We were driving home from Wisconsin on our Christmas adventure across the Midwest, and I’d spent so many hours in the car at that point, I wasn’t even sure what state I was in.) All I know is, while we were chugging along I-90, my sweet husband suggested we stop and stretch our legs and let our dog relieve her ever-patient bladder. And then we pull up in front of the J.Crew factory store. Yes, folks, my husband loves me.

All that to say that one pair of cargo pants, corduroys, and a sweater later, my fast is over. And while it will be really nice to walk into a store and buy a white dress shirt if I need one, rather than scouring every thrift store in town, I don’t think I’ll be returning to my old shopping habits any time soon. I still plan to turn first to Ebay whenever I’m looking for a new pair of jeans, and thrift stores can more than satisfy any hint of “itsareallygooddeal” disease that may come my way.

And for all of you who stopped reading five paragraphs ago because this post is so damn long, here’s a recap: I didn’t buy any new clothes for a year, I survived (thrived, even!), and you should try it too.

I threw that last little encouragement in there for good measure. If you’re thinking of giving up new clothes for a while and need some pointers, let me know.

In the meantime, I’m going to try to figure out something to resolve for this new year before I blink and it’s 2011. Any suggestions?

This sweet doggy needs a home!

We have corralled a very friendly, adorable stray that has been wandering in our neighborhood for a few weeks. He's so sweet, and climbed right into my husband's truck as he was getting ready to leave this morning! He tried to take the dog to McKamey Animal Shelter, but they wouldn't be able to take him without an appointment, and the soonest one they have is a week from tomorrow! We have no place to put the dog until then, but hate to put him back out on the street.

Would you be willing to foster this dog for one week? The workers at McKamey loved him and said he would be very likely to get adopted if we bring him in next week. If you would like to offer him a permanent home, that would be great, too! :)

Look how cute he is! You know you want him!

Project Rewear: October edition

I realize that not only is it not October anymore, it's halfway through November. Oops.

October's Project Rewear could be alternatively titled, "Things I've bought on Ebay." If you have no interest in shopping on Ebay whatsoever, feel free to skip this post. Really, I won't mind. I know it's long. :)

Ebay can be a wonderful resource for previously-owned merchandise, if you know how to use it.

I bought a nearly new pair of J.Crew jeans for $7.99. You would never know I didn't buy them in the store, and I saved 70 bucks. I also recently scored a chocolate brown J. Crew silk party dress, new with tags, for less than $12. Can't wait to get that one in the mail. Other Ebay sundries I acquired last month included a flapper dress and fake cigarette holder for Halloween, and a ballet skirt for the ballet class I'm taking.

I did discover the perils of purchasing shoes on Ebay. Before you bid, make sure you know what size you are in that particular brand. Remember that cute pair of vintage boots I posted about a couple of months ago? Sadly, when they arrived they were way too small. I tend to be a 6.5 in almost every shoe I try on, but apparently vintage shoes tend to run pretty small. So, I re-listed them on Ebay and got most of my money back. At that point I decided Ebay probably wasn't the best place to find shoes, and proceeded to visit every shoe store in Chattanooga looking for what I wanted - brown, real leather, no heel, and affordable. Apparently those things do not coexist in a boot anywhere in Chattanooga (at least not one under $200. Blech.), so I was soon back to stalking Ebay.

And there they were.

New, J.Crew (notice a trend?) brown, leather (leather soled, too!), flat riding boots. These were $300 boots last season, so I knew they'd probably end at a price way too high for me, but I brought my computer to small group one Sunday evening (yeah. . . ) and bid at the last minute. And I got them, for $67. I've worn them nearly every day since, with jeans, dresses, dress pants. And the best part is that since they're leather soled, if I keep them clean and repaired, I can resole and wear these babies 'till I'm 80.

So, a few words of wisdom if you decide to buy shoes or clothes on Ebay:

1. Stick to brands you know. I tend to stick to J. Crew or the Gap since I know what sizes fit me in those brands.
2. Search for something specific. Otherwise, the sheer volume of clothes on Ebay can get overwhelming. Figure out what you need, search for it, and put anything that comes close to what you're looking for on your watch list. If an item goes out of your price range before the bidding is over, delete it from your watch list and keep searching.
3. Don't bit until the last minute. You have to be one of those last-minute-swoopers that everybody hates to get the best deals. Know what you're willing to pay, wait until the last minute of bidding, enter your price, and hold your breath. Someone may have been willing to pay more than you, and if so you'll have to keep searching, but at least you had the element of surprise so no one had time to up their bids.
3. Be patient!! Really, if you're not willing to be patient, watch 50 items, bid on 5, and maybe win 1, then Ebay is not for you. If you are willing to be patient, though, you just might get some great deals.

Happiness is a warm puppy

And a box of kleenex.

I've been wiped out by a bout of bronchitis for the past several days. It has been . . . boring. I tried to do some homework, but really all my brain could handle was sleep, a few episodes of Chuck, and occasionally cheering on the college week contestants on Wheel of Fortune (I was sick ok? It's not like I watch it all the time. . . well, ok, maybe I do.)

I think the highlight of my three days on the couch, though, was my dog. Normally, if I'm home and not playing with her enough, she likes to steal shoes, tissues, socks, or dishtowels in an effort to initiate a game of chase. Fun for her, not so much for me. When I'm sick, however, she knows. It's like she goes out of her way to be a really good dog. I think she's only stolen one shoe and a couple of kleenex all week, and I haven't even been able to take her on any walks. She just understands. She spends most of the day next to the couch, laying her head on my lap, or curled up on the doormat keeping an eye on me.

Keeping guard.

Whatcha doin' mom?

Maybe you need a little kiss?

Or maybe we could cuddle? I'd be happy to get on the couch with you.

Shluuurrrpp. Feel better now?

I love her. :)

For my own satisfaction. . .

The flag pole picture from my previous post. Minus the flag pole.

Photoshop, I love you.