Head to Toe, Fully Committed

Last year, I half-jokingly made a statement that I'd like my wardrobe to consist of only second-hand clothing or clothing made from recycled or upcycled materials. Half-jokingly, because it seemed pretty far away, or like a ton of work to do that much thrifting.

Then, this weekend, I looked down and realized I was pretty much living that goal. My shoes, top, jeans, and jewelry all have a re-use source.

The jeans were one of five pairs I acquired from a recent swap.com purchase. I spent $38.50 at Swap, but these jeans would have totaled $318.50 new, an 88% savings!!

This top is so comfy for spring. It would have cost $39 new and I got it for free from Buy Nothing.

These flats cost $7 at Goodwill, and retail for $59. 

 

And finally, I'm trying out a subscription rental company for clothes and jewelry (Le Tote), which is responsible for these awesome Rebecca Minkoff earrings and Kate Spade necklace. I'm on the fence about the environmental impact of Le Tote, but here's what I've learned so far. Le Tote is like the Netflix disc model: you pay a monthly fee to get one shipment at a time. When you're done, you send it back and the next shipment comes. You can get as many boxes a month as you can use. Since you are renting the clothes, they will be gently used, and Le Tote takes care of the laundry. Where I think this could make a positive impact is for people who like to try new styles and trends frequently. This clothes sharing model means more people get to wear the clothes "just a few times" and when they don't fit the like-new criteria anymore, Le Tote donates them. If you decide you want to keep a piece, you can purchase it at a discount - it's like thrift shopping with a personal shopper!

Overall savings: $371.

Grunge is the New Hipster

The techies in Seattle wear a lot of plaid. And not the developers. The sales guys. You can't walk around downtown without running into 30 dudes who are wearing a fashionable mix of designer jeans and a shirt that is a cross between "dad", 90s grunge revival, Northwest outdoorsman, and lumbersexual hipster.

I have a lot of feelings about this: I wore a lot of plaid in my teen years. In the 90s. When it was just post-grunge in Seattle. So why am I so resistant now? Is it because I spent my 20s trying to become more feminine and stylish? Is it because I'm resisting associating with hipsters, like a true hipster ironically would? Regardless, I've been trying on plaid shirts for the last 3 years, unwilling to pull the trigger.

And then came the Buy Nothing post: "I have a bag of size 14 ladies clothes looking for a home!" I jumped on the opportunity.

In the bag were a handful of tops that I'll pass on to the next person, 3 tops that I kept for myself, a couple great pairs of work slacks, and this awesome plaid shirt.

It was meant to be: green is my favorite color, and I had actually tried on this same shirt at Target last year. $0 is definitely the right price when debating on a new style.

Savings: $23

Risk free trial of the cool kids club? Priceless

Luscious Lips

Did you know that when you get to the "bottom" of a tube of lipstick, there's still a ton left? If you have 10 minutes and some basic supplies, you can take the remainder and make a tinted lip balm.

Exhibit A: a lipstick that appears dead. It actually goes down into the tube almost another 1/2".

You can dig this out with any small tool. They make cosmetic spatulas, but I'm just using the handle of an eye shadow applicator.

Look at all that!

Now we're going to melt the lipstick and a few added ingredients. Start with a small glass dish set into a pan of boiling water. We're going to add some oil (I chose coconut), and some beauty butter like shea. I don't recommend just coconut oil because it melts with your body heat, leaving you without that creamy consistency. Most recipes are looking at this ratio: 1/3 oil, 1/3 butter, 1/3 wax. The lipstick covers the wax portion. You can play with the butter:lipstick proportions to give you more or less color.

Once your ingredients are melted (should take less than 1 minute), pour them into your container of choice. I had little containers from a travel toiletry set. You could also use one of those mini jam jars or a small mint tin. Use tongs - your melting container could be hot!

Let cool at room temperature, or fast cool in the fridge. Mine took about 10 minutes in the fridge to re-solidify.

Apply and enjoy your moisturized lips!

Cost: pennies