Good news: It’s almost the holiday season. Bad News: that usually means parties and the need for a cocktail dress. As many women know, cocktail dresses aren’t always cheap; most decent cocktail dresses are usually anywhere from $125-200. However, I have learned a few things in my 26 years about finding decently priced cocktail dresses. I’m all about dazzling the crowd without fizzling my bank account. This year I found 3 great dresses for different holiday parties this season. One was thrifted and one was gifted, but all three are well below $100. So let’s spread cheer with some good ‘ol holiday fashion!
This dress was a gift from my Mom which she bought at Urban Outfitters. Thought they do not carry the dress anymore, it was around $70; which most of their dresses are around $50-$80.
This is my thrifting pride and joy! This is a gorgeous chartreuse number was designed by Kate Spade. I found this at New Leaf Consignment, the cutest shop in Madison, NJ. The price of this dress was $60 and worth every penny!
Behold! The perfect New Year’s Eve dress! I absolutely love this backless cocktail dress from Venus; it is currently $89.
May your holidays (and outfits) sparkle and shine!
I’ve already shared ideas for boot dupes, now it is time for the handbags! Purses can add the perfect flair to an outfit; they are functional and fashionable. But let’s be honest, handbags can be ridiculously expensive. Don’t get me wrong, I dream of owning a coveted Hermes Birkin one day, but that just is not my reality at the moment. Luckily, there are always dupes out in the world. Since it is time to switch up the bags now that a new season is among us, I’ll share some winter bags that I have my eye on at the moment.
This post is going to be short, sweet, and to the point. Despite the shortness of the post, it is my biggest and best secret about budget shopping. This secret is also about my favorite statement piece; my trusty leather jacket. It is no secret that a real leather jacket is expensive, and fake leather just doesn’t look that great. So, here is the secret to finding the most badass and multi-functional staple piece your closet will ever have.
In 2015 I met a woman who frequently rocked a badass leather jacket, and I asked where she got it; she promptly told me Wilson’s leather. Of course I was familiar with this place, but I never went in because I couldn’t afford it. Before I moved on from her answer she simply said: “I bought this jacket in July and it was 70% off.” The second she said that I was like:
She told me this information in January and I waited for as long as I could…May. I went to my local mall which happened to have a Wilson’s Leather Outlet AKA bonus savings! I searched for the perfect jacket that was within my budget. After a few trials, I found it. This jacket was not only on sale at an outlet mall, but it had an extra sale because they were trying to get rid of the jackets. It was perfect and fit like a glove. To this day it is my favorite piece in my closet.
Last spring break I went on a cruise with my boyfriend. Not only had I never been on a cruise, but I didn’t really have a lot of swimwear or money for suits for the vacation. Because of this, I did a lot of research online to find fairly priced swimsuits that didn’t look absolutely terrible. We all know that meme:
For obvious reasons I was petrified of buying swimwear online, but after a lot of research I found three great online retail stores for budget swimwear.
1. Zaful: I first started out with Zaful by purchasing three of their swimsuits. I was shocked when I found out that suits were sold as a set. Being a top heavy girl, I had to take a large but I was concerned about the bottoms. I took a chance after I read some reviews. One week after I placed an order, three suites arrived and they all fit like a glove!
2. Shein: I had purchased clothes from Shein before, so I was a little more confident with their products. A lot of their swimwear was similar to Zaful, so I purchased the same sizes and received the same results. The swimwear fit well and looked very cute for a reasonable price.
3. Asos: Asos was a retailer that I as very excited to purchase from. I am very familiar with the sizing, products, and shipping policies. I purchased three suites for my recetn trip to Cabo San Lucas. Though the suits were budget friendly, they were not as cheap as Zaful or Shein. However, the material did feel a little more expensive and shipping got here a few days earlier than both Zaful and Shein.
Overall, all three retailers are perfect for budget swimsuits that don’t look cheap. I am so glad I found these stores and that I took a chance on them. I highly recommend any of these places for suits and resort wear. Just be sure to do your research, look at the reviews, and pay attention to the size charts.
First dates are nerve-wracking and unpredictable, but they can also be promising. I was never much of a romantic, but I would still always put my best foot forward on a first date- even if I knew the guy had 0% chance of a second date. I don’t remember what I wore on any of my previous first dates, but I do remember the exact outfit I wore on my first date with the first ( and hopefully) only guy I have ever fallen in love with.
Before I dive into the fashion and what I wore, I’ll give a quick backround on how we men. Dating in Utah can be difficult, especially if you are not LDS. Because of this, sometimes we need to seek the help of online dating; I didn’t want some trashy guy on Tinder so I chose Bumble, where the girls get to make the first move. Through that I met Dylan. He seemed great and I was very interested in meeting him in person, and that never happens especially since he and I were completely different people. He was in finance, I was in marketing. He seemed put together and formal, and I am….not. We decided to go to a popular Mexican restaurant in the area that I had never been to and he just raved about it.
I knew I had to look perfect, but still be myself. I’m never the type of girl who will dress for a man, that is just stupid. However, I still wanted to look good. Though I do not have the exact outfit I wore, I’ll share similar pieces to what I wore that night. Because this was a Mexican restaurant, there was no need to wear a cocktail dress. I did, however, know that Dylan would be meeting me right after he left work at his job, meaning he would be dressed up. I took all of these situations and created a simple, yet sexy outfit that was perfect for our first date.
Because my first date with Dylan was over three years ago, I don’t have the exact outfit, but that was almost identical to what I wore that night. To this day, even Dylan still remember the exact outfit I wore and the impression it made on him. Though the outfit worked for him, I know that it would never actually looked as great unless I felt great.
So many women push themselves to wear outfits that society tells them men will want them to wear, but the perfect outfit is only great when the person wearing it feels their best. I felt my best in the outfit and it reflected out.
To this day Dylan and I are still dating, and I am pretty sure that day was my last first date. The outfit obviously isn’t why we are still dating, but it was what gave me enough confidence to come out of my shell and talk to a stranger who became a big part of my life.
Any one who knows me knows that I am a sucker for a good pair of boots. Sock, combat, over-the-knee, you name it! And Hallelujah it is boot season at last! The only problem with boot season is the price; I’m a college student and can’t afford the pair of $300 boots you’d find in Vogue, but that has never stopped me from finding a similar pair for much cheaper-a dupe. Because let’s be honest, everyone wants to look and feel like Andy, from The Devil Wears Prada, when she wears the Chanel Boots.
So here are my tips and tricks I use to find boots that make me feel and look great without breaking the bank. First, I never actively seek out expensive boots-they just happen to find me through cruel articles that feature gorgeous shoes and they never show the prices in the article. So of course, I fall in love only to be disappointed by the fact that I can never afford the shoes. This then leads me to my unmatched skill of researching and finding the dupe of those boots. I don’t just type it into a search engine, that is more of a last resort. Instead I look at my go-to websites that always have cheaper versions for great quality. Granted it took some research to find these sites, but lucky for you I am willing to share my research. Currently, my go-to sites are: Asos, DSW, Betsey Johnson, Nordstrom Rack, and PrettyLittleThing. With that thought, let’s dive into this years duped boots.
No… you didn’t hop in a time machine and land in 2005, jean skirts are back in style. Anyone from Bella Hadid to Kendall Jenner are spoted wearing the throwback piece. After middle school, I swore that I would never be caught dead in a jean skirt and ugg boots again. Luckily, designers found a way to make jean skirts cute and the promise was broken; I still promise to never wear Uggs. With that being said, winter is almost here and I’m just not ready to let go of my jean skirt; so I decided to make my skirt winter friendly.
Fall is one of my most favorite times of the year. I love the change in the weather, the color of the leaves, and I LOVE the fashion. It’s fun to be able to trade in shorts for a giant sweater; plus fall fashion looks more chic in my opinion. However, if you’re someone like me AKA ballin’ on a budget, switching out the wardrobe can be pretty expensive especially as the trends change. This year was even more difficult as I had a trip to Cabo at the beginning in October. So not only did I need to have stuff for fall, I needed clothes for Cabo. To say I had stuff already would be a massive understatement. I had to be smart with my shopping and make stuff that I bought for Cabo, 90 degree weather, work for Fall in Salt Lake City.
The biggest part of my plan was to find stuff that could be cute on it’s own, and would be just as cute layered or with a pair of boots. Biggest challenge, I needed the stuff to be as cheap as possible. Luckily, I was able to find some great options. Here are the looks:
Summer Look:
Top: Francesca’s $20 (On sale and no longer in stock)
Skirt: Francesca’s $14 (On sale and no longer in stock)
My Grown Closet 