Re-fashioned Denim, Fun Fashion Finds, and Confidence

My mother-in-law went through her closet recently and pulled out a lot of stuff she wanted to get rid of.  She asked my daughter if she'd like to come over to see if there was anything she wanted.  My daughter and I both found several things that we brought home.  We've been busy re-making them into different, more current, fashionable clothing.

The first one I worked on was a long denim skirt.  It went almost down to my ankles.  I think it must have been from the 80's or 90's.  It's a high quality skirt and the top of it fit great.  So, I shortened it for a more current and stylish look.  It has nice deep pockets on the sides too.  I love that!  I even had thread that was the perfect color to match the faded yellow on the other parts.  Cool!

I wasn't quite sure about this dress.  It was a little funny.  But, I love denim so much!  And, I have a memory of a super cool denim dress I bought in the 90's that I ended up returning because I wasn't sure I'd be brave enough to wear the very fitted style that it was.  This dress is different but there was something about it that reminded me of that one.  So, I had to go for it.  Oh, and a cool side note...not only is it great to be up-cycling old clothing but this dress was made in the USA!

Oh that ruffle!  And, the raw, frayed edge!  Oy!  lol

I removed the ruffle.  It turned out that the edge that was left was already surged.  That was nice.  All I had to do was fold it over and stitch it down.  I wasn't quite sure if the tapered look would work or if a hem on the thick denim would even hang right.  But, I think it works.  As far as the top goes, I opted to just cover it up.  It fits funny at the top and there's a tiny hole in the middle that looks like it might have had a flower or something attached at one time.  I have plenty of scarves and shawls and several of them looked great.  I went with a more summery one for the pics.

Oh, and pics!  Yikes!  I've been working at being braver to post pics of myself.  I've gotten better.  It's still weird though and uncomfortable even having my daughter take pics of me.  But, I went for it and got a few I'm fairly happy with it.  I'm not going to let myself wimp out on posting these!  So, here it is....my new, up-cycled, re-fashioned dress...

I've been working on being braver with fashion.  There are looks that I love but I tend to go safe.  My usual way of dressing is jeans and casual shirts.  I'm doing better.  So, now, I'm trying to be even braver and trying not to worry about parts of my body showing....like my legs.  I've been wearing shorts all summer and even some skirts!

I found these awesome boots a few weeks ago at a thrift shop.  I love them!  So, I got them and I'm determined to be brave enough to wear them.  And, now I have an outfit that goes with them.  So, no excuses, right?!  Gulp!

I hit the shoe jackpot the day I found these!  They were only $5!  They're leather and in great shape.  I looked up the brand online and found out that these boots were over $100 when they were brand new!  These look like they've barely been worn.  And, for heels, they're actually pretty comfortable.

I found two other pairs of shoes that day for just $4 for each pair.  They're in great shape and look like they've barely been worn too.  Those who've seen them think they're high dollar too.  I'm still working on finding outfits for them.  

They're definitely beyond what I normally wear but I love them.  So, that's a perfect reason to be braver and bolder to get to a place where I can wear things like this that I love!

How do you all feel about fashion?  Do you stay in a safe zone with what you normally wear?  Do you see things you love but aren't sure you could do it?  Do you worry about an imperfect body like I do?  Are you nervous about trying to be more stylish or letting parts of you show?   I'd love to hear how others feel about this.

I've always been SO self conscious about my skinny bird legs.  As I've been working lately on being OK with me, I've noticed that there are beautiful people out there with skinny legs.  The difference seems to be confidence.  That's what I'm attempting to have!  I'm trying to love what I've been given and make the best of it.  And, besides, I'll never be as young as I am today!  So, why keep waiting?!  Watch out world, here I come!  Gulp!

A Date with the Dog

Last Saturday night, hubby and I went out on the town and took our dog Salsa.

What?!  A date with the dog?!  Yup!  She had just been groomed and just had to show it off.

We took her to the Lazy Dog Cafe in Temecula.  They allow doggies in their outdoor dining area.

They just have three rules....no begging, barking or biting.  They even have a menu for dogs.

Salsa had already had her dinner but she enjoyed watching us, the other people and 

other dogs.  She was such a good girl and really enjoyed her outing.

We did too!  The drinks and food we had that night were SO good!

We started out with a special drink they're currently serving.

It had moonshine, berries, peaches, mint and....hmmmm?...I'm not sure if it had 

anything else.  But, it was good and cute too as it was served in canning jars.

Looks like Salsa thought it looked good.  Looks like she was licking her lips!

This was super yummy....sweet potato tater tots with jalapeno aioli.  Yum!!!\

I didn't take a picture of our dinner but it was super yummy too.

It was a sweet and spicy shrimp dish with broccoli and rice.

It was flavorful and delicious!

I did get a picture of my dessert.  We decided to order more drinks instead of something sweet to eat.

I ordered a special drink I've only seen on their menu...a Phuket.  It's like an herb garden in a glass.

It's made with pepper vodka, coconut rum, basil, jalapeno, and candied ginger.  Yum!

Hubby had a Moscow Mule.  It was pretty tasty too!

Salsa has gotten a lot more snuggly lately.  While we were at the restaurant,

she went back and forth a few times between us to spend time next to each of us.

Sometimes she even sat down and leaned against me.  So sweet!

She never did lay down though.  I think she didn't want to miss any of the action

of people walking by and other dining doggies.  Eventually, I think she got a little tired.

Salsa, hubby, and I had a great time!

I even got to sear my new, high shoes!  They're actually comfortable.

I didn't think it was possible to have comfortable heals.  But, these really are.

I've been working on improving my wardrobe over the past year or so and platform

heels are something that was on my list.  I'm not sure the style of these would have

been tops on my list but when I tried them on it was no question....I had to get them.

I also wore a whole new outfit and I finally got to wear my Diamond Flowers Shawl.

It was perfect!  So pretty and just a tad bit of warmth that I needed in the evening breeze.

We topped off our outing with a stroll around the shopping and a little window shopping.

I love evenings like this!  It was wonderful!  :-)

Wardrobe Enhancement

I love jeans!  They're my favorite part of my wardrobe!  I wear them in the winter with pull-over sweaters.  And, I wear them or denim shorts in the summer with short sleeved tops.  I have started wearing some skirts in the summer.  But, I've been trying to stretch beyond that and add some new things and more style to my wardrobe.  I've been watching episodes of "What Not to Wear" and learning a lot.  I love that show!  One of the biggest things I've taken from that show is to try things I wouldn't normally try.  

My daughter and I played around with that idea a few weeks ago.  We went to Macy's and picked clothes for each other.  We tried to think outside of what the other would normally wear.  We got a big dressing room and put together outfits for one another.  We had a ton of fun and found some styles we really liked that we never would have considered before.  Unfortunately, we didn't find anything we HAD to have that day and most of the things we liked were not on sale and were beyond our budget.  But, we'll definitely be shopping differently after that.

We were on a mission that weekend to find some things.  One thing I've been looking for is a nice, thick, warm sweater.  They're all so thin these days and I hadn't found any I liked until I found this...

I think Penelope likes it too!  My daughter fell in love and bought one for herself too.

It's thick, warm, comfy and I love the neutral colors, the designs and the style.
It's not a standard cardigan...it's much more up to date, stylish and fun.

It looks great with another find from that weekend.  Boots!

My daughter and I scored on these all leather boots!  She got brown ones and I got black.

They're flat, comfy, and I like the buckle details on them (top and at the ankle).

They look great with my black skinny jeans, a rust colored top, and my new sweater.

On a really cold night, it looks good with one of my chunky hand knit cowls too.

I also bought a pair of tan pants/jeans...a color I never would have gotten in the past.

I like colored pants on other people but always felt weird when I put them on.

After our little "What Not to Wear" experiment, I think I've changed my mind.
I even considered some red ones but they didn't have my size.

I'm on the lookout for some skirts and dresses that I can wear with tights and my new boots.

It's a look I've liked for a long time.  I'm determined now to find it and be brave enough to wear it.

This isn't much but clothes shopping is hard.  Especially with a tight budget.

But, another thing I learned from the show is that to look good you have to put in the effort/work.

It's not terrible that it takes so much time...it's just part of the process.

Knowing that makes it less frustrating and a lot more fun!