When a junker ventures into a retail zone

When visiting at my sister's for Christmas dinner, the gals were showing off some new duds they just got. You know the kind... skinny jeans, cute longer tops, and boots. I sunk lower in my chair wearing my frumpy baggy jeans, short tshirt and hoodie ensemble.

 Let me give you a visual. This is pretty much what I wear every day, minus the scarf belt.

NOT to be confused with a slightly more trendy and form fitting (and skinnier) this.

I know how to look 'cute' if I really want to. I worked in retail clothing for 13 long years so I use to do cute every single day. But these days kneeling down in dirty truck bays or slinging paint doesn't exactly constitute dressing to the nines. So thrift shop clothing finds do just fine.

Until I saw what the 2010 cute was all about of course! But I didn't know WHAT to really look for these days to be hip. So, they prepped me well. They told me what store to go in, and what to look for. Instructions: look at a mannequin you like, then GET IT.

Well heck... I can stare at a mannequin and copy this look, right?

 So, I had to run into town today to drop off my son and and stopped by where I knew the store was.

It was the BIGGEST MALL ON THE BUSIEST SHOPPING DAY ever.

Everyone and their dog, entire families and long lost cousins were shopping for the best smokin' deals ever. And made sure they brought 3 vehicles per person. Not sure how they pulled that off but they did. The parking lot told me so.

Me, small town folk with one 3 way stop as the 'busy' intersection.  I was clearly out of my element. But I got there and by golly I was gonna get cute today!

So I strut in with my dirty runners (sneakers to USA'ers)  completely optimistic to become brand new today and then my jaw dropped. I didn't know which isle to walk down.  I'm use to one isle in our local yokel mall. This one needed a MAP.

Here's a technical difficulty to make things interesting. I suffer from small bouts of what's close to vertigo from time to time. It's a neck injury thing. What the condition basically does is temporarily remove your smarts. You're left with virtually no memory of what you just did. Some call it getting old. Call it what you wish. You're safe, but it's best to do the same 'ol over and over again some days so you don't HAVE to think. You'll soon see why I told you this.

So I ask a shopper where the certain store is and they point me in the right direction. No need to work at this more than I have to, right? One store and I'm outta there. EASY.

 I get to the store and it's a zoo. And everything under the sun is on sale. Ok, bonus I guess.

All the manniquins are dressed in SALE tshirts. Red shirt, big white letters. That's it. Nice.

So I go to a salesgal and spew out my troubled frumpy story and asked if she could help me look cool. She couldn't. She was suppose to fold stuff. I asked another and they were suppose to do something else. They could help with my sizes but I had to take care of the rest.

So I whip around and find some rather cool combos. Long black T with short short sleeves and scoop neck, a nifty scrappy looking scarf, worn looking skinny jeans, a cool black jacket with a fur lined hood and head for the fitting room. This was gonna be gooood....

Fitting rooms CLOSED. Apparently sale day is too busy to let you try on things.

So I start trying on stuff over stuff I wore in. Not fitting and not working. I leave the store.

I go past other stores and enter a couple. Nice, but expensive. And everything's starting to look the same. And expensive. I apparently have exceptional taste and after you see the best you cannot back down. NOW I remember why I don't go to malls. I leave the expensive pretty stores and resolve to try and find what I desire in a thrift some other day. I was now well educated after all.



And then I get lost. I had NO idea where I came from or what I just walked past. None. It was all gone. And let's just mention the isles looked like ant filled highways.

I walked for awhile and I mean, I didn't panic or anything. But I also didn't want to come off as a wacko so I simply went to a shopper and calmly asked where a certain street was. Good job, he led me the right way. Except I wasn't parked on that street. Riiight... So I resolved to go for a NICE LONG WALK outdoors in the rain to look for the right entrance so I could find my truck. What the hey, it beat ant filled isles.

I found it in no time. But I'll admit it felt like falling into the arms of my mom when I spotted my truck. And I couldn't wait to get home, jack up the heat, put on my pj's, cuddle my cats, eat Christmas chocolates and turn on the computer. I wanted all the comforts of home NOW.

Are you still here? You deserve a treat! Help yourself and see you when you get back. You rock. And thank-you. Here, I'll mark off where you left at...

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You're welcome.

So I drive home and I pass my fav coffee shop. Pumpkin spiced lattee... wimper... next one I pass, I'm stopping I promise myself.

30 min later, I pull in the drive through and get one. YES. And on my way out of that mall strip, I pass a store I haven't frequented in some time. And I had a gift card for it from a year ago! So I park and start wandering in with my fluffy coffee to enjoy the browse.

And I see thing after thing that blogland is making for free. Good golly... this was going to be difficult.

(below photos were taken with the iPhone, not too bad!)

Hey Miss Mustard Seed, does this look familiar? (wasn't priced)

MMS' mirrored side tables.

How about these? $350@

MMS' were approx $65 each, for chair and materials

Now these were cute! Burlap covered trunks! But for all 3 it was just over $100. I got jittery over these.

 Check it out.. this one even had my name on it. Think it was a sign I was suppose to buy it? Nahhh... don't even go there. Now looking at it again and my house? They could totally work in front of my picture window...NO. STOP IT.

Now, I really did like this pillow. Ruffle city! But at $25, it stayed. I was after deals after all.

 What did I end up getting? Some Christmas stockings, pj pants and new white shortie sport socks. Not exactly the cute I originally had in mind but new socks are a good start, yes?

Getting home, I was excited to hang the cute new 1/2 price stockings. But to my surprise, they were too fancy for my decor.

 So I rehung my grain sack, burlap sand bag and pillow case and called that a bust as well.

I then yank out leftover turkey fixings and have a nice freebie dinner. (thank-you my seester!) While wearing my new flannel plaid pj pants with my old hoodie and old frumpy black tshirt.

The lesson I learned today? 

All it takes to apparently make this girl happy is the odd $5 fluffy coffee, new white sport socks and flannel pj pants. Because she has, will find, or will make the rest.

Lesson #2. 

Malls are for SHOPPERS, not junkers.

Besides, I'd probably end up feeling like THIS GIRL anyway.

p.s. my 2nd Christmas tree dried out too. I give up.

So my thrifty friends, have you too stopped shopping retail for the most part?

Where's your fav place to pick up cute and chic clothes?

Merry Christmas from me!
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