Etsy Wish List

So I browse Etsy like a crazy woman and I HAVE to talk myself out of buying things or else I would go broke from that website. Here are some of the items I've posted to my favorites recently and are therefore on my Christmas Wish List!


Set of 2 Velvet Ribbons from mcatgarrison



purple dress from smittenclothing

vintage soft grey leather cuffed boot from lovesmenot

Classic Collared Fur Coat by leasvintage

Bird Necklace from Laboite abijoux

Ascot Floral Top by laboheme

Sigh. My list goes on and on but it would take way too long to post all of them! So there you go. Maybe one day I will be a millionaire or maybe I will strike gold at a thrift store soon and find similar items.

Forever 21 New Collections

Forever 21 has just launched two new lines, Boutique and Forever 21 Collection.  I just found these on their website while browsing, so I won't get a chance to tell you about the quality or fit just yet (but that will come later, I promse).  But I will give a quick overview of each!


Boutique is Forever 21's vintage-inspired line.  Lots of embellishments and details are the main features of this line, along with romantic colors.  I loved the outfits above from the lookbook, yet the clothes on the website right now don't impress me too much.  Maybe after they get more clothing in stock I will love it more..  But I do really want the top in the firstpictures so very much..  isn't it lovely?! I'm also ecstatic that more vintage-inspired pieces are appearing in stores everywhere! Although nothing could ever beat the thrill and satisfaction of thrifting and hunting for authentic vintage finds.

Collection claims to have high-quality fabrics and design.. I suppose we won't know about the quality just yet, but I can comment on the design. In general, I was disappointed.  Nothing screamed out at me as high-end and a lot of it looks like clubwear to be honest.  There were a few pieces I liked, such as this Sequin Vine Shoulder Top, however.

Like I said, I'm sure they will be adding much more to both collections over the next couple of weeks, especially as Christmas season approaches.  Perhaps the quality of these collections will be overwhelmingly better than the poorly constructed Twelve By Twelve collection (even though a lot of it was adorable.. sigh..).

Butterflies

"I almost wish we were butterflies and liv'd but three summer days - three such days with you I could fill with more delight than fifty common years could ever contain." John Keats


I'm feeling very lovey dovey right now.  Maybe it's because Patrick and I have watched the trailer about 50 times now for "Bright Star" or maybe it's because I'm daydreaming again about our future (a constant thing for me). As strange and possibly corny as this sounds, I sometimes feel like I cannot even form thoughts or words to convey how blown away I am to have such an amazing man as my boyfriend.  All mine.
Patrick, I've just got to tell you that I am in so in love with you.  You make this life incredible for me, every single day. These past two years have been the best in my entire life. Traveling for concerts, Skinny Dip every week, Pho on cold, blistery nights, hanging out all night and wondering at 10pm if we should do anything ..we come up with Ihop yet you end up drawing completely skewed pictures of me (cough fat face), dragging you shopping with me (I think you love it), and you dragging me to guitar shops (I secretly love it), talking on the phone and the most exciting part is me going "do do do dooo doooooo", and going to Blockbuster for hours to end up renting NOTHING.. just a few of our memories I'm recalling right this second.. so many more to come.  You're the best. 

Another post with blue and black..

November 23, 2009

Ah, yesterday was just what I needed! I slept in until 9:30, which I NEVER get to do. I spend the whole morning reading blogs and doing some online window shopping.. and I even ate my favorite cereal, frosted mini-Wheaties! Yum. I hung out at Starbucks for a little while and took advantage of Partner Shopping Week (40% off everything!) and finally got the Andrew Bird album I've been wanting. My friend Shelby and I then spent the afternoon thrifting and I had some pretty good finds! And she made her first thrift purchase. I'm proud! The evening was finished off with a nice hot bowl of pho from Pho 79 with my boyfriend.. perfection!

P.S.- For some reason I've noticed that lately all I've been wearing is black and blue or some variation of the two! I find this SO odd because I'm usually all about different colors. Anyways.. just an observation.. and I'm working on getting out of that slump!

P.P.S.- The lighting has been SO off on my pictures because it has been overcast and rainy the past few days.. blah..


Outfit Details:
Headband: Target
Blazer: Thrifted
Pin on Blazer: Forever 21 (it's actually an earring, I lost the other and couldn't bear to throw it away because they were my favorites, so I put it to good use!)
Tunic: Plato's Closet
Leggings: Forever 21
Boots: Chaps (bought about 3 yrs ago from T.J. Maxx)

Out To Dinner...

November 22, 2009

It's Thanksgiving week!!! This is wonderful for me because this means everyone is home from college. Usually I'm stuck in my hometown and have no friends here to hang out with (Thank God for my boyfriend!) so I'm ecstatic when everyone comes back. The first and most crucial thing on my list was to have dinner at Baker's Crust with my best friend, Danielle. We've been buddies since we were both new to our middle school in 7th grade and have been inseparable throughout the years. We've both changed a lot and went in different directions, but we have one of the friendships where that doesn't even matter.

Anyways, like I said, we went to dinner at Baker's Crust, which is an amazing soup/ sandwich/ salad place and I literally salivate when I think of the tomato and cheese soup. Funny story: After dinner, I ordered a Raspberry Cheesecake Brownie to-go for the boyfriend. It looked so delicious so I cut off a little bit for Danielle and I to try. Well, cutting off a little bit turned into cutting off almost ALL of the brownie. When the waiter came to give us our checks, he handed me another brownie and said "Well, I know these are to good to resist even when you are supposed to bring them to someone else, so I brought you another one for them." WOW. It was embarrassing but really pretty funny.

Moving on to the outfit...weekends, you will find, I won't post much because I usually work like a mad woman and Fridays and Saturdays I normally ONLY wear work clothes because I go straight from one job to the other. So, as I was feeling very slumpy? (I just made that up) this weekend from work, I wanted to get all dressed up. Maybe I went TOO formal, but I was happy with it. Oh, and I'm in LOVE with this necklace. The detail is SO beautiful in person! I highly recommend the seller, NewFashionedWhispers on Etsy. Check her out!

Outfit Details:
Blazer: ? Old from closet
Dress: Thrifted
Necklace: NewFashionedWhispers on Etsy
Belt: Thrifted
Tights: Gap
Shoes: DSW

Part of Something Beautiful

November 18, 2009

Yesterday was the debut of the opaque blue tights I bought in the SUMMER. I have been waiting forever to wear them. I've tried a couple of times with hesitation but ended up coping out. When I saw this Banana Republic skirt at my local Goodwill (brand new with tags!) for only $2, I immediately thought of the nice contrast it would make with my tights. So there you have it.

I went out to lunch with a friend and then spent the WHOLE afternoon thrifting. With all of the stress from work and school, there is nothing more relaxing to me than shopping.. except for when I spend too much, which will stress me out later when I do the calculations of how much I spent.. which is why thrifting is the perfect answer! I had some amazing finds yesterday.. they will all appear in future posts! For about $40, I got: a vintage 1960s fur-trimmed wool coat (so amazing), an electric blue 1980s blazer, a Free People blouse, a Gap dress, vintage 1960's? nightgown that I will be wearing as a dress, and a vintage 1980s gold and black belt. Not too shabby!

Later on Patrick met up with me at my dad's house where my stepmom made an amazing Mexican dinner.. I wish we had pictures. Desert= cayenne infused pot de cremme topped with whipped cream.. all homemade by my stepmom. It's probably my favorite desert.

I would also like to take this time to mention an amazing friend's upcoming blog. She is such a talented writer and I was reading her newest post about childhood and, as always, was blown away. One line in particular was exceptionally thought provoking:
"We don’t have to know innocence to experience astonishment."
This girl is such an incredible writer. Check her out, you will be glad you did.
http://salexab.wordpress.com/

Outfit details:
Earrings: H&M
Purse: Etsy
Sweater: Thrifted
Skirt: Thrifted
Tights: Gap
Flats: DSW

Simplicity

I apologize for the awkwardness of this photo. But I love the pockets on this cardigan! And let me introduce you to my jean leggings. They are somewhere in the middle, a lot thicker than regular leggings, but they look like jeans to the untrained eye. They feel like sweatpants!!! So comfy yet chic.

These shoes are so amazing! Gotta love UO sales. I was so proud of myself for buying them. Pretty much ALL of my shoes are black or cognac or some variation of the two, and I've been challenging myself to buy more colored, bright shoes.

November 17, 2009

Well... I woke up late yesterday morning and had to just kind of throw something together. Tada! This is the best I could come up with at 6am. When this cardigan came in the mail from American Apparel, I was a bit disappointed, but now I am in love! The color is so amazing in person and I love the boyfriend fit. I just got my bangs trimmed and a little thicker last week so I'm still kind of channeling Zooey D. I've been looking for an elegant, classic, eye-popping hair pin for a while now and I almost bought one on Etsy for way more than I paid for this beautiful, well-made hair pin from Forever 21. I have to say, that store is completely hit or miss, although right now I'm kind of on a strike from them. I bought a really adorable cardigan-style shirt last week and tried it on and it was SO flattering. So I bought it and planned on wearing it the next day to school and a concert. When I woke up and got dressed, a button on the sleeve had already fallen off! OK, things happen, that's forgiven. At school, in the period of two hours, two more buttons fell off. I knew the shirt would never survive the washing machine. And on top of that, the shirt had a bow (at a closer look, VERY poorly sewn on) that kept going crooked and I constantly had to fix it. So I still had all the tags and receipt and Forever wouldn't take it back! They didn't even give me store credit or an apology at that. I understand I wore it for a little bit, but the quality was SO poor. Shame on them, and shame on me for not looking closer I suppose.

So that's my rant.

Outfit details:
Hair Pin: Forever 21
Neclace: Forever 21
Cardigan: American Apparel
Jean Leggings: Jolt
Flats: Kimchi Blue

First Post!

November 16, 2009

Yesterday was the most BEAUTIFUL day. It was the first day that I actually noticed all of the leaves changing color and even though the nip in the air was missing (thus the skirt with no tights), there was something in the air that just finally felt like fall. I felt really inspired to wear darker colors in lieu of the approaching doom of winter. I wish it was fall year-round, it's by far my favorite season. I also haven't changed my purse in months, so beware: it will be hanging around for a long time. But maybe, like me, you won't get tired of looking at it. When I spotted this baby on Etsy, I knew it HAD to be mine. The hand-tooled leather is so much more beautiful than pictures could ever show and it is so sturdy! I am just so in love with it.

My boyfriend and I ventured off to the local state park and had a wonderful time. Even though I'm not used to being the center of attention and I don't really know what to do when someone is taking a picture of just me, he made it a lot of fun! Oh, and I can't forget to mention that it was date night.. we had dinner at Eat and then saw "Pirate Radio." (Which, by the way, I have to mention is one of the best movies that I have seen in a long time.)

On another note, how did I do on my first post? Even though I have had many little blog experiments in the past, I feel like this blog is completely different and completely new, uncharted territory. I've been admiring other independent fashion bloggers for months and months and months now and they have inspired me to finally take the leap and create my own. Finders Keepers is dedicated to being creative and fashionable on a budget.. trust me.. I mean a TIGHT budget. I absolutely love thrifting and finding great vintage treasures and incorporating them into outfits with modern pieces to keep things balanced(thus, Finders Keepers). My goal is to build more courage and become more bold with my outfits as well as continuously develop and evolve my personal style.

Outfit details:
Hat: H&M
Shirt: H&M
Skirt: Etsy
Suede boots: Nordstrom B.P.
Purse: Etsy

About Me

Hi there! Thanks for stopping by and having an interest in my blog.  I started Finders Keepers in November of 2009 to document my outfits and inspirations.  Through blogging, I've been introduced to some really amazing people in addition to becoming more confident in styling and have become better and finding the little treasures in stores, especially while thrifting.  I believe that style is an art form and says so much about one's personality, therefore, I like to present myself in a way that I think best describes me: smart yet not pretentious, fun yet slightly conservative (in my actions, not political or religious beliefs.. but we will save that for another discussion), bubbly yet genuine and real.

I reside in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where I've lived all my life.It's a really great city, and so many people take it for granted.  In the future, I'd love to move to northern California or somewhere near Seattle.. wherever I move, there HAS to be an ocean! I'm finishing up my last semester of community college and will be attending Old Dominion University in for the Fall '10 semester. I'm studying Speech-Language Pathology to become a speech therapist for young children who are deaf/ hearing impaired with cochlear implants or hearing aids.  My seven year-old brother, Charlie, is deaf, has cochlear implants on both ears, and has made tremendous progress with his speech and development, which was my inspiration for going into the field. 

My senior year of high school, I met the love of my life, Patrick Videll.  My life has never been more perfect than the past two years that he has been my sweetheart.  Let me tell you... he loves the thrill of the chase! I had to work to snag him.  He didn't do it intentionally, but he sent me major mixed signals! We were friends (and when I say friends, I mean he thought we were friends and I had a major, huge, almost obsessive crush on him) for six months before we started dating.

We are a really laid-back couple.. our favorite thing to do is eat pho at a local restaurant and lounge at the beach in summer (ok, I lounge, he surfs.. he HATES lounging! So active, geez!).  Our idea of a vacation consists of a weekend trip revolving around a concert.  In fact, the only time we ever go out of town is to see shows.  Patrick is an aspiring architect and singer/songwriter, and he has serious talent.. part of the reason why we want to move to Seattle is because of the amazing music scene.

I really hope that I can both give and receive inspiration through Finders Keepers.  Please don't hesitate to ask any questions, or just send me a friendly message to say hello!