lauren conrad dress, a-line dress

I know some people who wear vintage from head to toe. There's nothing wrong with that, but I love mixing a touch of vintage with contemporary threads. And that's exactly what I did last weekend. I've become kinda obsessed with Kohl's since I used a pair of their brocade shorts for my last Today Show appearance. And in particular, I've become a fan of the LC Lauren Conrad line. From the jeans to the tops and especially the dresses, the pieces are flirty, sweet and super feminine.So I was excited when I was sent this Lauren Conrad for Kohl's dress. It's A-line {a flattering shape for all sizes} and has adorable cut outs at the top.

vintage purses, vintage handbag

A few weeks ago was my last thrift shopping tour at the Goodwill Outlet and surprisingly, I walked away with just as many accessories as clothes. These weren't just any accessories, but there were a few vintage gems. And at $1.69 per pound, they were serious scores.I only found a handful of cute clothes, but it turns out the accessories were more valuable {when it comes to styling}.

looking fly on a dime thrift shopping

I've done quite a few posts on the do's and don'ts of thrifting {check out thrift shopping 101 and 10 Thrift Commandments}, but I've never really done anything on thrift etiquette. Well, after this weekend, I had to change that.For the past decade, I've been a serious secondhand shopper and I've seen a lot of things, but I'm noticing people are becoming increasingly aggressive and some are just jerks.

how to thrift shop, thrift shopping tips

Thrift stores have come a long way. They're no longer the musky, moth ball ridden places {some of them were} from back in the day. I even wrote a piece for The New York Times on how thrift shopping has gone upscale.In addition to cleaner stores and sales, more stores are offering different ways to purchase clothes other than being sold by the piece. I'm talking about stores where you buy by the pound or bag {like Housing Works Buy the Bag or the Goodwill Outlet}. These are the places I like to go when I really want my buck to stretch.However, these places can be really intimidating since the locations tend to be in massive warehouses and clothes are stored in large bins. But when you have the right tips, you can walk away with clothes that cost less than a buck per piece.