PLUM PUDDING 
Predictions of a wintry mix of sleet and snow and it's gym day today, so cozy, comfy all in shades of eggplant and plum pudding are the theme this morning. Scout's eggplant leather headband is from anthropologie majorly discounted down to $4 ; the plum Stella half button henley has already made numerous appearances here (ahhh such a good buy), just got the deep eggplant fine skinny leg corduroys out of the bins last weekend originally from target by cherokee -- good for basics; the coat too out of the bins by jacadi; sweater is baby gap and has just the right bit of detailing to be subtle modern and tasteful also Da Bins! the raspberry supergas are divine with this and she even has a great dark chocolate knee high with raspberry polka dots -- just lucky i guess.

  

 R.O.C.K. in the USA

ooooh i love the military look -- I purchased this little jacket ala stella mccartney years ago at a little shop in Newburyport, or were we on an adventure in NH, Auntie Malia? Oh right thanks Ma -- little boutique in Rye NY.  It was on sale I think for $250 GULP. That purchase would NOT happen today.
italian made the tag has a circled RR's on it and it says Flash & Partners Spa on the manufacturers tag.  Scout calls it her Michael Jackson jacket but I honestly do not know who the designer is so getting money back on it on ebay is unlikely.  the pants are j. crewcuts $14, boots boden $65 and the little khaki shirt is Neige a dime. And that's Cuddly kindergarten bear study homework :)

Spring in the Air Spring in our Step

Just back after the winter break and we were in a mad rush this morning.  Zara for kids tunic with rich floral print was an easy one piece outfit to go to -- mornings are of course still a bit chilly so the H&M cable knit leggings keep Scout cozy during recess.  We nabbed this wonderful faux gray fox furry thing at Patagonia's 50% off sale that ends this week. Their original prices are a bit steep for me but at 50% off, and the about 20 compliments Scout has received about it in two days, makes it worth it.  I bought two sizes up so you'll be seeing more of it!

That's Cuddly Scout has patiently waited for her turn to take him home for the night - her's a closer look at her ZARA for kids rich print tunic dress oh we got it for $4 at a yard sale in Southampton 

Tea for two

Thomas Jefferson Was a Fashion Plate

Oh we had the perfect Presidents' Day -- we feel a tad bit under dressed posing with Mr. Jefferson but we are on our way back to the pool so ease and comfort are the order of our busy day of relaxing.  Scout is in her suit but using her graphic ethnic print tunic from Zara for kids as a cover up.  i of course find it a bit pricey- but we scored ours at a yard sale in Southampton for 4 bucks.  For warmth for breakfast, she has on her stella mccartney for the gap crochet mocha leggings and pink ballet slippers by Bloch for which i paid way way way too much money $100.

STRIPE THIS
ooooh i love my striped shirts. despite the wee snowstorm yesterday, you can smell spring here in virginia. apropos of presidents' day, we are celebrating at the wonderful jefferson hotel in richmond. scout is in her ralph lauren orange and white french stripe bateau knit top. i bought it years ago at tj maxx because it was on sale for 7 dollars, she is finally fitting in to it beautifully. the white jeans, a year round favorite of ol' mum, are gap purchased at building 19 for i think 8 dollars.  i bought both a size 6 and 7 so she will be all set for next year too.  she took a major digger running circles around cecelia's house - no matter a little bleach and white jeans are as good as new, making them a mom favorite. the red sneakers are tom's which i did pay over 20 dollars for but given a shoeless child gets a pair for every pair purchased   well that's all i need to know.  the swimsuit is banana cabana and was 2 dollars, i bought about 6 of them off season at nordstrom's off the rack
the look of lilly pulitzer at a fraction of the cost.

Urban Apres Ski Look

urban apres ski look

UNIQUE AND THRIFTY

Ooooh I just love any sort of nordic inspired wool cozy jumper. We love to go to our neighborhood french spot le pain de quotidienne on the weekends for the perfectly gratifying soft boiled eggs and soldiers. We happen to be missing the chill in new york at the moment but this was just before we left. Scout's hand knit, no label, sweater was found in the bins, as was the taupe-ish real rabbit fur topper. The taupe, long sleeved, super soft tee with  sweet hint of gather at the neckline, that is in the same color vein as the stripe in the sweater, is by Neige
http://www.neigeclothing.com/girls-sale-at-Neige-CID281.aspx.  We found it in the bins on a particularly fruitful day, there were numerous, expensive pieces donated from a little girl just about Scout's size. Neige, french for snow, is all that it purports, sophisticated comfort and ease and NOT overwrought with bright colors, loud prints and tacky fabrics. I am not big on the healthtex look as you might imagine and it does indeed make Scout stand out, but in a modern, chic way. This top is now on sale for $23 from $46 -- we of course paid about a dime for it but if you had to have a piece or two, I am happy to report, there is a 50% sale on at the moment. Let it Neige.

love love love my mini valentine
While Mom's covering the tragic LOVE case, Scoutie gets to spend her days on adventures with her beloved Cecelia.  Luckily Recessionista was able to duck out of court on the lunch recess so we could have a Valentine's celebration of love at Rapture on the quaint little Charlottesville mall. 

Scoutie is thrifty thrifty thrifty all decked in her pink and red.  The sparkly red cotton cardigan is from target though purchased at Goodwill with the tags still attached $5 and her adorable asian inspired faux wrap ruffle front pink dress is the gap but we got it for a dollar at GW -- and it too still had the tags on it.  Underneath it all, she has a pink with red apples print claasen tank that is just too adorable for words also $5.  
Even the ever frugal Cece is all in theme in her pink red and heart adornments.  Mom is in a red wool vintage inspired shift that is Banana Republic but scored at GW for $7.99. And with our secret weapon, industrial strength steamer - it was clean and ready for wear in minutes.  the uber long divine cardigan by duro olowu london little known British designer, was a major score outta the bins, so while we paid probably the equivalent of a dollar for the sweater it was probably close to $1000 retail.  There were kisses and hugs and love all around and we all looked the part for nothing while doing it. now you gotta LOVE that.

Happy Valentine's Day!

 GOT MILK?

Scout is ready for some strolling and some easy french dining in her stella mccartney gray long cashmere cotton blend hoodie with with the chic reinforced elbow and forearm patches over her adorable gray tweed high rise pleated shorts H&M $19.99. The hoodie wasn't exactly cheap even on sale, so we bought it in a size up to get plenty of wear out of it.
It's chilly so we paired them with her tic tac toe black and white speckled tights.  I love the black cashmere trapper hat by jcrew -- $45 in the stores -- 25 cents outta the bins. She added her new red raspberry supergas which made me balk at first but then really they are the perfect hint of, i'm still a kid, oh that, along with the milk mustache.

ON TARGET

Recessionista was on the go -- a loooong 6 hour drive south -- perfect time to pull off the highway and look for a deal the morning Jason Wu debuts his line for TARGET.  Thank you for the reminder Auntie Cole. The first tarjay we stopped in somewhere in Virginia wasn't even carrying it -- luckily all you have to do is drive a bit more down the highway before you bump in to another target.

Scout is in her comfy weekend travel gear - straight from bed to car -- stella mccartney fox print gray marl sweatshirt (half price on stellamcartneykids.com with her divinely soft j crewcuts gray marl classic cotton sweatpants with a groovy peg leg line $14 at the after christmas sale and her easy pink leopard thongs from old navy.
Well all of the Jason Wu accessories bags scarves etc were stripped bare and there were a few tops, dresses and skirts left but they were all crafted from cheap fabrics and too cute by half in my humble thrifty opinion.  we did score one of the few jason wu things that did appeal on line for the cat lover in Scout.

perfect for hotel bed jumping. MEOW.

I'll Tumble For You

We are big fans of layering -- and we just scoured this little furry gilet by Indigo in our thrifty bins for basically FREE at the Housing Works Thrift Shop Buy by the Bag event which is held most Saturdays at their warehouse in Long Island City.
http://www.housingworks.org/events/buy-the-bag/
Best to buy an hour of power ticket.
Scout is also wearing her Ismodern faux fur cream cotton lined coat with her dusty rose stella mccartney tunic and her lilli gaufrette sequined paisley wool tweed skirt and her stella crocheted leggings.  Easy breezy clothes so she can tumble to glory at her Circus Gymnastics Show.

The feather clip she bought at the Dollar store for well a dollar.

Lucky for us, Loving, Stylish Auntie Katie came to show her support. Then it was off for skinny margaritas for the moms and Mexican Hot Chocolate for the Gymnast.

DREAMY INTARSIA KNITS 


Scout is sporting two of our favorite knits together today.  Not sure anyone in their right mind would wear them at the same time but how delightful it is to be covered in swinging monkeys and pollinating birds all at once. In shades of orange chocolate brown mustard and gold they somehow work married in the same color wheel.
Both Lia Molly for Anthropologie -- I got them once they were on sale 50% off of half price off the original.  The sweater coat is a size 2 and meant to be a long sleeved dress -- no matter, keep the thrifty value going - it still looks great as a cardigan with 3/4 sleeves.  The intarsia knit dress has a humming bird feeding on a mustard colored three dimensional flower applique.  We're cozy in our nod to this week's Spring-like weather.  

LOVE IS IN THE AIR
Ahhh is it that month again? Yippee!  Scout is traveling this month with her mother on a couple of murder trials so she will be missing all of the wondrous and fun Valentine's activities in kindergarten. So we decided to bring out her H&M heart print faux wrap top dress out a little early.

 We snagged it years ago for a dollar and has been useful for a few years though i think this will be the last.  topped with her red zara for kids trench, hamptons yard sale find and our favorite purple suede boots for a purple heart nod and her loose romantic hair twist she is dripping with symbols of love.

My Little Mermaid

You can find a plethora of children's costuming treasures at second-hand stores. We have chests full of tutus, wigs and boas for endless hours of fun. Scout had her big show for her final Musical Theatre class today. She had announced a couple of weeks ago that she is a Mermaid so she needed to grab her mermaid costume at the beach house. So she did -- I think we paid 2 dollars for it a couple of years ago and she almost actually fits in it.  We topped it off with a as many as mommy's sea lady shell necklaces as she could carry and put her hair in to a celebrity-style fishtail of course.  Scout's day wear today was another irresistible number for Missoni for Target with its matching zig zagged hemmed leggings and her Prada sneakers $29 at Nordstorm's off the rack would be $220 at Prada. And the sea nymphs are singing, 

Missoni by day, Mermaid by night.

fishtail and pearls for the magical mermaid