Neigh Neigh Giddy up

oooh i love a good animal print and on children what fun it is to throw on the whole animal. This wonderful GAP cotton zebra intarsia sweater dress was part of an entire animal print collection a couple of years ago - and I couldn't help but stock up for a couple of years in advance. Scout has gotten a lot of wear out of it and it stills looks great -- course i hand wash these types of things because often the color fades in the lesser expensive brands like GAP.  Alas it's chilly again so she has on her zebra leggings and her cozy sale patagonia to keep the recess wind at bay.

Rich and Relaxed Blooms

One of our fave tops is this Ismodern blue floral print - yes she has the dress too but this is just so fabulous without being fussy and paired with her GAP skinnies she is chic and comfy.  The falling cardigan is Stella McCartney's silk and cotton button down jumper.

Love that Scout took the neck tie and wrapped it around the back making the top a great deal cooler. Then she asked if she could wear her pink Bloch ballet slippers and said, do you like my outfit? why, yes, I do, do you?  yes she said, i just think these shoes looks so great with these jeans...and so it begins.

I had a farm in Africa...

...at the foot of the Ngong Hills.

 Today is "Pocket Day" at PS87 - will have to wait to find out exactly what that means - all I know is Scout had to be kitted out with something with a lot of pockets. What better way to showcase my favorite Spring look. Was dying to mix in my love for orange but couldn't resist the silk leopard scarf we got out of the bins last weekend. With her $3 Gap safari dress from Goodwill and her J Crew zebra stripe cardigan for an extra layer and her jewels from KK she is ready for some serious Big Game.

Who Can Make the Sun Rise?

Good Morning America
A dream come true...Scout finally got her big wish to be on TV... well sort of :)
Just like a real movie star, she got picked up in her chauffeured suburban then it was off to pick up her good gal pal Avital. They giggled and screamed with delight the entire drive to Times Square.
Dressed to kill for her classic New York Urban adventure, the wind chill is making it frigid, so she donned her vintage fur purchased by her Guammie at Goodwill. The feature on Easter Candy Delights was outdoors so we were glad we had it. To ensure she'd pop on the tube, Scout wore her Ismodern out-sized royal blue circles print top and coordinating skirt. Avital sported her truly fabulous Marc Jacobs blue egg print dress. Even Carson Kressley of Queer Eye fame told them they looked fabulous. Perfect cuz, go ahead, you're on the air.

Having a chin wag with weatherman Sam Champion

Mirror Mirror

Oh Wait I Meant The Other One, Cinderella Cinderella

What a treat this little show at Lincoln Center is...I was delighted when Scout's teacher Ms. Davis asked me to help escort the class to Cinderella.
It was a beautiful early spring like morning but I am still old school and think one should "dress for the theatre." Many of the mothers complimented Scout and me for "dressing,"  I thought it odd no one else was dressed including the conductor and the orchestra -- just a throwback, i guess. And to me "dress rehearsal" has many connotations.

For the Princess in all of us, I thought Scoutie should feel as close to being able to hop up on the stage should Cinderella take a spill as is possible, no? With a little help from her Fairy Mother, she is in her stunning Stella McCartney silk chiffon ecru dress paired with her J. crewcuts floral applique metallic bolero and her crown "jewels?" from Goodwill - just what the humble, and thrifty Cinderella would have worn.

The Romance of Dusty Rose

 Oh Stella Stella ...McCartney you get it right - Scout's tunic is a perfect hue of muted dusty rose. Blonds look divinely sophisticated in shades of putty.  Love love her felted wool floral pony tail holder that I picked up at 75% off at Sustain in Charlottesville, this wonderful all-green, eco friendly boutique to which my dear soul sister, Cecelia Magargee introduced me. the safari friendly giraffe print was purchased at the j. crewcuts sample sale and the stella top well was too much so i bought it in size 10 to extend and justify its life with us.

SPRING FLOWERS BLOOMING

Another Stella McCartney favorite is our little flower print MAC waterproof rain jacket. Today Scout is brightening up the gray day in it - what better way to greet the first day of Spring? Why covered in blooms, of course.

ALWAYS SPARKLE

Always Glitter Always Shiiiine

Mad rush Mondays, i call them after our ebay sales go through the roof on Saturdays and Sundays, it's mad wrapping, packing, labeling and shipping -- and then it's a mad dash to school. More and more Scoutie wants to be ready to run, so comfort is a must - we just got these GAP skinnies in the bins on Saturday and by Saturday afternoon, they were sent to the laundry.  The wonderful toggle sweater is brand new, i suspect J. crew though the tags were cut out -- but also cost about a dollar outta the bins, the Gryphon sequin gilet also the bins; and the classic striped cotton knit sweater, I just bought at H&M so go grab one -- it's high quality and who couldn't use a fresh one?  This is our staple uniform but now that everyone is wearing it, we're going to be coming up with new twists on the classic.  why not throw some sequins in to the nautical mix. "always sparkle," we always say.

Goin' Green and Louis Vuitton Gold at the End of the Rainbow

We had a splendid St. Patrick's Day starting out nice and early in search of the pot of gold or two at our regular Recessionista Saturday hunting haunt -- The Housing Works Thrift Buy the Bag Event. With help from my little leprachaun kitted out down to her toes in her leprachaun shoe socks from her Guammie who probably got them at Goodwill or Target, we were in the proper Irish Spirit.  Her fleece is Land's End, Green Stripe-y hoodie target - she could barely get it over her head so after bin diving - in to the donation bag it went, and she topped it all off with the bow we saved off a pressie for just this thrifty purpose.

One of the many pots o' gold found was a Louis Vuitton bag - yes a real one that cost basically nothing. Ay the luck of the Irish. 








In keeping with the "going green" theme, we planned our big St. Patrick's Date Night with The Lorax. An adorable, creative, spirited film who's saving the trees message did not go unnoticed by our beloved little Leprechaun. Her 3D Lorax Theater-wear: green Mini Boden Sweater, brand new silk green scarf and green cloth necklace were all found in the bins today. Our fave green apple print dress is J. crewcuts. I wore my truly INCREDIBLE Dyed Green Tibetan Lamb fur coat, I got from the bins -- so perfectly inspired, it was for the night, I might add, that some of The Lorax Project guys at the theater said to us, is your coat made of Truffula trees?

RAIN RAIN GO AWAY

ahhh a wet North Wind has blown our glorious Spring tease to the back of our closet with our floral prints....for now. I just picked up this adorable spring baby deer tunic dress at H&M -- i love deer prints and the ecru background is divine on my wee blonde muse.  topped off with her cozy patagonia "fur" - she is ready for a chilly romp on the playground.

i can't help but think of gray on days like today.One should probably throw on a sunny yellow or tangerine orange cashmere cardigan but we don't have any so this ismodern puff shoulder double layer charcoal gray cozy dress over her zebra print leggings from GAP and hunter rain boots still makes for a favorite rainy day outfit.
To brighten up Scout's gray duds we popped on her "new" coral puffer from j. crew -- the ruffle around the neck makes it over the top cute -- we got it in the bins last week -- it looks brand new -- but we paid oh about a quarter for it.  I wish it was one size bigger but we'll put it on line and make 30 bucks on it after she's gotten a little wear out of it.
That's right MAKE money on clothes she wears.
want to know what is almost as good as her thrifty threads? the paris leather club chair Scout is lounging in was FREE -- the patagonia store around the corner was throwing it out. with the help of neighbors i finally got it in to my apartment and the cushion came up as we stuffed it through the door -- i see the restoration hardware tag -- that's right $2700 chair for free.  love love love sitting in it and at that price my love is immeasurable.

Ethnic Embroidery and the Look of Far Flung Adventures

The change in weather always inspires renewal and its matching shift in style. Scoutie loves the ease of exchanging her warm coats for vests over sweaters. This Stella McCartney is an absolute favorite in our repertoire. fine khaki cotton with embroidered tunic top, she looks ready for a stroll through the spring wildflowers in the Alps or a maybe a tropical drink on the beaches of St. Barth's.  We paired our favorite little schmata with her J. crewcuts red cotton cardigan with its sequined starfish and mom's beaded Calypso for Target khaki belt.  The vest we got at goodwill and I think it too was an original Target gem. Scout grounded the look with her brown Boden leather boots instantly giving her that easy, breezy, bohemian laissez faire, hipster flair. Now where to?

SECRETS GEMS AND TREASURES

Scout loves spending her Saturday mornings with her BFF "Ira."  Ira runs one of Recessionista's favorite treasure troves of spectacular thrifty finds.  Housing Works which started as a wee thrift store to fund housing for AIDS patients has become huge business. With thousands of charitable New Yorkers donating their clothing and wares, Housing Works doesn't have the space in its Mnahattan stores to sell the goods. Lucky for the Recessionista in all of us - on Saturday mornings, they open their doors to their warehouse in Long Island City. Bin after bin filled with clothes - yes it is dingy dirty, and by the end of the day, there is a risk of being buried in a mountain of clothes. It is a lot of work but in the best possible way. One of my bin diving pals had just found the sequin vest Scout sported immediately but of course it matches her boots. I always get to feed my obsession with french nautical stripes and anthropologie.  On this day we got ooodles of Gucci, Prada, Ralph Lauren, anthropologie, J. Crew and Scottish cashmere and amazing dresses -- love this Susan Monaco gray wool pleated skirt dress found by my dear friend Jody, a Prada bone leather bag perfect for ummm right now, a Shanghai Tang distressed leather jacket, a lovely spring colored Kiton skirt, a little french toile also a Jody-find, and on and on and on.....and it's all on ebay as of the publishing of this blog, being sold for a song!!