Thrifted Treasure

You got it right - this dress was one of my latest finds in Goodwill (where I had to go for that secret reason I am not talking about just yet!). The bright purple (mulberry and lavender, would you agree?) color palette with a splash of orange (which never fails to make me happy) is what attracted me to this dress in the first place. I haven't had a style like this before, though it is very reminiscent of what my Mom used to wear in the early 80s, and it also has a mid-century feel to it, all at the same time. I am not a big expert on fashion history, and I would be very interested in learning what YOU think of this dress. Is it a classic, old-fashioned, retro, ageless or aging dress to you? What does it remind you of?

I first styled it with my beloved denim jacket, and that gave it a scaled down contemporary vibe in an instant. But for some reason I wanted to play even more feminine that evening. I thought I didn't have a cardi in either purple or orange hues, but boy was I wrong! I do have one - it was packed in a large container under my bed as a "Fall/Winter season item". I guess it's all in our head at the end. This cardigan definitely can be a year round piece. Out of the box it came! 

I am doing fabulous Sheila's of Ephemera pose here :)

I played with the orange accents this time, just because I love orange (who'd think, right?) and I have all I need in this lovely hue. I am guilty of not completely stopping thrift store shopping (or sales in my favorite brand name stores), but I do a better job shopping my closet these days too. Anya was the one who helped me to decide on the necklace you see here. She said that it picks up the orange from the dress and shoes so well. I love this necklace for the fun assortment of shades, shapes and sizes it has. Justin did a great job catching the sparkle in the evening sun! (Just so you know - evening light is the most beautiful, 2 hours before sunset is the most flattering time to take your photos. Mid-day light is very harsh and harder to work with. We first took photos this day at 3 pm, and they weren't nearly as good as these. I only used the portrait shot from the first photo shoot.) 

It was a lovely evening, very comfortably warm, but not hot or humid (very Seattle-ish kind of Summer). But in a hot day I would go necklace-less.

The dress is made of almost exclusively cotton with just a bit of spandex in the fabric - only 3%, but it makes the difference! Clothes fit so much better when they are made of a stretchy fabric. I don't remember it being an option when I was sewing (in the 90s) - I believe it's a newer fabric technology. What do you think, Beate?

The dress fit is almost perfect, with the exception of the bust area, (it's just a bit too big for me ... how is that even possible?). But given that I found this dress in a brand-new like condition for only $11 at Goodwill, I am not going to complain. The brand is unknown to me (East 5th). I suspect it's an inexpensive department store brand (I almost never shop at departments stores, they feel overwhelming to me, so I am not familiar with their brands). It is well made, has lining in the upper part and zipper up the back, and the cut is quite sophisticated for an inexpensive dress. I found a dress exactly like mine on eBay for $35, so I did pretty well.

Dress - thrifted (Avenue 5th via Goodwill)

Shoes - Tsubo (via Nordstrom Rack)

Purse - Cole Haan (via TJ MAXX)

Orange necklace - Lane Bryant

Ring and bracelet - boutique finds

Linking up with Visible Monday at Patti's

and 52 Pick-me-up: 60s at Spy Girl's