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September 12, 2012

The sort of outfit I usually wear to go yard saling



Garage saling vintage outfit, Chronically Vintage, image 3
 
 
Garage saling vintage outfit, Chronically Vintage, image 4


Garage saling vintage outfit, Chronically Vintage, image 2
 
 
Garage saling vintage outfit, Chronically Vintage, image 1


Outfit details

Blue stretch headband: Ardene
Prescription eyeglasses: (frames) Venus Eye Design V-12
Adorable sterling silver and Swarovski crystal kitty necklace: gift from Tony ♥
Green cardigan: Old Navy
Purple plaid shirt: Warehouse One
1950s corduroy bucket purse: etsy seller Rue 23 Vintage Clothing
Faux pearl stretch bracelets: Real Canadian Superstore
Denim capri pants: Nine West
White skinny belt: eBay
Black bow sling-back flats: Payless
Lip colour: MAC Russian Red

Photography by Antonio Cangiano
 
♥ ♥ ♥

Earlier this year I shared an example of the type of outfit I typically wear for a day spent hitting the thrift stores, and before this summer wraps up completely, I really wanted to show you an example of what I commonly sport while out garage saling.

It had almost became a running joke. Each Saturday morning when we'd (by which I mean myself, my mom, and Tony) head out and I'd make a point of saying (to Tony) that we needed to grab some wardrobe snaps that day. Yet time after time, for whatever reason, it failed to happen. Finally, after one of our more recent yard saling excursions, as we returned home, I all but insisted he stop and grab at least a couple of photos (in this case, on his iPhone) of me in our own yard.

There's nothing really fancy about this outfit, but that's the whole point. One doesn't want to have to worry about dust and dirt while out garage saling, and you want something that will stand up to  hours of wear. Comfortable shoes are important, too, and I usually opt for flats or a very walkable, sturdy heel. Generally, depending on the weather, I'll either wear these denim capris, my Freddie's jeans, or an a-line button front skirt (such as this one) that has pockets (very important for having cash at the ready!).

I'll usually wear a necklace and bracelet or two, but generally opt for stretch or tighter fitting bangles, as I don't want to risk losing a bracelet or having them bang into (and potentially break) anything I'm reaching for in the midst of my yard sale rummaging.

As one can never be entirely certain of what the weather will do, I tend to opt for at least two light layers (in this case a short sleeve button up plaid skirt and a thin knit green cardigan), that way I can button up or slip one off, just depending on what kind of mood Mother Nature is in that day.

Just as pockets are important, so too, I find, is a purse that I can easily get into. This way, if an item costs more than I have in my pocket (or I've depleted my stash of coins), I can quickly grab my wallet and start negotiating the price (I pretty much always bargain for a lower price at garage sales and flea markets).

This 1950s bucket purse is one you've seen before (such as in this post), and that's because it gets more use during the summer months than probably any other purse I have. It's versatile hue, decent size, and weight (empty, it's quite light) means I reach for it all season long (during the winter though, one usually doesn't want an open top purse when it's snowing, so this bag usually gets a breather until the following spring arrives).

So there you - and I (finally!) - have it, a look at the kind of outfit I generally wear when sourcing every yard and garage in town I possibly can for vintage treasures. I suspect it's akin to what many of you also don for these kinds of days, whether your yard sale season is just a few months long (as it is up here in Canada) or something you get to enjoy all year long (lucky you!).



40 comments:

  1. Garage 'sailing', I've not heard that term before! The outfit is wonderfully coloured and matches your hair perfectly. Adore your retro hairstyle and makeup too. Women used to look so much more like females didn't they? A little bit of mystery and romance ....

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    1. Thank you very much, sweet gal. Though I'm quite sure we're not the only ones who have come up with it (and I make no claims as such), it's a fun little verb my mom and I have been using since she began taking me to yard sales as a youngster. It's very handy and should, I do believe, become part of the whole world's lexicon.

      ♥ Jessica

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  2. Lovely, I like the green cardi with the purples in the shirt. Very practical too, I wear similar things when I go to car boot sales. More outfit posts please!

    Miss P xx

    www.porcelinasworld.blogspot.com

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    1. Hi lovely Porcelina, thank you very much. Health permitting, (as of the start of this past spring) I try to put up a new outfit post about once a week, so hopefully you'll see lots more fashions you like in the weeks and months to come.

      ♥ Jessica

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  3. You look wonderful and that is the perfect outfit for garage/yard saling! It's cute and comfy with an amazing purse!

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    1. Many sweet thanks, dear gal. I adore this purse. The original stitching that held the handles in place began to come apart this summer (three of the four contact points broke at various times), but I used a fabulous, acid-free glue (from my craft stash) and fixed that up in a wink each time (and cut the forth one off at the pass, literally, by picking out the stitches and replacing them with glue), so it's still going strong and serving me well. :)

      ♥ Jessica

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  4. You look very cute! I always dress more casual whenever I got in search of treasures.

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    1. Thank you, hon, so do I (though, on a couple of occasions, when I was on my way to a more formal event, instead of a weekend morning of garage saling, I have been known to show up on someone's lawn in anything from a faux fur caplet to a 40s cocktail dress).

      How are things going with your car and the issues it was giving you at the end of last month?

      ♥ Jessica

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  5. That definatley is my uniform too. A lot of the estate sales I go do are pretty dirty. Plus I do a lot of bending over so a dress is out of the question. Great color cardigan gotta love that Kelly Green.

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    1. Thanks, hon! It's a surprising versatile cardi colour (definitely a quasi-neutral). I'd say that after black, grey, and blue, it's the most worn cardigan in my closet.

      ♥ Jessica

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  6. That color green really suits you, love it! I haven't got to go yard saling very much this year and I've really missed it. My mom goes religiously every weekend though and has for about 35 years now. If she misses yard sales, you know something is wrong - plus she gets very cranky. lol

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    1. Thank you, sweet lady. Your mom and I sound like we're cut from the same cloth. I don't get cranky, but I do feel a bit sad if I miss out on a weekend of garage saling. Unfortunately, between being quite ill all August and super busy in July, I haven't gotten to any in a few weeks now. The weather here is still quite decent, so I suspect there will be a couple more weekends of yard sales still this year - fingers crossed I can make it out on those days.

      ♥ Jessica

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  7. Are you serious that he got such fabulous photos on an iphone? Awesome! I'd love to hear about some of your garage sale finds. Ever find 40s 50s vintage items? Where I live there are not too many garage sales and my husband is not one for any kind of shopping so I think it's special that your husband likes to go to this kind of thing:) My father loved to garage sale shop and I always loved it too. I think I need to start looking up estate sales seeing if I can find some gems:))

    And, I must say you look very lovely. I'm sure you were the most glamorous thrifter that day:)

    http://dividingmoments.blogspot.com/

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    1. Hi sweet Joanna, thank you very much. Indeed he did grab those shots with his iPhone (I don't have one, I've got a Blackberry which doesn't take anywhere near as nice photos) and then I edited them a touch afterwards on my laptop.

      Aside from any household items we might need (and with an eye open for craft supplies), I pretty much yard sale exclusively in the hopes of finding vintage or vintage appropriate items.

      As we didn't get to very many yard sales this summer, I haven't added too many new treasures to my shelves lately, but here's a post from the end of this past spring laden with all the treasures I unearthed earlier in the year: http://www.chronicallyvintage.com/2012/06/my-favourite-spring-2012-vintage-yard.html

      Though the haul was, again, a lot smaller, I may do a similar post at the end of the summer in a couple weeks from now, as the first one seemed to prove really popular - and because I love sharing my finds with you gals.


      ♥ Jessica

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  8. I hadn't discovered Old Navy until my trip to NH a couple of weeks back. They are the only place that does pyjama bottoms long enough for my long legs and jeans curvy enough for my chunky thighs (not to mention the fact that they don't expose my bum crack like countless other jeans!)

    I'm a convert - and so reasonably priced, too! xxx

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    1. I first developed a crush on Old Navy as a teenager when I saw their TV commercials and then fell head-over-heels in love with them when they started popping up in some of the larger Canadian cities (such as Calgary and Toronto, both of which I've lived in before). Though, unfortunately, these days there isn't an ON for hundreds of miles around, I know that the next time I'm in the vicinity of one again, I'll be making a beeline for the cardigans and other basic, timeless staples there once again.

      ♥ Jessica

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  9. I wish I dressed up more for my thrift store endeavors. I don't go yard saling a lot.I usually browse the antique store or goodwill. However I've found quite a bit of vintage pieces from goodwill. And on their auction site {I don't where the link is} my Mom bought me a vintage fur stole that I still just adore!!

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    1. It's so, so awesome that the Goodwill has an online store in the States. A few Goodwill locations exist in Ontario, but the chain has yet to expand throughout the rest of the country, and as they don't have an online store, I've not had the opportunity to shop with them yet. Hopefully one day!

      ♥ Jessica

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  10. Such a great outfit! I've really been into the vintage casual look lately and this is just fabulous!

    xoxo
    -Janey

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  11. I bet you have great luck because you disarm the folks at the garage sale with your pretty outfit and then you drive a hard bargain!

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    1. It's really interesting that you say that, Kathleen. Though it might not come across in my posts, I'm an incredibly shy person and stay far away from anything that might cause confrontation when out and about, but there's just something about yard sales that makes me so brazen (by my standards) and unafraid of haggling over a price until the cows come home. I think it has to do with the fact that I started young at my mother's urging and so have grown up with that (yard sales) feeling like one of the few places where I had that kind of confidence.

      ♥ Jessica

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  12. Simple and very lovely! Love your hair...

    xoxox
    theefface.blogspot.com

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  13. you look beautiful dear Jessica :) I so love to yard sale and goodwill etc. Because of you I have recently purchased new (vintagy looking) eyeglasses! lol

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  14. That looks soo comfy and I am all about the comfy! And its pretty too! Don't you just adore cardi's! Yeah for fall!! xox

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  15. Your outfit's adorable and absolutely perfect for yard saling! I love that you enjoy bartering too!

    I hope you'll do another post at the end of the season rounding up the second half of your summer treasures. The first one was big fun.

    The best thing about garage saling season winding to a close is that the Halloween stuff starts to come out and one can find the most spectacular pieces of vintage for dirt cheap. And then comes bazaar season - various churches in my small town sell books, old goodies and yummy baked goods and I bet they do the same in the churches and legions near you. I feel like you'd really enjoy those.

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    1. Thank you, hon! I'd usually be the first one to agree about the Halloween decorations coming out in full force (such as certainly been my experience, too) as summer winds down, but I've been on the hunt for Halloween decor all (garage sale) season long as have come up virtually empty handed (and my mom, who has been able to get to more sales than I have, and who knows I'm looking for decorations, hasn't had any better luck either). Perhaps with the economy the way it these days, people aren't turning over their holiday decor as quickly as they once did.

      We don't have much in the way of bazaar season here, but boy, do I wish we did - I'd love to keep hitting the sales once the mercury drops.

      ♥ Jessica

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    2. Just wanted to add, most of the churches around here usually hold their parking lot sales or indoor bazaars during yard sale season, perhaps because of the better weather, but I suspect because they know that the throngs of yard sale shoppers will be more inclined to stop by as they make their way around town during the April - September yard sale months then if they held such events in the dead of a -25C Canadian winter.

      You're very lucky to live somewhere bazaars continue (or start up?) during the chillier months and would be delighted if my small Canadian town took a page for your locale's playbook.

      ♥ Jessica

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  16. I'm glad you did get around to snapping your outfit. It's nice to know I'm not alone in going for comfort/practicality when it comes to bargain shopping! x

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  17. Hi sweet ladies,

    Thank you all very much for your fantastic comments. Though the haul is considerably smaller (unless I massively luck out in the next couple of weeks), you've definitely confirmed that you'd be interested in seeing a "best of the summer" roundup of yard sale finds, so all things permitting, I'll try to get such a post up towards the end of this month.


    Oodles of hugs to you all,
    ♥ Jessica

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  18. I'm glad that Tony got some snaps of you, you still look chic even when in a practical yard saling outfit. When ever I go to carboot sales I tend to dress right down and wear no make up, otherwise they see me coming a mile off and up their prices for all the Vintage bits. Hope you have a lovely weekend Jessica. xx

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    1. Thank you, dear Kelly-Marie. Yikes! While on the one hand I wish that was a problem here (outside of large cities, there aren't too many people who seem to know a lot about us vintage loving folks, I've found, so I doubt that would be a risk here unless I was in an antique store), I'm grateful it's one I've not (as far as I know) yet encountered. Actually, a few times (while yard saling) I've had sweet seniors give me a discount (or even something completely for free) because they said they like what I was wearing and how it reminded them of their younger days. Certainly not every week, but every now and then, and it always makes my day to no end when it does happen.

      ♥ Jessica

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  19. I love this outfit post! I prefer more casual vintage-inspired outfits to more dressy ones, and I love the capris!

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    1. Thank you very much, Janice. I think it's really important to dress, and build a wardrobe, for the life you live. So while part of me would love to wear evening gowns more often then not, it's simply not practical or budget-wise, so I tend to stock plenty of classic, comfortable, stylish vintage pieces in my closet that I can dress up or down quite easily.

      ♥ Jessica

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  20. I adore your casual outfits! And I love that you've got a perfect vintage look from modern retailers. :)

    Lisa.

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    1. Thank you, sweet gal! You know, aside from the vintage purse, you're absolute right, this is a look that's comprised of modern-does-vintage pieces (just like my recent "fishing in the dark" look was, too - even the bag was modern there!). I'm all for outfits like this, especially if you're doing something with dirt and/or rips are a very real possibility. All the fun and style of vintage without the perpetual dread of accidentally damaging your threads :)

      ♥ Jessica

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  21. What a charming outfit for garage sailing! I adore your green cardigan, I always wish I could find more green items for my closet. I agree about it being a quasi-neutral, I think green can be worn with almost anything.

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    1. Thank you, dear Frances. I'm on the prowl for more green pieces, too. I got this cardi quite a while back (guessing 3 to 4 years ago now) and it's been the key green piece in my wardrobe ever since (though I do have a couple of verdant frocks which I found around the start of this year - so that cardi isn't completely alone any more :) ).

      ♥ Jessica

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  22. You look wonderful in that green! How I envy you have so many yard sales...I think it is a Canadian/ American phenomenum!We don't have them in Australia. We have'garage'sales, but they are few and far between. People tend to donate their unwanted items to charity/thrift shops instead. Again, so jealous!xx Shauna

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    1. Thank you very much, dearest gal. I'm sorry that yard saling hasn't spread to far beyond Canada and America as of yet. Perhaps in time it will, but there's certainly no guarantee. While you envy that element of this content, I will continue to perpetually yearn for the superb vintage fairs, festivals and other events you have in your gorgeous corner of the world (and which are exceedingly few and far between in most parts of Canada).

      ♥ Jessica

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  23. You look smashing my dear! :) The color green of your sweater is superb on you indeed. And your pendant is adorable. Garage saling is soooo much fun. We never know what we can find. It seems i always find one or more little treasures that i cannot believe the people selling don't want to keep forever! LOL. Though i love garage and yard sales, we've never had one ourselves because neither my husband or myself seem able to part with anything. I always end up saying.. 'no, i have to keep that for some such reason..' Maybe someday... ?

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