Retro Maternity Wear: Black and White and Sassy

(note, popped collar for humorous effect because I was feeling… fly…?)

This shirt might be the best $10 decision I ever made at Goodwill. Normally, because it’s used clothing, I don’t like spending over, say, $7 ish for a garment (unless it’s really amazing vintage), because… guys, it’s used. I mean, I have nothing against purchasing previously loved garments, but the entire reason anything is at a thrift store is that it’s no longer new. Aka, you can’t return it to the store you bought it from, cuz you’ve worn it too much and it’s lost some value. But that rant about Goodwill’s ridiculous Fashion Focus section where you can find obviously pre-worn dresses for $50 or more is for another time.

Back to this shirt. I tried it on and loved it. But my policy about not getting too spendy on one garment settled in, and it sat in my cart to deliberate for the full two hours that I was there trying on every crazy vintage thing I could find (including a plethora of floor-length Hawaiian Muumuus that I very nearly bought.) I very nearly put it back when my purchases started climbing higher than I am used to (most of it for Etsy).

But then I remembered Marlen’s article on Bustle about dressing emotionally, and realized… through all the deliberation I just couldn’t get this shirt out of my head. It pulled at my heartstrings and just… made me happy. So into my closet it came. With the added reasoning that I also need some good shirts to wear over this belly of mine that are not tees or tank tops. I love a good tee, but I’m going to try to up my summer style game this year, pregnant and all, and a loose blouse like this looks so much more put-together over shorts than a plain tank top. (and it has room for air flow. Win win.)

I’m so glad that Marlen more or less convinced me; I feel good today, and the lady at my local farm stand told me I looked sassy. Which is the best compliment I could have hoped for. It might be odd to some people that I’m over here deliberating over spending $10 on a shirt when the internet hails budget fashion bloggers as women who spend upwards of $200 on one outfit, but hey: I’ll be blunt. I grew up poor. I didn’t realize it as a kid, but once I started working at 16, that money was precious and budgeted and I was so used to thrift store prices that even though we’re living in a time of plenty at the moment, I’m still shocked anyone would spend over $20 on a shirt like this and call that normal.

No judgment if you do — you can be a smart shopper on a budget and drop $100 on a purse, if that’s your budget — but this girl could probably pull an outfit from her closet that cost her less than half of what most people spend on a single garment. It’s the way I roll. I am planning to put Marlen’s emotional dressing into action in my own life and go through my closet to thin out what I have — because I have much more than I probably should admit to. As she said in her article, I want my closet to be full of emotion, and not just “oh, that’s cute.” I want to get rid of the “eh” stuff and move into just cultivating a wardrobe that I’m head-over-heels for.

She has a few other articles I’m using, too (here, and here) and hopefully by the end of the week I’ll have weeded out the garments that I like but don’t actually love.

Top and headscarf, thrifted | maternity leggings and boots, Target | lipstick, wet’n’wild Purty Persimmon

What do you do to keep your wardrobe full of things you only love and can actually wear? Or are you like me, and just so fascinated by crazy vintage that you end up with a lot you don’t actually adore, and only had a minor crush on for looks?

Happy Wednesday!