Frugal Fancy-pants: June: A Two-fer for Corynn

It's been a dry season for good ol' Frugal Fancy-pants. This is due in part to the fact that I'm a middle-aged lady now, and cracking open that basement bin full of duds from five years ago that I actually like requires a lot less sugar and a lot more running than it used to.  Beggars, choosers, and all that. Until (if ever) that happens*****, I'm stuck wearing costumes like these, which are okay for posts when there's nothing else, but still, it's more fun when I like what I'm wearing. 

When I ran across this picture Millie took several months ago of Cadence and me, however, I thought it would make a good FFP, and then at the beginning of June, two Sundays in a row unfolded when I was surprised by the fact that I LIKED what I was wearing. The stars align!  Here we go, with apologies for a setting that lacks good lighting and fashionable ambiance.

EXHIBIT A:

Wear this outfit on chilly spring/summer mornings when the temperature is cool enough to require a bathrobe (for the stylish elite such as yourself who wear bathrobes as outfits), but your warm and fuzzy winter one simply feels too warm and fuzzy.

-Pajamas: Victoria Secret pajama pants and cotton t-shirt, rummage sale for about a nickel each
-Robe: Jones New York, rummage sale for about a nickel

Total cost of outfit: 15 cents

Optional accessories:
-A child's thumb (with child attached, preferably clutching her brother's weapon and covered in blue paint from an early-morning "adventure" involving getting into things she should not touch)

-A green sheet hanging to dry that was soaked from a thunderstorm blowing in the window the night before.


EXHIBIT B:

Wear this outfit to church after raiding your daughter's wardrobe for the clothes you gave her last fall even though they were a size too big for her because when you bought them at the rummage sale-- when you were 8 1/2 months pregnant-- you couldn't imagine ever being able to fit inside them.

-Dress: rummage bag sale; about a nickel
-Skirt: hand-me-down
-Belt: hand-me-down
-Sandals: rummage bag sale: about a nickel

Total cost of outfit: about a dime

Optional accessories:
-Wooden bracelet: gift from my sister Becky, who knows my love of wooden and metal jewelry
-Earrings: my new favorites that Millie made from a necklace I broke two years ago.
- A little thumb fancier than the one in Exibit A, with child still attached, sans paint and weapon
-Stilted expression, about which your smiley second born says, "UGH! You look so ugly! Why do people poof their lips out like that? You look so much prettier when you smile!"

Side-by-side comparison:






BONUS FANCY-PANTS, WEEK TWO

EXHIBIT A:

The bathrobe outfit. See above for reference.

EXHIBIT B:

Wear this outfit when you realize the skirt you have in the back of your closet might fit now (!), provided you force the buttons to comply at the highest point of your waist.

Black shirt: hand-me-down (but I think Mary originally got it at a clothing giveaway)
Gorgeous lined, vintage skirt, with POCKETS!: about a nickel at a rummage bag sale
Black wraparound tie shoes: about a nickel at a rummage bag sale

Total cost of outfit: about a dime

Optional accessories:
-A little girl in white, whose bangs are thankfully growing out and looking less homeschooled.
-Horse hair earrings: Millie made them and surprised me with these for Christmas a year or two ago. Twelve years later, I wonder what Apache would think of me stealing his hair for jewelry?
-A smile, which, even though it's fake (Annika asked me if it was, and, with chagrin, I told her "yes"), is still apparently an improvement from those disgusting poofy lips.

Side-by-side comparison:







*****VERY IMPORTANT UPDATE! I wrote this post months ago and have since been given some stellar hand-me-downs from 2 sources in sizes that fit me NOW!!! The basement bin-- at least for dresses-- is no longer needed for Frugal Fancy-pants posts. Hurrah!  The only problem is that I kind of feel as if it's cheating to use such nice hand-me-downs for FFP, instead of clothing I purchased at rummage sales, because, really, not everyone can expect to receive a hand-me-down windfall like that, so it's not as realistic as second-hand shopping. I will mull this over at length before making a final decision, because these posts impact the fate of all humankind.

THE END.