Pastel & Sparkly

TOP: TORY BURCH (last season) + DENIM: GAP 1969 + HEELS: NORDSTROM + EARRINGS: BLOOMINGDALE'S + BRACELET: C WONDER (SIMILAR) + CLUTCH: ZARA (SIMILAR) + NAILS: ESSIE "

Ok, I'm about to divulge a huge shopping secret of mine. Designer consignment. Is. My. Best. Friend. If you live in the NYC/Bklyn area, you must try out Beacon's Closet. It's a vintage + modern consignment shop, but if you're imagining your local salvation army, you are very far off the mark. The great thing about places like Beacon's is they are super picky about what they carry (read: great for shopping, not great for selling... What do you mean you won't take my $300 J. Crew dress just because it's more than 2 years old? Fools.) In order for them to carry a piece in the store, it has to be (a) vintage or (b) a top name brand from within the past 3 (I think) seasons, plus whatever other arbitrary rules they have that basically boil down to whether they like it or not.

The key to places like Beacon's is to go a lot. Luckily unluckily for me, there is one literally one block from my house (shopaholics everywhere are gasping in pleasure/pain at this thought). It can be totally hit or miss, but since their inventory turns over constantly, you'll probably never see the same things twice. Like this Tory Burch tunic, I have scored MAJOR deals there (especially on shoes and dresses) - and it allows me to buy more funky, adventurous designer pieces that I wouldn't normally be willing to spend so much on. Would I pay $300 for a designer blouse covered in so many hand-stitched sequins that it's practically unwashable? No. Would I pay $30 for it? You betcha. 

So do some googling and ask around to find the top consignment shops in your area. (If you happen to live in the DC area, Mustard Seed in Bethesda is another fave, and was my regular haunt in high school and college.)