clearance aisle

Goodwill Clothes Alteration Hacks

Date: May 15, 2018
Author: Sweetwater Style
Categories: clearance aisle, clothes, no sew, sewing, Stuff to buy at Good Will, thrifty

I haven’t posted about thrift store shopping in awhile.
Never fear….that does not mean I haven’t done any thrift store shopping!

This week I was perusing the selection of pants in my closet.  Yikes…it is filled almost entirely with black pants and jeans leggings with some fancier pairs for dressier events.
I pretty much live in Yoga pants until it is time to go out.  Then casual is the rule. Ahh…the life of a retiree!

I headed to the thrift store this week with the goal of finding some summer pants that were not jeans or black!  It is usually a mistake to go to the thrift store with a specific item in mind.  Mostly that will be disappointing.

But the Good Will gods must have been watching over me this time.
I found not one, but three pair of summer pants.
AND…..a super cute summer sundress.

But here is the deal!
They were the perfect PRICE….but not the perfect fit.

Instead of passing these bargains up….I knew with very little time and effort I could cure what ailed them.

 I am pretty short so almost any pair of pants is going to need hemming up!
The red pants were the right length but were not tapered enough…..
The white pair and khaki pair needed hemming…..
The sundress hit the floor and then some on little me….and I wanted tea length because I know I will get more wear out of it.

Knowing how to do some basic alterations and/or tailoring is one secret for success at the thrift store.

If you think you have no sewing skills…..remember….the items you are working with cost less than a glass of wine in a restaurant!  You can take a risk and see what happens.

Here are my favorite alteration hacks:

Hemming: 

  • Sometimes the easiest thing to do is just turn the existing hem under and do a few tacks with a needle;
  • Fusible hem tape is a great time saver if you don’t feel like sewing.
  • Tightly woven knits like athletic leggings with lots of spandex can just be cut off with no stitching.  You will be amazed at how well the raw edge stands up to washing.
  • Alas…sometimes you need to do an actual hem….but don’t stress with finishing with hemtape and all that.  Just cut them off….turn it up and stitch. 

 Straps:

  • So many cute tops and dresses have spaghetti straps.  When you try on an item….pull those straps up to see if the top looks better. It is an easy fix to tack the shortened strap to the inside of the back.  This trick fixes a couple of fit problems….saggy bodice, loose underarms, and in some cases, pulling the straps up makes the waistline fit better too.

 
Under the arm:

  • When you see a top that looks just a little too big, sometimes it is a matter of just taking in the side seam.  This works especially well with sleeveless tanks.  The added benefit here is that you can fit the underarm area and taper it to the bottom.  This gives a little more room for your bottom too!

Baggy Legs:

  • I like the look of fitted skinny legs on most casual pants.  These cute red pants are a great example.  By tapering the inside leg seam just 1/2 and inch, they went from way to “preppy” and hard to find shoes for….to perfect casual with sandals or flats.

Every one of these alterations can be done with a straight stitch with the sewing machine or a few simple hand stitches.
It is definitely worth remembering when you find something wonderful at the thrift store that has “possibilities”!

OR….you can call a friend who sews 🙂
OR…you can find a tailor shop.

AND….all of the above also works for any bargain shopping you do.  If you find a good deal….but the fit isn’t good….think of the possibilities for a quick alteration.

Wishing you a wonderful day!

Plastic Planter Transformed with Spray Paint

Date: July 10, 2011
Author: sweetwaterstyle
Categories: clearance aisle, crafts, garden, thrifty, tips

Finding an inexpensive way to dress up our front entryway has been a real challenge. 

The height of the opening and the scale obviously call for some pretty big planters-not the puny ones in this photo.  A trip to Target and Home Depot solved the problem.  Take a look!

Here is what I lust after….
 
Maybe someday!

Walking through Target looking for bargains, I came upon two big ugly green planters.  They were marked down to $6.97 from $14.97, so you know that even at full price they were nothing special.  But they were the perfect size, so I bought them.

Then off to Home Depot where I found Rust-Oleum Paint for Plastic Spray Paint like this.  At Amazon it is 8.99 but at Home Depot it was only 4.99 so I bought 2 cans.  They had the perfect blue color.

I am not so good at remembering to take pictures of every stage of my projects, but I figure everybody knows how to spray paint….just remember to spray at least part way down the interior of the pot.

Here is the finished product!  Total cost:  $20 for 2 Planters….WOW!

The Geraniums are from the 50% off sale at Holaseks and the Celosia was on sale at Bachmans for $4 .
Planting Tips
Instead of filling these big pots with dirt, we put  2 gallon pails upside down inside of the pots.  I left the geraniums in their hanging pots and set them on top of the pail and removed the hangers.  I stuck in some red dogwood twigs for height. 
The edges of the plastic planters were visible and you could see the space between the outside of the blue planter.  
Using Spanish Moss from the craft solved this problem very nicely.

 Check out these other links for ideas about painting plastic pots”
Faux Painting from a Home Staging Expert
Of course Centsational Girl had already found this paint 2 years ago!
Martha Stewart takes this process over the top by adding moss to the pots…go figure!

 Now….what will I do with the other can of Plastic paint? I will keep you posted!

Party Time

 ABowl Full Of LemonsThe Power Of Paint
Kissed By A Frog Rustoleum Parade

Plastic Planter Transformed with Spray Paint

Date: July 10, 2011
Author: Admin
Categories: clearance aisle, crafts, garden, thrifty, tips

Finding an inexpensive way to dress up our front entryway has been a real challenge. 

The height of the opening and the scale obviously call for some pretty big planters-not the puny ones in this photo.  A trip to Target and Home Depot solved the problem.  Take a look!

Here is what I lust after….
 
Maybe someday!

Walking through Target looking for bargains, I came upon two big ugly green planters.  They were marked down to $6.97 from $14.97, so you know that even at full price they were nothing special.  But they were the perfect size, so I bought them.

Then off to Home Depot where I found Rust-Oleum Paint for Plastic Spray Paint like this.  At Amazon it is 8.99 but at Home Depot it was only 4.99 so I bought 2 cans.  They had the perfect blue color.

I am not so good at remembering to take pictures of every stage of my projects, but I figure everybody knows how to spray paint….just remember to spray at least part way down the interior of the pot.

Here is the finished product!  Total cost:  $20 for 2 Planters….WOW!

The Geraniums are from the 50% off sale at Holaseks and the Celosia was on sale at Bachmans for $4 .
Planting Tips
Instead of filling these big pots with dirt, we put  2 gallon pails upside down inside of the pots.  I left the geraniums in their hanging pots and set them on top of the pail and removed the hangers.  I stuck in some red dogwood twigs for height. 
The edges of the plastic planters were visible and you could see the space between the outside of the blue planter.  
Using Spanish Moss from the craft solved this problem very nicely.

 Check out these other links for ideas about painting plastic pots”
Faux Painting from a Home Staging Expert
Of course Centsational Girl had already found this paint 2 years ago!
Martha Stewart takes this process over the top by adding moss to the pots…go figure!

 Now….what will I do with the other can of Plastic paint? I will keep you posted!

Party Time

 ABowl Full Of LemonsThe Power Of Paint
Kissed By A Frog Rustoleum Parade

Plastic Planter Transformed with Spray Paint

Date: July 10, 2011
Author: sweetwaterstyle
Categories: clearance aisle, crafts, garden, thrifty, tips

Finding an inexpensive way to dress up our front entryway has been a real challenge. 

The height of the opening and the scale obviously call for some pretty big planters-not the puny ones in this photo.  A trip to Target and Home Depot solved the problem.  Take a look!

Here is what I lust after….
 
Maybe someday!

Walking through Target looking for bargains, I came upon two big ugly green planters.  They were marked down to $6.97 from $14.97, so you know that even at full price they were nothing special.  But they were the perfect size, so I bought them.

Then off to Home Depot where I found Rust-Oleum Paint for Plastic Spray Paint like this.  At Amazon it is 8.99 but at Home Depot it was only 4.99 so I bought 2 cans.  They had the perfect blue color.

I am not so good at remembering to take pictures of every stage of my projects, but I figure everybody knows how to spray paint….just remember to spray at least part way down the interior of the pot.

Here is the finished product!  Total cost:  $20 for 2 Planters….WOW!

The Geraniums are from the 50% off sale at Holaseks and the Celosia was on sale at Bachmans for $4 .
Planting Tips
Instead of filling these big pots with dirt, we put  2 gallon pails upside down inside of the pots.  I left the geraniums in their hanging pots and set them on top of the pail and removed the hangers.  I stuck in some red dogwood twigs for height. 
The edges of the plastic planters were visible and you could see the space between the outside of the blue planter.  
Using Spanish Moss from the craft solved this problem very nicely.

 Check out these other links for ideas about painting plastic pots”
Faux Painting from a Home Staging Expert
Of course Centsational Girl had already found this paint 2 years ago!
Martha Stewart takes this process over the top by adding moss to the pots…go figure!

 Now….what will I do with the other can of Plastic paint? I will keep you posted!

Party Time

 ABowl Full Of LemonsThe Power Of Paint
Kissed By A Frog Rustoleum Parade

All Things White and Beautiful-Updated

Date: June 21, 2011
Author: sweetwaterstyle
Categories: clearance aisle, clothes, collections, decorating, entertaining, flower arranging, goodwill

I was in the car taking the Sweetwater Daughter to the airport….
The conversation turned to the fact that exactly a year ago she was encouraging me to start blogging!
Her encouragement resulted in “Sweetwater Style”….who’d a thunk it?

I took my own little trip down memory lane and started reading some of my first posts.
I had some good ideas….
but as with anything that you are just learning to do…
They are/were pretty different than my latest things.

So this week I am going to revisit and update some of those first posts!
Kinda tricky, as I am too busy to do many new projects this week!
This post was published in June…. here it is again updated!

All Things White and Beautiful-Sweetwater Style
My ongoing big project last summer was to repaint all of the white woodwork in our lower level….
and it took me the whole summer to do it. 
The time and expense of  using oil based enamel paint was well worth it.
15 years of dust and grime….covered up!
The woodwork almost “glows”!
 We got a new patio door installed….it will need paint!  That will happen when summer break starts THIS year!
All that white paint got me thinking about the color white! Maybe it was looking at all the white specks on my arms and legs or perhaps the fumes from the oil paint!
White really is classic! 
Here at Sweetwater I use white around the house and in my wardrobe!
  • I buy white hand towels and white wash cloths by the dozen at CostCo…we use the hand towels as dish towels…always nice to have a bright clean stack for a party.  We use the wash cloths for everyday cloth napkins….absorbent and they don’t need ironing.
    • when these get stained, they go in the rag bin and are great for cleaning!

  • Having a collection of white tablecloths in various sizes is something that makes decorating for an event a simple task.  Watch the clearance aisles at Target and HomeGoods, you can often pick up white table cloths for great prices.  They make great gifts/ or just nice to have a pristine new one for your next party. Way better than spending 5 bucks for plastic cloths that you throw away!
    • My collection of off-white mid-century pottery is growing, thanks to thrift stores. These pieces are very versatile and they work for any season or holiday. If you have spent any time reading this blog….you probably notice that I use these all the time.  Right now…I am using a selection for the mantel in the family room….simple!

    •  I LOVE White dishes… 

      • we use our cereal and pasta bowls from Williams Sonoma almost every day.  I have found some of these at thrift stores.  Sets of these make great housewarming or shower gifts.  
      • Don’t worry that your white dishes don’t match…the color brings it together.  
      • White serving trays are great to have for entertaining or everyday use.  I keep them handy on my dining room shelves to make it easy to use them.

      • My favorite “go to” wedding shower or wedding gift is  a stack of fluffy plain white bath towels. You can always find them on sale somewhere, they fit any decorating scheme.   I always keep a couple in the “gift closet”!  

      Now on to White in the Wardrobe!

      “Marilyn Monroe’s iconic dress sells for $5.6 million at auction
      June 19, 2011|By Alan Duke, CNN
      Marilyn Monroe wore the famed “Subway” dress in “The Seven-Year Itch.”Marilyn Monroe’s white “subway” dress sold for more than $5.6 million in a Beverly Hills, California auction Saturday night in which bidders paid another $2.7 million for three other Monroe movie outfits.Bidding for the iconic ivory pleated dress Monroe wore in “The Seven Year Itch” was “totally magical,” Morgan said.”

      Tee Hee!  I think I am a bit “old” to pull this look off, but that white dress is truly iconic don’t you think….BTW…do you watch SMASH?  Marilyn certainly holds a fascination for us! (wow….was that an ADHD sentence or what?)

      Here are some whites that are in my closet!

      • White Jeans-no they don’t make your butt look big and they go with everything! I just found a new pair of GAP jeans at GW….SCORE!
      • A Crisp white shirt-classic with jeans….an oversized one is great with leggings or as a beach cover.  I ALWAYS see great ones at GoodWill.  And don’t forget to look for t-shirts and cami’s there too.  If you only pay a couple bucks…you can toss them when they start to look grungy.
      Long white skirts-I actually have 2-great with a dark tank, funky belt…add a jeans jacket and you can go anywhere.
      • White zip-up hoodies, sweatshirts and cotton sweaters  are always great GoodWill bargains.

      • I found this White linen dress- an Eileen Fisher mid-calf A-Line that Iscored at Opitz outlet for $30.00-yea me! It was almost floor length…so I shortened it with a little decorative stitching…can’t wait to wear it this summer! I found this photo on the Neiman Marcus website…the dress is selling this season for $278—go figure!!!

       My favorite GoodWill organizes items by color, not size…I ALWAYS look through the white section….and often find great stuff.  Beware when you buy white at a thrift store…check carefully for stains or discolorations.

      And about those stains…..that is why here at Sweetwater…because we use our white stuff….there is always a big bottle of Chlorine Bleach in the laundry closet!

      So that is my updated post….it was kind of fun….wonder which one to do next…Hmmmmmm!

      Here’s wishing you a bright day with no stains…!!!

        My Favorite Wardrobe Whites

        Now….off to paint more woodwork….
        Have a great day!