Neutrals With a Punch of Red

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Hello! Just wanted to take a few minutes to say Merry Christmas to all of you. With the holidays in full swing we've had a lot of things to go to from kids' music concerts to church Christmas pageants and everything in between. I've long said goodbye to my "ugly Christmas sweaters" in favor of more understated yet festive attire. I threw this outfit together for my older son's Jazz U concert last week:


Sweater, Banana Republic, Rag Doll Clothing Exchange
Pants, New York and Co.
Tank, What to Wear, Edwardsville IL
Necklace, Rag Doll Clothing Exchange
Boots, Payless Shoe Source

Add some Christmas ornament earrings and you've got an instant festive, holiday outfit.

 

Another frugal, fashion for the home I used this season was to decorate my outdoor plant pots with evergreen boughs from a friend's garden. Hard to beat FREE!

We also attended a Celtic Christmas celebration in St.Louis called "Christmas in the Kitchen" featuring the music of Mitzi MacDonald and Keltic Reign. You haven't lived 'til you've seen Santa in a kilt!

One last thing.....Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Barber-Hallquist Family caroling, 2013

 

Thanks for stopping by....hope your holidays are joyous!

Please comment below to let us know any family traditions that you celebrate...

Being Flexible

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Hope you all are enjoying a wonderful holiday season! One of my best casual-wear purchases was this reversible black and red zip (fake) down vest. I can wear it either on the red or black side. Then I can wear either a white/off white turtleneck under it, or a red/black/grey/white long sleeve. So many variations! I procured it and the off-white turtleneck at Goodwill. I've definitely gotten my money's worth.

Merona vest(Target), Goodwill
Off-white turtle neck, Goodwill
Cato jeans, Cato
Clogs, Clarks, Macy's

I like the idea of being flexible during this time of year. I've learned over the years that being flexible can really allow me to be so much more relaxed during the holidays. Writing a list of people for whom I'm purchasing gifts on a post-it note in my datebook with their sizes has helped me to stay organized. I tune my car radio to the station that plays Christmas music and sing along--this ALWAYS improves my mood! Also, to keep it simple, I remember my friend Abys(www.simplify101.com) saying "done is better than perfect".
 



earrings(miniature ornaments), Walmart



So what do you think? Do you have a favorite article of clothing that is versatile and can be worn with many different things or different ways? If so, I'd love to hear from you down in the comments. Comments are open to anyone now. I get my fashion inspiration from others.....so please, join in the discussion!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Val

Dressing The Table

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I love holidays because my dining room table gets to "put her formal wear on".  We have an oval oak formica covered table that I found on Craigslist for $90. We always had rectangular tables but I find an oval to be more inviting and easier to pull up additional chairs when we have guests.
Our Thanksgving was VERY laid back this year (just our little family of four) but I still wanted to get out the china, crystal, and fancy flatware. Much like wearing a smart outfit makes me feel good, a beautifully set table gives me pleasure as well. I included my 9 yr old this year, showing him the proper position of the flatware, cloth napkin, and goblet relative to the plate. He liked it and did a great job!

Sweater, Tommy Hilfiger, Macy's
Lucky Brand Jeans, Rag Doll Clothing Exchange

 

Mikasa China, gifted
Mikasa crystal goblets, gifted
Oneida flatware, gifted
Tablecloth, Walmart(I think)
Cloth Napkins, Walmart(I think)

This bottom picture shows the moment my 15 yr old figured out we could play the theme to Jaws by flicking the edge of the goblets with varying levels of liqud therein. (Only in this musical family!)
We had a fashionable, frugal table by using items we already had at home to decorate it. (and shopping at Aldi for the food!)

From our family to yours.......Happy Thanksgiving!!!


 



A Beginning

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11-24-13

In beginning this blog I hope to accomplish a few goals. One: to challenge myself to write on a semi-regular basis. Two: to inspire myself and other women to look their best. It is my belief that when one looks nice on the outside it can enhance self-esteem and improve one's mood which then enables her to be a better mother/wife/employee/friend.

I believe a lady can look fashionable on a budget. Also, I'm a mom to two sons so I don't have a lot of time to labor over deciding what to wear each morning. I also don't have a lot of time to go shopping.......hence the name of my blog: Fast Frugal Fashion.

Thanks for joining me on this journey!   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNPAM5ABhvs

Turtleneck: Calvin Klein, Goodwill
Skirt: Jaclyn Smih, Kmart

                                           
                                                                    

A Beginning

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11-24-13

In beginning this blog I hope to accomplish a few goals. One: to challenge myself to write on a semi-regular basis. Two: to inspire myself and other women to look their best. I believe when a person looks their best on the outside that it enhances self-esteem and improves one's mood. This lends itself to being a better mother/wife/employee/friend. I also feel that a lady can dress fashionably on a budget. Likewise, I am a mother of two sons and don't have a lot of time to labor on deciding what to wear each morning. Further, I don't have very much time to go clothes shopping....hence the name of my blog: Fast Frugal Fasion!

Thanks for joining me on this journey.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNPAM5ABhvs

Turtleneck: Calvin Klen, Goodwill
Skirt: Jaclyn Smith, Kmart
Boots: Crofts & Barrow, Kohl's