Many of today’s trends are throwbacks to the times when our mothers were growing up so why not go shopping in the most unlikely of places … your mother’s closet!
Fortunately for me, and perhaps my wallet as well, my mother used to be a fashion designer. She is also, pardon the pun, a “closet” hoarder… while she hasn’t been buried alive yet, if she keeps up it, ohhh boy, we are going to have problems in my house. Over the years, my mother has stowed away an insane amount of her favorite pieces/random things from her wardrobe (a trait she picked up from my grandmother who is also a secret hoarder and the next stop on my closet shopping tour). I, being the nosy, loving, daughter, have a favorite past time of looking through her clothes from yesteryear (items which are distributed throughout not only my house, but my grandmother’s as well) and appropriating to myself her old things which, now are amazing vintage pieces.
When I was younger, my mom used to show me all of her favorite possessions, which included items with crazy prints, weird shapes, matching sets, and, yikes, SHOULDER PADS (one trend I will never understand or like). Not the savvy vintage shopper when I was young, I shunned these pieces, questioning my mother’s fashion sense for having ever worn these items in the first place. Now. however, I see her closet as fertile buying opportunity, a place where I can add to my collection items that offer a unique take on today’s trends. The best part is that they are available to me alone (and perhaps the few people who kept them from years ago). What I realized was that today, in order to create looks which are wearable and trendy, you need to look past what is on the hanger and update your looks through tailoring, customizing, and styling.
I know not everyone has a mother who likes to hoard her most favorite designs and clothing purchases, even those that she wore years ago. Still, why not take a shot at shopping in your mother’s closet? While you may come up zeroes, there is a chance you will be able to match today’s trends without putting a serious crimp on your bank account!!
Check below for some tips on how to shop in your mom’s closet and also check out my Spring/Summer 2011 finds in Gracielas’s (my mom’s) closet! [continue reading…]