That feeling when you find designer pieces for a STEAL!

I'm constantly searching resale and secondhand sites for designer wardrobe staples. You never know when someone is just trying to unload their unwanted pieces, or maybe don't know an item's resale value! Those pieces go fast, so you want to be on top of doing your research. I was searching Poshmark listings with the filters "shoes" and brand "Chanel", and then sorted "price low to high" (what mad person sorts "high to low"??) when I came across these pretties at the top of the feed. Leather + logo detailing on the top and I was in love. I purchased these a little while back so I am not sure what they were originally listed at. I offered $40, which I believe was $10-15 less than their asking price ( I wanted them - no time for lowballing!) and they accepted! After taxes and shipping, I purchased these Chanel loafers for just under $51. 

Currently, Chanel is selling leather loafers for anywhere between $825-$1250 on their website. After doing a little research I found the same pair that had sold on Tradesy for $540, and another used pair currently listed for sale for $640! GUYS! Chanel holds it's value so well. 

Zara Staw Hat [new, $20] Wayf Polka Dot Wrap Top [secondhand, $6] J. Crew Legging Pants [secondhand, $3] Chanel Black Leather Logo Loafers [secondhand, $50]

The goatskin leather is so buttery soft, and these shoes just add a really nice, sophisticated touch to any outfit. Of course, these aren't brand new shoes and show some wear. There is some peeling of the leather at the toes, and the soles have seen some sidewalks. Once the home remodeling starts to die down I will spend some time to do a little DIY rehab, including some leather conditioning and new soles. I will definitely share some after photos on here once I do!

I LOVE Longchamp bags. They are so classic and preppy + high quality pieces that last forever. Back before I was so into secondhand shopping I bought myself a new medium size black Le Pliage tote for my birthday, and then for my birthday last year I got a tan nylon backpack as a gift (perfect thrifting bag!)

I've been wanting a large Le Pliage tote bag for sometime. I see so many chic ladies using them for travel and I wanted one! They retail for $145, but because I know how high quality they are I was willing to buy myself a fixer upper. I had been searching sometime between secondhand sites when I found this pretty red bag on Poshmark! I had originally been looking for a navy one, but red is also versatile and goes so well with everything. The bag was listed at $20, but had been listed for some time. I was wondering if I could get away with buying the bag for a total (tax+shipping) for under $20. I sent the seller an offer of $12 and they accepted! It was all mine for under $18. Total score!

Of course, there was a catch. The bag was very worn. You can see a lot of the wear in the before pics below, but it had a lot of dark marking (probably from rubbing on jeans), small water stains, white paint, and holes had started to tear in the corners (this is pretty common on Lonchamp bags.) Keep scrolling to see what I did to make it look almost new!

To clean the nylon of your Longchamp Le Pliage bag, run it under a low stream of warm and water and scrub with a clear, mild soap. Pro tip: make sure to avoid getting the leather details too wet! Water will stain leather and is a lot harder to remove. I had the leather handles and clasp bound up out of the way, and you can also tie a plastic bag around it. I used a scrubby pad to really clean out the nylon, but don't use anything too sharp! Make sure to rinse all the soap out to avoid any discoloration lines, and let it air dry. 

The staining I was most worried about getting out was the paint. I had read online that a traditional nail polish can get paint out of a lot of materials, so I thought I would give it a try. I applied it to a q tip and lightly applied it to the paint stain spots. It dissolved SO fast! Easiest part of the clean up. 

I think it is really important to mend the holes in the corner of your tote bag because with the heavy items in your bag + gravity the rips can really spread and it's less likely you can repair it without being too noticeable. I flipped the bag inside to sew up the rips so as to make sure the stitching is not as noticeable. I used a very thick needle and dental floss because its much stronger than traditional thread. Make sure to keep your sewing very close to the the rip line to make the stitches less noticeable, and make the line as straight as possible to ensure you get crisp corners.  

The whole process took me under 30 minutes, and now I have a like new Longchamp Le Pliage large tote bag! Sometimes rehab on an item can be off putting (either for reselling or for your personal closet) but always do your research because sometimes you can get away with an amazing steal! If you are looking for your own secondhand Longchamp Le Pliage tote bag, I've linked a whole bunch of options above 50% + off  retail. Thanks for reading!

Happy 2020! 

I've been MIA the past few months because we have just been up to our eyeballs in remodeling our new house. It's going slower than we expected, but it is slowly and surely coming together. I thought it would be fun to share the journey with you guys and maybe our experiences can be helpful to you! I wanted to start by showing you where we started from (wait until you see the color of the bathroom..!!) I'm also sharing some inspo photos to give you an idea of what we want to do with the space. Overall we are going for a simple, modern look with a simple mix of white, black, and wood. Keep scrolling!

So pretty much through the entire house we are keeping the same flooring and paint for consistency. For flooring we went with a nice gray luxury vinyl plank, which I had never heard of before we started researching flooring. It's thick and waterproof, which means we can also run it through bathrooms and kitchen. I also had my heart set on a high base board, and we found a great moulding at Lowes that is 6" high. For walls we are going with a simple ultra pure white. 

For the kitchen we are actually going to be removing the wall behind the stove to open up the space into the dining room / front room. We will have an island where the stove is instead. 

For the bathroom, we have actually removed the wall with the window and moved it back a couple feet. We are in the process of building a walk in shower in the new space and will put a double vanity in beside it. 

This was previously utilized as a tool shed, however with an entry door into the living room (that looks like a bookshelf, how cool is that??) we have decided to convert it into a second bathroom! We'll just close up the exterior door. As far as design, we are going to just make into a mini version of the master bathroom.

As you can see..we have a LOT of work ahead of us. It's already going slower than expected, but we still have hope one day we will have a nice house, just the way we want it. Have experience with home renovations? Leave some tips + words of encouragement (lol) below!