Say hello to our new to us '81 Mercedes 380 SL , Fraulein!
Honestly, we weren't really in the market for another car (we have too many for two people to start with) "My car" was an Audi A4 which was super cute and a great car, but with our schedule, I was barely driving it. I hadn't even put 1000 miles on it in a year! We had considered selling it in the past, but always thought we should keep in the event there was an emergency and I needed to drive it. I should also point out that due to some poor financial decisions we made a couple years ago, we had refinanced the Audi's loan and still had two years of payments to make on it. It sucks paying interest on something that is depreciating!
So then in July, my husband's old boss (that he still talks to occasionally) texted him about his friend that was selling a cool old Mercedes. The friend was moving and didn't want to go through the hassle of listing it on multiple sites and dealing with annoying strangers. Because of this he was only asking a fraction of it's value, an amount we could pretty easily put together in cash. We thought that it was almost too good to be true, but the next day we made the 4 hour drive to check it out, and it was even cooler than we thought! It was the perfect car for me to drive occasionally to thrift stores or the post office. We sold the Audi, paid off the loan, and are now completely car debt free. This car is nearly 40 years old, and the previous owner took great care of it, but it still needed some work here and there. There are a couple rips in the leather, and some chipping paint around the exterior. Luckily there are a lot of websites where you put in your cars make, model, and year and they can find the exact paint you need. We were pretty surprised that the car had cruise control and power windows - really uncommon for a car from the early 80s! After doing a little research, we found that this car was top of the line in 1981...and quite expensive. The original receipt was still with the car, and the first owner paid the equivalent of $140,000 in todays money with inflation between now and then. Despite having been taken great care of, the car still needed some work on our end. The AC wasn't working, but luckily hubs fixed that pretty quick. There has been a learning curve owning a car like this and there are some things you should think about before buying a classic car. A few things I have learned so far is: There are no Airbags
Funny store - after we purchased the car and I was getting insurance for it, one of the questions was how many air bags the car has. Not knowing if it would have side airbags, I asked the previous owner. He said no side airbags...no front ones either. Apparently putting air bags in cars did not become a law in this country until 1998?! Anyway, something to think about if safety is important to you lol.
Little Fixes are common
Pretty common sense, but the older a car is the more likely it will need things changed and replaced more often. This can get expensive, but luckily my husband can fix pretty much anything on a car. Many parts on the car are still from the 80s, so naturally they are worn down and will break eventually. We have already had to replace the original radiator amongst other things.
engineering Is Different
My husband has built a race car from the ground up, so he was pretty confident going into this purchase that he would be able to fix any issues with it. He popped the hood and found a million vacuums and hoses that no car made in the last twenty years has. Despite knowing so much about cars and how to fix them, he still needs to do a lot of research. Speaking of this...
Maintenance Can Cost More
Because the engineering is old and no longer used, it is more difficult finding mechanics that are knowledgeable enough and willing to work on cars this old. Because of this, if you need to bring the car in to a shop you can expect to pay more money. Even to get it through a smog check I have to make sure the location is equipped to test a car that old.
Original = More Value
What we heard from a lot of people is that we should try our best to keep everything on the car as original or from Mercedes as possible. This absolutely helps with the value of the car, especially if we ever plan to sell it ( I hope not!) The previous owner put in a new radio with USB and bluetooth, which is nice but also kind of kills the vintage look of the dash.
Invest In Roadside Assistance
We've already been stranded on the side of the road once...so I highly recommend paying the few extra dollars a month with your car insurance for this peace of mind. Our car still had the original radiator, it cracked and overheated so we were stuck on the side of the road for a bit. Worth it!
Thanks so much or reading and checking out our new ride! If you have any experience or words of wisdom with a classic car, leave it down below!
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I wear these classic designer bracelets almost daily. They are so classic and versatile! The lighter brown wrap bracelet is Hermes, and I got it from Poshmark for $50! Bracelets like this retail brand new for around $300-400. The darker brown clasp bracelet is from Louis Vuitton, and is called the Historic Mini Monogram bracelet. This one retails for $270. The origin of this one is a littler more mysterious... My husband brought it back for me from an international work trip, but he didn't have a box, bag, anything. He refuses to tell me how we got it! I'm thinking he found it laying somewhere...but we will never know haha. Anyway!
When you aren't buying designer items straight from the source, you always want to take extra care you are purchasing an authentic item. Here are a few quick things I look for when authenticating secondhand designer jewelry pieces:
1. Even, ConSistent Stitching
Quality control is high in luxury brands such as Hermes and Louis Vuitton. Stitching will always be evenly spaced and straight.
2. Straight Stamps
Many designer jewelry pieces will be stamped or engraved. Look for these details because if there are no stamps or engravings, it is provably fake. These stamps/engravings should be straight, deep, and consistent, even if they are on the inside and not visible when worn.
3. Country Of Origin
Do research on where the designer brand typically creates their jewelry pieces. It is probably not China. After doing some research I found that Louis Vuitton often makes their jewelry pieces in Spain, as seen below.
4. Weight
Overall, the piece should feel heavy and as if it is made of sturdy materials.
These are details I am usually looking for when buying secondhand jewelry. Hermes can be difficult to authenticate more so than other designer items because they often lack a lot of stamping or engraving. Real Authentication is a great tool to find out if your designer items are indeed authentic. You upload pictures and within a couple days they let you know whether the item is indeed authentic or not, which I highly recommend if you intend to resell these items.
I did a little digging and found a number of similar Hermes and Louis Vuitton secondhand bracelets below at killer deals! A lot of these are under $100! They are sold through Vestiaire Collective and are authenticated. Just click the picture to see more details of them!
$70+ is still so much money to drop on jewelry, so I have found a couple dupes from Amazon that look very similar to the designer leather bracelets above!
A designer belt is a great way to posh up a bread and butter outfit. The last two designer belts I've purchased was a GG Gucci belt from an outlet mall... ...and the one I most recently bought is a black elastic Prada waist belt for under $40 off Poshmark! The thing these belts both have in common is that they were wayyy too big when I originally bought them. You can get a lot of clothing items altered, but the great thing about belts is that they are so easy to alter yourself, or super cheap to take into a cobbler! The Gucci belt was way too long, so I took it into a shoe cobbler who only charged me $5 to add a couple more holes and trim the end of the belt off. The Prada belt consists of an elastic piece that I had to take about six inches of material away from. I didn't want to actually cut up the elastic band in the event I wanted to do anything different with the belt in the future (or gained weight lol) so what I did is, I sewed u where I would want the belt to end with dental floss, then sewed down the ends for a cleaner look. Almost looks like a bow! A great way to find some killer designer deals is to start looking outside your usual size!
Honestly, when I first starting seeing the distressed shoe trend around, I was like no way, I am not going to invest this fleeting trend. But then it started to stick around, and I honestly started to love the look more and more. HOWEVER - I am not spending $500 on an intentionally worn out pair of shoes...
I set an alert on Mercari (a site similar to eBay where people sell their stuff!) to let me know when Golden Goose sneakers in my size are listed, and when I got an alert and saw they were only $100 - I bought them right away! Most of these selling sites protect you against counterfeit items - ie if the seller says they are real and you receive them and find they are not, you can return them and get your money back no prob - but you have to know what to look for. If you are searching for your own pair, keep scrolling to find out some tips to authenticate your Golden Goose sneakers! Stitching
As with authenticating most designer items, stitching is an important detail to look at. Specifically on Golden Goose sneakers, an area where counterfeits often miss stitching detail is the rectangle below the laces. The lines should be straight and make a perfect symmetrical rectangle.
Another area of stitching to inspect is the seam on the back of the shoe. Make sure the stitching is straight and the stitches are a consistent size.
Triple Dots
The triple dots on the side of the shoe is an important detail to look for on Golden Goose Superstar sneakers. The dots should be the same size, consistently spaced, and at an angle.
Star
Often, counterfeit GG Superstars will have stitching that does meet the ends of the stars, therefore allowing wrinkling and rolling of the edges of the stars.
Scuffing
Scuffing is a signature of Golden Goose sneakers. However, the scuffing should look "real". There should not be a system to the distress. Make sure the scuffing is inconsistent through out the whole shoe.
Lettering
There are a couple areas on GG SS sneakers that have words and letters, including the side (GGDB SSTAR), the back (Golden Goose), the tongue (GGDB Made in Italy) and the soles (Superstar Golden Goose Deluxe Brand Venezia). Make sure the font and spacing are consistent throughout, and that the shoes include all these details.
Before I found my GG sneakers secondhand, I also had a dupe pair. (Dupes are similar styles that don't try to pass for the originals, ie logos and brand name -- these are counterfeits!) For being so cheap, they were not cheaply made! I still have and wear them, and they have held up so well! Below are a dupe pair that are only $21 + have free shipping!
Below are a couple options if you are looking for a pair of secondhand GG sneakers. Not all are superstars, but all are under $130! Just click directly on the pic to shop.
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]
Outfit Total: $79
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!
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