when good music happens to thrift fashion

Working on a magazine project for another class, I stumbled upon a great new musician with a connection to fashion (albeit, a small one). 

Matt Ward (no, not that M. Ward) is the younger brother of my friend Jen, and an up-and-coming singer-songwriter. His folky, quirky style is fresh and endearing, and so is his subject matter. 

His debut album is called Thrift Shopping, and the title track is a glorious ode to everyone's favorite activity: a lazy day browsing through the treasures at a local thrift store.

Buy the mp3 and treat yourself to lyrics extolling on the virtues of musty couch cushions, grimy fondue sets, old trophies, and finding a t-shirt you gave away a couple years ago and now want to buy back. (It wasn't his style then, Ward sings, "but now it is.")

Mostly, though, this song reminds me of everything I love about thrift shopping experiences: spontaneity, goofing off, and that one great find that brings you overwhelming satisfaction. Play this song for a quick pick-me-up, or on the way to your favorite thrift store. Just remember to go on a day "when the clothes are half-price."

The "Post" of "Tedious" Fashion Connection

One of my favorite blogs, The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks, has started to gain some notoriety -- mostly because it's hilarious and awesome, but also because so many other sites have linked to it in recent months. With the birth of my very own blog, I couldn't help but jump on the linking bandwagon.

I was prepared to scour the archives to find something, anything, having to do with vintage clothes or thrift stores (or really, fashion of any sort) so I could write a post, only to find this on the front page:

The humor of this site comes not only from the images' fairly self-explanatory grimace-inducing abuse of quotes, but from blogger Bethany Keeley's musings about the "true" intentions of those who so blatantly "disregard" grammar "rules" and make such truly egregious "errors." (That just hurt my head a bit.)

For more evidence of the blog's brilliance, check out the Greatest Hits section on the right-hand side of the page, or just scroll through the archives. If punctuation -- or really, any basic language rule -- is one of your pet peeves, get ready to laugh.

Uh, this concludes today's edition of shameless blog-sharing. As you were, fashionistas.

hokay, so, here's my blog

When I told my friends I was taking a fashion class, they laughed. This was a less-than-encouraging reaction for someone who's trying to learn more about online communications, but when aimed at me, it seems fairly appropriate. I am most comfortable in sweatpants and an old t-shirt. My socks have holes in them. I didn't buy a pair of leggings until well after the trend had come (and gone?), and even now I wear them only when it's cold, and with trepidation.

I'm not a fashionista by any means. But I think I know what looks good. I read Go Fug Yourself regularly and can spot a fashion faux pas a mile away. And with that, I start this blog exploring vintage and thrift store style -- a vein that I feel I fall into, or at least wish I could fall into more often (since I'm currently wearing a t-shirt leftover from the second grade, I think I'm qualified).

I'll comb the interwebs and the mean streets of Syracuse and report back to you. All you have to do is read, enjoy, and hum "The Sweater Song" before you click away (before you click awa-a-ay -- Weezer reference, anyone? Anyone? Bueller?).