Simply Stripes with The Thrifty Six

The theme for this month’s Thrifty Six collaboration is Simply Stripes. As much of a staple stripes are to most wardrobes, I hardly have any items in the pattern, let alone secondhand pieces. I decided on this thrifted pink dress out of necessity!

This isn’t an outfit I would have otherwise chosen for so late in the year, as the happy pink shades and floral Kate Spade purse feel more spring-y to me than late summer/early fall. However, like I said, this dress was the only secondhand striped piece in my closet, so I made do.

I got this dress just before the pandemic began and haven’t had a chance to wear it out yet—I think it would be perfect for a brunch or Easter celebration. It is strapless, which is an unusual choice for me, but I couldn’t resist the $12 price tag. The dress is also extremely well made—it was Ann Taylor originally and has a belt-like mechanism on the inside designed to keep the strapless dress up. Great idea in theory, although I have to admit, it’s not necessarily the most comfortable.

There’s a bit of a funny story behind this dress… When I first stumbled upon it during the great $1 thrifting experience of 2019 (you can read about how I found several upscale dresses for just $1 in this blog post), the dress was in perfect condition. It looked like it had never been worn, all the zippers/clasps were working properly, and the pink stripes were vibrant. I’m the type of person who scrutinizes everything before buying—even new items—and turns a piece down if it has any blemishes. Of course, I’m a little less stringent when it comes to thrifting, but it makes me that much more excited to find a secondhand piece that is perfect.

Flash forward a few months—the pandemic hit, I was forced back home by my college, and I finally had the time to put together a thrift shopping haul blog post. I tried on all the dresses I had purchased and took photos of them outside, one by one. And somehow, in the five minutes that I was wearing this pink dress for a quick pic, a bird decided to shit on me. I didn’t feel it; I don’t know how it happened. I just so happened to catch a glimpse of the big smear of doo-doo on the back of my dress when I walked past a mirror. And as if it wasn’t bad enough already, the bird decided to strategically crap right on my butt, to make it look as if I was the one who messed myself. Unbelievable.

I thought some of my trusty stain remover would clean it up in no time. What I didn’t expect, however, was that the stain remover would smear the beautiful pink stripes and blur the line between the pristine white ones and the bold pink lines. So sure, I got the poop stain out, but I replaced it with smeared, messy stripes! I’m sure nobody else will even notice. But still, I can’t begin to tell you how frustrating it was to have a rare, perfect condition thrifted find only to have some bird (and ironically, the stain remover) ruin it. Tsk tsk.

Anyway, be sure to check out my thrifty friends’ striped outfits below! I like how a lot of the other ladies styled black and white stripes this month—it’s giving me chic circus vibes, in the best way possible, of course.

Lucy of Lucy Bertoldi: Confessions of a Montreal Styling Diva:

“You all know how much I love a great jumpsuit – and this one has stripes up, down and across! Thrifted years ago, I usually style it with a white or red leather jacket… but wait, since “Stripes” is our theme – zebra print has so many funky kinds of stripes! This perfect, flashy, totally sequins jacket is on point layered over this jumpsuit! Nothing like a hodgepodge of stripes to make this print-mixing addict indulge in a dopamine styling fix. Loving this look so much – thanks Thrifty Six for inspiring me!”

Nancy of Nancy’s Fashion Style:

“This striped dress was one of my first pre-loved purchases. It’s a King Louie dress which is a brand that designs retro clothing. They often have very colorful items. And you know I am not about very colorful. On me that is. So these red stripes with black in it were perfect for me. This dress was a bit short for me and I have sold it after I wore it one season. But it did start my love for pre-loved items.”

Jane of Preloved-Vintage-Handmade:

“Avoiding the Moiré Effect… stripes confuse the photographic lens, the tighter the stripe the greater the confusion… We see the Moiré effect, that weird moving pattern when stripes merge into each other and out again. I wondered how I might create a striped outfit to please the camera – of course, the power of black and white… this time two negatives definitely make a positive!”

Shelbee of Shelbee on the Edge:

“I was visiting my friend recently in her consignment shop when I spotted this bold black and white knit dress that I was certain would not be flattering. But I tried it on anyway and I loved it! Then I saw this striped duster hanging on the same rack and very much needed to pair the two pieces together. So I did it!”

Emma of Style Splash:

“I found this striped jacket in a charity shop for only £5, and although I already have a few black and white jackets in various patterns, I couldn’t resist this one! A classic black and white striped jacket will never go out of style. For contrast I teamed it with red culottes and my favourite Soul Sisters T-shirt.”

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Thanks for stopping by the blog today, and I hope you have a great start to your week!

-Grace

Pink Stripe Dress: Thrifted, Ann Taylor originally, $12, last worn here | Denim Jacket: JCPenney, $19, last worn here | White Heels: DSW, $50, last worn here | Floral Purse: Kate Spade New York, gift, last worn here