Fashion

Today’s NY Times: Recession Chic hits the news!

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So my 15 minutes of fame may at last be here! 🙂 As some of you know, The Recessionista Blog was featured today in the Style section of the NY Times. In the words of a famous TV “Dr.” this is a “changing day in my life.” 🙂 This blog has found an audience because of the state of the current economy. The NY Times is dead on, people are struggling to do more with alot less. And the term “Recessionista” is a word well known to ordinary, reasonable people & shoppers like myself. Its not just a meaningless buzz word made-up by “pundits” and fashion magazines.

So back to FASHION, I’m receiving a lot of comments today from new readers as well as familiar fans of the blog. A big shout out of thanks today for everyone who is stopping by. Alot of people want to know, is ALL the stuff in the picture yours? And how did you snare it on a budget? The answer is yes– its all mine. Let me share some of my recession chic shopping techniques. (note: the above picture is my personal photo. The photo in the article is exclusive to NY Times.)

1) I love Coco, Coco Chanel. I have several Chanel pieces that I wear for business. The pink jacket in the picture was purchased at a Designer Consignment store in New York City. It was purchased for a fraction of its retail price. The previous owner wore it maybe once. I love that its hanging on the wall of my study in this picture. I consider Chanel art! -:)

The Chanel shoes in the picture were purchased at the same store, and they had never been worn..not even once. When I found them, I was amazed that shoes like that would just be dropped off for resale, without ever having been worn. Incredible what you can uncover when you take the time to look.

2) The designer Alice Temperely dress was purchased on eBay. It was “NWT” (new with tags for those of you not familiar with the eBay lingo.)Retail price for the dress was over $800 USD. But, through the magic of eBay, I paid $99.00 for this dress. Yes, I have bragging rights on that steal of a deal!!

3) Wearing: Celia Birtwell top from Express purchased on sale for a song,
Yummi Glass heart necklace and on my lap mi amour, my Target Anya Hindmarch handbag.

4) Pictured around me, a “bevy of bargains” : Sigerson Morrison shoes from Target, Yummi Glass jewelry box, H&M “stuff”, Nordstrom Rack silver ballet shoes + Prada shoes from the Barney’s NY sale.

Special thanks to the folks at The Shampoo Lounge for the great hair! David’s been doing my hair for years. The prices are reasonable and the look is fantastic!

That’s all for now…I’m running off to get some coffee and check out H&M’s Comme des Garcons preview on the H&M home page. I’m pondering the collection for a future blog….
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Since 2008, Mary Hall has been the author of The Recessionista Blog, which is read by thousands of regular readers in over 160 countries. An internationally recognized expert on the art of the living the good life for less, she has been a commentator on local, national, and international radio and TV shows. Her advice has been featured in over 2,000 media outlets, including The New York Times, Reuters, Life & Style magazine, ABC News, NBC News and now The Huffington Post, among many others.

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