SIA - The Singing Butler

I decided to put together an outfit to participate in this installment of Style Imitating Art, so of course, it gets shared with you!  The painting was chosen this time by Jess of Animated Cardigan, and is a work by Jack Vettriano painted in 1992, entitled "The Singing Butler," and I couldn't help but be inspired by that amazing red dress!



Purposed.

I know you've been holding your breath since my little teaser earlier in the week, so today I'm going to introduce an exciting new chapter in our life!  I'd like to introduce (dun dun dun DUUUNNN!!!!) Purposed. Remade Creations.  (or just Purposed., for our friends :P )

As you may have noticed, I am quite passionate about companies that better other people's lives.  Well, my dear friend Andrea (who has the same passion) and I have formed ourselves into a team to support anti-trafficking efforts and orphan care through an already established organization.  We wanted to use our interests and abilities to raise support for an organization called Tiny Hands International.  A little more about them: Tiny Hands is on the front lines of the fight against human trafficking, specifically targeting the borders between Bangladesh and Nepal into India.  They help patrol the borders to intercept potential trafficking victims, rehabilitate trafficking survivors, and work with the justice system to prosecute traffickers. They also run several children's homes for orphaned or disenfranchised children in South Asia, and believe that "all children should have the opportunity to thrive, not just survive." (from their website)  Out of the many organizations fighting trafficking, all of whom are doing amazing work, we chose Tiny Hands based on their commitment to not only rescue all the 'least of these' from their physical distress, but to ensure that they are introduced to God's light of the Gospel.  Both the physical and spiritual needs of those being ministered to are addressed and met.

Now, a little about what Andrea and I are actually doing:

"The items we find at second hand stores are items that have been torn, stained, thrown out or in some way damaged and unwanted. We are messes before God calls us; we are thrown out and told we are useless which is the exact opposite of how we are seen by the Creator. He sees potential in every single creation and gives them the opportunity to shed their old self and be made into something new and wonderful! The Creator takes joy in seeing something broken being made new and has great love in His heart for each and every one!" (from our website)

We take unwanted secondhand items, and transform them into something beautiful! After two years, and both of us having our third babies, we have amassed a small stockpile of items for sale, and have set up a Facebook page in order to display and sell them, with a large portion of the proceeds going straight to Tiny Hands Int'l.  But of course, I couldn't help but highlight a few of my favorite pieces here on the blog!

One of the joys of working with re-claimed, usually vintage, clothing is all the buttons!  A lot of the buttons, although quite pretty, end up making the original garment look very dated, so we ended up looking for other uses for all the buttons we had left over.  They've shown up so far in necklaces, rings, and scarves, and I'm sure we'll keep finding uses for them!




There's also the repurposed clothing, some of which you might recognize, and some of which is new:

Original post HERE

Original post HERE
And of course, I have to highlight  a few of my favorite pieces out of all the amazing jewelry that Andrea has made!  If I had my way, that fringe necklace would be mine, but in the interest of fairness, I'll give ya'll the first chance to make it your own.



All of our sizes and prices are listed with the items on our Facebook page, so if you're interested, please click on over and check out what goodies we have to offer!  We're so excited to see what the future holds for Purposed, and hope you'll come along with us to find out!

Thrifted Pinterest - SUMMER!

In case you haven't noticed, it's hot outside.  It's the kind of hot that makes me only want to wear outfits that scream




SUMMER!!!

There's nothing more summery than white paired with bright colors, so I decided to take a pair of capris I thrifted for 50 cents, and turn them into some summer-ific shorts (it's a word. Really...) using this tutorial:

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/216806169533220496/
Ta-Da!
 



Outfit Details:
Top: via secondhand shop, $5
Shorts: DIY, thrifted, $0.50
White Necklace: Wal-Mart, $1 (clearance)
Other Necklaces: DIY, $2.50 for materials
Shoes: Payless, $15 (now on sale for $12, get your own!)
Grand Total: $24

{Okay, here's the thing: I love the colors and pattern of this top, but my DIY side also wants to turn it into a kimono.  It should be easy enough, just cut down the middle and hem the edges, but I don't know which way would get more wear in my closet. I really can't decide, so how about I let ya'll decide for me!}


What do you think, cut it or leave it?  Let me know in the comments!

Something's Coming.....





Be sure to stop by the blog this Friday for the big reveal!

Fair Trade Friday - Rethreaded

Can I make an obvious statement?

People are not property.

It seems like it should be a simple concept, but considering the fact that human trafficking is the second largest criminal enterprise in the world, it would seem there is a large portion of the population that doesn't agree with that statement.

Fortunately, there is also a large portion of people fighting back, including a great company called Rethreaded.  From their website:

Rethreaded provides a four-month holistic job training program for women in the Jacksonville, Florida area who are coming out of lives of addiction, violence, human trafficking, and prostitution. Many of these women leave prison with felony records which create significant challenges to employment. Rethreaded is a safe place where women are paid a living wage to become artisan seamstresses and “upcycle” donated t-shirts into beautiful creations for sale.
Locally, Rethreaded has directly helped 13 women through providing jobs in the Jacksonville, Florida area.
I love what these lovely ladies are doing!  They've combined some great loves of mine, including fashion, anti-trafficking, and re-purposing, and created a beautiful space to change lives.  Plus, their products are gorgeous.  Take this scarf:
Hand Dyed Basic Grace Scarf
This scarf is so pretty!  It's also hand dyed, comes in a variety of colors, and did I mention it has an awesome name...? ;)
Harmony Necklace
If you would prefer a piece of jewelry, they also have these necklaces, and some braided wrap bracelets.  Both would be a great addition to your wardrobe.  I personally would have trouble picking just one color to take home, but this pink one is a front-runner for sure!
Team Headband Set of 2
So, if you know anything about Northwest Arkansas, where we live, you know that the Razorbacks reign supreme in the sports world.  You'll know if it's game day when there's a sea of red in our town!  I'm thinking I might need these headbands to show some support to our Hogs!  Plus, they're so cute that I probably would wear them every day in between!
What's your favorite item from Rethreaded?  Are there any other amazing companies fighting trafficking that I should know about?  Let me know in the comments!

Wordless Wednesday

Hey guys!  Be sure to head over to Arkansas Women Bloggers' main page today to see a guest post from yours truly for their Wordless Wednesday feature!

OOTD - Medieval Torture Devices

Ya'll.  These shoes.


I spied them on the rack at Potter's House (a local thrift store), tagged with the color that happened to mean that they were only 50 cents.  FIFTY CENTS!  (Sorry, am I yelling? :D)  So, of course, they went home with me.  And, I immediately worked them into an outfit.  However, I underestimated how my feet would react to wearing heels after taking an unplanned break from them.  So I spent the day following this progression:

Leave the house and walk to the car.

Take the shoes off.

Put shoes on and walk to my seat.

Take the shoes off.

Put shoes on and walk back to the car.

Take the shoes off.

...and so on and so forth.  Oh, well. At least they look cute!




Outfit Details:
Dress: Kohl's, $10 (clearance, old)
Earrings: Old Navy, $2 (clearance)
Necklace: gifted
Shoes: thrifted, $0.50
Grand Total: $12.50