Funky Jewelry Love (eBay Seller Recommendation)

It was destined to happen. 

I started a little early Christmas shopping for my husband, four parents, 11 in-laws, four brothers, one sister, three step-brothers, three stepsisters and friends. Despite the big task at hand, I became distracted by wonderfully awesome eBay items that I want for myself!

I just bid on this delicious lot of FIVE vintage necklaces (current bid: $14.99 with free shipping!!!). 

(By the way, I'll reach through my computer and warmly smack any of you readers who may try and outbid me. She has plenty of other options — many with free shipping — so you shouldn't need to bid on the necklaces I'm eyeing.)

Here are just a few other intriguing items being offered by PowerSeller 44brendee (note: this seller has 100% positive feedback).

Glam charm bracelet: $8

Lot of four fab costume necklaces: $14.99

10 assorted pierced earrings (dangly, hoop, etc.) for $14.99

I'm reminded all over again why I heart eBay. Happy shopping, friends! 

Wrap Dress Drawing Winner!

And the winner is....

Yes, I did actually cut up names to draw out 

of a hat (aka a cup)

Unless you think I'll show up to your house and steal your fab Goodwill finds, PLT, please e-mail me your address (or the address of a friend you trust - ha). katy.mallory at gmail. 

Tomorrow: Wrap Dress Contest Drawing

Can you really call something a contest if only three people have entered it? Oh well, that's kind of hilarious in of itself.

Tomorrow I'll draw a name out of a giant hat... and someone will be the proud new owner of my wrap dress (with a promise to post pictures wearing it then offer it up to another blogger, of course).

So if you want to join in the fun, comment on this post or the original post. Right now there's a 33.33333% chance of winning...

Katy

Wrap Dress: Awesome in Theory (In Practice... Not So Much)

The scene is set

The tutorial begins

Does this look cute to you?

(Yeah, not really to me either)

Laura tries her hand at a Kariza style

Yep, questionable fashion

The most decent-looking style of the afternoon, 

as invented by Laura (not by the style guide)

Laura models her invention

The creative duo

The end.

So, it turns out my colleague Laura has the same (or almost the same) wrap-type dress I picked up from eBay in February. She, too, had little idea how to maneuver this wacky mass of layered fabric. When we discovered this last week, we conspired to try them out together. We thought, "maybe the Kariza magic wrap instructional DVD will show us all we need to know!"

We set up my laptop in an open space, grabbed a glass of wine each and popped in the DVD. Ladies, get your frocks ready. We were in for a show. A lovely Indian woman, on 79 individual DVD chapters, demonstrated the potential ways to wear this thing. 

To spare you all the details, we were both a little unimpressed with the choices. Most of the looks made even the super-cute, thin model in the DVD look frump-tastic. And I honestly struggle to call many of these looks "looks" because they wouldn't pass on the street as dresses/skirts/tops/whatever. I mean, just draping the piece of fabric over one of your shoulders shouldn't be considered a viable option...

Learnings:

• It's a good thing neither of us paid much money for this thing (Laura's came from Plato's Closet)
• The wrap dress should have come with instructions to make curtains from it, as that's probably the most practical way to use it
• Having a fun and fearless coworker try out new "fashion" (if you can call it that) is a great time no matter what the outcome
• Megan, you're going to owe me big

eBay hat

eBay crochet beanie hat — $11.99 plus shipping 

(available "buy it now")

My eBay hat came this week. It was perfect timing, as I haven't been feeling well (read: I haven't wanted to spend much time getting ready for work). One of my coworkers said I looked Bohemian. Another said I looked like a Parisian painter. I don't care what I look like as long as my messy hair is covered up. 

Find more crocheted beanie hats like mine (and tons of other fun, funky and inexpensive hats) through this seller. Once you get to NYFashion101's store site, click on "hat." 

No Comprendo

Umm..... the fabric of my "magic dress" looks cute but I'm going to need about two hours with the instruction manual (which could be more detailed, by the way) and maybe a "phone a friend" before I figure this out...

Katy

Latest Ebay Experiment

While looking for 80's dress for Maria on eBay (she's still on the market for the 80's theme party we're co-hosting with Megan in March), I came across some funky finds. I had been doing searches for "taffeta dress," "80's prom dress," "1980 dress," "vintage dress," etc.

In the midst of my last search, I stumbled upon a unique seller's store. This seller had a variety of interesting wraps and dresses, some of which used vintage fabrics. I was intrigued by a dress that claims it can be worn some 15 different ways. I decided if I could find one for a decent price, I would experiment with a magic wrap skirt dress of my own. 

I bid on a few, some of which ended up out of my price range. Then... I snagged one in its last hour of bidding. Once my dress arrives in the mail (and I spend a solid two hours with the instruction manual), I'll let you all know if the $18.50 plus $4.00 shipping was worth the risk. Judging from the feedback, it seems there are many happy customers. Who knows? It could be a fun summer frock...

You should be able to locate other dresses using the keyword search "Reversible Vintage Silk Magic Wrap Skirt Dress" or by clicking on the seller's store link above.

2,051 Giraffe Purses

Dan and I went with my father and stepmother to Raleigh's Fairgrounds Market. We perused all kinds of cool antique furniture, memorabilia, estate jewelry, foods, baseball cards, fruit and more. Of course, because it was a flea market, there was a good bit of crap there, too.

Also, I seemed to see a lot of this damn purse or ones like it (maybe six people carrying it and two or three vendors selling it). Do you have this purse? What is the deal with this "giraffe print inspired" bag? 

Apparently it's popular. My eBay search yielded 2,051 "giraffe purses" on sale at this very moment.

Fan Gear for Folks on Your Christmas List

As we draw nearer to the Christmas holidays, I'm sure many of us have gift shopping on the brain. 

In my opinion, and it might be because I'm a girl, I think guys can be the tougher sex to shop for. I'm well aware I'm stereotyping, but what guy doesn't love some gear from his favorite team—college or professional? I think even some gals would be thrilled to receive a memento of her alma mater or favorite NFL team. 

Sports Huts is an awesome eBay vendor for fan gear. As I type, the store has more than 6500 items listed, ranging from lunch totes and pennants to plastic tumblers and table cloths. To give you an idea, I did a search for "Packers" within the store and found 112 items including night lights, aprons, shot glasses, soft coolers, license plate holders and window decals. I find the selection particularly helpful because local stores often carry few items beyond those of local teams.

I've picked up a few gift items from here (a Dallas Cowboys ornament for Dan and a Green Bay Packers one for my father) and have been satisfied with the shipping costs and shipping times. (The general eBay rule of thumb that shipping is cheaper when you combine items also applies to shopping with Sports Huts.)

Here are just a few items: 

(Car magnet: $13.78 plus shipping)

(Football helmet ornament: $4.99 plus shipping)

(Koozies: $6.64 plus shipping)