Spring 'Flea' Queen

Shopping without the guilt trip. Who said it’s impossible to fit those two in one sentence? Forget the price tag, baby. Behind this maarte façade and seemingly brand-crazy persona, I‘ve grown fondness for vintage and thrift finds readily available online. Ahh, the thrill of finding something I like without dropping my half-a-month's paycheck for an item or two. Sometimes though, the price premium of online thrift shops is still above what I’m willing to shell out for used clothing.


So I found myself on a mission to go on my first thrift shopping experience in thrift stores locally known as Ukay Ukay.  After all, who doesn't love a good bargain? I ended up waving the white flag after nearly an hour into the mission and went home empty handed. What went wrong you ask? The clothes were ridiculously overpriced at Php155 for an item. I’d always envy my sister Ela when she’d go home with a handful clothes from Ukay trips with her friends, dropping only a few hundred for about 5 separates. Php155 could’ve gotten her about 4 pieces already, a far cry from the price range the store was offering.

With actual Ukay-hopping off my list, I have to make do with what the World Wide Web has to offer. Decided to pool the clothes I got at bargain prices, I can only remember as far back. Here’s a quick run-down of the best bargains I’ve scored around the cyberworld and beyond.

• Prairie Girl. (Php 200) Crazy about floral chiffon dresses that double as office wear. This has a- Little House on the Prairie going on with the adorable neckline and the capelet feature.
• Ice Princess. (Php 200) I knew this will never work as a dress with my 5’6’’ frame but it’s too pretty to ignore. Don’t you just love the cut right below the waist plus the layers of thick lace that doesn’t make you itch? (nope, not even for a bit). I wore this over my footless tights and it looked pretty decent for work if you’re aiming for that just got out of skate practice- look. 

• Oriental Warrior Princess. (Php 350) It had me on the kimono sleeves alone. It's very office-appropriate and public commute-friendly. The fuchsia color is so retro I just had to cinch it with a blue belt. 

• Champagne Supernova. (Php 299)     I was randomly browsing through Penshoppe’s summer collection when I stumbled upon this beauty. Last one, my size..story of my life! I love the embellished waist making the dress look more expensive than its pricetag.

• Flapper Girl. (Php 100) Black Zara dress I scored from Patricia Prieto's booth during Bloggers United II. Trust me, a little black dress will come to the rescue of any social calendar emergency. 

• The Butterfly Effect. (Php 320)  I may not be able to sink my toes into sandy beaches but this cover up works wonderfully as casual wear. I absolutely despise wearing bras and anything tight fitting when at home and this tunic is the perfect weekend clothing without looking sloppy. I usually wear sports bra underneath so I don’t have to layer it over a tank top. And yeah, I don’t mind looking like a walking handkerchief sometimes.

• Valley Girl. (Php 300) Scored this from Patricia Prieto’s booth at Bloggers United 1! It was love at first sight from her spread in Candy Magazine back in 2010; fast track to the next summer, it was already up for grabs at the first installment of Bloggers United. One of my favorite finds ever! Reminds me so much of this dress from Valley Girl episode of Gossip Girl. 

I'm no Flea Queen but who can resist a good bargain? I sure can't. End of season sale is just around the corner.I don't know about you, but I'm hiding my debit & credit cards!