DIRT-CHEAP CHIC

Edge of Love Inspiration

2012-01-19T18:38:00.000-08:00

Sienna Miller in Edge of Love

Recently I watched the movie, Edge of Love and just loved the wardrobe in it. I particularly love this look above that Sienna Miller is wearing. It is so casual and comfortable, and cute. So I have been doing my own version of this simple, yet adorable style. Boots, dress, and a sweater are the main pieces, which makes this look so easy for me, as I have a huge collection of dresses, and sweaters. I love this look because it is so girly and classy. So here is one example of my take on this look.

Dress: Forever 21, Boots: Jefferey Campbell, Sweater: thrifted.

The Chair Project

2012-01-14T23:39:00.000-08:00

About a year ago I found this wonderful vintage chair at an antique shop. It is dated back to 1969, but I was getting a little sick of the print on the fabric, so I decided that I would reupholster it. Here is how it went...

After deciding to take upon this task, I went to Joann's and got some fabric in a color that I liked! I ended up getting 3 yards of some pretty cheap turquoise fabric, which I don't really recommend as now I may change it for some other better quality fabric in the future. I pulled out my staple gun and got my scissors, I also used fabric glue with this project and a monkey wrench for the buttons. (I would have used a hammer for that part, but alas I could not find one!)

I then checked out what I was working with (this is also how I discovered how old this thing was!) Instead of taking off all of the fabric, I decided that I would leave it on just in case something went terribly wrong, or if I decided that I wanted the old print back.

I then started pinning. I decided to do the back first and I stapled the fabric in a line at the bottom of the chair. As I pinned, I gradually cut off the excess fabric to provide a perfect fit.

You'll probably need A LOT of pins... I then sewed where I had placed all of the pins. I found that a curved needle worked best!

I then did the seat. I stapled the bottom first again, and cut off the excess. Using a butter knife I simply tucked the fabric down as deep as I possibly could into the crack.

I then did the back (which took the longest!) I had to pullout the buttons first so I could tuft the new fabric. Luckily these buttons had metal ends instead of actually being tufted with string so they were really easy to stick into the new fabric. I then did the smaller parts of the chair, by pinning and sewing.

Anddd.... Voila! A turquoise chair! It is not exactly complete quite yet though. I will be putting a nice cording around the edges and might use studs to make it look fancy! I'll post photos when I do that part of it later on.

Shorts + Stripes

2011-12-15T18:45:00.000-08:00

Shorts: thrifted, Top: thrifted, Boots: Ross, Bag: Coach

Vintage white

2011-11-22T23:27:00.001-08:00

Skirt: vintage, Shoes: Vans

From Summer Past

2011-11-05T19:54:00.000-07:00

Top: American Eagle, Skirt: Ross, Boots: Ross

A look from this past summer...

Short cuts

2011-10-11T22:22:00.000-07:00

Summer is past and dreary Oregon fall is here. I am reminiscing about short shorts, and these great ones that I made this summer and was only able to wear once...

Shorts: Thrifted, Top: Thrifted, Belt: Thrifted, Shoes: Payless, Hat: Fred Meyers

Grandma's

2011-09-29T22:25:00.000-07:00

Dress: Vintage (Grandma), Boots: Ross, Scarf: Forever 21

I love this dress that I found in my wardrobe at my mom's house! I remember it from many many years ago because it was my grandma's when she was a kindergarten teacher! It's a little big so I had to do some cinching and pinning, but I just love it. I really like that it buttons all the way down.

And she wore white

2011-09-16T22:28:00.000-07:00

I love white dresses. Nothing makes me feel more free than white in the summer.

Love, Meg

Dress: Ross, Vest: thrifted, Boots: Charles Albert.

I know, I wear this jacket too much...

2011-09-08T16:03:00.000-07:00

I know it's pretty ridiculous how often I wear this jacket, but what can I say? I adore it!

Love, Megan

Jacket: Forever 21, Romper: Wet Seal, Shoes: Dolce Vita

Fashion's Night Out

2011-09-07T21:51:00.000-07:00

So for those who didn't know.... Fashion's Night Out is tomorrow night! Tobi is going to be hosting a giveaway to two lucky people who simply like them on Facebook! So awesome! Just so you know... you should probably do it.

Love, Megan

Tobi Facebook Link! Like it! :)

Navy Maxi

2011-09-02T18:53:00.000-07:00

Here is another shot taken in Newport Beach, CA. I love this maxi dress. It is by far my personal favorite in my wardrobe! It is so incredibly comfortable and I love the ruching detailing at the bottom. I got it awhile back at TJMaxx and I don't believe that it was over $20! Quite the steal, if I do say so myself!

Love, Meg

P.S. I got a delightful new addition to my blog. If you take a peek over to my right sidebar you will find a lovely new badge for Tobi.com! Please check out their wonderful site full of amazing clothes, accessories, and other goodies that are going to be far too tempting for me not to buy! They have a vast array of great designers and they carry women's and MEN'S!

Oregon Country Fair

2011-08-17T19:01:00.000-07:00

Every year in Eugene, Or there is the Oregon Country Fair. It is a festival full of organic food, nudes, music, and other things that can only be found there. Most people who go tend to be hippie type people and a lot of people dress up in extravagant outfits. This year was only my second time going and I decided to be creative and dress up a little bit like everyone else. I wore a swim suit that I got at Walmart of all terrible places (But I love it!), and I altered a long maxi skirt that I thrifted, I topped it off with a headband, some feather earrings, and my fringe booties. I played with my makeup too, by using a straight edge eye shadow brush I made dramatic blue strokes with gold glitter around my eyes.

Love, Meg

Strolling through PDX

2011-08-09T21:01:00.000-07:00

At the end of July I took my yearly trip to Newport Beach, CA to visit my family. I take it as a great opportunity to really try out some new outfits. I love to pack up and bring pieces that I don't normally wear so I have to wear them on the trip because that is the only clothes that I have to work with. Here is a look I put together for my first airport day. I always wear my biggest shoes at the airport, so I don't have to try to pack them, so here they are! These are by far one of my favorite pairs of heels. They seem deadly, but they are actually incredibly comfortable and I got them at Ross! I even wore these in the Moms Weekend Fashion Show, because they are so comfortable and they are simple to take on an off with the convenient zipper in the back. I am editing photos and I will soon load more pictures from my trip!

Love, Meg

Blazer: Thrifted, Leggings: Fred Meyer, Dress: OP, Shoes: Ross

Favorite Jacket

2011-07-15T14:19:00.000-07:00

Dress: Forever 21, Jacket: Forever 21, Shoes: Kensie

I love this jacket that I got quite a bit ago. I feel like I can just throw it on over anything. I also love this maxi dress that I got about two years ago. It was only $11! It is so incredibly comfortable. It was perfect for the walk on the beach that I had with my sisters and my beautiful little niece! It was just perfect out and my little niece was mesmerized by the tide coming in and out. It was light enough for the warm sun and it gave me the perfect protection from the frigid wind.
I hate to outwear this jacket.... but, I just love it so much!

Love, Meg

Thanks Mama

2011-07-07T12:13:00.000-07:00

Sweater: Old Navy, Shirt: Max Azria, Skort: vintage, given to me by my mother.

I love coming home to find that my mother has gone through her old clothes from the 80s and 90s and decided that I would like some of her things. She knows me oh so well. She gave me two little floral skorts, a tan one and a green one. I am such a lucky girl to have a mother who doesn't like to get rid of anything, but finds things for me!

Sincerely, Megan

H+M

2011-07-01T18:23:00.000-07:00

Dress: H&M, Sweater: BCBG, Boots: H&M, Belt: Thrifted

It is now summer! My favorite time of year. Time for the birds to chirp, the sun to shine, and the legs to come out! I can now walk outside comfortably in shorts, skirts, and dresses (w/o leggings or tights). Recently I have been spending some time in Newport, visiting the family and working. I have also been spending some time missing my David, as he is out to sea, fishing. He will be home soon enough though, so I can stop whining. I have been helping my mother out a bit around the house by decorating her guest bathroom and creating the spare bedroom into my own comfortable guest suite. It is awfully comfortable I must say. I will only be here in Newport for a few more weeks, as I have just gotten a new Nanny position in Corvallis. The family seems just wonderful, so I am pretty excited to join their family and help to take care of their two young children. I will also be spending some time in California again this summer at the end of July to spend sometime with my Grandmother and my other family who live down there. Since I have much more spare time during the summer I would expect more consistent posts. I really would like to at least do one post per week. Well that is the plan as of now.

Love, Meg

Stripes and Shorts

2011-06-25T19:01:00.000-07:00

Top: Ross, Shorts: Forever 21, Tights: Forever 21, Bag: Ross, Sweater: BCBG

Cleaning and changing!

2011-06-25T15:43:00.001-07:00

So... I have decided that I need to change my blog up a little bit. I am getting bored of looking at it! :)

Love, Meg

2011-06-22T23:48:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted any outfits in quite some time! Sorry guys I'll get on that asap! I will soon get back to your lovely messages as well! :)

-love, Meg

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Portland&Hair

2011-05-28T15:04:00.000-07:00

Shot by: Shawna X Huang
First look: Shorts: Gloria Vanderbilt (thrifted), Top: Vintage (thrifted), Shoes: B.P. (thrifted), Belt: thrifted, Bandeau: Fred Meyer
Second look: Romper: OP, Belt: thrifted, Shoes: Dollhouse

Soo.... last weekend I went up to Portland to visit some friends and while I was there I had my friend Katrina cut my hair! It feels amazing! I was so done with my dead, long locks. While I was there the next morning I thought it would be a great opportunity to take some photos so I put some outfits together and I contacted Shawna X for some fun photos. This is what we got out of it!

Love, Megan

Metal love

2011-05-02T23:10:00.000-07:00

I made all of these one day during spring break. I thought, well why not?!

Love, Meg

Lost for months

2011-04-25T23:34:00.000-07:00

Hat: Dream Out Loud, Pants: Hollister, Boots: Dolce Vita, Top: Max Azria, Jacket: Forever 21

My favorite hat, boots, and jacket.

All dressed up and nowhere to go...

2011-03-28T19:59:00.000-07:00

Leggings: TJ Maxx, Vest: TJ Maxx, Top: Ross,
Shoes (black) Madden Girl, Shoes (Purple) Jessica Simpson

I got all dressed up for a photo shoot and it was unfortunately cancelled at the last moment so I took some myself. I didn't want all of the make up to go to waste!

I just started up spring term classes and I am already stressed. I honestly should be far away from my computer because it is my greatest source of distraction. I am only taking one class this term (along with an acting class that I am taking for fun!), but it is worth 12 credits alone! I will be student teaching at the preschool and Oregon State. I am really excited to meet the cute little kiddies, but I am worried about all of the writing that is ahead of me for this writing intensive course. Many have done it before me however, which is comforting and my instructor seems to be very welcoming and helpful.

More interesting news... I am moving again! Tomorrow! I am pretty excited it is an actual house, not an apartment. It should be really nice and my rent will be a bit cheaper. I am mostly excited about our new backyard with the beautiful patio and the gorgeous hard woods that are throughout the house. Another wonderful thing is that Tia and I will still be sharing a room, but there are two closets because it is technically the master bedroom. They are a bit small so I will have to work something out with the rest of my clothes... I will be sure to take some photos and post them when we have things a little bit more situated.

I am most likely going to be rather busy in the next term, creating lesson plans for my little 3-5 year olds, so I apologize in advance if I fall a little behind in my postings. If you haven't noticed I created a Tumblr account mainly to create a place for my modeling photos. I recently went into Muse Models in Portland and I am anticipating getting some work modeling. Let's hope** :) So, I should be rather consumed in my activities, but I will try to keep up with it all. TaTA for now.

Love, Megan

Tumblr

2011-03-28T09:52:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies! I have created a Tumblr account to better display my images. These include my modeling photos, my personal photography and inspirations. Don't worry though I have not forgotten about my style blogging! I just thought that this would keep all of my images a little more organized. I added a Tumblr tab underneath my header for easy access to it. I'll be posting soon!

Love, Megan

Happy Birthday to DIRTCHEAPCHIC!

2011-03-15T10:24:00.000-07:00

Soo.. it's not exactly our one year birthday, I think I technically missed it. But around the same time last year was when I really began blogging! I am proud to say that a year has passed us by! I would love to do a GIVEAWAY to celebrate, but I must find something perfect to give first!

Thanks for following!
Stay dirt cheap... and chic, of course!

Love, Meg