Shopping in Phoenix: Poor Little Rich Girl

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I had a short – but wonderful! – week in Phoenix, Arizona visiting my beloved Aunt, Uncle, and cousins, and helping my Aunt go through and organize all my recently-departed Grandmother’s belongings. I’ll share more about that in an upcoming post (and tell you about the vintage treasures that blew my mind!), but the purpose of this article is to share about my new favorite place in Phoenix to shop: Poor Little Rich Girl!

My cousin Tiffany raved about this shop, and she has excellent fashion taste, so of course I had to go check it out! It’s a resale/consignment shop, packed wall-to-wall with carefully curated fashion treasures and locally-made jewelry, housewares, and gifts. Fabulous!

Poor Little Rich Girl began seven years ago as a consignment store, but has recently moved to a cashout system, giving sellers the best bang for their buck. No matter what the item you’ve sold gets marked down to over time, you’ll receive the initial value up front on your precious treasures! This immediate-gratification system most likely explains why the store is so full of designer brands and current trends! I spotted Coach, Gucci, Michael Korrs, Betsey Johnson, Kate Spade, Diane von Furstenburg, and Tory Burch, just to name a few.

My daughter was with me, and we had a fun time shopping for treasures. She was particularly enamored with the huge necklace display; an old wire mattress frame, laden with jewelry she could walk through, running her fingers through all the pretty things hanging like branches of a magical willow tree! Very clever.

Poor Little Rich Girl has two locations, a few miles apart. We visited the one on E. Indian School, and had a blast! Be sure to check out their instagram feed here; not only is it inspiring from a fashion perspective, but you can shop directly from it, and have unique items sent to you! Instant gratification, indeed.

Happy Shopping!
XOXO,
Tanya

Poor Little Rich Girl is in Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Store Hours: Mon thru Sat 9:00am-7:30pm, Sun 10:00am-6:00pm
Website here, Facebook here, Instagram here.

Quick Q&A About LONG SKIRTS!!!

Thank you to Geneva, who posted this question on my Facebook page:

“I have a question for you. I’m a plus size woman who is bigger on bottom than on top. I’m needing long skirts/dresses for a mission trip to Kenya with IC World. But can’t seem to find anything that looks good. I am 5’8″ and live in Nampa.”

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first I’d like to give you a HUGE hug for your efforts to help the people of Kenya! My dear friend Lori recently made a similar trip, and was so blessed by the experience, and the opportunity to help families in need there. With high malnutrition rates, severe drought, and over a million children orphaned by AIDS alone, Kenya is definitely a country that needs compassionate volunteers!

Many mission & volunteer programs do, however, have a dress code, depending on the culture you are working with. How to be respectful, comfortable, and appropriately-dressed for the requirements of your trip, AND your personal style & body type? It can be challenging, but not impossible! 😀

Some tips…

1. I recently found the maxi-skirt-of-my-dreams (that’s me on the left!) in the newly-opened Nordstrom Rack.

teamwithammo — Photo courtesy AmmoPhotog ~ http://ammophotogstreet.wordpress.com/

It’s from a brand called Bobeau, who makes comfortable, stretchy, stylish clothing (affordable, too!) in misses and plus sizes! It’s a lightweight breathable rayon material, and most importantly, it’s super-duper-DUPER stretchy! The waist can be worn folded up or down, depending on what top you wear with it. Either way, it’s so comfy, it kind of blows your mind! The Rack carries them in a variety of colors, and right now they carry womens’ sizes XS-XL. Some of their other Bobeau items DO come specifically plus sizes, but these skirts are so generously sized, it might definitely be worth trying them on!

2. Watch out for pleats on your maxi skirt! If you are a lady with curvier hips, pleats around the waistline will make those curves look even curvier! 😉 The Bobeau skirt I mentioned (left) has barely any pleating around the waist; when worn, they pretty much disappear! If you hold up a maxi skirt and the hips puff out on the hanger, it is NOT going to be a slenderizing skirt on an actual woman. (Only exception: if you put a big, chunky statement belt over the waist & pleats!)

3. Another tip: Look for maxi dresses! These are everywhere right now, from Ross to Macy’s to Target – there’s a style for every budget! Steer clear of low-cut styles that would be inappropriate for the work you are doing. Empire-waist styles can emphasize your bust, so if you are a lady with a pear-shaped body type, these can be very figure-balancing & flattering! If you have a larger bust size, look for lower-waisted styles, or maxi’s that don’t have a defined waist, but instead flow gently (not too tight, or too baggy!) over your curves. Ask your mission coordinators what the rules are regarding bare arms & shoulders, too; these guidelines will also affect your shopping choices!

4. Many of my overseas-traveling girl friends concur on this point: a local re-sale store will be your best resource! Long skirts come and go in fashion, year after year. Your local Saver’s, Goodwill, etc. should have a good selection of long skirts, at really decent prices. And be SURE to check your local consignment stores, for skirts that are more current, and often in better condition. 😉

A quick internet search pulled up some great options in Nampa, Geneva! I found 1. Catwalk Consignment Boutique – 1310 2nd St S, (208) 466-4832. 2. 11th Ave. Consignments – 1509 Caldwell Blvd # 1178, (208) 466-7700. 3. A to Z Resale Inc. – 1407 2nd St S, (208) 442-7900. 4. Magic Again – 819 12th Ave S, (208) 991-2341.

Hopefully some of these ideas will be helpful to you! Good luck, and please post pictures of your trip!

XOXO,

StyleSpyGirl

P.S. Fashion friends, do you have ideas & shopping tips for Geneva? Feel free to add your helpful comments! 😀

Local Style Secret: Again Consignment

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Idaho is known as a beautiful & stylish town. But do you know what wonders lie just below the surface? Peer down the stairwell of Again Consignment, to discover a basement boutique loaded with fashion treasures!

Have an eye for high-end labels, but don’t want to pay high-end prices?? Check out Again Consignment for fabulous fashion finds!!!

Looking for a unique dress from Benetton or BCBG? You’ll find it here, for under $25. In the market for an Ann Taylor or Calvin Klein suit? They’re here too, all under $30. With over 1,000 NEW ITEMS coming in weekly, this store is stocked with wall-to-wall affordable fashion – some BRAND NEW with tags still attached!

Check out some of the adorable outfits I found, all with high-end labels, and all UNDER $50… including the shoes!!! COMMENT ON THIS POST to vote for your favorite outfit, and your name will be entered to WIN: a $20 Gift Certificate to Again Consignment!!! 😀

trio — Click on the pic to view a larger version.

Again Consignment is located at 222 E. State Street, Eagle, ID 83616.

They are opening a NEW STORE for Juniors & Teens soon!!! Like their facebook page for updates & special deals: https://www.facebook.com/againconsignment?sk=info

Guest Post by Amy Johnson!!!

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Boutique: Exposure a.l.p.h.a Interchange Exposes the FUN in FUNKY!

Don’t you love when you find that one-of-a-kind vintage dress or that previously unappreciated painting that shows everyone how eclectic you are? You want exposure; you want to show the world your new treasure!

We all want to be recognized as the wonderfully unique individuals that we are. Allies Linked for the Prevention of HIV and AIDS (ALPHA) has just opened their new gently repurposed boutique in downtown Boise on 10th St. This is where you will find those signature treasures that no one but you will own and everyone but you will wish they had found!

While the mission of ALPHA is a serious one, they know how to have fun. This is often the case of people who deal with a serious subject on a daily basis. Wednesday night, July 6 was no exception.

It was obvious that a lot of fun & creative energy went into the planning of this event! The front window had three improvisational models wearing fashions from the store, and posing with various odd objects. Passers-by glanced in with curious amusement. If that wasn’t enough to bring them in, then the upbeat bluesy live music played by Daniel Kerr did!

Unfortunately, this party was the VIP pre-shopping fundraiser and you had to have a ticket to participate. The VIP party people got a chance to be the first to discover fun, new/old or old/new fashions and home décor, dine on hors d’ oeuvres, and drink beer and wine from Moon River Distributing, who fittingly offers harder-to-find boutique wines.

Mark Dale, who has helped fill the store with its upscale, gently re-purposed items, enthusiastically described the plans for the store. They will be taking consignment pieces on a case-by-case basis and they hope to offer retail space for clothing, jewelry, and perfume designers. The front window will feature local artists and will change monthly.

This non-profit store will provide a much needed additional income for ALPHA. Craig Chapelle, who has been dubbed “The Wrangler” and used to be the fundraising director, said that this store will allow them to depend less on fundraising so they can direct more attention to what they are passionate about: the people. In fact, that was the common denominator for everyone at the event. Socially connected and compassionate, the ALPHA employees, volunteers, and friends agree that it’s a family.

Duane Quintana opened ALPHA to provide a service that was largely under-appreciated in the state of Idaho. They do free HIV testing, community education, and they offer counseling and support to Idahoans who have been diagnosed with the disease. They have just been approved by PCC to include testing for Gonorrhea and Chlamydia. They even have a food bank with pre-approved healthy choices for people who are too sick to work.

Though the event was light-hearted and filled with laughter, the cause was never far away. Some of the most ardent volunteers are HIV+ themselves. During the festivities, one young man came in for testing, not realizing that the offices had moved around the corner.

ALPHA is not only a fun place to shop, but also a conscientious way help to support a desperately-needed service in our community. The grand opening is August 4th, First Thursday in August, but they are open now for shopping and donations! Look for ALPHA between our favorite salon, Roots, and Café Bellissima at 213 N 10th St., Boise. Call (208) 424-8518 for more info, and be sure to follow Exposure a.l.p.h.a. Interchange on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/alphaidaho !!!

Amy Johnson is currently a senior in Communication/Public Relations at Boise State University. She is a wife, mother, self-professed lover of the written word. Her awesome blog is http://amyjohnsonmyers.blogspot.com. Also, be sure to follow her on Twitter for creative musings and brilliant wit!