Styling Our Pre-loved Suits – February’s Thrifty Six Challenge

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a great weekend and Valentine’s Day! I was working in the morning, then went home for a nice snooze and a delicious homemade vegan thai curry. Work is still full on but it looks like things will be easing up after this week. I’m ready for a rest!

I have lots of second hand jackets but I didn’t have any suits, so when Nancy chose pre-loved suits as this month’s theme I instantly started looking on eBay. That’s where I found this Marks & Spencer skirt and jacket. It turns out it’s actually quite difficult to find a pre-loved suit online that’s guaranteed to fit. In the end I managed to buy these separately and matched the pattern by inspecting the photos very closely! It took a bit of research but it paid off in the end!

Suits are actually quite versatile because you can split them up and wear them as separates

I had a few suits on my eBay watch list, but I thought buying one by Marks & Spencer was a fairly safe bet. The quality and sizing is generally really good. I would have preferred the skirt to be a couple of inches shorter for a more modern look, but I suppose it does give me the option of wearing it without tights. Suits are actually quite versatile because you can split them up and wear them as separates.

For a hit of colour, I chose a hot pink roll neck sweater to wear underneath, which I matched with my bag. Almost everything in this outfit is second hand: I bought the bag from eBay years ago, and I found the boots in a charity shop just before lockdown. They’re by Lotus, so a really good quality, in fact I don’t think they’d been worn.

SHOP THE LOOK

Marks & Spencer skirt and jacket (from eBay) | New Look sweater (old) | Lotus boots (from a charity shop, available here) | J by Jasper Conran bag (from eBay) | John Lewis earrings | Sam Edelman sunglasses

Let’s see how my thrifty friends are styling their pre-loved suits…

Grace of Graceful Rags

“Since I’m away at college right now, my wardrobe options are very limited – I decided to take this month’s suit theme as the perfect opportunity to try online thrifting for the first time! I snagged this Chanel-esque skirt suit from Poshmark, originally from Anne Taylor, for just $40. The skirt doesn’t fit quite right but the blazer is fab!”

Jane of Preloved-Vintage-Handmade

“A chance to share my pretty little treasure…Everything about this suit is perfect, the beautiful indigo colour, the styling, the condition, the quality and the buttons are nothing less than exquisite!

When an eBay search brings up a vintage treasure like this, you just buy it and you buy it quick!It’s a true vintage, 100% wool, French designer piece and I paid under £5 for it – such a shame it doesn’t fit…It’s just a little too tight to wear to the office but not too tight for a quick photo shoot.  So when the Thrifty Six chose suits as the style focus for February, I was absolutely delighted! At last, a chance to share my pretty little treasure!”

Lucy of Confessions of a Montreal Styling Diva

“I found this gem of a suit in the tiniest of shop holes in Old Montreal, maybe ten years ago? Never went back…life! I just happened to be in that part of town for a show later that evening.  I’ve been told that the place doesn’t exist anymore- all I know is that I fell upon it by accident.  The period hats in the window caught my attention, and I just had to walk in.  Lo and behold, there she was, bold and beautiful.  I had to have her.  As I checked the seams to see if there was any room for alterations if needed, I saw the label hanging by a thread:  Dolce & Gabbana. She was mine forever, all 20$ worth.  Looking just a bit lonely and tired, aged like perfect wine- all she really needed was a little pampering: Dry cleaning and minor alterations- Boom!”

Nancy of Nancy’s Fashion Style

“This suit attracted me because I love houndstooth, or Pied de Poule as we say here. And I loved the jacket with the short sleeves and the huge buttons. But I now tried this suit twice, with different colors and heels and flats, and it is just not me. I think it is because the skirt is to short, it’s not my Style. So I am going to sell it. Shall I keep the jacket though??”

Shelbee of Shelbee on the Edge

“When Nancy announced the theme, I realized that I did not own any suits at all, thrifted or not. We live in an era where casual is what we do best and I have long since rid my closet of suits. But I will use any excuse to go on a thrifting adventure, so off I went to look for suits and I came home with 3 different ones. This vintage Jones New York suit was just $10. I loved the pleated skirt so much which I imagine I will wear more often than the blazer. But the color was a selling point for me as well. It is an interesting shade of olivey taupe and I just love it paired with black and red.”

We’ve had a lots of fun styling our pre-loved suits…we’ll be back with another challenge next month! Have a great week!

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