Shop with me today, for my spring ten-item wardrobe. As promised, I am exploring a budget ten-item wardrobe this season. You can't get more "budget" than not buying anything at all, and as I have 8 returning core pieces, I really only need to purchase two items to complete the "ten". Today, I go shopping at TJ Maxx, looking for a stylish deal. I am interested in purchasing one or two blouses and a jean skirt. I am also in need of some shoes.
Which blouses did I choose?
Check out my video to see what I end up with. And I hope you get a kick out of my terrible public vlogging skills!
News
Here is a beautiful photo of At Home with Madame Chic in Polish
... and all the way from the Czech Republic
Question of the Week
Hi Jennifer,
I'm so pleased to have discovered your YouTube channel and blog. I, too, am a mother of two young daughters and an infant son. I was wondering how you manage their clothing. I searched to see if you had addressed this issue and saw some other readers wondering the same thing. If you choose not to respond in order to protect the privacy of your children, I understand. However if you have tips on how to maintain their wardrobe or suggestions of children's clothing brands that wear well, I would love to hear them!
And that video was hilarious. I don't know how there were so many funny moments in such a short clip. I just love how the little girl marches on in; someday she'll have a good laugh seeing it.
Best wishes,
Genevieve
Hi Genevieve, thank you for your question. I have received this question a lot regarding my children's clothing! I do not follow a strict or structured ten-item wardrobe with them, but can very confidently say that they tend to wear the same things over and over again naturally. They might even have less than a ten-item wardrobe. But because they grow so fast and change sizes, and because we (gratefully) accept clothing from family members and friends, it often appears that they have more clothes than they need. I am working on an organization system for my children that deals with frequent size changes and special occasion wear, etc. I can do a video one day discussing children's clothing. Thank you for the request!
Another question I frequently get involves my filming equipment. Thank you to everyone who has noticed the better quality in my videos! For those of you who have inquired, the camera I use is the Canon EOS Rebel T5i, the microphone I use is the Rode VMGO.
Comment of the Week
Summer writes: I LOVE how tickled you were about the video and how you pointed out how stressful! I watched it and made my husband come in and watch it and we were laughing so hard we both had tears in our eyes. If you are a parent, you just get it! I loved the girl, the boy and the mom! I was dying! I reposted that video as well and just put, "This is hilarious! The struggle as a parent is real!" Thanks for talking about this video. It was a breath of fresh air! But the poor guy...
Hi Summer, it feels wonderful to laugh until you cry and I'm so glad that we all had that opportunity with this video. Bless that wonderful family for giving us such joy this past week!
This week I would love to know if you enjoyed this "shop with me" vlog. What are your favorite budget stores? How is your ten-item wardrobe coming along? Let me know and your comment could be chosen as comment of the week on the blog.
See you on Thursday for another "shop with me" video (but with a twist!).
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20 comments:
I did enjoy shopping with you! As it turns out TJ Maxx is where I shop primarily for blouses, sweaters, purses and soy-based candles. About a month ago I was at my local TJ Maxx hoping to stock up on candles for the next 3 months and also looking for a new blouse. Unexpectedly and completely out of place was a chambray blazer (a very much hoped for item on my ten-item list for this spring/summer). It was my lucky day, the blazer fit like a glove and the sleeves were long enough. Plus (happy dance) the price was much lower than I budgeted.
At first, I really wanted you to purchase the pastel floral blouse, but after you tried on the blouses with more color - wow, you look great in color. The blouses are beautiful. Thanks for taking us along.
Hi Jennifer,
I really enjoyed this video and agree that both the blouses look great with your complexion. I also appreciate the restraint you exercised when you just opted for the two instead of three. When the prices are such a good deal, it is difficult to not get caught up and just get everything, therefore avoiding a decision! I will be curious to see how these hold up to wear and washing this season. I'd love an update at the end of the summer. I am wondering how you feel about not necessarily buying high quality this time around?
I am currently working on my spring wardrobe. The schools are closed here in Nova Scotia today because of a snow storm, so it is hard to get inspired. In our climate, I have come to realize I need to change up my wardrobe 4 times a year. Spring is so very different from summer. My spring wardrobe involves sweaters, jeans, booties and jackets. In the summer I can pull out the dresses, shorts, light blouses.
Thanks so much for the inspiration as always.
Jennifer,
What a fun video -- thank you for taking us on your shopping trip! The blouses you selected are lovely (and I echo The Wool Fairy's comment about appreciating your restraint, when all four blouses were pretty and well-priced), and they look fantastic on you! Love the pops of color.
Cheers,
Shannon
Loved this. Thank you for doing it for us. I loved the colorful blouses and wanted you to get all three. As a former person that would have bought all three, I would have gotten home and continued to obsess about the one that I didn't get, especially when the weather gets really hot!
You look gorgeous in those colors.
This was a very fun video. I'm glad you got to experience TJ Maxx for the first time, and the colors were beautiful! Nordstrom Rack is also marvelous, but not as widely available.
Hi Jennifer,
Really nice shopping video! I am just wondering what is your approach to textiles as it is first thing that I look into when I see some interesting clothes. It is really hard to find high quality clothes in reasonable prices. In this case, by high quality I mean fabrics that are natural and breathable like cotton, silk, wool, lyocell, modal. But most of the budget blouses and dresses are made from polyester instead! That makes my shopping really hard and time-consuming. How important is a fabric for you and how do you deal with the problem?
I would be grateful for your comment. Greetings from Poland! :)
By the way, pink blouse with short sleeves looks really gorgeus on you! That colour plays with your skin tone perfectly.
Hi, Jennifer,
My comment isn't related to your post's content, but I thought of it as I was watching your intro and outro. I love the classical music you recommend in your books and the pieces we hear at the beginning and ending of your posts. Can you perhaps recommend a Pandora or Spotify station with "Madame Chic approved" music?
Thanks!
Becky
I loved this video! TJMaxx is one of my go to stores, along with Marshall's and Stein Mart.
I agree that the blouses you chose are perfect for your skin tone.
Jennifer, your new intro and outro are so beautiful and calming! It's such a joy to watch your blog grow as you add even more layers of loveliness :)
And you got the blouses I was hoping you'd get! Yay!! Excited to see the whole wardrobe together!
I loved this video!!
I appreciate your honesty and transparency in discussing how it feels to vlog in public. I hadn't considered how awkward it must feel, but it was interesting to hear about. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
Great blouse choices. I would have picked those two for you. I loved the shoes you chose too. They are exactly what I am looking for. Can you share the brand name please? This was a fun video.
~Jody
Loved this video!! I'm glad you bought that solid pink top because it looks amazing on you! Thanks so much for doing this video and sharing budget-friendly options.
Quick question: I'm living in a place that has four very distinct seasons (Korea). Spring is mild and even chilly at times, but summer is very hot and humid. If you were living somewhere less temperate than SoCal, do you think you'd have a separate 10-item wardrobe for each season? I know many of my items can transition from one season to the next by adding or subtracting layers, but some I'd only wear when it's extremely hot or cold. Just wondering what you'd recommend!
Dear Jennifer, thank you for your useful tips regarding the 10 item wardrobe! I take them all in while I'm trying to create my own 10 item wardrobe this spring/summer - as of now, by reducing my existing closet to size and packing away the remaining clothes to see next year whether I missed them!
Beyond that, however, I have a truly special sort of "extra" to buy: a wedding dress. Moreover, I come from Poland and have only moved to LA in recent years, which makes the entire market here foreign to me. Do you have any tips on how to find - or even start searching for - a wedding dress that will not break the budget, but will be of quality? (The latter is of special importance to me.) Or are these two qualities put together too much of a dream? (I secretly dream of buying a white designer dress - this is well within reach, given a usual wedding dress price - and letting it pass for a wedding dress, but also hopelessly dream of a princess-like dress too. Choices, choices...)
Thank you so much for your wonderful blog and videos. You really are one of my role models on how to be stylish and poised while still being funny and interesting!
It was fun to shop with you! I've found I can budget shop at some quality retailers that always have sales, like Gap, Banana and Ann Taylor. Their clothes are good quality and if you're patient, you can usually find a 40% off sale. They also do extra savings on sale items pretty often. I never shop at these retailers unless I have a coupon or code - it takes patience and discipline but it's worth it.
It's so fun to virtually-shop with you, Jennifer, especially as you reinforced how important it is to not get swayed by all the choices and to stick with your list.
The shape and color of the blouses you selected are so pretty and so beautiful on you. The nude/neutral sandals are great, too. By any chance, do you have a link to your AG jeans? I'd love to see what the specific style is. Again, thanks for Vlogging for us and I'm glad the Master Connoisseur got some board books while you were out.
Jennifer, Thank you for your fresh perspective on simplicity and beauty. A couple of summers ago I needed a few budget friendly items to complete my wardrobe, and after looking for a denim skirt to no avail I finally purchased one off of Amazon. That skirt has now became a wardrobe staple. I would like to recommend it to you. https://www.amazon.com/Dickies-Womens-Denim-Stonewash-Indigo/dp/B00857TGZA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1490129709&sr=8-1&keywords=dickies+jean+skirt I hope it will work in your wardrobe as well as it has in mine.
Hi Jennifer! Thank you for your shopping video. As someone who has an overstuffed closet and rarely says no to anything I like that I try on, it was so refreshing to see you only purchase a couple items from your shopping trip! I have so many clothes in so many sizes and now after watching your Spring 10 item wardrobe I have a desire to go through my closet and get rid of anything that doesn't work for me right now. I feel like it is definitely a powerful exercise in living in the moment.
Thank you for being a bright spot in my day!
Hi, Jennifer! Thank you for sharing your shopping experience with us! However, I feel that you have departed from the original ten-item wardrobe concept: a few, well-chosen quality pieces that will last several seasons. I was truly inspired by you to change my approach to shopping a few years ago. These blouses, however, remind me of the kind of clothing I used to buy previously: polyester blouses that looked nice but wore out quickly and were uncomfortable to wear. In my view, the challenge of creating a small wardrobe on a budget consists of finding high-quality items at a reduced or reasonable price, not shopping low-quality items at full price. I would love to hear your view on this.
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