Last month, I told you that I had started selling some of my clothes that no longer fit – let it be my body or my style – on Poshmark. The assignment was clear: make some extra cash. I, of course, misunderstood said assignment.

Everyone – minimalists and maximalists alike – will tell you the same thing: shop with intent, shop with a list. So that’s what I did. I went in looking for a bargain. And while looking for good deals, I found myself going down a rabbit hole.

So here’s some of what I’ve gotten in the past few months:

1- Something woven: To know me is to know that I’m a bag lady – which is not to say that I haven’t refined my collection. The idea was to keep only one purse per style, plus any – ok fine, all of the investment pieces. Even the bags I don’t use anymore. This means that I’ve retired my Speedy, but since I see retirement the same way Jay-Z does, there’s always a chance for a comeback. All this to say that after taking inventory of the bags I had left, I realized that I didn’t have a handheld everyday bag in a decent size. You know: not too big, not too small. So I got this Club Monaco navy woven tote.

Now, I normally would have gone with a black or tan purse, but it reminded me of a Bottega intrecciato tote. Plus, it was brand new, so at $22, it was a no-brainer. FYI, the smaller version is still for sale.

2- Something leather: As you know I turned 40 this year. I had visions of wearing leather – a leather skirt or leather pants – at my birthday celebration and therefore became obsessed with finding the perfect leather item. Now, no way was I going to drop the $500 Massimo Dutti is asking for. And while I know that vegan leather is all the rage, I just can’t. I don’t like the feel of them. I don’t like the look of them. And the look of them sure doesn’t like me. What makes me say that? Aritzia and Zara do sell many models at a reasonable price. But unfortunately, finding pants at these two stores has always been quite a journey.

So I looked for something on the secondhand market. I did find a pair of Danier leather pants in excellent used condition for less than $40. But I had to resell them – at a loss – because they didn’t fit. It isn’t just Aritzia and Zara that have something against le bum. Leather pants are pants made out of leather, ie. extra tricky to pull off. I will not be making that mistake again.

I did get a Danier leather skirt instead this month. Bon, it has a high-low hem and not exactly what I wanted, but I got it for a great price ($25) and it fit me perfectly. This is funny because this time I applied a lesson learned from my ill-fitting leather pants: it’s better to overshoot and get them fixed after. The joke’s on me, I guess…

3- Something Miu Miu: Speaking of making a list, these wedges were not on my list, but I couldn’t resist. They were listed as being in EUC (excellent used condition – three letters/words that are very sought after in the resale market) and designed by Miuccia Prada. Need I say more?

I’ve been an espadrilles girl – whatever that means – for the longest time. I’ve owned this one navy same pair for years and then two years ago I finally took the plunge and invested in the quintessential pair of espadrilles, Castañer – only to wear them less than five times. To be honest, I can only remember wearing twice: once in Costa Rica before the pandemic and once this past summer. I don’t know why I got them with a wedge so high and, of all colors, in ivory…

Anyhow, here’s to hoping that I am a wedge girl and just hoping to become one.

So these three items were my best secondhand purchases. Whether they were actually on my wish list or not, they’re the ones I look forward to building an outfit around and wearing. Don’t worry, I’ll talk about the letdowns in a later post.

Oh, by the way, the only leather I wore on my birthday was some old Nine West leather pumps that survived the great purge.

Hope you all had a restful holiday.

✌🏾 Sergelyne