Thrifting is to Weddings

Took another trip to San Francisco this weekend. There is never a shortage of things to do there, and each neighborhood has such a distinct feel to it.

The winning neighborhood this weekend was The Lower Haight. Again.

The neighborhood of choice for daytime activities is usually The Mission. With Dolores Park, their many food options (<3!) and megaton of interesting boutiques, it's a great place to spend the sunny hours.

Lately though, I've been spending more time in the lower Haight. It's a bit removed from the tourist mecca that is Haight and Ashbury, so I can avoid feeling that constant wave of annoyance that seems to fill my psyche when in areas of the city like Union Square (prime tourist shopping area). For those of you less familiar with San Francisco, think of it as if you were forced to travel through a smaller (and cooler - sf pride!) version of Time Square, New York just to get to your favorite tea shop while having to maneuver around awe-stricken tourist who seem to think it's perfectly acceptable to stop in the dead center of a cross walk simply to discuss which direction the nearest Gap is. Not that I have anything against Gap - I've gotten lovely pieces from there before.

Despite all of the touristy areas, I really can't wait to move there. Most big cities will have that issue anyway, so maybe I should think about getting over it. I'll be graduating from college in a few weeks, and that mean's that my long-time dream of moving out there will actually be within arms-length.

I've heard of thrift stores having a certain running theme to them before - like say an army motif or featuring lots of animal print - but never have I entered one that seemed to have a thing for weddings...

Never have I seen so many vintage wedding dresses in one place. Can't say any of them are even close to approaching my sense of style, but very cool to look at all the same. Lace and ruffles are just as in vogue now as they were back then (70's/60's?) i see. Some of you may remember that I have a slight obsession with all things weddings, so it's little wonder I was got camera happy. 

Picked up some cool jewelry from there. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

The skeleton key locked my bedroom in my family's last home. Some of my most fondest of memories were made in that house, so that key does have some ooey gooey sentimental value to it. I slipped it on the chain that the little birdhouse necklace came with, so now I can actually get some use out of it.

It's can be hard for me to incorporate new jewelry into my stock of outfits. I'll wear the said piece for a week or two and then completely loose interest. It's for this reason that I rarely buy jewelry, and when I do, I never spend very much on it. But, if all goes as planned, the above necklaces will be added to my arsenal (the thumb band, my pearls and a locket that is not pictured) and I can finally work some variety into my hum drum routine that is my jewelry life!