What I Bought In April & How I've Worn It: Opshop Finds and a Few Retail Purchases

I haven't bought a lot of things to add to my wardrobe this year. I did pick up a NWT bag in the opshop back in February, but since then hadn't had much thrifting luck looking for myself. Managed to purchase plenty of books for myself and the kids to enjoy though!

Earlier in April I had a rare morning running errands by myself, and some things to donate to the opshop, so I had a good long browse after doing so, and I came home with a lot!

Not everything was a preloved find, as I also bought a couple new things on a day out with my mum and sister. So here's my massive April shopping haul, and how I've worn everything so far.

What I Bought:

Bought New:

• Havaianas glitter Rosa Macaron  
• Anko Kmart short sleeve slub v-neck tee in copper 
• Cotton On silver beaded bracelet stack
• Mimco mini shimmy bracelet in bluebell

Opshop Purchases:

• thrifted Target hammered silver circle earrings
• thrifted hammered silver statement necklace
• thrifted Lovisa red tassel earrings
• thrifted rose gold station statement necklace

 

• thrifted Seed heritage black dolman sleeve blouse
• thrifted no label terrazzo print white tank
• thrifted no label black and white leopard print cocoon cardigan
• thrifted Cotton On pale olive cami

How I've Worn It:

Every time I add something to my wardrobe I set myself the goal of wearing it twice in the month I buy it. While there have been a few exceptions to this rule (like knits I stumble across at the opshop in summer I need to wait until cooler weather to wear), most of the time I achieve this goal. It helps me make sure I'm buying things I'll actually wear and enjoy and that work with my current wardrobe. And everything I bought I managed to wear at least twice. Even the Havaianas, as it was mild enough for a few days not not need closed in shoes.

The hammered silver circle earrings were a surprise winner for most worn new purchase in April, as I wore then 4 times. Good cost per wear already, at $2 new with tags at the opshop. They just go with everything! I love wearing them, and all the things I bought I've enjoyed wearing. The leopard print cardigan was such a lucky opshop find, as the autumn weather has really set in in Queensland and I've been reaching for knits more often. I'm confident I'll still be able to wear it over winter too, it keeps me nice and cosy.

I'm really happy with everything I added to my wardrobe this month, and expect I'll have another couple of shopping free months before I buy any more.

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30 Ways To Wear: Atmos&Here Navy Stripe Shift Dress

Now that Brisbane is having a little bit of cooler autumn weather at last, thought that this cosy black and navy striped shift dress with 3/4 sleeves was the perfect piece to feature for my latest 30 ways to wear post!

30 Ways To Wear: Atmos & Here Navy and Black Stripe Shift Dress

Cost Per Wear

I picked this navy stripe tee dress up on sale at The Iconic for $26.36, back in July 2014. So I've had it in my wardrobe almost 11 years! At 32 wears, it's down to 82 cents a wear. And it's still going strong, it will be worn in the cooler months for years to come.

It has taken over a decade to get more than 30 wears, but I credit that to it being a dress I can only really wear on cooler days, and it not being one I could wear when breastfeeding. I definitely think of it as a staple in my wardrobe though and look forward to wearing it in the colder months.

Out of the 32 outfits I've made from this dress, here are my 30 favourite ways I've worn it so far.

Navy Stripe Tee Dress With More Blue

I love wearing multiple shades of blue together in an outfit, and as you can see from these 4 outfits, the dark navy dress is perfect with blue jackets, scarves, bags and even shoes.

Striped Shift Dress With Boots

As this striped dress is quite thick with the long 3/4 length sleeves, I wear it most often on colder days. it means it's the perfect temperature to wear some boots with it too! Sometimes with bare legs and ankle boots, other ways I've worn it include with taller boots and leggings.

Navy Stripe Dress With Yellow

The neutral navy and black stripes on this dress make it the perfect backdrop for a nice bright scarf, and as you can see from each of these 4 outfits, yellow scarves are a bit of a go-to for me with this dress. And sometimes I add a little yellow bag for even more bright colour against the neutral navy.

Navy Striped Tee Dress With Red

Navy and red is not a new combination, but like the colour combinations above, it's one I reach for a lot with this dress! I love the pop of a nice bright red accessory against navy, from something small like a belt or necklace, to something larger like a bag or scarf.

Navy and Purple

Of course it's not just colourful scarves that look good with this dress, although as you can see from the last 3 of these outfits I do like wearing printed purple scarves with this dress! In the first photo though you can see even a small pop of a lighter lilac purple can look good against a navy dress.

Navy Stripe Dress With Pink

Blue and pink has to be one of my favourite combinations, and I have worn an awful lot of pink bags with this neutral dress. it's a very fun pop of colour! But again, wearing this in cooler weather, I find pink scarves brighten it up nicely, and I really liked that middle outfit with the blush pink blazer over the dress.

Navy Striped Shift Dress With Green Accessories

I think blue and green should definitely be seen together! Navy is a really nice shade of blue to wear with green, and it works well with different shades. The olive bag, green necklace and darker green bag all look good against the dress.

For more outfit inspiration, you can see all the 32+ times I've worn this dress in my archives, or browse the 30 wears series too.

Similar Posts In The 30 Wears Series:

• 30 ways to wear navy boho tile print dress
• 30 ways to wear tropical floral print shift dress
• 30 ways to wear a grey skater dress
• 30 ways to wear a floral maxi dress
• 30 ways to wear a navy printed jersey maxi dress
• 30 ways to wear a tie dye maxi dress
• 30 ways to wear a pink maxi dress

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What I Bought In February & How I've Worn It: Upcycled Re-Up Denim Tote Bag

When I did my annual budget round up post at the end of the year I shared that I probably wasn't going to add much to my wardrobe in 2025. And I managed to resist the January sales and bought nothing, although I did make one purchase this month. An impulse buy I just had to have!

What I Bought:

Just one addition to my wardrobe so far this year. I just HAD to buy this when I saw it in Lifeline. I see that a lot of opshops are listed as stockists of the Re-UP bags on their website so I'm assuming they partner with the opshops in some way and it wasn't just a donation from someone's wardrobe. That explains why there was an entire rack of these beautiful bags all new with tags for me to pick from.

I was only intending to browse for books, but I like to look everywhere in an opshop in case I find a gem or two and this bag was definitely it. It's a real conversation starter!

I  am not short on bags, but for something this unique I couldn't resist adding it to my wardrobe.

How I've Worn It:

While I don't have any blue jeans in my wardrobe, I do have some blue denim skirts and jackets, although I don't see myself wearing this bag with them. I love it with non-denim pieces, particularly dresses, those outfits might be my favourite with this so far.

It's also been used as as a laptop bag for work a few times, it gets a lot of compliments! And it's a great tote on a day I need to carry a lot. Definitely a fun addition to my wardrobe.

At just $14.95 I'll get a lot of value from this bag, and it's so good that it's giving life to an old pair of jeans as well.

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