A Revolutionary New Bag

When putting together one of my Hooch Bags, I sort of let the thrift gods lead the way. This bag is a very special one, made for LeAnn Stephenson, The Vintage Laundress, as a hostess gift for putting together a tremendous Bastille Day party at Uptown Modern in Austin, Texas....and for being such a wonderful, new friend.

I didn't have my normal cache of funny money, candy cigarettes or discrete nips, but I didn't let that stop me as I perused the Allemany Flea market in Los Angeles. First, the blue suede bag appeared, then the fan fron Air France, and he vintage Parisian postcards and finally the French books. The hilarious vintage nylons showed up in a Goodwill in Austin, and my friend Deb Kelt donated the French dictionary and the red and blue ribbon.

Et Voilà! A bag fit to cause a revolution!

Always Frugal, Always Fabulous,

The Elegant Thrifter

Oh Judy!

It's a Hooch Bag by the Elegant Thrifter kind of moment, especially when Mother's Day is peeking around the corner. Now this lovely Judy is smokin' today, made for a special order that's going to be overnighted to a mom who apparently shares my gal's passion for funny money and a discrete nip.

Now you don't have to be as naughty as Judy to please your dear, sweet mother. You can fill a vintage handbag full of candy, brownies, a gift certificate or even a shimmery piece of jewelry....sure to make your mama proud. 

For more thrifty ideas, buy  The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details  at Borders, Barnes & Noble,Amazon and Powell's.

Puffing on a candy cigarette -- The Elegant Thrifter -- Always frugal, always fabulous!

Ferocious Fifi!

So you already met the sassy Sabrina at The Elegant Thrifter, but get to know her sassy gal pal Fifi. Oh she's a fine specimen of a Hooch Bag, filled with a ton of cash, a gallery map of Paris and a nice-old nip of Absinthe. They say too much of the sauce will make your crazy, but Fifi, like her pal Sabrina, are good time gals ready for a night on the town. Oh they're pretty gals, but look inside their stash and you might just flip your wig!

For more information on The Hooch Bag by The Elegant Thrifter email theelegantthrifter@gmail.com

Old Bags, New Tricks!

My girls were on parade last week at the Miraval Living Retail Therapy show coordinated by Grace Group and my gre at pal Nancy Berger. They wriggled, they jiggled, and they giggled for four days until many of them go picked up and toted away.

So Long Sonya! Later Lola! Ta Ta Petula! and Goodbye Dolly! Oh, it's sad to see my gals go, but they'll be back soon enough -- after a little nip and tuck to keep them looking good.

I've got a whole new hard-working crew ready to take the stage, but until then, feast your eyes upon last week's extravaganza, and the gorgeous stage effects and sexy hangtags that my set producer Eagle Eye Elliott created.

For more information on The Hooch Bag by The Elegant Thrifter, email theelegantthrifter@gmail.com

Good Golly, Molly

I picked up Molly because she was a gorgeous and naturally green little bag made by Isaac Mizrahi for Target. 

Not my typical vintage bag, but I loved her just the same. She appeared to be a literary type, seeming keeping her thoughts in a notebook as she wandered the woods and other dark places, until I noticed she was heading off with a nip of tequila in her folds. And then I read her observations one day -- woah does she have some tales to tell.

Read the story Nancy Berger told about Hooch Bags by The Elegant Thrifter in her blog, The Gift of Style. And come see me at Retail Therapy April 3, from 3 pm to 7 pm; and  April 4 and 5, from Noon to 5 at 515 E. 72nd Street. I hear its going to be a shopping extravaganza...and a lot of fun. My girls will be high-kicking like crazy. 

Just take a gander  the spectacle they created at last week's Brooklyn Flea Pop-Up Market in Dumbo!

For more info on my lovelies, email: theelegantthrifter@gmail.com

Back to the Flea!!

The Elegant Thrifter will be back at the Brookln Flea Pop-Up Market this coming Sunday. Come by and say Howdy, and take a peek at his new book: The Find, The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details. It's his only copy, but you can order one for yourselves at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Borders, and it'll be shipped to you in May.

In the meantime, take a good look at Nanette, a lovely department-store purse from the 1960s before she got all hooched up for a night on the town. She used to be all, "No! No!" But these days, she a "Yes!" gal. Oh, you'll see the difference in her when you come out to see her in her Sunday best. And we're not talking about her singin' in the choir!

Get Your Hustle On!

Oh my girls are out of their minds today since they discovered that my pal Ali who runs 21st-Century Hustle posted this great article about Hooch Bags by The Elegant Thrifter. They took the weekend off from shimmying and shaking at The Brooklyn Flea-Pop Up Market to re-group and get re-styled for their next outing.

Now the lovely pink Dolly clutch has been showing cleavage for a few weeks, all trussed up in a pretty silk scarf, carrying a trio of hard candy sticks and a nip of tequila but has been belly-aching about not getting enough attention. Here she is in all her satiny glory. Take a long gander at this lovely, and while you're at it, savour the new Dolly Parton Backwoods Barbie video.

Now that's a show worth repeating!

In May, Clarkson Potter will publish my book, The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating with Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details. Pre-order now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Borders.