No, don’t worry, I’m not actually going back to school. I’ve had quite enough of that, though I wish someone would tell my subconscious, because I still have those terrible dreams where you discover you’re signed up for a class you never attended. The worst. Anyway, anxiety dreams aside, shopping for a new school year (or pretending to) is a great time to take stock of your closet and what you want to wear for the coming season. As I mentioned yesterday, I’ve really been looking forward to plaid, so I did my best to turn some up at the thrift store.

Here’s what I found:

These plaid wool skirts seem like they’ll be incredibly versatile and cozy as the temperatures drop. The one on the left is even lined, and they’re in fantastic condition. One is A-line and the other is a pencil skirt, so I’ve got both silhouettes covered. Plus, since they’re neutrals, it leaves a lot of possibilities for additional colors via tights and tops.

Using one of these skirts as a base, I can imagine putting together a look inspired by this one from Stella Jean Fall 2012. (See this post for more.)

My other big finds from the thrift store were hats. These were both in the Halloween accessories section, and they’re both 100% wool, brand new with tags. But as you can see, they both need a little work.
This one got squished during its time on the Halloween shelves, and needs a little re-shaping, but I think that will be easy with my steamer. I’m also going to remove the big ugly flower/feather thing, and probably replace it with something a bit more understated. Maybe a vintage brooch or just a smaller bunch of feathers.

This gray one is missing its band, but that won’t be hard to replace.

Here are some of my ideas. The top two are belts, and the bottom is a black velvet ribbon. I’m leaning towards the black, but I’ve also got some other ribbons and trims I’m thinking of trying. What do you think?