Friends-piration

I get by with a little help from my friends! Every now and then you should turn to your friends for inspiration. I'm lucky enough to have worked with a few of these girls at a retail store in Austin, and seeing them express themselves by the way that they dress or the houses they live in has been great fun. I grew up going to thrift stores around Austin on South Congress or the Drag to find unique outfits to wear, especially during high school. I never considered myself very talented at the art of thrifting, but in high school I had time and energy to put into finding a unique t-shirt or a skirt with a fun pattern. As I've gotten older, I have tended to purchase new clothes more often than vintage, so when I go to gatherings with my friends I am always impressed with their amazing style. The way they blend vintage clothes with new store bought clothes is really interesting. For example, the sheer oversized orange button up shirt is from American Apparel, but the floral skirt it is paired with was bought at a resale shop. The leopard print ruffled skirt is vintage, but paired with a cropped basic black top from American Apparel. Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the thought of trying to find all unique vintage pieces, or fear for my wallet's sake at the thought of buying all brand new clothes at full price. I will try to keep in mind that you don't have to wear ALL vintage or ALL new clothes, but actually the mix of the two can be very flattering and show your individual sense of style off! All photos taken by me with my film camera, a Contax 645.