Dixie Outlet Mall She who Hunts Finds; Outfit Reveal

I went shopping at Dixie Outlet Mall this past weekend. Armed with $200 courtesy of Dixie Outlet Mall to spend and a mandate to create at least one look for under $200. I will be honest the challenge was harder than I expected!

Part of the challenge was to shop at at least 4 different stores. I could have shopped my money away at Winners alone so I had to make sure that I went through the whole mall and considered everything.

I also don’t usually shop for outfits. I shop and find clothes sure, but I don’t shop to complete an outfit in one outing. I buy pieces that go with what I already own. So creating an outfit (or 2) was a challenge for sure.

I am also not exactly price conscious when I shop. I would rather spend $200 on one amazing thing that I will wear for years to come (gotta love cost per wear!) than 20 items that I wear once and ditch. So sticking to the budget again was going to be a tough one.

The last one was the hardest of them all. I didn’t want to shop for the sake of shopping, which in fact is what this exercise is. I could create any sorts of outfits but I wanted to make sure I purchased things that would work with my wardrobe and I would want to wear again. I didn’t want an outfit that would be revealed in a blog post never to be worn again.

I started out at Winners. I probably would have created a totally different look if I had of started at a different store (there was a cute dress at Tommy Hilfiger that could have worked too!) but I am really happy with how this all turned out so I am glad I started with Winners.

The outfits that I created at Dixie Outlet Mall all center around this black Cynthia Rowley Shift I found. It cost $39.99 (originally $80 or more).  The fabric is almost like a cross between sweatshirt and scuba – regardless it is super comfortable and has a bit more structure than your average t-shirt dress. Plus it has pockets so I am sold!

After Winners I went straight to Nine West. I was surprised to see that the store was a bit empty but apparently they were restocking the shelves so it was  just timing. Still I was able to find these super cute zebra calf hair flats. They were a super deal regularly $120 down to $36!

If we were shopping for summer I would say there is one outfit complete and I have spent under $100. But we are looking for fall outfits and just the dress and flats it feels like it is missing something. If I were to style this for Summer I would throw on a long necklace and a cuff to finish it off.

To finish off this outfit I picked up a fringe scarf at Danier. I could have easily spend $200 on a fab leather jacket at Danier but again that wasn’t the point of this exercise. Sometimes I forget that Danier has all these other accessories in store. This fringe scarf makes a cozy addition to this outfit.

Outfit 1:

Dress    –    Winners –  $39.99 plus tax (original price approx $80) a savings of $40

Flats     –    Nine West  – $36 plus tax (original price $120) a savings of $84

Scarf    –     Danier     – $39 + an extra 10% off (original price $59) a savings of $23.90

When I left Winners I also found this wool waterfall vest; $59.99 at winners regularly $120. I had to have it. My original thought was to pick up an inexpensive long sleeve tee and some jeans. But after I had visited Winners and Nine West I only had $47 left to spend so I had to get more creative.

This is where you can see my shopping persona The Swan shine through. I literally went into every store considering blanket scarves and jewellery and belts. Floating from store to store to be sure.

Again you could argue that this is another outfit! But I found one more thing to complete the look.

This studded belt I found at the Laura Outlet. I think it pulls together the look and is a great way to stay warmer when the temperatures drop. The belt was only $9.99.

Outfit 2:

Dress    –    Winners –  $39.99 plus tax (original price approx $80) a savings of $40

Flats     –    Nine West  – $36 plus tax (original price $120) a savings of $84

Vest     –      Winners  – $59.99 plus tax (original price $120) a savings of $60

Belt   –    Laura Outlet – $9.99 plus tax

And there you have it. Two whole outfits, each of which is well under the $200 budget but I did have to put $5 of my own money in to get 2 looks. Still I had a savings of $207.50! But because everything is something I want to wear together and with other things I own I am very happy with the the results.

Stay tuned to later in the week – you will be able to enter to win $200 to spend at Dixie Outlet Mall for you to spend on your own style challenge!!

What do you think? Did I succeed at creating an outfit you would wear from Dixie Outlet Mall?