Every story about living on a budget seems to start out with the line ''in these tough economic times.'' So, in these tough economic times, thrift store shopping seems like a really good idea. And the thrift stores have noticed. The New York Times published an article today about a new phenomenon - Goodwill boutiques. These shops are still run by the Goodwill and they still use their profits for the same cause, but instead of being a ... Read More

Don't forget, New York BUSTies, tonight at Re/Dress NYC there will be a book signing and event with Marianne Kirby and Kate Harding , authors of Lessons from the Fat-O-Sphere. They will be accompanied by Fatshionista's Lesley Kinzel (who also contributed to the book) for an evening of shopping, dancing, reading and being fat/awesome. Directions: Re/Dress NYC 109 Boerum Place Brooklyn, NY between Pacific + Dean f/g train to Bergen ... Read More

Are you one part all-American girl next door and one part risque party chick? Then Vine and Venetia may be exactly what you're looking for. The line is based on the fictional story of two sisters: Vine, who is laid-back and prefers a quiet evening in with good friends and wine, and Venetia, a music-loving blogger who loves clubs and parties. Malik S. founder of Vine and Venetia, conceived the idea in 2004 as representations of his ... Read More

GoGoMarj is a cool online clothing store (part of RetroWardrobe.com) that sells recycled and recreated vintage pieces. Designer Meredith Fogg takes vintage fabrics, often from scarves that she finds at estate sales, and re-purposes them into skirts, belts, headbands, and so on. She takes these old things and makes them into versatile pieces. Her skirts have gathered waists that fit a fairly wide range of sizes (most will stretch from ... Read More

The Australian version of Harper's Bazaar featured ''plus-size'' model Crystal Renn in a couture fashion spread (I put ''plus size'' in quotes because she actually wears a size 12). It' not a special edition about plus sized models. It's not a niche issue for curvy girls. It's a couture fashion spread. With a plus sized model. And she looks just as hot as (if not more so than) skinny, ''straight-sized'' models in the same ... Read More