Thrifty treasure #1: copper-sequined tank

As a part of my last weekend in Seattle, I decided to enjoy my University District neighborhood filled with vintage and consignment shops. One of my faves became the Buffalo Exchange, where I found a dark olive green tank top with copper sequins by Ann Taylor Loft. 

From first glance, it seemed like the perfect top for professional and unprofessional night-outs, the versatile pieces needed to be the career girl and the off-the-clock girl. Some of the sequins were lying in the opposite direction, but they're easy to smooth them down, so I dished out the $15 (originally a lot more) and supported recycled fashion.

Nail techs, salon owners reduce toxic dangers

Image: The Seattle Times.
Victoria Luu, co-owner of
Sènsé Nail Spa, uses a mask
to reduce her exposure to
potentially harmful chemicals.

Last week, I wrote an article about a county program in Washington state helping nail techs and salon owners to reduce the adverse health effects that can potentially come from the toxins found in nail polish, removers, glues, and other products.

Since the workers are consumed by the toxic exposure all day almost every day, they are susceptible to some health issues like difficulty breathing, eye irritation, skin rashes, and headaches.

It was an environmental justice issue since many Vietnamese women are in the nail salon industry. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have campaigns to educate workers in the nail care field.

Check out the story here.

Vintage shopping: the Seattle exploration

For the past few weeks, I've been adjusting to Seattle, my home for the summer. So finally found a place to stay, and it's in the University District, the trendy area for the students of the University of Washington. This weekend, I spent time exploring the neighborhood and found myself in the center of a vintage shopping haven.

Red Light Vintage Clothing is unique to the Seattle area with two locations. I enjoyed seeing clothes, shoes, and accessories that I would never thought would have been in season years ago, or perhaps decades ago. I couldn't believe I still wanted to wear a lot of that stuff because sometimes vintage shopping goes a little too deep into history where I wouldn't wear certain things. I was really feeling the shoes, but I knew I should wait for the perfect pair begging to come home with me.

So Goodwill is everywhere, especially here in Seattle where there are almost 20 locations throughout the city and the outskirts. But I noticed this location tried to fit into the block with having a vintage aura compared to its counterparts elsewhere. I bought three tops that probably look like my other stuff, but I couldn't help it since it was cheaper than the stores back home in California.

While walking up the street, I checked out the Buffalo Exchange, which is a chain of stores in several states, but I never heard of it. I was curious to see what they offered, and it was a mainstream vintage shop. That may sound insulting, but it's incredible because their inventory rocked. They even made their own jewelry. Interesting pieces, but the nickel metal makes my skin itch. I did find a J.Crew gray cardigan since I'm a sucker for those. It looks more fashionable than it sounds.