the soubrette brunette: joanie clothing

Holy cow, I can't believe it's been exactly a month since I last posted. It's amazing how quickly time seems to pass. I've been a little busier than normal (I did a staged reading, spent some time at the lake, and have been trying to put together my show for the Fringe Festival in September), but mostly... I haven't felt much like blogging. I still love blogging and don't plan on giving it up any time soon. But the work that's involved feels like a lot when you're running on empty. I've been taking photos, which means I have a big backlog. It's actually the photo editing that's keeping me from posting more frequently. It's so much easier to edit a single image for Instagram than it is a slew of large photos for this blog. I love doing it when I have the time and energy; those two things are just harder to come by these days.

That said, I have no shortage of time or energy when it comes to fruit picking! I know how quickly these seasons fly, so I've been making it a priority. I kicked things off with strawberry picking at Chase Farms. My mom and I went early one morning last month and we weren't disappointed. Of course, I had to wear this adorable jam jar dress (which is currently on sale!) from Joanie Clothing. It happens to match my jam jar brooch from Erstwilder perfectly, which isn't all that surprising when you consider how much I love a good food-themed outfit.

I never actually make anything from the strawberries we pick (other than strawberry shortcake!), but that's fine with me. These were so delicious. There's nothing quite like a ripe, local strawberry. I'm trying to savor all this fruit as much as I can because once it's gone, it's gone. I think a lot of my favorite things are like that (e.g., lilacs, peonies, peaches) – and that's probably not an accident. Everything feels so much more special when they're around.

Outfit Details

Betty Jam Jar Dress: c/o Joanie Clothing

Popular Preserve Brooch: c/o Erstwilder (similar)

Flats: Crocs (similar) - they're good shoes for walking around in dirt!

I guess things have been a bit hectic lately. Aside from all of the other stuff I mentioned, my best friend was in a really serious car accident last week. Miraculously, he's going to be alright and I am so, so relieved. I've been reminded once again not to take people you love for granted or put off the important stuff. That means I'm enjoying as much as I can and that I'm wanting to take better care of myself, too. I hold myself accountable for so many things, but that last one's tough. I guess I'll start with savoring every moment – especially the moments that involve eating fresh fruit.

I hope you all had a nice holiday weekend! I actually didn't end up doing much yesterday (we went to the mall – very exciting!), but it was definitely nice to have some extra time off from work. However, work has been kind of great lately because... I just got a promotion! It feels really nice to be recognized for my efforts and how far I've come in the last year. Best of all, my day-to-day job isn't going to change all that much (just which clients I write for and how much time I'm able to spend on them). So really, it's the best of both worlds. I'm eager to get started on these new challenges!

Promotions call for celebrations, and this Joanie Clothing dress is the perfect piece for date nights, special dinners, or literally any summertime event. It's actually on sale for a STEAL right now (and there's a cute long sleeved version, too!) It's 100% cotton and quite lightweight, but it could easily be dressed up with cute heels and some jewelry. I kind of toed the line between casual and formal here, adding one of my favorite belts and using an adorable vintage hat box as a purse. It was wayyy too humid to wear this white jean jacket in the photos, but I had to decorate the lapel with my new Betty & Veronica pin!