Hydrangeas || Unique Vintage Style Society

Is this not one of the prettiest prints you've ever seen? As soon as I laid eyes on it, I knew I had to have it! Hydrangeas are some of my favorite flowers (third only to lilacs and peonies), and a hydrangea print is very rare indeed. I thought I had missed out on it when Heart of Haute ran out of these dresses on their site, so I was elated to find that Unique Vintage started carrying them! This dress is the same style as the cherry dress I posted last week, but it looks a lot different with a petticoat! I actually ended up wearing this dress for a callback I had last week (in the throes of a bad cold, no less!), and I think it brought me good luck! For more vintage dresses like this one, head on over to Unique Vintage to check out their fantastic selection!

This month has already been a whirlwind, and it's only the 13th! Auditions, callbacks, birthdays, Mother's Day, seeing family, seeing shows, performing and rehearsing. I'm exhausted, but in a good way. I've gotten used to having a lot of downtime, so I had forgotten what it was like to be in a constant busy state. I sort of feel like I'm trying to maintain a balance between two distinct parts of my personality – the dolled up girl in dresses vs. the grubby performer in sweats. These two halves are both authentically me, but they do sort of have to be mutually exclusive in some ways. I like having options, and I like not being completely defined by one or the other. And I love both of these parts equally, and I don't think I should have to pick just one. I think it's something that actually makes me a little more interesting and complex, and I guess I like to challenge expectations and impressions a little. It's yet another thing that makes me a little unique, I suppose!

Outfit Details

Hydrangea Dress: c/o Unique Vintage

Shoes: Amazon

Petticoat: similar

Ring: Etsy

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

xox Sammi

Cherry Pink & Apple Blossom White

Ever since I purchased this Bernie Dexter dress from That Shop, I knew I wanted to take photos in it when the flowering trees were in bloom in Highland Park. Highland is a beautiful space in the city of Rochester, and it's home to the annual Lilac Festival, which is currently going on; the lilacs aren't in full bloom yet, but I'm planning on heading there once they are to take some photos in another Bernie Dexter favorite. But last weekend was the peak time to be amongst all of the beautiful pink trees, so I was really glad I was able to take advantage of the gorgeous weather!

A little bit about this dress: this Paris version of the Cherry Tree Lane print is available exclusively at That Shop. The only problem is, they're based in Australia and they don't actually have a website where you can place an order. I despaired that I would miss out on this dress because I don't live in Australia, but luckily, you can also place an order via e-mail or Facebook message. They reply very promptly and I received my dress quite quickly, so I was elated that it all worked out. If you'd rather use more conventional means for attaining this print, Bernie has an adorable skirt and crop top set available on her website, but since the Paris silhouette is one of my favorites, I decided to go for it.

In other news, I've been in constant rehearsals for the workshop I mentioned in one of my previous posts. It's been exhausting, but great. I'm not finding a lot of time or energy for much else, but it's been awesome to work with such professionals and have this type of experience (which is pretty unique for my current situation). I always love music rehearsals the most, but I'm excited to move on to the next part. I've been struggling a lot with trying to figure out if I want to move and try to pursue performing, or if I want to settle for something creative that will pay the bills and perform on the side. My heart still wants to try for the former, I think, and maybe this will push me a bit in the right direction. Also, on a related note, after this workshop is over, I'm going right into rehearsals for Beehive the Musical, which is going to be really fun (another 1960's show!). Lots of good stuff on the horizon!

Outfit Details

Bernie Dexter dress: exclusive to That Shop

Cardigan: available at ModCloth

Shoes: available at ModCloth

Brooch: Tatty Devine

Pettislip: similar

Have a wonderful Sunday, and Happy Mother's Day to all of you wonderful mamas out there (especially mine)!

xox Sammi

Friday Favorites #93

Things have been crazy-busy this week, so this'll be a relatively short Friday Favorites post... but I had to include a few things that I'm swooning over lately... like these two new dresses from Tatyana!

This pink jam jar print dress(!!!) appeals to my love of kitsch, and this mint dress with floral accents is such a sweet vintage-inspired find. (I wish I had known enough in high school to wear something like that to prom!) 

My Jam Dress  ||  Sweet Surrender Dress

Love these shoes! 

1   //   2

This sailor top is one of the best I've seen in a while:

I enjoy this pepperoni'd pairing (and I really want the pool float):

a   //   b

Pigtails and Pirates' fairytale collection is absolutely darling. The Alice in Wonderland dress is probably my favorite, but I love how kawaii the Cinderella and Snow White dresses are!

a   //   b   //   c

This has been making the rounds for a couple of weeks, but I keep forgetting to include it in a FF post. These illustrations of real love are wonderful:

And finally, this video of underrated feelings is pretty perfect:

Have a great Friday! And the winner of my Sourpuss giveaway has finally been announced (apologies for the delay!). You can check that out here.

xox Sammi

This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase after clicking on one of these links, I may receive a small commission, which helps to run my blog. I link only to items and brands I absolutely love. Thank you for supporting The Soubrette Brunette!

Cherry bomb

I think a good cherry print is imperative. Which makes it sort of insane that I never acquired a cherry print dress until very recently (and now I own two!). I love this Beverly style dress from Heart of Haute, and I got this dress as a lovely surprise in the mail! It's an awesome work-appropriate dress that works just as well for a night out. I opted not to wear it with a petticoat here for a more casual look, but this silhouette looks even better with one. I wore this dress to the Rochester Music Hall of Fame induction ceremony last month (my dad played in the house band for the fourth year in a row), and I thought it was a really fun choice. I wish I had a cherry brooch to go with it, but at least I have the awesome cherry pie ring that Kate made for me!

Today's post is on the short side, but for good reason: for the next three weeks, I actually get to feel like a "real" actor. I'm in a workshop of a musical I was involved with a couple of years ago, and this time it's a mix of local and Equity actors (meaning union actors) from New York – which in plain speak means that I feel like a professional who gets to earn an actual weekly salary during this process. It also means that I'm already really tired (and it's only day 2!); I haven't had an opportunity to earn a living wage solely from performing since before I started my blog, and I sort of forgot how much energy it takes. It's a great opportunity and a lot of fun, but I'm just glad I have a backlog of photos right now! 

Outfit Details

Beverly Cherry Dress: c/o Heart of Haute

Heels: ModCloth (similar)

Ring: gift from Kate

Have a great Wednesday!

xox Sammi

I've got no strings

There are many instances where I simply don't have the patience to wait until things I like go on sale; I'm always afraid they'll sell out before they can be marked down. But every once and a while, I'll bide my time and it'll pay off – like with this adorable marionette print dress from Swonderful Boutique. I'm dying to go to puppet school if I move back to New York, so I thought a marionette dress was a necessary addition to my wardrobe. 

I included this dress in a Friday Favorites post quite a while ago, but it was a little too expensive for me at the time, so I put it out of my mind. I visited their website again recently and was ecstatic to discover the dress was on sale (and they offered free shipping from New Zealand!), so I quickly snapped it up. I'm so glad I did, because the fit is perfect and I couldn't say no to this amazing novelty print. This dress is still available on their website, so you can grab one for yourself if you love it as much as I do. Swonderful has a ton of other adorable pieces as well, and I like to support smaller businesses like theirs (plus, it started as a mother-daughter operation, which I love!).

Outfit Details

Marionette Dress: Swonderful Boutique

Balloon animal necklace: similar

Boater hat: similar

Flats: similar

Today is your last day to enter my giveaway for an awesome red sparkle clutch from Sourpuss Clothing! The giveaway ends at midnight (EST) tonight, so don't miss out! Enter here.

Have a great Sunday!

xox Sammi

Friday Favorites #92

Happy May Day and Happy Friday! I'm glad it's the end of the week, but this weekend is actually pretty jam-packed for me, so today's post will make for a nice escape. And speaking of escape... right about now is when I start dreaming about going to the beach (something I don't often get to do, living here). Wouldn't these pieces be great for a walk on the pier?

1   //   2   //   3

I'm going a bit cherry-crazy lately, and I think it's high time I have another cherry swimsuit in my life. I had one back in middle school & high school, but I'm swooning over these ones nowadays:

a   //   b   //   c

These are pool floats!!

It should come as a surprise to no one that I adore these cupcake heels(!):

I always enjoy Lazy Oaf's tongue-in-cheek designs. How great is the egg co-ord!?

a   //   b   //   c

This little banana pin is so cute!

I love yellow roses, and this flower crown is really sweet:

I assume many of you are as obsessed with the Magic of Mary Blair line at Pinup Girl Clothing. I have two of the dresses from the collection, and I'm eagerly awaiting the arrival of a third on the website. I ordered the Commuter Jenny Dress when it became available this week, and I really want to get my hands on this Mary Blair book to learn a bit more about her!

1   //   2

I'm seriously jonesing for a Disney fix these days. I'm dyyyying to go back to WDW (or to make my first trip to Disneyland), so I really loved this list that combines two things I love: Disney and fashion!

How amazing is this red balloon purse?

And I'd pair that purse with this practically-perfect gingham dress:

And finally, once again, Amy Schumer wins the week:

Don't forget – you have until Sunday at 11:59 PM (EST) to enter my current giveaway with Sourpuss Clothing! I'm giving away an awesome red sparkle clutch that's perfect for any retro-loving gal! Hurry + enter here.

Have a great weekend!

xox Sammi

This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase after clicking on one of these links, I may receive a small commission, which helps to run my blog. I link only to items and brands I absolutely love. Thank you for supporting The Soubrette Brunette!

Indigo

I have a slight obsession with vintage square dance dresses. I've worn others on the blog before (here, here and here), and I'm excited to add this one to my collection. The fit is perfect, and the color seems to be sort of rare. It's also comfortable, and I like that it isn't a super delicate vintage piece (so I can actually get some wear out of it!). A lot of square dance dresses are suitable for very specific occasions, but this one is worthy of everyday wear.

And where did I find this fantastic dress? You might remember that I recently held a giveaway with Hey Viv!, a retro clothing boutique. They carry lots of popular retro reproduction brands, and they also have their own line. But did you know they also have a vintage shop on Etsy?! I had no idea that they also sold vintage, so I was very excited to browse what they had to offer. I ended up picking this square dance dress, which I love, but it was definitely hard to choose. It can be difficult to find affordable, high quality vintage pieces – especially on Etsy, where there is SO much to choose from – but Hey Viv! Vintage has a wide array of great vintage items for sale. Although their regular boutique specializes in '50s-inspired items, their vintage shop boasts pieces from the 1940s-1990s, so there's something for everyone! Here are just a few of my favorite pieces (all currently available) from their shop:

From top left: Floral Teal Day Dress  //  1950's Fascinator Hat

1970's Embroidered Purse  //  Country Floral Dress

One more awesome thing about Hey Viv: they're offering my readers a 10% discount code (good for both their regular site and their Etsy store) when you sign up for the Hey Viv newsletter! Scroll to the bottom of their home page + enter your information, and you'll receive the code in your e-mail. Be sure to let me know you signed up in the comments here so we make sure you get your discount!

Outfit Details

Vintage dress: c/o Hey Viv! Vintage

Flats: similar

Don't forget to enter my Sourpuss giveaway! The winner will receive an awesome red sparkle clutch. The giveaway ends Sunday night at midnight, so don't wait! Enter here.

Have a great Wednesday!

xox Sammi