Sea siren

Outfit Details:

Seashell We Dance? Dress: ModCloth (now 50% off!)

Mermaid head wreath: Sparkle & Posy

Starfish ring: What Dress Code
Bracelet: American Eagle (old)

Turquoise jewel sandals: LuLu*s (old)

Rope and seashell belt: made by me

Steven and I went to the Sterling Renaissance Festival this weekend, and we had a great time!  Each weekend has a theme (i.e., Romance Weekend, Pirate Weekend), and since this weekend was Fantasy Weekend, I decided to forgo my traditional garb in favor of something a little different... It was either a fairy or a mermaid, and I decided to go with the latter.  There were quite a few other fairies there, but I didn't see another mermaid around all day.  :)

Magic wands made out of blown glass

Enjoying the faire's version of street meat

This performer always has this huge butterfly puppet strapped to his back -- the wings even move!  The photo doesn't really show how cool this is.

This little duck always sits outside in this same spot, never leaving it.  I'm not sure what the significance behind this is (if any), but he was so sleepy and cute.

And this is my friend April...

... getting dunked.  

She is playing the role of a thief at the Festival this year.  I don't have the kind of personality or mind that I can be really successful at improv, and a lot of what April has to do (be witty on the fly, interact with strangers) are things that freak me out, frankly.  But she handles all of it splendidly.  I was afraid I wouldn't find her to say hi, but I was lucky enough to happen upon her while walking.  She had to stay in character the entire time we spoke, and she didn't break once.  She also has to say "thither" a lot.  :)  I don't regularly see people I went to college with (most of them are still based in the NYC area), and even though we didn't really get to catch up too much, it made my heart so happy to see her!

My heart was also happy to see wine slushes at the faire.  I don't even like wine, but these are my favorite!  I could have had like, three more of these.  Yummmmm.

I also tried hair chalk for the first time!

After the faire, we ended up going to a nearby beach -- since, after all, what is a mermaid without beach photos?  We truly lucked out with the weather, as it was an absolutely gorgeous day, and there were lots of people at the beach.  I hadn't been there since I was very young, and I didn't really remember having been there.  I forgot my tripod at home, so I roped (ha) Steven into taking some photos for me.

After this, we headed home to eat fast food (FYI: for all you meat-eaters out there... the chicken waffle tenders from Popeye's are a thing of beauty), watched Project Runway on DVR, and went to bed before 11 PM.  All in all, 'twas a glorious day in the shire.

Have a great Monday!

xox Sammi  

When in Rome

Outfit Details:

Dress: Urban Outfitters (old)

Necklace: Forever 21 (old)

Belt: from a Target skirt

Flats: yeswalker

This dress is another one that has been in my closet for a long time.  I got it in college, and wore it often.  After I lost weight, it was much too big on me, so I finally had it altered and can love it again.  I think the print is pretty awesome -- it's has little chariots all over it, and the design kind of looks like ancient pottery.  I have to credit Steven for coming up with a name for this post (which he did without even realizing what the print had on it), because this week has kind of fried my brain (not in a bad way, though) and I was truly stuck.

In terms of exciting things this week... I had auditions (and a subsequent callback) for a children's theatre company here in Rochester, at which I work fairly often.  I felt iffy about my initial audition, but I felt really great about the callback... and I was cast in the role for which I was called back!  It's for a relatively new Rapunzel musical (called Rapunzel! Rapunzel! A Very Hairy Fairytale), and I'm playing the witch role (who, in this story, is an evil enchantress with desires to be queen... and who has slight Lady Gaga-esque tendencies... fun, right?).  I really enjoy playing evil broads who are a little bit silly.  It's so outside of who I am in real life.  Many times, I enjoy playing characters much like myself, but something like this is wacky and silly and malicious in all of the best villainous of ways.

We also started our rehearsals for our production of ROOMS: a rock romance, which will be running during the Rochester Fringe Festival in late September.  I'm really excited about delving in; I'm working with really talented people, and it's a vocally-challenging rock musical in which I get to do a dialect (Scottish, in this case), so this experience basically encompasses all of my favorite things.  You can find out more information about the show and our performances (including where to get tickets, if anyone's interested) on the Fringe Festival website, or on our Facebook event!

Okay, end of theatre talk.  :)

Steven and I are off to the Sterling Renaissance Festival today!  I have gone there nearly every summer since I was very young, and since my friend April is working there in the acting company this summer, I couldn't miss going this year!  It's kind of my happy place.  I'm a total nerd.  But where else is it socially acceptable to dress in costume and speak in dialects and divulge in absolute silliness and stuff yourself with treats (both savory and sweet) and spend way too much money all at the same time?  This weekend is Fantasy Weekend at the Faire, so instead of my traditional Renaissance-inspired garb, I will be going as a mermaid!  I think we may go to a nearby beach after the festival (the fest is right near Lake Ontario), so I'll be sure to get pictures.  :)

Also... I JUST REMEMBERED THAT BREAKING BAD IS BACK ON SUNDAY!!!  Is anyone else as excited as I am about this?!?  :)

Have a beautiful weekend!

xox Sammi

Shop Feature: A Wild Tonic & Wanderlust Print Co.

This week, I'm forgoing my usual Friday Favorites post in favor of a very special shop feature!  Today, I'm featuring two adorable shops, both run by one adorable lady!  I went to college with said adorable lady, Lauren, and it's been wonderful to reconnect with her through the world of blogging.  Not only does Lauren run both a vintage shop and a print shop, but she also has an absolutely lovely blog.  A Wild Tonic was Lauren's first store, and it originally housed both her vintage pieces and her original prints.  Eventually, she made the decision to split the shop into two specialized shops, and thus, Wanderlust Print Co. was born!  I could (and often do) spend hours perusing the various vintage shops that Etsy has to offer, so I'm partial to Lauren's main vintage store especially, but I really adore how she takes different maps and repurposes them to make these adventure-themed prints in her other shop!

J.R.R. Tolkien print

Adventure is out there print

Be brave print

Lauren can also make prints with custom quotes or specific maps, which is great.  They're perfect mementos for travelers and dreamers alike.  I love the idea of displaying places you've been to -- or places that are dear to you -- in this way.

In addition, Lauren is always adding new items to her vintage shop, but here's just a sampling of my favorite pieces that are currently in the store:

Vintage purple cardigan

Vintage floral needlework table runners

Vintage cat pin

Vintage wool coat with fur collar

Vintage floral curtain set

Vintage red lace veil hat

I love that A Wild Tonic has such a wide array of vintage items -- everything from table linens to fabulous '80s dresses.  I also think everything is priced very reasonably, which is a huge plus.  Lauren has a bunch of great items in her 10 Dollar Clearance section, too!

If you are a lover of all things vintage like I am, check out my guest post over on Lauren's blog today!  Per Lauren's suggestion, I scoured Etsy's vintage section for pieces to create looks inspired by Broadway's leading ladies, and Lauren put a beautiful collage together with them.  It was really fun to actually combine my love of vintage fashion with my love of performing.  I usually keep the two somewhat separate, just because I think it's nice to have a creative outlet that isn't directly related to my career, but this little project was super enjoyable.  I'd love to hear what you guys think of the post.  And thank you for making me look so good, Lauren!  :)

Have a great Friday!

xox Sammi