Cross Stitch for the Florida Strawberry Festival

Late February to early April is festival/fair season here in the Tampa area, and one of my favorites is the Florida Strawberry Festival in Plant City. It's very similar to the Florida State Fair, and the past couple years, Matt and I have opted to go to the Strawberry Festival instead of going to both.

The main difference--for me at least--is there is one vendor in particular that I absolutely adore. She creates petit point jewelry that is detailed and beautiful, and I seriously want to adopt her as my grandmother. I'm planning to dedicate an entire post to her and all the fabulous creations I've bought from her over the past four years. So stay tuned for that!

I had this talented 84-year-old woman in mind when I picked out this dress to wear to the festival yesterday morning. (I'm realizing how awkward that sounds as I'm typing.) Anyway, the cross stitched flowers on the bodice reminded me of her work, so it's what I decided to wear.

And just in case you're wondering, she loved it! :)

I can just hear Cleo saying: "Oh, hey... Those boots are fabulous!" My dog has good taste! ;)

Photos from the festival:

I posted a version of this photo on my Instagram. Then, I chowed down on one of the weirdest, most genius, heart attack-inducing meals ever created: Doughnut Burger. I remember the first time Matt got this at the Florida State Fair. I was disgusted. A hamburger with typical fixins sandwiched between two Krispy Kreme doughnuts? No, thank you. Then I tried a bite. OH. EM. GEE. It was delicious! Now, it's an annual requirement that we get one when we go to the Strawberry Festival. We cut it in half and share it.

We ended the day with a large bag of kettle corn. And by "large," I mean "gigantic." We've eaten just enough so we can get the bag closed, and it seems that we'll still be eating it when the Strawberry Festival comes to Plant City again next year. Can't wait!

Outfit Details:
Simply Be Dress
Target Leggings
Target Boots
Urban Outfitters Backpack (old)
Fossil Strawberry Charm (old, similar)
The Alchemy Shop Fox Ring
Headcase Press Letterpress Ring (Read more about it here: What's the Perfect Gift for a Writer?)

Photos by my sweet fiance, Matt

This post contains Urban Outfitters affiliate links, and I will be compensated if you click on them and make a purchase.

Pennyfarthing Print Dress

I'm a big fan of novelty prints, and there's something about a bike print in particular that I just can't resist. I bought ModCloth's Ride Here, Right Now Dress a few months ago, and now, I also have the Taking on Tulsa Dress in Pennyfarthings.

I wore it over the weekend to dinner for a friend's birthday. These photos were taken the day after, and I used Matt's bike as a prop.

I'm also digging a couple of these new accessories. The Just as Imagined Necklace in Mushrooms is also from ModCloth, and I ordered it with the dress. You might remember it from my February Wish List.

The wooden handle clutch is vintage, and I picked it up a couple weeks ago from iamsonotcool vintage at Whigfest, a local music festival. When shop owner Cheryl Howell saw my eyes widen as they locked onto the purse, she told me it had just been marked down from $12 to $10. Do you really think I was going to say no to that?! :)

Outfit Details:

Taking on Tulsa Dress in Pennyfarthings and Just as Imagined Necklace in Mushrooms from ModCloth
Vintage Purse from iamsonotcool vintage
Target Leggings and Shoes
Icing Headband (old)
The Alchemy Shop Fox Ring
Headcase Press Ring (read more about it here: What's the Perfect Gift for a Writer?)

Photos by my sweet fiance, Matt

This post contains ModCloth affiliate links, and I will be compensated if you click on them and make a purchase.

What's the Perfect Gift for a Writer?

Are you looking for the perfect present for the talented author or journalist in your life? Provided your wordsmith is of the feminine persuasion, a great gift might just be letterpress jewelry.

Made from old pieces of movable type that were once used for relief printing with ink, letterpress jewelry is a unique way to re-purpose these vintage materials.

My thoughtful fiance, Matt, gave me a letterpress necklace for my birthday last month from Etsy shop MIMAboutique. Shop owner Mi Ma uses authentic vintage letterpress pieces to create custom messages. Then, the text is printed once on a necklace card before it's cleaned and shipped. Mine says "Stret&Reamster," nicknames my fiance and I call each other.

After he saw how much I liked the necklace, Matt went a step further for Christmas and gifted me with a letterpress ring from Etsy shop Headcase Press. Shop owner Nicole Monforti creates collages of letters in varying sizes and typefaces. She offers rings, necklaces, earrings, bracelets, tie bars, cuff links and more. Nicole does custom orders, so you can pick which letters you'd like her to use. Matt asked her to incorporate my initials, AMR, into the piece.

When the ring ended up being too small for my ring finger, Nicole worked with Matt and ended up making a whole new ring with a larger band that now fits on my middle finger!

For this writer, these letterpress jewelry pieces are perfect. I absolutely love them!

Do you have letterpress jewelry or other re-purposed letterpress items? Tell me in the comments!

Outfit Details:

Letterpress Necklace from MIMAboutique
Letterpress Ring from Headcase Press
Urban Outfitters Dress (old, similar)
ModCloth Sweater (old)
Target Leggings
Payless Boots (old, similar)
Target Purse
ModCloth Scarf (old)
Anthropologie Leaf Necklace (old, similar on Etsy)
The Alchemy Shop Delicate Fox Ring

This post contains ModCloth and Urban Outfitters affiliate links, and I will be compensated if you click on them and make a purchase.