Blueberries and Blue Jeans

It seems fruit picking is the order of this summer.
First there were the blackberries and then the figs, now it’s time for blueberries.

Recently spent a rainy morning at Eastfields Farms. A hidden gem in Mathews County. I believe it was their last weekend of picking, which was hard to believe with how full the bushes were. We picked two gallons for a mere $18 (which might both sound expensive and like an insane amount of blueberries, but if you factor an organic pint at the store being about $4…. that’s $64 worth of blueberries… and now the freezer is stocked for smoothies and pies!)

It is such a primal and satisfying thing, picking your own food straight from the bush or tree that it grew on.
I swear the fruit I’ve picked this year with my own hands has tasted like the best I’ve ever had. And perhaps that is some amount of imbued romanticism at the practice of it all, but I think there is something good and natural about that too that connects to our souls on a deeper level.

(Although my Dad said these tasted like the best blueberries he’d ever had, and he had nothing to do with the picking of them so… interpret as you will.)

Grateful to live in a place with such an abundance of natural bounty…
I suppose apples are next?
Virginia, I do love you so.

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Folkling Shop Update: A Turquoise Jewelry Collection

Nineteen special vintage pieces of sterling, turquoise and coral jewelry. 
I have been curating these all summer for you, and I am so excited to be able to finally offer them in the shop.

I have several incredibly special turquoise and sterling pieces in my own collection (some I wear every day) and they are timeless statement pieces that I treasure and value in my day to day wardrobe. They are investment pieces that will never decrease in value or go out of style.

It may feel indulgent to treat yourself in this way, but I believe what we wear and hold around us in our day-to-day routines holds more importance that we realize.

Choosing pieces that evoke stories and depth in their wear is a meaningful practice.

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Folkling Home

Introducing Folkling Home. 

Similarly to when I created Folkling in 2017, this venture too is a long time in the dreamin and plannin.

Folkling Home is a venture for sharing interior design projects and lifestyle concepts centered around slow living and a more sustainable life.

Which, for those of you who have followed along on the Folkling instagram, know that’s an important ethos and reason behind why I do what I do over there in finding old things new homes and appreciation in layered stories.

But this is something I believe in not only for the pieces that make up our wardrobes and homes, but our every day lives as well.

I want to share more of the slower and mindful lifestyle that I’ve been spending the last five years pursuing.

I will primarily be sharing the unfolding of these narratives on the Folkling Home instagram which you can follow here: @folklinghome.

I can’t wait to start sharing more of these stories with you all.

Thank you for being here.

Tiny Routines

It is the nature here that has kept me grounded.

Kept me continually looking forward and focusing on the good.

I lived in Richmond my whole life, was born and raised in The Fan.

And then, after 26 years, I came out to the Chesapeake Bay. A place I grew up coming to for a similarly long period of time as my Dad is a sailor. So many spring, summer and fall nights were spent out on these waters. A few winter ones too.
It’s always been one of my homes.

And then I left for The Road.
And then I left again.
It kept calling me back and I kept answering.

Yet another kind of home.

But now I’m back here on the bay and now more than ever it feels like a respite and sacred place amidst the chaos of the world.

The Road still calls, and perhaps it always will. But this place, with its endlessly fascinating array of flora and fauna, is the needed anchor amidst it all.

I have now been here long enough, and in all seasons, to witness the varying cycles of the life that lives here.

I recognize the calls of the osprey and bald eagles and grey herons. Watch them all build their fortresses in the trees and on the pylons overlooking the water from fallen branches and dried grasses from the yard.

And how March brings daffodils and dandelions. 
April fosters camellias and low hanging wisteria. 
May greets buttercups and forsythia.
June grows tiger Lilly’s and road-side daisies and, best of all: magnolias. 

And July—July has brought blackberries.

Which has been one of the greatest gifts in this season, discovering them all around the property. Because I’ve never been here during a July until now, and to witness such a constant thing despite my inconsistency and variation brings a kind of centerdness to me somehow.

It is in witnessing these tiny routines that I find solace amidst attempting to create my own.

This Is Virginia In The Summer

You have to close your mouth when biking at night.

This is Virginia in the summer.

The air is thick and hung with winged creatures.

The moon winks at me from the water filled ditch, newly filled after the afternoon’s down pour.

The low-hanging magnolias unfold their skirts towards the grass beds, entangled in a flirtation with the sweet scented leaves.

I cut some Queen Anne’s Lace with my pocket knife and revel in its silhouette against the dusk.

Petal pushing, pedal pushing.

This routine is one of the few I perform without fail.

A small days end respite from the unrelenting speed of time.

My bike basket fills with little pink slips of paper.
They hold a promise of something more if I choose to exchange them at the post office down the road.

(I never do take them with me, somewhat absentmindedly but more so as an act of defiance of the one mean post master in town…)

I hoist my bike up onto my shoulder and ascend the porch stairs 
1-2-3-4-5-6
and into the house.

I run upstairs to my computer, where I can record my thoughts faster than any other medium.

My feet are so hot I start to pull off my boots (because I wear boots year round…) but I’m afraid I’ll lose the words so I stop half way.

Typing feverishly with one boot on and one boot off.

“Are you awake?”
He asks.

“Yes but I can’t talk right now.
I don’t want to lose the words I just found.”

Before The Dawn

There is unrest.

Weighted and dark, moving throughout the country.

I’m watching from here on the bay my beloved city, Richmond, upend and fall apart from the inside out.

Streets I grew up on are unrecognizable to me now.

People being pepper sprayed on their porches?

Curfews?

Limiting freedom of speech?

What is this world we are living in?

I know others feel the weight of these days more permanently and inherently than I.

I am broken hearted for those who have been systemically abused, mistreated and marginalized in this country.
A country I take pride in in so many ways, for our dreams and innovations and independence... but in this?

In this we have it wrong.

We have to find a different way.

How is it that we can’t get this right?
How is it that we are still fighting about this?
The equality of human beings?
This should go without saying... right?

And yet here we are.
Wrestling with the heart issues of the generations before us and cycling through the same motions.

There has to be a better way.

We can do better than this.

The ones who come after us need better than this.

But I believe this to be true as well, which is that it is always darkest before the dawn.

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I am taking the week off of posting to elevate others and attempt to engage more meaningfully in these times and in these moments in the community I have right in front of me.

Keep listening.

Keep learning.

Keep loving.

Twenty Twosday

So I have an idea I want to share with you…

This is something that’s been on my mind for a while.
Since last Summer to be exact, and after a conversation with my friend Anna.

Anna and I have talked about our mutual love and affinity for living more sustainable and ethically responsible lives through a whole manner of ways, but especially in regards to shopping for our homes and bodies.

Which is in large part why we feel so passionate about what we do in regards to each of our respective vintage businesses.
It’s not just about paying the bills, though we gotta do that, we live and breathe what we preach in our every day and personal lives in regards to shopping secondhand and combatting fast fashion and the type of unhealthy and wasteful consumerism so prevalent in our world right now.

Which brings me to this point: Anna said this thing last Summer that’s stuck with me and been on my mind ever since…

“I want to make shopping secondhand and buying vintage more accessible to people.”

And while I  try often get most excited by working on fixing up Victorian tops, and hunting for really old denim, and hoping to find WW2 vintage and one of a kind handmade jumpsuits from the 1970s…

I’ve come to realize that I want that too.

I want to continue to share my love of the really old stuff. The vintage that does warrant higher prices because they’re rare or one of a kind, because they have special wear and patches and because they hold immeasurable amounts of history and story in them…

But…

I also want to make shopping for vintage and secondhand more affordable and accessible to more people and more budgets.

Because I do think it makes a difference.

It makes a difference buying something old that already exists, vs. something new at Target and creating the demand for more which has consequences far greater than most of us realize the reality of in our first world lifestyles.

It makes a difference supporting a small business and in turn your local community and economy.

It makes a difference refusing to settle on lack of quality in the name of quantity.

It makes a difference choosing to be more mindful with how you spend your money because: every time you spend a dollar, you’re casting a vote for the type of world you want.

And so I have an idea in the works…

99% of my wardrobe is secondhand/vintage/handmade

A similar statistic could be applied to how I furnish my home.

(Well… when I have a home and I’m not living on The Road in Blue Moon anyway…)

And so once a week I’m thinking about offering up a collection of more affordable pieces for your body and your space to help further the inspiration and motivation to keep the ways in which you clothe your body and furnish your home more ethical, sustainable and attainable.

The working concept for this idea is to call it: Twenty Twosday

In which I would post a collection of pieces every Tuesday that are $22 each.
Most pieces would be vintage, but not necessarily all because I don’t think something necessarily has to be 20 years old (the definition of true vintage) to be a great staple in your wardrobe or a beautiful or functional piece in your home.

(Though admittedly the quality and craftsmanship of clothing in the past 20 or so years has degraded IMMENSELY which is another reason I prefer true vintage more often than not. But I somewhat digress…)

As always, I would love to hear what your thoughts are on all of this friends! Comment on this post or shoot me a message over on instagram.

Last week’s first intro to the idea went so well, and I am so excited to post this week’s collection today in the folkling instagram stories! Click the button below to shop along.

In Case You Want To Put A Sheepskin On It

⋒ ⋒YOU COULD WIN THIS SHEEPSKIN FOR ONLY $10⋒ ⋒

In case you missed it yesterday, I posted a super fun raffle on the Folkling Instagram!

Tryin to help us all get through the middle of the week with a fun opportunity to win an extra special piece for your home!

Up for raffle is a lovely sheepskin. 
Measures 71” x 39”

It does have two slight marks *see photos* that may come out with some cleaning and spot treatment, but in no way effects the usability and enjoyment of this beautiful piece! There are also a few imperfect sections that have been shorn.

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HOW IT WORKS

1. To enter, send $10 to @Leney on Venmo OR via PayPal Friends and Family to missjellyb@gmail.com with “Sheepskin Raffle” AND your instagram handle.
OR

(If you do not have Instagram you can leave your email instead but it is SUPER important that I have a way of contacting you if you win so please leave one or the other with your transaction!)

 Only ONE entry per person to give everyone an equal and fair chance of winning!

2. You have until midnight FRIDAY to enter!

3. I will write down everyone’s names who entered, throw them in my hat, go live SATURDAY morning on the Instagram story (so you guys feel extra good about this being above board and honest ) and pick a winner! (Don’t worry about being present to watch the live video— I will contact you via Instagram or your email if you win!) Many of you know my love for sheepskins due to my fiber arts history, and I have and use so many in both my stationary and mobile life!

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I have one that I always sleep on when camping in Blue Moon  or in a tent, and I have been known to throw them in the backseat of my car for extra “ambiance”, but I also love them:

Draped on a chair that needs some extra cushion

On your bed for some extra styled depth and layering

Next to your bed as a rug so that your hard workin feet start the day extra pampered

A sweet floor pad to lay your bebe on

AND I don’t have a dog but I hear they make excellent dog beds... 

(If you want to see more ways that I use sheepskins, you can check out #PUTASHEEPSKINONIT

Thank you all for doing this with me! It’s been really great coming up with more diverse and varied ways to connect and have fun with you all during this time and help make ends meet over here! I have such a blast hanging out with you in this virtual space and talking about all the vintage and sustainable ways of livin. Thank you for being here.

I super appreciate each and every one of you. ️

Good luck and see ya Saturday morning on the @folkling Instagram!

The Consistency of Place

“The land doesn’t speak to you because you don’t stay in one place long enough to hear it”

It seems a lot of what I’ve written about recently stems from conversations with various friends from all across this country.

I don’t know that I’m talking to people more than I normally would, but perhaps life has slowed down enough to really be able to meditate on the things being said to the extent they deserve.

This is a paraphrased quote by a friend who mentioned this line from the book: The Practice of The Wild and it’s from a conversation with a Crow elder.

It struck a chord with me for several reasons.

While I have the constant pull of The Road on my mind and that’s a huge part of me, I’m also a life long Virginian. A born and raised Richmonder, and someone who grew up routinely going to the Chesapeake Bay and its surrounding tiny towns because I’m the #daughterofasailor.
I have immense pride in being from one consistent place and having the roots that I do.

I lived in #RVA for 25 years before I chose to make the bay my home in between my road dog life, and while it’s always been a part of me and felt like home, taking up residence here has made that more tangible.

When I came home in November from living a year on The Road, I really meant to be back just for a few months to catch up with loved ones, work on some writing projects and then get back out there.

And then the world fell apart.

Yet, in the midst of that I’ve had more ability to enjoy this place. Discover unexplored corners, notice things I’ve always driven past too fast, really get to know my neighbors and those who work in my community and appreciate the consistency of place.

I have been debating what to do in the coming months.
Whether to leave or stay.
What leaving would look like now that photo jobs have been cancelled and I’m unsure if @folkling could be consistent enough while being mobile to make ends meet and still trying to save for a place of my own.

And I’m still debating.

But I’ve been relearning the importance of home. That even in these times, or maybe especially so, pausing long enough to listen to the land and appreciate where you presently are is a narrative worth hearing.