Plaid & Lace / Capturing an Asteroid

I really like pairing plaid with lace. This plaid skater skirt from Choies is exactly what I've been looking after for ages - it also looks great (although super preppy, but I don't mind) paired with suspenders. This lace shirt is also a versatile wardrobe piece - throw it on over a dress on a cooler day when you don't want to completely cover up with a sweater. I've been doing this a lot lately, now we're finally coming into some colder weather here! shirt - c/o Oasap skirt - c/o Choies shoes - Chicory socks - c/o Sock Dreams So NASA's next big plan, after sending Curiosity up to Mars last year (...who incidentally hopefully won't be obliterated by a possible collision with Mars and a comet next year, but that's another story), is to capture an asteroid and bring it into stable orbit around the Earth. What NASA want to do is to use an unmanned robot vehicle to capture the asteroid, then bring it back into orbit where it can be studied and explored by humans, and also mined for things like water - to provide to the international space station (for whom it currently costs thousands of dollars per kg of water sent there). Exactly how the asteroid will be captured is still unclear, but NASA believe with new technology coming out of physics and engineering, it can be done within 10 years. I think that this is really exciting. Although hopefully NASA will be able to figure out how to stop the asteroid colliding with all the thousands of satellites and space junk currently in orbit around Earth. It's a pretty huge job! Read more about it here. Bloglovin' | Facebook | Twitter |  Instagram | Chictopia | Lookbook | Tumblr

Autumn Vintage & How Many Pixels To Mars?

Ahh, it's finally cold enough in Sydney to start layering up! This is definitely my favourite kind of climate - cool, sunny days where you can comfortably wear tights and a cropped sweater over a long vintage dress or skirt. Basically everything that's in this outfit is thrifted for a few dollars, which makes me really happy. Speaking of which, there's a thrift store only 50m down the road from my new place. I have somehow successfully restrained myself from going and spending all of my rent money there so far, but I don't know how long that is going to last... (It's basically the biggest tease ever). tie - c/o Flapper Girl shirt - Thrifted skirt - Thrifted belt - Thrifted tights - c/o Oasap shoes - Thrifted You guys know I love attempting to make you feel all tiny and insignificant ;) but seriously, I really do love projects like the Scale of the Universe and How Big Is Space, that cleverly attempt to show you how big the world around us really is. Call me weird, but I find it kind of reassuring, rather than daunting, thinking about how small I am and how incomprehensibly huge the universe is. Because how can you be stressed out about an assignment deadline or people at work when the universe is just so, so, so much bigger than you (and all your problems) are? So anyway, this is another cool example of that kind of project which I found the other day - if you set Earth to 100 computer pixels wide, how many pixels away is Mars (our closest planetary neighbour)? The website that will answer that question for you, Distance To Mars, is here. Bloglovin' | Facebook | Twitter |  Instagram | Chictopia | Lookbook | Tumblr

Holy Cats!

This dress is yet another extremely fantastic one (did you see my teapot dress yesterday?). I just couldn't go past the print on the front of this dress. And how could you? It's a cat wearing a crown, pretending to be a king. Come on, now. Look at his little crown and cape! Also, I forgot to take closer-up pictures, but the dress has collar tips which are little skulls. It's a very interesting dress indeed. Also, in this post I'm reviewing these shoes, sent to me by a company called Sammydress. Well, I'm definitely a fan of big, beautiful (and impractical) shoes, so they definitely ticked that box. I was really surprised with the quality of the shoes, being from a wholesale website (FIFTEEN DOLLARS, PEOPLE!) - they are suede and really well-made, the stiletto heels feel really strong and don't wobble at all, and my feet feel really secure walking in them, which is always a good thing. I've had bad experiences with wholesale shoes before (often smelling really like petrol, taking forever to ship and being very "plastic-y" and cheap-looking), but these were entirely the opposite to that. They didn't smell, they arrived in about a week and, most importantly, look amazing. Another great thing was that the size was perfect - I'm a US 8/UK 6, and the 39 fits me perfectly. They're really the most beautiful things, and basically about as comfortable as sky-high-stilettos could be. Now I just have to learn how to walk properly in them... dress - c/o Oasap tights - Ebay shoes - c/o Sammydress I'm sorry that a lot of my "science segments" have just been videos from these guys lately, but I don't have a lot of internet access at my new house as of yet. Soooo I am not really able to research cool science things for hours and hours :( anyway, this is something I found a couple of weeks ago, and is way too good not to share. Especially as I'm wearing a cat dress. Enjoy! p.s. The winner of the TNK vintage giveaway is Emmy Anne! You will be emailed shortly. Remember, you can still get 50% off anything at TNK vintage using the coupon code 26790. Bloglovin' | Facebook | Twitter |  Instagram | Chictopia | Lookbook | Tumblr

Teapot Dress & My New House

GUYS, THIS DRESS. It's got TEAPOTS on it. I'm pretty sure that this is one of the best prints that I've ever seen on a dress. And you can get it here if you're as in love with it as I am. Oh, and see this new background? I'm at my new house! And I have this pretty new photo-taking spot, and apart from the window behind me kind of making it look like I have antennae coming out of my head, I think it's pretty nice. Anyway, speaking of my new house, it's almost all set up and it's very very pretty and I'm really proud of it, so I'll hopefully get some shots of it up soon (if that's something people would like to see?) dress - c/o Sheinside shoes - Chicory clips - DIY Something amazing happened in neuroscience the other day and I of course have to share it with you. Image Source Scientists from Stanford University developed a technique which can turn biological tissue transparent (they showed this by making a mouse brain completely clear), while keeping it's original shape. This is going to make it so much easier to study cells like neurons,  which are all densely packed inside the brain, without having to make a billion million individual slices of the brain. And the technique can be used on any tissue, not just brain tissue. It's an exciting time to be going into neuroscience :D Read more here. Bloglovin' | Facebook | Twitter |  Instagram | Chictopia | Lookbook | Tumblr

Guest Post: Cat Eye Glasses (buyin' & stylin')

Hi, I’m Amy!  I’m a personal life and style blogger by pure hobby (find me at A. Loo's Closet). I dress with a retro/vintage vibe, blog photos of my daily outfits, and write about random happenings in my life. I’ve been married for 5 years to my husband, Josh, and together, we have two darling, little girls, Emeline (3 years) and Odette (18 months).  Psst. See that skirt I’m wearing? I made it using one of Annika’s DIY tutorials. Can I get a what-what?  A few days ago, Annika and I were chatting via email about what I could write about for her lovely, little blog, and she mentioned my collection of eyeglasses and sunglasses. She said -- and I quote -- “your glasses collection is so enviable!” So, per dear Annika’s enthusiasm towards my glasses, let’s talk about glasses!  Here are a few shots of my current collection: One | Two (I have Brown) | Three (I got these from ASOS a while ago, but I’ve linked to a very similar pair from eBay) | Four | Five (I have Tortoise) | Six I’ll admit it. I’m a fraud when it comes to eyeglasses. I’m a girl who’s blessed with good vision, and while I’m not complaining about that in the least, I do have a ridiculous soft spot for a great pair of retro eyeglasses. So, I purchase plastic, clear-lensed pairs from eBay in order to achieve my vintage, smarty-pants look. Anyone else sound like me? For those of you who do, know that you can achieve the look! And very inexpensively, too! We’re talking under $10.00 including shipping, folks. Win-win.  eBay is my go-to for sunglasses and fake eyeglasses. As a mom to two little girly-girls, I just can’t afford a super-expensive pair of glasses. I don’t want to. One: because we’ve got important family stuff to provide with that kind of money; and two: my girls like to try on my glasses from time to time, and though they do have little hands, they can be unintentionally destructive, and I’d have a stroke if they accidentally broke a pair of glasses I’d paid a pretty penny for. On eBay, I get a quality product for a small price, and if my glasses accidentally get broken or lost or stepped on, I don’t risk brain damage. Personally, I’ve had excellent service from ebay sellers monovoltz, deadstocksunglasses and ejey. Okay, now that you’ve seen my collection, you want to see my wishlist, right? Of course, you do! Pictured below are a few pairs that are on my wishlist. I so plan on owning these babies soon. One - Two - Three - Four - Five  Gorgeous, aren’t they? If any of y’all are looking for a great pair of fake eyeglasses or sunglasses, browse around on eBay! I guarantee you’ll find something you’ll like! A huge thanks to Annika for allowing me a small piece of her beautiful blog. She was one of the very first style bloggers I connected with when I started out a few months ago, and she remains one of my very favorites. Good luck with your move, dear Annika! Bloglovin' | Facebook | Twitter |  Instagram | Chictopia | Lookbook | Tumblr

Guest Post: DIY Map Backpack

Hi there! I’m Lauren, a South African university student and crafter from over at LDP. I am currently studying English and Journalism, though I spend much of my spare time making just about anything and everything that takes my fancy. While Annika packs her things, I’ll be showing you how to DIY your own map backpack! I’m currently in my first year of university, and I’ve just started my second term for the year. I spent my first term lugging around my books in a shoulder bag that was uncomfortable and inappropriate for holding so many books – in fact, towards the end of the term, it was even beginning to break! Because of this, I was almost forced into buying a proper backpack in which to carry around my books. But rather than running the risk of having the same bag as someone else, or, on the other end of the spectrum, having a decidedly bland backpack for the rest of the year, I thought (as usual) – why not just DIY my own? I picked up a fairly plain beige backpack rather cheaply at a market, and decided that I’d convey my perpetual wanderlust by decorating it with an old-fashioned map! You will need: • A backpack • Leather or faux leather • Mod Podge • A printer and paper What to do: 1. Make sure that your bag has a flat area on which to place your map. I had to remove a bunch of plastic buckles and straps from mine to achieve this, so don’t let that put you off!   2. Cut out the size and shape of the area on which you want your map from the leather or faux leather (mine was in two sections, so I had two pieces of faux leather, which I painted with a base paint of acrylic paint first, though this isn’t completely necessary). 3. Print out your map image. (I just did this on normal printer paper at the print shop down the road!) 4. Mod-Podge your map onto the leather or faux leather, ensuring that it is completely stuck down and secured. 5. Cover the map in another layer of Mod-Podge and wait for it to dry completely. 6. Sew the leather or faux leather onto the backpack, covering the appropriate section. I hope you enjoyed this DIY, and I’d love to see photos of any attempts to make your own! Bloglovin' | Facebook | Twitter |  Instagram | Chictopia | Lookbook | Tumblr