The Pineneedle Collective

Thursday, 12 March 2015

Everything Pink, Gaining Weight & 25-Million-Year-Old Organisms

Today, I decided that everything must be pink. So I donned a pink top, this gorgeous stripey pink vintage skirt (with pockets!), subtle pink lipstick and a watermelon necklace to match!

I found Yoshimi's lab at my local markets on the weekend, a maker of the most incredible and realistic-looking food jewellery! I stood at Yoshimi's stall for a good 20 minutes trying to choose what to buy (I had to get something), probably totally freaking Yoshimi out because I couldn't stop gushing over how cool everything was. (IT'S ALL MADE OUT OF CLAY, TOO! SUCH WITCHCRAFT!) I settled on this watermelon necklace because it was really hot that day, and the watermelon looked so refreshing!

When I came back from Hong Kong, I was a little dismayed to find out that none of my clothes fit me anymore - I may have enjoyed the food in Hong Kong a little bit too much. However, this particular pink skirt that was several sizes too big for me when I left fit me perfectly on my return!

Any small amount of weight gain is treated so negatively in our culture - when I say to my friends "yeah, I gained heaps of weight in Hong Kong", their immediate response is "no you haven't!" But WHY? I mean, I can read what it says on my scales, my weight gain is an empirical fact. "Oh, but you don't look like you've put on weight".

But why would this be a bad thing? It's not something I am unhappy about - it's only something that I've been told to be unhappy about, by advertisements and movies and TV.

But I'm really not. I'm curvier, and I've always wanted to be curvy. And, cool skirts like this one fit me perfectly now! I'm not going to feel bad about myself just because I've gained weight - instead, I'm going to enjoy recycling my wardrobe and shopping for new clothes to fit my new body!

Outfit details:

Top is thrifted

Skirt is vintage

Necklace is from Yoshimi's Lab (instagram page)

Shoes are Naot Kedmas

#SOTD (Science of the Day):

In 1995, scientists found a bee trapped in amber, and dated it to about 25 million years old.

As you would expect, the bee trapped inside was long dead, but these scientists decided to see if there was anything that might still be living inside.

And there was.

The scientists took a sample from the bee's gut, and put it onto a nutrient-rich plate too see if anything would grow. And 25-million-year-old bacteria that was inside the bee's gut was revived into a living culture.

So how the heck did it survive for so long??

Well, some bacteria are pretty freaky. There's these super tough type of bacteria which can form something called "endospores". Endospores are a hard shell which keeps all the important bits of the bacteria - DNA and ribosomes - safe inside. Endospores can then survive in a state of "suspended animation" when conditions are rough - conditions including being trapped in amber for millions of years and the cold vacuum of space - and then continue on as normal once their environment improves!

Apparently, this record has since been beaten by 250 million-year-old bacteria that were found inside salt crystals in a cave, and were able to be revived. Those bacteria were around at the same time as the dinosaurs, and they're still alive today somewhere in a lab!

I hope that you're all having a wonderful day,

Sunday, 8 March 2015

DIY Lace Underwear

Yup, you read that right! YOU CAN MAKE YOUR OWN LACE UNDERWEAR. AND IT'S REALLY EASY, TOO.

Making cute lace undies is my latest obsession. If I disappear for a while, it's probably because I'm off making at least 500 million pairs of these (that's seriously how easy they are to make!) Both beginners and people without sewing machines can give this one a go, too.

Materials:

- Elasticated lace trim (you only need enough that you can wrap it once around your hips)
- A small piece of 100% cotton fabric, does not need to be stretchy (get it in a matching colour to your lace)
- Needle & thread OR a sewing machine & thread

- Scissors (fabric scissors are best)

Have a watch of my tutorial:

And don't forget to post pics using the hashtag #diyannika if you try this or any of my other tutorials.

Love!

Friday, 6 March 2015

How To Make Your Own Underwear | Get Sewing With Me #2

YOU GUYS. I figured out how to make my own underwear, which brings me one step closer to having an entirely handmade wardrobe! (Next up is figuring out how to make bras!)

In this latest video, I'm going to show you how to make your own! You can make these out of any lightweight stretchy cotton jersey fabrics, including old t-shirts.

If you try this or any of my other tutorials out, snap a picture and upload it to instagram using #diyannika.

I hope that you're all having a beautiful day!

Thursday, 5 March 2015

It's autumn - time to break out the giant carrot scarves!

I am so happy that it's finally autumn. I am so done with the heat, and more than happy to relinquish summer over to the Northern hemisphere. You guys can have it. Because autumn means that I finally get to layer AND that I get to wear this amazing giant carrot scarf every day.

My giant carrot scarf is from Yummy You! If you haven't heard of Twinkie Chan before - what are you doing? Go and check her stuff out right this moment! Anyway, crocheting and crafting goddess Twinkie Chan recently started up her own brand and line of clothing called Yummy You, for which she designs food-themed crochet pieces and also features cool handmade jewellery brands like Fatally Feminine Designs!
Yummy You is a food-lovers, novelty-accessory-connoisseur's dream shop.

(The difference between Yummy You and Twinkie Chan's etsy store is that Twinkie Chan crochets all the items herself on her etsy store, but Yummy You is manufactured in China and therefore a cheaper alternative.)

My mum also found a bunch of Rugrats-themed badges that I used to own when I was about 10 years old. Who was your favourite Rugrats character? Mine were Kimi and Lilian, but Chuckie's colours matched my outfit perfectly (we totally have matching orange hair, aw yeah)!

Outfit details:

Scarf is c/o Yummy You

Skirt and top are thrifted

Shoes are from Naot (Kedma)
Socks are from Japan

Headband is from Hong Kong

Tomorrow I should be uploading a DIY-your-own-underwear video, so keep an eye out for that! I've made about 10 pairs of my own so far and they're the comfiest things in the world - I'm never buying underwear again ;)

Much love,

Sunday, 1 March 2015

DIY T-Shirt | "Get Sewing With Me" Episode #1

I have started a new Youtube Series called Get Sewing With Me - it's like "Get Ready With Me" videos but better ;) (and don't worry, Make Thrift Buy isn't going anywhere!)

In my spare time, I do a lot of sewing which I don't film either because I don't have a specific tutorial in mind, or it might require a bit of specialized equipment that most people don't own. But I thought that it would be cool to start filming some of these things that I make, because it could still help inspire your own sewing projects, show you some tips and tricks, or give you ideas for equipment you might want to get in the future! (And of course if you're a more intermediate-advanced sewer, then you could definitely use this as a tutorial!)

This tutorial will (hopefully!) teach you how to DIY a t-shirt from scratch, using an old top as a pattern. It can be used to make any kind of t-shirt.

Thursday, 26 February 2015

Scary Rides & New Friends: Hong Kong Travel Vlog #4!

I've already talked about how I was lucky enough to meet up with some really cool people in Hong Kong - and one of them was Maddy! She showed me around a couple of places in Hong Kong, one of them being Ocean Park, an amusement park on Hong Kong Island. I snuck my camera onto a couple of rides (not the heaps dangerous ones, I was too scared haha) and I made a little vlog! I hope that you like it :)