Babymoon: the Adler Planetarium

Calling all space/astronomy nerds! There's a big event coming on August 21: a total solar eclipse! For the first time in quite a while, the path of the eclipse will cut from coast to coast of the United States, and I'm actually going to get a pretty good view in Chicago at midday. I've already planned my entire day around getting to Chicago's Adler Planetarium for the eclipse, though I still need to assemble a kit for safe viewing.

Help Me, Trashy Diva Obi!

If you think I'm mildly obsessed with Trashy Diva...well, you're not wrong. They have so many amazing prints and such lovely vintage-inspired styles that I really cannot resist! I've reviewed quite a few of the new releases over the past year, but every once in a while, I like to take an older print out for a spin.

Hot Mama: a Stylish and Cool Third-Trimester Dress

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the year you buy an air conditioner is the year you'll get a ridiculously mild summer. To anyone out there in Chicago that's reading this: you're welcome. Remember that one week of 90+ degree heat and humidity in early June? Yeah, that ended the day before we had our ACs installed.

She's Gone to Plaid!

Earlier this month, my mom came to visit Chicago for the very first time! Here are some things you need to know about my mom:

My Charity-Shop Haul

Admittedly, my priorities for my trip to England last month were a bit unusual. Apart from having a proper English breakfast, eating Scotch eggs, and going to English chains like Primark and Marks and Spencer, I was most excited to try my luck in the charity shops. For my American friends: charity shops are secondhand stores whose proceeds go to a specific charity (i.e. Oxfam and the like.)

Happily, while Jeff was at his conference, I got to live the dream!

One Top Three Ways: Lavender Vamp Top

Sometimes my sister and I speak in TV-Tropes shorthand to each other, which confuses anyone we happen to be around. (If you've never visited TV Tropes…make sure you have a couple of hours to kill before you check it out! It's an endless link-clicking, new-tab-opening wormhole of Wikipedia-level  proportions.) The Vamp top from Pinup Girl Clothing, like its close relative the Vamp dress, is a prime sartorial example of Exactly What It Says on the Tin: putting the shirt on turns the wearer into Jessica Rabbit.

As someone who's only embraced pastels recently, I wasn't sure whether I'd be able to work this lovely lavender hue into my wardrobe, so I figured I'd give it the ol' One Piece, Three Ways treatment and see how it went. As it turns out, this shirt is super versatile!