The Age of Steam
Last week I worked at an event at university called STEMpunk. The event was aimed at young people from schools and colleges and was designed to bolster their interest in STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and maths). 'STEMpunk' is of course a play on steampunk - one of my favourite genres.
I worked on an exhibit called 'Weird Creatures', featuring mainly invertebrate species and including some wonderful live specimens.
The photo above shows just a small part of the exhibit, but I didn't want to bore you all with a ton of photos of how it was set up.
Here is a closer look at a few of the things that are in the tanks, as modelled by yours truly. Just a quick warning in case anyone is a bit squeamish, the photos are of a variety of invertebrates but there are no spiders.
Giant African Train Millipede
You can just about see another peek at the millipede in my hands in this photo I pinched off the University Twitter page.
Giant African land snail
Purple-clawed land hermit crab
...and a cockroach.
Now onto what I wore...
Blouse - Vero Moda via Asos | Bustier - Primark | Skirt - 1970s vintage
Stockings - Anne Summers | Boots - Charity shop
Goggles - Borrowed
Here is a photo of me with Skelly... and some slightly more sensible pics too. I must say I really enjoyed wearing the spiders in my hair - I must get them out more often.
I had a really fun time helping out (read: playing with the millipedes) and it was fun to dress in this style. I'll be keeping my eye out for some older (or older looking) things than I usually choose when I go shopping. I have a few ideas for some more outfits of this ilk.
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PS, if anyone is in the area this Sunday 30th, there is a pop-up vintage fair at The Ridings in Wakefield. It doesn't look like I will make it there myself but it looks like there are a lot of fun things happening. Let me know if you decide to pop along!
![Vintage Queen Number 134](http://i43.tinypic.com/2ywej5l.png")
4 comments
What a cool event to get to be a part of!
ReplyDeleteThat's actually a really cool event! Wish us humanities and social scientists could something like that. :/ Would love to get people more engaged in politics.
ReplyDeleteSuch a cool, clever play on words and marvelous idea for a show. I must ask, as I've always wondered, what does it feel like to have such a giant millipede walking on you? (Scary, kind of like a massage, etc.)
ReplyDelete♥ Jessica
It feels a bit like velcro. Their legs are quite strong so it's not really tickly, and although I don't personally find it scary, it was a bit offputting the first time I tried holding them.
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