EPBOT

I have somewhat quirky taste in clothing.

Like, my-favorite-shoes-are-slouchy-yellow-superhero-boots kind of taste. And I don't wear heels because a) my feet are so small anything over a 2 inch heel is excruciating, and b) I think most heels are kinda ugly anyway.

I'd like to say my style sense is "bad-ass geek girly-girl with a dash of whimsy," but to be honest, I have no idea what that looks like.

As a result, I'm always looking for a fashion blogger to assure me I'm not a complete freakazoid - or at least to wear something stranger than me and still look good in it. I can't claim to have found her yet, but here are the ones I check in with regularly:

With most fashion bloggers I find myself liking maybe one outfit in ten, but Chandra is close to being my style soul mate. If I thought I had a prayer of fitting into her clothes I would track her down and steal most of her wardrobe. (Wait. Was that creepy? No?)

It's such a shame she stopped updating her blog about 6 months ago. Come back, Chandra!









Lilli prefers lots of patterned dresses that aren't really my thing, but sometimes she'll feature more layered gems like this:


It's also refreshing to see a fashion blogger with a body less stick-thin and more, you know, like mine. I've looked for more blogs like Lilli's, but other than a few of the most famous plus-sized blogs, I've come up empty. Anyone have any recommendations?



Another blogger I love who doesn't post many fashion updates anymore. In fact, this is going back a loooong way, but Zo used to do a column for The Suicide Girls called What's Zo Wearing?, and a few years ago I inhaled every bit of those archives, they're all so amazing.

She still has that layered gothic badass look going today, but it's a bit more accessible and modern:










Needless to say, her photo shoots are the stuff that dreams are made of: pure eye candy. Since she started her new makeup line Doe doesn't post them as often, but it's a huge treat when she does.

And on a personal note, Doe is one of the few bloggers I follow who've I've actually met in person, and we "clicked" almost immediately. So much so that John and I spent two days with her and her husband Mark while they were in Orlando last year, and she and I couldn't stop talking the entire time. Heh. I find fashionable people intimidating in the extreme, and I don't think Doe reads either of my blogs, so I figured we'd have nothing in common. C'mon, a geek who can't wear heels and a fashion model? - but within a few hours I felt like I'd found a long-lost sister. Doe is quiet and introverted, like me, and we share so many of the same fears and anxieties that come from working online.

We haven't kept up since then, but I mention this because Doe gets a lot of flak online - I believe undeservedly so. She's humble and approachable and cares passionately about her work and the people it affects. If you ever hear differently, take it from me: the person saying so has never met her in person.

[stepping off soap box]

Ok, so tell me, fellow geeks: what other fashion bloggers should I be following? Help a girl out, and tell me in the comments!

I've got a huge backlog of material dating all the way back to the book tour that I've been meaning to show you guys, so prepare for an onslaught of geek goods! (And here's hoping you haven't seen it all already. Heh.)

Ok, serious props for the attention to detail. Look at the tiny "start" and "select" buttons on the bed skirt!

And in case your cats want in on the Mario action, check out what Epbot reader Jenny H. made:

It's hard to tell in the photo, but the dark tube is actually green carpet, and the base has the red brick pattern from the game. The yellow box hold toys. Fun!

My Dragon*Con buddy Diane M. made a custom cat tree that's even more up my design alley, though:

The gingerbread trim piece is painted a hammered copper, and the leather edging was nailed in place with brass upholstery tacks. The steamy trunk at the base holds all the kitty toys. Love it.


It seems you can't throw a sonic screwdriver these days without hitting another awesome TARDIS build, but if you haven't seen it yet you simply *must* watch this adorable German teacher building her own collapsible version:






The clock *ROTATES*, and you tell the time by the location of the rolling ball. When the ball reaches the center, it drops through the hole and emerges at the top/bottom 12 again.