We are go for launch - OUR ONLINE SHOP IS OPEN!!!
We are publicly announcing it here first, because Tumblr is the place we began, where we met some of our first and still favorite designers, where we learned about new aspects of the vast and diverse Universe of creators in astrofashion.
Our shop is infused with science, from the carefully curated products to their informative descriptions to our “Shop By Science” menu and extensive Learn More page. You’re not just buying a beautifully designed & crafted piece of jewelry or clothing your accessory, you’re learning and sharing real science!
The blog will live on at blog.startorialist.com, and we hope to start posting here again soon, and not just products from our own shop - we still have nearly 200 draft posts stored up!
Here is our oh-so-brief origin story, and the mission of our business:
STARtorialist began almost seven years ago as the Universe’s premier astro-fashion blog, founded by astronomers Emily Rice & Summer Ash. When we shared the blog with our colleagues at research conferences, the most frequently asked question we heard was, “Where can we buy stuff?”! With the help of Kelle Cruz and Debbie Kovalsky, we experimented with BOOTHtique pop-up shops at conferences, to great success! Then the new FAQ became, “Do you have an online shop?” so we set that as our next goal.
Finally, the launch day is here! We are thrilled to be able to offer some of our favorite scientifically-accurate and space-inspired designs in jewelry, clothing, accessories, toys, and more. We have nearly 200 products in stock, and we will continually be adding more. We would love to hear what you are looking for, so Contact Us via the shop, and be sure to sign up for our Newsletter!
Your purchases will allow us to continue supporting independent designers and women/minority/family-owned small businesses, many of which are struggling during these challenging times. We are also committed to sharing some of our profits with STEM education, outreach, and equity & inclusion organizations in order to strengthen our community and improve our world. We thank you astronomically for your support!
Universal Love,
Emily, Summer, Debbie, & Kelle
Hello, dearest followers! We’ve been quiet over here because it turns out running a new online shop is a LOT of work! But we’ve loved every second of it, and are especially exciting to be starting our first Black Friday-Small Business Saturday-Cyber Monday weekend (the biggest shopping weekend in the US!). Our shop is not only a women-owned small bsuiness, but it helps support dozens of other small businesses & independent designers!
Our deal is Buy One, Get One 50% Off (almost) anything in the shop! Only original paintings by Dust & Ash Co. are excluded. The discount will appear automagically during check out, no code required! Plus, we offer free shipping with the US for orders over $100.
We have lots of curated astro-fashion, toys, and gifts in the shop, and many items are custom, limited edition, or even one-of-a-kind! Shop early to find that special gift for the space-lovers among your friends, family, or even yourself.
Stay safe this holiday season, and share space metaphorically rather than physically, with gift curated by professional astronomers. 🤩
—Emily, Debbie, & Kelle
#TBT to us over the years!!
I think the top photo actually predates our very first blog post! The blog existed in our heads but only became a reality a couple weeks later in the final days of 2013…SO MANY YEARS AGO.
Look at our baby selves at AAS223, the World Science Festival, and the Intrepid Museum’s Hubble25 exhibit in 2014 - we were so young and carefree living on stardust.
Flash forward to 2016, hanging out at Columbia University’s Astrofest and in the StarTalk studio (with Star Baby #1 making its presence known).
And last but not least, two of our last conferences together in person - AGU 2018 and AAAS 2019 (with uber imminent Star Baby #2).
Now here we are and it’s hard to believe our dreams of an online shop have finally become a reality!
Thanks to all of you for being here every step (post) of the way. You never forget your first (blog) home. ;)
- Summer & Emily
Today’s (late-breaking) #WeeWednesday (our first since the online shop officially opened!) is actually a triple-bagger!
“Wee” was originally for kids, and the adorable plush planetary pals from Celestial Buddies are perfect for kids of all ages. We’re highlighting one in particular today, so wee is also appropriate for the tiniest of the buddy bunch, the Comet. And new for today is “Wheeeeeeeeee!” because Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) is currently flinging itself through the inner Solar System making for a spectacular viewing opportunity for northern hemisphere skywatchers! It is visible before dawn at the moment (look north-east, close to the horizon), and around mid-July it will become an evening comet (look north-west), perfect for physically-distanced stargazing!
Top image: Comet Celestial Buddy and Comet NEOWISE photographed by astronauts on the ISS.
Second row: cuddly Comet celebrating the Philae landing back in 2014 (Bonus: we still have Rosetta wood necklaces available in the shop!)
Bottom image: Comet NEOWISE as observed by the NASA/ESA SOHO mission in June.
Check out all our #comet blog posts
–Emily
Happy Aphelion Sunday, STARtorialists! Yesterday at 7:34 am (NYC time) the Earth was 94,507,635 miles from the Sun, its furthest distance for this orbit. As we inch closer for the next six months, you can celebrate our closest star every day with some our favorite Sun-inspired designs!
From top to bottom:
Sun Illustration Cotton Bandana - a beautifully hand-printed bandana based on a scientific illustration of the surface of the Sun, available neon and neutral, doubles as a DIY no-sew face mask (video instructions).
Sun Illustration Cotton Handkerchief - smaller than the bandana so even more portable & eco-friendly, plus it will soften with each wash. Use it to replace tissues, paper napkins, and more!
Sun Image Ring & Earrings - these are a brilliant way to wear a little sunshine every day. Also available in a necklace, clip, & hair slides
Solar Eclipse Wood Bracelet - eclipses in general are less rare than you probably think, but a total solar eclipse is still an experience to cherish! This design by a Ph.D. astronomer (!!!) is available also as a necklace.
Sun plush toy - you don’t need any sunscreen to get close to this cuddly Sun.
–Emily
OTD four years ago, in 2016, NASA’s Juno Mission arrived at Jupiter and began doing ALL THE SCIENCE. Pop on over to our online shop to pick up some goodies to celebrate the gorgeousness of this gas giant!
Featured above:
Mismatched laser cut Jupiter and Juno spacecraft wooden earrings
3D printed gold steel Juno Mission logo necklace
Juno Mission spacecraft print socks
Swirls on Jupiter steampunk choker (as imaged by NASA’s Junocam)
Click for quick links to browse all of our Jupiter products and Juno products.
- Summer & Emily
As tragic events keep piling up, it bears repeating: Black Lives Matter.
Science is a human endeavor and traumatic events (not to mention institutionalized racism and microaggressions) take a significant toll on our black colleagues, which we can’t ignore if we want to foster and inclusive, equitable, and productive scientific community. We highly recommend this article by Danielle Lee (aka DNLee ) which explains it better than we ever could:
…it would be nice to know that we can safely grieve and feel and acknowledge how these tragedies touch us…and not be judged as being wasteful or distracted. Strange, because we actually are distracted. Trauma and grief and worry have a way of doing that. But in very competitive academic or industry science cultures, distracted is often a demerit. It’s frustrating being demerited for being human and vulnerable. I’m too traumatized to science right now.
Here is a list of things to read and do to advocate for #blacklivesmatter via Chanda Prescod-Weinstein.
- Summer & Emily
Our country today feels no different from when we originally posted this almost four years ago.
Here are some additional resources of things those of us with privilege can do:
26 Ways to Be in the Struggle Beyond the Streets (via Ejeris Dixon)
5 Ways White People Can Take Action in Response to White and State-Sanctioned Violence (via Showing Up for Racial Justice NYC)
Google Doc of Anti-Racism Resources (via ninaneedspace)
Black Astronomers You Should Know (via Ashley Lindalía)
- Summer & Emily
(via startorialist)
Today is the day we usually celebrate Pi Day, but honestly it feels infinitely* silly with so much happening around our pale blue dot. So instead of celebrating an irrational number, we thought we’d share slices* of some small but rational* steps for uplifting one another in difficult times.
As many of you know, we are in the process of setting up our own small (women-owned!) business, and as we work through that process we appreciate even more how much time and energy the artists & vendors we share here have put into their own craft. For many of them, maintaining their livelihoods is especially challenging right now, but luckily, we can help!
Instead of hoarding toilet paper, why not start your winter-holiday gift shopping very early! Or stock up on birthday presents, or gifts for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, graduations (with or without in-person ceremonies), Just Because Day! If you’re not sure what someone special (even yourself) might like, purchase a gift card from your favorite artist. Want a custom creation? Message an artist on social media for a commission so they don’t have to pay fees to sites like Etsy. :)
Here are just some** of our favorite small businesses (women, family, and/or minority owned) who could use your support:
Amy Rae Hill (whose commissions like this teapot are out of this world!)
Cepheid Studio (check out her new shinies, like this Hubble pin badge!)
Chrissy Sparks Art (we adore her hand-painted cosmic wooden ornaments)
Cosmic Funnies (whimsical web comics, illustrations, stickers and more featuring all your favorite celestial objects)
Lost in Space Jewelry (custom Planetary Position Plaques make lovely gifts!)
Science Socks (watch this space for more designs!)
Sofie Shen (illustrator extraordinaire who can make your space art dreams come true)
Two Photon Art (they have some great freebies to download, too!)
Yugen Tribe (our long-time favorites with stunning new designs, like these Solar System beauties)
We’ll continue to share work by these artists and more via this thread over on Twitter!
Socially-distant hugs from across the Universe,
–Emily & Summer
(image credits: FreakingNews.com, user: vicspa)
*We made be sad and stressed, but puns will always prevail.
**woefully incomplete
Today is the last official day of NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope mission <sniff>. Launched over 16 years ago, Spitzer brought the infrared universe to the forefront as one of NASA’s Great Observatories. It studied everything from our own solar system to the Milky Way to some of the most distant galaxies. It mapped the first “weather map” of an exoplanet, refined the density estimates for the seven planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system, and found the largest molecules known to exist in space, aka Buckyballs. I could go on and on and on!
In celebration of this amazing mission, Science Socks made these awesome socks so you can trap your own infrared radiation and keep your feet warm in memory of Spitzer! BONUS, $2 from every sale is donated to STEM for Her - a non-profit in the D.C. area that promotes education to create awareness, excitement, and opportunities among girls and young women to pursue successful STEM-related careers.
If you’re not ready to say goodbye just yet, you can relive some of this phenomenal mission with this tribute video and learn more about 15 of Spitzer’s greatest discoveries here.
- Summer
FBF to our amazing volunteers at the BOOTHtique at AAS 235 last week! Thanks to everyone who stopped by, supported us, and helped make it happen.
Thanks to all our stellar volunteers (top to bottom) Betsy Hernandez + Danielle Rowland showcasing our new logo, UH Hilo students Hannah Blue + Kamalani Poepoe + Andrea Waiters working hard and hanging loose, Kristen Dage + Teresa Panurach + Victoria DiTomasso + Brandon Barker enjoying stellar gifts from Dr. Rachael Livermore & Maria Vallejo, and Tom Rice showing how to dress for success. Briley Lewis + Hannah Blue living it up in the exhibition hall. Not pictured but just as amazing: Stephanie Douglas, Karen Knierman.
- Emily & Summer