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Geeky Fashion, News

Job Hunters Merch is Here!

JH Merch

For those who may not know, I am one of the producers of a web series called Job Hunters. And over the past year and a half, we’ve been working on the second season of the show. We’re launching our first episode on Tuesday (watch for a post that day!), and in the meantime, we’ve created some new in-world merch:

Avery World Tour Shirt: You’ll look like you were at Avery’s famous “Dancing on Rainbows” world tour with this shirt! (I’m personally planning on getting one of these to wear at Vidcon!)

MAEWIN Jumpsuit Shirt: Want to look like a job hunters but don’t want to wear a full jump suit out in public? We don’t blame you. Get this shirt instead.

Safe House Posters: These posters were created by our Art Director and can be seen in the Safe House during season two! Get them for your house and it will be like YOU live in a safe house!

You can check out all of the merch at dftba.com. Are you looking forward to season two?

Geeky Fashion

2D Briefcase from JumpFromPaper

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I was given the opportunity to do another shoot with a JumpFromPaper bag, and I decided to use it as a chance to explore the Seattle Geek’s wardrobe. While a standard day has us in jeans and t-shirts, there are days where you’re meeting with a client or giving a presentation, and you’ve got to “suit up” a bit. So I tried out the standard work outfit: Nice jeans, a geeky shirt, a blazer, and nice shoes.

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The JumpFromPaper briefcase was a nice addition to the outfit, and has been suiting me well even after the shoot. It’s my go-to laptop bag (yes, it fits my 13″ MacBook Pro!) and gets just as many stops on the street and compliments as my JumpFromPaper purse.

JumpFromPaper Briefcase

You can find the briefcase at JumpFromPaper.com, as well as a lot of other cool bags.

What’s your go-to work uniform? And would you carry around a JumpFromPaper bag?

Fun Food

Game of Thrones Cookies Cutters

Game of Thrones Cookies

I’m anxiously waiting for the Game of Thrones season finale tomorrow, and thought I’d help the time go by a bit faster by making some Game of Thrones sigil cookies!

I received these amazing 3D-printed sigil cookie cutters from WarpZone Prints. They have cookie cutters in pretty much every fandom you can imagine–it’s AMAZING.

The cutters were easy to use (I made Warpzone’s recommended sugar cookie recipe, which is delicious!), but as you can see, some houses are easier to see than others. The Stark sigil turned out amazing every time, and I had decent luck with Lannister and Baratheon, but darn it, Targaryen’s 3-headed dragon just didn’t want to turn out. I think the cutter had too much detail for the cookies I was making. But overall, I’m really excited with how they turned out!

You can pick up a set of the house sigils here!

What are you doing to prep for the finale? #nospoilers

Fun Food, News

Learn to Cook at Whole Foods

Whole Plate

The other day, Whole Foods invited me to check out “Whole Plate”, a new event space in the Whole Foods Interbay where they’ll be featuring cooking classes, wine tastings, and more. We got to see a cooking demo by Chef Anne, the healthy cooking coach, and learned all about how to use cherries in sweet and savory recipes. (Check out my Instagram for some of the pics from that event!) I’m particularly psyched after learning that I can make an amazingly delicious (and protein-packed) smoothie by blending cherries, almond milk, and almond butter together!

To celebrate the new space, Whole Foods Interbay is hosting an open house this Saturday (June 14) from 4-7pm. And in addition to the open house, they’ve given me a pair of passes to a class to give away! Just let me know in the comments which class you’d like to attend. I’ll randomly pick a winner on Wednesday, June 18th! (All classes are held at the Interbay Whole Foods, so you’ll need to get yourself there!) I had a great time and learned some cool new tips–I know you’ll love the classes as well.

Contest closed: Congrats to Steve for winning the cooking classes!

For more information on Whole Plate and the class schedule, click here!

 

 

Fun Food

Kitchen Overlord’s Illustrated Geek Cookbook Kickstarter!

Kitchen Overlord Kickstarter

I’ve posted about The Kitchen Overlord and her amazing books before (including Wood for Sheep and the Doctor Who cookbook), and I’m super excited about her newest project. She’s working with artist Tom Gordon to created a fully illustrated cookbook of various unique (but easy!) geeky recipes. There will be 50 recipes from a variety of fandoms including Alien, BSG, The Princess Bride, D&D, and more!

The Kickstarter is already double its goal with over 30 days left. This means that new rewards have been added and a “Carbs Against Humanity” set of cards have been unlocked and are available for download!

You can get a copy of the Ebook for a $10 pledge, and an actual copy of the book for your hands for $25.

Find out more info at Kickstarter.com!

I can’t wait to see the finished product. What recipe are you most excited about?

Movies, Parties, Sci Fi, Space, Star Wars

Star Wars Cantina Potluck

I’ve gotten really into potlucks lately. It gives you a great opportunity for a get-together without putting the burden of the entire party on one person. Plus, everyone will know they’ll have at least one thing they want to eat, and when you throw themed parties (as I often do), you’ll get to see the creativity of your friends. (Hint: It often surpasses mine!)

So, when I told my friends I was throwing a Cantina party, and they were all to come dressed as aliens and bring a food from their planet, they did so with flair. Their costumes were fantastic–we had aliens from Star Wars, Rocky Horror Picture Show, and Doctor Who. We also had a lot of original characters. And the best part? They all brought delicious (and on-theme) food.

Cantina Potluck Collage

Also, dry ice. Dry ice is the best. They’re the perfect accessory for the Star Wars cocktails I posted about earlier!

Dry Ice

I didn’t do a lot with decor this time, and instead focused on a few central activities. These included:

“Cantina Band Auditions”

Cantina Band

The party store had tons of little party favor musical instruments, including these ridiculous recorders. They were the perfect thing to make party attendees play! They sounded awful. Pretty sure they were unanimously banned from use after the first or second person tried.

“Who Shot First” Game

Who Shot First

Mr. Geek adapted the game Cash and Guns into something he felt was more suitable for the night: We used wooden pegs and metal money instead of the cards and cash the games came with.

Music: 10 Hours of the Cantina Band

This is a thing. You’re welcome/I’m sorry. Our party attendees had the song stuck in their head for days.

Would you throw a Cantina party? What activities/elements would you include? And what alien/potluck dish would you come as/bring? (And don’t forget to check out my other post for fun Star Wars cocktails for your Cantina party!)

Libations, Movies, Recipes, Sci Fi, Space, Star Wars

Star Wars Cocktails

ThinkGeek recently reached out to me about showcasing some of their Star Wars items, and my mind went in overdrive  on what I could do. I decided to throw a Star Wars Cantina-themed potluck, and to use some ThinkGeek items to inspire and create themed drinks. I’ll show you the party soon, but for now, let’s make some geeky drinks!

The Death Star

Death Star Cocktail

What do you make when you have a Death Star ice sphere? A Death Star drink, of course! “The Death Star” is an actual cocktail, I found out, that’s pretty similar to a Long Island Iced Tea. It’s POTENT . As it should be. (And seriously, whether you want to make the drink or not, the Death Star ice sphere is one of my new favorite things. It’s super easy to fill, looks amazing, and really classes up a glass of whiskey.)

Death Star Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 1 oz Jagermeister
  • 1 oz triple sec
  • 1 oz vodka
  • 1 oz whiskey
  • 2 oz sweet and sour mix
  • 2 oz (or more) cola

Directions:

  1. Place all ingredients into a glass with a Death Star ice sphere in it.
  2. Stir to mix ingredients.
  3. Enjoy!

Blue Milk(shake)

Blue Milk

You can’t have a Star Wars party without blue milk, right? I decided to make a drink that was a bit more fun: a blue milkshake! R2-D2 helped me out with measuring the ingredients. (Aren’t the R2-D2 measuring cups the CUTEST?)

Blue Milkshake Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup vanilla ice cream (the whiter the better!)
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 2 tsp blue Jell-O powder
  • blue food coloring (optional)

Directions:

  1. Mix the milk and Jell-O powder together.
  2. Pour the milk/Jell-O mixture and ice cream in a blender.
  3. Blend until smooth.
  4. Add a few drops of blue food coloring to heighten the color, mix until even.
  5. Pour into a glass and enjoy!

The Sith Lord

Sith Lord

I received the lightsaber ice pop maker and instantly knew what I was going to do with Luke’s lightsabers: Mountain Dew. Duh. What else. But What would be fitting for ol’ Darth Vader’s? It hit me in the soda aisle: Mountain Dew Code Red. The dark force of the Mountain Dews. I placed a tsp of cherry vodka in the ice pop mold and filled the rest of it (approximately 1/3 cup) up with the Code Red. A bit of vodka makes it a bit more “naughty” without preventing it from freezing. Creating the ice pop made me decide to make the drink form as well. It’s super easy and quite tasty!

Sith Lord Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 1 shot cherry vodka
  • 1 can Mountain Dew: Code Red

Directions:

  • Fill a highball with ice.
  • Pour in the vodka shot, fill the rest of the way with the Mountain Dew.
  • Enjoy!

Lightsaber Trio

Just be careful when you’re eating those ice pops. REMEMBER: IT’S A LIGHTSABER! THAT’S A LIGHTSABER IN YOUR MOUTH!

What’s your go-to Star Wars drink? Will you be trying any of these?

(And a big shout-out to ThinkGeek for supplying the amazing tools to make these drinks! Check them out at ThinkGeek.com!)

Fun Food

Marshmallows + Instagram = Boomf

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Marshmallows and Instagram, the next great match since marshmallows and hot chocolate? James Middleton (yes, brother to that Middleton) seems to think so.

His company, Boomf (named after the sound the package of marshmallows makes when it lands on your doorstep), will take 9 Instagram pics of your choice and place them on beautiful square marshmallows, perfect for roasting, dunking, or eating straight. They’re a bit pricey at around $26, but I can see them making a beautiful gift for marshmallow lovers or a fun accent to a marshmallow bar at a wedding or event.

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Would you spend $26 for 9 Instagrammed marshmallows? And what pics would you put on them? (See more at boomf.com!)

Fun Food

Make a little “Something” with this Baking Mold

Something

A fellow Kickstarter creator has created “something” that I think you’ll all enjoy. This silicone baking mold can help you make punny gifts all the time forever. “Just a little something for you!” “I got you something!” “Something old, something new…”

Yes. The mold is of the word “something.” You can use it for cakes, chocolate, breads, jello, ice, soap, and whatever else you can imagine.

So if you like puns as much as I do, go pledge now! You can get the mold, a book of recipes/ideas, and more goodies for $38.

What “something” would you make with your mold?

 

Geek Etiquette, Holidays, Lifestyle, Weddings

Happy “Hug a Geek” Day!

Last year I decided May 29th would be unofficial “Hug a Geek” Day. Why? Well, that’s when I married Mr. Geek! 3 years ago today we said “I Do” (with a secret “So Say We All” hidden into the vows), and on our anniversary I like to reminisce a bit on relationships with geeks. Two years ago I talked about geek love (and why it’s so great). Last year I talked about how common geek attributes translate into a relationship. This year? I want to chat about the way your relationships change you (hopefully for the better!).

As I’ve mentioned before, Mr. Geek is responsible for a lot of my geekiness. Before him I had never played D&D, never played European board games, and probably wouldn’t have set foot into PAX. But there’s so much more. He is more outgoing than I am, more adventurous, and more creative. He encourages me to travel, try new things, get out of the house, spend time with friends, and achieve my various goals. I joke that I’d be a mean ol’ recluse if it weren’t for him, but I think there’s some truth in that. Without someone to remind me to have fun, I would work non-stop. And even when he’s not specifically telling me to do something, he’s still inspiring me. His sense of humor makes me step up my game. (I still get really proud when I can make him laugh!) His intelligence makes me want to learn more. And his outlook on life wants me to match his positivity and drive.

So today, go hug the geeks in your life, whether they’re your partner, family member, or friend. Let them know that you’re a better person because of them, and tell them why. (Or better yet, give them a shout-out in the comments!)

(And for those interested, here is the obligatory wedding video link I post every year!)

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