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A Geeky Home

Get Organized with Superhero Pinboards

Comics Pin Board

I have a confession to make: I like Pottery Barn, but what I like best about it is the kids’ section. In case you didn’t know, they have some sweet licensed Marvel and Star Wars gear hiding out there. And while their bedding may be a tad too small (and too low of a thread count) for some grown-up beds, they have some other great room accessories that would be at home in, well, anyone’s home.

I’m loving these pinboards that allow you to get organized with bright colors and a pop of geek. It looks like they were originally created for little boys’ bed rooms, but I can see it being perfect in a kitchen or above a desk. Mix and match the super hero pinboards with chalkboards, bungee boards, and corkboards to make an organization system that’s perfect for your home.  Now they just need to create a Wonder Woman one…

What superhero goodies have you found at Pottery Barn?

Gift Ideas

The Ultimate Unboxing: Julep, Loot Crate, and Birchbox


This whole “monthly box” things has really taken off, and I feel like there’s a box out there for everyone. So I took the three I get and did a giant unboxing video. Now you can compare the contents and get a good feel for a variety of monthly boxes! (Also, it felt a bit like Christmas opening so many fun packages!)

Take a look at the video above and then leave a comment (on the video or blog) on monthly boxes you get (specifically if you get one I should check out!).

Here’s additional information on the boxes I get:

Julep: $19.99 a month.
Sign up here.

Loot Crate: $13.37 (plus s/h) a month.
Save $3 with code “GEEKYHOSTESS”
Sign up here.

Birchbox: $10 a month.
Sign up here.

Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites: August 16

 Friday Faves 8-16

Whew! Back to Friday Favorites! This is the first weekend where I won’t be traveling or on the set of Job Hunters all summer, and I’m excited to catch up on some posts and work. But first, here are some of my favorite things from the past week!

Favorite Activity: Market Ghost Tour
I took my mom to the ghost tour at the Pike Place Market, and while we didn’t see any spirits ourselves, we did get to hear a lot of really fun (and spooky!) stories and learn more about the history of the market. (Don’t worry, I wore my Ghostbusters tank top to keep us safe.) We both had a really good time and are thinking of going back for their mortuary investigation soon. Get tickets for the Ghost Tour here.

Favorite Treat: Rachel’s Ginger Beer
Rachel’s Ginger Beer has been made locally for a while, but they just opened up a flagship store a couple weeks ago at Pike Place Market. You can go in and purchase half growlers of locally made, fresh, amazing ginger beer in a variety of flavors. (I tried and loved the strawberry and the blood orange!) You can also grab cocktails while you’re there, including a blended strawberry ginger beer and vodka concoction. Visit rachelsgingerbeer.com for more info. 

Favorite Webseries: Husbands
Husbands is back and on the CW! Or on something they call “CW Seed.” Either way, yay for successful webseries! This season has even more guest stars and centers around an official wedding for the two lovebirds. Expect lots of family drama and some broken vases! Watch it here.

Favorite Kickstarter: Seattle Geekly
Our good friends at Seattle Geekly are raising funds to start doing their podcast again, and I can’t wait! The podcast is entertaining and Shannon and Matt are some of the sweetest people. The Kickstarter’s been up for a day or two, and they’ve already reached half of their goal. Help them reach it!

What are some of your favorite things this week?

Geeky Fashion

Threadless Sale

Threadless is having another $10 tee sale (and everything else is on sale as well!), and I think I’ve been really good about not picking up tons of t-shirts at cons this summer. Clearly that means I can splurge now, right?

These are some shirts I’m putting in my shopping cart. They’re all ones I’ve had my eye on for a while, and they all seem to go with the theme of “adventure.”:

Let's Go On An Adventure Tee
Let’s Go On An Adventure (This adorable D20 will make this my new go-to gaming tee!)

Today is the Day shirt
Today is The Day (Glows in the dark to say “Tonight is the night!”)

Adventure Awaits Shirt
Adventure Awaits (Belle and The Doctor? Can’t go wrong.)

Adventure Seeker Hoody
Certified Adventure Seeker Hoody (For when your adventures start to get chilly!)

You can see everything at Threadless.com. What will you be picking up?

Geeky Fashion, Lifestyle, Sci Fi, Television

Closet Cosplay with thredUP: Mal from Firefly

The final item of clothing from my thredUP shopping spree was this awesome brown coat. It’s long, flares out a bit, and will be perfect over dresses/skirts/jeans/anything in the Fall and Winter. It’s also a versatile cosplay piece. I feel like there are tons of opportunities to wear a long, brown coat, even if it’s as a generic pirate or steampunk character. But when I first put it on, Mr. Geek went “Mal?” so here I am. I re-wore the capris I got for my Lara Croft outfit and paired it with my most comfortable pair of boots. Top it with a more girly version of Mal’s shirt, and voila! I’m a true browncoat.

Coat: DKNY Trenchcoat from thredUP.

Capris: Ann Taylor LOFT Capris from thredUP.

Hair/Makeup: Keep it natural. Brown tones are an obvious choice. I put my hair in a side braid because Molly Quinn wore a side braid when she rocked her Mal cosplay.

As I’ve mentioned in the previous posts, I put together a week’s worth of “closet cosplay” outfits based around pieces from thredUP. They’re an awesome online consignment store that only sells new or slightly used pieces, and they’re all a great price. I really enjoyed my experience and recommend you check them out! You can get 25% off your first purchase with code GEEKYHOSTESS25 until the end of August. Take a peek and let me know what you end up with! (And if you haven’t seen my previous posts, take a peek! Let me know what your favorite outfit was.)

Geeky Fashion, Lifestyle, Star Wars

Closet Cosplay with thredUP: C-3PO

 

I had this silly idea to create an “evening look” inspired by C-3PO. Mostly, I’ve wanted to do a closet cosplay of C-3PO somehow, and I thought this might be easiest. Why him? He’s my favorite character from Star Wars. He and I are very similar: we both worry and focus on etiquette excessively, often to the annoyance of our friends. We’re both tall. And, well, I guess that’s where the similarities stop. But while wearing this outfit, I can pretend I’m a bit more mechanical. You just need to find a gold dress, some gold makeup, and a bunch of wires to fashion as a belt. Voila! Very subtle cosplay!

Dress: French Connection Cocktail Dress from thredUP.

Belt: Wires from Ace Hardware. The woman who cut the wires for me has a Millennium Falcon tattoo on her foot! You never know where you’ll find Star Wars fans! To make the belt, combine the wires together, put around your waist, then wrap the wires around each other or place a bit of electrical tape around the ends to keep it together.

Makeup: Time to break out all of  your gold! For my eyes, I started with Stila’s Gilded Gold from the In the Light Eye Shadow Palette and then Urban Decay’s Chopper and Smog. For my lips, I used Clinique’s Different Lipstick in Tenderheart and Long Lasting Glosswear in Sunset. I have the two of them together in a trial pack, and apparently you can still find it on Amazon.

Accessorize with gold jewelry and shoes and you’re all ready for a night out!

Check out thredUP and get 25% off your first purchase! Use code GEEKYHOSTESS25 by the end of August. 

(This is part 6 in a week-long series of closet cosplay from thredUP. Only one more to go!)

Geeky Fashion, Lifestyle

Closet Cosplay with thredUP: Carmen Sandiego

 

What does Carmen Sandiego do when she wants to go on vacation? She doesn’t want to stay bundled up in a trench and scarf, but she’s gotta stay vaguely recognizable for all of those kids looking for her (which is only a little bit weird). So she trades her trenchcoat in for a similarly colored wrap dress, and switches the scarf out for some more fun accessories. I chose to accessorize with yellow; based on the Carmen you grew up with, you can choose yellow or black. Add some red heels or black booties and a fun flower (or jaunty summertime scarf) and you’re all set! Don’t forget the glasses for when you want to go incognito…

Dress: Banana Republic silk dress from thredUP

Flower Clip: I got mine from a wedding, but you can find some similar ones on Amazon

Sunglasses: Studded D-Frame Sunglasses from Forever 21.

Makeup: Dramatic black eyeliner and a red lipstick to match your dress is all you need!

Now that I’m all dressed up as Carmen, it’s time for you to guess where I am! With the donut in my hand, I felt like I was on top of the world. And the Strip Search folks had to find the location in one of their challenges… Let me know in the comments if you think you know where the pictures were taken!

Check out thredUP and get 25% off your first purchase! Use code GEEKYHOSTESS25 by the end of August. 

(This is part 5 in a week-long series of closet cosplay from thredUP. I’ll be taking a break over the weekend and will resume again on Monday!)

Geeky Fashion, Lifestyle, Movies, Video Games

Closet Cosplay with thredUP: Lara Croft

 

Sometimes it’s hot out, you don’t want to be bothered to do much with your hair, and you need a bit of extra oomph to get you through your day. And on those days, it’s best to channel Lara Croft. Her bad-ass-ness will infuse your day while you get to relax in cargo pants.

If you want to go a bit less cosplay-ish, you can lose the utility belt. But seriously, don’t knock wearing a utility belt until you try it. I’ve worn it at cons before instead of bringing a purse and it’s amazing. A way cooler version of a fanny pack.

Pants: Ann Taylor LOFT Capris from thredUP. (This is why thredUP is amazing. I would have never looked at Ann Taylor for cargo pants, but I saw them online, got them, and love them!)

Top: Brown Cami from Romy

Belt: Nylon Swat Belt from Amazon

Hair: Just put it in a messy braid down your back. Super easy!

I kept makeup very simple with this look. If anything, just bronze a bit.

Check out thredUP and get 25% off your first purchase! Use code GEEKYHOSTESS25 by the end of August. 

(This is part 4 in a week-long series of closet cosplay from thredUP. Stay tuned for more!)

Fun Food

Healthy Snacks for Game Nights

Healthy Snacks

My friends and I have a lot of impromptu game nights, and I make an effort to make sure everyone is well fed if they step into my house. And as much as my friends love cupcakes and junk food, I’ve found that as we get older, we’re all steering towards healthier options. Some basics I’ve started keeping on hand are things like veggies and hummus and stove popped popcorn. They’re easy to prep and everyone seems to enjoy them. But there’s one unhealthy thing I haven’t been able to fully shake: chips. I’ll bring them out with other healthy options, and my friends and I will tear through a bag like wild animals. So when Green Giant wanted me to try their “Veggie Snacks”, I got excited about the possibility of finding a new healthy item to bring to the table.

Green Giant Veggie Chips Key Visual 1

They sent me Multigrain Sweet Potato Chips in Barbecue and Roasted Veggie Tortilla Chips in Garden Ranch. If you’re a sweet potato lover, you’ll like the sweet potato chips. I was hoping for a bit more of a “barbecue potato chip” feel and taste, so I didn’t love them. But the veggie tortilla chips–oh man. They taste exactly like Cool Ranch Doritos. Next step is to bring some to Taco Bell and see if they’ll turn it into a taco for me.

Next time friends pop on over, I’m psyched that I’ll have these in the pantry ready to go. And if I’m crafty enough, I may try to see if they even notice a difference between regular chips and these healthier, veggie-filled versions.

Find more info (including nutritional information and a coupon) on Green Giant’s Facebook page.

What are your go-to healthy snacks for impromptu game nights?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Geeky Fashion

Closet Cosplay with thredUP: The TARDIS from Doctor Who

PhotoGrid_1375941103150

When I first saw this blue tank top on thredUP, I instantly thought “TARDIS.” When it arrived, I needed to give a bit more thought to what to wear it with. What does the TARDIS inspire me to look like? I came up with this.

The TARDIS is a sexy thing: The top itself is pretty sexy. Low-cut, flowy, and a nice bright color.

The TARDIS knows when to blend in and when to stand out (and it loves standing out):  A blazer and jeans is Seattle’s unofficial uniform. You could walk into any office building or public location in a blazer and jeans and probably feel at home. It also helps tone down the brightness of the top. (Most Seattlites’ wardrobes are made up of blacks and grays.) To stand out, just take off the blazer.

I accessorized with the key necklace and the TARDIS earrings, for obvious reasons. I also added some glitter to my eyes because everyone needs an excuse to wear glitter (and claiming they’re stars in space is enough of a reason for me).

Necklace: Skeleton key purchased at the Fremont Flea Market.

Earrings: TARDIS earrings purchased at SDCC, also available on Amazon.com.

Top: Express Silk Sleeveless Top from thredUP.

What would your TARDIS-inspired outfit look like?

Check out thredUP and get 25% off your first purchase! Use code GEEKYHOSTESS25 by the end of August. 

(This is part 3 in a week-long series of closet cosplay from thredUP. Stay tuned for more!)

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