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Geeky Fashion

Espionage Cosmetics Announces Lip Gloss Line

Kiss of Death Image

I have a weakness. And that weakness is lip gloss. I have a giant cookie jar overflowing with different glosses and lip things, and yet I still buy more. So naturally, I squealed a bit when I heard that Espionage was releasing a lip gloss line. They’ll be releasing 3 sets of this line over the next year, and I’m already thrilled with the ones they came out with. (Plus, their promo photos are SO cool!)

These first two glosses are vegan, gluten free, and contain coconut oil and vitamin e oil. Although they seem so good for you, they’re all based on fictional characters with a “Kiss of Death” and their names represent that:

Venom is coral with a gold shimmer, tastes like peaches, AND it’s blacklight reactive! So cool.

Fatality is a clear gloss with gold shimmer, tastes like buttercream frosting (my favorite) and is specially formulated so you can blend it with any of your Espionage Cosmetics colors to make a unique gloss.

You can find these glosses at Espionage Cosmetics’ Online Store or at any convention the lovely ladies may be attending. OR you can win the set right now! Just follow the directions in the Rafflecopter below. I’ll pick a winner on  May 22nd!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Geeky Home

Chandelier Grows Vines on your Walls

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This is one of the coolest chandeliers I’ve ever seen. It looks great on its own, but when it turns on, it casts shadows of vines along your walls. It’s a bit spooky and make me think of being lost in a fairy tale forest. I’d love to have it in a dining room for some moody parties, or to create some fun ambiance in a reading room.

The chandelier prototype was so well received that they’ll be launching a Kickstarter soon to produce a larger quantity. I can’t wait to see the campaign once it launches! You can read more about the inspiration for the chandelier and add your name to be notified on their Kickstarter and pricing by visiting the site.

Would you put a chandelier like this up in your home? What room would it be perfect in?

Geek Fit

Geek Fit: Exercise the Scientific Way

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A scientific study was published in the American College of Sports Medicine’s Health and Fitness Journal outlining why interval training is good for you. In short, they’ve devised a 7 minute circuit that will provide you with the aerobic and resistance training usually provided in a much longer workout. Kratom is a very potent drug that is relatively new and unknown in the US. So, naturally, the issue of how you can test for its presence in the body is still being studied and debated. One reason why not much has been advanced in coming up with a drug test is that Kratom is not a banned drug in the US. In this article, I look at issues touching on drug tests for Kratom. But let’s first look at what Kratom is, what it does, and how it works. It is a tropical coffee tree that grows in Southeast Asia with Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand being the biggest producers. It is also grown in the Philippines and New Guinea. Growing to be as tall as 25 meters, it is a special tree that yields leave the size of a man’s palm when fully grown. These leaves are elliptical, more like hearts, and they feature an underside covered with hair-like growth. This is the least amount of the drug you should find in a sample for you to declare it as a positive result. Even without a Mitragyna drug screening, there are some effects that can give a clue to the drug’s presence, click here! for more about kratom drug test. Apart from these dose-dependent effects and signs, one can also experience effects that are regardless of the amounts consumed. These can happen when Kratom is combined with other psychoactive drugs, which can lead to dangerous results like seizures. Continued abuse of Kratom is also known to cause addiction on its own and produce different withdrawal symptoms similar to the ones noticed among other opioid addicts. Remember that Kratom is a psychoactive plant that interacts with the central nervous system and opioid receptors in the brain. Therefore, if you find yourself in this predicament, get in touch with an addiction treatment center right away. A false positive drug test result is a concern shared by many Kratom users. False positive results are generated when you fail a drug test for a substance you don’t even use. In this instance, certain users reported testing positive for methadone, yet the only thing they are taking is Kratom. Cases of producing a false positive for marijuana have also been reported. You can imagine the kind of mess one could end up in if this were to happen in a strict workplace or learning institution. Many suggested Kratom drug screenings are still at the theoretical stage and are still being formulated to be reliable methods. Other tests do exist but are rarely used in the US because Kratom is legal and so testing is rarely required. False positive results are incredibly unlikely so there is nothing to worry about on that front either. Since the drug is new in the US and relatively less researched, information about it is mostly anecdotal, and most come from users in Thailand and other parts of Southeast Asia where it has been used for ages.

You can see the circuit above, or read their study to learn more about it. Each exercise should be done for 30 seconds, with a 10 second break in between. The circuit can be repeated 2-3 times, giving you a full workout in under 30 minutes.

I’ll be trying this out tonight. Will you join me? Let me know in the comments!

Source: The New York Times

Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites: May 10

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It’s Friday! Posts have been light this week as I’ve been gearing up for some awesome things in the Geeky Hostess world. Stay tuned, this month should be a wild ride of announcements, photos, and video!

Favorite Video: The World’s End Trailer
Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost drink beer and fight aliens. That’s all you really need to know. I’ll  be looking forward to the midnight screening of this one! Watch the trailer here.

Favorite Game: Candies.aniwey.net
This game allows you to collect candies and lollipops and then do things with them, like go on an adventure, purchase items, fight bad guys, and have conversations with frogs. It’s ridiculous. It’s addicting. I love it because I can leave it open in a tab and play short bits of it here and there. Plus it’s about candy. Play carefully–if you close your tab, it won’t save your game. I got up excitedly this morning to go on another quest, only to find out the computer had restarted and my game had been lost. Start playing at candies.aniwey.net.

 Favorite Kickstarter: Throwboy Chat Pillows
You may have seen Throwboy at various conventions, and they now want to take their cute chat pillows to the next level by building a production run and selling them in more places. You can make it happen, and get yourself some cute geeky pillows in the process! Donate now for some sweet incentives, including one pillow at the $20 level, and all three at the $55 level. Support Throwboy at Kickstarter.com.

Favorite Treat: Yumm Sauce
Cafe Yumm is a delicious and unique vegetarian restaurant that started in Eugene, OR and expanded throughout the state. Yumm Sauce is, well, their sauce. The closest thing I can compare it to is a goddess dressing. It’s good on everything, I believe it’s good for you, and I can’t think about it without salivating. In the past year, the Seattle area Uwajimayas, Whole Foods, and Metropolitan Markets started carrying it, so now I can get my Yumm fix without driving for a few hours. Find out more about Cafe  Yumm, Yumm Sauce, and their signature Yumm Bowls at CafeYumm.com.

What have been your favorite things of this past week? And how many candies have you eaten?

Geeky Fashion

Book Clutches

BookClutch

I’ve been drooling over these Kate Spade clutches for years, and the brand has just started promoting them again (and put The Great Gatsby on sale, just in time for the movie!).

These clutches are the perfect way to show a bit of personality (and your love for the literary arts) while out and about–I would personally love to pair it with a more formal dress for a wedding or other fancier occasion.

The clutches come in The Great Gatsby, Romeo and Juliet, Emma, The Importance of Being Earnest, I Married Adventure, and A Tale of Two Cities. At $325, the clutches are a bit pricey. If it’s too much for you and you like to get crafty, you can always make your own (and bonus, you can pick the book of your choice!).

Find the clutches at KateSpade.com.

A Geeky Home

Build a Personal IMAX Theater

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Have tons of money lying around? Have a part of your house you don’t ever use? Will you only watch movies if they’re 20 feet tall and in 3D? You should get yourself a personal IMAX theater. And then we should become close friends. I’ll bring the popcorn.

IMAX’s website claims that “Everyone’s experience it. Few will own it.” After speaking with a personal consultant, they will look at the space you have available and design a theater and sound system exclusively for you to give you the best quality of film-watching possible. You’ll be just like the directors who watch their IMAX films in a private theater for the first time, except you’ve never directed anything and probably have more money than them.

See more at IMAXPrivateTheatre.com. The price isn’t listed, which means it’s automatically out of my price range. I’ll stick to my normal-sized TV for now.

Fun Food

Technology + Cupcakes = Win

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You know how you can order Dominos online or Pizza Hut from your Xbox? Pizza’s great when you’re gaming, but what about when you want something a little sweeter? Trophy Cupcakes to the rescue.

Trophy has recently launched their online ordering system and delivery to Seattle and Bellevue. I tried it out last week, and seriously, nothing beats picking cupcake flavors to have delivered to you. You visit TrophyCupcakes.com and choose up to 10 dozen cupcakes to be delivered to you for a $15 fee. Order by 4pm, and you can have cupcakes delivered to you between 10am-2pm the next day. Order during a late night craving, and  you can pick a day a bit further in the future. (Believe me, your future self will thank you.) You can pick Trophy’s standard cupcakes, or go for a pre-decorated dozen in themes like Hello Kitty, Dinosaurs, and Star Wars.

I picked a selection of Trophy’s standard cupcakes and waited (very impatiently) until they arrived to me the next day at around 12:30pm. Delicious! My friends and family were delighted by the surprise cupcakes I  brought them over the next couple days.

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The delivery would come in handy when organizing a party and you don’t have a chance to bake/get out to pick treats up, or as a nice surprise for someone you love. (They’re around the same price as getting flowers delivered and they’re WAY more tasty.) Now through May 15th, you can give the delivery service a try with the coupon code “TROPHYLOVE15” for 15% off your order. It’s perfect for Mother’s Day! And also days ending with “Y.”

If you give it a try, let me know your favorite flavor! As delicious as they all were, I think Trophy’s classic Vanilla Vanilla is still a fave of mine.

I was provided with a dozen cupcakes to review for this post. All words and opinions are my own!

News

3 Years of The Geeky Hostess

 

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This weekend, The Geeky Hostess celebrated its three-year anniversary. I’ve had a blast over the last three years writing and learning about cooking, entertaining, and etiquette, and finding fun ways to inject a bit of personality into it all.

This year, The Geeky Hostess will be moving beyond just the blog. You’ll see me in videos, at conventions, hosting small events, and opening an online store. And of course, I’ll still be writing. I hope to create a lot more recipes this year!

Take a look back at some of my favorite recipes from the last three years:

Portal Cake Shots
The first recipe I made, and it’s in video form!

Nickelodeon Slime Cupcakes
The first cupcakes I made! You can see my photography skills have grown a bit.

Pumpkin Beer Cupcakes
My second most popular cupcakes. These guys are all over Pinterest.

Mountain Dew Cupcakes
My most popular cupcake (and overall post). These are also some of the easiest cupcakes to make!

Troy’s Bagel Bites Casserole
Ahh, a dish in honor of Community (back when it was good).

Sundae Cone Cupcakes
My personal favorite cupcake recipe!

Let me know what you’d like to see more of this year in the comments. Want to collaborate on something? Contact me! Help me make this next year the best so far. And thank you all for sticking around and being a part of this adventure with me.

Events

May The Free Comic Books Be With You


The stars have aligned and two of the best geek holidays have joined forces: May The Fourth (or Star Wars Day) and Free Comic Book Day.

Visit your local comic book store and pick up some free comics. While you’re there, show your support for their business by picking up a trade you’ve had your eye on. Have kids? Free Comic Book Day is the perfect way to get them excited about reading and comics, and a lot of stores will have special events aimed at children and families. You can find out more at FreeComicBookDay.com.

As for May The Fourth: Wear your favorite Star Wars gear, quote the movie, and tell everyone you meet “May The Fourth Be With You.” Many places are holding Star Wars-themed events, and a lot of online stores (including Her Universe and ThinkGeek) have special Star Wars promotions happening that day only.

What are you doing on May 4th? And which comic shop will you be stopping in? I won’t be able to make it out to one myself, which saddens me greatly. Let me know what you get so I can live vicariously through you!

Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites: May 3

Friday Faves 5-3

It’s Friday, it’s gorgeous outside, and we have two big geek holidays coming up this weekend! Let’s celebrate!

Here are my favorites from this past week:

Favorite Twitter Account: PinterestFake
I have a love-hate relationship with Pinterest. I do get a lot of great ideas from there, but you have to sift through some not-so-great ideas that are always posted with comments like “This is a life changer!” “Best thing ever!” and “I’m making this TONIGHT!” The enthusiasm for mundane or impractical things is ridiculous. @PinterestFake took inspiration from the stupid ideas on Pinterest, and tweets (hopefully fictional) Pinterest descriptions. Love it! It’s a life changer!

Favorite Web Series: The Ladies and the Gents
This web series is a cute look into what happens in the bathrooms of a nightclub. As a fellow web series creator, I have to say their transitions at the end of episodes are some of the best I’ve seen. They get you hooked into watching more, and it looks like they have a lot of fun behind-the-scenes content! You can find it at YouTube.com.

Favorite Kickstarter: Pen to Paper, My Imaginary Friend
Children wrote stories about their imaginary friend, and Disney/Pixar artists brought it to life. It’s a beautiful idea, and it’s on Kickstarter for two more days. Take a look!

Favorite Place: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Visitors Center
I was invited to attend an event at the Visitors Center, and it’s really cool. It’s in Downtown Seattle, free and open to the public, and showcases the work the Gates Foundation is doing in an easy and inspiring way. Being connected to Microsoft, they make use of some really cool technology while masking everything in wood to make it feel warmer and more approachable. I’d highly recommend checking it out!

Favorite Car: Mazda6
After spending a week car shopping, we’ve picked one! We chose the Mazda6 because while it looks sporty and classy, it’s extremely safe and will be a great, reliable car. Plus, it comes loaded with all kinds of cool tech features. (I mean, it doesn’t literally park itself like a Ford Fusion, but we’ll let that slide.) Also, for some reason, Mazda6 has teamed up with Star Trek Into Darkness. I’ll let you know if the car beams us up anywhere, and just to be safe, I should probably avoid wearing any red shirts while driving.