geeky recipe and party ideas
These cupcake sleeves showed up in my inbox today, and I couldn’t NOT share them. How cute are the popcorn and margarita cupcakes?
Eversave is having a deal on these, starting today. You can get two packs of the cupcake sleeves for $9. Check it out here! But hurry, the coupon expires February 12th.
Take a look at all of the sleeves on the not-as-pretty website at RoundaboutSleeves.com.
We’ve all been there. You’re in the middle of writing a story or a play, putting together your photography portfolio, creating a D&D campaign, or even writing a blog post, and the inspiration stops. BAM: You’ve been writer-blocked. Luckily, inspiration can be just a couple taps away on your iPhone or iPad with the Muse apps by Rasmus Rasmussen. I had the pleasure of trying out his apps over the past couple days, and I’m in love. Each app gives you suggestions that are randomly generated and put together, allowing you to continue writing with a new prompt, character, or setting in mind. The apps themselves are very simple but effective. Check out all three below and see how you can win one yourself!
WriMuse
WriMuse offers a variety of prompts (as seen in the main menu screen at the top of this post), including prompts to add to an existing story, create a new story, or even create a blog post or essay. One of my favorites is the photo prompt, where it randomly generates a photo and a title for you to write a story or scene about. One random prompt I just received was a picture of a burger with the title “Blood Conundrum”. Yep.
$1.99 in the App Store.
FantasyMuse
FantasyMuse is perfect for all the Game Masters out there who have been stuck on creating an NPC or faction for their players to run into. This randonly generates either a character, faction, or quest to keep your game going. Once you find something you like, you can save it as a favorite (to use at a later date), email it out, or copy it to a clipboard. It could be fun to randomly generate each person’s character and then email it to them before the start of the game!
$1.99 in the App Store.
PixMuse
PixMuse is very simple but could give you a great idea for a future photo shoot. It gives you a theme, subject, and mood based on common images used in stock photography. Some of these might be a bit tougher to go out and do than just writing (for instance, do you have access to an elderly couple, or three models of different ethnicities or generations?), but they may help spark a different idea. Like FantasyMuse, your favorite ideas can be emailed or copied to your clipboard.
$0.99 in the App Store.
Want to give the apps a try? Just leave me a comment with which app you want the most, and I’ll randomly pick three winners (one for each app)at noon on Wednesday, February 8th. Winners will be announced and notified that afternoon! Good luck!
EDIT: Congratulations to Veronica for winning the Wri-Muse app and Anna-Marie for winning the FantasyMuse app! An email will be sent to you with the code. Know a photographer looking for inspiration? The Photography app is still up for grabs! First photographer to comment will get it.
I was provided with review copies of the apps as well as copies to give away in exchange for this review. All thoughts expressed in this review are mine alone. Are you interested in a review or giveaway for your product? Contact me at tara@geekyhostess.com.
This past weekend, I put together a little party for a small group of friends. Most of them decided to use one vehicle to reach the venue, but who’d waste time looking for a party bus in Sacramento? I hired them all one bus and arranged for transport. We’ve all been super busy and stressed out lately, so I chose a mellow theme: Come over in the late morning in your pajamas and enjoy some breakfast while watching the cartoons you loved as a kid. It was the perfect excuse for everyone to just veg out for a couple hours!
Food:
-Sugary Breakfast Cereal. Ask everyone for their favorites. I pre-opened the boxes and hid small prizes in the cereal–folks got pretty excited when they found them! Bowls and milk were available for traditionalists, and cups were available for those who wanted to mix n’ match cereal and munch on it like popcorn.
-Toaster Treats. I am a huge fan of Toaster Strudels, so I made sure we had some on hand as well as some Eggos.
-Scrambled Egg Cups. These are a super easy snack or breakfast to have on hand–you can even make them in advance and throw one in the microwave for 20 seconds on your way out the door. See the recipe below.
Drink:
-Tea, Coffee, Cocoa, Milk, and Orange Juice. Because we’re no longer children, I also provided champagne for those who wanted to make mimosas.
Entertainment:
In the invite, I asked each guest to provide me with the name of their favorite nostalgic cartoon. Netflix has a lot available to get you started, including Rugrats, X-Men, Rocko’s Modern Life, and Invader Zim. We watched an episode of each cartoon we had available, which made for a fun trip down memory lane. It also introduced a lot of people to cartoons they’d never seen before!
Suggestions for your own Saturday Morning Cartoon Party:
-Block out 3+ hours for this. I scheduled 2, and once we started watching cartoons, we kept wanting to watch more. The party would have gone on for 6 hours if I let it.
-2 words: Blanket Forts.
-Encourage people to take boxes of cereal home with them. I am currently enjoying cereal for breakfast, snacks, and dessert. I expect I will be doing this for at least a month.
Make your own Super-Easy Scrambled Egg Cups (Makes 9):
You’ve heard me talk about SCOTTEVEST before. I love their coats, and love them even more since they made my dad a finalist in their “Trip of Your Life” contest (we should be hearing any day on the winner! Eee!) When Mr. Geek and I were on our honeymoon, we had our jackets with us, and boy did they come in handy. Let’s just say I’m not used to European luggage regulations.
You can check out all of the baggage-charge-saving gear at Scottevest.com. What would you put in your SCOTTEVEST jacket?
Valentine’s Day is two weeks away, which means it’s prime time to get those gifts ordered, reservations made, and singing telegram booked. A lot of people ask me for valentines gift ideas that are a bit more unique and personal than your average bouquet of roses or box of chocolates, so I’ve put together a list of some of my current favorites. You should be able to find something for your geeky Valentine, and if there’s something you’re wanting, feel free to leave this page open on their computer!
Geeky Cologne
If your Valentine’s more Kirk than Calvin Klein, more Sulu than Hugo Boss, or has just always wanted to smell like Thor, then he (or she) will love the colognes from JADS International. Their scents are inspired by Star Trek, Star Wars, and The Avengers, and actually sound pretty nice. They even have a couple scents for the ladies, including Slave Leia and Pon Farr.
Price: $29.99-59.99. Available at your local comic shop.
Beer Candy
Let’s face it: sometimes Hershey’s just won’t do. If your Valentine is a beer lover, these are the way to go. Beer Candy is available in caramels, taffy, and “hopdrops”, or an “everything gift box”. I hear the caramels in particular are amazing.
Price: $7.50-70.00. Order by February 9th to get your candy in time for Valentine’s Day.
Heartbeat Ring
Show your Valentine what she (or he) does to your heart with this modern-looking design. Also available in a bracelet and necklace. Great for people in the medical profession or for a unique engagement or promise ring!
Price: $79.00-$398.00.
Expensive Wine
Is your Valentine a wine snob? This tongue-in-cheek bottle will be the perfect way to show you understand their “expensive” taste. The bottles also come available in sayings like “Lucky Night” and “Please Forgive Me”.
Price: $25.00. Order by February 9th to receive your wine by Valentine’s Day.
LEGO Heart Necklace
Amazon seller “GeekyNChic” has some amazing LEGO jewelry creations. My favorite is this Burgundy heart necklace which is the perfect mix of “geek” and “romantic”. Plus the color will go with anything. Necklaces not your thing? There are plenty of great cufflinks and other jewelry pieces from the same seller.
Price: $19.99. Not eligible for Amazon Prime.
Above all, remember that gifts on Valentine’s Day (or any day, for that matter) should come from the heart. It doesn’t matter how much it cost, just that it involved some thought and shows you truly care about the giftee. A nice long letter can go a lot further than a gift.
That being said, what are you hoping for this Valentine’s Day?
(Stay tuned next week for a special recipe you can make for your Valentine!)
The Geeky Hostess is gonna help you get your manners on! Each Monday, we’ll focus on a topic of etiquette. We’ll take a look at the classic rules (using Emily Post as a guide), and then evaluate the rules for our daily lives, creating a guide to “Geek Etiquette.” Have an etiquette question or topic suggestion? Email tara@geekyhostess.com!
They may look like dress pants, but they’re still sweats. Save them until you’ve got the job.
Many of my friends are looking for new jobs, and are unsure how to dress for the interview. The Seattle tech space is a very casual environment that shows a wide range of dress codes: you’ll see people go to work in sweats, jeans, workout clothes, the occasional suit or dress, and even cosplay (seriously). How do you know that your outfit will be appropriate for your company: not too casual, and (what’s been the case more often lately) not too formal? Emily Post says:
The real reason for dressing up a notch is that you want the interviewer to focus on you, not your clothes. If the interviewer’s attention turns to your clothes, you’re probably wearing the wrong thing.
Try to scope out the place before you go to apply for an interview and check out the way employees dress for work. If you live too far away to visit, simply call the human resource department or ask a receptionist. You don’t even have to identify yourself: “Hi, I’m interviewing with your company, and just wanted to know what your dress policy is.”
Too shy to call the company? Take a look at their online presence. Do they have pictures of their employees on their site? If not, find out the names of the heads of the company, then look for them on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, etc. What are they wearing in their pics? I would suggest aiming to dress slightly nicer than they do for your interview. For some tech companies in Seattle, that may mean nice dark jeans, a button up shirt or blouse, and a blazer.
Interviewing at a very casual place (gym, comic book store, etc.)? Wear what you would to a nice first date or to church. Don’t show up in workout clothes or sweats unless you were specifically requested to do so. Don’t just show up in a suit: if the company is more casual than that, they may think you don’t know the position or wouldn’t fit in with the culture. Don’t be afraid to show your personality in what you’re wearing, especially if the position requires creativity.
Still not sure what to wear? Check out sites like GQ Style and WorkChic for inspiration, or contact me for a Personal Branding consultation. I’ll work with you on making sure your online identity and real-life identity work together to convey what you want it to. If you need it, we’ll even go shopping together! Email me at tara@gaincharisma.com for more info.
Any dress-code stories or advice? If you interview people, what do you look for? What scares you away?
This beautiful clock is the perfect way to keep track of all that wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey stuff like minutes and hours. Hang this near a window so you can count the hours while keeping an eye out for the real TARDIS, waiting for the Doctor to whisk you away.
Dr Who Timey Wimey Tardis Clock, $42 at Unicorn Empire Prints’ Etsy shop.
Let your action figures do the talking with this comic text graphic-inspired shelf. I can picture showcasing a really great comic book or toy collection here. Not into collecting? Get some wooden letters (like these ones from Amazon.com
Comic Shelf, $249 at Groopti.com.
(Source: Thrillist)
Looking to enjoy dinner with your gaming session, but don’t want to take a pesky break to actually pick up your Hot Pocket? Make one of these handy-dandy Hot Pocket dispensers for your Xbox 360 controller with the help of Ben Heck.
I personally would have stopped after he duct taped the crisping sleeve to the controller. But that’s why I don’t make awesome machines.
See more episodes of the Ben Heck Show on his Youtube channel.
(Source: TDW Geek)
These glasses will make your friends think twice before asking for a second drink (unless it happens to be the antidote).
Great for murder mystery nights, Princess Bride parties, and any day you want to give your friends a little scare.
“You Have Just Been Poisoned Etched Drinking Glass“, $15 at Geekatrix’s Etsy shop. (There are all kinds of other good geeky finds there–take a look!)
