Month: September 2017

geek style

Make It So

Nina Penalosa4 Comments

jordandene-shirt-of-the-month

JordandenĂ© is a well-known fashion staple for geeks, and they’re definitely one of my favorite places to grab cool geekwear. Their shop is stocked with cozy tees, tanks, sweaters, accessories, and home goods with beautifully scripted quotes from different fandoms — from Star Wars, Harry Potter, Disney, and even Parks & Rec, they’ve got the gamut covered. All of their wearables are unisex too, so everyone can wear them! I love how I can easily get away with repping my fandoms in such a discreet and stylish way whenever I wear anything from them 🙂

With all that said, I’m very pleased and honored to announce that I am one of their brand new ambassadors! * happy dance * 

One [of the many] cool thing[s] JordandenĂ© does is release a special shirt of the month that’s only available for the duration of the month, and for September it’s Captain Picard’s famous one-liner “Make it so” from Stark Trek: The Next Generation. I’ve been meaning to watch TNG for the longest time, so this tank is like extra motivation for me to get on it. But if you’re a Trekkie and love Captain Picard, you’ll want to order this ASAP because it’ll only be available until the end of this week! It comes in red or gray, and you can choose to get it as a tank (like me), t-shirt, or slouchy tee. I’ve let some cool shirt of the months slide by and am full of regret — don’t be like me!

Use code LEFANCYGEEK25 to save 25% off your order too 🙂

jordandene-shirt-of-the-month

jordandene-shirt-of-the-month

Do you have a bunch of JordandenĂ© swag too? What’s your favorite item? Let’s talk about it in the comments section!

:: OUTFIT DETAILS ::
tank: c/o Jordandené (buy here) | cardigan: thrifted
belt: Wal-Mart | skirt: Hot Topic (n/a)
bowler hat: H&M (n/a) | shoes: Nicole
necklace: Chabot Space & Science Center (buy similar here)

Cheers,
Nina

PS: Here’s an outtake of my husband best friend Jen fixing my hair and holding my purse during this outfit shoot. #InstagramHusband

(photos by Sara McDougall)

FTC Disclosure: Product was given to me as compensation for an honest review and to aid in promotion. All opinions stated are 100% honest and my own.

 

geek style

Ain’t No Thing Like Me, Except Me

Nina PenalosaLeave a comment

I’m at Disneyland today with my sister and bruv-in-law. Hooray! Long story short, I missed renewing my Annual Pass by ONE day and after speaking to a cast member, I was told I could still receive the $60 discount and $0 down payment as long as I do it in person at the park before the 17th. So… here I am.  ¯_(ツ)_/ÂŻ

Talk about first world problems, huh?

The last time I went was right before Comic-Con and since it would be my first time going on Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout, I had to dress for the occasion with my Rocket Raccoon t-shirt from Fifth Sun and my galaxy print skirt. I was super anti-Mission Breakout because Tower of Terror was one of my all-time favorite rides, but I started warming up to it when I saw what they were doing with the structure back in April, and then Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was amazing, so I changed my tune. My thoughts? IT IS SO MUCH BETTER THAN TOWER OF TERROR. There. I said it. I love how super involved Rocket is with the whole ride experience too because he’s my fave. And it only made my outfit for the day even more appropriate 🙂

If you’re a huge Disnerd and happen to be on Instagram, you might be familiar with @bluewallpics — an IG account dedicated to cool OOTD (outfit of the day) and Disneybound photos taken in front of the blue wall that resides in the Hollywood Backlot area of Disney’s California Adventure. It’s the perfect spot to take pics because the natural light is on point, so my sister and I finally went and to document our outfits. I didn’t even use a filter or tweak them on Photoshop (I mean… I don’t even have Photoshop anymore, but that’s besides the point).

Are you a Tower of Terror purist? Have you gone on Mission Breakout yet? Know of any other super secret spots to take great pics at Disneyland? Who’s your favorite member of the Guardians of the Galaxy? Let’s talk about it in the comments!

:: OUTFIT DETAILS ::

t-shirt: Fifth Sun (buy here) | shoes: Vans (buy here)
skirt: Hot Topic (buy here)

Cheers,
Nina

(photos taken by Carmel Malixi)

geek style

First Order of Business

Nina Penalosa1 Comment

I know it’s only September, and December seems like a long ways away, but The Last Jedi will be in theaters before we know it!!! I can hardly contain my excitement, especially since Force Friday II has come and gone. I cannot wait to see Rose and Paige Tico because they’re not just any Asians in space — they’re Asian sisters in space!! IN A STAR WARS MOVIE!!! I actually got really teary eyed when images of Rose were first released. She’s Asian, has bangs, and a round face just like me! I finally feel like I can see myself in a fandom I love so much. Oh, and the Porgs have stolen my heart. My newfound love for them could probably be another blog post on its own, but today’s post is all about General Hux aka my Huxband. I know, I know. I belong in the trash compactor with Captain Phasma. I just have a massive crush on Domhnall Gleeson, okay? 😛

These outfit pics were actually taken last January —  I just never got around to posting them. Whoops! Seeing that today is Thursday (#TBT), it seemed like an appropriate time to write about it. At first glance I’m pretty sure you can’t really tell it’s Hux related, or could even pass as a Disneybound/casual cosplay, but I went with an all black motif like his ensemble in The Force Awakens. I wore my striped belt to emulate the ones on his coat sleeves, a red necklace because… uh… he’s a ginger, and my Captain Phasma purse from Loungefly. You can’t really see, but on my lapels I’m wearing a General Hux brooch I made myself and a silver pin of the First Order’s logo (check out up-close photos below).

When people ask if I’m on the light side or dark side, I always leaned towards the dark. I was all about giving into my negative feelings (they work wonders for writing angsty poetry, y’know?), and I can’t relate to the zen-ness of the Jedi. Plus, the dark side is so damn fashionable. Hashtag: Swag for Days! Whoever the Empire and First Order hired to make their uniforms, they are the Coco Chanel of a galaxy far, far, away. But after watching Star Wars: Rebels and Rogue One (Bodhi Rook = other space bae), I couldn’t help but think maybe I’m not on the dark side. Maybe I’m a rebel scum! They struggle with their feelings in wanting to do the right thing; they still let anger and hate consume them for just a bit, and then they get their sh!t together.

Much like Bodhi, I’ve defected. Shhh… don’t tell Huxband. Haha!

Are you excited for The Last Jedi? Are you just as obsessed with Porgs as I am? Did you buy new Star Wars swag on Force Friday II? Let’s talk about it in the comments section!

:: OUTFIT DETAILS ::

jacket: Macy*s | dress: Nordstrom
skirt: Modcloth | shoes: Blowfish Malibu
necklace: Kohls | belt: from another dress
Captain Phasma purse: Loungefly (buy here)
General Hux brooch: made by me
First Order pin: Dagobah Traders (buy here)

Cheers,
Nina

(outfit photos by Jennifer Khut)

geek style

Unicorn Crafts Nail Wraps

Nina PenalosaLeave a comment

Longtime Le Fancy Geek pal Unicorn Crafts came out with the most kawaii pastel heart nail wraps over the summer! They were nice enough to send me a set which I wore to San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) back in July, and they lasted for nearly 3 weeks after. The wraps were manufactured by Epsionage Cosmetics and comes with 22 set wraps per set, so I still have some left over to use for future kawaii manicures! If you’ve never used nail wraps before, they are a godsend. I feel horribly naked when my nails are bare, but nail polish just doesn’t quite cut it anymore.  With nail wraps, all you have to do is put on a base coat, apply the wrap to your nail (it’s basically a decal), file off the excess wrap, apply a top coat, and you’re good to go!

Pro Tip: I found that if you apply another top coat during the end of the week, they tend to last a wee bit longer than the advertised 2 weeks.

I got so many compliments on my nails everywhere I went — even the bouncer at the Rooney concert said he liked them 🙂

Want a kawaii manicure that’s super easy to do yourself? Get your set of Unicorn Crafts nail wraps here!

Cheers,
Nina

(middle photo courtesy of Unicorn Crafts)

FTC Disclosure: Product was given to me as compensation for an honest review and to aid in promotion. All opinions stated are 100% honest and my own.

bloop

Hello! Hello! Hello!

Nina Penalosa2 Comments

Mic check, mic check… hello? Oh, hey! Hi! I’m still alive, y’all!

Last time I checked in on here was on the blog’s 6th anniversary back in May. Yikes!  And soooo much has happened since then… like Force Friday II!

As for the other stuff, here’s a recap: I left my job as a reading tutor back in April after I was promoted as a contract worker at my current job at a fashion start-up called WISHI. Remember when I went to dog grooming school last year ’cause I thought I was going to be a dog groomer? Haha! Anyway, I’ve been consumed with work ever since — especially since I was promoted to full time back in June. I went from unpaid intern –> paid intern –> contract worker –> full time employee. I’m proud of myself for having come so far, but I’ve lost track of my passions: reading and writing. I don’t read and write as much as I ought to, but I’ve made it a priority to work it in my schedule (mainly during my commute on BART). I think it’s about damn time to get blogging back in there too.

I felt slightly disconnected with Le Fancy Geek for a bit too, so I didn’t try to rush back in. A lot of the content was starting to feel shallow and very materialistic to me, which is why I refrained for so long. Since I make it a point to be honest here I will say this: I am very materialistic. I love things! I can’t help it. Like Tom Haverford once said, “Love fades away, but things… things are forever.”

Clothes? Books? Toys? Gimme, gimme, gimme!

A shift needed to be made though. Of course I’m still going to be doing outfit posts and still talk about geek fashion on here, and books and movies every now and then, but I want to start involving the geeky fashion/lifestyle community more so. I want to feature small geek businesses that I love and have supported throughout the years, and new ones too! And also feature the amazing bloggers I’ve met along the way too (both online and IRL). I’ve talked about mental health on here as well and have shared some very personal posts, so I will continue to write those as well. I’d also like to discuss topics that are important to me, like finding representation in pop culture and why it’s important.

I hope you’ll stick around as I switch things up!

Cheers,
Nina