My Ultimate Loot Crate Dream Crate

November 12, 2016July 2, 2018 Nina PenalosaLeave a comment

The O.G. geeky subscription box service Loot Crate wants to know what kind of awesome gizmos and gadgets a-plenty their fans would put in their very own Dream Crate. When I learned about the project and was asked if I’d be interested in putting something together, I obviously said, “YAAASSS!” This is something I’ve given a lot of thought to before I was even asked to write about it, but since they’ve already done “Fantasy” and “Magical” (my ideal themes), I had to figure out a different theme that would encompass franchises I’m a fan of that have a fairytale, fantasy, epic journey, or magical-like quality to them.

So, I came up with “Story Time” and it would include items from The Neverending Story, The Princess Bride, Once Upon a Time, Harry Potter, and Game of Thrones.

loot-crate-dream-crate-le-fancy-geek-blogger

The Princess Bride: A copy of Cary Elwes’ “As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride”

With a theme like “Story Time,” it only makes sense to include an actual book! I think it’d be cool for it to include a copy of Cary Elwes’ book, and to make it extra special Loot Crate can design a different cover that’s exclusive to this particular crate. 🙂

Harry Potter: Hermione Funko Pop! figure

I love the Hermione Funko Pop! that comes in the Hogwarts Express edition because she’s holding books, but I don’t the train itself. Sooo, I think Loot Crate should team up with Funko to make one similar to it that’s exclusive, but make it so that the book is more intricate with details like a title and artwork. And it should come with a little Crookshanks because how cute would that be?!

Once Upon a Time: Belle’s Chip tea cup

I have a love/hate relationship with Once Upon a Time. There have been many times where I watch an episode and I’m like, “WHY DO I STILL WATCH THIS???” I’ve been with it from the very beginning; I’m too invested in Regina finding happines, dammit! Anyway, I love Belle’s Chip tea cup and I associate drinking tea with “story time,” so this seemed like the perfect item to include from the franchise. Even if someone who doesn’t like Once Upon a Time got this crate, I’m sure they’d love the cup anyway and find it very useful.

Game of Thrones: Bookmarkers

Book markers will obviously be needed if there’s going to be an actual book in the crate. They don’t necessarily have to be this exact Game of Thrones book mark set, but I’d prefer something like it.

The Neverending Story: Falkor t-shirt

This movie was my jaaaam when I was a kid! And I feel like The Neverending Story doesn’t get a whole lot of love with geeky subscription boxes, and that’s why I decided to include it in my dream crate. I call Rory “Baby Falkor” since him and the luck dragon look so much alike, so of course my dream crate’s Neverending Story item would be a Falkor t-shirt! It doesn’t necessarily have to be this one that I found on Redbubble by Mandrie, but I’d like the design to have really cute artwork. Also, the Loot Pets box that coincides with this should definitely come with a matching t-shirt!

What do you think, my little ponies? Would you be stoked if you opened up a Loot Crate box and unearthed all these goodies? Tell me what your perfect Loot Crate box would include in the comments section!

Cheers,
Nina

geek style

Fandom of the Month Club: Game of Thrones Box

August 19, 2016 Nina Penalosa3 Comments

Fandom of the Month Club (FOTMC) put out another special limited edition box quite similar to the Severus Snape box I got earlier this year, but this time it’s based on Game of Thrones! Of course I had to order one 🙂

The pieces all came in a pretty red satin pouch that says, “A Lannister Always Pays His Debts” in gold; it came with a Tyrion magnet, dragon claw ring, direwolf studs, a direwolf decal (not pictured), a pocket watch necklace featuring Jon Snow, and a steel book marker with a quote by Jojen. Overall I thought the pieces were really nice, but I wish that there was a bit more diversity in which houses/characters were represented. To me, it felt very House Stark and Lannister heavy since a majority of the items were from those houses. Even the postcard had a quote from Cersei on it.

Since FOTMC is geared towards geek girls, it would’ve been cool to see a bigger item that represented House Targaryen, or even something that had to do with House Tyrell or Brienne of Tarth. Ladies f*cking RULED season 6! I would’ve loved to have seen a cuff shaped like a dragon in this box. How cool would that be? COOLER THAN WINTERFELL ON A SUMMER DAY. That’s how cool.

My favorite piece was definitely the Jon Snow pocket watch, despite the fact that it came undone when I first took it out of the box (you can see that in the unboxing video above), but I was able to easily fix it. It says, “My watch has ended” which I thought was pretty punny because it’s on a pocket watch. My watch has ended… ay? Aaayyy?! Whatever, I like puns. 😛

If you want to purchase a Game of Thrones box for yourself or someone else, they’re still available here.

geek style · out & about

The Hall of Faces: Game of Thrones Exhibit

August 1, 2016 Nina Penalosa3 Comments

A couple of years ago I got to go to the offsite exhibit that Game of Thrones (GoT) put together for SDCC and it was so cool! They had tons of costumes from the show, a virtual reality simulator that made it feel like you were going up the Wall, a photo op to make it look like you were taking a picture with Drogon, and also one where you get to sit on the Iron Throne. They even had tattoo artists on hand for the first fifty people in line to get a free and super legit GoT tattoo! And everyone also got free t-shirts. I ended up not going last year, but I marked it as one of the top things I wanted to do at SDCC this year. It was really… underwhelming.

My sister, her fiance, and I waited three hours in line to get into the exhibit and all they had were three costumes (Arya, the Waif, and Jaqen,) photo ops with Arya’s sword Needle, the Iron Throne, two display cases of merch being sold at HBO.com, some sort of crown that shows people Arya wants to kill through Melisandre’s flames, and the Hall of Faces from the Temple of Black and White where you could get your own mug added, along with a souvenir print of the picture you took.

If you take a look at my blog post from the first exhibit I went to, you can see that it was pretty damn exciting.

Before getting thoroughly disappointed, I was super pumped to go because I’ve been fangirling over GoT a lot lately. And my crush on Pedro Pascal (Prince Oberyn Martell) has randomly flourished by tenfold, so I packed this Oberyn inspired outfit specifically for when I went to the GoT exhibit. I got it last year from Gold Bubble Clothing, and knew I had to have it when I saw pictures of it in one of their sneak peek posts on Instagram.

Oberyn was such a cool character — he was passionate, charismatic, full of swagger, and sexy as f*ck. How could I not be attracted to him?! I remember when his character was first introduced I was like, “Ooooh, I like him… he’s totally gonna die.” 😦 #RIPMySweetBB

How does one pose on the Iron Throne? #DidntKnowHowToPose

dress: Gold Bubble Clothing (buy here)
cardigan: Mossimo | belt: Xhileration
hair flower: Shop VDM (buy similar here)
shoes: Delfex Comfort (buy similar here)
Oberyn necklace: Le Fancy Geek Boutique

I’ll be back with more belated posts about my adventures at SDCC! Stay tuned, my little ponies 🙂

geek style

Nerdvember: The Final Week!

December 4, 2015 Nina Penalosa6 Comments

Whoooops, I’ve been so busy with work and trying to finish up inventory for Whimsic Alley’s Geeky Faire (which is happening TOMORROW!) that I totally forgot to make a post about my outfits for the final week of Set to Stunning’s Nerdvember challenge/contest! Mah bad.

Day 22: Winter is Coming

My sister and I headed to San Francisco so she could check out the ModCloth Fit Shop and meet up with our friend Brooke. I decided to wear my Lulu Tops Westeros Map dress (I do believe it’s a faux version of the Black Milk Clothing one, but whatever), a pair of earrings by Nerdy Buy Still Girly with Jon Snow and Ghost, and my Robb Stark necklace. We found the perfect snowflake backdrop at the mall to take pictures in front of too! 😀

Day 23: You Can’t Sith With Us

I layered my favorite Darth Vader pullover over my black and white tartan dress and paired it with my faux leather pink motorcycle jacket, Darth Vader brooch, and plushie Vader backpack. Kind of felt very Mean Girls x Clueless.

Day 24: Where the Wild Things Are

I layered my Where the Wild Things Are pullover by Out of Print Clothing over the Old Navy dress I wore for my cousin’s wedding, but totally didn’t realize how wrinkled it was until my friend Norma took my picture after we got out of class. Whoops!

Day 25: BB-8

You guys, I seriously love Utinni Bikini. I have a problem. I bought this BB-8 dress when they were having a special sale during Halloween, so I immediately placed an order. Haha! Even though I love the Dark Side, I do love some of the “good guys” too. And y’all know BB-8 has stolen my heart. ♥

Day 26: Happy Sithsgiving!

Basically a variation of Day 23’s outfit. Haha! My mom also happened to wear a Star Wars sweater for Thanksgiving too. We didn’t even plan to match, it just happened. The Force must be strong in my family! 🙂

Day 27: Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey

The folks at Level Up sent me a package full of some timey-wimey goodness! I paired the TARDIS belt and pendant that came in the package with my Her Universe dress featuring all the baddies from Doctor Who, along with a pendant I made with my companion, Rory, and a hair bow by my friend Jen (Walrus of the Sea). GERONIMO!

I’ll be making a special, more detailed post about the goodies I got, so be on the lookout for that!

Day 28: You Can’t Sith With Us: Part Deux

In case you’re wondering, yes. That is ANOTHER dress by Utinni Bikini. It has AT-ATs and Stormtroopers all over it! After I placed my order for the BB-8 dress, I got a message saying that I could get another dress for a super cheap price plus free shipping, soooo I caved in. Also, I’m feelin’ this bowler hat, you guys. Not sure if you can tell since it’s popped up in quite a few of my Nerdvember photos. 😛

Day 29: BB-8: Part Deux

BB-8 FOREVER AND EVER!! I ordered this BB-8 bomber by Her Universe while my sister drove us to Disneyland for Season of the Force a few weeks ago, and it finally came in on the 25th (unbeknowst to be since my email notification was buried in my inbox). I was also feeling particularly lazy this day and couldn’t be bothered to brush my hair. But I took a picture anyway because I was very determined to get all 30 days of November documented. 😛

Day 30: Girly Looking Nerfherder

For my final outfit of Nerdvember I paired this velvet black dress with Han and Leia pins I got at Disneyland, my Millennium Falcon belt, and Darth Vader purse. On my Instagram my description was:

Han Solo vibes today because sometimes I need a reminder to be a scruffy looking badass nerfherder. And self rescuing princess, and sometimes Sith Lord… I’m complicated.

So that’s a wrap on Nerdvember! I hope you all enjoyed my geek inspired outfits throughout the month. 😀

geek style

A Shiny Wish List for SDCC

July 8, 2015 Nina Penalosa4 Comments

Brace yourselves, COMIC-CON IS COMING.

In the past years I haven’t been a wise shopper. Just because something is “exclusive” doesn’t necessarily mean I must own it, right? I’m going to attempt to be a bit more strict on what I spend my precious monies on this time around, but there are some exclusives that have me doing the heart-eye emoji BIG TIME.

– Sparkly Darth Vader coin purse by Loungefly

How fabulous is this sparkly Darth Vader coin purse?! I have a ton of coin purses at home, and I actually just took all my coins to the bank to cash them, buuut… I mean… this would be a practical purchase. <— it’s DARTH VADER. Of course I’m trying to justify my want for it!

– Firefly necklace by Quantum Mechanix

OMG SO SHINY. I don’t think I need to explain why I want this. I mean… look at it!

Unmasked Captain America Pop! Figure by Funko

This little unmasked version of Captain America is too cute for words! It would be perfect to put alongside the Peggy Carter figure that’s coming out later this year too. Since Barnes & Noble will have a few Funko SDCC Exclusives, I’m asking my friend Jennifer to go and take a look to see if they have this little Cap figure so I won’t have to stand in that crazy long-ass line during the convention.

– Doctor Who: 11th Doctor Pop! figure by Funko

The 11th Doctor is my favorite Doctor and purple is my favorite color, so that’s a completely justifiable reason to want this adorable rendition of him, right?

– Direwolves plush set by Factory Entertainment

Last year I was on a mad hunt for a Grey Wind plushie, except the only ones that were in the exhibit hall were all prototypes. UGH. This year Factory Entertainment has an exclusive set featuring little 6 inch versions of Grey Wind, Ghost, and Nymeria. AHH!! I just might cave, you guys. I just might. O__O

– pretty much EVERYTHING at the Her Universe booth

So none of these are officially exclusive, at least not that I know of, but HOLY. CRAP! Her Universe just released images of a few new items making their debut at SDCC and everything looks AMAZING!!! I’m particularly stoked for the Peter Pan collar Avengers top and Agent Carter t-shirt. I saw on Instagram that there won’t be any plus size Agent Carter tees available since they didn’t have enough shirts, but I’m hoping I’ll be able to squeeze into an XL. – crosses fingers –

What swag are you most looking forward to getting your hands on?

geek style · le fancy geek boutique

Le Fancy Geek Boutique Shop Update

June 17, 2015 Nina PenalosaLeave a comment

Hey ponies!

With season 5 of Game of Thrones coming to an end last Sunday, I added a few new Game of Thrones necklaces to Le Fancy Geek Boutique! Now you can wear one of your faves close to your heart (like Robb and Oberyn… R.I.P. my handsome babies) at all times. ♡

The Jon Snow necklace was also re-listed.

And until June 22, you can save 15% off your order! Just use code DAMMITOLLY during checkout.

5 fandom friday

5 Fandom Friday: My Favorite Funko Pop! Figures

February 6, 2015 Nina Penalosa10 Comments

A friend of mine once asked how many Funko Pop! vinyl figures I own, and I had to stop and think about it for a good 2 minutes. I lost track of all the figures I own, but I know it’s well over 20! With so many choices, how am I supposed to narrow down my top 5 favorite for this week’s 5 Fandom Friday?! I tried my best to not list all my Disney ones to make the list more diverse, but alas. A good majority of my collection are Disney characters (because I’m the biggest Disnerd, duh!).

1. Baymax

My Baymax figure is the biggest figure I own! My friend Jen got him for me for Christmas (he was originally supposed to be my birthday present) and she was super anxious to give it to me because she knew I would most likely buy it for myself. And I nearly did buy him! I put him on hold at Barnes & Noble, and then she had to keep telling me NOT to buy him. It took me a minute to figure out why. Haha!

2. Snow White

Snow White is my favorite princess, and one of the first Disney Pops I ever purchased (my very first Pop! figure would be Batman). I went pretty crazy when they came out the first Disney series — I got Maleficent, Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and Sulley along with Snow White. But Snow’s the fairest Pop! of them all! I found a set with 3 mini Disney princess figures that had a lil’ Snow White, so now I have two. 😀

3. Mary Poppins

I fangirl’d sooo hard when I saw a preview of the Mary Poppins figure a few years ago. I mean, look at her! She’s practically perfect in every way. 😉 Whoever designed her just completely nailed every little detail from her hat to her umbrella. Perfection!

4. Robb Stark & Grey Wind

Okay, this is technically two, but I’m counting them as one because I feel that I can’t have one without the other. I got Robb at SDCC, and was on a mad hunt to find his dire wolf, Grey Wind. I didn’t know that Grey Wind was a 7-11 exclusive though (I could’ve sworn I saw him at Barnes & Noble when I still worked there), so he proved to be quite a challenge to acquire for a price below $50. I eventually found him at Stockton-Con, and he is the most priciest Pop! vinyl I own (I haggled and got him for $30). I DID IT FOR YOU, ROBB.

5. Loki

I’m sooo happy that Funko came out with another Loki figure with the pointy helmet! I wasn’t really crazy about the one sans helmet, and the first Loki figure they came out with is way too ‘spensive online, and his helmet wasn’t even gold. This one is just fantastic!

What are some of your favorite Pop! vinyls? Have you lost count of your collection like me? Lemme know in the comments!

cheers

To find out the origins of 5 Fandom Friday, go here. And check out The Nerdy Girlie and SuperSpaceChick to catch up with the latest prompts!

5 fandom friday · Uncategorized

5 Fandom Friday: My Favorite Things About Winter

January 9, 2015 Nina Penalosa4 Comments

I was born and raised in the central valley of California, and still live in the Golden State. As many people know, Californians don’t have a “real” winter season. But I do want to note that when I lived in Daly City, it was like living in a perpetual foggy haze all year round! No sun. Very fog. Such depress. Wow.

Anywho, in other parts of California we do experience “cold” weather during winter that allows us to bundle up. Sometimes there are mornings where you may find the windows of your car covered in thin sheets of ice, and scrapping them off can be a bitch. But having snow all over your car? Driving in snow? NO THANK YOU. How do you people who experience real winter weather do it? HOW?!

We’re extremely spoiled over here, especially the Californians in SoCal!

This is basically how I felt when I was at Disneyland during the evening:

But it was stupid hot in the afternoon! Oh, California. You’re so strange.

Alright, now that I’ve established the lack of actual “real” winter weather I experience in my spot of the ‘verse, here are my 5 favorite things about the winter season:

1. Tea all day, everyday

I love myself a good cuppa. I’ll drink it even if the weather is deemed “too hot” to drink tea, but during winter it’s perfectly fine to have cups and cups of it! Lately I’ve been drinking this really yummy white pomegranate tea by a brand called Revolution. I found it at Ross for $3. Score!

2. It’s actually cold

Fall is my favorite season, but California has a hard time getting with the program. It was still stupid hot in October. I mean, 80 degree weather in October? What is that? HORRIBLE. AWFUL. UNACCEPTABLE. That’s what it is! So when winter comes, it’s absolutely lovely.

3. Bundling up in winter accessories

I prefer cold weather, and by that I mean I love overcast skies with a gentle breeze where the days are between 50-60 degrees and the nights are in the mid 40s. It’s my favorite! I’m still able to wear my tights with dresses (because eff pants), and layer on a jacket over a cardigan or sweater. Plus beanies and scarves are fun and sometimes necessary to wear. When I’m having a bad hair day, I love the fact that I can throw a cute knitted hat on and go to work. It makes life so much easier!

Winter also allows me to wear my everyday Robb Stark (Game of Thrones) cosplay (pictured above), complete with faux fur paw scarf. It has pockets lined with fleece too. 😀

4. Boots, boots, boots

This seems more like something that would be on a “My Favorite Things About Fall” list, but I LOVE boots. I’ll even try and wear my cowboy boots during the spring (bearable) and summer (terrible), but with winter it just gets colder and more appropriate to wear boots! Plus I got these G.H. Bass boots on sale at their outlet store in Livermore on New Year’s Eve and they’re made for wide calves. If you have wide calves like me, you know the struggle is real when it comes to shopping for boots.

5. Sales all over the place!

Every store seems to have a sale because of the end of the holiday season and the New Year. I’m a self-proclaimed shopaholic, so of course this is on my list. Haha! 😛

How’s winter where you are? Are you spoiled with a California winter like me, or are you freezing your tail off in the snow? Lemme know in the comments!

the biblio files · the reel world

The Funday Post

November 30, 2014 Nina Penalosa2 Comments

♥ The new Star Wars trailer gives us all reasons to stay alive! Did you get goosebumps when the Millenium Falcon showed up? I DID.

♥ In true Nerdfighter fashion, John Green didn’t forget to be awesome and donated signed copies of his books to the public library in Ferguson!

♥ Can you believe Christmas is already around the corner? Here are some fun ways to geek up your gift wrapping.

♥ Puppies dressed like Disney characters is the best thing EVER.

♥ Who Said It?: The Dowager Countess or Jane Austen? I got 11/12 and I don’t know how.

♥ I found this DIY summer bracelet tutorial on Pinterest, but think it would be fun to do as a stocking stuffer!

♥ Another Pinterest DIY craft find: make your own Iron Throne for your phone.

♥ I rooted for Alfonso and Witney on Dancing With The Stars, but how cute is this Super Mario inspired number by Mark and Sadie?

Cheers,
Nina

geek style · le fancy geek boutique · shoppin'

Le Fancy Geek Boutique Update: Le Fancy Bloops!

November 28, 2014 Nina PenalosaLeave a comment

Hey ponies! I just wanted to let you know that “Le Fancy Bloops” have just been added to Le Fancy Geek Boutique. You might be wondering what the ever loving frickity-frak are “Le Fancy Bloops”? They’re pendants that didn’t turn out as great as it could have, but despite their little imperfections, they’re still totally wearable. And at $8 a piece, they’re a steal!

You can find them here.

New items will be posted tomorrow for Small Business Saturday!

Use code HOLIDAY14 from now until December 1st to get 15% off your order of $12+

Happy Shopping!

Cheers,
Nina