Tag: harry potter

geek style

You’re Just As Sane As I Am

Nina Penalosa6 Comments

I found this post just hanging out and collecting figurative dust in my drafts. It’s too cute to not share though! If you know me, you know I love getting dressed in theme when I go places or for certain days. I wore this outfit on September 1st aka Back to Hogwarts Day! Since it’s a Luna Lovegood outfit, why not post this on her birthday? 🙂

I’m a Hufflepuff through and through, but I’d like to think that Luna would be one of my best friends if I went to Hogwarts. We’d hangout and read the Quibbler together and I’d listen to her talk about nargles and other weird things, and we’d have fun craft sessions (making cool jewelry and papier-mâché headpieces for quidditch games).

Both my Luna skirt and beret are from 1138 Clothing, a super cute geek small biz owned and run by my girl Linda. Linda sews all the dresses, skirts, and tops for 1138 Clothing and will even customize pieces to fit your exact measurements. The silhouettes/style of her garments have a retro/vintage feel with a geek twist as she uses fabrics adorned with characters from all kinds of fandoms — from Harry Potter to Disney to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles — there’s something for every geek!

:: OUTFIT DETAILS ::
skirt & beret: 1138 Clothing (buy here & here)
glasses: Zenni Optical (buy here) | top: Old Navy
shoes: Dexflex Comfort | belt: Lane Bryant
purse: Kate Spade | bag essence: Tokyo Disney

Who’s your favorite Harry Potter character and what house are you in? Did you get sorted by Pottermore or did you figure it out on your own? Let’s talk about it in the comments!

Cheers,
Nina

PS: Happy Galentine’s Day!!!

 

 

Muggle Struggle
geek style

Muggle Struggle

Nina Penalosa8 Comments

I haven’t been feeling very magical lately. And as you may have noticed, my blog game has been super weak because I haven’t written a damn thing since November 2017. YIKES. I even missed my 7-year blogging anniversary back in April! Who knew being an adult with a full-time job would leave one so restless? Hahahahaha… ::sobbing::

But SDCC is just around the corner, and I’m starting to feel very much like Harry Potter going back to Hogwarts! I get to see my sister, and surround myself with my magical geeky friends once more and I. CAN’T. WAIT.

Plus it’ll be nice to be around witches and wizards who will understand and appreciate my geeky themed outfits! I wore this inconspicuous geeky outfit to work last week (and Sunday because I’m an outfit repeater) and no one could tell I incorporated Harry Potter into it with my “Mischief Managed” tank by Jordandené or my cute pins. 😦

Anyhow, I’ve been feeling the urge to get back into blogging as I’ve been reading TONS of comics. Book reviews are something I’ve wanted to incorporate on Le Fancy Geek, and I know I’ve done a few, but comics are pretty much all I’ve been reading lately, and they’ve helped me become a voracious reader once more. I had a reading goal of 30 books for this year and I’ve already surpassed it because of all the graphic novels I’ve read! And I want to talk about some cool ones I’ve come across because I need to geek out about them!! And with SDCC coming up, there are bound to be endless things I’ll want to share on here!!!

I also have some cute geeky outfit photos I’ve posted on my Instagram account, but not on the blog, so I’ll be sharing those soon!

::OUTFIT DETAILS::
cardigan: ModCloth (buy here) | tank: c/o Jordandené (buy similar here)
skirt: Merona | shoes: Dexflex | belt: Amazon (buy here)
Polyjuice Potion Pin: Magical Girl Studios (buy here)
Niffler + Occamy pins: Hannah Hitchman Illustrations (buy here + here)

Cheers,
Nina

PS: Why yes, I do have my dog tattoo’d on my arm now! We have lots to catch up on, don’t we?

PPS: Are you on GoodReads? Let’s be friends! You can add me here.

geek style

Accio Geek Apparel: A Loot Wear Review

Nina PenalosaLeave a comment

Last month’s Loot Wear was full of magical items from franchises like Doctor Strange, Kingdom Hearts, Adventure, but most importantly (at least to me anyway) Harry Potter! If you’re unfamiliar with Loot Wear, it’s a monthly geeky mystery apparel subscription service. There are 5 different subscriptions you can get, or you can pick a bundle to get multiple items!

Here’s a breakdown:

  • Wearble ($14.99)
  • Socks ($9.99)
  • Loot for Her ($14.99)
  • Tee ($8.99)
  • Undies ($9.99)

Bundle subscriptions are available too!

  • Socks & Wearable: 2 pairs of socks and 1 wearable ($20.99)
  • Risky Business: 1 tee, 1 pair of socks, and undies ($16.99)

Every month’s theme includes items from franchises that are related, so I was pretty damn excited when I saw that Loot Wear’s November wearble and socks subscriptions would include Harry Potter items! Here’s all the stuff that came with it:

  • Wearable: Harry Potter lounge pants
  • Loot Tees: Doctor Strange
  • Loot for Her: Kingdom Hearts knitted scarf
  • Socks: Harry Potter and Doctor Strange
  • Undies: Adventure Time feat. Earl of Lemongrab

Loot Tee:

I wasn’t too excited about the Doctor Strange movie despite the fact that I’m a self-proclaimed “Cumberbitch” because of the whole Asian whitewashing thing. I do want to look into the comics eventually though. With that prejudice aside, I thought the Doctor Strange tee was cleverly designed and I love the fact that it’s like an ugly Christmas sweater! I paired the tee with my navy polka dot skirt, a gold belt, and some red ballet flats. I would’ve worn my red cardigan with this, but it was nowhere to be found. Oh well!

Loot for Her:

A pair of Kingdom Hearts socks was included in a previous subscription with the same design as this scarf. Though I don’t play the game, I’ve gotten the most use out of this particular item besides the Harry Potter lounge pants because it’s super warm and cozy! I think the symbols are inconspicuous enough for me to get away with wearing it. And as you can see from the pics, I wear the scarf two different ways 🙂

Socks, Wearble, Undies:

The Harry Potter socks are hands down the best socks Loot Wear’s come out with. EVER. They are soooooooo cute!!!!! I can’t stand it! And I’ve been wearing the lounge pants non-stop (don’t worry, they’ve been washed twice already). They’re on the lightweight side, so I have to bundle up on blankets to keep me warm at night. But I still love ’em! Make sure you watch the unpacking video to get a better look at them and the Lemongrab undies.

December’s theme is “Revolution” and tomorrow (December 19) is the last day to subscribe to get it! Make sure to do so before 9pm PST!! Any of these subs would make the perfect Christmas present for the fangirl or fanboy in your life ♥

  • Socks: Guardians of the Galaxy, Mr. Robot
  • Wearable: Rick and Morty
  • Loot For Her: Spider-Gwen
  • Loot Tee: Invader Zim
  • Undies: Rick and Morty

If you’re interested in subscribing you can save 10% on your subscription (or any other Loot Crate subscription) by using the code “LEFANCYGEEK”! Click here to level up your geeky style. 😀

Cheers,
Nina

(photos of myself taken by Jennifer Khut)

FTC Disclosure: This is a sponsored post as Loot Crate/Loot Wear sent me items to review and will gain a little bit of compensation for those who purchase subscriptions through the links provided. All opinions stated are honest and my own.

le fancy geek boutique

Shop Small with Le Fancy Geek Boutique

Nina PenalosaLeave a comment

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Things have been pretty quiet over at Le Fancy Geek Boutique, but it’s still open for all your fancy fandom needs this holiday season!

Hogwarts house necklaces have just been added to the store, so now you can proudly show off your house pride! Or you can get one for the witch or wizard in your life. Just use code “SMALLBIZ16” during checkout to save 20% off your order from now until Tuesday, November 29.

Happy Small Business Saturday! And for those braving the busy storefronts this weekend, stay safe!!

Cheers,
Nina

geek style · the biblio files

My Ultimate Loot Crate Dream Crate

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.

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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

the biblio files

The Biblio Files: Harry Potter Year 1 & 2

Nina Penalosa2 Comments

I’ve been wanting to re-read the Harry Potter series for quite awhile now. I purchased a box set of the complete series three years ago with the intent of starting it then, but I kept getting distracted whenever I picked up The Sorcerer’s/Philosopher’s Stone. I’ve mentioned it on here before, but I find myself having a hard time focusing whenever I try to dive into a book. It’s really annoying! Finding audiobooks to listen to while reading along has helped a lot, and I’m so happy I finally found the hard drive I had all my Harry Potter audiobooks on!

What finally made me get back into the series, aside from finding my audiobook files, is most likely the hype surrounding all the Harry Potter related things happening this year — the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is FINALLY opening up on the west side very soon, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the eighth story in the series, is coming out in July along with the stage play in London, and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them comes out in November. Plus Pottermore’s come out with brand new information on witchcraft and wizardry in North America and articles about other wizarding schools around the world. It’s just a really amazing time to be a Potterhead right now!

I knocked out the first and second books in a little over a week and I’m nearly done with The Prisoner of Azkaban (my favorite of the series). It’s been really interesting revisiting these books as I have only read the series once through back when I was a sophomore in high school. It was around the same time the first Harry Potter movie came out, so the first four books were out already, and then I had to wait patiently for books 5-7 to come out! Knowing what’s going to happen with each story, I can see the subtle clues J.K. leaves and it’s just mind blowing. Oh, and I’ve been listening to the readings done by Stephen Fry and I’m seeing that my copies have been (understandably) super Americanized, so I’ve taken the liberty to make corrections because I want to read it the way J.K. intended! Plus when it referred to football as soccer, I was like, “This is based in the UK. They don’t call it soccer there. America is like the only country that says that. STOP INSULTING MY INTELLIGENCE!” Raaaawwwrrr!

How many times have you read the series? Do you plan on reading them again soon? Have you read them at all?! Let’s talk about it in the comments section!

cheers le fancy geek fashion blogger

geek style

Fandom of the Month Club: Snape Tribute Box

Nina Penalosa1 Comment

Last week this cute little box from Fandom of the Month Club arrived at my doorstep! I’ve been waiting for this ever since I ordered it back in January as it is the special Snape Tribute Box that they put together in honor of Alan Rickman. They also donated $2 for every box to St. Jude’s. It took them 4-6 weeks to design the jewelry as it wasn’t planned out.

It came with a black pouch that says “Property of the Half Blood Prince” in gold, 4 pieces of jewelry, a magnet with a minimalist portrait of Snape, a decal that says “Always” with the a being a Deathly Hallows (not pictured, but you can see it in the unboxing video above), and a really pretty postcard. Overall, I’m super pleased with everything it came with! My particular favorite piece from the box is the necklace with the doe, a lily flower, and a little bottle that says “look at me.” I got quite emotional when I saw it. Actually, the box as a whole made me very emotional because of the premise of why the box was made in the first place. 😦

Since the Snape Tribute box did very well, they’re putting out another special box themed “Magical Creatures.” It’s $16, but $2 will be donated to Hearts United for Animals. Like the Snape box, it’ll take 4-6 weeks for the item to ship out as they need the time to put together designs for the jewelry in the collection. I’m thinking of picking this one up too because if I was a student at Hogwarts, I think Care of Magical Creatures would be my favorite class. 🙂

cheers le fancy geek fashion blogger

 

5 fandom friday

5 Fandom Friday: 5 Fandom Tattoos I Have/Want

Nina Penalosa8 Comments

5fandomfriday-1 copy

It’s been a really long time since I’ve participated in 5 Fandom Friday, but today’s prompt was a fun one that I couldn’t pass up. It’s about fandom tattoos, which is something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately (number 3 on my list in particular). But alas. Tattoos are effing expensive, so I need to put my ink dreams to the side for “adulting” things.

1. Jingles from Disneyland’s King Arthur’s Carrousel

This is my one and only tattoo so far, and I like to call it my obscure hipster Disney tattoo because it’s pretty inconpicuous. It was designed and tattoed by Jen Lee at Tattoo City in San Francisco. I’ve always had a love of all things equine and Disney, and the first piece of writing I ever had published involved carousels, so it made sense to get Jingles, the lead horse on King Arthur’s Carrousel, as my first tattoo.

2. A portrait of Rory

Not quite a fandom tattoo as Rory is my dog furry baby, but I love him so much! His name came from Doctor Who anyway, so I guess it’s fandom-y enough.

3. Hufflepuff badger with a fancy Deathly Hallow

I really, really, really want a tattoo dedicated to my Hufflepuff pride! Ever since I came across a badger tattoo done by Kiki Burghardt on Instagram, I knew that she was the one that had to do it. I already have a good idea of what I want it to look like too; I want it to be surrounded by leaves (kinda like the design above by Veronica Guzzardi) and yellow flowers, and somehow have the Deathly Hallows be incorporated. I’m unable to locate the picture of the badger tattoo I originally saw by her, but you guys should totally check out her Instagram! I want the Deathly Hallows part to be detailed with filigree or something like that. I found a picture on Pinterest a few years ago that would be perfect! But I want mine to be different because I don’t want to straight up copy the person who already has the tattoo.

(Deathly Hallows tattoo found here)

4. “Make Good Art” in Gallifreyan

My friends and I have talked about getting BFF tattoos in Gallifreyan for a few years. At first it was something me and my ex talked about before we started dating. It was brought up again when I got my Jingles tattoo, and my friends said, “F*ck him. We can all get Gallifreyan BFF tattoos instead!” All of ours would have different sayings that means something to us, but the fact that it’s Gallifreyan will help keep in theme with the BFF-yness of it all. I want mine to say “Make good art” which is something Neil Gaiman said in a very inspiration commencement speech about 3 years ago. It’ll be a constant reminder for me to stay creative and make good art, whether it be writing or jewelry making. I found this particular design here.

5. BB-8/R2-D2

After watching The Force Awakens, I couldn’t get the thought of getting BB-8 and R2 tats on my calves! At first I thought about getting them as tattoos on either thigh, but then decided calves would be a better location. How cute would that be?! Star Wars is one of my beloved fandoms and I’ve been trying to think of what character I would want as a tattoo. I’m a Dark Side girl, but I wasn’t really crazy about the idea of a Darth Vader tattoo. I thought about a Storm Trooper in Elizabethan era garb or in Victorian era fashion. But the droids are just so damn cute! I came across this art print of BB-8 by Michelle Coffee and would want it to look something like it.

Do you have any fandom tattoos or are thinking about getting one? Let’s talk about it in the comments section! 😀

cheers le fancy geek fashion blogger

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

Level Up by Loot Crate February Review & Giveaway!
geek style · giveaway

Level Up by Loot Crate February Review & Giveaway!

Nina Penalosa25 Comments

{GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED} winners have been contacted. thanks to all who entered!

Holy sh!t biscuits, y’all! Level Up totally killed it with the loot that came in their February fashion subscriptions, which is funny considering that the theme of the month was “Dead.” Haha! #PunsForDays

But seriously, there was so much cool stuff! I was particularly stoked for the women’s Wearable subscription item because I knew Her Universe was designing something with Deadpool and tacos. And you guuuys, the top they came out with is the cutest thing EVER!!!!

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Here’s a breakdown of what every subscription came with:

♥ Female Fashion Accessories: Blood Splatter nail wraps by Espionage Cosmetics and a The Walking Dead cherokee rose necklace by Bioworld.

♥ T-Shirt: black and white Silence of the Lambs tee.

♥ Socks: Deadpool and glow-in-the-dark Death Eaters (Harry Potter) socks.

FYI: There are 2 combo subscriptions you can subscribe to – one is the wearable item + socks, and the other is the fashion accessories + t-shirt

To subscribe to one of the many Level Up subscriptions, please go here and use code “LEFANCYGEEK” to save 10%! March’s theme is “Versus” and includes items from Captain America: Civil War and Batman vs. Superman!

Keep on reading to get to the giveaway portion!

level-up-loot-crate-february-dead-collection-her-universe-deadpool-geek-subscription-service-geek-fashion

I was really excited about the Esiponage Cosmetics nails wraps that came with the Female Fashion Accessories sub. It has a blood splatter design that reminded me of Dexter. And they glow in the mother effin’ dark! That was a total surprise to me as my nails glowed while I watched Zootopia at the theater on Monday. It does say they’re glow-in-the-dark on the package, but I was too excited to put them on my nails to bother reading anything else on it. I put the nail wraps on about a week and a half ago and they’re still on! If you ever get any nail wraps from Espionage, I highly recommend putting a top coat over to help make it last longer.

Even though I’ve never seen Silence of the Lambs or watched Hannibal because scary movies and TV shows aren’t my thing, I really love the shirt and its design is pretty inconspicuous to the unknowing. Except when I wore it to work one day, my co-worker was like, “Oh my God, it’s the death moth!” and I’m like, “the what-what?” * shoulder shrug * And… I don’t watch The Walking Dead either (I tried! it was too stressful!), but I’m loving how simplistic the cherokee rose necklace is. When you open the pendant, there’s a mirror on the inside, and on the back it’s inscribed with a quote that says “This rose started to grow right where the mother’s tears fell.”  Even though I’m not part of the fandom, I am sooooo happy for all you Richonne shippers!!! ♥♥♥

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Overall, I was super happy with all the items that came with every subscription. But the Deadpool shirt by Her Universe, you guys. You guuuuuys. IT IS GIVING ME SO MUCH LIFE. And the nail wraps go with it perfectly!

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Okay, enough jabbering, let’s get onto the important part of the post: THE GIVEAWAY!

Level Up sent me an extra package full of goodies from all of the subscription services they have to offer and one of you lucky ponies can win it! FYI, both the wearable item and t-shirt come in my size (2x) so if you’ve got big booby-8s like me or are willing to tailor the tees, enter away!

Also, five of you will be get a code to get a free subscription for March’s Level Up Female Accessories subscription! This month’s accessory will feature Batman, Superman, and a special guest… I’m assuming it’s Wonder Woman. Who else could it be?!

The giveaway starts today (March 9) and ends next Tuesday, March 16. Winners will be chosen and contacted the morning of the 17th.

Code winners, please make sure you use the code by the 19th because that’s the last day to subscribe to all subscriptions from Loot Crate.

These giveaways are open to US residents only. Sorry to all my international ponies.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
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Don’t forget: the more options you enter with, the more entries you’ll get to better your chances of scoring a prize!! Good luck!! 😀

cheers le fancy geek fashion blogger

 

FTC Disclosure: Loot Crate sent me these items to review. Along with the items, I earn a small compensation when purchases are made through my affiliate link. All opinions given are honest and my own.

geek style

Nerdy 30 Birthday Wish List

Nina Penalosa7 Comments

nerdy geeky birthday wish list star wars her universe funko harry potter

Star Wars leggings | Star Wars: Aftermath | The Force Awakens novelization
Admiral Ackbar pin | Dumbledore Funko Pop! figure | Hufflepuff HP book set
Spider-Gwen v.0 | Ms. Marvel v.4 | Silk v.0 | Her Universe Loki pullover

My 30th birthday is in 2 days! AAAHHHH!!! Some people call it the “dirty 30.” Others call it the “flirty 30.” Since I am neither (well, maybe more dirty than flirty regarding my sense of humor), I am calling this birthday my “nerdy 30” because it makes so much more sense. And I’ll be at Disneyland to celebrate, because what better place to kick off 30th anniversary of life? 🙂

I threw a little birthday wish list together and as you can see, all I want are Star Wars, Marvel, and Harry Potter things (mainly books)! I’m not expecting to get any of these things, but y’know… it’s just a wish list.

Who else has a birthday in January that’s coming up or has passed? Lemme know what’s on your wish list or what you’ve gotten for your birthday in the comments section!

cheers