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Closet Geek – Store Opening

August 21, 2015 by Bel Leave a Comment

Tomorrow my online store opens and OMG I’m nervous. Sadly I haven’t got half as much done as I’d hoped to, but probably more than I thought I realistically would. My new Closet Geek store can be found at www.ClosetGeek.co.uk and at midday tomorrow, my store will open! In the meantime, please feel free to sign up to the newsletter (I promise no spam) and you will receive a discount code to use on opening day!

comingsoon
This post today is actually scheduled. As this goes live, I’m heading up to Berwick Upon Tweed, where my best friend Amy lives, in order to have a very last minute photoshoot. Her daughter Liv and my two girls Megan and Lily, will be modeling all the clothes I’ve made, in order to place them on my store. I will also have a whole bunch of hair bows, jewellery and pencil cases.

Eventually I hope to stock adult clothes as well as kids, but for now I’m concentrating on the Disney inspired stuff, with elements of other geeky fandoms. As of tomorrow my site will be live and hopefully I’ll be making up orders. Once the girls go back to school I’ll really get to grips with making new things and adding regularly to my store!

businesscardIf you have any feedback, please don’t hesitate to contact me! I probably won’t be blogging tomorrow as I’ll be busy opening my store and heading home from Amy’s. I’m always contactable via email, on Facebook, or Twitter etc. Thank you for all your support and I hope you love my store!

Filed Under: about me Tagged With: Closet Geek, clothes, Disney, disney inspired, dresses, geek, hair bows, harry potter, jewellery, necklaces, nerd, pencil cases

Just Sew Geeky

June 10, 2015 by Bel Leave a Comment

As you probably know from my previous posts, I love to sew. My mum and dad bought me my first sewing machine at the age of 18 and I used it for a good year or so before it got stowed away and barely used. Since having kids I’ve used it every now and again, but it has never had more use than in the last 12 months. Last summer a group of us decided we would go to London Film and Comic Con and that we would cosplay. This was my first ever experience of cosplaying and I wanted to make my own costume. I was pretty pleased with how it turned out, especially since I hadn’t used my sewing machine in a long time.

cosplay

Sadly now when I look at the photos, all I see is how much weight I had on at that time. I was beginning to lose weight at that point but since then I’ve lost about 1- 1 and 1/2 stone and feel so much better for it. Anyway, when I try to focus on the costume itself I’m pleased but I know I’ve done so much better since. In the following months I made young Anna and Elsa dresses for my two daughters, I made a Snow White costume for my best friend Amy and I made a whole stack of Disney inspired dressed for our holiday to Florida.

dresses

Since getting back from Florida I’ve flipped flopped back and forth about starting my own business – sewing clothes. I have had an online store on Etsy selling jewellery for some time now and I’d love to combine everything geeky that I like to do and make a little business from it. Anyway… the title of this post was one of the names I toyed with – Just Sew Geeky. However I felt it was too sewing orientated (and I want to do more than sewing) and in the end went for Closet Geek. The sewing section of my site will probably be the largest – for the most part I’ll be offering inspired dresses and clothes for children. In the future I hope to be able to offer custom cosplay too, not just for kids but for adults. I’ll also add my Jewellery Ever After stock (and add to it), along with the inspired hair bows that Megan and I were making a few months ago. On top of all that I hope to add murder mysteries to the categories, but that’s a little way off right now. It’s a lot of work and I’ve really only just started. I have the bare bones of a site in progress, social media platforms set up and business cards ordered.

businesscard2At the weekend (just gone) I sat down to get some sewing done and discovered the foot from my sewing machine was gone. I’m absolutely certain I’ve put it somewhere “safe” but after two hours of searching, I still couldn’t find it. In the end I ordered a new one, costing a total of £8.79 (only £3.80 for the foot but £4.99 postage!). To be honest I toyed with buying a new sewing machine all together. I checked out sewing machines online and I found a really good range at Tesco Direct but as yet I haven’t made a decision. There is nothing actually wrong with my sewing machine at the moment but I have to admit I can tell it’s definitely on it’s way out. As I said, it was bought for my 18th birthday – and I literally just had my 36th last week. It’s old… though not as old as I am… and it’s going to need replacing soon, especially if I expect to be sewing on it even more often than I have been recently.

Though I’m bubbling over with ideas of Disney inspired dresses to make, my first project is actually a cosplay one. For now I’m going to keep it a secret but I’ve ordered vintage Simplicity pattern 9825 and turquoise jacquard material that I could really only find in the US. I’m excited to crack on with it so my sewing machine foot better turn up soon! In the mean time I’m going to head for Pinterest and start pinning some more ideas and also work on my online store! I’ll let you know as soon as I have an update.

cosplay2

Filed Under: promo, sewing projects Tagged With: Closet Geek, clothes, comic con, cosplay, costumes, disney inspired, dresses, etsy, fabric, geek, jewellery, jewellery ever after, material, nerd, new business, patterns, sewing

2014 in Review – Subscription Boxes

December 30, 2014 by Bel Leave a Comment

Over the last year, I have tried a variety of Subscription boxes. My first was Birchbox, which I took out in March – receiving for March, April and May. At the same time, I also subscribed to Discovery Club, by The Fragrance Shop, though this was a quarterly subscription – which I received from March (Spring) and included Summer (July) and Autumn/Winter (September). After I cancelled my Birchbox subscription, I tried out Glossybox. Sadly I didn’t really enjoy that subscription, cancelling it after only two deliveries and actually only posting about it once!

Deciding I needed a break from Beauty boxes, I made the move to Geek boxes instead. My first one was Nerd Block, which I started to receive in May and continued through June and July. After that, I tried out Loot Crate. This subscription I received July, August and September. During this same period of time, Chris subscribed to My Geek Box. This is one I had been considering, so instead of subscribing myself, I just documented his. He received My Geek Box for the first time in September, then again in October and finally in November.

Having still not quite found the right box for me, I decided to try out a completely new subscription called My Little Box. It was brand new in September and I subscribed straight away (though I didn’t receive my box till October). At the exact same time as September’s box arrived, so did October‘s. I then received November‘s and later December‘s. I’m still currently subscribed to My Little Box and probably enjoy it the most out of any, but perhaps will cancel – just due to finances.

Anyway… I wanted to look back on what I’ve enjoyed and which products I actually ended up keeping and using. So here is my recap for 2014 subscription boxes!

Birchbox was by far my favourite Beauty Box. The products felt high end and interesting – it felt like I was genuinely sampling something I wouldn’t have otherwise. In March’s Birchbox I discovered English Laundry as a new scent, along with Pores No More as a new product. While I haven’t used either recently, I definitely would purchase both in the future. In April’s Birchbox I liked Lord & Berry eyeliner, discovered Color Club nail polish (in a beautiful mint shade) and fell in love with Tommyguns – Pomegranate & Orange Flower Shampoo. While I don’t think I would purchase the eyeliner again (only that eyeliner is really just eyeliner to me), I would love to try some other shades in Color Club nail polish and I would absolutely purchase Tommyguns shampoo again. In May’s Birchbox I tried (and loved) They’re Real Mascara, by Benefit – a product I now use the majority of the time. I also discovered Siogne nail polish in a bright orange shade, along with Beauty Protector shampoo and conditioner. I’ve never seen Siogne polish to buy, though at £11 a bottle, I can’t imagine I would. I do think its a great polish though. The shampoo and conditioner were almost too small to really sample, but the smell was great and I’d be interested to try again!

Glossybox was a real let down for me. Of all the boxes I’ve tried, it was by far my least favourite. The products seemed very ordinary and didn’t seem like a treat. While you did get full size products, rather than sample sizes (in most cases), I felt like I could easily pick up the products at a reasonable price in Superdrug, Boots, Tesco etc. if I had wanted to try them. From my first Glossybox in May, I honestly don’t think I used anything. The nail polish was added to our ever growing collection and the lipstick when it my box of lipsticks, but I don’t think either have been tried. Majority of the rest went in the sample swap at #LincsBlogMeet, when we held that in July. Again, with June’s box, the only thing I actually used was the makeup brush. So as you can see, not that great!

Overlapping with these Beauty box subscriptions, was my quarterly subscription to the Discovery Club. It was incredibly reasonable at only £5 every 3 months and seemed like a good way to discover new fragrances. In each box was 2 male samples, which I passed on to Chris. I know some of them smelt nice but I can honestly say that neither of us have made a note of which ones they were. To be absolutely honest with you, from the Spring box, I don’t really remember which I liked. Looking back I think that perhaps Alien was okay and maybe Very Irresistible. Luckily in Summer’s box, I made a note of which I liked – these being Givenchy Dahlia Divin, Agent Provocateur Fatale and Prada Candy Florale. I do know that I’ve used Agent Provocateur and Prada loads since and sadly both samples are gone! If I was the type to treat myself to new perfume, it would be definitely one of those two. Finally in the Autumn/Winter box, I noted that Loewe Quizás and Jean-Paul Gaultier Classique Intense were my favourites, but that none were really “me”. I can honestly say I don’t remember using any of these, despite all the samples being in one big box to just pick at randomly.

Then came the turn of the Geek boxes and first up was Nerd Block. I picked this because it was one I’d had emails about and I had also received t-shirts from their sister site, Shirt Punch. While I definitely consider myself to be a Geek, I do appreciate that I’m not into EVERYTHING geeky, as I’m sure can be said for a lot of people. I like Star Trek but not really Star Wars, I like Doctor Who but only certain Doctors, I enjoy a variety of TV shows and Computer games, but certainly not with wide scope. My first Nerd Block in May, was very heavily Star Wars themed. As such, majority of the box wasn’t of interest to me. One item was saved for a Christmas gift, Chris took the plush, Nat took the comic and I gave Rhiannon the t-shirt. This left only a Mario dangler, which the girls currently have hanging on their bedroom door.

May’s box was a little more successful. There was a blind box of Doctor Who vinyl, that turned out to be Matt Smith – a Doctor I actually like. A Minecraft sticker and a Mario Kart race car, that the girls both took. Two t-shirts, both of which I like. And finally a pin art thing (I don’t really know how to describe it), that you place your hand or face into and it makes the shape in blunt pins. All of the box stayed within our house, so a fairly successful haul!

Finally came June’s box and this was a mixed bag. The t-shirt was TMNT and that was fine as I loved it. There was a Comic Con dvd that I’m interested to watch (though haven’t yet), which more importantly came with a Stan Lee figure. However a Star Wars magazine and another Star Wars plush, both got given to Chris, along with a Zombie Nerf gun. The gun was fun for a little while, but it doesn’t really serve a purpose and just sits by Chris’ desk. This saw the end of my Nerd Block subscription!

Next up came Loot Crate and by far my favourite thing about this subscription, was the attention to detail with the design. The packaging/logo was sleek and modern looking, which was a big plus, but inside of the box was always awesome.

I once saw that someone kept all of the boxes and stuck them on the walls, using them then to display the cool stuff that came in the Loot Crate. I thought this was a great idea and perhaps as a student, or even pre-kids, this might have been something I would have loved to do.

In July’s box (which was Villain themed) majority of my box went to Chris. There were some Deadpool socks, along with a Joker and Harley Quinn poster, both of which are things he likes more than me. There was another comic – which I passed on to Nat, a Darth Vader keyring – which I think I maybe gave my brother and a Bowser magnet which is currently on our kitchen fridge. The only thing I properly kept and liked, was the Joki t-shirt, a cross over between the Joker and Loki.

August’s crate (Hero themed) was a mixed bag as well. The main thing I loved and still have, is a Loot Crate Exclusive Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy, in a POP Funko figure. I hadn’t even seen the movie at the time, but I knew I would love it so this was a great find. Otherwise there was a TMNT figure, some flash “shwings” for your shoes, a chimichangos magnet and a Mega Man air freshner, all of which went to my brother. Finally there were some TMNT sunglasses, that are now in the fancy dress box.

Finally came September’s box and while I kept a couple of things, majority of the box is gone. The theme I guess was Space, though I don’t honestly remember. I got a Tribble plush (which while cool, doesn’t really have a home), a blind box vinyl again (which luckily had Mal from Firefly in it) and some Firefly money. I liked all three, but other than the vinyl, the others are a little pointless and don’t really have anywhere I can display them. As well as that, there were some pop rocks, a poster, a magnet and an Alien figure, all of which Chris had (or if not, the bin). This was the end of my Loot Crate subscription.

Chris took out a My Geek Box subscription and honestly, from my point of view, majority of it was rubbish. All three boxes had t-shirt inside them, none of which were very good (in yellow, red and then white). In the first box was a book he already had, a Walking Dead blind box vinyl (which happened to be Daryl and was given to me), a twinkie and a glowstick. His second box had a POP Funko figure of Jason Vorhees, which while it isn’t something we would have picked, was added to our growing collection. It also had a Zombie Zity figure and a blind bag Zombling, both of which I think went in the bed. There was also a poster, a magnet and some popping candy. I assume Chris ate the candy and the magnet is one the fridge, but I have no idea what happened to the poster. Finally was the last box and this was possibly the best. A Baker Street sign, a talking Darlek plush keyring and some Thunderbirds shot glasses, were all kept (two of them by me). The t-shirt was also the best of the three, Red Dwarf themed and in white rather than a foul bright colour. There were Weirds (like Nerds) that got eaten and a comic that I’m not sure what became of it. For the most part though, the best of a bad bunch.

Finally that brings me to my last and current subscription box – one considered to be a Lifestyle box (containing beauty, fashion and lifestyle items). I’ve actually had four of these boxes now and enjoy them the most out of everything I’ve had so far.

The Parisienne themed box was first and I loved the stickers, postcard, notebook, tablet case/cover and makeup – a full house! I will admit however, that I haven’t used any of the three products, or the Paris stickers. I’m sure I definitely will at some point though.

Next was the Diane von Furstenberg box. Again the postcard in this box was loved, but sadly the scarf was not! I believe there were a variety of scarves available, but the one I happened to get just wasn’t me. Luckily my mum liked it, as I gave it to her as a little extra this Christmas. There was also a little pin badge in my package and while it was cute, I can’t honestly see myself pinning it anyway. The three product in this box, were definitely a good discovery for me – or at least one of them specifically. L’Occitane vanilla hand cream is now my ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE beauty box product and I’ve even treated myself to a larger version of it. I doubt I’ll use the hairspray but hopefully I’ll definitely get around to the makeup remover.

The third box, was Cosy themed. There was an espresso cup which I won’t likely use, unless to decorate (just that I don’t drink strong coffee) and a heated wheat bag which is just perfect colours and I’m sure to get some use from. As before, I love the postcard and while I haven’t tried any of the three products yet, there are all fairly everyday basics, so I’m sure to give them a go at some point.

Finally came December’s box which was Fleur De Force and Christmas. I loved the headband that came as a present but it isn’t really my style – perhaps one of the girls will like it. All the Christmas bits included – like string and gift tags, were all used up this Christmas and I loved that some were quite girly, rather than Christmasy. Of the three products sent, I haven’t had chance to try any yet, but I’m looking forward to the L’Occitane cream, seeing what colour the lipstick is and possibly using the body lotion too (if it smells nice).

———————-

So this is my round up of all my Subscription boxes! Congratulations if you made it to the end of the post, as its taken me HOURS to write up. I have no idea what I might try out this year, but what I do know is… it will have to wait till after Florida!

Filed Under: subscription, year in review Tagged With: 2014, Birchbox, Discovery Club, geek, Glossybox, Loot Crate, My Geek Box, My Little Box, nerd, Nerd Block, subscription boxes, year round up

Hot Topic – Haul #4

December 12, 2014 by Bel Leave a Comment

Yes… yes I did. I know… I’m terrible. But at the same time, you all want to know what I got, right? Here it is! (All my other Hot Topic posts can be found here)

This is Hot Topic Haul, number 4 and for the first time, there was actually lots of stuff for me. I’ll break it down into smaller sections, so you can see what I got.

First up was some underwear.

These bra and pants come as separates, but I’m a sucker for matching sets. It’s been a long time since I treated myself to some nice underwear and as these were Disney, I thought “why not?” You may also have seen on Instagram that I got myself some Tinker Bell and Bambi matching sets from Primark too. I now have four nice pairs of underwear.

Next there is a new scarf – this time Doctor Who. I love my Disney Script one so much and I wear it all the time. This one has a nice pop of colour though, whilst still being beautiful big, soft and long. As well as the bra sets above, I got this pants set which is Harry Potter themed. I loved this pack specifically because it has one pair of Hogwarts pants, then one for Gryffindor and one for Slytherin. As I mentioned in my recent Magical Orlando Tag, I can never truly pick between the houses so I loved the idea of this pack of pants. Finally there is a little mermaid bracelet. It’s a simple metal one that reminds me of one I bought from Black Tied some time ago. Since I get a lot of wear out of that, I’m hoping the same will be said for this new one.
Finally there are some Olaf bits and pieces! And some headphones for Chris.
The Batman earbuds, as I mentioned, are for Chris – to go in his stocking. He loves Batman, DC etc and always listens to his phone on the way to and from work. As for the Olaf bits, well there’s some Sticky Notes, a lanyard and a sunglasses case. The sticky notes are either for me or my mum – to go in a stocking. The lanyard is for my mum as previously I only got her a HP lanyard and this is her Disney one. The sunglasses case is for me – for the sunglasses I got in a previous Hot Topic haul. I just loved the fact they are Olaf sunbathing, such an iconic part of his character.
So that rounds up my latest haul post and believe me when I tell you I have a whole load more stuff in my basket ready to get next time! I’m seriously addicted to Hot Topic and I really wish they’d open up over here in the UK!

Filed Under: haul Tagged With: Ariel, Batman, doctor who, frozen, geek, harry potter, Hogwarts, Hot Topic, nerd, Olaf, Rapunzel, shopping, underwear

My Geek Box (that actually belongs to Chris)

November 22, 2014 by Bel 1 Comment

Chris has had two boxes from “My Geek Box“, both of which have been a little disappointing. As such he decided to cancel, but a little too late for November’s. That means, yesterday his Geek Box arrived and of course I was there to snap a few pictures, to share them with you all. Typically, in my opinion, this is the best box so far…

As soon as Chris opened the box, my eyes went to the plush. I almost squealed, except for the fact that it doesn’t belong to me, but Chris instead!

This was the contents of the box:

  • My Geek Box magazine
  • 2000 AD magazine/comic
  • Thunderbirds shot glasses
  • Darlek plush (with noises!)
  • Red Dwarf t-shirt
  • Baker Street sign
  • Sweets called Weirds (presumably like Nerds)

Neither of the magazines are particularly exciting, though I am amused by Simon Pegg with a moustache! We quickly moved onto the rest of the box, hoping it would be better.

*SQUEAL* Seriously, I love this. It’s squidgy and cute but it talks and I especially love the fact it says “you would make a good darlek” – hell yeah I would! Chris was actually kind enough to give this to me! Although he loved it himself, he isn’t actually a Doctor Who fan, so it’s now mine. Yippee!

This is mine now too! I’m a huge Sherlock fan, though more traditionally rather than the recent BBC series or even Elementary. That said I do love the Sherlock movies that star Robert Downey Jnr – even if the second one was a bit dire. I also love London, the tube stations, the street signs etc. Chris was more than happy to gift this to me, knowing I’d love it on many levels.

How awesome are these? Thunderbirds shot glasses. This set of 5, features each number/vehicle, from the TV series Thunderbirds. They’re proper glass too. I’m not sure if they’ll ever make it out of the box but they’re pretty damn cool.

Finally, a pack of sweets – Weirds – and the obligatory t-shirt. The Weirds are Dennis the Menace themed and in a weird flavour of Strawberry and Grape. The t-shirt, by far the best of three that have arrived. is Red Dwarf themed (awesome in itself). It’s also a good design in a really decent colour!

As I said, in my opinion, this is the best box out of the three he’s had. Typical really since he’s cancelled the subscription. All of the things that came (except maybe the magazines) are pretty decent. For the first time, it actually feels like value for money – well for Chris anyway, since it was his money. I know that we’ll get use out of everything (even if only in a display sense) but finally, a decent box – YAY!

Filed Under: subscription Tagged With: baker street, darlek, doctor who, geek, My Geek Box, nerd, red dwarf, sherlock holmes, shot glasses, sweets, thunderbirds, tshirts

My Geek Box (that still isn’t mine…)

October 23, 2014 by Bel Leave a Comment

Last month I posted about Chris’ “My Geek Box” that he received. Sadly it wasn’t that great but he wanted to stick with it and see what the next month brought. On Saturday his latest box arrived and even though it was 11 o’clock at night when he get home, I quickly urged him to open it up so I could snap some pictures. Please excuse the quality of the photos, as they were taken on my phone and at night, though I did go back and take a few new ones the next day.

The box felt pretty light and I had prepared myself for it to be disappointing. I have to admit it was a better box than last month, but sadly it still wasn’t great.

The contents of the box were:

  • My Geek Box magazine
  • Jason Pop! Funko figure
  • Pumpkin Popping Candy
  • Zombi Zity figure
  • Zomblings blind bag
  • Red t-shirt
  • a poster
  • Nightmare Before Christmas magnet

I didn’t take another picture of the magazine but it was rubbish anyway. Inside was 2 pages of cosplay stuff and 4 pages of games review and basically seemed like a waste of glossy paper. However the second thing out of the box was this awesome Jason Voorhees figure. We’re getting quite a collection of Pop! Funko now and what I didn’t tell Chris when he opened this, was that I’ve also bought him the Jigsaw figure from the Saw movies, for Chritstmas. This will go awesome with this little fellow.

Popping Candy is at least better than a Twinkie, but still pretty weird. I have no idea what this pumpkin flavour will be like but it sounds pretty gross to me. Next up is the Zombie Zity figure which seems pretty pointless to me. No doubt Chris will sit him on his desk upstairs but in by opinion, just a waste of time.

Speaking of a waste of time, the Zombling blind bag was pretty pointless too. This strange looking cow thing is what came out of the bag and I see even less point to this than the Zombie Zity thing. Needless to say it’s actually in the bin now (along with the magazine coincidentally).

Couldn’t decide if last night’s picture was better or if today’s was, so posting them both. Sadly the t-shirts seems to come VERY creased but this month’s was at least a better colour than last months yellow. Chris likes it and it looks less like a tent, so that’s a plus.

This poster is pretty good but sadly its not really our style. Also, as much as its great to be sent some good prints, its often a hassle to go out and buy frames to make them look good. At our age we’re too old to be putting posters up so really it would be nice to get a canvas or something you’d be proud to place on your walls.

Finally, the only thing I really like. A Nightmare Before Christmas magnet that is now on our fridge…

Anyway, once again, its not my box so it doesn’t really matter to me – but personally I’d still have been disappointed, even though I thought it was better than last month. The Pop! Funko figure is really all that saves this box, and a marginally better t-shirt. I have no idea if Chris will continue his subscription or not but I’m definitely sticking to “My Little Box” instead of geek boxes for now.

Filed Under: subscription Tagged With: chucky, Friday 13th, geek, halloween, horror, Jason Voorhees, magnet, My Geek Box, nerd, popping candy, tshirts, zombie

My Third Loot Crate (September)

September 24, 2014 by Bel 1 Comment

Yesterday my Loot Crate arrived, this time for September. Unfortunately I missed the delivery and had to pick it up from the Sorting Office today. I was eager to see what was in my box but from the moment I picked it up, it felt very light and rattly. I took the box home and opened it up… this is what I got.

Alright, it looks like quite a lot, but sadly I was a little bit disappointed again. Luckily my rule of thumb with these subscription boxes has been three boxes and then cancel – so being my third box, this will be my last.

The contents were:
– A tribble (Star Trek) a Loot Crate exclusive apparently.
– Star Wars magnet
– Alien figure
– Science Fiction figure, blind box
– Apple Pop Rocks
– Firefly money
– Star Wars poster

I have to admit the Tribble is pretty cool. I like Star Trek and I especially like the original series. I used to have a Pygmy Puff that reminded me of a tribble, so I’m fairly pleased to have this.

A fairly random Star Wars magnet (my magnet was actually upside down and I didn’t even realise till I went to place the picture on my blog). Even Chris wasn’t too fussed about it so sadly it went in the bin.

Of all the figures available, I guess the Alien was perhaps the best pick? I’ve seen the movie(s) and I don’t mind them, but honestly I’m not at all bothered about a figure from them. I passed it on to Chris so I imagine it will join his collection of things I’ve passed his way.

My Science Fiction blind box, could have been one of several random figures – from Firefly, to Aliens, to Predator, to Tron. Out of all the 16 or so options on the side of the box, only 3 of them were things I liked. LUCKILY, by some miracle, the figure I got in my box was one I liked. Malcolm from Firefly. So I guess that’s a win?

To be absolutely honest, he doesn’t look a bit like Mal, but as Chris pointed out, the Daryl in his My Geek Box, didn’t really look like Daryl either.

Apple Pop Rocks. I like Popping Candy and I like Green Apple. These are fine though I often find putting candy in these boxes a bit random. As I’m on a diet though, I passed it on to Lily who ate the majority of it and then passed it on to Chris. This was okay though.

Firefly cash. It doesn’t really have a name I don’t think, just money from the Firefly universe. This is probably my favourite thing from the box but at the same time I’m not entirely sure what I will do with it. Sadly, geek stuff like this, without even an ornamental purpose, just gets shoved in a drawer and never really seen. Not only that, but since Chris bought the Firefly board game at LFCC, the game contains fake money – and smaller at that.

Finally, a Star Wars poster. Han Solo in carbonite. Eh… I don’t even know what I can say. It went in the bin.

So that is the contents of my last Loot Crate. Sadly I’m yet again unsatisfied with this subscription and I’m happy to cancel again. My first box was actually pretty great, with its Villain theme – there was at least a t-shirt that warranted majority of the cost I paid. My second box had a Heroes theme and while there wasn’t that much I liked in it – the Groot Funko made up majority of the cost and I loved it. So for this last box, to only have… well cheap rubbish in it really, I’m more than a little disappointed.

Anyway, that’s me done with Nerd Block and Loot Crate. I’ve also done Birchbox and Glossybox as beauty subscriptions. What will be next you ask? Well you’ll have to wait and see! I have made another subscription though, only yesterday in fact.

Filed Under: subscription Tagged With: Alien, American sweets, Firefly, geek, Loot Crate, magnet, nerd, science fiction, Star Trek, Star Wars, tribble

My Geek Box (except it isn’t actually mine!)

September 19, 2014 by Bel 2 Comments

To tell you the truth, I’m not entirely sure if this is August’s box or September’s. I remember Chris had a few problems getting it delivered, but I don’t know if its late for September or very late for August. Anyway… as you know, I’ve previously subscribed to Nerd Block and Loot Crate – two geeky box subscriptions. I’m just about to receive my third Loot Crate (I had three Nerd Blocks too) and so I’m probably due to cancel soon and find something new! My Geek Box was one I was wondering about… but in the end, Chris subscribed and so I didn’t have to!!

Chris was lured into ordering My Geek Box when it was advertised that this month’s theme was Apocalypse. Chris a big fan of zombies, Walking Dead etc. and so this was the kick he needed to sign up. As soon as his box arrived, I was quick to dive in and get some snaps, wanting to let my lovely readers know if its something you should be considering or not!!

The contents of the box were as follows:

  • World War Z book
  • Walking Dead Vinyl Figure (blind box)
  • My Geek Box magazine
  • a Twinkie
  • a glowstick
  • a t-shirt

 All in all, it doesn’t sound too bad, but in actual fact (and in my opinion), it was pretty terrible.

Sadly, and no fault of My Geek Box, Chris already owns the World War Z book (anyone want a copy?). It’s been out for a long time now and Chris has owned it well before the movie was made. Not only that, but with the movie being made, I’m sure even more copies were sold then, so really the chance of someone who is “into” an apocalypse theme, not having the book already, is pretty slim.

 

The Walking Dead figure is a blind box, so obviously no one – not My Geek Box and not you as a receiver – know what is going to be in it, until you open it. I have to admit, for me, this was the best part of the box. Partly because figures are always cool if you’re into the theme and secondly, because the figure turned out to be Daryl Dixon (and I love Daryl), Chris gave the figure to me!

The My Geek Box magazine was pretty pointless to be honest. It was about 6 pages of nothing much, majority being about some girl who did Cosplay of apocalypse type characters. The Twinkie and the Glowstick were really just random. I mean, why? Okay.. so I get that Twinkies are often mentioned as that must-have” or missed food, when the apocalypse sets in, but really? Also… glowsticks, same notion, needed in the dark etc. but still. Sad.

So finally that brings me onto the t-shirt. The design is… okay. The colour is just… well disgusting to be honest. There are very few people I know, who choose to wear yellow – certainly on a regular basis. Not only that, but the size is just HUGE. Chris did admittedly order a 2XL which is his usual size on TeeFury, Qwertee etc. but this is really just like a tent. Not only that but the print quality is poor and looks like it will wash off – its certainly not a professional looking print.

And so that is the contents of the “My Geek Box”. Honestly I am so glad that it wasn’t something I subscribed to as I would have been so disappointed. In truth, I think Chris was too, but with next months box themed “Nightmare” he’s hanging in there for a “better luck next time” type of thing. Personally, I’ve looked at the “past crates” and I’m not convinced. Sorry My Geek Box, but its just not that good.

Filed Under: subscription Tagged With: apocalypse, books, geek, Loot Crate, My Geek Box, nerd, Nerd Block, the walking dead, tshirts, zombie

Hot Topic – Want… Want… WANT List

September 12, 2014 by Bel 2 Comments

Have you ever heard of a store called Hot Topic? If not… why the hell not?! Honestly though, if you haven’t.. that’s probably for the best. I apologize in advance, if I give you a new addiction!

First of all, don’t feel too bad if you haven’t heard of Hot Topic. They are American and sadly they haven’t expanded over to the UK (yet?). They are awesomely geeky stores though so if you have a love for Disney, Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Walking Dead, Marvel and DC, gamer gear, band merch… seriously the list is endless… then you will love this shop.

Updated with new stuff, pretty much daily, the site is almost an addiction for a pop culture fan like me. Sadly, the incredibly expensive overseas postage is quite a deterrent from ordering though. The one time I visited America (New York) I actually managed to visit a Hot Topic store and I bought this amazing Gryffindor jacket (coincidentally I’m wearing it as I write this post!).

Anyway the site is awesome and I have a huge wishlist, that pretty much builds every day. From clothes, to Funko Pop figures, from necklaces, to bags – there is SO MUCH stuff I want would like.

Here are just a few of my picks.

This beautiful Beauty and the Beast, stained glass window, glass. It’s currently selling for $6.38, which is about £4. I have always loved Beauty and the Beast and Belle is by far my favourite princess. I used to have this exact design as my phone case but this glass is just amazing!

It’s always been a tough call for me, between Disney and Harry Potter so its no surprise that next on my list is something Harry Potter. This awesome Expecto Patronum necklace is only $9.38 (approximately £7) and even though its gold, I’d still love it!

I originally had my eye on a Beauty and the Beast dress but its been and gone sadly. I’m not entirely sure what it is about this dress (as I’m not especially into Maleficent, though she is kickass) but it just calls to me. It retails at $25.88 (about £16) and I certainly won’t be buying it until I’ve slimmed down somewhat!

This Doctor Who TARDIS Shower Rack is just my kind of thing. Hand on heart, I wouldn’t actually use it in the shower, probably put it near the door for keys, envelopes etc. but I love it. However at $37.13 (£23) its one of the most expensive things on my wish list.

There are loads more things I’d love, majority are Disney or after that Harry Potter. Honestly if I lived in the US, or if postage overseas were cheaper, I’d probably be flat broke (so I should be grateful for that at least). Hot Topic is such a great store and I’m sure it will have be lusting after their stuff for the rest of my life! If you dare, check it out.

Filed Under: wish list Tagged With: beauty and the beast, clothes, Disney, doctor who, geek, harry potter, Hot Topic, jewellery, nerd, shopping

My Second Loot Crate Box (August)

August 30, 2014 by Bel Leave a Comment

So its that time of the month again, where my big box of geek arrives on the door step. If you read my blog regularly, you’ll know that I initially started my geeky delivery, by signing up to Nerd Block. However after 3 deliveries, I cancelled and started up a Loot Crate subscription. My first delivery was “Villains” and this month is “Heroes”. This is what I got!

As you can see, I got quite an assortment! My favourite by far is the “Groot” from Funko. At the time the box arrived, I hadn’t actually seen Guardians of the Galaxy, but now I have and I love Groot. There was also a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle figure, presumably in lieu of the new movie coming out – a Chimichango’s magnet – some lightning shoe accessories from Shwings – a Mega Man car air freshener – and finally some TMNT sunglasses, which Chris kindly modeled for me!

As with all the geeky boxes I’ve received so far, some of the stuff is great and some of it I just don’t know what to do with. Groot will join my growing collection of “Funko” toys and the glasses will no doubt go into the fancy dress – but the rest? I’m not sure. I do think these boxes are great and with regard to value for money, they are very good. However my problem is that on a regular basis, you can’t always guarantee that all subscribers like everything. Usually I justify the money because included in the boxes is a t-shirt. This usually covers the value I would spend and therefore the rest doesn’t really matter. This time, Groot pretty much covers the cost of the box (plus he’s a Loot Crate exclusive that you can’t get anywhere else) but I was disappointed there was no t-shirt. What do you do with the things you don’t want? Pass them on to a good home? Save them for a Christmas or Birthday gift for someone who will like it? Throw it in the bin?

My search for the perfect Geek box will continue, but there will be one more Loot Crate unveil to come, before I move on to whatever comes next!

Filed Under: subscription Tagged With: August, Chimichango's, geek, Groot, Guardians of the Galaxy, Heroes, Loot Crate, Mega Man, nerd, shoes accessories, shwings, sunglasses, TMNT

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Hi, my name is Bel!


I’m a forty something, mother of two, self-confessed geek!

Here on my blog you’ll find;
books I’ve read, clothes I’ve made, movies I’ve watched, cakes I’ve baked, products I’ve tried, places I’ve been, pictures I’ve taken… plus lots and lots of DISNEY!!

I’m a lifestyle blogger – covering a little of everything I love <3

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