EPBOT

This is a red letter day to be a geek, guys!

First, check out the first sneak peek of Martin Freeman as Bilbo from The Hobbit, just released by Peter Jackson through Entertainment Weekly!

WOOHOOO!! And I know we've all said it from the beginning, but Martin really is perfect as Bilbo. (Is it 2012 yet??)

And next, fellow Harry Potter fans, have you heard about Pottermore? Here's J.K. Rowling's big announcement, which just released today:

And since that's a bit vague, here are a few details courtesy of the Leaky Cauldron:



And from the official press release:

I scraped out the green dots & popped out the green sections on the hands with the point of a craft knife:


Oh, and lest you think I sacrificed a perfectly good ring, that's it there. As you can (kind of) see, I removed the crystals in a flower pattern, so I think it actually looks better now than it did when I first bought it. A win-win!


The clock is sitting, ticking, beside my keyboard as I type this. I find the ticking kind of soothing, but it drives John bonkers. (A win-win-win?) :D


Important Safety Update: Thanks to dmontag in the comments, I was reminded that old clocks often made use of radium paint on their dials, which is harmful. We didn't *think* this one was old enough, but just to be sure we opened it up and found it was made in the early 70s. (From what I can tell, radium dials tapered out in the '50s.) If you have an old clock or watch with glow-in-the dark detailing on it, go here to learn more about the dangers of radium paint - and PLEASE don't go scratching it off like I did on this one. o.0

I actually used to hate antique stores, and antiques by association. There was just something about all that musty, uncomfortable furniture, the shelves and shelves of don't-touch crystal, the creepy toys... and why the heck was everything covered in doilies?

Actually, come to think of it, I still hate most of that stuff.

:D

Still, over the years I've learned to love antique stores. Maybe it's because I'm getting so old that there are toys *I* grew up with in them (well hello, Mr. Glo Worm!), or because I realized they're like museums where you can touch stuff (except that crystal, of course) or - dingdingding! - because I'm now a bit of a steampunk devotee. Oh, and can't forget all the gaudy vintage jewelry! Man, I love that stuff. The more sparkle, the better.

Of course, my favorite kinds of antique shops are the cheap and junky ones. Don't show me beautifully preserved tchotchkes, each displayed in its own spotlight - show me the tables of ancient mishmash I can dig through! I want stuff I can fix up, re-use, and get creative with.

Which isn't to say I don't drool over finds like this, though:



Anyway, so last week John and I took some friends to our favorite antique mall, and this is what I came home with:

Anyone else remember these? I used to play with Kermit and his skateboard on my desk at school. Something reminded me of it a few weeks ago, so when I spotted Fozzie here (unopened!) in a pile of toys at one of the stalls there was much rejoicing. And squeeing.

Of course, now you know I have to find the rest of the Muppet Babies set, right? (And eventually I'll break down and take Fozzie out of the bag, but I'm going to feel really guilty when I do. Heh.)

So, have I convinced anyone to go antiquing? And am I invited when you go?

Remember that old radio cabinet John and I purchased way back when? Well, we finally dragged it out of the garage about two weeks ago, and have been working on both restoring and steampunking it out ever since.

Here's what it looked like, fresh from the antique mall:

As you can see, the only real damage was to the speaker grill, where a few pieces of the lattice design were broken off.

The radio itself was long gone, with the guts and knobs removed:


This would actually make a beautiful shelving unit by itself, but there was no way I wasn't using that gorgeous center panel. So, we set about repairing it.

First, John carefully pried up the center speaker grill, which was nailed in place with tiny pin nails:




The Dremel takes off tiny, tiny bits at a time, so it's very dusty and very slow going - but that also gives you a lot of control, which is good.

Here are my patches after carving:

I won't lie to you: I am extremely proud of these patches. I'd only used the epoxy putty this way once before (on a project I'll feature here later), and I've never carved anything before, so this was both a learning experience and a ton of fun.

Next I used acrylic craft paints to apply a dark faux wood grain over the patches:



Of course, the irony here is that I spent two or three days working on something that no one will ever notice - and that's the whole point. Heh.

Next I'll be showing off the fun, electrical, steampunky features we're adding to our radio cabinet, so stay tuned for those!

Oh, and in case you have something that needs patching, here's the epoxy putty I use. It's about $6 from Amazon, or you can find it at your local hardware store. And believe me, once you start using this stuff, you'll be in love. Just be sure to wear gloves, or you'll be picking concrete bits off your skin for a week. (Heed my voice of experience!)


So tell me, guys, what's your favorite crafty secret weapon? Any tools or products I should know about?

Ok, so this is actually from last year (how did I miss it?) and isn't particularly geeky or girly, but it's perfect for today and made me laugh:

Oh, and if you haven't seen Sunday Sweets yet today, you might like my tribute to all dads - but mostly mine - over there. In addition to the jaw-dropping cakes, I share a few of the reasons I became the geek girl I am today, thanks to my Dad.

Plus you'll learn my childhood nickname and the names of our pet miniature goats.

Not to mention the fact that we had pet miniature goats. Heh.