Baby Thor, Haunted Mansion Minis, & The Basement Of Every Trekkie/Whovian's Dreams

I don't know about you, but I've been leaning HARD on my favorite creators and fan pages lately to save me from doom scrolling. I've joined more fan groups on Facebook, watched a lot of Rachel Maksy on Youtube, and even convinced John to join me on TikTok, where we obsess over synchronized roller skating and sea shanties. Oh yeah. Gimmie all that beautiful randomness.

Sure, it's the ostrich approach to dealing with... ::gestures vaguely:: ... but at this point I've determined every non-destructive coping mechanism is valid. A better time is coming, we just have to hang on 'til it gets here.

So in that spirit, and for my fellow ostriches, here come some of my favorite finds and follows to interrupt YOUR doom scrolling.

*****

As always, The Replica Prop Forum is THE page to follow if you like anything geeky. It's a smorgasbord of smiles, like this: 

 Speak softly and carry a big hammer. Also wear a cape. Unless Edna Mode is around.

The RPF is also where I found Todd Pineapple Spann, who's been building something incredible in his basement for over 2 years. I've been eagerly waiting for him to finish so I could show you all, and happily for all of us, this week it's finally done!

Behold!

It's 8 minutes long, but you keep seeing new stuff the whole way through, I promise. Plus time flies when you're drooling on the keyboard. :p This was just the mini vacation from reality I needed when it came out earlier this week. Dang.

Also to whom it may concern:

Todd, I don't know you, but with this crowd that basement will at LEAST get you a first date.

*****

You know those things from your childhood that always makes you smile? For me one of those are the original Care Bears illustrations. I can't get enough of that pastel 80s style art. So last week I joined the Care Bears Forever in the Kingdom Of Caring group on FB to get pretties like this in my feed:

EEEEE! It's just so darn cute.

The group also posts toys for sale or trade, which can be a nice trip down memory lane. In fact I've joined a couple of toy groups, both for the nostalgia and to see peoples' collection photos, which are super addicting. Some give me great display ideas, too:

Facebot Smile Roundup

More goodies from the Epbot & Fans of Epbot Facebook pages!

Brittany P.'s Doctor Who bath makeover made me do a double-take. Here's her "Before"

 And the "After:"

Really digging the teal and that grey tile! Only, look closer:

 

 The "tile" is actually painted brick paneling! Brittney tells me she was inspired by our painted brick tutorial for the steampunk room. I can't get over how much it looks like glass subway tile!

Remember when I talked about all the Rainbow Brite stuff at Hallmark? 

Haha! Awwww. DO GO ON.

 Speaking of rainbows, prepare to squee over Cheryl G's rainbow Toothless mobile!

Cheryl's mom sewed these for her using this PDF pattern from Etsy.

In fact, her whole nursery is dragon themed, and she has a print of the baby Toothless John commissioned from our friend Nathan, right behind the crib!

This picture makes me so happy.

More Doctor Who goodness: Kari Ann salvaged the backing from a broken dresser mirror, and turned it into a TARDIS headboard!

It even lights up!

I'll let her explain the deets:

Check out the fab details in her paint job:

WOWIE. And I love that the windows glow in the dark.

Here's a shiny ray gun I forgot to post last time:

And Erin's Stay Puft baby, because the world needs more Stay Puft babies:

Yes, Erin, yes she is.

And since this post already has a Doctor Who theme going, let's end with Debra here:

You guys, she was inspired by my mom!
You better believe I sent this over to Mom the second I saw it.

I get e-mails and letters from Epbot fans ranging from ages 9-90, and I'm not sure anything makes me prouder than knowing our geeky community welcomes them all. In fact, just a few days after Debra posted that, another reader named Donna posted a message on Fans of Epbot that included this snippet:

YES.

Our little Fans of Epbot tribe is growing, btw (I think they've settled on "Facebots?"), and I'm impressed with how thoroughly you guys distract me from getting any work done through the week. The discussions and silliness and pictures and advice and general cheering-each-other-on - plus now there's a plush "Squee-bot" traveling the globe visiting readers?! - is like a virtual version of the geeky commune I once wished for. Good stuff. Gold medals for everyone.

Finally, regarding the things I share here: if it's posted on Fans of Epbot - which is a private group to facilitate real talk - I ask permission first. If you share on the public Epbot page, though, then I'll take that as tacit permission to share your project pics and whatnot here on the blog. (Don't worry; if it's something super personal I'll still double check, though.)

And please DO keep sharing your stories and projects, peeps! They make me happy. :D

BOO!!

Since Facebook changed the Page format again, I can't "highlight" your posts on the Epbot page anymore, which makes it a lot harder to share all the fun photos and links you guys post there.

SO... here's a little something that brightened my Sunday:

I get a lot of amazing costume photos from you guys, but Caitlin's Weeping Angel inspired me. So, a few minutes of photo editing later...

This is one of those times when low lighting actually helps - yay for extra creepiness!!

Thanks so much to Caitlin for sharing! (And keep an eye on her blog for more details, which I hear are coming soon!) Maybe I'll have to start featuring some of my favorite FB posts every now and then, just so the rest of you won't miss out.

Oh, and by the way...

YOU BLINKED.

Happy 50th, Doctor Who!

When I was little my parents brought me and my brother to our very first convention. The only convention, in fact, that we've ever been to all together as a family: the Doctor Who USA Tour.

via ebay

(We had this mug for most of my life; my parents report it finally broke just a few years ago.)

I remember the full size TARDIS control room (built on the back of a truck, like those mobile blood units) with all its buttons and knobs that I was encouraged to play with. I also remember John Pertwee (Doctor #3) ruffling my hair and saying something kind.

But mostly I remember a show we watched as a family, and characters we grew to love. Characters who made us laugh and sometimes cry, who inspired loyalty and justice and kindness to all creatures. (And who also fought some of the goofiest monsters this side of classic Star Trek.)

My parents still watch all the new episodes, but I admit I haven't followed the reboot very well.  I have no doubt I'm going to brave the heartache and catch up eventually, though, because this is a show near and dear to my geeky little heart.

So today, when John and I go out with friends, I'm wearing this pin:

 

 My father kept it all these years, and then kindly let me steal it. :) It's a shame it's yellowed so much; I really like the old logo's colors.

And if a fellow Whovian spots it, I know we're going to share a smile - and I might end up gushing about that time my favorite Doctor gave me a side hug again. (Nope. STILL NOT OVER IT.)

Happy Birthday, Doctor.

****

What's your favorite Doctor Who memory, guys? Tell me your stories in the comments!

Friday Folderol

HEEEEY YOOOU GUUUUYSS!!

Happy Friday!

I've been a bit scattered this week, flitting from one project to the next, so allow me to dump some of my various and unrelated goodies on you:
 
First, add one more cutie to my newborn photography portfolio:

This is Caleb, my good friend (and wrecky minion) Julianne's newborn son. He was actually born Halloween night, and I took this photo when he was 5 or 6 days old. He was not a happy model, though, so I only got a handful of smiley peaceful images from our two hour session - and this is my favorite, because BATMAN HAT.


Yesterday John and I went to our annual viewing of the Festival of Trees at our local art museum. (SO. MANY. SPARKLIES.) I should be posting my favorites soon, but in the mean time, here's an ornament closeup I've been playing with:

I'm not sure I'll make it to Thanksgiving before breaking out one of the trees, either. Urge to decorate... OVERWHELMING.

Ahem.

In honor of tomorrow's Doctor Who special:

These ladies are ROCKING IT.
You can see more pics of them at Fashionably Geek!

I of course (of course!) have been playing the new BioShock DLC, Burial at Sea, but I've only found a few hours for it so far.  Even on "easy" the combat seems a lot harder than I remember, but the new Old Man Winter vigor is pretty cool. [pun intended]

The story is... well, confusing, but so was the first one. Parts of it feel a little TOO pandering, though, like when a random stranger calls Elizabeth "little Songbird." I think I'm only halfway through, though, so no official judgements yet. (Besides, if you're as much of an Infinite fan as I am, then of COURSE you have to play this.)

This week John and I finished all the MLP episodes Netflix has on streaming, PLUS all of the Phineas & Ferb ones, which we've been watching for ages. Guess we need a new cartoon now! Any suggestions? (I've already watched Avatar - and loved it. I wish they'd add the new TMNT series to streaming; I really want to see that!)

And finally, because it's Friday and this post just isn't random enough, allow me to introduce you to John's new favorite Youtube musicians: two guys who play in a pizza parlor in Salt Lake City:

John listens to their videos every week while he's moving Sunday Sweets over to SquareSpace (we write everything in Blogger, then copy posts over to SS), so now he's gotten me hooked. John's even half-jokingly suggested a road trip to go see them, since Salt Lake was one of our favorite stops on our last book tour. Not gonna lie: tempted.

Oh, and if you like that, then go listen to this one next. WOW. John played it for me last night, and I had to stop what I was doing and just listen. It's distractingly beautiful.


I hope to have a fun crafty project for you next, but 'til then, have a great weekend, guys!


PS - I always forget to mention it, but I also post lots of my favorite geeky finds on Pinterest & Facebook! So if you're looking for more goodies you can't find here on the blog, give those a follow!

Saturday Steam 9/15/12

You guys, I've decided I need to learn leather-working. And yes, Emily L.'s sending me a link to these amazing steampunk bags MIGHT have had something to do with it:

Awwwwesome. These are by Iza of Iza's Art Shop over on DeviantArt, but lucky for us some of them are available on her Etsy shop.

I don't see that style listed right now, but this next one is!

 $139 on her Etsy shop

Oh, and remember how I talked about making a hip bag that hangs from a belt by two straps? Well, check this action out:

 Those clips are genius: you can add a strap, or clip them to your belt loops! (Or make smaller straps to hang off your belt.) So cool!

Hit the links up there to shop, gawk or both.


Next up, Erick H. found the most astounding reproduction light bulbs:

These are from Ferrowatt Productions, which sells more styles of old-fashioned filament bulbs than I've ever seen. That one on the right is called the "Ball-O'-Fire," and I totally want one. Or maybe a dozen. (Hit the link to see a vid of it in action - flickery goodness!) Of course, you have to "request a quote" for all of Ferrowatt's bulbs, so I'm pretty sure that means I can't afford 'em. Poo.


For you Whovians out there, Norma E. spotted a fantastic steampunk sonic screwdriver:

Made by Danny Ashby of Outland Armour

And while we're at it, how about a steampunk K-9?

 Desiree spotted this delightful "K-1889" by James Richardson-Brown, and when I went to grab the link to his gallery, I found he'd made a gold and black version, too!


I stumbled across Nerfenstein Blaster Mods & Props by way of SuperPunch, and this gamer girl is my newest hero. In addition to making amazing homage blasters to games like BioShock and Portal, she also has a healthy steampunk obsession. Check out this Tesla she made, inspired by H.G. of Warehouse 13:

 Gooorgeous. 

You can see more at her site (link above) or her DeviantArt page.


And finally, the original steampunk computer guy himself, Datamancer, has made a new laptop that goes beyond breathtaking:

Would you believe this is a laptop?? (Don't worry, I didn't either, at first!)

WHOAH.

If you've never seen Datamancer's other work, do yourself a favor and go check out his site. (If you've ever drooled over a steampunk keyboard, odds are he made it.) I still have a less-than-half-done keyboard tucked away inspired by his work, but if I ever win the lotto I'm totally commissioning one from the master. :)


Seen something steamy this week? Then show me the goodness! Link me up in the comments or over on Facebook!

Timey-Wimey Doctor Who Quiet Book

BB was inspired by that adorable Star Trek Quiet Book that went viral some months back to make a Doctor Who version for her two-year-old son. A few months and a lot of stitching later, BB's got one heckuva fabulous, timey-wimey book!

The yarn tentacles are genius.

Yeah, what IS hiding in K-9, BB? Your blog doesn't say!

Pose? I'd be making him dance!

And finally, this page wins both "Most Terrifying" and "Most Hilarious":

AAAUGH!!

We can only hope BB's son isn't too traumatized. Ha!

Head over to BB's Tumblr to see the rest of the pages - there's a Dalek "Accessorize" page, mkay? You want to see this. And a huge thank you to BB for sharing the fun!

(Oh, and BB? Please, get some watermarks on these images, STAT. I predict it's going to be everywhere online soon, and I'd hate to see you not get full credit!)

Jen's Gems 8/3/12

Jessica H. e-mailed to thank me for my geek cred post last week, and mentioned in passing that she recently did a "Super Space Geek Bedroom" for her 4-year-old son. Naturally, I had to check this out.

Behold!!

And, you guys! LOOK AT THE CLOSET!

A glowing Death Star beside a TARDIS closet. Be still, my heart. 

Head over to Jessica's blog for lots more great detail shots (I love that nightstand!) and even a tutorial for the TARDIS closet.

Elizabeth J. found the sweetest Star Wars art card for her living room, and I'm especially loving the fact that it only costs two bucks. Check it out:

The back reads, "The mission was to bring down the rebel’s shield generator, not fall in love." Hee! You can get yours at the UglyBaby Etsy store.

You know you've made it in the world when someone uses you as an answer in Draw Something, right?

 

WOOOHOOO! Thanks, Sarah A.! And great job! 

You fellow Dizgeeks are gonna flip for these behind-the-scenes photos of the latest Annie Liebovitz portraits for Disney:

 I love stuff like this! (Found via SuperPunch)

And here's the finished version with Jack Black, Will Ferrell, and Jason Segel:

(Is it weird that I like the poses from the candid picture better? Especially for Will and Jason.) 

And now, some random hilarity that John made me watch yesterday: a professional actor reading a Yelp review. It's a little strange, but you have to watch the whole 90 seconds - it gets absolutely hysterical by the one minute mark:

:D

Jen's Gems 7/6/12

Oh, this? This is just a wedding bouquet made from a sonic screwdriver and pages from a Sherlock Holmes story. No biggie.

(via BoingBoing)

[Kermit flail] AAAIIEEIII!!

Plus, I saw someone suggest making one with a lightsaber. BRILLIANT!

Yet another reason why I need to learn wiring and Arduino and whatnot:

The folks over at adafruit technologies posted a tutorial for building your own time circuit clock! I have that exact same Delorean model on my desk, too. Only now it looks lonely without a time circuit next to it.  (via NerdApproved)


I haven't done a jewelry post in a while, so...how perfect are these white rabbit cameo earrings?!

They're only about $8 over on Etsy (shipping from England not included) - and while I guess they're not necessarily Alice in Wonderland earrings, that's all I can think of when I look at them. Can't you just imagine some adorable Lolita-style Alice wearing them?

I'm slowly going through the process of changing all my office art frames from black to white. I love the cleaner look, but getting new mats and painting all the frames and then re-framing every. single. piece. is taking sooo much longer than I expected. I'm roughly halfway there, and hating the chaos, but when I see something like this I remember what I'm striving for:


How great is that display?! Grouping by color on a mostly-white background gives the whole space such a bright and modern look - exactly what I'm hoping to cobble together in my own art-packed office.  (That's the home of graphic designer Sarah Harvey, btw; Etsy did a spotlight on her home [with lots of great photos] here.)

I do have one tiny half-wall done in my office, so when I'm feeling overwhelmed I just turn my chair around and stare at this for a few minutes:

Ahhhh. Soon *all* my walls will look this good.

I hope. ;)

(See my Dan Aykroyd print up there? I finally got it framed!)

And finally, I've never seen Peter Davison (my first & favorite Doctor) in person before, so I was beyond delighted when Colin Ferguson (of Eureka) tweeted this video of the two of them and Gareth David Lloyd (of Doctor Who & Torchwood) doing a Q&A at a convention last weekend:

And since John and I have been watching Eureka every night for the past few weeks, it was doubly delightful. If you want a fun way to kill an hour, definitely watch the whole thing. Personally, I'm now convinced that these are three of the coolest/nicest guys on the planet, and I'm desperately jealous of everyone who was there. (Oh, and the things in the little plastic cup are jello shots. Clearly this was a very fun con. Ha!)

Here's a photo Colin tweeted earlier of him and Davison at the same con:

That's all for now! As always, if you have something fun to share, hit me up on Facebook, Twitter, or e-mail!