July
17
July
17
Wizard Plushie Pals
Because the Snape Potter Puppet Pal just wasn’t enough to satisfy my craving for magical fleece, I found another project for you: “Wizard” Plushie Pals by SaintAngel on Etsy.
They remind me of soft Weeble Wobbles!
Apparently SaintAngel is concerned about a call from the Ministry of Magic, Office of Copywriting Enchantments, because her plushies are named Henry, Ryan, Henrietta and the Great Bumblefloor. But perhaps you can use a diving spell to figure out who they really are.
Looks like have featured SaintAngel’s work before – check out this post on Spike the Dinosaur!
LINKS OF INTEREST:
- Wizards plushie set
- SaintAngel’s store on Etsy
- More Harry Potter posts on GeekCrafts
July
15
Harry Potter Friday Roundup
Well, it’s finally here. The END, I mean. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part II has launched and with it we here at GeekCrafts bring you an entire week of Harry Potter themed posts. Let’s start things off with a roundup, shall we?
Remember the “Whereabouts Clock” that Mrs. Weasley used to magically keep track of her various family members? Most often they would be at home, work, or traveling, though there were occasional brushes with “mortal peril”, as well. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could use your loved ones’ Twitter feeds to track their whereabouts? With your own Magic Clock, you can!
One of the more interesting side characters is Luna Lovegood. She’s so quirky and more than a little odd, but has a good heart. She also has a unique fashion sense. Channel a little Luna with this pretty crochet scarf from Sabina24 on Etsy. Also check out this lacy Luna scarf pattern from Melissa Helton on Craftster.
This Instructables tutorial shows you how to convert old encyclopedias into Hogwart’s style spellbooks.
The “Daily Prophet” doesn’t just tell you the latest news in the wizarding world, it shows you – complete with moving pictures. Create your own digital moving pictures with this tutorial from Photojojo.
Not everything in Harry Potter’s world is sparkly magical fun. There are Death Eaters, and they aren’t very nice. For those days when you feel a little “not nice” yourself, perhaps you should don your own Death Eater Mask. You can also make your own version of Bellatrix’s Death Eater Mask.
In his first game of Quidditch, Harry had a heck of a time catching his first Golden Snitch. Perhaps this origami Golden Snitch will be easier for you to get your hands on.
Hopefully you have heard of the insanely popular and highly amusing Potter Puppet Pals. If not, go watch some videos, then come back, because you’ll definitely want to make your own crochet Potter Puppet Pal finger puppets, thanks to a free pattern from Melissa at Inner Child Crochet.
Speaking of PPP, check out this fantastic Snape puppet-plushie on Craftster! Doncha just wanna cozy up to it?
Another interesting side character is Mad Eye Moody. I would LOVE to read some backstory on him! Maybe Pottermore will provide that? Until then, maybe I’ll just have to stitch up this fabulous Mad Eye-patch from Kelly on Ravelry. There’s also a tutorial for a more realistic Mad Eye on Instructables.
And finally, we’ll wrap up this week’s roundup with some spellcasting. One of the more commonly used spells is “Lumos”. But what good is that spell if your wand doesn’t light up? Enter DadCanDo‘s tutorial on how to make a wand that lights up!
What other Harry Potter crafts have you seen or tried yourself? Feel free to Submit a GeekCraft to let us know!
LINKS OF INTEREST:
- The Magic Clock
- Luna Lovegood scarf #1
- Luna Lovegood scarf #2
- Hogwarts’ Spellbook
- Harry Potter Moving Pictures tutorial
- Death Eater Mask downloadable art kit
- Bellatrix’s Death Eater Mask
- Origami Golden Snitch
- Potter Puppet Pals
- Potter Puppet Pals crochet finger puppets pattern
- Snape Potter Puppet Pal plushie
- Crochet Mad Eye patch
- Realistic Mad Eye patch
- LED light up magic wand
- More Harry Potter crafts on GeekCrafts
July
14
Revenge of the Nerds Cake
“Come on Gilbert, let’s go to college!”
If you haven’t seen Revenge of the Nerds–shame on you! Bad geek! Stop reading and go watch it right now! Wait, scratch that. Finish reading this and then go watch it immediately after!
I was watching this comedic master-piece today, and thinking about cake, knowing I had a post due here, I turned to Google, to see if anyone had managed to combine these two wonderful and amazing things–and someone did. This is a Revenge of the Nerds Cake by Claude I stumbled across on Cake Central. I just love it.
July
13
Movie Review: Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon
Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon (2011)
Director: Michael Bay
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Josh Duhamel,Tyrese Gibson and John Turturro
Voice actors: Peter Cullen, Hugo Weaving, and Leonard Nimoy
157 min
Rated PG13
You might think that crazy-awesome special effects, a pulsing soundtrack and GIANT FIGHTING ROBOTS would be enough to guarantee an summer blockbuster. And you’d be correct – in terms of box office sales. In fact, Transformers 3 is currently the 47th highest grossing movie of all time.
But if you think the same formula would guarantee a movie worth 2-1/2 hours of your time…not necessarily.
The latest installment in the movie series based on Hasbro’s toy line of yore, Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon, has all the elements of a sure-fire Hollywood hit. Tested director of notable action movies like Armageddon & Pearl Harbor, Michael Bay? Check. Fan-boy favorite producer, Steven Spielberg? Check. Score by Steve Jablonsky, composer of the two previous Transformers film scores? Check. Voluptuous love interest? Check. Mighty morphin’ robots in disguise? Check.
Strong storyline told in logical progression…not so much.
Don’t get me wrong – I know that any Transformers movie is not exactly meant to have an Oscar-worthy script. I’m not expecting rich character development, or to be able to relate to the story on a deeply personal level. I know it’s a summer blockbuster that’s meant to be eye candy. And on that criteria, the movie did deliver. The transformation from vehicle to robot was as flawless as in the previous movies, with all the whirling cogs & gizmos, and usually while in motion. Visually stunning.
But the story seemed all over the place. It was like they just thought up a bunch of scenes, filmed them, and just threw them together. It felt very abrupt and disjointed, and was generally distracting, even with the impressive special effects.
Also distracting was the newly-introducted love interest – Rosie Huntington-Whiteley took over for Megan Fox in this installment. Her role was completely gratuitous to the story, though perhaps that’s to be expected, too, especially after the first two movies. Giant robots and a pretty girl, and fanboys are typically content. (oh I’m sorry, did my bitter resentment show?)
That said, a delightful surprise (for me) was the voice acting by Leonard Nimoy (need I say he played Spock in “Star Trek“?), and the “sidekick” part by Alan Tudyk (“Wash” from “Firefly“) as a rather flamboyant German assistant. So there was a little something for the geek girls – at least THIS geek girl. ;)
Overall, I’d say Transformers 3 is a renter, if anything.
LINKS OF INTEREST:
July
12
Tutorial Tuesday: Colour Changing Drinks
This is a must for any of you who are having a Harry Potter movie party.
However you’re preparing for the return of your favourite wizard, whether it’s having an epic 6 movie marathon, getting dressed up, or reading one of the books to your kids (friends/dog?). You can really add a touch of the supernatural to it by serving up some magical colour changing drinks.