Geek Chic Guide - Derby Girls

'Derby Girls Rock my World!' by NerdJerk

I've got a wicked obsession with all things Roller Derby. Not-so-secretly crushing on the idea of being a full-blown Derby Girl is one of my specialties! Here's some rad gear that makes me wanna buy that first pair of skates and rock out!

skatesnouts $20.00	janinebasil $23.00	SnapDragonStyl... $32.00	knickerockerol... $20.00
Whiskey7Art $5.00	BLSoaps $9.95	ravishingjane $19.99	BlackfinGraphi... $2.99
smallfly $22.00	cupcaketree $9.00	whimsyandink $18.00	missfancypants... $29.00
beepart $12.00	amepix $6.00	SkateLove $22.00	CausticThreads $17.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

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I'm pretty sure of a few things in life... and one of those truths is that "We are all geeks about SOMETHING!"

Whereas I've never been too ashamed of my geekiness (heck - it's how I make a livin'! Thank you, loyal fans!), I do have a long-standing secret crush & embarrassing point of shame about said secret.

Awesome starter skates that I've been
eyeing since before Maker Faire 2011.
On SALE for $144.99 USD
RollerSkateNation

SECRET CRUSH is...

I wanna be a bad-ass derby girl!!! RAWR! :)

SECRET SHAME is... 

 I am totally afraid of skating. :(

Okay, okay! I can hear you all the way from over here!

• "What's WRONG with you?" 
• "How could you wanna be a derby girl and not be willing to suck it up and get a little beat up?" 
• "There's no way you'd make it as a bad-ass. Better stick to yarn!" 

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And you know what? Part of that might be right! But not all of it. So to answer your (*ahem* hypothetical) questions:

• Nothing is truly wrong with me other than:

1. I was traumatized by roller blades as a young child. Take 9 y.o. girl with poor balance, add roller blades, a rope, a bike and some sugar-crazed kid pulling you along downhill on asphalt. Marinate for almost 20 years. Serve.
2. I'm the heaviest I've ever been in my life & as other types of physical exercise leave little to be desired, the prospect of derby gets my blood going!
3. Roller Blades are not Roller Skates.Roller skates have the potential to hold more weight at a better distribution. And possibly go slower... down hills?

Roller Derby Poster by Whiskey7Art - $5 USD on Etsy

• Dude - although I've got these extra pounds and gimpy crochetitized wrists, I'm willing to make it happen. I just need to get that first pair of skates. I suppose I can *grow* a pair while I'm savin' to buy a pair.
• I will stick to yarn, but I'll do you one better. I'll make my own bad-ass derby gear. ;) Being a hookin' baller has it's perks.

That being said, I ended up getting an email from Erica of Derby Girls Blog about possibly doing some advertising on their site. As I've yet to fully invest myself into the derby culture, I don't know if I would quite fit in very well. But it still got me thinkin' about how much I love the culture! Which led me to looking at my favourites on Etsy! Which led to a treasury! Which is what today's Geek Chic Guide is all about!

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What activities have you just been dying to try out?!

Have you gone for it yet? If not, what's holdin' you back?

Vlog #2 - Living the Life of Nerdity

A young Steph Cortes, nerding out over
generic brand crayons. I still get that crazy
look in my eyes when I see bright colours!

Trust me, you don't get to call yourself the Master of Geekery without earning it somehow! And while I may not have earned it conventionally through hardcore Nintendo Entertainment System gaming at the age of 2 in 1985, I believe that I have indeed willingly participated in enough button-mashing marathons (with minimum tours in D&D campaigns as a blood-thirsty ninja) to have been awarded the right to an MFA in Nerdity.

That being said, I thought I would take this opportunity to show my followers a little more about what my day to day life looks like, starting with a tour of my bedroom.

Not that it's that kinda tour, but more of a peek into a little of the "hoarder-like madness" behind the curtain of kawaii plush at nerd JERK.

DISCLAIMER: This video may be a bit overwhelming to librarians and retail craft store sales associates, as it may trigger flashbacks of previous stressful workplace environments. Proceed with caution.

from Steph Cortes @ nerdJERK on Vimeo.

I love colour! And I love crayons! :D

My severe love for crayons has never died. In fact, with time, it has only grown stronger.

I guess that's why I have such an obsession with things that bring back nostalgia. When forced to deduce my brand into a few sentences today, all I could come up with was:

nerd JERK aims to excite your inner geek with a love for all that is old-school & retro! 

And really... what more is there for me to say?!

Tell me a little bit about what makes you feel like a geek!

I  know I can't be the only one enjoying making plush typewriters, smelling the pages of old books and occassionaly bustin' out that 64 pack of Crayolas. :)

nerd JERK First Vlog

The fact that I'm vlogging right now is probably a sign that the universe has made it easy enough for preschoolers to make movies.

And yet, I encourage you to take a few minutes and watch this, cos it's got some important news about some changes at nerd JERK... along with a whole lot of other stuff that isn't quite as important. 

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However, I would like to take a moment to say that this latest venture into the blogosphere was made possible by the following sponsors:

I got an email on day from Tammy George at PuNk rAwK pUrL with a link to her newest vlog. Although she'd sent it along with a cute joke about her looking like a frog in the screenshot (not true, BTW), I saw the instant connection that can be made with peeps over the internets once you can hear and see them.

Tammy did her vlog in answer to a conversation on My Girl Thursday's blog, in which she's been giving away items (giveaway ends today at 11:59 PM) in celebration of her blog recently reaching 1,000 followers! :D She's now well into the 1,100s, but that's totally reason to celebrate! She had a few questions that were posed on her blog that seemed to inspire answers in their video bloggin'! So, like Tammy, I was inspired to do the same. Check out the questions below the video.

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Steph's First Vlog 
from Steph Cortes @ nerdJERK on Vimeo.

PSST! Here were the questions I couldn't remember on the 4th take of this video:

1.Do you have a middle name?

2. What was your favourite subject in school?

3. What's your favourite drink?

4. Favourite song at the moment?

5. What would you name your children?

6. Do you participate in any sports?

7. Favourite Book?

8. Favourite Colour?

9. Favourite Animal?

10. Favourite perfume?

Image c/o Madame Scodioli

Solid Perfume mentioned in this vlog:

Madame Scodioli's

EUPHORIUM 

$12 USD

Possibly the greatest perfume I've EVER worn. Lovely notes of almond, milk & honey mingle & melt on your skin to leave you smelling of some sort of dreamy marzipan! YUM!

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And who knows... maybe I'll post some outtakes of the first couple of versions of this once I figure out how to do video editing on my iPad. But until then, I'm afraid you're stuck with one-shot takes! :D

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Comments encouraged, but please be gentle. ;D

I'm such a n00b!

Geek Chic Guide - Neon Lights for Summer Nights

Oh folks! It's so obvious from my product photos that I love me some neon colours. And you know what? They're finally coming back in style! So as an ode to the photo-shoot I'll be having soon in front of some neon chartreuse backgrounds, I thought I'd share this POPPIN'  treasury that MaukyJo put together!

'Neon Lights' by MaukyJo

80's Flashback....everything neon!

mtcoffinz $40.00	Janefoster $33.00	greengoat $17.50	BlackbirdChic $15.00
elisehooperdes... $	CuckooBoo $4.00	NerdJerk $50.00	muppetloon $5.00
crazycouture $16.00	Buffpuppet $6.00	amoriconi $12.04	boxingbella $46.00
NikalaJayne $16.00	Buttonhead $15.00	StephsFantasti... $33.50	mademoiselleme... $40.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

For the Villain in all of us - Black Heart Cases' Kickstarter

Handmade Black Heart Cases for the iPad - by Gustavo Pastre

The day of my very first craft show, a fellow with the most awesome mustache I had ever seen took some time to stand at my booth and tell me that my ideas were worth more than I was charging for them. It was hard to listen to, being the newbie craft show seller that I was, but I took in the wise information this menacing lookin' patron had to offer.

Almost a year later, the same guy has a great idea that's worth a lot of dough. And I'm hopin' that I can round up a bunch of my geek buddies to help him make his idea into a reality.

 Mustache Stand - made of acrylic and leather - by Gustavo Pastre

Gustavo Pastre may look a bit menacing with his villain-like grin, complete with twirly old-timey mustache, but he's a hard-working artisan with a love for all that is handmade:

"I have been an artist/craftsman my entire life. When I was very young, I used to think everything was made in factories. It shocked me when I realized that people are responsible for crafting items, not giant robots. My processes are old fashioned and newfangled. Cast iron hand presses and lasers. Nothing would make me happier then to craft all day."

So this craftsman had a brilliant idea: handmade iPad cases made right here in San Francisco, that would be able to protect these "newfangled" electro-gadgets in a sustainable way - meaning that long after iPads had turned into the next gadget, you'd still be able to use the same artfully bound case for years to come!

Plus, since I've always wanted one, the villain-like mustache stand really calls to me! For more info on how it works, check out Gustavo's Kickstarter video:

The Black Heart Cases' Kickstarter project is over in 3 days time. This is where you come in!

Please help get this amazing project off the ground and raise some funds for Gustavo's newest endeavor!

• Inspire the your Inner Villain - Different prizes for different levels of sponsorship. Check out what you could win if you become a Black Heart Cases' Backer!
• Everyone know's a geek who'd dig this - If you can only help make a donation by passing this along, at least you've done something to help make this awesome idea a reality.

Wanna find out more about who's talking about Black Heart Cases? Check out these links:

Laughing Squid // Destructiod // Cult of Mac

Thanks for your help & support of your fellow geeks!

Celebrating 200 Etsy Sales - A New Milestone!

Thank you to all of the amazing people who have been inspired to buy nerd JERK items! You're awesome!

Sign up for my newsletter A.S.A.P. to find out about the NEXT round of new items to celebrate a whole other side of geekery!