Being Geek Chic is a blog for stylish geeks, sophisticated nerds and people who enjoy the musings of a complete dork. Join us as we dream of driving the TARDIS, cuddle with our eBooks and test out an iPad sleeve. It's written by Elizabeth Giorgi and a team of brilliant lady nerds. Meet the team.
The week’s Lady Geek of the Week is the lovely Leigh Luna (@ourobora on Twitter). She’s a spunky and quirky artist whose strongest passion is creating comics. She’s currently a student at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, studying comic art, illustration and graphic design.
Head to Luna’s personal website to snag a sampling of her work. My personal favorite comics of hers are the poetic and personal “New Mexico” and the tragic and simple tale of love, loss and regret in “Boats and Ghosts.”
Click a little deeper into Luna’s website to see some of her fine art or browse her whimsical illustrations. Fall a bit further into the rabbit hole of Luna’s mind when you scroll through her Tumblr of art, musings and mischief.
Check out Being Geek Chic’s interview with Luna to discover her one chosen superpower, the genesis of her comic book passion, and her message to her 13-year-old self that will surely make you say, “aww!” Read on!
Q: What has led you to your passion?
A: For as long as I can remember I’ve been drawing and making comics. My mom likes to tell people that I came out of the womb with a crayon in my hand. My parents have both been really great in guiding me into making comics. They gave me a lot of the Calvin and Hobbes and Betty and Veronica comics as a kid. They have always encouraged me to read comics and to make art. I’ve been drawing basically my whole life but didn’t start getting very serious about making comics as a profession until four or so years ago. That was when I “seriously” started making comics.
Q: When did you first realize you were “geeky?”
A: I had some realization that I was geeky as a child when I read all of the Red Wall books and watched Star Trek with my dad. I also got called a geek a lot in middle school due to my Manga obsession and Deviant Art addiction. However, I didn’t actually start calling myself a geek until I was in high school rocking my Batman t-shirt and attending comic conventions.
Q: You can choose one superpower. What is it?
A: I would really like to be a mermaid. Hands down. I have a bit of an obsession with mermaids, and really the ocean in general. I have been a swimmer most of my life, and have always felt at home in the water.
Q: If you could take any fictional character out for a drink, whom would you choose and what would you drink?
A: Honestly, I think I would just want to go grab some chocolate milk with all of Miyazaki’s lady characters and ask them to teach me the ways of their adorable spunk.
Q: What would you tell your 13-year-old self?
A: Take off that damn eyeliner and learn to play the banjo. When you’re older, you’re still going to want to know how to play the banjo! In about a year when you decide comics are lame, don’t do that, stick with your gut. And guess what? You’re going to be real proud of me because I’m still making comics.
Emma Bauer is a Being Geek Chic Contributor. Clearly, she’s got great taste. She is a PR enthusiast, history scholar, tea drinker, fashion devotee, and of course, aspires to Be Geek Chic.
Follow her on twitter: @emmalynnbauer
Editor’s Note: This is a RERUN from the Being Geek Chic archives. I’m taking a bit of a break this week, so please enjoy these classics from the BGC archives while I’m away.
Minneapolis is acting a lot like it’s west coast cousin lately. It has been raining for hours, which has made cranking out this DIY really wet. But the showers let up for an hour this afternoon so I was able to put together my LEGO flower pot and take some good pictures. I think it’s adorable!
This little LEGO flower pot also bears some resemblance to the evil flower pipe in the Mario games, which makes it all the more delightful. Plus, it’s super easy to make and I imagine a little kid would get a kick out of it, if you have one of those.
Here’s how you make it!
I’m beyond excited to announce SherlockeDCC: The Official Party of The Baker Street Babes, Being Geek Chic, The Nerdy Girlie, Sherlock DC and Cara McGee. If you’re going to Comic Con - you can buy a ticket right now, right here!
Join us at Brick + Mortar Thursday July 18th from 6 - 9 p.m. for of sleuthing, tea, games, prizes! You DON’T need a SDCC badge to come either! This is an ALL AGES party!
We are going to be giving away insane prizes, like a SIGNED COPY OF A SCANDAL IN BELGRAVIA with the scribes of none other than Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman and Steven Moffat. There’s going to be comics, art prints, mugs, tea - lots and lots of great stuff, my friends. But that’s not it. Because if you want can’t go to Comic Con, you can still win that script and get some swag by supporting our IndieGoGo campaign.
Here’s how our fundraising is going to work:
All the tiers (except the sponsorship tiers) come with all kinds of great goods. BUT the bonus is that for every $1 that you give you get your name entered into the raffle once.
So $1 = 1 Entry to Win.
I’d love to meet you and wax poetic about all things Sherlock with you, so if you are going to be at SDCC, then get your ticket now.
If you will be there in spirit and want a chance to win the signed BBC script - simply support the IndieGoGo campaign at SherlockeDCC.com - and check out some of the other great incentives you can pick up there.
Imagine if you will: You’re sitting in the movie theater this weekend, having just watched Man of Steel. I won’t speculate as to your general level of enjoyment, but here you sit and wait as the credits roll (because what’s a good modern comic book movie without a post-credits easter egg?). What could a Superman post-credit surprise have to reveal?
While you wait and wonder, permit me to present you with a pitch. Or perhaps more accurately, a prayer.
The post-credits easter egg in Man of Steel should be a Supergirl reveal. I am utterly convinced of this and here are a few reasons why:
Last week, Joss Whedon decried the lack of comic book films starring female heroes. He has a very good point. While Marvel Studios (with the help of Mr. Whedon) is very busy doing many things right, confronting this challenge is not really one of them. So if you’re DC Comics, currently struggling to close the gap with Marvel, why not set yourself apart by stepping forward to fill that void?
Warner Bros and DC Comics have yet to find the formula for expanding their film universe to rival Marvel’s, and reach beyond the success of their Batman films alone. Introducing Supergirl could be a significant step in the right direction.
Films for bigger heroes like Wonder Woman or The Flash on the road to a Justice League movie might seem like more obvious options out of the gate, but those also represent much larger, riskier challenges for a universe just looking to find a spark and an initial foothold – and perhaps more importantly avoid another stumble (remember Green Lantern?).
Supergirl is a character with the same basic origin as Superman, the same home, the same villains and a similar aesthetic approach. In addition, early looks at Man of Steel have shown a primary focus on the character’s interstellar roots, with Krypton and General Zod taking precedence over more familiar elements like Lex Luthor and Metropolis. If Man of Steel is a successful endeavor, Supergirl becomes a natural fit for the future, whether she were to appear as a key player in a Man of Steel 2 or better yet in her own Girl of Steel debut.
In either case, she could represent a first commitment, big or small, to building and supporting some sort of larger universe, in that same way Nick Fury did in the original Iron Man.
Speaking of our friend Iron Man, I’m confident Supergirl, if handled right, could become the next great success in that mold. As was the case with Tony Stark in 2008, Kara Zor-El may today be a total unknown to the non-geeky general populace, but given a chance I believe she could become another household name and beloved modern icon of the screen.
What are the odds this actually happens? Very, very slim, I know. But perhaps you’ll join me in hoping, crossing your fingers at the theater this weekend, and maybe reading a Supergirl comic or two while you’re at it.
Guest post by Adam Giorgi, who also happens to be my brother. He’s a writer, gamer, reader and Potter head. He also makes cool comics from time to time. Check out his blog: Geek-Attack. Follow him on twitter: @adamgiorgi
Costume departments on the sets of movies and TV shows are always aiming to create a look for their characters that matches their narrative purpose. So often with female characters this translates to blatant sex appeal or totally drab, pant suits meant to strip older women of any excitement at all. But these five characters are different. These five characters embody a wide range of ages, mediums, body types and style, but each have an important lesson to impart.
Here’s five women whose style is worth taking a note from:
Amy Pond teaches us that layering works. Always.
There are many who claim Steven Moffat ruined Amy Pond’s character with misogyny and anti-feminist stories in the end, but I can’t stress enough how much I appreciated the wardrobe department during the Pond era. Sure, she may have wore short skirts and short shorts, but she always wore them with layers. Tights, leather jackets, cowboy boots. It always felt true to her and more importantly, shows the importance of giving a little sex appeal here while covering up there. The mix is what makes it manageable.
According to her website, the mind of Ashley Hay (@HeyKannaya) is filled with Harry Potter, ice cream comes, Star Wars, the state of Minnesota, film, Pokemon, Disney, Batman, unicorns, etc. And when you take a look at her art, it’s clear that this wonderful brain mixture is creating some truly awesome pieces.
Thriving in Saint Paul, Hay is a graphic designer extraordinaire, costume designer, artist and geek to the core. She’s rocking the freelance designer lifestyle, with a client list that hosts some seriously big names, like Legacy Productions, Best Buy and 3M.
Check out Hay’s interview with Being Geek Chic! You’ll discover what fictional character she’d take out for a drink and how she wound up as a freelance designer.
Read on!
Q: What has led you to your passion?
A: Designing geeky stuff was something I always did. I grew up drawing, painting, air brushing, you name it. I got into things like fantasy/sci-fi stories, videogames, anime and comics at a young age and that is a majority of what I was drawing other than dolphins and unicorns. I remember I had a comic set from the 1950’s about a dog detective named Max and he had a poodle girlfriend. I thought it was awesome.
Then, in college honed my craft of design. I worked on my style and after college just did a bunch of designs of things I loved. I found shirt sites like Ript and Teefury and saw I could make some money off them. At conventions I was blown away when people told me how much they enjoyed the designs. It made me want to keep going and it still does. When someone has something nice to say about my work, it drives get better and continue working. It always makes my day.
