Being Geek Chic is a blog about one woman navigating the male-dominated industries of production and tech. It's written by Elizabeth Giorgi, Founder, CEO and Director of Mighteor - one of the world's first internet video production companies. Learn more about Mighteor here.
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.
It’s been a while since we’ve done a giveaway around here. I’ve been missing Doctor Who lately, so why not go for a lovely TARDIS themed gift? This one comes from ThinkGeek’s awesome customizable bracelet collection.
YOU’LL WIN:
HERE’S HOW YOU WIN:
1. Take a picture on instagram of how you live a geek chic life and use the hashtag #beinggeekchic
2. Do this by Monday, May 12th at Midnight EST
Can’t wait to see all your pictures. I’ll get us started by posting a great picture of the bracelet - which you can see on my instagram: @lizgiorgi - Follow me and I’ll post lots of geek chic inspiration in the next two weeks.
*The fine print: Giveaway only open to US readers. All prizing is provided by ThinkGeek and Being Geek Chic. The total value of the prize is $65 plus shipping and handling. The giveaway also includes the cost of shipping to one address in the continental United States. Please follow the rules and be kind to one another.
Elle (@yourfriendelle) is your best friend in the blogosphere. An LA lady with professional passions for TV and film, this Lady Geek of the Week blogs over at Your Friend Elle.
Don’t believe us that she has BFF potential? Just take a look at some of these posts: “35 Songs with a Positive Message,” “Game of Thrones Inspired Hair Tutorials,” “Looks for Less: Once Upon A Time,” and “What’s Wrong With the Body Ideal?”.
Seriously. Have your people call her people and schedule a sleepover ASAP. In the meantime, check out Elle’s interview with BGC!
Q: How did you discover your passion?
A: I started the blog as a travel site. I went to Europe this past summer and before I went I looked for helpful info to plan my trip. Easier said than done. All I found was expensive places to stay/things to do, or where to find cheap beer. Neither suited what I was looking for so I started my own research. When I got back from Europe I started the blog to help others. One problem, I don’t travel enough to keep a ‘travel’ blog going so I had to start adding in other items. My first big reader reaction came when I did a post on the Sherlock Holmes Museum and the film/tv blog posts just grew from there. I’ve always loved film/tv, I work in the industry so it’s a daily interaction for me. I honestly can’t imagine not being in the industry!
Q: Where do you find your inspiration in life?
A: Some inspiration comes from people around me, for example I wrote a Doctor Who post about my godson’s reaction to the show. But I’m also inspired by film and TV work. Buffy and Orphan Black have been big influences in my writing as of late. I’m working on a script and both shows have really been a launching point for the style of writing I’m going for.
Q: When did you discover you were “geeky?”
A: This is a funny question because I’ve never labeled myself as such. I honestly don’t like labels because I feel it confines people. But I guess it began with Buffy, I actually dressed as Buffy for Halloween one year. It unfortunately ended with a hot tempered Harry Potter shoving me (he was 7 years old) and ended in a bloody lip. I figure it came with the territory of being Buffy ;-)
Q: If you could take one fictional character out for a drink, whom would you choose and what would you drink?
A: Oh gosh, I’d like to say Sherlock but I think if I really had the choice I’d choose Doctor Who. Primarily because I’d like to take a trip in the TARDIS to visit loved ones like Rose did. Since the Doctor hates alcohol, or at least Matt Smith’s Doctor did, I’d get an ice cream soda or something fun like that.
Q: What would you tell your 13-year-old self?
A: I’ve actually been working on a blog post about what I would like to have told myself. I wish I had relaxed more, I feel like I was uptight about some things that didn’t matter. My 13th year was actually a really great time for me, I had an amazing best friend. Unfortunately, we don’t talk much now, but I look back on that time fondly.
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
Do you ever think that art is just a little too…pretty? Do you find yourself wishing that that prim Victorian lady strolling through the garden was arm-in-arm with, say, a Dalek? Or maybe that the charming 19th century girl was playing dress up with her favorite giant fly instead of her dollies? That picturesque Parisian street would be improved with a few zombies, don’t you think? Perhaps our traditional jolly Santa Claus would like to be accompanied by our favorite Time Lord?
Enter Jennifer Hales, our Lady Geek of the Week. She takes classically pretty paintings and throws in startling, delightfully geeky twists. Check out her Etsy page!
How did Hales come to creating such whimsically bizarre artworks? We’ll let her tell the story…
Q: How did you discover your passion?
A: I had a really artistic and nerdy friend when I was growing up. She made me feel like I could make anything I wanted with a pencil and paper. She had artist parents and really knew how to draw even at a young age. I would watch as her imagination would spill across the paper in awe of her skill. I decided then that I wanted to be able to do the same. I signed up for classes with a local artist, and eventually got a degree in art, so that all of things that I imagine can find their way to paper. She helped me to discover an outlet for my imagination that I will always be grateful for.
Q: When did you discover you were “geeky?”
A: When I was around 5 years old it was a weekly tradition for my dad and I to sit down and watch StarTrek: Next Generation together. Those are really some of my earliest memories I share with my dad. I learned to like all of these scifi things from my dad, it was important to me because it was what we shared an interest in. Growing up, it was how we connected. By the time I got to 7th and 8th grades I knew that most girls didn’t really didn’t have an interest in those things, but I didn’t care. It was cool to me, because it was cool to my dad, and that was really all that mattered to me. It is fun now looking at all of the things I had been made fun of for, they are all things that are popular now. Not to sound like a hipster, but I liked them before it was cool.
Q: Can you describe for us your artistic process? Where do you find your inspiration?
A: I love thrift stores. It is probably my second favorite thing after Dr. Who. I love being able to go into a shop and find the discarded things people leave there. These things all tell a story, they lived in someone else’s home, and now I get to see them on the shelves like a museum of lives. These paintings have been discarded for one reason or another, but they can still have a new life. I see stories in these pictures that have been so neglected. For me it is like being able to add to the story that some other artist started. I get to write my own version of a fan fiction with my paint brush. I get to imagine my favorite things in these existing paintings, making a new story with what was already there.
Q: If you could take any fictional character out for a drink, whom would you choose and what would you drink?
A: I like to keep things simple. I would love to have me some Tea. Earl Gray. Hot. With Picard. I would probably bring my dad with me the three of us would have a great time.
Q: What would you tell your 13-year-old self?
A: I’m not sure what I would tell my 13-year-old self. I don’t really think it would be safe to tell myself anything. Seriously we could do some unrepairable damage to space and time if I were to just go up and down my own time line giving myself advice. I feel like I turned out pretty well, and I don’t think I would have listened to anything anyways. So how bout we don’t mess with the timey wimey. I cherish my experiences and even though I have grown since then, I never would have become who I am without those experiences, why would I try to change anything about that? If I were to try to give advice and change things then I wouldn’t be me now, I would be someone else. See I am trying to explain why this is all a bad idea and things are getting messed up just trying to do that. But if I were to give any 13-year-old from this time advice, I would tell them that our experiences make us who we are. Without them we will never become who we are supposed to be. The good the bad it is all necessary for us to become what the future needs us to be.
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
Lori Garcia is a blogger, graphic/web designer, illustrator, bona fide Whovian, and a definite Potterhead. She’s been featured on The Nerdy Girlie, Geek Glam, and now, Being Geek Chic as our Lady Geek of the Week.
You can find Garcia blogging over at Girl Hero. She writes about her numerous and varied geeky passions, including her favorite ‘best friend'ships (starting with Sherlock and Dr. Watson), video game apparel and accessories, and this adorable DIY 8-bit heart garland - for your geeky Valentine’s Day.
Garcia also has several side projects up her sleeve. One of our favorites is Geeky Palettes. Garcia combines her love of geek culture and design to create color palates for her favorite Avengers, Doctors, and Powerpuff Girls. Scrolling through Geeky Palettes will satisfy all your nerdy design cravings.
Up your chances of meeting Garcia in person! Check out her upcoming conferences and events. Once you’ve plotted your spontaneous encounter, read on for Garcia’s interview with Being Geek Chic.
Q: How did you discover your passion?
A: Ever since I was little I’ve always liked things that are considered 'geeky’… When I was little, my dad, sister and I would constantly be playing Super Mario/All Star on our Super Nintendo. I started web-coding at the age of 9 years old. I grew up watching Sailormoon and CardCaptors, then found a love for Harry Potter and Doctor Who as I grew older.
Now-a-days, I still have a passion for learning when it comes to design and coding. I love the satisfaction of accomplishing something new!
Q: You can choose one superpower. What is it?
A: The ability to fly. I think that would be one of the coolest feelings ever!
Q: If you could take a fictional character out for a drink, whom would you choose and what would you drink?
A: Can I take out the entire Weasley family? I think it would be such a fun night to have a drink with all the Weasleys! We’d probably have a little bit of butterbeer.
Q: What would you tell your 13-year-old self?
A: You think you’re overly obsessed right now with Harry Potter?! Wait until you encounter Doctor Who… It’s going to take over your life!
Q: What would be the title of your memoir?
A: A Simple Girl Who Lived A Fandom-Obsessed Life and Ate Too Much Chocolate
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
Meet Kat. By day, she’s a filmmaker (specifically - a development exec at a production company in LA) and writer of geek culture editorials and video game reviews. Her work has appeared in IFC, AOL, Spike TV, E!, and more.
But that’s just the beginning of this lady geek powerhouse. She and her adorable husband Cam have been blogging for just three months over at Our Nerd Home. They chronicle their adventures in geeky home decor, DIY projects, style, small-space living, vintage furniture, and more. Our favorite posts include these DIY chocolate D20/gaming dice (have a terrible roll? Just eat the die!) and this delightful DIY geeky wreath.
When you dive into Kat’s interview with Being Geek Chic, you’ll discover that her passions for geeky home decor, Star Trek, and a certain magical blue box make her tick. And that her 13-year old self owned an awesome thrifted Misfits tank top. Read on!
Q: How did you discover your passion?
A: My older sister gave me a dusty old Atari 2600 and original NES when I was maybe 4 years old. Gaming instantly became my passion and progressed from there. Other geeky pursuits followed, and stuck with me my entire life. My guy and I just moved into our first non-apartment home, and wanted to blend our mutual love for geek culture into our home decor, which is how Our Nerd Home was born - basically to share those projects with our friends. A great bonus has been all of the new friends we’ve been making through the blog.
Q: When did you discover you were “geeky?”
A: I think it was when kids would make fun of me for constantly talking about Star Trek TNG. I didn’t really know I was a geek until people starting calling me that (back then it was a negative thing, for some reason).
Q: If you could take a fictional character out for a drink, whom would you choose and what would you drink?
A: Jean-Luc Picard, and probably Aldebaran Whiskey. But I would rather have a nice round-table dinner and drinks with Picard, Jareth the Goblin King, Dana Scully, the Doctor, and Zer0 from Borderlands 2 (I’m picturing a drunken ninja speaking only in haiku). How awesome would that party be?
Q: You can choose one superpower. What is it?
A: Hmm. I would like to be able to summon a large box that can travel through time and relative dimension in space.
Q: What would you tell your 13-year-old self?
A: So much! Some of the main points would be that none of the things you’re dealing with will matter in ten years, get an adult to buy Apple stock for you, and please don’t throw away that thrifted Misfits tank top - your adult self really misses it.
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
