My Top Ten Moments In Ghostbusters: Afterlife

Warning: this post doesn't just contain spoilers about Ghostbusters:Afterlife, it is ALL spoilers. Oh yeah.

Also this will be super confusing if you haven't seen the movie yet, so if that's you, go watch Afterlife first and come back. You don't have to be a huge Ghostbusters fan to love the new movie, but the more familiar you are with the 1984 original, the more references and Easter eggs you'll catch. Afterlife is a continuation of the same story and universe, so much like Force Awakens for Star Wars, it stands well on its own, but has plenty of extras for fans.

Oh, and this will be less of a movie review and more of a "let's fangirl together" top ten sixteen list, hope that's cool. I'll try to keep them in chronological order, too, so we can relive the movie together.

This is gonna be fun.

1) When I first realized it was Egon.

From the previews I knew Afterlife would be about Egon, but I never dreamed he would be in it. So when the light fell on his profile on the front porch, chills, y'all. CHILLS. 

2) Egon's study and its symmetrical book stacking.

There were a few times in Afterlife when I clearly heard a quote from '84 in my head. This was the first of those times, and also one of many Easter eggs throughout the movie.

 "You're right. No human being would stack books like this."

3) The chocolate bar wrapper in Spengler's jumpsuit

Just Phoebe finding the jumpsuits made me a little misty (I could almost have a separate top 10 of how many times I cried) but then the Crunch bar wrapper? MY HEART. This is another Easter egg referencing '84 when Peter gave Egon a Nestle Crunch bar, saying, "You... you've earned this."

4) The workshop lamp pointing to Egon's doctorates on the wall

Though clearly meant to be possessed by Egon's ghost, the workshop lamp felt like an adorable mashup of the Pixar lamp and Tony Stark's workshop robot arm. SO CUTE. This moment was a good chuckle, too; casually showing off his diplomas is VERY Egon.

5) The hilariously horrifying Death Whistle

10 Makers Of Fun & Funky Christmas Jewelry I'm Loving This Week

It's Black Friday, bots, so I bet a lot of you are bunkering down at home, eating leftover turkey, and - oh yes - shopping online. Woo woo!

So in the spirit of retail therapy that doesn't require elbow pads *or* pants, allow me to present some Christmas Jewelry Currently Endangering My Bank Account, or CJCEMBA, for short.

I'm not a big fan of traditional department store bling, so I went for a merry stroll down Etsy lane. I also did my best to focus on independent artists and makers, so we can help support some more small businesses while we shop.

Ready?

Then please... jingle this way.

First up, the sweet vintage designs of Lali Blue:

Gema has 35 different Christmas designs in her shop right now, from brooches to necklaces to earrings, and they remind me of vintage holiday cards in the best ways:

I spent way too long trying to decide which ones to show you, they're all SO GOOD.

Most of them are also dimensional, with stacked layers of wood or acrylic. So cool.

Be sure to visit her shop to see the rest!

*****

Disney fans, you'll want to bookmark Le Petit Mouse:

I can't get enough of these adorable gingerbread Minnie & Mickey pins:

She has plenty of non-holiday designs in her shop you'll love, too.

*****

If you're A Christmas Story fan, then Wilder Mind Design Co has the earrings for you:

In dangle or stud, and made of wood so they're not... fra-GIL-e. ;)

*****

Born 2 Blossom Designs is another shop tormenting me with too many awesome choices. LOOK:

For my Friends friends. Look at the glittery fez & mirror lenses in the sunglasses!

They also have A Christmas Story earrings:

My DIY Ghostbusters Stay Puft Ornament: Free Templates!

Note: This is a Ghostbusters:Afterlife spoiler-free zone, so don't worry if you haven't seen the movie yet! I will only be referencing the mini-Pufts from the trailers.

****

If you've been here a while you may have noticed I like Ghostbusters.

(My last name even means "gatekeeper.")

... and that I have a particular fondness for that deliciously evil marshmallow, Stay Puft.

(Get you a hubby who jumps onboard the fandom train with both feet, choo choo.)

So when the trailers for Ghostbusters: Afterlife started dropping, I started planning. John and I rented a theater for opening night, invited friends, and even made everyone a cute movie-night gift to celebrate:



At first I was bummed that the release date just missed Halloween, but then I realized I could take advantage of the timing and make Christmas ornaments.

So I did.

Ta-daaa! Isn't it ADORABLE?? This is either classic Stay Puft or one of the new mini-Pufts, your choice. 



And yes, the hat is slightly squishy. WOOT WOOT.

This is a surprisingly relaxing and relatively easy craft, since I'm about to give you our template cut files for the faces. I'll also include the printable seals John made for the gift bags, so you get the whole package, pun intended. I recommend making an entire Gozer army to festively unleash on your favorite friends and sub-creatures. 

 

You... you've earned it.


John and I shot a quick video tutorial for y'all last night, so here's that first - but you can also keep scrolling for my usual step-by-step photo tutorial. Because I got you, boo.

Snapshots From A Florida Renaissance Faire

Last weekend we got the gang together to visit the Lady of the Lake Renaissance Faire just outside Orlando - a new one to me. Want to see?

Trust me, you want to see.

That's Traci, Karen, & Arielle. We spent Craft Night working on our outfits.

Ironically that IS my Death Eater cloak. It's fun having a cosplay closet to pull from.

Rest assured, John was not spared:

He is VERY PROUD of that hat, y'all.

Also those are women's pants he thrifted for the occasion, and he was completely befuddled by the lack of pockets. "But where do I put my wallet?"

All together now, ladies: EXACTLY.

:D

Parking lot portrait so you can see our full outfits:

Right, I suppose I should talk about the actual Faire now, huh?

Lady of the Lakes surprised us in the best ways. It was bigger than I expected, with more people, more shows, and located in a shady grove filled with tall trees, so everywhere you looked there was gorgeous green canopy overhead.

There were little campsites and wagons throughout:

Hang Your Game Controllers With This Renter-Friendly, $1 Hack!

If you play video games - or live with someone who does - you know corralling all the controllers can be a pain. You want them out for easy access, but not cluttering up your end tables.

I'm a fan of wall mounts to free up horizontal spaces, so after a little googling I found these clever stick-on wall brackets from Playstation:

They cost $16 for the pair, though. Harrumph.

So how about we DIY a set of five brackets for just a dollar? Yep, that's it, one buckaroo.

Here's how my one dollar version looks:



They can fit any console controllers, and are practically invisible on the wall.

 John I've been using ours almost daily for about 3 months now, so I can tell you they're super sturdy. Best of all they look so clean and organized! It makes me happy every time I hang my controller up.

We mounted them next to John's chair in the fan cave, so they're within easy reach:

Right, ready to see the big one dollar secret?

All you need is this pack of tool hooks from Dollar Tree:

FoE & Tell: The Vader Zoom, Monster Food, & Kroger Browncoats

I'm here with another reminder from Fans of Epbot that your geeky family will always - ALWAYS - support wearing Darth Vader masks to important Zoom meetings:

YESSSSS.


We'll also encourage you to play with your food, and eat monster meals.


How cute are those lil' cheeseburgers??  John & I've watched the first 5-6 episodes of Monsters At Work, btw, and it's good! Definitely recommend.

This makes me want to start themed meals for movie night again. Remember our mashed potato pill bug for Emperor's New Groove? Ahh, good times.

*****

Meeting fellow geeks in the wild is one of my favorite things, so I love this post from Kristi:

Tell me this didn't renew your faith in the 'verse just a bit.

(I've been tempted to print up cards with my contact info to leave on extra geeky-looking cars before. I figure that would freak people out, though, so I've resisted.)

*****

Sneaking in a little holiday treat:

Leah, I desperately want to see your completed Cottage Core Cryptid Tree. PLEASE POST PHOTOS.

Are any of you planning unusual themed trees or decorations this year? John and I are discussing something new we want to try, so I'm excited. And on a completely different subject, do any of you know where I can get a small, safe-for-indoors smoke machine? :D

Speaking of trees, look at THIS:

Let's Open The Ghostbusters "Mini-Puft Surprise" That Lives Up To Its Name

Listen, I really love Ghostbusters.

That's it.

That's the only explanation I have for this.

 

 

 

("Goo bag" is not something you get to say often. Goo bag goo bag goo bag.)

A Hufflepuff Wedding, Tangled Lady Knight, & The Labyrinth Family Cosplay To End All Family Cosplays

Happy Friday, my pumpkin-spiced pretties! It's a gray, rainy day here in Orlando, which I love, but the rain also knocked out our power, which I don't. John and I just spent 10 minutes driving around a Wal-Mart parking lot, trying to get close enough to mooch some wi-fi, hah. (John IS inside buying groceries, so I feel less mooch-ish. [Moochy? Mooch-inary?])

Not that I'm complaining; I have the pitter-patter of rain on the car roof, cold a/c on my face, and a post full of nerdy loveliness to share.

So let's do this.

First up, event planner Hannah Hester teamed up with photographer Christine White to create the most STUNNING Hufflepuff wedding shoot:

This is gasp-worthy gorgeousness. And look at the wands!

You know I'm not subtle with my fandoms, but when it comes to weddings I can appreciate a little restraint. You definitely have to look twice to catch all the Hufflepuff-y touches in this shoot, but that adds an extra thrill of discovery, right?

Swooning over the vintage mix of golds and soft yellows.

So perfect!

They included touches of honey: a honey cocktail and honeycomb design on the wedding cake:

The Big Beetlejuice Halloween Wrap-Up

John and I took an extra day off for his birthday yesterday, which was lovely and exactly the rest we needed, ahhhh. (We ate fancy take-out and played video games all day. Like adults.) So thanks for being patient while I shirked my bloggy duties, and for all the sweet birthday wishes!

And now I am BACK with a full report of our Beetlejuice Halloween shenanigans. Woot woot!

(If you missed them be sure to check out our Sandworm build and all the pretty reveal shots!)

 Halloween night was hectic, hilarious, stressful, so exhausting, and totally worth it.

First let me back up and show you a couple last-minute additions, because of course we kept crafting until the last second:

I covered a hardback book with brown craft paper, waxed the paper to darken it, printed the image, and cut & transferred the title with our Cricut. This was a great prop for photos, and honestly it'll be fun to have lying around the house later.

We also made the "Now Serving" sign - which lights up! - and some number strips for people waiting:

The sign is made of Dollar Tree foam board and posterboard, with two LED puck lights behind the numbers to make them glow.

We hung this on the garage door behind our chairs and coffee table - a make-shift "waiting room."

Our friends Traci, Arielle, and Karen all came in costume, so we had increasingly silly photo-shoots as the night went on. There were also several impromptu dance parties, as we kept the soundtrack blaring.

In fact, here are some video snippets of the silliness: