Melificent

Archives for August 2015

The Geekie Awards: Voting Has Opened

2015Nominee-WebsiteBlog

I know I had mentioned that I have been nominated for a Geekie Award for Best Website/Blog, which is still beyond surreal by the way, but voting has officially opened and I would absolutely love it if you guys could vote for me if you enjoy reading my blog. You can vote every day, once a day, leading up to when voting closes on August 31st. I can’t tell you how much your love and support means to me with this!!

If you want to give me some ultimate love, head over to THIS PAGE and vote for me under Websites & Blogs.
Thanks for all the support this past year, my fellow geeks!

Geeky Wears for your Bridal Party

If you have followed me for long enough, you know I love event and party planning, especially if I get to add some personal (& geeky) touches. There’s nothing like an event with personality, and I think having yours shine through is so important in making it unique. That’s why I absolutely love the growing trend of geeky weddings! There have been some really beautiful ones (this Star Wars one immediately comes to mind), and I want to show you how easy it can be to incorporate your fandoms in a classy & subtle way when dressing your wedding party.

 

Geeky Bridal Party

 

Weddington Way has introduced a new Gents Shop, which makes the initial bridal party shopping even easier for you and your lucky friends and family. You can customize the guys’ suits to match perfectly with your little ladies’ frocks (which are also just a click away) without much stress, which is always valued during the craze of wedding planning. Once your outfits have been chosen (I dug the retro vibe of this Alfred Sung dress & grey herringbone suit), the fun can truly begin!

 

For the ladies, I honestly think the options are limitless when it comes to geeky components that you can add to their outfits. My personal picks were a pair of geeky earrings that compliment their dress (these heart pixel studs would really look great and subtle with an updo), a possible alternative bouquet that illustrates your fandom (totally love these Sailor Moon rods) and a nerdy manicure of either your or their choosing. These are such easy ways to incorporate the worlds you love into your most special day – and I promise none of your girls will complain – they are just too fun!

 

Dudes have it a little less easy. Suits and tuxes can be tough, but there are definitely ways to bring out the fanboy in any groomsmen. I like the idea of a subtle fandom-inspired pocket square to begin with. These can be matched to your wedding colors and feature a fun geeky design like these I found through Etsy, or be a physical prop, like this amazing Chewbacca pocket partner. I also love the look of a suit with Chuck Taylors, and these superhero themed ones would look so rad. Don’t believe me? Here is photo proof! Finally, a man isn’t ready to 007 without a pair of nice cufflinks, so lets make them geeky, shall we? These deathly hallows ones are just one of the many you can find scattered all over Etsy at affordable prices. I especially love when each of your guys has a different look like these awesome men!

 

Are you planning a geeky wedding soon? Do you want to?
What are your ideas?
I’d love to hear them in the comments!

Perler Therapy

Processed with VSCOcam with f2 preset

I found out about Perler Bead crafting through a fellow Geek Girl Brunch Officer. She posted this adorable Loki hair clip that she made for some of the girls for a brunch and I was immediately interested. Being such a huge fan of geeky accessories, I definitely wanted to know how to make my own! I went out and bought supplies, and after some trial and errors (pony beads are not the same as perler beads, FYI), I got the hang of it and am making some for Miami’s Doctor Who themed brunch this month!

Processed with VSCOcam with f2 preset

It’s a totally relaxing process for me and another way to express my creativity without being overly time consuming or costly. I also love that I get to practice my fine motor skills (they aren’t the best) while putting down my patterns. Another bonus is that I get to make handcrafted gifts for my friends, which is always a fun treat! I’m starting with adult hair clips, but I hope to make baby hair clips, keychains and bowties (both adult & baby) soon. The best part is that you only need a few supplies, and all of them can be found at your local Michaels, Hobby Lobby or similar craft store.

If you want to get in on the fun, check out these tutorial videos on YouTube that I used as reference when learning;
Video 1
Video 2
Video 3

Four Things

Screen-Shot-2015-07-19-at-7.04.38-PM-440x130

Although I don’t usually do things like these, I do like reading them about others, and thought maybe all of you would like getting to know me a little better. Plus, the adorable Kristin of SuperSpaceChick.com nominated me to participate, so who am I to say no? 😉 There were a lot of questions, so I shortened it down to the ones I thought were most interesting and that I don’t tend to share here on the blog. I won’t nominate anyone, but I hope you all enjoy a little look into the Meli behind Melificent!

FOUR JOBS I’VE HAD

  • Receptionist at a law firm; My first dip into a job (away from my father’s business) was in a commercial real estate firm as a receptionist. Super exciting, right? I remember the office not having any windows at all. It was dark and cold and overall, the worst. However, thanks to my OCD, I became a little enamored with putting together closing packets and got really, really good at them. Silver lining, I guess?
  • Behavior technician; When I was about 18 years old, I took a job away from the law firm and working with kids on the spectrum for the very first time. I knew I wanted to major in psychology, but this job introduced me to the world of ABA and behavior analysis. I instantly fell in love and knew this was what I wanted to do. However, I had a very bad boss that took the wind out of my sails and made me question that decision after a couple of years…
  • Clinical coordinator; Which led me to go back to the realm of clinical psychology. I worked as a clinical coordinator at a therapeutic foster care agency for 5 years. It was so rewarding at first, and then the complete opposite. It was day in and day out of feeling like I was hitting a brick wall repeatedly and not making a difference in anyone’s lives despite working so hard to do so. I knew I needed a change and remembered how fulfilled I felt when I was working as a behavior tech with kids on the spectrum.
  • Behavior analyst; That led me to a complete career change. I went back to school, collected experience hours and and sat for 2 very grueling exams after the age of 30 to start working as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. I absolutely love what I do (even though it can be very stressful and frustrating at times), and it makes me feel like I am helping others on a daily basis – a feeling that really drives me.

Autism_Awareness_Ribbon

FOUR THINGS I DON’T EAT

  • Anything with gluten; Through blood work in my late 20’s, I was diagnosed as being gluten intolerant. It has been a war ever since, trying to avoid it as best as possible despite being an extreme lover of all foods. I miss a whole lot of stuff and sometimes I cheat, but I’ve been squeaky clean since finding out I was pregnant 6 months ago. I fantasize about drinking all the beers and eating all the burgers.
  • Strawberries; I still felt sick even after doing blood work, so I decided to go for a comprehensive exam that tested my body’s reaction to over 300 different foods, chemicals and environmental factors. It turned out I was allergic to a whole slew of foods that can be found in basically…everything. Strawberries is one of them. Cue sad music.
  • Vanilla; This was also on my list – do you know how hard it is to avoid vanilla?? It’s basically in everything. It doesn’t help that this was categorized as being on my “severe” list, so I really can’t ingest it or my stomach goes into immediate rejection mode.
  • Lemonade; Aside from all my food intolerances and allergies, there are some things I just dislike (but very, very few). Lemonade is one of those things and I know that’s pretty weird. I just can’t stand the taste and find it entirely too bitter. However, I totally love Starbucks’ iced tea lemonade like there is no tomorrow. Who understands taste buds, amiright?

gluten-l

[Read more…]

Nerdy Must Haves

collage

1. TARDIS floppy hat; GeekyU hits it out of the ballpark again with this incredible on trend floppy hat for summer emblazoned with the iconic police box logo (plus don’t miss the bow in the back). This would look so adorable paired with a bright red or plain black bikini (don’t forget to pack your Sonic along with your sunscreen).

2. Baymax crossbody bag; I can’t get enough of Baymax related anything, so it should come as no surprise that I am in love with this adorable crossbody bag (the emoji ones are cute too, but…) from Spree Picky. I simply have to have it to complete my next LBD ensemble.

3. Unicorn champagne horn; I honestly think I may die if I am not sipping my champagne out of this incredible UNICORN HORN when the clock turns 12 NYE this year. I mean, it’s clearly the best thing I’ve ever laid my eyes on. Do you think people would judge me if I brought it everywhere…weddings, blogging events, birthday parties, etc. No, right? Cool.

4. Kawaii badass crop; I don’t know about you, but I like the idea of being a kawaii badass. Who doesn’t want to be adorable and dangerous? This sailor scout in training would rock this crop top all over the streets of Miami…well, post baby that is. #weightlossgoals