Hey, kids! Are you a little bit country, and a little bit Hot Topic? Having a little trouble reconciling your “Hello Kitty” feng shui with your more rustic sensibilities? Is that special toddler in your life due a good traumatizing? Then for the first – and in all likelihood, only – time in your life, a winner is you!
Cherrybox Studios’ Plush Kill Wall Series guarantees one of two reactions and probably nothing in between: the start of a memorable conversation, or someone backing slowly out of the room and never taking their eyes off you. Each 12-inch stuffed head of a Mouse, Unicorn, Panda, Spring Buck or Bunny has been molded and stitched from “fleece, felt, polyfil stuffing, trim and love” and mounted on a wooden backing with appropriately kitschy wood-textured backing paper.
It’s more than an off-putting living room accent, really; it’s a social experiment. Make up a unique, grimly detailed back-story for each “hunt” and see how long each soon-to-be-sorry-they-asked guest takes to put as much distance between themselves and you as they can. Even better: when Junior’s nightmares start after this adorns the big empty wall over the tyke’s bed, bring this adorable taxidermy in to the next conference with a child psychiatrist/school counselor/priest. Note the reaction. Post a detailed account here in the comment section!
Innovate new forms of punishment via psychological warfare! The next time your bundle of joy steps out of line and starts clutching a favored plush toy, look at the toy, look at the wall and ask Junior if he/she thinks Hot Cross Bunny would like some company. Then enjoy the frightened, uncomfortable peace and quiet!
(Note: Neither Geek Gems nor myself, Sleepless Colin, actively promotes the above parenting practices. But if you have irritating, grown-up company over, have at it with the other suggestion. Some grown ups do, in fact, deserve it.)
No jokes, this time. Nothing sarcastic. No wit. This is actually far too neat and inexpensive for that.
First, Edmund Scientific showed me an intelligent, voice command robot R2D2. But then came something that I admit, boasts two key features that little 15″ stack of awesome doesn’t: this is both useful and inexpensive.
I can’t speak on everyone’s behalf, but I dare not begin counting how many plastic water bottles sit about my place on a regular basis. Incidentally, I also dare not count how many times I could’ve really taken better pictures for want of a simple tripod. Enter the bottle tripod.
The universal mount fits pretty much any compact camera; the bottle tripod itself attaches atop a standard-size water bottle lip and pivots 15 degrees in any direction. Making sure it balances the camera’s weight could be as simple as … well, using a faucet and filling the bottle! Also, consider this: one little water bottle could easily perch atop places no tripod could, making for some unique angles. And as an outdoors-geek who can appreciate tiny devices that store easily amidst fanny-pack and backpack clutter, the bottle top tripod might be the coolest thing since beef jerky in a resealable bag.
When I was a kid, my family went to a lot of minor league hockey games, and man did I have a blast! The raucous crowds, the smell of spilled Pabst Blue Ribbon, the ubiqitous “We’re #1″ foam finger that was always perched atop my pre-adolescent fist. But perhaps my favorite part of these games (besides the fights – c’mon, we all love hockey fights) was watching the Zamboni. While those around me clamored to the concession stands for over-priced hot dogs and related gruel, I sat in awe watching the big machine smoothly resurface the ice in deft, perfectly spaced strokes. I once had a dream of becoming a Zamboni operator, I’ll have you know. It was right up there with “rock star” and “astronaut”. Hey, it’s good to have goals!
These days my hockey game attendance has waned, but I still love a good Zamboni, so when I saw this desktop vacuum, I couldn’t help but give a little squee. Sure, there are plenty of capable mini desk vacuums out there, but do they boast the awesome, time honored designed of the exalted Zamboni? I think not! Plunk in 4 AAA batteries and let the palm-sized beast have at it, sucking up all manner of crumbs and small debris from your desktop until it’s as clean and smooth as freshly resurfaced ice. Then pop a PBR and raise your foam hand aloft in victory, because that was some pucking cool vacuuming action. ;)
It’s not at all unusual here at Geek Gems to stumble across “things that make you go hmmmm …” You know the ones – the products that you can’t quite decide are cool or creepy, because they seem to live happily in the space between.
That was my first thought when I spied the hidden animal large coffee mugs by IMM Living. A little bit whimsical, a little bit strange, and a whole lot of style. Whether cute or creepy, you certainly won’t find unique coffee mugs like this anywhere else!
Each of these large coffee mugs (they hold up to 16oz of your favorite hot beverage) is made of high quality, dishwasher safe porcelain. As you sip your cares away, a little animal peeps its head out to play. Choose from the hidden fox, bear or owl varieties. I think Mr. Fox is my favorite, although I can see the bear being a wonderful choice for children. What kid – young or old – wouldn’t get a kick out of a bear peeping its head out of their cocoa? The large size also means these cups would be excellent for soup or even a small portion of cereal or oatmeal.
Come to think of it, I also know a surprising number of people “hoo” are always on the hunt for unique owl gifts. … Get it? Owls say “hoo!” Yeah I know, I know. =P [via holycool]
Since there seems to be a small Star Wars kick going on around Geek Gems, I figured I should find a neat little Star Wars item to throw into the mix!
My days, weeks, and months of searching were finally put to an end when I was lead to this amazing chibi-esque Darth Vader alarm clock lamp! It even has chubby little body that makes up the base of the lamp and makes Darth look super-huggable and both kid and adult friendly. The dark lamp shade could also provide some appropriate evil lighting, since it appears to be tinted and all.
A plain Darth Vadar lamp would have been cool enough, but don’t have to worry about finding an alarm clock to set next to this little guy. This lamp has a digital alarm clock right on its torso! It’s also able to play music from your MP3 player through its speakers, meaning you could have him blast out the Imperial March every time somebody enters the room he inhabits, or humiliate him by playing Ke$ha through his speakers, or even JarJar quotes. Now … somebody find an MP3 of Darth saying “I am your father”. That’s my kind of wake-up call!
Plush-Kill Wall Animals ($42+)
