Spock's Pickled Brain

There are a lot of ways to approach wand-making. Of course the easiest wand to make is the branch in the backyard. Another way is to modify a dowel or chopstick. But since I've always admired the ornate, turned handles of some wands in the films. However, I don't have the access or skill to use a wood lathe. So instead I set out to make my own simplified version with materials found in craft, thrift, and hardware stores. The raw materials for the wand itself cost only $1.60, and not much more when you add in stain and superglue. Wands from the Harry Potter films (graphic by Albus_Silente ) Materials -Wooden dowel  -Wooden candlestick -Large wooden beads, finials -Danish oil (for light stain/finish) or wood stain -Superglue -Sandpaper Tools -Hacksaw -Pocketknife 1. Gather the materials For this version of a wand I visited craft, hardware, and thrift stores to gather the materials. For the main segment of wand, I bought a 5/16 inch diam...

Hey everyone, the often-silent Starbat is here at last! So, you may have seen the Loonatic's recent post on her Fantastic Beasts 20s Ravenclaw outfit. She went for the professional, Ministry-approved suit look, so I decided to go the opposite route, with a sparkly dress, shiny heels, and a lot of black with a 20s Slytherin look. This was heavily influenced by Phryne Fisher of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries fame. It also draws on looks like the one Leta Lestrange sported in the Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindlewald trailer. Basically, I went for dark, sparkly, and overdressed for everyday activities. 1. Dress This is one of those things I found in a thrift store ages ago and just had to buy. As such, it was definitely $20 or under, and it has been waiting for years to actually become part of something more interesting than Starbat's Closet for the Wayward and Overdressed. It's not really a perfect 20s dress, but more like a 20s dress as seen t...

So last Friday Starbat and I went to see The Crimes of Grindelwald in theatre. In short it's a great movie, and I definitely need to watch it about a dozen more times. Originally I was going to write a review here, but I realized this turned into more of a deconstruction of themes and impressions I got from the film and less about being a thorough and ranked review. And there's certainly a lot to unpack. So warnings abound: Spoilers Ahead! So Many Romantic Subplots Merlin's beard there's a lot of romantically involved people in this movie. At the risk of sounding like a grumbling cynic, maybe too many? We've got Tina and Newt, Jacob and Queenie, Leta and Theseus, Credence and Nagini, Dumbledore and Grindelwald, etc. We get a little lost in the weeds of these relationships, to the point that it gets pretty romcom. Awkward meetings with crushes, misunderstandings, heated arguments, and...kidnapping? It's a bit like they needed to check off all the r...

In honor of the Crimes of Grindelwald film becoming the next chapter in the Fantastic Beasts franchise, I decided to put together a 1920s-inspired witch costume with some Ravenclaw flair. The traditional go-to for a women's Roaring Twenties costume is a flapper dress, bobbed hair, and T-strap shoes, but I'm actually going for more of the look of the MACUSA aurors (ex. Tina Goldstein). I got my inspirations for this costume from the costumes in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and from other 1920s sources. It was still unusual for women to wear pants in the '20s, but jodphurs or wide-legged flowing slacks weren't too far gone. You can see some interesting examples of this in Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries , an Australian mystery drama series set in 1920s Melbourne with award-winning costume designs. Below are a pair of their fabulous outfits for characters Phryne Fisher and Dr. Macmillan. So in this build I'm going to try to emula...

Here's another batch of interesting objects found in antique and thrift stores that could be reimagined as magical objects right at home in Hogwarts. 1. Dumbledore's Memory Cabinet This beautiful display case was spotted in an antique store, but unfortunately it'd already been sold. It bears an uncanny resemblance to Albus Dumbledore's cabinet of memories from the Harry Potter films. Not nearly as ornate, but it has the underlying structure, nice size, and it's already painted gold. It would take some tools, but you could cut elaborate lace-like patterns in a succession of balsa sheets, paint, and then mount them in layers on the corners of the cabinet. If you wanted to go the extra mile to make it like the films, you could use this to as a display case for glass vials. Or as a liquor cabinet. Whatever floats your boat. Close up by Charlotte of The Tea Drinking English Rose Photo by Carl McPherson 2. Puffskeins or pygmy puffs I foun...