Disneyland turns 55

The Happiest Place on Earth will be of age to be considered a Senior Citizen this Saturday, July 17!

To celebrate, Disneyland will be distributing these special retro park maps all week long. And on the 17th, the park will be doing special things throughout the day.

At noon, a dedication ceremony will take place in Town Square, and at 4:15 p.m. cast members will sing Happy Birthday.

From 9-11 a.m. the Disney Gallery (now located on Main Street) will hold a signing for their 55th anniversary merchandise with artists Kevin Kidney, Jody Daily, and Noah.

The merchandise was inspired by original items found throughout the park when it first opened, such as the popcorn boxes and cups. Kevin Kidney and Jody Daily re-created said items out of ceramic. There's also a nice little tea cup set designed after the Mad Hatter's Tea Party attraction.






[all photos courtesy of Disney Park Blog & Kevin Kidney]

Doctor Who-welry

I am horribly smitten with the British sci-fi show Doctor Who. My love for it may have gotten to the point where it's unhealthy -- I dream about time travel, I constantly make references to Doctor Who, I've developed a fear of statues, and whenever something’s not working (an electronic appliance, elevator, a broken down car) I think, "If only the Doctor was real, he could totally fix this" or "Damn, I could really use a Sonic Screwdriver right now."

Yeah, I know. I'm off my rocker.

But my obsession has led me to find some rad stuff on Etsy. Notably an array of necklaces made out of palmer clay and resin by The Clay Pony.

She's made pendents of the TARDIS© (the Doctor's ship, for those not in the know), Daleks (the Doctor's long-time foe), and K-9 (a robotic pup). At $17 US, you can nab a simple pendent on a chain. For $27 US, there are beautifully crafted cameo-esque pendents on a leather chord that features The TARDIS©, Daleks, and K-9 (pictured below).


[photos courtesy of The Clay Pony]

Currently, there are only cameos of K-9, the TARDIS©, and the Time Lord symbol available, and a K-9 necklace on a chain. The Clay Pony often restocks, but you have to be quick to get what you want! I bought a Dalek necklace a few months ago and wear it almost everyday.



To get a better idea of how the necklaces look on someone, here's a picture of me wearing my Dalek necklace.

If you haven't seen Doctor Who, I urge you all to check it out. If you like monsters, aliens, and cheeky British humor, this show is for you! The fifth season is just about to wrap up here in the US, but if you happen to have Netflix, seasons 1-4 are available for instant streaming along with classic episodes from the 70s.

Brian McCarty's toy story

Toy photographer extraordinaire Brian McCarty is [FINALLY] coming out with a book featuring his work. It chronicles the last five years of his toy photography, which has been used in Hi-Fructose editorials as well as StrangeCo promotional photos. Many of his subjects are part of the Urban Vinyl movement -- toys created by contemporary artists such as Tim Biskup, Simone Lego, Jeremy Fish, Amanda Visell, and a bevy of others.

Like what Pixar has achieved in their Toy Story franchise, McCarty truly brings toys to life in his photos.

Art-Toys is set to release this month and signed copies will be available at the Hi-Fructose and Baby Tattoo's booths at San Diego Comic-Con.

If you can't make it (like me), you can purchase the book via McCarty's website for $40 US (+ $6.50 shipping). For $95 US (+ $8.50 shipping), you can have the special edition that comes in a vinyl slipcase and is signed and numbered by McCarty and a some of the artists whose toys are featured in the book (Frank Kozik, Patrick Ma (of Rocket World), Otter X, Mark Nagata (of Max Toy Co.), Attaboy, Sam Flores, and MARS 1 to name a few).




[all photos courtesy of Brian McCarty]

I frequent Tumblr quite often (one of many reasons why I have neglected this blog for so long), and this particular image has popped up a few times.

Geeky fashionistas of the world, how 'effing amazing are these shoes? Answer: VERY amazing! Problem is, I have no idea where to obtain them, what shoe brand they are, or if they were a DIY creation from a very crafty individual. I don't even know who to give photo credit to. x__x

Of course I tried Google, but alas. No results.

So ladies, I'm sorry, but we're just going to have to sit and drool. Or unless you have any knowledge on these pumps, do share! I know I'm supposed to be telling you guys where you can snatch awesome things such as these shoes, but just this once I don't know!

Are you a Skirt or a Suit?

While most shows have already had their season finales back in May, AMC's critically acclaimed and award-winning show Mad Men returns for their fourth season on Sunday, July 25.

The Mad Men Yourself avatar creator has been updated with all sorts of new goodies for the upcoming season.

Remember that BB gun Betty used on her neighbor's pigeons after he threatened to shoot the family dog? You can add that to your avatar now! Joan's accordion? Yep, that too. Hell, you can start wearing a fez now too (actually, that's only for "Suits" ... and I don't even know if that's new because I never looked at the men's avatar maker before the update. Sorry!). Anywho, more clothes, more accessories, more drinks, more fun!

Here's my new avatar up above. Quite appropriate for summer, wouldnt' you agree?

Once again, the fourth season begins on Sunday, July 25 @ 10 p.m. and the Mad Men Barbie dolls (which I blogged about in March) will be available this month as well. You can pre-order Joan, Roger, and the Drapers on Barbie Collector.


[photo courtesy of AMC]