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While Etsy does have its charms, when things go ugly, they go very ugly. All of these are truly hideous things that have never taken physical form, and will only dissapoint and anger the recipient. Observe:

Exe Funtown Brooch

G33k Keyboard Choker

Luigi toadstool wacky helmet hat

10 Sad DIY Geek Gifts You Should Never Buy

Instead, (and definitely if you lack the crafty skillz, like most of the preceding folk) shell out some cash for these equally geeky but far more chic choices like:

Circuit Board Business Card Case - Jumbo - $29

Teal Triple Capacitor Necklace - $30

Caffiene Keychain - $22

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Liz McLean Knight, the main human behind Fractalspin is featured on the cover of the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye free magazine for a feature about geek girls, and especially those in Chicago.

“Geek Chic: New generation of women embracing inner geek” [via the RedEye]

If dissassembling computers is geeky and making jewelry is girly, then Liz McLean Knight has found geek-girl nirvana. From her Wicker Park office, Knight, 30, runs a line of accessories make from computer components and sells the “fashionably-geek hipster gear” on a Web site she created, fractalspin.com.

There you’ll find necklaces made from capacitors. Handbags made of diskettes. Cufflinks made from microcontrollers. Woot! Those wrist cuffs made of MIDI cable are super neat!

The Washington Post Express thinks Budclicks are a neat way to customize your iPod earbuds. We think so too!

As if things couldn’t get any better than our adorable and popular Super Mario Brothers Mushroom Candy and our imitation retro-controller Nintendo Power Mints, behold our motion sensor powered Wii Controller gum tins that are pretty much the same size as the real ones, but lacking the ever-important safety strap. After you’ve finished off the peppermint gum you can use the case to store useful things like pens, DS cartridges, memory cards, ball bearings, or any small thing you need to tote around inside a Nintendo controller.

If you’re feeling of a particularly DIY spirit you can attempt to mod the case into something useful like a toothbrush timer, pre amp, actual remote control, or any of the other projects featured over at Make.

Transistor Cufflinks - $45
*NEW* Normal cufflinks in standard materials will make your geeky boy go “meh.” Cufflinks made out of the stuff of circuits will make him go “woot!” These silver-toned cufflinks are made from real transistors–components that are used to amplify current or act as a switch.


Goa Wave Binary Watch - Blue LEDs - $129
Your nerdy guy likes to be on time, but he probably would rather glance at a futuristic watch face than ordinary, analog watch hands. The Goa Wave Binary Watch is exactly the right combination of stylish form with geeky function. To read the watch you have to add up the numbers in the first row to get the hours and the ones in the second row to get the minutes.


MIDI Cuff 1.5″ - $45
At first glance this black cuff looks like some kind of funky rockstar-ish accessory, but a closer examination of the surface shows it to be created from MIDI Cable — Musical Instrument Digital Interface cable that’s used in electronic music creation. Whether your boy likes / makes electronic music, or just appreciates unconventional material, he’ll love owning a MIDI Cuff or two. Most guys will need the “Large” size option.


Fuse Necklace - $25
Here’s some geeky guy jewelry that looks good as well as being pretty nerdy. The rubber, electronic wire-type material has two real wire terminals at each end and a real glass fuse as a pendant. Hot.


Silver Wallet - $38
Here’s a cool gadget that will help your boy consolidate his pockets filled with loose credit cards, receipts, and cash. This aluminum-toned wallet will allow him to organize select up to six credit, ID and membership cards quickly and easily at the push of a switch.

“Less Than Three” Sterling Silver Necklace - $75

What better way to share your love with your nerdy girl? This silver necklace features a less than character (shift + , on US QWERTY keyboards) followed by the number 3. Turn your head to the right… and you see love. Aww.

Teal Triple Capacitor Necklace and Teal Capacitor Earrings - $42

If your girl sees diamonds as merely ultra-hard carbon, soon to be replaced and devalued by the technological advancements made with synthetic diamonds, then she’ll love these necklace and earrings pair that use teal capacitors instead of gemstones.


Silver Compass Ring - $78
Show your loved one that you truly care with this silver ring featuring a real compass instead of a gemstone. Because, let’s face it, a rock would be pretty useless when you’re lost.


Diskette Handbag - $55
From the tag: “CARRY YOUR STUFF IN GEEK-CHIC STYLE WITH A PURSE MADE FROM TWELVE (12) GENUINE 1.44 MB COMPUTER DISKETTES. ALLOCATE INTERIOR POCKETS TO MANAGE INTERNAL FRAGMENTATION. TOTAL AVAILABLE MEMORY: 17.28 MB.” Now that’s a pretty cool purse.


Dopamine Necklace - $75
Dopamine is what we’re really celebrating on Valentine’s Day–it’s the chemical that your brain produces when you’re in love and results in a feeling of bliss. What could be a more perfect gift than the dopamine molecule cast in silver to give on Valentine’s Day?

We’ve added four new wallet concepts to round out our selection of duct-tape-based money-carrying apparatuses.

Duct Tape Hybrid Vault Wallet $18
If you’re the type who hates a pocket full of loose change and receipts then you’ll love the design of this wallet. Featuring the duct tape + PVC design of the Duct Tape Hybrid BiFold Wallet, it adds the useful feature of an internal zippered pocket for change, a separated currency compartment (also useful to stash receipts) and an edgy, decorative patch on the front to set it apart from other wallets.

Duct Tape Hybrid Change Purse Wallet $18
Girls who own any of our duct tape purses can now have the perfect wallet. This hybrid wallet features a snap-closed change purse frame on one side and a traditional wallet with credit card slots on the other, accommodating your needs.

Duct Tape Hybrid Zip Wallet $25
If you’ve got pack rat tendencies and a ton of credit cards then this is the perfect wallet for you. The zippered part lets you stash receipts, notes or checks without being worried they’d slip out and disappear forever.

Leather Duct Tape Wallet $22
So, if you’re not ready to make the leap to a fully duct-tape constructed wallet you’ve got a compromise in this Leather Duct Tape Wallet. It’s fully made of leather with a real duct tape ID holder that slides out of a pocket on the front that also provides a unique design element with its cutout corner.

Here is a cool talk we found on TED about our favorite subject, fractals (of course!). Ron Eglash noticed Julia set patterns in they way villages were laid out while flying over Africa and it spurred his interest to investigate what was going on. Specifically, he talks about his research on the intriguing fractal patterns he noticed in African villages across the continent. He talks about his work exploring the rigorous fractal math underpinning African architecture, art and even hair braiding.

If you loved our original Smiley Necklaces but hoped for a more affordable version, you’re finally in luck. Check out these Mini Smiley Necklaces that are just 1cm in diameter and only $38. Instead of a chain like the original they have a thin velvet cord that comes in black, java, denim, or plum as well, and are available in either :-) or ;-).

If you’ve already got either version of the Smiley Necklaces, our sterling silver Smiley Earrings at $68 make the perfect accompaniment. Also at just 1cm in diameter you can choose from “Wink” or “Smile” to dangle from your earlobes. Both come in a cute little gift box.