René Magritte Apple Macintosh T-shirt + Vinyl Decal Sticker/Son of Mac

Art and geek collide with these two items from Etsy inspired by Apple and RenéMagritte’s famous painting, The Son of Man.  The René Magritte Apple Macintosh T-shirt by Baostudio ($23.00) hides the face of man behind the old Apple logo with colorful results, while the Vinyl Decal Sticker for the Macbook Pro by artwallproject ($13.00) cleverly uses the Apple logo to reenact the painting.

St. Mark's Comics and Toy Tokyo

When I lived in New York City, I used to spend a lot of time in Greenwich Village.  Two notable geek stores on the block are St. Mark’s Comics and Toy Tokyo.  They’re both a bit difficult to find (St. Mark’s Comics is on a lower level than other shops, and Toy Tokyo is on the second floor, with only a sign and a painted Godzilla to guide you).  They’re both packed to the gills with their respective material: St. Mark’s Comics is full of comic books and old toys and collectibles; Toy Tokyo is full of fun, hip toys, from The Simpsons to Domo-kun.  But are these two shops worth the walk?  Find out after the break:

St. Mark’s Comics is probably best for its ambiance.  It feels like being inside of the mind of a stereotypical geek: dusty, crowded with old memorabilia, hidden away in some basement area.  Ironically, it’s not really a great place if you’re looking for a particular comic book.  I’ve bought more comics at Jim Hanley’s and Forbidden Planet, where the shelves are much better organized and the staff is much more knowledgeable.  Instead, I go to St. Mark’s for great geek inspiration, to see old toys and get a fun sense of nostalgia.  So if you have an ample amount of time to browse and want to remember when geek was as far away from chic as possible, this is the place for you.

Toy Tokyo, however, is hip and fun, with a wide variety of vinyl toys, plushies, kawaii trinkets from Japan, and both American and Japanese pop culture icons (a la Astro Boy, Star Wars, Godzilla, Nintendo’s Mario, and Peanuts, to name a few).  The Kidrobot store in Soho is much more minimal and manageable, but the crowded and frenetic nature of Toy Tokyo is also very enjoyable.

Has anyone else been to these stores and agree/disagree?  Anyone need directions?  Feel free to comment away!

Triangle T-shirt + Wall Pocket

The Triangle T-shirt by Circle T has a repeating Triforce pattern, with a few extra triangles, and the Wall Pocket by Scout Regalia reminds me of a combination of a Zelda rupee and a Bejeweled jewel.  It was inspired by geode mineral formations, so the comparison is definitely fitting.  Still, I play too many video games, don’t I?

Bricks and Mortar Armchair + Mushroom Pouffe

Mario imagery is simple and iconic, and a great source of inspiration for geeks around the globe.  The Bricks and Mortar Chair by Richard Woods (£1,725.00) is reminiscent of classic NES Super Mario Bros., while the Mushroom Pouffe by Anne-Claire Petit (€85,00) would look right at home in the Mushroom Kingdom!

By sketchystories and voodoorabbit

The 8-bit Heart and 8-bit Skull Pendants by sketchystories ($35.00) match perfectly with the Patchworked Pixel Heart and Patchworked Pixel Skull Cushion Covers by voodoorabbit ($45.00).  It’s a match made in pixelated heaven!