Awhile back, I broke down the design and construction of my dream Nerd Cave.  Sitting in there the other day, it occurred to me that while the furniture, paint color, etc. is important, it’s really the little details that create the vibe.  So, in no particular order, here’s a list of eleven things that (IMHO), no self-respecting Nerd Cave should be without.

1.  Lava Lamp

     Who doesn’t love lava lamps?  The one in my nerd cave is actually an original from the 1970’s.  Well, the lava part is.  I actually managed to salvage it from our fire and decided not to keep the lamp part because it was old and had rusted in places after the fire. The wiring wasn’t exactly what you’d call “state of the art.”

     I’ve noticed that the “lava” in modern lamps tends to be fairly opaque and dull.  The lava in this old school lamp is transparent and quite pretty.  Whatever you go with, you just can’t beat the effect of a nice lava lamp.  I often turn it on as soon as I get home so it will be warmed and bubbling up by the time I settle in for the evening.

2.  Alien Embyro Lamp

     This is the Xemu/Xenu lamp by Xenu Mundi International.  My wife bought this for me a few years ago as a birthday present and I absolutely LOVE it!  I may have even referred to it as “my precioussss.” Its creepy green light really ties the room together. Like my lava lamp, I salvaged the glass jar but not the lamp itself.  After a couple weeks of searching eBay, one came up for sale and I snapped it up.  It’s often the first thing people comment on when they enter the cave for the first time.  People know good taste when they see it. Get one while you still can.

3.  Funky Timepiece

     Maybe it’s just me.  But if I can take something simple and add a quirky little twist to it, I gots to do it.  Thus, when shopping for a clock for the Nerd Cave, I wanted something beyond just a generic old clock.  I settled on a clock radio with a projection feature. There’s a lense that projects the time onto the wall, ceiling, or your forehead if you desire.  Not a big deal, just a cool little detail.

4.  Bobbleheads

     In general, I used to HATE bobble head dolls. Then I saw these on Amazon.com. I fell in love.  Now I’m always on the look out for a new member to add to the family.

Funko Mars Attacks Wacky Wobbler bobblehead
Funko Saucer Man Alien Wacky Wobbler bobblehead
Funko Cthuhlu Wacky Wobbler bobblehead

5.  Magnets

     Why must magnets be confined to the refrigerator? LET MY MAGNETS GO, I say! With all the metal furniture in the Nerd Cave, I have several great places to slap a magnet or two. You can take a dull boring surface and turn it into a conversation piece with just a few magnets.

     Often, I can’t find a magnet I like so I have taken to converting pins by removing the pin part and replacing it with a small rare earth magnet.

6.  Zombie Backscratcher

     We used to have a bamboo backscratcher at the old house.  A few weeks ago, my wife was bugging me to scratch her back.  Since I bite my nails like a mental patient, that’s not a good idea for either of us.  I started to tell her to “Get the backscratcher…” when I remembered “Oh yeah…we don’t have it anymore.”  A quick Amazon search brought up this wonder of modern science.

     Talk about a conversation piece…I can’t say enough about this thing.  I plan on sharpening the nails a bit to amp up the back scratchitude. But other than that, this is functional art at its very best. It’s a little pricey but considering you could use it to beat a burglar to death, I think it’s a good deal.

7. Salt Shaker(s)

     I am a bit of a salt-aholic.  But at least I use Lite Salt which has 50% less sodium than table salt.  So I have that going for me.  And as a salt user, nothing’s more annoying that sitting down with your bowl of Chef Boyardee Ravioli only to find you’ve forgotten to grab the salt shaker from the kitchen.  Since a big blue can of Lite Salt looks bad sitting on the shelf, I again jumped on Amazon for a funky solution.  I settled on these two and because I couldn’t decide which one I liked better, I got both.  Now I can aggravate my high blood pressure in style.

Robot Salt & Pepper Shaker set
Marvin the Martian Salt & Pepper Shaker set

8.  Alien Butler

     What can I say?  This is the crown jewel of my Nerd Cave accessories.  It came from a company named Design Toscano, which sells some pretty eclectic stuff.  From life-sized Bigfoot garden statues to King Tut’s sarcophagus, this place has funkiness on tap.   One day I was perusing their catalog and there he was.  Roswell, the Alien Butler Statue.   10 minutes later, the order was placed and I waited.

     When he arrived later that week, I tore into the package like a 5 year old on Christmas morning.  I’m 42 years old but I was literally giddy as I unwrapped this guy.  In fact, I was so excited that when I attached the tray to his arm, I torqued it too much and literally ripped his right arm off.  Panicked, I carried him in for triage.  Luckily, a bit of Crazy Glue fixed the wound and he took up his place of honor.  Named “Paul” after the movie alien, he is one of my favorite things in the room.

9. Funky Lamp

     Sure, you can swing by Wal-Mart or Target and get a boring run-of-the-mill lamp.  But this is the Nerd Cave, Baby.  You have to turn it up a notch.  Thus, once again to Amazon and you can add this little gem to your decor.  It’s a little pricey but what’re a few bucks when we’re talking about a focal point of the room?

10. Big Jar of Dice

     I like jars of dice and I cannot lie.  Ever since I got the crappy set of polyhedral dice in the Dungeons and Dragons boxed set back around 1980 or so, I’ve loved me some dice. An inexpensive glass container from Hobby Lobby and a couple of Chessex’s “Pound O’ Dice” later and you have a beautiful yet functional piece of art for your cave. If you’re not a gamer, then maybe this is not for you.  But if you are, you gotta have one of these.

11. Pimp Out Your Trash Can

     Trash cans are boring. It’s a can you put trash in. Period.  But add a BIOHAZARD sticker or two and now you’ve got a can with personality.  If you’ve got an in-law who isn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer, he or she might even stop and wonder…what’s in there?

     So there it is.  Eleven relatively inexpensive Nerd Cave accessories that you can add to your personal space to amp up the cool factor. Dang, when is HGTV gonna call and offer me my own design show?

It Came From The Nerd Cave Recommends:

Magnasonic Projection Clock Radio
Funko Mars Attacks Wacky Wobbler bobblehead
Funko Saucer Man Alien Wacky Wobbler bobblehead
Funko Cthulhu Wacky Wobbler bobblehead
Zombie Backscratcher
Robot Salt & Pepper Shaker set
Marvin the Martian Salt & Pepper Shaker

Copyright 2012 It Came From The Nerdcave