Muggle Musings is coming to an end this weekend and it’s broken my heart a little bit, but I know deep down that it’s for the best. It’s been the most brilliant thing ever, running my own discussion group and getting to know such a wonderful group of people. I feel I’ve learned so much during such a short time so I wanted to share it with you.
I wanted to do a little bit of a life update as I’d not done one for a while! Also last weekend me and some of my favourite nerds went to a Harry Potter Supper Club and Quiz in Coventry, so I thought I’d write about that too. Because why not?
If being a Ravenclaw means being more like Luna Lovegood, then count me in. That girl is literally the fictional manifestation of all I wished I could have been during school. There are so many moments where Luna is the most perfect character in the Harry Potter series and in true celebration of her birthday (February 13th) I thought I’d write a post about just how flawless she really is.
This month marked the 6th ever Muggle Musings (the Harry Potter Discussion Group I host)… and it’s been going well so far! During the last 6 meetings, we’ve discussed Harry Potter himself, Supporting Characters, Evil Characters, Magical Creatures, Hogwarts Teachers and Muggle-Wizard relations.
We come up with a million different theories about the wizarding world in every meeting and so I thought I’d pick out just a few of the highlights, seeing as it’s Harry Potter’s Birthday!
When visiting Harry Potter Studios last year, I realised I was a WIZARD at Harry Potter Trivia. I know so much about this fictional world (considering I can’t remember what happened last week…) and so I decided to use my knowledge to help spark interesting events in my local community.
Harry Potter Studios is one of the most magical places on earth. I REALLY don’t want to spoil anything for you and I’d encourage everyone who likes HP to go, so please look away now if you don’t want to see the details…
Are you still here? Okay, good.
I revisited the Harry Potter Studios this week, for an exclusive evening tour which included a meal, Butterbeer and a Guidebook (plus entry til midnight!) The drive there was great as I brought along Harry Potter Trivial Pursuit and absolutely smashed the competition – as any Ravenclaw would.
26th June marks the 20th anniversary of the release of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone! This is Part 2 of my two-part series of Harry Potter party inspiration from my birthday party! Below is all my Harry Potter Party food; to find out what I did for my invitations and decor click here! For more… read below!
I had a lot of ideas for Harry Potter party food and wanted to make sure that people knew what they were called! As with all aspects of my themed parties, everything was going to be a reference: from the food to the wall decor, the drinks to the games. First off I got some mini-metal keys, black ribbon and printed out some labels onto parchment style paper…
For most of my twenties, I’ve been hosting themed parties (Disney, Video Game Characters etc…) and so this year for my birthday I hosted a Harry Potter themed party!
Harry Potter is one of my favourite things ever and next week is the 20th anniversary of the publication of the first book! So in conjunction with this and my birthday party, I thought I’d do two posts about my Harry Potter Party Inspiration! Part one below is my Harry Potter Party Decorations and Invitations, followed by part 2 next week (June 24th) for food/drinks and games!
I know a lot of people won’t be in the habit of buying one of each of the Harry Potter Sweets available at the HP Studio tour, so I thought I’d do a little review to help you pick the best if and when you go (or to get from their online store.) I purchased 5 items that were featured in the books, rather than the Harry Potter brand name stuff as it seemed a bit more authentic.
This weekend I visited the House of Mina Lima Exhibition in Soho. I went with a group of friends / fans of the books. I decided not to go too over the top and wear a costume or anything so I just went for a witchy dress, my Ravenclaw hoody and Head Girl badge… So not that much at all…
For those not familiar, Mina Lima is the graphic arts company responsible for the graphics within the Wizarding World. So that’s the book covers, the potion bottles, the icon signage… all the little details that helped to make the Harry Potter movies a true reflection of the world created by JK Rowling.
You, like me, may not realise the amount that these affect the overall tone of the movies and realise just how many graphics there were! The Harry Potter saga is full of amazing props over the course of the 8 films. The Mina Lima Exhibition filled two floors and with the release of the Fantastic Beasts movie, I also got to experience an entire 3rd floor of related print artwork.
Newt and I had a moment
The place looked as if the whole thing had been created separately and then mortared together. There were creaky floorboards, slanted stairs and ceilings; the whole thing was reminiscent of a creaky abandoned house, filled with iconic imagery and props.
The Daily Prophet. Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. HoneyDukes Sweets.
Hogwarts Acceptance Letters. Ministry Propaganda Posters.
Howlers. House Crests. The Quibbler! All these magical quirks that make Harry Potter completely different from all the other fandoms and have brought the world to life were inside.
Miraphora Mina and Eduardo Lima (whose names sound like they’re straight out of a Hogwarts alumni directory!) have been honoured as eponymous characters in the Harry Potter World.
And that’s for good reason! Their attention to detail is astonishing and although I wouldn’t consider myself a graphic arts enthusiast I can definitely appreciate the amount of effort that goes into creating things like this.
The shop was absolutely wonderful. In the end, I just had to buy some badges and postcards. Later, I regretted not buying myself a print so I splashed out on a Ravenclaw one.
Represent!
We also passed the entrance to this… One day…
It was wonderful to be encapsulated by this world that I’ve grown up in once more.
Have you ever visited the Mina Lima Exhibition? What makes the Harry Potter movies magical for you?
Until next time
Amy