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dent-de-leon · 1 year

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Satyr, elf, dwarf, genasi, paladin, bard, fighter, warlock

Hi!! this got a little rambly and long lmao but here we go:

Satyr: how did you discover critical role

okay so!! This was apparently just before crit role started streaming, cause it was 8 years ago, and anyway, I went to a signing for Matt at a con. I'm incredibly shy, but he was just very nice and friendly. Some time later, I started seeing pretty VM art and heard people talking about this DND thing that Matt Mercer did with some other VA's and I was like, oh!! I've heard of him!

I tried getting right into C1 but I felt like it was maybe a little daunting to catch up at that point. But then not long after, C1 wrapped up, and they announced they were doing another campaign. So it seemed like the perfect opportunity to start watching, be there right for the beginning of the new game. And I still remember when C2 was first teased, they posted this art of the party--but just their sihlouettes.

And it was just so fun to see everyone guessing at what kind of class everyone was and who was playing what character, and there was!! this one very striking sihlouette in particular! This one with HORNS and pretty jewelry and!! tHIS ADORABLE LITTLE TAIL!! and anyway I saw that sihlouette and I was like!! That one! I want to see that one! And watched the first episode of C2 live absolutely vibrating with excitement and when Mollymauk first showed up I knew I was already so far gone, it was hopeless--

Elf: what is your favorite side campaign

I really liked EXU Calamity!! Even if it absolutely broke my heart, it was just so much fascinating world building and character arcs. And I'm just so weak for anything related to the Age of Arcanum.

Dwarf: what is your favorite one-shot

THE SONG OF THE LORELEI!! I love blood hunters and werewolves and the concept of all the PCs being family. The sibling rivalry and banter, the mysterious family history and the way each character chooses whether to carry on this legacy or find their own path--there's just a lot of little things I loved.

Genasi: who is your favorite campaign 3 character (so far)

Funnily enough, my favorite character is a genasi, and it's Ashton!! I love the whole concept of dunamancy as raw, primal power and chaos--as opposed to the very refined science of spellwork and theorems we see from Dynasty wizards. It's just such an interesting contrast and the unpredictability of it is so fun. Love watching Taliesin react to what he rolls for those chaos bursts.

Also adore Ash's whole personality and the little so far we've uncovered about their past. I love his little found family and the way they're so protective of people when they insist they don't have friends. Grappling with their fear of abandonment and attachment, gradually learning to up again and heal. Also, Taliesin playing another trans character just makes me so so happy. Soft barbarian my beloved,,

Paladin: what is your favorite friendship

aHH the circus kids!! I think it's such a tragedy that we never got to see more of them, and it makes all of their little moments all the more heartfelt and poignant. Yasha saying that she just got attached to Molly because "he was Molly," seeing him in all his color and vibrance and joy--"he was so beautiful." A spark of life when she had been traveling so long in the wastes, where everything was dead and nothing grew, where there was no color in the world. And then there's Molly, and he shines like a beacon.

Molly making sure Yasha has ways to find them when they leave town. Kissing her on the forehead when she comes back. The aftermath of the Zone of Truth spell, when Molly's just leaning into her for comfort and thanking her for being there for him. Molly opening up to Yasha about being genderfluid, about how he really feels and what his tattoos mean to him.

Molly waking from the resurrection feeling so lost and pained and Empty--running away and holding his head in his hands until Yasha goes to his side and comforts him, promises him he's not Empty anymore. The sheer adoration and warmth in his voice when he calls her Love, the moments when he gives her the biggest hug and hands her the flowers he picked just for her and Beau.

The fact that Molly spent so long at the circus waiting for the next time Yasha would show, trusting that she'd always come back when she's ready, that she'd never leave them for good. Yasha still faintly hoping and praying, mourning Molly for so long until finally, finally--he comes home. And this time, Yasha gets to be the one to welcome him back and bring some color and warmth to his life.

Bard: what is your favorite “how do you want to do this?”

The vision of Yasha ripping Obann's wings off while lit by the temple's shattered stained glass is just so very thematically satisfying and striking, I'll never get over it.

But Jester staring down at Lucien and telling Molly that she knows he's in there, that they all love him so much and they want him back--that always breaks me. The poetry of Jester being the one to strike down Lucien when she's the one who read his tarot cards and told him, "Facing you is death," but says it is a comfort. Death--not as cruelty or something monstrous, but as a new beginning, an end so something new can be born--death coming to you and sitting beside you, holding your hand and telling you it will be okay.

Two tieflings, two parts of a matching set, a deck drawn by them both--Jester and Molly, death and rebirth. I love them so much.

Fighter: what was your favorite funny moment

I absolutely adore the classics of 1) Vox Machina spends like four spell slots, 25 minutes, and takes 10 damage trying to open x1 door in Whitestone, and 2) THE HOSPITAL HEIST and especially eVERYTHING Molly did for it. The image of him crashing through a window full of glass and acting like he just did a ten point landing and then jumping into Fjord's arms while he's trying to convince some nearby guards that Molly ran off in the opposite direction--pure art.

Warlock: what is your favorite critical role merch

MOLLY AND JESTER'S TAROT DECK!! I've been longing for that merch for years and it's everything I wanted. I love the little introduction written from Molly's point of view and all the lore tidbits we get about Moonweaver worship and Moonweaver oracle decks. I've also just always had a love of tarot cards, and this is actually my first oracle deck, so I was really excited!

The way these decks are often destroyed and rebuilt from scratch over and over, sometimes as often as the passing phases of the moon--how this reflects Molly's own soul and his fluidity in transformation and renewal between lives. The fact that Molly really does use his cards to try and help people, and that there's another group aligned with Ruidus who make red moon decks designed just to deceive and manipulate their marks.

Molly's cards and art being influenced by the ideals of Moonweaver worship and his heart for adventure and romance. The way he really did draw cards for all the Mighty Nein, making them a part of his life and the story his deck tells--I just love him and Jester and this lovely collaboration of art they did together. (Also, Jester's little notes in the margins of the pamphlet are so cute!)

#thanks for the ask hope you had a happy holiday!

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pastelwitchling · 3 months

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I think the PJ fandom are being way too critical of this adaptation. Is the book? No. Is it the movie? No. Because guess what, they've been done before and we don't need to see them again. Percy is requesting Annabeth take the lead in a lot things since the train. He's trusting her to do what he can't do yet. Part of being a good leader is knowing when to delegate. If he'd stormed in and thought he knew everything, he'd just be arrogant and ignorant and not charismatic at all.

I think this take is completely fair. Like I said in my thoughts on episode 3, it makes sense for Annabeth to take care of so much because she's been part of this world for years, whereas Percy is a newcomer. That's fair and reasonable. That's not the issue here.

The issue is that while the book and movies recognized that since Annabeth was the person to turn to for answers, since Annabeth was the natural choice for that, they had to make up for it with Percy uncovering things, Percy doing most of the fighting, Percy having small moments that showed his potential as a leader and his difference as a child of the Big Three. He hasn't grown up with any of this knowledge like other demigods, but he's not just any demigod, so he both doesn't fit in and does fit in because he can adjust to this world during a quest.

I still remember the way Percy in the movies decapitated Medusa. Am I saying that the show has to do the exact same thing? No. But since they knew that they couldn't show Medusa's head getting cut off (I don't know what is up with this rating that they slapped on the series, I really don't think it's doing the darker elements justice), they should've done something a little more creative and epic than just... Annabeth puts her cap on her and Percy swings at the air. Like, that doesn't LOOK cool. That doesn't FEEL cool. I don't care about logistics here, I would've taken something cheap looking if we'd just gotten something more creatively EPIC. But that's not what we got.

I am also not saying that the show has to be the movies. Am I comparing scenes in the movies to the show, or the feel of scenes? Am I comparing lines from the movie to the show, or the colors? The vibrancy? The energy? You can hate the movies all you want, but outside of following more scenes from the book and casting kids, I just personally don't feel like the show captures the vibe of the books the way the movies do. The movies have the characters using their powers. The movies weren't afraid to go dark, which again is probably due to the terrible PG rating we're getting (I have to assume that's what it is), but there's no creativity behind that. Gabe isn't that bad, but... it was always about more than just than him stinking enough to ward off monsters. It showed what Sally would endure for her son, how strong willed Percy was because he recognized that bullying quality in Ares and didn't put up with it. The movies even, in my opinion, are more epic than the show because they feel like we're following demigods. And, more specifically, a child of the Big Three. I'm sorry, I just found it a bigger deal in the movies that Percy was a forbidden child, here they just gloss over it. I, AGAIN, enjoy the show, I really do, it's fine. I just think that the movies are more entertaining than what we've gotten from the show so far. Are you going to try to tell me now that the show shouldn't be colorful and fun because... we already get that in the movies?

There are eight episodes in total, yes? In those eight episodes, instead of paying better care to Percy's journey, Disney is doing what Disney usually does, and worrying about their half-assed girl power messages than focusing on the actual quest and what makes sense for the characters.

Answer me this. Does it make sense for a child of Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom, to talk back to Ares? Now, before you get on me about "just because the books and movies did it, doesn't mean the show has to do it" -- THIS IS WHY EVERYBODY CRAPPED ON THE MOVIES IN THE FIRST PLACE. THIS IS WHY WE DIDN'T GET THE FIVE MOVIES LIKE PLANNED. Nobody cared that the movies were fun on their own, they wanted exact copies of the book SCENES. Yeah, we didn't get that in the movies, but at least we got something fun and epic, in my opinion. The whole POINT of Percy talking back to the gods, in both the movies and books, was to show that he couldn't stand bullies, and that he was guided by his heart, the way Annabeth was not. She is literally guided by her mind and reason. It's her whole thing! Oh, but that could sometimes be a flaw, and Disney can't have their female characters with blatant flaws! It ALSO sets up the big fight between Percy and Ares in the book because we see the anger had been building for a while. In the show, Percy just gets angry at Ares all of a sudden at the very end, as if to say, "See? It's the same as the book now!" Except it's not.

Here's what the show's doing, and I'll end my response on this. The show is too busy trying to show you how much care they put into Annabeth while still thinking that they could have Percy's journey like in the books. How do I know? They keep slipping in seconds every now and then of Percy taking charge of the quest to show his "journey," even though it comes out of nowhere. To me, it's not working. And I think that the PJO fandom should be allowed to criticize and critique as much as we want.

Just as I welcome your response to my critique, and I understand the points you're making, please respect that not everyone will see it in the same way, and understand that the show is up for critique. I had to sit through years of people mocking and insulting the movies that introduced me to PJO in the first place, and kept quiet because they had the right to voice their opinions. Now, I have the complete right to voice mine.

#ask rin #pjo rant #pjo #percy jackson

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taiturner · 2 years

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1, 13 and 32 :D

Putting this under a read more because I simply cannot shut up 💕

What are your top 3 favorite sets you’ve made? (In no particular order)

I’m cheating and using one for these 2 Viktor sets because they’re the same theme - this post season 3 set, this pre season 3 set. I’ve just always really loved the theme of “Viktor is the bomb” and I’ve saved that post-s3 set quote for so many years and I held off using it until after season 3 and was excited that it was still relevant. The colors in that set just make me happy and I’ve tried so many times to use it again and it never works the same. And for that pre season 3 set, I think that’s when I was really starting to teach myself blending? So I had so much fun making it. I just love giffing Viktor in general, I think there are so many themes to play with while editing that always really inspires me when I make something for him.

This "favorite TV show" gifset of TWD: World Beyond is one of my favorites because I think it's probably the first time I ever did a layout set? And it took me sooooo long to do it and I had to make so many decisions because I love every episode and every character so trying to make everything, everyone, every theme all fit together was so hard, but I was really happy and it makes me happy to look at it because the show is my comfort show. I also really tried to focus on the panel being about family, science/fighting, love, and growing up, which are very much the main themes of the shows so I was happy with it!!

My Luther set + a quote from The Chosen Ones. This is probably my favorite Luther set ever, because I read this book and I wrote down so many notes on it screaming “Luther, Luther, Luther,” so I always wanted to make a set with him ft. this book. I was very strategic on the scenes I used based on what I think about him in my own head but in particularly, the last 2 gifs are very important to me (’desire something’ over a shot of his smile fading after the kids that were looking up to him then started laughing at him after he made a fool of himself + the shot of him thinking he’s in a better place now that he’s away from his father yet he’s still just in the same cycle of being exploited. And “wasn’t sure he was capable of it” with shots of him thinking he’s finally free / alive but the next day he’s just full of shame and still sad... I hold these two gifs so close to my heart). Also, this is definitely the set that began my love story with the gradient map. I’m not too fond of the typography anymore but this quote will forever be my Luther quote. Also, I know Luther always wears blue and that’s probably what people associate him with, but for some reason I’ve never wanted to use blue for him... but I am so pleased with this particular blue/purple shade for him, so he’s allowed some blue now <3

Klaus + You Look Like Death. When I opened photoshop, it was supposed to be a Five gifset.... and then when I decided it was Klaus, it started off as dark green and purple, so I literally don’t know how I got here? But Klaus + vibrancy is something so personal and he deserved it, and I loved Robert’s foreword so much and it was so fitting after season 3, so I’m very very happy with how this turned out. He’s one of those characters that just has so many fun shots/scenes to work with and I definitely want to gif him more.

My recent Five set. This time when I opened photoshop I actually let it be about Five. He has sooo many aesthetically pleasing and tragic shots that it really is so fun to gif him and I’m glad I finally did. I’ve always appreciated Five as a character but ofc following you has made me love him even more, I love your love for Five 😌

This is my “I thought this was a top 5 not a top 3″ disclaimer because I’ve once again cheated when you asked me top anything, but <3 anyway this was so TUA heavy so honorable mentions for my father’s day set for my favorite TV dad ever, this Tracy set, this Luther set, this Alden set

Where or from whom did you learn how to gif?

I’m a professional graphic designer, so technically, I learned in college... but obviously my day job is very different than any kind of giffing I do on tumblr. My work giffing is pretty bland in comparison and I often work with static images rather than videos, so it’s such a change of pace to gif here. I started giffing on tumblr though basically out of spite because so many of my favorite characters are either hated for no reason or just minor characters who don’t get much love, and I was tired of not finding anything in their tags, so I started giffing. Most of the things I’ve learned have come from different tutorials on tumblr (and bless them all because I absolutely don’t ever know how to explain anything I do, so all my love to the people who can articulate it so well that other people can learn from them).

Also my friend @felixcarlucci and I kind of started learning how to gif alongside each other so we exchange a lot of helpful tips and I’ve learned a lot from him too!

What is your favorite tool/adjustment layer in Photoshop?

Selective color my beloved!!! I also really, really love gradient map and I’ve been relying on it so much lately... I cannot help myself (currently working on a Sloane set with gradient maps and the coloring scheme for her is just making me vibrate, I’m excited to finish it).

#answered #me getting home from work to nap vs. ranting to lizzie my beloved #ty for sending!!!!#jameszmaguire #number5theboy

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beehunni62 · 2 years

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- A Brief Introduction to Korean Purple Dye -

For those who are into historical costuming or who simply love useless trivia, let us talk about a fascinating topic - 자주색 (jajusaek) or purple!!!

Before synthetic dyes, such as synthetic purple invented by English chemist William Henry Perkin (1838-1907) were created and commercialized during the Industrial Revolution, dyes were painstakingly done by sourcing, transporting, mixing, adding, oxidizing, etc, chemical compunds found in animals, plants, and minerals. That meant that animals such as insects, snails, flowers, and mineral rocks were crushed, mixed, and/or treated in a complex process to generate specific colors.

Dyeing was once an elevated art form that not many could afford like in the case of purple. Purple is considered by many historians to be one of the most, if not, the most difficult dye to produce naturally. Don’t believe me? Just check the World History Encyclopedia Page to see how one of the most famous purples, Tyrian Purple, was produced in the West [here]. The reason why it was so difficult is because sourcing the natural chemicals for the dye from hard-to-find natural producers took time, knowledge, and money as well as developing complex processes that would ensure the vibrance, adherence to the fabric, and life-span of a dye that just didn’t cooperate. In short, it was a headache.

Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean that the West had a monopoly on purple. Asian cultures also knew how to produce the color. However, I wish to focus on Korean purple, also known as Gromwell purple, which comes from the Gromwell plant (lithospermum erythrorhizon) or, rather, its roots. While the Gromwell plant itself produces vibrant reds termed 자초 (jacho; called after the plant), the roots could be grounded into a fine powder to produce a reddish-purplish color similar to plum that had warm undertones. To make the fibers of the desired fabric absorb the dye, it was necessary to use an alum mordant which helps the colors gain their brilliance and protects them from being washed away for a long period of time. For an extensive lesson on Korean dyes throughout Korean history from the Baekje (백제) era until today, check out this blogpost:

Fun Fact: the Japanese termed the purple they got from the Gromwell plant, their main source of purple, as “murasaki” which, if you are familiar with Japanese culture, literature, or history, you would know that’s the alias that the author of The Tale of Genji is known for today. Back to Korea.

Some of the other plants used in the Joseon era (1392 A.D.- 1910 A.D.) to make purple were sappan wood and hollyhock which produce reds and and blues respectively [Kim, 2014]. They are also both found in various parts of Asia, including Korea. If you’re curious to see what sappan wood reds and purples look like, then I invite you to check out this blog post:

The Gromwell plant’s significance to Korean culture cannot be understated as it was not only used to dye fabrics but also cosmetics, to create paint, and as traditional medicine for inflammation and burns [Cho et al., 2008]. Additionally, it helped create one of the colors of the Ogansaek (오간색) or the five secondary colors in Korean culture.

The purple we avid consumers of historical K-Dramas are familiar with that is often used to dye modern hanbok recreations is NOT historically accurate. It’s this blueish purple rather than reddish purple that was not available in the peninsula until after the 1870s when artificial dyes were first introduced to Joseon society [Song & Hong, 2019]. Many modern day purple hanbok on TV screens look like laser beams ready to damage corneas. That specific shade of purple that has cool undertones and seems highly saturated would not be possible using plant, animal, or mineral-based dyes.

The first widespread use of purple in Korea as a symbol of status came from the Baekje Kingdom (18 B.C.- A.D. 660) where the king was

[…] known to have dressed in a wide-sleeved violet garment, blue silk pants, a white leather belt, a gold or black silk hat and black leather shoes. Other documents said Baekje courtiers wore colored belts (purple, red or blue) to distinguish their ranks [Kim, 2020]

This color system to identify courtiers and even the social classes in general was adopted fully by the Silla (57 B.C.– 935 A.D.) Kingdom in the 6th century A.D thanks, in part, to the new caste system developed in 520 A.D., the Bone Rank System (골품제도). Those sitting at the top two ranks “sacred bone” (성골) and “true bone” (진골), were the only ones who could wear purple. If you wish to learn more about the Bone Rank System, then check out this link:

By Queen Seondeok’s reign (632 A.D.-647 A.D.) the color ranks for courtiers at Silla court from highest to lowest were purple, red, green, and cyan blue.

During Goryeo (918 A.D.-1392 A.D.), dye manufacturing specialized facilities appeared and the previous Silla color system was upheld for the first half of Goryeo but the Bone Rank System did not survive [Anderson, 2019]. However, purple still retained its high-status association [Kim, 2020]

From left to right: All three are Goguryeo (고구려) (37 B.C.-668 A.D.) purple robe recreations based on archeological evidence [source], [source], [source].

By the time of Joseon, purple was still being used by the upper classes but with notable differences. For instance, red came to replace purple as the color for the king since red went on to signify a stronger connection with masculinity (yang) and also due to Ming influence. Kings still wore purple robes but for casual wear while, for ceremonies, they would switch to red. High ranking courtiers also shifted away from purple and into deep crimson reds. As far as the court women were concerned, Park Hyunjung for the Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles writes:

The color rank of the Wonsam is as follows: the Queen’s color was red, the Crown Princess’ was green and purple, the royal concubine’s was usually green and blue, but they could wear purple when they won the King’s favor. A prince’s wife’s was usually green, but she wore blue and purple if she became the mother of the King. The princess’s was green, and the court lady’s was green, blue, and black (2009)

The wonsam (원삼), pictured below, came in different colors throughout its history. Red, green, purple, and yellow. Although the latter was only used very briefly towards the end of the Joseon Dynasty after Korea declared itself an empire. Before, neither Korean kings nor queens were allowed to wear the color yellow as Joseon was considered a vassal kingdom of China and such a move would have been controversial, to say the least.

From left to right; top to bottom: Representation of yellow wonsam (황원삼) worn by Korean empresses after Joseon declared itself an empire (modern times). [source].

Representation of red wonsam (홍원삼) worn by Korean queens and high ranking concubines at the end of the Joseon period. According to the Garyedogam Uigwe (가례도감의궤), the record of royal marriages, there was no wonsam for the queen but there were green ones for the Crown Princesses. Queens went on to have specific Hongwonsam (red wonsam) by the end of the Joseon period (modern times) [source].

A reproduction of Princess Deok-on's ceremonial green wonsam (녹원삼) (1822-1844). Nokwonsam was worn by crown princesses, princesses, or noble ladies, depending on the time period. At some point, only princesses and aristocratic women wore nokwonsam, at others, nokwonsam was worn by crown princesses too. Commoner women could marry wearing nokwonsam but without any golden embellishments (modern times) [source].

A representation of purple wonsam called jajeokwonsam (자적원삼). Depending on the time period, jajeokwonsam was worn by concubines and princess consorts or by crown princesses too. Commoner women could also marry wearing a jajeokwonsam but were not allowed golden decorations (modern times) [source].

More examples of purple in Joseon clothing ranging from aristocratic and court to military wear:

Left to right; top to bottom: Front and back views of a purple danryeong. Danryeong (단령) initially was worn by civil and military officials for mourning. Eventually, it developed into the man’s wedding clothes in traditional Korean weddings (ca. 1970s) [source].

Back and detail views of the official robe of courtiers during the Joseon period called jobok (조복). This particular style was worn by 1st and 2nd rank officials as it is apparent from the red body and purple edges (date unknown) [source].

Ritual robe called jebok (제복) worn at the Royal Ancestral Shrine while performing ancestral rites. This particular robe was worn by Gun Heungwan. Ritual and ceremonial robes are constructed the same way but, with ritual robes, the person wears a decorative white raw silk collar, a black silk robe on top of a white inner silk robe (this is one, particularly is purple), and the red ceremonial apron seen in jobok is amplified and worn on the chest (1815-1848) [source].

A front view of another purple jebok (date unknown) [source].

Image depicting the purple mourning robe of a crown prince called seoyeonbok (서연복) with the four clawed dragon insignia, the sajoryong (사조룡), and headdress called ikseongwan (익선관) (modern times) [source].

A modern recreation of a Joseon official’s danryeong on display at the “Couture Korea” exhibit in the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco (modern times) [source].

Front, back, and side views of a purple ikseongwan belonging to Crown Prince Yi Un (황태자) (1897-1970), also known as King Yeongchin (영친왕) (20th century) [source].

Front view of Crown Prince Yi Un’s purple dragon robe (1897-1970) (early 20th century) [source].

Image depicting a recreation of Joseon King Cheoljong’s (철종왕) (1831-1863) military uniform (군복) portrait (modern times) credit to @Oreaeui on Twitter [source].

Front view of purple military outer blouse (date unknown) [source].

A popular trend among the women seems to have been dyeing the goreum (고름), or ribbon, purple while leaving the jeogori (저고리), or shirt, a different color. A popular color combination was purple and green. The color of the goreum could tell you a great deal about the woman wearing it. A purple goreum meant that your husband was alive and a blue goreum, that you had a son [Kim, 2016]. Although the colors were not compulsory for the above cases, they were meant to signal socio-economic and marital status.

From left to right; top to bottom: Princess Deok-on's Dang-ui, Ceremonial Jacket (1822-1844) [source].

Jang-ot Coat style veil (1800-1880) [source].

Ceremonial long jacket (Dangui) of the consort of Imperial Prince Yeong [source].

Dang-ui, Jacket of Queen of abdicated King Gwanghae, Queen Yoo (1700s) [source].

Hang-a-dang-ui, Long Jacket for court lady which was worn during Princess Deokori’s wedding in 1837 (1800s) [source].

Jang-ot, Princess Deokon's coat style veil (1822 - 1844) [source].

Dangui, Semi-ceremonial jacket of Princess Deokon (1822-1844) [source].

Reproduction of a jeogori of intellectual madam Haepyeong Yoon (해평윤) (1835-1920) [source].

We also have purple accessories:

From left to right; top to bottom: Maegae-daenggi, Side ribbon worn by court women to fix their wigs to their heads, particularly when sporting the eoyeo haistyle (date unknown) [source].

Jebuburi-daenggi, Ribbon in swallow’s beak-shape used by princesses, usually for ceremonies. The name of the ribbon comes from the “beak-like” triangle shape of the ends (date unknown) [source].

Joseon women’s ceremonial coronet (Jokduri) used as wedding accessory (date unknown) [source].

Pendant (norigae) with three main ornaments (Eunbangadari-samjak-norigae) passed down in the family of Song Siyeol (ca. 19th century) [source].

Angular belt (Hyeokdae) worn with official uniform (date unknown) [source].

Soryebokdae official’s belt for semi-formal small ceremonies (19th century) [source].

What seems to be purple paint in murals too:

A detailed view of the mural on the western wall of the main chamber of the Goguryeo period Tokhung-ri (Deokheung-ri; 덕흥리) Tomb (Northeast Asian History Network, 2011). The color on this and several other murals in the tomb appear to be purple which may be because actual purple was used or the red paint oxidized giving it its purple appearance [source].

Back to wonsam:

Purple wonsam were worn mainly by 3 kinds of people in three different situations.

Crown Princesses: Their wonsam were deep purple with only Chinese characters for good fortune made out of gold leaf or thread allowed as decorations. Only queens were allowed to have floral and animal motifs. Crown princesses wore purple wonsam for important ceremonies.

Royal concubines after they gained favor from the king and were required to attend a formal ceremony wearing the wonsam. Their wonsam too could only be decorated with Chinese characters.

Any commoner woman, no matter how low, could wear a purple wonsam with no decorations for her wedding day. Her husband would also dress in an official’s purple danryeong with no insignia.

Examples of purple wonsam:

From top to bottom; left to right: Front view of the only purple wonsam with phoenix insignia known to exist from King Gojong’s concubine, Lee Wan Deok (이완덕, 1887-1970); official name Gwanghwadang (광화당) [source].

View of collar of Gwanghwadang-wonsam [source].

Front view of phoenix insignia of Gwanghwadang-wonsam [source].

Back view of Gwanghwadang-wonsam with phoenix insignia removed [source].

Korean actress, Kang Sooyeon, wearing a purple wonsam for period costume drama Ladies of the Palace or Women’s World (여인천하; 2001) [source].

Image of purple wonsam of rental shop [source].

Purple wonsam shown at an exhibit [source].

Although at the beginning of Joseon men were allowed to wear insignia on their purple danryeong, this eventually died down until no commoner was allowed to do so. Because the purple dye (as well as the other dyes on the outfit), silk, and accessories were too expensive for the average commoner to afford (if it was up to them to procure all articles necessary to officiate the wedding they wouldn’t be able to wed at all), the local government would most likely have kept a certain amount of wonsam and danryeong around and would loan it for a day to the couple getting married. After the ceremony, the clothes and accessories were given back to the local officials to be distributed again to another couple. Dressing themselves in such expensive fabrics and dyes plus wearing the hats, wigs, pins, jewelry, and shoes, with the horse and servant procession, was a great honor and a once-in-a-life-time moment. Even to this day, purple wonsam and danryeong is still worn in traditional Korean weddings. Another use for the purple danryeong, as used by court officials, was for mourning.

Just to show how incredibly different natural Korean purple was to the synthetic dye that was introduced to the peninsula, here are a few pictures. Notice how this purple is more blue in color and that all of the dates from these examples range from the 19th century to the 20th century. All of these articles are from the upper class because they were the first to get their hands on the novel synthetic dyes brought from the West. It would take decades before every day people could afford to wear and buy purple. Granted, I cannot 100% confirm that the items below were dyed using synthetic dyes or if they were the result of a new dyeing technique. However, their color is clearly different from earlier examples of natural plant dye and I’m not sure whether they can be achieved naturally. What do you think?

From top to bottom: Queen Yeongchin’s (1901-1989) shoes (early 20th century) [source].

Jeogori fur-lined jacket (1900-1935) [source].

Okdae, Official’s belt (20th century) [source].

Tteo-guji, Wooden wig (20th century) [source].

Nubi-jeogori, King Gojong’s Quilted Jacket (1864-1907) [source].

Geumgwang unknown date [source]

…And that concludes my useless trivia moment. Next time you see a purple hanbok in a historical drama that makes your corneas burn from the sheer saturation, you can think back to this post and wonder why on God’s name they decided to go for that color and suffer as much as I do ☺️. Hope you left this post having learned something new or not as bored as when you started reading.

~ hunni

In-Text References

Anderson, M. (2019, January 13). A history of natural dyes - Episode 1 - Korean natural dyes [Blog]. Nutmeg. https://www.nutmegfibers.com/nutmegfibers/2018/11/26/slow-color-korea-nat-dyes-wip?format=amp

Cartwright, M. (2016, September 15). Bone Rank System. World History. https://www.worldhistory.org/Bone_Rank_System/

Cartwright, M. (2016, July 16). Tyrian purple. World History. https://href.li/?https://www.worldhistory.org/Tyrian_Purple/

Cho, H. R., Cho, Y., Kim, J., Seo, D. B., Kim, S. H., Lee, S. J., & Kim, N. I. (2008). The effect of Gromwell (Lithospermum erythrorhizon) extract on the stratum corneum hydration and cramides content in Atopic Dermatitis patients. Annals of Dermatology, 20(2), 56–66. https://doi.org/10.5021/ad.2008.20.2.56

Dekel, S. T. (2020, July 31). Sappan reds and purples [Blog]. Suzanne Dekel. https://www.suzannedekel.com/amp/sappan-reds-and-purples

Kim, J. (2016, February 2). hanbok, geu aleumdaum sog-e damgin yeogsa sangsig [Hanbok, the common sense of history in its beauty]. SK Careers Journal. https://www.skcareersjournal.com/m/468

Kim, S. (2014). Kinds and types of dyes uses in the Joseon Dynasty [Abstract]. Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles, 38(2), 201-215. http://dx.doi.org/10.5850/JKSCT.2014.38.2.201

Kim, H. (2020, March). Shades of history: Color’s societal roles. Korea. https://www.kocis.go.kr/eng/webzine/202003/sub01.html

Park, H. (2009). Color rank system of the court wonsam of Joseon Dynasty [Abstract]. Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles, 33(10), 1552-1563. DOI:10.5850/JKSCT.2009.33.10.1552

Song, S., & Hong, N. (2019). A study on synthetic dyes used in insignia badges [Abstract]. The Korean Society of Costume, 69(4), 104-122. DOI: 10.7233/jksc.2019.69.4.104

#korean culture #korean #hanbok #한복 #historical fashion #purple #korean history #history of dyes #trivia

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ordinaryschmuck · 3 years

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What I Thought About "Yesterday's Lie" from The Owl House

Salutations, random people on the internet who absolutely won’t read this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons!

Here it is! The midseason finale of The Owl House Season Two! An episode featuring Luz going back to the human realm, is hyped up to heaven about how painful it'll be for the audience, and features more anxiety by how Creepy Luz is a thing. And BOOOOOOOOY howdy were fans not ready for this. I'm sure as hell not ready for when I wrote this intro at *checks time* thirty minutes before watching the official premier. Yup, the words you're reading right now are from me in the past, when everything was still pure and simple. Whereas future me is still probably destroyed by the events that transpired. Isn't that right, future me?

Future Me: Actually, it wasn’t that bad. The ending hurt, sure, but other than that, it wasn’t too painful.

Wow, that is some neat input! At least, I think it was. I wouldn't know because I literally wrote that after watching the episode. With the words you're currently reading being written at *checks time* twenty-six minutes before the premier...this whole intro is confusing, isn't it, future me?

Future Me: Sure is.

Yeah, it's definitely confusing. In any case, let's dive into this spoiler-filled review as we find out together just how painful this episode was! Take it away, future me!

Future Me: Will do! Major spoilers ahead, folks!

Now, let’s review, shall we?

WHAT I LIKED

Luz’s Room: We only see it for a short time, but everything about it just screams Luz. The pile of weird-looking stuffed animals, the witch hat in the center of the floor, and the fact that she has bunk beds, a single child's dream (Or so I've heard). It's a small thing, but I love it.

Vee: Here she is! The character previously dubbed Creepy Luz who now turns out to be yet another new addition to the ever-growing list of characters that we, as a fandom, would give our lives for. Because holy s**t was Vee the best type of expectation subversion. Showing us all the ominous ways of how she basically took Luz's place made fans assume that Vee was an evil doppelganger. Turns out, she was just a tortured soul that was desperate to live a new and better life and lucked out in finding Luz's. What Vee does is...questionable at best, but seeing what she went through with the experiments Belos pulled on her, you understand why she would do it. And I personally love it's that same background information that makes Vee resentful of Luz of all people. Luz's life is a relative dream come true, and running away from that would be insane to someone who spent most of their existence through imprisonment and experimentation. It's an intriguing point of view, even though it's admittingly flawed given how it's mostly Camila that seemingly made Luz's life bearable. But the flaws don't matter. What matters is that you can see where Vee is coming from, and to me, personally, I think she's understandable enough to make me root for her to have some kind of happy ending. Whether as Luz or as herself, I'm hopeful to see Vee get some semblance of peace.

Camila: *Round of applause* Don't mind me! Just taking the time to love how all them sons of b**hes who thought Camila was a bad mom are now heavily invalidated. 'Cause, guess what? Camila is a fantastic mother, both to her daughter and her daughter's doppelganger! Allow me to walk you through the highlights:

How Camila looks like she’s not okay with the fact that "Luz" is clearing out her weird stuff, seemingly acting too different to the Luz she knows. Added to the fact that Camila doesn't like it.

How Camila drove Luz to camp whether than letting her take the bus

The fact that Camila takes that box of junk back in, not willing to part with the tin foil sculpture Luz made.

The way she was willing to play along with the game she thought Luz was doing, supporting her daughter's creative mind that Camila admits to being glad to see.

And, best of all, the willingness Camila had to help this poor creature, despite the lies it lived.

It's that last part I really want to touch upon, though. Because an action like that shows just how much Luz's heart comes from Camila. The kindness and generosity of helping this poor creature, who she has every right to run out on, proves how Luz learned to be everything she is today through Camila's own loving heart. Vee was scared and hurt, and the second Camila saw that she was then more than willing to help because of it. It's something that Luz would do, and it proves that even though Camila didn't exactly get everything right, she's still a great mom where it counts.

“A new life”: A perfect line.

Initially, it makes audiences think that it has everything to do with replacing Luz. It's only through future context that we know it's about escaping the s**t show Vee once lived through that it's clear she's talking about starting over. It hits us with intrigue on the first viewing, only to hit harder with the feels during a second. Really well-done.

Luz in the Mirror: A well-done surprise that makes fans curious about how this even happen in the first place. Kudos to you, writers.

The New Portal: I don't mind that they found a way to build this off-screen. Showing Luz and the gang slowly building a new portal would have been a little too tedious to watch, and it's so much better to just start this episode out with it. Besides, maybe we'll get the slow and steadier version now that we've seen how quickly building one might not have been the best way to go, given how fast that thing fell apart.

Luz Between Dimensions: I have no clue what the hell that place she was in is called, but it's awesome! The overall design of the realm is the correct type of unsettling, like it's oozing with mystery, but it's somewhere that you probably don't want to be in for too long. Whoever designed it deserves all of the credit because I don't want to even think about all the hard work that went into making this look as well-made as it was.

Luz Resisting to See Amity: What? Luz and Amity are adorable, and seeing Luz's immediate thought about seeing Amity makes my shipping heart scream with glee. Don't judge me!

Hiding Luz’s Dad’s Face: Well, that was a fun story while it lasted.

So, it turns out that Luz's dad really was a part of Luz's and Camila's life at some point, but not anymore. As for why remains to be seen, as we don't really know yet if we'll see him make an appearance. I'd say that the odds are high that he will, given how much of a point this episode made about keeping his face hidden. Shows don't usually do that unless the goal is to hype up some official reveal, and I can't wait to see what comes of it.

Luz Telling Herself to Count to Five: Hey, more evidence for how I relate to Luz! I know how it feels to be all panicky about a specific situation, and I only got better when I took the time to calm down for a bit. Sometimes, I even tried the "count to x" method that Luz used...it never worked, primarily because it made me feel worse when people told me to do it, but I still tried it! Plus, there's also some narrative foreshadowing when after Luz says five, the realm shows her Vee, or Number V, which is a pretty cool detail you'll notice on a rewatch.

Luz Helping Vee: I gave Camila praise for helping Vee in the end, but that doesn't abstain Luz from her own set of recognition. The second that Luz realized that Vee wasn't really a threat and is far from evil, our favorite human does what she can to help and even makes a deal where they're both happy. Because, of course, Luz is that perfect of a protagonist who is more than willing to help others in need. And it's why we love her so.

Looking for Magic that Eda Left Behind: A pretty cool idea that gives Luz and Vee a chance to bond and giving us an insight into Eda's past antics and misadventures in the human realm. Not much I can add to it, though.

Gravesfield: It's surprisingly not as jarring as I thought it would be to spend an episode in the human realm. I thought for sure, after all that time in the Boiling Isles, there would be something off about walking around a normal environment for a change. Turns out, it's almost easy to get used to. Or, for me, it is.

But I will say that there's this neat use of colors when comparing Gravesfield with the Boiling Isles. In Gravesfield, the coloring looks dulled down and standard, which is a stark contrast to the bright vibrancy of everything we've seen in the Boiling Isles. It's a subtle way of showing how things are different, aside from the major discrepancies we could come to expect. And I think that's why I appreciate it much more.

Eda’s Called Herself Marylynn in the Human Realm: Hang on...hang on...do you mean to tell me that the crack theory about Eda being Stan's ex-wife is actually true?

...

...What even is this show?!

Vee Making Friends with Camp Members: This shows the most apparent difference between Luz and Vee. Where we see Luz is already fearing the many ways that could go wrong with interacting with teens, Vee revealed that she adapted to her situation and had a chance to make friends. The implications of this are worth discussing another time, but for now, I'll say that it's pretty intriguing that we gain this much insight into both Luz and Vee through such a small thing.

Belos Wanting to Learn How Basilisks can Drain Magic: ...Didn't Raine say that Belos was taking away magic? If so, I think we can figure out how he's doing it. The question now is: Why?

Jacob (The Curator Guy): This guy was a riot. At first, Jacob seemed like a threat with the way he trapped Vee and was apparently stocking her, but the second he goes off about his conspiracy theories, it becomes clear what type of character he is. And was it a blast seeing how much of a crackpot this man is. It wasn't cool seeing him wanting to dissect the precious angel that is Vee, but I still chuckle about things like his "Flat Eather's Certificate." So while he's not that much of a threat, he's still fun to watch.

The Owl Beast was in the Human Realm: ...How did that happen? When did it happen? And how the hell did Eda get out of a situation like that?! Who knows, but it's still a shocking piece of news to learn.

Luz Telling Camila the Truth: Hey, she faced her fear after all! Although, the results aren't as pleasant as when Amity faced her fear two weeks ago.

Camila is a Veterinarian: ...One insignificant reveal...managed to destroy so many fanfics. I mean, we probably shouldn't have just assumed Camila was a nurse...but what the f**k else were we supposed to think?! Sorry for seeing the scrubs, and the first thing that came to my mind was "nurse" and not "vet."

By the way, that had to have been intentional, right? There's no way that Dana Terrace didn't think we'd assume Camila was a nurse. She'd had to have put off a reveal like that just to trip up her fans. And if that's the case, then that is a major d**k move...but that's why I mildly respect it.

Two Human Brothers went to the Demon Realm: Turns out we don't have to be in the Boiling Isles to learn more about it. Because now we have more information about how two humans were taken to the Isles with the help of a witch, thus setting up a grander reveal if it turns out that one of the humans was Philip and the witch was Belos. Because if that's true...then there's more of a history between those two than we thought.

Jacob has a Training Wand: This helps me believe that it's highly likely for Jacob to make a return and to have a power boost for when he does. After all, focussing all that attention on the training wand is way too convenient for it not to come up again in the future. Meaning we're most likely going to get more pain from Jacob if he shows up again.

Camila Beats the Crap out of Jacob for Vee: ...Writers, don't make me choose between Camila and Eda on who's the better cartoon mom. I know Eda's technically not a mom...BUT I STILL DON'T WANT TO CHOOSE DAMNIT!

Also, the sandal...just...

Why the f**k does Camila have a sandal in her purse? I don't know. Is it still funny that she does? Most certainly.

Camila and Luz’s Talk in the Rain: Ooooooooh, I was not ready for this...

I wasn't ready for the crying.

I wasn't ready for the hurt in Camila's eyes when she found out Luz chose to stay in the Boiling Isles.

I wasn't ready for Camila asking if Luz hates being with her that much.

I wasn't ready for Luz profusely stating how it was never Camila's fault.

I was not ready for Camila to tell Luz that she'll try to do better.

And I definitely was not ready for Luz to barely have enough time to promise that she'll come back.

This episode wasn't the twenty-two minutes of nonstop angst that I thought it was going to be...but this short scene more than make up for it.

Luz Tries to Stay Strong: Yet another thing she unwittingly learned from Camila. Camila tried to keep a brave face when Vee was with her and Luz, most likely not wanting to tear either of them down in the process. Luz does the same thing here as she avoids talking about the details of what went down in her sort-of journey back home. And seeing her clearly fake smile slowly droop into an uncertain frown, it uh...it definitely tore me up inside.

WHAT I DISLIKED

I want to say it's perfect, but there's one major issue that really bogs this episode down.

Continuity Error in How Vee Replaced Luz: Having Vee take Luz's place the same day Luz appeared in the Isles is a smart idea on paper...if it wasn't for the fact that it's impossible.

Because Eda closed the portal door the second that she saw Luz, meaning that there's no way for Vee to go to the human realm. It's a major plothole that makes no sense, and it might just be the first time ever that this series wasn't so closely knit with its story. Which ends up taking a dive in quality in the process.

IN CONCLUSION

I'd say that "Yesterday's Lie" is an A-. Everything about Luz, Vee, and Camila is incredible, combined into a story that ends in tragedy and uncertainty for the future. That plothole may drag things down a bit, but everything else is handled so well that I'm not lying when I say it's easy to forgive and forget.

(And that's ten episodes in a row without a single stinker. HOW THE F**K DOES THIS SEASON KEEP WINNING?!)

#the owl house #the owl house spoilers #toh spoilers #luz noceda #camila noceda #camila is a good mom ok!#toh vee #emperor belos #what i thought about #the owl house reviews

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bisexualrapline · 3 years

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Borahae! 💜💜💜✨ I love your blog!

For the ask game, I pick 8, 13, 18, 31 and 32. Sorry if that's alot in one go ^^'

I'm really curious about the GIF making community here on Tumblr and kinda aspiring to try it out myself. Keyword: kinda and try

Have a lovely day ヾ(•ω•`)o

harper that is so sweet thank you angel borahae 🥺💜

8. what gif trend do you hate? - ahhh hate is a strong word!!! i think all creations are lovely simply because gif creators spend so much of their time and effort making them! but if i had to pick One thing then i’m not the biggest fan of overly sharpened or textured gifs, i just don’t think they look as nice but that’s definitely more of a personal preference!!

13. where or from whom did you learn how to gif? - i still wouldn’t say i’m Good at making gifs per se but i started very small from THIS youtube video which i found very helpful for basics! after learning basics though you can basically just search gif making on tumblr and find so many incredible resources, content creators really put so much time and effort into not only creating content but helping others to create and i think it’s so inspirational!!

18. for the aesthetic, for the laughs, or for the feels, what’s your preference? - a little bit of all 3!!! like my 100 days of seokjin sets are almost purely aesthetic, i would like for my gtkm sets to be for the feels, and then most of my event based/episode based sets are generally around moments that make me laugh!

31. do you schedule/queue posts or do you post right after you’re done? - i’ll usually post right after i’m done because my patience is non-existent! but sometimes i’ll gif late into the night and in those cases i’ll queue it up for the next morning so that my followers don’t know i’m crazy 😭

32. what is your favorite tool/adjustment layer in photoshop? - ah, idk if i have a favorite! these are the ones i almost always use though, with very little variation because i am nothing if not a creature of habit: curves, hue/saturation, selective color, vibrance, brightness/contrast, gradient map!

i hope you do give gif making a try! i’ve found it to be such a nice creative outlet for someone that honestly has a pretty boring non-creative job 😭 and it’s always fun to create content for a fandom you care about! please feel free to reach out if you ever have questions/need any advice i might be able to provide! and thank you for sending these sweets!! 💞

send me an ask about gif-making? 🥺🤲🏻

#long post #ask #ask game #moonsiechild

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spongebob-connoisseur · 4 years

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I feel like the new spongebob animations are way too exaggerated. Like it ruins some new SB SP episodes for me, Bc sometimes the writing of the episode is good but the Animation is just.. Eh. I'm not complaining about the colors tho I think the colors are just OK.. SB SP s3 had the best colors and the best animation. Also is it me or they just add way too many sound effects into the episodes? It's kind of really annoying.. And yes ik they do that so like kids who watch it like but like cmon..

Tbh I like the new animation. It was a breath of fresh air compared to seasons 6,7,8 where he was very stagnant and slow. Now they're relying on more creative and visual gags which are fun but I admit sometimes it can be too much.

However the colors I fully agree with. Watching SB on TV and he's flat out neon is unbearable. No joke he looks closer to if you mixed the yellow and green highlighters together.

Season 3 has the best colors hands down. It was because its early digital animation. So they can use a full array of colors they wanted to their desired vibrancy but also the limit of it being early technology so no neons. Its a little more than season 2 where digital animation was introduced. Spongebob looked grey instead of yellow in some episodes and there was strange grainy textures in the background but things smoothed out by season 3 and I wished they kept it.

Idk have you ever done digital art? Starting off, you are given unlimited colors. Your drawings might end up looking bad because you can't properly control the saturation as well as you would have with traditional media. It takes time to get well. I've noticed this with other early digitally animated cartoons like the 90s spiderman. The colors are bright but not like neon bright and had a lot of pretty colors. Meanwhile some cartoons today can be completely neon and really harsh on the eyes. Idk that's just my theory why.

My favorite animation is actually season 1. Mainly because it was traditional so no two frames looked the same. Every moment was unique. It was very stretchy and fun. It was still good into season 2,3 but started to get lazy by late season 5ish. The show really benefits from the look of traditional, I feel like the animation of season 1 would have suited the new seasons now since they need more stretchy and goofier looks.

Bruh I haaaate too many sound effects in cartoons. I get kids are meant to watch it but even as a kid I used to cringe at shows like that. It made me dizzy and tired. Personally I haven't experienced it so much with SB. Though I haven't caught up with the 12th season yet if there's something I missed.

I hope my thoughts were helpful 💚

#spongebob #spongebob squarepants #sb #spongebon squarepants #Ask #the spongebob theorist #spongebob theorist #about the spongebob theorist

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bisexualalienblast · 5 years

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Gif Tutorial

I’ve had a *lot* of questions really about gif making. There are a MILLION gif tutorials on youtube and Tumblr but I figured I would show you guys how I personally do it, and maybe that will help! I’ll show you how to make this gif, and god help you because I'm bad at teaching.

HERE is where you find the dimensions for gifs on Tumblr for them to work properly.

Step 1: Import your video clip into Photoshop. I only use MP4 files--I find it the best and easiest way to make gifs *shrug* Import video frames to layers

and then you’ll isolate which portion of the clip you want for your gif. (if it’s a whole episode/movie/whatever that you’re giffing from, trim it in Quicktime first so you’re not just throwing the whole thing in there and then trying to isolate from there. That’s a *pain*

IF you’re using MP4 files, you do NOT need to limit to every 2 frames unless you just want it to be a super fast gif and hey, no judgment. You do you.

use the tabs at the bottom to further isolate the moment you want (advice: always import a few frames before and a few frames after the part you want. You can delete frames later. Also there is a limit to how many frames you can import--don’t worry, Photoshop will sure as fuck yell at you when you try.)

Now when everything is imported, you'll see your “timeline” at the bottom of your screen. These are the frames you’ll be working with. The little garbage can icon is, unsurprisingly, where you will delete frames you do not need. Frame count depends A LOT on how big the gif is, the way you color, how vibrant the colors, how you've sharpened it, etc. A good rule of thumb is 35-40ish frames for a 540 pixel wide gif, 70-100 for a 268 wide gif, and even more for a 177 pixel wide gif (I don’t often use that size...as you can tell)

I’m making a large gif (540 pixels, a common size for me personally) so I set it the width here (the height will be adjusted later)

Once you’ve got the width you need, then you can start cropping to get the height you want. This particular gif is 269 pixels in height, based on...well, what I think looks good (A plus for teaching here)

So now we’re here. We have 37 uncolored frames with the correct width and the desired height. Now, you could leave it here, and still have a gif.

But that’s no fun. There’s no color! We gotta see those curls in technicolor, darling.

SO NOW FOR THE FUN PART

The adjustment tab is where you’re going to add light, brightness, saturation, whatever your little heart desires. No limits (ok there’s limits, sorry)

Now, we’re lucky here because A) we have a good quality download and B) the scene is in natural light so we really don’t have to do *too* much. If it’s a dark scene....well, that’s when you’ll want to die.

This is the part where EVERY gif maker is different. This is just what I do. You find what works for you. I start with curves.

a good place to start is just to hit “auto” and then adjust from there, which is what I did here. It’s better to have it a tad too light than too dark (at least for me!) (yes he looks orange, yes that will be fixed)

Next: brightness/contrast

Now we’re cookin’ with fire! It’s still too orange but now the gif is highlighting what I want it to. I want it to be deeply saturated (especially the curls and facial hair)

Next: color balance

Run buck wild. That dropdown will let you adjust the color in shadows, midtones, and highlights. You’ll find your style VERY quickly here. Spend lots of time here learning what each sliding color scale does (tip: I RARELY use the magenta/green colors. And when I say rarely, I mean basically never.)

Once you’ve done that, you can do vibrance, hue/saturatio, whatever you want (keep in mind that the more “vibrant” the gif, the fewer frames you can use)

Me personally? I use selective color A LOT

ESPECIALLY blacks. And because Roswell is addicted to YELLOW YELLOW YELLOW, I alter yellow a lot to try and balance it.

The ONLY thing that can help you here is practice. Slap a scene into photoshop and figure out what color/light works for YOU

Once you've done all the coloring you want to do, now you can add dialogue. This is where I will direct you to these tutorials here and here because these are how I learned and they do it better than I ever could. (a tip though: USE THE RULER IN PHOTOSHOP. Make sure your dialogue lines up in the same spot in every gif. I do mine at 93% but whatever works for you. Don’t leave it up to your eye, I promise it won't work)

OK we now have the right color AND the right dialogue let’s sharpen this bitch! But first, let’s make sure our gif is the right size because sharpening and saving the gif will increase the size and you need to keep it under 3 MB for Tumblr. AT THIS POINT, SAVE THE PSD. Because sharpening and things may take some room for error and you really don’t want to lose it all. Trust.

Click your “File” folder, then “Export” and then “Save for Web” and you’ll see this:

2.61 MB is a very good size to have before sharpening. Anything more than that and you’re playing with fire. Because once you've sharpened and it looks great you may very well discover it’s too large and then you have to undo what you just did to delete frames and that’s rage inducing.

Go down to your timeline and click “convert to video timeline”

THEN go the right side of your screen and highlight all your layers

And then go to “Filter” and click “Convert for Smart Filters”

and it will look like this:

All your layers have been grouped together so now you can sharpen.

Under “Filter” you’ll find all the things you can do to your gif now that it’s been converted for smart filters. have a ball! Experiment!

For my gifs, I use “Smart Sharpen”

and then I have it set to what I think looks good. I typically tend to over sharpen.

So this is what we have! We’ll check the size one more time before we save

2.76 MB! Perfect! I’ve found that at this point anything about 2.85 MB will save to my computer as a file that is bigger than 3 MB and thus unusable on Tumblr.

And tada! A gif!

#long post #and I do mean long #gif resource #giffing resource #gifmaker resource #gifmaking #my gif tutorial

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anissagraces · 7 years

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Big ass gif tutorial

It’s been a while since I made a coloring tutorial, and I thought it would be useful if I made a full tutorial on how I make my gifs. I will go over:

how to screencap

making your gif in ps

sharpening

coloring that gif

putting subtitles on a gif

saving that gif

you will need

a hd copy of the episode/movie you want to gif

potplayer (or kmplayer)

a version of photoshop (I use CC)

a sharpening action

A psd or patience to color your own gif

end result:

Everything will be under the cut. Warning: this will be picture heavy and text heavy. English is my third language so there will probably be some mistakes in here.

If this is the first time using photoshop, your startpage will look pretty blank. I’ll show you what you need to make visible to gif.

Click on “window”. The screencap I made of the settings is pretty big so click here if you need to see it.

Not seen in the picture but useful: actions, properties, character, paragraph

STEP 1: THE FILE

Okay first of all, you’ll need your file. I recommend downloading µtorrent, then going to a torrent site (like rarbg.to) and searching for your episode or movie. ALWAYS choose 1080p and web dl if possible (web dl means logoless) Example: wynonna earp s01e01, then in your search results, look for one that has both 1080p and web dl in the title. 720p is also good.

You can also find twitters that post logoless episodes and movies, this is better if you don’t like using torrents or if you live in a country that gives you fines for torrenting (I’m lucky, Belgium doesn’t care). If you want a list of a bunch of twitters that share logoless episodes and movies, message me off anon so I can link you privately.

STEP 2: CAPPING

When you have your file, download potplayer (or kmplayer). Open the program and open the file you want to cap.

Search for the moment you want to gif. Tip: hover over the playline thing to see what scene is at what time. Normally it looks somthing like this:

Press ctrl + g when you have the moment you want This window opens:

Change your settings to mine ^^. I made a new folder in my Pictures folder where all my caps go bc it’s easier to go to. It’s up to you where you save all of them, but I suggest you pick one you can easily access. Click start.

Click escape and start your video. Pause again when you have what you wanted (this can be a whole scene or a moment, depends on what kind of gifset your making). Press ctrl+g again and click “stop”, then close.

Now go to the folder where you saved your caps. I always make another new folder inside that one, put all the captures in there (unless I’m doing a scene, then I’ll make 6-8 new folders and distribute all the captures in those folders. Note that with the 3mb limit you’ll be able to use about 60-120 captures per gif, sometimes more. You can always delete layers of your gif in case it goes over 3mb)

Tip: make all your screencaps before opening photoshop. If you’re making a general character/ship gifset, that can take a while, but it’ll save you time if you seperate the two actions.

After you have taken all your caps, open photoshop. You can download it on any photoshop tumblr like yeahps or itsphotoshop. I cannot give you the link to mine because it doesn’t exist anymore, but I got it from kickass (rip).

STEP 3: OPENING AND MAKING THE GIF IN PS

We have our caps and our ps open, but now we have to open those captures in photoshop. Do not use ‘open’, but Files > Scripts > Load multiple DICOM files

I know a lot of people choose ‘Load Files into Stack’ but Load Multiple DICOM files is SO much faster.

This window will open

Now you go to the folder where you saved all your caps, choose the file with the screencaps for 1 gif and open it.

It might take a little bit for everything to load, especially if there’s a lot of screencaps, so just wait.

When you have everything, click on “Create video timeline”. It might be called something different if you have another version of PS, but whatever it says here:

(I know I know, I make pretty arrows lmao)

Then click those 3 boxes on the left side

Next step is ‘make frames from layers’, after that click “flatten frames into layers”

STEP 4: CROPPING

Obviously our gif doesn’t have to be as big as it is in ps right now, so we’ll crop to make it smaller. For this, you need to know the dimensions Tumblr uses:

540px for 1 gif in a row

268px for 2 gifs next to each other

177px - 178px - 177px for 3 gifs in a row (this is something annoying à la tumblr, and because it’s hard to predict which gifs you’ll put in the middle when cropping, I make them all 178px in width and then crop the ones I won’t use in the middle to be 177px after)

You can choose to use the old dimensions which are 500px, 245px and 160px.

These are the widths, you can choose the heights yourself. For this gif I’ll be cropping 268 x 150

This is the cropping tool

click it and you’ll see this on the topbar of your screen. Type in your dimensions

Then crop as you wish. This is my result.

STEP 5: CHANGING YOUR IMAGE SIZE + SHARPENING

The gif is way too big at this moment, so go to image > image size, this window opens:

Click “okay” and your gif will be a lot smaller. Use ctrl + “+” to make it bigger

This is what our photoshop looks like right now

These steps look like A LOT of work but as soon as you’re used to the steps, it’ll take you about a minute to do all of this.

Next is sharpening. I use a sharpening action made by ilanawexler but it’s pretty complicated, so I do not recommend it if you’re a beginner. I will however explain it fully here. Note: I had to do something different than the directions the blogger gave, so what I get might not work for others and you might have a different outcome

Select all your frames (from 1 -)

then click “convert to videotimeline” (it’s possible it’s called differently in your ps)

when you did that, add two layers on top of your other layers

Select all your frames (frame 1 to layer 2), right click and click “convert to smart object”

Then, go to your actions. If you just downloaded your action, you have to add it.

When that’s done, open the bobbiesdraper sharpen and click “action 2″. Thn click the play icon

It’ll a LOT of stuff, but just let it be.

Warning: if you changed anything to the frames in the timeline section, this won’t work. I noticed that if I delete frames or change the delay, ... before sharpening, it won’t work.

If it worked, you now have this

I’m not sure if it’s normal, but I now have twice the frames I had before, but only the SECOND amount is sharpened. So I delete frame 1-35 now in the timeline section.

This is my gif after sharpening (you can use this to practice coloring or to follow along with my coloring tutorial below)

this psd automatically sets the delay for your gif to 0,05, I always change it to 0,06 (sometimes 0,07). Just select all your frames, then click on the 0,05, ‘other’ and choose whatever you like. The max I would go is 0,08 (0,07-0,08 is the speed the episodes go btw when you watch them)

STEP 6: COLORING

Now the fun part!! You can either choose to use a psd (here are my psds) or you can color it yourself.

For this tutorial, I’ll be doing a basic coloring. (that means: steps I always use to start my colorings).

We start with curves. For this gif, these are the settings: (this is a pretty bright gif so for darker scenes you’ll have to use more, but don’t start with too much, build it up)

then some levels to give the gif more depth

I usually enter 10 for the black (unless it’s a very dark gif) and I’ll move the arrow of the white to where the little line starts.

Some brightness

Some black selective color (I always enter 10, unless it’s a dark gif)

Color balance (also usually start with this, unless it’s a blue gif, then I’ll move the arrows to red, magenta and yellow). If the gif is VERY yellow, I’ll add more in cyan and blue.

Then I’ll add a vibrance layer, +100 vibrance.

This is what I have now (with a pretty watermark). These are the layers I will always start with.

You can stop here, but I like to add some more to my gif so I’m continueing

I like adding more blues so I’ll add a selective color layer: (you can also decrease magentas is the “blue” ones to make the blues more cyan)

For blondes, I like making their hair stand out more so I’ll add a selective color layer for the yellows:

Of course, there’s a lot of yellow in the skintone so chances are the skin will look very yellow now, I add a color balance layer and change the highlights. (In darker gifs you might need to change the midtones instead)

Some magentas to make the lips stand out

and some contrast

That’s all for coloring. This is what my gif looks like right now:

STEP 7: SUBTITLES

If you want to add text, click this icon

these are the settings for my text

Then we’ll add some other adjustments to make the text more visible:

click on the fx icon

then click ‘stroke’

click okay, and click on the FX icon again, then click “drop shadow”

when you added all your adjustments, duplicate the textlayer and delete the first one (if not, your adjustments will only show on 1 layer instead of the whole gif)

If your text isn’t in the middle of your gif. Click your text layer, then click this icon

then in your topbar, adjust with these tools

this is what the text looks like now:

here is the psd for the text

STEP 8: SAVING

Of course, you have to save your gifs. Go to File > Save for web and this window will open

Make sure your settings look like these:

Make sure this number isn’t above 3 mb

That’s all!!! If you have any questions, you can always come ask me. I’m sorry if this wasn’t clear, but I hope it made atleast a bit sense.

#itsphotoshop #completeresource #yeahps #gif tutorial #my tutorials #my tutorial

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the-writing-on-the-statue · 7 years

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finding your way back home

Summary: Tsubomi tries to find her balance, in the days after Claw.

Author’s Notes: Part four of the Esper!Tsubomi series. Make sure to read the others so you know what’s going on.

the fallacy of memory

in the halls of the mountain king

pull the roses from your lungs and breathe in

[Read on AO3]

It’s very cold when Tsubomi returns to the house. Her aunt is waiting, still lines and shadows curling around her shoulders. The broken furniture is gone, the floors and walls cleaned.

Tsubomi does not flinch, even when she tastes the bitter tang of wine on the air, mixing with the lingering hints of bleach. It perfumes her mother’s words like knives. It soaks them with regret.

“So.”

The word hangs between them. Tsubomi clenches her hands in her skirt, the tattered strips of cloth clinging to her knees. A rose curls thorns around her neck, the only one that had decided to remain with her after she had left.

She wishes then that she had taken up the offer handed out carelessly by Shigeo’s teacher, after the dust had settled and all was the vague semblance of calm once again. You need a place to go, kid?

Tsubomi had said no, because her mother needed her. She had walked home, walked to the cold house without greenery and life. She had walked away from the bright vibrancy of colors that was Shigeo and his Shishou, and the world had gone a little less bright in their absence.

“Pack your things,” her mother says, her mouth a thin, white line.

And Tsubomi stares up at her, at the harsh grooves bracketing her mother’s manic eyes.

“But, Mother-”

Hands curls around her neck, and Tsubomi is so tired, so exhausted, that she can’t do anything but buckle. There’s heat, blinding, familiar, and then there’s pain, and finally-the crisp of ash on her tongue.

Tsubomi thinks it is not fair, that her roses are not permitted the courtesy of screaming with their agony. Thinks it even less fair that neither is she, to scream for them, to scream with her own grief.

“You’ve had your fun,” her mother-her aunt, something inside Tsubomi says, the thing that pulled roses from her lips to burrow into the cracks of the walls that kept her prisoner. “Now we leave.”

“They’ll follow us,” Tsubomi says, on her knees, her head bowed. It feels like genuflection, to a statue wrapped in shadows. It feels cold. “You know they will.”

Her aunt is still. Tsubomi raises her head, feeling blood trickle down her neck.

“I’m tired of running,” she whispers, and it is blasphemy, to say in the cold air these secrets Tsubomi has never given true voice to.

Tsubomi is prepared for the slap. She turns with the stinging, burning blow, and it knocks her to the floor, where she lays still. She remembers what to do. She remembers. She remembers-

Footsteps, moving away.

Tsubomi is quiet on the cold, hard floor.

It is only after several minutes of cautioned stillness that Tsubomi pushes herself up, and goes to find the first-aid kit.

Her neck bleeds in sluggish trails. There’s a bruise curling purple-black around her eyes. These are the worst of her injuries.

There are other cuts and scratches, other bruises – wounds that came mostly from that last frantic battle against the Seventh Division’s men. Most of them are healing well, and will be gone by the time she returns to school.

She doctors the small injuries first, carefully rubbing stinging creams over the bruises, saving the one around her eye for last. She bandages the cuts, gasping as she plucks free from her skin the thorns that still cling to her neck.

The thorns fall to ash as soon as she does.

She wraps clean linen around her neck, only to stop as the door opens. Her aunt stands there, looking less like some great behemoth wrought in shadows and more like-

More like she is simply a woman, bowed under her exhaustion.

“Dinner will be ready shortly,” she says.

Tsubomi nods, recognizing the words for what they were.

A compromise, a truce. An olive branch held out. Peace, for a moment.

The door closes, and Tsubomi tends to her wounds. Her hands do not tremble.

(Not overly much, anyway.)

It’s strange to come back to school.

Her teachers welcome her back with good humor – feel better after that fever, Takane-san? – and her classmates with curious eyes. Her friends say that they’d heard nothing, and that they were worried. Her fellow club members ask her if she’s feeling up to the game next week.

Tsubomi is good with lies. She weaves them like silk in the hands of a master seamstress.

To her teachers she smiles and collects her homework, and says she feels fine, and thank you. To her classmates she says thank you for thinking of her. To her friends she says that her mother has a tendency to get super-focused on Tsubomi when she is ill, because it happens so rarely, and that her mother ignores everything else when she does.

To her fellow club members she says she’ll be fine soon.

But her captain looks at her, and looks past the carefully applied makeup that covers the bruise curling around her eye. She looks at the way Tsubomi holds herself, and at the high-necked shirt she wears under her school uniform (to hide the bandages around her neck).

“Is everything all right, Takane-chan?”

Tsubomi smiles, and spins another tale for her, of thinking she was better and trying to practice a tennis move, and nearly knocking herself out. She rubs the back of her head sheepishly as her captain laughs.

It makes sense to the older girl. Tsubomi, after all, worked hard at tennis – sometimes too hard – and often pushed herself unnecessarily. It’s not the first time something like this has happened.

Tsubomi takes the resulting chastisement with a faint blush on her face, sheepish but accepting, even though she’s so removed from it all that the world might as well be dust outside her ears.

She doesn’t expect how hard it is to keep up the charade.

One of her friends makes a little quip about the most recent episode of a show that had aired while Tsubomi had been in Claw’s hold, and Tsubomi widens her eyes and claps her hands together in a facsimile of glee.

There are flowers blooming in the Gardening Club’s greenhouse, and every time Tsubomi passes the structure she feels the singing in her very bones, and she feels like a magnet on a compass being drawn inexorably north.

But she can’t. It’s one thing to fight in the heart of battle, to call the roses to protect her then, but another thing entirely to lose herself here. And she could.

She wants to – but she can’t.

It’s so hard to do this, to just be Takane Tsubomi, who was good at tennis and an excellent student and a pretty girl admired by her classmates but nothing more than that, when all she wants to do is run in the streets and bloom vines to gather in her hair and roses to curl over her ears.

It’s just as hard as it had been when the weight of Mizuho Tsunami was still freshly laid on her shoulders, when she had to learn quickly what would make her likable and make her unnoticeable.

But it’s what she needs to do. So she does it.

Her aunt is smiling these days, as Tsubomi brings home word of her good grades and how she’s fitting back into school life with ease. Her aunt even lets a few plants come into their house.

(Of course, they are soon no more than ash on the wind alongside burns across Tsubomi’s fingers and back and thighs, but…small steps. It’s progress, and Tsubomi doesn’t want to lose that fragile peace they’ve managed to find.)

“You’re so decisive, Tsubomi-chan! You’re so strong!”

Tsubomi blushes and giggles.

(And later, she laughs until she cries.)

What do you want?

…I-

What do you want, Tsubomi?

…I don’t know.

Shigeo stands across the classroom, beyond the door, blushing and unable to look her in the eyes. But he’s there, she thinks.

If she takes twenty steps, she could be at the door. If she takes five steps after that, she could reach him. She could say hello Mob-kun, and he might say hello back and-

Mezato, the journalist girl Tsubomi’s seen around a few times, says something to him, and Shigeo’s attention is drawn away. He speaks to her.

Tsubomi breathes in, breathes out.

She turns to respond to a quip made by one of her friends. She laughs at a joke made by another.

(She does not mention how it felt, to have those roots pulling away from her, turning somewhere else, turning towards a better sun, towards better light, and she does not mention how much she hates how easily it goes, how easily it’s always gone. How easily those roots have always drawn away from her.

That much has not changed, since they were children.)

If you were a good daughter-

But she’s not.

She’s not, and she knows that.

(Her aunt, drunk and crying, screams Ayako died to protect you? Why did I have to give up everything to protect you? Why did Ayako have to leave? Why did she have to leave me-

Tsubomi takes the words and the weight they drop onto her shoulders and goes to her room.)

Tsubomi is so, so tired.

What’s the point?

Her life has been dictated by hiding, by running, by Takane Tsubomi and all that that name is supposed to mean.

It’s supposed to mean tennis and a pretty smile and charm aimed precisely at the right people and at the right times. It’s supposed to be tutoring underclassmen, and getting ready to head to an excellent high school, and from there an even better ranked college.

It’s supposed to mean close friends and then a husband and then children.

It’s supposed to mean normal.

But now Tsubomi has the pulse of the earth beating in her ears, and the longing for roses wrapped around her wrists and-

And she has no idea what she’s supposed to do about that.

Where is she supposed to go from here?

Tsubomi stops by the greenhouse.

She stands by the door, the glass green and people moving inside, blurred as though from under water. The flowers and plants are humming, a single thread of discordant sound that weaves in and around her spine and pulls her forward, to press her hand against the glass.

You were never worth my sister’s life, her aunt’s voice whispers, as soft as poison.

She jerks her hand back.

Never use that power, do you understand? It will get you killed-

“Oi.”

The door to her right opens. An annoyed upperclassman, hair all askew, pokes her head out.

“You going to come in, or what?”

Tsubomi blinks, and stares, and-

“The greenhouse is open, kid. You don’t have to stand out here all day if you just want to come in.”

She opens the door wider. An invitation.

And Tsubomi thinks of Shigeo’s hand on her shoulder – Tsubomi-chan, she’s still alive – and of rose seeds in her hands.

She thinks of watching the last petals of a dying flower fall to her windowsill, hunger curdling in her stomach. She thinks of walking down the street and finding a rose blooming from a vine at just her height, like it had been waiting for her.

She thinks of Shigeo’s utter trust in his Shishou, that rush of power flowing like a river to its end, knowing it would reach.

Tsubomi thinks of her mother standing in front of her.

She walks inside.

The plants sing.

It’s still hard.

She still has to be Takane Tsubomi, the school’s idol. She still has to smile at the right people, and laugh at the right jokes, and know about this show or that new superstar. She still has to stand in a crowd of people and feel utterly comfortable with their attention on her. She still has to go to her games and win.

She still has to be Takane Ayane’s only daughter. She still has to bear the weight of burns across her back and neck, and not flinch when a tennis ball drills directly into bandages hidden beneath her clothes. She has to learn on what days her mother (her aunt) is likely to be drunk and on what days she is likely to be crying and she has to learn what to do on days like that.

But-

But now there’s the greenhouse.

She digs her hands into dirt and turns the soil, feeling worms crawling over her hands, and roots tangling their tiny fingers over and around hers.

Tsubomi watches as the papers dancing on the wind flow to Shigeo, and the roots around him, that have been growing and reaching and never truly searching for ground to bury in-

One reaches down, and for the first time, curls deep into the soil, as Tsubomi’s childhood friend hands the remade book back to Emi, who takes it with wide eyes and a thank you trembling on her mouth.

Oh, Tsubomi whispers. Oh.

She thinks of Shigeo’s Shishou burning with the power his student had given him, the power that had been handed over with bone-deep trust, leaving only endless, endless warmth behind.

“Well done,” she whispers, impossibly fond.

What do you want, Tsubomi?

…to live.

And how will you do that?

…I don’t know.

I suppose that’s all right. You’ve still got a lot of time left to learn, kiddo.

Tsubomi opens her eyes, tears trickling down her cheeks. She smiles up at the tiny lights of the glow-in-the-dark stars covering her ceiling, and rubs the tears away.

A plant in a small pot resting on her windowsill blooms red.

(These petals do not wither.)

Tsubomi runs her fingers over the bandages hidden underneath her uniform. Tsubomi runs her fingers over a vine that drops down to greet her on the way to school.

She does not think of her aunt, still half-drunk, still crying, still so tired. She does not think of those questions that curl along her spine whenever she wavers.

I want to live.

She takes a deep breath.

It’s never easy, kid. Nothing worth doing ever is.

Tsubomi cups a small rose in her hands, and wonders if Shigeo would like it.

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #mob psycho 100 fanfiction #takane tsubomi #kageyama shigeo #tsumob #reigen arataka #esper tsubomi au #lee writes stoof #child abuse #injuries #blood #ptsd

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lady-divine-writes · 7 years

Text

Klaine Valentines Challenge - “You Don’t Know How Lovely You Are” (Rated NC17)

After dinner, Kurt and Blaine go to Blaine’s apartment ... (2163 words)

Written for the Klaine Valentines Challenger prompt day nine "Be My Forever"

Chapter 3 of the story “Come up to Meet You”

Chapter 1 - Come up to Meet You

Chapter 2 - Nobody Said It Was Easy

Read on AO3.

They’re not drunk.

They barely drank enough alcohol throughout dinner to get tipsy.

And the little they did drink, they burn off laughing and cuddling in the taxi on the way home, making out in the stairwell on the way up to Blaine’s apartment, fighting with the front door because Blaine’s hands shake too much to get the key in the lock the first five times, slow dancing in the living room while they kiss some more, stripping off each other’s clothes to the rhythm of the music, eager to get to bed but not ready for this to end.

To prolong it, they converse while they dance and kiss and undress, exchanging little nothings, a background breath of conversation so it doesn’t seem like they’re there just for sex.

“You know, I love your apartment, Blaine,” Kurt murmurs while he undoes Blaine’s bowtie. “I love all this space. It’s rare that you find someone willing to commit to a two bedroom apartment just for themselves.”

“Well, it helps when you have a ridiculous amount of disposable income.” Blaine chuckles bashfully, working at the buttons on Kurt’s shirt with less success than he would like. “With the market the way that it is, sometimes I feel bad having a spare room just to store my instruments.”

“Are you kidding?” Kurt helps with the buttons, relocating Blaine’s hands down to his belt to speed things along. “I’d kill for my own sewing room.”

“But your loft is huge!” Blaine nibbles Kurt’s earlobe.

“And cold …” Kurt gasps when Blaine’s teeth lightly graze his skin “… and damp. I can’t leave any of my fabrics lying around. Everything would end up moist in the morning. It’s also in a scary neighborhood … and kind of lonely …”

“Oh, Kurt …” Blaine pauses between kisses to look in Kurt’s eyes “… I don’t want you to be lonely.”

Blaine found out on their third date that he and Kurt had a tremendous amount in common aside from being from Ohio. They were both in show choir in high school. They had both been bullied for being gay. They both moved to New York with dreams of someday performing on Broadway.

And they were both lonely.

Blaine lived alone by choice, but it wasn’t something he was used to. He’d gone from living with his mom and dad, to attending boarding school, then one plane ride later, he was alone. He doesn’t regret his decision not to live in the dorms. There are benefits to having his own apartment that far outweigh the benefits of rooming in a dorm. But he’s made one or two stupid decisions because of loneliness.

Decisions he’d rather forget.

Kurt moved to New York with his best friend – a plan they had conceived their junior year - but shortly after, she scored a role on Broadway, which segued into her own TV show. The show was canceled after the second episode, but she had moved to Los Angeles to film it and, since she had an agent finding her work, decided to stay.

She didn’t come back for the rest of her stuff. Kurt had to pack it up and send it to her.

As happy as Kurt was for her, he was sadder for himself. He had lived the dream of moving to New York with his bestie for a grand total of about six months before it ended.

But now Kurt and Blaine had each other. And if Blaine had his way, Kurt would never feel lonely again.

When they’ve gotten as far as they can removing clothes without breaking apart from one another, they stumble into the bedroom to sort out the rest. They trip over pant legs and hop to grab socks, chuckling and giggling and outright guffawing when Blaine’s misstep over Kurt’s feet lands them in a tangle on Blaine’s bed. They kiss and touch and whisper and smile, and all of the anxiety from earlier which caused Blaine’s subconscious slip of the tongue bleeds into obscurity.

Dating Kurt has been so easy. They meld together seamlessly. They complement one another effortlessly.

But making love to him is even more simple. It’s being alive, in all its vibrancy - in its bright colors and its soothing, muted shades; its symphonies and its lullabies. Kurt knows what he wants. It surprises Blaine how much. Blaine fumbles only a few seconds asking, “Did you know how … I mean, did you have an idea of how you wanted …?” while Kurt wordlessly produces a condom and rolls it down Blaine’s length, then a bottle of lube seemingly from nowhere.

It’s like a magic trick, but then everything Kurt does seems magical.

Kurt isn’t shy about asking for what he wants, another surprise considering a confession from days earlier where Kurt mentioned feeling like the sexual equivalent of a baby penguin back in high school, how he felt like puberty didn’t really kick in for him until his second year of college. He guides Blaine’s hands, commands gently, “Touch me, Blaine … there, please … no slower … yes, yes, just like that … now, kiss me …” so that there’s no doubt in Blaine’s mind, no question that Blaine can please him. Because he is, simply by following Kurt’s lead, and Blaine can’t get enough of him. He can’t get enough of kissing him and caressing him, figuring out the speeds and angles that make him beg, make him moan, make him fight to remember words that make sense, and make him forget how to breathe.

Blaine watches Kurt in amazement as he slides over him; watches the faces he makes that revolve around a single, blissed-out smile; watches his eyes as they lock on Blaine’s eyes, becoming more black than blue as he climaxes, full of Blaine’s body and beneath his weight.

“Oh, Blaine.” Kurt mutters the only phrase he can that means anything for the moment. And the sound of Kurt’s voice whispering heavy in Blaine’s ear, its deeply entrenched meaning expressed succinctly using only two simple words, makes Blaine shudder. Blaine had forgotten that something as wonderful as this existed in the world.

He’s so thankful that Kurt came along to remind him.

Blaine slowly sinks in to Kurt when his orgasm builds to the point that muscles start to become useless and cognitive thinking begins to fail. He wraps his arms around Kurt’s torso so he can be as close to him, as one with him as he can be. And even as he starts to fear that he may be crushing Kurt, his weakening thrusts driving into Kurt’s hip bone, he feels Kurt’s arms weed around him and hug. One hand slides down his spine to his ass to push in and hold, and that’s when Blaine lets go.

“Oh, God,” Blaine moans, cumming inside Kurt’s body. (In a condom, but still. It might lessen sensation, but it doesn’t block out Kurt’s heat, or his tight squeeze.) “Oh, Kurt. Oh ... God …” Blaine mumbles into the soft skin of Kurt’s neck, breathing him in and breathing out moans of his name. “Oh, Kurt … Kurt …”

“That’s it, baby.” Kurt massages the nape of Blaine’s neck, laying kisses against skin whenever it comes within reach of his lips. “Oh, Blaine …”

Blaine buries his face into Kurt’s collarbone, breathing fast against his chest as Kurt continues with soothing strokes up Blaine’s back, kneading twitching muscles till they begin to relax. With each breath, Blaine loosens his grip and raises his head. God, that was good for him - better than he remembers it being with anyone else, and sure as hell better than masturbating at home alone. But he needs to know …

“So …” Blaine pants, hoping that the words he wants – suave words, romantic words – will come. But, unfortunately for Blaine, unless he’s singing, words are rarely ever his friends “… what did you think?”

Kurt looks at his anxious boyfriend, calms his own breathing. His smile, which had been blinding before, becomes blasé. He shrugs. “It was fun.”

Blaine’s jaw drops. “Just … just fun?”

Kurt’s mouth twitches in the corners. “Fun’s not a bad thing, per se.”

“I …” Blaine suspects he’s being teased, so he doesn’t argue. He tickles. Kurt squirms to get away, but Blaine’s on top of him, weighing him down.

“Blaine!” Kurt cries, throwing his head back with laughter.

Blaine takes advantage of his exposed neck, not just with kisses, but with zerberts. “Just fun, huh?” Blaine remarks between Kurt’s squeals. “That’s all?”

“No, no, no, I was joking! I was joking!” Kurt exclaims. “It wasn’t just fun. It was amazing. You’re amazing, and incredibly sexy, and completely mind-blowing.”

Blaine stops his assault. He lifts up on his hands and knees. “Really? You’re not … you’re not just saying that?”

“I’m not just saying that,” Kurt says, pulling Blaine’s body back down. “I swear. You’re wonderful and awesome and talented and … and …” Kurt’s attention is suddenly pulled by the sound of Blaine’s phone buzzing on the bedside table, wondering how and when it even got there “… you’re getting a text message, I think.”

“Hmm …” Blaine reaches over, not budging an inch off Kurt’s body in order to get it. He looks at the message on the screen and groans. “Oh, give me a break.”

Kurt scowls. “Is it him?”

“Yeah. Dammit! I told him to stop texting me.”

It didn’t take long after meeting Kurt for Blaine to figure out how his catfisher might have gotten his phone number. The week prior to him receiving the text messages, he’d put up a notice on the student bulletin boards at school trying to sell a few old guitars. That was the only way he could think that anyone could get his number. He didn’t even have it listed in the student directory.

Unfortunately, Blaine couldn’t change his phone number without throwing his life into a huge upheaval. Besides, he still wanted to sell those guitars. He’d have to put his new number on the notices and, if the catfisher was persistent (which they seemed to be by the amount of new Please, text me back, Blaine. We need to talk messages he got in a week) they’d still be able to get a hold of him.

Blaine went to the police. They said they would look into it if they had time, but that more than likely they wouldn’t be able to help him. They recommended he block the number and report it to the donotcall registry as well as his service provider. They also told him to record any incident of further contact just in case.

The officer assured Blaine that catfishers rarely ever come after their victims in real life. The odds of anything but a few annoying text messages coming from this were slim.

If Blaine ignored them, they should just go away.

It was the lengthy verbal equivalent of a shrug.

Blaine did as they suggested, blocked the number and reported it, but that only stopped the messages for a couple of days. Soon they came back from a different cell phone number.

Blaine has been ignoring them, but they’re still frustrating.

“Here. I have an idea.” Kurt holds out his hand for Blaine’s phone. “May I?”

“You may.” Blaine hands Kurt his phone, no idea what he has planned.

Kurt switches it to camera mode. He scoots closer to Blaine and puts an arm around his shoulders. He raises the phone up, adjusting until they’re both in frame. “Say cheese!”

“Cheese!” Blaine smiles wide for the camera.

Kurt snaps the picture. Then he attaches it to a message and sends it on its way.

“There. That should give whoever-never a clue that you’re mine now.”

“Let me see.”

Kurt hands Blaine his phone and Blaine checks the sent messages. There he sees the picture. It’s a really good picture, if he does say so himself, even if the two of them look like they’ve just run a marathon, hair sticking out, faces flushed, obviously naked even though all he can see is their bare chests. Underneath the picture, Kurt had typed:

Don’t contact Blaine again. He’s very, very busy making love to his devoted boyfriend so kindly fuck off. Hugs and kisses, the real Kurt Hummel.

Blaine nods in approval. “I think so,” he agrees, setting his phone aside. “Devoted boyfriend, hmm?”

“Absolutely.” Kurt rolls over onto Blaine and kisses him sweetly. “Hopelessly devoted.”

“Hmm, I like that,” Blaine says.

“Me, too.”

“So …”

“So …?”

“Your message did say that I am very, very busy making love to my boyfriend.”

Kurt wiggles his eyebrows. “It did say that, didn’t it?”

“It did.”

“Well, then. We’d better get started,” Kurt suggests, eyes dark, smile even darker, “but this time, I get to be inside of you.”

“Oh, God,” Blaine moans, Kurt sealing his intentions with a kiss.

#klainevalentines2017 #klaine fanfiction #klaine fic #frankie writes

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gregellner · 7 years

Photo

Cover by Tula Lotay.

I’m really sorry for the delay in posts. The closest reason I can say is “news fatigue” as a reason for why I have had trouble bringing up the will to write anything worthwhile here. That, and I have been writing other “micro-reviews” for Multiversity Comics in their “Wednesday Wrapup” sections every Monday. To avoid overlap of perspectives, I have elected to avoid putting my posts from there on to this blog here. However, I may put up my additional thoughts on specific issues.

Today I’ll be reviewing “Tomb Raider II” issue 12 of the “Choice and Sacrifice” arc, the apparent finale of this take on the series, written by Mariko Tamaki and penciled by Phillip Sevy, published by Dark Horse Comics.

First, we have a chase scene, with different objectives. Lara is trying to get back to set up her plan to trap Himiko by following a truck headed back to her base of operations, while Dr. Taffe and his group of Trinity assailants are trying to capture her and kill Samantha Nishimura, who is being possessed by Himiko still. The scene has a rather humorous counting error, wherein Taffe says that there is one order, despite mentioning two (the capture order, and the kill order), with the soldiers under him exasperated as they have to correct the numbering. The artwork by Phillip Sevy shows this off rather well, with the person who is holding up two fingers seeming both confused and annoyed despite having on a balaclava that covers all but the eyes.

The three sides of this conflict collide rather spectacularly, with a squadron of Trinity troops invading Himiko’s base at the same time as Lara is trying to spy on them to isolate Himiko from her followers. The Trinity troops appear to be German, as one of them says “abschaum” while attacking one of the members of Himiko’s army, meaning “scum” in German. In all, the combat abilities of the Trinity soldiers seem to contrast with those of Himiko’s army. Trinity members are more professional, demanding that the Himiko cult members drop their weapons, whereas the latter simply attack first.

The spread panel of Himiko and Lara coming face-to-face in the middle of this battle in a warehouse is well lain. The entire scene is in chaos, with both armies fighting one another, but one can pick out the two women, both of whom are not fighting any particular person, but looking at one another from across the spread. However, I’ll admit that their actual conflict, their fight, is rather anticlimactic, with barely a mention of their earlier animosity. In fact, Lara doesn’t even identify Himiko as Himiko, but rather tries to get Sam Nishimura within to fight against her. For some reason, I felt that the fight between them would be a little more dramatic, or even show a smidgeon of Himiko’s weather abilities, or in the least reference why they are absent. The encounter is interesting, but I feel that it could have been more.

As for the climax, wherein Sam confronts Himiko within her own body, I am reminded of “Fight Club” (both the book and the movie) by Chuck Palahnuik. In order to stop her possessor, Sam inflicts harm on her own body, nearly killing herself in the process. In contrast to how I feel that the Lara encounter could have been handled better, this one was perfect, encapsulating how and why Sam has grown as a person from the damsel in distress she was in the 2013 “Tomb Raider” game. Sadly, the way she ends out the issue makes me feel that it is highly unlikely that she will fill the role portrayed by the Remnant teenager Nadia in “Rise of the Tomb Raider”’s “Baba Yaga: The Temple of the Witch” and “Cold Darkness Awakened” downloadable content packs.

The intentional loose end in “Dr.” Taffe is an intriguing enough plot point to leave me wanting more. However, I do have to wonder if he realized that the Divine Source was gone for good. Or was it? It’s unclear, something I hope to find out some other way.

In all, I found this arc to be better than the “Spore” arc before it. However, “Choice and Sacrifice” had its own issues, mainly in a lack of focus on the direct conflict between Lara and Himiko. They each fight, yes, but there seems to be little, if any, attention on the fact that Lara killed her in the first place. The only element that is outright revealed is the Wei Mirror (which I enjoyed in general). In all, I feel that, in order to make the Spore arc feel like it meant more, there probably should have been more behind-the-scenes work with Himiko and Sam, perhaps with her being progressively overwhelmed. That arc, which seemed to be a retread of “immortality artifact of the month,” would have done well with a change of pace like this far more personal endeavor.

I turn my attention to “Writing Excuses,” a podcast to which I listen, specifically to their Season 11, Episode 24 podcast. The point at which this arc succeeded where the “Spore” one failed is a simple matter of stakes. Lara did not have much of a real stake in the adventure in “Spore,” with the primary interesting feature seeming to be her new training of her senses. She didn’t have many people in danger of whom she would know much about, and the “Knights of the Spore” didn’t seem to have that same level of menace. This arc, on the other hand, dealt with her personal conflicts with Sam and her friendship with Jonah simultaneously, while also bringing back Trinity, making everything seem to matter more. Since everything mattered more, I felt more engrossed in the plot.

I’m not saying that this issue is bad. I merely find that there could be various improvements.

On the whole, I found this adventure very interesting. I look forward to the next work from this team, if they work together, or separately. Tamaki’s storytelling style is very interesting, and the vibrancy and versatility of Sevy’s artwork is great. The entire scene of Himiko being defeated is great, using light and shadows as well as different colorations and perspective to give a feeling of complete victory over the Sun Queen while simultaneously showing the horror of what became of Sam as a result.

While I am somewhat worried for the franchise now that Rhianna Pratchett has left as lead writer, I still look forward to the next steps.

It’s been fun. Thanks for everything!

#phillip sevy #mark tamaki #tomb raider #tomb raider comics #dark horse comics #square enix #crystal dynamics #nadia #rise of the tomb raider #baba yaga #lara croft #Samantha Nishimura #sam nishimura #himiko #dr taffe #trinity #tomb raider trinity #tula lotay #Rhianna Pratchett

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tech-battery · 4 years

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Galaxy Book Flex review: A pretty QLED laptop with a useful S Pen Samsung’s laptops are coming into their own.

Samsung has had a troubled past as a laptop maker. Its ATIV, Notebook and Odyssey machines were underwhelming, and in the late 2010s the company consolidated its efforts into the Galaxy Book line. Instead of competing against the usual PC makers like Dell, HP, Lenovo and ASUS, Samsung focused on making more mobile-friendly machines. It prioritized thin-and-light designs and great displays, and it added an onboard stylus, borrowing the features that made its smartphones the industry favorites they are today.

With the Galaxy Book Flex, Samsung continues to show improved self-awareness by showcasing its superior display tech. The Flex is the first laptop with a QLED panel, which promises more colors, deeper blacks and greater brightness. It also comes standard with an S Pen and a wireless-charging pad built into the trackpad. Two models -- 13 inch and 15 inch -- are available, and we received the smaller version, which costs $1,349. The larger is just $50 more, and both are available today.

Engadget Score

Pros

Beautiful build

Useful onboard S Pen

Trackpad can wirelessly charge other devices

Comfortable keyboard

Cons

Limited configurations

Middling battery life

Summary

The Galaxy Book Flex is a gorgeous, powerful laptop with a vibrant QLED display. Though its battery life isn’t as long as some of the competition, the Flex is still a capable machine with a helpful S Pen onboard.

Design

I gotta give Samsung props. The company has seriously stepped up the design of its laptops over the past few years. The Galaxy Book S and Galaxy Chromebook both had super sleek builds, and the Flex is no different. This thing is all clean lines and sharp corners, with gleaming edges that give it a polished look. The deep royal blue of my review unit is refreshing: I’m used to boring silver, black or gray laptops, so my eyes welcome this change.

Though it’s impressively thin, the Flex feels solid and dense. It’s still pretty light though at just 1.15kg (2.53 pounds). In comparison, the new MacBook Air and the Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 are both heavier at 2.8 and 2.9 pounds, respectively.

The Flex’s 13.3-inch screen is surrounded by minimal bezels on the top, left and right sides, with a fatter chin at the bottom. That thicker bottom bezel is still common in laptops, though Dell managed to do away with it in this year’s XPS 13 -- maybe the rest of the industry will catch up soon. Samsung still managed to squeeze a webcam above the Flex’s screen, although it sadly doesn’t support Windows Hello logins.

Along the edges, you’ll find a headphone jack, a microSD card reader, a push-to-release S Pen slot and three USB-C ports (two of which are Thunderbolt 3 compatible). That’s one more USB-C socket than the XPS and MacBook have, with the Apple laptop lacking the card slot the other two offer. As a consequence of offering more connectivity options, the Flex is also slightly thicker than both of those laptops. Still, it’s compact enough to fit in most of my work bags.

Display

I’ll be honest: I can’t tell the difference between an OLED and QLED screen of the same size and resolution. And you might not be able to either. That is to say, you won’t have any complaints about the Flex’s full HD display in terms of color reproduction and vibrance. I watched several episodes of Amazon’s new show Upload. The rich, autumnal colors in the leafy forest settings were stunning, and it was easy to make out details in even dimly lit scenes.

My apartment gets a lot of light, so it can sometimes get hard to see any laptop’s screen. The Flex’s Outdoor Mode is supposed to combat that by bumping the brightness an extra 200 nits to 600 nits. But switching it on via the keyboard shortcut only helped a little bit. However, it was much more useful on a slightly gloomy day.

I wish Samsung hadn’t made this a mode that you switch on or off and instead offered it as a few extra levels on the built-in brightness scale. Sometimes I needed a little bit more than the built-in max, but in those situations I had to use Outdoor Mode, which scorched my retinas. Still, it probably conserves battery to only bump up brightness by that much for short periods of time rather than encourage you to use it for an extended stretch.

Outdoor Mode also added a weird yellow cast to the screen, as if it turned on a blue-light filter. This wasn’t a big deal other than when I needed to edit photos for color temperatures. In those cases, you’ll have to turn off Outdoor Mode and figure out some other way to see your display without that brightness boost.

Keyboard and trackpad

Because it’s so slim, I was expecting the Book Flex to have shallow keys, but Samsung was able to offer a surprisingly deep amount of travel here. The keyboard is well laid out, with no undersized buttons save for the right-shift key, which is a little less wide to make room for the fingerprint sensor next to it.

My one gripe would be that the left-shift key seemed a little sticky, and too often I would try to uppercase the first letter of a word and end up getting the first two letters instead. I’d blame it on my lazy pinkie, but I haven’t encountered this on any other laptop.

A quick note on the fingerprint scanner: It was fast and accurate, usually unlocking the laptop without delay. Since it’s Windows Hello-compatible, I also used it for authentication on programs like Google Chrome. While the placement is uncommon -- most laptops place their fingerprint readers on the top right of the deck or embed it into the power button -- Samsung’s choice didn’t feel too odd.

Below the spacebar sits the Flex’s trackpad, which is fairly roomy given the laptop’s small footprint. Smaller notebooks often have cramped trackpads, but the surface area here is generous. It’s not as tall as the XPS 13’s or MacBook Air’s, but it offers enough vertical space. Aside from being large, the Flex’s touchpad is also responsive and smooth, and gestures like scrolling or pinch-to-zoom worked well.

S Pen

One of my favorite things about Samsung laptops is the S Pen. It’s not only fun for drawing self-portraits or scribbling down notes but also helpful for signing urgent PDFs. I just had to open the document, select “Add a Note” from the toolbar and sign on the dotted line.

The Flex offers the same onboard stylus as the Note 10 -- don’t expect the bigger, more pen-like version on the Galaxy Tab S series. Still, it’s comfortable enough to use for hours while drawing a self-portrait. Fans of Samsung’s Air Command menu on its Note phones will be pleased to know it pops up here too when you slide the S Pen out of its slot.

Performance and in use

The Flex may look like a dainty machine, but it actually packs a powerful 10th-generation Intel Core i7 processor. My review unit came with 16GB of RAM, which is double the 8GB configuration you can buy in the US. (The 15-inch model has the same CPU but 12GB of RAM.) Bear in mind that this means my experience, at least when it comes to performance and speed, isn’t going to be representative of what you can expect.

With these guts, the Flex deftly dealt with my daily workflow of Slack, dozens of Chrome tabs, spreadsheets and the inescapable Zoom calls that permeate our lives now. The laptop also kept up with my new at-home needs, like executing my podcast-recording setup and uploading large files for review videos. I also played several rounds of League of Legends after rediscovering it, and the Flex never let me down.

That is, until I decided to turn on Samsung’s Silent mode. This is meant to keep the laptop’s fans quiet if you’re bothered by them. It’s pretty easy to activate: Just slide a switch in the Samsung Settings app. You don’t have to go into Boot mode to access it. I never found the Flex too loud, but I guess those trying to get work done in bed next to a light sleeper or just really hate white noise might.

I did notice a significant decrease in sound when I enabled Silent Mode, though it seemed to throttle CPU performance. When I tried to continue playing League afterward, the system lag made it nearly impossible: My character could barely make it to the first turret before I gave up and restarted (with Silent Mode off). This is somewhat understandable. You can’t expect high-speed performance when the fans are turned off without the computer running too hot. Silent Mode is more useful if you’re bothered by the noise and aren’t running anything intensive.

Battery life and wireless PowerShare

Thanks to the Flex’s QLED screen and 69.7Whr battery, Samsung promises up to 20 hours of runtime. In reality though, that number is a lot lower. Our video-looping battery test drained the Flex in about 13 and a half hours, which is better than the MacBook Air but falls short of the XPS 13 2-in-1’s 14-and-a-half hour mark. In real-world experience though, I saw power levels plunge below 20 percent after five hours of heavy use. To be fair, that involved energy-sapping processes like video playback and more-frenzied League games.

One of the new features of the Flex is its trackpad’s built-in wireless charger that can deliver power to Qi-compatible devices. It’s the same Wireless PowerShare feature that debuted on the Galaxy S10. You can’t use the trackpad while you’re charging something, which makes sense, since something is literally obstructing the usable area. I’m not sure how helpful this feature is, since wireless charging is typically too slow to be meaningful. I placed the Galaxy S20 Ultra on the trackpad (after the requisite first step of turning on the feature in Settings) and watched as its battery level climbed painfully slowly from 79 percent to 85 percent in 20 minutes.

For something smaller, like the Galaxy Buds, I could see this being useful in a pinch (say, in an airplane when you’re running low on juice). Otherwise, wireless PowerShare isn’t something I’ll use a lot.

Wrap-up

I’m enamored with the Galaxy Book Flex. It’s a pretty machine with a nice display, powerful guts and useful S Pen. But I wish there were more configurations (for each size) to make the base price lower. Sure, $1,349 for a Core i7 processor and 8GB of RAM isn’t the priciest, considering the new MacBook Air tops out at $1,199 for a Core i5 and the similarly specced XPS 13 2-in-1 costs a lot more at $1,700. But with the competition offering options starting at $999, that’s tough to swallow.

Still, if you’re looking for a gorgeous, beefy laptop with a good screen and don’t need it to last forever, the Galaxy Book Flex is worth considering. More important, it proves it’s time to take Samsung’s laptops seriously again.

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atypical60 · 4 years

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I’ve been sale-ing since the end of November. That’s when they winter sales kick in. On Black Friday, to be exact.

The past few years, we’ve been in Paris for Thanksgiving weekend and 2018 was the first year I noticed that Black Friday left the confines of the USA and took over in other countries. France being one of them.

But lets’ get back to the actual sales and what I’ve purchased and why I purchased.

The Black Friday Sales: This past Black Friday had me perusing Galeries Lafayette for a camel coat. This was on my list since I couldn’t find a decent one here in the States. Either I was completely outpriced or what was available was overpriced garbage.

In my mind, I knew what I wanted. A coat that could be worn to the office every day during the winter. One that would pair well with pants as well as with dresses and skirts. I didn’t want a trendy style but rather a classic cut. And camel because I’m tired of black coats—dirt shows up more readily and with dog hair being part of my life, camel was the more practical choice.

This coat turned out to be the greatest buy. I’ve worn it practically every single day since it was purchased!!!

I found the coat after about a half hour of searching. The first coat I tried on, I loved but at a price tag of over $600, I wasn’t—or rather, the husband wasn’t quite ready. He suggested I look around a bit more. Which I did. And just as I was about to give up, I saw her hanging on a rack.

This camel coat goes with everything I have..

It even goes with my wigs!!!!

A straight cut that falls to the knees, it was just what I was looking for. And at a price of $250 euros, less ten percent discount, she was perfect!

Other than the coat, I hadn’t done any shopping until after the Holidays. As you know, the Holiday Season was a difficult time for my family due to my brother’s passing.

Fast forward to January. That’s when I saled. And to be perfectly honest with you the majority of the items purchased were for the coming summer.

Lilly Pulitzer hosts a great “After Party Sale” in January and if you are a fan of her bright colors and timeless dresses, taking advantage of this event is well-worth it.

Three of the four items purchased at the Lilly Pulitzer After Party Sale!

What I purchased were four items. Three online and one in-store.

The in-store purchase was a pair of Darci Shorts in a stretch fabric. Why these shorts?

And the length is great. The shorts are shorter than Bermuda shorts but not as short as short-shorts!

Well. The stretch fabric stays close to the lets. If there’s one thing I cannot stand about shorts is the fabric’s uncanny ability to ride up the inside of the thighs. It looks sloppy and is annoying AF when you have to constantly tug the shorts down. And although I don’t wear shorts all that often, for a casual Saturday afternoon or hanging on our deck during the warm weather, the shorts are a welcome change from a dress.

White shirt. I love this long-sleeved stretchy shirt. Again, the price was right and one can never have enough white shorts. The fabric has give and, although unforgiving around the belly, it’ll look great with a skirt or high-waisted pants. I will have to wear a push up bra with this but it really doesn’t matter because the moment I arrive home from where I was the bra, this shirt will come off and be replaced by a loose tee!

I love this shirt! I’ll definitely need a push up bra to make the titties look more lively…and..

it brings back memories of one of my favorite Seinfeld episodes!!!

Shift Dress. Bonaparte doesn’t like this one. At all. But he’s not wearing it. I am. And during the warmer months, I live in dresses. Be they sun dresses, a simple frock or a fitted shift. I love one-stop dressing. This is the dress I can run errands in. Can go to the movies or a casual dinner. It’s comfortable and the length is actually more modest than the usual summer dress. I love the neckline and the front zipper.

This is the Larsen shift which I think is a great day dress

The arm holes aren’t cut so wide so as to show off your underwear…and not cut so small that they cut into your upper arm fat. They are the perfect cut!

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The neckline flattering!

The length is perfect. Not too short. Not too long.

Overall, this is a great summer dress.

Maxi Dress. I did a video on the clothing I bought and as I stated in my video, this is the money dress! It’s the Lilly Pulitzer Wynne Maxi dress. At $64, this was a fantastic price.

This dress is the money! I wish the vibrancy of the print would show up better because this is just gorgeous!

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Everything about this dress

is just wonderful!

I purchased a Wynne maxi last year to wear for Oona’s Bridal Brunch and paid $178—full price, which I rarely do. The one I bought last year was one of the most-worn dresses I wore during the late spring throughout the summer. The Boho vibe is spot on and the slits on the side give some air conditioning and extra comfort to the dress. And let me tell you I’m so happy I purchased this because it is now discontinued.

My Wynne maxi from last year. Did you know my maiden name is Wynne?

Yet, another great item that corporate fashion decides will hit the dust.

Are you familiar with Gretchen Scott Designs? The mail-order brand has become a favorite of mine. Especially when I can find sale items that haven’t been grabbed yet.

The Gripeless Cotton Spandex jeans are a mature-woman body’s best friend. I’m not kidding. I purchased a pair a few months back. I took a chance because no stores in my area sell the brand and there were no reviews to be found. This is a very elusive and secretive brand if you ask me!

These pants were purchased a while ago but I love the fun print! I wore these to work yesterday because I was too lazy to shave my legs.

Anyway, I really loved the pants I bought because of the fit. The waist is a higher cut and really hides a plethora of belly sins. And because of the higher waist, the allusion of longer legs is given. But the great thing about the pants are the whimsical prints.

Are these pants stinkin’ adorable or what????!!!

I purchased a pair on sale for $39 that reminded me of a cross between Marimekko and Pucci. Kind of 1960’s psychedelic. And very-much fun! I couldn’t resist. And I found good use for a bright pink Tippi Sweater that I haven’t worn too much!

Dear God. I’m such a class act. Check out the hanger and Chippy’s ball on the floor. I swear I didn’t even realize this was on the floor until I saw the pic. I was making a video. Real class! But–I’ll be wearing these pants a lot!!!

The shoes I bought. No work shoes this season. No boots either. I made do with what I have. But all was not for naught. Mine eyes hath seen the glory of a cute pair of pom-pom flats that Talbots was selling. I was watching these babies like a bird-dawg searching for a duck. There was no way that the full price of $130 was going to come from my pocket—and I’m not a Talbot’s fan. But these shoes…

I love these shoes so much….the memories they bring back to me..

And in January, the price came down. I got them for $53.00 –less than half price. These shoes bring back memories of the Pappagallo and Capezio flats I wore in high school and loved so much. As usual, they were wide, but inner soles took care of that issue.

Come on ladies! I KNOW you remember these shoes!! Do you miss them as much as I do?

Another pair of flats I was dreaming about came from J. Crew and at $178, there was no way I would swing the purchase. In the first place, the shoes are covered in fabric. It’s not very practical. But—the shoes are plaid!! Plaid. Pointy-toed. Embellished with a bow. The perfect party shoe when you know you’ll be standing for hours and don’t want to bear the brunt of heels.

Plaid shoes. With bows. They are adorable but worth $178? No.

How these shoes were marked down to $34.99, I’ll never know—or better yet, if I got them for $34.99 were they ever worth $178???

They are worth the $34.99 purchase price though!

On a J. Crew-ish roll, a pair of Gold flats were purchased at J. Crew Factory for a grand total of $11.97. They’re cute. They’re comfortable and will be worn for those casual times.

These have the pricey Chloe vibe but for $11.97 the price is better than Walmart!

Lastly, a dress for the remaining days of winter. Purchased at J. Crew Factory for $15.97. A cotton-flannel, funnel-neck shift. I love this dress because it feels like a nighty. I kid you not. It’s a great work dress and off the bat, I can tell you this will have a heavy rotation between now and spring.

I wore this dress today. And I can guarantee this’ll be carrying me into the late spring! Who can beat the $15.97 price?

January is a great time to make purchases on end-of-season items. But chose wisely. Stick to more classic cuts that you know will be around for a while. Trendy clothing isn’t necessarily a pragmatic choice because you never know what’ll be “it” next year.

Now that I’ve made the purchases, I’ll add a link below to my little video of how some of the clothing looks in real life!

youtube

Happy sale-ing!!!!

Come Sale Away With Me! I’ve been sale-ing since the end of November. That’s when they winter sales kick in. On Black Friday, to be exact.

#Fashion for mature women #january sales #Lilly Pulitzer After Party Sale 2020 #What I&039;m Wearing

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