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bittybattybunny · 3 years

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Your crafts are just so freaking adorable! I’m low key jealous that if you want to be surrounded by cute critters you can JUST MAKE THEM! And they when you need to make something for storage like baskets or bags you just make those too! It’s incredible and your style is just so cute it makes me sequel in delight to see your work! You just MAKE all these colorful and pretty crafts!

I MEAN THATS HONESTLY WHY I PICKED THE HOBBY UP---

I learned to crochet originally to make a cute Pyramid head for a friend of mine (sadly i think the only pic of him lives on my insta i never use) and from there I just wanted to have a bunch of octopus friends (and then people on campus wanted them so I would make them for like 5$ an octo) and then i learned to make cats, pokemon, etc. It was a way to keep busy and i got something cute (before I got into crochet as a way to deal with my severe agoraphobia and anxiety I would fold paper stars and cranes. I have over 7,000 paper stars I’ve folded over the years and I think i have 1500 cranes or something?)

I’ll be honest I’m always so much more nervous posting my craft work just because I feel like I’m overwhelming but I just wanna show it off like i MADE this i can HOLD THIS.

it’s so satisfying

liek today I finished off Strawberta and I’m so happy!! she’s long and fuzzy and baby!!! Finishing Queen Beehemoth yesterday too was just so satisfying and I’m almost done making a new bucket hat!!!

I learned to sew years and years ago (like 17 years ago. I learned when I was 10.) and it’s always been such a huge delight to finish a project off and hold it. IDK why it gives me such a rush and then showing people and them liking it too makes me feel so happy. I just love to make things. not persay to sell them like my dad thinks I should I just love to create.

You can never have enough baskets!!!Honestly I actually make the baskets more to help me sort things as I have issues with finding things due to my ADHD (i have some bad memory issues so I lose things easily) and they make good gifts for friends and family. Fun fact I once made a BUNCH of coworkers beanies as christmas gifts. I don’t make them often or do more complicated projects cuz I can’t focus long.

if it’s not clear I’m really really passionate about my handicrafts and I get this way irl too. Like spud will come with me to get yarn and I have to be careful i don’t talk too long to the nice yarn lady. I also will just ramble about it incoherently as I don’t have many folks to talk to about it ^^;; I have a few discord buds I talk yarn with time to time but I really don’t have any close friends who craft like this (i once tried teaching Nico to crochet and they somehow did it left handed.... we’re both right handed.)

My sister and i like to talk about the main purpose of my making things is just to make happy brain juice of as Spud says “tone those seras.” (like serotonin ya know)

Like from grabbing my crochet hook cases (which also bring me joy. I have two tokidoki milk carton pencil cases I use to hold my favorite hooks. the strawberry holds my bamboo handled ones that I use most often, plain milk holds all my other hooks minus a few ergonomic ones and my massive T hook that doesn’t fit) and watching these creatures form just from STRING its so ahhhhh

it’s the same thing when i’m doing a sewn project and i can see it coming togehter. honestly I wish I could sew more often as I love it but it’s hard to make space for it and with my health i can’t do the set up and take down I need to so I just have to wait for really good health days to sew. this is why I crochet soooo much. I can do that when I’m stuck in bed unable to walk without getting dizzy or shooting pain. I can do it in the car, I can do it at work. it’s portable.

Lately I’ve been considering a “crochet with me” stream where I make a bee or something on stream just to joke around while working, or like doing granny squares and letting people pick colors (tho i wanna sort my yarn better before i do that lol)

sorry i got really rambly just

know I really am happy people seem to love these silly things I make. It makes it all the more enjoyable. Like to know the things making me happy make others happy. I know there’s a jump from posting fanart and fanfic to just random bees and snakes and baskets but It’s just who I am as a person. I’m just a bun who makes things be it illustrations, paintings, writings, plushies, costumes. I love to make. Someday I hope I can leave my day job and just. make full time. but that’s in the future.

#ask #anon #bun rambles #not art #long post #i honestly have debated taking a few days off of my day job to reset up my online shop #I have so many buttons plushies hats and keychains to sell but i just #its hard to manage with my health hence why i shut the shop down #but i keep getting asked at my dayjob about if i have an etsy or not and it slike yes i do #but nothing is on it

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coffee-obsessed-writer · 5 years

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When You Least Expect It: Part Three

Part One | Part Two | Part Three

Jensen x Musician!Reader

A/N: This is a slow burn fic that I have been working on for a while. Its a story I wrote for myself and just wanted to share with everyone. Yes, the “Dee” in the story is who you think, but there is no intended hate on her or their actual marriage. It is a work of fiction, that is all. Part three is from Jensen’s POV. There is also a playlist to go along with the series.

Series Playlist: “When You Least Expect It” (Spotify)

Series Summary: After a hard breakup, Jensen decides to throw himself into organizing a Music Festival in Austin that is meant to raise money for a few of his most cherished charities and organizations. As he throws himself into planning it, he stumbles upon a spirited, undiscovered performer, who he convinces to come aboard to help plan and coordinate the event with him. What transpires after that takes both Jensen and his new friend, by surprise. But when their respective pasts come back just before the event kicks off in Austin, they will both have to decide if the unexpected feelings are worth perusing, or if they should just walk away and go on with their lives.

Series Warnings: Language, Break-Ups, Angst, Fluff, Smut (that’s it for now)

WC: 3.5K

*Banner created by me; pics & gifs found online

Jensen was fucking cold.

He didn’t start feeling the chill set into his bones until they made their way back up the beach towards where he left his car. They chatted casually on the walk back, mostly about the festival, and Austin itself, but when they reached her front door he found it hard to say goodbye. Unless he was mistaken, he got the vibe that maybe she didn’t want too, either.

They stood outside her door for another three or four minutes and she finally noticed his body trembling.

“Hey, why don’t you come inside? After all, it is my fault that you’re shivering. I think I have some clothes here that may fit you alright since you’re completely soaked through.”

“It’s fine. I’ll make it back to the hotel alright,” he said through chattering teeth.

“Nonsense, come on. Besides, we’re going to be spending a lot of time together over the next year. Might as well start getting used to you being around all the time.” She winked and unlocked the front door.

Stepping into her bungalow, he felt instantly comfortable in her space. The furniture was older, but it was still in decent shape and very cozy. The couch was draped in oversized fleece blankets with a few plush throw pillows. There were nautical decorations, pictures of fishing boats all over the walls, and even the curtains covering the small kitchen window bore anchors and sailboats. A small hallway divided the room, separating the living room from the eat-in kitchen that led to the bedrooms and single bathroom.

“Cute place,” he said after looking around. “Not exactly what I would have imagined your taste to be.”

She laughed. “Not my taste, at all. This was my dad’s house, long before it was mine. I just never wanted to change it after he passed.”

“Oh,” Jensen replied, “I’m sorry.”

“Thanks. It was a long time ago, but, thanks…” she trailed off for a moment but came back around. “Let me get you those clothes so do you don’t develop pneumonia on my watch.”

Y/N disappeared down the hallway, and Jensen took the time to really look at the pictures that lined the walls. He saw a small girl, and boy slightly older standing with a man in his forties on the dock. Beside them was a fifty-plus foot fishing boat.

“That’s him,” she said upon her return and pointed to the man in the photo. “That’s my dad, Monty, and that was his boat, Song of the Sea.”

“Cool name. That’s you, then?” he asked, pointing to the girl beside Monty.

“Yep, that’s me, and that’s my brother Dave.”

“Is he a fisherman, too?”

“Nope. He’s a dickhead. I don’t know what he does for a living now. We haven’t talked in years.”

“Oh…”

“Clothes,” she said and handed them out to him. “If you’re hungry I have some leftover pizza in the fridge I can warm up. It’s from Saw Mill.”

“I am down for some pizza,” he smiled, feeling quite content with the direction the evening took, despite his dip in the ocean. “Is there a place I could change?”

“Yeah, down the hall, last door on the left.”

Jensen found the bathroom and stripped out of his clothes. The room was blessedly warm, allowing his skin to unfreeze the moment the wet clothes had been removed. He borrowed one of the towels that had been hanging on the back of the door and used it to dry his hair. Once he had on the fresh set of clothes, he paused and looked at his reflection in the mirror. It was the first chance he had to be alone with his own thoughts since arriving at the Bamboo, and as his own green eyes stared back he didn’t know where to begin processing it all.

Twenty-four hours ago he was laying in his hotel bed, dreaming about some mystery girl, and now he was standing in her house, about to gnaw on some pizza and discuss how she’s going to be working with him over the course of the next year.

Are you out of your fucking mind? He silently asked his reflection. He decided he must be, but he also decided that he didn’t necessarily care. When he searched his genuine feelings, the ones he kept very close to the vest, he was happy. He felt good about making her the offer and even better that she accepted it. The other ones, the tangled mess of clingy, fawning emotions that bubbled so close to the surface were the ones he didn’t want.

You can get to know her, be her friend, without it turning to sex. Certainly, no feelings. This is work. She’s smart and creative and will be an asset to the team bringing this to life, he said to himself, almost like a mantra.

Then, out loud. “It can’t be anything more… It. can’t. Whatever you think you feel… you don’t. It's just--”

A soft knock at the door interrupted his train of thought. “Yeah?”

“Sorry, I just wanted to see if you wanted a beer with your pizza. I have water and some apple juice, or--”

“A beer sounds great,” he replied. “Be out in a minute.”

It was quiet again, and he assumed she must have walked away. Remembering their earlier exchange on the word, he didn’t want to take the chance she would hear him. One beer, one slice of pizza, then back to the hotel and tomorrow back to Vancouver. You got this, his inner voice promised himself.

Two beers and two slices later, Jensen was sitting criss-cross applesauce on Y/N’s floor, with her next to him and a photo album depicting her years in drama club productions in front of them.

“Oh, this one,” she started and pulled it from its plastic sleeve pausing to look at it long enough for one of those soft, reflective smiles to touch her lips. “This is from when we did Grease.”

“That’s you there?”

“Yup. I was the understudy for Sandy. The lead they cast was a healthy specimen, so I got to play one of the Pink Ladies instead.”

“I bet you would have made a kick-ass Sandy,” he teased and took a closer look at the picture.

She snatched it from his fingers and returned it to the album. “Nah, I was way too wild to be Sandy. The girl they cast was purity defined. She did a great job. Frenchie, maybe, or Rizzo… I could have pulled off Rizzo.”

“Now we’re talking. Rizzo, she was my favorite. I always had a thing for the bad girls,” he mused with a devilish grin before finishing off his second beer.

“Want another?” Y/N asked and got up from the floor.

Jensen considered it and waved her off. “Nah, I should probably get back to the hotel.”

“Right…” she mumbled and opened the fridge to grab herself another beer. “I mean, it's after two. If you wanna crash in the spare bedroom, it's open.”

“You’d be okay with that?” He watched her reaction closely. Yes, they had grown close in the day they spent together, and he was oddly comfortable with the idea of crashing at her place. But he didn’t want to seem as if he was continually pushing himself on her.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t have offered if I wasn’t.”

“Not sick of me yet?”

“I was sick of you after you spilled the tea all over the table. But,” she paused to shrug and grab a second beer from the fridge. She handed it to him and continued, “now, I dunno, I’m kinda used to ya.”

“Alright, sleepover it is,” he chuckled and sipped at his beer.

He liked Y/N, a lot. Physical attraction aside, she was someone he enjoyed spending time with. She made things easy; the business talk, the ‘get-to-know-you’ banter, all of it. Y/N made just sitting on her floor looking at old pictures fun, and that wasn’t something he’d had much of in his life, as of late. All the drama, and push ‘n pull with Dee has sucked him dry. Fun and easy going hadn't been on his radar in a damn long time.

Jensen was growing more than a little curious about her. She was a mystifying puzzle that he felt compelled to put together so he could see the whole picture of who she was. Yet, he also knew that it wouldn’t be an easy task. Y/N didn’t strike him as the kind of girl that would give away all her secrets or feelings to just anyone. He was going to have to work on it, but if their day together so far had been an indication of her willingness to one day let him in, he felt pretty confident that they could be really good friends.

“So, I gotta ask…” he started, not exactly hesitant on asking, but on how to ask what he wanted to know. “Earlier, when you dared me to polar plunge… why add the song in?”

“Joy to the World?”

“Yeah.”

Y/N closed the album and drew in a subtle and slow deep breath, drawing her knees up into her chest then taking time to consider how to respond. In the quiet of the room, she found Jensen’s eyes and held on to them. He saw hers growing damp at the corners and watched her ignore the one, lone tear that slid down her cheek.

“When I was a kid, I had a bunch of phobias. Some were normal, some, not so much. It got really bad after a while, and my dad tried everything to help me. One day, we were going to the market, and for some reason I was so, so scared to go in. It was summer vacation, and I was gawky and awkward. A bunch of Bennies were hanging out in front and I was petrified to walk past them,” she saw the confusion on his face and clarified. “Bennies are what locals here call the people that come here for the summer.”

Jensen nodded in understanding and then unknowingly mimicked her position and rested his chin on his knees as he listened on.

“Anyway, he said to me… ‘they aren’t going to say a word. I promise’. I said that I didn’t believe him. Trust was scarce in those days. My mom had just left, and everything was upside down. So I even had trouble trusting my dad, the one person I loved more than anyone in the world. He said, ‘Y/N, I’ll bet you anything they don’t’. We finally came to the arrangement that if I was wrong and he was right, then I had to give him the benefit of the doubt the next time something like this came up.”

“And if you were right?” Jensen asked.

“Well, I then got to embarrass him in public by making him walk around and sing Joy to the World. It was the song he hated the most,” she laughed at some long ago memory that she kept to herself, and lingered in it for a while. “But, I don’t know, it just became our thing… he’d say trust me and when it was super important that I did, he would simply say, ‘I bet you Joy to the World that I’m right’.”

Y/N cleared her throat and tightened the grip she had around her legs. This time when she caught Jensen’s gaze, he noticed the tears had finished falling and that her soft smile was directed at him.

“That’s how I knew I could accept this offer and trust you. You did it without question. The fact that you sang the song and committed like you did… I knew my dad would’ve told me to trust you. He would have bet--”

“The world,” Jensen finished for her.

“Yeah. Exactly.”

“So, did he have to sing it that first day?”

Y/N chuckled. “Nope. They didn’t even give me a second glance as we walked by.”

“Did he ever have to sing it?”

She lapsed into her contemplative expression, but only for a moment before bringing up her alluring (y/c) eyes to meet his. “Only once. But that’s a story for another time. I think we should take the opportunity to talk about Austin and when this is all going to happen.”

For another hour Jensen and Y/N talked and planned her move to Austin. Exhaustion was finally setting in and neither of them could keep their eyes open. Y/N showed him to the spare room and turned to walk back up the hallway to her own room. Jensen said goodnight, and before he could turn to go it, he saw her pause at her door and look back at him.

“Jensen... I’m sorry if I was cold to you when we first met. I tend to put up a pretty high wall sometimes. I hope you didn’t take it personally.”

“I didn’t.”

“Ok, good. I’m glad the day went the way it did. You surprised me. Not many people can surprise me. I take back what I said earlier. You’re not a shitty actor,” she said with a playful twitch of a smile. “Night, Hollywood.”

Jensen woke a few hours after going to bed and while he wasn’t exactly rested, the four hours he got was enough to energize him to reach the airport. It was a long flight back to Vancouver after all, plenty of time to sleep then. He didn’t want to miss his last chance to see an East Coast sunrise.

Tiptoeing through the bungalow, so as not to wake Y/N, he quietly opened the front door and stepped out into the autumn air. The day was dawning bright with a cotton candy sunrise over the ocean and barely a cloud in sight.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” he heard Y/N say.

He whipped around and saw her sitting on the small bench to the side of the house. She had a blanket around her shoulder and a steaming cup in her hands.

“Coffee?” she asked, holding it out to him.

“Bless you,” he sighed gratefully and took the cup. To his surprise, he found she took hers just how he liked his.

She moved over on the bench giving him room to sit and watch the sunrise. He closed his eyes and relished in the luscious taste of the coffee as it warmed his throat.

“Thank you,” he said, handing it back.

“Keep it, that was my third cup,” she chuckled, then reached over to the side of the bench and pulled up her guitar resting it on her lap and lightly strumming the strings.

“Won’t the neighbors complain?”

“They would, but there aren’t any. All these places are summer rentals. Closest year-round neighbors are the Sinatra’s down the beach.”

“Seriously? So, it's just you out here almost all year long?”

“Yup.” She nodded and continued to strum the guitar. The melody she was plucking was familiar, and after a few more beats Jensen came to recognize it.

“That song…” he started and then felt his heart start to beat faster as he realized where he remembered it from. “Its… shit!”

“Well, damn, tell me how you really feel,” she snorted, unsure if she should be offended or laugh.

“No! I Didn't mean it like that. I can’t remember the name of it, but it's familiar as hell. Actually heard it in a dream the other night,” he admitted without realizing how close he came to adding ‘a dream about you, in fact’.

“Oh! It's from Grease, You’re the One That I Want, but like, way slower,” she shrugged. “After talking about the play with you last night, it got stuck in my head. I couldn’t sleep, so I made coffee, grabbed the guitar and came outside to wait for sunrise.”

Y/N looked away from the guitar and over to Jensen. She watched him curiously for a moment, still playing, and with each passing note the song became clearer and clearer in his head. They held each other’s gaze for a moment, and he wondered if she felt whatever it was that sat between them. In the span of thirty seconds, he had at least a dozen “I wonder” thoughts cross his mind.

...if her heart is pounding, too

...if she dreamed the song, too

...if she couldn’t sleep because she was thinking about me like I was thinking about her

“I got chills, they’re multiplying, and I’m losing control,” she sang, in a breathy whisper that matched the volume of her guitar. “Cause the power you're supplying….”

Her voice gave him goosebumps across his skin, running from his wrist all the way to his neck.

She trailed off with singing but continued the humming the melody as she plucked the chords and brought her gaze to settle out on the horizon. Jensen wished she had kept singing; he wanted to beg her too, but he was afraid that speaking would break the magic of the moment.

From the other side of the yard, a loud buzzing was coming from Jensen’s car. His brow furrowed trying to recognize what it was, then suddenly jumped up and put the cup down on the bench before jogging through the cold sand to the car. When he came back, his cell was in hand as he was scrolling through messages.

“Completely forgot about this last night,” he mumbled to himself. “Yiiikes.”

“Missed a lot, did ya?” she asked, still strumming.

“Yeah. Looks like there was a change in my flight again. Jared has called at least half a dozen times, and about five texts from work. Good times.”

“Sorry I took you off the grid. Just blame me,” Y/N shrugged.

He watched her for a second and realized how carefree and easy she could be when she was comfortable around someone. There was an aura of calm that surrounded her at times and he wanted to absorb it like a sponge. He felt settled around her, and that was something he could get used too.

“I’m not even a little sorry, though, I guess I should get my ass in gear and get back. But…” he trailed off and went back to his phone, pulling up his calendar, “let’s figure out exactly when I should book your ticket to Austin.”

Y/N stopped strumming and gently rested the guitar on the ground beside the bench. She thought for a minute before replying. “I would need at least two weeks to get my shit together and tie up loose ends. So, let’s say, the 18th?”

“Yeah, that works for me. I may be in Vancouver, but I will make sure everything is all set for you.”

Before Y/N could say anything else, his phone started buzzing again. He answered it and began pacing between the house and the car. To give him some privacy, Y/N grabbed her guitar and went back into the bungalow.

Not five minutes later, Jensen came back inside and began to gather up the rest of his stuff to change, but she waved him off. “You can wear those back. Just junk them when you’re there. They belonged to my brother. Doubt he’ll be here anytime soon.”

“You sure?”

“Positive,” she snarked, making it clear brother Dave was a sore subject.

“Alright, well, I guess I should head back. I got the 18th in my calendar, and I will call you when I have more details about the flight and apartment. I’m really looking forward to working with you on this.”

“Same here,” she said and boosted herself to sitting on her kitchen counter. “It's gonna be a good time.”

Jensen had hoped she would see him to the door, and maybe even get a chance to touch her in some way; a handshake, maybe a hug, even. But she didn’t budge from the counter and he wasn't going to push her boundaries.

“Thanks for last night, the whole thing was a lot of fun.” Picking up the car keys from the table he moved towards the door, pausing one last time in hopes she’d come to him,

“It was my pleasure. The guys loved having you at the Bamboo. Save travels, ok? I’ll see you in two weeks.”

And just like that, Jensen felt discouraged, like maybe he had imagined their connection this whole time… had he? He tossed the keys up and caught them, and gave her a firm nod.

“Yes, I will. Two weeks. Take care, Y/N. We’ll talk soon.”

When he was sure she wouldn’t budge, he slipped out of the house and exhaled a rush of air from his lips when he reached the car. He got in, started it up and quickly backed down the dirt lane. Pausing before reversing out to the main drag, he threw it into park and rested his head against the headrest.

“You’re a jackass,” he mumbled to himself. “A grade A, idiotic, jackass.”

Hours later, while Jensen was mid-flight, pensive and unsure, obsessively replaying their entire day and night together, his cell phone started to vibrate from way down in his pocket. When he unlocked it and saw the text notification, he smiled.

From Y/N: “Hope you landed safely. Don’t wanna lose the job before it starts. Take care, Hollywood. Can’t wait for the 18th”

And just like that, he was smiling again.

Good new is, you don’t have to wait long for Part Four!! Its already done and ready to post. Will have it up soon :)

Everything Tags: @kazosa // @sorenmarie87 // @lefthologramdeer // @his-paradox // @letsby

SUPERNATURAL TAGS: @wings-of-a-raven // @negans-wife // @mrsbarnes-rogers // @teller258316 // @spnhollis // @sweet-things-4-life // @hobby27 // @sweetlythoughtfulbird // @theoriginalvicki // @dreamchester67 // @xxwarhawk // @babykalika2001 // @superwhovianfangirl81 // @toobusynerdfighting // @missihart23 // @crowleysreigningqueenofhell // @idreamofplaid // @thewinchesterchronicles // @wayward-gypsy // @closetspngirl // @fatestemptress // @rebelminxy // @22sarah08 // @witch-of-letters // @cole-winchester // @rainflowermoon // @adoptdontshoppets // @waywardvalkyrie // @fandomoniumflurry // @gnrfanfic // @blackcherrywhiskey // @jessieray98 // @lyoly // @a–1–1–3 // @31shadesofbrown // @whereismyangel-damnitdeanshare // @pilaxia // @screechingartisancashbailiff // @kgbrenner // @holylulusworld // @deansenwackles // @flamencodiva // @jamielea81 // @coffeebooksandfandom // @logical-princey // @gemini0410 // @salt-n-burn-em-all // @katehuntington // @collette04 // @mrswhozeewhatsis // @deathofmissjackson // @lauravic // @akshi8278

Series Tags: @winchest09 // @jerkbitchidjitassbutt // @aomi-nabi // @luciathewinchestergirl // @alexisxwinchester // @moonxdance // @seppys-return-to-madness // @donnaintx // @deans-baby-momma

#jensen ackles rpf #jensen ackles x reader #jensen ackles x y/n #jensen x reader #jensen x y/n #Jensen ackles fan fiction

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acrispyapple · 5 years

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oh no.. at least u could do “fun” stuff??? drink a lot of water!!!!! the place you visited looks very pretty and sleep enough!!

heya! i wanted to answer this earlier but i decided to include some of the random photos i took during my trip! gonna put it under a cut because it might be a bit spammy~ just remember, i don’t put any effort in taking photos– so these are all like bad angles and rushed-looking haha (°▽°)

okay so like, we visited this island (this is a badly zoomed photo from the boat) and they told us its name and why it’s named that way. apparently it has something to do with it’s shape. i thought it looked like a whale? like a half-submerged whale? so whale island would’ve made sense– but this island is called helicopter island lmao

since i had to wake up early almost everyday for “tours” and “fun” – i didn’t have many options for breakfast except for this one place that’s like walking distance from our place. at least it has a view of the ocean. they don’t use plastic straws so my hipster light bulb mango shake had a metal straw. they use bamboo straws too.

random socket on an island and some cave place that was really hard to get into because its entrance is a tiny hole you have to lift yourself into. i bumped my head on the top of the entrance~ (⌒_⌒;)

first pic is the port, so right after breakfast we’d usually wait for our boatmen to pick us up. there were dogs everywhere just lying around. bottom pics are our rare lounge-around time! i’m sorry random people in the photos, i just took a photo of what’s in front of me!

most of the places / islands we visited had really clear and shallow water with random fish that don’t care that people are around. but to get to some of the coves with shallow water, people had to swim through rough / deep waters. i can’t swim so i had to float like a corpse while the tour dude dragged my life jacket strap along while he swam. proud moment!

dude on a boat visiting random islands selling coconut and rum. sometimes he has overpriced ice cream too! other pic is a cave you kayak into, but yeah, that’s a no for me.

more climbing for me so i can have more “fun” haha. had to climb for 30 minutes to get to the zipline place. it was so hot, i think my laziness to put sunscreen on made me suffer the most here. i’m a burnt / baked apple now (*^^*)♡

it’s a 750-meter long cable stretching over 1.4km, and it’s about 262 feet above sea level. it was wasted on me. i’m pretty much not good with these things and i badly wanted to back out, but then everyone else was on the other side? and i don’t really know where else to go if i don’t join my family. i just closed my eyes and pretended it was really windy. took a video with the my phone tho~ and nah, i don’t own a selfie stick or whatever. it was just my waterproof phone case hanging from my neck haha

obligatory sunset photo! i just took these pics from inside my waterproof phone thing, sooo it might not be too clear~ i mean that case has dried sea water on it i think haha. oh yeah, had to walk tons too. walking on sand is such a pain. it’s like leg day everyday. ☆

#asks #themayamermaid-blog #personal #crispyapple break!#burnt apple now!

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eorzeasntm · 5 years

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ENTM Tumblr Cycle 11

Round Six: Fairy Tales, Folk Tales, and Legends from Around the World

Whew, that title is a mouthful, but we wanted to ensure that everyone had a chance to pick a story that had meaning to them. We had a tale from Japan, legends from England and Nicaragua, and a whole passel of Grimm’s tales to bring us full circle. The judges and the community all agreed that this week’s best fairy tale cosplay was:

Ni’ko Shae for Puss in Boots

The decision to go with a vertical shot showed off those long kitty legs to perfection, and the choice of an action shot in a dungeon (since this round was free style) let the story fully come to life. Congratulations!

Our guest judge this week was Momoko, the co-host of ENTM Instagram Cycle 2. Thanks Momoko! We did a full on judge swap so you can also check out my critiques for IG Cycle 2, Round Two on our Discord channel!

For the Tumblr models, your critiques for this week are below if you keep on reading.

Judge Momoko

Kota: I love your glam for this!! It really feels like a Hollywood take on what Little Red Riding hood would wear. It’s also very very easy to tell which fairy tale you’re showcasing, so big props to you!! The apples in the opposite corner to you help to add a couple more pops of red to the overall pic and help balance it.

Yomu: I hadn’t heard of this legend before, so first off, I wanna say thank you for teaching me something!! I thought your use of the Nanamo minion was so incredibly cute and creative!! I think the lighting was just a hair harsh on her, though, and we sort of lost all of the cute pink colors on her, but I also thought how you framed the upper half of the pic with bamboo was both a clever way to stay true to the legend and keep it from having too much empty space!!(It might take me a bit to send them all out today, ‘cause I’m at work, but I promise they’ll be sent today

Haila: This was such a fun entry!! I’d never heard of La Mocuana and had to read about it, but I loooooove monster girls and creepy folklore in general, so I’m so happy you went with it!! After reading about it, I think you fit the story to a T!! I love the expression and how it’s half-hidden, and the colors/filter really tell that you’re by yourself in a dark cave. I will say that your hair blended in a little too well with the background, but other than that, yours was so creative and fun!!

Peaceful: How creative!! I never would of thought of doing King Arthur, but you really nailed it!! It’s extremely easy to tell which legend you’re replicating. Your picture’s colors are a little dull and faded, which halfway lends to it, but it also makes it a little muddy. However, I think you adding that soft back lighting over your shoulders easily draws the viewer’s attention back to you, which was really clever!!

Adam: I think your choice in legend was really interesting!! There’s all sorts of aquatic-based stories, and I feel like Sinbad would be a little more difficult to convey, so props to you for choosing something challenging!! I wish I could’ve seen a more dynamic pose/more of the boat you’re standing on, but the soft muted colors in the background are such a nice combination with the yellow pop of your glam!!

Bria: Beauty and the Beast is my favorite story!! I really liked your glams and how the colors complimented each other. However, it is a little difficult to tell exactly which fairy tale you’re emulating without the title, and it’s hard to see who the specific model in the picture is. But I also thought that your garden courtyard background was a cute way to imply that you’re at a fairy tale castle!!

Luma: Your choice for your story was way too cute!! I never would’ve thought of doing Jack and the Beanstalk, but I’m so glad that you did!! I think that your choice of environment was super cute, creative, and resourceful!! My biggest thing was that I couldn’t see your face, and your glam colors blended a little too well with your background, but I also liked how unbalanced your picture was; it really helped showcase how giant that beanstalk was!!

Ni’ko- Yours was my most favorite picture!! Your glam was so cute (going for that monotone look to match your hair and tail was a really clever way to make yourself look like a cute tabby), and the boots!! THE BOOTS!! The way that you zoomed out the camera to help elongate your legs was such a clever way to bring focus to the main part of your legend in an almost cartoony way, which I’m a big fan of. I think that your weapon choice and overall color palette is extremely well-done, too!!

Judge Ona

Haila: I learned about this folktale when I took Spanish in High School. Our teacher was pretty twisted, but that’s why everyone loved Senora. I was super excited when Kat told the judges that you did this tale, and genuinely LOVE how you captured it! She hides her face and wanders the forests driven mad by betrayal. If you aren’t the vision of mad, I don’t know what is!

I love the color palette here. Sticking with blues, and only a hint of pinks, you create an eerie vibe. With the filter appearing almost translucent over you, it creates an illusion that you are actually the translucent one. The glamour choice is phenomenal. In the story it says she is dressed in silks, and this is extraordinarily flowy.

My only real critique is that I cannot see your entire body, and although the filter gives a spooky feel, I wish you could have found a cave entrance or a body of water or something to add to the background. Regardless of this, this shot totally encapsulates La Mocuana, and I am so glad you picked something from Nicaraguan culture.

Ni’ko: If you keep changing Ni’ko’s color I will never know who I am looking at.

However, Ni’ko, I love the choice here! I love how you did a non-human fairytale, where your race could be used to your advantage. I love how you are being showy with your pose, as Puss and Boots most definitely was. Sword up, foot pointed forward toward the front of the image and back hand outstretched as if you’re saying “is that all?”. I also LOVE that your glam looks like the humanoid version of the character we all know; it was an excellent choice to do a big jumpsuit instead of flashy armor.

The lighting is well placed, bringing the viewers eye to your face and the rapier, and the decision to battle such a big enemy was an excellent choice so as its size does not compete with you, because much of it lies just off screen from you.

My only real critique here, is that I wish you maybe had a smirk on your face instead of the blank expression here. A smirk would have conveyed that you are about to kick this monster’s behind, and you are a feline, not a knight. I still love this image and genuinely believe it is one of your strongest yet.

Peaceful: I love your choice of story. Sword in the stone, King Arthur before he was king! It’s a well-known tale, and it’s a strong story to try and cosplay. Unfortunately, you took a big chance and it didn’t quite pan out how maybe you envisioned. However, this image has many strong characteristics, and I would like to go over those for you.

First, your use of this emote or action, shows movement in your character. Bracing yourself to pull the impossible sword from solid stone. You have determination on your face and are focused on the sword. The choice of location lends to the story and is the perfect choice. I would try to avoid the large amount of deadspace in the upper right corner. I know you wanted to get Merlin in the shot, but I think you could have done without him, and closed further in on yourself.

Try next time to place a light on your face instead of the rock in the front, make sure to avoid dead space in the image, change the angle of the image so that its not an upskirt shot which often makes the physics of the clothes act funny, and be mindful of the background (that weird little purple light is very out of place. I think you have some very strong elements, and some weaker ones that you can work on for next week! Remember, you can ask Kat for advice and feedback before submitting.

Yomu: Yomu finds a tiny human in a tree and immediately believes that he may have had too much to drink.

The facial expression had me in tears. You are genuinely freaked out by what you have just found. Your emote here shows excellent action and I can feel the same startling feeling that this woodcutter is feeling! I am pretty sure anyone would feel immediate concern and confusion if they were in this situation.

I love the glamour here, as the story is Japanese in origin, the use of a Japanese style robe helps to place the story’s origin. I am a little concerned about the physics of the robe, however, as it falls slightly unnaturally. The spotlight on your minion is perfect, as the story talks of a shining girl 3 inches tall. Also, excellent choice of filter with particle. I do wish, however, there was a bit more blur to the minion, as this close of a shot lends to distortion and pixelization.

Overall this is a strong image and you do a wonderful job telling the story of the woodcutter. I would loved to have seen more of this story. Try to take into account depth of field, and physics next week. Thank you for also thinking outside of the box and giving us a story from Japan!

Judge Wulf

Bria, you and your costar’s outfits are very well color coordinated! Your location choice is also very appropriate, I feel, since that area of Idylshire gives off a very regal and proper feel. I am a bit concerned that you hair blocks your face! You’re the star of this photo, so make sure you’re the one we see the most of! Always remember: when working with a costar, make sure that they are there to support you and make you look good! That being said, I adore the chemistry between the two of you. Can’t wait to see next week’s shot!

Luma, I admire the lighting in this shot. I am a major fan of bright colors, and you’ve really made the greens, browns, and yellows all come together in this forest scene to make it look both awesome and welcoming all at once. Going with a vertical shot was also a very good choice, I believe, because it makes the “beanstalk” look much more large and imposing, and by contrast you come across much smaller! My main note is this: Since you’re kneeling down and facing away from the camera, you do kind of look a little cloaked in darkness upon first glance. This is a simple fix, though! Just make sure to light up your character a bit more! Once again, I’m really impressed by your concept this week!

Ni’ko, the story of Puss in Boots is one of those that I read over and over again as a kid, and I think you’ve captured a very nice look using the equipment and colors in game! The monster looming over you is also an amazing touch, as it makes you look small, and even more true to the tale! I’m very impressed with your shot this week, but if I had to nitpick, I’d say that it’s only a little off that you aren’t looking at the boss’s face, instead looking through them. Like I said, that’s only a small note though! Very good job this week!

Peaceful, I instantly knew this was the story of King Arthur! Using iconic imagery to give out key details of what you’re cosplaying in a very important part of any cosplay picture, and I’m glad you’re doing that here! The picture is...very dark though. It may be just my computer monitor, but I find it pretty difficult to see your face or other details about the picture. Could this be an issue with the filter? I’ll tell you where all the darkness does work, though: in the forest behind you. The darkness gives the forest a very spooky vibe, and I’m honestly a little unnerved! For the next week, make sure your character is well lit and visible. Good luck!

Judge Terrini

Adam: I feel underwhelmed by this shot. You're glamour does nicely call to an Arabic pirate, and there's the boat and water and distant shore but it doesn't really draw on the charm of the Legend of Sinbad. He was one of the early Swashbuckling archetypes and you seem very mellow in this pose. A more dynamic pose and angle would have been nice to see here, something swinging your sword or at least looking away from the camera would have been better to capture the sense of something more. This is a myth, a legend, so you want to capture people's imaginations like the story you're drawing from. Also watch your background composition when you go for something scenic like this. The weather condition colors everything to be rather samey and the sea and sky are both similarly rippled and plain so they come across as uninteresting to the eye. Play with angles and don't be afraid to drop things from your concept for the sake of better composition. Play with it.

Bria: This shot is very playful, and I do like the use of colors (love them blues and purples) as well as the fountain backdrop, but as a depiction of Beauty and the Beast it comes across as a reskin mashup of the Disney movie. It might have been nice if you had your guy wearing an ifrit mask or lion mask or something to up the beast factor, or perhaps went for a different scene from the story. When a competition is fierce, you've gotta push creativity to the limit and really be memorable.

Haila: I'm not familiar with the fairy tale you're spinning here, but still, I'm entranced. The effects and colors you've chosen with this pose tug at my heart, like you're despairing inside a storm of magic, struggling and pushing onwards. This must certainly have been a moving fable, and your depiction here makes me want to know more.

Kota: I love the colors captured in this shot, and your glamour is so cute! It's really spot on! Taking the picture by the Apple Trees in North Shroud was great to bring that touch of red into your background as well. The angle of the ground is a bit off-putting and it might be nice to have something more to the image on the ground to enhance the theme with more of a "path". There are some fences in that area too that you might have made use of to that effect. Overall, still a lovely shot.

Judge Nadede

Kota Tumet: This is a pretty good image from you this week. I knew right off the bat that you were Red Riding Hood without looking at the caption, so glamour and your setting did it’s job. I like the lighting that you have and very nice use of depth of field that you have going on there. Your composition I felt was nicely put together as well. I do find myself kinda wishing you were able to incorporate the wolf somewhere within your image as it seems like the only thing missing to make this feel truly complete. So far though, to me, this is your strongest image so far. Keep up the good work.

Yomu Kazul: I have to admit, yours was one of two stories I actually had to look up and read. After reading “Tale of the Bamboo Cutter,” I felt that you did a good job portraying the scene of the little girl popping out from the bamboo. The composition is nicely done and having the “little girl” looking at you helped at least guide my eye up to you and then back to her with you looking right at her. I thought it was a nice touch using Nanamo minion for the little girl instead of a lala as, if I remember reading right, the little girl was just a few inches or so tall when she pops out of the bamboo. So I applaud attention to detail there. My qualm however is when zooming out to get an overall view of the image, your foreground is a bit on the bright side and going back to where your face is in the image, it’s a bit on the dark side. I would suggest try to make the light to where it is a bit brighter towards you and not so bright closer to the audience. Overall, nice work.

Luma Lee: Luma, while I like the composition of your shot this week, the bottom part where you are at was hard for me to make out. I wouldn’t have thought Jack and the Beanstalk at all just from looking at your image because it was a bit muddled. After reading the description that you had chosen “Jack and the Beanstalk,” it made a bit more sense as to why there is an emphasis on the tree. What I’m having a problem with is that your lighting could use work, especially around your character. With you in the shadows and your outfit is the same color as your background, you blend in a bit too much. I also think a different filter would have worked in your favor as well. So far this is your best shot compositionally for me, just work on the lighting a bit more. Good job.

Adam Evershot: While this is a nice shot for you Adam, I felt like you could have done more with the story of Sinbad. I find myself wishing that perhaps you could’ve brought in extras to help you with a “crew” of some sort or brought some part of the story to life. I do find the atmospheric lighting of your image nice, I do wish that you could have done a bit more with the lighting on your character to bring you out just a bit more. Just remember when doing a cosplay type shot to find a way to bring out the story of that character more. Overall good work.

#ffxiv #ffxiv screenshots #entm #eorzea's neo talent management

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cutiecrates · 5 years

Text

Cutie Reviews: NMNL May 19

I know it’s only been a week since I did the previous NMNL, but I had been hoping to have this done a few days ago. But I just wasn’t really in a hurry to use the items like I usually do. The box wasn’t the problem though, I just lost a little momentum again. But I’m feeling better again and I’m ready to do this!

“May’s box is all about embracing your natural beauty! Whether you want to do that by taking care of your skin or enhancing your features wih a little makeup, we’ve included the perfect products for you because we want you to feel beautiful this month!“

Prize

For winning the contest this month, first prize could win a set of the Missa Time Revolution Vitality Set of curated products, while runner-ups got a Missa dual blending eyeshadow in Rose Crown.

Glam Gift

Meanwhile, the glam gift includes a whole set of Etude House goods :D I love Etude House, and I was very excited to recognize the Missing U lotion, it’s the exact one I have. I meant to buy the whole set, but I kinda forgot to get the others...

I’ve also been planning on buying the soft drink lip products because of how cute they are, so I found that to be kinda funny too.

Meanwhile, the months horoscope is What cocktail should you try? with mine, Libra, being a Mai Tai. I’ve heard of it, but I never tried it. I’d love to try a strawberry daiquiri though, or maybe a Cosmopolitan- I’m only into fruity, colorful drinks.

Okay, well with that let’s get started!

Patting Panda Tool

Our first item is a unique beauty tool meant to emulate an important part of the Japanese skin care routine. This is basically applying a lotion product by gently patting the skin until its absorbed in the skin, so this adorable panda wand will help with that. I assume you can also use it with other various skin products.

All you do is apply a cotton pad or paper or tissue or something, then apply a lotion (from the images I assume liquid works better, or something thin and runny), then you tap it against the skin about 30 times. I think you can do more than that though because I noticed mine was fine after that, so I think I was closer to 50 or 60 when I noticed mine was dirty and thinned out/no longer usable.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I mean, in all honesty it’s probably more work just putting this thing together than it is actually applying/patting the product on yourself. BUT, it’s nice if you don’t want it all over your hands or touch your face, and I can’t say it doesn’t work. I used it and noticed that the product seemed to absorb quicker and my skin felt really nice. I also love pandas, so it’s pretty cute in that regard; and it was actually fun to use.

The only thing I dislike is that the loop piece won’t stay on unless you have something for it to connect to on the head piece, the cotton pad/tissue/paper. So until I decide where to put it, I’ll be leaving it in the box, which takes up a lot of space if you ask me...

Speed Off Brush Cleaning Sheets

Our next item is for cleaning makeup brushes, with each wipe infused with Alkaline electrolyte water to remove built up dirt, sebum, oil, foundation, and whatever else might be on the brushes. There is 12 in a set, and let me tell you, I used 3 of them cleaning all of my brushes.

That is because in all honesty, I actually was never told about the importance of cleaning your makeup brushes. I would clean them as I used them, but I never gave them a real, wet cleaning. Not cleaning your makeup tools can lead to bacteria that can lead to acne and other skin conditions- that never happened to me as of yet, but that isn’t to say it never wouldn’t have.

They have a scent, but I’m not sure what it is. It isn’t really a pleasant scent like flowers or fruit, but it’s not bad either, it’s really light.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

To be fair you probably could have got the same effect just wetting the brushes and cleaning them manually, but this saves you effort; it’s like the opposite of the panda, but like the Panda, I actually really liked these. Not only did they make everything look brand new and tidy again, but it also did an awesome job removing the built up mascara on my favorite eyelash curler I really need to throw away but won’t because it’s my favorite.

As I said above, I did go through 3 of them, but rest assure that I used each one to its fullest and they were covered. But to be fair, one of my palettes got smeared with another makeup and I had a hard time removing it, and my foundation brush was loaded with product <3< it’s seen a lot...

Fragrance Body Sheets

By Fiancee (a brand we’ve seen before but not recently~) we have these fun looking body wipes in a grapefruit scent. They have a cooling menthol effect and will keep one moisturized and refreshed whether it be in the morning while getting ready or while outside enjoying the weather.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I love these! I’ve always ♥ grapefruit scents or anything citrus-based because to me they’re very refreshing and great pick-me-ups on those lazy mornings you can’t wake up fast enough. They smell amazing and the scent is long-lasting!

The only reason I marked them down is because you’re told not to use these on your face or clothing... I mostly use wipes for my face, and if necessary my clothes too, like if I spilled something while I’m out. I don’t know why they can’t be used on these 2 places, but I don’t plan to test my luck either and I really hope I remember not to use them on my face <3<

I assume it’ll burn...

Japanese Bath Powder & Fluffy Cleansing Pad

First up is an item I’ve had before, but it’s been so long I don’t remember if I had it in this specific version. These are adorable bath powders based on the daruma doll, lucky cat, or a dog, each with their own beneficial ingredients; like the daruma I have contains Japanese snake gourd plant extract, the cat has orange blossom oil, and the dog contains chrysanthemum extract.

As you can see I got the daruma doll, and he smells really good. I can’t tell if its cranberry or lychee or what, but it smells good and has a pretty matching color. I did use it, but because I didn’t feel like taking a bath I soaked my feet in again, but because there’s so much powder I only used a portion of it. The rest will be saved for a bath... or more feet soaks cause lately that’s what I’m into.

Since I’m pretty sure I already had this one, or one exactly like it. I’m not going to rate it, I’ll just say that my feet/skin felt no difference after I used it. All it really did was color the water (no staining btw) and release a strong, pleasant scent.

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Our next item is a cleansing facial pad, available in 2 colors/designs, and I was very happy I got the pink one~ But they’re both cute colors. Like the panda, this is another product by Beauty World.

These are for exfoliating and cleansing the skin while removing makeup, instead of using a cotton pad or wipes that might strip the skin of beneficial nutrients. They also brighten the skin.

I decided not to rate this one either, but only because I didn’t really have much to say about it. It feels really soft and fluffy like the name implies, and it does its job.

Berrisom Horror Mask

Our next item is another Berrisom mask, this time part of their Horror line. We could either get a skeleton version made from Black Rice, which focuses on clearing up dry skin and improving the elasticity and moisturization, or the Pierrot/clown version, made from green tea and bamboo water to deeply moisturize and prevent wrinkles.

In knowing that, either one would have worked for me... but I don’t remember i I mentioned this before or not (I probably did), I’m terrified of skeletons DX I know it’s silly, but I’ve always been; the only exception is that I think skull designs are cute, and cutesy skeletons I can endure, I used to love the Skelanimal series.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

It smells good, it has that Target scent I mention some times. I really like it, but I did not like the skull design on this mask DX it was scary. For me to use this, I had put it on and hurried up and put one of my other masks on top of it because I could see myself wearing it.

Again, I know its weird but it’s what I had to do okay.

Its quality was great though, plenty moist and it stuck very good. It was very soothing, and my face felt really nice after I used it~

Oh My Lash Mascara

Our next item is by Etude House, the Oh My Lash Mascara available in 2 formats; either #3 which focuses on volume or #4 for curling. I got 3, which you can kinda see in the pic on both the tube and lid.

This is a basic black mascara. There’s a little bit of a scent but it doesn’t smell like typical mascara.

Rating: ♥ ♥

I was really disappointed with last months Kira Kira Crate metallic pink let-down, so this one, which wasn’t nearly as cute didn’t give discourage me. As soon as I smoothly pulled out the wand and observed the bristles, I had high hopes this one would be pretty good.

But despite how good it looks, it’s a typical mascara. It’s not the worst and I can see a difference, but my lashes insta-clumped and stuck together. That usually doesn’t happen until like my third or fourth swipe (if I really have to do that many that is...). This won’t be in my top 3 mascara anytime soon.

Lip Tint Jam

Our last item is by Canmake. This lip tint jam is available in No.4 Expresso Jam, but don’t let the name fool you, it has a scent but its not a delicious one. This specific product features a jam-like jelly texture that easily spreads on the lips for a smooth, semi-matte finish. It comes in a brownish-orange shade... A shade I can’t say I was ever considering for myself.

Rating: ♥ ♥

The product isn’t bad, I kind of like how it feels on my lips. It went on smoothly as promised, but I did have to apply it a couple times to evenly spread out, because each time i brought my lips together it seemed to pull it away from certain spots. I wasn’t crazy about the color, but after dabbing it, it left a lighter, but still-noticeable tint on my lips that I approve of a lot more.

♥ Cutie Ranking ♥

Content - 3.5 out of 5. I liked the items, but I felt like some of them were lacking in quality.

Theme: 1.5 out of 5. Honestly, I think only a couple items really enhance ones natural beauty. I never really consider makeup to be Natural, but if you do I’d bump it up to a 2.

Total Rank: 6 out of 10. The products are fine and they do work,but in comparison to the past two that I really liked, I felt like this one didn’t measure up. It had a handful of nice qualities too though, so I can’t say it was a bad box, it’s just my personal opinion that it could have been better.

♥ Cutie Scale ♥

1. Body Sheets - Besides the fun, colorful packaging, these smell deliciously wonderful! I’ll be bringing these with me and using them on those sleepy mornings for sure.

2. Patting Panda - It’s so sweet, I can’t help but smile looking at it~

3. Japanese Bath Powder - Smells and looks really pretty. I didn’t feel any different but it was still a pleasant experience.

4. Berrisom Face Mask - the prior ones weren’t too impressive but they smelled good, and this one smelled good too- plus the quality actually impressed me. These ones would be fun to use at a slumber party or friendly get-together.

5. Speed Off Cleaner - I love its pink and black color scheme on the packaging x3 I was also very impressed by these. I wish we got more, but I can see why we didn’t, since you don’t need to clean your makeup tools all the time. They could end up drying up before you use them all DX

6. Lip Tint Jam - Felt nice but it left my lips uneven and patchy until like the 3rd application. I didn’t like the color until I wiped off a portion of it after a few minutes. The bottle is really cute though and I think it’ll be a nice shade for fall/autumn.

7. Cleansing Pad - The packaging is really cute but the sponge itself is plain; the polar bear face isn’t really even on it, which disappointed me a bit. It feels really nice on the skin though, so I think I’ll still use it. When I remember that is...

8. Oh My Lash Mascara - I think this was the biggest disappointment in the box. It worked but I wasn’t impressed by it. It’s also pretty plain, which is so not the image of Etude House I get.

#cutie reviews #nmnl #nomakenolife #fiancee #canmake #etude house #berrisom

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yuzusorbet · 6 years

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My Sendai Holiday (April 2018) - Part 3: Weekend Sendai

Part 1 was about Yuzuru’s Olympic Victory Parade and Part 2 was about Ice Rink Sendai (links are at the end of this post). This part is about the rest of my trip.

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I flew into Sendai by ANA; the cute plane below was my connecting flight from Tokyo Haneda to Sendai.

Entering the airport, I saw a poster of our dear 若様 (’waka-sama’ = young master). What a beautiful start to my holiday. :)

Sendai Airport is small and beautiful. The roof is like the waves of the sea. And it’s very convenient too. A linkway connects it to the train station just across the road. (Pic below taken from linkway.)

After a short train ride, I reached Sendai Station, the main station of the city. This is also the shinkansen (bullet train) stop. I love Sendai Station. It’s so pedestrian-friendly due to a huge walkway that sprawls over the roads and traffic outside, connecting the station to the malls and buildings around it.

Inside, there are many shops and eateries. Pic below: shops selling ‘zunda mochi’ and ‘hagi no tsuki’. (further down this post, you will see more zunda mochi.) (hagi no tsuki is a snack that Yuzu loves.)

In the station, there is an awesome tourist information centre. Young master Yuzu is there saying “Welcome to Sendai”..... and sometimes there are samurais there as well! When I took this photo, instead of saying “cheese”, these guys said “zunda mochi!!!” XD

The tourist centre was giving out beautiful leaflets with suggestions on places that fans can visit, like Goshikinuma Pond, Ice Rink Sendai, Nanakita Park and Yuzu’s monument at International Centre Station. The words on the right-hand leaflet say “Sendai City supports Hanyu Yuzuru-senshu”.

The centre also had big stacks of ‘Weekend Sendai’! (the travel magazine with Yuzu; it’s free) I already have a copy at home but I took one for a friend.

Yuzu is eating zunda mochi in the photo above. It’s a Sendai specialty, mochi covered with mashed edamame, and it’s sweet like a dessert. I love it!

“Itadakimasu.” (See the white mochi under the mashed edamame?)

The photo below is the take-away cup; the mochi inside is smaller but it tastes just as good. Ate it a few times during my holiday, and also tried zunda shake and zunda pudding. They were all nice, but I like zunda mochi the most.

Next to Sendai Station, on the 4th floor of Parco shopping mall, Yuzu’s signed skate boots were on display. He donated them for an auction in March this year to raise funds for Tohoku earthquake recovery (3.11). The successful bidder was Japanese fashion house, Samantha Thavasa Japan Limited, and the final amount was 8.5 million yen (about US$76,000). According to Oricon news, the money was from the staff of the company inside and outside Japan who donated their money to support this good cause. [thanks to fan Shuko for the info] [pic below from Yahoo Japan]

After the auction, the company decided to bring the boots to different parts of Japan to be on display and they were in Sendai during this period. Here are the boots that raised 8 million yen: (8,501,000 to be exact)

Near the boots display area, Yuzu’s parade T-shirts were on sale. I had already bought mine online and they were delivered to the Sendai hotel that I was staying in.

My first dinner in Sendai.... gyu-tan of course! Grilled beef tongue is a Sendai specialty and oh so delicious! Had it at a restaurant in the station.

The gyutan in the middle is the usual one flavoured with salt, the gyutan on the right is flavoured with miso. The white thing on the left is another Sendai food, sasa-kamaboko which is grilled fish cake (kamaboko) in the shape of a bamboo leaf (sasa), believed to be inspired by the design in the family crest of the Date clan who ruled Sendai Domain in the Edo period. It can be eaten on its own as a snack. The rice was also very special; it had some barley mixed into it, giving it a different texture and fragrance. Everything was very, very oishiiiiiii~~~~~

I ate this with my friend Ella who was in Tokyo just the weekend before to watch ‘Continues with Wings’, so you can imagine what our chat was about. The last time we saw each other was one year ago. So much Yuzuru to talk about. :D

The next day was the first day of sale of parade wristbands. There were several sale locations and I went to one near my hotel. On the way there, I saw some Yuzu-banners. This one below says:

“Hanyu Yuzuru senshu, thank you for touching and inspiring us. PyeongChang Olympic Gold Medal, 2 consecutive victories, you are the pride of Sendai, Miyagi and Tohoku.”

This banner below is about Yuzuru’s photo exhibition coming to Sendai at the end of June.

And this is the line I saw when I reached the sale location at 7.45am, not too bad! The start of the line is on the left where people are sitting on the ground, near the closed shutters of the department store. Sale would start at 10am.

The wristbands were sold in sets of 2 at 1000yen per set. Only 10,000 sets were made (compared to 80,000 tees). So these early birds like myself just wanted to be sure of getting them. :D My friend Ella was at another sale location and she said the line was snaking up and down stairs and around the building! xD

While standing there in line, I ate my breakfast and also shared my food with the woman in front of me and the man behind me. They were both of middle-age and were local people living in Sendai, and since we were waiting together for more than 2 hours, I chatted with them to pass the time (and to practise my Japanese, haha). Some things struck me from the chat that morning.

I was telling them a bit about myself, that I have been a Yuzu-fan since 2014 Sochi Olympics, and I naturally asked them, so when did you become fans? They didn’t reply..... I was a bit surprised as I waited for their answer. They were both thinking very hard, with a slight puzzled look on their faces, like they were trying to recall..... And then I realised, they live here in his hometown! Which means they would have seen him in the local Sendai news since he was very young and they have been watching him grow as a skater and they have been naturally supporting him since who-knows-when! There is no clear-cut point like us who happened to see his performance one day and got zapped. With that sudden realisation, I quickly said, oh you live here, so you have known him from way back! They both nodded and looked pleased that I understood. I guess no one has ever asked them that question before! The man added that when Junior Nationals were held in Sendai in 2007, he went to watch and he was so impressed by Yuzu’s performance. (Yuzu was only 12 then; his SP was ‘Sing, Sing, Sing’ and FP was ‘Firebird’. I translated about this competition from his biography; will include the link at the end.) I told them I was so envious that they live here and have known him for such a long time! You lucky Sendai people!!!

Besides asking that stupid question, I also made some stupid assumptions. I told them, I plan to go to Nanakita Park to sit on ‘Yuzu’s bench’ and then go to Ice Rink Sendai to skate and then have dinner at the gyu-tan restaurant with his signature.... you two must have been to these places, right? They both smiled and said no. (What????) The look on their faces seemed to say they never thought of doing that and there was no such need. But they were very impressed that I knew these places. The man took out his phone to try to help me with directions. He wanted to make sure I knew the right route to take. Really nice people. :)

At 9.30am, staff of the store came to set up the area and we got really excited! Soon we would have Yuzu-bands on our wrists! The Sendai lady asked, how many sets of wristbands are you buying? I said two of course! But the man said ONE. (What???) I assumed everyone would get 2 sets each (maximum). Especially after lining up for so long and it’s in limited stock. I said, ONLY ONE? REALLY? He said, yes I just need one set because there are 2 bands, one for me and one for my wife, just nice. Oh......... somehow I was touched by that. Their support for Yuzu is so sweet and simple. They don’t need to go to his home rink nor all the places that he has been to, but they will line up for a few hours to buy just one set of his parade wrist bands..... These Sendai fans touched my heart..... :’)

Since he was only buying one set, I asked if he could buy one more set for me. I wanted to send them to overseas fan-friends who couldn’t come to Sendai and he was very happy to help. :))

Besides wristbands, there were also parade tees on sale (only S size left). Some reporters came to interview the people waiting. The line had grown really, really long by now, looped to and fro a few times, but still very neat and orderly.

At 10am, sales started and the staff was so efficient. Very soon, I got my wristbands! Plus an extra set from the really nice Sendai man! I was so lucky to be standing in front of him! And much thanks to him and the lovely lady for a good chat!

I took the above photo after I bought my bands. There was a staff holding a big sign with the words “end of line”, so it was clear to all where to join in if they wanted wristbands. He also held a tally counter to count the number of people in the line. As it approached the number of bands that was available in that store, he would tell people who came to join the queue that they might not get the bands but they could try if they didn’t mind waiting in line. I love Japan, these things are always so well-organised!

After this, I met up with Ella and we went to Sunao Noto-san’s photo exhibition which was held nearby. (Admission was free.) It was a very small exhibition but the outside already took my breath away.

Pic above: the Japanese words over “Stay Gold” say “Congrats and thank you”. (We could take photos of the outside but photography is not allowed inside.) In the small room, there were some beautiful photos of Yuzu from PyeongChang Olympics. There was also one photo that I had not seen before and it brought a lump to my throat..... Yuzu was standing with crutches and looking at his own photo exhibition. It was the exhibition held in Sendai from November 3 to 21 last year. On Nov 9, he injured his ankle and withdrew from NHK Trophy the next day. Then it was reported that he went back to Sendai and visited this exhibition after it was closed for the day. He also wrote a message thanking fans for their support, dated 12 Nov 2017, and it was displayed at the exhibition. (I posted about this last year; will include link at the end.) This photo must have been taken that evening, just 3 days after the injury. Looking at him in crutches at that November exhibition, the emotions of those few months rushed back into me. How high was the wall that he surmounted.... I felt so keenly the heartache..... and also deep, deep admiration and respect. Tears started prickling my eyes. Oh Yuzu.... you made me cry again! Later, Ella said to me, Sunao Noto-san’s photos always tell a story. Indeed.

That was my first Yuzuru Hanyu photo exhibition. Thank you very much, Noto-san.

When we left, a girl approached us and gave us this beautiful newspaper:

She is a Waseda University student and was carrying a backpack full of her school newspaper to give away to Yuzu-fans! She said she gave us the paper because I was wearing a CiONTU tee! Much thanks to dear Ella who gave me the tee last night and I wore it as soon as I could. xD And thank you, dear Waseda schoolmate of Yuzu! You made many Yuzu-fans very, very happy!

So much emotions.... and it was not even 12 noon yet! xD

From this lovely shopping area near Sendai Station, we went for a walk. Along the way, we saw the most beautiful 7-11 store.

Many shops had signs like that, saying ‘Hanyu Yuzuru senshu, congrats!!’

勾当台公園 Kotodai-koen (park) was beautiful. There was a farmers’ market, cherry blossoms were still in bloom, and someone was playing the guitar and singing!

More photos I took along our walk, from the park to the next subway station.

(Above: another “Omedetou!! Hanyu Yuzuru senshu”)

Then we took the subway to 泉中央 Izumi-chuo Station (N01). From there, it’s a 20-minute walk to Ice Rink Sendai or you can wait for the bus. For people who like to look at maps, 2 photos here: (We were at Kita-Yobancho station, N07.) (The main Sendai Station is N10.)

I wrote about Ice Rink Sendai in an earlier post (link included at the end). After our visit, the queue for the bus was very long (all Yuzu-fans, haha), so we made the 20-minute walk back to Izumi-Chuo Station and took the subway one stop down to 八乙女 Yaotome. A short walk from the station was 利久 Rikyu (Izumi main branch), a restaurant with Yuzu’s signature.

Grilled liver (square plate) and gyu-tan (round plates). The meal was soooooo delicious, especially the liver. I told myself that I must eat here one more time before I leave Sendai. Yuzu, thank you for your recommendation! :)

When we were leaving the restaurant, there were some people coming in and I suddenly realised one of them was another good fan-friend K-chan! She saw me at the same time and we screamed (or maybe only I screamed, haha) and we hugged each other! It was so good to see her again! And I wonder if the restaurant was just filled with Yuzu-fans that day. :D

On the subway back to Sendai Station, we saw Vegatta-kun. (If you have not seen the video of Vegatta and 15 year-old Yuzu, please search for it. xD)

Coming out of the subway exit at Sendai Station, we saw handsome Sendai travel ambassador Hanyu-kun. :)

End of a marvellous day. The highlight had yet to come! Next day = Sunday 22nd April = Yuzu’s parade day!! (link at the bottom of this post)

A bit more on food: at the end of parade day, I met up with K-chan and, thanks to her suggestion, we had the softest, puffiest pancakes I’ve ever tasted.... they were light and puffy like clouds! The fruity topping was sold out, so we had the plain version. Very yummy!

.... in this cute little bakery-cafe near Sendai Station.

I will end this post with Sendai Station at night plus the walkway that crosses roads and connects it to the surrounding buildings:

Will do a Part 4 because it’s too long to put it all here. :D Last part: 2 places with Yuzu’s signature (restaurant and sports shop), a shrine that he has visited before, his monument at International Centre Station, a historic pond and a castle hill..... coming next. :)

(Please do not use or re-post my stuff without permission.) (Photos are taken by me.)

Some links mentioned: Part 1: Yuzu’s parade day Part 2: Ice Rink Sendai 2007 Junior Nationals and 12 year-old Yuzu Nov 2017 photo exhibition: news pix and fan account

Update: Part 4 is now done.

#Yuzuru Hanyu #Sendai #sendai holiday

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lunarcrown · 6 years

Note

Hello!! I have been a fan of yours ever since I got into the Tangled fandom again and I just have to say that I love your art and your animatics KILL me!! (In a good way, though! So creative and inspiring!) Sorry if this has been asked before, but what do you use for your digital art and how do you get such high quality photos of your sketches done in a book/on paper?

“AHHH hey back!!! That’s so SO sweet of you to say :’’’) I hope to make another animatic soon!! (LOOKS AT WORK SCHEDULE PLEADINGLY)

AND NO!! Ur the first person to ask!!!!

IM GONNA START W MY TRADITIONAL ART/STUFF IN MY SKETCHBOOK, it’s SO NOT SPECIAL!! I like to sketch with a blue col-erase pencil, line and throw some shades on with a ticonderoga #2 pencil, and literally just take photos with my PHONE HAHAH Sometimes I scan it, if it’s a really big thing (like my 24 hour comic), but literally every other one I just use my phone bc im so LAZY.

for my digital art, and please excuse me I went a little HAM ON ANSWERINDGSHSDG, BUT for my digital art I use photoshop CS6, a Bamboo Fun Tablet and the Kyle Webster Brush pack!!

I USED to work in photoshop, then I ditched it for SAI, but when I went to college ALL they had on the CINTIQs was photoshop and I wasn’t about to miss my chance to draw on a CINTIQ bc I was rusty, so I picked it back up again and have just stuck with it!! Its a HEAVY program for my poor laptop here at home to run, but it’s worth it for all the tools I use, and hotkeys I’m used to! Sometimes though I jump back to SAI when I don’t want to wait around for PS to load HAHA

I love LOVE LOVE texture, so the Kyle Webster brushes are perfect for me! I got the megapack bc i was THIRSTY but tbh I only use a few brushes. I also change it up a LOT both in brush preference and style, though my ride or die will always be the “Ultimate 2B Pencil” brush MMM

I use it to sketch with, line with, color with, BASICALLY EVERYTHING.

I’ve been really into lineless stuff right now too, and it lets me get a nice edge with texture. DELICIOUS

Below I have a pic of my fave brushes and texture helpers, and a picture i went ENTIRELY TOO HARD ON to have as an example. I use a lot of Gaussian blur filters and blending modes to get fun glows, and I usually finish up every pic with some adjustment layers to smooth the overall flow!

#alchemy-all-day-everyday #varian #false prince varian #tips #ask #reply #I HOPE THIS ANSWERED U OK #ITS SO EXTRA #my art

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peaches-of-1 · 6 years

Text

Training: Bon Voyage Season x (Pt1)

It was time for you guys to find out your next destination for the upcoming season of Bon Voyage since planning wasn’t done in time for the 50 States Trip. It seemed like it had reached this number so quickly, and it meant you had been with the guys for almost three years now. Fans sometimes recognized you as BTS’s close friend, but they still had no idea what you did behind closed doors...and in chains...and lingerie...

Some people would ask why you of all people got to be seen on camera with the boys when they had so many other friends. You just said you were lucky, which you were. You had fallen with these seven boys through their music, and they had fallen for you because of your body. Then you all fell for each other’s hearts and loved each other deeply.

It wasn’t just a job anymore.

You thought this as you looked at the boys entering the dance room. The managers were all here today too, and you were curious. The youngest of them held your empty hand since Yoongi was holding the other.

Oh, there was business today. Suga kissed you quickly on the cheek and you moved to the back of the group where the staff was. Inside the studio were cameras, four of them. There was also a table with black briefcases on it. On top of the middle case, there sat a note in a type of cutesy Korean font that made it sort of hard to read.

They all told Namjoon to read it, but even he looked like he was going to have a headache reading it. You hid your face since you knew it was your handwriting. Maybe choosing a cute font wasn’t the right decision to make.

Taehyung looked at the lettering and then pointed, “Isn’t that (Y/N)’s handwriting? She writes her 기 like this all the time.”

You nodded and the boys started laughing.

Jin, on the other hand, “Why the fuck you gotta write like that? We know you don’t write like that! It looks like a drunk raccoon wrote this! Huh?”

“I uz trng ta cue.” You mumbled, embarrassed.

“WHAT?” Jin opened his ear to you and cupped it with his hand.

You pouted and puffed through your nose, “I was trying to be cute~!”

Hoseok then replied, “Then get your cute butt over here and read it for us!”

You looked to the other managers and they said it would be ok if you read it off screen, behind the camera. They’d blur your face out in post or cover it with a Van sticker to make it seem more casual or what have you. Namjoon handed you the letter, and you read it, struggling a bit yourself.

“In each suitcase is a hint to where you’ll be going. We’re making a game out of it, so it’ll be more fun for you! One member must sit on one side of the table with the suitcases. The other six members will form teams of two and take turns guessing what the person with the cases is describing. The winning group will get to have a special treat on vacation. Good luck!”

The boys then decided who was the best at describing things and decided to give that role to Jungkook. The teams were as follows: Namjoon and Hoseok, Jin and Taehyung, Yoongi and Jimin.

You were in a spot where you could see what was in the suitcases. The first was filled with green sticks that looked sort of like bamboo.

Jungkook looked at the name tag and began describing it to them. Each team talked about what it could be. Green, cut down, bands around it with some brownish streaks here and there. Cylindrical.

Namjoon’s hand shot up first, “Bamboo?”

“Ddaeng!” Jungkook replied.

Taehyung then put his hand up, “Sugar cane?”

“Ding!” Jungkook turned the case around to show the others who stood up to see better.

So the place they were going was known for sugar cane. Everyone thought of Brazil, Thailand, and India mostly. Yoongi even said China would make sense for the sugar cane hint.

Onto the next suitcase where several wooden stilts were inside with padding around the highest point along with some novelty versions of feathered headdresses. Well, maybe not novelty, but they weren’t the elaborate ones you expected to see. then again, those wouldn’t be able to fit inside the case.

Jungkook was about to say what they were but then remembered they were playing a game, so he decided just to say that they were made out of wood. He was fickle when they called for more hints.

“It’s two things. The first one, you can stand on it.” Was his only other hint before Yoongi got the right answer.

“What’s the second thing?” Hobi asked.

The describer held a blue one in his hands before saying, “It has a lot of feathers on it, and I think it goes--oh wait, I can’t say that part, but it’s really pretty.”

Jimin guessed it right, giving their team the whole point.

That meant the only team that didn’t have a point was Joonie and Hobi, and if they didn’t get this next point then one of the other groups would have a fantastic time wherever they were going.

The boys had absolutely no idea what the stilts could possibly be for, so they didn’t make any real guesses as to where it could be. You knew what it was, though since it had been you who suggested it. There was an island called St. Croix you had seen online recently and wanted to go so badly! It was gorgeous and it felt so familiar to your heart. You bit your lip to keep from saying anything.

In the third and last suitcase were several dolphin plushies that Jungkook gasped at. He said that this one would be easy.

And it was. However, Namjoon and Hobi did not get the point and were upset at the winners, aka Jin and Taehyung who hugged each other and jumped around. They were told that they wouldn’t find out their surprise until they got to the island. Also, they were interrupted by a manager who asked if they knew the destination yet.

Some of them did, you could tell by their faces. You had talked to Jimin and Hobi the most about wanting to go there and they had pretty good memory, so maybe they remembered you bringing it up at the meeting of possible locations. That day you had been given the order to attend the meeting with no underwear on and Yoongi had played with you under the table even as you gave the suggestion.

You wondered if they were going to say it, and Taehyung did. He blurted it out and everyone asked how he knew. He just smiled and got excited that they were going. There would be a lot to do there like snorkeling, kite surfing, and reef diving. The place they were going even had a spa.

Then the cameras were shut off and the boys started to try on the stilts and walk around in them since the game was done. The managers seemed worried, but they had someone holding each hand to keep them from falling down too badly. However, when Jimin fell because he wanted to do it by himself, they were quickly taken away. Everyone kept the small headdresses though as they went home.

“Good job, jagi.” Jin whispered in your ear as you all made your way back to the vans.

You looked at the map while sitting in Jin’s lap on the ride to the hotel. The vans went up a rather large hill where pink buildings were passed and you were super excited. You had gotten to visit this place a couple of times as a kid and were glad to be back. Then you turned left and got a good view of the beach you’d be staying right in front of. They section you were living at were called the Deluxe Ocean Front rooms.

Most of the staff were staying in the Ocean Front rooms, and it felt as though you had rented out half the rooms on the entire lot. The boys wanted to see the ocean from the rooms. Even though some newly built rooms were more secluded, these rooms were closer to everything fun to do.

You were in a room with Jihye as usual. Some of the locals gawked at the handsome Korean men as they got their suitcases out the trunk. Two girls were trying not to scream as they used one hand to cover their mouths and the other hand to hold their friend’s hand. Jimin took a moment to wave at them, and they waved back. He wanted to show his appreciation of them respecting the boys’ personal space.

They were in BT21 bathing suits that had only come out last month. The darker girl with a short white afro had on a blue Koya one piece, the sleepy face placed prominently on her stomach. The lighter skinned girl with wavy black hair down her back had a two piece with TaTa faces with various expressions all over it. They clutched Chimmy and Shooky hooded towels. With all of their glasses and sandals, they had all of the members one way or another on their body.

Not the way you did, but you were happy. It caused huge smiles on the boys’ faces. Taehyung talked to one of the managers who approached the girls. You’d have to ask what that was about even though you were pretty sure it was just Tae wanting to thank them somehow for supporting them.

Looking at the itinerary, there were lots of things to do. Right now, it was unpacking and some downtime before going out to explore the island and its beaches and whatever else they had in store. It was mostly work, but fun work. The guys at least had the nights to themselves. You remember arguing one on one with Hitman about that.

The only nights where they’d have to do work was today and the day before they left.

“So, this place is absolutely beautiful! How’d you even know about this island? It’s breath taking?” Jihye asked.

You shrugged, “It felt like I was looking at home when I saw pics of St. Croix, and I wanted to see what it felt like with the people I love. When the producers asked about places the boys wanted to go, I took my chance. It’s just a bunch of luck, honestly.”

She laughed, “You’re the luckiest girl I know.”

That got you to giggle and you noticed your phone nearly vibrating off the nightstand, so you caught it before it fell to the ground. It was Yoongi who really wanted your attention.

You giggled and grabbed your purse saying that you were going to Yoongi’s room for a nap. She told you to have fun as she finished unpacking her own things. When you got to his room, Suga hugged you and led you in by holding your hand.

He then took his shirt off and jumped into the bed. After a quick “leak” of which stylist told your black haired bf not to bulk up, he had started to work out more...which was glorious. He seemed happier too. Yoongi smiled and opened the sheets for you. You returned his smile and set your bag down before getting in with him. Before he could completely cuddle you closely, you had to plug in your phone.

One you did, Yoongi held you close to his bare chest and played with your hair.

“I’m really glad we got to come to the place you suggested. I can’t wait to have such a fun vacation with you.”

You giggled, “I swear you say that every time we do Bon Voyage.”

“That’s because it’s true every time.”

It felt safe in his arms. He went to sleep first, his hot breath blown on your forehead. The rise and fall of his chest rocking you to sleep. Nap dates were always the best with Yoongi because he actually slept. Nap dates with Taehyung usually included him dry humping you while you couldn’t help but tease Jimin when you “napped” with him.

It wasn’t until sunset that you were woken up by a soft chuckle and someone rocking your shoulder. Yoongi told you that it was 15 minutes until you all had to go to the first shooting location for photo cards. Some female dancers would be there, and so would you, in dresses and done up to the 9s.

The boys were put into suits. You knew the next theme was supposed to be “Love and Marriage”, so this is what this shoot was for. At least the first half. The second half was them around a bonfire and putting their arms around one girl with their feet in the water. It was all very romantic and cute. Your heart knew that it was really just preparing the fans for them getting married and dating publicly.

It would be coming soon, especially with Jin in his 30s now, but for now they said they didn’t need anyone but you.

Speaking of Jin, he kissed your cheek and said you looked pretty in the red dress and long curly black wig they put you in to photograph you from the back. You thanked him and said you’d look prettier with your actual hair feeling the island breeze instead of the wig.

He laughed and kissed you again before being called to a different shot. All of you fell asleep on the ride back home.

The next day, the boys were refreshed and were excited to go reef snorkeling since they enjoyed it so much the other times. They would go in teams of two, and you would be going with Jimin. It was eight minutes away at Tamarind Reef Beach. The reef itself wasn’t too far down, so you were all allowed to wear regular bathing suits.

Most of the boys were fine with wearing just swim trunks on camera since censor laws had gotten less strict lately, but Jin, Yoongi, and Jimin weren’t yet sure about it. They wore shirts and wet suits. Honestly, Suga in a wet suit was basically the same as if he had worn a regular bathing suit. His personal comfort mattered more, though.

Namjoon had found a rather large ghost crab and was showing it off to the camera as he waited for his turn with Seokjin. He was so cute and it made your heart do flips to see him be the excited Crab King that he was. It pulled out your domme side even though he was your Daddy in bed. Maybe it was because you were with Jimin who tapped your shoulder before your mind wandered to the type of lingerie you’d want to see Namjoon in.

“Ready to go?”

“Yeah.” You put on his goggles for him and then your own.

The guide showed you where to go and told you to be careful. You could hear Jimin giggling as a few striped fish wriggled into the palm of his hand for a moment. A smile couldn’t help but creep on your face. The guide then tapped your arm and pointed nearby where a turtle was coming towards you to say hi. You watched in amazement as it swam super close around your face and around and then away.

Your swim partner couldn’t help but use his underwater camera to take a few pics of your amazement. Then you two went back to shore where the boys had built holes and castles for the ghost crab to play around in.

Taehyung grabbed your hand and asked if you wanted to go on a sailboat ride with him later that night. You said you did since it sounded fun. It was to and from an even smaller island near the hotels. He told you to wear a dress as cute as you. He then squeezed your hand and tugged you along to play with the others and told Jimin not to fall behind.

All of you were attentive not to touch each other too much since there were cameras. Still, Hobi couldn’t stop touching your waist to make sure you didn’t fall or something in the sand. He even hugged you and kissed your cheek when it was his turn to go diving after Namjoon and Jin came back.

When you got back to the hotel, you took a shower and looked for a cute dress to wear. Jihye was probably out to get something to eat or taking some rest time at the beach. You wrapped yourself in a robe and tried to choose between a mint colored high-low dress that was only one strap and it would cross over your chest. The other other dress was yellow and had both straps and was a different kind of high-low.

You’d be wearing the same white sandals with them, but you would be wearing less intense makeup depending on the color. You sighed and did eanie-meanie-miney-mo. Yellow it was. You slipped a yellow hibiscus clip that he had gotten you earlier into your hair and grabbed a clutch for your phone and other important things. You brought your wallet mostly to keep your ID on you since Taehyung never allowed you to pay for anything when you were with him.

He knocked on your door as soon as you did the final buckle on your sandals and you smiled as you answered.

“You ready to--wow. I swear you get more beautiful every time I see you.”

You chuckled, “You’re such a dork, but you look amazing too. And thanks.”

Tae was wearing a red pinstriped dress shirt and black dress pants. He gave a tiny smile and asked if you were ready to go. You were and locked up the room before being escorted on a sailboat with other couples and small friend groups. There was soft music playing on the speakers. It was right before sunset, and the sky was painted with a soft fire.

They served drinks, but you really didn’t want any. You two would probably crash at his place afterwards since it was an early day tomorrow. Right now you just wanted to enjoy this time with him. You started to hum along to the music and Tae joined a moment later. The boat was filled with mostly couples sweet talking and friend groups enjoying the atmosphere.

He nervously put his arm over your shoulders, and so you leaned into his chest. His heart beat rapidly against your ear. The lesbian couple across from you soon got into a similar position.

“How long?” The slightly more butch one asked.

“How long what?” Taehyung asked.

She giggled, “How long have you two been together?”

“Time doesn’t matter when you’re in love.” He said and nuzzled your cheek.

“What about you?” You asked in return.

The other one answered, “We’re celebrating our ninth.” The two kissed and you both congratulated them.

Everyone quieted as the water rolled and crashed. There were dolphins frolicking nearby. The guests were told not to try to interact and not to use flash photography. During the commotion, Taehyung took the chance to kiss you on the lips.

You weren’t expecting it, but it made you smile.d Tonight was the only chance you’d get to be this reckless outside. Even after all this time, you were still BigHit’s secret. ARMY couldn’t know the boys all called you jagiya and meant it. You were dating BTS because of love, but who would believe you?

The public would freak out if they knew that after getting of the boat, the stars in the sky would never get you as hot as Taehyung did when he asked, “Your room or mine?” breathlessly in your ear. Dispatch would have to pry the fact that his manner hands squeezed your ass right before he unlocked his bedroom door and then kissed your lips like his first meal out of your cold dead hands.

Even sasaengs would never get to know how your yellow dress and his red shirt landed two feet away from his black pants or why the curtains closed to quickly when it was such a nice night. And good ARMY would never realize why the sea breeze felt so good about an dhour and a half later.

Maybe someday the world would know that the rope imprint wasn’t from one of your bracelets or that you looked at him with a question in your mind.

“Did you mean what you said earlier?”

“Hmm, probably.” He replied. “What did I say?”

You caressed his chin, “That time doesn’t matter when you’re in love.”

Taehyung nodded and chuckled, “Yeah. I meant that. I’m in love with you and it feels like we’ve known each other forever. You’re timeless to me.”

You kissed his lips and sighed, “You’re a beautiful person. Don’t ever change that.” You looked at the time. “We should sleep.”

“Sweet dreams, jagiya.” He said and kissed your forehead until you got into your sleeping position where your most romantic lover held you close to his heart.

ARMY, Naver, Dispatch, sasaengs, absolutely no one but Kim Taehyung would ever know the love in his eyes when he saw you were already fast asleep in his arms.

You had started to officially date all of them after a long talk. It had started with Jin burning dinner for the third night in a row. He had been distracted lately and you didn’t know why. Then again, he was buying a whole bunch of stuff from you which made Tae jealous and it just became a mess until you had them all sit down and asked what was up. That’s when they all confessed to you and started figuring out a way for this polyamorous relationship to work.

It honestly didn’t change much from before, now their feelings were out in the open. By out in the open, it was known among the crew that you were more than their live-in prostitute...they owned your heart as well as your body. Instead of paying you for sex, the boys just gave you a weekly allowance so that you didn’t have to work.

It wasn’t normal, but things hadn’t been normal for three years. It was perfect. Your kind of perfect.

#BTS #Bangtan #Kim Seokjin #Min Yoongi #Jung Hoseok #Kim Namjoon #Park Jimin #Kim Taehyung #Jeon Jungkook #Jin #Suga #J-Hope #JHope #RM #Jimin #V #BTS V #Jungkook #Story: Training

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comradecrossing · 6 years

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hi do you have any tips/recs for someone who’s just starting new leaf? i had it a long time ago but i stopped playing, and now i want to start playing again but i don’t remember it well 🙈

Hi! This might be long but! When I restarted this last time I was worried it would get boring real fast like with my first save, so I planned out as much as I possibly could ahead of time.

Think of a theme that makes you happy! Do you love witchy/fairy things? A specific color? maybe a season? particular villager animal? Aliens??? If you can figure out a theme you can build around (and it can be ANYTHING) then you will have much more confidence when you first step foot in your new town!

Now I’m gonna use my town as reference, so, I really like the Witchy/Fairy aesthetic and I knew immediately thats what i was going to do. I’m bad at town names, but i like Pokemon and remembered they have a fairy town, so I looked it up and got my name and figured why stop there? That’s how Laverre City became one of my sole inspirations for my town. I was inspired to restart because of hackers so even though I cant hack, I think about things I might like to do, or really want to do when/if i ever can and i have some big ideas lol im so sad. So ultimately i settled on a fall themed town (not perpetual fall but looks best in fall and the dreamcode will be of the town in fall) with lots of pink cosmos and regular saplings to give off a resemblance to Laverre City :)I then looked at a lot of forest and dreamy type towns to get some inspiration like mushroom rings, layout ideas, and items or PWPs to use. I also checked sites like animal crossing wikia to make a list of PWPs I might like in my town and chose 30 possible options (you can only build 30) and check the space requirements.

Once I start for real with a vague idea of where I want to put things I look at all the maps available and if they don’t have specific traits i want (secret beach, desirable town tree location, diving cliff, ponds in places that wont get in the way of projects and landscaping ideas, good spot for the cafe, etc) I restart until a map comes up that I like. Once I arrive in town its time to check my native fruit and rock locations and make sure its up to my standards, and if a resident is important for you to have/not have make sure to check the map too!

Once you get a town you’re happy with and you’ve found the perfect place to call home its time to get serious >: |It’s time for your first shovel and axe.Now, I have always been anti-axe in previous games but this last save changed me. I got a hold of that first axe and chopped down every tree that wasn’t a southern cedar tree! (southern cedars are only possible at the start! If you plant them they’ll only grow in the North, thats the top half of your town.) Now your town will feel barren at first and this is the ugliest stage but also one of the funnest -imo- so lets open up your patterns and get started. Now that you have a blank canvas use your green & blue tiles to signify trees/bamboo and bushes, you can even redesign it and write “T” or “B” respectably and start laying them out. You can also use the Yellow to lay down where you want PWPs (make sure to surround two spaces further than the project requires. a 3x3 fountain should look more like a 5x5 area to ensure no one moves directly next to where you want to build). You should have lots of fruit piled up (remember to stack them) so you can layout bush tiles and plant fruit if you’d rather have a better idea of how its gonna look. I planted all my peaches and would later go back and replace certain ones with new fruit i acquired. Its good to have a “this is all a process” mindset because it will take a while to get your town done even if you time travel, but thats good! because the game is all about making your dream town!

So now you have a good amount of the town planned out and probably have some ideas of what to do next. The next few days will be spent checking out how things are growing and making sure you planted things in the right spots. if there’s anything you’re not liking - change it! Your town Your rules!

Now while you are waiting for things to grow and get pretty its time to gather aaaaaallllll the flowers you can find and organize them in a large free space so they are all diagonally touching (XXXX), this way you can get hybrids early on :)Make sure they are the same breed and check hybrid guides so you know which colors work best to make the hybrids you most want and make sure to water them everyday as they will wilt if you don’t have the beautiful ordinance. Hybrids are good to have for trades when you dont have much money.

After all this you should be off to a pretty good start. Try to keep in mind villagers you would like to have and try to make friends online or IRL that you can adopt from (I always post when i have some one leaving and who I am hoping to replace them with and I usually get an offer fairly quickly, even for villagers I was desperate to get out. No matter who they are someone likes them :)) But if your town is set up in a way that you’ll be devastated if your dreamie moves in that one perfectly made up spot, it might be a good idea to plot set &/ reset.Plot resetting is when you make a *NEW* character save to check and see if anyone moved in overnight, and more importantly, if they moved in an undesirable place. If this happens restart and select the new save option until the villager plots in a spot you like. Once they do that build your tent somewhere and save quit. This will make the new residents spot permanent and then you can select the new save once more and delete their home. This could take quite a while if you have lots of “open” space. “Open Space” is how I refer to non-tiled/pwp or house occupied areas and the way I go about this is covering my town in about 75% tiles and spacing out pwps to where there are as few places houses can plot in as possible. Houses wont build over tiles and will plot at least 2 spaces away from other buildings, rocks and projects and one away from clifs and ponds/rivers. They dont care however if there are trees, bamboo, items, bushes, or flowers so be sure to lay out tiles in any place at risk to being plotted on. I refer to this as “Plot Setting” as you can make 3x3 empty plots you surround with tiles which will help villagers know where to plot. If you do a good job and plot everything out just right, you’ll never have to worry about someone messing up your hard work.

Now here’s the kinda sucky part of ACNL and that is The Limitations.Annoying programmed rules that seem to only get in the way such as the 2-space rule between pwps/buildings. This can mess up your aesthetic a lot and sometimes you will have to completely replan things due to a small fact you may have overlooked or not noticed and suddenly your garden isnt looking right so im gonna name off the biggest hassles and how I have gotten around some of them.

Bush + tree + bush: You can line up 12 trees/bamboo and bushes in a line. This works both straight and diagonally. only 12. Now you can leave gaps in some places that will reset the count or do intricate designs like one cedar in the middle of 4 bushes, a line of bushes with trees spaced out directly behind, a pattern of bushes and chopped bamboo, etc get creative. Visiting others towns or looking at pics people post can help you get lots of ideas. Bushes can touch each other but trees & bamboo still have the one space between rule.

PWP 2-space rule: now I’ve already mentioned this a few times but this rule is always the one that I seem to forget when planning. YOU NEED TWO SPACES. I cant tell you how many times i have planned project locations weeks in advance only to not be able to lay them out as i wanted because I got the space requirement wrong or only left one space between other objects :/

Beach Rules: You may have seen cool towns with pwps, cedar trees and hibiscus bushes scattered around their beach and Ive got some bad news; Those are hacked towns. The only thing that can be planted on the beach naturally is coconut and banana trees, flowers, and clovers. Nothing grows on the beach, not even weeds. No pwps can be built there either, even though it was initially programmed to be possible. I currently use the space for hybrid breeding since i have no space to elsewhere ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Tear Down and Build Up: I will say though that even though only maybe 15% of my original plans came to life, my town looks way better than i had ever imagined it would. Don’t be afraid to tear things down and try out different locations or setups you might figure something out that looks amazing compared to your original plans.

Finally, while you can participate in the Happy Home Ratings, you dont have too. Decorate how ever the flip you want. Find new things to do everyday as the game can get old fast and you might get temped to Timetravel (which isnt a bad thing if thats what you want to do, but be careful you dont lose your villagers/flowers! Even though I have the Beautiful ordinance, I water all my flowers incase they pop out a hybrid. I try to earn all the badges, I visit dreamtowns for inspiration, redesign areas of my town, farm PWPs, make patterns, try hunting down items to decorate my house with, etc, this is another area where having a theme can help as you will find inspiration easier, and make you feel more immersed like you’re playing an RPG.

I’ve gone on a lot here and I have more to add but I’ve spent over an hour typing this, but let me know if you have any other questions or need clarification on anything :) I’m not gonna add pics rn but if you need photo reference send another message and I will address it separately and add it here later.

Now heres a bunch of links to help you get invested:MoriBD - A catalog of every in-game item and an option to make a wishlistHybrid Guide - By @nooklingPWP GuideVillager Adoption Further Info on Plot ResettingPWP Farming Towns/interiors I found inspirationalSome QRsHacking info (if youre interested)How to upload your screenshots & Make your screenshot pretty!

Pick the right face when you startOnce you get the QR reader (talk to sable 7 days) you can use these

Please let me know if there’s anything else I can do to help :)Just putting it out there too, I am always happy to help people get whatever they want/need for no cost whether it be fruits, bamboo, mushrooms, items, hybrids, etc, I will always do what I can to help you out, whether you’re just starting or on your 5th year.

#ref #tutorial #animal crossing #acaddicts #animal crossing new leaf #i might have to go through and edit this later #but im too tired rn #blanca

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laurenwestrom · 2 years

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Comings and goings in the spring garden

March 30, 2022

She ran late by a week or two, but Spring finally made up her mind and sprung. Last week ornamental trees like Mexican plum (Prunus mexicana) flushed into flower as live oaks overhead began their annual mass shedding of “evergreen” leaves. It’s autumn and spring all at once in my garden!

This understory Mexican plum is finally getting some height and showing off lots of flowers about 5 years after planting.

Bees and other pollinators love the flowers.

The white blossoms look so pretty against a deep-blue sky.

And they smell good too — not too sweet and kind of spicy. The fragrance wafts across the garden.

You want sweet? Bury your nose in the purple gorgeousness of Texas mountain laurel (Sophora secundiflora). Ahhh, that grape Kool-Aid smell! After taking a hit in last year’s Freezepocalypse and not flowering at all in 2021, the survivors — even the maimed — are putting on the best show in years. Gardeners all over Texas are remarking on it. The one pictured above is a neighbor’s tree.

I have one too — the sole survivor after last year’s freeze took out my biggest and oldest one. This one means more to me though. My daughter grew it from seed in middle school — it was a class project — and now it’s about 9 feet tall and blooming beautifully.

It still looks wintry around it though. The straw-colored grass is bamboo muhly (Muhlenbergia dumosa), which got bleached by the (second in a row) hard winter. It’ll green up again soon. The cut-back plants are Mexican honeysuckle (Justicia spicigera), which after a normal winter (remember those?) would be blooming about now. Ah well, maybe by early summer.

Native spiderwort (Tradescantia occidentalis) is blooming all over the back garden, having seeded itself in nooks and crannies in the shade and in morning sun. I just yank up the ones I don’t want, or where it seems overly weedy. But mostly I approve of Mother Nature’s design sense. The bees love this one too.

After schlepping my small succulent pots in and out of the garage all winter, they’re finally back out on the porch, soaking up the sunshine (bright shade, mostly) and warmth of our recent string of upper 80-degree days. The red Circle Pot is a new addition to the porch, after hanging from a tree in the lower garden for years. I like the height it adds to the eclectic tabletop pot display.

Sedge (Carex leavenworthii) is blooming in a pot, supervised by a matching gnome.

A few other faces keep me company here too, like the one on this little mezcal shot cup I found at Ceremony in Wimberley. He sports a tillandsia hairdo.

Huh, I’m noticing a theme of circles, suns, and faces in my garden art. Because we recently took everything off the house to have it painted, I had an opportunity to rethink what to keep and where to put it. I discarded some old stuff that was falling apart and made new combos, like this one: Death Star and Killer Flower. Better watch your step!

I’ve also taken a few plants out this week, including some loropetalums. They were beautiful shrubs before the Freezepocalypse, which killed them to the ground. But even though they returned from the roots, their new growth has been sickly, yellow, and anemic. No amount of compost or acidifying MicroLife fertilizer seemed likely to improve them, so I’ve been digging them up. Yep, even a year out from that awful freeze, the impact is still being felt.

I neglected to get a decent pic of its replacement, but in the photo above, at upper left, you can see its rich purple foliage. It’s another loropetalum! I’m not letting that freeze scare me off planting them again. The dark foliage and pink flowers are just too pretty to do without. This time I’m trying ‘Cerise Charm’. But I’m still hunting for a replacement ‘Sizzling Pink’, so if you see one for sale in Austin, please let me know!

Out front a Corten dish planter stuffed with golden barrel cacti is new. My neighbor inherited the cacti and was looking for a good home for them, and I said, they can come live with me!

They harmonize with my new Wasabi door color and gave me an excuse to add another steel planter. I hope they’ll be happy here.

I welcome your comments. Please scroll to the end of this post to leave one. If you’re reading in an email, click here to visit Digging and find the comment box at the end of each post. And hey, did someone forward this email to you, and you want to subscribe? Click here to get Digging delivered directly to your inbox!

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Digging Deeper

Learn from gardening experts at Trowel & Error, the annual symposium at Mayfield Park in West Austin. After a 2-year COVID hiatus, the symposium returns on Saturday, April 2, from 9:30 am to 1 pm. Designer Colleen Jamison will be speaking at 11 am, along with entomologist Wizzie Brown at 10 am and rose expert Theresa Anderson at noon. Located at Mayfield Park, 3505 W. 35th St. A suggested donation of $5 gets you in.

Need design help with your yard? Hire me as your personal garden coach! Maybe you need replacement plant ideas after the big freeze. Or maybe your landscaping has grown tired, and you want fresh curb appeal. Or perhaps you’re ready to get rid of some lawn and create a pollinator garden, bird habitat, or hangout space for you and your friends. I’m here to help! Contact me to let me know what’s going on, and let’s figure it out together. My range is Austin and suburbs within a 25-min. drive of NW Austin, but I’m flexible and can travel farther with a surcharge, so let me know where you are. Weekday morning appts. only.

Join the mailing list for Garden Spark! Hungry to learn about garden design from the experts? I’m hosting a series of talks by inspiring garden designers, landscape architects, and authors a few times a year in Austin. Check out the 2021-22 schedule. These are limited-attendance events that sell out quickly, so join the Garden Spark email list to be notified in advance. Simply click this link and ask to be added.

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