#how to design for inclusiveness

[san-sews-seams]

While I understand the goal with gender-inclusive/'gender expansive'/unisex adult clothing patterns, I kinda hate them. Like. That's just now how human bodies are. One-size-fits all just doesn't!

A garment that is designed to fit well on a body without breasts will, by definition, fit like shit on me, no matter how boxy/oversized the style lines are! A garment designed to fit someone with by body (or the closest common approximation of my body, with like 3" less breast full bust circumference) will, by its very nature, fit very badly on someone flat-chested. See also, shit like shoulder width, and waist/hip raios, and I'm sure various other aspects.

Like, I get that there's a lot of baggage surrounding body shape and social expectations of gender! But you can't get around that baggage by pretending that various physical differences just don't exist!

If I want to dress more masc, the shape of my body does not change. The fit adjustments that I need to make don't change. I would in fact need to make additional tweaks and adjustments to get a traditionally masculine silhouette. And while it would be interesting and valuable to have guidelines on how to do that, unisex pattern designs move the whole process back in the opposite direction.

#San sews #Possibly my reaction is informed by a fat person's experience of one-size-fits-all #Which so rarely includes me #But it's deeply frustrating to see something marketed as inclusive while *knowing* that it's been made that much *less* accessible to me! #Universality is just not practical or even feasible in garment and pattern design #The variability of bodies precludes it #And that does not mean that patterns are inherently gender-exclusive! But if you want to truly acheive unhindered garments #You can't really start with a one-size-fits-all outlook #You have to offer more built-in variability or at least guides on how to acheive that variability through fitting #It's just... well-meant but ultimately shallow and sloppy

[aquarterasian]

I really miss elena. Like she was such a big step for the franchise and it’s kinda disappointing that they haven’t branched out with more diverse characters since then. Her merchandise probably didn’t sell well enough for them to think it was worth doing again which is really sad. I hope they have someone like her again.

#precure #pretty cure #like it was crazy when starpre first leaked people thought those ones were fake bc no way would they have a character with dark skin #and it was so nice to see how happy it made people #like even if you don’t like starpre or even elena you have to realize how huge her inclusion was for the franchise #she was half-Mexican and she was PROUD of it and she was very popular in school #like idk I was thinking about this when I saw that they had made saki paler in her adult design #like I get the idea that she’s not playing sports so much anymore so she’d be less tan but #some people are just naturally darker and that’s beautiful too! #I just hope that if precure can introduce more diversity again the future :/

[scaryinclusive]

if your excuse for being ableist or sanist by using words associated with demonised, stigmatised disorders as adjectives is that they better describe what you mean than any of the other vocab choices that aren’t harmful, this is peak sanism. essentially, you’re saying “well this word is connected to a stereotype and thus paints a stronger picture in people’s mind regarding whoever I’m referring to when using it.” that’s because it’s an ableist stereotype, it’s been specifically curated to have that impact. “I use the r* slur to better paint a picture for people to understand this person’s intelligence and / or mental capability” if you wouldn’t excuse or support this, because it is also extremely ableist, stop excusing the use of disorders or words with heavy connections to disorders ( such as sociopath and psychopath ) as adjectives.

#stigma info. #mental health awareness #all inclusive related. #personal. #actuallyaspd #actuallynpd #this goes for literally ANY mental health related term #I don’t understand why people jump through so many hoops #to excuse ableism and sanism #‘but it’s more provocative in my writing’ because that’s how it was designed to be! by ableists!

[skeletalheartattack]

i love your art style so much, it's rad as hell. how long have you been drawing? :o

you mean the goofy little sketches i do from time to time? if so, that's really kind of you to say!!! that said, i wouldn't necessarily say they're the peak of my drawing abilities though, since i just draw with a mouse.

i use to draw a lot when i was growing up, though after getting Gmod for the first time, and subsequently SFM, i moved over into those programs to make my art, and kinda stopped drawing from that point.

i don't normally draw a whole lot these days, but when it comes to how i draw the stuff above, really i just find the messiness of using a mouse to draw really goofy, that and it's kinda nice to draw stuff without it needing to be perfect. it's just silly lines.

but regardless, thank you for the kind words, im glad you like my silly stuff

#ask #now if you meant the sketch of Boe that i use for my icon and a few other goofy posts i made? that was drawn by my friend Kikkini #(Kikkinimomini on Twitter) #i think he has a tumblr account too but i don't remember his handle offhand... #that sketch of Boe was one of the first ones he sent me. regarding a skeleton OC. #i really feel he struck a really good balance between ominous and kinda goofy with the sketch #that and the inclusion of the mohawk being pink really sold it for me #i would like to try and create how i actually imagine Boes world in Limbo and Hell some day #which. is very similar to Gorillaz' Phase 2 era and old ''find the hidden object games'' like Mystery Case Files Ravenhearst #in which its just like. full of junk and polution and whatnot #though with Limbo specifically. i imagine blue/purple clouded night skies over roaming empty grassy fields with nothing in the horizon #and Boes house being in the center of it all. with a long empty road in front of it #i think of Boes house as like. similar to the Ravenhearst manor or the iSpy spooky mansion #old fashioned house with a lot of junk inside #i also kinda think about Pajama Sam's colour palette in the land of darkness a lot regarding limbo and hell #the purples and dark blues of the night sky. the reds and oranges of the lava caves. #id kinda want to make what i imagine in the Source engine. but i already have trouble starting stuff in Hammer as it is #maybe some day i'll commit to it and design what i want. but ough..... #anyway thank you for the kind words anon!!!

[dexaroth]

hm. apparently the self-insert webring closed down. no matter i will plaster kelvin everywhere i dont need no javascript im my own man -_- in my own house!

#ngl the design isnt moving along. idk how to make it interesting.. #i might also stop trying to make the layouts fit mobile. too much of a headache that i literally dont have the energy for as much as it-> #-> pains me to say. i want it to be mobile inclusive godamnit

[avocadomin]

i understand people miss the box style packaging and are hating on the binding/quality of the packaging of rockstar but why do some people follow it up with their favorite packaging being oddinary and why is it always newer stays within the last year like at least name one of their other 2 box style albums oddinary screams graphic design is my passion

#i have no where else to post this and it needs to be said oddinary graphically is one of their worst albums #yes it's a nice quality box but inlife i think is their best design with their box albums then golive #also storing wise box albums take up SO much space along with producing more waste and using more materials to make the #i wish they would go back to their cle series packaging with larger/think photobooks #and maybe have an envelope for all the goodies to prevent theft of inclusions #i feel like it's a good middle of what people want #i do like how easy it is to take apart rockstar though cause it makes it easier to breakdown for collages #without killing my fingertips #if anyone wishes to add on to this feel free i'll probs keep this tab open while i work late on this gift for my grandma

[goldiipond]

toh still has the best artstyle of any show ive ever watched. to me

#skye's ramblings #sometghing abt it. so pleasing to my brain. i love how the eyes are drawn i love the diverse unique characters #i love the inclusion of several ethnic features that are horribly underrepresented in media n most importantly. i love little luz lip thingy #the way luz's mouth is drawn is like peak character design for me its so simple but it adds so much personality its everything. to me #ive actually replicated the style with several characters its really fun. maybe i'll share some of em #also t/oh proves you can draw big noses and lips in a simple cartoony style and 'it doesnt work in my style :(' is bullshit. anyway

[spookyboywhump]

Likes smth so I can look at it later because the image won’t load

Immediately gets terf shit from “based on your likes!”

Goes to look at wtf I liked

Has nothing to do with said terf shit

#I hate it here #it is simply too early in the got dang morning for this #‘trans inclusive language was designed to dehumanize women!!!’ Idk how to tell you this but literally not everything is about you #not whump

[colloquialcolival]

I love everyone's designs for listeners and i respect everyone having their own ocs and ideas . I truly do adore it! But next time I see a fem listener i will bang my head against my desk

#WOE #masc listeners put so much serotonin in me #nb listeners too #the part about adoring people's designs isn't sarcasm #have fun!!! #I'm just tired of 7464 brown or blonde haired white girlies with funky names #power to the fellers who do have those tho #i am simply very much too transmasc #there's another statement i could say about hunting for inclusiveness points but I won't because meh #will ask: how many of y'all have made a Hispanic oc that isn't mexican #where's my chapines #ticos

[087710]

maw fucking sucked ass & im mad i wasted time reading it like honestly it was so gross

#stupid ass using rape as a plot device to turn the woman into a monster but then the twist at the end????? garbage #also the bizarre inclusion of a trans woman like honestly it was so fucking weird & made me uncomfortable how they introduced her #overall do not read this shit like it isn't worth it not even for the monster design at the end #meowl.txt

[therevengeoffrankenstein]

thank you rarity mlp fim for the trajectory of my life ❤

#myevilposts #mlp #she's soooooo. the character of all time. #thank you for everything queen. #she's The Reason. why i got into fashion btw 😭 #i have been putting together a lot of outfits and designing a bunch of pieces lately and like. i remembered that i owe this in #great part to her. fashion is a very important form of expression to me. of all facets of myself. #more recently i've finally been applying it practically to my daily outfits and have been learning to pull #basically anything from my closet and style it in a way i can love myself in it. #which is amazing considering that i am a guy who has spent nearly his entire life hating how he looks #and dressing accordingly to that instead of using fashion to boost myself up like i do now. #that is the grandest message behind my designs and why i design my own clothing; i want to make fashion that anyone can love themself in. #because i know how it feels to hate yourself and how clothes make you feel. i want my designs to instill a #sense of self-pride and self-love in anyone who wears them. and i do mean anyone. #that may come across as a pretty basic wish/message but you'd be surprised how hard it can be to find #accessible (well priced. comfortable. inclusive sizing. etc.) designer fashion.

[lasnevadaslaborunion]

It frightens and discourages me how pervasive "tribal" stereotypes and imagery are in the fantasy and adventure genres.

It's all over the place in classic literature. Crack open a Jules Verne novel and you're likely to find caricatures of brown people and cultures, even when the characters are sympathetic to the plight of the colonized peoples - incidentally, this is the biggest reason I can't recommend 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea to everyone, despite Captain Nemo being one of my favorite fictional characters of all time.

You can't escape it in modern cinema, either. You'll see white heroes venturing bravely into jungles and tombs to steal from natives who don't know how to use their resources "properly." You'll see them strung up in traps, riddled with sleeping darts, forced to flee and fight their way out. Hell, Pirates of the Caribbean, a remarkably inclusive franchise in many other ways, had an extended sequence of the white heroes escaping from a cannibal civilization in the second film.

And when fantasy RPGs want a humanoid enemy, the "bloodthirsty natives" are the first stock trope they jump to. World of Warcraft is one of the most egregious examples, with the trolls - blatant racist caricatures with faux-voodoo beliefs, cannibalistic diets, Jamaican accents, and a history of being killed in droves by (white) elves and humans - being raided and slaughtered in nearly every expansion.

It doesn't matter how vibrant and distinctive the real-world indigenous, Polynesian, Caribbean, and African cultures are. It doesn't matter how much potential these real civilizations offer for complex and sympathetic characterization. Anything that doesn't make sense to the white western mind is shoved under the same "savage" umbrella. They're different. They're strange. They're scary. They have to be escaped, subjugated, eliminated, ogled at from the safety of a museum.

Modern writers, directors, and developers don't even seem to realize how horrifying it is to present the indigenous inhabitants of a place as "obstacles" for non-native protagonists to overcome. "It's not racist," they say, "because these people aren't really people, you see." And if you dare to point out anything that hurts or offends you as a descendant of the bastardized culture, you're accused of being the real racist: "These aren't humans! They're monsters! Are you saying that these real societies are just like those disgusting monsters?"

No, they're not monsters. But you chose to design them as monsters, just as invaders have done for hundreds of years. Why would you do that? Why can you recognize any other caricature as evil and cruel, but not this?

This is how deep colonialism runs.

#tw racism #critical #this isn't even about any specific media anymore #it's a pattern #and it's a pattern that seems so obvious #but it's so omnipresent that even the most progressive folks can't seem to recognize how terrifying it is #these tropes were written in blood

[charles-breaks-beakers]

HETEROSEXUAL CIS-PEOPLE LOOK HERE

Snaps my fingers at you as you scroll past this post

Look at me. Listen.

I'm not the best at serious posts, but that article up there reminded me of how important it is that people like you stand up for us. So hold on while I try to get this out of my mushy end-of-work-day brain.

We could fight this fight ourselves for decades trying to reach the equal laws, gender affirming trans healthcare that doesn't have a 2-5+ soul-eating years of waiting time, medical care with equal knowledge of lgbtqia+ bodies, and, what is often forgotten, inclusion in the little everyday areas of life like our way of speaking or things being set up or designed with the existence of queer people in mind.

But you joining in could get us there so much faster.

The power you have as a hetero cis person is that you set the standard for what is seen as the average way of treating us among other hetero cis people. You have been given the power of deciding what's "normal" and I'm begging you to use it.

Richard Green is a great example of to what extent your actions can help our situation, and smaller ways of support still add up to a great impact on society, and could make the days of the queer people you interact with.

Educate yourself before you speak up, but don't be silent.

#lgbtqia+ #lgbtq #lgbtqia #lgbtq+ #lgbtqia+ rights #lgbtq+ rights #lgbtq rights #interesting #article #psychology #mental health #psychologist #reading #culture #cooking #drawing #music #nature #science #baking #pets #inspirational #gaming #photography #fashion #writing

[nope-body]

.

#the facilitator of my Shabbat hosting lab (it’s a fellowship program) is wonderful and I know that she wants to be as inclusive as possible #and she does! we gave her feedback with various people having different opinions about the weekly homework writings and she quickly made it #optional. she made the requirements for what we had to host flexible from the very beginning #because the curriculum she was given says that we have to host a Shabbat dinner (specifically that and nothing else Shabbat related) and #have at least 8 guests #she made it so that the goal was 8 but she wasn’t going to punish anyone for less. I’m aiming for 3 and she’s completely fine with that #it also doesn’t have to be a Shabbat dinner. it can just be something Shabbat related/related to what we’ve discussed during Shabbat #and when I talked to her about my conflicts (because one of the few things she can’t change are the dates of our two weekends to host) #she brought up the idea of designating a different day for shabbat— lots of people who have to work Fridays and Saturdays (especially rabbis #and Jewish leaders) do it #she also gave me the option to just postpone it which was so kind #I think part of that was because I had started crying almost immediately after starting to explain my situation #(not necessarily because that was the thing putting so much stress on me that made me cry but just because between everything piling up and #being in a ton of pain (which always makes me more likely to end up crying over small things) and being able to voice a problem I was having #to a person I trusted just ended up with my brain going ‘that’s enough. we need to open the floodgates and it’s safe to do so’ so I cried) #but part of it was that was just how she did things. she prioritizes our experience and learning over us meeting an arbitrary quota and #she’s just so kind #it also helps to know what there do exist people who are willing to accommodate me in a non-classroom setting #based on the weather forecast Friday and Saturday are going to absolutely suck for me pain wise #and I mentioned the weather and she immediately made the connection between the weather forecast and worse pain for me which #I wasn’t expecting to be honest. but it was nice to know that she understood and thought about that stuff #i just want to not be in pain #all my joints hurt so much

[astriiformes]

Might actually cry a little bit (in a good way) - the new bill that just passed here in Minnesota granting paid medical leave to people caring for sick family members has such an intentionally expansive definition of "family" that biological and/or legal ties are not actually a prerequisite to qualify for the program. In fact, there's a portion of the bill that specifies anyone designated as family by the incapacitated party can receive the benefits.

Apparently this was done in part to make the policy as inclusive as possible of queer family structures and I am absolutely floored; as someone with a seriously chronically ill queerplatonic partner I worry a lot about my options as a primary caretaker, seeing as the fact that we are not legal partners bars us from so many other benefits, but the fact that this particular one would be inclusive of us (and poly partners, and single queer people with no ties to their biological family but close friends willing to help them out, etc) has given me more hope that may change someday than I think anything ever has.

This is how you do policy that benefits the entire queer community, including poly, ace, and aro folks for whom same-sex marriage has never offered the same legal rights (and plenty of other folks besides, like disabled people or people with terrible biological families -- you don't have to be LGBTQA+ for it to be a seriously important option). This is genuinely incredible. I was excited to see this pass even without knowing it would potentially apply to me, too, but now I'm a total grateful, emotional mess.

#genuinely can't believe this is something that was prioritized in the bill (and then PASSED) #minnesota: a pro-found family state apparently #land of eldritch lakes #aroblogging #aceblogging

[samwisethewitch]

Homemaking, gardening, and self-sufficiency resources that won't radicalize you into a hate group

It seems like self-sufficiency and homemaking skills are blowing up right now. With the COVID-19 pandemic and the current economic crisis, a lot of folks, especially young people, are looking to develop skills that will help them be a little bit less dependent on our consumerist economy. And I think that's generally a good thing. I think more of us should know how to cook a meal from scratch, grow our own vegetables, and mend our own clothes. Those are good skills to have.

Unfortunately, these "self-sufficiency" skills are often used as a recruiting tactic by white supremacists, TERFs, and other hate groups. They become a way to reconnect to or relive the "good old days," a romanticized (false) past before modern society and civil rights. And for a lot of people, these skills are inseparably connected to their politics and may even be used as a tool to indoctrinate new people.

In the spirit of building safe communities, here's a complete list of the safe resources I've found for learning homemaking, gardening, and related skills. Safe for me means queer- and trans-friendly, inclusive of different races and cultures, does not contain Christian preaching, and does not contain white supremacist or TERF dog whistles.

Homemaking/Housekeeping/Caring for your home:

Making It by Kelly Coyne and Erik Knutzen [book] (The big crunchy household DIY book; includes every level of self-sufficiency from making your own toothpaste and laundry soap to setting up raised beds to butchering a chicken. Authors are explicitly left-leaning.)

Safe and Sound: A Renter-Friendly Guide to Home Repair by Mercury Stardust [book] (A guide to simple home repair tasks, written with rentals in mind; very compassionate and accessible language.)

How To Keep House While Drowning by KC Davis [book] (The book about cleaning and housework for people who get overwhelmed by cleaning and housework, based on the premise that messiness is not a moral failing; disability and neurodivergence friendly; genuinely changed how I approach cleaning tasks.)

Gardening

Rebel Gardening by Alessandro Vitale [book] (Really great introduction to urban gardening; explicitly discusses renter-friendly garden designs in small spaces; lots of DIY solutions using recycled materials; note that the author lives in England, so check if plants are invasive in your area before putting them in the ground.)

Country/Rural Living:

Woodsqueer by Gretchen Legler [book] (Memoir of a lesbian who lives and works on a rural farm in Maine with her wife; does a good job of showing what it's like to be queer in a rural space; CW for mentions of domestic violence, infidelity/cheating, and internalized homophobia)

"Debunking the Off-Grid Fantasy" by Maggie Mae Fish [video essay] (Deconstructs the off-grid lifestyle and the myth of self-reliance)

Sewing/Mending:

Annika Victoria [YouTube channel] (No longer active, but their videos are still a great resource for anyone learning to sew; check out the beginner project playlist to start. This is where I learned a lot of what I know about sewing.)

Make, Sew, and Mend by Bernadette Banner [book] (A very thorough written introduction to hand-sewing, written by a clothing historian; lots of fun garment history facts; explicitly inclusive of BIPOC, queer, and trans sewists.)

Sustainability/Land Stewardship

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer [book] (Most of you have probably already read this one or had it recommended to you, but it really is that good; excellent example of how traditional animist beliefs -- in this case, indigenous American beliefs -- can exist in healthy symbiosis with science; more philosophy than how-to, but a great foundational resource.)

Wild Witchcraft by Rebecca Beyer [book] (This one is for my fellow witches; one of my favorite witchcraft books, and an excellent example of a place-based practice deeply rooted in the land.)

Avoiding the "Crunchy to Alt Right Pipeline"

Note: the "crunchy to alt-right pipeline" is a term used to describe how white supremacists and other far right groups use "crunchy" spaces (i.e., spaces dedicated to farming, homemaking, alternative medicine, simple living/slow living, etc.) to recruit and indoctrinate people into their movements. Knowing how this recruitment works can help you recognize it when you do encounter it and avoid being influenced by it.

"The Crunchy-to-Alt-Right Pipeline" by Kathleen Belew [magazine article] (Good, short introduction to this issue and its history.)

Sisters in Hate by Seyward Darby (I feel like I need to give a content warning: this book contains explicit descriptions of racism, white supremacy, and Neo Nazis, and it's a very difficult read, but it really is a great, in-depth breakdown of the role women play in the alt-right; also explicitly addresses the crunchy to alt-right pipeline.)

These are just the resources I've personally found helpful, so if anyone else has any they want to add, please, please do!

#homemaking #homemaking resources #gardening #urban gardening #self sufficiency #self sufficient living #sustainability #sustainable living #homesteading #nontrad homemaker #nontrad housewife #urban homesteading #solarpunk #cottagecore #kitchen witch #kitchen witchcraft #crunchy to alt right pipeline #book rec #book recommendations #resource #long post #mine #racism tw #racism mention #transphobia tw #transphobia mention