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Happy Make A Terrible Comic Day 2024!!! I hope you enjoy participating in this annual tradition which we’ve all done for ages!!! You must participate so you might as well enjoy it!!!

If you make a comic (again, it’s mandatory) and you want to share it, post it on the tag #makeaterriblecomicday2024! Or don’t, I’m not a fucking cop.

Remember, the goal is to make something terrible! So if you can’t draw or have never made a comic, or if it’s just been ages since you made something just for fun — that’s perfect! You’re all set! If you fuck up and make something that’s NOT terrible… well, some might say there’s a joy to that too.

Ok stop reading this and go make something!!!

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Switching between these every day

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I love when you’re reading multiple fics by the same author and you start to spot all the phrases and adjectives they like to use

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a lot of artists dont know how to draw bullets and to be real it bothers me a lot. here's my simple guide on bullets

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Hi! I put together an introduction post to block printing on fabric, based on my experience so far. Some basic info on printmaking blocks, ink types and the like. Enjoy!

First off - I have a background in fashion, but fabric block printing is purely a leisure activity for me. This info is intended mostly for other hobbyists and people who want to try their hand at this and don't know where to start. HERE are some examples of works I've done so far. I'll be really glad if this post will help or inspire someone to try<3

(please note that all the materials are what I could get here in Poland - this would obviously differ from country to country)

INK TYPES

SPEEDBALL Fabric Block Printing Ink

Probably the most popular fabric printing ink. Oil-based, water-washable. It has nice viscosity and spreads evenly. Available in many colors, a really nice opaque white among them. Works best with a soft rubber brayer from the same producer (although could be used with a more common, hard rubber brayer as well). Doesn't need heat setting, just a few days to dry properly. It mantains a soft hand after, although it is slightly noticeable. Can be used on both natural and synthetic fibers. Durable: with a test t-shirt I didn't notice much changes after a few washes.

ESSDEE Fabric Block Printing Ink

Water-based, water- washable ink. As in all water-based inks, the viscosity is average - works ONLY with a dedicated brayer from the same producer. Basic colors available, they mix well. Semi-opaque. Needs to be heat-set - the print mantains a really soft hand after, impercteptible by touch alone. Can be used on natural fibers only. Durability is fine, although the first two machine washes of the test t-shirt shown a slight washout on the design (this might also mean I'm shit at heat setting though lol). Good price to quality ratio; much more efficient compared to the Speedball ink.

PRINTMAKING BLOCKS TYPES

SPEEDBALL SPEEDY-CARVE and SPEEDY-CUT EASY BLOCKS

Both are soft blocks and carve really well. Neither needs a press to print on fabric - a pressure by hand or a clean brayer will suffice. Speedy Carve is suitable for all kinds of block-printing ink, Speedy-Cut Easy for water soluble-inks only (oil-based ones might break the surface and wear it out much faster). Personally I prefer Speedy Carve, as the other one is a bit crumbly, which hinders the carving process.

ESSDEE MASTERCUT and SOFTCUT BLOCKS

Both are great! MasterCut blocks are softer and suitable for water-based inks only, while SoftCut can be used for all kind of block-printing inks. First one is 4mm, the other 3mm thick, so you need to get used to carve a thinner surface. As with the Speedball ones, you just need to push the design into the fabric to print it by hand or better - roll a clean brayer over the back of it.

MILAN VINYL CARVING BLOCKS

Very good for fabric printing - smooth, soft, carve easily, print very well. Suitable for all kinds of inks, although they often leave an annoying residue on the surface that needs more cleaning that the other ones. Again - print by pressing with your hand or with a brayer.

BUDGET OPTION - PVC STRIP CURTAIN!

This is a great option for the beginners and people who are fine with carving a transparent plate. Price to quality ratio is AMAZING. I managed to buy two single strips of different thickness (3mm and 4mm if I recall) and both carve and print very well. However, I personally have trouble with carving transparent plates and I find the smell of these pvc curtains absolutely repulsive (might be just my luck tho).

OTHER CARVING/ PRINTMAKING BLOCKS

Stuff you can get from certain sites and find in different hobby sets. Usually have no info on them regarding what they're made of or what inks to use them with. It's always a hit or miss. Although I have to say that the synthetic carving blocks I got a few years ago in Stamp-making set at Flying Tiger Copehagen and similar one at Action recently were both pretty decent. They are often stinky cheap too, so worth trying!

CLASSIC LINO / HARD PVC BLOCKS

Not recommended. You can possibly get good results with classic, grey linoleum if you're presistent enough, but it doesn't have a give that the previous ones have, that is necessary to make a fine print on fabric. You'd also possibly need a press for it, to add more pressure. It's much easier with softer blocks. The hard blocks are out of the question.

RUBBER BLOCKS Not recommended! They crumble and carve unevenly.

DIFFERENT MATERIALS One of the best carving materials I own is some yellow lino flooring scraps sent by my dear friend! I used some of it to made these prints. Search locally for possible solutions, you never know what you'll find.

CARVING TOOLS

HANDLE WITH INTERCHANGEABLE CUTTERS - CAUTION!!!

If you're a beginner and want to buy your first carving tools, DO NOT buy these (the two sets on the picture are ones that I have myself and base this info upon). They are cheap and look handy, but! The cutters are not pre-sharpened and you will try in vain to carve anything with these straight out of the box. Sharpening the u- and v-shaped blades is a thing you might want to learn only when you commit to block printing, trust me. It's good to buy 2-3 tools that are more expensive, but ready to use. There are many good, different brands worldwide, I encourage also to search locally!

PFEIL is a brand I can personally attest to. EXCELLENT quality.

EWA MARCINKOWSKA - for my homies from Poland! I use their tools for 20 years now, good stuff.

PROCESS

To be frank, I assume most of the people who want to try block printing on fabric, might've already tried block printing (on paper) in the past. I won't give you a step by step here. If you're a newbie though, the process of making a linocut is pretty straightforward and easy to research. Here are two videos for starters with some helpful info on the topic:

That's the gist of it. I hope at least some of this info will help you to get into fabric printing <3 Let me know if you have any questions. ALSO - if any of you know different ink brands, materials and helpful tips for fabric printing you're willing to share, please comment on this post or reblog with sources! Thanks!!

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Painting my friends kitties as a thank u for a huge favor he did me :3

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David Lynch's Weather Report 3/6/21, 4/10/21, 2/20/22... among others! It was a very recurring sentiment. He wanted everyone to have good luck and fun with our projects.

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im sure someone already made a post about it but i came across a ublock origin add-on that blacklists around 950 AI websites and disables AI overview ☝️ so u can be free from seeing AI in your search

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Gravity Falls - (1988) dir. Alex Hirsch

Ramble/description under the cut:

Here's my uhh, very unconventional contribution to @candycatfalls ford gets held down day! (I drew this a couple days late, and then I let it marinate on Patreon for like a week.) This was a few things happening at once - besides drawing Ford Getting Held Down, I knew I wanted to draw big bill + little ford, because somehow I'd never drawn them like that before and I HAD to change that. But I'd also just watched my first ever Don Bluth movie (all dogs go to heaven) and I thought it was SO BEAUTIFUL AND INSPIRING!! I definitely need to watch more traditional animation. It was totally stunning. So I tried my hand at imitating the style, or something adjacent to it.

The painted background I grabbed from the world wide web is doing a LOT of heavy lifting; I wasn't really feeling this drawing until I slapped it in the background. I don't wanna keep using art that isn't mine, so I'm gonna have to start painting some backgrounds if I want to keep doing this. Which… I kinda do honestly. I think that would be so much fun :') Aside from that, for a first attempt, I think this turned out pretty decent! I might do it again sometime.

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HALT! Do you have sensory issues? Overwhelmed by sound in a messy environment? Desperately wanting to write that essay/fanfiction but your ADHD is getting on the way? In need of atmospheric sound for your tabletop game??

Please let me introduce you to MyNoise.net - a lifesaver on all aspects.

Mynoise provides an incredible index of noise machine generators with personalizing sliders to suit your every taste.

Missing the sound of a lively coffee shop during the pandemic? They have that. That specific, calming noise of a public park in a peaceful afternoon? they have that. Rain sounds? City sounds? Want to fuck around and listen to some uninterrupted Gregorian chants? They have that also!

According to the website:

“myNoise generators cover the whole audible frequency range, from 20Hz to 20kHz, over 10 color-coded sliders. Through a simple but accurate calibration process, all myNoise generators can be shaped to your personal hearing thresholds and compensate for your audio equipment and listening environment deficiencies, including the presence and nature of background noise. Calibration is unique to this website, and makes calibrated noise machines stand out from regular white noise machines. During the calibration process, we are able to measure your personal hearing levels, and adapt our noises accordingly. If you are suffering from age-related hearing, you’ll be surprised to hear frequencies you thought were lost.”

And that’s not all. When I say ‘incredible’ I really mean it; I’ve found myself using the website on multiple occasions, for work, creative and stress-related issues, and the variety of machines provided cannot be overstated. You’ve got animal noises, nature soundscapes, street sounds, meditation aids, melody-based lullabies, magical soundscapes, medieval ambiance, situation specific sounds, white noise generators– and a lot more!!! They even have noise to block out IRL sounds you don’t want to hear.

Just take a brief look at what the index page provides:

There’s something for EVERYONE. And it’s all for free! It’s been for free for years, and it is the creator’s wish that it remains accessible to everyone who might need this kind of aid in life. I am using it to write this post right now. Though if you read some of the above index, you may have noticed that the support for the website has been very low lately.

Which brings me to the reason I’m making this post. Mynoise is curated and maintained by a single person:

Please check out the Mynoise Index for yourself, donate if you can, and tell your friends who might be interested ♡

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see him schmoove

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What all historical fan fiction writers need is a database with a series of videos showing someone getting dressed and then undressing step-by-step with subtitles that tell us the name of each item of clothing, for every possible era and culture

Yes, so we can write smut, obviously, but very informative smut where you come out learning a little something about the undergarments of a woman in the early 1600s Italy and how you might take them off with your teeth

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this one took me 1,5 years details + process under the cut!

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I've acquired a creature that stares at you no matter which direction you look at it from

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for those of you who remember cgtextures circa 2008, texture.ninja has a large repository of public domain textures without annoying hoops to jump through.

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i know we joke about cis artists having the weirdest sense of anatomy, but also even when the anatomy is fine, no one seems to want to draw women doing normal things

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my dad likes to call the stretches of time where you’re not creating “dreaming periods” and says that they’re meant to allow you to absorb all of the beauty, life, and inspiration from the things around you so that when you’re able to create again, you will have fanned your spark back into a flame. sometimes its hard to see those moments as anything but stagnation, but he always says that they’re natural and healthy and needed—things that should be embraced rather than feared.