#1 for top 1 for bottom and 1 for the repeating middle section

[giddydelphiresearcher]

I needed jagged glass for tutorial 3 so I fused six glass shards into a shuriken. Patient got fuckin attacked by a ninja. Who also gave them tumors. For tutorial reasons

Also there's a sprite(s) for the threads of the stitched closing wound but not for the actual thing so I put a laceration under it to make my own

[mellosdrawings]

I apologize for the inconvenience, I saw that you posted a tutorial on how you draw Jamil, if it's not a problem for you, could you make a tutorial on how to draw Riddle's hair please?

Alrighty! Here goes Riddle's hair tutorial!

1. Symmetry

You can immediately get a sense of order in Riddle with how symmetrical his hair is. Cut the head in two first, then cut each sides in two again. All parts should be approximately the same size.

Riddle's hairline isn't visible, but if you want one in case you have to draw his hair up for whatever reason (sharp movement, falling, etc) I would go for a heart shaped hairline since Riddle's whole motif is "Hearts".

2. Front Left Banana

Every single one of Riddle's hair parts can be generally shaped as a banana (or a crescent moon if you wanna be poetic). Start with the front bangs, preferably the left side since it will be later hidden by the right part. Make it go from the top of his head on the middle line, right to his eye level. That banana should take 1/4 of his head.

3. Front Right Banana

Repeat the precedent step in mirror with the same proportions. This bang will go in front of the precedent, so erase the previous part that gets hidden. (Don't hesitate to add a few stray hair. Riddle's hair is symmetrical but not perfect!)

4. Side Bananas

Once you're done with the front bangs, you can start the ones bordering his face. Those ones will reach to his chin and take up the last two remaining parts. You can add some hair from the front bangs to the side bangs to make it more natural.

5. Short hair

Riddle's hair follow his skull in an almost perfectly round manner. Only the lower parts will fork slightly, still on the circle line. You can make a circle from the top of the head to his mouth easily.

6. Neck hair

Don't forget to add a handful of short strands around his neck.

7 and 8. Heart Loopies (I'm not very good at them, I hate drawing ahoge)

Start by putting a straight line slightly below the merging sections of Riddle's bangs. Then draw a heart from top of the head to that line. It should be about as wide as the two middle parts. Draw two strands intersecting at the bottom.

Add a few details here and there and there you have Riddle!

[rjalker]

gimme ur flatland OCs and I can maybe crochet them. maybe.

I won't be able to give them to you, but I can give you the pattern i used to make them lol

Update 01! Nov 9 2024:

@ranmagender 's Lana the gamer girl

[ID: A photo of a crochet original Flatland character named Lana, held up against a white wall. Lana is a pink and blue line, with a large round eye in her upper middle, with a blue eyelid and red iris. She is made in single crochet, with alternating chunks of pink and blue. Her top and lower section are rounded. End ID.]

Pattern, made up as I went along:

Top and bottom. Make 2, one longer than the other.

Chain 2. 8x single crochet into the first stitch, slip-stitching to close. Pull tail tight.

Chain 1. 2x single crochets into each stitch. Slip stitch to close.

Single crochet in rows until desired length. Add second color if desired.

After reaching desired length, in the back loops only, make one more row of single crochet. Fill now.

Cut a long tail. It will be used to close this and attach it to the rest.

In either only the front or back loops, use the hook to pull the tail through, pulling toward the center. When you get around to the end, gently pull the tail tight, and this will close the opening like a drawstring. Add a slip stitch anywhere to secure.

Head:

Chain 2. 10x single crochet into the 1st stitch. Slip stitch to close.

Chain 1. 2x single crochet into each stitch. Slip stitch to close.

Chain 1. 2x single crochet, 1x single crochet, 2x single crochet, repeating. Slip stitch to close.

Chain 2. 2x single crochet, 1x single crochet, 1x single crochet, 2x single crochet, repeating. Slip stitch to close.

1x single crochet in each stitch. Add a second color now if desired.

1x single crochet.

1x single crochet.

1x single crochet, 1x single crochet, single crochet together or skip, repeating.

2x single crochet, together or skip, single crochet, repeating.

Together or skip, repeating. Fill now.

Cut long tail. Doesn't have to be as long as the first ones. In the front or back loops only, pull the tail through towards center, then pull tight at the end of the row. Make a slip stitch to secure, then hide tail inside by pulling through from the back or side.

Eye:

Chain 3, turn, and single crochet in each stitch, one with increase. Repeat for three throws, increasing each time. Change to white.

One row of white, single crochet 1x each.

3x white, 2x red, 3x white for two rows.

One row of white with a decrease.

Decrease with white.

Make the last row of only decreased slip stitches.

[undergroundbillions]

Doom's super-easy quick-and-dirty fool-proof rag doll tutorial! Part two

Part one of many! Masterpost here. Part one of the doll making steps here.

Step 5: Attaching Arms

On each side of the torso, fold your fabric 1/2 inch inward, hiding the raw edges on the inside of the doll. Pin in place. Next, take your arm and line it up with the seam, thumb facing up, and pin it to both sides of the torso so it sticks out of the side seam. Sew the arm on with a running stitch, and continue stitching down the length of the doll's body. Do not sew the bottom closed yet!

Repeat this process with the other arm. It's ok if this is a bit messy or you don't hide all your raw edges, you'll hide it with clothes!

Step 6: Attaching Legs

Stuff the body to your liking. Just like the sides, fold under 1/2 inch along the bottom of the torso. Insert both legs into the seam and pin in place, then sew along the edge.

Step 7: Making the Hair

Now to make the hair wefts! You COULD sew down each individual piece of yarn, but this is way less time consuming!

The first step is to make your Contraption. Take your two rulers or whatever you have and put something between them on each side (I'm using a ruler and a tape dispenser here). The more distance between them, the longer the hair on the wefts will be. Tape your new invention together.

Wrap yarn around and around this, bunching it up slightly. You want it to be fairly dense, unable to see through, but not thicker than two layers. Once you have it all covered you're going to sew down the middle with a messy backstitch (YouTube tutorial). You want each piece of yarn to get sewn around at least twice, securing it to the pieces on either side of itself. Work your way all the way down the full length, if you have to start a new piece of thread start back a little from the ending spot.

Once you're done, turn it over and cut the yarn right down the middle of the opposite side. When it falls off the Contraption you will now have a row of yarn pieces ready to be attached! You will need to make multiple of these to cover the doll's head how you want. You can make any length of hair this this method!

Step 8: Attaching the Hair

Ignore that it changes color here, I ran out of the white yarn I was using so I dug out some wefts leftover from a different doll. The process is the same!

Time to sew on the hair! Generally Raggedy Ann & Andy dolls will have a line of hair along the side seam of the head, and the rest covering the back. Pin the wefts in place and whipstitch along the side that won't be seen. If you're hand-sewing wefts like this, don't cut them!!! Your thread WILL unravel.

Step 9: Hair Loopies

Raggedy Ann has a very iconic little topknot, so here's how to make that if you like! You'll need decently long hair for this.

Take a section of hair from the front where the bangs are and section it off. Tie a piece of thread around the end and wrap it around a few times until tight, then fold back the entire bundle so it sits on top of her head. Sew it down to where the weft begins. And you'll get little loops!

That's all for now!

Check up on the masterpost for how to make the clothes!

[cooking-thru-shortstack]

Savory Sweet Potato Soufflés - 5 Stars

Vegetarian

It doesn't matter if you've never had a soufflé, or even seen one in person -- the one universal thing that everyone knows about soufflés is that they are impossible to make. It's very intimidating to even think of making one, as they seem (from what you pick up from early 90's sitcoms) designed to collapse and make a failure of you.

This is the first soufflé I've ever made, and it went off without a hitch! It wasn't even that difficult to do, just very involved.

Granted, this recipe is for one large one or 6 small ramekin-sized ones, as seen above (and I only made a half recipe, as I don't have 5 roommates on hand), but they were so big in flavor. They're slightly deflating here, but they had that great soufflé rise fresh out of the oven. Even Boyfriend finished his with great enthusiasm, despite him assuming he'd only try a bite out of politeness.

I've never had a sweet soufflé, but this is an impressive thing to pull off if I do say so about myself. Don't be afraid to try it, the flavors and the bragging rights are worth it!

Ingredients:

1 cup roasted sweet potato flesh

4 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature, divided

1/2 cup finely grated Pecorino-Romano cheese (about 1.25 oz), divided [Don't be turned off by the funk of this sheep cheese, it's essential for the flavor]

1 cup finely chopped onion [I used a red onion for this]

1 garlic clove, finely chopped [per usual, I did 4x the amount of garlic]

1 1/2 tsp finely chopped oregano leaves

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup whole milk

1 cup grated Gruyére cheese (about 2 1/2 oz)

4 large eggs, separated into whites and yolks

Preheat the oven to 350˚ with the uppermost rack in the middle position.

Pass the flesh through a food mill or potato ricer into a very large bowl.

Use 2 tbsp of butter to grease the inside of 6 individual six-ounce soufflé molds or one 2-quart soufflé dish. Add 1/4 cup of the Pecorino to the dish (or divid among the molds), turning them (or it) in your hands to evenly coat the inside(s) with cheese.

In a large saucepan, melt the remaining 2 tbsp of butter over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and oregano and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, about 15 minutes. Stir in the flour and 1/2 tsp of pepper and cook, stirring constantly, until the flour begins to takes on a light-golden color and smells nutty, about 2 minutes. Add the milk and 1/2 tsp of salt and bring to a simmer, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan to release the flour, until the sauce thickens, about 3 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the Gruyére until melted. Add the mashed sweet potatoes and stir until combined. Whisk in the egg yolks, one at a time, until well incorporated.

In a large bowl, add the egg whites and a generous pinch of salt. Using an electric hand mixer, beat the egg whites until they hold soft peaks, about 3 minutes. Use a spatula to gently fold a quarter of the whipped egg whites into the sweet potato mixture. Repeat with the remaining whipped egg whites, adding a quarter at at time. Don't overmix.

Divide the mixture into a soufflé mods or dish, filing them about three-quartes full. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of Pecorino and a few grinds of black pepper over the top. Use a damp towel to wipe any stray soufflé base from the rim of the mold (to allow it to rise evenly).

Bake the soufflé(s) until golden brown and puffy and the top beings to crack in sections, about 35 minutes for individual soufflés and about 45 minutes for one large soufflé. Serve immediately.

[starriedoll]

ㅤㅤㅤ- - The Sofest Blowout Tutorial - -

୨୧ What you'll need + why . . .

Round brush - For this style, choose a medium-large size. This is the brush used to hold + style the hair while drying.

Blowdryer + concentrator attachment - To dry the hair, of course.

Tail comb - To section the hair.

Large clips - To hold the hair in separate sections. (Claw clips would work).

Leave-in serum - To soften the hair and reduce frizz. My personal favorite is Biosilk.

Blowdry spray - Acts as a softer heat protectant + smooths the hair. I like the Kenra Blowdry Spray.

Volumizing spray - To give the hair volume and lift at the root. I would recommend Paul Mitchell Extra Body Boost.

୨୧ Instructions . . .

Begin by fully wetting and detangling the hair. If you proceed when dry, the hair will not hold the blowout as well.

Apply your leave-in serum to the hair. You shouldn't need too much, depending on how thick the hair is. Go for about a dime-quarter size.

Using your tail comb, section the hair in a straight line down the middle of the head, from the forehead to the neck. Clip one side of the sectioning out of the way. Section the other side from the top of the head to the ear and section the front part out of the way. Repeat with the other side and let the back down. This should look like a T from the top view. (The picture is down below, ignore the parting with an X).

4. With the back section let down, use your tail comb to section a thin parting about an inch above the neck. Clip up the rest of the hair. 5. Holding the bottle a good distance from the hair strand, lightly spray the blowdry spray over it. Lift up the hair to face the ceiling and spray the root of the hair underneath the strand with the volumizing spray. If you spray too close, the product with clump up in the hair. 6. Holding the round brush in your dominant hand, and your blowdryer in your non-dominant hand, lift up the hair with the brush, and the hair strand facing towards the ceiling. Blowdry the root of the hair underneath the strand about 75%. Keep the blowdryer constantly moving back and forth, as to not burn the scalp. This step will add lots of volume. 7. Lower the brush so the hair strand is sitting straight out from the head and place the concentrator nozzle on the blowdryer close to the brush, facing towards you. If the air is flowing up the strand, towards the head, it will cause lots of frizz. Move the brush from the root to the bottom of the strand, the blowdryer following right behind it. Repeat until the strand is fully dry. 8. Once dry, use the brush to twirl the ends of the hair towards the head. Do this for at least 8 seconds, before turning the blowdryer off. Do not cool shot it, this causes frizz. Instead, continue twirling the ends of the hair with the brush without the blowdryer for another 8 seconds. This will cool the hair enough. 9. Repeat using 1 inch sections until you reach the top of the head, or the top of the section. 10. Repeat, but on both sides of the head, or the other two sections. 11. Adjust to how you think is necessary.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤComplete !!

[the-autistic-agoraphobe]

Autistic April Day 20: Echolalia

Just like many other Autistic people I partake in Echolalia which is when I repeat things that I hear. Sometimes it's immediately after I hear it and sometimes doing something triggers it.

The other day I was at a buffet getting my self a hotdog to each when I said "mmmm hotdog needs mustard" in an American sounding accent (I'm Australian). I recall my furby connects using the same phrase sometimes.

One other time I was the can with my mum when a car infront of up stopped abruptly. Mum had to put her foot down on the breaks to stop the car and I joked about her giving me whiplash. Than I said "Whiplash whiplash call my lawyer" Unicourse who is a uncorn puppet says that in Bluey.

I feel like I get most of my delayed echolalia from furbys and Bluey. I think echolalia feels good like stimming feels and I think it can benefit Autistic people alot in terms of regulation. I feel as though people should be able to say what they want as long as its not hurtful to anyone.

Image Descriptions:

1:Tay-boo is a furby connect. She has a round shaped body that is covered in light pink fur. On the top of her head she has a white antenna that is round at the top. Her ears have big holes in the middle them and are oval like shaped. The back of the ears are light pink and the front of the ears are hot pink. Tay-boo is wearing a dark blue sleep mask that has yellow sides and a picture of two closed eyes in yellow. At the top of the mask there is a yellow part that is shaped like her light sensor. Tay-boo has a small orangey yellow beak. She has two feet at the bottom of her body that has three toes each. The toes are half light pink and half hot pink. She is infront of paint sample cards of various colours.

2: There are a list of prompts for each day of the month for Autistic April. The top and bottom of the image is light purple and the middle part of the image is white with black text on it. The black text says "Autistic April 2024 Prompts: 1: Special interests 2: How you found out you were Autistic 3: your favourite stim 4: alternative forms of communication 5: your favourite fidget toys 6: textures you hate 7: safe foods 8: other disabilities you have 9: LBGTQI+ 10: childhood special interests11: comfort items 12: your favourite Autistic celebrities or characters13: unmasking 14: sensory aids 15: misdiagnosis 16: Autism friendly places 17: Disability support you have received 18: animals 19: favourite thing about being Autistic 20: echolalia 21: idenity first or Person first language 22: the spoon theory 23: colours that represent Autism (not blue) 24: Autistic owned small businesses 25: meltdowns and/or shutdowns 26: Your clothing prefences 27: Self care 28: Relatable Autism memes 29: Accessibility 30: routines" There is an infinity symbol that is half red and half gold on the top right corner of the white section. End Description.

[waterlilyunit5]

Garment Construction Continued

After the heart shaped apertures were completed, the hems of each pattern piece were overlocked with light blue thread to blend in with the denim. The waist seam did not need overlocking as it would be sewn into a waistband.

Each hem was pressed over at 1cm, and sewn with the double yellow thread.

Each side seam was sewn together.

A waistband from a pair of jeans was unpicked apart, and cut to the right length (so would fit around my waist and overlap around 2cm) 

On one half of the waistband, I used chalk to market out eight equal sections, and then used red/orange chalk to mark out the centre/middle of each section.  

When pleating in the skirt by hand, right sides together, the different coloured markings will give me a guide for where each seam should be placed, as well as the centre of each pattern piece. 

Pleats were pinned and then tacked in with black thread, making sure to tack in each pleat at least once, and twice for security. 

The pleated skirt was then sewn into the waistband at 1cm, along where the original seam allowance on the waistband was 

The other half of the waistband was also marked out eight equal times in white chalk, and then red chalk to mark out the centre of each section. This was for the second layer (bottom layer). 

So the points of the bottom layer’s pattern pieces could centre in-between the top layer’s points, one of the pattern pieces were cut down the centre, and the loose half of the pattern piece was sewn to the other side of the pattern piece. (for example, each pattern piece has a number, 1-8 One and eight aren’t joined together but the other pattern pieces are. Half of ‘1’ was cut off and sewn onto ‘8’) 

The remaining raw edges of the skirt were overlocked with black thread 

This time the skirt was pleated wrong side to right side, so when both waistbands or joined and sewn together, both layers of the skirt face the correct way. 

The pleats were pinned and then tacked in, before being sewn at 1cm 

Both waistbands were sewn together at 1cm, right sides together. 

A second denim waistband as unpicked, this time leaving one edge still topstitched together. 

20-30 beltloops were unpicked from all my denim, ready for the crosshatch pattern 

Two belt loop was placed onto the second waistband at a time, right sides together, one crossed over the other to make an ‘X’.  

Each ‘X’ was pinned into the seam allowance of the waistband 

The step was repeated with remaining beltloops, placing each ‘X’ side by side, and arranging it to make sure it was neat/even. 

Once the full waistband was covered, still leaving 1cm on each side for seam allowance, each beltloop was tacked in place, before sewing them to the waistband.  

The beltloops and waistband were lined up with the other waistband (the one with the skirt sewn in), and pinned in place, before being sewn right sides together. 

All four waistband seams were topstitched together with double yellow thread 

The side seams of the skirt (side seams of black bottom layer) were sewn together up to the hip point, and the raw end s of the piping were folded inwards and handstitched down, so it wasn't visible. 

A zip was then pinned right sides together, making sure each section lined up with the other side, before being sewn together with a zipper foot. 

The zip was then pressed and topstitched to keep the seam down. 

(denim flower construction on blog, another post) denim flowers were then arranged and pinned onto garment until I was satisfied with the placement, and were handstitched onto the waistband, making sure to carefully sew down each petal so they wouldn't continue to curl up. 

After the heart shaped apertures were completed, the hems of each pattern piece were overlocked with light blue thread to blend in with the denim. The waist seam did not need overlocking as it would be sewn into a waistband.

Each hem was pressed over at 1cm, and sewn with the double yellow thread.

Each side seam was sewn together.

A waistband from a pair of jeans was unpicked apart, and cut to the right length (so would fit around my waist and overlap around 2cm) 

On one half of the waistband, I used chalk to market out eight equal sections, and then used red/orange chalk to mark out the centre/middle of each section.  

When pleating in the skirt by hand, right sides together, the different coloured markings will give me a guide for where each seam should be placed, as well as the centre of each pattern piece. 

Pleats were pinned and then tacked in with black thread, making sure to tack in each pleat at least once, and twice for security. 

The pleated skirt was then sewn into the waistband at 1cm, along where the original seam allowance on the waistband was 

The other half of the waistband was also marked out eight equal times in white chalk, and then red chalk to mark out the centre of each section. This was for the second layer (bottom layer). 

So the points of the bottom layer’s pattern pieces could centre in-between the top layer’s points, one of the pattern pieces were cut down the centre, and the loose half of the pattern piece was sewn to the other side of the pattern piece. (for example, each pattern piece has a number, 1-8 One and eight aren’t joined together but the other pattern pieces are. Half of ‘1’ was cut off and sewn onto ‘8’) 

The remaining raw edges of the skirt were overlocked with black thread 

This time the skirt was pleated wrong side to right side, so when both waistbands or joined and sewn together, both layers of the skirt face the correct way. 

The pleats were pinned and then tacked in, before being sewn at 1cm 

Both waistbands were sewn together at 1cm, right sides together. 

A second denim waistband as unpicked, this time leaving one edge still topstitched together. 

20-30 beltloops were unpicked from all my denim, ready for the crosshatch pattern 

Two belt loop was placed onto the second waistband at a time, right sides together, one crossed over the other to make an ‘X’.  

Each ‘X’ was pinned into the seam allowance of the waistband 

The step was repeated with remaining beltloops, placing each ‘X’ side by side, and arranging it to make sure it was neat/even. 

Once the full waistband was covered, still leaving 1cm on each side for seam allowance, each beltloop was tacked in place, before sewing them to the waistband.  

The beltloops and waistband were lined up with the other waistband (the one with the skirt sewn in), and pinned in place, before being sewn right sides together. 

All four waistband seams were topstitched together with double yellow thread 

The side seams of the skirt (side seams of black bottom layer) were sewn together up to the hip point, and the raw end s of the piping were folded inwards and handstitched down, so it wasn't visible. 

A zip was then pinned right sides together, making sure each section lined up with the other side, before being sewn together with a zipper foot. 

The zip was then pressed and topstitched to keep the seam down. 

(denim flower construction on blog, another post) denim flowers were then arranged and pinned onto garment until I was satisfied with the placement, and were handstitched onto the waistband, making sure to carefully sew down each petal so they wouldn't continue to curl up. 

[morgan-is-here]

Yes I am still thinking about A Mechsummer Night’s Dream. There are notes of a plot but we’re getting there.

Ngl I’ve mainly just been doing these Titania outfits.

I wasn’t expecting to like the steampunk one so much but wow. I love the rainbow wings though.

Which one is your favourite?

[ID:6 digital drawings of Raphaella La Cognizi in the same pose, standing arms by her side and loking over a shoulder. She also has the same loose hairstyle, but is wearing different outfits with different wings. All are drawn on the same aged paper background and all are coloured in a slightly messy watercolour style.

First image: A single version in the centre. She wears a green 1860s ballgown with leaf patterns running up and down. The skirt is large, floor length and circular. The bodice has a low wode neckline and short ruffled sleeves. She has large bat like wings similar to those she's usually photographed with, but more animal like. To the left is hand written "1860s"

Seond image: Two versions. The left wears a white edwardian dress. A high, flat nekline, midlength, slightly puffed sleeves and slightly pulled in waist. The bodice has flower details, the same detaling is repeated around the hems of the skirt. She has wings made from strips of differnt coloured fabrics all draped from a single wooden frame. To her write is hand written "Edwardian" The right wears a white dress with abstract flowers wrapping around the skirt and boddice. The top is sleveless with large straps that run accros the v neckline. The boddice ends in a point. The skirt is circular but not as large as in image 1 and appears to have lots of thin layers. She has black and purple butterfly wings, the purple being bluer on the top half and pinker on the bottom half. She also wears flowers thoughout her hair. To her left is hand written "1937 Titania"

Third image:Two versions. The left wears a very light blue dress sleeveless. It's very loose but thin fabric that clings to the body. The dress bunches in the middle and the lower seciton of the dress has a lot of creases and folds. The shape of her legs can be made out from how the fabric lays. Over each shouder and thin strip of fabric drapes. On her upper arm she wears a gold band. She has fairy wings, like butterly wings but much more segmented and with jagged edges. The colours transition from pink to purple to blue to green from top to bottom. They are rounder at the bottom and more jagged at the top. The right wears a simple very light blue straight dress that becomes sheer near the bottom, her shins and feet can be seen slightly through the fabric. Over top is an opaque layer of the same colour. It cuts off at the bust in the centre but either side fabric drapes down to about knee lenght. A similar drape can be seen going down her back to her shin. The opaque sections have a red leaf like pattern around the edge. The dress is sleeveless. She has dragonfly wings of many colours blended together. The main colours appear to be blues, greens, purples and reds. In the centre between the two is handwritten "Athenian"

Fourth image: A single version in the centre. She wears a red corset with golden leaf detailing. Under is a frilly blouse with wide low neckline that joins to short, off shoulder sleeves. Her skirt is a dark burgandy. The centre is slightly ruffled and reaches to her knees, with a pleated ruffle at the end. On the sides of the skirt is 3 overlapping layers of fabric, eventually reaching floor length. Each layer has a pleated ruffle and drapes slightly. She wears fishnets under black boots with a brown lace up section. Only one of the boots is fully visable, the other hidden under skirt. On her wrists she wears red fabric wrist cuffs with lace edges. She wears a similar choker with an opal in the centre. She also wears a necklace lower down with a smiliar opal. Her wings are clearly mechanical. Ther are bronze pistons, pullies and gears along the rigde. There are 2 layers of matal feathers, the frist silver and the larger layer underneith in gold. The rest of the wings are made up buy fabric in a bat wing shape. There are pannels alternating light and dark between bronze rods. To the left is written "Classic Steampunk" /End ID]

[jasper-pagan-witch]

Because I’m a organization nerd, and always want a peak into other people’s organization systems:

86. How do you like to organize all your witchy items and ingredients? (Or books, I’d love to hear about you personal library system.)

Hello Stag! (Can I call you Stag? Is that cool?)

Witchcraft Asks #1-105

86: How do you like to organize all your witchy items and ingredients?

*cracks knuckles* There are a lot, so get ready. Luckily, I've already discussed my abhorrent grimoire system on October 10th (and...the post is already outdated...), so I won't repeat that here. Let me split this up.

Crystals

All of my tumbled and raw crystals are in two plastic jewelry organizers with movable walls. I've recently had to put my aventurine in with the rest of my quartz, amethyst, and citrine because I needed more room. I need another that's also strong.

My crystal beads are in a weaker plastic organizer because I've been making friendship bracelets- I MEAN ROSARIES for the deities on my altar. Just got Azura's done tonight!

The jewelry that I didn't make for deities with real crystals is in this little wooden jewelry box that looks like a small chest of drawers. I have two morganite rings, a hematite ring, a red jasper ring (of fucking course), a malachite bead bracelet, and two bracelets with many miscellaneous crystals in the top compartment. The middle compartment holds all of my bracelets with pendants/charms and my bracelets that are set in small cuffs. The bottom compartment holds necklaces.

Did I mention that I don't wear jewelry?

Additional shoutout to the Giant Fucking Rock Box which holds my bigger crystal pyramids, spheres, and raw chunks, and the carved or large crystals scattered across my desk.

Tarot and Oracle Decks

All of my 58 current decks are currently lined up in height order across the tops of the three plastic three-drawer containers that hold my clothes. There is no further categorization, I just fucking memorize their heights to find them.

Herbs and Blends

My dried basil (that's actually Cernunnos' dried basil), my Bloody Mary mix, the two different cinnamon sugar blends, and my small vial of Bree's Banishing Powder are all tucked together on the back corner of my desk.

Current Deity and Altar Locations

Since being displaced from my room, I've had to put all the deities I honor, venerate, worship, and work with on one altar. I just had to bring in a second shelf because I brought home Skull Friend from The Field. They're in places where they seem to work fine.

Books

The piece de resistance or whatever the fuck. As y'all may know, I'm a librarian now. This is NOT reflected in my book organization.

Section One: Mythology, History, Religion, and Geography. This is perhaps the second-strangest section of my book collection and is currently 24 books strong. Shoutout to the book about the Freemasons that I found in my stepdad's stuff, my copy of the Necronomicon that I lost behind the laundry basket on Monday, and Mortellus and Tomas Prower for writing my favorite books in there.

Section Two: Regional. This includes stuff about folk magic (both Ozark and Appalachian), city magic, and people getting high and musing on broadscale Celtic practices. This section has 9 books.

Section Three: Tarot. And, to a lesser extent (that being one book), divination more broadly. I actually like a lot of these books, which isn't hard because there are only 6 books here.

Section Four: Beginner. It is no secret that I am a simp for Bree's book Grovedaughter Witchery, but there are other good ones in here too. There are also 6 books in this one.

Section Five: Spell Books. I've gotten along with several blogs on here by shitting on some books in this section, but they're in here nonetheless. This section actually has 11 books, making it one of the slightly chunkier sections.

Section Six: Correspondences. I don't actually recommend most of the books I use for correspondences. There are 13 books here covering stuff like crystals, trees, elements, and symbols.

Section Seven: Gardening. Only one is specifically magical, but I suck at gardening and need help. There are 5 books here and some are specifically about Missouri gardening.

Section Eight: Literary. Not necessarily magical, but important literary collections. Edgar Allen Poe, Brothers Grimm, Dante, et cetera. This is 6 books but deserves its own category because of how absolutely CHONKY they are.

Section Nine: Miscellaneous Fuckery. Astrology, self-care, green witchcraft, hearth witchcraft, necromancy or death witchcraft, candles, and so on and so forth. This is 14 books strong and is my "fuck that" corner of my collection.

These numbers do not include the books I put in storage because I hated them. This is still 89 books. It does not look like that much.

Oh, they're also stacked on their backs, not set up in lines so you can read the spines. I either memorize where they are or I lose them behind the laundry basket.

Other Tools

I have some general "fuck that" drawers that hold other tools, like my knife collection, bandanas and scarves, a hilarious amount of shampoo/conditioner/lotion, and so forth. There's also a giant, heavy tote out in storage that has my candles. I have too many candles and not enough time to light them. This is what I can do with the single room and storage that is available to me.

Don't copy my organization system.

~Jasper

[simon-x-billy]

Simon x Billy

Chapter 7: Where’s the helipad

Most gifs from @vousnavezrienvu If I have left an image or gif of yours uncredited, please tell me

AN: Enjoy the sweet sweet sounds of helicopter blades slicing through the air. I love the helicopter scene so much. It is happy-making. It just makes me love both of them for each other. (Let's ignore the fact that I wrote it.) And it's been sitting there patiently, completed, waiting for me to write literally every chapter before this one.

We are so close to the sex, guys. So close. This is the last SFW chapter for a while. Bask in the virginal dude-bro atmosphere, and let people know that you read the chapters before they were cool.

TW: Drunkenness. If alcohol is triggering for you, no need to read the last teeny section after we first meet Barry. Rest assured that Simon gets home safely and says cute stuff, then happily goes to bed.

Masterlist | Start: Chapter 1 | Prev: Chapter 6 | Next: Chapter 7.5

Playlist! 1. Me Myself & I by De La Soul || 2. Mirror in the Bathroom by English Beat || 3. Sunday Bloody Sunday by U2

Chapter 7: Where’s the helipad

—--/Simon/—--

I am trying to stop thinking about falling to my death. Give me a minute.

Ok, so this is…..This is a long flight of fucking rickety, wind-blasted wood. Not like that metal set of stairs with all the switchbacks I was complaining about last time I encountered stairs. I take all of my complaints back about that place. That was the height of stair-building technology by comparison. This place is just…..language fails me, like I’m picturing the stairs failing me any second now.

So have I mentioned that the Hotel di Limoni was originally a private home? Pretty big family, I guess. Prolly a summer vacation villa, cuz this coastline has been a summer-getaway spot for centuries. Scratch that. For millenia. Yes, the view from my room is insanity. But what you can’t view from up in my room is the tiny strip of beach wayyyyy down there at the bottom.

Both shots are from the website of the actual Hotel La Tonnarella, which is the hotel I based my fictional hotel on. Yes, it really looks like that. Yes, I did stay there. Best decision I’ve ever made. You can faintly see the stairs, at left. It’s that pale diagonal line down the cliff from the hotel at top left down toward the beach, crossing right in front of that ruin in the middle, halfway down the cliff.

Beaches are a rarity on the Amalfi Coast. Anybody with two inches of it will stick a beach umbrella in it. So imagine owning the only access to an entire beach. There is one stairway, and the hotel owns it. Yeah, its size is probably more aptly described as a mini-beach, but still, it is a goldmine for a hotel. And the public pay handsomely for what the guests get for free: a beach lounger. (These are pebble beaches. Nobody wants to lie on sharp and lumpy rocks.)

The only other access to the beach is from the water. And there are a lot -- I mean a lot of yachts around here. They will never, ever look normal to me. But they’re starting to look like a normal thing around here. And I’m told these aren’t even the big ones. Fuck me.

Anyway, we’ve seen the (only) road and there’s definitely no place to do my morning run. It doesn’t even have a shoulder. I guess if I can’t run without being squashed, I could do the steps when I wake up. Better than nothing. It’s just… we’ve seen that I hate stairs. Steep stairs. Cliff stairs.

Fuck. Besides being terrifying, it was tiring just getting down here. What am I going to do when I have to go back up?

Anyway, Billy’s working down here today. And I really feel like disrupting his job well done.

“Will yeh just look at your man now. Down the beach, explorin,” he calls, as I approach the hotel’s beach cafe. “You didn’t take the stairs, did yeh?”

“Um, yeah? I wanted to see the beach.”

“Why didn’t yeh take the lift?”

I fix the man to his spot with a very frowny, very deep, “Would you mind repeating that, Billy?” Like if Patrick Warburton was playing me in the movie. I can barely see through my eyes that have now narrowed to slits of disbelief and distrust. “There’s an elevator?”

“Well, yeah man. How else are people meant to get down here? The cliff’s a dangerous way down, innit.”

Ok, Lewis. You can incorporate this new information without flipping out. Just be proud of yourself for facing your fears. You descended steep, unsafe stairs. Good job! And you were only vaguely terrified the whole time. Good job!

“Is the cliff so dangerous that they should close it down due to the mounting death toll? Or is it only dangerous in an inoffensive, cute way?”

He huffs out a quick laugh, then returns to slicing up lemons and limes.

“Billy? That was an actual question. Care to provide an answer?”

“Meh, it’s safe enough,” he says. And that, ladies and gentleladies, is all I need to convince me I can indeed use this as my new Italian morning exercise routine. 1. Cliff, 2. Coffee, 3. Cliff, 4. Vomiting coffee. Perfect.

—--/-/—--

I’ve spent the week forging a grudging relationship with the beach stairs.

I’m getting a little more used to it. I have a few specific stones and broken twigs I’ve chosen as landmarks, whenever I require reassurance that I am indeed climbing down the right cliff. And if I’ve survived it the last four mornings, I can survive it a fifth time. Flawless reasoning.

Behind the bar, Billy gives me a wave as he sees me approaching. “You packed, man?”

My insides instantly start fizzing. I am so freaking pumped. I got us an airbnb in Naples for the weekend so we can check out Sabina’s show tomorrow night. Billy could not say yes fast enough. He’s a social guy, and there’s not a lot of nightlife around here. I have no idea how he’s managed it all this time. Oh wait. He’s managed it with women. Lots of women.

Over the last week, I’ve come to the realization that management does not mind a guest hanging out at the bar distracting their employee all day, because while that person is distracting the employee, he is also ordering drink after drink, and healthy fruit-based foods. It’s like they’ve realized that my distraction of Billy might actually be lucrative for them.

“I have come to a decision,” I declare as I take my seat at the bar. “We need a convertible.”

“Sorry?”

“A convertible. We need one.”

“Yeah, mate, heard yeh.”

“What, it’s a convertible!”

Billy remains unmoved. “Why can’t we take the train? It’s simplest-”

“We are not taking the train.”

“But I quite like the train.”

“Because you’re insane and don’t like convertibles.”

“See now, I never said I don’t like convertibles. I-”

“I need to do something.” Because my brain just exploded with potential.

“What?”

“Be an Ugly American.”

“Em, that sounds terrible,” he says.

“If you’re gonna be American, you might as well own it. Watch me own it, Billy, just watch me.”

He still looks wary. “That sounds-”

“Awesome.”

“-terrible. You’re not going to wear one of them caps with straws into beer cans, are yeh? Actually, I might pay yeh to do that.” He snorts at whatever he’s picturing.

“Ok, not that ugly.”

I’ve got the phone out and I’m already dialing before I’ve even reached the stairs. And then I remember I can also take the elevator.

—--/-/—--

You ever notice there’s an ugh in ugly?

Billy has finally met up with me at the fountain by the hotel entrance. Thank god, cuz I really don’t want him to miss the arrival of that Ugly American thing that required a phone call.

“There you are, Delaney. MWAH hah ha ha hahhhhh! Prepare to hear the sweet sweet sound of helicopter blades pulsing through the air. It’s done, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it.”

“Simon-”

“So where’s the helipad?” I inquire.

“The what now? Mate, it’s not that kind of hotel. Why are we taking a helicopter to the city?”

“The appropriate response would normally be ‘because we can’-”

“That is not a normal response.”

“-but not this time,” I finish. “That’s not the real idea.”

“Oh, so you’re tellin me this is a superfluous helicopter. That is ugly.”

“No! It is most definitely not superfluous.”

“Your carbon footprint’ll be spendin all eternity in hell, man.”

“Billy.”

“Simon.”

“Stop talking. And just enjoy the mounting anticipation. The mellow sense of terror. Or at the very least a nasty case of creeping dread.  MWAH hah ha ha hahhhh!”

“Stop it, mate. You’re gettin evil genius all over my uniform. And you know how I feel about laundry.”

“Just a little bicarbonate of soda. Gets out even the most organic of stains. MWAH hah ha ha hahhhhh.”

“Simon.”

“Billy.”

“Stop talkin. Like an evil genius. Stop evil cackling all the time. We’re gettin complaints.”

“Are not.”

“From me. I’m complainin.”

“What am I going to wear?”

“Simon. Oh my god.”

“I’m serious! I packed for Italy in ten minutes. It’s all socks and shorts.”

He’s shaking his head at me. For some reason, this makes me happy. In my tummy.  How novel. And then…

“Is that the fire alarm?” he asks.

“Huh? I mean, MWAH hah ha ha haaaah, oh no. It is the sweet sweet purring of a helicopter bearing my booty.”

Billy jumps on it swiftly. “You didn’t think that one through, mate.”

“Oh, but yes, yes I did. The booty is worth baring. Can you feel it? The heady excitement of anticipation? The mellow terror?”

“Yes. I feel the terror,” he says blandly.

“That would be the best cologne flavor ever. Mellow Terror, by Simon Lewis. Pour homme.”

“Are you manic right now?”

—--/Billy/—--

I was joking, but Simon just went very still. I’ve put my foot in, haven’t I?

“I am a bit manic, am’nt I?” he offers, with a fake little laugh.

“Somethin wrong with your shoes, mate? Simon, man, my eyes are up here.”

“Just wait til you see what I’ve done,” he says, sheepishly, eyeing me from under his caterpillars.

“Simon. Should I be worried?”

“Oops?”

Oops? I haven’t a clue what to do with oops.

He grabs me excitedly by the forearm and starts dragging me toward the hotel gates.

That’s…Wait, is that-

“Simon. Did you buy a Mini Cooper?”

“A convertible Mini Cooper.”

“But why ?” I ask the reasonable question.

“Because I can!” He’s practically vibrating. I can tell he wants to do his jumping-clapping thing by the way he’s currently bouncing on his toes.

“Simon.”

“Billy.”

“You bought a Mini Cooper. Convertible, ” I swiftly add. “You’re in the land that built the Maserati, the Lamborghini, the Ferrari, and every other sports car that ends in i-”

“Not Audi.”

I huff in annoyance, “-and you bought a convertible Mini Cooper. And had it airlifted here. Because you could.”

“I’ve always wanted a convertible Mini Cooper.”

“But not a convertible Ferrari,” I clarify.

“No.”

“Who are you?”

“I’m awesome,” he answers, because he’s Simon.

I decide not to mention that we could have skipped the car altogether and taken the helicopter to Naples.

This is so childish, and impetuous, and reckless, and I refuse to find the actions of a grown man adorable. Jaysus.

“Oh my god!” he squeaks. “They were driving Minis in The Italian Job!!!”

Shaking my head. Just shaking my head.

“Did you have them airlift in some clothes, too?”

“Shit! I totally should have!” He appears to actually mean that.

“You should see your face,” he hoots. Feckin hoots, all half bent over from laughin.

And now he’s ignoring me. It’s like I’m not even there. He only has eyes for his Mini. “Oh my god it’s so kawaii.”

His smile is kawaii.

“Go away,” he flaps a hand at me. “I want to fangirl freely and without judgment from a judgy Irishman.”

“Fine. I need to pack anyway.”

And off behind me I hear him call, “Wait! What am I gonna wear?”

Shaking my head. Just shaking my head.

—--/-/—--

I’ve gathered my gear, and I can see Simon out by the car park. I’m hitching up my pack, so it isn’t really until I’ve cleared all the foliage, that I realize Simon is humping his Mini Cooper convertible. “All right?” I ask, tryin to keep a straight face.

“Oh, yes. All is definitely right,” he purrs.

“Have you turned her on yet, or is it just you who’s turned on?”

He slides off the car til his Converse hit the pavement with a slap.

Now he’s draping himself over the boot. I can’t help it that I’m laughing. Sometimes he just hits me at exactly the right moment to set me to belly laughin. Doesn’t happen often with Simon, but when it does, he wears the greatest surprised happy face I’ve ever seen. This time there’s giggling. Off to a good start, which is good. Yes. Good.

I hesitate. “Look, mate. Will this thing actually fit us? Have you tried?” I eyeball the car. “I am quite seriously concerned that we might actually need the top down to ride in this thing. How tall are you, anyway?”

“Six feet. Why? How tall are you?”

“Just a bit taller. But not enough for you to get intimidated, mate. I’m sure the ladies won’t notice when I introduce my small friend.”

“You’re short shaming me. No, that’s ok. I don’t take offense. You just seem to need a lot of reassurance about your size, Billy. I mean, sure, it’s ok to want to be bigger. I assume. I wouldn’t know.”

“Mate, get off the boot so I can shove this in there, and we can go.” He does, and I do. “Thanks for not getting the red, white, and blue one.” There is a god. Thank you, Poseidon.

“They were out of orange, white, and green, too.”

“You asked about the tricolor, did yeh?” Alright fine, he’s got me laughin again.

“Fuck out of the driver’s seat!” he roars.

Wow. He looks proper angry. I admit I may have even flinched.

“Don’t you want a car and a driver? No, serious, don’t yeh want me to drive, since I know the way?”

“ Get the fuck out of the driver’s seat, Billy. Now!”

“Alright! Fine, fine. You’ll be usin GPS then, will yeh?”

“Si si si, certo.”

I groan. “This is all about to go so very-”

“Awesome,” he declares. “This is all about to continue to be awesome. Be the change, Billy. Be the change!”

“Oh my god Simon.”

“I can hear you rolling your eyes from here,” he says from behind the boot, which he slams shut a little too hard. I feel it in every moving piece of this tiny automobile. Bigger than a SMART car, so I suppose I shouldn’t be complainin. Well, here’s hoping he’s still so enthused about it at the other end.

“Gotta say, mate. I’m surprised you’d want to drive at all.”

“Why not?”

“Because mate, it’s Italy, innit. Famous for frightenin foreign drivers.” He has to remember what the drivin was like his other three trips down this road. “Well,” I sigh. “At least you get to drive on the wrong side of the road in Italy.”

—--/-/—--

“See? I told you you’d fit.”

“Alright man, you did.”

“Come on, give it up…

“What?” I’m not laughing, I promise. “Is she a smooth ride? I don’t know, man, why don’t yeh start her up ‘n find out?”

“Well there is that. So yeah,” he says as he pulls out of the car park and up to the mouth of the hotel driveway. ��It’s to the left, right?”

“Em, yeah. Yes, the city of Naples is still in the general direction of left. Like the other three times we’ve done this road together.”

He rolls his eyes, and all is right and well in the world. Until the moment he pulls out onto the road. Then I’m brought up quick by the realization that between us we know fuck all about the convertible Mini Cooper. “Wait, where’s the GPS on her, for the flat’s address?”

“I dunno, check the screen thing.” So helpful, my man Simon is.

“Do you even have an Italian driver’s license? Or insurance? I love this guy. How’ve yeh managed to live this long being the way you are?” I pause for an answer, but none is forthcoming. “I mean, fucksake, Simon. You called someone to buy you a car and suddenly you’re on the highway to Naples. Do you even know where the directionals are? Or like, the wipers? D’you know what I mean? Should I be concerned for my safety, Mr. Clever Clogs?”

“Shoosh. Don’t jinx us. Do you need to have registration in Italy? Or insurance? I don’t know. Italy doesn’t really strike me as a big insurance-y type of country.”

“Not a bad point, actually. But I take it you have….whatever, I dunno, papers and all that?”

“Don’t know. What’s in the glove box?” He makes a flappy gesture in the general direction of my knees.

“How are you like this? Were you actually born like this, or did it come with fame and wealth?”

“You mean, was I actually born a flaming asshole, or just become one?”

“Meh. Yeah,” I shrug. “We’ll go with that. So, what’ll it be?”

“Ow. Straight for the throat, Delaney.” His tone is recriminating. “Uncool, man. Uncool.”

I’m flipping through the owner’s manual. Before long, I’ve got the time plugged in, programmed everything for his phone, located the GPS, cued up some tunes, and even found the button to pop the bonnet. “There you go. It’s workin now.”

“What’s working?” he asks.

I shrug. “Everything, man. Everything.”

He barks out a laugh, and I realize I’m smiling to myself. Grumpy fuck.

I plug in the address for the flat and immediately the voice pumping out the radio is a woman speaking Italian. Now I’m fumbling with it again, while Simon’s stuck in a fit of laughter.

“Aw, come on! Let’s see how we do in Italian,” he gasps out.

“Fucksake. See how we do in Italian.” Shaking my head.

“No, seriously. Let’s hear what she has to say, this ummmmm, what should we call her - Maria! Because obviously, Maria.”

“Certo.” That gets me another laugh.

“Santa Maria, show us the way, in Italiano,” he pleads in a truly horrendous accent. “I am so happy right now.”

He says it with a laugh. Such a thing to so easily roll off the tongue. Fella I met a few months ago, I never would have pictured bein happy, let alone noticing it, naming it, declaring it. Nice to see. Unexpected, know what I mean.

“I don’t trust you when you’re quiet that long, Delaney.”

“Hm?”

“Exactly.”

Am I missing something?

“Ok, so.” He clears his throat. “We know who I am. Who are you? Let’s hear it. Who is Billy Delaney?”

Aw, man. Serious? “How long we got?” Please don’t make me.

“How would I know? Maria’s speaking your language, not mine.” He shrugs.

“Fair enough.” I hit play on my playlist, hoping the conversatin will trail off from there. But of course it doesn’t, because this is Simon. Si. Certo.

“What. Do you have some horrible second identity thing going on? Are you really even Irish? Truth time, Delaney.”

“You show me yours, I’ll show you mine?”

“Yeah, ok.”

“Oh.” Uh, erm…..”So, what mate? What do you want to know?” I ask, though truthfully I wish he’d just let it go.

“Is your name really Billy Delaney, and are you actually even from Ireland at all?”

“Yes.”

“Boring.”

“Brief.”

“Obtuse.”

“Si.”

“Oh my god, Billy. So where are you from?”

“Ireland.”

He looks around us rapidly. “Is she going to start speaking Italian? Cuz we just passed Ercolano.”

“Already?”

“Yeah! I know, right? Time flies when you’re torturing someone for information. So should I panic?”

“Nah, we've a bit more road before we turn aside. Maria can sleep on.”

“Alright. I swear to God, Billy. If you don’t start coughing up some details, I'm serious, I will pull this car over. Do I have to pull this car over, kid?”

“Wow, that’s forceful.” Cos it is. “Ow!” I flinch when he swats my shoulder with a backhand.

“Fine, ye bastard. My name is actually Lola, but I go by Billy Delaney. And I’m only mostly joking. One of the summer cousins I used to play soccer with couldn’t say William, when we were little. So for a few months every year, I was Lola. There. Was that not juicy enough for yeh?”

“Charming. But from that I got these few details: 1. You have cousins. Conceivably fertile ground. We could continue that way. 2. You play soccer, and you call it soccer. Isn’t that illegal outside the US? No- don’t answer that. I’m not finished. 3. You go someplace where there are cousins to play soccer with in summer. Are we even still in Ireland?”

Em. I just sort of sit there and wait.

“And you really don’t want to talk about this, do you?”

“You are so easily distracted,” I tease him. “No, but seriously, here’s some details for yeh. I’m 27. I left Ireland at 18, after gettin out of culinary school, and was sent out to do my apprenticeship. That was at a manor house near Galway.”

“And…..”

“That’s not enough?” I thought that was a fair bit of information, if I’m honest.

“Do I have to turn this car around, young man?”

“I feel like I’m missin some essential cultural reference, here.”

“Don’t distract me with your distractions, Delaney. Feed me.”

And that’s when Maria tells us to turn left.

—--/Simon/—--

I can’t fuckin believe that there are Irish pubs in Italy. Nor can I believe I’m  in one. I mean, where do Italians go to watch soccer? This can’t be right.

“All right?”  Billy asks the bartender.

“Howeyeh,” says the man back to him, and Billy’s eyes go comically wide.

Next thing I know, I’m bored stiff, pretending to find the intricacies of European football interesting with a Welsh guy named Barry.

And whoa, turns out Billy’s day-to-day accent is pretty washed out in comparison to the thickness of his accent when he’s speaking to his new BFF. They’re speaking so fast that I can’t understand a word through their accents. Welsh is so much easier.

That is, until I hear a voice disturbingly similar to Billy’s, requesting a Bud.

I swing back around in time to see Billy’s new BFF nod at him and begin turning toward the draft beers.

“No! Wait,” I wave. “He’s only joking,” I say, emphatically shaking my head no.

“Oh,” the Irish bartender looks back to Billy in surprise. “Were you?”

“Course he was! Certo.” Ok, fine. It might not have been Billy’s best-executed joke, but what , does the guy think I’m just making it up?

“Why ‘ of course ’?!” Billy turns on his barstool to face me. “What the fuck, Simon?”

“Sorry if I fucked up your joke, dude, but don’t drag it out, ok?” I say under my breath.

Disparaging other people’s beer of choice is like a national pastime in Brooklyn, because it frequently employs irony, and we are naturally good at it from birth. Don’t blame him, he’s new.

“I’ll take that Bud,” Billy reiterates. “Ta, mate.” The barkeep returns his nod and goes about the business of it.

“Billy? We’ve talked about this. You swore you’re Irish. Were you lying to me? Are you a lying liar who lies?”

“Why do yeh say that?”

“Because you can’t – you’re not – you’re not, like, allowed to drink bad beer when you’re Irish. Isn’t that illegal? Or fatal, or something?”

The big ape is just lazing back against the bar, sipping his pint of piss beer, looking at me in amusement.

“You’re like a caricature of yourself sometimes, Simon, d’yeh know what I mean?”

“Fuckin- What?! That’s not very nice! I’m outraged.”

“You should see yerself, mate. Yeh look like your face is about ready to split down the middle and outrage’ll start pourin out like lava from the fissures.”

I stop and cock my head at him. “That was both specific and descriptive. Nice one. But that said, how dare you! I demand an apology.” I’m trying really hard to keep a straight face. He has no intention of making it easy for me.

“Apologize? For what?” He gives me a cock-eyed grin. Oh look, his cock eyes are doing that twinkly thing again.

“You have offended my good taste and have let down your countrymen and native soil. Or water or whatever it is that makes all beer taste better in Ireland. The least you could do is the decent thing and apologize to your countrymen, and me , and then hide it in your jacket where no one can see you sneaking sips!”

He laughs because he thinks I’m joking.

“Do you just not like beer at all? And that’s why you don’t order the good stuff?”

“Simon, you are such a snob,” he says, and goes right on twinkling.

“Correct. And if you’re going to drink cheap beer, for god’s sake, order PBR and salvage at least some of your self respect.”

“Do you know this man?” the bartender asks Billy. “Is he harassin yeh?”

Billy is now laughing so hard that he’s almost fallen off his stool.

“We know each other,” I reassure the barkeep. “Don’t know how long that’ll last, all considered, though. Check back for updates.” I raise my pint of Guinness in respect.

“It’s czech. Budvar,” the man informs me.

“Ah, no! Why’d yeh tell him, mate!” Billy raises his hands theatrically. I’m telling you, theatre school. “Yeh just had to put him out of my misery, yeah?”

“And my misery,” says the man.

���--/-/—--

Ok, so what is it with the whole pub drunkenly singing “oh-ay-oh-ay” at the top of their drunken lungs, sloshin beer out of their pint glasses, whenever Europeans play soccer. Mebbe they sing it in Southmerica, too. Butwhatevercuz I don’ really care.

If you can’t – beat em then join em. Thassmymott, um, -o. Thassmy motto. Motto.

Where’s Billy? I can’t see him. If thissperson would get out of the frickin way. He’s all backed up against my face’n I can’t see. Anything. Nothin to see here, folks. Move along, people, move along.

Where’s Billy? Oyeah, right right right. Right here in my face.

I figure it’ll be easier to keep track of him if I hold onto his belt loop. Or a pocket or something. Yeah, I’m just gonna hang on to his pocket.

Pocket.

I like the word pocket. Lossa hard consnits that pop. Pop.

Pop.

I like the word pop. It sounz like it pops. And it’s the same backwards and forwards an’itsall about the lips. Pop ’ing.

What? Where’s he going. I’m trailing after him with my hand in his pocket. He keeps pullin it out and I keep puttin it back in. Oth’wise I’m gonna get lost and then where would I be? Huh? I wouldn’t even know !

“Oh! Now I know where we are! We’re on the block where we’re were where gonna sleep.” If make it up th’stairs. But Billy’s helping. He’s nice like that.

“You’re nice like that,” I say with a big smile. “And you‘re funny lookin.”

Wait.

“Oops! I mean yerlookin funny at me right now. Whass funny? ‘m’I funny? Or juss funny lookin?”

I crack myself up. Like in real life, cuz I’m laughing. Right now. Sometimes iss hard to stop laughin but I’ll be ok.

“Billy. Billy! Hey, Billy. What’re you doing? Tryin to get in my pants? That tickles! Oh, hey! Did we win? I mean, I don’really care - just wonren.”

Hey! Tickles! “Stop that! How’dyou know I don’t wanna wear those? I’ll take ‘em off when I feel like it. Prollymaybe take ‘em off tomorrow. Hey! I was wearing that! And that!”

He’s very pushy. “You’re very pushy. Stop pushing.”

I land on the bed and it’s like fluffy clouds of teddybears. “K, fine. I’ll go to bed, jeez .” Alls I wanna do is bury my face in pillow, but can’t breathe when I do that.

“Don’t close the door all the way, Ma. And leave the hall light on, K? g’Night, love you too.”

Masterlist | Start: Chapter 1 | Prev: Chapter 6 | Next: Chapter 7.5

[tj-crochets]

Mini mushroom sewing pattern:

Mini Mushroom Friend Pattern: 1/4" seam allowance is included in the pattern. The dotted line indicates that but is not actually drawn at the 1/4" mark, I just freehanded it (I did measure it on the original pattern)

Cutting instructions:

-cut two (one the reverse of the other) of the body piece -cut four (two reversed) of the arm patterns, if you are adding arms -cut four of the mushroom top piece of your choice (tall or dome shaped. These pieces are symmetrical so you don't have to reverse them) -cut four of the corresponding mushroom cap bottom that goes with the cap shape you chose (these pieces are also symmetrical and do not need to be reversed)

Sewing instructions:

If you are adding arms, take a pair of arm pieces, right side together, and sew aroud the curved outside edge, leaving the short flat section unsewn. Turn right side out through that section and add some stuffing to the "hand" part. Repeat for the second arm

Take the pair of body pieces, put them right sides together, and sew along the curved edges, leaving the short flat section unsewn. Turn right side out through that opening, add some stuffing to the bottom half but leave the top half unstuffed for now

Take a pair of your mushroom cap top pieces, right side together, and sew from the top point to the bottom edge but do not sew along the curved bottom edge. Repeat for the second pair.

Stack the two pairs you just sewed on top of each other, right sides together, making sure the seams align. Sew from one bottom edge, up to the top point, and back down to the other bottom edge. Set this aside for now

Take a pair of your mushroom cap bottom pieces, right side together, and sew from the middle point to the outer edge but do not sew along the curved outer edge. Repeat with the second pair

Stack the two pairs you just sewed on top of each other, right sides together, making sure the seams align. Your opening for turning will be in the middle of this seam; sew the outer edges at least 1/2", but make sure you leave enough in the middle of this seam unsewn so you can turn the mushroom cap right side out later

Take the mushroom cap bottom and put it right side up. Take the mushroom cap top, right side down, and put it on top of the mushroom cap bottom, making sure the curved outer edges line up. Sew along the outer edges, not leaving an opening for turning

Turn right side out, add stuffing, and sew closed the opening for turning

Assembly time! Take your mushroom body and your mushroom cap, and now you are going to experiment with adding more stuffing, tucking the seam allowance at the top of the body in, and cap angles until you find one you like. For now, pin it in place. While it's pinned, add the face (this can be safety eyes, embroidery, applique, whatever you want). The face placement varies wildly depending on preference, height of the mushroom, and arm placement. To aid in face placement, you might want to tuck the top seam allowance of the arms inside them and pin the arms in place as well (again, experiment with placement). Once your mushroom face is complete, sew the cap and body together, and sew on the arms (if using)

Your mushroom friend is complete! If you share a picture on tumblr I'd love to see it if you're willing to tag me or send it to me, but it is in no way a requirement (I understand being shy). Feel free to sell things you make from this pattern as long as you are the one making them, not a factory or anything like that. Enjoy!

Mini mushrooms!

[bastardsofravenkroft-blog]

HOW ARE YOU DOING/WHAT ARE YOU UP TO?

[^PRETEND IT'S SPARKLY AND FUN BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW HOW TO MAKE THE COOL THINGS]

below the cut ~~

So the sparkle things are gifs, which means we need to

1.) make the frames and

2.) turn the frames into a gif

Step 1: Making the frames

I use ibispaint bc its free and has great versatility, it doesnt matter what photo editing app you use it will just change how you add the glitter. To keep this super simple im just going to show you how to glitter

In ibispaint, open whatever size canvas you want/open the image youre glittering. Choose the text tool and add your chosen text

On the bottom row here ^^ you can see a little button with a number two, its where you can open the layer/canvas menu. Click that

Click the "+" on the left hand side, click clipping, and click the dropdown that says "normal" and choose "add" (this is the blending mode). Your screen should now look the same as above.

in the menu on the righthand side (the "tools" menu), click the fx filter icon

Scroll to "artistic"

Fix the settings until they look like the ones above

Type: color

Strength: 75

Amount: 25

And blending mode normal

Click the green check

Now go to the adjust color section and click "exact line drawing" and match it to the settings above

Black: 0

White: 100

And middle: 55

Click the check

The layer is now going to be black rather than the colors it was before, that means youre on the right track

Click the x to leave the filter menu, go back to the layers/canvas menu

Click this little flippy button, "invert layer color" now you should have a glitter layer!! This glitter layer is going to be part of one of our frames

Now repeat the steps of making a new layer, clipping it and changing the blending mode, adding the filters, and inverting the layer color 1-2 more times to have two or three glitter layers (yes theyll be stacked on one another but that is okay for now)

Saving the frames to make a gif:

Now we have several layer, descending they should be:

2-3 glitter layers

A text layer

(And an empty base layer, just ignore it lols its just chillin, u can delete it if you want it doesnt matter)

All these layers have eye images on them. If the eye is dark the layer is visible. If its not its invisible. We are going to save every glitter layer over the text layer individually to get the frames for our gif

The text layer needs to be visible at all times during these next steps.

Turn off the visibility of all the glitter layers except the bottom one (by clicking the eye icon on the layer)

Only one should be visible while we're saving the frames

There is an arrow on the bottom bar all the way at the right

Saving as transparent png makes the background see through like the gif above, save as png makes the background white. Pick whichever, but choose the same one for all of them (if you choose transparent choose transparent for all frames)

Go back to the layer canvas menu, make the glitter layer that is currently visible invisible. Click the eye on the layer above that one to make it visible (the second glitter layer)

Repeat the saving process. If you have a third glitter frame, make glitter frame 2 invisible, glitter layer 3 visible, and save.

Part 2: making the gif itself

go to ezgif dot com. ezgif dot com is the best simple gif maker. ezgif dot com is now your best friend. hashtag not sponsored

Click gif maker

Click "choose files", "photo library", add the glitter frames you made and click add or choose whatever is at the top idr

(I wound up using 3 frames not 2) where it says delay under each gif, delete the "20" and add 12 to one and 13 to the rest (the delay is how much time each frame will take in the gif, using one number thats different keeps tumblr from screwing up and accidentally converting them into videos. Idk why that happens but sometimes it does.)

Ignore all the rest of the settings, you dont need to mess with them just for lil glitter gifs and click the create button at the bottom

Now you can either click download when your gif pops up or you can long press to save it directly to your camera roll

Extra notes:

If you want your glitters to be rainbow, skip the "exact line drawing" and "invert layer color" steps

Ezgif isnt good for high quality gifs. For the gifs on my website i make the frames in ibispaint and use photopea (a free online photoshop) to make the gifs themselves. But thats more difficult to do as you cant really use photopea on mobile without a mouse and its much more complicated (so thats a separate tutorial if you ever need high quality gifs)

[jeeonkinks]

watching interesting stuff with your bestfriend (1/2)

pairing: jungkook × reader

genre: smut

summary: when you invited tour best friend to your house in the middle of the night and both of you found out how to have fun.

rating: 18+

warnings: nsfw, mention of sexual stuff

word count: 1,169

disclaimer: this is purely a fragment of imagination. lowercase intended for aesthetic purpose.

recommended song: friends // chase atlantic

enjoy.

-------

he knocks on the hard wooden door with his knuckles, producing strong tapping sounds. putting his hand back down as he let out a silent deep breath, waiting for response in the middle of the night.

the darkness of the night illuminates the sky as the chilly breeze faintly hits his skin. the sound of leaves being brushed shyly by the wind slows the world down as the padding of the jacket keeps his warmth to himself.

after a few seconds, sounds of footsteps can be heard coming from inside of the house. 

"who is that?" a feminine voice says as she stands at the other side of the door, hand already on the doorknob as she is expecting a person.

"it's jungkook," jungkook replies to his best friend's sentence.

A clicking sound emits as she twists the doorknob, opening about inches wide for her eyes to playfully take a peek at the guy.

jungkook just watches the pair of eyes looking at him in a vertical line as her beautiful long black hair falls into the direction she leans her head on.

the tip of his lips minimally rising. "you don't know my voice now?"

on the other hand, y/n stand up properly as she straightens up her spine, opening the door wider than before.

"of course I don't, duh. we literally call almost everyday"

jungkook raises his eyebrows as his lips become pouty.

"that is a fair point."

a smile makes a way on her lips as she looks at his face. he even looks good in the night light.

his details can clearly be seen as the dim light of the night gives some touch of serenity and sensuality.

don't get it wrong. they are best friends and they don't really have feelings for each other. 

it is just she knows something is pretty when she sees it. 

and she is quite honest about it.

but of course she doesn't really tell jungkook because he will always brag about how beautiful he is. 

"do you want to come in?" she asks as she lean on the door. "says the one who invited me to their house" he answers in one swift.

the reason y/n invited jungkook is one, she misses him, and two, y/n's parents are out to another state. this time they are probably going to be gone for some time since the quarantine is over and her country is proudly covid free.

she just let out a giggle as she moves to the side, giving him a space to walk in. he ambles his way into the house as y/n closes the door behind them, locking it safe.

both of them directly go for the stairs as it is where y/n's room is located.

"what are we going to do?" jungkook asks as his foot steps on another stair with y/n climbing the stairs behind him.

"i don't really know," she replies as her cardigan slips off one of her shoulders, exposing the spaghetti strap of her white top.

as jungkook reaches the top floor, he turns around to look at his friends who are steps away from him.

"want to watch 'interesting stuff' ?" he asks with a small sly smile as y/n's feet finally touch the wide aligned floor.

"what?" she says  as her wrinkles form between her eyebrows. jungkook just turns his back to her, ignoring her meaningless questions as they walk straight to the on their left.

yeah, jungkook is definitely comfortable being in her house. they hang out together so much that each other's home feels like a second home.

their parents know their good friendship so they don't really mind either.

he pushes the gray wooden door, the smell of her room hits her nose. the room smells like strawberry, the scent that is stuck with y/n wherever she is.

the chilly air of the room hits his skin once again, but this time a bearable cool temperature.

looking around, nothing has really changed except for there are definitely more items in the room now.

well she told him she was online shopping a lot because of the quarantine.

he walks to her neat bed, throwing his front on the gray duvet as his legs are hanging on the side of the bed.

he takes a deep breath, needing more of the sweet calming scent.

y/n let out a chuckle as she watches his action, closing the door behind her as she walks closer to his figure. 

she lifts up her hand, giving him a spank as her palm meets his bottom. 

jungkook doesn't bother, instead he just closes his eyes, enjoying how good her bed feels. 

his body bounces as y/n sits on the bed, crawling onto the other side. she rests her back on the headrest, finding a comfortable position as her gaze pinned on the laptop that is sitting on her bed.

she looks at the male beside her, stretching her hand out as she runs her fingers through his soft hair. repeating her action that seems to make him one hundred times relaxed than he already is, she opens up her mouth.

"what do you want to watch?"

hearing that sentence, he lifts his body up to sit properly on the bed. he crosses his legs as he sits besides her. reaching out for the laptop, he grabs the sides of the light metal which is cool due to the air conditioner.

he places the laptop between the two of them. 

his fingers begin to do the work as she watches him, only for her eyebrows slanted inwards.

"why are you turning on the incognito mode?"

the tip of his lip rises as he lets out a smirk.

he begins typing in the search section as her eyes slowly open wide while her lips make an opening gaps. 

pornhub.com

she taps on his arm as she looks at him with a surprised face, a part of her feeling how ludicrous the situation is.

jungkook moves his gaze onto her, a small chuckle making its way out of his mouth.

"so we are finally watching porn together?" y/n utters as both of them look at each other.

yup, they talked about this before. both of them are hella dirty minded. 

plus, being besties that are way too comfortable with each other, of course they chatter about this kinda stuff.

"yes duh. we talked about it a lot of times before but we never got a chance to do it," he states, looking at her soft features.

this honestly feels illegal but at the same time it feels rebellious, giving them the adrenaline which drives them.

it is better when it feels wrong, doesn't it?

"go lock the door," she says as she looks at him. following her precaution, he stands up and locks the door by turning the small lock handle to the side.

he sits on the bed once again, placing his gaze on her. a mischievous smile forms on his lips.

"what kind of p*rn do you want to watch?"

[tearsinthemist]

SPICED LENTIL RICE WITH BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND DATES  // VEGAN ADAS POLO BA KADOO HALVAI

INGREDIENTS

1 medium butternut squash

3 medium yellow onions

150g vegan minced neat

1 cup of pitted dates

2 cups of bulgur wheat (optional)

1 cup of basmati rice (3 cups if omitting bulgur wheat)

1 cup of brown/green lentils

1 tbsp tomato paste

2 tbsp cinnamon

1 tbsp nutmeg

Salt

Pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 180C.

2. Boil 1 cup of lentils in 1/2 tsp of salt and 1 tbsp of cinnamon added to the water. Cook the lentils until tender but slightly firm. Set aside.

3. Cut the butternut squash into around 1cm cubes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake for 20 minutes or until soft.

4. Wash 1 cup of basmati rice and 2 cups of bulgur wheat. Boil in plenty of water with 2 tbsp of salt until half-cooked - usually 8-10 minutes. The rice should be tender but still hard in the middle. Drain the half-cooked rice in a colander, rinse with cold water and set aside.

5. Slice the onions very finely and fry in oil. When slightly golden, add 1 tsp of turmeric. Separate into two sections and set aside. One will be used for inside the rice, and the other half for the garnish.

6. Line the bottom of a large pot with oil, around 2mm. Place lavash bread, pitta bread, thinly sliced potatoes or thinly sliced squash for the tahdig.

7. Layer 1/4 of the cooked rice mixture, 1/4 of cooked lentils, 1/4 of half of the batch of caramelised onions, a sprinkle of nutmeg and cinnamon and mix gently with a fork. Repeat until the pot is full and you have an even mixture of the ingredients.

8. Create a mound shape by raking the sides of the rice up to the middle, and create 5 holes in the mound with the end of your spoon. Pour 2tbsp of oil over the rice with a slotted spoon.

9. Cover the lid with a kitchen towel or a damkoni. Steam the rice over low heat for one hour.

10. Whilst the rice is steaming, sautee the vegan minced meat with 2 tbsp of oil. Add in 1 tbsp of tomato paste, salt, pepper and a sprinkle of nutmeg and cinnamon.

11. Lightly fry/soften the dates and raisins in 1 tbsp of oil or 2 tbsp of water. Mix the butternut squash and the second half of fried onions to the dates and raisin mixture.

12. Serve with the soy mince and butternut squash mixture garnished in rows on top of the rice.

13. Serve with torshi and yoghurt. Enjoy!

Vegan Adas Polo ba Kadoo Halvai (Persian Spiced Lentil Rice with Butternut Squash & Dates)

[emmaknitsanyways]

Sweater pattern!

I knit this sweater top down with raglan increases in the round. There are increases on the top of the sleeves to give it the volume with a ribbed cuff to give it a balloon shape. The neckband is added at the end by picking up the neckband stitches. I did knit this to be slightly cropped, so finish the hem where you feel comfortable. This pattern was made for my size. My chest is 35”, and the sweater measures 39” around the chest. It’s my first time making a pattern, so I’m not confident enough to suggest how to alter this for different sizes! I’ll update this as I learn more.

Gauge 10 stitches x 13 rows = 4x4” swatch (POST BLOCKING)

Needles 10mm circular 9mm circular

Materials (Used in the finished pictures) Miss Babs K2 yarn 2 skeins Naked (480 yd) 1 skeins Lacewing (240 yd) 1 skeins Moss (240 yd) 960 yd total Any 3 color way in a bulky yarn should serve you well. I loved working with Miss Babs because of its color and strand consistency.

Stitches to Know K - knit K4B - knit 4 below K2tog - knit 2 together P - purl P2tog - purl 2 together KFB - knit front and back M1R - make 1 right M1L - make 1 left M1P- make 1 purl wise PM - place marker

Raglan Increases are worked on the right side of the work, at each side of a raglan-st. The raglan-st is a normal stitch and is worked as k1 on the RS and p1 on the WS. I placed stitch markers to either side of the raglan stitches to keep track. The increases are worked as: M1R: Using the left needle, pick up the loop between two stitches from the back, k1. M1L: Using the left needle, pick up the loop between two stitches from the front, k1 tbl. In the first row of the pattern I indicate this at raglan-st(M1L, PM, k, PM, M1R) for the left side and raglan-st(M1R, PM, K, PM, M1L) for the right side. Afterwards I refer to it as (M1L, K, M1R) or (M1R, K, M1L). Always ensure the markers are directly on either side of the knit stitch, not the increase.

Bubble stitch calls for multiples of 4+3, so I cast on 39 stitches on the 10mm needles. Do not join to knit in the round yet, because we first work a few rows flat to create the back.

Cast-On/Yoke CAST ON: 39 stitches with Color 1 (for me its Naked) WORKING FLAT (WS) Row 1: P across (RS) Row 2: k1, raglan-st(M1L, pm, k, pm, M1R), k8, M1L, raglan-st(M1L, pm, k, pm, M1R), k17, raglan-st(M1R, pm, k, pm, M1L), k8, raglan-st(M1R, pm, k, pm, M1L), k1 Row 3: P across Row 4: k1, M1L, k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to last st, M1R, k1. Row 5: P across Row 6: k1, M1L, k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to last st, M1R, k1. Row 7: P across Row 8: k1, M1L, k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to last st, M1R, k1. Row 9: P across Row 10: k1, M1L, k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to last st, M1R, k1. Row 11: P across Row 12: k1, M1L, k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to last st, M1R, k1. Row 13: P across There should be 97 stitches on your needles Join the work into a round on the next row Row 14: k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to end of row. cast on 6 new stitches at the end of the row. Join to continue knitting in the round, making sure that your work is not twisted. Row 15: K to the first raglan-st. The beginning of the round is now moved to this point. There should be 111 stitches on your needles.

The work should be divided as: 1 raglan-st, 22 stitches (left sleeve), 1 raglan-st, 31 stitches (back), 1 raglan-st, 22 stitches (right sleeve), 1 raglan-st, 32 stitches (front).

Work in stockinette stitch in the round, while at the same time working raglan increases on every other round: *(M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1L, K, M1R), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to marker, (M1R, K, M1L), k to end of row* On the next round, k across all sts.* Repeat from * to * a total of 6 times for 159 stitches.

Body Place the 34 sleeve stitches on either side on hold while you knit the body. I placed mine slipped through leftover yarn to secure them while I worked the body.

Cast on 4 sts at each underarm (total 99 stitches), with your preferred in-row cast on method. The beginning of the round in now under the left arm. Place a marker in the middle of the new sts at the left underarm to indicate the new beginning of round. This is the beginning of the bubble stitch pattern. This is the basic bubble stitch pattern: ** Row 1: Knit across Row 2: Knit across Row 3: Knit across Row 4: Knit across Row 5: Knit across NOTE: when changing yarn color, do so after this row, before starting Row 6 Row 6: Knit 3, * Knit 4 Below, Knit 3 * ** Work 3 repetitions in Color 1 (Naked) Change to Color 2 (Lacewing) on the third repetition for row 6 Work 2 repetitions in Color 2 (Lacewing) Change to Color 3 (Moss) on the second repetition for row six Work 3 repetitions in Color 3 (Moss)

This gave me a slightly cropped look, which I was going for. If you want a longer sweater, I think adding a pattern repetition in Color 2 (for a total of 3 repetitions) will give the desired length. Try on the sweater to determine if the length is right for you, before beginning to work the bottom rib. Change to the 9 mm circular needles and work 5 rows in rib (k1, p1). Bind off in established rib pattern.

Neckband RS facing, with the 8mm circular needles pick up and knit 69 stitches, starting at the transition between back and sleeve. The number of stitches to be picked up corresponds to approximately picking up 1 stitch per stitch along the neckline. In the sloped part of the neckline, you pick up 1 stitch for every row, corresponding to 10 stitches at either side.

Work 6 rounds in k1, p2 rib (k1, p2) (69 stitches) Work 1 round with *k1, p2tog* decreases until the end of the round (46 stitches) Work 6 rounds in k1, p1 rib Work 1 round with * K1, p1, M1P* increases until the end of the round (69 stitches) Work 5 rounds in k1, p2 rib. Bind off loosely in established rib pattern.

Fold the neckband down so the seam and bound off edge line up together. I crocheted the two seams together using a single crochet, but you could also mattress seam or sew these two together.

Sleeves Note that the sleeves are extra-long to give that voluminous look. They are knit using the Magic Loop technique.

Back to Color 1! Place the 34 sleeve stitches on hold for one of the sleeves back onto a 10mm circular needle. Pick up and knit the 4 stitches cast on at the underarm (total 38 stitches). The beginning of the round is in the middle of these 4 new stitches. The first 27 rows should be worked in stockinette, adding a one stitch increase every other row *Row 1: knit across Row 2: k1, kfb, k across* . . . Row 27: knit across There should be 47 stitches on your needles.

Refer to the body section for the bubble stitch pattern. Work 3 bubble pattern repetitions in Color 1 (Naked) Change to Color 2 (Lacewing) on the third repetition before row 6 Work 4 bubble pattern repetitions in Color 2 (Lacewing) Change to Color 3 (Moss) on the second repetition before row six Work 4 bubble pattern repetitions in Color 3 (Moss)

Change to 8 mm (magic loop or dpns). Next round: * k2tog, p2tog *, repeat from * to * until the end of the round (24 stitches). Work 5 rounds in a k1, p1 rib. Bind off in established rib pattern.

Work the other sleeve identically.

Finishing Weave in the ends and block. I use Soak Wash for my knitted items because it’s no rinse.

Congrats on your new sweater!