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[astrogre]

What gifts to buy for each Venus sign

Christmas is among us, my favourite season and time of the year. Venus is the planet of love, by nature it can display what we like to receive from others but if you don’t know their Venus or the house it’s in you can try to look at the persons Sun sign instead but Venus is ideal.

A gift based on their:

Sun sign will make them feel seen and like you know them well, it will be a gift they may appreciate

Venus sign is all they’ve ever desired it’s the pinnacle of their ideal gift. Especially as Venus represents how we like to receive and experience love

Aries/ 1H Venus

Gym membership, running shoes, thrill seeking experiences like tickets to bungee jumping, rock climbing, a skydiving event, gym outfit, tickets to their favourite artist, tickets to festival, cool lighter, archery classes, tickets to sports games, a shirt with their teams logo or merch from their favourite artists, scissors set, cooking tools, hair styling products like hairspray, hair dye, Fitbit/apple watch, knives set, sports gear, heavy bass headphones, tickets for those room smashing experiences, take them clay pigeon shooting, family destroying board games like Risk or Catan, diy tattoo kit, diy piercing kit, theme park tickets.

Aries Venus are by nature thrill seekers, Aries is ruled by the head and has 1st house influences, they can certainly appreciate something that ignites passion, they are impulsive and quick by nature to pursue what they desire. They need gifts that match their decisive nature and to let out that pent up energy they have in them, I honestly think experiences are the best for them. Or a box of hair dye for their impulsive moments

Taurus/ 2H Venus

Hire a chef or take them to a really good restaurant for a 5 course meal that serves orgasmic food and has impeccable visuals/atmosphere OR you can even arrange a 7 course homemade meal with the finest of recipes! , fine jewellery adorned with a gemstone, culinary experiences, cooking classes, kitchenware, go to fragrantica.com and find a high quality perfume to give, premium home decor, art, antique items, antique furniture, comfortable cosy clothing, hot water bottle, gardening tools, plants, selection of seeds for their garden, diffuser, essential oils, desserts like baklava/ferro rocher, luxury goods, wellness retreat subscription, day at the spa, tea set, comfy velvet winter pillows and bed sheets

Oh my Taurus natives, they know how to break a bank for Christmas and if not they can enjoy luxury on a budget! They enjoy the finer things of life of course Venus ruled, they know how to induge in pleasures and satisfaction. Due to the earthy influence they have a green finger and a natural affinity with plants and gardening, they may love flowers or want to grow plants themselves. Taurus venuses are rather easy to gift, if you know them they usually have a vice, it may be sleep, food or pure laziness, get them something according to their vice and they will treasure it.

Gemini/ 3H Venus

Really cool stationary, Spotify subscription, comedy show tickets, books from their favourite genre, a notebook, Grammarly subscription, cards against humanity board game, Duolingo subscription, multiplayer games, home kit recording studio, language learning stuff, calligraphy classes, kindle, portable car charger, Bluetooth speaker, karaoke machine, suitcase, travel accessories, a musical instrument, sealing wax kit, creative hobby supplies, microphone, podcasting equipment, audio editing software, a car, vr headset, Nintendo online subscription, Netflix/HBO/youtube/crunchyroll subscription

Gemini rules communication, short journeys and social engagement. Blessing these natives with tools to enhance their pleasant hobbies will make them swoon in gratitude, if you want to get them something make it engaging and whimsical. These natives are ruled by mercury and always welcome something that requires the mind.

Cancer/ 4H Venus

A cooking set, baking set, comfort food, commission artwork of the family, family photos, some really nice home decor, a keepsake/musical box adorned with velvets and soft materials that will store sentimental objects, a locket necklace, family recipe book make a recipe book of all their favourite foods and some foods you know they’d like, soft fluffy blanket, the family heirloom, hand crafted quilt, hand painted ceramic mug, animal crossing game, sims 4 game, games relating to the home, bring and fly in family that are far away as a surprise and cook their favourite meal together, household utilities, lush bath products, a personal chef for a day, a personal butler for a day, custom family tree art, ancestry DNA kit (please be careful though once you use them they keep your data and if they get hacked your information is out there), home movie night, comfy slippers and pyjamas, family board games, this christmas make them Christmas dinner this time.

Cancer rules the home and there’s nothing more appreciated by a cancer Venus than things that remind them of this. They are by nature expressive and nurturing, this time let them be pampered!

Leo/ 5H Venus

Hair care products, gift card for their favorite store, make them an edit no joke like a TikTok edit that makes them look really cool, one of those light up mirrors or a pretty handheld one if they don’t have one already, book them a photoshoot together if they don’t like the camera maybe post them on your social media and show affection for these bold natives, theatre tickets, bold sunglasses, luxury watch, good jewellery, VIP experiences like backstage passes or reservation to exclusive invite only restaurants, designer clothing that is a prestigious brand they love, commission style artwork, make them a playlist of songs that reminds you of them, fine wine, personalised fragrance creation that allows them to create their own signature fragrance, personalised makeup makeover, hire a stylist for them

A perfect gift for Leo’s need to have an element of self expression, luxury and incorporate their personality that garners attention from peers. They need a gift that makes them feel special, something tailored specifically for them that cannot be gifted to anyone else. Personalised gifts do well either this placement too. When I think of these natives I just think of that Meghan Trainor music video “Me Too” watch that and you’ll get their vibe.

Virgo/ 6H Venus

Skincare products, a blender for smoothies, lots of cleaning products, multi purpose aesthetic storage containers, Quora or chat gpt subscription (these guys like to be well informed), give them scientifically researched bath products that have all that vitamin breakdown qualities, make them a notion template to help them plan, quality office supplies like a desk organiser or chair, practical fitness gear like a yoga mat, a fitness tracker, get them a personal nutritionist, tailored meal prep services, bookshelf organiser system, a stylish briefcase, home office makeover (BUT PLEASE GET THEIR PERMISSION FIRST), online course subscription, digital subscription to news feed, you can never go wrong with practical things, an ikea haul, Costco membership, minimalist decor, multi vitamins, a precision watch, set of labelling and sorting tools, a neat tidy chess board, get them a nice little pet, honestly for some reason whenever I think of Virgos I think of matcha. Get them something matcha based.

Virgo Venus natives need gifts that resemble their routine and organisation, they can be rather difficult to purchase for since they have such a specific taste in mind. Gift cards are practical for them but they really need something that allows them to be more prepared. Take them out for comparison price shopping like say if you want to get them a sofa tell them you’ll take them out to Costco, Amazon, ikea, and compare the best ones. They are also very clean and efficient.

Libra Venus/ 7H Venus

Trending Make up like the fenty hot chocolit heat lip gloss, Korean skincare products, beautiful piece of art, a wedding ring 😏, bouquet of flowers, take them to a beautiful botanical garden, fashionable accessories like a silk scarf, books and courses on design, take them to a couples romantic date, a couples workshop, write them a love letter, museum date, tickets to an art exhibition, fine dining, an astrology synastry reading, if they’re single set up a blind date with someone who you KNOW they would like (make sure they’re handsome/pretty), couples retreat, love coach Patreon subscription, pottery/painting classes, relationship podcast subscription, relationship psychology books, fine fragrance/cologne

Libra is ruled by Venus and 7th house, all things related to love beauty and pleasure align with this native, even if they are single they have a natural gift for delving into relationships. Make sure that whatever gift you give them it is pleasing and sensual

Scorpio/ 8H Venus

Intimate gifts, a psychological crime documentary playlist like Epstein island documentary or YouTubers who speak of renowned cult leaders, personalised astrology reading, a dark seductive fragrance, dark artwork, dominance and submission guide book, shadow work journal with a lock on it, dark poetry and literature, escape room adventure tickets, monopoly game, dungeons and dragons game equipment, bdsm accessories, personalised erotic art, leather/latex clothing, bonding activities, empowering books like 48 Laws of Power, martial arts training, taxidermy, personal development workshops, intense workout equipment like a punching bag, chess, daggers, locks on their door or for their belongings like installing a lock for their drawers, buy them a ring camera and subscription, wine tasting experience

Give them something sultry and deep, it has to be psychological and empowering. They are not impressed by superficial gifts that mean nothing to them. They really like gifts that allow them to explore their nature and the darker aspects of existence.

Sagittarius/ 9H Venus

A scratch off map that allows you to scratch off countries you’ve been to, a surprise holiday where you take them abroad, Duolingo subscription, a wanderlust journal for them to document their experiences, passport accessories, an electric guitar, drums, take them to a fireworks display or do one at home for them, a telescope, a drone, binoculars, philosophical books or religious books based on their own beliefs and religion, running shoes, horse riding in the sunset experience, musical instruments, motivational and positive affirmations book or make some for them yourself, a book collection of all their motivational and positive messages they have said, a compass, pay for their tuition for a course they’ve always wanted, traveling stuff like suitcases, pillow for travelling, a portable flask, a disposable camera, a Polaroid camera, a tent, tickets to a cultural festival, hiking gear, skiing gear, camping gear, sketchbook, a donation in their name

Sagittarius Venus and 9H venuses love the concept of exploration whether it be in the mind or physically, the best gift you could give them is one that allows them to take in so much culture, information and experiences.

Capricorn/ 10H Venus

Customisable credit card (CUCU is a good site for this), a nice power suit like business attire, vintage pocket calculator, cufflinks or a tie, formal shoes, pay for their CV to be analysed by professionals in their industry, elegant timeless clothing and jewellery, make them business cards, get them a corporate slave (an assistant will do), pay for business class flights for their next trip abroad, project management courses, tickets to Ted Talk event, take them to and big them up at networking and entrepreneurial opportunities, a sleek desk, submit their work for trophies and awards, quality furniture, Starbucks or their fave coffee place gift cards, a fountain pen, personalised desk name plate, professional photoshoot, designer accessories like a Swiss watch, leather wallet, cheque book, pay for a professional calligrapher to design their signature, time management software

Our sweet cap Venuses and 10Hers need their professional acknowledgment, give them anything timeless and a way for them to better themselves. They love being the best of the best so give them things that support their ambitions.

Aquarius/ 11H Venus

A 3D printer, high tech phone, a gamer console, smart home device like Alexa, chat gpt subscription, AI art pieces of them, rubix cube, VR headset, bespoke one of a kind art piece, tickets to a science technology conference or musem, networking events, phone case, futuristic home decor, membership to an niche club their interested in, mini indoor garden like a plant terrarium, pay for an astronomy stargazing experience for them, alt clothing, goal setting journal, a camaraderie for their friendships can be a bracelet for an example, tickets to a unique workshop according to their niche interests, video editing software, a unique invention prototype for the industry their interested in say if it were cars then a mini Tesla or something, volunteer together, design software, film festival tickets, social cause merchandise, unique fashion piece, astronomy kit, an AI boyfriend or girlfriend, take them a Ted talk.

Always remember the specific niche interests of these natives they like things that are very niche and so sometimes asking them is actually the best thing to do. But make sure it’s something they’re passionate about not all of these natives live tech but they certainly are innovative.

Pisces/ 12H Venus

Seashell necklace, watercolour paints, fantasy book collection, their favourite mangas, handmade artwork, stained glass window art, dream interpretation book, flowerpedia book, vinyls, yoga mat, contact lenses, tickets to their favourite artist like mitski or the sort, create a playlist for them that’s about fantasy and imagination, they might like Disney consider taking them to Disneyland, windchime, subscription to mindfulness app, astrology book, go to the aquarium together, windchimes, art supplies, a dream journal, sound healing instruments, pay for their spiritual retreat, zen garden decor, a mystical music box, water fountain, take them to a mesmerising body of water, prayer mats, diary, write them a heartfelt letter of how amazing they are, take them to a nature retreat, wearable art

Dreamy imaginative gifts would be perfect for these people, they need gifts that allow them to appreciate their escape world where they have a reality that’s just better than here. Give them things that are as beautiful as their inner world.

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Paradigm Shift 4

Warnings: this fic will include elements, some dark, such noncon/dubcon, and other untagged triggers. Please take this into account before proceeding. It is up to curate your online consumption safely.

Summary: you get transferred to a new position but it’s hardly a breath of fresh air. (plus!reader)

Characters: Loki, Bucky Barnes, this reader is known as Billie.

Author’s Note: Please feel free to leave some feedback, reblog, and jump into my asks. I’m always happy to discuss with you and riff on idea. As always, you are cherished and adored! Stay safe, be kind, and treat yourself💜

💼Part of the Bad Bosses AU💼

You have one victory on your first day and it’s hardly that. Laufeyson and Barnes responded but it’s just more work to put on your plate. Now you have to go through and figure out how to balance it all. Well, it’s Friday and you can worry about all of that on Monday. 

You head out from the office. You have earned your prize. Drinks. And you’re not going to take it easy, even if Missie tells you to. 

You get there later than the others. You barely have enough time to get home and change out of your striped blouse. All you really did was switch out your blazer for a leather jacket. 

Georgie is nervous and glum. Her boss is taking her on an impromptu work trip. From what you’ve heard of the guy, he’s a real tool. You envy Izzie as she’s jumping out of planes instead of moping over an office desk. You’ll have to ask her how she got into that. 

Before you can put in your order for a double paloma, more tempted to just ask for a straight shot of tequila, a server appears with a tray of drinks. Ugh. You can see the sugar in the colour alone. 

“I don’t think that’s for us,” Elfie says before you can. 

“Some gentlemen sent them,” the server gestures behind her with her chin. 

She unload the tray as you strain to see the creeper buying a round for you. There’s always some loser buzzing around like a gnat. “God, I could use a tequila...” you mutter. 

“Who is that?” Rosie asks what you’re all thinking as a man waves and Dizzie waves back. You want to snatch her hand down. She can be so naive. 

“That’s my boss,” she explains and your throat locks up. You might just choke on your own damn tongue. 

You sit back down and hide your face between your hands. It can’t be but you’re certain at a glance. Dark hair, square jaw, piercing blue eyes. Did he see you too. 

“Shit, he’s with my boss!” You hiss. 

“Your boss?” Elfie leans in with concern. 

“One of them.” 

“And... is that... Mr. Rogers?” Rosie chimes. “What are the odds?” 

You lift your face and glare at her brightness. She might like her boss but you have been in hell all day. You can’t even begin to explain the shit pile you’ve been handed. Two bosses. Both eager to outdo the other’s assholery. 

“It’s so nice of them to send some drinks thought,” Dizzie says. 

Rosie agrees but Elfie has the sense to question it, “but why?” 

“I won’t deny a free drink..” Missie slurps. 

You ignore their chatter and raise your hand above the din. You signal to the server with a fraction of a smile. Fuck this apple bullshit. You need the hard stuff. 

The alcohol helps the night along but you can’t shake the presence across the bar. You’re paranoid. It’s too much of a coincidence. More so than Barnes being there but with Rosie and Dizzie’s bosses. You gues their type flock together. 

Still, you can’t quite shake it. You keep yourself to two palomas. You won’t risk making a single misstep. 

At the end of the night, you head off alone. Usually, you’d split a cab with Elfie but she left early, Georgie too. You yawn and bid goodbye to the rest. 

You dive out into the dark and tuck your hands into your pockets. The street is quiet as you step up to the curb. At this hour, it’s only cabs but you don’t see any lurking around. You head down the pavement in search of a ride. 

“Billie,” the deep timbre halts you. You blow out between your lips and turn to face Barnes. You're not surprised. 

“Mr. Barnes,” you greet. 

“Walking home alone?” He asks. 

“Trying to find a cab.” You spin back and raise your hand as a yellow car appears around the corner. 

“If you need a ride...” he offers. 

“No thank you.” You lean in as you flag the driver. He stops just a few feet away to pick up a group of guys. Shit. 

“I don’t mind.” He insists. 

You shake your head and cross your arms. You continue down the street. You don’t live that far. His footfalls echo yours. 

“You know, it wasn’t in the options but I do expect you to flash a smile or too,” he chirps as he comes parallel to you. 

“I’m not on the clock.” 

“No, you’re not. So how about another drink?” 

You scoff and stop. “I don’t mix my personal and professional life.” 

“All professional, doll. I’m just congratulating you on your new position.” He smirks as you glance over. 

“I gotta get home.” 

You walk on and he does too. You get to the corner and harrumph. You stop again. 

“What are you doing?” You ask. 

“With that kinda attitude, you’ll fit right in with Laufeyson.” 

You tilt your head as you consider your options. Keep going and lead him home or argue with him some more. Why can’t it just be over? 

“I can be a nice guy. You caught me on a bad day,” he says. 

“Look, I appreciate the offer, Mr. Barnes.” 

“We’re not at work. Bucky’s good.” 

“Mr. Barnes,” you repeat. “I’m tired. It was a long day, thank to you, and I need to go home and sleep. Let’s save the niceties for Monday. Please.” 

He considers you, his cheek dimpling. His blue eyes scan your grim expression. He snorts. 

“Huh, I think I misjudged you, doll.” He reaches to fix the floppy lapel of your jacket. “I really didn’t think you were that much of a tight ass. Guess I’ll just have to loosen it up.” He winks and pulls back, tucking his hands into his pockets. “Be safe,” he turns on his heels, “don’t know what kinda creeps are hanging out around here.” 

He struts back towards the bar and you glare after him. Right. You’re dreading Monday even more. 

[madisockz]

Hello! I wanted to share my process of how I made my Easter Pony! She is my second ever custom and she made all the trouble I had with the first one seem like a walk in the park in comparison ಥ_ಥ Let's begin!

DISCLAIMER: Custom ponies like this one are not to be played with by children nor made by children. This pony was made with the use of nail polish remover (acetone) which is toxic. You need to wash your hands throughly after use and use in a well ventilated area. This pony was also made with sharp tools such as an xacto knife, sewing pins, rehairing needles, and an awl.

First, the concept art! Trial and error caused her to look a little different than the concept art but I still love the end result!

I wanted to start with a white base to give myself a clean canvas for dyeing so I got this G3 Breezie off Ebay for only $3. I decided to first remove her mane and tail which requires removing the head. If you know anything about G3 pony customzing, you know their heads are difficult to get back on once they come off. Even when you run them under warm/hot water. So to get it back on for dyeing, I tried trimming a little excess of vinyl off the neck ring with my xacto knife. It slipped and got me right under my nail! Bad omen for what's to come!

After getting her prepped (removing her mane and tail, cleaning her, using acetone (nail polish remover) to remove her cutie mark) she was ready for a dye bath! I used Rit DyeMore as regular Rit Dye won't dye the vinyl material that ponies are made of. This was my first ever time dyeing anything that wasn't fabric so I was thrilled when she came out this warm rich brown! So pretty!

I read online that dyed ponies will leach dye onto other ponies if they touch, so I wanted to try and prevent this as much as possible with some matte sealer. Lesson #1: Even though she was dry, the matte sealer reactivated the dye! The smallest touch left a print! :(

I pushed forward! And tripped immediately after! I thought, "Surely matte Modge Podge will seal her just that much more" and to my dismay, the Modge Podge kept every brush stroke I made when it dried!! She looked like a leather hand bag! ˚‧º·(˚ ˃̣̣̥᷄⌓˂̣̣̥᷅ )‧º·˚ I learned later you can buy matte Modge Podge spray online but all I had was the type you brush on to your surface.

Thankfully, with the help of sixteen cotton balls and a q-tip with acetone, I managed to remove all the sealer but she was no longer that nice rich brown. Oh well I still loved her!

And whoever said the paint will protect the eyes from the dye has clearly never dyed a dark pony! Her eyes were so brown after this lol

Painting, adding of polymer clay easter themed confetti, and adding her 3D chocolate bunny cutie mark went great! It was all going well until the eyes.

I had never fully painted pony eyes before so the first attempt was pretty bad. Not even my multiple attempts at glitter and using clear nail polish as a cheap gloss on the eyes could save them.

It was so bad that I almost didn't take any pictures but when I went to seal her head, this weird white powder covered half of her face?? I had never seen this before and it freaked me out thinking I just ruined her. I managed to get it off with a cotton ball and some acetone but her paint was fully damaged.

Turns out this was caused because I didn't shake the can of sealer well enough. I needed a break....

While I took a break for a few days, I decided to watch tutorials on how to paint doll eyes and learned that it's actually pretty common to use high quality watercolor pencils; either Faber Castell or Derwent (which is what I ended up buying).

When I came back, I made the hard decision of removing all the paint and decorations from the head and starting over. Hours of work gone but it was so worth it! 🩷 Removing the paint with acetone ended up making her head lighter than her body so I had to redye her head lol. This time I mixed Derwent pencils with acrylic paints for her eyes.

Time for the hair! I've never done curls before and my original plan was to buy curly hair online but it's so hard to find in the color and curl size I wanted.

So my second idea was to buy small curlers to use on regular nylon doll hair bought from ShimmerLocks on Etsy. But when I tested them out on poor Flower Bouquet it looked so bad ಥ_ಥ

I discovered a Youtube channel you may know called Dollightful where in one of her Stock Box videos she used yarn that she unraveled to make super cute tight wavy hair for a doll. It was a perfect solution! It looks so good but omg it was tedious haha! I used it for her tail too; sectioning off the colors hoping they'd stay separated (they didn't lol).

She's nearly complete! Time for small decorations! I tried so many different ears from air dry clay to stealing some from bunny decorations I bought at the store and nothing was working! But I had one last idea...

I gave these old Littlest Pet Shop costume bunny ears some use with a flat top sewing pin and some glue so now my pony has bunny ears! Yay!

I forgot it in the concept art, but I originally wanted to add flowers to her mane but I couldn't figure out how to do that without glue which I didn't want to do, too permanent, so I opted for some beads I had on hand. I didn't have any light blue so I made some with the use of acetone (nail polish remover in my case) and boom! Light blue beads! Then I washed them off so the acetone wouldn't damage anything :)

I used a gold topped sewing pin, a butterfly charm, a felt flower and two faux flowers to create a cute hair accessory!

Finally I sewed a hair tie to a puffball to give her a removable cottontail if I ever wanted to take it off.

And DONE! She looks so good after so much time and effort! I worked on this girly for two weeks I think? She actually had a partner I designed but I've run out of time to make her :') Maybe next year? 👀 🩷🩷

[cup-of-starlight-waters]

things i was taught by my mother or learned for myself

always cut your nails wet: they are softer while wet, so less prone to splitting and also less likely to make gross noises. best time is after a shower or bath; failing that, after doing dishes, or soaking for five minutes in a bowl of warm water.

recipes don’t always scale proportionally: the clearest example of this is rice; the more rice you have, the less water you need to add. I don’t know why, but suspect it has to do with how much water boils into steam vs how much gets absorbed by the rice. Similarly, if you double a dressing recipe, you might want to cut back on the salt or spice. if you add protein to a dish to feed more people, you might not want to add carbs in proportion—or vice versa. if you are adapting a recipe to serve more or less people, you might want to do a quick search or ask someone’s advice

you are allowed to change recipes: this can be scary if you are just beginning cooking, but so many recipes can be adapted very easily. Don’t like chicken? use pork or beef in stead. out of pink beans? substitute black beans or chickpeas. it might taste different, but it probably won’t taste bad. pasta sauce taste super acidic? put in honey or sugar or chopped carrots next time. if you actually need to reduce the acidity and not the taste, a little bit of baking soda. want a vegetable with your pasta? throw in some chopped carrots or spinach. once you’ve followed enough recipes, you’ll get a sense for the basic cooking processes, and you can start trying new things—the worst that will happen is probably one night of not-so-great food, but more than likely you’ll develop several variations of a favorite recipe you can swap between depending on your mood or what you have in the pantry.

don’t leave hair in the shower: if you have long hair, it sheds, and if you leave shed hair in the shower it will slip down the drain and over time form a nasty clump that will slow or even clog your drain. it’s also very rude if you share a shower with anyone else. if touching your own hair grosses you out, grab some toilet paper or a paper towel and use it to wipe up your hair (this also works if you share a shower with someone who doesn’t clean up their hair).

learn how to do easy things for yourself: my mother tells me to never have the mechanics change the cabin air filter in the car when i get my oil changed, because we can buy them cheap online and it takes five minutes and no special tools to do. i don’t have enough interest in cars or time and energy to do more complicated processes, but this is something that takes five minutes and saves me around $20 every time. if something is difficult or time consuming or better if done by an expert, then go ahead and get it done professionally. but there are a lot of things that are very easy to do yourself if you take the time to look up how.

politeness goes a long way: smiling and saying hello and goodbye to people you work or share community with. asking for advice. asking if someone has the time to help you, and saying thank you even if they don’t. saying thank you. offering to help. giving sincere compliments, not because you want anything but simply because you think it’s true. these things establish that you acknowledge and respect and see the people around you, and the more you do it the better you’ll get at it. and when you do that, people are more likely to acknowledge and respect and see you in return.

don’t mix cleaning chemicals: the big bad, deadly, never ever ever mix together is bleach and ammonia, but in general you shouldn’t mix anything if you don’t know exactly what’s in them whether or not they will react in a harmful fashion. it’s usually safe to dilute chemicals with water, and wearing gloves and a mask can protect you if the cleaning solution is caustic or gives off fumes. you’re probably better off using something milder, though. a mild disinfectant for the bathroom and hot soapy water for everything else is sufficient.

use a separate towel for your face: ideally, you should wash bed linens and towels in hot water regularly, but your face is particularly vulnerable to acne and infections. don’t use the same towel to wipe both your face and your butt. get a hand towel that you use specifically and only for drying your face when it’s clean. if you can’t find the time or energy to wash your bedding regularly, buy extra pillowcases and swap those out instead.

buy clothes that fit (that you like): this one is hard, for so many reasons. clothes are expensive; it can be hard to find good fitting clothes for certain body types; it can be hard to let go of clothes you’ve had for a long time; it can feel shameful to have to pull a particular size off the rack, because our culture sucks. but you will be more comfortable if your clothes aren’t too tight (or too big), and if they don’t have holes in them. if money is an issue, go to thrift stores or charity bins, or (and this can be hard) ask if anyone you know has hand me downs. if you are younger, a lot of people get rid of clothes when they graduate college and pack up their dorm rooms. on the other side of things, if you’ve been wearing hand me downs and up for grabs clothing most of your life and now you have more financial flexibility then you did before, you are allowed to spend money on clothes that you know you’ll wear a lot. don’t buy something that doesn’t fit quite right just because it’s a bargain; chances are you won’t wear it as much because it’s uncomfy. if you have a hard time letting go of a piece of clothing that doesn’t fit anymore or is falling apart, consider repurposing it: make it into a pillow or blanket. cut out a favorite graphic print and stitch it onto a new shirt. give it to someone you know will love it as much as you did. try to find a replacement—sometimes it takes time. my favourite, comfiest underwear style got discontinued by the brand five years ago. i have worn my last pairs to their limit, and only just found a new brand/style that works for me. every time i had to toss a pair because it had holes felt awful because even holey they were more comfortable than the in-between-styles, but now that i’ve found my new style all the old ones must go. out with the old-that-wasn’t-working and in with the new-and-unfamiliar-but-functional!

this is how you cut a melon: - wash with soapy water, because of Germs - put on a cutting board with a rim (to catch the juices) so that the stem and end of the melon point to your left and right - get a garbage bowl or a bag for scraps - use a long knife to bisect the melon, forming two hemispheres with the stem on one half and the melon end on the other - use a large metal spoon to scrape out all the seeds and any soft flesh from each melon half into the trash can or garbage bowl - take one half, place it cut side down on the cutting board, and carefully slide the knife horizontally through the top inch or so of the melon. you should be able to see the flesh or the melon - use a knife (should be long but skinny, so there is some flex to it) and cut off the melon rind one slice at a time, by cutting from the top of the melon to the cutting board, curving the knife path to follow the curve of the melon - rotate the melon half and repeat, until the rind has been completely removed and only the flesh of the melon can be seen - slice or dice the melon half according to your preference - repeat on the other melon half, or cover in cling wrap and refrigerate for another day or two - enjoy delicious melon

reblog with your own things you have been taught, or don’t; enjoy delicious melon, or delicious something else; live and learn new things, or teach the things you’ve learned to someone else

[arikasugar]

beauty on a budget for someone new to the lifestyle?

since you’re only starting out, you’ll probably want to focus on affordable products and diy and at home beauty treatments.

you can get affordable skin care products from brands like cerave, cetaphil, and the ordinary. you’ll find all your essential cleansers, serums, exfoliators and moisturizers. you can order facial sheet masks in bulk cheap from amazon. you can also use aztec secret healing clay as a clay masque. skip the guasha altogether and follow a youtube tutorial for face sculpting massages instead.

good quality affordable makeup brands I used when I was nearly broke included e.l.f., nyx, wet n’ wild, maybelline, and makeup revolution. look into some other drug store brands within your budget and check reviews before you buy anything so you don’t waste your money. get generic beauty blenders and powder puffs, you’ll be replacing them often anyway so it’s best to get them cheap. you can buy cheap big makeup brush sets on amazon that’ll last a long time if you clean them regularly and take care of them.

press on nails and home manicures / pedicures will save you a ton of money and time. find a good manicure kit and pumice stone. buy a dollar store basin and some epsom salts to soak your feet. for press on nails I usually get mine from temu or brands like kiss and impress. if you just want to paint your natural nails, get a gel polish like l.a. colors color craze gel or sally hansen miracle gel. if you want to go the extra mile, invest in the supplies and learn how to do your own acrylics or gel manicures.

learn how to wax, shape, and tint your own eyebrows. you can buy an affordable diy wax kit like this one and use youtube tutorials on how to find the most flattering brow shape. (as a bonus, the hard waxing kit can also be used to remove unwanted hair on the rest of your body.) you can also find cheap brow tinting kits that usually last up to five uses at sally’s beauty supply and various other stores online.

if you want your lashes done, you can either get really, really good at applying a strip lash – my go to affordable brands are ardell and kiss – or you can invest in some bulk lash clusters and the falscara diy eyelash extension kit. figure out what lash placement will best compliment your features, then watch lots and lots of youtube tutorials on how to use it and practice, practice, practice. they take some getting used to.

when it comes to hair care, the very first thing you want to do is figure out your hair type with a quiz like this one and find what it needs to look and feel healthy. I have 2A hair, so I would pretty much always spring for nexxus for something moisturizing and lightweight, but I’ve heard great things about ogx, shea moisture, not your mother’s, maui moisture, l’oreal elvive, and garnier whole blends which are great for other hair types, densities, and textures. all these brands carry a wide variety of products from shampoo, to leave in treatments, to hair masques, to curl cream — you get it. again, read reviews. you can also use a cotton t-shirt to dry and plop your hair instead of spending money on a microfiber towel, and a satin scarf wrapped around your head to protect your hair while sleeping instead of a silk bonnet and pillow case.

if you’re into styling your hair, two of my favorite methods are heatless styling and blowouts. for heatless styling, you may not even need to purchase any new styling tools. I started out using this heatless robe curl method and eventually started doing other heatless styling methods like the ones on this playlist once I started buying more tools, and did styles like these when I didn’t feel like setting my hair at all. for styles that require heat, a highly suggest investing in a dyson airwrap – which can do pretty much everything – so you don’t end up spending even more on an arsenal of hot styling tools.

good luck, sugar

xoxo

[i-rate-horse-games]

rating Star Stable Online

Star Stable Online is a MMORPG! its plot seems to get pretty wild!

upon discovering that Fish was an option in the drop down name creators, i cackled with joy. this is Rusty Fishfish and Futurefish

our goal in this world was to become Fish. one glorious leap into the ocean showed us that it would be harder than anticipated, due to having taken a ‘dangerous’ fall. luckily it doesn’t seem like horses can be injured, even though the screen flashes red if you trip while jumping. 

i joined right after the new character models became available. i think they’re pretty neat! some of the body types looked androgynous to me, but the game calls you a girl regardless. but you can still buy facial hair in the shop!

the world is a nice size! it’s scaled small enough that you feel like you’re going places even when your horse is physically moving a little slow, and the world is big enough that there’s plenty to explore while still being small enough that you see other players going about their lives pretty frequently. 

speaking of other players! shout out to @ro-sso for warning me to never open the global chat. i did! i asked how to get hay after very rapidly forgetting what i had just learned. three people told me it grew on a farm. i said Ok. when i did find the hay (in a shop) i told the chat i had been betrayed and bamboozled and they said “BAHAHAHAHAHA”. later i used the Say chat to ask for help finding a championship that was starting soon, and everyone nearby was very helpful. you win some you lose some

quests seem to be the biggest part of the game! they’re how you get player and horse exp and level up and get better stats for competing. a lot of the quests i did felt very tedious. lots of riding back and forth and delivering messages and so forth. the worst ones involved herding horses that kept splitting into smaller groups and running around a mall doing errands for a sketchy guy. my favorite quests were the ones where i got to open my backpack and drag a tool onto something, which felt like playing Nancy Drew. there was also one where we got to follow the visible smell of pumpkin pie on a trail to a little cottage, and it was nighttime so there were cricket sounds as well!

there’s so much love and soul packed into this world! there’s a pony who was elected mayor! there’s a pirate themed race that has music just similar enough to the Pirates of the Carribean music to remind you of it while also remaining distinct! there’s a riding club that “wears pink and not only on wednesdays.”! there’s a girl with a pet owl named Toby who says “Even though he blathers about it, Toby loves bugs.” there’s vague sounds of people talking in areas with lots of NPCs! there’s a kid with a hot air balloon who takes you up to the cloud kingdom! he has a pet frog who can ride on your head! there’s an emo electric violinist who was really funny! you can get a kitten for your saddlebag! the music is pretty decent!

the clothes very strongly remind me of being 12. something about the slightly awkward way the clothes fit is nostalgic. there were also lots of flower crowns for the summer solstice!

a huge point for this game is that it has its own pride festival!

there’s just something about going to a new place and seeing rainbow flags everywhere, especially after the horrors of horse isle 3. i hear this game also has canon lesbian characters! this does make it even funnier that all players are assigned Cowgirl at login

the one thing that really surprised me is that if you play without a membership, you are apparently trapped in a demo version, and the rest of the game is locked behind a paywall. this sprang up on me after i started running out of quests. the game told me to level up to unlock more main quests, but the only way to get player exp was to do quests, and i pretty much ran out. this concept is really foreign to me, since every game like this that i’ve played before, the membership made your life much easier and more posh, but free players could still get a lot out of the game. games like club penguin, pixie hollow, animal jam, etc. it’s only about $5 a month, though, with a permanent membership option for over 50 dollars. i have not purchased it, but if I ever do, i will update my rating. :)

while googling the above problem to figure out what was going on, i learned that there's no level cap and there's seasonal events that give EXP, so even if you've finished the whole game, there can still be players more powerful than you with better stats dominating the competition. that seems ! a little rough! they also said that after you beat the game, there's not much left to do. hopefully the fun part is the journey and not the destination!

all in all, though, we did it. we became Fish.

and that makes it all worth it.

i’m rating Star Stable Online 4.5 out of 5 stars!

★★★★✬

please feel free to submit horse games or ask me to reevaluate! next up is Alicia Online!

[solradguy]

SOL RADGUY SCANNING GUIDE

Covers:

What you need to scan a book.

How to do it.

How to do it better.

What to do now that it's scanned.

This is a long post with images.

WHAT YOU NEED //

A scanner.

I use an Epson Perfection v39. It's old but it was affordable (~us$60 in 2016 money) and it's reliable. You need something that can scan in color, greyscale, and black & white modes at 300 DPI. DPI (Dots Per Inch) is the resolution the scanner outputs the scan in. Anything over 300 DPI for art/comic scans is a little overkill, imo. However, if you're planning on printing physical copies of your scans, consider scanning them in at 600 DPI for something around printer paper sized, or 1200 DPI for posters. These files will balloon in size considerably with the increase in DPI. It may be worth it buying an extra hard drive just for managing work in progress scan files if your computer's local hard drive is smaller than 500gb.

Black construction paper.

Construction paper that's black. Put this behind the page you're scanning and it prevents page bleed through. More on how this is used below.

Masking tape.

Not really necessary, but useful for mapping out the ideal scanning area on your scanning bed. Speeds things up.

Art/photo manipulation program.

I use Clip Studio Paint EX ver. 2.0 and Photoshop CS5. Your program should have a clone tool and basic image manipulation such as cropping and rotating. Free alternatives are GIMP and Photopea.

OPTIONAL:

White inspection gloves.

These are thin cotton gloves used to handle sensitive things such as historical photos, coins, and old books. Highly recommend investing in a cheap pack if your book has glossy pages. Don't have to worry about cleaning up greasy fingerprints in post with these on.

Bone folder.

This is a flat plastic (bone, historically) stick used to crease pages in book-making. I find having one is useful for carefully pushing pages flatter to get cleaner scans. If your book has tense binding this tool might prove useful.

Heat gun, hair dryer, or a stovetop + big skillet.

Tools for de-binding books in order of most to least useful. I use a heat gun. More on how these are used two sections down.

X-acto knife.

For skinning. It's sharp, it's a knife.

Non-abrasive document cleaning pad.

If you buy a book with glossy pages that's greasy as hell consider picking one of these up. It's a fabric pouch full of a soft powder that gently picks up and removes dirt and oils from paper. I've got one by Lineco and used it on the Dengeki PlayStation magazine scans. Some art stores will carry these but I had to buy mine online.

HOW TO DO IT //

Remove the dustjacket, obi (informational band around the book), and any other loose materials inside of the book (mark what pages those materials were found on). Clean the pages as best as you can with the doc. cleaning pad or just wiping it down gently with a dry paper towel, then get your black construction paper and stick it behind the page that's going to be scanned. If your book is really big, remove the lid on your scanner. It's only going to get in the way.

Try to put as much pressure on the spine as you safely can and hold down the parts your hand can't reach with something heavy-ish. I usually use this paint water jar. Scan in PNG or TIFF format at 300 DPI. For art books and manga use either the color or greyscale modes. Raw text (novels, etc) benefits from the black & white mode.

Here's the raw scan:

Artworks of Guilty Gear X 2000-2007 scans very nicely despite being perfect bound (bound with glue) and rather stiff, but it's still an old book and has some minor damage that will need cleaned up in post later, as well as any dust that I missed cleaning off my scanner bed beforehand. The gutter is on the left. Note the black specks of dust in the right corner and in the big white area, and how you can't see any of the image printed on the other side of this page due to the black construction paper preventing bleed through:

HOW TO DO IT BETTER //

SKINNING BOOKS. A scary thought... But sometimes necessary. Manga volumes have really tight binding that makes them almost impossible to get clean scans of in a traditional flat scanner bed.

You will need either a heat gun, hairdryer, or a big skillet and a stovetop for this part. I use a heat gun. Warm the spine of the book CAREFULLY over the heat gun while gently pulling back on the cover until it pops free from the glue. A hairdryer will be used the same way as a heat gun, just slower. Turn it to the hottest setting.

For the skillet method, heat it up until it's just a little too hot to touch (BE CAREFUL; don't actually touch the skillet with your bare hand). Then hold the book spine-down on the skillet and peel the cover off that way. This method can burn your book very easy because it's harder to gauge how hot the skillet is. Take your time.

Now that the cover is off, use the same method to remove the pages one by one. Make sure to keep them in the right order. Sometimes there will be a thick glob of binding glue that can be sliced off with the X-acto knife. Watch your fingers.

Scanning loose pages is mindlessly easy and there're ways to make it even more mindless. Tape black paper to the top of your scanner lid and use masking tape to mark where exactly on the bed to put the pages so you can get them all in about the same spot. Makes lining them up later in the digital cleanup stage a piece of piss. Don't be a fool and think to use regular tape or duct tape. Cleaning adhesive off glass is a nightmare.

Time to put on some Zeppelin and zone out for about an hour. Remember your page order.

My setup and the raw scan:

I number my pages how they are in the book with the cover, obi, and inside cover flaps usually being zeroes with a letter following it ("00a-dustjacket-FRONT, 00b-dustjacket-BACK, etc":

Your art program should load in the file as a layer with the file name. Load in about 10 to 20 at a time (if your computer can handle it), line them up, clean the dust, adjust colors, sharpen image, then save them in a new folder separate from the raws. Use the clone tool to clean up dust. If you sharpen the image, remember that less is more.

WHAT TO DO NOW THAT IT'S SCANNED //

Upload it. I put all my (non-doujinshi) scans on Archive.org and include a .PDF of the scanned book with smaller resized pages and a .ZIP of the full size pages as loose files. This is optional, don't feel obligated to do both because it really adds a lot of extra work saving the files in two different sizes. Having the full size files is more valuable than a compressed .PDF, though, if you're unsure about which to go with.

For smaller files (<25mb total as a .PDF or .ZIP) you could put them on Neocities too. Neocities doesn't really like the idea of people using their site as a file sharing host so while I don't really recommend using just Neocities, it's definitely something you could do if coding a website sounds fun to you. Here's the archives page on my NC site for an example of how you could code/organize your own archive, if you wanted: solradguy.neocities.org/archives

If you scan something and wanna get more eyes on it, feel free to slap my @ somewhere on the post or you can email it to me (junkyarddogmkii [at] gmail [dot] com ) and I can reblog it and share it with the lore server crew.

Here's a link to the Guilty Gear scans masterpost: https://solradguy.tumblr.com/post/701138089295364096/comprehensive-guide-to-unofficial-guilty-gear

[lizziedelgrant]

Hair Care

secrets from south asian women

To start, south asian women are known for their thick long hair. This is achievable, but you need to keep in mind the climate of where you live, as well as the water quality. I would suggest investing in a shower filter or a water de-hardening system.

Additionally, nutrition plays a huge part in your hair. Drink your water, take your vitamins, eat your protein (or drink it i guess), and eat fish.

Now lets get into it.

Stay away from heat. if you want to see results, prioritize your hair and scalp health. keep the heat tools to a minimum and keep that shower water and the blow dryer on low or cool.

Oil and Massage. Even when you don’t have oil in your hair, don’t skip your nightly scalp massage. Brush it a hundred times before bed. For oil, you can either buy premade oils from online or from your local indian grocery (they won’t stare at you in there, ppl just come to buy their vegetables). If you’re Pakistani, you know the hype behind Amla and rattan jot/ alkanet root. these are the oils you want to look for. Others will also do. I oil on Saturday nights and wash it out Sunday morning. Make sure to really massage the oil into your scalp. Shampoo twice to get it out. Never overpay for oils from sephora or anything. A bottle of oil should Never be more than 10-15$.

Yogurt scalp mask for dry/flakey scalp.

Braid your hair instead of keeping it up all the time. Keeping your hair up in a ponytail or bun stresses your scalp and puts weight on it. French /Dutch braids are the way to go.

Henna makes a great hair conditioner. it also adds a slight red/ amber hue /shine to your hair

Put a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in a bottle of water. poke a hole in the bottle cap with a pen and squirt the water onto your scalp/ hair. Let the water drip off into the tub. after you get through the whole bottle, rinse your hair and condition. Bonus points if you add onion juice to the water. This is THE magic scalp potion. Only do this one every 2 weeks since its so strong.

remember! consistency is key. results take time. keep at it.

[look-at-the-soul]

Look at the soul - Part 8 Count on me

Cillian Murphy x OC

Series masterlist

Song: Count on me by Bruno Mars

As usual, we meet new characters 🥰 thank you SO much for your support, for your thoughts and feedback, it means everything 💕

“I won this time.” Cillian approached Marianne after rehearsal, she was sitting in the front row with her laptop on her lap.

“Hey, yeah… someone decided to ask a million questions today and I couldn’t get out earlier.” She explained with a worried expression.

“It’s alright, we need to remember your studies are a priority.”

“But I asked around and apparently, I can change my program to study in a hybrid method, like half my credits online half in the classroom, so I filled a form and they’ll check my status to see if I can fit the program, they’re starting it and only had like two or three students sign up.”

“That’s incredible! I hope you can make the change, but are you sure it won’t mess up with your studies?” He wondered how she’d be able to keep up with everything.

“No, because it’s the same program, professors, well all of it, that way I can have more free time to do it all.”

Cillian crossed his arms. “And what about your tests?”

If you ever find yourself stuck in the middle of the sea

I'll sail the world to find you

“I’d take them online as well as the courses.”

“But how? You don’t have to be in the classroom?” He just couldn’t picture it.

“Technically no, they upload the test with four or five possible answers and you get your score right away.” She explained.

Cillian lifted his hands in a surrender motion. “Maybe I’m just too old for this.” He chuckled.

“What? That’s ridiculous… you’re not old.” Marianne shook her head.

“Can’t you see the white hairs?” He huffed taking the seat next to her.

“I have friends younger than me with their entire head white, that has nothing to do with age.” Suddenly she was aware of the masculine scent emanating from Cillian. He was too close. “Anyways let me show you this, I made a budget for the rest of the year so you can use for the different projects.”

As she started to show him a few tools, he was in awe of the information for him; graphics, proposals for the new equipment, an analysis cost-benefit of the upcoming projects, this was mind blowing!

“How the hell can you do that?” He asked squinting his eyes, a deep frown showing.

If you ever find yourself lost in the dark and you can't see

I'll be the light to guide you

“What?”

“That thing, when you show me one thing and then another.”

Switching from one file to another, Marianne showed him what buttons she pressed. He made it seem as if she was doing a magic trick.

“Now, if you want to consider buying the equipment overseas, I made this.” She showed him another analysis comparing the investment.

“Wow, this is super organized!” He admitted leaning back looking from the screen to her surprised. “I’m speechless.”

“I tried to make it easy to digest.”

“Thank you, it seems like we both have good news then.”

Marianne saved the document and looked up at Cillian as he stood up.

“Now, come on stage cause I want you to see something.”

“What is it?”

Cillian was pleased to hold it between his hands.

“Guess?” But she couldn’t imagine. “I just got the first printed poster for the promo.” Cillian unfolded the paper carefully and took a few steps back so she could see it completely.

“That’s amazing!” Lee praised joining them on stage, excited to see how everything was developing on time. “Can I take a picture?”

Cillian nodded and raised the poster above his head so it would cover his face.

“What do you think?” He asked moving the paper a bit down, so now only his eyes were poking over it.

Marianne took a moment to register the image, it felt surreal. “I can’t believe this.”

Her green eyes sparkled under the bright lights of the theater. It was one of the photos Cillian took from her as the two roles that represented Adria, looking straight to the camera it was the fearless woman in the red dress in contrast with the woman in the reflection of the mirror with a sad look in her eyes, vulnerable, hit by life over and over.

It was hard to imagine it was the same woman of the script, not only by the character’s differences, but because Cillian had been able to capture Adria’s essence and the gaze from each character when in reality it was the same woman.

We'll find out what we're made of

When we are called to help our friends in need

“It was a good idea ask you to take the photos.” Enda approached them, taking the poster from Cillian’s hands.

“You just did that so you didn’t have to hire and pay for a photographer.” Cillian laughed.

His lifetime pal was right though. “Yeah, but you did a fine work either way.”

Hiding his hands inside the back pockets of his jeans, Cillian looked down. “All credit belongs to Adria.”

Marianne immediately jumped in. “Ah non of that, you were the one making magic with the camera.”

“Right, I’m going to check the sound again, it was horrible today.” Enda adjusted his glasses on his nose and walked away. Once he was out of their sight, Cillian took the permanent marker from his pocket and handed it to Marianne.

“I’ve to be the first one,” Cillian gave her a smile, “can you sign it for me?”

She was beyond surprised, speechless even. His request took her by surprise.

“It should be the other way around, isn’t it?” She raised her eyebrows. “Me asking you for an autograph?”

“Look, as much as I enjoyed portraying a woman in a film, this is a character I’d never be able to play. And unfortunately for you, it’s not my face in the poster, so you’re the one who needs to sign it.” He carefully put the paper on the table in front of them.

“I’ve never signed anything… what do you write?” She looked up at him for guidance.

“Just my initials a circle or a line or whatever…” he chuckled, “but don’t do that, write something nice.”

“Well in that case, I’ll need to take my time to get inspired.” She added with a dramatic hint.

But a phone call interrupted their chat, it was Selene, her classmate, so she moved a few steps away to talk to her. Cillian was trying to define what was happening, because her facial expressions were full of worry.

“Everything alright?” He asked when Marianne approached him again.

“No, we’ve to do a project in teams, but one of the members just let my classmate know he was quitting school, wanted to travel the world and then work in his father’s company.” She sighed frustrated.

“Fuck.” Cillian tried to understand the way she felt.

“My thoughts exactly, now Selene and I have to do everything.”

“What’s your project about? Can I help you in any way?”

You can count on me like one, two, three

I'll be there

She felt a rush of adrenaline, they had very little time to complete the assignment. “We’ve to build a business case about well… a business, doesn’t matter the category, explain the process to the classroom and propose different goals and alternatives to reach them.”

Cillian looked at her trying to figure out a way to help. “Can you use my production agency? My secretary must’ve the monthly balances.”

His proposal made her nod eagerly. “Yes because I could include the investment you did on the play as part of the company to show some way of expansion.”

And I know when I need it, I can count on you like four, three, two

And you'll be there

“Then it’s all set… tell me what you need.”

That’s when Marianne’s smile faded away. “I’d have to ask you for an interview, or you can tell me whoever I can talk to, it doesn’t matter my professor isn’t going to corroborate the authenticity of the job position.”

He realized she was mortified. “It’s no big deal, I’m happy to help.”

We'll find out what we're made of

When we are called to help our friends in need

“Oh my God, thank you! Thank you, it’s only a few questions and it can be just by voice.”she felt at ease when Cillian smiled. “When would you like to schedule it?”

“Right now? Unless you’re busy with something else.”

Marianne could barely hide her excitement, this was extremely important for her and it meant the world that he was willing to help her. “Yes, whenever you can.”

“I‘ll see you kids tomorrow, have a boring meeting with the PR.” Enda waved at them and walked away.

“How about we go to the studio? So you can see where everything is done.” Cillian then asked, taking his jacket from the seat.

“Sure, I promise you it’ll be quick.”

As they moved to the studio, the conversation flowed naturally.

“The other day I was walking down the street, on my way to buy some groceries and I found a little antique shop, there was a beautiful painting, but it was listed as if it was a Rembrandt or a Van Gogh and of course I couldn’t afford it, or I wouldn’t have anything to eat for the rest of the course,” she laughed and the sound caught Cillian’s attention, because it was one of those genuine laughs, “so I showed Lee the picture I took of the painting and she’s doing a replica for me!”

“Really? That’s incredible, I didn’t know she could paint.”

“She’s very artistic, you guys did a great job taking the photos for the promotion of the play.”

Cillian nodded, it was easy to work with her because their ideas matched. “It’s like talent comes naturally in different areas.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I know about copyright and all, but in the art world the prices go out of proportion. And I fell in love with the paint.”

“I can assure you, you’re not the first nor the last one to do it, beside if it ended in an antique store, the original owner didn’t care much about it.”

“That makes me think of the one that got destroyed at an auction.”

“Bansky right?” He immediately recalled watching it on the news, as it was destroyed by a hidden shredder inside the frame. “That was crazy.”

“It was beautiful, simple, but beautiful.” She expressed moving her hair back, a hint of orchids filled the air around him, filling his nostrils. “The little girl, reaching for a balloon that’s floating away…”

“Wonder what was the artist’s intention to do such thing, it’s something stupid right?” He felt comfortable express his thoughts to her.

Marianne shuddered. “Unconventional would be the best way to describe him.”

“Doesn’t makes sense.” He added holding the door open for her. “Nothing makes actually.” The sound of his phone interrupted their chat, Cillian pressed the button to answer, listening to the man at the other end. “So that date works for you?”

Marianne noticed the huge grin on his face as he was humming.

“Alright man, I gotta start scouting locations around and I already have the general idea, the demo is fantastic!” Another pause and he indicated her to turn to her right in the corner. “Talk to you later, thanks Danny.”

Cillian sighed pleased with the information he just got, and turned his head to look at her through his Ray Bans.

“We just signed to produce a music video for a rock band I like, it’s a great hit.”

Marianne now understood his smile. “Congratulations! That’s some great news!”

“Thank you, is a good opportunity.” He was excited about it, but decided to not ask her yet to get involved in the project, not yet.

Arriving at the studio he showed her around first, the cabin where they recorded, the sound machine, it felt like his second man cave.

“Would you like to read the questions first?” She already had a draft, so it was easier to adjust the questionnaire to his business.

Cillian frowned. “No, just shot.”

She chuckled and placed her cellphone between them, setting the recording app. “Starting in three, two, one.”

“Action!” He joked.

“Mr. Murphy could you tell us a little bit about how you started this business?”

“The Mister part made me feel old, can you cut it off?”

Marianna suppressed a small giggle but nodded at him.

“Hi Cillian, thank you for accepting this quick talk, could you tell us about how you started this business?”

Cillian adjusted on his seat and looked up at the silence sign in the corner. “I love my job, but somewhere down the road I stumbled across being behind the scenes, as I started learning what’s happening in the background, th-the things we don’t see on screen, I fell in love with that part of the process.” He looked at her intensely. “But I’m always in one corner, I care too much or I don’t at all,” he chuckled, “so I decided to explore that side of the business because I had a lot of free time and I was a good part of the day in the studio anyways with my stuff. So I talked about it with a couple of friends who are experts in their fields and they were happy to jump in this ship.”

“Can you elaborate a little about your main projects?”

“Yeah, we finance and produce independent films, advertisements, records…”

“That’s amazing, the magic behind the scenes…”

He gave her a genuine smile.

“What was the biggest challenge you faced? The struggle that almost made you quit?”

Cillian leant his body forwards, towards her, one of his hands over his thigh.

“People not believing in my dream, saying it was just one of my hobbies. But it’s always being like that, you know? People never take you seriously until you make it.”

“I’ve seen some of the projects and it’s mind blowing.”

“You’ve?” He asked surprised.

Marianne nodded. “I was curious about the audiobook you recorded and I listened it until like two or three in the morning. I also loved the promo video you did of local food in Ireland, it was mouthwatering. I wanted to take a bite of each plate.” She laughed.

Cillian was taken a back by her words, he didn’t know she had been so involved with his company to the point of seeing the projects. And he rarely got a compliment over it because he was usually behind the scenes.

“I take every project seriously, love being involved in every little detail to be able to deliver a good quality work.”

“What’s next for you?”

“There’s a video already in post production about tourism in the country, the finest places to visit, the hidden little gems… it’s beautiful. We’ll present it to the client in a few weeks and there’s another one I’m particularly excited about, but unfortunately due to confidential agreement I can’t share more at the moment, but it’s about music.”

As they finished working on the questionnaire, Marianne told him she would call Selene, to let her know the interview was done.

“Can I use your laptop in the meantime? I’ll be quick.”

Marianne already had her phone next to her ear, so she nodded before trying to reach her classmate.

As Cillian opened the icon to search, he found her email open already, his eyes were glued in one in particular.

Change of medication?

Cillian moved up to close the tab, but his fingers hesitated. He didn’t mean to intrude in her personal email account, but it caught his attention.

Feeling a rush of guilt, he looked over his shoulder to make sure Marianne was out of sight. But curiosity won him over, he really needed to know why would she need another medication since she never mentioned being sick.

There wasn’t a lot of information, at least it wasn’t clear, she just mentioned feeling her chest tight at times during the night and that she couldn’t exercise because she felt short of breath. The doctor answered he was out of town for a couple of days but would schedule her once he got back.

He also mentioned she should go back to her previous medication and look after any other alarm sign she could notice.

Cillian stared at the screen for a moment, he couldn’t see a signature or phone number. And it wasn’t clear if she was getting any better. Clicking finally on the red x at the top corner, he felt a vein in his temple starting to pulse.

Was her sickness something serious?

Should he worry about her health condition?

“All set, she will take care of the analysis and proposals for the project and I can work on the business case,” Marianne came back with a smile, oblivious of his thoughts. “I was thinking of using the play as my baseline, you’re super involved in the project and I could easily make it fit as one of the ways to expand your company, sorry I’m talking too much.”

Cillian looked into her eyes, debating between asking Marianne directly or not.

****

Next part

A/N: Still with the slow burn… but I promise you, there will be some action, can you feel them more integrated? Let me know!

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[illiterate-goblins]

Tips for my transfemme siblings <3

I've been transitioning for the past 4 years and in that time I've picked up a lot of tips and tricks that I didn't see many other people talking about. So, let me pass along a little bit of the wisdom that's helped me pass to the rest of you all. This is going to be a long post, so brace yourself :)

DISCLAIMER: These are things that I have found personal success with. All people are different, and not all advice is going to be perfect for everyone. Also important to note, this advice is coming from a white person who is ABSOLUTELY not makeup expert. I have specifically made notes below where my advice and recommendations may not be the best / most accurate for people of color. With that said, much of the advice should still be applicable to most people - POC or not.

A lot of the transfemme makeup tutorials I found early on were based in drag. I didn't like the sheer amount of products that were being pushed as *necessary* and had heavy looking final results. Over the past few years I've found a more minimal (and affordable) routine that gives passing results. My daily makeup routine only consists of four products: Concealer, Translucent setting power, blush, and eyeliner. Let's go through each of those.

TOOLS - You're going to want to get a set of brushes. You can find affordable sets online or in stores. I got a set of E.L.F. brushes and they've held up excellently the past 4 years. - Don't buy beauty blenders. Beauty blenders aren't going to be the best tool for us because of our skin texture. Skin that grows facial hair is more textures than skin that doesn't. Applying makeup to textured skin with a beauty blender won't look as good for as long. - The rest of the supplies I use will be listed in their respective sections. You really don't need a ton of tools or supplies, especially as a beginner. Stone rollers, face masks, serums, scrubs.... They're nice extras if you can afford them, but they're not essentials

CONCEALER - I use R.E.M. Beauty Sweetener concealer ($24). It comes in a small pot and will require a brush for application. This concealer comes in a wide array of colors (60, to be specific), provides high coverage, and doesn't look cake-y. - Cream concealer has worked better for me compared to liquid concealers. You get more control on the amount you're using and it should last you a good few months. REMEMBER, a little goes a long way! You don't need to lay it on super heavy. - I apply this just over the areas where I have facial hair shadow. Stipple the concealer on freshly shaven skin and blend those edges out until there's no visible edge. - Using a brush is crucial for trans femmes, especially when going over facial hair shadow. As I said above, the skin that grows facial hair is rougher and more textured, using a brush to stipple on the makeup will get it into the pores. - The concealer I've recommended is great because it can be built up in multiple layers if needed. R.E.M. Beauty is also cruelty free and vegan, if those factors are important to you.

SETTING POWER - I use a L'oreal Hydra Perfecte loose setting powder. Unfortunately, this product has been discontinued. - A great affordable / drug store option is E.L.F.'s High Definition Powder. It's only $6, comes in a sheer option for light skin tones and "soft luminescence" for some darker skin tones. - I don't know what kinds of setting powders will work best on dark skin tones. Light setting powders like this can (I think) leave an ashy finish on darker skins. - I prefer using loose powder, but that's mostly because just what I have experience with. They tend to have a more sheer and transparent finish compared to pressed powders. - Tap out a small amount into the lid of your powder and press it into your skin lightly instead of spreading it across your face. - You will want to use a setting powder on top of every layer of liquid or cream makeup. This will set the makeup and prevent it from smudging as easily and mixing with another liquid / cream product. (if you're applying a second layer of concealer, like I mentioned above, powder in between layers). - Setting powder, in addition to keeping makeup from mixing and spreading, gives the skin a matte finish. This will help hide the textured portions of your skin. - If you want a dewy finish you can add a setting spray at the very end. This will give your skin a little bit of shine without drawing attention to your textured sections.

BLUSH - I use Revolution Beauty Blusher Reloaded ($6). This one pan has lasted me four years and has approximately ten years left. (Seriously, I use this almost every day and the pan hardly looks used). - Blush is a very important step because it brings color and warmth back to your face. - There are two main methods I use when I apply blush: Dramatic and Classic - Dramatic: Place blush from cheek to cheer and across the nose. - Classic: Place blush on the apples of you cheeks (the part that rises up when you smile) - If you apply the blush too heavily just go over it with your bare powder brush. This will reduce the color and blend the edges. - I've found that you can get away with a heavier blush if you're going with the dramatic method (hence the name). Classic blush looks best when it's applied fairly subtly. However, it's still possible to go too heavy with the dramatic style.

EYELINER - The ONLY eyeliner I use is the NYX Epic Ink Liner ($10). - There are three main kinds of eyeliner: Pencils, Pots, and Liquids. - Pencils: Like the name suggests, they're basically really really soft pencils. These are great if you want to blend out and get a smokey look, but aren't great for crisp bold lines. - Pots: This style of eyeliner comes in a pot and requires a specific brush to apply. If you buy a set of brushes, you should be set. This kind of eyeliner is more versatile, able to be blended into a smokey eyeliner AND able to give crisp lines. However, I've found that it's got a steeper learning curve. - Liquid: This style is the best way to get clean lines and sharp wings. Liquid liners usually come in a bottle with a nail polish looking brush, which definitely also have a learning curve. But, that's where my favorite eyeliner comes in! - The Epic Ink Liner is essentially a brush pen. With a pencil form factor and an always sharp brush tip, you will get easy to control lines with just a little bit of practice. - This is my everyday method of applying eyeliner: 1) Start in the outer corner of your eye and extend the angle your lower lid makes. (You can make this wing as big as you'd like, but I would suggest beginners start with a relatively smaller wing (1cm or shorter). Repeat on the other eye. 2) Place the tip of the brush at the peak of that line and draw over in a straight line until you hit your lashes. Close your eyes slightly so the crease of your eye doesn't effect this line. Repeat on the other eye. 3) Move to the inner corner of your eye and apply an even line along the rest of the eyelid. Take a moment to soften the transition between this line and the straight line from the previous step. Repeat with the other eye. 4) Fill in any empty spaces - By doing each step on both eyes before moving on to the next step will help your eyeliner to look more symmetrical. Plus, if the angles aren't matching, it's much easier to remove one line rather than an entirely finish eye. - One additional step you can add is extending the line in the inner corner of your eye just a little bit. Follow the curve you made and don't go down too far. - NOTE: This is my method for non hooded eyes. Because hooded eyes are an entirely different shape, I don't know the best method to add eyeliner.

HIGHLIGHTER - I use Colorpop Super Shock Cheek highlighter ($9). As the name suggests, this is a SUPER highlighter. - I don't wear highlighter every day. It's a fun addition, but I don't find it necessary for days I'm just running errands or going grocery shopping. I reserve it for concerts, dates, or any other event where I want to look extra cute. - The main places to add highlighter are the top edge of your cheek bones, the inner corner of your eyes, the outer edge right below your eyebrows, and down the bridge of your nose and onto the tip. - Since this isn't going on any skin that grows facial hair, you don't need to use a brush. I use my ring finger to apply the highlighter, wipe off the excess, then gently blend the edges with my ring finger again - Blending your highlighter doesn't need to be taken that seriously. Just softening the edges is enough 99% of the time. If you think you applied the highlighter too heavily you can take your powder brush and hit those spots and little. Just like with the blush, this should tone down the pop a bit

FOUNDATION - I don't use foundation anymore. I prefer a minimal face of makeup, letting the natural variations in color and imperfections show. However, wanting a smooth and consistent color all over your face is perfectly valid, too <3 - If you are going to use foundation, you will want to apply concealer first. The concealer is going to do the heavy lifting for hiding your facial hair shadow. - When choosing a concealer to put underneath foundation, many people will say to pick a color that's a shade lighter than your skin. That advice is aimed towards people who primarily conceal their under eye bags, and the lighter color helps the eyes look more awake. If you're getting just one concealer, pick the closest match to your skin tone. - I highly recommend choosing a powder foundation. Powder products, as I said before, give the face a matte finish that hides the textured skin better. Unfortunately, powder foundations are less common and typically more expensive ($30+) - If you already have liquid foundation and don't want to waste it, apply it like you did with the concealer: take a small amount and dab it into the skin with a brush. - The order I would apply this makeup in is: Concealer -> Setting Powder -> Powder Foundation // Concealer -> Setting Powder -> Liquid / Cream Foundation -> Setting Powder. Not everyone agrees on which should come first, concealer or foundation, but I found that concealer first looked better, especially with powder foundations.

COLOR CORRECTOR - You might notice that no matter how high coverage your concealer or foundation are, there's still some noticeable discoloration over your facial hair shadow. This is down to color theory: your shadow is producing a different undertone than non shadowed skin. To cancel that out you need to cover it with its complementary color. There are generally 3 different tones that shadow comes in. - Brown tones: typically found in light to medium tan skin tones. This is covered by pink and salmon tones. The deeper your skin tone, the darker you'll want to go. - Blue/green tones: Typically found in olive skin tones. This is covered by peach and orange tones. Again, the deeper your skin tone, the darker you'll want to go. - Blue/grey tones: Typically found on dark skin tones. This is covered by orange tones. Medium dark skin will want a lighter orange, darker tones will want a more true orange. - DO NOT APPLY COLOR CORRECTOR HEAVILY!!! The heavier you apply the color corrector the more concealer / foundation you'll have to apply to cover it up. You only need the smallest amount to counteract the undertones that will show through your concealer / foundation. - Color corrector is also used to hide other skin tone variations like under eye bags or acne. Under eye bags are usually blue, so use a peachy CC on them. Acne is canceled out by green. - I have seen so many tutorials that recommend using lipstick as your color corrector. Don't do this. Lipstick is generally going to be more oily and prone to melting / smudging. Specially formulated color correctors will stay put much better.

MISC. OTHER PRODUCTS - Primers - A primer can be a good addition to your routine, but they're not strictly necessary for everyone. Primers can be used to give your full face of makeup a better initial layer to stick to, and there are some designed to fill in your pores (something you may want if your shadowed areas are more textured than you'd like after after concealer (and foundation if you use it). I'd say skip it on your first trip to the makeup aisle, but pick it up later on if you'd like. - Eye shadow - Eye shadow can be really fun! It adds extra color to your face and can really accentuate your eye color. It can be a fun addition to tie in with accent colors in your outfit. I just personally don't like the time and effort needed to get good looking eye shadow most days. And, because I don't do it much, I'm not that great with it. Luckily, it is absolutely not needed for an every day look. - Lipstick - I'm an anxious lip biter, so lipsticks don't always last very long on me. I do, however, LOVE one specific lipstick: Maybelline's Super Stay Matte Liquid Lipstick ($11). Once this bad boy dries you're going to have that color on all day. I like the look of matte lipsticks, but if you want a glossy finish you can add a lip gloss once it dries. This liquid lipstick is pretty east to apply, just try to keep a steady hand and work your way to the outer edges of your lips. Letting it air dry will take a little longer, but ends up looking better removing the excess with a napkin (no paper bits will get stuck to your lips). Just be prepared to scrub this off your lips at the end of the day. -NOTE: I don't like recommending people buy from Maybelline since they aren't cruelty free. This is the only product of theirs that I haven't been able to find a suitable alternative that works even a fraction as well. Luckily, one tube of lipstick lasts a long time, and since it stays on so well you won't have to be reapplying multiple times a day -Contour - Contour can be your friend, or it can be your worst enemy. This is one of the more difficult products to apply if you're going for a natural look. Most times that I've personally tried contouring it ends up way too dark. Subtlety is your best friend with contour. I would also suggest sticking to a powder contour pallet to start, liquid contours are much tougher.

SKIN CARE -Okay I am the WORST person to talk about skin care, I neglect doing it so often. With that said... - Don't buy in to beauty youtubers and their 12 step skincare routines. They're super expensive, have so many overlapping products, and I have never met a single person who has the time or commitment to stick to that intense of a routine daily. - Bare minimum: Get makeup remover wipes and take your makeup off every night. Since we are specifically trying to fill our pores we NEED to make sure we take the makeup off. Clogged pores lead to acne outbreaks and ingrown hairs. Eye makeup, if left on, can lead to developing styes, which are painful, annoying, and can grow into a serious issue if not dealt with. Cheap walmart branded wipes will do the job, but they aren't the best. I really like Neutrogena's makeup remover wipes ($5). - If you do develop a stye you'll want to give it a hot compress once or twice a day. Soak a towel or wash cloth, wring it mostly out, pop it in the microwave for 20-30 seconds, and apply to the affected eye. This is opening that pore and letting it breathe. After a few days - a week it should be fixed. DO NOT TRY TO POP A STYE!!!! Styes are clogged pored that have developed an infection, if the puss from the infection gets out it can cause more styes. - If you want a better routine than just makeup wipes, here's my 3 step process (that I don't do nearly as often as I should): Simple Foaming Cleanser (now discontinued :( ) to remove your makeup -> CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser ($15) to clean your face once the makeup is off -> Simple Replenishing Rich Moisturizer ($7) to keep the skin hydrated and soft. There is a bit of overlap here, and if you're on a tight budget I would just go for the CeraVe cleanser. - If you're a lazy bitch like I am, just use makeup wipes at the end of the day and keep your face wash in the shower and do that whenever you shower.

Shaving -If you want the closest possible shave or all day smoothness, you won't find a better answer than a 5 blade razor (or a straight razor but those have a steeper learning curve). DON'T DRY SHAVE WITH THIS KIND OF RAZOR!!! You've got to have something lubricating the skin or else you're going to end up with razor burn and irritated skin. Putting makeup on top of razor burn hurts and isn't good for the healing process - I don't like the time and hassle that a standard razor requires, so I shave every day with the Philips One Blade (~$40). This gives an incredibly smooth shave that lasts almost all day (at least with the rate my facial hair grows). The head replacements are a bit on the pricey side (a 3 pack is usually on sale for ~$30), but one head will last you around 3 months. The face will wear down and show an image when it's time to replace it, but I find you can typically get a good shave out of it for a while after. - They make a variant of the razor with a stronger motor that's designed for body hair, but I've have great results with the standard one. If you have thicker / coarser body hair the upgraded motor model might be the one you want to go for (it should work perfectly fine on facial hair, too). - They have also recently released special heads for "intimate" areas but that's another thing I think you can probably pass on. I just snap on the #1 guard and shave my pubic area down. It's not a perfectly smooth shave (and I don't recommend using the bare razor head on your pubic region unless you're EXTREMELY careful and/or don't mind the occasional small cut), but I find that it's more than good enough for me. That length actually bypasses the itchy phase of your pubes growing back in after a day or two (for me, at least)). And... I think that's everything! Those are all the makeup and beauty related products and processes that I can think of. Again, I'd like to reiterate that this is all stuff that has worked for me specifically, and it's information I ended up learning the hard way. I spent several months walking around with orange tinted skin so you don't have to. If you have any questions about anything please feel free to ask in the replies or you can DM me. And, if you have any extra tips that I didn't mention, or if you have tips for darker skin tones / hooded eyes / other non-white features, please add them! Our POC siblings deserve love and support too!

[metroformen]

Welcome to the FOR MEN blog

Hello readers and welcome to the FOR MEN blog!  I am Krista, the men's grooming expert and the blog author.  You can expect to read everything related to men's grooming services, education, and tips.  Topics will include men's hair care, men's hair product reviews, and application techniques.  I will also discuss men's body waxing processes, aftercare, and men's skincare and shaving tips.  I won't forget men's nail care too.

Be sure to comment on the topics that we discuss.  Please feel free to suggest topics you would like to learn more about too. 

My Humble Beginnings

I first started my company blog in 2005, where I planned to write about anything from men’s grooming products and services to our company parties. When social media started, I jumped on every platform possible to promote my men's hair salon. I created a company page on Facebook business pages in 2007. In the beginning, I just wanted to have visibility wherever I could so clients could find the salon. My instincts told me that the more websites the business was on, the more my business would be found. At that time, very (and I mean very) few hair salons were using the web as a tool to grow, which meant there was no competition. That did not last long.  As more businesses in my industry got online, I had to learn to be strategic. This is when I learned I needed a unique voice and needed to post content related to my professional expertise. I want to be the person men come to when they have grooming questions.

What The m Blog Promises to Deliver

I started forming online connections that fit my goal on and offline.  At first, I accepted every incoming friend request, but over time, I realized that just having connections did not meet my overall objective. I set out to make connections that inspired me as much as I was hoping to educate others. According to Dr. Gilpin, social capital is the “collective value of all social networks and the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from them.” It is one of the reasons I will never venture into buying followers, as seen in this MIC.com article. In the MIC article, a want-to-be influencer paid another social media influencer $20 to boost his follower count so that he, too could be considered a mega influencer. Buying followers was an option for me when I started out, but it just did not feel right.  As Dr. Giplin pointed out, social capital is built through authenticity and trustworthiness by focusing on the relationship. I built my following organically and vow to maintain an authentic voice in this blog.

My goal is to post fresh content designed to solve a problem and inform or motivate our men in their grooming endeavors.

Have a great day!