#Leftovers for the zine are currently open if anyone is interested! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

reneeofthestars · 4 years

Text

Nerra Voa Numa

** I’m so excited to finally share the fic I wrote for “Found: A Clone Wars Zine”!! This was such an amazing project to be a part of, and I’m so thankful to the mods for allowing me to participate. **

***Leftover sales for the zine are currently open, so check out @foundaclonewarszine if you are interested in purchasing one of these amazing zines!***

Click “Keep Reading” to stay on Tumblr, or read it on AO3

* * *

The bustle of the spaceport felt oddly comforting. Boil squinted against the harsh Rylothian sunlight as he stepped off the hoverbus, letting himself be jostled along by the crowd. Food carts tempted him with sweet aromas, pilots called for cargo or passengers, engines roared and sputtered on the landing platforms, droids and beings alike called and beeped and whistled.

The debarkation processes for civilian freighters and transports were far less organized than those the Grand Army of the Republic had used, but it had a liveliness to it, an energy that reminded Boil of the anticipation that had filled him the first time he watched the oceans of Kamino shrink into a cloudy sphere before vanishing altogether in the blur of hyperspace.

He hadn’t felt that excitement in years. When the Imperial troops loaded into the cruisers – that is, the Star Destroyers – it was like watching some parody of Boil and his fellow soldiers. The clones set out under orders to drive back the mindless Separatist droids and defend the citizens, and their focus was palatable. The stormtroopers were commanded to instill order – even when there was no disorder to be found – and their energy felt…wrong.

Boil had worn the stormtrooper armor for years as he trained new recruits. He remembered how civilians had looked at the clone troopers when they came to the cities during the war – yes, there had been skepticism and dismissal; but there had also been relief, friendliness, appreciation. As a stormtrooper, he only felt positive emotions from a select few Core Worlds. Everywhere else, the civvies looked uneasy, mistrustful, even scared.

But he had been able to chalk those feelings up to the vast changes in the galaxy. The war had begun and ended so suddenly; residual turmoil was expected. He went on as he always had: a soldier following orders.

And he had fellow clones in the ranks that he spent time with. They mostly kept to themselves; the natural-born recruits viewed them as either superiors or inferiors. They had quietly complained about the degraded plastoid armor and inefficient helmets, reminisced old battles, spoken to each other like only brothers could. But one by one, they died in skirmishes with criminals, or were forced into retirement by their superiors, until Boil was the last clone at the Arkanis Imperial Academy. He’d never been without a brother before, and the loneliness had almost swallowed him whole.

He had known it was only a matter of time, but that hadn’t stopped the swooping sensation in his gut the day his supervisory officer told him to clear out his bunk and come to her office. He’d signed the discharge doc absently, writing his nickname without thinking. The officer had scowled and ordered him to resign it with his birth number.

And now, here he was: a clone on Ryloth with a limited credit supply, a bag of clothes, his old armor, and no idea what he was supposed to do now.

A passing Rodian caught his eye and frowned, like she was trying to figure out if she knew him. Boil ducked his head and hurried on, securing his headwrap closer to his face, trying to obscure it best he could. It had been ten years since the end of the war, and most civilians seemed to have already forgotten its existence. But there was still an impression that the clones were somehow responsible for the hardships of the war, which could lead to…problems. Boil ran a gloved hand over his face. Getting a job would be difficult.

Maybe he could be a mechanic. Or a mercenary. Or maybe a bodyguard. He’d have to find a place to buy a good blaster – the Empire hadn’t let him take his standard-issue blaster with him. Outside of war, he wasn’t sure what he could actually do. Maybe –

“Nerra.”

Boil froze. The voice was high and feminine, coming from somewhere off to his right. It was said quietly, almost absently, but it struck him to the core. He had a flash of a ghost town in a canyon, a small girl calling after him –

He spun around.

A young, teal-skinned Twi’lek woman was walking past, pushing a hovercrate brimming with electronic scrap. She wasn’t looking at him; she focused on the crowd in front of her, shooing away vendors that got too close.

Boil felt his breath catch, turning to tell Waxer – but no, Waxer had died years ago, what was he thinking?

He didn’t recall stepping forward. All he knew was tripping over his own feet as he hurried after her. “Ex – excuse me? Ma’am!”

She kept walking.

“Ma’am? Ma’am!” Why were his hands shaking? He stumbled to a stop. “Numa?”

She jerked to a halt, whipping around to face him, her head-tails swinging. Her eyes widened. “What did you say?” she demanded in heavily accented Basic.

“I – ” Boil faltered. “You called me ‘nerra’.”

The woman’s face flushed a darker teal. “It’s – it’s just an old habit. I didn’t mean to –”

“No, you – you called me ‘nerra’ when I was here. During the war. Me and Waxer.”

She fell silent. Her wide brown eyes were streaked with violet, taking in his face, his height, his orange-marked greaves visible just below his oversized poncho. Very quietly, she asked, “Boil?”

He laughed. It had been so long since anyone called him by his nickname. He wasn’t sure why it happened, but his knees gave out.

And then she was there, little Numa, alive and healthy, if still a little too thin, kneeling in front of him, her hands holding onto his shoulders as he shook.

“You’re alive,” he gasped. “I’m so glad – you’re alive. So many people died – so many we couldn’t save…”

“Shh.” She looked around, apprehensive. The crowd had parted for them, and Boil realized he was attracting stares. “Come with me. I’ll help you.”

“No, it’s – it’s alright,” he grunted, fighting to pull himself together. The last thing he wanted was a patrol of stormtroopers to see him like this. “I don’t know – what came over me. I just – I’m glad you’re alright, that’s all. I’ll be going –”

“No,” Numa said fiercely. “You helped me. You helped my people. It’s my turn to help you.”

Boil let Numa pull him to his feet, surprised by her strength. Wordlessly, he took the hovercrate from her. She hesitated before nodding slightly and leading him through the winding streets. He wiped his face with the cloth of the headwrap, embarrassed.

He followed her into the residential quarter, the chaos of the spaceport fading away behind them. It was a quiet area, save for the wind whistling through the rocks around them. The homes had been hewn into the stone; they were much better-kept than the village he and Waxer had found Numa in all those years ago. Adult Twi’leks chatted outside of homes as children chased each other. Several of them called out to Numa, throwing Boil curious looks. He kept his head bowed.

Finally, Numa had him park the hovercrate along the side of a particular building. She tossed a large rough blanket on top of it, camouflaging it with the stone. That caught his attention. He looked at Numa sharply, but she either didn’t notice or chose not to respond.

“Uncle Nilim!” she called, leading the way inside the house. The entry room opened into a sparsely decorated common area, with cushions and seats arranged around an outdated holoprojector.

An aging, blue-skinned Twi’lek man appeared from an interior room. It took him a moment to see Boil, then recoiled when he did. He held a frantic arm out to Numa, crying something in Ryl.

She said something very quickly in reply, her lekku twisting and gesturing, and Boil remembered a lesson on Kamino in his childhood; Twi’leks used their head-tails to communicate in tandem with their oral language. He’d never paid attention before. It was like the hand signals he’d used with other clones.

The man still looked skeptical; he skirted the edge of the room before approaching. He and Boil stared at each other for a long time before the Twi’lek finally gave a small nod. “You are older. But it is you.” He pronounced every word deliberately, with great care. He seemed to be practicing his Basic.

“And it’s you,” Boil responded, realization dawning on him. Numa had run to this man when Ghost Company had liberated her village. Boil had always assumed he was her father. But she called him ‘uncle’…

The man smiled. He placed a hand on his heart as he bowed his head. “Nilimb’ryl. Nilim Bril,” he introduced himself. “I am honored to finally meet you, Nerra.”

“My name is Boil. Uh, thank you,” Boil said hastily, bowing his head too.

Nilim gestured towards the common area, and Boil followed the two Twi’leks as they sat on some plump cushions. Boil mimicked them, grunting as he lowered himself to the seat. He was getting old.

“I told you we would meet again someday,” Numa said, beaming as she nudged her uncle. She looked to Boil, sitting forward eagerly on her cushion. “And where is the other? Waxer?”

The air rushed from Boil’s lungs. It never got any easier.

He didn’t need to say anything. Numa’s face fell. She extended an arm and touched his shoulder gently. “I’m so sorry.”

“He’d be glad you’re okay.” Boil forced a smile. “He always wondered if the war left you alone once we liberated the planet. It sounds ridiculous, cuz we only knew you for a day…but you left a big impact on him. On both of us.”

He set his pack down and reached inside. Nilim shrank away, reflexively grabbing his niece’s arm. “It’s alright,” Boil said quickly, holding up his hands. “I don’t have a blaster. I just want to show Numa something.” He didn’t move until Nilim nodded.

Boil moved his assorted belongings aside until his hand closed around his helmet. He hadn’t worn it since the war, but he’d been allowed to keep his armor, and the detail on the bucket was still intact. He stared at the visor, his reflection gazing back at him.

“When we found you, Waxer realized you might think we were droids, so he took his bucket off so’s not to scare you.”

“I did think that,” she admitted. “I remember being scared – I thought the droids were going to take me too. Then when I saw his face – ” she laughed. “I’d never actually met a Human before, so I wondered where his lekku were.”

“And when I took mine off, you pointed at us both and said ‘nerra’.” Boil was quiet for a moment. “He didn’t want to leave you behind. I did. If it had been up to me, I would have left you there, to continue my mission. Waxer was always a better man than me.” He hung his head, grip tight on the helmet.

“You’re a soldier,” Numa answered, her voice soft. “Sometimes you have to make hard calls. But you made the choice to help me. And you saved me. You saved all of us.”

Boil chuckled. “Heh. Well you saved us, too. Those two-legged insects would’ve eaten us if you hadn’t gotten us outta there.” He lifted the helmet from his pack and handed it to her.

She took it, her brow creasing as she examined the cartoonish figure painted on the side. Waxer had painstakingly added the decal to both their helmets.

Discomfort settled on him as Numa silently stared at the drawing of herself. “We both wanted to remember you,” he offered awkwardly. “When the war started, we knew we were fighting for the Republic, but it was just an idea. It’s not like we’d ever lived in it, or knew why it was better than the Separatists. But we saw what happened to the civilians caught in the middle. Waxer wanted us to remember who we were really fighting for. For you, and for people like you.”

Numa remained silent, her expression unreadable, her lekku still.

Nerves fluttered in Boil’s gut. He cleared his throat and tried to explain. “Our armor was the one thing that was our own. We never had possessions – we moved around too much, and it’s not like we had much shore leave. So, we clones started painting our armor to make it our own. Different colors for different companies, accents for battles, tally marks for fallen brothers… everyone was different.” He fiddled with the hem of his pack, waiting for a response that didn’t come. “It was the best way we had of honoring people. We always said our armor showed who we were, and who made us that way.”

Numa said nothing. Carefully, she set the helmet beside her. She stood abruptly and hurried from the room, refusing to look at him.

Something caught in Boil’s throat and he gulped, rocking forward on his cushion to stand, but Nilim laid a hand on his shoulder.

“Give her a moment,” he advised.

Boil slumped. “I’m sorry,” he said, rubbing his eyes. “I don’t even know why I’m here.”

“People end up where they need to be.”

What a strange thought. It reminded Boil of something a Jedi would say. A flash of – anger? shame? – shot through him before dissipating as quickly as it came. Keeping his voice low, Boil looked at Nilim. “Where are her parents?”

Nilim’s gaze drifted, his smile slipping away. “My brother and his wife were killed in the attack in Nabat. I have raised Numa since their passing.”

“I’m sorry,” Boil said. The only family he’d ever known were his brothers. He didn’t know what it felt like to have parents – or to lose them – but he imagined the pain was the same. A wave of guilt drove him to his feet. “I’d better get going. I’m only making things worse.”

The Twi’lek’s eyes widened, startled. “Numa will not want you to go. You are welcomed here.”

“I’m a clone,” he said gruffly. “I’m not welcomed anywhere.”

“Stay.”

Numa stood in the doorway, cradling something decorative. The whites of her eyes looked vaguely red, and her mouth was held in a thin line. She shifted from foot to foot, looking almost apprehensive.

“This is a Kalikori,” Numa said, holding the decorative piece reverently.

“It is a totem,” Nilim explained, “passed down the line of a Twi’lek family.”

“It honors all who have come before. It is our way of remembering our family.” She held it out to Boil, and he took it gingerly.

It was a long series of intricately carved figures, arranged in a T-shape with charms and carvings hanging from the points. Stone, wood, metal, and clay pieces were engraved with symbols and shapes. It was easy to see that great care had been put into creating it.

At the bottom of one of the strands were two small orange and white blocks joined by a teal rectangle with some sort of script chiseled into it. Boil’s mouth went dry, a prickling sensation springing up behind his eyes. “What does that say?”

“Nerra voa Numa,” she answered quietly, watching him closely. “Brothers and Sister.”

Tears spilled from his eyes as Boil held the Kalikori tightly to his chest. His shoulders shook and his breaths turned to gasps and sobs. He turned his face away, ashamed. He hadn’t cried like this since he’d learned of Waxer’s death.

Hands rested on both of his shoulders as he wept; one large and calloused, one slight and gentle.

“Boil.” Numa paused, taking a deep breath. “For the last ten years, every time I saw a clone, I would say ‘Nerra’, hoping that one of them would react to it the way you did. I’ve wanted to find you ever since you left. I don’t want you to leave again.”

“We added you to the Kalikori years ago,” Nilim murmured. “You have been a part of us all this time. You have a home here, if you wish.”

The words stuck in Boil’s throat. “I…I need to think on it.” He dashed a hand across his eyes, fighting to steady his breathing. He handed the Kalikori back to Numa, and she gently set it down.

“Of course.” Nilim squeezed his shoulder. “And while you think, I will be making lunch. You are hungry?”

“Thank you,” Boil said, successfully distracted by the idea of a home-cooked meal. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d eaten anything that wasn’t rations or Imperial-regulated meals.

Nilim left the room. Boil and Numa sat in near-silence as Boil worked to control his breathing. The tears kept falling, but they were drying, which he was grateful for; Numa was watching. From the other room, he heard Nilim shuffling about, cookware scraping together as he worked. Once he trusted himself to speak, Boil pitched his voice low. “Numa, why did you hide those electronic components?”

She looked to him appraisingly, and suddenly she seemed much older, and he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was no longer the frightened child that had trailed behind him all those years ago.

“Because beneath those electronic components are blasters for Syndulla’s resistance. The Free Ryloth Movement never truly dissipated. The war never ended here.”

Between them, the Kalikori and his helmet rested side-by-side. “I want to help you.”

She beamed, and before Boil could move, she’d thrown her arms around him tightly. He started in surprise before returning the hug.

When she drew back, her eyes were dancing. “I’ll message Cham and let him know you’re with us. Not a word to Uncle Nilim, though. He’s not on board with me being in the resistance yet.”

“I understand.”

“I’m glad you’re with us, brother. There’s much work to be done.”

69 notes · View notes

dsmpfanzine · 2 years

Text

🌿 Text In post:

It is with a heavy heart that, in light of recent events that are transpiring amongst the DT community, the Mod Team has made the ultimate decision to discontinue this zine.

Our initial goal for this project was to celebrate the creative and positive aspects of the DT fanbase, thus doing our best to create a positive safe space from these sorts of events that exist within the community. However, as matters have recently became more serious within the fanbase, we are not and do not want to seem ignorant and insensitive to it - thus our decision here.

We will not announce our stance on the subject nor elaborate on the exact events, as it is not our place here - we do not want to bring negative attention to anyone, especially for our potential fan creators or audience. However, we do hope you understand and can continue to enjoy the fandom in your own way.

Thank you immensely for your support and interest in this project! We hope you'll check out our other project - “Unfinished Symphony”, that is currently shipping our preorder sales, with leftover sales opening soon!

- The DFZ Team :)

#dream smp #dsmp #dsmp fandom #dream team #dteam #dt #dream come true zine #dream

4 notes · View notes

birbleafs · 4 years

Text

[fic] A Tragicomedy In Five Acts

Series: Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan || The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. Rating: T Genre: Friendship, Humour, Breaking the Fourth Wall Character(s): Akechi Touma, Saiki Kusuo, Saiki Kurumi, Saiki Kuniharu, Saiki Kuusuke Warnings: None, save for the canon-typical shenanigans Summary: Akechi has made a habit of showing up unannounced, uninvited at the Saiki residence. The inevitable "bonding" occurs and Kusuo despairs; the world continues to turn. A/N: A piece I wrote for the Disastrous Life Zine, a charity zine. I wanted to share the uncut version here since I like how it reads more (it's not too different from zine version, though). Leftover sales are currently still live, so here's your last chance to grab some limited items if you had missed the pre-orders earlier! Thanks to the mods & other contributors over at @disastrouslifezine, for all their hard work on this project. Many thanks also to my bro Digi for the awesome beta work and for always being an all-round great pal ❤ Fic can also be read AO3. _______ i. It’s a problem Saiki Kusuo should have—could have—nipped earlier in the bud, when he’d been forced to spend a whole Sunday with Akechi Touma betting on horse-racing. But between Akechi being (begrudgingly) accepted as one of the PK Psychickers to Kusuo having to stop a meteor from slamming into the planet—well, a lot had happened. Akechi had since taken to visiting the Saiki residence at random, with little notice in advance. On his second visit, Mom had invited him in before Kusuo could intervene. If it weren’t for the cupcakes Akechi had brought along—not to mention the terrifying heat of Mom’s demonic glare at the first sign of a protest—Kusuo would have teleported him miles away without hesitation. That’s how Kusuo finds himself now—glowering at Akechi who’s sitting politely in his room and firing a running commentary about nothing and too many things all at once. Resigned, he leans back into his study chair and asks, point-blank: What do you want, Akechi?

“Your mother is lovely as always,” Akechi replies instead, dancing around the question. “I’m grateful she’s gone from remembering me as ‘Pee Boy’ to ‘Kusuo’s Friend Who Only Ever Wets His Pants Occasionally’. Surely that’s a sign we have gotten closer.” It sounds just as terrible as the first—only a simpleton would be okay with that as a defining trait, Kusuo retorts. In any case, we’re hardly more than classmates. So, why are you here again? “I thought you would have realized it by now with your telepathy. But I suppose I can explain it for the sake of the readers!” Akechi beams, holding up a small case in his hand. Don’t just casually break the fourth wall, Kusuo frowns, even as he leans forward for a closer look. Akechi pops the case open and turns towards the game console. “I was recently gifted this game by my cousin, who assured me that, while underrated, it’s still a cult hit among fans. I thought it would be fun to play it together.” Kusuo stares flatly at the title OVERWORKED displayed on the disc as it slides into the console drive, already unimpressed. That is such a blatant rip-off. “Oh, no, it's a completely different game from the one you’re thinking of!” Akechi says. “Here you play as the overworked waiter of a cafe who serves multiple orders at once and takes over the cooking whenever the head chef throws a tantrum and storms right off.” How is that different from OVERC***ED? It is totally OVERC***ED! “Regardless, shall we have a play-off?” Akechi offers the controller to him. “Winner gets this box of cupcakes. I got them from the best pâtisserie in town, which is no easy feat. Why just this morning I left home at the crack of dawn to secure a spot in the queue, and even then, there were already about 30-odd people ahead of me! Who knew it was so popular—A-ah!” Kusuo yanks the controller easily from Akechi’s hand towards him with telekinesis, a glint of determination in his eyes now. Best two out of three levels. Loser also has to leave immediately. Akechi grins knowingly and cracks his knuckles, reaching for the second controller. “You’re quick to assume victory, Kusuo-kun. Very well, then!” Thirty-seven minutes later and Kusuo’s left staring at the final scores, appalled. He would have won if his character hadn’t kept freezing in place and glitching at crucial moments, messing up in the kitchens and sending out wrong orders. How is he always losing to Akechi like this? Clearly the universe is still conspiring against him. “You were so close to beefing my lask score dhoo,” Akechi says shamelessly through a mouthful of strawberry frosting. “And my, deez fupfakes are s’per dhasty!” Are you taunting me now? Kusuo scowls enviously at the cupcake in Akechi’s hand before he huffs, slinking back into his chair. Well, I’ll be staring dejectedly out my window for a bit, so feel free to eat your cupcakes and then leave. But Akechi only laughs then and, to Kusuo’s surprise, moves to place a chocolate cupcake before him. “You’re so melodramatic, Kusuo-kun. I never said the winner can’t share.” ... I guess you didn’t. They spend the rest of the afternoon eating cupcakes. _______ ii. This again? It’s been a month, but Kusuo already feels a sense of gloom settling over him when Akechi steps into the genkan. He would have been fine with leaving Akechi outside blathering away through closed doors for the entire day while he pretended not to be home, but obviously Mom is having none of that. “I’m so glad you’ve been coming over to play with Ku-chan!” she greets cheerfully. “I couldn’t believe it when I first heard, but you and Kusuo are getting along well, huh, Akechi-kun!” Dad says with a sagely nod, looking every bit the part of the morally upright, reliable father. Bold of you to believe such delusional notions of camaraderie, or that you even look the part of an admirable adult, Kusuo comments drily, before turning to leave. “We don’t just get along,” Akechi chimes in reply. “You could even say our friendship is super-califragilisticexpialidocious!” GET OUT. If looks could kill, Kusuo’s current expression is pure genocide. But his parents are already fawning and AH-HYUU-!!-ing at Akechi’s words, tears of joy gushing down their cheeks like an endless waterfall. Kusuo watches in quiet despair as Akechi is readily accepted into their fold with welcomed embraces, a key development in this romantic soap opera. Oi, what’s with the misleading narrative?! We’re not in that kind of fanfic right now! Dad and Akechi hit it off well enough, one thing leads to another, and Kusuo suddenly finds himself roped into playing MECH-O ARENA VR on the WAB station in Dad’s study. Seriously, stop it with the terrible rip-offs of actual games already, Kusuo frowns as he watches Dad’s and Akechi’s characters flitting about on the screen to fight off an incoming attack. “I suppose it’s not very original, is it?” Akechi says, punching the controller buttons in a flurry of movements. “But it’s different enough that we can probably avoid any unwanted copyright lawsuits.” That’s completely beside the point. Dad’s wholly immersed with the game now, so it’s impossible for Kusuo to get rid of Akechi without Dad throwing a childish fuss about losing his new gaming buddy. Not to mention Mom’s uncanny ability to appear with coffee and snacks each time Kusuo had tried to inconspicuously retreat back into his room, all while exuding an ominous aura that effectively dissuaded his need to leave immediately. Good grief—everyone’s being such a pain today, Kusuo sighs, before he finally relents to Mom’s cajoling to team up with her against Dad and Akechi in the final round. He figures it can’t get worse than this anyway. That is, until Kuusuke gets involved. _______ iii. When Kusuo returns home from a quick grocery trip for Mom, he walks into a surprisingly empty living room. He can hear Dad and Kuusuke’s voices from upstairs but for some reason he’s not quite able to perceive the atmosphere within—it’s as if his senses are partially blocked by a cognitive fog with the study engulfed in a dead zone. Must be that prototype “router” Kuusuke had installed in Dad’s study yesterday. Kusuo has zero interest in his brother’s tiresome antics, but is compelled nonetheless to check on them, if only to ensure Kuusuke isn’t playing Mad Scientist and coaxing Dad into yet another deranged human project. He opens the door, nearly lashes out in shock with telekinesis when he sees Akechi staring through the doorway with a creepy, owlish expression. “Oh, were you actually surprised, Kusuo-kun?” Akechi says. “My apologies for frightening you like that.” Kusuo studies the room cautiously, only to realize he’s unable to hear anyone’s thoughts with telepathy. He glares at his brother in suspicion. “Welcome back, little brother!” Kuusuke greets him with a Cheshire grin. “I see you’ve got yourself a new playmate. Hmm? Ah, you must think it strange that I've taken to Akechi-kun so readily.” Strange and highly dubious, Kusuo counters. What are you scheming? “Well, Akechi-kun shows the most potential and capacity for mental growth amongst the lesser primates close to you—” What a disparaging worldview. And stop deflecting! I know you can still understand me. “—So, he may yet make a good test subj—Ah, I mean, a good friend! Interesting specimens tend to gravitate towards you, after all. Though his propensity for peeing sure is troubling, isn’t it? Haha!” You can excuse questionable human experimentations, but you draw the line at incontinence? Kuusuke attempts a nonchalant shrug. “Priorities, amirite?” “But this is amazing, Kuusuke-san,” Akechi says, glancing up in awe at the blinking device on the ceiling. “The telepathy canceller really does block our thoughts efficiently!” “It’s child's play compared to Kusuo’s abilities,” Kuusuke says, seemingly modest, but Kusuo doesn’t miss the devious glint in his eyes when he reaches into his coat pocket to pull out what looks suspiciously like a detonator with a giant red button. “Still, with this, Operation SM☆SH can now finally commence—” Wait, Operation what?? Kuusuke, don’t you dare...! But Kuusuke is already pressing the button, and the study is plunged into darkness as the lights flicker off and the blinds draw shut. Alarmed, Kusuo wrenches the detonator away from Kuusuke’s grip with his telekinesis. What did you just do?! There’s an electronic whirr, a blinding flash, and Kusuo finds himself suddenly staring at a large LCD screen as it emerges from the ceiling. Music blares from overhead speakers as a cinematic opening sequence begins to play. “There you are, Kusuo!” Dad looks up from behind the coffee table where he’d been fiddling with the game console. He adjusts the VR headset over his eyes. “It’s time to finally beat you at SUPER SM☆SH BUDS as payback for last time! HII-YAAAH!!” ... Oh. So it’s just another game. “That’s right!” Kuusuke claps his hands together, blissfully ignoring the heat of Kusuo’s baleful glare. “I heard about your horse-racing bet from Akechi-kun and found this as the best way to even the odds for other types of games.” “The idea came to me while peeing in the shower; to find ways you could play and not get bored easily, Kusuo-kun,” Akechi adds in unnecessary detail. “But I didn’t think Kuusuke-san could actually pull it off.” “Here, Kusuo,” Dad says, waving his controller. “Come choose your character—” But Kusuo’s already teleporting away, fleeing the wretched upheaval within his own home to hide at Cafe Mami for the rest of the day. _______ iv. Akechi corners him after school three weeks later. Kusuo is surprised and unsurprised all at once; he had worn the germanium ring to class, after all, in a bid to avoid spoilers for the direct-to-streaming release movie adaptation of a book he’d been fond of. It’s easy to ignore everyone’s spoilery chatter when it isn’t droning directly into his mind—he’d kept his fingers stuck into his ears each time class ended, oblivious to the strange looks thrown his way, and had even hidden away in the restroom cubicle during breaks, successfully avoiding any interaction with the usual human nuisances. Until now, that is. “Let’s walk home together, Kusuo-kun!” Akechi calls, jogging after him. I’m suddenly deaf and sound has eluded me, Kusuo deadpans as he breaks into a sprint, determined to leave before Akechi starts blabbing spoilers. “I noticed you weren’t quite yourself today,” Akechi continues, catching up with him. “And I thought it might have something to do with the ring on your left index finger that you’ve fondled precisely seventeen times throughout the day.” What an awful way to describe it. I didn’t fondle anything. “Perhaps the material of that ring works in the same manner as the telepathy canceller—which would explain why you seemed uncharacteristically skittish today since you’re pretty bad at discerning people’s intentions without your telepathy.” What are you? A psychic? But Akechi only persists. “I realized later that you’d always leave whenever anyone started talking about that new movie on Netfl*x—” Can’t hear now, Kusuo slaps his hands over his ears. Gone horribly deaf. “And I figured it must be that you haven’t watched it yet for some reason, like maybe your home internet is down because your father forgot to pay the bills for three whole months and so it got cut—” How did you even..? Kusuo grimaces. N-nope, not listening! 100% deaf! “I know you don’t have a mobile phone to watch it on either,” Akechi continues. “So, that’s why I wanted to invite you to my house today, to watch it together. Oh, don’t worry, I know absolutely nothing about the movie. In fact, I’d only heard Kaidou-kun screaming out the title just ten minutes ago.” Kusuo pauses then, glancing back at Akechi in hesitance. Akechi only meets his wary gaze with a knowing smirk, and says, “We also have strawberry shortcake in the fridge.” _______ v. I don’t suppose there’s a good reason this time either, Kusuo sighs wearily, closing his book. Still, there’s a glimmer in his eyes; he knows Akechi had come bearing gifts—a selection of coffee jellies topped with cherries and chocolate drizzle. “I’ve made a habit of crashing your place unannounced, haven’t I?” Akechi offers a contrite grin, watching as Kusuo helps himself to a spoonful of jelly. “I do apologize, but whenever I get restless, I find myself wandering here by instinct. Admittedly, I was worried about being a bother, but your mother is always so welcoming at the door despite that dreary, constipated look in your eyes—” You are being a bother. Like a persistent mosquito that thinks it's summer all year round, Kusuo grouses with his Most Annoyed Expression, knowing how ineffectual his Feigning Ignorance Face had become over time. Also, have you graduated from pee references to shitty jokes now? Disgusting. But Akechi takes it all in stride, undeterred by Kusuo’s ugly grimace and acerbic jibes. “—Plus, it’d be considered extremely rude if I didn’t come in after that, and I certainly do not want you to think of me as rude. You’re a friend I hold in high regard, after all. I always have, ever since I found out it was you who saved me from the bullies back then.” The earnestness in Akechi’s words stumps him, if only a little. And though Kusuo is careful to keep his surprise from showing, there’s a part deep down in his not-so-granite heart that feels a touch of warmth at the sentiment. Akechi’s already placing the Scrabble board on the floor, so he misses the ghost of a smile that crosses Kusuo’s lips. Did Akechi honestly think he could beat a psychic at Scrabble too? How naive. “You’re probably thinking how naive I must be, believing I could beat you at a board game with your powers and all,” Akechi notes cheerfully, almost as if he’s a mind-reader himself. Kusuo frowns, slightly disgruntled by the fourth-wall breaking once more and wishes they would give it a rest for once. Overusing a trope gets really tiring, you know? Still, he smiles again as he takes a seat across from Akechi—who is now shuffling the Scrabble chips while nattering away about the history of board games and how the loser would have to give up his share of coffee jelly (as if Kusuo would allow it to come to that again). Two Sunday visits per month only, Kusuo says, lifting several chips into the air with a wave of his hand. If you beat me... I’ll allow it. Akechi’s eyes widen, before he breaks into a playful grin. “Very well, then. May the best man win.” Kusuo only lets out a soft laugh. Perhaps it’s not too late to pick up where they had left off in grade school. —End—

#saiki kusuo no psi nan #the disastrous life of saiki k.#saiki kusuo #akechi touma #disastrous life zine #fanfic #please check out and support the other contributors' pieces too !

27 notes · View notes

marveloffworkzine · 3 years

Note

Hello, I am trying not to make assumptions, but it seems like this project is having similar delays and organizational problems to other zines Asagi has lead/managed recently (several of which have gone on indefinite hold, some not opening preorders, not shipping, or even not completing donations). Again, I really don't want to attack anyone here or be alarmist, I just want to know if there is anything you're doing that can show people that's not where this project is heading?

Hey Anon, I'd like to address a couple of things you mentioned here so bear with me for a bit of a long post <3

For the immediate issue of this zine, I'm afraid I'm not really sure what to do to assure you at this time, other than letting you know that we've already tallied our votes and will start sending emails within the next 24 hours, as I mentioned we would last night, if there's something specific that you're looking for then please do let us know

As for your other comment about my other zines, could you please let me know what zines are on infinite hold? The only ones that I'm aware of being in this position are ones that failed to get enough responses on their interest checks and never opened applications- and in total fairness, that just... happens with zines sometimes, that's what interest checks are for :)

As for those that have yet to hold preorders, they're still in the creation period- again if you have any that you're particularly concerned with I'd love to be able to address the specific circumstances with you, but just to name the most "immediate" zines that are nearing their preorder stages, both @thehalloweenzine and @yoitropezine are currently working on our contributor preveiws and nailing down our opening dates, and @teenwolfhorrorzine is going to be nearing that stage soon, with our creation running a little longer than we had planned due to the amount of work being done on the tarot deck :) Anything that was started up before those, however, has already gone on preorder (of the ones that actually received what was needed from their interest checks that is)

I'm also not sure what zines are "not shipping"? The zines that have completed their preorders and have not shipped yet are still waiting on products to come in, there should be adequate updates on each zine on their individual blogs, if you'd like to address something specific I'd be more than happy to go into detail with you :)

As for zines that haven't completed donations, the zines that have completed shipping and have not completed donations yet are still in the leftover stage- @ygomagiczine is holding the final leftover sale right now, for example, and once we close there, donations will be made within the month- more than likely that'll be September

Again, I'd love to address things with you specifically so I can provide better information, but that's quite alot of information to unload here and if there's a specific project you're concerned with, I'd love to address it with you so I can reassure of you that project's direction as well as the direction for this one

~Mod Asagi

#answered

1 note · View note

castielzine-blog · 5 years

Photo

Hello everyone! Huuuuuge update time, this will be an image heavy post, so we’ve decided to put it under a cut so we don’t overwhelm your dashboards. This update contains the following:

A peek of the zine! And the rest of the products.

Update on shipping concerns.

Shop re-opening and new products.

Frequently asked questions answered.

So if you’re interested in any of those things please step right up and click the cut! 🐝💙

ZINE PROOF & OTHER SNEAK PEEKS

After three subpar proofs (yes, we’re very picky - and wanted to pieces to look their very best) we finally received a beautiful mock up of what the zine will look like. Right now they’re working printing out the hundreds of copies we need, but we’ll be picking them up by boxes throughout the week. Here’s a tiny peak.

Additionally, if you don’t follow us on Twitter, we have received some other items as well.

The only product which we have not received is the Gold Foil Print stretch goal since we had some trouble with the foil placements, but we’re expected to have it in our hands by the time the zines are all done!

SHIPPING CONCERNS

We have ONLY started to send out PDF orders (which were paused for a bit after we had to fix some issues our contributors pointed out)!

No physical shipping has started, so anyone concerned about address changes and any related issues, do not fret! We guarantee that you will get your order.

Considering the rising concern we have decided to do the following: we will be emailing each and every one of our customers that have physical orders to confirm their address before we start printing out labels. If there is no answer within the five days we will assume the address is correct and proceed.

*If you have moved from the United States to an international location you might be charged extra once you change your address.

SHOP RE-OPENING

By extremely popular demand, we have decided to do inventory on what we will be leftover with and open the shop for a second round of orders early. So if you missed out on the first round, we are currently opened!

But please be aware of the following:

These will be completely separate from the first round of orders, we cannot add the products to your first order to save on shipping. Sorry!

The second round of orders will NOT include the stretch goals, our current inventory doesn’t allow that. If you wish to own one of the stretch goal prints you will have to purchase them separately.

The postcard bundle will not be available.

All profits will be added to the donation amount.

Also, we’ve added a secret little item that hasn’t been announced anywhere else, and profits made from the sales will also be added to the donation. We expect to get the actual enamel pins any day now as well, so expect photos!

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Where have you been?!

Sorry! It’s not our intention to go MIA, but we underestimated how long manufacturing would take (+ shipping to Puerto Rico) and all the free time the organizer planned to work on this was way back in February. Right now we’re balancing a job, school, cons, and trying to make the best possible zine for you all! But Castiel deserves the best, and we plan to deliver.

Will I get a third chance of purchasing the zine?

We have absolutely no idea, if there’s anything left once we have fulfilled all orders and are 100% sure everyone including international orders have received their copy - we will try and “get rid” of the rest. But that won’t be until summer!

Now that Supernatural is ending, will you be running a project to commemorate it?

As much as we’d love to, our organizer has a bar exam to pass right around that same time, so unfortunately no. But we hope to participate in whatever projects the fandom comes up with - and if anyone would like us to promote it, send us a message!

Will there be copies available at any convention?

The organizer will have a small handful of solo books at Puerto Rico Comic Con in May, as well as the enamel pins (all profit will be added to the zine’s donation) but apart from that we won’t be anywhere else!

(Strangest request so far). Can I have this account when you’re done?

No.

FIN

We’ve answered as many messages and e-mails as we could tonight, but we’ll be taking a bit of a break to keep sending out PDF orders! If you feel like we’ve missed something here, please tell us.

Thank you everyone for your support always, have a wonderful day/night!

#updates #update #castielzine #castiel #supernatural

191 notes · View notes

linkedinleads-blog · 6 years

Photo

LinkedinLeads Customer Acquisition Strategies

By bridging the gaps in your knowledge we can show you how to get the most out of any of these approaches, no matter how large or small your business is.

1. Direct Mail

An extremely flexible medium that gives you access to any number of otherwise inaccessible prospects for many different purposes; to sell your products; generate sales leads; follow up enquiries; get more business from current customers; keep in touch with former customers; close the sale in advance … and so much more. It allows you to present every benefit of your product or service over those of your competition in a manner that’s 100% consistent. This is not just in their offices and during the business day, but in their homes, in the evenings and at weekends. Reaching the right audience with the right offer and the right message is the key to success, because the only thing that counts is how many sales or inquiries your mailing generates.

2. Advertising

Advertising should be nothing less than”salesmanship in print,” i.e. it should do the same job that a top sales person would do face to face. If you approach advertising in a scientific manner, following proven principles and facts, it no longer has to be a gamble. There are many extremely effective ways of using advertising in a highly targeted manner, that can’t help but grow your business.

3. Referral Systems

One third-party endorsement is more powerful than a hundred presentations. Getting your customers to recommend and encourage other people they associate with to seek out your products or services is the most coveted prize in selling, besides a sale. There are hundreds of referral systems you can use; to create an unlimited supply of hot prospects; to get prospects returning your calls; to contact hard-to-reach buyers; to create a reputation that opens closed doors; to enhance customer loyalty; and to increase sales and multiply profits. Referral systems make your life easier and more professional, and bring higher profits with increased customer loyalty.

4. Host Beneficiary Relationships

There are bound to be other non-competing businesses who have already spent years attracting and establishing relationships with the very people who are prime prospects for your own products or services. By establishing the right relationships with those”hosts”, those customers can be yours for the asking, with the full co-operation and permission of the businesses that acquired them in the first place. And it will bring you more customers and more cash right away.

5. Word-of-Mouth Marketing

This is the most powerful, persuasive marketing weapon available to any business. It drives customers to try products or services more than any other marketing technique … more than advertising, salespeople, direct response, and public relations combined! And contrary to what you might expect word-of-mouth is not out of your control. There are dozens of techniques for launching your own highly successful word of mouth campaigns, based on an all-important Decision Matrix and a proven seven-step process.

6. Qualified Lists

The quality of your prospect list is the single most important influencing factor in your marketing success because it can eliminate virtually all marketing waste. A list of well qualified prospects can be a priceless gem because if you exploit it properly it will produce tremendous amount of revenue for you from people who have a proven interest in your product or service. Thousands of properly qualified lists are readily available for virtually any marketing purpose and can give you many times more sales. These lists identify the specific businesses, key decision makers and demographic characteristics you desire, within the geographic areas you specify. You can focus only on prospects who are more likely than not your primary target audience for your product or service.

7. Networking

Most people you meet have hundreds of contacts, which mean that virtually anyone you might want to contact or meet is only four to five people away from you. Effective networking is therefore vital to your success. Most people are poor networkers, but you can quickly learn how to get out; meet people; make new contacts; develop quality business relationships based on trust; polish your communication skills; educate the people you meet about what you do and the benefits offered by your product or service; create a lasting impression; quickly build your network, use your contacts database effectively, enjoy your new contacts …and maximize your chances of success.

8. Internet/E-Commerce

The Internet is now an essential element in business communication. When people want information, they surf the web to find what they need. You need a good website that maximizes your exposure … or you’ll look old-fashioned and behind-the-times. Your website needs to be attractive, informative, and easy to navigate so that you obtain a constant stream of new prospects. You also need to establish a system that deftly converts them into customers.

9. Become a Recognised Authority

You can take a number of simple steps to rapidly establish yourself as a recogised authority in your field. These include writing articles and books, creating newsletters and information products, speaking and delivering seminars. These can keep you very busy and in demand virtually all the time, giving you a tremendous edge over your competitors who struggle to get by. Customers will normally flock to you, while your competitors wonder why and have to settle for picking up the leftovers.

10. Public Relations and Publicity

Most of what you read, see, and hear in the media got there with the help of PR. The media are insatiably hungry for factual, interesting, and newsworthy or entertaining information they can share with their customers, members, employees, listeners, viewers or readers. PR, approached correctly, will give you free coverage on radio, television, in magazines, newspapers, trade journals, newsletters, e-zines, and via Web sites who serve the marketplace you’re trying to reach.

11. Special Events and Promotions

One of the best methods of making your business more successful is to make doing business with you a special, memorable experience. The more exciting, enjoyable, fascinating, informative, valuable or educational you can make the experience, the more business you will do, and the stronger and more meaningful the bond you will form with your customers. Events are a very powerful way of offering people who have an excellent probability of turning into customers a chance to be educated about the benefits and results of your product or service. They can also be used to recognize your existing customers as being very special.

12. Brochures and Corporate Literature

No matter what your business, your brochures should help bring in profitable business … yet most brochures fail miserably. You therefore need to know how to create professional brochures and fliers that sell for you by educating your prospects and customers about the benefits you offer and also addresses their questions and their needs for your product or service.

13. Making profits on the”Back End”

If you depend more on repeat business than initial sales, or if most of your sales and profits occur when customers repeat purchase from you again and again, you should be doing everything possible to motivate as many customers as you can to make their initial buying decision as quickly and easily as possible. Making it easy and irresistible for the customer to start doing business with you by adding extra incentives or by making your initial sale at breakeven or a small loss, means that you will benefit sooner rather than later from all the repeat business, the add-ons and the ancillary products and services that represent the bulk of your profits.

14. Newsletters

A powerful technique for building your reputation with a defined audience over a period of time is to regularly send them a newsletter, which can either be free or paid subscription. Newsletters can be used to position you as an authority in your marketplace, to build closer relationships with clients. You can use them to educate your target market so they can make more informed and more frequent buying decisions or educate them to the full extent of your services and how you can add value through those services.

15. Use Your Competitors Resources

Harnessing the relationships that your competitors do not properly or fully develop or appreciate … and making arrangements to obtain details from them of all their unconverted leads, unsold prospects and unconverted enquiries is like them handing you the keys to their own customer list.

#Leads #Lead Generation #Marketing #Sales

27 notes · View notes

kafashionsofficial · 4 years

Text

Fashion Tips: Designing at Home

Sew a patchwork quilt with Next in Fashion’s Daniel Fletcher

Creative director and star of Netflix’s Next in Fashion, Daniel W Fletcher has plenty to get on with while in social isolation, designing a collection for Fiorucci as well as one for his own brand. In his down time, he is taking up a DIY challenge to make a patchwork quilt based on a dress he made during the filming of Next in Fashion, using other designers’ leftover scraps. The design – inspired by concerns over the melting polar ice caps – is an arctic landscape.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

“Ever since the show, I’ve been inundated with requests to make similar quilted items, so I thought this was a good opportunity to show people how they can do so themselves.

“You can make it from any leftover fabrics you have. This time, I used some leftover damaged denim from my studio as the quilt base. I don’t imagine everyone has that lying around so use what you have.

“Heavier is better for the base so it can hold the appliqué – maybe some old curtains or an existing blanket that needs some love. If you don’t have enough to do a blanket, you could use the same technique to make a cushion. For the appliqué, it could be old clothes, tablecloths, tea towels – anything you can get your hands on.

“I went quite abstract with my pattern, but you could come up with a more elaborate design.

“Mine took me five hours on a sewing machine. You could hand sew it instead. It’s going to be a much longer process but could be very therapeutic, which is something we could all do with right now.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Difficulty level: intermediate Equipment needed: an old blanket (or similar), scraps of fabrics, thread and needle

How to:

“For the nitty-gritty, head over to my Instagram – my wonderful sister captured the whole process.”

A post shared by DANIEL w. FLETCHER (@danielwfletcher) on Mar 27, 2020 at 12:52pm PDT

Crochet a small rug with menswear designer Liam Hodges

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Liam Hodges has recently moved house, so his time in self isolation has been spent unpacking and making rugs.

“I learnt to crochet last October and have found it really relaxing. For our AW20 collection, we crocheted a lot of squares as embellishments. I’ve kept it up and even tried to make a skipping rope when I first went into isolation.

“I had been wanting to make some rag rugs and started working out how to crochet graphics into them. I made the graphic in Photoshop so that each pixel represented each crochet stitch.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

“I thought doormat-size was perfect. I have mine by the door to remind me to keep positive and take the [government] advice about staying in seriously.

“It took me around two and a half hours to complete and is made up of old, shredded T-shirts for the coloured section and yarn made using Wool and the Gang offcuts for the main black areas, so it is entirely made from waste.”

Difficulty level: intermediate Equipment needed: an old T-shirt, a crochet hook, yarn and scissors

How to:

“Use our how-to digital zine on Instagram, which has the pattern as well as instructions on how to crochet.”

A post shared by LIAM HODGES (@liam__hodges) on Mar 27, 2020 at 4:56am PDT

Sew a shark mascot with designer Christopher Raeburn

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Designer Christopher Raeburn’s team are adapting to the current situation by releasing weekly creative tasks via their #RaeburnAtHome initiative.

“This project is to make one of our shark mascots. We have always featured animals in our collections, initially as a way to highlight and support endangered species through our WWF UK partner. The Shark is one of our most popular animals; we keep it in our collections each season, but it always evolves.

“You need no more than one square metre of fabric – even less if you are conscious of pattern placement for waste reduction. Using a variety of smaller cuts of fabric is encouraged though as this adds pops of colour and texture to the final shark.

“Not only is reusing and repurposing old fabric a more interesting way of working, but extending the lifetime of garments is instrumental in reducing planetary impact. When people are spending more time at home than ever before, now is the chance to pull out those bits that we no longer use and give them new life.

“Unless you are an absolute master, it should keep you busy for about 10 hours. We only recommend a sewing machine for ease and speed – top marks for effort go to anyone tackles it by hand.”

Difficulty level: advanced Equipment needed: a sewing machine, fabric, scissors, thread and paper.

How to:

Sew a kimono-inspired garment with designer Edward Crutchley

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Designer Edward Crutchley’s lockdown aim is to set himself a project each day. His first was to cut a pattern for and sew a one-piece kimono-inspired garment. Next up is making miniature sculptures of the kings and queens of England using modelling clay.

“How to make Japanese clothes by John Marshall is a book I have on my shelf that I thought it would be great to lose myself in during isolation.

“I love traditional Japanese clothing and now is the perfect time to study. What I love about kimonos is that they are traditionally dictated by the fabric – they are the width they are because that is how wide the looms could weave. For a fabric geek like me, that’s a dream.

“A traditional kimono pattern looks like some different-length rectangles put together, but nothing is ever that simple and it takes a lot of skill to construct a traditional kimono properly. The one I made is much, much easier.

“I used three metres of fabric left over from the last collection, but you could make it with two metres if it’s 150cm wide, or you can easily add seams to the patterns or patchwork fabrics together. Repurposing old curtains or a bed sheet would be perfect.

“It took me around four hours to complete – there are only three seams and three hems. I tried to make it as simple as possible.”

Difficulty level: advanced Equipment needed: a sewing machine, two to three metres of fabric, thread, scissors, paper and dressmaking pins.

How to:

“The pattern I made is available to download for free here. The step-by-step sewing guide is saved on my Instagram highlights.”

Make a shrunken crisp-packet necklace with Tatty Devine

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

While social distancing, Rosie Wolfenden and Harriet Vine, the designers behind Tatty Devine jewellery, are doing daily making challenges.

“It’s amazing for your mental health and the perfect antidote to these strange and unsettling times. This so-called shrinky necklace is something we did as kids. We first made one as Tatty Devine in 2001. It was very early days, when we made jewellery from whatever we could get our hands on. We enjoyed having to eat crisps.”

Difficulty level: beginner Equipment needed: old crisp packets (not foiled or metallic, such as Chipsticks or many supermarket own brands); a chain necklace (whether new or something you already own); greaseproof paper, a baking tray, a damp tea towel (for safety reasons), an old tea towel, a hole punch, a regular jump ring and two pairs of flat-nose pliers.

How to:

Set your grill to medium.

While the grill is warming, fold the greaseproof paper to make it into rough envelope shapes and pop your empty food packets inside – one wrapper per envelope.

Put the envelopes on a baking tray under the grill. The packet will start to shrink and curl up. You don’t want them to burn or blister so watch closely.

As soon as they are shrunken enough, remove the baking tray, quickly place a folded tea towel on top of the envelope and slam your hand down to flatten your “shrinky”.

Use a hole punch to make a hole somewhere on the packet.

Open a regular jump ring with the pliers and thread the packet on to the jump ring, then put the jump ring on to the necklace and close it.

You can stop with one pendant or layer up for a charm effect.

Knit a scarf with dancer Meshach Henry

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Despite having no previous knitting experience, dancer Meshach Henry has made three scarves in as many days, documented on Instagram by his partner, the Radio 1 DJ Nick Grimshaw.

“I always said I would learn a new skill like plumbing or plastering if I ever had a lot of time on my hands. But they aren’t ideal skills to practice in this current situation. So, having seen knitting supplies in a craftshop window recently, I thought, ‘Here’s my new hobby.’

“I purchased a thick wool because it looked easier to use and less fiddly. I bought 10mm knitting needles, which I thought were an average size but later found out are strangely big – but I’m really happy with the chunky effect they produce.

“What I like about knitting is that you can see your physical product. As a dancer, I rarely get to see my own work, so to be able to see and hold this tangible thing is a whole new world for me.

“My intention is to move on to knitting jumpers. I want to create a matching jumper for every scarf, just to keep things interesting.”

Difficulty level: beginner Equipment needed: knitting needles and wool

How to:

“I taught myself by watching an eight-minute Knitting for Total Beginners tutorial on YouTube. The tutorial taught me how to cast on in the first instance. Then there are follow-up links to a second video that teaches you how to change knitting style and how to cast off.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Make drinking glasses with former British Vogue fashion director Lucinda Chambers

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Lucinda Chambers is co-founder of fashion brand Colville and online shopping platform Collagerie and was fashion director at British Vogue for 25 years.

“I was in Paris six months ago having a glass of water in the Bon Marché and I noticed the glass looked suspiciously like the end of a wine bottle.” When Chambers investigated she found a world of home crafters making their own tumblers from pre-used wine bottles.

“I found an inexpensive kit on Amazon,” she says. “Each glass is a labour of love as I sand them by hand; it’s strangely therapeutic.”

Difficulty level: medium Equipment needed: empty glass bottles, a glass cutter kit (available online, for instance from Amazon).

How to:

“The kit has everything you need to make the glasses: a stand, saw and markers that you place on the empty bottle at the height you require your finished glass to be. You can make French-style low tumblers or something taller. Once you’ve cut the bottle you need to sand the cut edge smooth.”

The internet is full of videos, such as this one, that show you more details.

This content was originally published here.

0 notes