#as a french I wear my beret XD

[puppyluver256]

[Image Description: An anthropomorphic Portuguese water dog who is also a mime. They have a mostly white coat of fur with black ears and tail, short black hair, grey eyes, and black eye makeup. They are wearing a black beret with pink star pins, a white t-shirt with black stripes over a black turtleneck, white gloves, a pink sash-style belt, black shorts, white tights with black stripes, and black boots with pink zipper pulls. They are leaning on an invisible that seems to come up to chest height, looking at the viewer while pointing upward with one finger. The background is a pixelated gradient of white and light grey, with a soft white glow around the character. End ID.]

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I figured that if my regular self had a dog version, it was only fair to give Muette one as well! They're a Portuguese water dog, which is kinda ironic considering both the French theming of the stereotypical mime and the fact that neither I nor Muette can swim (at least I don't think they can, I'll hafta develop them a bit more), but it was a pick that seemed similar enough to my own wheaten self from the list of black and white dogs I googled. And best part? They're apparently known for being quiet. And we all know mimes are infamously quiet XD

💖🐶 Check out my pinned post for ways to support my artwork, among other things! 🐶💖

~Likes are appreciated, but reblogs are greatly preferred as they let more people see my content! If you have something to say, feel free to give feedback in tags/comments/replies as well!~

Muette (any form) and artwork © PuppyLuver Studios

[abneliaacnh]

[nathavenpd]

Detective Kyara Torthevi {Book 1}

fc: Zendaya Coleman

Personal

Name: Kyara Torthevi

Name Pronunciation: KEE-ara TOR-theh-vee

Age: 29

Date of Birth: January 17th

Zodiac Sign: Capricorn (Aquarius cusp)

Height: 5’8.5”

Hair: Deep red hair cut into a bob (ala Zendaya’s Joan of Arc Met Gala look)

Eyes: Light green

Relationships: 

Rebecca Torthevi (mother; positively developing relationship) 

“Rook” Torthevi (father; deceased) 

Unnamed paternal aunt (presumed deceased)

Natalie Sewell (romantic interest)

Tina Poname (best friend)

Solomon Verda (good friend)

Bobby Marks (ex-lover)

Sexuality: Lesbian (masculine/stud)

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Home: A minimalist apartment with minimal decor and furniture

Unit Bravo: {AS OF BOOK 2} Romantic relationship with Nat; Respected teammates with Ava; Friendly teammates with Farah; Close teammates with Morgan

Personality

Charming: 39% | Intimidating: 61%

Impulsive: 49% | Cautious: 51%

Sarcastic: 47% | Genuine: 53%

Friendly: 51% | Stoic: 49%

Easygoing: 43% | Stubborn: 57%

Traits

Heart: 58% | Mind: 42%

Optimist: 72% | Pessimist: 28% (I...don’t know how this happened lol)

Team Player: 66% | Independent: 34%

Professional

Job Title: Wayhaven PD Detective / Agency Human Liason

Skills

People/Psychology: 47%

Combat/Physical: 45% (in my head this is way higher xD)

Science/Technology: 67% (I also don’t know how this happened lmao)

Deduction/Knowledge: 38%

By the Book: 63% | Bend the Rules: 37%

Bio

Born to Rebecca and “Rook” Torthevi, Kyara seemed predestined to fall into the law enforcement profession. With a father that passed when she was two and a primarily absent mother, Kyara was raised by a woman whom Kyara assumed was a good friend of her mother. 

Kyara was born and raised in Wayhaven until she graduated from high school. She traveled out of state for college and graduated at 19 with a bachelor’s degree in History and a minor in Criminology. At first, she intended to become a historian, but she quickly felt a surprising pull to enlist in the United States Army. After three years, she qualified for the U.S. Army Special Forces and served as a Green Beret for another two years.

During her first deployment overseas as a Green Beret, her troupe was suddenly attacked, and Kyara was forced to defend herself. She and most of her team survived the encounter, but the near-death experience traumatized Kyara more than she anticipated. She ended up discharged from the U.S. Army after a military doctor diagnosed her with PTSD. She returned home soon after, no longer the bright-eyed recruit she was when she initially left for basic training.

Kyara spent some of the next year in intensive therapy. She learned how to re-acclimate to society and its demands, as well as manage her triggers. The only profession she could see herself joining was the police force, so she packed her bags again and began attending at the nearest police academy. After graduating, she promptly started work at the Wayhaven Police Department. After about 4 years of service, she was put through a speedy promotion and is now Detective, a title she wears with pride and determination. She wants to protect the people of Wayhaven more than anything; she feels it gives her purpose and a reason to wake up every morning. If she didn’t protect her town, who would?

Notes

- Part of her coping strategy involved creating a workout regiment. Even years later, she still sticks to it. It’s incredibly intense, but she loves it. 

- Kyara is left handed.

- Her triggers are sand in her clothes, the smell of char/things burning, and screaming.

- She knows her languages very well and is fluent in Spanish and French, among others.

- She actively detests wearing anything feminine. She only purchases clothes from men’s sections and gets them tailored to her body.

- She initially butted heads with Ava due to how similar they are in personality.

- Her attraction to Nat was pretty much immediate lol

[atrixfromice]

Language switching when being taken by a strong emotion is awesome!

Someone please tell me why some people consider a french cliché a fictional character who says "oh mon dieu" when they're really amazed, happy or excited, and they're french.

Someone commented this today about one of my art pieces and we had an intense debate about it, cos I genunely can't understand why, and the other person's arguements were poor. I think it's because they didn't know the meaning of the word cliché.

The word cliché comes from French and means "stereotype". And thus, an stereotype of a french would be a character that speaks a bad pronounced english of who talks a mix of french and english and makes difficult to understand them.

*** A character who is snobby, awkward and lazy in personality can be also a french cliché, because some people use this as an sterotype for the french.

*** A character that wears a stripped shirts and a beret, is also a French cliché.

*** A character that uses words that are very outdated like "sacrebleu" for example, might also be taken as French cliché, and I understand it's because no french use those words in nowadays. So it might sound silly or goofy that a fictional character does it.  

But a character that says a couple of words or an exclamation in french that real french use in nowadays in a situation when being really surprised/excited/glad or when feeling any other intense emotion, that's NOT a french cliché!

It's just logical!

It makes sense to me that if a character is french and when they are overwhelmed by an intense feeling they use exclamations in their native language, even if they usually talk in english because they live on an english-speaking country or are surrounded by english-speaking people on their daily life. I think this little detail adds a lot of feeling and warmth to the character in question! It makes it feel more genuine and creible that they're actually bilingual and they’re not just pretending it.

And I'm not talking about french fictional characters only; but also japanese characters, mexican characters, russian characters, german characters, etc, and even English-speaking characters who make surprise exclamations in English when they're in an enviroment where they're surrounded by people who don't speak english!

I'm talking about language switching in an specific situation:

When you're bilingual, Switching to your native language to make an exclamation of surprise/joy/excitement/fear/embarassement when being arround people WHO DON'T SPEAK YOUR NATIVE LANGUAGE and being overwhelmed by a strong emotion, is spontaneous and natural. It happens in real life with real people

And it’s cute!

And it’s cool and it’s awesome!

And it’s legit!

So I don’t see why some people consider it a bad thing when it happens with fictional characters.

I know it because I’m trilingual and do it naturally when being taken by a strong emotion. Also I have seen people doing are bilingual and do it in real life as well. So I can assure you that it is something that do happens spontaneously and it happens to a lot of people. And not just on this specific situation, but in other situations that are similar.

check this out this GREAT EXAMPLE

I think I write about this subject today specially so I can redirect to this article the next person who tries to bug me with saying this is not what people in real life would do, so I can avoid unecessarily and none sense heated discusions *chuckles*

My logic is undeniable XD

Hehehe, no but joke aside, it's just I always, always have a proof of what I say and I think a lot before having an opinion about something. And I personally think language switching like how I’ve just descrived, it’s such a cool and cute thing, not only on real life but also with fictional characters.

And while I have my own opinion on this subjet supported by well  well-founded arguments, I'm also open and I like to hear other people's opinions. So I also write this cos I think it would be cool to know your personal opinion on the subjet.

Do you like language switching? In which situations?

Do you think it's cool or not in the situation I described in this article?

Do you think it helps or doesn’t help to make bilingual ficional characters feel more genuine?

Have you seen or know bilingual people doing this in real life? (a part of me of course *giggle* )

Do you know characters you like who do this?

I would love to know your personal experiences and thoughts on the subjet!

[tristinai]

Tag Game

Tagged by the wonderful @deviantalicee. Thank you <3

nickname: Elle. It’s what everyone besides my flesh and blood call me. 

zodiac sign: Aries. 

height: I am 164 cm so whatever that is inches...5′5????? I should know this T.T

hogwarts house: Slytherin >:)

last thing i googled: French artist hat thing what’s it called

song stuck in my head: Lorde’s “Royals”. I blame Hustlers for that XD

following:  200+ blogs, I think???

followers:  I dunno like 390 something??? I never check XD. I probably should check. Nah.

amount of sleep i get: Usually like 5 or 6 hours? I probably should sleep more and game less >.>

lucky numbers: 6 

dream job: To be a diplomat or work in foreign service for Canada. However, I cannot qualify because I don’t speak French :( (I know the solution is to study French but I usually end up studying or picking up the language of the countries I work in so I can get around there and so far, I have yet to work in a French-speaking country or even in the French-speaking areas of Canada).

wearing: high heels, black tights, skirt, cardigan, a beret

favorite songs:  Copycat - Billie Eilish, One Shot, Two Shot - BoA , Make Me Feel - Janelle Monae, What I Need - Hayley Kiyoko, Colors - Halsey. I listen to dumb stuff XD

instruments: I played guitar back at a fine arts high school but haven’t really played since ^^;;;

random fact:  I dislike Halloween. Probably a very unpopular opinion but I just don’t get it??? I don’t eat candy, I cosplay regularly anyway so I don’t need an excuse to wear a costume, and Halloween is usually when the weather turns colder and I f***ing HATE winter so being reminded of the season change just makes me grumpy. Mind you, I am not gonna go out of my way to ruin anyone else’s fun (if you love Halloween, enjoy it :) ) but I wish that from October 1st, it wasn’t like HALLOWEEN everywhere >.>

aesthetics:  Designer handbags, warm eyeshadow, stilettos, pastel pink, sunny days, the lazy crawl of the sea creeping up on the sand, sliced fruit

tagging: @mordinette, @cap-sweet-and-salty-sadness, @bpdeadpool, @redxluna. Anyone else is free to try this :D. Tag me so I can see your answers <3

[petite-madame]

Can you tell me about french fashion? I see a lot of articles about "how to dress like a french? parisian chic etc etc..." How do you dress dear little lady!

Hi anon

Can you tell me about french fashion? I see a lot of articles about “how to dress like a french? parisian chic etc etc…" 

Good question!

Ok, it’s abit hard to define what is “French fashion” or even “French chic” but I’m goingto try. However, I’m gonna stick to Paris not because I think that Paris is thecenter of the world but because it’s my town and I prefer sticking to what Iknow.

First, whenyou think about “French chic” you certainly think about something like this:

Do somewomen dress like this? Yes of course, tons, particularly in their 20′s-30′s, but not all of us do and this look hasbecome a caricature of the “Parisian chic look” over the years. For me, it’sthe stereotype of the Elle Magazine look and of actress Lou Doillon: nude makeup to make people believe you are “naturally beautiful and fresh”, “saut du lit”(out of bed) hair (= I spent two hours at the hair dresser to make my hair lookjust a bit messy but not too much + subtle caramel highlights here and there), slimjeans and designer bag (vintage is a plus). It was very “bobo” (bourgeois bohème) when it started but now that you can find this look easily in shops like H&M, Zara or even Forever 21 it has become a kind of a “default look” for women who want to be “casual chic” and trendy. 

So, somewomen dress like this in Paris, true. But do you know how the vast majority of us dress?Casual. Very casual. Jeans, black parka, convenient shoes to walk (becauseParisians apparently walk 6 km a day on average according to a recent study). Not a lot of bright colors (exceptfor the people who shop at Desigual. Spanish teachers mainly…xD). If you want tosee how we dress, go to Google and look for pics of people in the means of transportation (train, bus, etc…) or in the street. For instance, here’s a photo of students during a demonstration:

Your average Parisians…

If you want me to be more precise, THE fashion item of the past 1-2 years, is the Canada Gooseparka (well, the knock-offs mainly because the original is very expensive).Always very popular, Converse shoes, Stan Smiths sneakers, and little black boots (always a classic)

I findParis fashion pretty bland lately. Everybody is dressed the same, not a lot ofcolors. Not a lot of visible make-up (except for some girls who are into the “Instagramlook”, you know, big eyebrows and contouring…but it’s SO two years ago…xD). Doyou know what is also a factor for this “bland look”? It’s sad to admit it but it’sstreet harassment. A lot of women don’t want to be annoyed so they tend tothink twice when they wear short skirts or bright items. Does it mean that ALL women thinkabout this when they dress? Of course no, thank god, but it plays a part particularly for women who live in some precise areas. And even for some men too, who want to avoid attracting attention for fear of being mugged. 

What is a bit sad about “French fashion” these days is that you have a standardization: people shop at Zara, H&M, Primark, etc…and then, you have in Paris people dressed like people in Amsterdam or Madrid. Same brands, same clothes, same people. 

Does it mean that the “French chic” is dead or non-existent? No, but you have to know where to find it. You still have eccentric or very elegant people with Chanel and Vuitton bags but you don’t see them in the street or in the means of transportation. You meat them at parties, vernissages, trendy coffee shops (Le Coste for instance) or in expensive shops like Vuitton, but not the Vuitton shop at the Champs-Elysées (it’s for tourists), much more the Avenue Montaigne or Saint-Germain des Prés shops. A little world just a few of us have access to (not me). Really, we don’t live on the same planet.

All this leads me to a question: who the hell wears all the fancy and eccentric stuff I see in shops and that are always sold out? You should see Zara’s Winter collection this year: a thing of beauty. Velvet dresses with embroideries, coats that look like the ones of Poiret, jackets with golden button, etc…All these items were sold out in a couple of weeks but when I walk down the street I NEVER see them on people. Do people wear them at parties? Am I hanging out at the wrong places? WHO WEARS THESE CLOTHES? How the hell this silver trousers I saw on a mannequin once at H&M and that I wanted to try on just for fun was already sold out?!

Anyway,even if it’s difficult for me to tell you how we dress, I can tell you how weDON’T dress. We don’t dress like non-French Instagram influencers who think that Frenchpeople dress like in a 1960’s Nouvelle Vague movie. We don’t wear berets orrarely. We don’t care about Jeanne Seberg in Breathless (A bout de souffle) andwhen you see girls like the ones below, they are tourists. They want to dresslike this during their vacation? They think it’s cute? Awesome. It’s actuallyvery cute but…hmmm…no, you can tell in one second that they are not from Paris (or that they are French influencers doing pics for their insta page and surfing on the cliches to appeal to an international audience)

And don’tget me started on Chinese tourists who dress like in the 1950’s and takepictures with flowers in their hand, usually at the terrace of a café. I mean,it makes great photos but it’s not representative of French fashion at all. But you know, tourists…Whatever makes you happy folks! 

There are also some fashion trends that you see on tourists and you know immediately that they are not French: very fancy coats with sneakers (OH MY GOD, why?), Birkenstock shoes with socks, ENORMOUS parkas with a belt, hand bags with big rhinestones…

How do you dress dear little lady!

I’m goingto disappoint you, I’m not very original either. A pair of jeans, a blue parka.It’s my uniform somehow. However I wear a lot of make-up, far more than the average person and my make up is often a too fancy for what I do. We tend to prefernude and minimalist look here for women over 30 but I’m into a Dita Von Teese kindof look even when I go to the supermarket. I never go out without red lipstick. I even have a golden custom case with my initials on it, to put in my bag.

Anyway, my fashion item of the moment is not very “burlesque” it’s thesesneakers, a collaboration between the brands Salomon and Avnier. They look like skeletons, I love them.

If I could afford them, I would buy these Gucci shoes because I love them so much ♥

Voilà, I hope I answered your (difficult) question. Thanks a lot anon ^^

[aquietgirlsmess]

19, 16 💕

19. do you like your country’s flag and/or emblem? what about the national anthem?

Yeah I like my country’s flag! It has nice colors. I do like the national anthem too! Some will say it’s too gory/violent/sinister or something (which isn’t so surprising considering the context it was written in) but idk when I hear I feel all (ง •̀_•́)ง and like I could accomplish stuff and that’s always nice.

16.  which stereotype about your country you hate the most and which one you somewhat agree with? 

I don’t know if I really have a stereotype about France/french people  that I truly hate…  I mean some are  actually pretty positive like the one that says we’re super stylish for example (it’s not necessarily true tho or at least not for everyone *cough*me*cough*), some are ridiculous and/or funny like for example that idea that we always go around wearing stripped clothes and berets al the time or that one that says we don’t bathe xD and others I feel are overrated/overstated (which I guess is the closest to me hating a stereotype I guess) like our rudeness. I mean sure like anywhere else you’ll encounter rude people but there aren’t only rude people in France. Though I guess it might depend on your definition of rude.  

 One I would agree on is maybe about us being complainers because I feel like we kinda are xD  or the one about how a lot of us are smokers… Personally I’m not but a lot of people I know smoke or have smoked at some point (but idk I haven’t exactly run a study on the subject so I wouldn’t know how many of us actually do smoke xD but around me a certain number do so yeah)

[petite-madame]

(Hi petite madame! Oops, here's what was supposed to be part one. Tumblr, don't your dare eat my message again!) 1/2 I love the posts you make about your art process and the little insights into french culture you give us. I just wanted to point out that in your post about french style, the girl wearing the black beret with a red skirt is in fact parisian! Her name is Louise Ebel and her blog is misspandora (I’ve been following her for years!)

Hi anon

Sorry for the VERY late reply, I took a break during a good part of December and I didn’t answer any ask. I wish you a Happy New Year, it’s never too late. 

Ok, so, these two asks are about THIS POST devoted to French fashion, a post made at a time Tumblr was still welcoming to explicit content. It was last year. An eternity. Ah, the nostalgia…

The girl wearing the black beret with a red skirt is in fact Parisian! Her name is Louise Ebel and her blog is misspandora

LOL. It’s super funny. She plays the “Parisian card” at 100% xD She’s dressed the way a tourist taking cute pictures in Paris would dress. I guess it’s also a way to appeal to an audience who expects Parisians to look a certain way. I mean she’s right: if she was dressed the way Parisians were ACTUALLY dressed, her Instagram page wouldn’t be interesting at all, and if she does dress like this everyday, kudos to her for bringing a bit of colors to this town, that is often grey and boring as hell. 

And from now on I’ll imagine you as Dita with sneakers. That’s just too perfect.

I wish I could have Dita’s perfect shape but otherwise, the description (burlesque make up and sneakers) is pretty accurate. Ah Dita…I saw her live at the Crazy Horse and recently at the Casino de Paris. What a beauty. She is EXACTLY the same IRL and on pictures: perfect skin, hair and make up. When you see her you just go…WOW! ♥_____♥

Thanks again for your message and sorry about the late reply.