#i do a lot of colour themes so palette ideas are great!!

[canmom]

so hades 2 huh

it's fun! i am more convinced after actually playing it than i was in the runup to it. the green colour palette looked a little drab in the videos but it works better for me fullscreen in game, and I really like the second zone's design. the major aesthetic change does go a little way towards making this feel like 'new Supergiant game' instead of just a rehash of the first game.

the difficulty floor is higher than the first game. i think it's well-tuned to go into if you've beaten that one. so far i've played 6 runs, seen the first boss in 5, and and beaten her in 2 of them; yet to get more than about halfway through the second zone after that tho!

the new mana mechanic is kinda interesting, lots of tradeoffs to make. it's a bit more granular than the cast in the first game; you use it to do powered up versions of your attacks, and spending it also charges up the Call-equivalent.

i'm increasingly intrigued by the setting, and i really like some of the side characters like arachne. i think the time skip was a good decision - the story of Zagreus et al. was definitely done. the epilogue ending of the first game was way too neat.

still, starting a revenge plot in media res is curious. especially when Nemesis lampshades the lack of personal motivation. compared to Zagreus's very pressing and relatable motivation (run away from my abusive dad), Melinoë's motivation is a little more abstract - this seems to be deliberate. but it does a fair bit to sell the sort of 'desperate resistance base' setting. it definitely seems rather like they're setting up a twist down the line. but it lacks the immediate emotional hook of the overbearing patriarch in the first game. curious to see how it will work once I've seen more of the story.

as far as the new gods, I'm fascinated by the decision to make Hephaestus and Hestia both be Northern - probably Yorkshire. it's always fun hearing regional UK accents in games. they do also both feel like responses to the criticism that Jen Z never designs fat characters lmao. still, they are good designs. both have satisfying mechanics. Selene also has a really good design I think.

the other gods' mechanics have naturally been redesigned to fit the new game. still broadly the same themes, e.g. Zeus will still be lightning based, but different interpretations of what that means, so for example you have 'hitting an enemy produces a lightning blast behind them' as the primary Zeus mechanic instead of chain lightning. which definitely keeps things fresh. Melinoë's kit has a lot of directional attacks and, with the Cast now being an AOE which slows/freezes enemies, there's a lot more emphasis now on positioning enemies to set up AOE attacks which is interesting.

the witch stuff is quite fun in an admittedly slightly cheesy way. it's definitely pull on aesthetic currents which aren't at all Ancient Greek, like the pointed hats. but hey! I can get into it, it's not like the game's aesthetic has ever been all that strictly historical. even if I am still scratching my head at 'so mote it be'. apparently it's an archaic word meaning 'may', i.e. 'may it be so'.

of course the main thing is, the actual moment to moment gameplay is fun. it flows just as the first game did, and it's just as addictive with the way it spreads out story breadcrumbs. the vfx and such look great, the movement is already super tightly tuned (tbf it's basically the same as the first game with the addition of a new 'hold dash to sprint'), and there's a already good variety of enemy mechanics.

there's some obvious placeholders for some of the UI art and character portraits (notably none of the keepsakes have been drawn yet), but overall it's surprisingly polished for an early-access build. all the voice acting is already there - it's fun seeing the Supergiant voice cast return in new roles.

the meta progression element... there's some neat ideas, like an upgrade system with a limited set of slots that very much calls to mind NieR Automata's chip system. so there are some stronger tradeoffs to make; it's not as simple as 'spend resource, get better' as it was in the first game. and it's clearly possible to advance quite far even without a lot of meta resource investment. so far it definitely feels like my main limit is skill, and I'll progress further once I learn more of the enemy patterns and figure out what builds I like to play.

(though I guess the idea with this kind of game is that the power ups quietly boost you and make it feel like you're getting better a lot faster than you are just learning the game lmao)

overall, it's just really fun to have another Supergiant game to sink my teeth into haha. I still wish they'd continued their streak of coming up with new IPs each time, because they'd come up with fantastic settings, but there's plenty of interest here still.

also the more I work in game dev the more I can appreciate just what a ludicrous amount of polish there is in Supergiant's games. I can only imagine the amount of work it must have taken to tune the feel of everything this tight.

[field-guide-to-mud]

💜💖

[art]

Creator Spotlight: @jijidraws

Jiji Knight is a latina pinup illustrator. Her work is overall geared toward thick ladies and dedicated to fat positivity out of a purely selfish need to create art she wished she had seen growing up. She often features sexy and soft macabre themes on vibrant or sweet colours and takes great joy in making folx feel good about themselves with her work. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration and operates out of her very sunny hometown of Las Vegas.

Check out our interview with Jiji below!

Have you ever had an art block? If so, how did you overcome it?

Oh my gosh… I have art blocks all the time. My favorite way of overcoming it is by making fanart. Funnily enough, that’s something I don’t do in my own work anymore. But there are still IPs I return to that still bring joy to my heart. I love returning to drawing Sailor Moon like when I was in first grade. Or I’ll even look up the last fashion week and start drawing the fashion week outfits from the Paris or New York show. Stuff like that is what gets my creative juices flowing.

What medium have you always been intrigued by but would never use yourself?

Resin. Resin art is so stunning. People make the most amazing and beautiful sculptures using resin, and I don’t think I could ever bring myself to play with something so complicated. There are a lot of ways to cure it, and sometimes, it doesn’t cure properly…I already work with enough chaos as it is! I respect resin artists, but I don’t think I would ever touch it. I’ve admired it from a distance. There is an artist I follow who does these resin layer paintings. So they’ll paint a layer of resin, then cure it, and paint on top of the cured layer. They build up these amazing paintings using resin…I could never. Maybe one day!

What is one interaction you had with a fan of yours that has stuck with you over the years?

I still remember…It was my first and only Flame Con in New York. I had a fan come up to my booth. They didn’t say hello or that it was nice to meet me. They started to cry! They cried, and the first words out of their mouth were, “I’ve never seen myself in artwork before.” So, of course, I started to cry! So we were just crying across the table at each other. It was just one of the sweetest interactions, and it really sticks with me still to this day.

What is a recent creative project that you are proud of?

My latest collaboration with the artist Missupacey. We’ve been collaborating for two years now, and our last collaboration was for Midsummer Scream. It was two very cute clown girls, and I designed our T-shirt. It was one of the most fun projects we’ve done in a long time. We love doing collaborative work because it keeps working in the art industry fresh—being able to bounce ideas back and forth. So we do it where someone picks the color palette, and someone picks a theme. We’ll get references together, put them on a big board, and send each other sketches. It’s really nice to work with somebody else.

How has technology changed the way you approach your work?

Honestly, it changed everything. I mean, I used to draw for myself a lot. And while I still do that, I now predominantly draw for my Patrons. For a while, I was drawing for the internet. So I was drawing stuff people wanted to see in terms of plus-sized versions of characters—a plus-sized Poison Ivy or a plus-sized Sailor Moon. My Patrons have allowed me to start drawing for myself again. But technology, for a while, essentially dominated what direction I was taking with my art, so I’m grateful to take some of that power back.

If there is one thing that you want art enthusiasts to remember you by, what would it be?

Body positivity. I would love for them to remember that there is an artist making work that is making people feel good about themselves and about the way they look at themselves.

Top tips on setting up an Artist Alley booth?

Have a method of taking money, have a method of displaying your work, and have a way to take a break. I have a plastic picnic cover that costs like a dollar at any store. All I have to do is clip it to my display grates, and it covers up my entire display. I feel secure enough to take time for myself in a 10-hour workday to eat something, go to the restroom, or even take a moment to breathe and reorganize my inventory. So it’s so funny that this one-dollar piece of plastic is like the most life-saving item in my display of items.

Who on Tumblr inspires you and why?

@mayakern comes to mind. She is another body-positive artist who expanded into making body-positive clothing. She’s amazing, and just to see someone else out there promoting body positivity. Maya’s been doing it longer than I have, I believe. It feels good to know that I’m not alone. Her work is always stunning, and I love her body-positive DnD characters and the fact that she’s still plowing through the clothing industry. For example, she’s expanded from skirts to button-downs and even custom-wrap shirts. I love to see what she’s doing, and it inspires me to pursue different avenues with my own work.

Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing, Jiji! Be sure to check out their Tumblr blog over at @jijidraws.

[rkherman]

How it took a whole year and six pieces to evolve a concept

Sometimes you have a great idea, but the finished art looks a lot worse than how you imagined it, and that’s okay! You can always shelve it and come back to it later when you have a lightbulb moment on how to improve it. In my case it took multiple iterations as well as a style evolution throughout the process.

~~~~~

1. Aquarium II - Nov 14, 2021

I started with a pretty solid idea of fish inside glass baubles of water, with a palette of yellow, orange, pink, lavender, and sky blue. I kind of like how the design turned out with the filigree and the cats, but the palette just wasn’t working out. It’s probably because I didn’t put in enough contrast and dark areas, but I hit a wall with this one and put it aside, unfinished.

~~~~~

2. Koi Pond (Winter) - Jan 3, 2022

Using the palette of ‘Aquarium II’ as well as the two circling koi, I expanded it into a pond of circling fish. I did like this one and even made an animation of the fish swimming, but it still felt like something was missing.

~~~~~

3. Circular Motion - Feb 21, 2022

I decided to go full Escher with the fish tessellation (everything is flush, no spaces between) and also push the palette and contrast. I really didn’t like the result. The colours look dull and bland, and the fish look weird. It was partly because of this piece that I decided I wouldn’t do perfect tessellations if it made the animals look weird.

~~~~~

4. Aquarium - May 25, 2022

The first true success from this concept! This is part of the trio that uses the same palette, including ‘Arboretum’ and ‘Archives’. I put the aquatic creatures in clear baubles once again, and my lineart style is more established at this time.

~~~~~

5. Koi Pond - Jun 18, 2022

I fell in love with this palette of yellow, orange, pink, green, and dark green. It’s just a recolour of the previous ‘Koi Pond (Winter)’, but the lines feel wishy-washy to me now that my style has thicker lineart.

~~~~~

6. Flow - Dec 21, 2022

The final success of this concept! This is part of another trio that includes ‘Flock’ and the upcoming ‘Flutter’. I kept to the theme by adding cats observing the main subject, and used a minimal palette so that the center koi would stand out more.

~~~~~

In the end, I am still attached to the two ‘Koi Pond’ variations. I want to get them to a place where I feel like they are complete, but I don’t yet know how. So, they will just hang out in their respective folders until then.

[shayberri789]

Tumblr Tips

With new users coming and apparently actually following me, I figured I'd may as well make a master post of "Tumblr Tips" and "Tips for new users and returning users" posts I have been reblogging lately.

Edit: make sure to check my original version of this post, apparently the read more option no longer redirects people to the original full post from reblogs, so you won't see the additions. I've linked it in comments

This post was made when Twitter Refugees flooded tumblr, so it's mostly targeted to them. However!! Reddit immigrants will get a lot of use from it too! I'll be adding reddit specific stuff too as I find them. For now, here is the best and clearest "tips for reddit immigrants" post I've found. Welcome to tumblr

Can't believe I need this category; Tumblr Safety Tips:

Don't List Minor Status

Lurk Before You Post - my comment: Learn the site and culture before you post, you're less likely to poke a beehive that way

Listen to this or you will be mocked by locals

Don't give out your real name! + The benefits of primary and secondary blogs

Privacy: make your likes and follows private

A common scam going around - be careful! It'll pray on your kindness in your ask inbox

For Starting Out:

Starting info for Twitter Refugees

A handy guide for starting up - with diagrams!

How Not To Be Blocked By Every Tumblr User

SERIOUSLY. PLEASE GET A PROFILE PICTURE.

Why Locals Block Empty Blogs

Free Profile pictures if you're out of ideas: [x]

Etiquette - or shit that annoys locals to hell and back if you ignore these:

Don't censor shit - it's cringe and annoying and can be harmful

SERIOUSLY DONT CENSOR SHIT

bitesyoubitesyoubitesyou REBLOG SHIT

Abuse the tags but don't clog the tags - unrelated info tags are not cool

Tips to Improve Your Experience:

Terminology (Blorbo, plinko, some classic jokes, etc)

More terminology: Poor little meow meow vs blorbo

Different methods of interaction explained - reblogs, asks, DMs, replies, etc

XKit to improve your experience

Themes! Make your blog look great

Also you can change the site colour palette - I like a soft blue, some like black, some white, but there's more!!

Tumblr Tags: Don't Use Quotations "like this"

Remember; it's your blog

How to post mature (Eg: sexual) content

Folk Stories

Blocking:

Block without hesitation, for any reason

It's integral to curating your online experience

An example of reasons to block someone - yes your reason can be silly. I've blocked people for posting x reader fics, for shipping my notp, because i didn't like their AU. Not because I don't like them, or have anything against them, I just hate x reader fics in general, or didn't want to see my notp, or I just got tired of seeing their posts in a fandom tag. Rather than demanding they change, I changed how my tag looks to me. And that is responsible blocking. I also block racists, terfs, homophobes, etc. I blocked someone who was mean to me in replies. Do whatever to make your online experience good.

Misc:

FOR RETURNING USERS! We have new things!

Added to the above, here are some things people in the notes have added: Comments are a thing, clarification on tag filtering, seriously follow @/staff and @/changes

To concerned twitter artist refugees

Also! You can shorten posts like I have by adding a "read more" option. On website, make a new line and click the squiggly lone button. On mobile, type :readmore: then hit enter! Everything after that will be hidden under a nifty button. I recommend doing it! Especially for writing longer pieces!

How Tumblr Treats Celebrities and Popular blogs (If you're an influencer, prepare for hell. You'll get chased off if you try that here)

Tumblr Holiday - November Fifth Explanation

[snakes-and-fluff]

Project Voltage Mikus ranked by my personal taste from most to least favourite:

-Ghost. Glitchy ghost Miku. GLITCHY GHOST MIKU!! When I saw this one I gasped, it's so so good That fact that her tie is a little glowing ghost-wisp? The muted and simplistic colour palette? The "01" badge being a wisp floating next to her arm? I cannot stop screaming about it. It's. Perfect.

-Ground. Honestly it doesn't really look like Miku but I don't care it's a baller design and I love it, it was made to appeal directly to me with the adventuring themes and the tattered cloak. Her hair does remind me of thorns more than ground tbh but she still deserves her spot here

-Fighting. Of course she's paired with Sirfetch'd for the leek! I had no idea what direction Fighting-type was gonna be and while I am a little sad we don't get ripped Miku I can't deny that this design is great! The dark brown accents really help make the rest of the outfit pop and her hair is leeks you can't get much more on-brand for Miku than this

-Dragon. The mini-cloak worn over one shoulder, the claw hairclips, the sword that doubles as a mic?? Fantastic. I also think this is the design that fits her partner Pokémon best - she really does embody Miraidon

-Fire. This one is fun! Her hair is insane and I'm not entirely sure what's going on with those leggings (are those just patches of bare skin? how would you even wear those), but I love her eyes and her jacket. This is the one I want most as a module in a Project Diva game

-Psychic. I love it so much, she's so cute! It's a pretty understated design but I feel like it really works, ya know?

-Ice. I really, really like this one... mostly. The bright green gloves take a bit of the appeal away imo - on her eyes and earrings and tiny dots throughout her outfit the green accent colour is fine but the gloves take up too much space to be fully green. Her ice-heels are incredible though, no notes

-Steel. I don't what I expected for Steel-type, but it certainly wasn't a samurai! A pokéflute being worn as a sword?? Inspired. Her hat looks like it can double as a cymbal in case she needs to make some impromptu music

-Bug. Tiny little Miku! The bangs over her front resembling antennae and the multiple wing motifs on her outfit are next-level adorable. She fits in the palm of my hand

-Dark. I love her umbrella-mic, 20/10 that's the best accessory of the lot easily. And I like the rest of the outfit , but I don't like what they did with the pigtails - I understand that one's crescent-moon shaped but the fact that they are so wildly different in length and volume is really throwing me off

-Flying. This is the epitome of a Flying-type trainer's design. She's soft and flowy and looks like she belongs in the clouds. I don't know what's up with that single dark blue glove though

-Normal. The vibes are impeccable; she's just having a chill time. I really like all the colours that are going on and can rest easy knowing that this Miku definitely smokes weed

-Fairy. This one is very, very close to overtaking Normal but the face keeps throwing me off. Her skirt is very cute and I love her puffy socks. I get what they were trying to do with the hair but it just looks like she got strawberry bubblegum stuck in there

-Water. I like that the pigtails join together at the end - absolutely insane design, 10/10 - but it just. Doesn't look like Miku. I can certainly believe this as a water trainer design in one of the games tho

-Electric. You just took a regular electric trainer, gave her pigtails and called her Miku. It's an okay design overall, even if I feel like it's more on the bland side

-Grass. I flip-flop on this one, but my feelings are generally neutral. It doesn't really look like Miku imo but it does kinda look like Miku's cousin so I'll let it slide

-Rock. For one thing, I keep looking at that design and thinking it's ice. And I'm just not a huge fan of the flowy bridal-dress look (I know there's an alternate version and I do prefer that one... but only slightly, so it stays here)

-Poison. The epitome of overdesigned. Also why did you choose mustard yellow accents? On the goggles and gasmask it looks okay but in the hair?? Awful.

DISCLAIMER: this was in progress as the designs were being revealed and after I've had to chance to let my feelings on them digest for a while my opinions might change but this is how I feel about them all currently. Overall, pretty great!

And in case you have no idea what I'm talking about: https://www.serebii.net/music/projectvoltage/

[cassmouse]

My ranking of Honoka's limited SIFAS cards and why

Hey! This will be the first in a hopefully long series where I rank the individual Love Live girls' limited SIFAS cards (the fes cards and the party) based on things like idolised artwork and 3D model. I thought, why not start with Honoka since she's a pretty good place to start? And with around a year since SIFAS (very unfortunately) closed down, what better time to start a series where I get to once again appreciate all my favourite cards?

SO without further ado, let's get into itttt

5 - Captain Honoka

This is Honoka's party limited card and it is, in one word, underwhelming. It has some very basic theming, with the very typical 'pirate' top, and the embroidery on the skirt, but in the end, when compared to other party or festival cards, the design can't really compare. The art looks like it could be a normal event card, and doesn't at all scream 'special' when you first look at it, and the overall composition and colours look pretty simple. The 3D model is even worse though, as the whole thing is far too basic for its own good. I feel like they could've done some really cool things with the pirate theming and Honoka, but no, instead they just settled for this pretty half-baked idea.

4 - Colourful Magician

Honoka was the only μ's girl to get a fourth festival card before the game's end of service, and was it worth it? ...Eh. Overall, this card isn't at all bad. The art especially is pretty great, with a pretty aesthetic and strong, pleasant theming and colours. However, the idea is relatively simplistic, with the art feeling like it contains a lot of empty space around Honoka, which I really don't enjoy in a SIFAS card design. And, to make matters worse, the 3D model isn't great either. Despite the outfit looking so vibrant and full in the art, the model makes the dress stiff and not particularly enjoyable. So overall, it was a slightly disappointing finish for limited μ's cards.

3 - Cosmic Driver

This is an absolute upgrade from the last two cards, and is Honoka's first festival lim. It's a really unique concept and surprisingly so for a first festival card, a set where for the most part, the girls' gimiks are pretty predictable. The art is full of life and the colour palette is absolutely brilliant, and the mesh of a racer and a party aesthetic really pays off for the card's overall uniqueness. I absolutely adore the characterisation found in the pose and the expression too. The 3D model is also consistently strong, with the colours being a little all over the place but in a way that could tie the outfit together surprisingly well if looked at correctly. The cutesy skirt and jacket combo works wonders here, and when tied with the very pop colour palette and hairstyle, it's an idea that really sells. However, it's the slight simplicity with the black crop top and the potential to be a bit of an eyesore with the 3D model's colours that ranks it below the others.

2 - Downtown Patrollers

This is her third festival card, and one that really knows what it's doing. The art is exceptionally pretty and absolutely earns its title as a limited festival card, and the colour palette is unique and fits very well with the theme. The dragon she's sitting on and the background looks amazing, but still manages to not at all overshadow Honoka as the main subject of the image. The 3D model also, for the most part, does a very good job in keeping this aesthetic going, with the colours and patterns staying pleasing to the eye and consistent. So overall, this was an actually great festival card, and I have a lot of praise for it.

1 - I'll Show You Round The Mansion

In my opinion, it's Honoka's second festival limited card that really takes the cake. The art is already very striking, with a rich and gorgeous palette that automatically seems to scream luxury. It's a great concept, a bit of an old reliable, and everything in the art from the background to the lighting effects really compliments the idea. The OUTFIT too just AUGH. AUGH I love it- It must be one of my favourite clothing choices in the game as a whole. And this of course is also great in the 3D model, where it continues its elegant and refined yet very Love Live-esque look. I also love the slight curl in her hair, it's yet another unique point about this model that just makes me love it so damn much.

---

Tysm for reading if you got this far! Kotori's next time~

[saikourobyn]

Japan 2020 - Day 5

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Our continuing Tokyo travels take us to a dark warehouse, an abandoned museum and some tasty beverages.

Friday 28th February 2020

Tokyo

Today was out last day staying with Hiroshi and Aiko, they were getting married on Saturday and we needed to get out of their way.

Aomi, Koto City

We headed out early to catch the train to Aomi (青海) an area of reclaimed land in Tokyo Bay. To get there we travelled across the Rainbow Bridge which is 798m long! At night the towers that support the bridge are lit up in rainbow colours.

After getting off the train we enter an area known as Palette Town (not to be confused with Pallet Town from Pokémon) we walk between two buildings, into the circular area in the bottom right of the picture above, the VenusFort Venice-themed mall on the left and the Toyota City Showcase on the right. We were meeting up with Oli's parents, they had just gotten back to Tokyo from sightseeing elsewhere in the country.

We had some time to kill so we had a quick look at what shops and eateries the mall had to offer but decided to head in to the Toyota City Showcase, I'm not really in to cars but they did have some interesting exhibits of what they though cars might look like in the future (with jet packs... what do you mean I already made this joke 🤫) You can see more about it here.

We walked through the Toyota City Showcase and on the other side we found the Daikanransha (大観覧車) Ferris Wheel, Oli suggested we ride it, I was initially hesitate because it seemed expensive but I realised that I was on Holiday and I should try and experience things if I can.

We opted for one of the smaller 360­­° view cars and got some lovely views, the sky was nice and clear and it did the job of killing some time while we waited.

When Oli's parents arrived we headed in to teamLab Borderless, I won't be able to do it justice here, it's a visual and auditory experience, when you enter you get lost in a giant maze and lose track of time much like Ikea.

It's mostly dark except for projectors shining lights and imagery on to the walls, in other areas LED strips hang from the ceiling, these were controlled by the visitors from an app, to add a bit of interactivity.

On the left is a sign showing different kanji's and the pictographs and on the right the corresponding symbols appear in the app.

This is a great place to come and take some beautiful selfies, though beware some areas feature a mirrored floor, so skirts may not be the best choice of clothing. Although these areas are often in side rooms so you don't have to go in if you don't want to.

We had been in here for awhile and I was starting to get hungry, I left Oli and his parents and decided to head over to the food court of the mall next door. I didn't take any pictures here, it looks just like a mall food court with Venice theming and lots of Japanese food.

Just a short walk from the mall in Palette Town is the Unicorn Gundam Statue (実物大ユニコーンガンダム立像) I don't anything about Gundam but it was impressive to see such a big structure just standing outside I had to stop by to admire it.

II had hoped to visit The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (日本科学未来館) but unfortunately it was closed from today until 17th March 2020, I'm sure it'll all have blown over by then.

I met back up with Oli and we headed back to Hiroshi and Aiko's place, we had to change at Tokyo station so took the opportunity to stop off at the Pokémon Center Tokyo DX (ポケモンセンタートウキョーDX) here I picked up an squishy Oddish and a Snivy plushie. There's also a café where you can enjoy cute Pokémon themed food and drinks, but we didn't try it this time.

It took until the last day we were staying with Hiroshi and Aiko for me to check out their nearest BookOff, it was a short walk away from the station, practically on the way to their apartment. There I purchased a Wii Remote, the idea being I could use it with the Wii U I had bought to test out the Taiko no Tatsujin Drum Controller before I took it home.

Hiroshi and Aiko kindly let us store some luggage at their place so we could carry on our journey across Japan with just one suitcase each, before we left they took us out to a local restaurant.

We met up with Oli's parents again and visited Junpei (じゅん平) for some okonomiyaki, Hiroshi took care of ordering for us all which was nice not to have to worry about. After the meal Hiroshi and Aiko left as they had a busy day tomorrow. We stayed in the restaurant for another drink, Oli's dad wanted Sake 🍶 but was having some trouble communicating with the waitress, I watched her trying to work out what drink he wanted for a moment. She was asking questions which didn't seem to relate to sake, I suddenly remembered that the word Sake just means alcohol and that in the west the drink we know as Sake is called Nihonshu (日本酒) with this information we were now able to narrow down the choices from alcohol to a specific beverage.

After our drinks we hopped on the train to Shibuya, the station was being renovated and it was quite confusing to navigate after escaping we then found road works blocking our way so it took us a little longer to get to our AirBNB.

Once there we then had the confusion of working out how to get in to the building, but Oli found the code for the door and we got inside. The small apartment featured two sofa beds, a small kitchen, a washing machine a small shower room and an even smaller room with the toilet. While seated on the toilet you could reach out and touch the wall in front of you.

Tomorrow was the big day for Hiroshi and Aiko, I was invited to the wedding reception in the evening, so I had big plans to explore Akihabara on my own.

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[hectormcfilm]

HERO

This is maybe my first glimpse into Chinese cinema. I haven't watched any kung fu films before and whilst over the last couple years I have taken a great interest in Asian media including: K-dramas, Kurosawa, Park-Chan Wook and Bong Joon-Ho and animanga, this was my first Chinese film... and I don't think I could have hoped for a better introduction.

Hero is one of if not the most visually striking films I have ever witnessed, the cinematography throughout is gorgeous in ever way. Most importantly is the colour theory, this film excels with its vibrant colour schemes that change throughout the film and reflect its themes. The film starts with a very harsh red colour palette when it is the nameless heroes perspective reflecting how he is in a way trying to seduce and persuade the Emperor of his story so he can get close to him, it also illustrates the violence of his story as he claims to have murdered three assassins. Then when the Emperor gives his opinion on what happened the colour palette changes to a colder blue, this can reflect neutrality, like a neutral flowing stream, conveying how the Emperor wasn't there so is only theorising, blue can also represent intuition working perfectly with the Emperors intuition towards the heroes true intention. The final colour palette is white, implying purity and truth, communicating how the ending reveals the true story, this is bolstered by the use of green in Broken Swords flashback in the end, green links to nature connoting that Broken Sword's story is natural and true. One final piece of subtle colour theory is the nameless hero never changing colour, staying in a black robe the entire film, this could link to the idea of a black lie and its seriousness. Besides just the colour the cinematography shines through the landscapes and scale. There are multiple wide shots of wide expansive barren deserts with horses charging through them and people perched on mountains, these stunning shots make the film feel like an epic with a huge scale. This is emphasised by the amount of extra used for the battle scenes, having dozens of horses and hundreds of men in unison moving together, very reminiscent to Lord of the Rings. The different technical camera techniques used are very effective, the Dutch angles ad close-ups utilised in fight scenes add a great layer of intensity and intimacy.

The cinematography isn't the only spectacular element of this breath-taking cinematic experience, both the fight scenes and music are excellent and compliment each other perfectly, reflecting how the characters describe music and swordplay as similar skills. The fight scenes have a great mix of amazing choreography and emotional impact. The opening duel between Sky and the hero shows off the almost flawless choreography and speed these fights have, then as the film continues the fights between Snow and the apprentice and especially Broken Sword and the Nameless hero focus more on the emotion and beauty of swordplay. Having both fighters avoid hitting each other and instead pounce across the water was beautiful. I was so impressed how they hid the wires of the actors and the shots of the swords breaking through the water were so satisfying. My only problems with the action scenes is certain editing choices like having the characters faces fade in and out overlaying the fight, seemed like quite an unnecessary effect and I didn't enjoy the almost supernatural powers they had like the hero and snow deflecting arrows and a lot of the absurd high jumps and floating characters would do, an explanation like some form of a magic system or a scene of them training to learn these techniques would've excused this.

My only other problem with this film would be the few moments of CGI used as it isn't very believable and takes away from all the practical effects and extras but this is only really a problem in the arrow sequence.

The final thing to mention is the plot itself and the use of the Rashomon effect, the constant twists and reveals in this film combined with the audiences distrust towards everything due to the manipulation of truth keeps you on edge throughout and helps the films narrative and pace. Overall, an excellent epic.

[alexcaldownapier]

Film Project - Week 3/4

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1JHDe7Utgi5OGpbPluzoAHWbk_ugxLQAB?usp=sharing

Exercise 2

Changing the feeling of an interior space. The fear has set in a bit with this one - I’m not very happy, again, with what I made. I put a lot more effort into this week’s exercise, thinking through the lighting, framing and colour palette a lot more. BUT, it’s still doesn’t look great. Currently having some doubts about my ability to create cinematic images, or at least interesting images. I wanted to create a cosy, if a little lonely, mood - which was picked up on by the class, so I guess there’s that. Again, as last week, maybe more ambition would help, especially after seeing Sam’s and Eva’s submissions - both totally and completely transporting the meaning of the space, not just the feeling of the space. Sam’s lighting especially was very moody and dynamic and just great to look at. There’s that ineffable quality to a shot that I really feel I’m missing - some shots you can just look at forever (whereas with mine, a minute is more than enough). There’s thought and what feels like quite cohesive conceptualising for my approach, but nothing that interesting within it (intent and approach outlined in the google doc). Maybe it’s what I’m thinking of shooting, not necessarily how I shoot it? Although I think creating a bit more contrast in the lighting would have helped and also moving lights a bit more off-axis from the camera. I almost like the lighting for the final shot:

The right side of the frame has a bit of contrast and interest with the lighting, but the left hand side feels flat and boring. Anyways, again, it was a very interesting class and I really enjoy the way we’re able to have discussions about our decisions and approach. Always so much fun to see the different ways that the people in this group approach the same task. 

And then, later - the conversations at the end of class where we delved endlessly into technical questions and then a bit more creative and experiential topics - was also very rewarding. It cleared up and deepened a lot of my own ideas about exposure, but did also freak me out quite a bit. The “it” factor that Andrew spoke of is the single most terrifying thing I can think of (most likely due to my fragile, inflated ego). The idea that creating interesting, artistic images is something you can’t totally, entirely learn, is very scary. I think I’m a pretty hard worker and ask a lot of questions and want to know what there is to know, but then there’s the idea of artistic talent. What if I learn as much as I can but there’s a lack of any real talent? The fear of any person interested in art, maybe. I just want to be good! make something beautiful that people actually want to see - where people get more out of it than I do. Because it’s always felt a little selfish to me - art as a career. Unless you’re actually talented and have interesting, kind things to say. I could go on about this, work in the socialist messaging and middle-class guilt that informs this, but we’ve only got 24 hours in the day and I’d hate to waste any more of yours.

Aaaanyways, I know more about ISO now, so yeah, that’s good. Maybe I’ll work out soon if this is something for me to do.

ASC Article - Linus Sandgren and Babylon (2022)

Another interesting one - again about a film I’ve recently watched (I think it’s completely and utterly fine, with a nearly inexcusable amount of stupidity in it’s themes). While the film may have been a bit of a disappointment, the visual approach was at least interesting. Again, I’ve learned more about some techniques - this time push and pull processing of film. I really like the look of the push-processing used in this film and it’s something I want to try out at some point. The concept was then further developed in my mind with the exposure conversations later in the class. While the adding grain in the grade is probably the better way of doing things (more control), I do still want to try it out in camera so I can understand it a bit more in a practical sense. Just like last week, I did have some issues with what the DP said about their process - this time it was the lenses. The film was shot on Atlas Orion Anamorphic lenses as they supposedly have great close-focus capabilities - something I just don’t understand. throughout watching the film, I was getting a little irritated by the number of close-ups that felt soft with the field of focus being halfway through the skull instead of on the face, which to me seemed like a close focus issue. Encourages me again to test, test, test! I did really like the ingenuity of how the period footage was shot - in order to get the hand-cranked feel without destabilising the camera rig they were using, they made alterations so that the DP could remotely change the frame rate as they were filming. In these shots, the frame rate is moving between 18 and 22 fps - a nice wee bit of problem-solving.

Film Project Development - Longboard Nights

More tests, more discussions. Ben and I have been going through each scene of the script and deciding, in broad terms, how the scene will look - shot sizes, lighting, camera motion, colour palette, effects, etc. 

For the flashbacks, we’ve settled on a yellow tinged, soft-lit, handheld POV that is step printed and shot with a 270 degree shutter angle for more motion blur and a smearing effect. Mainly inspired by Fallen Angels and the flashbacks from the Bourne movies. The step-printing I’ve tested, but not with the right shutter-angle, something to try out.

For the training scene at the start, we’re going for a hard, red-gelled key light for a high-contrast, moody image, paired with close shot sizes and camera movement that follows the movement of the character to emphasise their physicality and the aggression in their movements. We’re balancing out the red light with an LED for fill, motivated by a projector in the scene. We plan on using quite strong colours throughout to convey the character’s change - red for rage, yellow for insecurity/fear and blue for peace and calm. 

One worry is the skating scenes. We want to convey the protagonist’s anger and physicality as well as set up the visual language for the coming fight scene. But, we don’t really have the capabilities of fast-moving camera and complicated rigs so we’re looking to see if we’re able to use GoPros and some creative lensing to create more of an intensity to the sequence. Shots could work with a long lense and our actress skating quickly towards us as well as some short movements on a slider/dolly quickly intercut to make the movement feel more consistent. Lots of work-arounds to explore.

Film Project Development - About that one time

Due to the intensity of the pre-production for Longboard Nights, I’ve been kind of neglecting my other film project - a documentary directed by Natalia Baczyinski (someone I’ve wanted to work with for a long while). I love the idea and the beat sheet and the approach! The experiential stuff mixed with a contextualising V.O. intro could make for something very interesting. I’m doing the sound design for this film - one of my favourite things to do. Especially this kind of style: minimalist, realistic but subtly psychological. I can already imagine a lot of the film, without having spoken much to Nat about it. We’re having our first group meeting on Monday and I’m very excited for it. 

See you in a couple weeks. 

[electricfuneral666]

How to Pick the Right Sofa

A sofa is a great way to begin your designing job from square one. A sofa can be selected initially so you have a suggestion of what to enhance around it. A showpiece sofa could be upholstered in vibrant luxury material, or covered with an intriguing print and end up being the focal point of any space. Are you on the market for a new sofa? If so, it's important to select the right one. Aspects to think about consist of size, shape, and design. And do not neglect convenience! Right here are some ideas to help you make the best decision.

Your sofa's style precedes. Take a look at the present design of your home and afterwards choose a sofa that will complement it. I know this appears evident, however many people simply buy what they such as, as well as unfortunately, what they such as does not constantly match the design of the space. It might also encounter the room's rug or the paintings that will hang over the sofa.

Take into consideration exactly how you want the space to feel when you stroll right into it. Do you want this place to appear calm and soft (neutral sofa), vibrant as well as adventurous (something a lot more vibrant), or do you have an extremely details theme in mind, such as mid-century modern? What you intend to do with the sofa is important. With 'sitting' being the apparent solution, let's dive a bit deeper. Is it for a formal resting space where you'll settle for beverages when guests arrive? Is it an area where you'll lounge and also enjoy television on a daily basis? Is it for a rumpus room upstairs for the youngsters where they can ivite good friends as well as eat/drink on it?

It's a requirement to determine the sofa you're thinking about before you acquire in order to see to it fits. The sofa must fill up the area well without really feeling too big or as well little. To start, get your measuring tape and also gauge the width of your sofa. Consider whether you desire side tables alongside your sofa, in which instance you'll require to add concerning 50cm on either side of your sofa measurement. The deepness of the sofa need to also be measured. Some sofas can be approximately a metre deep (from the front of the sofa cushion to the back of the sofa). It's also a good suggestion to determine your present coffee table to guarantee it will certainly collaborate with the sofa you wish to purchase. When picking the ideal couch for your living-room, consider who will certainly be utilizing it as well as what influence that carries maintenance. One vital variable to consider when making this choice is material each type of fabric or leather provides its very own distinct advantages with respect to longevity also ease in cleaning! A leather sofa, for instance, is easier to tidy than a material sofa with children or family pets. The disadvantage of leather is that it can be cool in the wintertime as well as cosy in the summertime. Leather sofas are likewise harder to accessorise with cushions. Additionally, with some animals, leather will show claw openings more easily. When selecting the colour of your fabric 2 seater sofa, it is important to think about whether you are adding a sofa to a currently decorated room or if you 'd like the sofa to play a supporting function. When choosing a new sofa for an existing colour palette, you must determine if the sofa will be neutral, or if it will certainly tackle an accent duty.

Some designers utilise a sofa that matches the wall colour to unify the space and make it show up larger. If you acquire a sofa to match your wall colour, altering the wall colour in the future may be tough.

One of the most prominent strategy is to acquire a sofa that praises the other furnishings and doesn't make a declaration nor blend in with the wall colour. This is why neutral sofa colours are chosen in most homes.

Central ceiling lights can produce a plain ambience in your home as well as have an influence on the total state of mind of the area when you browse here. Therefore, as opposed to relying just on one light in the centre of the room, we recommend utilising as numerous source of lights as feasible. Table lamps as well as floor lamps, as an example, are wonderful at www.floorlampssale.co.uk These cutting-edge source of lights add to the creation of pools of light that create a welcoming ambience as well as warmth. Furthermore, you might rearrange these around your home where needed for added lighting!

[sparrtington]

IN THIS HOUSE, WE WANT LOVE FOR LOKI IN EVERY REALM. *CHEF KISS**THROWS HANDS**WHY DO THEY ALL HAVE FACIAL HAIR*

Def a wip, I’ll probably clean it up later today as long as my entire be----ing decides to COOPERATE. (edit 2 hours later: apparently my brain turned off mid sentence)

More ranting under the cut...the ramblings of a very mentally unhinged quail WHO JUST LOVES THREE SPECIFIC LOKI SHIPS *CRIES*

In chronological order:

Dashingfrost is like...my OG Loki ship. Is it cause they’re both green based colour palettes? Both are narcissists' and like to dress well? That outfit to Jotunheim Josh Dallas wears in Thor 1? Fur shawl nonsense with double pauldron capes? HOLY SHIT. What a tool. Love it. And the Zachary Levi variant Fandral gets more intricate armor detailing and a full cape (which we respect) and his disheveled look is a great contrast to Loki with a more clean cut vibe. Again, the OG Asgard royalty/protector dynamic. The growing up to slow burn love each other over centuries. Easier to encapsulate a story about a more Norse myth centric story (If you don’t want to bother with super heroes in general). LOVE IT. Totally didn’t stay up till 11pm reading Dashingfrost. BTW, the name is charming. It’s a very Disney Prince(TM)-esque theme (lol cause Josh Dallas was Prince Charming in Once Upon a Time and Zachary Levi voices Flynn Rider in Tangled) It’s a very cute, charming name. It’s a charming ship that kinda ticks all the fairy tale, norse myth, potential centuries of tragedies, kinda stories. Also, out of all the Warriors Three, Fandral seems to be canonically (or fandom wise) the least hostile towards Loki as Thor’s best bros. He also has some banter with Loki in Dark World as well. We don’t talk about the untimely demise of the Three in Ragnarok. I felt so betrayed even tho I love Ragnarok as a movie.

---

Frostiron is that mid MCU ship that started with Loki throwing Tony out of a window by his neck, with one hand. (MARK ME DOWN AS SCARED AND HORNY) Fell for the ship hard even though it’s the most “never ever would be canon” air about it. 

Different height dynamic. Loki tall, Tony smol. Both have equally massive egos and big brain energy for their respective crafts. BOTH OF THEM HAVE BIG DADDY ISSUES. All that potential childhood traumatic angst. A lot of angst in this ship...now that I think about it. Exploring their individual PTSD issues either with Tony and his impromptu trip to space and his anxiety attacks or Loki being mind melted and tortured by Thanos....etc. a lot of potential healing and comfort uwu. More suffering ideas? The concept of mortality. Loki lives a long time, Tony no lives a long time. MORE SUFFERING.

Tony and Loki can swap the sugar daddy role. If Loki is on midgard or if Tony is on Asgard, which ever poison you prefer. Uhhhh...I also enjoy the amount of snark you can get out of them. Both from completely different realms, but they are kind of the same kind of messed up, big brain, ego driven idiots. Also, their ship name is metal af. 

--

Lokius, not as cool of a ship name because it’s just a traditional melding of their names, but we respect simplicity. Also, the most canon ship we’re gonna get. The coolest ship potential because VARIANTS. Not the other ships can’t be in AU’s, but Lokius is basically “You want an alternate universe? VARIANT THAT SHIT”. Love it. 

Mobius is also a very patient, caring character in general. Besides knowing Loki’s entire story front to back, he’s just very sympathetic without being half hearted about it. Mobius is very much 1000% capybara energy. Loki, the hostile alligator sitting with a chill capybara. That’s it, thats why I love this ship. Capybara energy~

BUT THEN THEY ENDED THE SERIES WITH MOBIUS BEING LIKE “Who are you?” and I bout fuckin punched my monitor and screamed. I could eat my own teeth. LET. HIM. KISS. THE. COWBOY. anyway....Lokius, yesssss. A lot of potential with infinite and veritable possibilities. 

Ok, that’s all. Thanks for coming to my ted talk, I need to lay down and cry over Loki shipping now.

[kyunisixx]

chiaroscuro

artist!Robert Plant AU one shot.

a/n: this really started out as a song I wanted to write. But I knew I had to turn it into a longer writing!!

themes: fluff, mild implications of nsfw and tw: childhood trauma.

summary: in which Y/N becomes a muse for Robert, a landscape artist in more ways than one. (Man, that summary is so shit but let's roll with it)

pairing: artist!Robert Plant x fem!reader

chi·a·ro·scu·ro

the treatment of light and shade in drawing and painting.

an effect of contrasted light and shadow created by light falling unevenly or from a particular direction on something.

"Lean back for me a bit more, darling. That's right, relax."

As she moves, the old sofa creaks beneath her. Chilled air gusts through a partially opened window, making her shiver and sending miniscule bumps all over her bare skin. Her eyes drift over the fixtures inside the cozy cabin, illuminated by an outmoded oil lamp situated on the man's table. Several tiny moths were floating around it as the flame wavered ever so slightly from the breeze.

Scattered were all paintbrushes and smudges of paint were messily smeared all over the table. A round board was placed so close at the edge (one she heard him call before —a palette). In the middle is a rustic cup with half-empty, now cold tea. But a paint-smudged hand grasped on its handle and swiftly brought it over to a mouth. 

Then her eyes met his.

His frizzled, curly blond locks are pulled into a disheveled bun. One he pinned up so carelessly with a thin, unused paintbrush as to prevent it from obstructing his view but a few ringlets managed to escape and are now framing his face.

Ivory-colored shirt, a few buttons undone to reveal smooth skin of his collarbones which were also marked with a few shades of paint. Some scattered across his jawline to his cheek. 

Lips are pursed and eyes are pulled into deep concentration, they are set into a particular part of her. As if to capture the exact curvature of the crease on her waist.

Salient was the cleft on his chin and the sharp edge of his cheekbones by the incandescent light lent by the lamp, making him look like a contrast between sinister and elegance.

He dipped a brush and carefully made short strokes on the canvas, pausing every now and then to look at her.

The sun was setting and the sky was shaded a dull gray, providing so little of brightness which seemed to have darkened even more being situated in a lush forest.

Many months ago at this time of the day, she would have just been getting up from her sleep. Wake up and get ready for a long shift. It was a routine she had gotten so used to every day.

Take a bath. Eat. Pick out an outfit. Put on makeup. Be into the persona.

She would become a completely different person as soon as she stepped into the establishment she knew for as long as she moved into the town a few months ago.

From having to move into different cities and using different names to hide her identity. All of it to escape the filthy and haunted ghost of her past. 

Screaming. Glass breaking. Bruises. Slamming doors.  All of the things a child shouldn't have to go through. She took a risk and ran away from it.

And here is where she ended up thirteen years later.

Lacklustre eyes unmoving as they steadily stared back at her in a blurry mirror inside the changing room. All the girls' chattering seemed to have been muted and faded in the background as she gazed at her reflection. She picked up the small item in her hand, before taking the cap off and swiped the crimson lipstick across her chapped lips, creating a thick shade.

"Y/N, you ready to go?"

She turned her head back to Don, the club manager. She smiled and moved her head in a single nod.

“Sure, Don. Just give me a short moment”. She adjusted the strap of her black velvet dress and walked on the familiar, dimly lit hallway. Her stilettos clapped quietly on the floor as she padded and stopped in front of a red curtain covering the doorway from the side to the stage. 

"How's it going, folks? Alright, alright. I'd get right into it. This is the moment you've all been waiting for. The crowd favourite, slithers like a python, mistress of the night; Marilyn"

Then, she waited as the main lights switched off and took her cue to enter as smoke filled the platform. Coloured lights gleamed right through. She situated herself right in the middle then circled her hand on the pole as the first note of the song started to hum quietly. Like a distant patter of rain—calm before the storm. Her hips moved into the rhythm and fluidly sneaked around the pole as the cloud of smoke started to clear out. Gazing into the crowd of men, her blood-red lips quirk into a smirk.

It was the only time she knew she had complete power and control. And she relished it, savoring the potency. 

Her hands smoothed all over her now slightly perspired skin as men clamored and hooted for her. Bills were haphazardly thrown into the dancefloor. Something that she wasn't used to when she first started, it made her feel cheap. Dirty. But her routine carried on almost every night, she eventually got used to it and had even grown to like it.

Then she spotted him. 

Big ball of golden hair illuminated by stage lights. He was situated amongst the sea of predators, his eyes followed the fluidity of her movements. But what struck her the most was the way he was watching her. It wasn't shadowed by lust, but more of an intense wonder and curiosity. It was as if he was memorizing each part of her curves, but for another purpose.

Her gaze somewhat mirrored his. He definitely wasn't strange-looking. Hell, he might have been the most beautiful man she has ever seen. He didn't belong to a place where no good men wander around. Both his beguiling beauty and aura was completely out of place for such a place like this.

The song then came to a stop. Her number was over but her eyes remained locked with his. It was only then she came back to consciousness as Don's voice boomed into the large speakers, signalling the end of her performance. She collected the bills scattered on the floor and walked off the stage, throwing a last glance into the crowd as she took her exit.

He was gone.

He wouldn't show up for a couple of days. She was sure, of course. The moment she steps out, her eyes would already be skimming through the lounge, and would sigh in disappointment if she didn't spot any sign of him.

"Have you seen your mysterious man yet?"

One of the girls she was closest to, Hershey, asked as she counted the thick block of bills on her hand.

"He wasn't out there tonight"

"You could have been hallucinating. Anyway, you told me he was 'like an angel'"

Hershey laughed, mimicking the way she had said the last part with a breathy tone and added, "Or could have been disappointed in your dance number, ran away and swore to not step a foot into this place again"

She stopped momentarily, chuckled lightly and sighed, "You may not be far from the truth but we'll see."

Then he would be there the next night, positioned right at a table at the back. His curly locks gave his identity right away, with his elbows propped up and fingers poised against his chin, bearing the same gaze. 

Later that night, he'd be waiting right outside of the club.

"The show was spectacular."

She tilted her head to him, nodded and smiled.

"Thank you."

She wasn't sure how it ended up with her sitting on a stool inside a cozy 24-hour operating diner so late at night, chatting with her "mysterious man" late at night, who introduced himself as Robert. He was apparently a landscape artist and has traveled the world where he finds inspirations for his works.

"The best place I have ever been to? Hm. I'd say Machu Picchu, set in the high mountains of Andes in Peru, above a river called Urubamba. I had to hike all the way up, and you could see the breathtaking view when you reach the top."

"That does sound very lovely." She sighed wistfully.

"Have you ever traveled anywhere outside the country?"

"Oh no, I have not. I move to different places a lot but I've never gone out, never had the chance to."

"Ah, you should! It's wonderful."

She nodded, "Do you only do landscaping?"

"Well, no. I do a little bit of abstract art but I focus mainly on landscaping. I was thinking of expanding more, though. Maybe portrait, or nude art."

"That's a good idea. An artist has to come out of his comfort zone and be able to become great."

"Yeah…", he trailed off, as if lost in thought. "I hope this doesn't come off as strange or I as a creep. But may I ask you to be my muse? Don't worry! We'll only do portrait." He added the last sentence quickly.

She tilted her head to the side and looked at him, her brows furrowed deep in thought.

"You don't have to s—"

"I'll do it."

A few days later, she was again popped up on a stool inside his flat just a few blocks away from the club. His place was spacious, but had a very rustic feel to the interior design. A few souvenirs from different countries were neatly placed on a shelf and most of his paintings were hung stylistically on the walls (in which she stared at in complete awe for what she could tell an hour each painting until he had to drag her away to his studio)

Her fingers fiddled as she tried to stay still under his calculating gaze. She never had much problem with how she looked and never had insecurities. Perhaps she just didn't care enough to be insecure. But at that moment, she thought of how she must've appeared to him and if she was good-looking enough to be an inspiration for his art.

"Are you alright there?"

"Yes! Yes, I… Yeah I'm alright."

His hand stopped and placed the paintbrush on the table. "Are you sure? If you're not comfortable or if you need a break, we could stop for a bit."

She shook her head vigorously, "No, it's okay. Don't worry."

"If you say so."

She let her eyes travel from his bare foot, to his khaki trousers, to his satin shirt with top three buttons undone, to his face. Oh, his gorgeous face. It was pulled into a deep concentration as he stared at his work, giving her some time to study his majestic features.

His eyes flickered to hers as if sensing her stare and playfully frowned, a small smile curled on the side of his lips.

"What?"

"What?"

He laughed, "You were staring."

"I was. Is it a crime?"

"No, I wouldn't say it is." He said with a teasing edge to his voice. 

It was their arrangement which they stick to a few times a week. On her day off, after work if she wasn't feeling too exhausted. There was an obvious attraction lingering inside the room of his small studio but none of them acted upon it other than just casual flirtations thrown around. He was a perfect gentleman and had always been accommodating. A couple of times he would insist on paying her in which she would always refuse to accept. 

"The tea you make for me is enough for a payment." She had jokingly said. "Do not worry about it, Robert. Really, it's okay. I'm making enough from my job."

One night, after their sessions, they had too many drinks and bottles were littered over the table along with his paint brushes which had long dried of paint. 

"Tell me about you, Marilyn. Mistress of the night, who apparently, slithers like a python." He mused, mentioning her alias. His glossy eyes filled with mirth.

She snorted, took a long swig of beer and swiped the back of her hand across her mouth. 

"Marilyn is… Nobody. I'm nobody. I came from somewhere that in my mind, ceased to exist." She stared ahead. "I ran away from home. Who calls it a home anyway?" She laughed humorlessly.

"My parents fought a lot. They spent so much time fighting, they didn't even have time for me. Looking back at it now, I could have just preferred that. But then, they turned their anger towards me." She sniffed and quickly wiped the salty tears before they even slid down to her flushed cheeks.

"I went to my grandparents. They loved me so much and I loved them so dearly. But they were not my parents. Eventually, both of them passed away and I was left on my own. But I was eighteen. I didn't have to go back to my parents. So I went to different cities, finding places where I could feel like I could fit in. Looked for jobs, and then I ended up here. I made friends and I have my own place, but it still never felt like home."

He was quietly staring at her, and the silence was deafening. Then he lifted his free hand to her face and ran the back of his index finger to dry her cheeks. Her hand caught his and brought it to her lips and placed a soft kiss. 

"But with you, it feels… different. I like hanging out with you. I like being with you. You feel like home to me, Robert."

Her voice echoed softly as he took his time to reply. But he didn't, instead, he leaned down and sealed his lips against hers. 

He layed limply on top of her body as he shuddered from his release. Both tried to desperately catch for their breath as her hand smoothed down his back and the other combed through his damp locks. He slid out of her and dropped beside her, not too long before he enclosed his arms over her and pulled closer. He catches her lips on his in a lazy kiss and smiled.

"You feel like home to me too, Y/N."

Her heart soared and nuzzled her nose against his.

"I want to paint you like this. May I? You are so beautiful. In light and in shadow."

She blushed, "Yes, but right now? I'm tired."

"No, no. We'll do it tomorrow. I'll take you somewhere." His warm breath hit her skin as he whispered.

"Where?" She whispered back.

"Well, I'm not telling you that. But it was what I helped my Father build when I was younger. It's somewhat like a special place for me, and I want you to see it."

He gazed at her as he waited for her to respond.

"Okay."

Under the light of the lamp, she peers at him under her lashes.

"Don't look at me like that."

"Mm? I have no idea what you are talking about."

"You know what it is. Cut it out or I'll never get to finish this."

She huffs. "You're no fun"

"I can prove you otherwise in a few minutes."

He continued to do his finishing touches and leaned back to admire his work.

"That isn't too bad. But nothing compares to the real art."

"And what might that be?"

"You, my love." He stood up, walked over to where she was, placed his hand at the back of her neck and pulled her to him.

"I've been waiting for this for hours."

"I've been giving you hints and you insist on finishing your art."

He chuckled. "Of course I had to."

His fingers danced their way from her sides to her hips, rubbing along the marks littered across her skin.

"Are you ready to see it?" He murmured against her neck. She shudders as she nodded, giving their playful banter a break. 

He bit her earlobe softly, "Okay."

He walked over to his canvas and carefully turned it around to face her.

She gasps.

.

⭐ writings list ⭐

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taglist: @jonesyjonesyjonesy , @princesspagey , @ritacaroline , @jimmys-zeppelin , @rebel-without-a-zeppelin , @reincarnated70sbaby (if you wanted to be added in, let me know 🤘🏻🤗)

[peachhyychenle]

bloom bloom, heart | h.rj

'bloom bloom pow! the moment i met you, i felt like i'd explode. my heart fluttered. i hope it's not a dream' - bloom bloom, the boyz

pairing: florist!renjun x reader

genre: fluff

word count: 1.6k

for the nostalgic melodies event hosted by @knet-bakery

playlist: bloom bloom the boyz, life still goes on nct dream, dive into you nct dream, cherry kisses chungha

a/n: my first fic for an event!! i hope you all enjoy this as much as i enjoyed writing it. also,, go check out everyone else that participated in the event!! oh, i also haven't had the time to proof-read this so, sorry lmao.

summary: flowers held many different meanings, and renjun loved that. from giving someone a baby's breath to giving them peonies, he loved how up front the message was, yet how hidden it was to someone that didn't understand their true meanings. You had always adored flowers, the colours, the scents, the meanings. And so, every week, you would go into Floral Dreams, to buy new flowers to draw, however Renjun would always throw in additional flowers to express his ever-growing crush on you, unbeknownst to him you understood every word.

If you had told Renjun this time last year he would be working part time as a florist, he would've simply laughed. But yet here he is, adorning a black apron, rearranging the plants in the display cabinet.

Floral Dreams was a great place for Renjun. It was never too busy, it was a five minute walk to his apartment and, thanks to Donghyuck, he has learned far more about flowers in the past month than he has learned about art history at his uni classes. He would never admit it to him, but Renjun was intrigued by the meanings each flower held.

From the bluebell to the yellow carnation, every flower held a different meaning. At first, Renjun couldn't care less. They were just flowers after all, their only job to him was to sit and look pretty. However the longer he spent in the floristry, the more his curiosity and his passion grew.

And now here he was, currently wiping down the counter he had just used to arrange a bouquet for somebody's birthday.

As he returned behind the till, the soft chime of the shop door bell rang. He glanced over and locked eyes with you. You seemed to be a regular. always popping in on a Wednesday afternoon, no matter the weather, to buy different pre-made bouquets. At first, Renjun found it odd how you would only buy one particular colour palette of flowers or even just a singular flower, however as you came in more often than not with a camera bag over your shoulder along with a sketchbook poking out the top of the tote bag you carried, it started becoming clear why you would buy them.

His current theories are that you are an artist that just really liked to paint flowers (specifically pink and yellow varieties) or you're a plant mum that just has an apartment filled to the brim with colourful flowers and plants.

His first hunch was correct.

A few months ago, you had moved into Neo City in order to attend the local university and study fine art. It was an interesting place for sure. It was a quaint town yet there was always something going on, whether it be different celebrations for certain holidays or events, to small annual carnivals and parades that would happen.

During your first week of moving in, you had explored the town centre, natural curiosity getting the better of you. That was when you stumbled upon Floral Dreams. The forest green painting on the window frames along with several broad leafed plants sat outside the shop, charmed you.

You remember when you first met Renjun. It was a rainy Wednesday about a month after you had moved. Your classes had just finished and you decided to buy a small bouquet. Something to brighten your dreary dorm room. And so you headed to Floral Dreams. When you stepped into the shop, instead of the cheery greeting you would usually get from Donghyuck, you found that he was busy talking to another guy, Renjun.

Both boys had briefly glanced towards the door, with Donghyuck giving a small wave, whilst the other boy shot you a smile. He was cute.

Returning the wave with your own, you continued into the shop, looking at all the flowers, taking in their colours and scents. Five minutes had gone by and you had chosen all the flowers you had wanted and walked up to the counter to place your order.

You rang the small bell placed on the countertop and after a few seconds, the new guy from earlier emerged from the back room and properly greeted and introduced himself, Renjun.

To say he was pretty was an understatement. He had a soft smile, kind eyes and long hair which made him look ethereal. His voice was melodic. So melodic that you only snapped back to reality halfway through his sentence.

You purchased the flowers and had another look around the empty shop, this time to admire the blossoming flowers. Back at the counter, Renjun would glance at you, whilst he wrapped the bouquet, his mind thinking about your smile and vibe whilst his hands carefully wrapped the bouquet up.

When he was finished, he rang the desk bell to catch your attention. He handed you the flowers and you were on your way. Not before turning back to Renjun and shooting him one last smile with a cheerful goodbye.

From the moment you walked in, Renjun knew his heart had exploded and his slightly dull world would never be the same again.

Week after week you would come back to the shop. It was always at 4pm and it was always an hour into Renjun's shift. You guys had managed to acquaint yourselves and make small talk, with the weather and how both of you had been, being the usual topic of choice.

Today Renjun was determined to make a move. Whether it was changing the topic to be something more in depth, or giving his number to you, he was definitely going to do something. And so when you walked up to the counter to place your order, Renjun made his move. He asked the question that had been on his mind. Why in the heavens did you buy so many flowers? The laughter that followed made Renjun's heart flutter, it was beautiful.

You then proceeded to explain the reason you moved and why almost all the store's sales were from you. Upon hearing that you went to the same university he did, Renjun was enthralled and began talking about his passion for art and the history behind famous pieces.

Much to his dismay, his hands had a mind of their own, and had wrapped up your selected bouquet far too quickly for his liking. Just as you were about to grab the bouquet, Renjun let out a 'wait!' which made you pause.

He ran into the back room and came out a moment later with some ribbon along with a couple of gardenias and blue salvias. 'It'll make the bouquet look amazing, trust me' he said with that smile you had fallen for.

Once he was done, you took the flowers, bid him adieu and left, ready to take photographs of this masterpiece.

As soon as you left, Renjun let out a sigh of content and his heart started to calm down. He had a crazy idea to use what he had learned from Donghyuck, and to confess to you in the form of flowers.

It was a bold move, one that made him feel happy with himself.

Over the next couple of months the same routine would occur. You arrived, picked out flowers, ordered the bouquet, Renjun would wrap them up, you would take them, then leave.

However, as time went on, you began noticing flowers that you hadn't picked out.

For example, you had ordered a bouquet with mainly red flowers, with a couple of white ones to make it more visually appealing, however you don't really remember picking up the white camellia. Or that time you noticed a couple of yellow jasmines mixed with your sunflowers.

You eventually thought of looking up what these flowers meant. You knew one of your old high school flowers loved gardening and would often talk about flower meanings, but you had never paid any mind to them. Oh how you wish you had.

And so that's how you spent the evening on different websites looking at different meanings for all the flowers you could remember buying, and the definitions.

The morning after, you had a brilliant idea.

That next week, you came in at the usual time with a list on your phone of all the flowers you had never actually bought. You suspected that a certain someone kept slipping different flowers into your bouquet, which was actually quite sweet to you, however you were going to surprise him.

You picked out various flowers that were composed for a yellow, blue and white theme. You included the yellow jasmines and gardenias, along with the white camellias and blue salvias. Additional flowers were added and made a stunning bouquet, the best you had imagined yet.

For how quiet the shop was, your heart was thumping a lot louder than usual, despite this you walked to the till with a small smile. The normal routine went on, Renjun making conversation with you. The topic for today was conspiracies and aliens, which would usually be quite interesting to you, but your mind was in a different place.

Just as Renjun was tying the last ribbon up, a 'wait!' escaped your lips. A slightly startled Renjun paused to look at you. Dashing away to the front of the store, you picked out a red rose and walked back to where he was waiting.

Much to his surprise, you added the rose to the centre of the bouquet, pushed the bouquet towards him and then pulled out a letter that had been in your coat pocket and pushed it across the counter in his direction.

He froze. Almost everyone knew what a red rose meant.

He opened the letter. All the flowers he had given you with their meanings were listed, along with the red rose.

I love you.

Underneath was a small paragraph. His already racing heart began to explode as he read the words 'let's go on a date tomorrow' followed with your number underneath.

He looked back up to you. You were currently looking everywhere and anywhere that wasn’t Renjun.

Placing the letter down, he came around from behind the desk and hugged you. He could feel you tense up under him, however in a matter of seconds, your arms were around him, and a sigh of relief escaped your lips.

From the moment he met you, his heart had exploded, the colours in his world seemed to be brighter whenever you were there.

He loved hearing your laugh, seeing your smile, being in your presence.

Time felt non-existent with you.

He loved you, as much as you loved him.

And that was all he needed.

[marypsue]

Man, I just saw more BTS shots of more costumes for season four, and I just...season one had a lot of ugly clothes, but they fell within a carefully-curated colour palette and they said meaningful things about the characters, they were good costumes. Season two followed in largely the same pattern, though it leaned a little more towards ‘good clothes’ over ‘good costumes’ than season one. Season three had a lot of costumes that didn’t necessarily do a lot of heavy character lifting - they seemed to get the most mileage out of incongruity between costume and character, actually, and the most memorable costumes were jokes at the characters’ expense that were also references to movies/TV shows - but they were great clothes, and I liked looking at them, so it was okay.

Season four has neither. Early BTS photos had me hating the costuming, but thinking they were maybe doing a cold-blue-and-grey thing to emphasize, like, loneliness and winter themes? But that’s clearly not what’s going on at all. And they’ve, again, forgotten that the Byers are poor, judging by the house situation, and we all saw that El is capable of putting together an outfit that does not look like a five-year-old dressed herself for Picture Day in season three, so there is absolutely no excuse for the eyesore that is clashing-coloured plaid-under-floral-print. You’ve already had a chance to play around with clothes and discover your own style onscreen, so I’m not buying that you have absolutely no idea how to put an outfit together. You’re not so poor you can’t afford colour vision. You’re in California, the layers aren’t even required to keep warm! There’s no excuse! And she is merely the worst offender, by no means the only one. 

They are subjecting me the viewer to these ugly, ugly, ugly clothes that serve no apparent meaningful story or character purpose and therefore don’t even have the saving grace of being good costumes, and that is an unforgivable crime.

[chaaaaalk]

What r ur top three movies rn

!!!! seeing this in my inbox was so exciting! I'll jump at any chance to talk about movies. This was difficult tho, not gonna lie, I had to sit down and really think because honestly I can have a great big handful of favourites at any given time and they will all be so different to one another.

Part of me really wants to answer with things like Freaked or Meet the Feebles and all the batshit, over the top stuff with hybrid aesthetics that I really really like ha.

But I'll answer with 3 of my favourites that I can go back to in an instant that I think are all around pretty entertaining, interesting and kinda bizarre.

Phantom of the Paradise is one I absolutely love to the moon and back, everything about it enthalls me, from the overall themes of corporate bullshittery and the whole idea of art being so easily and quickly passed into the wrong hands (to the point where it is used as a weapon against it's original creator) being the main driving plot, Willem Finley, Paul Williams and Jessica Harper (in her first feature!!!!) being an iconic as fuck trio which everything is sorta balanced on, all of the stories about the film's production and the whole swan song set back, the music, the tonto synthesizer, the bird motif and how it's still pretty relevant now, I love all of it.

Possession from 1981 is one I just keep going back too, and I think thats just because I think it works great as a genuinely unnerving horror film/creature flick while also being pretty damn camp at the same time??? I get so much out of every performance every time I rewatch it (I fucking read a letterboxd review recently where the person said that Sam Neil reminded them a bit of a 'hot Mr Bean' and I literally cant stop thinking about it). Im a fool for content involving doppelgangers and I think this is still to this day one of the more mysterious and eerie examples of that kind of subject matter. On a more serious note, I think the setting (right by the Berlin Wall, something that really amplifies the films overarching theme of devision) and the gritty blue, green and brown colour palette makes the whole thing pretty identifiable as 'Possession', you know. I think I really just enjoy the heaviness of this movie, theres so many layers to it and I feel like I come out of it after each revisit with a slightly altered interpretation.

This third spot had me a bit stumped cos theres so many that could take it, but I knew it had to be a movie more on the theatrical side of things, in the sense that its something relatively contained in terms of characters and setting and relies heavily on the interaction rather than the event itself. Im gonna have to go with Dog Day Afternoon, which is different than the last two previously listed, since 1) it doesnt have any horror/fantasy elements in it at all and 2) it is a fairly recent favourite of mine. I love movies where dudes are just terrible at doing what they set out to do and this is like the pinnicle of that kind of thing. It's claustrophobic and insane and manages to be quite funny at times in a completely natural way, the humour coming from the absolute absurdity of the situation rather than the script itself. Lastly, but just as importantly, I think this movie and the sympathy it contains remains, to this day, incredibly culturally rich and fairly relevant (despite it being released in 1975) with the way it handles a lot of subjects that are still being discussed in 2021. Also, and this is a given, Al Pacino gives one hell of a performance here, the nuance, the range...

Forgive this long write up but yeah those are probably the three I currently wear on my sleeve the most. I do feel like I should mention the two I had running up for that third slot that are also high-stake, tense character pieces primarily set in the one location, and those are Funny Games from both 1997 and 2007 and Angst from 1983, however these are tough to sit through to say the very least and arent for everybody so I'll leave them in the honourable mentions (because god theyre effective in what theyre trying to do and I couldnt just post this without mentioning them, my apologies).

Alrighty, that's probably more than enough to answer your question, Im gonna go sit down on the floor now before I think of anything else and drag this on any further, bye 🏃‍♂️🏃‍♂️