#this was a great question thank you!!

[msculper]

OK so as a out of practice history buff i wanna ask for some of your fav examples of how historical fashion trends mirror cultural/social changes…. go nuts with this one i love information

HI HELLO THIS MAKES ME SO EXCITED i've narrowed it down to four of my favorites (with the caveat that i study american history so this is verryyyy western-centric)

this got long with pictures so... under the cut

1. marie antoinette's chemise a la reine

this one has gotten a lot of attention in past years, but it's still one of my favorites! so the picture above is two portraits of marie antoinette in very different dresses. the right is the more traditional court dress of the late 18th century: silk, with lots of ruffles, bows, lace, and layers. the left is one of the most scandalous portraits of the century. in both a huge pr moment to prove how very relatable she was, marie sat for this portrait wearing her approximation of what peasants wore.

this picture is much closer than marie's version (side note: i trust abby cox, pictured above, with my life because she literally wrote the book on clothing in this era). what marie is wearing is much closer to women's undergarments at the time, hence the name 'chemise a la reine,' or (essentially) the 'underdress of the queen.' but the style took off! and lead to more fabric movement over the next fifty years or so in popular fashion

2. free black women in the european colonies

this one i learned about frustratingly recently from the amazing creator khensani on instagram but i haven't stopped thinking about it! so free black women in the 18th century were subjected to all kinds of clothing restrictions designed to enforce class lines along racial lines by prohibiting them by wearing silks, jewels, and other more luxurious materials. khensani has started using visual sources from the caribbean to try and piece together what free black women in south africa wore to express themselves under these clothing restrictions. i can't really speak intelligently on it yet, but from what i've seen, free black women put together incredibly intricate ensembles that reflected their african roots and repurposed the garments and materials available to them to create variations on european standards.

3. napoleonic war

let's talk menswear!!! one of my favorite shifts ever for western men's fashion came in the early 19th century. in the first 10-20 years of the century, men's fashion was some variation of this getup:

very clearly inspired by the 19th century, with the coat designed to show off fabric and breeches to show off one's shapely calves (no seriously... fashion is conspicuous consumption and tight stockings showed off the muscles that grow from horse riding, which carried several status indicators). but then by the end of the 1820s, men's fashion looks more like this ensemble from 1833:

the waistcoat and jacket are more practical and almost uniform-like. of most note: the breeches have become trousers that go all the way down to the ankle (a style that hasn't been fashionable for centuries at this point). so what changed? anybody? bueller?

sailors came home from the napoleonic wars! and, with a wave of fresh, brave, strong men to flirt with, women flocked to them instead of the men who'd been home all war. this is an illustration of a french uniform at the time, which very clearly inspired the updated cut of... all the garments:

the main takeaway: the same men who made fun of women for wearing corsets that hid their natural silhouette changed their whole pant situation to look more like the hot, working class studs those women were into. classic.

4. consumption chic

before heroin chic or anorexia chic, there was tuberculosis chic. that's right: the biggest killer of the 19th century was also a fashion statement. tuberculosis (aka consumption, for the way people seemed to waste away from the inside), like many other diseases, caused wait loss, pallor, and flushness. so when western society was obsessed with small waists* and paleness (a product of both racism and a time when lower classes toiled outside and upper classes lounged indoors) as markers of attractiveness, tuberculosis gained a strange relationship to fashion. one could become more fashionable - not to mention interesting - if one contracted tuberculosis, as people were so obsessed with death and dying that it was desirable to die a long drawn out death surrounded by your loved ones. but people also tried to catch tuberculosis to change their skin tone, or would use chemicals and makeup to mimic the visual affects of tuberculosis.

this fashion plate shows two things, regarding color: look at the difference between their skin color and the white of their gloves (yes, they're wearing gloves). now look at the coloring on their cheeks. it's that level of paleness that - unless you're me and my irish ancestors - is impossible to achieve without a deathly illness. this right around/after a time period when women would draw on veins to make their skin look lighter. and if tuberculosis both makes your skin whiter and flushes your cheeks? two for one deal, baby.

like, maybe she's had better days, but look how thin and pale that skin is!!! fashion!

*contrary to popular belief, 19th century westerners did not care about the literal, measurable size of one's waist (unless you were insanely, top 0.0001% and had nothing better to do) as much as they cared about the relative size of one's waist. in the fashion plate above, the women's waists look so tiny in part because of the frills on their sleeves and their hoop skirts. these garments were specifically constructed to give the illusion of a tiny waist. so long as your waist was the thinnest part of your silhouette, no matter how thin that thin was, you were in style

thank you for the ask! and if you made it this long, double thank you!!

[libelelle]

Underground reboot: So it’s a no-brainer that Vanilla, Cream, & Cheese would be at Sanctuary, but would Cream & Cheese ever see any action? Maybe helping Amy scare off a troop of SWATbots that got a little too close to Sanctuary for comfort? Also speaking of Cheese, how’s the Chao population in this ‘verse? Chao gardens are already supposed to be rare in the game verse, so in this verse the few remaining must be as protected as Sanctuary (there probably is one in Sanctuary).

Oh yeah Cream, Cheese and Vanilla are for sure Sanctuary residents. They probably stay out of the action for the most part, especially with Vanilla around. Cream still wants to help people of course, so she and her mother do what they can to support the Resistance.

As for Chao gardens, they are majorly rare. At this point they're found mostly on islands where Robotniks influence is weaker and pollution is less aggressive. Sanctuary is also well-preserved, so they have a Chao garden. Chances of finding one outside these areas are low.

[setacin]

"she's dead scar.... you won."

my cosplay of scar's secret life red life skin!

[pencildragons]

still insanely funny to me that ortus nigenad has canonically written 18 volumes of epic poetry about a bodyguard who was, in fact, Just Some Guy, and regularly quotes himself out loud in conversations on the regular. man had to die at the start of gtn because he was too fucking powerful to live

[callisteios]

I have a new uquiz for you, go on a pilgrimage with me. discover who you are.

[queerliblib]

Most libraries in the US are free only to people in the library's taxing district. Who will be able to get a QLL card? Is it a subscription library? I am watching with great eagerness - I can't wait to add a QLL card to my Libby account :)

Hello! you're absolutely right, and that's partially due to how public libraries are usually funded through local taxes. That's one of the unique things about QLL, since we're a 501(c)3 non-profit and fully funded through donations, our library will be accessible to anyone across the US* who signs up for a digital card with us! We've already met with Overdrive/Libby to confirm that we can do this.

*we are currently limited to the United States because of how ebook licensing works. It would be exciting to expand in the future, but we're just getting started.

[drawnfamiliarfaces]

In one of the episodes, Jun mentioned that she wanted to pierce her ears twice. in your version she has already done this?

oh dude you either have memory of a steel trap or someone had a good rewatch recently! But, wow, tbh I do not remember this and in HoM AU designs I only delibarately added earrings/piercings to Kim and Jake to sort of break their design more from their og looks (especially Kim lol, I barely changed her anything xD) but also for practical in-verse reasons. I didnt even think about Jun or anyone else... but you know? I like it, so now she does!

AND now she got 7 of them!!! Some are just simple hoops or studs, but others are magical gem stones for emergencies (small spells and protections), and she can just swap them out when needed.

After you mentioned it, I wonder why out of all characters Jun is like almost the only one without piercings of any sorts? I mean even Lila got a fang earring and she has been human-shaped for like less than a year?? Which led me to a headcanon:

What if Jun's invulnerability is so strong she couldn't even get piercings in a normal human way? So, going with her Mom or her friends to get her ears pierced in a mall was out of the question. She and Jasmine had to enchant a needle/make a spell (or maybe just visit a monster beauty salon), just for her to do it and after they just show up to her parents like: "Oh look Barbara, Michael, I took Jun to pierce her ears, doesn't she look wonderful?'

And later Jun just took the needle/spell to covertly make more piercings with her friends, which Ophelia was more than happy to do. The other three she got a bit later over the years. ;D

[ithinkitwasvodka]

MIN HO? MORE LIKE MEAN HOE

[kimtaegis]

blue joon ♡ for @rkivedfiles

cr. namuspromised

[ao3-shenanigans]

Would it be rude to ask an author how sad of an ending an ongoing story will be? I don't like permanent major character death stories or Greek tragedy levels of sad ending stories and it's one of the ways this story I'm really enjoying could end up going. There is no indication in the tags or author's notes from what I've seen. Idk I just don't want to be mean or discouraging cause I love the story soo much!!!!!

To be honest, I’m not entirely sure; I know everyone will have widely varying opinions on this which means that it’s a very good question!

On one hand, authors aren’t generally fans of being told what to do or not to do in the comments as that’s not really the place for such things, on the other hand- if it’s a genuine question I don’t really see why not?

I think it really comes down to tone and context:

‘Woah! I love your story! [character/concept] is one of my favorites and you do it so well!

Out of curiosity, may I ask how sad you intend the ending to be?/genq (I’m sensitive to some endings and didn’t notice anything in the tags and as such wanted to be able to prepare myself; if you’re willing to share)

I love this story and am always so excited to see an update notification in my inbox!

Many many kudos!’

^something like this would be, I think, pretty well received by the author and understandable as it’s coming from a place of good intentions and is made clear as such

Of course, if it does end up being a tragedy for the ages, you might have to stop reading, which would be unfortunate but there’s really nothing you can (or should) do to change it. If it turns out to be the case, leave an “Extra kudos!” On the last chapter you read and walk off without further comment- leave on a high note, and hey- bookmark it and maybe one day you’ll be able to come back and revisit the story!

Note: to everyone commenting and sharing their own experiences and opinions, please, above all else, be kind, both to commenters and authors <3

[bakathief]

It’s been 209 days. Since the last time you updated Shadow Chase when are we getting a new update :(

Hi how are you I‘m good thanks :)

If you are worried that I‘m slacking off rest assured that I have been working on my art in my 2-3 hours of free time every day. If you don‘t believe me you can check out the +140 art pieces in my latest collab or the 22 pages comic I uploaded 2 weeks ago. Thank you for leaving words of motivations in my comments and inbox as noone loves more „when is the next update“ comments than me, especially after a 12 hour shift on the weekend. :)

That being said, there are new pages, when I have the capacity to upload is another question.

[strangegutz]

How do you sell the dolls? I’m not asking where or about pricing, but how do you prevent getting attached and wanting to keep them? That’s what I struggle with. I’d love to sell my creations, but after a while of working on them I get so attached. Do you ever experience this, and if so what do you do to prevent it? Thanks in advance, and have a wonderful day.

(If you don’t ever deal with this/don’t have advice feel free to ignore this of course)

This is a good question! I think a good thing to do is make sure you're making stuff for yourself occasionally. It won't cure the urge to keep other things you've made, but itll help a bit. And sometimes, after keeping something on a shelf for a while, you might decide it's time to move it on. I think that making a handful of dolls with the same general concept, take my witch cats for example, you could convince yourself to just keep your favorite and sell the rest. There's also asking the question, "do I want this forever, or did I just spend a lot of time with it and am used to it being around" which gets easier to answer (either way!) the more things you make, in my opinion.

I'm a little weird with how I create dolls that makes it kinda easy for me to sell them (this isn't advice but just what goes on with me) The things that are fun for me to make are not usually the things I care to keep. There's something very satisfying about making a cute pink creature with a frilly dress full of texture, but it's not something I care to put on my shelf. Kinda like having the fun of building a Lego set then not knowing what to do with it after. You'll notice I make a lot of cutesy or fanciful dolls, like kitties, rabbits, lemon slices, but I keep things like giant spider women and a rat that looks like Siouxsie Sioux.

There's also the weird problem I have, where knowing that I made something makes me like it less, but that's just my own hang up haha

Maybe as you go, you can find something that's fun for you to make and explore, but doesn't spin your gears in the way more personal projects can?

[plantboiart]

My autism superpower is being able to connect every single song i listen to to just roll with it blood in the bayou with minimal effort

[whatsanameanyway]

wanted to do some ddvau fanart bc i love the series and these guys are everything to me

au by the amazing @kitsuneisi and @xmaruu11 you guys are amazing

[unregisteredskybox]

[@ysines becuz u asked :D] im gonna preface this rant by saying i think side order was GREAT!!!! i love roguelikes i love splatoon this was a dlc MADE for me,

that being said! the lore was obviously, unfortunately, not the focal point of the dlc, especially the final boss being [spoilers!] another sentient ai. i love the little guy, but tartar [my wife] did it better. so UNDER THE CUT will be a long rant as to what i would make for the final boss of the DLC, along with some art I made for it!!! Oh, and that final boss?

Order, a sentient collection of Eight's memories that deems ITSELF to be the real copy

alright, now that i have your attention, let me go into depth as to how this all began, side order spoilers obviously:

Marina created the Memverse to help all the octolings from the metro of course, but more specifically, her friend Eight. The entire memverse was based on their memories, using them as the "blueprint" for all memcake related technology, since theirs were fully intact. Not only that, but since Eight was not only unsanitized, in a right state of mind, and an incredibly capable fighter, they were the perfect basis for those CLIMBING the tower. if the memverse is brain surgery, than Eight's brain was the example used. makes sense? This is where thing's get weird, however. Eight's memories are embeded within the memverse itself, interconnected with all aspects of it. Functionally speaking, a part of their SOUL was in the memverse, a soul with lots of desires, dreams, and determination. They fought through kamabo co. after all, their soul wouldn't be so easily tamed. Marina allotted too much control over to Eight's memories, so as soon as the memverse was online, they were alive. Alive...

And alone.

The memverse was just booting up, and considering how big it was, it would likely take hours, maybe even days. Days that Not-Eight would have to spend wandering an unfished world alone, devoid of any meaningful colour. It was designed to be monochrome as it was easier to retain memories when climbing the spire, without significant colour to distract the climber. Worst part was, this individual was eight's memories BEFORE octo expansion, so the last thing they remember is falling after fighting agent 3, waking up here. Through time, other memories would spark creation within the world, from the sanitized octolings who helped on the project, but it was still a long and lonely time for Not-Eight. However, as I said, they're the blueprint for this world, and was interconnected with it, so they had a form of control. It wasn't a conscious decision, but rather, the unbearable feeling of loneliness caused the simulation to pull people IN, hoping to satiate the desire for connection the god of this world demanded. And, with our Eight also being integral to the memverse, the system decided the perfect fit would be to bring in their best bud Agent 4! ...Who Not-Eight didn't know because they've never met.

But, after a quick explanation, Four, smart as they are, picks up on the situation: something went wrong in the Memverse, and Eight only remembers her previous memories, and not her current ones. Alright, they've got it completely wrong, but it's the logical conclusion. The two do find solace in each other, however, as they wander the Memverse searching for...anything really. As this happens though, something starts to happen to Not-Eight. This entire time, they've felt like something was missing. Like when you wake up from a dream, and feel like you can remember it exactly, yet it immediately fades away. That, but constantly. They assume Four's story is correct, since it would explain the feeling, but it doesn't offer them any comfort. There's also Not-Eight's emotional state, since they've been wandering the memverse for days now, and Four's only done it for maybe a few hours. It's taken a toll on their mind, and by proxy, the Memverse itself. Remember, it's connected to them, their loneliness was why Four was here in the first place. As such, with their desire to be fulfilled, to remember something, the Memverse starts to overwork itself; it brings the spire into existence, the Jelletons, all of the challenges, much faster than it should, all for its God that doesn't even know it's a god in the first place. With this speed comes mistakes, or in computer terms, glitches. Just as Not-Eight's mental state effects the memverse, the memverse's stability effects Not-Eight. They start to, if only gradually, undergo a process known as Bleaching; when a Soul and Body are separated into two individual beings, the soul in the memverse, and the body outside of it. [This replaces greyscaling.] But, Not-Eight doesn't have a body, just a simulated one to house their soul. That means, while attempting to climb the spire with four, they start to deteriorate. Pieces of them glitch away, corals grow and cover their face, and features just disappear. It's an incredibly painful process, one that Four doesn't really understand, so they try to solve it in the only way they know how: getting to the top. It's hard, especially considering they have to carry Not-Eight up there, and have no colour chips [Only weapons they summoned the same way Pearl did], but they make it to the control room. Pulling up a monitor, they scroll to a section covering the Admins of the spire. Marina, Pearl, Four themselves, and...two instances of Eight. One of them is glitching out, so that's the one Four goes for, not bothering to question why there were two. They click the button to reset the palette, but...that was probably the worst thing they could've done. In an instant, Not-Eight's mind was flooded with the code of the entire memverse, it's innerworkings, what it was currently processing, and their identity. They knew within an instant that they were just MEMORIES, a shadow of another person. Yet, they also knew how much power they had over the world. Without another word, they immediately Bleached Four, creating the Parallel Canon boss and Order Defense Force. They knew that the "real" Eight would come for them, to subsume them, to replace them, so they would need defenses. Though they acted like a tough general on the outside, in reality, Order was horrified. They were, mentally, a fourteen-year old child who failed to escape to the surface and instead fell into what was practically Hell. A cold, barren landscape with no colour or emotions, a place where they would die by being assimilated into another person. The mask placed on the Parallel Canon boss wasn't something to control them, as they already had that power. Rather, it was to make other beings look more like themselves after they began to decompose. This, is Order, the commander of the spire:

The red bits on their body are pieces they can no longer use due to the Bleaching, which is basically trying to separate their soul in two, considering they don't have a body. All facial recognition they once had has been wiped clean, and they're more coral than octoling at this point. Now is when Eight and the rest of the gang enter the memverse, but how Order presents themself is different. They're still a dignified smoke cloud, as they were after Marina, but they harbor an irrational sense of hatred towards Eight, one that isn't cold or orderly. Boss fights are now, as many people have suggested, Eight fighting the person the palette belongs to. Inky clones of Marie or Big man, who dissipate into a cloud of smoke once you defeat them, with Order taunting/insulting Eight after the fact. However, palette orders are slightly changed, as the last one you get before Eights is Four's. Now, the Parallel Canon boss up to this point would've been the hairless clones specifically, because Order is saving Four for last. Once Eight reaches the top, Order does another monologue, and brings out Four in hopes that Eight's emotional attachment to them would make them give up. [It does not, as Eight is INCREDIBLY used to fighting their brainwashed friends.] Once Four is defeated, they're freed from the Bleaching/mind control, and exposes Order's identity in their fit of rage. Now, Order did genuinely like Four, so seeing them express such hatred for them puts them in a really terrible mood, especially considering Eight is one step closer to replacing them.

at this point, Order freaks out, and Eight probably would as well, considering that they look exactly like each other [Though Order's freakout is more anger and Eight's is more confusion.] Order's one goal now is to kill Eight and replace them before they can do the same. It probably has some sort of AM I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream esque monologue [can you see the inspiration? i love it so much] and deems itself to be the one true "eight." After escaping the tower, with a bit of exposition from both Four and Marina, the entire group basically figures out what's going on. Their respective reactions, however, are a little different, mainly between Eight and everyone else. Most of the group feels sympathetic for Order, as they're a 14 year old who's only known loneliness, the fake sunlight, and is currently at risk of being replaced as a person. Eight, however, has NO sympathy for Order whatsoever, an opinion they would definitely voice. They toiled and troubled through Kamabo Co and the spire just to get their memories back, but now their friends are arguing that they shouldn't? That they should remain without memories just to keep a fake person alive? I've been writing this with more of a story perspective than a gameplay one, so this would probably cause some divide in the group. How the Memverse works to me is after freeing Marina, all of them could come and go from the simulation as they please, like a normal VR. And, because I loooove angst, I could see Eight sneaking into the simulation when everyone else is gone and fighting Order themselves, since no one agrees with them.

Here's where I split the timeline a little, because honestly? I don't know how this should end! I could see two options, option 1. With plenty of time and convincing, they learn to coexist, Order eventually becoming like a little sister to Eight and the two of them living in harmony, completing each other. Option 2? One of them kills the other, permanently, and basically absorbs their mind, memories and bodies, just fitting with the personality of whoever won. IDK!!! I could draw smth for both maybe? Or if you, the lovely reader have any ideas???

And if you have any questions about this (or the aforementioned ideas) don't be afraid to drop an ask!!!!!!!! ooough that was long. thanks for reading : D

[returntoregalia]

Here's a fun thought exercise for you guys

When the series is finally adapted for either television or the big screen. Let's say there's an alternative universe where it isn't the magnum opus version all the fans could agree upon.

What character behaviors or moments from the series could you see Hollywood butchering? And how would they do it compared to how it's written in the novels?

Example: The root beer/Corkscrew moment with the spinners Or Pandora being eaten by the mites.

This is SUCH a good question oh my god. I will have to start asking my guests this on the podcast! I have A LOT of thoughts about this because I watched the Percy Jackson TV show in January and I’m in the middle of the live action Avatar: the Last Airbender series, and. Well. Let’s just say I have found both of these adaptations severely lacking.

I think the thing they’d be most likely to mess up in an adaptation of The Underland Chronicles would be Gregor and Luxa’s relationship. They would make Luxa too nice at first, and she and Gregor would become friends too easily. What’s great about them in the books is that they have to EARN each other’s respect and admiration over time, and that’s why they’re such strong friends later in the series. A bad filmmaker would absolutely drop the ball on that if they had no sense of subtlety re: genuine character growth.

I want to hear y’all’s thoughts! What would the movie/TV adaptation of The Underland Chronicles fuck up??