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pileofsketches · 4 years

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Yuletide 2020

Hello author!

Thank you, in advance, for what I’m sure will be a splendid story. The tagset threw out some of my favorite fandoms/ship tropes this year, and I’m delighted to request them. Beyond this letter, there are several letters for previous exchanges in this tumblr, though I will attempt to elaborate fully on the tropes and such that I enjoy within this letter.

First,

DNWs: 1st Person POV (barring epistolary format), coffee shop/minimum wage struggle AUs, noncon between requested characters, identity headcanons, prostitution as a positive (background prostitution/mentions of trafficking are a-ok), daddy/mommy kink, and sexualized choking.

KINKS: A/B/O (kink-specific DNW: female alphas with penises/male omegas with vaginas), Breeding Kink, Competitiveness in Bed, Dirty Letters, Dirty Talk, Femdom, Honor Bondage, Knotting, Lactation Kink, Lingerie/Corsetry, Loyalty Kink, Oviposition, Sex Pollen

AUs/Tropes*: A/B/O, Black Jewels AUs, Comes Back Wrong, Dark Fuck Prince(ss), Soulmate AUs, Time Travel/Groundhog Day

*You are, naturally, under no obligation to do an AU, but- if you have that in mind, these are my favorites.

The Immortals - Tamora Pierce

Rikash Moonsword, Veralidaine Sarrasri

These two!! It was the greatest disappointment of my life that they didn’t end up together over Daine and Numair. Fix this, please. I enjoyed how their relationship and how it developed as Daine came to see the facets of the immortals beyond understanding them as monster, and Rikash’s duty/necessity of being a Stormwing.

I am not interested in fic where Daine’s age is a kink/remarked upon, unless it’s in comparison to Rikash’s immortality in the standard Aragorn/Arwen sense.

Turn (TV 2014)

John André, John Graves Simcoe, Peggy Shippen

The fact we never got to see Peggy and Simcoe interact in the series was also deeply disappointing to me. A vignette where, perhaps, John uses Simcoe to collect Peggy’s information and bring it back to him pre-Benedict switching sides would be splendid, as would some sort of a dumpster fire of an OT3. I love Peggy’s loyalty to John, the great despair of their love not panning out, the brief flashes of hope, Peggy managing to outwit and manipulate Benedict despite being trapped herself by her sex and her family’s expectations.

재혼 황후 - 알파타르트 | Remarried Empress - Alpha Tart

Heinrey, Navier Ellie Trovi

I would love to see some AUs here, especially of a soulmate/soulmark AU.

I love Naiver’s unwavering loyalty to her people, and the fact that she’s good at her job and that’s what she derives her fulfillment from! Like most people I just want to shake Sovieshu until he realizes that. But Heinrey does and is fully prepared to take advantage of that, sooo. Also, I’m not too interested in Rashta bashing. She’s smart in her own way and has her own goals, and tbh can’t fault her for that.

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pileofsketches · 4 years

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Fandom 5k Letter

I tried to include everything in the blurbs on Ao3, but should you need extra, this tumblr also contains letters for most other exchanges I’ve done.

DNWs: 1st Person POV (barring epistolary format), hopeless or depressing endings (angst and struggle during the fic = great), coffee shop/minimum wage struggle AUs, noncon, identity headcanons, prostitution as a positive (background prostitution/mentions of trafficking are a-ok), daddy/mommy kink, and sexualized choking.

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pileofsketches · 5 years

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smut4smut letter

Hi Writer!

I’m noun on Ao3; thank you for writing for me! To give you an idea of my tastes, I’ve got the standard DNWs below. Anything not mentioned is fair game.

On consent, I’m ok with dubious consent—be it because consent cannot be discussed beforehand, dubcon turning into con, or simply because desire overcomes reasons why person didn’t consent fully in the first place. Otherwise, go wild. I like enthusiastic consent, arousal is arousing.

A/B/O is a trope I absolutely adore—the changes to society! the possessiveness! the various kinks!—but please no male pregnancy/women who can impregnate.

If there are domination/submission dynamics, I prefer femdom. Please no male dom/female submissive.

If, in any place, a kink/trope looks to override any specific DNW, the kink/trope wins out. That shouldn’t happen in this exchange, but if it does—kink/trope trumps.

Kinks for this exchange are self-explanatory, instead I’ve hashed out what I like for the dynamics of each parings. (Generally, if I like one thing in one request, I will like it in another. Go nuts.)

Assassin’s Creed

I have not played anything after Syndicate, but am familiar with the comics up to Juno’s death and some of the YA novels. Please do not use any of the Odyssey/Origins lore, be it on whatever they’re doing with the Precursor backstory or Assassin motivations or whatever.

Juhani Otso Berg/Lucy Stillman: Either Lucy pre-betrayal and post, how she copes with being welcomed into Abstergo and then the Templars– how does it feel to have to lie less? How is Lucy ideologically seduced? Is there the promise of being able to live a ‘normal’ life- IE, a normal relationship, house, kids, not being murdered? Does Berg (with his thing for Shay) take particular interest in Lucy because of the chance to get an Assassin to switch sides?

Desmond Miles/Lucy Stillman: I like this paring because of what an effective lure Lucy was for Desmond, with the fact that she was 1) attractive 2) saved him and 3) had a relationship with Bill that seemed like perfect bait (and was) for Desmond’s own issues with him. Desmond’s forgiveness of her, Lucy’s tragic death, the parallels that were made in the game between him and Lucy and Maria and Altair—all great.

Malik Al-Sayf/Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad/Maria Thorpe: My favorite OT3s are the ones where each person has an independently strong relationship with the other two in the trio, and supports each one/gets different things out of each one. I like Maria and Malik moderating Altair and dealing with the complicating feelings he has for each one when he’s been such a lone wolf for most of his life. (I am also a big fan of Tazim being Malik and Maria’s kid)

Solo: Ratonhnhaké:ton | Connor: This ship is entirely a vehicle for kinks/tropes, do whatever you’d like. Also, I would kill for a ToKW setting.

Evie Frye/Jacob Frye/Crawford Starrick: A/B/O or soulmates is my ideal for this, breaking Crawford’s spirit and power over London, particularly in the form of eventual willing and enthusiastic submission, while he still remains super prickly to the outsider world. Polygamy ending preferred.

Death Note

I’ve read the new one-shot. Please feel free to set the parings during that comic as applicable.

Halle Lidner | Halle Bullock/Near | Nate River:

Halle Lidner | Halle Bullock/Mello | Mihael Keehl/Near | Nate River:

Halle Lidner | Halle Bullock/Mello | Mihael Keehl:

Dishonored

Emily Kaldwin/The Outsider: General monster boyfriend vibes, the idea of the destined lover, the inevitability of fate vs active and individual choice. I prefer Outsider-Outsider, but am ok with a story that splits between divinity and mortal or sets him as the slightly-off human. Please no naivety/woobie human Outsider.

Kirin Jindosh/Emily Kaldwin: Coup-tested royalty vs clawed his way up from the gutter genius—the class divide is a huge part of why I like this paring. I like Emily pushing and Jindosh resisting—until he doesn’t—and the idea of the public/private divide as far as behavior.

Kirin Jindosh/Emily Kaldwin/Clockwork Soldiers OR Clockwork Soldiers/Emily Kaldwin: Genuinely if you manage to capture some of this dynamic in the fic I will die happy.

Jennifer’s Body

Jennifer Check/Anita "Needy" Lesnicki: Two lesbians figuring out who they are and what they want in a small town super oppressive environment, Jennifer trying out bisexuality/heterosexuality to see if it’ll help her fit in and getting seriously hurt, all the undertones the love that dare not speak its name with her very best friend until, whoops, Jennifer is a demon now, and can do whatever she wants and not worry about the consequences.

Original F/M

I am a huger sucker for the idea of a destined lover, particularly if that lover is some form of immortal/super long lived creature who has spent however many centuries waiting and building their idea of this person while being forced to go on with their life and keep living and then finally, finally gets what they want, even if the other half is unaware or disbelieving at first.

Badass Witch/Male Werewolf Who Owes Her A Life Debt:

Demon Lord/Female Paladin Sent to Defeat Him:

New England Colonist/Old World Monster Who Followed Her:

Woman Viewed With Suspicion By Isolated Townsfolk/Monster Lover In Their Woods:

Penny Dreadful

Ethan Chandler/Vanessa Ives:

Ethan Chandler/Vanessa Ives/Alexander Sweet | Dracula:

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pileofsketches · 5 years

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Hi Writer!

I’m noun on Ao3; thank you for writing for me! To give you an idea of my tastes, I’ve got the standard DNWs below. Anything not mentioned is fair game.

DNWs: dialogue lifted entirely from canon (callbacks are fine!), first-person writing (unless in epistolary format), character studies (whole fic musing on someone’s canonical actions, no new content/action), hopeless or depressing endings (angst and struggle during the fic = great), coffee shop/minimum wage struggle AUs, noncon, trans headcanons, autism headcanons, asexuality headcanons, prostitution as a positive (background prostitution/mentions of trafficking are a-ok), daddy kink or parental role kink, and sexualized choking.

A/B/O is a trope I absolutely adore—the changes to society! the possessiveness! the various kinks!—but please no male pregnancy/women who can impregnate.

If, in any place, a kink/trope looks to override any specific DNW, the kink/trope wins out. That shouldn’t happen in this exchange, but if it does—kink/trope trumps.

List is organized by fandom, then universal kinks, parings, then paring specific kinks if applicable. There are so many freeform tags, I tried to give a sentence each as to why I like each one, and more if possible. Also, you can assume if I like a specific kink (ie, Breeding Kink -- We Have to Conceive the Chosen One(s)) then I will like it in a general sense (= breeding kink) and it’s a-ok to use it in combo with another prompt.

Assassin’s Creed – All Media Types

A/B/O - Alpha begs to be allowed to knot: I love the desperation and the contrast between perceived authority of the alpha versus the omega actually giving permission.

A/B/O - Animalistic Behavior: Biting, marking, a general retreat to more animalistic instincts. I like A/B/O set-ups where it’s the alpha who gets uncontrollable while the omega, while in heat, retains their wits. I do love nesting omegas!

A/B/O - breeding triads: ‘Successful’/stable relationships involve either one of each, or two alphas and an omega, or two omegas and an alpha.

A/B/O - First time rut Alpha with experienced omega: Self-explanatory.

Alternate Universe - Role Reversal: Fandom specific! Either a) make the Assassins Templars, or b) swap motivations as far as Pieces of Eden.

Bondage and Discipline - Honor Bondage: Give me some of that Assassin control! Does the paranoia and like, actual expertise with restraints and weapons make this the more interesting/more sexual option? How does control get handled when that’s one of someone’s huge ideological pillars?

Breeding Kink - Those are some excellent genes you have there: For any of the past parings, they know they have to have a kid to make Desmond happen. For any of the later ones, is it a pre-Flare attempt to get them a backup plan? Is Abstergo making them do it?

Breeding Kink - We Have to Conceive the Chosen One(s): For any of the past parings, they know they have to have a kid to make Desmond happen. For any of the later ones, is it a pre-Flare attempt to get them a backup plan? Is Abstergo making them do it?

Character From Future Tries To Convince Current Enemy They Will Be Friends/Allies In Future: Desmond going back to the Farm, Desmond going back before his kidnapping, Desmond waking up from any of his Animus experiences with knowledge of the Flare and trying to get to Lucy earlier, Maria going back to the first time she met Altair and trying to help him, Altair waking up in the middle of his missions from either the end of his life or the middle of his successful relationship and trying to mend things with Malik/meet Maria sooner.

Character goes bad to save the world and enjoys it more than expected: I will kill for this in a ToWK setting for Connor. Or, Desmond—the Eye somehow gives him all the power, and he decides to fix everything/break the cycle. I’m also for this with anyone in the Altair/Malik/Maria trio—what does it look like if one of them manages to use the Apple?

Comes Back Wrong: Mostly for Desmond. Everyone is glad he’s ok, but there’s some element of Precursor/just plain done with being manipulated/whatever you want to slap on. Also, for Malik or Maria after their canonical deaths.

Dubcon voyeurism to consensual threesome: self-explanatory.

Lavish Descriptions Of Historical Clothing: specifically 18th century, but I’m flexible.

Loyalty Kink: self-explanatory.

Sex Pollen: self-explanatory.

Soulmates: Characters have each other's names on their wrists: self-explanatory.

Soulmates - they know from a young age that they're soulmates but smth keeps them apart: self-explanatory.

Touch-Starved Character Having Overwhelming Tender Long Foreplay First Time Sex: self-explanatory, but it does scream Connor.

Werewolves - Sex With Werewolf in Wolf Form: self-explanatory.

Desmond Miles/Lucy Stillman (Assassin's Creed)

I like this paring because of what an effective lure Lucy was for Desmond, with the fact that she was 1) attractive 2) saved him and 3) had a relationship with Bill that seemed like perfect bait (and was) for Desmond’s own issues with him. Desmond’s forgiveness of her, Lucy’s tragic death, the parallels that were made in the game between him and Lucy and Maria and Altair—all great.

Malik Al-Sayf/Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad/Maria Thorpe (Assassin's Creed)

My favorite OT3s are the ones where each person has an independently strong relationship with the other two in the trio, and supports each one/gets different things out of each one. I like Maria and Malik moderating Altair and dealing with the complicating feelings he has for each one when he’s been such a lone wolf for most of his life. (I am also a big fan of Tazim being Malik and Maria’s kid)

Ratonhnhaké:ton | Connor/Original Female Character(s) (Assassin's Creed)

This ship is entirely a vehicle for kinks/tropes, do whatever you’d like to make the OFC work. My only request is that she not be a colonist who’s Not Like Other Girls, ie, won’t wear stays/a corset and a skirt, or be someone that Connor rescued who now has a crush on him. Also, I would kill for a ToKW setting.

Rebecca Crane/Shaun Hastings/Desmond Miles (Assassin's Creed)

Pretty much the same as the Altair/Malik/Maria ship- I like OT3s are the ones where each person has an independently strong relationship with the other two in the trio, and supports each one/gets different things out of each one. I would be as happy for something set pre-Flare where the three of them fall in together because hey, it’s the end of the world, as much for something Syndicate/Black Flag era where Desmond is revived/downloaded from the cloud and they’re very glad to have him back.

Dishonored (Video Games)

Arranged Marriage - Public Consummation

Bondage and Discipline - Honor Bondage

Breeding Kink - We Have to Conceive the Chosen One(s)

Character goes bad to save the world and enjoys it more than expected

First Time - A Patient with B's Clumsy but Enthusiastic Blow Job/Cunnilingus: Would prefer Emily to be the experienced one.

If I Must Solve A Dozen Geopolitical Problems Just To Have Sex With You Then I Will

Lavish Descriptions Of Historical Clothing

Loyalty Kink

Ritual Sex Magic

Soulmates - they know from a young age that they're soulmates but smth keeps them apart

Emily Kaldwin/The Outsider

General monster boyfriend vibes, the idea of the destined lover, the inevitability of fate vs active and individual choice. I prefer Outsider-Outsider, but am ok with a story that splits between divinity and mortal or sets him as the slightly-off human. Please no naivety/woobie human Outsider.

Xeno - Loving oral on Wet Pinecone Dick (Awapuhi Plant gif)

Xeno - sex shouldn't be physically possible but we're not cowards

Be Not Afraid for I have some excellent dick

Consentacles

Kirin Jindosh/Emily Kaldwin

Coup-tested royalty vs clawed his way up from the gutter genius—the class divide is a huge part of why I like this paring. I like Emily pushing and Jindosh resisting—until he doesn’t—and the idea of the public/private divide as far as behavior.

Masked Ball As An Excuse for Inadvisable Sex: This is just the Fugue Feast, so.

Pregnancy - Impregnator Wins the Throne

Soulmates - Characters have each other's names on their wrists: The angst! How does Jindosh handle this, growing up. (How do you even prove it’s real?) How does his struggle to get close enough to Emily influence his choices? Is he even interested in nobility? How does Emily handle her side? Just give me class issues and the concept of fate/avoiding fate.

The Witch (2016)

Please don’t make Thomasin’s age/youth a kink. In the period setting, she’s more or less a full adult, dresses like one, etc. Also, I would prefer a benevolent/semi-benevolent Black Philip in the sense of a viable alternative to the religion Thomasin was raised in, and a humanoid over a goat. The theme of willing and educated consent is particularly important to me in this one- Thomasin makes her choices understanding the cost, and is an enthusiastic participant, or is actively convinced.

Black Philip/Thomasin (The Witch)

Alternate Universe - Formal Matriarchy: How does the witch commune in the forest work? Where do they get their food/supplies? (’noun, that’s too much thought for a horror movie’) How does this turn out in fifty years/sixty? Listen, I just want a functioning magical matriarchy that yells fuck off/fights expansionism.

Breeding Kink - We Have to Conceive the Chosen One(s) Slash anti-Christ, or a bunch of demons, or whatever.

Lavish Descriptions Of Historical Clothing: Particularly corsets, or the sort of clothing that wealthy women would wear in this time period. She was tempted by a pretty dress, among other things.

Pregnancy - pregnant with multiples

Sex with Monsters

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (TV)

Please keep this in the era the show is set in! I am a-ok with period homophobia, but am not interested in a coming out type story where the focus of the struggle is triumph over adversary- I like Midge’s career being the focus, or little domestic scenes. Maybe something where they’re in a relationship by the time she realizes that Shy’s gay? Is she able to handle herself better because of this? I am also perfectly happy if Midge and Susie remain closeted to friends/family during the story/their relationship seems like how it is in the show to everyone else, and there’s no angst over that.

Miriam "Midge" Maisel/Susie Myerson (Mrs Maisel)

Butch woman is allowed to remain butch for entirety of story

Canon Got Fucked and They Lived Happily Ever After

Character A thinks they're just character B's rebound but they're not

Lavish Descriptions Of Historical Clothing

Make This Fic Super Excited About Bing Set in New York

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pileofsketches · 5 years

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Dear Chocolate Box Writer,

Hi! I’m noun on Ao3, and thank you for writing for me! I’m still getting into the flow of exchanges, but I’m particularly excited for this one because I love ships; they’re mostly why I read and write fic. As a result, I’ve requested a bunch! and now realize they’re all het, haha, probably because I adore the female character in all the various parings and want to read more about her. I have bookmarked a variety of fic—hopefully it should give an indication of my tastes if my letter is lacking.

I’ve selected fanfic for all of these but I would love some art treats.

DNWs: dialogue lifted entirely from canon (callbacks are fine!), first-person writing (unless in epistolary format), character studies (whole fic musing on someone’s canonical actions, no new content/action), hopeless or depressing endings, coffee shop/minimum wage struggle AUs, noncon, trans headcanons, autism headcanons, asexuality headcanons, prostitution, non-canonical infidelity, daddy kink or parental role kink, non-canonical death, and sexualized violence (ie choking).

A/B/O is a trope I absolutely adore—the changes to society! the possessiveness! the various kinks!—but please no male pregnancy/women who can impregnate.

Likes: A/B/O, body horror, daemon AUs, eldritch nonsense, epistolary format or interludes, groundhog day/time loops, intense relationships, kidfic, longing/pining/loyalty, period pieces (esp. 18th century), soulmates (first words/real names as a favorite), stories set in a real city where it’s really really obvious the author did their research, and werewolves AUs.

Kinks: biting/marking, difficult penetration, dirty talk, everything under A/B/O’s usual umbrella, exhibitionism, fancy lingerie, fuck-or-die, general hedonism, monsters, oral, praise kink, pregnancy/breeding kink, ritualistic sex, size kink, and submissive men.

Dishonored:

✧ Kirin Jindosh/Emily Kaldwin

- AU where Delilah was accepted by Euhorn or legitimate from the start and became empress, Emily is her heir after Jessamine’s assassination during the plague (they missed Delilah, failed because of Delilah’s powers? whatever it was, as long as Corvo still did his vengeance quest) and they meet in completely different circumstances.

- I love this paring, period: coup-tested royalty vs clawed his way up from the gutter genius. Clockwork Mansion was the level I got to demo when they did the DH2 preview events, and they based the whole mystery on Jindosh at the party itself, so I was excited for the chance to finish the level going in. I (like pretty much everyone else) made assumptions based on the Sokolov connections that this would go the recruiting route. When we didn’t have that option, I was disappointed. Maybe something where Emily spares him, or uses the electroshock machine but then finds she needs him for the lock at Stilton’s? How does the Crack in the Slab mission go with an allied (to whatever level of enthusiasm he’s collaborating) Jindosh?

-Go pre- or post-canon, play off the novels, the comics, whatever. The only thing I wouldn’t like is a generic modern AU.

Assassin’s Creed:

✧ Daniel Cross/Hannah Mueller

✧ Daniel Cross/Lucy Stillman

✧ Juhani Otso Berg/Lucy Stillman

- Templars, please! Either Lucy pre-betrayal and post, how she copes with being welcomed into Abstergo and then the Templars-- how does it feel to have to lie less? How is Lucy ideologically seduced? Is there the promise of being able to live a ‘normal’ life- IE, a normal relationship, house, kids, not being murdered? Does Berg (with his thing for Shay) take particular interest in Lucy because of the chance to get an Assassin to switch sides?

- How does Lucy look at Daniel? Was she in the Brotherhood during the Purge? Did she know him? How does what the Animus does to him change her own work with the Animus?

- for Hannah, I would love to see something where Daniel either doesn’t turn her down in the last night before he kills the Mentor, or one where they’re already in a relationship before, and how that greater betrayal factors into what she does in the years after (would love if she survives and gets to, you know, do stuff).

- Bleeding Effect sex/sex on the Animus is always my jam.

Death Note:

✧ Halle Lidner | Halle Bullock/Mello | Mihael Keehl

- came into the canon very late, but would love a soulmate name AU, and all the complications that has with the Kira case as well as relationships between the people trying to solve it. Does the Kira cases change the culture around name display at all? How do you deal with probably wanting to hide your name now?

Halt and Catch Fire:

✧ Cameron Howe/Joe MacMillan

- COMDEX where ‘oh no we have to share a bed’ turns into a weekend long forced domesticity

- any sort of modern AU where they’re both working in the modern computer/video game industry

- any of the AUs in likes and how that modifies canon!

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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FINALLY 👏 SOMEONE 👏 SAID 👏 IT. 👏 ALL OF IT. 👏ALL AT ONCE. 👏

(Thank you @fallingawkwardly for bringing this to my attention.)

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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i am completely ready for this

i was born ready for this

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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Duchess Anna Henrietta and her entourage. - Blood and Wine DLC

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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Padmé Amidala’s wardrobe from Star Wars: The Prequel Trilogy (Episode I: The Phantom Menace / Episode II: Attack of the Clones / Episode III: Revenge of the Sith)

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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Favourite Fashion: Chanel, Pre-Fall 2013

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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okay im literally so in love with this poster…

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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Fashion in art - Italian Renaissance, pt. 2

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pileofsketches · 7 years

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It’s FRIDAY FASHION FACT! Several weeks ago, I talked about fashion plates (read here) and how they were used to spread the latest trends in the time before you could flip through Vogue, or browse your favorite fashion blogger’s Instagram. But what happened before then? Fashion plates didn’t become popular until the end of the 18th Century, yet fashions would spread across countries long before then. How? Enter the pandora.

Put simply, a pandora was a doll, typically around 15-17 inches tall, dressed in the latest fashions. Nearly a foot and a half in height sounds large for a doll, but they were meant to be large enough not only to be prominently displayed, but also to accommodate every detail of the fashion they miniaturized; from the lining to the pleats, buttons, and trim. Also known as Queen Anne dolls (due to the Queen’s love of them) these dolls needed to be small enough to be practical in price, but more importantly, they needed to be portable.

Pandoras were created in Paris, which as I have mentioned before, was the undisputed fashion capitol of the western world throughout history. There is some debate as to when pandoras were created. They were popularized in the 17th Century, but there is evidence they may have been used as early as the 14th Century. They were created by the top Parisian dressmakers and shipped to both elite members of society and dressmakers across Europe and beyond.

The dolls themselves were most commonly made out of wood, but some early models were made out of wax, while later version were sometimes plaster. In the 18th Century, they commonly had carefully crafted porcelain faces. The dolls also had hair (typically made of wool) styled in the lasted fashion. They came complete with all the appropriate underpinnings, even little shoes. They were the complete look. The pandora was so in demand that it ultimately became the most desired and elite French export. It even rose above all political strife. When France and England were at war at the beginning of the 18th Century, all immigration and importation between the two countries was halted, with the exception of pandoras. The dolls were granted immunity, and escorted into England with full military guard.

Pandoras reached their peak during the Rococo Age, when opulence was most desired. However, they fell out of use at the beginning of the 19th century with the rise of fashion plates. Additionally, the style at that time was neoclassical fashion. The simplistic looks were easily conveyed in fashion plates, rendering the dolls unnecessary. Even as fashion grew more elaborate again, pandoras were not revived, as various developments in technology meant they continued to be unnecessary. However, over a century later, pandoras made an unexpected comeback.

During World War II, the Paris fashion industry was nearly completely destroyed due to German occupation (as I mentioned in my post about fashion shows, here) They needed a way to revive Parisian couture, though they had almost no resources to work with. The solution was the pandora. All of Paris’ top couturiers created their latest design in miniature, accessories and all. The doll’s bodies were made of wire, to make it clear that they were not toys. However, their faces were shaped by top artists, with expertly crafted hair. They were placed in complete scenes and put on display for the public. It was a massive success, dubbed Théâtre de la Mode, and effectively revived Paris’ claim as fashion capital of the world. The Théâtre went on tour, and while they were a novelty for a while, pandoras eventually faded into obscurity once again. However, the cultural impact is far reaching, and pandoras are often credited as being the precursor to modern fashion dolls, like Barbie!

Have a question about fashion history that you want answered in the next FRIDAY FASHION FACT? Just click the ASK button at the top of the page!

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