#&&. ressources: visuals

[byunbaekhyunie]

hey mutuals look away real quick ok? 🩷

i don’t like either of these aespa title songs I think they’re both bad

[lenalenouilleisblogging]

2024 feminist movie retrospective ~ day 3

LET'S GOOOOOOOOOOO WOMEEEEEN 🔥🔥

*cough* Sorry. Uuuuuuuh. Well. Do I need to introduce this movie? It's fucking Furiosa. This is radblr here, I assume we've all had at least one wet dream about Imperator Furiosa 🫡 raise your hands. No? Just me? That was a bit by the way. I'm kidding. I swear I am... Let's talk about Furiosa : A Mad Max Saga ! Spoilers will be in red. Graphic descriptions of violence and sexual slavery ahead.

Watched : May 24th at my city's independent theater. The showing was pretty empty.

One thing you gotta know about me, I'm a fangirl by nature. But I'm not a forgiving fan. I'm not the kind to just be happy that an IP I like is getting some new content and be happy with anything I'm given. I'm a really demanding fan. If an IP I like is getting new content, I'm gonna need it to be up to the task. And as a long time George Miller fan and an absolute Mad Max Fanatic, I expected a LOT out of Furiosa.

I think this movie can be enjoyed even with no prior knowledge of the MM series. Personally, I'm glad I watched these films in the order that they came out and I would recommend you do the same, but if for whatever reason the rest of the series doesn't interest you and you just wanna see Furiosa, go for it, there's no big story thread that will confuse you.

Mad Max is a series of dark adventure movies set in a post-apocalyptic world, an unknown number of years after our time. In the first movie released in 79, the economy and the state seem to have collapsed but there is still a semblance of an organised modern society amongst the violence. From the second movie onward, it all goes to absolute hell. The first film had a very limited budget and you can tell the team was working with what they had and were still finding their footing. It was a very different type of film but it was already a massive success, a very original concept, and still to this day probably my favourite entry in the series in terms of narrative.

Emboldened by the massive success of MM1, George Miller and his team got more freedom, more money, and started dreaming big. Every film from MM2 onwards became more and more balls to the walls insane. It all reached a climax with Fury Road in 2015, the most expensive and ambitious film in the series.

Since MM2, the franchise has had a strong visual and thematic identity with a lot of easily recognisable elements. A fashion heavy on leather and chains that seems BDSM inspired, a strong narrative presence of children and parental themes, a cast full to the brim with actors/extras who are visibly disabled/have congenital physical quirks, and a strong environmental message. The world of Mad Max is a seemingly endless desert where fuel has become the most sought after ressource and engines/vehicles are deified. It's big, it's empty, it's dry, and it's distinctly... well, distinctly australian.

Furiosa : A Mad Max Saga is the fifth movie in the series and as the name implies, the first one to not have Max as the protagonist. It is the origin story of a character who was introduced in Fury Road.

The story follows the titular Furiosa as she gets kidnapped at a young age from her home, the "Green Place of Many Mothers" by a biker gang from the desert who seeks to take over the Green Place for resources. As Furiosa is taken deeper and deeper into the Wasteland, she is caught in the crossfire between two feuding warlords, Immortan Joe (who will then become the main antagonist in Fury Road) and Dementus. The story takes place over many years, showing us what happened to Furiosa to make her the ruthless Imperator we know her as.

To start, a few notes on this film's relationship to the previous one : I think it's pretty flimsy. An origin story is supposed to give us additional information about an interesting character, and while the movie does add new elements, i just don't think it's enough. Just so we're clear : i think Furiosa is AMAZINGLY developed in this film. She's an incredible character. I just wish the film gave us more new elements. The Green Place is a major plot point in MMFR, but here it appears on screen for less than 5min. And more importantly, we never get a definitive answer as to what happened to it?! It's frustrating because as much as i love this movie's story, i think it's a bit of a false advertisement. MMFR tells us all about this heavenly place Furiosa is from, and halfway through it's revealed to have died/been destroyed. That was a hugely dramatic moment for Furiosa in FR!! We're then told we're gonna get an origin story for her, which opens with a scene in the Green Place, then the film leaves it behind to focus on the same areas we know from FR, and we're left with the same questions than 9 years ago! Showing it in a few shots doesn't matter in the end, we have gained ZERO new information about it. And most of what we "learn" about the main character in this film, apart from elements related to newly introduced characters (Dementus, Jack), is stuff that we could have guessed ourselves. It showed us events yes, but too few elements of characterisation to make this a satisfactory origin story.

There's also an issue with the movie's status as a prequel, but that's a common problem that isn't exclusive to Furiosa. To put it simply, it lacks stakes. We know Furiosa survives because we've seen her older. We know the Green Place dies off anyway. And more importantly, we already know when the conflict begins that Immortan Joe will be victorious, the whole point of FR was that he was top dog. It was a strange decision to focus so much on a conflict between Immortan Joe and ANOTHER warlord, as if we don't all remember the previous movie. Honestly, a film that follows Furiosa's mother in the Green Place, in conflict with Dementus, then ENDS with the mom dying and Furiosa being taken would have been a better choice i think! It would have been less marketable probably, but more compelling. No one would have been confused as to what happened to Furiosa between the Green Place and Fury Road. It's pretty easy to fill in the blanks with the info we got before this film. Anyway, that's enough complaining. Again, just so we're clear, i don't think this film is badly written. In fact it's the opposite! The film tells its story very well, i just personally, as a fan, wish it had told a different story.

(edit : oh yeah I forgot, there IS one massive plot hole in the film. The arm thing. Uuuuh what happened there. How... What... But hey this is Mad Max, it's told like a legend/tale. So we'll just say that detail was lost in time lol)

Holy shit, writing in bright red for 20min hurt my eyes so bad lol why did i do that.

Apart from storytelling decisions (as seen in the spoiler section above) the only other criticisms i have are : one, absolutely TERRIBLE looking CGI fire, and two, an over-abundance of fade to blacks in the editing. But that's just about my personal tastes, these always feel like they make movies seem slower to me, but it might be just me. Apart from that, well, i loved everything, so let's talk about the rest.

The movie is incredibly atmospheric. The music by Junkie XL (who had already delivered a banging ost for Fury Road) is perfect, and is incorporated into the action so naturally. It's intense, it's poetic, it all works so well. Miller's movies always have great sound in general, this one is no exception. The universe is well developed and feels lived in, as usual with the franchise. There's something interesting to look at in every shot, there's so much attention to detail everywhere. The acting is PHENOMENAL all around. I've been a huge fan of Anya Taylor Joy since Split, and she didn't disappoint here. But the biggest stand-out by far is Alyla Browne as kid Furiosa. Good child performances are far from common in blockbusters, but she's undoubtedly the star of the show here. I hope she has an amazing career ahead of her. Chris Hemsworth as Dementus was a surprise, i've almost exclusively seen this guy in Marvel slop, but he gets to shine here and he's fucking great?? I think it's the first time i hear him use his real australian accent in a role and it works great with the character. His physical comedy and line delivery are always on point, he was by far the most entertaining character. That's no surprise, Mad Max ALWAYS shines with its insane villains.

The movie's incredibly well shot and makes plenty of daring and interesting stylistic choices. It's stunning to look at. The CGI is significantly more visible than it was in FR and i'm... not sure why... The budget is after all very close to the one of the previous film, and the production was to my knowledge not rushed. On one hand the film is 30min longer but on the other hand it's also much less action packed. It might be a choice..? George Miller and his team have always handed the effects very well. The CGI in Fury Road was SO good that still to this day some people believe that the film only had technical effects with no digital help. It was invisible.

Here the effects work the same way (they enhance impressive real-life stunt work) but they are distinctly more plastic looking, and the vibe is very different. For a lot of spectators this was a problem, which i understand. For a lot of people, CGI exists to enhance visuals in a way technical effects can't, and is successful only when it is absolutely unnoticeable. That's not my opinion. As long as it's well thought out, well designed, well animated, and entertaining, i love fake ass looking films :D

(i've seen someone complain about a time-remapping issue in the CGI but even when i rewatched specific scenes i didn't notice anything, so it's probably a nitpick only animation professionals will care about.)

It's not just the visuals and the effects that feel like it was made specifically for me. The whole vibe is exactly my thing, i can't lie... There's an impressive action set-piece midway through the film that lasts almost 15 minutes, and it's... a lot. There's a lot happening at once, it's purposefully very busy to the point of being overwhelming, and some spectators found it to be too much. But fuck, i can't relate. Inject that shit straight into my bloodstream all day every day. It's insane, it's silly, but i'm a James Cameron/Whachowski fan, i don't care i love that shit. (i only like the Wachowski as artists, not as people...💀💀)

As silly as the action sometimes get, the film is actually very serious overall. It's clearly less campy and more focused than Fury Road was. As disappointing as i found some narrative choices to be, i have to admit that the story IS the film's biggest strength.

It clearly follows directly from the last movie in terms of style. But in terms of substance, i think it's closer to the original trilogy. (and i actually think this is why the movie flopped. Fury Road was already too expensive and i think it barely made its money back. But since then the movie has gotten quite the cult following, and a lot of these people were disappointed by Furiosa because it wasn't Fury Road 2. It's not a fast-paced never-ending chase, yes there's action, but it's mostly a serious, slow, silent, character driven film. And i'm really happy about that. I didn't want this saga to turn into 2hour stunt showcases. Yes i love FR, but i'm glad it turned out to be the exception in the series and not the new norm.)

As I said earlier, the best part of this film is its story. It has a great tone, it fits well in the series, the ending is frankly amazing. Some people found it anticlimactic and... Uh?? I don't get it. It was beautiful and coherent with everything we saw before. If you're like me and you're always a bit frustrated because movie antagonists rarely get the comeuppance they deserve, because the hero is like "no, I'm better than that 🙂‍↔️" then rest assured I LOVED that ending. Furiosa you're so sick and twisted. I am in love with you. WHO SAID THAT

Even tho the film is a prequel, the story takes plenty of unexpected turns and expands on the universe in a way that will please all fans of the series I think. And it's also, say it with me now : a great feminist tale.

I won't insult your intelligence by explaining why it's significant that the only safe haven in this deadly desert is named "the Green Place of Many Mothers". As I said at the beginning of this review (approximately 150 years ago), children and parenthood have always held a special place in this franchise. And since Fury Road, it's more specifically motherhood and women that take center stage. The actions of the two antagonists of this film cannot be removed from their maleness. Dementus is a creep, Immortan Joe is a monster. He holds all the power and resources of his community and collects women like livestock.

In the world of MM, People have started being infected by unknown influences and the population is mutating. Growing more and more unhealthy, less and less fertile. Those with no congenital disabilities and malformations are called full-lifes. Immortan Joe keeps a harem of women, locked up in his palace. All wearing chastity cages. Their prison is pretty, inviting, clean, the illusion of a better life. Forced to be raped by their master, they must give him a full-life male baby. Three strikes (as in, failed or disappointing pregnancies) and they're out. But they're not "out" like all the random men trying to survive on the outside. They become milkers. Supposedly kept pregnant as long as they're able to, to make more child soldiers for Immortan Joe.

When kid Furiosa is traded/sold to Immortan Joe, she becomes a future wife. She lives with the other full-life women, terrified of the master's oldest son who is a bit too interested in her. She decides to shave her head and run away from the prison to instead work as a mechanic. (Yeah it's one of these stories where no one can recognize sexual dimorphism and as long as you shave your head and don't speak you pass as male)

We see her slowly learn the ropes and work up the ranks, until she is the Imperator we all know. When her identity is discovered (before she is an imperator) Immortan Joe doesn't suggest making her a wife again. For two reasons : one, she is so talented at what she does that it is more useful to let her keep her current job, and two, by doing what she has done, she has effectively ruined her womanhood in the eyes of men, which makes her unworthy of breeding with. The wives become very important characters and a crucial plot point in Fury Road, and it's abundantly clear that Furiosa is not treated by men the way they are, even tho she too is a full-life female. To them she is better and lesser at the same time. She becomes a strong, powerful woman; and it terrifies them.

Furiosa is a great film about an even greater character. And I'm not just saying that because I love seeing myself be represented on screen (bald women 🩷). If you like Mad Max, I hope we can agree that this franchise needs more varied POVs like this. Not that I dislike Max, he's my special boy. It's just nice to see different corners of this world. If you don't know Mad Max, I hope this introduces you to it and you end up loving it as much as I do :)

Final rating : FURIOSAAAAAAA/10

This film gets the official Léna seal of approval! It's one of the best of 2024! Here's a link to the trailer.

[dreamtydraw]

do u have any advice for someone starting to draw?

Hmmmm I have a bunch of advices the thing is they worked one me and might not work on everyone but let me share things that helped me in my art journey.

It’s a long post with advices and resources so i hope it can be helpful.

On advices :

Accept the fact that not every art you'll make will be good. Unless you're a full on professional with years of experiences you'll always need to learn things and so, often you'll find flaws in your art. That where it's important to remember to have fun , art shouldn't stress you into making flawless products.

Doodle often. Again you don't have to daily make detailed artworks but doodling will help you progress and helps with creative process.

Find an art format you like. Just like you can't ask a guitarist to play piano, every art mediums are different with their rules. I would advise you to experiment until you find something you're the most comfortable with ( ex i like markers, color pencils and digital art but I despise oil painting )

The quality of your material does matter. It doesn't matter on how well you draw but it does matter in helping you work better so sometimes it's worth saving up for better materials ( do research on what seems the best for you ). This apply for digital tools too ! I only like one app and it's ibis paint...

Copy. Now this doesn't mean blindly trace or steal but find artists or artworks you like and try to find WHAT you like in it and then try to copy it on your own. This goes for anything you want to reference visually, find what you like in it and copy that, if you just copy the reference you don't do much more than being a printer.

Flip your canvas or use a light tablet to turn your sketch. This help you notices anatomy errors more visibly so you can correct them before starting the clean up.

Don't sleep on cartoon. A lot of people say "learn realism before finding your style" and I'd say that not for everyone. If you want to get professionally into art or works on your anatomy then yes you should learn realism because it's the fundamental of anatomy but that not an obligation. One thing you can learn from tho regardless of what you try to do is cartoons. Cartoons are exaggerations of posing, expressions and designs and learning some cartoons rules might help you understand a bit better some notions ( mainly shapes languages and expressions )

Find something that motivates you to draw. Draw for fandoms, draw your oc, draw for yourself but having something that makes you want to draw is important. It's very important that you don't base your motivation on other people's opinion of your art.

Get inspired by other medias. Search about symbolism in other art form, get inspired by movies, books, videos games, people, objects, design etc… Humans are good at making creative stuff, it feed the spirit.

Now on ressources ( That i use or have used )

My personal pinterest board for visual reference

Scan of morpho, a good morphology book

Scan of morpho, about fat and muscles

Post with resources about fat

Tips about character design

Links to Kasey golden Chanels for cartoon inspiration and material review

Post about shapes designs

Hope this can be of help !!

[gp-ressources]

GP-RESSOURCES - Qu'est-ce que c'est ?

FR : Vous y trouverez une collection de gifs soigneusement sélectionnés, prêts à être utilisés dans vos créations.Mais n'oubliez pas ... Créditer les créateurs originaux lors de l'utilisation de ces gifs. Rebloguer leurs gifs packs. Liker leurs posts. Le but est de promouvoir le talent et le travail des artistes qui ont contribué à la création de ces packs. N'hésitez pas à explorer ce blog et à profiter de ces ressources visuelles pour enrichir vos propres créations.

DIRECTORY

EN : You will find a carefully curated collection of gifs ready to be used in your creations. But don't forget... Credit the original creators when using these gifs. Reblog their gif packs. Like their posts. The goal is to promote the talent and hard work of the artists who contributed to the creation of these packs. Feel free to explore this blog and make the most of these visual resources to enhance your own creations

[neonrain-dev]

Engine Update is live!

Hello friends!

It's finally here, the Godot 4.4 engine update! After so long!

Engine Update Improvements:

No more shader cache stutters!

Improved enemy navigation performance!

Better performance for Steam Deck users and mid-range PCs!

Patch Notes:

Buffed the entire enemy roster’s senses. They can still be dumb, but hey, what can you do when you're a solo dev with little backend experience? If anyone has great Godot ressources for more variety in enemy Ai, I will be all ears.

Fixed physics for moving platforms.

Added a new option to customize the game's saturation.

Tweaked enemy movement patterns so expect gunners to be more spread out.

Fixed a bug with lore terminals.

Fixed icons for the data pad when using gamepads and Steam Deck.

Minor visual and sound tweaks.

Adjusted the Warden’s napalm sound effects.

And that's it! Next up is the 1.3 update, which will add friendly NPCs to the hub. Which will also mark the final Itch demo update, as I want everything beyond that to be part of the Steam build.

I'll be busy making NPCs now!

Cheers, and let me know if you find any bugs!

[justforbooks]

Laurent Cantet

French film director who won the Palme D’Or at the Cannes film festival with his improvisatory education drama The Class

The social-realist boom in 1990s French cinema produced compelling new voices such as Jacques Audiard, Bruno Dumont and Érick Zonca. The most humane and rigorous of that group was Laurent Cantet, who has died aged 63 after suffering from cancer.

Cantet, who often worked in an improvisatory mode with non-professional actors, won the Cannes film festival’s top prize, the Palme d’Or, for his education drama The Class (Entre les Murs, 2008). Sean Penn, president of that year’s Cannes jury, called the film “a miracle, a perfect movie, just so exciting to see. We walked into the jury room afterward and it was like we had swept up the floor and our work was done.”

A kind of Parisian Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, it was arrived at by cross-pollinating drama and documentary to create what Cantet called “documented fiction”. François Bégaudeau, author of the autobiographical novel Entre les Murs (Between the Walls, 2006), on which the film is based, plays a version of himself: an enthusiastic inner-city teacher who inspires his adolescent pupils but also crosses swords with them.

In one scene, François is taken to task over his use of anglicised names in his mathematical exercises: Bill has 12 apples, Bob has three, but what about, say, Rachid or Aïssata? This playful scene plants the seed for one of the film’s main themes – the use of language to gain leverage, and to reshape the world.

The movie’s sharp-eyed visual style lends these semantic wrangles a strong cinematic dimension. Shooting on location with three high-definition cameras, Cantet achieved an omniscient documentary effect. “This gave us a lot of freedom, allowing us to improvise, to capture the energy of the pupils rather than interrupt them when we wanted a different angle,” he explained. The students and staff in the film, who were all drawn from Françoise Dolto junior high in the 20th arrondisement of Paris, generated many of the scenes in collaboration with Bégaudeau and Cantet.

The movie’s overall tone is one of bruised idealism. “It shows the richness of multiculturalism rather than its weaknesses,” said Cantet. “The film is utopian about the possibilities this kind of setting offers, but pessimistic about the school system in general.”

The Class received an Oscar nomination and became Cantet’s most successful film. But the three features that preceded it were more impressive, withholding even the smallest spoonful of sugar to help their messages go down.

He made his debut in 1999 with Human Resources (Ressources Humaines), in which a business-school graduate starts a management job at the factory where his father is a welder. The newcomer clashes with the union at first, then has a change of heart when he learns of planned redundancies.

That film, which the critic Ginette Vincendeau called “generous, sensitive and innovative”, addresses with Loachian fastidiousness the challenge of reconciling principles and productivity. Both Human Resources and Cantet’s 2001 follow-up, Time Out (L’emploi du Temps), explore how work defines us even in our most interior moments.

Time Out concerns the middle-aged, middle-class Vincent (Aurélien Recoing), who conceals his unemployment from his wife and children, and instead lets his days drip by in service stations and motel lobbies. To retain his role as breadwinner, he cheats cash out of gullible investors he meets on the road.

The film was inspired by the case of Jean-Claude Romand, who lied about his non-existent job, and finally slaughtered his family. Cantet and his regular co-writer and editor Robin Campillo (who later became a director in his own right) stopped short of such horror. “We wanted him to have a disconcerting banality,” Cantet said. “He’s just someone who slips and trips down a certain pathway.”

Some audiences found a note of hope in the final scene, in which Vincent attends a job interview. Cantet was quick to scotch that reading. “The notion of work is so full of wealth and worthiness that the prospect of Vincent finding employment again is obviously a winner,” he said. “But not having a job can be of a certain wealth, too. For people like him, work can only be slavery, so to see the last scene as a happy ending is a denial.”

Heading South (Vers le Sud, 2005) applied Cantet’s usual scrutiny to a different milieu, albeit one still steeped in exploitation and commodification. Charlotte Rampling and Karen Young play sex tourists at a Haitian beach resort in the late 1970s who find themselves competing for the same 18-year-old gigolo (Ménothy Cesar). Neither woman is interested in the young man’s plight under the corrupt regime of President “Baby Doc” Duvalier, though eventually the country’s political strife eclipses their feud. The film has a starkly Fassbinderesque view of the intersection between sex, money and power.

Cantet was born in Melle, a town in western France, and raised in nearby Niort. His parents were both teachers. He attended university in Marseilles, then studied at the Paris film school IDHEC (L’Institut des Hautes Études Cinématographiques), where he met Campillo. Their first full-length collaboration, Les Sanguinaires (1997), was made for French television as part of a project looking ahead to the new millennium. (Human Resources was also made for TV, but earned an international cinema release.) Asked about the 13-year gap between graduating and directing Les Sanguinaires, he said: “I spent a long time trying to discover what I wanted to say in a film.”

Reactions to the movies he made after The Class were mixed. An adaptation of Joyce Carol Oates’s 1950-set novel Foxfire: Confessions of a Girl Gang (2012) met with muted acclaim. Return to Ithaca (2014), about a reunion of five friends in Havana, made few waves. It was Cantet’s second project in the city: he was one of seven directors who contributed to the portmanteau project 7 Days in Havana (2012). It was part-funded by Havana Club rum, which features prominently on screen.

His 2017 drama The Workshop (L’Atelier), about the relationship between a female teacher at a summer writing school and a male teenage student radicalised by the far right, revived the simmering tensions of Heading South, and represented a real return to form, though in fact the film had been gestating for more than 15 years. Cantet’s final picture, Arthur Rambo (2021), was inspired by the real-life case of Mehdi Meklat, and follows a young writer from the banlieues whose career is wrecked by offensive social media posts that predate his fame. He was working on a new film, The Apprentice, at the time of his death.

“My characters are never heroes,” Cantet said in 2008. “They always have weaknesses. That’s what motivates me to write them. They are people looking for their place in society: a place which is much harder to find when you don’t march in step with the rest of society. It’s something I can recognise in myself: keeping the world at arm’s length. Perhaps making films is a way of making up that distance.”

🔔 Laurent Cantet, film director, born 11 April 1961; died 25 April 2024

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[palior]

Awards 2023 : Movies

Second category: Movies that I saw this year.

Higher, Further, Faster, Funnier Award - The Marvels

New favorite trio in the MCU <3

Queer Fantasy Award - Nimona

These gayz are saving the world !

To Be Continued Award - Spiderman Across the Spiderverse

Visually as stunning than the first one. Now to see the story through to its conclusion.

It's A Queer Metaphor Award - Neptune Frost

An original and interesting tale of queerness, colonization, imperialism and ressource expropriation. Unanimous goldmine !

Best Goodbye Award - Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3

Probably the best arc in the MCU. The love and care given to the characters are my favorite. Rocket desperate scream is still haunting me to this day.

Best Animated Movie Award - Puss in Boots 2 : The Last Wish

So much heart in this movie. I'm still laughing at the random anti-gravity boots joke.

To Be Or Not To Be Award - Barbie

I loved *Ladybird* so I was expecting this movie to be at least good but I was not prepared for the character study of a doll that finds her own humanity and reason to live.

Best Movie Award - Dungeons & Dragons : Honor Among Thieves

As a big geek, I love D&D and this movie is a love letter to it. From the practical effects, to the lore, the jokes, the feel that you are in the middle of a campaign and some touching moments (special points for the Holga scene with her ex-husband that made me teared up), everything clicked for me.

[asterisque]

Independent & semi-private multimuse blog featuring characters from different gacha & video games fandoms but mostly from the Fire Emblem - Tales of & Honkai: Star Rail series.

Written by Aster. She / her. 30+.

Carrd. (revamping...)

Icons? I don't know her (most of the time idk anymore).

Low-key activity.

Rules & Muses under the cut!

Semi-Private aka, you are free to follow me but I won't follow back if you do not show interest in interacting. So yes, you are also free to send asks and reply to open stuff on my dash, because then it means you wanna do stuff and then I'll happily follow back for us to write more together!

I want to keep my dash mostly made of rp partners, not just people who look at each other doing nothing or never replying to me, sorry, I've had several issues in the last months that make rping hard atm, so I want it to be lighter and slower and more interesting to me!!

IM closed for everyone but mutuals!

Not spoiler-free.

Multiship & Multiverse. I only ship with ocs if you're a close friend. Any established relationships with my muse(s) are okay as long as it's a canon character pertaining to the canon of said muse(s) (if you're not sure about this, just ask me in IM).

Crossovers friendly!!

DO NOT REBLOG NOR LIKE ask memes from me, do it from the source, I'm not an ask meme ressources, I won't hesitate to hard block anymore if this rule keeps on being broken! If you could do the same with any reblog I do on this blog while at it, for the sake of my activity.

Speaking of ask memes, they're always available to send me, even if we're not mutuals, ask are open to everyone, only threads are for mutuals.

Tag anything NSFW & Gore for me, only visual stuff tho, if written, don't worry, I'll stop reading if not my thing haha. I will do the same.

And let(s have fun!!!

Muses:

The list below is made of muses I really want to write and open to everyone!

Honkai Star Rail:

Sampo

Aventurine

March 7th

Caelus

Jing Yuan

Jiaoqiu

Tales of:

Sorey

Vicious

Aster Laker

Colette Brunel

Fire Emblem:

Sylvain Jose Gautier

Sharena

Shez

Amber

Zenless Zone Zero:

Billy Kid

Seth Lowell

Misc. Muses:

Aalto (Wuwa)

Sakamoto Ryuji (Persona 5)

Tifa Lockhart (Final Fantasy 7)

Vane (GBF)

Leo (Fandomless OC with verses for all my fandoms, just hmu if interested???)

I can write other muses but in certain particular situations (private to friends, asks, limited threads), so they're not open to everyone and have very limited voice, but don't be surprised if you see a muse posting when they're not in the list!

[fabiansteinhauer]

Visualität

1.

Nicholas Mirzoeff ist einer der internationalen Schreiber (nicht unbedingt ein Autor), die Bilder so behandeln, dass ich sagen kann: sie behandelt sie als Grenzobjekte und normativ.

Wie man im deutschen Recht das Dogma findet, dass das moderne, bürgerliche Bildrecht mit dem Bismarckfall angefangen habe oder die These findet, dass erst mit jüngeren Bildern Juristen durch Bilder beunruhigt würden, anders gesagt: mit einer der vielen Thesen zum Anfang eines neuen Verhältnisses zwischen Bild und Recht hat auch Mirzoeff eine These zum einen Anfang, den er den Anfang der Visualität nennt oder: Visualities first domain. Das seien die Plantagen in den Sklavenwirtschaften gewesen: Der abwesende Souverän und Eigentumer habe so seine Herrschaft über die Sklaven ausgeübt. Mirzoeff assoziiert das Bild mit einem Effekt, den er dann weiter mit einem Begriff Autorität nennt. Visualität ist bei ihm eventuell eine autoritäre Fassung von Bild und Recht.

Wenn man das Bild normativ und operativ definiert, kommt man Mirzoeffs Vorstellungen nahe, aber im Detail gibt es Unterschiede. Darum etwas vorab, bevor ich Mirzoeff weiter lese: Normen sind nicht verbindlich, durch sie kann man mit Limits der Bindung umgehen, also sowohl mit Verbindlichkeit als auch mit Unverbindlichkeit. Normen tragen Konflikte aus, so, wie man auch Zeitungen austrägt: An Normen und durch sie wird etwas unterschieden, das läuft rekursiv, das heißt: Die Kontur der Norm und damit die Norm selbst erscheint durch die Trennungen und die Assoziationen, die man dank der Norm und durch die Norm vollzieht. Man kann das tautologisch und widersprüchlich nennen: Etwas erscheint dank und durch seine Erscheinung. Manche nennen das selbstreferentiell, ich nicht, weil in dem Vorgang etwas kreuzt - also zum Beispiel Rauschen und Information, Sprache, Laut, Ton, Krach, Sehen und Blindheit etwas austauschen, was zwar vom Selben durchzogen sein kann, aber nicht durchzogen sein muss - es kann kann von Fremden, von Alterität durchzogen sein. Was daran an diesem Vorgang offen ist, was daran geschlossen ist, was daran beschreibbar ist und was daran nicht beschreibbar ist, was daran begreifbar ist und was daran unbegreifbar - diese elementare Frage verschiebe ich einfach mal und sage: Man kann die Grenzen eines Bildes wie die Grenzen einer Norm nicht leugnen, sie sind nicht selbtgenügsam. Sowohl die Norm als auch das Bild betrachte ich als unbeständig.

Durch ein Bild, das normativ und operativ definiert wird, kommt zwar Wahrnehmung vor, dadurch wird etwas, nicht nur, aber auch das Bild wahrnehmbar (auch so, wie man Recht wahrnimmt, also bestreitbar und in gewisser Hinsicht ausübbar). Das Bild teilt aber auch die Wahrnehmung, teilt auch die Effekte. Das Bild ist nicht unbedingt autoritär, die Autorität wäre ein Teil des Effektes, ein anderer wäre etwa die Potentialität. Wie man im römischen Recht ab einer bestimmten Zeit auctoritas und potestas unterschieden hat (das wird für Warburgs Staatstafeln wichtig, weil der Unterscheid zwischen auctoritas und potestas später von einzelnen Autoren auch als Unterschied zwischen weltlicher und geistiger Macht übersetzt wird), so müsste man hier die Effekte des Bildes weiter unterscheiden. Wenn es eine Bildmacht gibt, dann ist das ein Effekt, der ebenfalls über Trennungen und Assoziation operiert, in dem Macht also zu nicht eine Ressource wird, die man hat oder nicht hat. Sicherlich kann man Macht nach denen unterscheiden, die sie ausüben und denen, sie sie erleiden, nur ist das nicht der Grundlage der Macht, nicht ihre Substanz, nicht ihr Bestand. Macht trennt und assoziiert dann auch den, der Machthaber oder Machtloser sein soll, auch in dem Sinne, dass die Macht ihn dann spaltet oder zerteilt - und ihm die Existenz einer Assoziation gibt, die man treffenderweise für eine unbeständige Angelegenheit hält.

Das Bild lässt Sinne wahrnehmen, weil es Sinne teilt, formiert, weil es Macht teilt, wenn nicht in die Formen, die man auctoritas und potestas nennt zum Beispiel die Formen, die andere Autoren konstitutionelle oder institutionelle Macht nennen (den Unterschied findet man zum Beispiel bei Vincent Descombe).

2.

Zurück zu Mirzoeff: Mirzoeffs schreibt nicht nur eine Gegengeschichte (gegen die anderen Geschichten stehen), er liefert auch Gegenbilder, gegen die andere Bilder stehen. Mirzoeffs Theorie des Bildes ist ein Dogma (den Begriff verwende ich nicht pejorativ, sondern als Synonym für Norm, die mit Bild einhergeht).

Mirzoeff arbeitet dabei auch an dem Bild, das ich ein römische Bild nenne und auf die Gründungerzählung von Plinius beziehe, mit der das Bild die Aufgabe habe soll, eine Abwesenheit zu überbrücken und einen Abgrund zu meistern oder zu bewältigen. Von da aus fasst Mirzoeff das Dogma der Visualität anhand des abwesenden Souveräns und Eigentümers, der mit dem Bild die Sklaven beherrscht.

Das will ich nicht widerlegen, ich will widersprechen, sobald das Dogma sich aus Situation löst, für das es gefasst wird; also sobald es sich vom Gebiet dessen löst, was Mirzoeff so schön bildllich eine first domain, eine fürstliches Anwesen oder eine herrschaftliche Domäne nennt. Aby Warburg hat eine andere Vorstellung vom Bild, die nicht von den Plantagen und Landbesitzern in den Kolonien kommt, sondern aus dem Bankgeschäft einer Hafenstadt und einer Familie, die sich in der Tradition von wandernden Wechslern sieht. Hamburger, Florentiner, Jude: pendelnd beschreibt sich Aby Warburg. Auch wenn er teilweise mit den Kulturtechniken arbeitet, mit denen die Verwalter auf den Plantagen arbeiten und sich diese Technik in seiner Geschichte und Theorie das Bildes fortsetzt, nämlich mit Verwaltungstechniken, die wiederum mit Akten, Tabellen, Listen, Protokollen und Kalendern arbeiten, kommt er doch zu einer anderen Geschichte und einer anderen Theorie - und das zeigt sich prinzipiell, also gerade an dem, was man dann als Anfang ins Spiel bringt. Auch Warburg definiert das Bild normativ und operativ, aber weiter noch darüber, dass bestimmte Regungen [Bewegungen] operationalisiert werden. Warburg befasst sich gleich am Anfang seiner Bild- und Rechtswissenschaft 8also ab 1896) zwar mit der mancipatio, also einem Akt, mit dem man (auch) Sklaven erwerben kann. Aber die mancipatio kommt weiter zum Einsatz (str. inwieweit), Warburg sieht in der Beziehung zwischen Herren und Sklaven nicht unbedingt etwas Negatives, vor allem aber markiert die mancipatio für Warburg nicht den Anfang der geschichte des Bildes. Im Atlas, der ab 1924 in Hamburg langsam entsteht, macht Warburg klar, dass er als erste, anfängliche Bilder Sternenbilder ansieht. Die mancipatio interessiert ihn, so lautet meine These, weil sie als Bild schafft, was Sternenbilder schaffen. In der mancipatio, die schon Gaius als Bild, sogar als eine Art wirbelndes Bild versteht ( "Est autem mancipatio, ut supra quoque diximus, imaginaria quaedam venditio...") sieht, das spitze ich jetzt zu, ein Vorbild und das ist das Sternebild, das um den Menschen elliptisch kreist, in dem doppelten Sinne, in dem etwas um etwas kreisen kann, also es damit umfassen kann, aber auch seine Krise Form und Formlosigkeit geben kann, also den Menschen logisch (sprachlich) begreifen und (krachend) kreischen lassen kann.

Kurz und mit den Begriffen für Warburgs Bibliothek gesagt: Wie Sternenbilder lässt die mancipatio Wort geben und sich ein Bild machen, lässt orientieren und handeln, alles kommt bei Warburg aber in Situationen auf, die alles andere als beherrscht sind. Weil da kein Wort ist, muss man eines geben, weil man nichts sieht, muss man sich ein Bild machen, weil man keine Orienioterung hat, muss man sie finden, weil man ohnmächtig ist, muss man handeln. Mirzoeff assoziert das Bild mit Beherrschung, Warburg mit unbeherrschten Situationen, sogar unbeherrschbaren Situationen. Es ist wohl kein Zufall, dass der Anarchist Edgar Wind in der zweiten Hälfte der zwanziger Jahre intensiv an Warburg gerät, eine wichtige Rolle bei der Rettung der Bibliothek spielt und in den ersten Jahren in London si viel anstösst, bis er selbst wohl zum Anstoß und, wie manche behaupten, zur Paria des Insitutes wird.

Warburg und Wind sind zwei der wenigen Figuren, die das Bild nicht an Macht ketten, nicht mit Macht verschmelzen und nicht mit Macht verlöten oder verschweißen, sich nicht dann damit beschäftigen, wenn es sich um Leitbilder handeln soll - und die das Bild doch normativ und operativ definieren. Nur definieren sie es weiter über Regung, die anarchisch erscheint, weil sie unbeständig, meteorologisch und polar ist, sie kommt und geht, mit ihr kommt und geht was, das alles bleibt schwer berechnbar bis unkalkulierbar, aber gerade dafür sollen Bilder interssant sein: Bei aller Rigidität des Unverbindlichen mit der Rigidität des Unverbindlichen umgehen zu können. Bei aller Austauschbarkeit sollen man mit dem Austausch umgehen können, bei aller Auswechselbarkeit mit der Auswechslung, bei aller Windigkeit mit dem Wind, bei aller Wendigkeit mit den Wendungen, bei allem Kippen mit dem Kippen, bei allen Kehren mit den Kehren. Warburg zu sagen, er sei nicht machtsensibel, das wäre wohl ein Hohn. Warburg sammelt Nachrichten über Gewalt, immer, egal ob es sich um Polizei, Soldaten und Kriminelle handelt, jede Ausübung von Gewalt stösst ihn an, manche sogar um. Aber das Macht nur Macht sei und nur Macht Macht, das glaubt er nicht. Schon darum führt er auf Tafel 78 zwei unterschiedliche Mächte vor und eine Grenze, die damit mitten durch die Macht geht.

3.

Es gibt einen Bedarf nach Theorieimport, Bedarf danach, auf Leute wie Mirzoeff zu verweisen. Es gibt Gründe dafür, warum solche Untersuchungen nicht an deutschen Fakultäten geschrieben werden, ich liefere sie aber nicht, gebe sie nicht, auch nicht weiter, weil ich diese Gründe für Quatsch und ärgerlich halte. Mirzoeffs Buch von 2011 erschließt einen Diskurs über Recht und Bild, versteht Rechtswissenschaft nicht als die Literatur, die Gerichtsentscheidungen und dazu noch die Literatur von staatlich anerkannten Rechtsautoritäten noch einmal zusammenfasst, kritisch kommentiert, systematisiert und dann vielleicht noch mit Zierleisten Philosophie versieht. Vor allem schreibt er ein Buch, weil andere es nicht tun, auch wenn er nicht behauptet, er sei der erste, der sich über das Thema Gedanken gemacht hätte. Ob und inwieweit Mirzoeff eine andere Vorstellung von dem Verhältnis zwischen Recht und Bild hat als ich oder als Aby Warburg, dazu habe ich bisher nur minimal etwas gesagt, nicht einmal den Fuß in die Tür gestellt, nur so ein bisschen angeklopft, ein paar kurez Passagen bei Mirzoeff und bei Warburg abgeklopft.

Eins kann ich eindeutig sagen, nämlich warum ich Mirzoeff hier vorstelle: Visualität ist bei ihm entweder das Sichtbare im Sinne von Cornelia Vismann, also eine Einrichtung oder Insitutierung von Sicht, die durch eine Sperre (englisch a bar), also eine Trennung und eine Assoziation (Vismann: "Cancellierung) erscheint. Das kann auch eine nackte Sichtbarkeit, nichts als Sichtbarkeit sein, aber die Nacktheit darin ist eben auch ein Akt, der wie ein Akte operiert, also auch über Sperren, Cancellierungen operiert (das beschreibt Vismann nicht im Aktenbuch, aber in ihrem Text "Vor ihren Richtern nackt"). In seiner Einleitung schreibt Mirzoeff "visuality is not the visible", ich würde das im Hinblick auf die Möglichkeiten der Übereinstimmung mit Vismann eventuell so übersetzen: Visualität ist zwar das Sichtbare, aber das Sichtbare ist eine gesperrtes, cancelliertes Sehen.

Entweder ist Visualität bei Mirzoeff also das Sichtbare im Sinne von Vismann, oder nicht, aber dann entwirft er immer noch eine Geschichte und Theorie der Visualität, in denen Sehen und die Sicht von Anfang an auch normativ und operativ verstanden werden, in dem Sinne: nicht so unschuldig wie Blümchen auf der Wiese, nicht als das, was noch frei und unbegrenzt wäre, bevor dann angeblich später erst das Recht käme. Mirzoeff füttert keine Phantasien über rechtsfreie Räume und unberührte, unlimitierte Sinne. Die Gründe, die mich Cornelia Vismann haben entdecken lassen, die sind insofern die gleichen Gründe, die mich Mirzoeff haben entdecken lassen. Heute bringe ich diese Gründe immer auf eine Formel: Immer dann, wenn etwas anfängt, dann fängt auch das Recht an, weil Anfangen eine juridische Kulturtechnik ist. Meine These lautet nicht, dass alles auf der Welt Recht ist, ich will aber an allem beobachten können, wie Juristen involviert sind - und entdecke bisher immer etwas.

[byunbaekhyunie]

admittedly I’m not that familiar with aespa’s discography but drama sounds too much like your middle of the road blackpink tt to me ://

[acre-of-wheat]

Hi, hope this doesn’t sound weird. You've said before that you work in stuff for accessibility for people on the spectrum. Do you happen to know of any ressources with stuff such as check-lists for morning routines? Like, all I can find online is stuff where they're like

1. Get up

2. Do some yoga

3. Eat breakfast

4. Go to work

Where, I'm searching for much more specific help, like

1. Get up

2. Go to the bathroom

3. Eat breakfast

3. 2. Drink water

4. Brush your teeth

5. Take your wallet/keys/charger/earbuds

6. Take lunch and water bottle

7. Go to work

You know what I mean? Like, specific stuff to help not forget elementary self care things, you know?

It's alright if you don't have an answer, of course :) have a nice day

Oh! I've actually been to some expos where I've seen people who have developed things like this. Of course there are phone apps and stuff like that, but honestly I think the visual/tactile model of a chart like that makes it *much* easier to use than a digital one.

Honestly I'd just take a look through Etsy, because you'll see a lot of different options and can look at the different layouts, see what you think looks both aesthetically attractive to you and feels like it would work best and where it would fit in your home.

I feel pretty confident that I've met the people who make this particular one?

And here's the Etsy page to look through!

I might suggest one that looks like it has a degree of customization, because none are going to be exactly perfect for what you want, but if it leaves open a few cards/magnets/pieces for you to put tasks of your own on, you can tailor it to your needs.

Hope this helps!

[threefandomsinatrenchcoat]

Also, if you want your graphics to be good as a developer, please remember that even the best graphics in the world won't mean shit if the game they're prettying up is an otherwise empty shell. Make a good game first and if you still have time and ressources then, you can start worrying about pretty graphics. I get wanting to make something that looks cutting edge and modern and good. But at the end of the day, real gamers care more about the game being good than looking good. If I wanted pretty, photo-realistic visuals above all else, I'd watch a movie.

this is a controversial opinion and I’m not a gamer but I don’t need my graphics to be that good. I don’t need to see every individual feather on a bird. my poor computer doesn’t deserve to carry that weight either.

[kinnikuniverse-blog]

i don't really like to talk about négative things. It wastes everyone's time and makes everyoje depressed and shit. But i have to get this off my chest.

Ever stumble upon something that you really love, but you can't help but disagree with the way its done? Tbat's what happened to me with a youtuber called Loresmith.

So this guy is a phenomenal storyteller. He has légitime talent to tell stories, no doubt about it, and he ddoes put effirt in his writing. His tekken lore series is such a bliss for me as a tekken fan, who felt that the series really dropped hard after Tekken 5. He gives the secondary characters so much justice its unreal.

There is just one big problem that makes my enjoyment of his videos à big dilemma. The use of AI.

While Loresmith' storytelling abilities are top notch, i am deeply disappointed that his main method of visuals is AI. Not just the visuals, but also he uses an AI voice modulator in order to have the characters voices read his lines and even use the voice of the Tekken 5 narrator to tell the story. While I do understand that the reason for this is to get that authentic old school Tekken 4-5 storytelling experience...well, i will admit, i really love this, but at the same time, its not the authenticité stuff. In the end, its just a copy of the authenticité experience.

I get that to réplication all of that using real art requises time and ressources that Loresmith very likely doesnt have and will never have, i get that...but man...you can just, i dunno, write them into fanfics or, hell, even blogs or à thread on tumblr or Alternatehistory.com, anything! And there are plenty of tekken art, both official and fan made, that existait out there. You can even commission artists to draw specific scenes that you write in your scripts!

Such a shame,man...the guy is a genuinely talented storyteller, and i cannot deny that i love what he does, but...fuck. this is like still loving to watch chris benoit natches or still loving rurouni kenshin all over again...fuck, i wish I didn't have dilemmas like this in my life...

[thequeenofmyownscreen]

The Delilah Briarwood cosplay, in details

Warning : it's a long post, as it is as much for you as it is for me (to document and remember), so I'm putting a cut. But if you want details and pictures of said details, and a glimpse of my life for the past 6 months, click on ahead !

[If you just want the good photos of the photoshoot, I made two posts about it.]

So after last year for MCM London in October, the one where the cast of Critical Role appeared after the "Echoes of the Solstice" live show, I had such a great time doing my 1st ever cosplay as Laudna, that I thought a few weeks after "Well, now I have to do another cosplay ! What if this time I learned to sew ?"

Now mind you, I haven't even decided which character I wanted to do, I was hesitant between Vex'ahlia and Delilah Briarwood, because, well, with Laudna, I do love this horrible triangle of characters reunited by the circumstances, and each of them are fascinating in their own way. Also, I was rather undecided on the timeline, I did not know yet I would come back to MCM in October. It was more of a really lose timeline in my mind, like when I first started on the embroidery on the Laudna blouse (and ended rushing it up when we learned CR was coming in London).

Problem : I did not know how to sew. At all. Like, sewing a button, yes, but any other stuff, no. Also another problem : except for a bunch of needles, some thread my mother gave me, and a pair of scissors, I did not have any supplies.

The 1st step was buying a sewing machine. Which I did in March this year. The 2nd step was calling my sister and watch a bunch of Youtube videos because I did not know how to put the threads on my machine, or how it worked, really.

At this point, I was half-decided to do Vex, since her costume (at least the lower levels one) seemed easier to do. Then, in my search for tutorials, I started watching a lot of historical costumes videos (Bernadette Banner is wonderful, guys, but also there are a lot of channels on the subject). Then, when my mother learned I bought a sewing machine, she started giving advice since she has a lot of sewing experience, and her number 1 advice was : "start with something very small, like a handkerchief, or a pillow cover." Now one thing to know about me is, sometimes, I do not listen to advice at all and think "I will do the exact opposite". This was such a moment.

It still took me the 2 following months to decide that I wanted to do a Delilah Briarwood cosplay, in a full Victorian lady reinterpretation (because I love what The Legend of Vox Machina offered as a visual for her, and it is loosely inspired of the late-Victorian era, and it was easier to be inspired with the one Delilah design in the show rather than the multiple amazing interpretations of the character I saw in the fanart.)

Now, mind you. Historical recreations of past costumes are, in general, hard. The clothing industry as we know it emerged after WWII, and before, the cuts of clothes are wildly different, and it is my opinion that the Victorian Era is one of the most difficult to work on (appart from, say, France in the 1750's). The small grace is that : there's A LOT of ressources on the Internet about this period, and sewing machines were already invented, no sewing everything by hand, yayyy !

First, I needed some 19th century underwear. I decided to start using my brand new machine by creating and sewing two rather simple pieces of 19th century undergarments : a chemise (worn under the corset) and a petticoat. It went rather well, my sister ended up helping me for the chemise since it was way too large, and we resized the shoulders, and she showed me how to do a simple hem. For the corset, I knew right away I would buy one rather than make one (making one is doable for an experienced seamtress, sure, but I was and am not one, and it takes SO MUCH TIME). I found a rather nice and historical-adjacent one online for less than a 100 euros, and it served me well.

Next, I decided, looking at the Delilah design for The Legend of Vox Machina (I'm so very grateful they did episode-by-episode commentary for the first 2 seasons, and I am bitter Amazon did not let them continue this for season 3), that rather than creating a pattern who would follow very closely what I saw, I would much rather like finding an existing pattern who could work with the shapes, and the colors, even if it ended up looking like an interpreation rather than THE costume. Even though I'm a control freak, I was happy with that decision. It was easier, I thought. I'm still happy with that, and it was easier and quicker than creating, but that doesn't mean that it was easy and quick in its own right...

I chose, for the skirt, the Black Snails #0414 Edwardian Skirt (Fan-Skirt) pattern. Bonus, it came with a small bustle pattern ! The bustle I ended up doing first, and honestly I'm not proud of how I sewed the bias tape on there, but my gromets look rather good ! I really recommend this pattern for beginners in historical costuming. By theb, we were well at the end of June... And I still haven't decided to go to London ! Which meant my timeline was still not rushed at all, I was enjoying life and taking my sweet sweet time.

Except than, in mid-July, when I started sewing the mock-up of the skirt, we ended up deciding on going back to MCM in October. Suddenly, my timeline was clear and incredibly close. When I said the date to my sister, she made a face, and said "are you really going to make a mock-up of a skirt, make a skirt, chose a pattern for the bodice, make a mock-up of the bodice, and then make a bodice in less than 3 months, including the time where you won't be able to sew because you'll be away from home, while working full-time on your real job and realizing this hobby will take all of your free time ?"

Yes.

This is what I ended up doing.

The mock-up of the skirt taught me a lot, including that the size I choose was (at the time), not the right one, since I simply couldn't close it. Then I indeed took a 3 weeks vacation away from home... and I still worked on the mock-up because I ended up sending it to my parents' adress, to beneficiate from my mom's advices. I also bought 8 meters (wayyyyyy too much, but I didn't know at the time) of a nice black satin coton, it's shiny ! When I came back home in mid-August, I sewed the real skirt in a record time of 2 weeks, since I already knew what I was doing thanks to the mock-up. I chose 2 sizes higher, it ended up being a stupid decision (it was too much, 1 size up would've sufficed ; and also in the meantime, I lost some weight), but thankfully the skirt has a huge pleat in the back, and I simply draped more fabric than what was indicated on the pattern. It ended up working, but in 2025 if I have the time, I will resize it down because it's simply too much fabric for nothing.

I also decided on the pattern I liked best for the bodice. Delilah's design in TLOVM has kind of a weird top, either it's a bodice with huge armor-like shoulders, with a tail rather than an over-skirt separated from the top ; or a simple bodice with and a tail and a jacket with armor-like shoulder pads. I decided my life was complicated enough, and that the jacket was not what I wanted. I found that the Truly Victorian TV462 1883 Tail Bodice pattern was close to what I wanted, and it came with 3 collars and opening neckline options, which I appreciated. Of course, looking at the cut of the bodice, which has 2 Fronts, 2 Sides, 2 Sides-Backs, and 2 Backs (I told you the cut of clothes were weird pre-WWII !!), it meant that I had to do a difficult choice regarding the color pattern of Delilah's bodice, in black and purple. I ended up deciding on the purple for the Backs (obviously this is the important color in the TLOVM design), but also for the Sides-Backs and the Sides. The Fronts would have to be black entirely, I simply could not revise the pattern and divide the pieces to have a black and purple Front ; maybe it's possible if you're and experienced seamstress, but I was adamant to not fuck this up, and chose to sacrifice the color pattern a little, and to have a wearable cosplay instead. We were at the end of August by then, and I still had to do the mock-up !!

The mock-up went well, thanks to my mom, who helped again. It was a huge help to understand how the weird cuts of fabric would end up creating a fitted bodice, because, simply looking at the pattern... it wasn't evident at all. It also helped with some resizing stuff at the waist and the shouders, and also understand how the pleating for the tails worked. The TV pattern in itself was less easy than the Black Snails one : the instructions are in imperial system (and no, Americans, you can't escape out of this one, it's just a stupid system and the metric system is better, do something I swear to god), they are somewhat imprecise about small details, and I truly think the cut of the shoulders is wrong because I ended up with an insane amount of fabric to cut just to have the boddice sit right on me. But it's fine enough.

In mid-September, my sister helped me chose the purple fabric (the black one was, of course, the same as the skirt), and the fabric for the lining. Now I want to write a paragraph for future me and others looking for advice about lining : don't do it on a 19th century piece, it's not worth it. Many reasons : 1. lining was not really a thing at the time. There were some, sure, but not really many clothes were lined. The reason lining is done since the invention of the Grands Magasins and the current fashion stores is beacuse it looks "nicer" when you look at the inside of a garment. It's simply a capitalist reason, and not a practical one, it doesn't serve another purpose except "it looks pretty and clients will buy it." 2. you have to buy more fabric, and sew more, just to do the lining. If you don't have time or the ressources, just don't do lining. 3. Yes, lining in thise case is used to finish the raw edges of the boddice, since you're supposed to turn in inside-out, and tadaaaah ! Yes, but, if you don't do lining, there are other means of finishing the edges, for example, bias tape, which require less fabric and less work. 4. Now that I've lined the bodice, I can't ever change the bodice. Or at the very least, if I want to change a thing, I have to unsew the lining completely, change the thing, and then change the thing in the lining also (since it's an exact mirror) and then re-sew the lining. What a waste of time in the end.

The reasons why I still did lining are : at the time, I didn't know any of these previous reasons, and the pattern said to do it. Since I didn't want to make huge changes to the pattern, I did as I was told. Furthermore, for the interling, I used a fusible one, since it was easier to use than baste and flat-line both the fashion fabric and the interlining (flat-lining is a process only used in pre-WWI clothes, if you want to know more, I can link ressources). And the fusible interlining is kinda harsh for the skin, and I did not want to wear the bodice with the fusible interlining showing on the inside and touching the corset. And now I kinda regret lining the bodice and using fusible interlining. Again, it's fine, and it sures looks good on the inside ! but I feel like I've worked a lot for a thing that doesn't really serve the garment.

By mid-september, I also ordered the boning (the bodice is boned, and yes, that's on top of the corset who is also boned, obviously) which I wanted to sew on my mock-up to see how to do it, and what it looked like. Unfortunately, GLS is THE WORST, and my boning didn't arrive on time, and so I had to sew them on the final garment rather than trying it out before.

Once the fabric was chosen, and cut (don't forget, cutting takes wayyyyyy much more time than you think it will), the sewing parts were pretty simple... at least for the ones I did before on the mock-up. The steps I had no experience on included : boning (hehehe) (but that went pretty well, even if it was long, because I had to sew those by hand), the collar (more to come on that), attaching the lining to the sleeves and the main part of the bodice (long but not really complicated), sewing the sleeves (same), and doing the pleats. Now the pleats on the mock-up were easy, because I watched Costuming Drama's mockup video of this pattern, and she explains it really well. But I didn't consider I would have to do acrobatic brain challenge on this with the lining, since, with the lining, you have to do the same steps, but in reverse, mirroring the fabric... I spent way too long agonizing on this (like, an entire afternoon) and once I got it 4 hours later, it was over in 15 minutes.

I did 2 changes to the original pattern, changes I was pretty confident I could do. The 1st one was the sleeves. On the original pattern, the sleeves are fine, they just lack the dramatic feels of that Delilah design in TLOVM. Come on !! See those armor-like pauldrons of her shoulder ? I got to have that ! So I bought a bundle of Truly Victorian sleeves pattern (TV495 for those who want to know), and got to work on a moderate sized Leg-O’-Mutton sleeve ! This was easy enough, since in reality it doesn't change anything to the main part of the bodice itself : your armhole stays the same. The 2nd change I did was the collar. Delilah has a dramatic 'Evil Queen' kind of collar, not too big to be comedic, but big enough to be menacing, and the original TV pattern only proposed a small ridiculous collar that won't just do for Lady Briarwood. I ended up working on the original piece, but simply making it bigger in height, and I wanted to reinforce it with both a fusible interlining and a metallic structure with wire (like those Catherine de Medici collars) ; in the end though, the fusible interlining was enough for the collar to stand up, and so the wire was not used. I'm pretty proud of those changes, I managed to do them without too much time spent and too much difficulties, and I think they work well for this cosplay.

Overall, I'm pretty satisfied with the costume, less by the bodice than the skirt, that's because : 1. I found myself with the same problem I had on the bodice mock-up : the shoulder seams are just weirdly placed, and the Fronts had way too much fabric left between the upper chest and the shoulder line, my neckline was just weird and not fitting. I ended up cutting, re-doing the shoulder seams, cutting again, re-doing the shoulder seams 3 times before I ended with something that was adequate at best, but... I had no time to do more. I still think this pattern is weird. I don't think I have proportions problems in regards to my chest/waist proportions, with or without the corset ? It's as if the pattern was expecting me to have a 250 cm chest for a 30 cm waist, which is ridiculous. 2. Even without this problem, I measured myself carefully, with the help of my sister, while wearing the corset and everything, and I still ended up with a very small waist on the bodice. It may be possible this problem emerged because I used a fusible interlining, and the bodice was very stiff and not very stretchy because of it... It became a problem when I realized I did not do buttons yet, and I would have to substract 2cm for closing the fronts, with the buttons, and without dying because I couldn't breathe. Let's just say that in the end, the bodice is closing, I can breathe, I lost some weight (not that it didn't do much because in the end, the corset and the petticoat re-add bulk at the waist ; also like I said before, it ended up being bad for the skirt waist size), and it's fine like that, I guess. But yeah, it's weird at the waist. I don't think I made mistakes though ?? It works. it's fine.

I worked on the bodice almost every Saturdays and Sundays throughout September and October, and some nights of the week too when I wasn't busy with other stuff. I have to say, thank god I was passionate about the project, becasue I really don't how I could've pulled this off otherwise. At the beginning of October, I also thought on the 2 accesories I wanted to do for this cosplay : the necklice with the 3 green gems Dellah is wearing pretty much all the time in TLOVM, and her Whispered One grimoire of magic Vax found when snooping around. For the collar, I ordered fake gems of two kinds on Amazon (I know, it's bad, but they do deliver quick and do have everything) and sewed/glued them on a simple fabric collar necklace I made, that closed with snap buttons. My sister helped me with the book, since she's a librarian, she gave me a big book that was due for pulping, and on my suggestion and original idea, she dug into it by cutting of the inner pages square-like, to form a secret compartment ! I painted the outer pages with silver paint to glue them together, and I had time to create a fabric cover with 4 green gems (my personnal touch, it doesn't exist in TLOVM) and the Whispered One symbol in fabric, sewed on top, with some embroidered lines. The friends that went with me to London can attest, I was still working on the embroidery on the Eurostar Wednesday morning, two days before MCM. Con crunch is real, you guys.

I'm hapy with the two accessories. I think they look good, and tie the whole evil-looking Victorian lady outfit together, otherwise, I would just be an extra from a Steven Moffat episode of Doctor Who.

Overall, I learned a lot this year. I am grateful that my sister and my mom were here to help me, I couldn't have finished in time without their help. I loved doing this project, truly. I loved wearing it too at the con and being recognized as a Lady Delilah cosplay throughout the weekend. I just loved doing it, and now I'm alreayd thinking on : doing some more historical cosutmes (not for cosplays, but for like historical events, or just for fun, like, the skirt mock-up I did can be worn in the summer !) + doing some more cosplays... FOR THE NEW-YORK LIVE SHOW AND THE NYCC FOR EXAMPLE ???!!! I have some ideas cooking, I'm grateful it's in 11 months though, because this new hobby I just found takes time, as is evident by this long-ass post !

[entomoblog]

Flower plantings promote insect pollinator abundance and wild bee richness in Canadian agricultural landscapes | Journal of Insect Conservation

See on Scoop.it - Les Colocs du jardin

Flower plantings promote insect pollinator abundance and wild bee richness in Canadian agricultural landscapes

  Published: 28 April 2022 Journal of Insect Conservation Stephen G. Van Drunen, Jessica E. Linton, Gregory Kuwahara & D. Ryan Norris

  [Image] Change in abundance (A) and richness (B) between years per group.

  Abundance is number of individuals while richness is number of genera for wild bees and otherwise the number of taxonomic families for insect guilds. Points represent each plot’s abundance or richness in each year, with lines connecting each plot’s points to help visualize the direction of change between years per plot. Point shape and line color represents province (AB = Alberta, MB = Manitoba, SK = Saskatchewan). Points are jittered on the x-axis to improve readability

  ------

NDÉ

Traduction

  Les plantations de fleurs à petite échelle dans les paysages agricoles constituent une stratégie de gestion de la conservation simple et efficace pour soutenir les populations locales d'insectes pollinisateurs.

  Le déclin mondial des populations de pollinisateurs est une préoccupation constante du point de vue de la biodiversité et de la sécurité alimentaire.

  Une initiative de conservation croissante dans les paysages agricoles est l'établissement de fleurs sauvages sur les terres marginales afin de fournir des ressources florales et un habitat aux pollinisateurs. Cependant, l'efficacité de ces efforts de conservation et de restauration n'est pas toujours évaluée.

  Nous avons évalué l'efficacité d'une initiative de conservation des pollinisateurs du secteur privé en (1) comparant l'abondance et la richesse des insectes entre les parcelles de fleurs plantées et les parcelles de contrôle et (2) en évaluant les changements d'une année à l'autre.

  Pendant deux ans, des parcelles de fleurs plantées et des parcelles de contrôle (c'est-à-dire des zones agricoles hors production) situées au Canada ont été étudiées pour les insectes à l'aide de méthodes d'observation visuelle, de filets et de piégeage à l'aide de bacs.

  Les pollinisateurs, en particulier les abeilles sauvages, ont été nettement plus nombreux et plus riches dans les parcelles plantées que dans les parcelles témoins. La taille des parcelles n'a pas eu d'effet sur l'abondance et la richesse des insectes, ce qui indique que même les plantations de fleurs à petite échelle peuvent être bénéfiques pour les communautés de pollinisateurs.

  Alors que l'abondance et la richesse des arthropodes pollinisateurs, prédateurs et herbivores sont restées stables ou ont diminué d'une année à l'autre, probablement en raison de conditions météorologiques défavorables au cours de la deuxième année de l'étude, l'abondance et la richesse des abeilles sauvages ont augmenté au cours de la même période.

  Nos résultats montrent que les plantations de fleurs peuvent être un outil de conservation efficace pour augmenter l'abondance et la biodiversité des pollinisateurs et des abeilles sauvages dans les paysages agricoles.

  Traduit avec DeepL.com (version gratuite)

[formations-pro]

La productivité et Excel

La formation en Excel peut être un puissant levier de productivité pour les entreprises de toutes tailles. Voici comment une formation bien structurée peut directement impacter la productivité :

Automatisation des tâches

Excel offre des fonctionnalités avancées comme les macros et le VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) qui permettent d'automatiser des tâches répétitives. Par exemple, les employés peuvent apprendre à créer des scripts pour automatiser la saisie de données, le traitement des commandes, ou même pour générer des rapports périodiques. Cela libère du temps pour des activités à plus forte valeur ajoutée.

Gestion améliorée des données

Excel est essentiel pour la gestion de données. Une formation peut aider les employés à mieux organiser, filtrer, et analyser les données, ce qui est crucial pour prendre des décisions éclairées. Par exemple, l'utilisation efficace des tableaux croisés dynamiques permet aux utilisateurs de synthétiser de grandes quantités de données et de dégager des tendances importantes.

Réduction des erreurs

Une utilisation incorrecte d'Excel peut conduire à des erreurs significatives dans la manipulation des données, affectant les décisions d'affaires. Une formation appropriée réduit le risque d'erreurs en enseignant les meilleures pratiques et en sensibilisant les utilisateurs aux pièges courants d'Excel.

Collaboration accrue

Les fonctionnalités de collaboration d'Excel, comme la co-édition de documents dans Excel Online, permettent aux équipes de travailler ensemble en temps réel, améliorant ainsi la communication et l'efficacité. Une formation peut aider les employés à tirer pleinement parti de ces outils pour une meilleure collaboration interdépartementale.

Rapports et visualisations

Excel est un outil puissant pour créer des visualisations de données et des rapports interactifs. Les employés formés peuvent utiliser des graphiques, des conditionnels de mise en forme, et d'autres outils de visualisation pour présenter les données de manière plus engageante et informative, facilitant ainsi la compréhension rapide des informations clés par toutes les parties prenantes.

Adaptabilité et évolutivité

À mesure que l'entreprise évolue, ses besoins en matière de traitement de données changent également. Les employés formés en Excel sont mieux équipés pour adapter les outils existants ou pour développer de nouvelles solutions qui répondent à ces besoins en évolution, garantissant ainsi que l'entreprise reste agile et réactive. Conclusion

Investir dans une formation Excel pour les employés est donc un investissement direct dans la productivité de l'entreprise. Non seulement cela permet d'optimiser le temps et les ressources, mais cela renforce également les compétences essentielles qui soutiennent l'innovation et l'efficacité opérationnelle à long terme.