#at least one store runs cheaper by a lot

[six-demon-bag]

i deserve a little treat for chiseling my truck out of its tomb of ice, however the price of EGGS

[queer-crusader]

Nothing brings me closer to the edge of "huh maybe I do have a touch of the autism" than shopping

[vaspider]

If you have celiac or otherwise can't eat wheat, btw, and you like bread, I highly recommend investing in a breadmaker. Even the best store-bought gluten-free bread does not hold a candle to the stuff that comes out of our breadmaker, and it's cheaper per slice even when we buy bread mix in single-loaf bags.

This is our breadmaker. Evie got it on sale, but it is an investment. I'm not going to pretend it isn't a chunk of change up front. There are cheaper ones, but the reason I like this one and think it's worth the money:

It has two smaller paddles, where our older bread maker that my mom got us and got destroyed by getting construction dust in it had one big paddle in the middle. This leaves a big hole in the middle of the finished loaf, which makes the bread much less useful for, like, sandwiches.

Zojirushi is not as well-known a brand in the US, but it's a Brand Name in Japan for good reason. Evie's had our Zojirushi rice cooker for over a decade & we had to replace the inner bowl once bc someone used metal utensils in it and scratched the non-stick coating. We expect to use this machine for at least a decade.

You can program your own cycles, which we found really useful. Evie built a custom cycle that removed the punch-down sections (gluten-free bread tends not to rise as much) and that made our perfect loaf.

A lot of bread machines produce very tall, square loaves, which are awkward to slice, store, and make sandwiches with. This produces loaves that make good sandwiches and toast, and the French toast slices don't crowd the pan.

The top heating element on this gives a really amazingly browned top crust that we definitely didn't get on our old machine.

It's so pretty.

So how is it cheaper in the long run if the machine costs $300+? A little like this:

We use Pamela's Bread Mix bc it's really consistent and easy - you need the bread mix, water, yeast, 3 egg whites, and oil. (We use avocado oil and find it best and most consistent, but regular vegetable oil works!) We buy Pamela's in bulk, and without any subscription discounts or whatever, the $48 pack of 3 bags makes about 11.5 loaves. With the cost of yeast and eggs and stuff, it ends up costing about $4.50 a loaf. (If you buy your yeast in larger bags & store it in an airtight container, you can create less waste and it's also cheaper.)

By comparison, a loaf of Franz GF Bread costs $7-8, and Canyon Bakehouse usually runs about the same.

However, that's not an apples to apples comparison because the Franz loaf is an 18 oz. loaf, whereas our breadmaker makes a 2 lb. loaf. Assuming even the lower-end cost for getting a Franz loaf at the store, an equivalent amount of bread would cost $12.42, and it's not nearly as good.

(Yes, gluten-free bread is fucking expensive. That's part of why I'm writing this post in the first place.)

Anyway, assuming you eat 2 lbs. of bread a week in your house - a breadmaker loaf, basically, to make the math simple - you'll end up spending $7.92 less on bread every week. That means that even at the most expensive cost for the Zojirushi, if you buy it at its highest price (don't do that! wait for a sale!) it'll take 50 weeks - about a year - before the breadmaker pays for itself. If you manage to get it on a 25% off sale (which we did), it pays for itself in about 9 months.

Nine months, I must stress, in which you are eating much more delicious bread.

We tend to go through a couple of loaves a week because toast, sandwiches, and melts are great food for people with low spoons.

Evie and I perfected the Pamela's mix recipe for this particular machine - I'll get it typed up when I'm downstairs next, along with the quasi-babka recipe. (Really, it's like a marble cake and babka and bread had a baby, and it's a family favorite.)

Bread good. The end.

[wingedtyger]

How to Buy a Computer for Cheaper

Buy refurbished. And I'm going to show you how, and, in general, how to buy a better computer than you currently have. I'm fairly tech-knowledgeable, but not an expert. But this is how I've bought my last three computers for personal use and business (graphics). I'm writing this for people who barely know computers. If you have a techie friend or family member, having them help can do a lot for the stress of buying a new computer.

There are three numbers you want to know from your current computer: hard drive size, RAM, and processor speed (slightly less important, unless you're doing gaming or 3d rendering or something else like that)

We're going to assume you use Windows, because if you use Apple I can't help, sorry.

First is hard drive. This is how much space you have to put files. This is in bytes. These days all hard drives are in gigabytes or terabytes (1000 gigabytes = 1 terabyte). To get your hard drive size, open Windows Explorer, go to This PC (or My Computer if you have a really old OS).

To get more details, you can right-click on the drive. and open Properties. But now you know your hard drive size, 237 GB in this case. (this is rather small, but that's okay for this laptop). If you're planning on storing a lot of videos, big photos, have a lot of applications, etc, you want MINIMUM 500 GB. You can always have external drives as well.

While you've got this open, right-click on This PC (or My Computer). This'll give you a lot of information that can be useful if you're trying to get tech support.

I've underlined in red the two key things. Processor: it can help to know the whole bit (or at least the Intel i# bit) just so you don't buy one that's a bunch older, but processor models are confusing and beyond me. The absolutely important bit is the speed, in gigahertz (GHz). Bigger is faster. The processor speed is how fast your computer can run. In this case the processor is 2.60 GHz, which is just fine for most things.

The other bit is RAM. This is "random-access memory" aka memory, which is easy to confuse for, like how much space you have. No. RAM is basically how fast your computer can open stuff. This laptop has 16 GB RAM. Make sure you note that this is the RAM, because it and the hard drive use the same units.

If you're mostly writing, use spreadsheets, watching streaming, or doing light graphics work 16 GB is fine. If you have a lot of things open at a time or gaming or doing 3d modeling or digital art, get at least 32 GB or it's gonna lag a lot.

In general, if you find your current laptop slow, you want a new one with more RAM and a processor that's at least slightly faster. If you're getting a new computer to use new software, look at the system requirements and exceed them.

I'll show you an example of that. Let's say I wanted to start doing digital art on this computer, using ClipStudio Paint. Generally the easiest way to find the requirements is to search for 'program name system' in your search engine of choice. You can click around their website if you want, but just searching is a lot faster.

That gives me this page

(Clip Studio does not have very heavy requirements).

Under Computer Specs it tells you the processor types and your RAM requirements. You're basically going to be good for the processor, no matter what. That 2 GB minimum of memory is, again, the RAM.

Storage space is how much space on your hard drive it needs.

Actually for comparison, let's look at the current Photoshop requirements.

Photoshop wants LOTS of speed and space, greedy bastard that it is. (The Graphics card bit is somewhat beyond my expertise, sorry)

But now you have your three numbers: hard drive space, RAM (memory) and processor (CPU). Now we're going to find a computer that's better and cheaper than buying new!

We're going to buy ~refurbished~

A refurbished computer is one that was used and then returned and fixed up to sell again. It may have wear on the keyboard or case, but everything inside (aside from the battery) should be like new. (The battery may hold less charge.) A good dealer will note condition. And refurbished means any flaws in the hardware will be fixed. They have gone through individual quality control that new products don't usually.

I've bought four computers refurbished and only had one dud (Windows kept crashing during set-up). The dud has been returned and we're waiting for the new one.

You can buy refurbished computers from the manufacturers (Lenovo, Dell, Apple, etc) or from online computer stores (Best Buy and my favorite Newegg). You want to buy from a reputable store because they'll have warranties offered and a good return policy.

I'm going to show you how to find a refurbished computer on Newegg.

You're going to go to Newegg.com, you're gonna go to computer systems in their menu, and you're gonna find refurbished

Then, down the side there's a ton of checkboxes where you can select your specifications. If there's a brand you prefer, select that (I like Lenovos A LOT - they last a long time and have very few problems, in my experience. Yes, this is a recommendation).

Put in your memory (RAM), put in your hard drive, put in your CPU speed (processor), and any other preferences like monitor size or which version of Windows you want (I don't want Windows 11 any time soon). I generally just do RAM and hard drive and manually check the CPU, but that's a personal preference. Then hit apply and it'll filter down.

I'm going to say right now, if you are getting a laptop and you can afford to get a SSD, do it. SSD is a solid-state drive, vs a normal hard drive (HDD, hard disk-drive). They're less prone to breaking down and they're faster. But they're also more expensive.

Anyway, we have our filtered list of possible laptops. Now what?

Well, now comes the annoying part. Every model of computer can be different - it can have a better or worse display, it can have a crappy keyboard, or whatever. So you find a computer that looks okay, and you then look for reviews.

Here's our first row of results

Let's take a look at the Lenovo, because I like Lenovos and I loathe Dells (they're... fine...). That Thinkpad T460S is the part to Google (search for 'Lenovo Thinkpad T460s reviews'). Good websites that I trust include PCMag, LaptopMag.com, and Notebookcheck.com (which is VERY techie about displays). But every reviewer will probably be getting one with different specs than the thing you're looking at.

Here are key things that will be the same across all of them: keyboard (is it comfortable, etc), battery life, how good is the trackpad/nub mouse (nub mice are immensely superior to trackpads imho), weight, how many and what kind of ports does it have (for USB, an external monitor, etc). Monitors can vary depending on the specs, so you'll have to compare those. Mostly you're making sure it doesn't completely suck.

Let's go back to Newegg and look at the specs of that Lenovo. Newegg makes it easy, with tabs for whatever the seller wants to say, the specs, reviews, and Q&A (which is usually empty).

This is the start of the specs. This is actually a lesser model than the laptop we were getting the specs for. It's okay. What I don't like is that the seller gives very little other info, for example on condition. Here's a Dell with much better information - condition and warranty info.

One thing you'll want to do on Newegg is check the seller's reviews. Like on eBay or Etsy, you have to use some judgement. If you worry about that, going to the manufacturer's online outlet in a safer bet, but you won't quite get as good of deals. But they're still pretty damn good as this random computer on Lenovo's outlet shows.

Okay, so I think I've covered everything. I do recommend having a techie friend either help or double check things if you're not especially techie. But this can save you hundreds of dollars or allow you to get a better computer than you were thinking.

[kingshovelbug]

Hii what is your best advice to younger adults trying to make it independently and make a living? In art, savings or anything you think of. Thank you in advance!

dont be too hard on yourself. its tough out there right now in regards to like everything regardless of what old people say. also this is going to be a lot so im slapping a read more on here

⭐️ first thing id recommend for anyone is to start figuring out a budget. figure out how much youre making monthly. keep all your food receipts for a month or two to see what youre spending on food. find out what youre paying for thats necessary like utilities and whats not

the goal for a budget (or at least mine) is to find a good balance of earning vs spending. im paying off my credit card right now because i ran through all my savings after we had to move last year but my goal used to be to save 1/4 of what i earned after bills and putting money into an emergency fund (usually an emergency fund is 3 months worth of expenses). but it depends on how much you can comfortably put away. if you can put more away do it. but if you never spend money and deprive yourself of joy youre going to burn yourself out regardless of what your job is

⭐️ if youre not already buy store brand for as much shit as you can. if its an ingredient i promise as someone who cooks and bakes you probably wont notice the difference. if its an actual snack it depends. again both from a money perspective and to boycott pro-isreal companies we get a lot of snacks from aldis and theyre awesome. i dont miss anything from mars, oreos etc when i have my chocolate coconut wafers

⭐️ if you have any subscriptions and you need to get rid of something you can probably cancel them. for *most* things theres some kind of free alternative. but again just like with a budget. there are going to be some subscriptions that make your life easier and while youd save money without them it would lead to extra work and burning out. ex willow has kofi gold because it has really cool extra features that help with running the shop. but for streaming services? im going to be so honest. both to save money and with how cheeky streaming companies (in a bad way) have been getting… you can find whatever you want to watch online for free

if you need to use anything from the microsoft office suite, but youre not required by youre job to specifically use microsoft, libreoffice is a free alternative that i actually like better. its what i use to help willow run their shop and its free

for art programs. if you still have photoshop switch. not just for money reasons. adobe is getting bold with what they can claim as their content and use from what people produce in their program. the switch isnt the easiest but there are a bunch of alternatives. some free some like csp offer one time licenses which are so much better than subscriptions. will has spent almost $2k on photoshop and after effects from using it as long as they have. when csp is $50 and they like csp better anyways. i also know of krita and fire alpaca which are free

⭐️ also theres stuff about being an adult that i thought you had to pay for but you dont? like for car insurance i went through an independent insurance agent and they found me a cheaper plan than i could find myself. i didnt pay the guy. they get a cut from the insurance company for finding them another customer. some banks or credit cards offer financial advising sessions to users. its boring but if you can get a copy of your health insurance see if they have any free shit on there thats available for you. my brother gets free doctor finding? like i can call them, tell them what specialist he needs and instead of me calling around to find one that can take him, they connect me with someone. my work offers 3 free therapy sessions (better than nothing) and free food that i take advantage of

⭐️ i think one of the biggest things that makes an impact for us is researching before buying stuff. sounds like a no brainer but you dont just want to find the cheapest deal. you want to find the best bargain, the best bang for your buck. whats the best quality thing you can get that you can also afford? itll prevent your from having to replace stuff all the time and by extension spending more than you need to. we have nonstick pots and pans that are scratched and starting to peel (which apparently can cause cancer??) that were cheap because of being on sale. now after looking into what makes quality cookware i know i should of just slowly bought stainless steel

⭐️ last big one. credit cards. unfortunately we need them so find one with a low apr and that offers decent cash back. use it up to like 20% of your limit and pay it off every month. focus on using it on things that will get you cash back so you can essentially get free money

im sure i could ramble more but this is already super long

[ccalhoun]

≻ ┄┄ ♡ ┄┄ ≺

carlisle cullen x m!werewolf! reader

warnings: male reader, werewolf reader, imprinting, twilight lore, omegaverse?, forbidden love, reader gets hit by a car lol, love confessions??, esme doesnt exist (still love her tho)

wc: 2.1k

cut for length!

you drove into town in your dad's truck, old and slow. your family hated going into town, and you never understood why, which is why you were on a sort of errands run for them. of course you knew of the cullens in all of their vampire-ness but you never found it as much of a problem, what were the chances you'd run into them anyways?

the laundry list of things to do was long, longer than you'd expected, so last minute you called your friend jess to help keep you company on your long day ahead of you. you picked her up from her cute but humble house and headed towards the first place on your list, newton's olympic outfitter's. "aren't you and one of the newton boys together? mike, right?" you asked as you looked at the list on the seat next to you while pulling out of jess' driveway. it'd been awhile since the last time you'd hung out even though you considered jess to be one of your closer friends, the reservation didn't get good enough phone reception to call as frequently as she wanted.

"uh, no, we broke up actually," she mumbled quickly from the passenger seat next to you. "oh, damn, sorry. what a bitch," you added the last part jokingly, trying to cheer up from the topic. you both laughed it off and continued the drive until you got there, continuing your conversation as you walked into the store. "i just need to get a few things for my sibling(s) and dad, shouldn't take too long," you assured her as you quickly found the first thing on your list. the day went mostly like this, stopping by random shops for the few odd items before the final store on the list, just getting a few groceries that are cheaper to buy in forks. you entered the store and followed the routine as normal, getting whatever you needed and getting out as soon as possible.

caught up in your conversation with jess, you hadn't even noticed the small red car speeding through the parking lot. everything happened so fast all you can remember is walking with jess, hearing her scream, and then being on the ground of the parking lot. "tyler! what the fuck is your problem!" jess yells, you only vaguely hear it before she rushes over to help you sit up. "at least call an ambulance asshole, don't just stand there with your door open!" you heard her yell again before she started to check on you.

before you knew it, you were being taken into an ambulance and rushed to the hospital. the hospital. a shiver runs down your spine and you hear the heart rate monitor pick up its beeping as you realized you're going to the one place in forks where you have been forbidden to go by your family.

you start panicking, trying to get out of the ambulance in any way you can.

"hey, calm down, we're going to put you under for the rest of the ride, okay? we can't help you if you don't let us," you hear the nurse in the back with you say after trying to get you to stop freaking out.

you woke again in a hospital bed, the smell of medicine invading your nostrils immediately and making you sneeze.

"ah, you're awake, and just in time. the doctor's on his way right now." the same female nurse says before finishing up on writing your vitals and waiting for the doctor. your heart drops when you hear her mention him, no doubt it was carlisle cullen. what if he killed you in the hospital, right there, he probably had manipulation powers to make everyone think nothing happened.

"i don't need a doctor, i'm fine, let me go," you rush out as fast as possible while trying to sit up, the action only making you dizzy as the nurse gently laid you back down.

"once the doctor says you're fine you can leave. you only have minimal bruising and a few cuts, you'll be out of here in the blink of an eye," the nurse comforted you, and it seemingly worked as the heart rate monitor went back to normal. you took deep breaths, only a few minutes with the monster and you'd be able to leave and never go into forks again.

you heard footsteps approaching and turned your head to the door, the door knob turned and your heart dropped again, fear pulsing in your veins more than it ever has before. then he stepped into the room and you were filled with a new feeling, your heart started beating faster, and it was like you had tunnel vision on him and him alone. you couldn't hear the busy sounds of the hospital, and you surely didn't notice the nurse standing too close for your liking anymore. the first thing your brain registered was that the doctor had the best smell you've ever encountered, like vanilla, honey, and lavender all at once.

"-use me, sir?" the nurse said, only hearing the last part of whatever she was saying. you adjusted back to reality quicker than you wanted, then you noticed the doctor standing in front you, trying to get your attention for an unknown amount of time.

"cullen," was all you managed to squeak out, staring with wide eyes at the man in front of you. he was better looking than anyone you'd ever seen, like god himself graced the doctor's face. he wasn't what you expected from the stories you've been told. you were told his eyes were empty and loveless, but as you looked at him his eyes were warm and more full of love than a father seeing his newborn baby for the first time.

"i see you're from the reservation, brave of you to come here," his voice was angelic, like he was singing a song only for your ears to hear. you gave him an alarmed look before you could stop yourself, was he threatening you? was your pack right?

"what?" you stuttered out and you were met with a soft, too soft to be real, chuckle and a warm smile from the doctor. "i don't see many of you in the hospital, i was starting to think you've all been avoiding it because of me,"

"they have," your words came before your brain could filter them, his frown was quick and the cutest frown you've ever seen, the kind of frown that made you want to hold him and kiss it away. "sorry, just something the tribe elders told us to do, it's not like any of us hate you," you stumbled over your words, and lied through your teeth. some of the members of your pack hated the cullens like they'd been personally attacked by them. the smile on his lips made your heart skip a beat, which was well documented from the heart monitor you nearly forgot about.

the doctor, carlisle you think, shone a light in your eyes, and then checked your ears, and listened to your heartbeat. his hand was on your chest, and you're sure he could hear the affect it had on you.

"well, good news, you can be released and you already talked to the police so there's no need for you to stay." you didn't think it was possible but your heart dropped again, you'd almost wished you got hurt worse so you could spend more time with him. "i'll finish this paperwork and get it on file as soon as possible, you should be able to leave within the hour. is there anything else you need?" you barely heard the rest of his sentence, still focusing on the fact that you wouldn't be able to stay around the doctor for longer.

"um, would it be possible to talk to you? in private?" you asked sheepishly. you were 110% sure you were imprinting on him, and you were even more sure he was definitely a vampire. you didn't hear any heartbeat, and you were quick to notice his larger than normal canine teeth. your question was met with another warm smile that made your heart restart and a nod.

"yes, of course, let me get you unhooked from the equipment and i'll walk you to my office, okay?" his voice was soft and reassuring, like he knew what you were going through. there was no way he knew that much about werewolves, right? just as he said, he helped you get the various wires off and led you to his office. his door read 'doctor carlisle cullen', you had remembered his name correctly. he opened the door and held it open for you, the gentleman you could only dream of. he closed the door gently but swiftly behind himself.

"please, take a seat. what were you wondering about?" he asked sweetly as he took his own seat and set a few papers before himself. you didn't plan to get this far, you hadn't figured out what you were going to say, so you just said what came to mind first, "i know you're a vampire," your words came out jumbled. he stared at you with a blank look, millions of thoughts racing through his head. you picked up on his reaction and rushed out the rest, "i'm not gonna expose you, everyone in the pack knows," hardly comforting, but better than him thinking you want to ruin his life. he let out a small noise of understanding, and that itself made your heart skip another beat.

"what is it you came here to tell me?" his voice was colder now, but still melodic like he planned his words for centuries.

"i'm sure you know about, you know, the whole werewolf thing," you paused as you spoke, looking at him to gather his reaction, and he nodded to signal you to continue speaking. "do you know anything about... imprinting?" you whispered the last word like it was poisonous.

"ah, you came to ask about that. i can try to help as much as i can, but wouldn't you prefer someone from your tribe to explain it to you?" carlisle's words were soft and understanding, with a hint of genuine curiosity.

"no, uhm, hold on i think i need a minute," you stuttered out, trying to figure out the least awkward way to explain you think he's your soulmate. you thought for a minute, carefully putting a sentence together before speaking again.

"doctor cullen," you started, "carlisle, i think i," your voice was caught in your throat, but you tried your best to finish you sentence. "i think i imprinted on you," you ripped off the band-aid and rushed it out. you stared at your shoes, though you'd rather be looking at carlisle's godly beautiful face. after a moment of silence you peeked a look at his face to gather if he was upset or not. you couldn't pinpoint the emotion on his face, shock? fear? anger? your heart started beating at an irregular pace again, "i-i'm so sorry, i'll go," you felt tears in your eyes and started to gather the small bag of belongings you were given before his voice stopped you.

"no, no, you're okay. i'm sorry, i didn't know that was possible," for once his words didn't seem as well thought out, it was jarring but his words flowed together as beautiful as always. "and you're sure?" he asked.

"yes, i think, i don't know. i haven't felt this way before, it's just like it was described to me. like you're the only person who actually matters anymore," you spoke freely, which surprised you.

"hm, well, i'm new to this too, we can figure it out together," carlisle's voice was warmer than ever, you felt like a blanket was being placed over you. you smiled and were going to stand up when he was suddenly standing right next to you, you jumped slightly and he let out a playful laugh, his laugh was beautiful, like angels singing in a choir. "apologies, forgot to warn you,"

you stood up and hugged yourself to him, his arms wrapped around you in the best hug you've ever had. he was cold, but you were sure you were warm enough for the both of you. you never wanted to separate from it, and let out a whine when he pulled away, surprising yourself more than you thought you could today.

"i'll tell the hospital something happened with one of the kids and we can talk about this more, if you're okay with it," you agreed quickly, the other patients could wait, how much trouble could happen in forks while you hog him for a little?

≻ ┄┄ ♡ ┄┄ ≺

[notnights]

your gangle cosplay is really cool, do you have any tips for someone trying to make their own?

Thank you! I appreciate it. And it depends on what you're going for with it! I've seen a lot of different Gangle cosplayers with different interpretations which are creative and fun to make I imagine! So I can't really advise any specifics on crafting etc since I don't know what you're going for.

For me when I cosplay I want to get as "accurate" as I can with the character design. I unfortunately am not very good at sewing and shaping and stuff but you can see that didn't stop me, I made it as well as I could. And Gangle is obviously one of the more difficult characters I've ever decided to cosplay so wasn't ever going to be accurate with her unless I did like... a puppet method or something. (From my understanding this falls under the "creature" cosplay category?)

Idk if these will help at all, but it's good to start with visualizing ideas you want to try for before hand:

Ideas for a Navi, Bill Cipher and Gir from Invader ZIM cosplays that went no where.

Thinking outside the box also helps in the sense of, other forms of crafting, skills or items, you wouldn't think to use might help with what you're making!

Examples:

I used fursuit methods to help build my NiGHTS cosplay, I also used quilting methods to help make Gangle's ribbon limbs.

When making Circus Baby I wanted an exhaust fan that actually spun, turns out there are plenty of tutorials on how to make your own fidget spinners so used that method to make a light weight one out of cardboard and pennies for that piece! When making Gangle 2.0 to keep the shape I wanted to infuse wire into the edges of the ribbon limbs. The best method for this would have been to hand sew floral wire to an extra piece of fabric with fishing wire, then sew that one in with the edges of the the limbs. I however was only 1 and a half week away from a con and still had a ton of pieces to finish so I got a bunch of cheap wired ribbon, and infused those inside the limbs. (Kept the shape well enough but I'm at the point where I want to remake them again lol.)

Instead of using traditional adhesives like hot glue, maybe something like silicon adhesive can be used and other more hardware based unities can be used. Hardware stuff in general helps. Similar stuff they sell at craft stores can often be found cheaper at hardware stores. I've had the benefit that my father is a handyman so I grew up with a lot of that tool usage, and loved going to hardware stores with him because sometimes I'd find something that would make me be like "WAIT I CAN USE THIS For that art project I've been trying to do."

This admittedly also comes from my doll customization hobby, which believe it or not, has a lot of power tool usage to make those pretty little dolls! Some of these things I used for my Gangle. Making cute ribbon outfits or bows for dolls, you have to burn the edges of the ribbon you've cut, least it fray (in Gangle 1.0. each ribbon you see has been lovely burnt by candle LOL) when Gangle 2.0's ribbon fabric it would run after getting snagged on stuff, I made a "sealer" I'd use for making doll wigs. Watered down glue (this case Modge podge because its already watery) and painted it over any places that would receive a lot of friction as the solution admitted made the satin a tiny bit duller so didn't want to paint the whole thing with it.

Sometimes you can use the methods/shapes from existing clothing to help you make what you want. When I made my NiGHTS cosplay I found a little decorative halloween jester hat which I used as a reference to make a pattern for NiGHTS' hat/horns.

Speaking of, and also in relation to that hardware thing. Thrift shops are a great way to find random pieces of stuff you think can help with your project especially if they're going to be items you cut up/modify anyways. I wanted the illusion of floating when making my NiGHTS and musing about a Tatsumaki cosplay so wanted to use tacky clear platform heels to make it happen lol. And thrift shops have a ton of used shoes. I only needed the platform part and remove the straps so didn't need anything brand new. While I didn't find clear ones at the time I did find other platforms that helped with my NiGHTS, the feet were so big on the costume it shadowed the heels anyways and kept the illusion. (bonus concept of that Tatsumaki idea)

When I needed a squeaker for a cosplay piece I just bought a 99 cent dog toy and disemboweled it for one. In the same kind of "cheat" I just got a wielding mask, removed the mask part, and attached my Gangle mask to it to make a way method to take it on and off.

Anyways that was a lot of examples, but they're times when my dumb dumb brain was like "wait!!! I don't have to do this the hard way and get what I'm looking for!!" and it saved me from said hard way of getting what I wanted.

[kirkirk]

I think I know what Rejet's next move could be for DL (Soft theory)

-- Rejet's slogan for 2023: REVAMP -reform-. From IwaD's X account

I have a hunch they might have cooked an epic comeback in 2023 and we're already seeing the first hints about where it all could lead to.

Today I was welcomed by every diaboy as kids when I opened twitter and, despite being a pleasant surprise (they all look adorable) it got me thinking.

Before anything, keep in mind that this is only a thought exercise. I myself admit this scenario might be too optimistic.

This last year, IwaD became quite active on their socials (at least from my POV). Doing polls about which merch lines people prefer, minor coloring preferences, interest checks... In their ongoing projects, they intend to open a new cafe, concept room, and store.

Lately, they've been doing a lot of recruitment posts, even going to the extent of making their own website for job listings. That one being:

In their tweet about this, IwaD says the following:

Clearly hinting at Rejet coming back into game/CD development (even tho he might be just doing some damage control).

Coming back to their new merch release (at the time I'm writing this, Millennium Summer, the one with them as kids with sunflowers), the title instantly catches my attention. As the last time they did merch of their younger selves, the set starts with the word 'Millennium'. As if they were trying to build a separate SUBbrand around them as kiddos.

To me, this is interesting in itself, because I enjoy marketing a lot, but this could hint at something bigger. Another odd thing they did lately was releasing YUI MERCH!!! (happy screaming SFX) and for it, they did 7 whole Yui outfits. Kind of a LOT for people that before weren't even thinking about doing any merch with her.

If you think about it, there are tons to say about the diaboys' childhoods. It's true that we know some big canon events, but, taking into account how many years they've been alive, it wouldn't be difficult for them to add some new content there. I know I don't talk for everyone here, but I believe their childhoods to be one of the most fascinating aspects of DL's lore.

Hear me out, what were the last story-related things Rejet released? Daylight and Youngblood. Yes, Youngblood, the mangas about them as children. They were already thinking about this before going on this nightmare of a hiatus.

I truly believe Rejet's next move could be a new game with their childhood selves as protagonists, with Yui taking the role of a storyteller/narrator and using some of her merch outfits as new sprites. She could even be a Karlheinz-like figure, that tries to give advice to the children from time to time.

I haven't researched the personal situation of all of DL's seiyuus, but I know there have been some controversies (such as Ruki's VA getting seriously canceled when the whole DL hiatus thing was starting). This could help avoid any backlash since they'd have to cast new people to do their kiddie voices. This would also be way cheaper for them since most of DL's seiyuus are very famous. No matter how I think about it, this would be a flawless move for them. Heck, they could even lure into DL some of the people who are afraid of the brand due to its original bad press if they turn it into a whole subbrand (which they're already starting to do) with a separate new name and a pretty makeover on top.

On the other hand, if they want to go for drama CDs first, I don't think they would do them from their baby POVs, depending on the voice, they could sound really annoying for a 1 hour CD + I doubt people would buy them at all. In that case, they might do a first run of CDs with the original VA cast (this would also allow them to test whether the public cares about canceled VAs) with our guys retelling a main event from each of their childhoods. This could be a direct segue into a game that would explain each of the new old conflicts.

Again, I know this is foolishly optimistic, I myself I'm hopefully skeptical, but I hope you've enjoyed this thought exercise. Who knows, maybe there's a timeline where Millennium Devils is a thing, or maybe I come from the future.

Update: THEY JUST DID A 4KOMA WITH THEIR MILLENNIUM SUMMER ILLUSTRATION I'M VIBRATING I KNEW IT AAAA

[bogmonstergeneral]

One of my favorite things in the whole wide world is an ultra-accurate cosplay. I’m talking exact name brands. Obviously, this can be tough, because media in question will very rarely go out of their way to tell you what the character is wearing. Shoes, in particular, are very difficult.

I really like shoes. More so, I really like good leather shoes. The kind that last you your whole life. Currently, I’ve been hyperfixated on Metalocalypse, and today, we’re talkin boots.

Welcome to:

Bog’s Boot Basics: Metalocalypse Edition

I think people are scared of leather. I’m here to tell you that leather will not hurt you. You will not save the planet by buying a pleather boot. Actually, not only is pleather horrible for the planet, it’s also gonna cost you more in the long run because pleather isn’t built to last.

Say it with me: Leather is more sustainable than pleather.

I’m serious. Stop buying pleather boots off amazon for your cosplays. Stop buying pleather, period.

Most of the boots (and sneakers) I’m showing you today will not only elevate your cosplay, but also last you for the rest of your natural days. If you buy them secondhand, they have probably lived longer lives than you. Leather fucking rocks if you take care of it.

This all being said: These are not super budget-friendly options. Good new boots are an investment, and sometimes you have to pay a little more. If you’re not able to do that, these can often be found on ebay at lower prices, and very often at second-hand stores.

Ok, that aside, we can jump in.

I’m stealing a pic from the comic because it shows all their shoes. Although Skwis and Toki’s boot colors are actually reversed here - Skwis wears black boots, Toki wears brown in the show. Blah blah, anyway.

Nathan Explosion

Nathan wears some sort of single buckle, black tall boot. For our sake, we’re calling them biker boots.

Single buckle, slightly slouchy at the ankle, low heel. No laces or visible zippers.

Nathan does, in fact, ride motorcycles. Because of this, I’m going on a limb and saying these are actual biker boots. Nathan also, in fact, has money, and Harley Davidson boots are a fantastic choice for this.

Here’s a pair of Harley Chalmers with an extra buckle - no foul there, these are cunty as hell and I’d totally wear them anyway.

Pro: Fucking brutal

Con: Brutal fucking price tag at $200 new.

Honestly, if you’ve got the money and you want a sick pair of boots… buy em. Harley’s last forever.

The Harley double-zip riding boot is a slightly cheaper option, sitting around $100-$120.

Honestly, these are gonna be easy to find. Your keywords here are “Tall biker boot with buckle” or something along those lines. That’s doable. I also see a lot of secondhand Harley’s going for really reasonable asking prices, so always check all your thrift stores and ebay (depop and mercari are kinda a crapshoot, but always worth looking.)

Skwisgaar Skwigelf/Toki Wartooth

These are the boots that made me make this post, because I saw them and immediately thought “there’s no fucking way they’re walking around in those 24/7,” because those are old school field boots.

Ask any person who’s ever ridden a horse over the age of 30 if they can take a look in the backs of their closets, because they most definitely still have a pair of these boots. Every equestrian had at least one pair of these torture devices, and they will outlive you.

Here’s an example of a black pair and a brown pair:

Pros: You can get these on ebay for anywhere between $20-$100. Facebook market place is full of them too.

Cons: These were made for you to wear while sitting on a horse all day, heels down. When you walk in them, they will pinch the everloving fuck out of your heels, and this leather is too thick and stiff to soften. If you’re gonna walk around in these on a convention floor, please bring a change of shoes because you will fucking need them.

But these are so easy to find and they usually shine up really well. If you don’t have leather conditioner (which you should if you own leather shoes) olive oil works in a pinch.

You also usually have a couple different calf options here, so you can tack on “wide calf” or “tall calf” or “slim calf” etc etc depending on your needs.

Your keywords here are “Old school equestrian riding/field/hunt boots.” So fuckin easy.

William Murderface

It pains me to say this. But that dildo fuckhead is wearing Demonias.

Look at him. He knows what he’s doing. I use the term Dildo Fuckhead affectionately btw, please don’t mistake me for a Murderface hater. I love him.

Honestly, I think you could get away with calling these mid-calf’s, but they’re probably technically tall boots.

Obviously I hate Demonias. These plastic fucking emo Barbie boots are worth approximately $8 and a cup of Kraft mac n cheese. They will cost you well over $100. Fuck that.

I’ve heard that older New Rocks are good alternatives? I have a friend that backs that claim up, but I don’t have a pair to confirm that. I’m sure there’s some Doc Martens you could sub in but I couldn’t find any matches under $400.

These are a pair of New Rocks. They’re… that I guess. Kinda cool. He’s probably not even really wearing Demonias but like, that’s what they are. To me. In my heart.

Here’s a pair of Demonia Riot-18BK. I guess. They’re about $133.

Murderface somehow has the most difficult boots for me to find. Plenty of cheapo Temu options, but I’m not here to show you those. Please let me know if you buy a pair of Temu boots so I can come to your house and break every fucking lamp you own.

Your keywords are “Tall boot with buckles” or “tall biker boots with buckles” or anything along those lines.

I feel like you’ve got a little more room for interpretation on Murderface’s boots, so long as their tall boots and they’ve got the buckles, you’re golden.

Wild Card Round: Pickles the Drummer

Man is wearing adidas!!! Pickles cosplayers are the comfiest motherfuckers in the convention hall.

Campus 00s, Samba OGs, Handball Spezial, Superstars, and Racer V 2.0 are all going to get you extremely close renditions of his shoes. The racer’s are my everyday shoe when I don’t wanna wear boots and those fuckers are. So comfy. Wear em without socks, who fuckin cares. I bet Pickles doesn’t even own socks.

If you’re going for Snakes N Barrels Pickles, try looking up “red Justin cowboy boots.” Justin’s are my go to brand because they last forever (I have a pair from the 70s) and they’re pretty comfy. They’re work boots, so they’re made to be worn/worked in all day.

If you’re made of money, buy yourself a pair of Tecovas. Those are the nicest cowboy boot you’ll ever own.

Blam! Bootboard moodboard! I probably should have done this with all of them.

Anyway. Have fun, remember that inaccurate pieces don’t make or break a cosplay, this is just for fun and to elevate whatever you’ve got going on. Wear your shoes until they fall apart (that’s what i do. get your moneys worth), be kind to your feet, be kind to your shoes (actually you can be pretty harsh to leather so long as you do a little aftercare. this is an innuendo, but also please clean and condition your leather pieces.) and be kind to the planet. Leather is better than pleather. You are paying a premium for plastic. Don’t do that.

(Lemme know if this is cool/useful btw. I would be so happy to find boots/brands of clothing for your cosplays. I think my inbox is open.)

[mong---mong]

How You Met SKZ (Changbin)

Sorry for not posing for a while, I'm trying to consistent, but I noticed when i post a lot, all my post don't get noticed, and I know you guys like my stories, so I didn't want you guys to miss them! Anyway here is Changbin's Version~

-x-x-x-x-

Meeting Changbin was a godsend for him, even though you had just done the humane thing. You see when they met Changbin was in a relationship.

That day you were at the mall, shopping for business clothes to take on your trip to present a slide show in Japan.

You wanted something to blow them away, hopefully you would’ve gotten promoted to CEO, even though you were young only 21 but you had a drive for success. What you didn’t know at the time, is that the company you worked at was trying to collaborate with Seo Industries.

In the end would mean there was one CEO. You find yourself infront if the first store, the crowd had thinned out by this point, all you see was a well-built man in a suit, on his phone waiting on a bench outside the store.

You walk into the store, which seemed vacant minus the employees, and 4 customers that were huddled around something. You go over to the cheaper section, while you had money, you spent it well.

You gazed at the beautiful dress suits, and the dresses, when you stopped by one. A red off the shoulder dress, that had a short train at the end.

Checking the price you knew for sure, this wasn’t suppose to be in this section. It was so beautiful though, and you rarely treated yourself. So this was the perfect time.

You grab the dress, imagining yourself in it, as you go to look at other clothes. You didn’t need new ones, but you liked browsing in case there was a beautiful object that just needed to come home with you.

That’s when you overheard the girls talking. “I can’t believe Changbin gave you a $70,000, engagement ring!” Your eyes widened, and you couldn’t help but eavesdrop. 

“Well I always looked at it, whenever I had the chance to, at least he isn’t a complete idiot and catches onto things..” The lady says, you thought this was something sweet, a kind gesture. $70,000 was a bit pricey, but who were you to judge, you were about to pay $300 for this new dress.

“So Sumin, are you going to sell the ring and run off with the money?” One of the friends asked, catching your attention. “Why of course, Changbin had spent so much money on me, I’m sure he is almost out of money..” the lady named Sumin replies.

You felt your heart do a flip as you heard something you weren’t supposed to hear. You tried to keep walking, before the lady steps in front of you. 

“What a cute dress..I’ll pay triple for it, if you give it to me” the girl said, you were so angry about what you heard you forgot every bit of mannerism your parents taught you. “You won’t pay for it your fiancé will!”

The girl scrunched her face�� and turned towards the door leading into the mall. “Changbinnie!” She whined.

The male that was sitting outside the store came into Sumin’s comfort. “I love that dress, and I want that for my bridesmaids, but for our seamstress to make it she’ll need the exact copy” she puts in a fake put and Changbin looks at you then Sumin.

“Well she does have it and it’s not like she stole it from you, if you already asked if you could have and she said no, then that means no, and maybe you’ll find something that you like even more!” Changbin said so positively.

He seemed like such a nice man, the lady scrunched and said. “Do you know who I am?!” She spits in your face as you say “You're a scandalous, evil woman, who wants nothing but to hurt the people that love her!”

You blurted, and she snatched the dress from your hand walking up to the counter. You never would’ve cared, or taken it too seriously. You feel in love with that dress though. You were shocked to see yourself getting so emotional.

“I can buy you anything else in this store, just please don’t take it away from me.” You said, shocked to find yourself begging.

“Hah! After what you called me, I don’t think so, and you can’t even afford some of this stuff, you probably have to get a loan for this dress alone!” She laughed, with all her friends, the only one not laughing was you and her fiancé.

You pulled a business card out of your purse and said “L/N Y/N, CFO of Shin Industries..” her eyes widen at the as she took it from your hands.

“Sounds tempting, but I don’t think you understand, I want these for my bridesmaids!” She says, and you rolled your eyes. “You mean for the wedding that your not even going to show up to, because you plan on taking your engagement ring and running away?” 

Sumin was about to slap you when Changbin’s hand stopped her. 

You watched the couple fight, and it ended up with you having the dress, Changbin having the engagement ring, and a couple that broke up.

“I’m so sorry, for all the drama…I caused.” You said guilty as you bowed to him. “Don’t be, you just saved me from marrying that woman..”

You nodded feeling shy as you gripped the dress, “I should pay you back for the dress, since she used your card..” you said, grabbing you wallet. “No need, think of it as a thank you gift..”

You smiled and said “Atleast let me do something for you..” Changbin smiled and said “Your very persistent..fine, try on the dress, and we’ll call it equal.” Shocked by the request you go into the changing room, and change into dress. 

You step out onto the platform, and look at the mirror, Changbin was behind you a smile on his face. “What do you think?” You asked. “My opinion doesn’t matter, look into the mirror, and ask yourself what you think.”

You smiled looking at yourself. “I think I look stunning..” Changbin grinned, “I couldn’t agree more..”

-x-x-x-x-

The length is not biased towards the artist, I just have different I ideas for different stories!

Have a wonderful day~

[icequeen1371]

You can tell people that grew up, or are still middle income, or being taken care of by middle income, parents, or grew up in a house where there’s money. But they didn’t consider themselves rich or are rich. Just saw someone post something supposedly helpful. A list of 13 things people “usually have in their kitchen“ but can’t think of what to make for a meal. Meanwhile, no, not everyone has avocados and green bread or eggs let alone, fruits and vegetables in their fridge. Do you want to talk about making a meal? How about you? Talk about the bread, the ketchup, the mustard, no eggs, pasta, and maybe a can of pasta sauce, and a leftover container of butter in the fridge. Make some pasta, put a little bit of margarine on that to loosen up the noodles, a splash of sauce, couple of cheese slices to melt within the pasta stirred up at salt and pepper a bit of garlic powder some Parsley, because those are all found at the dollar store. And you have yourself a meal. If you do have eggs, you could put those on toast and make a toasted egg sandwich. If you’re lucky enough to have peanut butter in the house call me you can make a toasted peanut butter sandwich. A lot of it depends on bread. If you have no bread, depends on pasta. Pasta is really cheap but the dollar store. There’s not much room in a freezer when you’re low income because you deal with the freezer that you have in the apartment that you’re renting. So bread has to be a weekly thing, make sure you have $10 on top of the fridge or in the cupboard put away specifically to go buy bread every week. Because a lot of times if you don’t have bread, you can’t eat. Bags from the dollar store are a good thing, makes you feel like you actually have something to drink besides water from the tap. Get a bag of sugar and use it sparingly don’t have super sweet tea. Otherwise she’ll run out fast. Milk always runs out. That’s why I always kept a can of carnation milk in the cupboard just in case. You can always water it down for cereal if you’re desperate. If it’s cold, you can’t really tell. Canned vegetables, canned fruit. They can last along time you don’t have to worry about them. Going to waste in the fridge. Ramen noodles, there’s 1 million recipes for those out now. Get all your spices at the dollar store. Eggs and tuna are always great protein but don’t spoil fast. Learn how to love drinking water from the tap. Buy a case and refill the water bottles but don’t forget to clean the lids and the rims at least once a week and if the bottles get cloudy? Throw them out and save for another case. Yes, I said save because some people don’t have a three dollars to spend on a case of water or don’t want to spend the money on non-reusable plastic. You can always pick up some water bottles from the dollar store that are reusable and fill those up in your fridge. Just don’t forget to wash them with the dishes at least once a week. Can’t exactly offer those people when your mouth has been all over them. Lol so always make sure you at least have a couple bottles put away for guests. Get to love no name brand soda. When you have money to treat yourself get namebrand. But not like a case of it or something. And a case is always cheaper in the long run than just one 2 L bottle, so you can afford it ration it out. It’s not actually that bad. Cinnamon sugar on toast, a can of tuna mixed with a Lipton sidekick creamy Parmesan with half a can of peas, mix that up well with a little salt and pepper and you’ve got tuna casserole for two people. Three people if you have a little salad on the side. or you can make garlic bread. Even if you’re using slices of bread. Toast them, then butter them, add a little bit of garlic and herb seasoning to each one with a little handful of cheese, or even just some Parmesan cheese shaken on top. Let that toast, got some real cheap and garlic bread. Pretty tasty if you’re in a pinch. And you’re not bougie like people are now. I’ve had to put ketchup in hot water with half a can of mixed vegetables to make myself some soup before. Cheap eating is a skill.

[zhalfirin-binds]

Making paper backed cloth for bookbinding

I tried my hand recently on making my own book cloth, not because I can’t get any, but because there are so many fun patterns and colours around. To be honest, I expect bought book cloth to be superior for all the ways it’s finished to be more resilient towards dirt and and such, but that doesn’t say self made cloth is bad at all! There are different ways to achieve a paper backing, I went for the backing with paper and starch paste because a) if I mess up I can always do it over no harm done, no material lost b) I have my doubts about the durabilty of heat activated glues and their durability c) using paste is just so much cheaper

So first up was cooking starch paste. I don’t have a ratio for that. I put a spoon of starch into a pot, add some water to get rid of any lumps and let it soak a few minutes (usually just long enough to get some water boiling), then I slowly pour over the boiling water while stirring the starch and at some point it turns from white to translucent and lumpy and I stop when there’s a certain thickness. When the paste has cooled it press it through a mesh and add some more water as needed. (It’s usually rather thick at that point.)

(and yes, my mesh is a nylon sock. I don’t own a fancy horeshair sieve and this stores much easier) Then I prepared my cloth and the paper I was going to use for backing. The final sheets have the warp and the grain direction run parallel for better usage and less warping (at least that’s the theory, I have yet to use that selfmade cloth to find out). The limiting factor here was the width of the web of tissue paper I used. Because I also need the paper to be 2,5cm -5cm larger than the piece of fabric in order to get a smooth sheet of book cloth. Having around 5cm for an edge makes it far easier to get the paper on the cloth even if there is a little skew.

I moistened the pre-washed, but un-ironed fabric (I have some cotton and synthetic fabric, none of them are elastic) and smoothed it down to a flat surface that won’t be needed for a couple of hours (preferably over night). Glas would be best but I didn’t have that, so I picked two work benches for that. I used plenty of water, which was a good thing, I’d say because even when smoothed down, a bit more water made the synthetic fabric wrinkly again. 

I sprayed the later front side, turned the cloth around and sprayed the backside. Brushed the water in with a clean brush until the fabric clung smooth to the surface.

Then I spread the paste on the paper and put it on top of the backside of the fabric, brushed down the paper on top of the cloth with a clean and dry brush to get rid of any airbubbles. Starting in the middle of the fabric and brushing along the long side to the sides to push out the air. Then I gave it a brush down along the short side too. (the slightly brighter stretches of paper on the left are where the air is still caught under the paper, on the right is the paper all smoothed down)

Sometimes I had to lift the edfe of the paper carefully to let out some air or get rid of a too large wrinkle that was building up in the paper.

I weighed the cloth and paper down with blotting paper and blotting board as well as some wooden boards, but only to make them dry faster. In consideration of the table surface I cut only one corner loose after the coth had dried and loosened the rest by running a very flat bone folder all around the edges.

I had great success with the cotton fabric. only minimal bleed through of paste at the edges and a slight smudge in the middle of one sheet.

the synthetic fiber...   not so much. While others before that one had taken well to the paste, the one with those shades of blue and purple did not. it was a mess to smooth down and apparently not smooth enough. when I pried it loose it was all bubbly and a lot of fabric was not adhered to the paper backing.

I scrapped that one, I pulled the paper off, washed it out again and this time pressed it while drying, so it would be smooth before the next attempt.

Cleaning up the surface was easy by the way. It was all plastered with dried starch paste, but I simply sprayed it with water, let it sit for a bit and wiped it off. No scrubbing needed at all.

[doctorstrangereview]

0085: Marvel Feature #2

Cover Date: March 1972 On-Sale Date: October 19, 1971

Despite Namor and Hulkie being huge grouches at the end of the last tale, Doc manages to get them together again. They face another world ending threat as a local cult conjures Dormammu. Roy is still writing and Ross is still drawing. Sal Buscema is inking Ross's pencils and it's a huge improvement. The lines are steadier and cleaner. At 28 pages this is the longest story in which Doc appears to date.

We start with a cold open. In the shadow of Bald Mountain on the night of October 30th, there's a church service being held for some reason. Nearby, up the mountain, a bunch of kooky cultists dressed in multi-colored, but blandly designed robes are dancing like they have neuromuscular issues. All this ridiculous activity has a purpose. They are summoning the Dread Dormammu. Surprisingly Dormie actually shows up.

Dormie explains that Halloween is the only time he can cross into Earth's dimension and take it over. And he needs a sacrifice. If they head cultist with his pointy scepter/spear thing cant find the right sacrifice, he takes its place. As the cultists are called witches, this isn't the most original of storylines so far.

The next stop is Doc's Sanctum Sanctorum. Sadly, Ross makes the Vishanti window look like a badly drawn pentagram. The cultists/witches are crawling all over the building. That's right, Doc still hasn't beefed up his security and it seems anyone can still walk right in.

Doc has an eerie feeling and decides to look into the Orb of Agamotto and try to discern the problem while the cultists play peeping toms and look on Doc. Ross does give us a cool image of Dormie invading our world.

Doc mentions remembers Dormie's self inflicted curse, but thinks he might try again anyway. Doc won't stand alone. He looks in on Hulkie happily walking through some forest and spies on Namor taking a nap on a beach. Suddenly The Ancient One's astral shows up and says "head to the sky and I'll tell you more about Dormie." Doc goes ghost and heads up. Once in the sky, The Ancient One disappears.

It was a trap. Doc's ghost was lured away by the peeping tom cultists while they trapped his body. This has happened at least once before. You'd think Doc would have taken some precautions against this. Like beefing up security on his house.

Doc is unable to pass through the shield on his body and Wong has just entered the room. The cultists beat the crap out of Wong on their way out. It turns out that Wong was on the phone with Clea before being so rudely pummeled and she runs over. Ignoring the fact that Wong has been bashed, Clea asks where Doc is and he tells her he doesn't know. Clea attempts to use the Orb of Agamotto to find Doc. This triggers something that calls out to Namor and Hulkie, who start to head to Doc's Sanctum.

Roy then inserts himself and then wife Jean into the story. He asks fellow creator Tom Fagan about bald mountain who answers with lots exposition and creepy stories. We spend the next couple of pages following Hulkie and Namor having a few meaningless adventures on their way to Doc's Sanctum. We burn another page as Roy, Jean and Tom attend a costume party.

Finally we're back to the action. The cultists/witches have arrived at a lodge on Bald Mountain and are taking Doc's body up to it. We find out that Doc isn't merely a sacrifice. Dormie will be possessing him.

Namor and Hulkie manage to bump into each other and are about beat each other. Fortunately they're right by the Sanctum and Clea takes them inside before the police catch up with them. Clea's like "Namor, you can't run around half naked. Here are some clothes." Then she hypnotizes Hulkie and turns him back into Bruce. This was much cheaper than a spending spree at the local big and tall store.

The quartet start out to find Doc. Swinging back to the cultists, we find out why Dormie want's Doc's body. This is apparently a loophole around the curse as he won't be in Earth's dimension physically.

Our ragged quartet of heroes are taking the bus to Bald Mountain! In a decade or so they'll be able to borrow a quinjet from the Avengers, but now, saving the world depends on having enough bus tokens. The quartet arrive on the mountain and try to sneak up to the ceremony. Brucie manages to alert the cultists by knocking a rock out of place. Oops!

Fortunately Namor is there because Brucie is still too stoned to become the Hulk.

Brucie gets jumped by a horde of the cultists and this gets him angry enough to finally go jolly green giant.

Hulkie and Namor continue to fight while Wong says he feels funny. Turns out Doc's ghost has been hiding in him all this time. Doc leaves Wong to check out his body and it turns out the protective spell isn't there anymore and he can go home.

Doc enters the portal to face Dormie directly. Doc is holding his own. The open gateway is sapping Dormie's strength. Their battle is echoed above Bald Mountain.

The mountain starts to crumble. Namor and Hulkie protect Wong and Clea from the avalanche which crushes the cultists. Dormie realizes he doesn't have the mojo to beat Doc and gives up. Doc escapes the gateway just as it closes. He rescues Clea and Wong as he re-enters the Earth's dimension, but believes everyone else is dead. Hulkie and Namor surprise him by climbing out from under the rubble.

This is definitely another Doc-centric Defenders yarn. It's another baddie from his rouges gallery. Namor and Hulk are drawn in even less willingly than the previous story. Clea and Wong's concern for Doc amplified by the Orb of Agamotto create a compulsion in them to come and help. Man, these early comics have real issues with consent! It's not the most original story. Witches, ceremony, sacrifice and demon. It's like an old 60s Hammer movie except the demon is Dormammu. The writer inserting himself into the story isn't new either. It was done a decade ago by Lee and Kirby in Fantastic Four #10. It's an unnecessary writer's conceit. At least this was just to provide some exposition that doesn't really further the plot. It's hardly as bad as when John Byrne decided to hop along to the intergalactic trial of Reed Richards/Galactus.

There's lots of padding. We don't need pages of Namor and Hulk trying to avoid the cops while journeying to the Sanctum. We don't need the massive amount on unnecessary exposition from Tom Fagan and the Thomas's. A good five pages could be excised with no detriment to the story. Rather they should have been repurposed to expand the battle between Doc and Dormammu. It's just rather mediocre.

[clatterbane]

One of my next little experiments in line: making some of my own real mirin! Which you just can't buy here; it's all the nonalcoholic seasoning syrup, basically. Anything I turn out is probably going to be at least as tasty for cooking.

It's apparently really easy to put together a reasonable version, too.

Shochu (rice-based neutral distilled stuff) is traditional, but vodka apparently works just as well, besides being so much cheaper and easier to find in Western countries.

Not that this is really a cheap project, involving specialty ingredients--plus even the "cheap" vodka runs over $20 a bottle here. 😭 Gotta love the state liquor store. Good extra incentive to get into homebrewing for anything over like 3.5%. It really is just as well that I very rarely drink distilled stuff. It's mostly a cooking/baking ingredient to me, like the finished mirin is going to be!

Bit of a shame that I didn't think to ask Mr. C to pick up any vodka or other booze when he was driving through Denmark/NL/Germany to and from the UK. Hell, even grab a bottle of cheap vodka from Lidl somewhere along the way. The stuff is significantly cheaper if you even pop across the bridge to Copenhagen here. (So that's what a lot of people do. Mobility problems suck.)

Anyway, info about homebrewing mirin is not the easiest to find online. But, the madlads over on r/Koji are a bad influence! A few threads if you're interested in a little more practical info and discussion:

First mirin, first cooking test

Is it worth making your own mirin?

Every time I’ve tried to make mirin this happens.

You are basically just having the koji work its sweet aromatic enzyme magic on rice in an environment that's already too alcoholic for anything to grow in there, then let it age some. One way to make flavored vodka!

I don't have any bigger glass jars now, so I guess this little experiment will end up split between a couple of pickle jars. It should work. That's kinda how we roll around here, anyway.

[dyketectivecomics]

Where do you READ! Cause like, I now have a job! (Money!) And I would like to not pirate these anymore. Also cause reading them on my phone is really hard. My phone is too small. :(. And my library really only has new 52 Batman, no nightwing, redhood, or anything (big sad). So where you can buy/read dc would be lovely! ✨✨

CONGRATS OMG!!!!! (Tbh my answer overall is gonna be to pirate first where ya can before deciding if it’s smthn you wanna ‘own’ lol SOME SHIT FUCKIN SUCKS and I’m like ‘glad I read you, I never want you in my house’ lol)

So in no particular order:

For backreading, I’m one of the idiots who got sucked into DC Universe (Infinite? Now??? Idk The App™️) when it first dropped as an all-in-one reading/streaming app. Now it exclusively is a catalog/archive. Which is cool!! And they’re constantly trying to expand it & they include ‘new’ releases on a slight delay (abt a month after so if I wanna be Completely caught up with certain runs I’ll 🏴‍☠️that shit if I need/want to) I use it on both mobile & on my tablet/laptop. It’s VERY nice although the bat-bias is pretty obvious on it, there’s some runs/minis that I can’t find bc they haven’t archived them fully/at all yet 😭 Batfam is p much all there tho from what I recall so if that’s your starting pt you’ve got a lot to get thru! 👍

For physical issues/trades, I’m a buy local/in-person believer but this is where i split! For trades, I’ll make a trip usually to the city where there’s more shops to choose from & either buy or order thru them. For single issues I actually love the thrill of Hunting for them thru thrift shops/antique stores/garage/estate sales. I call the place I live a Big-Small town so there’s always Somewhere nearby that I can hunt & usually at least Encounter A Comic even if it’s not one I’m looking for 😂 it’s a lot of fun!!! Just flipping thru them even!!! (& most of the time ppl offloading them have no idea what they’ve got, which is lucky for me lol)

My last resort: getting friends & fam to order online for me lol (the birthday/xmas gift route haha) I don’t like ordering things online if I can absolutely help it! It’s a dumb principle considering how much more convenient it would be (& how much cheaper sometimes) but it’s one I try to stick to as much as possible nonetheless!!! My friends esp let me rant & rave to them abt my favs & diff things I’m reading. It’s not too often, but I cherish each of my trades that were gifted to me so so so much 😭

[starlit-mansion]

i might make the post where i was very critical of laundry stripping specifically in one person's 50k note post unrebloggable soon because my problem with the original post is that it's a bad resource for probably 90% or more of people and situations, and i don't think mine is a sterling resource either. I just think that it's important to be really critical of life hacks, ESPECIALLY one's with really dramatic visual stim elements like seeing a bathtub full of brown sludge as proof it's worked.

So my slightly more articulated points are:

Based on OP's comments, OP has uncommonly hard water and issues with at least one of the big common detergents, and specifically was talking about very old worn clothes. All of these are probably not applicable to you if you don't think your clothes are gross right now. If they smell and feel clean as is, then you don't need to torture them for no reason.

You can make your own laundry soap, it's cheaper than storebought but also particulate inhalation is no joke, and you might be at some risk from it from borax... if you can buy borax; it's banned in some places. i'm not fucking doing that, because i want the laundry detergent that i like that already has blueing in it.

The particular practice of alkaline soaking isn't bunk, but it can be harmful to a lot of fabrics, is better for whites and lights rather than your dark clothes (again, dye leech!)

You can just do this with oxygenated cleaners (oxyclean), and you don't need to make your tub unusable for 12-24 hours. the tub thing is a very bright white surface that you can see a very visible change in, but you can soak things IN YOUR WASHER. if it's modern, it probably has a setting for it. if there's not a reason for you to haul heavy wet clothes from your bathroom to your washer, you don't need to see the dramatic visual results of soaking, the same way you don't need to see your dirty dishwater when you've got a dishwasher right there doing the work for you

the real thing that experts have to say on it is just wash your clothes more effectively. don't overload the washer, use 2-3 tablespoons (or the 1 line in the cap) of detergent per load, don't use scented additives or fabric softeners, look up how to clean your washer, add white vinegar into the fabric softener dispenser or add it in and run another rinse to deal with any issues from your clothes not being rinsed out. this is not as tiktokable but it's easier and cheaper and overall a good choice for the environment

if you need to do this for stuff, you probably need to do it once before doing laundry in the above way to maintain it, to strip out buildup from fabric softener, deodorant, body oils, lotion, etc. I'd only bother with it if the laundry was gross! I don't actually have stuff that feels and smells nasty. I used to have a polyester dress that had a body odor funk, but i stopped wearing it and donated it to a thrift store. It probably could have stood a good presoak to get rid of the gunk. i'd have done it in the machine drum or a bucket next to the machine, personally.

really, this is just rebranded presoaking. it sucks that most of us aren't taught how to do laundry correctly and there is a genuine pitfall of residue-leaving products that make things worse, but i also think Big Laundry is less out to get you than it seems. washers are helpful and efficient and we don't need to start mistrusting them and doing laundry by hand

line drying in sunlight is genuinely nice and also good at getting rid of germs and saving power and wear on the dryer. I can't do it where i live now but i used to. If your really want to do something old-fashioned for the aesthetic, a line of nicely hung clothes is lovely. (You can pop them in the dryer for 5 minutes to get rid of crunchiness, esp on towels)

I would be hypocritical if i said wash stuff less. I don't, because something in my head says it's gross. i want my clothes clean and i won't rewear stuff after 8 hours of wear unless its an emergency or a polyester skirt. however, you can hang and air stuff for longer wear. just don't do it for stuff directly touching your junk and pits and feets. wash that.

...also fast fashion is not purposefully trying to get your clothes dingy to make you buy more. the other problems with it vastly outstrip those and that was the one part of the post that genuinely bothered me. why invent a problem when you already are dealing with another separate problem (people don't know how to do laundry effectively and rely on info from commercials, and also there's a lot of hard water in most places.)

finally: research this stuff on like at least one reputable news/interest site. they're gonna write articles about every trend some tiktokker popularizes, that's good clickbait right there.