#bc I always find myself wondering which brushes other artists use

[koa-z]

Nagito sketch, gonna TRY (emphasis on try) painting it but god only knows how that's gonna go lmao wish me luck

Brush used (free): "ラフペン" (Rough Pen) from gyuukotu's "Fill Set (塗りセット)", content ID 1695210

Program: Clip Studio

[daily-dose-of-imagines]

𝕄𝕒𝕥𝕔𝕙 𝕌𝕡♡

hi admins! i hope you're doing well! may i request a haikyuu matchup please? and may i stay anonymous? Thank you!

I'm about 160cm tall and a little chubby, have thick long hair that reaches my lower back, brown eyes. My mbti is intj and my zodiac sign is scorpio! Im quiet and shy with new people, mostly because im not sure what to say/talk about and i worry if i'll say something wrong, so i find it hard to initiate conversation first and make new friends by myself. With friends or acquaintances i prefer to be listening rather than talking due to the same reason but also because i like listening to other peoples stories as well. I have a small circle of really close friends who im comfortable with tho and thats where i can really talk and joke around a LOT, like people who i dont know very well would most likely be surprised by my actual personality, it just takes some time for me to open up :') With close friends, I'm more witty, talkative and affectionate, both physically and with words. I always try to be supportive and caring to my friends, but i also won't sugarcoat advice if it's something they need. I have a "bad" sense of humor, which just means i will laugh at the unfunniest dumb jokes and puns bcs i genuinely find them funny.

I find that i overthink and worry a lot, and i get frustrated with my lack of social skills sometimes. Like i wish i can be more open to people and i want to try new things but i just get scared of stepping out of my comfort zone and also afraid that people would find me weird and judge me. I also get stressed out easily by responsibilities(?) Like i have a to do list in my brain of assignments, exams or other things i need to do so it'll always be in the back of my mind and i can't really take a break peacefully until everything's done, although thats quite rare as im in medical school right now and have exams at least twice a month :'). Im also insecure with my body most of the time but im slowly trying to love myself more :) my favourite physical feature is probably my hair. I just love having it touched or played with or getting it braided, etc.

My hobbies nowadays are mostly watching stuff. I'll watch movies, tv shows, musicals, plays, youtube videos or anything rlly. I don't have a favourite genre either, as long as i find it enjoyable i'd watch it. I also like playing games, with my recent obsession being animal crossing :) I read fiction novels too sometimes. I just really like relaxing and chilling in bed during my downtime to recharge my energy, especially after a long day or after going out, though i dont mind doing it with another person if im comfortable with them. I'm not a very sporty or artistic person either but i play several musical instruments sometimes and i love listening to music while doing other things. I'm somehow very good at playing with kids though? Like toddlers, especially. I don't know why but I'm good at entertaining them i guess hahah so i dont mind babysitting my young cousins usually.

ok thats all i have, sorry if its a little long! thank you so much!!

»»————-　♡　————-««

Hello sweet pea~! Of course you may! I’m so sorry this took so long to get out~! Thank you so much for requesting with us~! I hope you enjoy who I’ve paired you with, and as always thank you so much for your love and support for our blog~!

» » Admin Ko

𝕀 𝕊𝕙𝕚𝕡 𝕐𝕆𝕌 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙...

ᴋᴇɴᴍᴀ ᴋᴏᴢᴜᴍᴇ

Practically the same as you, Kenma is one who isn’t necessarily shy, but finds it a hassle to interact with people. He’s not friends with many, and considers his closest group of friends to be Kuroo and Hinata (with exception of the volleyball team). You two meet really through a mutual acquaintance (Hinata) and it honestly hits off from there. He appreciates your quiet spoken personality and immensely enjoys how kind you are when listening to other’s problems and issues. 

Kenma will be surprised once you begin to open up out of your shell, but it’s not unwelcome. Rather it’s a breath of fresh air from him. In comparison to Hinata’s sunshine like attitude, yours is like that of a warm spring day that he can lounge in forever. It’s to your surprise that besides playing video games, Kenma actually enjoys to de-stress by braiding and playing with your hair. It’s a feat that you don’t exactly except from the quiet setter, but it’s not unwelcome. To him, it’s absolutely endearing when he sets down his controller or phone to see you with sparkling eyes and freshly brushed hair. 

Contrary to your overthinking and worrying, Kenma will be the one to help ground you and remind you of the factual evidence whilst making sure you’re not on the path to an anxiety filled panic. Not only that, but he understands your frustration in wanting to be able to communicate freely with others whilst being yourself. Besides that, Kenma is no stranger to disliking or getting out of his comfort zone. In that aspect, he can relate to the anxiety and nervous build up before a change. 

When it comes to self love, he’s adamant in showing you how wonderful you are. It’s not often that he will compliment someone, but he makes the effort for you just so you remember how gorgeous you truly are to him. As for your hobbies? The moment he sees you playing animal crossing he’s demanding multiple island dates, and will most definitely gift you everything he receives in game. Anything rare or hard to create, he has already sent you the finish product along with the DIY. It’s one of his favorite types of dates with you. Besides watching movies in bed, he absolutely loves to lay side by side with you whilst you both explore the world of Animal Crossing. 

[cuziloveyou7]

15 questions

I was tagged by the always wonderful: @randombtsprincessa ofcourse!

Tagging: @everyone who wants to do it, @taevolucion, @an-annyeoing-writer, @kittylefayy, @oheyura, @http-je0n, @swthhhie

1. It’s your birthday! What did you ask for and did you receive it?

Okay so I'm the most basic person because I never know what to ask for. I usually ask for money or gift cards so I can buy my skincare or make up (which I don't use tbh but I just love make up so much!!!). Love to get flowers! Got them once from mom! My mom does have a whole list of ce moi... so far she promised to get me but still haven't received....

2. What was the last song or album you listened to?

Okay so imma do both! Last song was Badass women by Meghan Trainor (I needed happy and confidence) and last album was Eric Nam's The other side!

3. What is your go-to snack when you’re hungry or bored?

Ehmmm... so I rarely eat unless I'm actually hungry (blame the eating disorder, I'm good now tho but old habits die hard) so skyflex maybe? Because the only time I do do this is when it's period time and it's just a mess with what I want to eat!

4. What is your morning routine?

On a work day I wake up at 5 am, take a shower, wash my face, dress half way, skincare, eat, brush my teeth, dress fully, go to work. On days off I set my alarm at a comfortable time, slowly wake up, either shower after getting out or just lazy around the living before taking a shower, eat and play games, make some moodboards, day dream or go out if I have anything planned. I'm having a gap year so yeah imma take it slow! Can't do much with Rona anyways!

5. What mythical/cryptic creature would you be?

I was highly convinced I was the embodiment of a unicorn but I don't think I deserve that title. I wish I could be a Valkyrie because they badass. But I also kinda wanna be a mermaid/siren or fairy/fae/pixie! Idk man lemme be all!

6. How do you interact with someone that you don’t like?

Kinda nonchalant... idk I be nice and be normal but I don't put much effort in that person.

7. How do you define a toxic person?

Yooo! Das hard tho! Because I've met different types of toxic ppl. The ones I usually interact with are usually takers and I've always been a giver! I'm working on getting the right proportion of both because either one is very unhealthy on it's own. It's like ying and yang, you gotta find balance peeps! Ohh and toxic ppl usually make it so you think you're always in the wrong and at fault..

8. Have you ever been to a concert or fan meet type of event? If not, would you want to?   

This is a sad story... I've only been to 1 concerts in my whole 20 years of life... would've been 2 in july but no BTS for me thanks to Rona.... I would love to go to more concerts in the future when it's possible again! But for now stay safe loves!

9. Do you believe in astrology? Why or why not?

Eehhh.. yes and no? Like there are certain aspects I do. Also I'm more into the spiritual side of it? If that's what you can call it tho? Like the random posts you see on sm I don't take to heart. Also those magazine astrology is junk. Idk man it's hard because I also think you define you! You are your own person and that's the tea! Bc if I was to completely believe it I would be a pessimistic, workaholic who is most likely obsessed with money and success...

10. If you had only one sense (hearing, touch, sight, etc.) what would you want?

Sight! I have so much respect for people who can't see or have really bad vision. I can't imagine not being able to see all the wonderful things life offers❤

11. Who is your favorite celebrity or idol?

BTS! Tbh I used to have a lot of ppl on this list but everyone so problematic, so far BTS aren't problematic and just overal sweethearts and baby! It's some of our toxic amry fam I wanna bash sometimes..

12. If you could talk to your favorite celebrity(ies) for a limited time, what would you tell them?

Like, thank you! For real! These guys are like a remedy for whenever I'm down or when my severe mental health issues start acting up again.

Also you guys are awesome, be healthy, be happy, be safe, never ever doubt yourself cause you're all doing a great job. Nobody knows what they're actually doing, life is weird but from what I can see you're doing a great job at it. One day I want to be able to help and impact others lives as much as you guys 💜

13. I’m taking you out on a date and it’s your choice. Where are we going?

YOOO!!! I have been thinking about this a lot as of recent years! Since romance seems to be non existent until now (someone was flirting with me for the first time and it was awful but a fun experience hahaha) I never thought about it. I knew dinner is off the table, because I just don't enjoy eating out. At first I was like going to the film is great, I don't have to talk and it won't be awkward. But that's just awful because how we get to know more things about eachother? So what I would really enjoy is going to an amusement park/carnival or fair (whatever it's called) or like fun game things like lasergaming/paintball/karting/arcade/ those wood climbing things? Idk what it's called. It's so much fun, it's active and you're getting to know each other! It doesn't feel formal and stuck up. After sometime I would also enjoy going to art galleries or museums, picknicks are cute too! But I feel like those are more intimate so I want the fun and crazy stuff first hahaha.

14. Do you like sweet or savory foods?

Savory kinda gall but I do love myself some sweets. So depends on the food.

15. Do you have any band merchandise or merchandise from any of your favorite artists? If so, what?

YES MA'AM!!!! so most is bts! Got key chains, BT21 YALL!!! album! Rubber bracelet, posters, pins and a gorgeous bag designed by my gurliepren! Also got an exo chain from a friend and that's it so far! I want more, A LOT MORE!!! because I stan enough peeps!

[ruvigapo]

Hi do you have maybe some tips for someone who is learning how to use water colour? What brand of water colors to use etc. ??

Hi! Sure i guess.♡ Keep in mind that while i wouldn't say i'm a beginner i'm definitely still learning too.

I will uh.. i'll edit this post this afternoon with some tips lol (note to self to not use the tumblr app in the morning lest your thumb slip and post an unfinished post XD)

((Or maybe i am still a beginner, idk. Okay yeah i'm a beginner but i can give some tips.))

Okay so, i'm home. Been a long day. Here are some tips.

Honestly though, i'm Definitely not an expert when it comes to watercolour specifically. I've used it since i was a kid but i only really got the hang of it resently and i'm definitely still learning.

1. So honestly my first advise is to just look at a lot of different tutorials and ask a lot of different people. This goes for most mediums, but there are a lot of different ways to use water colour to achieve the look that you want and a lot of people do it differently bc it's so versitile.

2. This is a given, but honestly, there's no better teacher than experience. The more you try something out and try doing it in different ways, the more you'll be able to find what works for you. That's really important i think.

This is a tangent, but I took a water colour summer course once and i learn a lot of cool stuff, but i also learnt through a lot of trial and error that my style of water colour was very different from how it's traditionally taught here. Partially because i'm impatient and can barely wait for the layers to dry (this, btw, is honestly a must in water colour tho so that's really gotten better on my end with practice) and partially because a lot of the techniques i learnt were good for landscape painting but dificult when drawing more complicated pieces in my opinion. They're still great techniques but i also learnt to take inspiration from other sources that more closely match what i like to paint.

And the more i learn the more i find that i am also able to incorporate traditional techniques that before seemed very dificult for me.

3. As for art supplies, i honestly wouldn't worry too much about it. Especially as a beginner. I always say that the tool doesn't make the artist, the artist makes the artist. In the end, the most important tool you will ever need is your mind.

I'm also not very good with what brands are high quality and which aren't so there's that frankly.

I'd say ask around and look into what brands are available to you. Most standard water colour sets are good and last a long time. Then you can of course expand your tool arsenal. I'd recomend a bigger pallet just because i'm the kinda person who really enjoys mixing and trying out a lot of different colours and therefore need a lot of space to mix colours.

Also i'd say look into what type of brushes you prefer, and pay attention which brushes are water colour brushes and which are acrylic brushes bc they're pretty different.

Really high quality brushes are usually made with animal hair, which makes it able to hold a lot of water and pigment. I don't like them much personally bc i don't use a lot of water for my drawings as a general rule (mostly because they're doodles and the paper in my sketch book doesn't hold water all that well). (And also sometimes the hairs fall off from the brush and get stuck in my drawing 😬... they're worth checking out though.)

But try out different types of brushes and see what you like. It might be tempting to get a very tiny brush for tiny details but honestly, a medium size does the same work just fine with a light hand in my opinion. And depending on wether you want to paint big or small, what size brush you need will vary. I know that art supplies can be expensive though, so don't feel like you Have to get the most expensive thing when you're just starting out.

4. Speaking of just staring out... honestly, don't even worry about using up your supplies and feeling like every single thing you make has to be perfect. It's not going to be perfect. And not only is that okay but it's nessesary. Not to mention that perfection is wholy a myth and can't be achieved so don't even worry. Quantity over quality i always say. The quality will come with time and work. Which is why i always recomend cheaper brands anyway because you will be painting A Lot to git gud, as they say, but that might just be me.

5. Back to brands

Honestly Please invest in a good paper at least once. It doesn't have to be Fantastic, it just needs to hold water. I'm not even joking, the quality of your paper does wonders for the quality of your drawing. Can you make water colour look good on normal paper? Sure. Case in point, all of the things i paint. But honestly, if not for the sake of a result, then try it out for the sake of experience. Try different things. See what works for you. I honestly do recomend starting out with a good water colour paper since the result will be miles better and you'll feel way more encurraged to continue. That's the one supply i'm adamant about trying honestly. But again, budget wisely young padawan. And if you ever feel scared to use your supplies bc they were expensive and you don't want to waste it.. again nothing is a waste, everything you draw is stored as knowlege in your brain that you'll use to make better art in the future. Nothing is a waste. But if you're like me and the anxiety really hinders you, just get a cheaper paper. I like to paint in my sketch book bc it feels like a diary to me and it doesn't have to be perfect and if i screw up it's still fine. I'll tape it over and start again.

Okay so.. i realise that this is rambly and maybe a bit preachy and not very specific. Starting out can be scary and you want all the things in the right place and you want things to go well every time you paint even though you know it's not going to at first. But you just have to start somewhere and keep going from there. Bc if you never start, where will you be?

So honestly, if you don't have any supplies on hand, just go to the nearest place that sells art supplies and get yourself some good paper and a water colour set and just go ham trying out the colours.

Here are some of the water colour things i've watched over the years to help me in geting started.

This last guy i only found the other week. He does a more trafitional style, more in line with how i was taught at that one summer class thing. So it's always nice to look at different ways to do the thing you want to do.

6. Water colour to me has always been tricky. It's water so it flows, and for a while, that was frustrating because i wasn't able to control it i thought. I prefered using markers but honestly, markers are way more expencive than water colours and you can't mix them and get as much if a clean finish, so now i only use water colour to colour my drawings.

But for a while i avoided water colour and instead opted to use guache. Guache is mostly used in illustrations bc they're easy to layer since the paint is opaque. It's much more forgiving than water colours, so if you want, buy a couple tubes of guache and try that. You don t need that many. I use cyan magenta and two types of yellow as well as white. Any art teacher will tell you that with practice you can mix almost every colour from those colours. I almost never use blacj anymore. Unless i'm lazy, in which case i'll jusr add a layer of black water colour on top of the guache. (GUACHE CAN BE EXPENSIVE THOUGH, DON'T FORGET TO BUDGET)

There are opaque water colours but most aren't i believe. That's where the main difference between guache and water colour comes in. See, in water colour, traditionally, you aren't supposed to use white to lighten a colour. Instead you use water to dilude the pigment. This gives a much more clean and crisp finish. You can do this with guache also, but since quache is already opaque it will still have that same grainy look wether you dilude it with water or mix it with white or both. I mean... i personally love the grainy look so... it's very story book-ish.

With guache bring opaque that also means you can paint over mistakes and start over pretty much, so again, guache is much more forgiving. Once the white of the page is gone when you use water colour, you can't get that back without adding white guache on top, which honwstly just looks messy imo. So be aware of that.

7. Let layers dry before adding another one or the colours will bleed together. Learning to be patient is key. But if you're like me you can just use a hair dryer tbh.

8. If you're using a good paper, you can experiment with a lot more water. Taping down the paper helps bc the paper will swell a lot and buckle when you add a lot of water. (Press it between a butt load of books to get it somewhat flat again).

You can try taking a spunge or a wide brush and add a layer of water before adding the pigment. It can have some interesting results.

You can also leave the paper dry and just paint layers like you would with markers. Both work. Water bleeds more but that's really cool in landscape painting so if that's something you want to try, def experiment with letting the colours bleed together.

9. Oh and don't forget to swatch out your colours when you get them. Water colour dry lighter than it looks when you put down the colour, so swatching helps with determining what colours you want where.

There are So Many videos on the subject honestly. I like to watch videos while i paint. It's fun.

Okay so this is long enough i think. I barely grazed the tip of the proverbial iceberg but i hope it helped.

I really encurrage anyone who knows their stuff abt water colour to add on to this. I really don't want to spread false info. These are just my two cents on the top of my head.

Which basically just boils down to

JUST DO IT

I honestly tell myself this every day. And if i can do parkour then you can paint.

Good luck and have fun! 👍👍👍

[paradoxicalpatton]

Fanders Secret Santa!

@starswingsandthings @secretsanders

Hello there! I’m Patton, your Secret Santa! I read through your wishlist, and unfortunately I’m a terrible artist. I am however, a pretty decent fic writer! So I thought I’d write a cute Prinxiety fic as your present! I didn’t really have anything to go off, so I googled some Christmas prompts and found one that I thought was perfect. I hope you like your present, Happy Holidays!

Prompt: To impress them, they learn all of the words to their favorite Christmas carol. And they doesn’t even like carols. Or Christmas. Or singing.

Pairing: Prinxiety

Au: Human! Au - Virgil is waiting at home for his housemate Roman, who goes to visit his parents for Christmas. However this Christmas, Virgil realises his true feelings for his best friend.

Word Count: +1.5k

You can click here to listen to the song Virgil sings!

The sound of the crackling wood from the fireplace filled the apartment, the warm light touching every object in the small living room, shadows resembling Christmas stockings covered the walls. Sitting on the sofa was Virgil, his favourite constellation quilt that Roman had made over his lap. On the small side table he’d moved next to him was a cup of camomile tea, his phone, and Roman's gingerbread candle. In his hands was ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’ by Agatha Christie, a book his brother Logan had recommended to him. Looking up at the wall, Virgil noticed that the clock read 9:00. “Roman should’ve finished dinner by now.” he thought to himself. Placing the bookmark in his book, Virgil closed what he’d been reading, and replaced the book in his hands with his phone, sending Roman a message.

Emo Nightmare: sup ro, how's dinner with the fam?

Prince of your dreams: Why hello my dark and stormy night! I believe to be having a wonderful time, but I wish you were here with me.

Emo Nightmare: so do i, i could video call if you want? maybe i could give you your christmas present bc you won't be here on the day

Prince of your dreams: Oh Virgil that sounds splendid! Let me grab my laptop!!

Emo Nightmare: cool, ill grab mine too i guess

Virgil put his phone down gently on the book, and bent over to pick up his laptop off the floor next to him. He quickly opened it and put his password in before opening the video chat app. Roman's account switched to 'online’ and Virgil hit the call button, Roman answering quickly.

“Virgil! How is my chemically imbalanced romance?” Roman waved excitedly, his hair bouncing lightly. Virgil laughed quietly, a small smile tugging at his lips.

“Hey princey, I'm good. Pretty alone though.” Virgil looked up at the screen, lifting the hood of his jumper over his head. He let himself smile at the sound of Roman's laugh.

“I'll be home in a week Virge, did you open the present I left for you?” Roman adjusted himself so he was lying down on his stomach, reaching out of frame to grab his hot chocolate.

“Yeah, I did. Thanks Ro, it means a lot.” Virgil grabbed his own mug, taking another sip of his tea, Roman clapping excitedly in the background.

He'd had trouble figuring out a good present for Virgil, they may have known each other door a few years now but his purple haired friend was still a mystery. Eventually Roman bought him a new quilt set, most of it purple with black cats on it, the perfect thing to match the rest of his room. Virgil, on the other hand, had an even harder time than Roman. What could he have possibly gotten him that his creative friend didn't already have? After months (yes, months. Virgil spent months thinking of something) of planning, Virgil finally thought of it.

“Actually, I have something for you as well. It isn't the best gift ever, but I put a lot of effort into it.” Virgil rubbed the back of his neck, looking down at his lap sheepishly.

“I'm sure I'll love it no matter what! After all, a gift is a gift.” Virgil glanced up and smiled, Roman's deep emerald coloured eyes reassuring him. He slipped in some earphones and pressed play on a song in his phone.

“The fire is burning, the room's all aglow. Outside the December wind blows.”

He remembered when they first met, at Logan's Christmas party. The fireplace was lit, a warm light covering the room.

“Away in the distance, the carollers sing in the snow.”

The next Christmas they went out as a group to go ice skating. A group of people walked by singing carols, Roman joining in from afar.

“Everybody's laughing, the world is celebrating, and everyone's so happy, except for me tonight.”

They'd spent every Christmas together since they met. But this year Roman went to visit his family, leaving Virgil alone. On Christmas.

“Because I miss you, most at Christmas time. And I can't get you, get you off my mind.”

Virgil spent everyday of December leading up to Christmas wondering why he couldn't stop thinking off the royal pain in his ass that he called his housemate.

“Every other season comes along and I'm alright. But then I miss you, most at Christmas time.”

He asked Logan what it could be, but to no avail. His logical friend smiling sweetly as he told Virgil to ask Patton instead.

“I gaze out the window, this cold winter's night. At all of the twinkling lights.”

Soon enough Virgil asked Patton about his situation, his usually emotional friend smiling sadly. He knew exactly what it was, and he knew Virgil wouldn't like it.

“Alone in the darkness, remembering when you were mine.”

No. Virgil refused to believe it. This was just Patton playing a trick on him. He could never. Not in a million years.

“Everybody's smiling, the whole world is rejoicing. And everyone's embracing, except for you and I baby.”

Maybe he did. Virgil spent countless nights awake, pacing his room. Thinking about Roman's green eyes, his light honey coloured hair, the freckles that came in pairs, and his heavenly smile. Maybe Virgil did lov- um, maybe Virgil did like Roman.

“I miss you, most at Christmas time. And I can't get you, no no no no, get you off my mind.”

Virgil felt awful. He'd spent so long thinking about his own problems that he'd forgotten to get Roman something for Christmas. He stayed up all night that night, eventually deciding that he should listen to his heart. His heart named Patton. Who was yelling at him the next morning for staying up.

“Every other season comes along and I'm alright. But then I miss you, most at Christmas time.”

Virgil agreed with both Logan and Patton, and started searching for a song that would convey exactly how he felt about Roman. But even Virgil didn't know how he truly felt.

“In the springtime, those memories start to fade with the April rain. Through the summer days, till autumn's leave are gone.”

Roman only ever left Virgil around December. But he would always be home on Christmas day. Virgil could handle it any other time of the year. So why was it so bad now?

“I get by without you, till the snow begins to fall and then I miss you, most at Christmas time. And I can't get you, no no no no, get you off my mind.”

Virgil was in love with Roman. He was madly, deeply in love with his annoying, ignorant, somewhat handsome best friend. And he hated everything about it. The feeling of course, not the guy he fell for.

“Every other season comes along and I'm alright.”

Virgil loved Roman.

“But then I miss you, most at Christmas time.”

Virgil took out his earphones and looked up at the screen to a sight he thought he'd never see. Roman had moved and was sitting up again, he had tears running down his cheeks, his hands covering his mouth. Virgil was convinced he'd done something wrong. He probably had. He knew singing to him was a bad idea. As he went to apologise, Roman cut in, silencing the younger man.

“Virgil… I don't know where to begin,” Roman wiped his tears away and smiled at the camera. “That was beautiful. How have I never heard you sing? Although that isn't what's important, why did you sing that song?”

Virgil looked away and figited with the blanket in his lap, afraid to answer.

“Virgil? You can tell me, I won't judge you.” Virgil took a deep breath and closed his eyes tight.

“Because I love you Roman!” He let out a sigh and laughed, brushing a hand through his hair, thinking to himself ‘Well that wasn't that bad’. But when Roman didn't answer him he began to worry again. Virgil slowly looked up at a completely black screen.

His laptop went flat. His laptop, went flat.

Virgil slammed it shut, blew out the candle next to him, put out the fire in the fireplace and turned his phone off before running to his room and locking the door. He can't believe that actually happened. Although he's lucky he did, Roman would never feel the same.

A week passed and Virgil hadn't moved from his bed. He hadn't eaten or showered, and only left to use the bathroom. He'd been thinking about packing some of his things and leaving. Maybe he could find a small apartment in Antarctica, far, far, away from Roman. Unfortunately his plans were cut short with a loud banging on his door.

“Virgil! Virgil! Are you in there?” Patton, he hadn't heard Patton's voice in weeks.

“Virgil? If you're in there please let us know you're ok.” Logan, he sound panicked? Why?

Before he could answer his own question he heard the lock on the door rattling, the sound of a butter knife hitting it? That could only be one person.

“Virgil? Oh god Virgil, you're alright!” Roman opened the door and dropped the knife, rushing over toward him, pulling Virgil into a tight embrace.

Patton and Logan quietly closed the door to give Roman and Virgil some privacy. They obviously had a lot to talk about. Virgil explained to Roman that his laptop died and that if he heard anything he didn't really mean it. Which lead to Roman confessing his own romantic feelings to his edgy crush. The two sat there on Virgil's bed, laughing over the misunderstanding. Slowly the held hands and left the room, going out to find Logan and Patton.

“Hey Padre? Do you and Logan wanna come on a double date with myself and my emo prince?”

[homosociallyyours]

Rules: answer 30 questions and tag 30 blogs you would like to get to know better

Tagged by: @holmezyan -- thanks, you freeman-loving wonder! sorry it took me so long to get to this!!

Nickname(s): Bean, Meggles, Dottie, Beene, Milton

Gender: Genderqueer femme

Zodiac: Taurus sun & moon, Gemini rising

Height: 5′5″ (roughly)

Coffee, tea or hot chocolate: Lately I’ve been drinking Yorkshire Gold or Irish Breakfast instead of coffee (trying to have a little less caffeine), but I know I’ll return to coffee again sometime. I started drinking it when I was maybe 6 or so. Nice one, parents. 

Fav band(s): The Indigo Girls, One Direction, Bikini Kill, Magnetic Fields, Le Tigre, The Butchies, Team Dresch (why are all but 2 of my bands not together and making music? what have i done to deserve this fate?)

Fav solo artist(s): Niall Horan, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Kaia Wilson, Joan Armatrading, Dar Williams, Dolly Parton, Mirah, Jens Lekman, Sia, Gillian Welch

Song stuck in my head: Bebe’s new song, Ferrari. 

Last movie I saw: I watched Despicable Me 3 the other night on netflix. It was...everything I expected. The last movie I saw in the theater was Love, Simon

Last show I saw:  Theater? I think it was Hamilton last year! TV? I’m currently watching the finale of Glam Masters. It’s...ok.

When did I create my blog: 2012? YIKES

What do I post: A mishmash of everything I find interesting. Currently: 1D, Johnlock, queer shit, femme shit, Martin Freeman, US politics, Janelle Monae, other women making music that makes me feel gayer, meme/meme culture posts, and definitely too many “ask me questions about myself” posts bc i spent too many years on livejournal. 

Last thing I googled: Last night I was sitting with bander and wanted her to hear a song from my friends’ band, so I think the last thing I googled was “gaymous ross dress for less” which only kinda got me the result I wanted. Which was this amazing song. (Please listen, you won’t regret it!!)

Do I have any other blogs: Several! On here I have a cheese tumblr @heycheeselady (it’s mostly dead, i haven’t reblogged to it in ages) and a benedict cumberbatch meme tumblr that i used to co-run @darlingdomesticbatch that is now long abandoned (rip, it was actually really cute and fun while it lasted). I have a dreamwidth that used to be my livejournal where i really let my depression, anxiety, and emotional self-harm cut loose to like 2 or 3 other ppl (it’s a yikes-ass nightmare). ALSO i still have a diaryland diary (!!!) that is my private corner of the internet where i post inelegant poetic prose about my actual private emotions in ways that would feel dangerous to do in front of anyone but strangers. if i ever give you the info, you aren’t allowed to talk to me about it. i probably won’t give you the info. but i’ve had it since...2000? 2001? I definitely wrote about losing my virginity over there. embarrassing!! 

Do I get asks: Sometimes when I ask for them nicely. I rarely get anons, but after my 1 day brush with fame (which i think of as 1950gate) I realized that’s a good thing bc it’s fucking exhausting to have multiple ppl asking you the same question that you already answered/never wanted to answer anyway. also ppl can be mean! 

Why did I choose my url: I knew I was going to be blogging about sherlock and queer stuff, and I thought about what really connected those things. For me, it’s the homosocial-- social spaces and interactions that are focused on same gender relationships --that fuels the homosexual/makes me gayer. The description for my blog is “i am a homosocialsexual” because that’s really what i am. The yours part...I just liked the idea of signing off on everything. I remain homosocially yours,   

Following: 720 (and that’s after i unfollowed all the dead blogs. what can i say, I like having a voluminous and varied dash)

Followed by: 920 (this number is...shockingly high, ngl)

Favorite color(s): Bright dark pink and emerald green. Deep royal purple. Cornflower blue. The color of sun through leaves in the woods. 

Average hours of sleep: 6-12, there’s rarely an inbetween. 

Lucky number: 13

Instruments: I play ukulele and I’m a good enough singer to consider my voice an instrument in its own way.

What I’m wearing: Buffalo check thermal pj leggings and my fave grey pizza t-shirt

Dream job: Basically my current job? Though I should amend that because my reality needs to shift...I’m probably never going to be able to do my job full time again. So. Dream Job would be teaching cheese tasting classes to groups of 10-20 people at a time, giving info about the cheeses and how to taste them, how to prep them for a cheese plate, what to pair them with (and how). Ideally I would do all of this with a team of 2-4 other people, making decisions cooperatively and collectively. 

Dream trip: One month trip thru France visiting various cheesemakers and ending with a week in the south with my friend who has family down there. 

Fav food: Cheese. Ha :) 

Nationality: I’m Southern (from the US). My regional identity feels very important to me.

Fav song: Ummm I definitely can’t pick. Nope. 

Last book I read: Y’all I haven’t read a paper book in a hot minute. I just haven’t been able to do it. I even have books to read. My brain says NO NO NO. But the last book length fic I read was Own the Scars, and damn was it good!

Last fanfic I read: We’ll Be Seamless, which was a really great slowburn that ended so sweetly (with lots of hot moments along the way)

Random fact: I met my best friend in preschool when we were 3 years old. I’m even in her baby book. We had a few years of not being quite as close, but now at 37 we’re somehow still BFFs. We’re also both queer and big geeks, which is a nice thing. 

I’m tagging some random folks! Probably not 30 though, so if you see this and wanna do it, PLEASE DO IT & tag me in! (and really, I mean it, I don’t care if we’re mutuals or not!)

@yellinradios @swimmingbirdrunningrock @aprillikesthings @ann-fortunately

@miafi @always-aqua @valeria2067 @a-brighter-yellow @jaerie @yorkiepug

@yearofsolouis @suddenclarityharry @cumberbitchsandwich

[resbang-bookclub]

AMA Transcript: Simple Melody

For our final AMA of Resbang 2017, @alliope, @bbbutterfingers & @daciafu stopped in to answer questions about their Resbang, Simple Melody! Here’s some of what went down:

Q: My first question for Allie is what inspired you to do this AU?

Allie: Well I've generally had the idea for an Over the Garden Wall AU for a while, not necessarily for SE, but as the first check-ins deadline was approaching I ended up rewatching bits of Over the Garden Wall and it just kinda clicked? Mainly I think it came from Crona's betrayal and Beatrice's betrayal and everything fell into place from there. I thought the eerie atmospheres would work well together! So I ended up scrapping my previous idea and wrote 3k plus a summary like three days before the first check-ins, rip.

Q: For butter/dacia, what went into how you decided which scene(s) to art?

butterfingers: HM well there was some chitchat when we started about what kind of work we wanted to do and I said that I loved the Boom comics covers, and then I shouted WHAT IF I MADE  COMIC BOOK COVERS! and I think Dacia went WHAT IF I DID BACKGROUNDS and I guess we just approached it as if we were doing something comic-y haha!

Allie: You two were the power duo.

daciafu: I've always been in love with the style of the backgrounds of OTGW since that's where all those cozy and spooky feelings of fall and the Unknown really shine and I'm honestly HORRIBLE at designing backgrounds so I wanted to take the challenge and push myself to get better! Mimicking other people's styles really helps me break down how they make their choices and teaches me how to make things look Decent so I was super hyped to pick up the OTGW style! And then when Butters and I were trying to figure out What Do and she said she wanted to tackle covers, I decided to do background-heavy scenes. 😊

Q: What is generally your guys’ process (writing for Allie and arting for butters and dacia)?

Allie: Well, I wrote in little scenes, like I would get an idea for a scene and just go for it, the fic wasn't at all coherent until maybe a few days before posting. This actually posed a problem since linking scenes took longer than I thought it would. Because I had most of my scenes written, I thought I had more finished than I really did. By the end of Resbang, I had 56k written but only 20k remotely post-able. I'm a super obsessive planner though, so my whole fic was outlined in detail early on, which was nice cause I knew what I was doing lol

butterfingers: I loved going through Allie's notes, I was always excited to see how they'd connect the dots! My art process is as follows: scribble something, put it aside, look at it a lot throughout the day with the thought that maybe I can surprise myself into seeing something new, find something I hate, fix it, rinse and repeat. For this project I actually... have a friend who works with Boom Comics and she was able to hook me up with a nice little gallery of illustrations for the OTGW comic so I got to go through and put together my mood board for it 😊

daciafu: I read over the gloriousness that was Allie's draft and immediately picked out some neat scenes or wanted to reimagine the classic OTWG ones. I spent a lot of time studying first! Looking at the art books, and poring over the show’s scenes and kind of getting a feel for the color palettes, textures and compositions. Then I watched a tutorial on Youtube where someone just deadass uploaded their painting process on a piece of official art that made it into the show. So that was EXTREMELY helpful to watch the way they painted back-to-front and kind of blended the planes without like, losing depth?? The internet is so, so wonderful. And then I got to work! Started with a soft brush for lineart so it wouldn't be too prevalent, moved onto base colors, then shading, and then really trying to establish textures and make the atmosphere Just Right(tm).

butterfingers: Genius!! Oh damn that sounds like such great advice vis à vis backgrounds. /takes notes

Q: You sound like the dream art partner Allie, I weep for my artists and my last minute HERE IS 10K I JUST TYPED UP BC IM A MESS.

Allie: Ahh geez, these two were the dream partners honestly, like I'm so glad they could gather stuff from my notes, cause I've always got everything together in my head, but then it gets out there and it's a mess, these two deserve all the love.

butterfingers: There was one thing I regret that I didn't have the chance to draw and it was like a throwaway line somewhere in your notes about Maka presenting Soul with a praying mantis and him freaking out. I resonated with that so hard hahaha.

Q: What was the hardest scene for you to write?

Allie: The hardest scene to write that's actually posted was anything with Justin really, I don't get his character and it was tough to write him. There were a few scenes that were hard to write because I rushed them, but I wouldn't say they were genuinely difficult scenes, I just gotta rewrite 'em! But overall the ending scene I'm still struggling to write and there's a dream scene that occurs which has been difficult to write just for making it dream-like enough?

Q: And what was the hardest to art? :o

butterfingers: I had a hard time with Maka's expressions. I had many scribbles designing a Ragnarok lantern, too, but it was very fun!!

Allie: Your design for the Ragnarok lantern was so good, I still cry over it.

butterfingers: Ahaha thank you! He was very Calcifer inspired ;)

daciafu: I struggled quite a bit with the first one I painted, just because it was all so new to me. I had to base color 3 different times because the soft lineart bothered me if something extended too far, or there was white background peeking through. And then reimagining the texture in the leaves and the ground to try to separate the planes there but also wanting them to be cohesive was a bit of a headache. If I had to go back and do that one over again I think I'd be more prepared to deal with the foliage lmao.

butterfingers: Your textures were very excellent, that was a quality I struggled with as well!

daciafu: The first one I painted was the Golden Light scene where Maka and Soul are leaving the woods and entering the fields.

butterfingers: Trees r hard.

Allie: They all came out so incredible though, I'm in awe of how you were able to create those leaves.

daciafu: Omg ;;;;; At the same time trees are so organic and flowy and the chances of getting them wrong are pretty slim considering they can get janked as hell lol they're super fun to just zone out to. "I’ll just put a happy little leaf here, ooh and how’s about another one right next to it. They can be happy friends. Oh look, the squad showed up!!" Channeling my inner Bob Ross... but yeah you can just do whatever with them and they somehow come together.

Q: Daciafu how do u.....background, like you did so well and all I hear from art friends is various levels of pterodactyl screeching when the word background is mentioned.

daciafu: I heavily based the Leafing the Forest scene and the church scene after stills from the show so I don't get composition points there, but I built the pumpkin fields just based off of the environment’s design elements. I really wanted to push the depth of that scene but also give it that same never-ending quality to it, and I'm super happy with the results. Another note is that I omitted the characters entirely while building the backgrounds. Since I'm usually a pretty character-heavy artist, I wanted to tackle it like I was preparing the scene for an animator later. And then once they were done, I added in our sweet kids. Doing it that way first really helped to cement the characters in the space rather than my usual "character is done, how can I put them in an interesting physical space?" struggle lmao.

Q: Did you guys feel like your writing/arting changed at all or that you learned anything/picked up new skills/honed old ones etc. etc. during Resbang?

Allie: Gosh yeah, it changed a lot. In hindsight a bad idea, but this was the first fic I'd ever written with intention of posting and the longest piece I'd ever written. Before this I had written very little and my longest piece was maybe 10k. Throughout Resbang I've learned most of everything from the ground up, it's taught me a lot about my limits, how I work and writing in general. I've definitely improved a lot from the experience!

butterfingers: Let me tell you all about the airbrush tool that I discovered during Resbang. Amazing. Incredible.

daciafu: I learned how to paint backgrounds!!! Which is something I've always wanted to get better at. And I got super comfortable in Clip Studio (I'd just gotten it) as well as using texture brushes, so overall it was a very helpful and wonderful experience as a Resbang participant and as an arteest.

Q: Oh that reminds me butters, what program do you use?

butterfingers: Paint Tool SAI for the most part, and then Photoshop for color correction, borders, and, like, finesse things! :)

Q: Did you guys listen to any music that inspired you or helped you create?

Allie: Ah, yeah! I had a playlist actually! https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjTCaFkFU6rkD1edJwCZmHvJiUwlSUeGZ

If you want I can explain some bits of it? I use music a lot when writing aha. I like to associate certain songs with characters and character relationships, so most of the songs are connected to a particular part of the story. The Monroe Transfer, Wayfaring Stranger, and Mountains were all more general atmosphere stuff. Blame was very much related to Maka, which may not be apparent now, but yeah. Ragnarok I actually connected a lot with Willow Tree March. Soul was probably closest with A Lady. Crona had a lot of songs, but Neptune was most specific to them, as was probably Ghost Towns. Some character relationships I associated with certain songs, Crona-Ragnarok and Soul-Maka were both pretty connected to Always Gold, especially that dang last line "there were holes in you, the kind that I could not mend" oh man. Crona-Maka was definitely We Could Be Friends, Bloom, and Spell. Meet Me in The Woods I thought was a pretty good group song! Those are just some general bits of my thinking with the music aha.

daciafu: Definitely checked out Allie's dope playlist. For most of my working time, tho, I was either listening to TAZ: Commitment or MBMBaM oddly enough lol. I will forever think of Justin's uproarious laughter whenever I look at them lmao.

Q: Were any of the relationships difficult to characterize?

Allie: Mmm this may sound weird but early Maka-Crona was weird for me, cause they were kinda at that point where they want to (or at least Maka wants to) like each other, but they don’t like or trust each other at all and it's a weird spot for them. I'm used to writing them as at least interested by one another, if not enemies or already fond of one another, so this felt like a very odd place to start with them.

Q: Do you guys have future plans for writing/drawing? Aside from polishing and posting the rest of the fic!

Allie: I have,,, too many plans,, I need less plans,, someone please take them away from me, I can't be trusted with them,,,, I do want to do a sequel for this when I get it finished, playing on the detail about crows memory lasting five years so. Beyond that I have a SoMa fic to finish for the prompt challenge!! I'm working on a gift for Crescentcrona, which is a fantasy Kirona fic called Eat The Rich. I have polyam week fics that I'm cleaning up, I think my favorite so far is a Azusa/Naigus/Sid/Mifune one for Through The Seasons. And God I have so many CroMa fics I want to write, I gotta fill the AO3 tag. I think the biggest one right now is a wings-related soulmates au that I've been working on on the side since October I think?

daciafu: Yo there's one scene that I'm like sUPER hyped to do if Allie does the sequel because I already know exactly how I wanna draw it but I wasn't able to fit that in near the end, and it didn't end up in the first part. But there are a couple of other scenes Allie and I workshopped that would be super fun to do and I would love to draw them. Other than that, my drawing plans are pretty much working on commissions as they come in. Surprisingly my queue has been maxed out and I just got a full time job so of course now I'm like.... hm.... I'll get 'em done eventually!!

----

That’s the end of the AMAs for the 2017 season! Thanks again for reading along with us, and see you next year! :)

[laystudio]

hi! im that anon that asked for a tutorial and you said something specific and i really liked your harvey dent edit? the one that said, god is dead. and it was all red and stuff and super cool looking? no pressure! i just think your stuff is really cool and was wondering what the process behind some of it was!

ofc! it’s no problem at all :)

so i’ll just give a brief rundown and a v rough tutorial on how i made those particular graphics. thank u so much for the support, i’m especially proud of them too and it’s nice to hear u like them as well!

what you’ll need:

photoshop cc 2015.5 but any ps would do really

basic knowledge of photoshop

patience

fonts: dk shaken not stirred, liquido, couture, helvetica, helvetica neue, votu

so the first graphic is a really stupid move and i just realized it like hours after i posted it: it’s one of two graphics that feature a fanart instead of a faceclaim. looking at it as a whole, cohesive set it looks really stupid and surreal? bc it doesn’t match and just throws u off? so my advice is don’t do that. if ur gonna edit from an actual comic then the rest should be like that too (2D) but if ur gonna edit with real life elements i suggest to just stick to that path (3D) so that everything looks coordinated and neat :)

the second one actually took me a while to get right but basically the red circle is in [linear light] and the black circle is in [hard light] mode while the top most white is in [normal]. the paper texture is above all three layers and is on [multiply] mode so it only looks visible on the white circle. the “angels” text is just some basic layer mask so it looks like it’s inside the white circle. as for the style of the graphic itself it’s just based on the previous harvey graphic i did here, the last one on the left. the thing with that is i look for inspiration from other graphics i find and there’s a lot on behance, flickr and even pinterest. just search for ‘graphic designs’ and you’ll find a lot of good ones. u don’t have to copy them exactly but u can adopt and transform it into something urs! but if imitating some designs and tricks is what helps, then it’s fine too. nobody is born an innate artist/designer/whatever so just explore and experiment with what u know and what u want to see. eventually, u’ll be able to develop ur own style.

the third one is basically the same as the second and fairly straightforward. the big, red 2 is set to [darken] mode. i guess with this graphic it’s mostly abt negative space??? and also maybe laziness but negative space is good so that overall, ur graphic set wouldn’t look too cluttered. it helps the eyes breathe i think.  also the main focus is the faceclaim, and since the graphics above and below it is already optically centered, it’s at the rightmost side for asymmetry. just a thought.

ok i’ll be real this is one of my faves bc it just looks so harvey i couldn’t believe my eyes when i saw that hand. i just cut it and applied a gradient map of white and light red i believe so it looks like it’s sketched out or smthng. it looks just like harvey’s burned hand but bc i’m an idiot i forgot to flip the canvas so that it would look like his left instead of his right hand. to this day i regret this mistake. if u look close enough the coin has harvey’s face on it too. damn i love him. but moving on, the lines are made with the pen tool. the pen tool can be a hit or miss thing to use and i just recently learned how to use it properly but it’s v convenient once u got around it! it’s like a sophisticated brush tool if u want to incorporate more lines in ur stuff. u can also use it to cut stuff out (like with the quick selection and magic wand tool) but i don’t do that method often so probs don’t listen to me. i only have a v basic knowledge on it but there’s a yt video tutorial on how to properly use the pen tool if ur interested.

this fifth one is very….. meh. theoretically, it could’ve been better but since i’m the Worst in practice it ended up like that. the design is p much those adidas ads with the many dots? sorry for the plagiarism, adidas, but i don’t make money off of this. so when in doubt just slap some geometry on ur edit and ur good to go. i go for circles bc they’re more aesthetically flexible, if that makes sense? i find rectangles cool but they tend to look out of place in something so vertical; it leaves little space for words and other elements. but polygons look better on horizontal canvases so u can try that too!

the last and definitely least is the most ‘meh’ out of the bunch bc i literally stopped caring abt 2/3 into this thing. the thought that comes to mind is: time magazine cover nov2017 so what does that say abt it really. the text is naturally like that thanks to the font: liquido with a wave-like option if ur into that kind of stuff. some layer masks too to get the effect of the text being inside the harvey art. it looks so dumb now wtf i’m an idiot. but hey, 2 harveys. i’m a visual genius in that respect. again, some gradient maps and a red rectangle border. tip: u should most definitely add a contrasting color or accent in ur graphics, which i once again failed to do here. in this case it’s black since the color palette is red, white and black. it adds a depth to ur work. if ur skilled enough, u can use a wider range of color palettes instead of the usual black, white, [random color]. i, myself, haven’t mastered that yet so that’s what i usually use but one extremely prolific graphic maker who has a good eye for these colors is user mattelektras. u can check out her stuff and see how she uses complementary colors in her edits.

some other things to note:

if u need a paragraph-like text for filler, u can go to type > paste lorem ipsum then adjust the font size to ur liking (somewhere around 0.8pt for maximum unreadability)

it’s good to pay attention to colors and spaces in ur works! the color wheel is ur friend in this trying time

smart sharpen always and forever (at abt 65-130 depending on ur image size)

this got lengthy but i hope i was able to help! i know it’s not that detailed but if u have anymore questions don’t hesitate to ask :) i’m not bothered at all so don’t worry abt it. happy designing!

[jessicakehoe]

Texture Talk: 6 Local Women with Afro-Textured Hair Share Their Quarantine Hair Journeys

Welcome to Texture Talk, a new weekly column that celebrates and deep dives into the dynamic world of curly hair, from springy S-patterns to densely-packed coils — because curly hair is far from one big category. This week, we asked six Canadian women with Afro-textured hair to dish on how they’re each coping with their unique curl care routines now that stay-at-home orders have shuttered hair salons and many go-to beauty supply stores.

Gloria Alamrew, communications specialist and freelance writer

Courtesy of Gloria Alamrew

Pre-Covid hair rituals: “Pre-quarantine, I was a wash-and-go advocate through and through. I’ve always worn my curls natural and had never really been into protective styles much.”

Hair under quarantine: “For the first few weeks of quarantine, I really fell out of love with my hair. Anxiety was high for me with the news and adjusting to the WFH transition. My hair was honestly the last thing on my mind. And after a while, my curls caught up to me, and I was surprised at how much they had gotten me down! Now that I had neglected them, I was legitimately sad. Recently though, I’ve started pouring more love back into my curls by twisting my hair for the first time. They’re perfect for doing yourself at home because there’s virtually no skill involved: as long as you can section your hair and literally twist two strands together, you can do it. There is something about the routine of washing my hair, brushing it out, sectioning, applying product to each section and then twisting the strands that is so calming to me. I hate to sound cliché, but it really does feel like a sacred moment of self-care for myself. Quarantine has given me the time to actually come back to my hair, and the ritual of styling and protecting it feels so restorative. It has honestly helped with my mental health so much.”

Winy Bernard, entrepreneur and podcaster

Courtesy of Winy Bernard

Pre-Covid hair rituals: “My BC (before corona) hair life was wonderful: I saw my hairstylist every single week for a blowout, sometimes twice if I had an event. I loved my hair; I loved my weekly appointments.”

Hair under quarantine: “I had not done my own hair in maybe 30-35 years. I didn’t even have products for at-home haircare to wash or to take care of my natural hair. I am one of those people that was never, and will never be, an at-home, do-it-yourself person, so this has been extremely difficult and frustrating. I had to call my hairstylist and ask what products to buy at the drugstore, how to wash my hair and how to blow-dry my hair. The first time I washed my hair [on my own], I was very frustrated: It took over 3 hours, hair was everywhere in my washroom and the result didn’t even look good. It’s getting easier, though. I can’t say I’m very good at it, but I am doing my best. Now, my hair is always in a bun or slicked into a ponytail. I am so looking forward to getting back to some kind of normalcy that involves getting my hair done.”

Tasneem Nanji, artist, musician, writer and actor

Courtesy of Tasneem Nanji

Pre-Covid hair rituals: “I have a couple curl patterns going on and I love that. Before quarantine, my hair routine sort of went hand-in-hand with auditions, and I have always worn my hair natural for the most part. I have two [curly hair] looks: One I get with a hair dryer and product, and the other is a completely air-dried natural look.”

Hair under quarantine: “My hair has grown longer since I’ve been quarantined (it tends to grow pretty fast), and when it gets this long, it starts to get harder to manage. I gave myself a trim last week; the split ends were getting to me! I’m wearing a lot more buns and braids in this Covid era, which is new for me. I don’t feel like they’re as authentic of a look in terms of my personality, but I am also learning I am more than my hair. Lately, I keep thinking I should master how to cornrow my own coiff! I’ve been looking to icons, like Sade and Stevie Wonder, who have beautifully worn their hair pulled back and braided. I’m finding a lot of strength in knowing that hair like mine is versatile and can be worn a myriad of ways. Time to hop on a YouTube tutorial!”

Sandra Parker, corporate learning and development consultant

Courtesy of Sandra Parker

Pre-Covid hair rituals: “My hair has been relaxed for a very, very long time. Before quarantine, I had my hair relaxed at a salon by a stylist every six weeks. Between stylist visits, I washed my hair myself once per week. After washing, I blow-dried and then straightened my hair with a flatiron – basically doing everything my stylist does, but not nearly as well. Between home hair washes, I try and heat style as little as possible, so at night I wear a silk bonnet and sleep on a silk pillowcase. This really helps to hold my style so that I don’t have to use a flat iron each morning to fix it.”

Quarantine routine: “Like everyone else – I have no stylist. I’m totally on my own. My last salon relaxer was in mid-February, so twice the time between my regular touch-ups has elapsed. Hair washes now take longer, since my hair is more delicate with the new growth. I’m leaving conditioner in my hair longer and using a deep conditioning mask more often, too. I bought a boxed relaxer kit at the drugstore a few weeks ago. It’s been a million years since I’ve done my own hair, but things were getting out of hand. I bought it hoping I wouldn’t have to use it, but that day came a few days ago. My last few hair washes were really frustrating and my hair was much harder to manage. I watched a million YouTube videos on DIY hair relaxing; I didn’t trust the instructions that came with the kit. I then summoned all of the bravery I had and I relaxed my own hair. Thankfully, it turned out OK and my hair didn’t fall off. Hopefully the restrictions on salons will end soon so that I can have my hair professionally done again.”

Collette “Coco” Murray, university education administrator by day, dance educator, mentor and performer by night

Courtesy of Collette Murray

Pre-Covid hair rituals: “I’ve had dreadlocks for over 20 years. Before quarantine, I would go to my loctician three times a year for a treatment, cut and to wear various petal-loc styles, twists and updos. I have yet to see my stylist this year, so thank goodness I don’t have any highlights or hair colour to treat.”

Hair under quarantine: “With the abrupt shift of working remotely and quarantine life, I was frustrated because I failed to stock up on products. My locs were stressed and lacklustre at the beginning due to dehydration. I needed some advice as I structured my new home routine, so I reached out to my loctician to check in on how my hair was doing and expressed my worry. Finding products that work for locs can be a challenge. I needed tea tree shampoo, castor oil and a shea butter scalp conditioner. He recommended where I could order stuff online (something I don’t normally do), and I also had to be strategic in finding a store close to home that sold products for Black hair: On my social media feed, some Black women share tips on local West Indian or African grocery stores that carry suitable products. Currently, I’ve been setting my hair in loose curls using rollers and I moisturize my scalp and locs every couple days with a shea butter conditioner. I wear them up in a bun, an updo or a ponytail most of the day, but allow them to flow freely, especially for most Zoom meetings. I’m not wearing any new hairstyles yet, but I may rock some Bantu knots over Zoom one day! Quarantine hair has been a bonding experience. Instead of constantly being on the go, I’m now forced to stop and take a few hours of self-care. A good TV binge-watch while I go through my hours of washing, deep conditioning, re-twisting and styling at home is worth it. I love my locs, my cultural ways and the freedom I feel wearing my hair this way is how I cope with my upkeep.”

Bunmi Adeoye, publicist

Courtesy of Bunmi Adeoye

Pre-Covid hair rituals: “Just before lockdown, I decided to be adventurous and do my once-a-year blowout and also put in a colour, which I feel wasn’t the best thing for my hair (I’m now experiencing lots of shedding and maybe heat damage). I don’t know, though, because I haven’t been able to go to a salon and get someone to look at it and assess!”

Hair under quarantine: “Being left with the aftermath of potential heat damage from the blowout and colour (that I don’t love), I’m figuring out how to rehab my hair and get it back to good health. I’ve been doing more protective styles: twists to twist-outs, braids to braid-outs, intense detangling, protein treatments (twice so far in lockdown) and weekly deep conditioning. My immediate work team has now seen my hair in twists, twist-outs and space buns over Zoom meetings, and I get a lot of Slack messages, like: “OMG, your hair looks ah-mazing!” It makes me smile. Someone recently said that I change my hair every day. There was one time, though, I had to leave the camera off because I didn’t have enough time to rinse out the deep conditioner and my hair was under a plastic shower cap. People don’t need to see that JUST yet!”

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