#because their games complement each other so well stylistically

[jonasiegenthaler]

Would love to hear abt ur Luke/nico thoughts if u have any…such an interesting dynamic to me and I don’t think it’s often discussed

unfortunately there's no way for me to come out of this sounding same because they've literally never interacted on-camera/off-ice but i find their whole deal so compelling, like conceptually (best friend's brother, brother's best friend, classic)

but there's so many tiny things you see on the ice that i'm just rattling the bars of my enclosure because i need to know what they're like with each other like when luke joined the team out of umich he brought up nico as one of the guys that's been helping out and last year he said nico was the heartbeat of the team (per msg guys) and then before the season started nico had an interview about how hard luke's been working and how he's gonna have a big year. i don't think this answers your question lol but i'm with you because they need to be studied like bugs

also there's the bit in the ea video where luke just whispers "dude there's something up with nico on here" under his breath and i haven't decided the implications yet but it tickles me

[elordilover]

Hellooo ✨️ Could you write a friends to lovers walker x reader where reader plays walker's love interest ? Like everyone in the cast can see they like each other but them, and they get jealous when other people show interest in each other? Thank youu ❤️‍🩹

yess! thank you so much for the request!

“just friends”

pairing: walker scobell x fem! reader

summary: you play walker’s love interest in the pjo series, but is your romance just for the cameras?

warnings: none, not proofread, sorry if this is like my other friends to lovers with walker, it’s my fav trope i can’t help myself 💀

————————————————————————

“cmon just talk to him, everyone can tell you guys like each other!” dior told you.

“yeah i like him but he doesn’t like me i promise, we’ve had this conversation a million times already!” you told her.

“okay but the way he looks at you says otherwise”, she said, trying to prove her point. “Y/N i promise he does, i’ll ask him today”

“wait don’t”, you said quickly grabbing her phone, “don’t ask him, then he’ll know that i like him!”

“that’s the whole point Y/N! we are trying to set you up”, she protested.

—————

meanwhile:

“dude she likes you i promise”, aryan told walker.

“she could have anyone else, she would never date me”, walker said.

“i promise, just talk to her about it. you guys hang out all the time, aren’t you guys hanging out tomorow? just ask her then”, aryan said while putting this plan into action.

“no. tomorrows too early, maybe after the press tour”

“promise?” aryan said while he stuck out his pinky.

“promise.” walker said while bringing out his pinky and sealing the promise.

—————

it was the day after you and dior had the conversation. you were with walker right now, laying on his bed and talking, randomly showing each other tiktoks. he felt like home.

walker turned his head to look at you, “are you ready for all the interviews?”

“kind of. i’m excited to wear cute outfits, but not excited for dumb questions”, being this close to him game you butterflies. you could see his light freckles and the light pink flush on his cheeks. his beautiful blue eyes shined in the sun. you were sure your cheeks were bright red.

“same, im excited to be back with everyone though” he said while looking right into your eyes.

“same!!”, you said excitingly, “i can’t wait to see aryan again he’s so funny”, you said.

“yeah…. he is”, walker replied seeming more distant, you didn’t know why though. he kind of seemed jealous because you mentioned aryan.

—————

it was the first day of the press tour, it was the pjo series premier. you got dressed with leah and dior in your hotel room, there was also hairdressers and stylists with you. you were wearing a beautiful blue gown, with lace sleeves. leah was wearing a beautiful gold and blue gown.

you guys met up with the guys before walking the carpet for interviews, walker was wearing a deep navy suit. it complemented his eyes so well. he looked beautiful.

—————

“how did your relationships grow during filming?”, the interviewer asked, she had long beautiful blond hair with a gold dress.

“yeah i definitely grew closer to everyone during filming, especially walker and aryan, since i was filming with them all the time. i consider them my best friends now, they are the funniest people ive ever met. and ive met the coolest people through filming this show”, you replied reminiscing on your filming experience.

“amazing. what was your favorite scene to film?”, she asked noticing how you kept looking toward the left, where walker was being interviewed.

“ummmmm”, you said trying to find and answer. you looked over to walker to find a familiar face. you saw the lights hit his face in a way that he looked magical. you could stare at that face forever. he turned his head and looked at you, your cheeks heated up immediately as he waved to you.

“my favorite scene to film was probably a scene in the last episode. i can’t spoil anything but it was definitely my favorite to film, you’ll guys will see soon!!”

“niceeee well we will let you go! you look beautiful tonight Y/N!”

“thank you! you do too!” you replied.

you walked to the left and walked past walker.

“Y/N!” he called out to you, “come here” you walked back over to him and he stretched out his arms to hug you.

“hey Y/N” the interviewer said, “there’s one question i’ve been dying to ask you both”

“hi! what is it?” you said as walker also said “okay, ask away”

“okay, are you guys sure there’s nothing going on backstage with you guys?” he asked.

“oh um”, you said nervously, you didn’t know what to answer, so you let walker,

“no, there’s not. we are best friends tho! but yeah we keep the romance on screen” walker answers while you nodded to his answer.

even though you guys weren’t dating, that hurt for him to say. it shouldn’t, but it does. you felt betrayed. there was really no reason for feeling this way.

“but are you sure you are “just friends”’ he asked again.

“we are sure, i promise”, you answered to give walker a break.

—————

it was a couple days after the premier, you till replayed walker looking at you and hugging you in your mind. you and the younger kids of the cast were hanging out.

“oh my god”, dior said while she was scrolling through her phone.

“what”, you all said in unison.

“i’m gonna send it, y’all have to see this”, she replied.

you picked up your phone and watched the tiktok she sent all of you. it was a tiktok using the clips from the premier shipping you and walker. your cheeks immediately flushed and you looked over at walker. his cheeks grew a light pink and he gave you an upside down smile.

“stop it right now”, aryan said while slightly laughing.

“i mean it’s a good ship”, walker said quietly while shrugging his shoulders.

“i mean yeah it is”, you agreed as you liked the video and saved it.

“i see these all the time, y’all are cute”, dior said while smiling ear to ear.

“they are!!” aryan agreed.

you looked over at walker and noticed how red his cheeks were, yours were too. maybe he did like you all this time….

————————————————————————

thank you for reading! feedback is appreciated!

*i will most likely write a part 2 for this so send in ideas for it!!*

🎀🪩🪞🛋️💌🖇️🥿🐞🌺🌎🫧🥒🫐🍦🥄🎱🩰

[accio-victuuri]

March CPNs

this month’s banner theme is tennis boyfriends! lol. when i saw it, i knew it would fit, cause this month was also when WYB went for the lacoste show and most interviews was him talking about tennis. and who is the other actor who mentioned this sport too? another coincidence! why is it always them? 😂😂😂 from new au pairings, coins, similarities and kadian drama— this month delivered the goods to us!

time to review and look back at the delicious candies we ate this month:

• the bone necklace potentially getting replaced because of some anti rumors and what it means.

• circle elements in xzs vlog is a nod to cpf comments that have yellow circles

• lacoste and bjyx

• yibo shows cpfs some love at chanel pfw

• here are some other pfw minor clownery. 🌸

a nice detail seen in his clothes/jacket are red and green flowers. you all know how we feel about red and green in this fandom. yeah, this must be a stylist’s choice blah blah blah but that just how cpns work. and it’s so cute too!

descendants of the sun parallel! please! you all know i’m weak for this shit. chenwei will always reign supreme, but what if chen yu decides to go full on army or whatever.

i also found it funny how fans are noticing the difference with their clothes. xz was revealing in his own way & wyb was all covered up. of course these are two different brands so the clothes and everything will not be the same. but that’s actually what’s good about them, how different they are. and yet— they complement each other really well and have the same values in life. they try and learn what the other person’s interest is so they can have a better relationship. 🤍

posing with their female seatmates 🤣🤣🤣

• a similarity we noticed too was that wyb was on his phone before the lacoste show, and it reminded us of how xz was doing the same at gucci mfw. i think we went 👀 because for xz, we were already clowning that he was messaging wyb or reading message from him then something similar happens to wyb. it could be a completely different thing and who can blame them for checking their phone while on “downtime” — but let us be with our fake story from these two incidents 😌😌😌

• on 3/5 chang feng po lang released a new character poster for wyb’s character wei ruolai. because of it, a new AU pairing was born. wei ruolai x patient #5. i swear. their characters look good together! some also pair wei ruolai up with xiao sa or chunsheng 😂😂😂

i have to say younger chunsheng before he went to military and ruolai match so well together!

• same answers on fashion week interviews: comfortable dressing & the color black

• another perspective on the coin that appeared in zz’s vlog - relation to wei ruolai and war of faith trailer this is further “proven” when wei ruolai’s character posted was revealed and he was tossing a coin. look, i know it’s highly unlikely that the whole concept was a way to tease us with WYB’s drama. but it’s a nice double meaning and more! 🪙🪙🪙

• since there is a new character out for one of them, another new AU pairing was born! wei ruolai x xiao chunsheng 🤍🤍🤍

• the two of them being featured at vogue website as stand outs during their respective fashion week appearances. it’s not really cpn but more on them being the power couple 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 and i’m just so proud of them. years later, they still shine so bright and it has no signs of even fading.

even with weibo engagement, both of them were on top during their respective events. no one could even come close. and why, it’s so hard for them to work together, or why no one would allow that to happen cause it will be game over. lol.

• our dearest tennis couple 🎾 ; this has become more prevalent in the fandom because of wyb’s lacoste ad!

• the inception possibility - tbh i’m just desperate to relate this movie to them and a cpn 😂😂😂

• the collab between cotti and dove - this is most likely a business movie that has no input from xz and wyb. these are big brands that take care of their company but what’s sus is how cotti posted the announcement of this collab at 10:05. you would think dove would be the one to do that since xz is their endorser. or they could use 10, 10:10 or 10:30 posting time which are equally usual time slots for brand announcements. but no. it feels intentional on their side to use that association. of course it led to some drama but we still made some lemonade out of it by going through some old endorsement CPN examples that was funnily enough, dug out by solo fans who are clowns themselves.

• some are clowning (slightly) over WYB’s alleged kadian a day after the cotti drama when he FW the post for olympics because it read a (14:38) lifetime zhanbo. but you all know how picky i am with kadians. the vcr was shared 14:30 so i guess he only had a narrow window to share, not sure if intentional or not. for me, personally, not everything is kadian. considering the topic too, this is a national/international event. i don’t think it should be used for cpn. i’d like to think WYB is more professional than we are. but who knows 🤷🏻‍♀️

• this bts video from war of faith! it shows wyb being active — moving around and doing some exercises. reminds us so much of how xz was like during SBMS bts that was released. they are so similar!

• GG’s weibo post the night before WoF premiere

• adding this to the list of brands they both use for their wardrobe: NANS. as usual disclaimer, these are clothes used in brand shoots and may have been chosen by hired stylist of the brand or their own. who knows. i just like archiving stuff like this, especially for lesser known brands that seem to only be worn by them. some examples below:

lesser known because XZ/WYB are so popular so you would expect them to wear name brands. if not, a company that the general public likes. on weibo, the brand only has 132k followers which is pretty low and they don’t repost photos of celebrities who used their clothes— nothing about WYB or XZ or anyone else.

• 3/21, premiere date of WoF, WYB shares a new trailer for the drama. The weibo account of WoF posted @ 9:58 and WYB on 10:06. So the CPN is, did he miss? was this supposed to be 10:05? considering what XZ did the day before with his post. Personally, i’m relieved that he didn’t do it 10:05 to prevent drama with his so/os because this time is crucial. we can’t afford these sensitive ass fans turning away from him and not supporting his work. he is too smart for that, he knows all too well how these things go.

I like this interpretation from cpfs that he didn’t miss, it’s yibo, if he wants to do it 10:05 he will. but he has limits right now, those who know (us cpfs) will get the meaning and understand him. and we do. we always do 💛

•xz molsion live show clues: lego/puzzles, camping and chasing dramas

• xiao zhan calling wyb lai lai ( fake rumor )

• 3/25 XZS post where the 380 yuan fan makes an appearance and the 8th picture significance

• 3/26 fake rumor 🗣️🗣️🗣️

wls wants xls to call him “gege”, xls didn’t, so wls tickled him, xls had no choice so he called wls “gege” softly, after he said it he blushed so hard, and wls didn’t allow us to look 👀.fake rumor don’t believe it

• 3/27 IQIYI livestream/ watch-a-long event with WYB and him smiling when the host said side by side in the snowy mountain part one . part two 💛💛💛

• 3/28 we got to see a VCR of ZZ and his style looks similar to Bobo’s

• new lounge wear brand cp! bananain x miiow 😍😍

• a cute coincidence that in episode 21 of WoF it is revealed that in his hometown, Wei Ruolai has a nickname: “gou gu zai” = Definition: Jiangxi dialect. Refers to a child who has just entered his youth. Young people, they are not deeply involved in the world, but they are full of energy. like a puppy, lively and noisy.

it is exactly like gouzaizai but that one is from Chongqing. i know this is a script and fiction, but the director himself said that when WYB went in as Ruolai, he was inspired by WYB’s personality irl. It also means we were all right, looking at Lai Lai as a puppy during the show.

it’s just so nice to know that GG already found out what WYB’s personality was like early on. that he is a puppy — and feeds more truth to the cpn that GG was the one who gave the 🦴 necklace. a bone for a puppy.

• XZ’s xinxiangyin live “clue” on what activities they do spending time outdoors

-END.

P.S: and that’s the 1st quarter of the year done! just like that! actually, a lot of things happened in the fandom and i’m happy that both the boys continue to be active and we always have content. i also wanna take this time to thank everyone who supports both of them + cpfs who interact with me & my posts i appreciate you! <3 i hope the community here continues to grow and we all have this safe space to be cpfs 🤍🤍🤍

<<< previous month

[willowwhispersspeakeasy]

Can i make a Headcannon request,specifically for the demon bro’s +Diavolo and Barbatos,with a goth S/O,I hope I’m not bothering you

Or them with a tall and slightly muscular S/O,just an idea

all of the boys would love mc regardless of their build: tall, short, thin, muscular. I can't imagine any of them treating you particularly different, so we’ll do a goth mc instead 

OM! demons with a Goth mc

warnings: gender neutral reader

Lucifer

a wonderful match the pair of you make. aesthetically hes the most gothic of the brothers and he has a soft spot for many of the literature. some of the music he also enjoys.

he would truly enjoy whenever the pair of you go out together. you simply complement each other so nicely. the photos of the pair of you on devilgram will blow up because of your wonderfully complimentary dark aesthetics.

would prefer a more victorian goth or vampire goth aesthetic but he loves you and your self expression, no matter what part of the scene you prefer. 

Lucifer enjoys walking down through cemeteries with you, dark in the moonlight, and hes more then pleased to sweep you off your feet and into the blackness of night. 

Mammon

Mams thinks your style is amazing. he will be in awe at the different looks you do, swooning if you were to do a black and gold ensemble to match his usual color pallet. 

he likes metal music so hes open to trying whatever you listen too. but he’ll prefer the harder stuff. won't care for the writing tho, its to depressing for him. 

hed probably like trad goth or deathrocker the most on you, but hes happy and supportive no matter what of course. gifts you a piece of gold crow scull jewelry. he has a matching ring as well. 

but he will be hesitant to do anything too spooky. hes a scardy cat. you can probably bribe him into just about anything but he will be curled around your arm shaking in fear for most of it. 

Leviathan

at first he doesn't think much of it. kinda just shrugs. as the pair of you become close his reaction will change as he starts to take note of little things. please show up in platform boots, hes going to see them, and then see you, and turn pink at the thought of you stepping on him. hes a kinky bastard

okay now hes into it. the pretty jewelry, big boots, if you like leather or lace, lose fitting clothes or skin tight, hes swooning just a little. 

Levi knows subcultures pretty well, he’d probably like things leaning more as cross over styles like Gothic Lolita or Gothic Ouji.  

the closest to goth music you'll get him to listen to is Baby Metal, but he knows some of the lit, mostly from anime and games tbh. 

Satan

he likes it from the beginning. compliments your style immediately. Satan is well read in gothic literature and is familiar with the history of the scene all the way back to punk in the 70s. 

he has a great appreciation for gothic architecture as well as poetry. can recite Poe’s work verbatim. will bring you black roses as tokens of his affection. 

stylistically hes not picky, probably likes romantic goth or anything leaning into dark academia aesthetics overall. 

he will sneak you away to dance with you, he’d so love to teach you how to waltz to the pretty forlornful songs. kisses the back of your hand and writes you pretty poetry about how his rage eats him like decay but you have offered him peace in the rot. 

Asmodeus

he just thinks you are so beautiful. for alt styles I headcannon Asmo as actually leaning more into the punk mindset and lifestyle, but he loves goth and all of the alt subculture’s little children~

he’ll gift you pretty bouquets of nightshade and hemlock. black candles that burn with dark flames. to spite his personal style being full of light and soft colors he will compliment you nicely aesthetically. 

probably changes his wardrobe to reflect yours. you like wearing harnesses? well he’ll get himself a pretty pale pink one to match you~ (if you ask him he likes fetish goth bc of course he does) 

the literature is a bit dull for his taste most of the time, but he does like the music actually. unless its a tragedy, Asmo is a sucker for a good romantic tragedy. 

Beelzebub

the personal style of mc matters the least to the 6th born. Beel will love you regardless. he sees your goth style more as a reflection of your commitment to things you love. 

the dreary nature associated with goth will not bother him. he’s Belphie’s twin after all. teaches you how to add things like activated charcoal to food to turn it black or dark grey. 

if you were to have him pick an outfit for you he’s probably going to land somewhere between trad goth and e-girl/boy. Beel probably like emo as a subculture a bit more then goth personally. 

he likes the music just fine, but I do think he’d fall more into sub genres like emo or pop punk for his taste. not a fan of the lit tho, puts him to sleep. 

Belphagor

another match made in hell. Belphie might just consider himself a goth if not for his laziness and lack of commitment. he really can't bring himself to put in the effort required to “look the part”. 

he likes the music and the lit and the subculture overall. its all very cozy and familiar to him. he will adapt to whatever your chosen corner of it is. 

style wise he likes all of it. altho hes particularly curious by the “stranger” subsets like cyber goth or steampunk. 

Belphie would adore to lay in your lap under the blankness of a new moon, as you read him poetry on the dead grass. hes unbothered by whatever horrible thing you’ve found to tell him this time.

Diavolo

hes intrigued. he’s overall unfamiliar with the style and subculture, but he holds no prejudice or judgment. in fact it finds it all quite charming. would love to discuss it with you over tea sometime.

the themes that run at the core of the subculture are familiar and homely to him, so once he has a better grasp hes very pleased and supportive. Dia finds himself falling in love with the soft tragedy of it all. 

stylistically he doesn't have a preference. whatever you like and feel confident in hes pleased with. 

Dia is the type to stroll with you through cemeteries, telling you stories from his many years in the devildom. if you wanted to date an eldritch demon hes a wonderful choice you know. 

Barbatos

Barb is completely charmed. he adores your style. Barb doesn't care for goth music but he does love the literature. the poetry in particular is a favorite genre of his. 

he is also a very fun aesthetic choice. when he has days free and doesn't have to wear a uniform you’ll see hes got quite the gothic style himself. photos with him during private tea parties are beautiful (you probably have a pretty one of him with some dead dried roses as your lock screen or contact photo for him or something)

his favorite gothic style for you would be something like victorian or even gothabilly. he just finds vintage styles on you so charming. 

Barbatos’ idea of a perfect date is a nice tea party somewhere hidden away, chatting about philosophies or poetry and art while sipping tea with his darling of corse. he would so love it to turn that little fantasy into a reality with you with a black gothic tea set and little skull shaped sugar cubes. 

[tahdashi]

sayuyu ! jus woke up from a nap n saw u were doin an ask game . . . wif LEMONS ! here is one 🍋 && another 🍋 some more cuz i lauurrrv u 🍋🍋🍋 ( only if ure not alr swamped wif reqs tho ! ! if u r feel free to ignore this , take da lemons tho ! ) oki that’s all ilysm kisskiss 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩

tobio & the "keeping it professional on set" trope. (modeling AU)

you've been told several times that you and tobio have a lot of chemistry on set, and maybe it's because your looks complement his so well. the photoshoot directors always book the both of you to model together. the photographers barely need to make adjustments because of the way the two of you melt into each other so naturally. tonight, you and tobio are on set for a celebrity cologne advertisement. clad in a revealing sun dress and sunnies, you look stunning against tobio's bare chest. tobio's respectful — never catching too many glimpses at your exposed skin or letting his hands wander too far. and you might think that he's just here to get the job done — take some pictures and leave, but what you don't know is that tobio asked your stylist for your contact information after weeks of building up the courage to do so. what do you do when he asks you on a date to the beach, specifically asking for you to wear that sundress again?

[mrskurono]

title: Stylin’ ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴛᴡᴏ || Atsumu Miya x fem!Reader a/n: mm angst also need to go back in the first fic and fiddle with the timeline to bump it closer to the MSBY v Schweiden game but I'll do that later word count: 2.7k tags: angst, forgetting important dates, established friendship, on going fic, partly edited synopsis: Atsumu Miya might have a crush on his hair stylist. He followed you from 1000￥haircuts all the way to 5500￥haircuts. Beauty school to MSBY courts the setter might shoot his chance with the person who fixed his piss colored hair and makes him smile from jokes leagues above his own. character(s): Atsumu Miya (hq)

ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴏɴᴇ : ᴛʜᴇ ᴀᴘᴘᴏɪɴᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ | ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴛᴡᴏ: ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʀᴀᴄᴛɪᴄᴇ | ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴛʜʀᴇᴇ : ᴛʜᴇ ꜰᴏʀɢᴇᴛꜰᴜʟ | ᴍᴏʀᴇ(?)

For having never been there, you knew what the front of the gym looked like exactly.

What the front of the gym looked like from the left and the right of the sidewalk apparently. And what it looked like before damn and after sunset.

As well as what the gym looked like in three different filters. All of them Atusmu had said were clearly what it would look like if it was raining, snowing or sleeting. Even if it was the end of spring and none of those weather outcomes were really possible. You still laughed at every text he sent you knowing how prepared he was. Or at least making sure you were prepared. A simple address would have sufficed. Atsumu wanted to be sure though.

Thursday came just like every other day. When you looked at your phone to see Atsumu's name had already lit up your over turned phone an hour before your alarm went off. It would have been pestering if it didn't make you smile seeing his name first thing.

Snatching your phone to poke fun at him with a quick "Where am I going again?"

You laughed and ignored anything he might send back as you got ready to leave and meet up with the setter. It was a little bit of karama for all the filtered pictures of the gym he sent over the last few days.

To Atsumu's credit, when you wandered down the sidewalk towards your destination. You saw the building a handful of blocks away because of the god awful siding you scrutinized in the pictures. But you'd save complementing Atsumu just in case this coffee date was a bust for your only day off.

It hit you when the double doors unlatched loudly when you pushed through that it had been over a decade the last time you'd been in a gym. An echo with each step of your shoes into the massive foyer.Floor buffed so well you swore you could pick your teeth in the reflection. It left you in a little bit of awe with the size and grandeur. If this was just where they trained, where the gyms they played their games at even bigger?

Surely standing around looking like an idiot as you gawked at the huge ceilings. Rightfully wondering how they even heated something like this. You were caught off guard by the sound of the double doors you'd just came through groaning once more when opened. Spun around with a jolt you find two men looking at you rightfully confused.

Snapping your head left and right to see you were the only one they could be looking at. You quickly laugh as you rub the back of your neck, "I'm sorry- I think I might be lost-"

"Oh you must be Miya's girlfriend!" Out of the two men, the shorter one with light hair beamed you a smile as he offered you his hand, "We thought he made you up!"

"Oh- Oh!" Cheeks heating up you can't help but follow in his chuckle to not think too much about his comment, "He talks about his hairstylist. Yeah guess that sounds like Atsumu." You take the out stretched hand to shake, "L/N. Y/N L/N. But I have a feeling Atsumu probably already told you that."

"He actually has your business card tacked up in his locker with a magnet that looks like a little fox," Not only was the other man's hair much darker than the first, he was also extremely tall. Atsumu wasn't joking when you had to look up even to smile up at his greeting as you took his outstretched hand as well, "I'm Adriah."

"Shion." The first man added.

You step back and tap at your temple, "Wait wait wait- I got this. He told me-" You dredge up all the useless information Atsumu told you over the years of doing his hair and grasp at what he told you in conjunction with these two names he'd said in passing, "Middle blocker?" You point at at Adriah then shift and look at Shion with your finger doing the same, "And...the one that starts with an L...leeb- lie-"

"Libero." Shion grinned, "Damn Miya talks about us to his hairdresser? What lies has he been telling to such a nice lady?"

Adriah rolled his eyes and excused his team mate, "I take if you're here to see our setter?"

"Unless any of you guys need a new stylist or brand recommendation?" You grin smitten with your offer. Always fishing up new clients where ever you went like it was second nature.

Shion tugged at his bangs and looked up to his teammate, "Whaddya think?"

Laughing at him, Adriah nudged him and shook his head, "Keep that forehead covered, kids come to the games remember."

"Like you have any room to talk," Shion jested with Adriah since his bangs hung partially over his forehead as well but it just so happened his was darker than the libero's, "Besides, if Miya is expecting her then he'll pop a blood vessel if we steal his girlfriend."

"And if our setter's all wrapped up whining then we all know Meian makes everyone do laps." Adriah groaned.

"That does sound like the Atsumu I know," You chuckle at both men painting a pretty vivid picture of what your friend is like. Even if the second girlfriend comment made a heat creep to your cheeks. Again you laugh it off and rub the back of your neck, "Guess you guys wouldn't mind if I followed you to the right gym?"

"You'd get lost in one of our big games won't ya?" Shion laughed.

"Yes! These things are huge for just a sport!" You exclaim at the exact thought you had coming in.

Adriah snorted and motioned for you to follow him as Shion walked besides you, "Don't let anyone here hear you say that."

You were left pleasantly surprised at the light hearted conversation that followed as both men showed you through the area. When you confessed that you hadn't been in a gym since middle school sent a ripple of laughter through them both since neither of them could remember when they weren't inside a gym. Not an ounce of condescending tone to their teasing though. Adriah was incredibly sweet and Shion's jokes kept you snickering between the mini tour.

When you were finally directed by Shion that the last gym was the one they practiced in. You could attest to that with the smack of a ball hitting the opposite side of the door Adriah opened for you. Rattlinging you for sure.

"Bokuto watch your spikes!" Shion shook his fist at the grey hair man who was clearly guilty of almost striking you all coming in, "We got precious cargo!"

"Cargo?" Perked up immediately, Atsumu craned around to the double doors. One hundred percent expecting you. When the blond man saw you the biggest grin spread over his face, "Y/N!"

"Tsum-Tsum is that your girlfriend?!" Bokuto, the one who had almost struck you with a volleyball, came bounding to clasp your setter friend on the shoulder, "The hair lady!"

"She's very well put together." Beside Atsumu came another dark haired man adorn this time with beautiful ringlet curls, "Seems odd for you."

"Odd!!?? Omi-Omi shut yer trap I know lots of people outside volleyball ya know!" Atsumu already one step away from popping a blood vessel this soon.

Laughing it up at Atsumu's sauve being stripped right before your eyes among the gaggle of men. Very much unlike the coyness he waltz into the salon with monthly to woo the ladies in the shampoo bowls. You bow to the line of men and introduce yourself. Even with Atsumu fumbling the rest of the team introduces themselves. Learning faces to the names you've heard Atsumu spout off a million times now. Smiling you know to file everything in the back of your head just in case. Because there was always a just in case.

Still swarmed by Adriah and Shion you'd came in with. Now Bokuto and Sakusa were joined in the half circle around you.

"Hair?" Sakusa interrupts your job in his own words then squints a little, "What about curly hair?"

Nodding you count on your fingers real fast the things you prefer doing. Of course curly cuts being one of them. There's a moment a twitching smirk to the man's lips flash over his lips.

"Good to know." Sakusa nods with his own thoughts saved.

"She already offered to fix Inunaki's hair," Adriah snorted.

"Soon as you get your hair fixed," Shion poked at their middle blocker.

"Your all going to need a fix if you don't get back to practice," Meian interrupted the little get together with a scowl and arms crossed, "Unless she's your captain, which last time I checked I was, get to your drills before coach is down our throats!"

It's then that you look at Atsumu. Who had been threatening to pop said blood vessel for the last ten minutes. When your eyes meet his brown ones though he settles back down.

Brows furrowing a bit you look around at the spotless gym floor, "So...."

"There's seating up above!" Atsumu quickly points out the balcony overlooking the playing area, "I'll walk you up there."

"Meian said practice." Sakusa mentioned in passed back towards the net.

You laugh awkwardly, "Oh I'm sure I can make it up there to wait-"

"She got lost in the foyer." Shion whisked past with some jerseys in his hands.

Gritting his teeth Atsumu made a loud groaning noise as he looked at you and back at the court. Too easy to pick up on. Meian sighed and told Atsumu to make it quick. Some what of a victory after your induction to the volleyball world was with his teammates and not him. Atsumu snagged your wrist and told you to follow him it'd be quick.

Trailing behind him through the gymnasium. As well as up the stairs squeezed in the back of the building by the utilities of the entire building. You look up at Atsumu's back as you both ascend the stairs.

"So....your team seems nice." You make it to the top with Atsumu grumbling.

"They're fools." Atsumu huffed as his steps slowed to be beside you.

"Seems like you'd fit right in then."

He whips around. Glaring a little but it can't last seeing you grinning, "Yeah...supposed yer right. Anyways-" Atsumu gestured to the railing as you both approached it. Layed out all below you was an birds eye view of the gym floor you were on moments before. From below Bokuto and Shion waved at you. Atsumu huffed but you still waved back, "Ya can hang out here. Won't get hit by a ball 'er anything unless Omi-Omi decides to put too much spin on a spike."

"Does that happen a lot?" You ask cautious to agree to this waiting arrangement.

Atsumu snickered, "Only when him and Bokuto get into it...no seriously, yer fine up here trust me."

A smile blossoms on your face and Atsumu suddenly feels a little choked up, "I trust ya. Don't worry."

Fumbling over a few words, Atsumu rubs the back of his fresh undercut and clears his throat trying to weight staying up here and talking to you or getting in trouble with the captain. Talking to you sounds wonderful but...the outcome of getting in trouble wins.

"Practice gets done we'll be outta here! Still on for coffee ya?" Atusumu points finger guns at you as he backs away. A quick and clunky look back to assure he doesn't trip on anything.

Still smiling you can't help laugh like he always manages to get you to do when he's around, "Still on for coffee."

Surely thinking you didn't see it. Atsumu's little fist pump when he hustles back to the stairwell makes you giggle. What was a bit of volleyball practice? If it meant getting coffee with one of your favorite people.

What you hadn't asked was how long exactly practice took. An hour? Two? Three?

You were at best ready for three hours of personal time. Indeed thankful that you got the empty balcony to yourself just to wait. With no time to really waste as soon as the men looked to be playing a mock game. You decided to dive into some off hours work of your own.

More than enough time to deal with some work. Balancing the weeks totals. Reviewing appointments and if they'd rebooked. Inventory and reordering some back bar items. The time spent waiting even let you get a jump on calling clients for the following week to give them appointment reminders. When all was said and done you couldn't recall a time recently you were so caught up to seamlessly start a new work week. What you didn't realize was four hours had past since coming up to the balcony.

Actually when you double checked your phone it was nearing five hours since coming. That didn't seem right. When you packed your things back into your pack and looked over the gym floor sure they might be finishing up after all this time. It wasn't the case at all. Still going the men were rotating something. While you saw Atsumu closest to the net repeatedly setting with each team member approaching the net.

Whatever they were doing, it looked involved.

Sighing you look at your phone. Far past coffee time. You didn't want to drink anything this late in the evening. That was fine though. Maybe they'd be finishing up and the coffee date might just morph into grabbing some grub. And when your stomach rumbled heading back down the stairs the idea of just going out to eat together seemed even better.

Lost only for a hot second when you walked towards the bathrooms and not the gym doors Shion and Adriah walked you through. Getting turned around didn't seem to matter when you let yourself back into the gym to see the team still going at whatever drills they'd been instructed to do.

"Hmph..." Chewing the inside of your cheek there's a sinking feeling in your stomach as you watch Atsumu staring at nothing but the ball in his hands. Even as you take a moment to wonder if anyone might notice you're standing there. The sinking feeling grows in size when Atsumu just...isn't aware of anything outside the court.

It's late. You look at your phone again. The thought crosses your mind to wave him down and let him know you have to go. But with the way Atsumu seems so absorbed in the game it feels pointless to try and grab his attention.

Your thumb glides over your phone and immediately the last text sent lights up on your phone.

The conversation that felt nonstop for days before. Was now only the last text Atsumu sent you before you made it to the gym. Fully aware his phone was probably in his locker or a bag somewhere. It felt lonelier than you anticipated standing on the sideline without much of a voice to pull his attention.

Phone held to your chest there isn't really anything you think to do besides send him a text hoping he'll see it whenever they actually finish.

"Leaving?" Oriver, the only MSBY player not on the court as he comes in with a bottle in his hands looks over at you, "Want me to snag Miya real fast?"

You take a second to think that telling him that you needed to go home would work. But watching him absorbed in the court gives you a twinge of guilt for wanting his attention like that, "No...no it's fine!" You break a smile at the man, "Don't wanna interrupt practice I'll just let him know later."

Oriver doesn't press you. In fact he thanks you for coming which makes you smile a little more. You watch him go back out on the court and even then Atsumu doesn't look in your direction. Utterly absorbed in what he's doing. You pocket your phone and turn back towards the door. Thankful at least, that Shion and Adriah had showed you how to leave.

Leaving alone just wasn't how you saw your day off going. It's alright though. Even as your thumb works over the smoothness of your phone over in your pocket. You both never tasted the coffee by your school. So you should have known you'd probably never taste the coffee close to work either.

[thoughts-on-bangtan]

MTV Unplugged presents: BTS

by Admin 1

What a time to not only be alive, but also be ARMY with BTS taking the MTV Unplugged stage on February 23rd 2021 as the first Korean artists in history to do so. It’s another marvelous achievement on the already highly impressive list BTS have to their name, another mark they’re leaving on history and another piece solidifying their place among musics greatest, at least if you ask me and everyone else who tuned in and was left extremely impressed and emotional, a mix of euphoria, emotional rawness, but also a sense of warm, soft, and gentle comfort and hope.

With this gorgeously put together setlist they’ve also proven, once more, that even when you take away all the high budget stadium stages, the dynamic and explosive choreographies and the fancy music video editing, and just focus on their craft as musicians and their most valuable instruments--their voices--BTS can stand their ground easily. Their talent and passion is unmistakable and shines brightly in all these songs, four of their own and one cover.

The performance was shown simultaneously on dozens of MTV stations across the globe, some watching on TV and others via official live streams, and yet others catching up with what they missed hours later. All the promo, hype and attention paid off and they showed that it was all worth it, that they are more than worth it, and that we as ARMY have every right to be proud of them and be proud of being ARMY.

So, let’s do what I love doing most and talk about each performance, shall we?

What an absolutely delightful, happy and funky way to open the show and introduce new listeners to just how fun BTS can be. The stage was one giant room filled with lost of little details, including a motorbike with a second passenger extension, arcade games, a football game, and a sofa. Right from the get go there’s this joyful aura around the members, smiles on their faces, little dance moves making their steps light and fun--they were having fun and subsequently we were, too.

How wonderful is it to also finally see Yoongi with them as well, even if it’s very noticeable (and understandable) that he’s keeping his shoulder steady and arm moving as little as possible? After all Telepathy was “his” song for BE and contains lots of little Yoongi signature features, most obviously his knack for playing with autotune in a way that is very audible yet never quite too much, just walking along the line in an interesting way. There’s a genius note change from Hobi in the second half of the song that’s one of the absolute highlights, just like Namjoon and Seokjin doing their little minimal movement dances in the back while grooving along to the music.

As Vminnies we get our own little treat with Jimin and Tae coming together to sing alongside each other and do their little dance as well which we’ve previously seen during the Dear Class of 2020 performance of Mikrocosmos. Then to finish off their little segment, they also do this funny little thing of pointing at each other with Tae as though acting like he (perhaps) wants to boop Jimin’s face/nose from afar. Absolutely adorable.

Speaking of which, can we talk about their cute Donald and Daisy Duck accents on their clothes and accessories which add this little sense of retro? As well as the fact that Tae is wearing the cardigan equivalent to Jimin’s Gucci sweater from his NOTES on Dis-ease video? I do very much enjoy these little details from the stylists. Also, has anyone else noticed that Tae has different in-ears? His usual ones were green yet here they’re translucent.

The way I gasped when the members turned to Tae and asked him to introduce the next song and he said it’s one that is very meaningful to him, honestly, I can’t even describe it. I was so, so happy but also getting ready to be swallowed by all the feels. I know ARMY sns had theories that we’d get Blue & Grey based on the visuals of that stage which we got in the teasers, and yet somehow I still wasn’t quite ready when the song began and we were graced with absolutely breathtaking vocals that went straight for the heart.

The visuals for this performance were perfect for the song while being interesting yet not too much that it would pull your attention away from the song itself. One by one the members sang their parts and found their places along the two main walls, the lighting cold yet on the white/grey side, none of them really interacting or looking at each other which was fitting with the atmosphere of that blue and grey feeling. Then, for the second half, the ‘stage’ switched to more of a blue lighting and we had moments where first Seokjin and JK sang together and then Jimin and Tae, their voices harmonizing so heavenly with each other yet still none of the members really looked at each other, at most looking into the camera.

I love how this performance put the focus on each member on their own but also in moments on the entire group, that feeling of being alone but never quite alone, that they have each other, and that we have them. Tae also really seemed to be highlighted during this performance, which makes sense when given the history of how the song came to be. But, really, each of them was just as visible and equally beautiful in this.

Speaking of beautiful, my jaw dropped when we got to see (and hear) Namjoon during his verse. Honestly, that mans beauty and handsomeness--it somehow keeps on increasing with each time we see him.

From anon: Omg vmin in blue and grey 😭😭😭. They coudnt even look to each other while singing “Don't say you're fine' Cause you're not Please don't leave me alone, it hurts too much” it’s my fav part by the way and their harmonization it’s heaven. I loved they choose this song to the mtv performance!

As much as this was supposed to be a surprise, MTV accidentally spoiled it hours before their performance was aired, and yet, despite knowing it was coming, I don’t think any of us were quite prepared for it right after Blue & Grey.

Fix You is a gorgeous song in its original version with a sad backstory, and it’s one of those Coldplay songs that they are extremely selective over when it comes to requests for official covers or use for commercials or movies/shows. They are about their entire discography, but I think it especially goes for this song, and yet they gave BTS the permission to do this official unplugged cover.

We also know the song means something more to the members, seeing as Jimin posted a video on their 6h anniversary showing the members during a trip they’d gone on together while the song is playing in the background. They also spoke about Coldplay during the press conference before their Wembley concerts, and Namjoon and Hobi had gone to one of their concerts a few years ago, as well as Tae on a different occasion. There certainly is a level of admiration and respect involved, a deeper connection to what they were singing, which was very clear and tangible during their performance as well.

Vocal line were truly outstanding in this, especially Seokjin (who took sns by storm as the “pink mic guy” with floods of praise and people wondering who he is, what his name is, because they’d all fallen in love with him--very relatable because same). Rap line switched between harmonizing with the vocalists in their low register and did a beautiful job of it. Namjoon harmonizing with Seokjin truly gave me goosebumps (and made my little namjin heart very happy). We also had Tae and Hobi harmonizing and sharing a brief smile with each other, as well as Namjoon harmonizing with Jungkook and Jimin, and Yoongi harmonizing with Tae and Jungkook.

The stage was also beautifully thought out, minimal yet captivating at once, all the members sitting on barstools in a line with the blinds drawn on the windows behind them, spotlights shining on them from above and others dancing behind them giving them a beautiful glow and turning something simple into something extraordinary and gorgeous. They truly didn’t need any more than that.

And like their performance wasn’t outstanding enough, we also saw Coldplay themselves not only tweet about it while calling the cover beautiful in Korean (and tagging the member’s twitter account instead of the _bighit one), but also post the same comment below the video on YouTube and share links to it on their facebook and IG stories, as well as sharing the video in their community tab on their YouTube channel. 

So, not only did BTS garner big approval from Coldplay fans and ARMY alike, but also from the original artist. A wonderful moment in music and between two legendary artists in their own right.

This acoustic version of Life Goes On is truly a masterpiece, so calm, soothing and offering that sense of comfort, togetherness, and this reassurance that life will go on, that we’re together in this, that we’ve made it through the blue & grey, that we’ve helped each other to “fix” ourselves, and that we can now slowly heal and grow from the things we’ve gone through. The electric guitar, the slow and quiet drums and on top of that the members voices, all of it coming together truly beautifully.

Their outfits kind of gave me UK private school or University secret society vibes, or as Admin 2 called it “ready to go hunting, we’re just missing our Beagles or Basset Hounds” which isn’t necessarily wrong. And yet the warm shades of brown fit the atmosphere of the song really well, complement it even.

While we’re “used” to vmin having their little moment, we only really saw Tae smiling towards Jimin, though the camera unfortunately didn’t give us a wide shot to see if Jimin returned his smile, though I’ll go ahead and say he likely did if he noticed Tae’s. Though honestly, Tae’s wide happy smile was enough to melt my heart on its own.

And then, to close out the night, we got a very funky and fun yet calm version of Dynamite during which, surprisingly enough, the members actually stay in their seats against all ARMY theories and bets (well, okay, Namjoon stood up for a moment, but sat down really quickly again and no one actually got out of their seats to dance). Who would’ve thought a day like this would come, especially looking at how they got up in previous seated performances of Dynamite.

I love the not so subtle flex of all their gold, silver and platinum records across the wall behind them, as well as their MTV moon men. With how humble they are about their awards and achievements, this felt like a good moment to highlight just how hard they’ve worked, how much they’ve achieved, before they got the chance to be on MTV Unplugged and that truly, if someone deserves to be there and showcase their talents, its them.

Looking at how many times we’ve seen and heard Dynamite, it’s fascinating how they still managed to create a version that was different from all the previous ones and felt fresh and new. Their outfits were simple and all white and thus didn’t pull too much attention onto them leaving the focus on the music and vocals. Tae’s adlibs were absolutely fantastic and they all just seemed to have so much fun with this performance, smiling and dancing in their seats, obviously having a great time. We even got Jimin smiling and scrunching up his nose happily at Tae while he sang! 

Overall this MTV Unplugged performance was a wonderful display of their talents and music merits, their vocals and rap, and just how outstanding they are as a group on this vast world stage. The setlist was perfect, though perhaps a little short. Honestly, if you ask me, they could’ve performed five or ten more songs and I would’ve remained glued to the screen through it all. And yet, still, I couldn’t have asked for more. I was left brown away and so extremely impressed despite being ARMY and knowing how good BTS are. They truly manage to find new ways to grow, evolve, and showcase their musicality with each performance. I also love how they don’t shy away from trying new things and challenges, like rap line singing and harmonizing with the vocals.

I’ll definitely come back to watching these stages many times in the future and they’re easily up there in my top ten of favorite performances of all time. Thank you, BTS, and thank you MTV Unplugged.

[dilirebas]

My review of Reset / 开端

Reset is a mystery drama about a student (played by Zhao Jin Mai) and a video game designer (played by Bai Jing Ting) who find themselves stuck in a time loop: they wake up over and over again on a bus that is fated to explode. As they watch the same events play out repeatedly, they try to prevent the explosion and save the passengers on the bus.

The time loop mystery concept didn’t sound super appealing to me at first, but it ended up being a fun and enjoyable drama! In spite of the time loop, the storyline doesn’t feel repetitive. And even though the protagonists are working to solve a mystery, it’s quite simple and easy to follow because they feed you information at a moderate pace.

The two protagonists are good complements to each other. She’s an active extrovert who takes initiative and has strong people skills. He’s a passive introvert who thinks things through carefully and methodically. Their different strengths make them a good team.

Bai Jing Ting’s acting was seamless and convincing. Zhao Jin Mai’s acting was pretty good for someone her age but a little too textbook. Her reactions didn’t feel very real to me at first, but I got used to it.

I love Liu Tao, but why was she in this drama?

The drama tries to touch on some social topics like cyber-bullying, feminism, and mental health, but the portrayal of these topics lacks nuance. The problems are oversimplified and the resolutions are overly optimistic. Instead of bringing anything meaningful to the discussion, the drama glosses over these problems.

The focus of the drama is definitely on the plot, because stylistically it’s quite plain. The sets, cinematography, editing, sound mixing, and music are all very basic. It would have been nice to see the director take advantage of central themes like time, memory, or mystery-solving.

I think there’s something neat about how the two protagonists grow as individuals with each loop. Though the story starts as a normal ride on a public bus, the loops give them the chance to learn about the unique stories of each person on the bus. After going through so many life-or-death experiences, they learn to care about things that didn’t matter to them in the earlier loops. They get chances to fix their past mistakes.

The supporting characters are a mixed bag. Some of them are interesting and well-developed, and some of them are clearly just plot devices. Several of the characters react to situations in ways that no normal human being would react. I especially felt this way about the culprits and some key witnesses towards the end.

The plot started out really strong and I enjoyed learning about the concept and the “rules” of the time loop. But as it progressed, plot holes started showing up. The ending (or the “solution”) is okay, but it felt a bit predictable and a bit forced. It felt like the writer needed to wrap it up so they stretched what they had to make it work.

I think the strength of Reset is its mass appeal. Even if you don’t usually watch mystery dramas or if you find them hard to follow, Reset is simple and accessible enough that anyone can enjoy it. Some aspects of the story lacked refinement, but if you don’t look too closely at the details or over-analyze the story, it probably won’t bother you.

[igottiny]

Got7 reaction to you dying your hair to match theirs.

Mark - Having had two different shades of red in the past, he was stoked to be returning to that general color. This time it was a beautiful maroon. When he arrived home you wouldn’t stop praising how well it complemented his complexion to which he replied that you would also look good in red. So of course, that’s what you did the next day while he was in rehearsals. By time dinner rolled around you were walking through the practice room door bringing the boys food with your new look. Chaos ensued and Mark was literally floored.

“Babe. I didn’t think you would take it seriously but damn am I glad you did,” he said from where he sat on the floor in the middle of the room. “We should match more often. That way there is no doubt to everyone else that you’re mine.”

Jackson - Neither of you have had dark hair colors for a while and it was starting to take a toll on both of your scalps. So when you saw that Jackson’s hair had been died back to black when you met up for lunch, this seemed like the perfect time. Quickly buying the necessary supplies you headed home to color your own hair dark as the night before he could arrive home. When he arrived home he screamed. Who was the dark beauty in front of him?

“Honey, you look like the ruler of darkness and I don’t know why I find it so attractive right now. Let’s be raven haired rulers of darkness together as we match. Let’s take over the world together! We shall rule all!” He was always so dramatic.

JB - Grey? Done before. Blonde? Also been done. So when the stylist showed him the color swatch of a very light pale silver that was just on the grey side of white, he was in love. No one would expect this look. And you certainly didn’t. You couldn’t stop touching it and playing with it while he was cooking dinner you were so fascinated.

“If you like it so much and want to play with it, why not just color your own hair the same color,” he asked.

This sounded like the perfect solution to you. The next day you had off work, so you went down to your salon to be transformed. It was close to the same; the shade slightly darker but it was close enough for you. You finally got out just in time to meet him outside the JYP building. You both stared at each other for a long moment.

“Now I get to play with your hair cause you wear it better. That’s hardly fair by the way. Change it back.”

Jinyoung - He was nervous. He preferred to stick with darker colors if they were going to color his hair at all. Luckily he didn’t have any acting projects lined up at the moment. Walking out of the company affiliated salon with hair the same shade of blue as the sky had him tugging on a baseball cap really fast. For the first time in a while he felt out of his element. With his schedule done for the night, he set out for home. Once home he made the attempt to just burry himself in a book to take his mind off of it all.

You’ve seen him do this before. When something is bothering him he either goes for a walk or doubles down on whatever book he was currently trying to finish. His cap wasn’t doing much to actually hide his hair as he kept pushing it up to get better light to read by. You loved the color on him. It brightened up his features. The new lighter tone was beautiful so you decided that tomorrow you would show him just how much the color rocked. You barely made it to the practice room before their break ended, your hair appointment taking much longer than you anticipated. There was no mistaking Jinyoung’s smile as he pulled you close.

“Why,” he asked.

“Because I couldn’t look like a pile of trash next to you. Now we are both stunning.”

This is exactly why he said you were a keeper. Always knew just what to do and say to make his whole world better.

Youngjae - It was too purple to be red, but purple wasn’t right either. Either way, it was so different from any color he has had before that he loved it. It was bright and vibrant. He felt like a game or anime character. He sent you a selfie showing it off since you were out of town for work. The moment you saw the picture you know this was it. You had been talking about matching his next hair color, mostly as a joke, if only to be consistent as you both have had black hair for almost the entire time you had been together. When you got back to Seoul, you had plenty of time to spare before he would get home.

However, you had barely made it home before he did. You had just finished hanging up your hat, scarf, and coat, and taking off your boots when he walked through the front door.

“You were serious the whole time. I can’t believe you were serious about it this whole time. What about work,” he asked.

“Youngjae, I’m part of a journalism team, but I’m on the crew behind the camera. Our sound engineer has lime green hair. I’m fine.”

“That you are baby. That you are,” he says in awe.

Bambam - He was always the one getting the lighter hair colors so having a darker than normal tone was a miracle in and of itself. This was a true blue; like fresh out of a primary colors crayon box blue. This was going to be so much fun, if only the rest of his day didn’t consist of rehearsals and meetings to prepare for and go over their schedules regarding the filming the music video and the album photoshoots. By the end of the day he was exhausted and fell asleep while on a video call with you. It was moments like this that made you really appreciate him. He said he couldn’t sleep without seeing you smile and you wanted to show him that you were thankful that he cared.

As soon as your weekend girls trip was over you went straight to the salon after dropping off your luggage at home. You had previously been granted access passes for filming and photoshoot locations as BamBam often dragged you along before you had one anyway. Just giving you a standard pass like an employee of JYP would get simply made it easier. You stood with the rest of the members and waited for the photographer to signal the end of BamBam’s solo shoot. He was excited to say the least when he spotted you.

He stopped with the most exaggerated shocked expression possible before he ran over and threw himself at you. His smile reached his eyes as he exclaimed, “Jagi! We match! The color looks so good on you too!”

“I wanted to make you smile like you make me smile. You’re the most handsome when you smile,” you said locking eyes with him. His smile and the tight hug were everything and filled you both with warmth. The other members just looked on fondly. They couldn’t tease even if they wanted too.

Yugyeom - He absolutely loved his new hair color. Even if Youngjae and BamBam compared him to a dandelion and a dollop of mustard. He honestly liked this goldenrod yellow better than the bright yellow he had during the “7 for 7” era. Although he couldn’t resist playing along and stating that if he was a dandelion, then JB with his pale silver hair was the aged dandelion that you made wishes on before blowing away the seeds. He survived making that comment only because you had arrived with lunch. And of course this gave you ideas. You couldn’t let him out do you.

The next day while they had their last rehearsals before they started filming, you made a trip to the salon and from there the department store. You rushed to change once you made it to the JYP building as their practice was about to end for the evening as they had an early shoot time the next day. Right as they were starting to pack up you burst through the door in your new kelly green tracksuit and freshly colored goldenrod yellow hair.

“There can only be one dandelion Yugyeom. And look who the real dandelion is now. ME! All hail the Monarch of the dandelion race! Bow before me and you may not be blown away!”

All seven of them were shaking and crying with laughter. “Baby,” Yugyeom wheezed. “This is why I love you. Only you would do something like this, my gorgeous monarch of the dandelions. Let’s rule together. Dandelions forever! All hail” he explained with a smile on his face, love in his heart, and laughter on his tongue.

[shirtsgreys]

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#Freelancer mods in sp story mods#

#Freelancer mods in sp story code#

#Freelancer mods in sp story plus#

Over the last eight centuries it has grown into a teeming world of 220 million people who live and work in a single city that covers the vast majority of the planet's land area. Written by the game's lead designer and writer, this exclusive guide will provide you with the tools you need to survive the.

#Freelancer mods in sp story code#

There are jump gates/holes to five different systems, and the system orbits a single medium-sized white star.įounded in the year 1 AS, Manhattan was the first human colony established in the Sirius Sector. The section is complete by the only cheat code present in Freelancer. Det er gratis at tilmelde sig og byde p jobs. It aims to bring quick and brutal arena-like combat to Freelancer with Unreal Tournament 2004 style speed and years of refined Team Fortress inspired class balancing. Sg efter jobs der relaterer sig til Freelancer sp mods, eller anst p verdens strste freelance-markedsplads med 21m+ jobs.

#Freelancer mods in sp story mod#

It also hosts five major corporations and four criminal organizations. 88 Flak is a fast-paced combat mod for the 3D action game Freelancer by Digital Anvil. It adds new events and scenarios to make peds interact with each other and the world. Im now just playing the standard game and just started the story. Lively World expands the dynamism of Los Santos. I used to play the discovery mod online alot in the past.

#Freelancer mods in sp story mods#

The system contains two settled planets, eleven bases and a third uninhabited planet. GTA 5 mods: PEDs and visual mods Lively World. Freelancer.The New York system is the capital of Liberty space and the largest system in all of the Sirius Sector. Written by the game's lead designer and writer, this exclusive guide will provide you with the tools you need to survive the experience that is. The section is complete by the only cheat code present in Freelancer. Allows each ship type to have its own atmosphere burn effect. It lists the name of each secret, the type of good contained and its location. Directly connect to a server when first starting the game, or immediately start a new game or load the autosave. Fixed 'Fixed bike wheels mistaken separated to normal and chrome wheels', Now it has Chrome and Standard. In the past, the company has offered temporary, freelance, hybrid. INMNativeUI updated: Improve FPS while using this mod. A flexible employer, the majority of ModSquads team is given the choice to work. The Equalizer: A mod that completely removes some Gameplay and Story Segregation by making all player-flyable ship types compatible with all equipment classes.

#Freelancer mods in sp story update#

Secrets and Cheat Codes:This final section of the Guide offers information about 20 of the game's most hidden secrets. Fixed Camera issues for the Doomsday Heist update vehicles. Each mission is described in detail with tons of useful information. Just get some version of Freelancer Mod Manager before you do download it though.

#Freelancer mods in sp story plus#

It has the Campaign plus so much more content and different types of ways to modify your ship. Freelancer Rebalance Mod V3.55 Final is what you are looking for. Not to mention it doesn't complement vanilla because it's quite different, so not sure it'll be a good idea for OP. Well, you can, but it would suck for the first guy. It's so mismatched stylistically so much of it doesn't fit. Crossfire is a lesson in not doing things just because they can. Campaign Mission Walkthrough:By far largest part of this Strategy Guide, this section contains a detailed walkthrough of the campaign missions. Discovery is a multiplayer mod :) arienne88 9 hr. The last part of this section offers some useful game play tips. In the '70s, the business of freelance hair and makeup was virtually. It then explains some of the underlying game systems such as the random mission system, the reputation system and the concept of bribes, rumors and information. In a small town, the stories you'd do around an event like that were the. Basic Information:The Guide begins with the game controls: basic ship controls, tips for advanced controls, and important hotkeys.

[lovenikkilibrary]

April Events and Updates List

This month is the 1st anniversary of Love Nikki’s English server. As of today, they’ve announced the arrival of 15 new suits coming this month! The three events in which you can receive them (and how to get them) are listed below, as well as the reveal of a new feature. But before that, here’s a kind of big update: 

On April 11th, the Double Diamonds gift for diamond recharge is going to be reset! Even if you’ve already claimed it, it will be available to reclaim again. You can only claim it once, but it’s kinda nice to get a second first. ^^

Now, without further ado, our upcoming events.

Ultimate Race

Event Dates: April 11th- April 17th

Suits: Track Blazer and Blue Fantasy

Extra Goodies: A background

Free or Paid?: Free. Collect Victory Flags with 3 Free attempts per day on an Event Map. (Can also buy Victory Flags directly in the User’s Shop.)

How it works: The Event Map has 5 stages: 2 quiz stages and 3 styling battles. Each time you play a stage, you’ll earn “Victory Flags.” Play those stages over and over again until you earn enough Victory Flags to exchange for pieces of each set. (How to obtain the background is still unclear, but my best guess is it could be a reward for finishing up both suits. UPDATE: We still don’t know for sure, but gonna keep you posted!) 

Collection Attempt Limits: There are 3 free attempts (per stage) per day. If you fail a stage, it does not count as an attempt. Unclear, but most likely, you can buy more attempts with diamonds-- or pay for Victory Flags directly. 

My Fave Suit: Blue Fantasy on the whole but love the hair and pose of Track Blazer!

My Source: Love Lily Dress Up Queen and always the Official FB page

Anniversary Lucky Bags

Event Dates: April 11th- April 27th

Suits: Ode to Glory, Flower Lyric, Time Flies, Bamboo Song, and Momo’s Adventure

Extra Goodies: A background with Ode to Glory; Diamonds Postercards (which contain diamonds that you can get from or give to friends/ association members)

Free or Paid?: Paid. Recharge diamonds directly from the Diamond Recharge to earn Stars. Use Stars to claim lucky bags (UPDATE: find them in the sidebar under Lucky Bag). 

HOWEVER, there’s a free-ish component, too. Diamond Postercards can be gained by purchasing diamonds ($4.99 tier or more), but also by signing in every day or receiving from friends/ association members--- and that’s a free guarantee! 

How it works: Buy diamonds directly from the Diamond Recharge to earn Stars. Trade Stars for Lucky Bags. Each Lucky Bag will contain a random outfit (UPDATE: YES. A full suit! My first being TIME FLIES!!!! EEEEEK!!!) from these 5 suits. Please note that Ode to Joy will DEFINITELY be in the last bag! However, it’s the world premiere of that suit, it has its own background, and there are guarantees that you will NOT gain a duplicate set from the Lucky Bags. In other words, buy five Lucky Bags to earn all five suits!

Collection Attempt Limits: There are no limitations on the amounts of diamonds/ Stars you can collect, but it is likely that there will only be 5 Lucky Bags in total, one for each suit. Will update as we know more! 

My Fave Suit: Time Flies. Is that weird? (Runner up: Flower Lyric. But it ain’t got no cat.)

My Source: Love Kiki Stylist Queens and always the Official FB page

Time Yard Pavilion

Event Dates: April 11th- April 27th (?)

Suits: Spring: Cloud’s Smile and Wind’s Whisper | Summer: Flute’s Thoughts and Lantern Wish | Autumn: Stellar Atlas and Galactic Classics | Winter: Warmth Nearby and Bond in Distance

Extra Goodies: 70% off until the 27th (this is why the end date is unclear lol!) and 4 backgrounds for the four seasons!

Free or Paid?: Freeish. Gotta start farming those diamonds because it costs the shiny shiny to draw.

How it works: This long-term pavilion is open until at least the 27th. Draw Karma Crystals with all of your diamonds, then visit the Pavilion’s Exchange Store to collect pieces of the girls’ suits and the four backgrounds. To claim the boy’s suit, complete the girl’s suit that complements it! UPDATE: Find it in the Mystery Pavilion!

Collection Attempt Limits: The only limit is the amount of diamonds you has in your life. For a how-to on Diamond Farming by Sailor Drew, click here (or get the quick version from Momo via sweetpinkstylist here). 

My Fave Suit: As a pair: I LOVE Winter and Autumn. Spring is super cute, too. But the girls’ suits are so lacking compared to the boys! For the boys, Autumn is the fave, followed by Winter, Spring, Summer (but I love em all). For the girls, Summer is my fave, followed by Autumn/Winter. Spring’s alright. (Basically, just give me all the backgrounds doh).

My Source: Love Nikki Ranting and always the Official FB page

And finally... an update. 

The Time Diary feature will be available April 11th. You can see a map of Miraland. You can read the story without going through each phase (and find phases involving certain characters/ themes). AND you can earn rewards like free backgrounds! This is going to be a new fave of mine because it will allow a deeper look into the STORY part of the game. And that’s exactly what I’ve been looking to do! 

May Momo be with us all (or not, because seriously, that cat needs his eyes checked with his sense of fashion...)

[coolseanobuseng]

New Post has been published on https://legitlover.com/how-to-be-the-girl-that-guys-want-to-date-even-if-youre-nervous/

How To Be The Girl That Guys Want To Date Even If You're Nervous

Does it happen to you getting nervous with cute guys but you want to know how to be the girl that guys want to date?

NEWS FLASH: Does climbing Mt. Everest seem easier compared to achieving greater self-confidence? Perhaps you feel that being a bolder, more attractive version of yourself is too much of a tall order.

Are you one of those women who turn into a NERVOUS wreck? When meeting a cute guy for the first time? Worse, do you feel like you should be a totally different person. Or stuff down all wonderful the aspects of your personality?

If that’s the case, then you need to break out of this harmful train of thought. The things you want to be are already inside you. But you’ll need a healthy amount of self-confidence for others to see it!

Check out the best way to let everybody else know that you ARE an attractive woman:

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When you think about the dating scene, what do you believe are the necessary ‘selling points’ you need to get a guy’s attention? It seems like some girls know something others don’t.

A lot of women end up scratching their heads thinking, ‘How does SHE do it? It’s as if she does practically nothing but she’s NEVER short on dates!’

Well, the real trick to connecting with quality guys is by putting yourself on EQUAL footing with them. After all, the kind of man you want needs to be on the same page as you are, so let’s go through three quick tips:

How To Be The Girl That Guys Want To Date Even If You’re Nervous.

#1: Look after yourself

You may think that this is about being a flawless specimen of beauty or wallowing in vanity.

NOT at all.

What I’m stressing here is that you need to let everyone know you care enough to look your best. And that’s not the same as physical perfection. Guys just need to cotton on to the fact that you’re always on top of your looks.

The men that we squeal in delight over are considerate enough to look as good as they do. Even if he isn’t without a few flaws here and there, you KNOW that he’s got it together.

Thus, we ladies should be game enough to make ourselves just as presentable as they are. Would you date someone that had no regard for hygiene? Any guy who’s let go of himself would lower his chances of finding a partner ‘ that certainly applies to us as well!

Now, what details should we be concerned about? First of all, being fresh and clean is paramount. You may have an awesome personality, but you can help others see all of that by being in a PRESENTABLE package.

This is where regular showers and other daily habits such as flossing, brushing your teeth and shaving come in. Why should we let cleanliness be an issue that’ll get in the way of meeting gorgeous men?

Try putting on a nice feminine fragrance that distinctly defines you. Get beautified by spritzing on a light perfume that isn’t overpowering but pleasant enough to have guys at the first whiff!

Also, don’t be shy with lotions (like vanilla or other similarly enticing scents) to keep you looking AND feeling smooth. There’s nothing like a feminine appearance of delicate softness to appeal to a guy’s masculine sensibilities!

This same approach goes with your sense of style. Don’t be afraid to try on outfits that amplify your womanly attributes.

Looking good doesn’t have to mean baring too much. A tasteful outfit should bring out your feminine essence, expose just ENOUGH skin, and accentuate your curves. If you need help with this, employ the help of the people in your life who have a knack for style and fashion.

They’ll be able to recommend dresses, tops and blouses that’ll keep you classy and sensual at the same time. The most elegant wardrobes allow a HINT of skin in the right places ‘ any guy with the tiniest bit of imagination will be intrigued enough to take notice!

I’m sure you know at least one woman who happens to have fabulous hair that suits her perfectly. You don’t have to imitate her style; instead ask her where she gets her hair done so the same salon can fine tune your own set of locks.

Everyone is different, so consulting with a stylist will help narrow down a customized appearance that complements your frame and personality. Whether your hairstyle is straight, wavy or curly, the important thing is that it’s clean, lustrous and fully expresses your unique identity!

Of course, FITNESS has a lot to do with being a girl who has it together. You don’t need a perfect body mass index, but it does matter that you are making an EFFORT in this regard.

As busy girls, we have a load of excuses to keep us from working out regularly. However, if we recognize its importance in the general scope of dating (or your health for that matter), we can ALWAYS find time to work on ourselves, one way or another.

As for other matters, a dentist, dermatologist and other specialists who offer the kind assistance you need (be it your teeth, skin, etc) to really help polish the overall package. Investing in their services is a necessary factor to letting everyone know you’re looking after yourself.

Generally, the sum of your beautifying efforts weighs a lot more than your imperfections. What girl doesn’t have something they don’t like about themselves?

But it doesn’t matter since guys are willing to gloss over these infinitesimal details if they know you’re the kind of girl who doesn’t neglect herself.

In a parallel universe, we could look into each other’s inner beauty and that would be enough. However, the way we present ourselves still matters when it comes to making a memorable first impression!

#2: Have yourself to rely on

Neediness in an emotional and material sense is one of the biggest roadblocks to greater attractiveness. Sure, guys may get the occasional kick out of being your knight in shining armor, but for the most part you’ll need to let them know you can live without their brute strength.

In many relationships, the balance of power is so lopsided against a woman’s favor that it allows bad stuff to seep in, such being taken for granted. If a guy knows you can live WITHOUT him, he’ll naturally treat you better and it will breed MUTUAL respect.

It’s a human tendency to VALUE something you could lose at any given moment, right? But of course I don’t recommend that you flaunt this fact in anyone’s face or use it as a way for a guy to submit to your whims.

I’m simply asking all the ladies out there to project a sense of independence. Guys absolutely LOVE it when they can’t have a 100% hold on a girl ‘ you have no idea what self-sufficiency can do to their ‘hunting’ instincts.

Men are in it for the thrill of the chase, and knowing that he can’t ‘tame’ you is plenty of fuel for his masculine drive to conquer, pursue and achieve. Tapping into this wellspring (using your independent personality) is a great way to get a lot of dates! There are so many ways on How To Be The Girl That Guys Want To Date Even If You’re Nervous and this is one of the most crucial step.

# 3: Get a life!

I hope you don’t take this the wrong way because all of us obviously *have* lives. It’s just that sometimes, pursuing a relationship – or having one – can obscure the importance of having a WELL-BALANCED life.

Even if we are talking about improving your dating life, remember that you have a LOT of other things to be passionate about. And this kind of attitude is what makes a woman more attractive and dateable in a guy’s eyes.

When you’re dedicated to improving yourself as a whole person, it just makes you more interesting and compelling to know. Jumping into a relationship just so you can have one isn’t the right away to go about dating.

For your dating life to flourish, it needs a good, sturdy ground to stand on. Namely, a happening life filled with stuff you care about and ACTIVELY go after.

For instance, a guy is more likely to be riveted by a girl who has weekly brunches with her family, regularly attends a fitness class and excels at her chosen career. Furthermore, this interesting woman may also have a bunch of other hobbies that open her up to opportunities. To meet other similarly appealing people!

If you simply lived out the other parts of your life EQUALLY, chances are that this lucky guy will be dying to be part of your awesome life!

And the great thing about this is that you aren’t actively seeking a man’s validation or approval; living as a driven woman NATURALLY does that for you.

So my advice for you is to get involved in the other things that interest you ASIDE from cute guys. In the end, we have ourselves to look after anyway ‘ regardless of whether we’re single or not.

The way you treat yourself is like a big, fat neon sign that tells the world how to treat YOU. That’s why the way we handle ourselves. Be it in terms of looks, self-sufficiency or lifestyle is a reflection of what kind of women we are.

And when you send the right kind of message to guys out there, you can be sure that these quality men are going to pick up on your signal! Now that’s How To Be The Girl That Guys Want To Date Even If You’re Nervous.

—————————————————————————

This article comes to you courtesy of www.meetysweet.com

Serious about changing your love life success? The first step on your journey of self discovery needs to be with Meet Your Sweet’s ‘Get a Guy Guide.’

If you want genuine men, and not just any man, let Mirabelle Summers and the team challenge your beliefs. About love and attraction, and show you the way to become a seduction success story. I hope you’ve learnt a thing or two. On How To Be The Girl That Guys Want To Date Even If You’re Nervous.

Check this Out

No games. No scripted lines. Real life dating advice for real women! —————————————————————————

[onecentsgamedev]

Don’t Starve Game Review

     Don't Starve, published by Klei Entertainment, is an open world, survival game that came out on steam in 2013. In this review, I'm only going to talk about the base game, without any of the DLC. However, I’d still recommend getting the DLC if you like a lot of the challenge in the game. Don't Starve is quirky game with a Tim Burton-esque art style that appeals to people who enjoy exploration, crafting and building, and a bit of challenge in their games. 

     The game starts players off in sandbox mode, and the only way to progress to adventure mode is by activating Maxwell's Door in sandbox mode. This is a really nice mechanic, because it gives the player time to learn how the game works and come up with different strategies for survival before they move on to the more difficult part of the game. In sandbox mode, the player starts with nothing and has to use what they can find to survive as long as they can. In order to survive, the player must maintain their Health, Hunger, and Sanity. This means the player has to make sure they have a consistent collection of food, ways to recover their Sanity after being out in the dark or rain, and ways to heal themselves after taking damage from Mobs and other causes. On top of that there are changing seasons that affect what food sources are available, what the player needs to be wearing, and how long the day lasts in the game. This creates a difficult environment that prompts the player to go through a series of trial and error to truly understand the game. Once the player finds and activates Maxwell's Door, they have to worry about all this and more in adventure mode. The player starts adventure mode with the Divining Rod, an item that helps them locate the four objects they need to collect to proceed to the next chapter. Each chapter in adventure mode has a different catch to it on top of the regular conditions the player has to survive in. Some examples are quicker seasons with constant rain and snow, endless winter, separated islands that cost the player's sanity to travel between them, and more. These added challenges really amp up the difficulty, even for players who’re used to the game.

     One of the things that stands out the most of this game is the style and aesthetics. The game has an art style that resembles Tim Burton films, and also has the look of cardboard cutout in a 3D environment. It makes the world of the game appear as a Gothic style pop-up book or set pieces on a stage, which compliments the lore of the game. Even the sound design is super stylistic too. The game has both ragtime style  and dark cabaret style music, really highlighting the aesthetic of the game. Aside from the background music, each character's voice is comprised of different musical instruments. Wilson speaks with harmonica muted trumpet, Willow with flute, Wolfgang with tuba, and so on. When put together, all of these sound choices really complement this game's unique style and is one of the reasons I adore this game. Character design is another thing this game did fairly well. One interesting detail in this game is that all of the characters names start with a “W”, aside from the main antagonist, Maxwell. Each character has their own theme and different pros and cons about them which makes trying each of them out a fun experience. The pros and cons for each character are balanced pretty well, such as WX-78, a robot who can eat spoiled food and upgrade himself with gears, but takes damage in the rain and loses a lot of sanity when struck by lightning. Another example is Willow, who starts with a lighter that never runs out, but she also lights fire under her feet when nervous which can start a forest fire or burn down the player’s property.

     Overall, Don’t Starve is a game I would highly recommend that offers a fun survival experience in a stylistic world. The sandbox mode of game play allows players to learn through trial and error without needing a tutorial, and adventure mode is where the real challenge is posed. Lastly, both the great art style and music helps to keep the player immersed in it for hours.

[furnitureoxide-blog]

Coffee Table

Coffee is a sensational and traditional vehemence crafted with love and avidity. As we all know “ good communication is just as stimulating as black coffee, and just as hard to sleep after “, its better if we indulge ourselves in an enduring conversation with great zeal and gathering all our memories to be shared all over in a coffee table and get flew by enchanting moments. A coffee table is a key furniture for all your living room. It describes the whole notion and feelings of your love for your close ones and your remembrance moments all just in one panorama slide. It's such a beautiful feeling !. The coffee table is not only an idol for your home interior but the main module for a coffee shop. It looks so cool to look upon a barista preparing a warm and luscious coffee, cappuccinos, espresso, lattes. Right? And, yup, you enjoy all this divine just sitting with your favorite people and with your favorite gossips. I just made your day! Okay, let us jump into types of coffee tables. You surely will like it! A coffee table is a long and lengthen, low table that is intended to be positioned in front (or next to) of a sofa or upholstered chairs to accommodate drinks, magazines, books, decorative objects, and other small items to be used when seated, such as coasters for beverages. Throughout Europe, during the Late Victorian era, the first tables specifically designed as and called coffee tables seem to have been manufactured throughout Britain. Later coffee tables were built as low tables and based on the tables used in tea gardens this concept may have originated from the Ottoman Empire.

Different Types Of Coffee Tables

SHAKER COFFEE TABLES Shaker furniture is a distinctive type of furniture founded in the Second Appearing of Christ by the United Society of Believers, commonly known as Shakers, a religious sect that had guiding principles of simplicity, usefulness, and integrity. Their values were expressed in minimalist designs with well-made furniture. Furniture was carefully crafted, of functional form and proportion. Instead of using ornamentation — such as inlays, carvings, metal handles, or veneers — that was seen as prideful or deceitful, they created "creative solutions such as asymmetric drawer configurations and multipurpose ways to create visual interest". Furniture was made of timber of plum, oak or pine, normally dyed or painted with one of the colors prescribed by the religion, generally blue, red, yellow or green. Drawer pulls is made of wood for dressers or other furniture. Shaker's iconic coffee table design allows it to function in a multitude of environments. It features simple straight legs, Shaker wood knob dovetail drawer and a subtle bevel to the finest accuracy. COTTAGE COFFEE TABLES Cottage design is in some respects just as much a frame of mind as it is a formal approach. In the way it honors imperfections, common gems and mixed furniture families there is a daily calm. Cottages tend to be modest, unpretentious and full of heart — characteristics most of us would be proud to assert. Feminine lines and information feature both the cottage and country styles, such as turning. INDUSTRIAL COFFEE TABLES Industrial style or industrial chic refers to an aesthetic movement in interior design that takes cues from old factories and manufacturing spaces that have been turned into lofts and other living spaces in recent years. These Industrial style components include weathered furniture, construction structures, exposed bricks, industrial lighting fixtures, and concrete. Industrial architecture evokes the purposeful appearance and sound of machine machinery, using metal and wood in more rough-hewn, rugged construction. MID CENTURY COFFEE TABLE Modern in the mid-century refers to the style of interior design which was common between the 1950s and 1960s. Classic coffee tables from the mid-century are distinguished by smooth, simple lines and bentwood or plastic molding construction. Wooden furniture has a flat finish, most of the time, to show off its natural beauty. PARSONS COFFEE TABLE A conventional square or rectangular table, a table with parsons has four straight, triangular legs which are as thick as the flat top. The table for the parsons is a modern design developed during the 1930s. Though it has a plain outline, it is possible to embellish a parsons coffee table with upholstery or different materials to suit several style schemes. MODERN COFFEE TABLE OR NOGUCHI COFFEE TABLE The Noguchi table is a modernist piece of furniture that was first manufactured in the mid-20th century. It was designed in the USA by Japanese American artist and industrial designer Isamu Noguchi, introduced by Herman Miller in 1947. The Noguchi table consists of a wooden base made of two matching curved pieces of wood and a heavy glass plate lid. Initially, the foundation was made in walnut, birch, and cherry. It was later sold in ebonized walnut. Also during the first year, the table was on the market, the cherry bases were made, and have since been highly sought after. Birch bases were discontinued after 1954. As of 2016, the table is available in ebon finish, walnut, white ash, and natural cherry. The top was originally issued in thick plate glass measuring 7⁄8 inches (22 mm). The width of the rim was lowered to 3⁄4 inches (19 mm) in 1965, and its base height was increased, increasing the total height of the table from 15 inches (380 mm) to 15.75 inches (400 mm). CONTEMPORARY COFFEE TABLE While contemporary and trendy may seem to be synonymous, contemporary style applies to what is popular today. Contemporary styles also incorporate bold, colorful accents in solid interiors. A common feature of contemporary coffee tables are glass tops and metal bases.

Different Types Of Tabletop Materials

Let's discuss some common tabletop materials. METAL Metal coffee tables made of robust iron, steel aluminum, or other alloys are a popular pick. This easy-to-clean coffee table is often complemented with a glass top or a wood-and-glass mix. WOOD Wood is by far the most natural surface of a coffee table and is prone to water circles, so most people use trivets and coasters to cover it. GLASS Glass is another popular top-material. Another thing to keep in mind when buying a glass-topped table is that water circles and drops will become more noticeable on glass, and frequent cleaning will be required. STONE Choose a slate-, stone- or marble-topped table for a typical, stately feel. Maintenance of a stone top may depend on the stone size. UPHOLSTERED If you want a cushy place to rest your feet, and upholstered tabletop has the robustness of a coffee table but an ottoman's convenience. Placing a serving tray on top of a cushioned coffee table will give you a place to rest a drink without thinking about spilling it.

COCKTAIL TABLE vs COFFEE TABLE

A cocktail table is a square or rectangular shaped coffee table. For comparison, a coffee table is a round or oval drink bar. Confused?? Let's simplify life. By theory, a dinner table is the same as a coffee table. There is no harm in saying this because all tables are set in front of the couch at the end of the day, both are used for entertaining guests and can be used to place the coffee and drink! Yeah, next time you're asked by a shopkeeper if you want a coffee table or a cocktail table, just answer the "highly intellectual" question and go for your choice, rectangular or round, who cares? All the perfectionists and decor lovers read this article, make sure you don't purchase a coffee table on the pretext of purchasing a cocktail seat. When you want a cocktail bar, choose a rectangular or square-shaped table. A square coffee table. In a home, all tables are equally useful. There are no additional benefits or inconveniences of picking each. This is because they both have the same facilities. One must have found that each adult in the house will use the same table for various purposes. Some like resting their foot on it while enjoying a nice warm coffee, most use it to entertain guests, some like putting magazines and newspapers on it while some just like playing a game of shouting, chess! There are various types of coffee and drink tables on sale these days: wood, glass tops, stainless and even leather tables. For many people, style and architecture is also an important issue. The table will, after all, suit the house's interiors, and compliment the sofa. Nowadays you can find different styles, from victorian designs to new, contemporary and traditional designs.

What to keep in mind before buying your very first coffee table for your home?

Function When you buy a coffee table think long and hard about how (and be honest!) you'll use it. Is this a relaxed room in which people want to put their feet up? If so, you certainly don't want a tabletop with bottles. Are you lots of items to put on it? If so you want a solid piece with a finish that doesn't chip or get labeled quickly. Want additional storage? Then a table which opens or has a shelf at the bottom could be the right choice. The way you intend to use your table when you go shopping will help inform your decision. Decide your design Coffee tables are available in every possible style-make sure you find a coffee table that matches your room's theme. It doesn't mean "matching" Stylistically you can choose one that either blends in or sticks out— either blending in with or juxtaposing the look and form of other objects in the space. You'll want to weigh the materials, the shape, and how the rest of the furniture will look. Consider taking some snapshots of your furniture when you're going out, so you can see how it all fits together. Decide the best shape Traditionally rectangular coffee tables were the most common but far from being the only choice. Coffee tables can be circular, rectangular, square, octagonal - that's what you call. The best design for your room would depend on several factors including the available space, the rest of your furniture and lifestyle. (A household with small children, for example, might want to avoid a low table with sharp corners.) Note the other shapes in the room when talking about form. Compute your space Please check the room before you purchase a coffee table. Ideally, the height should be slightly lower than the sitting height of the adjacent couch and chairs. The length of the couch should be about two thirds long. There should also be around 14"—18 "between the sofa and the table (do not buy a table which is too large if your space is limited). Estimate and think about the budget As with any piece of furniture, beyond imagination, coffee tables can be dirt cheap or expensive. Remember the estimate and the size of the table in space. When you expect it to get a lot of wear and tear it might be a good idea to be on the less expensive side so you can repair it if necessary. If not, you might want to buy something timeless which will stand the test of time as a piece of investment. Coffee table substitutes Thinking outside the box is no wrong. Upholstered ottomans are popular coffee table replacements, with trays placed on top. We will add an element of warmth and softness. Storage trunks often work well and provide a spot for blankets and other things to be kept. There is no law that you just need to have one coffee table, too. Most people prefer two smaller boards, which can be bought.

Tips for styling coffee table

Now you have the best coffee table. So you may further want to decorate it too, hence we have some tips below to style your coffee table. The adroitness art of coffee table styling Coffee table decoration is something of a craft. Since coffee tables typically have prominent positions in living rooms, it is vital that they look good but it is equally important that they function in the manner they are supposed to function. Sarah Greenman's displays like this need to be appealing without interrupting the flow of the rest of the room. Luckily, it's easy to master coffee table styling as long as you keep those rules in mind. Keep things cool Stability is a significant component of any coffee table show and symmetry is one of the simplest ways to achieve stability. In the case of this Amanda Carol Interiors modeled example, a central focus grounds the view while smaller objects of equivalent visual weight round it out on either side. Remember that while the objects on either side are not alike, in terms of size and sound they cancel each other out. Setting up is important The composition is a tricky thing to get the hang of, and when it comes to coffee table style it is the item most people have trouble with. The trick is to think about how the whole collection of objects in a vignette fits together. We will sometimes communicate through color, sometimes through form, sometimes through design and sometimes through the pattern. Once the whole show has been assembled, it will read as one package, combining each object with those around it. And when done well, as in this show by Massimo Interiors, even seemingly unconnected objects will be read together as one. It takes practice to get the design of a display right so experiment around with objects and their positioning until it feels right for you. Use a tray There are easy technique stylists and decorators like Vanessa Francis use to make sure things fit in a show together. They use a tray to corral things all over. It's a smart way to force things together and it helps to unify the feel of a vignette. If you have compositional issues taking all the things and work within a tray's boundaries. If it's not fitting, get rid of it. Dimensions Matters When it comes to styling the coffee table it is important to use items of the right size. Items should have enough visual weight to not get lost, but they should never be so big that they will overwhelm the space or disrupt the table's functionality. As in this Park & Oak Design display, there should still be room in your home to put down a drink, book, remote control, or whatever else makes sense. Get hands-on your room Displays of a coffee table are not in isolation. They need to work within the space with the other things. The coffee table design in this transitional Cortney Bishop Design living room imitates some of the rustic undertones of the rest of the house. For starters, the mantel's rough wood and the wood blinds are complemented with a natural wood coffee table and some of the highlights. Although there is always room for contrast, the objects should reinforce the decor, not stand out like a sore thumb. Keep it Low As a general rule, you should never have anything so big when making a coffee table show that it hinders the view of people seated on either side of the table. The branches are subtly soft in the case of this show from Digs Design Company, so the result is not as distracting as the stronger object would be. When the room is being used, a lower view may be helpful. Although tall floral arrangements are often deserving of Instagram, they aren't always tailored to everyday life realities. Avoid throng Often loading a table surface with a lot of treasured accessories can be difficult to avoid. The table must not overwhelm and interrupt its functionality. When it's just for show like Alexander James is in this room, it can be fun, but if it's a place where you want to set up a drink or put your feet up, you need to make sure there's time to do it. Leave enough room to allow things to breathe, and leave room for anything you may need. Hold The Classics Uncertain what products to use? Jennifer Reynolds Interiors take a lesson from that set. For modern, there are books, flowers and one or two decorative objects that can't go wrong. The reasons are, they're still running. Books can be lined, a floral arrangement offers a little bit of sophistication and a beautiful item creates a slice of conversation. Creating something deserving of Pinterest is that simple. Take a 360 Approach When it comes to styling the coffee table remember taking a 360 approach. In a central area of a house, a coffee table is often mounted, so that people can see it from all angles. Try to avoid doing stuff from all angles which don't look good. For example, if you place a picture frame on a coffee table someone needs to look at the back of it. Alternatively, a vase looks good from every perspective. Include a Plot Frame Seek to use at least one stand out piece at all times. It could be an odd object that sparks discussion, something that has a unique shape or something far lighter than the other objects, like the green flowers that Urrutia Design shows in this room. These are basic and suit the show well, yet the eye is immediately drawn to the vivid, fresh color. A coffee table view, just like in a house, will benefit from having a focal point. Attach a floral arrangement Virtually any coffee table show will take advantage of a floral setup. No matter how big or how small, flowers like those in this show by Jennifer Reynolds Interiors give a splash of freshness to a display— and a room — that can bring life. They're perfect too because you can explore different types of colors and have some fun. Don't be afraid to try that hue you wouldn't use in the room otherwise. Since flowers aren't particularly long-lasting, experimenting is a great way to.

Top 11 Coffee Table In India

So now you can have your favorite coffee table which you can decorate to make it more enchanting. We have settled up some quality coffee table from the best brands that probably can be your choice. So, Yeah go have 1. Balaji Solid Wood Coffee Table  (Finish Color - Provincial Teak)

PIC CREDIT: flipkart.com This beautifully designed coffee table is made out of mango wood by Balaji, an esteemed brand for producing this type of exquisite coffee table set. Covered with a detachable glass tabletop to make it more attractive and also for convenience to keep stuffs. Also, you can put some glossy showpieces or floral flowers to style it. It comes with an extension of drawers where you can keep your daily stuffs or magazines or newspaper, whatever you fond of! The manufactured product is blended up with solid wood to make it robust and long-lasting. The whole coffee table furniture takes up some space in your room which still makes the entire living room cozy and elegant. A perfect match for a bungalow style home architecture. PROSCONSMango wood and solid wood gives a natural look to the furniture.Price can be a bit high because of solid woodThe glue used maintains strong bonds, so you can use the coffee table without any difficulty.The detachable glass top can be easily fixed up with rubber blocks. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: Solid wood           Secondary material: Mango wood           Color: Brown           Finish color: Provincial teak           Finish Type: Lacquer           Dimension: W x H x D: 119 cm x 50 cm x 61 cm (3 ft 10 in x 1 ft 7 in x 2 ft)           Storage included: yes           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 2. Allie Wood Sheesham Wood Solid Wood Coffee Table  (Finish Color - Mahogany Finish)

PIC CREDIT: Flipkart.com This aesthetic coffee table is by Allie wood, a worth trusty brand for table furniture is made out of Sheesham oak, with a tabletop that is spacious and perfect for serving food items.  Padded cushions are sturdy and cozy to provide a comfortable rest.  This coffee table sports a simple square outline and an X-frame foundation that beautifully nestles four cushioned stools.  This compact package is the perfect option for those in need of extra space and style.  It's about having a nice gourmet coffee time with your family or treating friends with homemade refreshments. Gives a basic and enlighten emotion to French and prairie home style architecture. PROSCONSSheesham wood gives a very smooth and shiny finish.Not water resistant This beautiful coffee table was formulated double-chemically to keep termites at bay.It comes with stool having padded cushions. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: Solid wood           Secondary material: Sheesham wood           Color: Brown           Finish color: mahogany finish           Finish type: paint           Dimension: W x H x D: 88 cm x 45 cm x 88 cm (2 ft 10 in x 1 ft 5 in x 2 ft 10 in)                   Storage included: no           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 3. Flipkart Perfect Homes PureWood Sheesham Coffee Table  (Finish Color - Espresso)

PIC CREDIT: Flipkart.com Well this coffee table by Flipkart perfect home, known for its innovative work, is a true attention seeker. Well furnished with brown color with a natural finish color of espresso giving the whole look a rich quality. Made out of Sheesham wood, making it highly durable and sturdy to use. It comes with four stool padded with cushion and tabletop for your conventional utility. A basic design with artistic and quintessential looks to fit in a Florida and modern home architecture. PROSCONSSheesham wood gives a very smooth and shiny finish.Woodcarvings happen in Sheesham woodA robust solid-wood coffee table comes from reputed plantations and is ideal for your living room.It comes with stool having padded cushions. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: Solid wood           Secondary material: Sheesham wood           Color: Black           Finish color: espresso           Finish type: paint           Dimension: W x H x D: 85 cm x 44 cm x 85 cm (2 ft 9 in x 1 ft 5 in x 2 ft 9 in)           Storage included: no           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 4. Induscraft Sheesham Wood Glass Coffee Table  (Finish Color - Brown)

PIC CREDIT: flipkart.com Lay your eyes on this exquisite coffee table by induscraft, a very well known brand always keeping our trust to a height. The coffee table is well featured with a pellucid although huge glass table top giving it a shining look. The glass tabletop is attached to the wood with the help of a vacuum. The glass-top furniture is made from Sheesham wood and features both a sealant and a lacquer finish to make it moisture resistant. The wood used in the production process has undergone cleaning by Kiln Chamber, making it completely dry. It can be a well fit for contemporary and modern home style houses. PROSCONSSheesham wood gives a very smooth and shiny finish.Woodcarvings happen in Sheesham woodThis sturdy coffee table is completely dry for use with the Kiln Chamber Seasoning.It comes with under covered wood where you can conventionally place and organize your things. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: Solid wood           Secondary material: Sheesham wood           Color: Brown           Finish color: brown           Finish type: lacquer           Dimension: W x H x D: 83.82 cm x 31.75 cm x 83.82 cm (2 ft 9 in x 1 ft x 2 ft 9 in)           Storage included: yes           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 5. Flipkart Perfect Homes PureWood Sheesham Coffee Table  (Finish Color - Grey Walnut)

PIC CREDIT: Flipkart.com Bring to your home this really uber-chic coffee table furniture by Flipkart perfect homes. Made out of pure Sheesham wood blended up with solid wood to make it more durable and decay-resistant. This grey walnut color gives a beautiful sensation and a warm environment for your living room. It can be used as a prop too for your photoshoot session. What more you need? And goes perfectly with any contemporary or cape cod styled home décor. PROSCONSSheesham wood gives a very smooth and shiny finish.Woodcarvings happen in Sheesham woodThis pre-assembled coffee table comes with an insulation agent and lacquer to ensure that the table can not be hindered by any humidity build-up. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: Solid wood           Secondary material: Sheesham wood           Color: Brown           Finish color: grey walnut           Finish type: lacquer           Dimension: W x H x D: 80 cm x 35 cm x 80 cm (2 ft 7 in x 1 ft 1 in x 2 ft 7 in)                    Storage included: no           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 6. Flipkart Perfect Homes PureWood Sheesham Coffee Table  (Finish Color - Mahogany)

PIC CREDIT: Flipkart.com Make your life comfortable with this elegant coffee table by Flipkart Perfect homes. Made out of Sheesham wood which gives the table a smooth and shiny finish. It comes with two stool padded with a cushion to make it more convenient for you to sit and have your favorite cup of coffee. The coffee table has a finish color of mahogany which personifies the snug and cozy circumstances of the room and all the memories that are building up with your close ones. Goes well with wood or stone style home architecture. PROSCONSSheesham wood gives a very smooth and shiny finish.Wax rubdown is required.Have solid joints, making the coffee table robust and reliable at the test. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: Solid wood           Secondary material: Sheesham wood           Color: Brown           Finish color: mahogany           Finish type: lacquer           Dimension: W x H x D: 99 cm x 42 cm x 50 cm (3 ft 2 in x 1 ft 4 in x 1 ft 7 in)           Storage included: no           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 7. RoyalOak Cyra Glass Coffee Table  (Finish Color - Black)

PIC CREDIT: Flipkart.com This opulent coffee table is an epitome of classic and affluent nature. Offered by Royaloak which is a well-venerated brand for their creative and trustworthy product. Make your guests and friend amaze with this archetypal coffee table and have memorable moments. Made out of tempered glass making it highly durable. With a glass top and a simple leg, this table strips the perfect balance between elegance and functionality with an intelligently designed storage place. Impeccable for Georgian home architecture. PROSCONSOnly high-quality tempered glass offers crystal clearness and excellent performance in a variety of environments.Tempered glass can break. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: Tempered glass           Secondary material: engineered wood           Color: Black           Finish color: black           Finish type: glass           Dimension: W x H x D: 110 cm x 43 cm x 60 cm (3 ft 7 in x 1 ft 4 in x 1 ft 11 in)           Storage included: no           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 8. Crystal Furnitech Sigma Engineered Wood Coffee Table  (Finish Color - wallnut + wenge)

PIC CREDIT: Flipkart.com Let us jump into this wallnut blended with wenge finished coffee table by Crystal Furnitech. Crystal furnitech has the best quality and fashionable furniture choices for you at most competitive prices on the market as a wholesale furniture manufacturer. Made out of particle board giving the table a hefty nature and making it highly durable. You surely will want to have a pleasant gourmet coffee with your family or treat your friends with homemade food. A simple design with an artistic and necessary appearance making it suited for Mediterranean home style architecture. PROSCONSParticleboard furniture is light weighted.Particleboard is not eco-friendly. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: particleboard           Secondary material: engineered wood           Color: Brown           Finish color: walnut + wenge           Finish type: lacquer           Dimension: W x H x D: 118 cm x 38 cm x 60 cm (3 ft 10 in x 1 ft 2 in x 1 ft 11 in)                  Storage included: no           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 9. Crystal Furnitech Avia Engineered Wood Coffee Table  (Finish Color - Wenge)

PIC CREDIT: Flipkart.com This eye-catchy coffee table is presented by crystal furnitech. This coffee table is very fashionable and follows the modern, people-friendly theme. It has a very tricky shape making it highly voguish and can be used as a prop too. Besides this, it is made of particle board making it robust. Grab it for your log or shingle home architecture. PROSCONSParticleboard furniture is light weighted.Particleboard furniture is not long-lasting. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: particleboard           Secondary material: engineered wood           Color: Brown           Finish color: wenge           Finish type: lacquer           Dimension:  W x H x D: 90 cm x 47 cm x 45 cm (2 ft 11 in x 1 ft 6 in x 1 ft 5 in)                  Storage included: yes           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 10. Delite Kom Pure Engineered Wood Coffee Table (Finish Color - Wenge)

PIC CREDIT: Flipkart.com Introducing this enchanting wenge colored coffee table by Delite kom to you people, one of the best dealers with quality and budget fit prices. Built with high-quality, engineered wood that symphonizes the coffee table’s inner fidelity and gesture. A portable table of coffee stood on the hip of castors.  Designed to matt finish in dark acacia pigment.  Coffee table made of solid, durable material of high quality to last for a very long time.  Best fit in space in the bedroom or living room of modern or mid-modern home style. PROSCONSEngineered wood is more frugal than plywood, rendering furniture very durable.Engineered wood may have an adverse effect on health.Vulnerable to water. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: particleboard           Secondary material: engineered wood           Color: Brown           Finish color: wenge           Finish type: lacquer           Dimension:  W x H x D: 90 cm x 45 cm x 40 cm (2 ft 11 in x 1 ft 5 in x 1 ft 3 in)           Storage included: yes           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART 11. Spacewood Engineered Wood Coffee Table  (Finish Color - Vermount)

PIC CREDIT: Flipkart.com This beautiful wooden coffee table is presented by Spacewood, one of the best sellers deserving of their excellent efforts to bring and deliver the best quality product to your home at a low price. This coffee table reflects the ideal centerpiece for small spaces. This offers the space a bit of modern allure and can be a starting point for discussion. Featured with an under the shelf where you can organize your magazine and newspapers. This coffee table has an impeccable effect on Traditional and Victorian home architecture. Must-buy furniture and a piece of excellent furniture to bring your elegant home design into the decor. PROSCONSThe engineered wood is more frugal than the plywood, rendering the furniture highly sturdy.Engineered wood may have an adverse effect on health.Vulnerable to water. KEY SPECS:           Primary material: particleboard           Secondary material: engineered wood           Color: Brown           Finish color: vermount           Finish type: melamine           Dimension:  W x H x D: 80 cm x 41 cm x 40 cm (2 ft 7 in x 1 ft 4 in x 1 ft 3 in)           Storage included: yes           Assembly required: Pre-assembled CHECK PRICE ON FLIPKART

CONCLUSION

So here we're stopping our journey through the coffee table you might encounter with. We hope that our review and advice on these different types of coffee table has helped you to think before making any purchasing decision, and has also provided some context for looking at it. What are your ideas for setting up a coffee table that will match your home decor? What is your preferred way to style a coffee table? Leave a line below! That’s all from us, stay fashionable! Read the full article

[calistachan3217]

Final Project: A Millennial’s Guide to Budgeting

I had little time to invest in my own development process due to issues reflected in the peer review. That being said, here are some takeaways that I have garnered from choosing a topic and justifiable audience, setting the stylistic themes (down to typeface, font, color, and layout) to be followed through by each member throughout our sections, working on cover pages and content page, editing and compiling the members’ work (with them, except when they were too busy to follow internal and formal deadlines), directing and fuelling the guide’s production, conversations on our work, producing content point-by-point to be covered in the presentation/design document, and reeling in the disparate contributions made by the members.

This module’s emphasis on terminology proved crucial during the groupwork, especially since we were aiming towards a cohesive and coherent design. Since not only did we we work on our individual parts separately, but also have different idealisations/abstractions of the final guide’s visuals in mind, these terms were crucial in order to articulate and calibrate our creative direction. For example, although I proposed minimalism - for its emphasis on purposefulness since our guide has a specific aim - and stated that we should turn to Broader Perspectives and Colorhunt.co for layout/colour-blocking and colour palette inspiration respectively, the design elements I personally identified and sought after in these examples completely did not translate to my groupmates at all. I could have better specified how the colours complement each other much clearer and the type of colours used beyond just “shouting colours that aren’t too over-saturated”. As for the layout, columns of text that fell symmetrically, if not in a balanced fashion upon the colour-blocked page. It was only upon witnessing the jarringly different work produced by each member that I realised how imperative these terms and specifications are. When compiling and viewing the final prototype and product, I had to edit each member’s layout because I noticed how even small details I took for granted like centering the elements to the artboard or basic alignments to improve readability were entirely overlooked, highlighting that our group members (naturally) had very different priorities in determining purposefulness and readability. Our understanding of our (ideally) collective decisions made in the design process was also exacerbated when doing up the design document and final presentation as well (as addressed in the peer review). As much as we would like to copy-paste articulated interpretation, discrepancies will inevitably be presented during visualisation if effective communication is not carried out. By extension, regardless of how much the designer attempts to direct the client’s eye and attention, our subjective perspectives inflect the takeaways we glean from every piece of design. 

On a more technical level, besides these small design principles that I have largely taken for granted, I managed to apply and experiment with new techniques when designing the cover pages. As seen in Fig. 1.1 below, I had intended to centralize everything, drawing inspiration from video game characters’ health bars. However, I decided to use the Golden Ratio in Fig 1.2 and adjust both positioning and scale of the elements included. There was thus a greater emphasis on the money-meter and title of the guide, since the millennials I surveyed regarding Fig 1.1 were unsure of what they were supposed to look at first.

Fig 1.1 I simply duplicated the tag vectors and centralized the overall design relative to the artboard. Spelling error was corrected.

Fig 1.2 Using the Golden Ratio and adjusting the ratio between illustration and title. Spelling error was corrected.

Beyond communication between group members, my back cover’s initial concept did not translate well either. Fig 2.1 was interpreted again by my millennial friends as “now he’s poor” due to the reduced number of “$” vectors and “shabbier” clothing. The increased amount of money in his wallet was hard to notice as well. I decided to tessellate the notes (making my own swatch on Illustrator) instead into a pattern for the background, keeping the individual notes at a size large enough to be recognizable as notes, but not to the point where it detracts the emphasis from the main figure and meter himself in Fig 2.2. This helped to counteract the distracting amount of negative space surrounding the character as well.

Fig 2.1 “Now he’s poor.”

Fig 2.2 “Now he’s drowning in money”

Fig 2.3 I played around with several typefaces and fonts before settling on Quicksand and Bebas Kai (for the front cover), although my go-to is Baron Neue Black. It was great seeing that the prolonged use of Quicksand throughout the guide did help differentiate our guide from the typical pamphlet or lengthy Internet article on budgeting - the sans-serif made it much both playful and readable, while we could use its different weights to create emphasis and direct flow. I enjoyed playing with the health-bar theme as well especially when I received validation that it translated as I intended it to. It was great fun designing and getting an end-product that both the client and I enjoy.

Even though I have no prior experience with Indesign before this module, the sheer amount of editing I had to do between the elements on Illustrator, the incompatibility of my groupmates’ Adobe software, and compiling everything on Indesign, I have been forced to get familiar with it. I’ve really come to appreciate the embed eps and how it prevents Indesign from crashing just like my Illustrator did due to the ridiculous amount of unnecessary layers some group members had. I’ve also unexpectedly become more proficient in negotiating the file types, such as teaching/sharing with my groupmates on the differences between svgs, eps, ai, pdf, how to image trace and expand to vectors, how to expand text/shapes/lines into vector-shapes, how to convert pdf to ai/indd so their work stops crashing everyone’s local devices, so on and so forth.

I do wish that beyond learning about the blob brush tool (from Jiaxuan!), I could have learnt more from my groupmates as opposed to learning about working with them. Other than learning about the importance of thinking about design edits as a means to get closer to a successful design instead of a huge number of small steps, upon seeing how it thoroughly paralyzed some of my groupmates, I wish that they could have contributed their learning points as well since this would have bolstered my own perspective and even design prowess - to sharpen my own skills and vision. On an overall, I am glad that I got to design a product that had fun design challenges to tackle along the way - an opportunity to get creative, which is where I drew the guide’s ethos from - applying and fusing my design knowledge with that learnt in class and occasionally, ideas from my groupmates.

[junker-town]

The Las Vegas Aces are running into an age-old problem for basketball superteams

They’ve actually been better when Liz Cambage and A’ja Wilson DON’T share the court, but there’s a good reason why.

There’s a moment in most Las Vegas Aces games where they turn into the unstoppable offensive juggernaut that was promised when they added the most dominant big in WNBA history. It’s usually during a stoppage of play in the second half of the first and third quarters. Sometimes it’s after a timeout. Sometimes, it’s after a loud horn buzzes in the arena. In eight games this season — technically nine, in fact — it actually was at the opening tip, though that wasn’t the plan.

It’s the moment when one of Liz Cambage and A’ja Wilson goes to the bench and fifth-year veteran and San Antonio Stars holdover Dearica Hamby enters.

Every game is different, but the season-long trend is supported by too much data to ignore. When Wilson and Cambage share the floor, the Aces score significantly less effectively, miss more shots, grab way fewer offensive rebounds, and draw fouls less frequently. The second Hamby enters for one of them — either one, in fact — the Aces score more efficiently, make more shots, grab significantly more offensive rebounds, and draw more fouls. (Yes, the Aces significantly improve on the glass and at drawing fouls when they only have one towering force inside rather than two). They play at the level of a decent team with their two stars on the floor, then transform into a title favorite when they don’t.

This happens for a simple reason: the concept of diminishing returns. Basketball is a zero-sum game. Every shot a player takes is one others can’t, and every time one goes to their preferred space on the floor, the other four need to go somewhere else to give that player space. One plus one doesn’t automatically equal two, especially when pairing superstars with similar strengths. This is a concept as old as basketball itself, one proven by countless studies and illustrated every time a superteam comes together, whether in the NBA or WNBA.

While on separate teams last year, Cambage and Wilson were No. 1 and No. 2 in the WNBA in usage rate. They are both devastatingly effective in the same area of the court and much less effective anywhere else. To be their best selves in that area, they need to be able to lord over it themselves. Because of that, Cambage and Wilson often encroach on the other’s space, allowing opponents to swarm either with multiple defenders.

In a perfect world, Cambage and Wilson could easily share that precious real estate within the flow of the game. Problem is, neither has the skill set or the natural instinct to be their best selves elsewhere on the floor, and opponents know it. When Wilson stands away from the basket, her defender drops off her to help on Cambage, knowing Wilson doesn’t have the shooting range to make her pay.

Cambage is a better deep shooter than Wilson, but has taken just 12 threes all season after launching 37 in 29 games with Dallas last year. Besides, acquiring Cambage to space the floor and shoot threes is like using a Ferrari to drive off-road. You could do it, but that’s not why you bought it.

By virtue of being stars that have (correctly) been the focal point of their teams, Cambage’s and Wilson’s off-ball instincts have atrophied. One tends to stand a half-step too close to the other when abdicating the paint. Wilson in particular doesn’t move, screen, or cut naturally in ways that could distract the defense and open up space for Cambage.

Those small shortcomings add up, especially against coordinated defenses that know Wilson and Cambage can’t score if they never get the ball.

Hamby, on the other hand, does not occupy the same space or shoot as often. She is willing and able to stand and move beyond the three-point line, and though she’s not a high-percentage shooter, she takes enough of them to pull her defender a step or two further away from helping inside. Though Hamby occasionally posts up, she is quick to flee back to the three-point line when Wilson or Cambage wants to do their thing. It’s actually funny watching Hamby run from the lane like she’s just seen a ghost.

Though Hamby is half the offensive force that Cambage and Wilson are, she is twice the threat when she doesn’t have the ball. She sets well-angled screens, runs the floor aggressively, and knows where to stand to maximize the team’s spacing. Because she’s used to playing without the ball, she’s developed the instinct to keep it moving when she doesn’t have an obvious opening to shoot or drive. Opponents get distracted by her, and thus they pay less attention to more dangerous threats.

But while Hamby is a nice player, overusing her at the expense of Cambage and/or Wilson misunderstands her value. Players like Hamby ensure one plus one actually equals two, but maximizing two superstars is the way to make the number at the beginning of that equation larger. That’s why basketball teams load up on stars even if their skills overlap, and it’s why they’ll do so in the future.

So what can the Aces do to alleviate their diminishing returns problem? Broadly, they should use three different, simultaneous approaches.

Let the problem solve itself naturally over time.

Limit (but not eliminate) the playing time the two stars get together to give them more chances to be their best selves on their own.

Alter the skill sets of the other three players on the court to ensure they complement the two stars.

In a theoretical world, option 1 is the most powerful of the three. Nothing solves a problem better than experimenting, failing, and learning from those failures. As Cambage said in a July SLAM cover story, “Once we start getting it together—like when I start knowing the plays—and really just snapping into it quickly and being able to run it straight away on the court, I think we’re going to be unstoppable.”

Each game features glimpses of that grand proclamation. The high-low chemistry between Cambage and Wilson is developing: they’ve assisted each other 34 times this season in 23 games, a rate of about once every three quarters. There are many other moments where they are attempting to blend their talents, but the timing and/or spacing is still a beat off. This is actually reason to be optimistic: more reps leads to better precision, so long as the right idea is being practiced.

But in the real world, time is always at a premium. The Aces have a playoff run incoming, one that may begin with at least one win-or-go-home game. Cambage and Wilson should remain teammates for the long haul, but the future is never certain. The memory of the previous three months doesn’t just go away, and neither does the experience of whatever happens the rest of the season. That’s why Aces coach Bill Laimbeer has to use the second and third approaches to improve the situation.

Using the second method allows Hamby to become a great luxury; she enables Laimbeer to rotate Cambage and Wilson to ensure one is on the floor at all times. Excluding the one game both Cambage and Wilson missed, the Aces have played 211 minutes with both of their stars on the bench, according to advanced stat site Positive Residual. Ensuring that number is zero the rest of the season is an easy step that will go a long way in improving the Aces.

The third method, on the other hand, will be more of a challenge. Laimbeer should change the way the other three players function around Wilson and Cambage, but I’m not sure he will.

The dilemma here involves Jackie Young, the No. 1 pick in the 2019 WNBA Draft. Laimbeer, who is also the team’s general manager, views Young as the team’s lead ball-handler of the future and has given her significant opportunity to make mistakes and learn from them. That often comes at the expense of 2017 No. 1 overall pick Kelsey Plum, whose game has stagnated since Cambage arrived and was removed from the starting lineup in Tuesday’s blowout loss to the lottery-bound Indiana Fever.

Throwing Young into the deep end may prove to be a brilliant long-term approach, but in the short term, her inexperience and lack of shooting range exacerbates the already difficult challenge of blending Cambage and Wilson’s talents. Young’s still too antsy under pressure, endangering offensive sets that require pristine timing. Teams don’t respect her jump shot, going under ball screens and standing way off her to muck up space inside.

When Young shares the floor with Cambage and Wilson, the Aces score an average of just 95.2 points per 100 possessions, according to Positive Residual. Take Young off the floor, and that number jumps all the way up to 103.7, albeit in a small sample of just 104 minutes. Plum has her limitations, but her perimeter shooting is a much better fit alongside Cambage and Wilson. Perhaps Laimbeer should have more patience with her mistakes and less with Young’s.

Putting the ball in Young’s hands also means taking it away from sharp-shooting All-Star wing Kayla McBride, who has seen her usage drop considerably from last year without a significant increase in scoring efficiency. Leveraging the threat of McBride’s shooting to open space for Cambage or Wilson is one way the Aces currently mask the spacing challenges of the rest of the roster.

Still, this strategy would be even more effective if Young became a better shooter or was replaced by one in the lineup. After all, Young isn’t on the court in that clip.

Solving for the age-old problem of diminishing returns will be tricky for Laimbeer and can’t be addressed in isolation. Playing Hamby more means less on-court time for Wilson and Cambage to work things out naturally. Limiting Young’s role should help in the short term, but may come at the expense of her long-term development. Any personnel or stylistic change threatens to undermine the Aces’ league-best defense, which has become central to the team’s identity.

But this is also a state of affairs any sane organization should gladly accept to secure two generational talents like Wilson and Cambage. The Aces’ diminishing returns dilemma is similar to what several NBA teams will face this season, whether with guards (Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors), wings (LA Clippers), or bigs (LA Lakers, Philadelphia 76ers). Even if you’re not a fan of the WNBA or the Aces, the problem-solving mechanisms they’ll use will inform the success of future superstar unions in both leagues for years to come.

That should make Laimbeer feel better as he searches his brain for the right solutions. At least his plight is a familiar one.