#i want to print out one design for my friend's gift

[lorrainestea]

You think I am stubborn?

Wait until you meet my printer.

Because she is the real oversensitive drama queen.

[nopefer-art-tu]

The Sky Above, by @mediumorange

I am SO excited to finally share this project with everyone!! Way back in the fall of 2023 I embarked on my first foray into bookbinding, and I thought, what better work to start this hobby off on than with one of the greatest works the Brokeback Mountain fansphere has to offer, written by my dear friend Emily?

And so began my year-long journey with this work, haha.

The book is a square back bradel style binding, covered in turquoise bookcloth. I used a kettle stitch to sew the textblock, and then Lineco-brand PVA glue as the adhesive for everything that needed to be adhered.

While I'm proud of the entire book, I have to admit the thing that I'm most proud of is the cover design.

To make a long story short, I wanted to find a way to make fully illustrated covers on bookcloth, and most of the popular methods of cover design that I had seen were all very limiting for me as an artist to do the things I wanted to do. Thus much of the time I spent making this book went into deep-diving into the world of textile design and ink transfer methods.

In my research, I discovered these types of toner sheets called Direct-to-Film (DTF, lol) transfers. Basically, you can print any design you want at most any size using the full range of the CYMK color spectrum + black + white, then you use a heat press to transfer the design onto your fabric et voila: your design is embedded into the textile.

Because neither the Renegade Bindery discord nor the bookbinder reddit groups really knew what I was talking about when I asked if anyone had ever tried this method out, I put my little rodent ears on and became the guineapig lol.

The first practice attempts I made at this came out tentatively successful, and when I tried it again for the real cover, it came out perfect. I'm still floored by the results tbh. This is such a game changer and I hope more binders can utilize direct-to-film transfers in the future!

Anyways, I really hope you love your belated birthday gift as much as I loved making it, Emily 🥰 Thank you for sharing your talents with such a small fandom sphere, and I can't wait to bind more of your works in the future!!

Editing by me

Typesetting by me

Binding by me

Art by me

[helslastangel]

Random Astro Observations #6

@helslastangel

Disclaimer: These are based on personal observations and experiences and may not resonate for everyone with these placements. If it doesn’t apply, let it fly 🪽

🔥 Leo sun men as fathers often make excellent financial providers but poor emotional support for their children

💧Scorpio moon women are often overprotective of their sons and very harsh or demanding of their children's love interests

🌬 Aquarius mars placements don't get mad, they get even. the definition of neither forgive nor forget

🌿 Capricorn moons pay attention to what you like and will send you relevant memes or funny videos if they like you. They love making others laugh and sharing humor is a love language to them

🔥 Sagittarius sun women with Aries placements can be self-centered in their day-to-day actions without realizing it and sometimes end up with strained friendships and issues with their siblings

💧Cancer venus men can be some of the most caring and kind if they like you, but they are also vengeful and will ruin your day on purpose if they feel like it will make their point

🌬 Libra suns are typically cheerful unless they have Virgo or Capricorn moon - those can be quite serious or melancholy. if they have Sagittarius moon they may have more anger management issues and are more confrontational in general.

🌿 Taurus sun men prefer to be chased than do the chasing. if a Taurus man is chasing you, he seriously likes you something different because they're not getting off the couch for just anybody

🔥 Aries moon and Sagittarius mercury can make anyone 2x more fiery than they would be based on their sun sign, or give an otherwise chilled-out chart a massive energy boost. I had a Scorpio sun, Aries moon, Sag mercury, Libra venus, Scorpio mars friend and she was the sweetest but most aggressive Scorpio I ever met. Nobody believed she was a Scorpio tbh her Aries + Sag energies overwhelmed the rest of her placements. I knew someone else with Scorpio sun, moon, venus, mars, and Libra mercury and they were like a huge teddy bear and kind of a pushover most of the time.

💧Scorpio risings deal with a lot of unexplained hatred from acquaintances and random strangers. Most people react to them with either love/obsession or intense anger. It can cause them a lot of anxiety and people like to pick physical fights with them.

🌬 Gemini women are extremely loyal friends besides the tendency to talk a little bit too much to one person about someone else's business. The thing is, Geminis value community and communal traits a lot. I think they subconsciously forget that their friends aren't automatically your friends too, so they do need to ask before sharing things you only wanted them to know.

🌿 Virgo suns/moon LOVE to dance, or if they can't/won't, they might either enjoy watching other people do so, or just enjoy some form of physical movement that requires some coordination and focus in some way (martial arts, boxing, yoga, Tai chi, etc). But yeah if they become comfortable around you, just like with Capricorns, you'll discover a whole other side to them

🔥 Leo venuses are known for liking gifts but tbh it's not just any gift - they want things that are high quality at the very least. Even better if it's something they can show off to others. My ex has this placement and I remember for Valentine's Day, I got him a bunch of things ranging in price, some for glamour and others because I just noticed he could use them. Yeah well, he loved the $250 gold earrings and immediately put them in and went to show his friends, and he loved the black woven bracelets because they "looked exclusive" but I found the tracksuit, graphic tees and the card with the lipstick print I got him shoved in the back of his closet. Asked about it and after lying about putting them there "just for a second to sweep the floor" he eventually admitted that because they weren't designer he really didn't want them. Lesson learned 0_0

My dad also has Leo venus and although he doesn't particularly care about things being designer or not like that, he WILL pick at the quality of anything you get him and only be happy if he can do the boomer thing where they say how "solid" something feels and how it will "last." If it's something like a book, it has to be a super popular bestselling "everyone is talking about this" title or else... yeah your gift is ending up in a sock drawer :/ lol

💧 Water moons experience a lot of guilt whenever they set boundaries with others and it's something they have to overcome as early as possible or they will suffer from a lot of headaches or stomachaches from anxiety

🌬 Aquarius sun men can be extremely toxic when it comes to wanting and chasing someone only after that person loses interest or displays nonchalance towards them. It is almost like they like a challenge to the point of manufacturing it over investing the same energy into a personal connection. The thing is, this is fun for a while but if they do it too often to too many people within a closed environment (school, activity group, work, etc), word gets around and they can often suddenly find themselves losing friends and romantic prospects. They can become lonely at that point and try to double back with their top interests, but won't admit they f*cked up. They just show up either acting as if nothing happened or being kinda arrogant about the whole thing and insisting that you're the one playing games with them.

🌿 Earth signs in the big 3 can make someone develop very peculiar ways of organizing. It can be physical objects, locations, or even just their thoughts, but they will have a whole elaborate process that can be kinda cute to watch unfold.

🔥 Fire signs in the big 3 can make someone highly expressive and have huge energy, even if they're a shy or quiet person. You'll know they've arrived at a function long before you see them and can find them in a room by just following the vibes ✨️

💧Pisces placements, especially suns, are extremely perceptive and people do not give them nearly enough credit for this. They're noticing everything and taking notes for future reference - looking like they're in the own world is just how they seem on the outside. Just because they didn't say anything doesn't mean they didn't clock your tea.

𓆩♡𓆪

↤ go back to the masterlist

[phoenixortheflame]

Bound: Licurici by @lou-isfake

Cover art by @saijordison. Typeset, bound, and designed by me, @phoenixortheflame.

Charlie wanted Harry, but he’d never planned on having him. He’d never planned on Draco Malfoy, either. He hadn’t planned on anything but living out his days in Romania, with his friends and his dragons and his safe, peaceful distance. Apparently, it wasn’t a very popular plan. This is a story about crumbs and flickers and roots, running away and coming home; about falling in love without meaning to (twice), and having truly good friends, and the mutually revealing recognition between two people in love with the same man.

I love Drarry, but I'm a sucker for poly ships, too, so when I started bookbinding, I knew it wouldn't be long before I bound Licurici.

Fast forward a few months and my library started offering paperback binding workshops. I thought to myself, this is the perfect fic to test the max page limit of their equipment. (And boy did it ever!)

Little did I recall just how smutty some of the scenes were, and I cackled to myself in the corner as I made the typeset, thinking of the Makerspace employee who'd end up printing my porn E-rated fic.

Speaking of typeset: I kept mine simple, as the library only prints the text blocks in black and white. I did have had an idea, though, for full-colour section pages, so I printed those at home and swapped them out on bind day.

As for the cover, immediately my brain went to the Challengers film poster. I pinged the Drarry Discord server I'm in to ask if there were any artists who wanted to make some cover art in exchange for a copy of the bind. @saijordison answered my call - and my goodness if it isn't the most beautiful piece of art I've ever bloody seen.

I'm really happy with how these turned out. And collaborating with @saijordison on this was such a positive experience, we have plans to do it again in the future.

"Praise for" quotes from: @lqtraintracks, @maleekamolscreates, @kamaela, @its-the-allure, and @wolfpants

(P.S. I don’t take commissions! Of the five copies, I kept one for myself, sent one to the artist, another to Lou, and the last two were gifted to friends!)

[lavaramen]

【Thoughts in the Dark】 A 14page Good Omens fancomic/fanzine!

Designed to be easily printed (double side A4) as a small book, so that anyone can own a physical copy :) like so:

You can make one yourself with Printable formats here!!! for freeee!

Gosh the making of this took so long, plz reblog I need the support!

This zine is a "love letter" to Good Omens, to which I am a long time fan; And to the friends I made and lost in the fandom through these years. Good Omens is a wonderful story, full of love and hope to the world,  one that made the universe a better place. It sparked a passion and love in me, and spoke an encouragement for all to give-pour-throw love to people and into the world.

It is one of the great stories and things in the world that inspired me to create my own works.

Physical copies were originally given out at a local convention as free gifts, but I really wanted to share this so ANYONE ANYWHERE can hold a copy in their hand, as a hug from me^^

Stuffed a lot of multi-media Good Omens reference in it! See if you can spot the nods to Radio Omens and the various book covers!<3 Hope you had a good read! Best wishes and hopes for GO Season 3!

printing sheet and instructions can be found HERE, or under cut:

if you do print it pleaseee show me!

[elenthyaolyenths]

This one was a gift for my dear friend @kotias!

She came one day and asked me if she could use the design of my dress (here) for one of her Human!AU fanfictions she is still writing. I was so happy to agree! Then, with all the precious details she gave me about her Crowley (He/Him), I decided to make a brand new illustration of her character in this famous dress, just for her!

It took me a very long time, because I really wanted to be able to colour this WIP. Plus, that was the first time ever I tried to draw such a gothic-inspired make-up.

Thank you for this wonderful occasion, Madame! ❤️‍🔥

↓HD images under the cut!↓

My other Good Omens illustrations: [Previous] [Next Day] [First Day]

Prints available here! - ❤️‍🔥Support me on Ko-Fi❤️‍🔥

Masterpost (Art Gallery, news)

Tag list (tell me if you want to be in or out <3):

@goodomensafterdark

@goodomensafterdark @floscrap-blog @demonsandpieohmy @amagnificentobsession @captainblou

@ineffable-hyperfixation @quoththemaiden @paperclipninja @silverdphantom @neverlet

@fearandhatred @eybefioro @crowleys-bentley-and-plants @ashfae @malohkeh-main

@mad-aims @daisydimple20092

[hxrnyforsturns]

guess C.S

based off of guess by billie ellish and charli xcx

SMUTT. p in v, oral sex,nudity. swearing. tattoos. making out. pet names.

y/n X chris sturniolo

you: pink

chris: orange

friend: purple

a/n i haven't seen enough fics about this song so im adding to it ;) it like 2 am i wrote all of this in one night. i'm not proof reading it so there is probably a lot of errors but idgaf.

i was out with my best friends shopping after we got tattoos together. we got matching lower back tattoos. the design was a heart with a pretty design on the sides of the hearts, kind of looking like wings. all i could think about was chris's reaction to it. an up beat song is blasting through the speakers as we walk into a victoria's secret in search of nice lingerie.

"i know i got chris a lot of gifts for his birthday but i see him today for the first time since he left for his birthday. so i was thinking ill get a special set in his favorite color and surprise him. what do you guys think?"

"girl your gonna get an orange set? that's gonna be hideous "

"not in his eyes"

"whatever do what you want, i'll be getting an actual nice color!"

i roll my eyes at her comment. he was very special to me so the least i could do is get a set in his favorite color, even if it will not look good. i rummage around the colors, i found a vibrant orange mesh thong with a matching mesh bra. it was bedazzled on the straps of both pieces, it also had a slight leopard print on them. they were both exactly my size, it was a sign, i had to get it. i ran to the checkout

"wow that's a color!"

"he's gonna love it! i'm so excited!!"

i arrived home with my shopping bag. chris wasn't home from the airport yet so it gave me time to try on and wear my new purchase. i slipped on both pieces and they were gorgeous, i was afraid that it wouldn't look to good on me but it was phenomenal. my new favorite set. i put shorts and a big t shirt over it so i could surprise him once he got home.

an hour or two passed. i was watching tv and i heard the keys jangling. i shot up and ran to the door and there he was. my beautiful boy was there. his eyes looked bluer since he left.

"CHRIS!!"

"hey my love! ugh i missed you so much!" he pulled me in fora hug as he dropped all of his bags on the floor of the kitchen

"come on! i have been waiting all week to give you your gift!"

chris opened all of his wrapped gifts. he finished opening all of his gifts except for the one I had bought that was on my body.

"for this next gift, we have to play a little game"

"ooh fun!" he smirked

"guess."

"guess what?"

"just guess a color."

"hmm blue?"

"wrong"

"red?"

"wrong."

"what exactly is the item that i'm guessing the color of?"

"you'll see once you get the color right. i'll give you a hint it's your favorite." i smirked at him while laying him down on the bed

"orange?!"

"correct! now you get to see!"

his eyes widen as i take my shirt off and as my panties make an appearance.

"for me? tonight."

"all for you baby, always and forever."

"that's all i want. wow i like your new tattoo! it's so beautiful. like you!"

we smash our lips together as i fall on top of him. grasping on his hair as muffled moans leave our mouths still pressed together. we grow sloppier and sloppier. i pull away just to kiss down his neck to his collar bone. i make it down to his stomach and i tug at his boxers letting him know i want them off.

"please?"

he immediately rips them off. his cock sprung out to his stomach. i grasp it and start to kiss the tip of his dick.

"god i've missed you so much."

i take his length in my mouth the farthest it could go in my mouth. my eyes start to water. he's nonstop groaning as he stares at me.

"fuck- i wish you could wear that everyday it's really turning me on." he expresses in between pants.

"fuck baby. m'gonna- cu-" he shot his load in my mouth and around my face

"shit baby i'm so sorry. i didn't mean to!"

"no need to apologize baby." i took my finger and dragged it around my face gathering his cum on my finger.

"want a taste?" i shoved my finger in his mouth.

"god baby never take that outfit off. "

he fidgets with the black bow on the waistband. i'm laying on the bed and chris plays with my panties. he pulls them to the side and my head shot up. he buried his face in my pussy. he licks everything like it's his last meal. he stuck his tongue as well as his fingers. i grasp the sheets so tight i feel they will rip any second. i moan loud as ever he detaches his lips and finger for a moment. he grabs my panties off my body exposing my throbbing pussy. he kept the panties in his mouth for a moment as he tore his shirt off. he had them in his hand for the duration of the night. he grabbed his dick and shoved it in, a loud gasp coming from my mouth.

"oh my fuck, your the best ever. don't stop there." i'm staring up at him as he holds my panties in his mouth while his hands on my hips as he aggressively thrusts into me.

"i'm about to cum now baby"

"same- oh my FUCK-"

he pulled out seeing our juices mixed at my pussy.

"that set got me so turned on. best birthday gift ever "

"glad you enjoyed it"

"let me see that tattoo again." he placed kisses for about 3 minutes on the tattoo as he drifted to sleep on my bare ass.

chris never goes anywhere without my panties in his pocket.

[creations-by-chaosfay]

Groceries are absurdly expensive, and having dietary restrictions (celiac disease for me, diabetes for husband) makes it even worse. Between groceries, fuel, and bills, we'll be hurting in a week. My husband hasn't been able to find a new job. Or, more accurately, no one is calling about an interview.

I have listings in my shop, with digital downloads starting at $0 USD, and everything has the option of Pay What You Want (PWYW). Currently, I have several tutorials, art resources, and quilts of varying sizes. There are also quilt tops with the option of having me turn them into finished quilts.

Commissions are open until June 1st. Use coupon code GOHOGWILD for 15% off, with one small catch: you choose the size range, I choose colors, design, and prints. I will work on unfinished commissions over the course of the summer.

You also have the option of being a monthly supporter for as little as $5/month. There are goodies like automatic discounts in my shop and commissions, freebies, postcards, and some other fun surprises.

Here's a link to my gallery of work, with work-in-progress all nicely laid out. Take a look and see if my style works for you and if it's in your budget. My commissions start at $20 USD.

If fine art is more your style, you can purchase prints of my paintings and photography here. I have the original paintings in my ko-fi shop. I haven't made any new paintings in years due to lack of paint. Someday, that'll change. Right now, however, food, fuel, and bills come first.

Should you decide you would rather treat me to nice things (seeing as all money otherwise goes to necessities), you can send me one of the things on my Throne list. Right now, I need thr humidifier so my asthma will behave. Dry season is here, and my lungs are feeling it. I also have paint on the list.

To send money direct, you can choose to donate via Ko-fi (Stripe, PayPal), or any of the following options:

For PayPal direct, you must mark it as a gift or I will otherwise need to return the money.

Here are some examples of my work:

[my-deer-friend]

Play along: Amrev codebreaker!

While browsing through some primary materials reading up about John Laurens’ mission to France as special minister to the court of Versailles, I came across a letter that he wrote to the president of the Continental Congress on 9 April 1781 that included a coded message using a numerical cipher. 

I took a shot at deciphering it – here’s the process I followed, and you can play along too!

1. The first step, of course, was to determine which specific encryption was being used. After a bit of digging, I came across the immensely useful United States diplomatic codes and ciphers, 1775-1938 by Ralph E Weber. He explains that the cipher in question was “prepared on separate encode and decode sheets, the latter contained 660 printed numbers, with usually 600 words, syllables, and letters of the alphabet scattered randomly throughout the sheet.” So, for example, the word “congress” is “143”, the syllable “el” is “593” and the letter “r” is “215”. This cipher was an updated and improved version of the one used by Benjamin Tallmadge, and Weber explains that Laurens was the first one to use it. Weber also handily provides the decode table in an appendix. 

2. The second step was to design an efficient way to decode the hundreds of numbers Laurens used in his letter, and the obvious answer was my good friend the spreadsheet. I transferred the table from the book to Google Sheets, which was mildly tedious but hugely time-saving later on.

3. Now the fun part! I typed out the numbers from Laurens’ letter, and then used a simple LOOKUP formula to match the number to the decoded text.

The cipher also includes two nuances - an underscore beneath the word means a plural, and an overscore denotes adding an “e” - so I marked these in the cells with pink and green highlights respectively.

4. The final step was correcting a few errors in my table, refining the decoding (some numbers have various iterations to save space, such as 103 which can be any one of “ec/eck/ek” depending on which syllable is needed), and extracting the final text. 

It all reads very smoothly, with the singular exception of “ght-f-t”, which is the way Laurens rendered the word “gift”. The obvious explanation for this mangle is that he mis-wrote 340 (ght) instead of 170 (gi).

That’s definitely 340, 304, 196 which decodes as “ght-f-t”.

While it seems like a strange error to make, bear in mind that the encoding sheet (the one Laurens was using to change plaintext into numbers) would have been listed in alphabetical order to make finding the numbers easier (while the person at the other end has the sheet in numerical order, to reverse the process just as easily). And when we sort alphabetically, we can see that 340 and 170 are right next to each other:

A simple slip to make for someone writing coded letters late at night in low candlelight.

If you want to play along:

Here’s the code/decode spreadsheet. 

And here is the transcribed text (underlines for plurals, asterisk for added “e”). I've given the solution under the cut!

I have employed the most unremitting efforts to obtain a prompt and favorable decision relative to the object of my mission_ 381, 304, 543, 437, 366, 377, 276, 75, 75, 226, 269, 385, 426, 377, 17, 465, 197, 481, 428, 593, 381, 355, 153, 278*, 428, 333, 70, 18, 405, 184, 226, 291, 197, 376, 524, 330, 446, 362, 449, 143 The Count de Vergennes communicated to me yesterday his most Christian Majesty's determination to guarantee 381, 59, 594, 18, 9, 205, 330, 497, 254, 401, 376, 503, 306, 503, 467, 428, 226, 236, 330, 278*, 245, 205, 506, 99, 376, 381, 381, 256, 184, 90, 340, 304, 196 ...and the value of the military effects which may be furnished from the Royal Arsenal, 418, 330, 497, 428, 197, 380, 377, 196, 376, 45, 278, 245, 205 I shall use my utmost endeavours to procure an immediate 467, 208, 491, 18, 278*, 9, 205, 45, 278, 42, 381, 230, 215, 355, 18, 237, 330, 497*, 215, 167, 290, 377, 376, 341, 278, 182, 302, 75, 376, 59, 594, and shall renew my solicitations for the 357, 34, 197, 18, 203, 291, 491, 481, 484, 34, 325, 89, 113, 392, 197, 269, 336, 458, 278*, 97, 18, 245, 205 may not be 126, 21, 215, 497, 376, 341, 296, 75, 477, 226, 103, 196, 481, 278*, 483, 215, 553, 75*, 18, 238, 377, 59, 374, 478, the providing this article I fear will be attended with great difficulties and delays as all the 476, 490, 481, 36, 228, 351, 392, 226, 197, 18, 237, are remote from the sea, and there are no 441, 420, 50, 563, 503, 197, 18, 377, 59, 278, suitable to our purposes. The cargo of the Marquis de la Fayette will I hope arrive safe under the convoy of the Alliance_ 481, 341, 78, 465, 75, 426, 408, 596, 115, 76, 376, 174, 196*, 291, 103, 197, 75, 75, 184, 226, 197, 281, 5, 171, 278*, 428, 593, 381, 355, 492, 194, 236, 376, 45, 574, 408, 504, 366, 381, 506, 197, 197, 193, 213, 75, 197, 199, 291, 377, 197 The Marquis de Castries has engaged to make immediate arrangements for the safe transportation of the pecuniary and the other succours destined for the United States_ 481, 350, 215, 167, 450, 196, 376, 34, 381, 75, 473, 376, 76*, 458, 278*, 72, 208, 449, 577, 114, 89, 405, 486, 497, 197, 113, 126, 34, 361, 376, 269, 278*, 277, 291, 104, 381, 113, 278*, 401, 230, 408, 550, 552, 342, 291

Have fun!

I have employed the most unremitting efforts to obtain a prompt and favorable decision relative to the object of my mission_ after many discussions, difficulties and delays with the details of which it is needless to trouble congress.

The Count de Vergennes communicated to me yesterday his most Christian Majesty's determination to guarantee a loan of ten millions to be opened in Holland in addition to the six millions granted as a gracious gift.

...and the value of the military effects which may be furnished from the Royal Arsenal are to be deducted from the six million.

I shall use my utmost endeavours to procure an immediate advance of the ten millions from the treasury of France to be replaced by the proposed loan,

and shall renew my solicitations for the supplies of the ordinance and military stores on credit that the present of six millions may not be absorbed by thousands objects and the purchase of necessary clothing

the providing this article I fear will be attended with great difficulties and delays as all the wool and manufactories of France are remote from the sea, and there are no

public magazines of cloth suitable to our purposes.

The cargo of the Marquis de la Fayette will I hope arrive safe under the convoy of the Alliance_ and by satisfying our immediate necessities prevent the delays above-mentioned from having any disagreeable consequences

The Marquis de Castries has engaged to make immediate arrangements for the safe transportation of the pecuniary and the other succours destined for the United States_ and has repeatedly assured me that the naval superiority which will be established on the American coast the ensuing campaign

[sillywabbits]

🎶 Soo I had a birthday yesterday! 🎂💕✨

Made extra special this year by a new found community and fandom (you guys!) and some special people in my life! Please allow me to gush a little hehe~ 💞

Found out our grocery store can print images on cakes! So we got a custom one done with befittingly sweet artwork courtesy of @thatmooncake that I commissioned a bit ago that I love to absolute bits! 💞💞 Thanks bunches Fable! 💫

@rambunctioustoons (We're spouses btw! 💘) made me the most perfect, unexpected, most sweetest gift. I designed my OC Bunny a Security/Daycare badge a while ago.. and they attentively made it for me!! Even got all her little stickers and everything!! 💞💞 I was so touched and in awe. (They also got me the bunny squish) Thank you so very much Rammy! 💖✨

Our close friend @unearth1y came by and she prides herself on amazing gift-giving for a reason BECAUSE SHE GOT ME PLUSHIES! ���️🌙💞💞 I made all the unholy noises and held them dearly for a very long time, believe me lol. She also made me the cupcakes! Strawberry ones that I've been wanting f o r e v e r 🍓❤️❤️

And last but certainly not least, Ram also commissioned my new dear friend @urbanqhoul to do some very sweet and sappy pictures just for me! Oh I grinned like the biggest dork you ever did see and kissed the screen fjfjfjf I'm still gushing over them, you ain't got no clue 💞💞💞💞

I cannot thank each and every one of these people enough for contributing to make my day feel more special than they'll ever know~ 💞 I'm again just.. so stupid happy to have come into the DCA community, that led me to all of these new experiences and so many lovely people! I can't wait for a whole new year of it! 💘💫

-Thank you endlessly everyone. So happy and lucky to be here 💖✨🌙☀️

[godesssiri]

Champaign Tastes on a Bottled Water Budget (because let’s face it, even beer isn’t cheap anymore) Thrift Tips

People are over living in white boxes. We now want richness and texture and colors and interest. Traditional design styles with lots of molding and detail and antiques are very in. People are making a living selling antiques online. Décor bloggers aspire to being able to bring back a container from European flea markets. People want to make their homes look like you have generational wealth.  But how do you have a home full of beautiful old things when you’ve got no money? Thrifting.

1. Always always check the art. Remember if you love the art but hate the frame you can always put it in a new frame, or makeover the current one. And vice versa, if you love the frame but hate what’s in it then it’s the simplest thing in the world to swap it out for something else, another piece of thrifted art, a print from Etsy or one of the many other places artists sell digital copies of their work, a color photocopy from a library book. And frames are very easy to make over, sometimes just changing the matting or painting a frame a different color or adding a little rub n buff makes a world of difference.

2. Rub n Buff or similar waxes are your friend for getting a gorgeous, antiqued look. The thrift stores are full of pieces that have great shape but they’re too modern looking for what you’re trying to achieve. But rub gold on the high points or a dark wax into the crevasses and suddenly they look completely different. I’ve got a ceramic parrot that looked very 80s when I got my hands on it but when I covered it with gold (leaving the original dark colors in the crevasses) he immediately looked like an antique. Just spray-painting something gold doesn’t have the same effect, using a wax creates depth.

3. Darken it up. Most old things are darker than new things. Darker furniture, fabrics, accessories, add depth and richness. If something is already dark, then when you thrift it then great. If it’s not then that’s what dye, paint, and stain are for.

4. Old souvenir pieces. I’ve got a load of old pieces that people have bought back from Greece and Rome, from Egypt, from China. They make my home look like it belongs to someone who has been on a Grand Tour. A lot of them are copies of ancient pieces which means they look timeless. They’re cheap tchotchkes that people have bought at gift shops but mix them in with old books and candle holders and natural pieces like chunks or crystal or large seashells, and they look classy and interesting.

5. Old books. Do you have any idea how many old books get thrown out by thrift stores? Like genuine antiques that get sent to landfill? Most thrift stores don’t want to deal with old books because they smell and harbor dust mites and are out of date and often look tatty. You may even be able to get a bunch for free if you sweet talk the volunteers. If you’re worried about dust mites, then pop them in the freezer for a few days. I know there are those who look down on people who use books just as décor, but if you using it as décor saves it from a landfill or a junk journaler and preserves it for a future generation then isn’t that a good thing?

6. Glass display items. Putting things behind glass makes them look lux and precious even if it’s some cheap trinket or even a bunch of dried leaves or other completely free natural items. Look for domes, plain clear vases you can turn upside down and glue a knob on top, display boxes holding ugly stuff that you can rip the ugly stuff out and re-purpose.

7. Antique reproductions. There’s been many points in history since humans started to mass manufacture stuff, that we have looked to the past a re-created what our forbears made by hand. There’s so much that ends up in thrift stores that looks old even if it’s no more than a few decades old. Cleverly mixing this stuff in to your décor can help you achieve the look of a home furnished with antiques at a fraction of the price.

8. Search ‘Old’ ‘Antique’ and ‘Vintage’ on FB Marketplace. Don’t get more specific than that, just literally type those terms into the search bar, set a distance you’re willing to travel, and scroll. People are always selling stuff that they don’t quite know what the heck it is, but they know it’s old. Yeah you’re gonna see a lot of trash but it’s worth it to find the treasures.

9. Candle holders and candles. I’m actually pretty meh about candles, I get why other people like them but scented candles mess with my allergies and I don’t get any joy out of candlelight – but if you feel the opposite to me, I do understand and encourage that. Candles are wonderful décor objects if you’re going to light them or not. Always check the section where your thrift store keeps candles, there’s often some really good ones. And candle holders come in so many different forms that you will always find beautiful and interesting ones. A figural brass candle holder will make my heart go pitty-pat. You don’t just have to use them for candles either, I have a gorgeously detailed pewter candle holder that I use as a display stand for a large mother-of-pearl shell, and my pair of huge Victorian cherubs currently have clear quartz crystals sticking out of them.

10. Actual antiques. I have hundreds of antiques big and small. I just tried to remember how many of them had been bought at actual antique stores and I think the total is 5. Real genuine antiques turn up in thrift stores All The Time. Sometimes the thrift store realizes what they’ve got and will price it up, more than you’d usually pay at the thrift but still way less than it’s really worth. Sometimes they don’t know/don’t care, they just want to turn over stock so they price it at whatever will get it out the door. You CAN furnish your home with antiques entirely from thrift stores. It just takes time and patience.

[madameoni]

Alright- I figured I might make a lovely long post detailing my commissions options to link to over here.

I want to start with pointing out that my main pride and joy is communication and feedback loops to archive just what you want. The commission process can be long due to the back and forth, but good communication makes great results!

If you're curious, this post shows some of my sketches in the feedback loop stage!

My usual time from start to finish (might depend on the time it takes you to answer) is around a month.

Lets break down the options and prices!

prices are in $usd

prices are for personal use only (ya' know, you can print it for yourself, a friend, but not sell it or use it for business promotion!)- commercial use can be discussed (:

contact me to melinamnovelli@gmail.com

These can be taken as guide, if you'd like something that doesn't fit here- feel free to contact me to discuss it.

CHARACTER DESIGN

Full character design. Detailed wings, anthro, animal and highly complex designs can change the price.

BASE PRICE: $170 2 full bodies - front view 1 nude or underwear + 1 complete outfit.

Extras Extra outfit: $50 each Weapon: $50 each Extra body: $70 each (alternate version, extra pose, etc) Back view: +50% of the total

OUTFIT | WARDROBE DETAILED

For characters that already are designed. Detailed wings, anthro, animal and highly complex designs can change the price.

BASE PRICE: $120 2 full bodies - front view 1 nude or underwear + 1 complete outfit.

Extras Extra outfit: $50 each Weapon: $25 each Extra body: $70 each ( alternate version, extra pose, etc) Back view: +50% of the total

NEW! | OUTFIT EXTRA: GARMENT DETAIL

Detailed front and back view of a single garment. Its an extra to the outfit or character design commission.

BASE PRICE: $50 front & back view of a single garment a few close ups if needed

NEW! | WARDROBE SKETCHED

For characters that already are designed. Detailed wings, anthro, animal and highly complex designs can change the price. Clean sketches of several outfits instead of detailed finished pieces.

BASE PRICE: $200 full bodies - front view 1 nude or underwear + 3 clean sketches of different outfits

Extras Extra 3 outfits: $70 Weapon: $25 each Extra body: $70 each ( alternate version, extra pose, etc) Back view: +50% of the total

WEAPON | PROP DESIGN

Fully rendered and detailed design of prop or weapon on its own.

BASE PRICE: $50 1 full view 1 close-up of detail

Extras Extra view: $30 each

PORTRAIT

From only face to waist up (showing arms).

$170

one character

double price for extra character

includes simple background, and decorative elements like flowers, jewels, etc.

FULL BODY ILLUSTRATION

BASE PRICE: $250

for one character

+100 each extra character

includes background, props and decorations.

extra charges might apply depending on the complexity of the scene- feel free to ask!

Lovely, right?

Now, some basic Terms of Service:

I won't accept any work related to NFTs and I don't allow my work to be used as NFTs.

Credit is very appreciated when reposting but not necessary as long as you don't claim the work is done by anyone besides myself.

The character designs & adoptables can be resold and gifted with proper credit (link and @), those are the owner's responsibility.

Since I'm a breathing human being, I have the right to reject a commission for whatever reason.

I take payment via PAYPAL. I'll make an invoice once the order is settled. I only work with full payment upfront.

For big pieces (+400usd) we can discuss signing a contract or doing payment plans for everybody's comfort.

I don't have a linear queue and I don't work with deadlines, but I will keep you updated regularly and have no problem with showing progress as anytime. Just ask!

Given that I show updates regularly and request feedback during the whole process, big changes once the work is past its sketching stage can require an extra fee.

I don't do refunds past the first sketch.

I guess this covers everything- feel free to contact me with any questions!

Please contact me via email for an easier and organized process: melinamnovelli@gmail.com

[fuck-customers]

It's almost sad that when I tell my regulars I only make $14.50 an hour at a job where I do professional level graphic design and print work, they all get shocked and say I should be making more (I work at a locally owned print shop, and I love the job for the most part, I just hate how I'm rushed and hate certain clients).

WcDonads employees make more than I do. Gas station employees around here make more than I do. And I honestly feel quite jipped because I was told to go to college. Get a degree. Find a job in the field I go to school for and I'll be set (I'm one of those "zillenials," too young to be a millenial but too old to be gen z). Some people say i should be thankful, $14.50 is a lot, but cost of living where I'm at is at least $20/hr. Granted, my college is completely paid for so I don't have student loans to worry about and I'm happy I have graphic design and photography experience. But when I'm at work and I feel the bald patch from where my hair has been falling out from stress from workload, it makes me feel like I was tricked.

I'm so conflicted. Like I said. I like this job. When things aren't busy it's wonderful. But those are becoming fewer and farther between where stuff has completely reopened from Covid and more people want printing for events and sales.

And I've met wonderful people! And learned about small businesses in my community I would have never known about otherwise! I love getting to make nice designs and print beautiful art every day. One of my current friends I've met copying her artwork for her! My gifts to my family have been photo prints and even signs for my dad's workshop that I've gotten printed at a discount and they're all loved so much. And I don't have to wear a uniform - jeans and a t-shirt of my choice every day!

But I've also been yelled at over small shit like maps not being printed on time, or how the color on a flyer isn't as "vibrant as it is on screen," or told to hurry up on a yard sign that someone decided they needed today rather than next week, or have a someone chew me out because I haven't even had time to print three sheets of mailing labels because I've had to hold the hand of a very picky woman who wants her rental guest book to look "just right" yet can't be assed to learn how to use a computer on her own. I've had packages thrown at me when I've said people need to pay to ship them. People getting mad over $.20 black and white copies and $.49 color copies. People saying they're going to get their business cards from PistaVrint because it's cheaper. People come to us and act like we're tech support - "Why is my computer not opening Wicrosoft Mord?! Why is my email not sending?! Why is my phone doing this?!" Like I don't know! Take it to Bye Best!

My manager hardly gets paid any more than I do and she's been with the business for almost 30 years and drives an hour each day to come to work. I only got bumped to $14.50 after my boss overheard I was interviewing at a college print shop that would have paid me $18 an hour. He couldn't even wage match! And I didn't even get the job.

I don't have funds to move to another location where I could find a better paying job in my field, nor would I want to as my family and community are here.

There is a pillow factory here I never knew about. They're hiring various positions starting at $19 an hour. Evenings and weekends mostly off, only needed to work if they need to fill a very large order. My friend started there this week and while she says she's physically tired, the environment seems nice so far and I'm so burnt out here that I've already asked her if she can get a word in for me to start there. More pay? And way less customer interaction? I could do that! But it sucks that I feel like abandoning what I like to do because of my pay grade and the stress I feel. I wish it was all different.

Posted by admin Rodney.

[nanowrimo]

5 Steps to Get Your Novel Ready to Self-Publish

Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. Kindle Direct Publishing, a 2022 NaNo sponsor, helps you self-publish eBooks and paperbacks for free. Today, author Denise Grover Swank shares some tips to help you get your novel ready to publish:

Congrats on completing NaNoWriMo! I completed my first book with NaNoWriMo in 2009, and was thrilled when I’d finished, but I wasn’t ready to hit publish just yet!

1. Have someone else read your novel.

Every book needs revising and editing. Trust me, I’ve written over seventy books at this point and still need to revise books. 

You’ll either need to find a developmental editor or alpha readers. Alpha readers—well-read readers and/or other authors—are great for writers on a budget and are usually free. You can find them in writers’ groups or your friends who are readers. Just be careful if you’re using friends and family: they’re going to be biased. (Unless they’re my aunt who read my paranormal thriller and told me I should write children’s books.) 

2. Invest in copy editing.

You’ve revised and edited your book, now what? Copy editing is where you may want to invest if you can. Copy editors look at your book line by line and correct grammatical mistakes. Please, please, please don’t try to do this yourself. You’ve read you book countless times and will miss things. Trust me. I know. (If you need a proofreader, here’s where your friends who can spot a typo a mile away come in handy.)

3. Get a good cover.

Let’s talk covers! Study the market and find out what’s selling in your genre, then find a cover designer who fits the trends. You can spend anywhere from $100 to $1000 or more, but you can get by on the lower end. Just don’t try to make one yourself unless you’re really good at graphic design. 

4. Get the formatting right.

You’re almost ready to publish, but first you need to format your eBook and print book—You can do this by using the free templates available on Kindle Direct Publishing, you can pay someone to do it, or there are several programs less than $200 that will do this for you. 

5. Now you’re ready! 

There are multiple places to publish, but KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) is super easy to use! Be sure to claim your books on Amazon Author Central, create an author page, then ask readers to follow you. Amazon will let your readers know about preorders and releases. Kindle Unlimited is great for newer authors who are still finding an audience, and readers in KU are more willing to take a chance on new-to-them authors. And finally, use the gifting option on your product page for giveaways on social media. Readers who love your book will tell their friends—never underestimate word of mouth marketing!

New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author Denise Grover Swank lives in Kansas City, Missouri. You can find out more about Denise at www.denisegroverswank.com.

Top photo by Nong V on Unsplash. 

[glindaupland]

The Phantom of the Opera | Seoul, South Korea | October 8-14th, 2023 [REVIEWS]

Wow it's about time I posted these reviews that I kept lying about (this week! tomorrow! in 10 years!) Better late than never?

In this post I'll drop a few general things about the production, but the performances are analyzed in my reviews linked here. I recommend reading those all in order since I revisit points about actors I've made previously along the way to avoid repeating myself. Also leaving a disclaimer that these performances are from October so there are some changes in what the actors are doing now (with the exception of Jeon Dong-seok since he left in November) Apologies in advance for my wordiness, but this is more of a "release my feelings for my sake and if anyone else likes it that's cool too" kind of thing? Listen - I wrote a lot of notes on my performances there. So just go in knowing this is the more coherent version of my insane looking notes app!

Before I start I want to thank a few lovely friends who helped me out with this trip because it wouldn't have gone as well as it did without them!

Thank you to @lucygold95 for helping me so much with planning over the past months and for giving me the best time in Busan. Thank you @capitanogiorgio for all the shenanigans we went through and the most special time going to the 1500th and meeting Yoon Young-seok. Thank you to @fadinglandtragedy for the fun talks and the good advice before my trip! The best part of things like this is making friends of course! : )

PERFORMANCE REVIEWS:

| October 8, 2023 | October 11, 2023 | October 12, 2023 | | October 13, 2023 (M) | October 13, 2023 (E) | October 14, 2023 |

STAGE & THEATER

This was as close to the original staging as possible. So I was able to take it in one more (or I guess 6 more?) times post-Broadway closing. The Charlotte Theater is a lot smaller than the Majestic so every view was pretty solid in my opinion, even the second to last row. I took a video of my view from 4th row under the chandelier during the exit music on October 11th so you can see! The angel and chandelier are shown halfway through. I'd say 5th row was almost the cut off for the chandelier drop (that was my spot next day) Broadway seats in this area were always too expensive for me so I'm glad I was able to grab these spots for this production

There were photo zones you can take pics at which you've probably seen. One was a large rose wall, the other was the cute statue of their mascot 오유령. People also take forever lining up for the cast boards for photos and yes I was one of those people. Here's a comparison of the cast boards from the second season (pictures I found when reading old reviews on Naver) and the cast boards now (I forgot to take a photo of one on the top floor though)

I found this review where someone took more detailed clean photos than I did if you're curious about the layout and decorations!

MERCH AND GIFTS

The tickets had these designs! If you booked on Yes24, you received a special envelope and a ticket holder with the face of the Phantom performing for that show

I only didn't receive a second Ju-taek because that was booked on another site - Interpark (bottom middle ticket). I also received paper masks with printed autographs every day I went to commemorate the 200th performance of the run/100th for Seoul and the 1500th overall Korean performance. We used them for the curtain call photos on those two dates (with Jeon Dong-seok then Kim Ju-taek). There are multiple versions of the program book and at the time of writing this I have all except the Daegu one. The first Busan program book was pretty bare and only had the teaser pictures - the same was the case for my Les Mis program book in Busan. -There are different photos in each one, so to me it was worth grabbing them all. My third version signed by Kim Ju-taek is currently on display as you can see below! (The writing says "내 노래를 날게 해 주오 - Make my song take flight") Once again thank you to Lucy for this! 🥹❤️

Here's some of my POTO merch (including a spare cupsleeve from the coffee shop next door, I also had a keyring, but I forgot to show it) RIP to the second program book I sacrificed for scans I still have the pages stored/displayed though! I'm not wasteful! I'll have more to post soon after sharing these reviews

TRANSLATION

Let me emphasize this: my Korean abilities are limited, so don't look to me as the expert on this at all. But I'll still share my notes and perspective as an outsider who's studying The lyrics have changed quite a bit since 2001-2. There are still lines kept or songs that are mostly similar. MOTN had a lot of similarity to 2009-11 even with its changes, STYDI was identical to 2009-11, but Angel of Music was pretty different from even the last season, etc etc. The Phantoms all have unique lines sprinkled here and there, mainly in MOTN (this happens sometimes in Korean musicals). You get some things like random single line changes in some parts depending on the actor or different order/wording of the same lines as well. Just tiny diversions from the script. This is the case for the Christines and Raoul to a lesser extent. Additionally, actors are often permitted to do some occasional improvisation/ad libs. Some unique lines are pretty normal parts of their interpretations now, some appear depending on the feeling of the performance, some are one time only events. I'll mention some of the actor-specific ones and such in their actual reviews, but I have been trying to mark down all of the differences like these for example

Of course, some things obviously have to be adjusted to make sense because of cultural / linguistic reasons. So one example would be the "Wrote...written" line in Notes I. Firmin speaks rudely and informally, but quickly tries adding a more respectful ending particle 요 after Raoul and André give him a shocked 'what did you just say?' kind of look. So "대체 뭘 썼다고 하는 건데...요!" is pretty much like "What the hell are you saying I wrote?" André would look so embarrassed by this each time 🫣

퇴근길 / STAGE DOOR

Stage door doesn't really work the same as it does in places like New York, London, etc. Most of the time if an actor comes out it's more like a quick greeting or chat with the fans. Some actors (not in this case) might sign or take photos in designated spots, but it really depends and it's not so common. It's gotten more restricted ever since COVID as well. 퇴근길 -> "way home from work" is literally what this is called. Dong-seok did wave at us a few times happily after the 200th performance, Gun-ha briefly came out to thank fans after the 1500th while Ceci and I waited to meet Young-seok who had agreed to meet us. I did not have the time (or strength) for the Seung-woo mob, but he usually greets fans after shows.

I literally asked Yoon Young-seok directly on Instagram if Ceci and I could meet him and give him gifts because I figured it didn't hurt to try! When he agreed, my anxiety was not necessarily about meeting an actor, but more about my ability to express my thoughts in another language. But he was truly the sweetest guy and incredibly patient. I think he got that I understood everything he said, but that replying was a whole other challenge. I'm glad I was making enough sense that he was able to get my points and helped me finish sentences if I looked stressed about it 😂 I basically told him I had been planning this trip since the cast announcement because it was too perfect to miss and that I came for 6 shows. I really like to listen to his Phantom on the cast recordings and I thought he made the shows I had seen so far so much fun.

We both said where we were from (the US and France) and he was amazed. He was also shocked when I pulled out my original Korean cast recording (I still laugh thinking about the way he said "와, 세상에!" like "Wow, oh my god!" and enthusiastically took it agreeing to sign when I was mid-way asking him haha) I also thought it was funny when he asked Ceci if she saw his Phantom last season. We wish! But she mentioned she had gone to Busan a few times and he looked very touched and appreciative that we went to multiple performances 🥹 This poor man was tired he signed our things with November (11.13) though and he also spelled Ceci's name wrong first time, but it was the 1500th show though okay. And if he says it's November...who are we to question him? Ceci should also legally change names so he isn't wrong. Anyway, ramble over you can find the art we made for him in this post

OTHER

Here's just bonus fun I had that I will manage to connect to POTO despite it not being POTO because I love doing that. I mean I went because I like these musicals as well (otherwise I would've been foolish enough to go see Ben-Hur but I have, uh, standards for my plots sorry to Park Eun-tae 😭), but it's fun to point out these things. I'm happy to share my show experiences in a different post if anyone's interested in my thoughts on those

Rebecca

I went to see Rebecca, mainly focused on seeing a scheduled date for 이지혜 Lee Ji-hye (Ich) and 장은아 Jang Eun-ah (Mrs Danvers). The whole cast was fantastic. Some Korean musicals have special encore bits they do where the leads sing a part of a song from the show during bows so that was really fun. Unfortunately, we don't get to have fun at POTO like that haha

Lee Ji-hye was in Y&K Phantom as Christine in the same cast as Jeon Dong-seok (Erik), Yoon Young-seok (Gérard Carrière), and Lee Sang-jun (Cholet). Two other cast members in Rebecca were in Y&K as well - 에녹 Enoch (Maxim) who was Philippe and 신영숙 Shin Young-sook (Mrs Danvers) who was Carlotta. Sadly, they had such few shows this season due to a busy schedule, so I couldn't see them (when will trot give Enoch back to musicals). Original Korean ALW Raoul and Y&K Erik 류정한 Ryu Jeong-han was also on rotation as Maxim, but I picked another day for my show so I didn't see him either

Les Misérables

I went to opening night of Les Mis in Busan! It was the Dream Theater, same place POTO played at before. As many of you already know, Choi Jae-rim is playing Jean Valjean at the same time as the Phantom.

I could recognize him easily as the Phantom, but honestly when he appeared at the very start of Les Mis it took me a minute to process that it was him! While I did enjoy his Phantom a lot, I think I enjoyed his Valjean performance a little more. It was only opening night, so curious to see how things develop!

The actor who played Javert that night, 카이 Kai (stage name), was a former Y&K Erik for two seasons too. So many Phantoms!

Frankenstein

On the last day I got to see Dong-seok and Ji-hye once more in a concert for the musical Frankenstein which they have been in together. So have some pics I took without a mask blocking his face!

Ending Note

Thinking back to December 2022 when I said: "Maybe I'll go to Seoul and see Dong-seok once or twice and that's it, I can have my first international POTO" That was funny. That was really very very funny and silly of me to say. 9 performances and 6 of those were POTO! But I'm so grateful and I have zero regrets about it. This is one of the best experiences I've had even if it might look ridiculous to some people to do something like this...I don't care! I hope my crazy essays can help paint a good picture for you!

[starry-eyesanddaydreams]

Prompt 15 of @deepperplexity 's Rickmas2023 prompts

December 15: Coal and Cards

Sinclair Bryant x Reader

You've recently moved to the outer suburbs of London and run into a beautiful, sweet, talkative man.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Maybe you had gone a little bit overboard, you thought as you balanced the bags in your arms. But in your defence, you loved Christmas. And the stores along the high street of the town you’d recently moved to had so many beautiful holiday things. So now you were balancing two paper shopping bags of last-minute gifts, decorations and the ingredients for gingerbread cookies, along with a bag of coal. Your new flat had a cute potbelly stove in one corner that was in working order and you couldn’t wait to get it fired up and making your flat nice and cozy. It had snowed the night before, covering the street and sidewalks in beautiful white coat. But while it looked lovely, it made walking a bit perilous, as you soon found out as your foot skidded on an icier patch of snow and you felt yourself starting to topple. On instinct, you dropped the bad of coal in one arm and grabbed hold of the nearest thing available, a streetlight, which stopped you hiding the ground. Getting your bearings back, you saw that a few items had fallen from one of your shopping bags and bobbed down, setting the bags on the ground and collecting the fallen pieces. “Are you okay?” You heard a deep voice ask. You looked up and saw a man who had bobbed down in front of you. Your breath caught in your chest at the sight of him. He had warm hazel eyes, strong features and fluffy blond hair that fell across his brow. The most uniquely handsome man you’d ever seen. “Um, yeah,” you blinked, “I’m fine. Just slipped a little.” “Do you want some help with these? It looks heavy.” He asked, picking up the last piece of your fallen shopping and handing it back to you. “Actually, that would be very nice. My eyes were a bit more than my arms could handle.” You laughed and he smiled in return. He had a beautiful, bright smile. The man picked up on of the shopping bags and the coal bag in each arm and stood. You grabbed the last bag with your baking supplies and stood too. “Thank you for helping me.” You said, “I’m y/n.” “Sinclar Bryant. And it’s my pleasure. Where were you headed?” “Oh, my flat, it’s just at the end of the street.”

You and Sinclar headed down the street, taking their time navigating the snow-covered path. “Have you been living here long?” He asked. “Actually, I just moved in a few weeks ago. I used to live in London and needed a change of scene. It’s so lovely and peaceful out here.” “It is. I work in London. Living out here is a wonderful break from the chaos. You walked quietly for a few moments before Sinclar glanced at the bag he was carrying. Sitting on top was a packet of hand painted Christmas cards. “Did you know Christmas cards were invented by a man who had too many friends to write too?” “No, I didn’t know that.” Sinclar hummed and kept talking, almost absent mindedly, “Henry Cole in 1843. The new penny post system meant a lot more people could send letters and he got so many Christmas letters he couldn’t answer them all properly. And in those days it was considered very bad manners not to answer mail. He worked out an idea with an artist friend, JC Horsely, to design a card with pictures of a family celebrating Christmas and helping the poor. He printed a thousand of them to send out to people. Over time, others started copying his idea and it became fashion to send Christmas cards.” You looked up at him, perplexed by the sudden history lesson but also finding the way he spoke endearing.

Sinclar’ train of thought apparently drifted to the other bundle in his arms and he continued, “You know in Italy, they have the tradition of a Christmas witch called La Befana. Legend is she tried to follow the three wise men to find the baby Jesus, but couldn’t find them, so she gave out her gifts to good children and gave lumps of coal to the bad ones. Today the give out sweets that look loke coal called Carbone Dolce as a joke instead.” Sinclar looked at you and saw your expression, a mix of confusion and amusement, and he blushed slightly, “I’m sorry, I have a habit of talking too much. I apologise if it’s annoying you.” Something in his eyes as he said that tugged at your heart. “You’re not.” You assured him, “It’s actually very charming. And interesting, I didn’t know either of those stories? A Christmas witch? It sounds fun.” Sinclair smiled again and the two of you kept talking more as you walked, first about random Christmas traditions and then about the town. He’s been living there a few years now and you were happy to hear his recommendations about the areas shops and events.

Sinclair felt happier than he’d felt in a long time right now. You were clever and curious. Talking with you was so easy. You’re smile was beautiful and your eyes were so warm and gentle, he found the persistent knot that had sat inside his chest for months finally starting to loosen.   “Oh, and you have to try this bakery, Lenora’s. It’s near the library. The best pain au chocolat and pasties you’ve ever tried. And at Christmas they make amazing hot chocolate.” He stopped, turning to face you properly, taking an impulsive chance, “Are you hungry? If you’re not busy I could take you there, show you around a bit.” He asked, hope and slight nerves colouring his voice. To his relief, you nodded, “I am hungry, actually. And that sounds great, I’d love to have lunch with you.”

You reached your flat and you quickly stashed your shopping just inside the door and headed back out with Sinclar. You walked towards the bakery, arms occasionally bumping into each other, and chatting idly about anything that came to mind, not yet realising that this was the start of something very special.

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Hope who reads this likes it. Sinclair deserves so much love. I want to hug him so bad. I am planning a continuation of this with another prompt.