#lace reviews

[adelle-ein]

cleared the beta main story (it's five chapters, for anyone wondering, all set in wishfield), there's loads of side quests etc to potentially do but i think i'll probably spend the rest of the time dressing up nikki and wandering around - don't want the first several dozen hours of the full game to be a drag when it comes out lol, want to leave some stuff. nikki also decided to mix things up on me by getting stuck *above* the ground in the last few cutscenes so that was fun

positives: really is just a gorgeous, gorgeous game. the dress up mechanics are stellar, lots of options and things to mess around with. i don't even really have a ton of clothes yet but have still spent tons of time dressing up, it's great, i've never played such an hd fashion game and it's exciting. so much love and detail has gone into the world - npcs will be standing around knitting, tons of tiny items and details in houses and storefronts. some of the animals are supremely cute, there's so many flowers, there's lots of little like...sewing/weaving/knitting/crochet/art details lying around. there's no part of the world that feels unfinished or like an afterthought. even the goddamn treasure chests are beautiful. it's very much a "see a place, go to it" open world. photo mode is really just fantastic and everything i want other games' photo modes to be. generally gameplay feels pretty easy and accessible - it's a little overwhelming at first when they're throwing terms at you (might be easier for nikki veterans) but you can get the hang of things after a bit, and the combat's easy. no lag, loading screens are pretty minimal, runs gorgeously on max settings on my computer (which is a very good gaming computer but not like a custom rig or whatever.)

negatives: don't love some of the platforming but i've gotten by ok without needing to call my sister to come do hard parts for me, so that's good lol. if i can manage probably most people can. the gacha really seems awful, odds of naturally pulling anything good are low, currency rare, hardly anything in the common pool, all that good stuff. and at least so far, some categories of items like eye colors and capes for momo are locked to pulling heavily, which sucks. while most of the bugs i've experienced are visual glitches, and i've had way less crashing since they pushed out hotfixes, said glitches can get pretty annoying at times - mostly nikki sinking into or hovering above the ground which can impede all kinds of things, and sometimes buttons to skip or advance scenes not working properly, (though usually if clicking didn't work, hitting f did and vice versa, still a pain). voice acting is flat as a board, and the last few cutscenes had some pretty gnarly typos/translation issues (there's some otherwise, but not enough to really impede the game imo.) these are pretty predictable complaints i think. not optimistic that the gacha will improve but i think the bugs etc can be smoothed out. also i got a little dizzy/motion sick at times but nothing awful, just needed breaks.

but yeah, excited for full game, shame about the gacha but hoping the rest of the game is strong enough to stand without it

[lacependragon]

2024 Book #1: The Hanging City by Charlie N. Holmberg

Intended Audience: Adult Genre: Romantasy (Romance-focused fantasy) Length: 335 pages Finished: February 17th, 2024

Narration: single narrator, first person pov

Summary: In a fantasy world consumed by an endless drought, a young woman on the run from her father has arrived at the last place that might take her in: the troll city under the greatest bridge ever built. But in order to get in, she must tell the leaders of her strange magic ability - she can push fear onto others, though she'll feel it too. As Lark, our MC, tries to fit into trollis (their preferred term) society, she finds herself struggling to fit in when kindness and compassion don't get you far in a society of strength. But some trollis soften to her, especially a handsome one named Azmar that Lark can't stop thinking about, no matter how dangerous it is.

Review: This is a very good book. Lark is a fun, compassionate, and quick thinking main character whose mistakes are understandable and who uses all the information at her disposal in clever ways. I loved how her compassion and struggle to fit in led to so much of the conflict in the story, and I loved how it also was a huge part of her success in the story, too. Lark's relationships with other characters, including Azmar and Unach, who she lives with, are just so, so good. I loved the job that Lark ended up with - monster hunting - and I really appreciate how it never stops being relevant to the story, both in activity and in social situations. In fact, this is just a very tightly written little book and everything circles around in some very fantastic ways.

The writing is lovely, too. I really enjoy the way this author writes books - I own a few of them - and I find there's a nice cadence to the words. It's smooth to read. And that spreads into how information is given to the reader, as well. Everything feels very smooth and easy flowing.

And, just to come back around, I really, really love compassionate protagonists. I love when characters want to help others, no matter the cost, and sometimes make stupid decisions because of that. Lark is such a fantastic protagonist who works around everything she is given. I love her. I love Azmar, too.

I think my biggest problem is that this is a seriously closed door romance. A few on-screen kisses and that's about it. Some light references. I would have loved to see more - I prefer my romances a little smuttier - but YMMV.

Just a fantastic book, seriously. So glad it was my first of the year.

Things I liked, specifically:

The romance was good. I understood why Lark was attracted to Azmar, and even though we never get Azmar's point of view, it was clear to me why he liked her. Watching them fall for each other was just adorable. Also, I love when a romance doesn't rely on badly done miscommunication for its third act drama. This does something SO GOOD that has nothing to do with that!

The worldbuilding was really neat. This is a standalone, so there's a lot of questions left unanswered, but the answers we got were fun. I also loved how it tied into the plot, as well as the culture of the trollis. You really get a sense for what their people value when the architecture is described. It's very evocative. And the cultural bits we get, the government and tax and law systems, the currency and caste stuff. God it's all so good and intriguing. Layered in just enough, in my opinion.

The friendships. There are so many good supporting characters in this story, including Unach, the trollis woman originally assigned to look over Lark. She's Azmar's sister and she's basically my fave. She's so gruff and short-tempered but also fantastic. Love her. I loved all of the supporting characters. All of them were well-written, well-rounded, and had motivations that were clear to me.

LARK. Again, emphasizing that Lark is just a fantastic, compassionate and kind protagonist. She is tired of fighting. Tired of having to hurt others. She wants a family, friends, and peace, and it is beautiful to watch her strive for her.

The themes. Sometimes you can't change a place, only you can change. Family isn't what your born into, but the people who will accept you no matter what you are. It is always right to try and save others. What is a monster? What is a man? Just to name a few that I personally pulled out of the story that I just adored the execution of. It's so good. And the trollis society embodies both good and bad, and you get to see the way it echoes into the themes and guh.

Rating: 4 1/2 stars.

Recommended for: Fans of romance who enjoy good worldbuilding, fans of Holes, fans of Gentle Giant men.

[sageadvice]

[ Dragon Age: The Veilguard Spoilers ]

Well…I reached the end.

And I mostly survived.

Varric 😭

I’m not going to complain about the bits that I took issue with. It’s 3:30 am and I’m too emotional for objectivity.

I did all that work to get the Solavellan ending…and then I gave it all up to punch the egg man in the face. And I don’t regret it for a second. (Chalk it up to my Rook being a girl’s girl, I say.)

One day, I’ll reload and do the whole “secret ending” thing but my gosh, keeping Varric’s…what, spirit? Tethered between Solas and Rook through BLOOD MAGIC?? Even Merrill would not approve of this. I knew he was manipulating Rook. I thought I understood betrayal. But that…that really cemented his place as the villain in this story for me. Even to the last, he believed himself a god.

I lost Harding. That…really got to me. I sort of knew it would happen; her or Davrin, the game didn’t make some big secret of it. And, to be honest, the whole game had a lot of easily-predictable plot revelations, and I think that was one of its major strengths. You could always point out the traitor during the first conversation, and then feel that sense of “ha! I knew it.” If they’d tried too hard to subvert your expectations, it would have come across as poorly written.

I ended up being very glad that I got all the companions to Hero status, and all the factions to three stars, because that meant that I didn’t lose anyone else. It felt right, like I personally did put in those hours and make those careful choices to save those people, and they didn’t just get a free pass due to plot armor. It was all Rook.

And I did enjoy the end of Rook and Lucanis’ romance. To be honest, if that scene hadn’t been waiting for me after she got out of the veil prison, I would not have been able to keep playing. Was it enough? I think so, for Rook. I will be writing my own fanfiction embellishments though.

Scrolling back a bit, the moment in the game that first made me cry was Manfred waking up with magical powers and squealing with excitement. “Magic! Like you!” Instant waterworks. The depressing moments are never as meaningful to me as the shockingly touching ones, and Manfred embodied that sentiment wonderfully.

What else can I say? I loved it. 10/10 for me, especially after waiting 10 years. They honored Varric, and even if I’m still mad about it I guess it’s more than we got for any of our other past beloved NPCs. In my head, he’s hunting Hawke down in the Fade. One day, Cassandra will meet him there and they’ll be reborn as wisps who can dance around the Necropolis together. Emmrich will make sure they’re properly cared for.

[bixels]

Very recent tag on my last post, but all credit goes to my partner again. They were sitting next to me while I cycled through Google image search "1920s flapper dress," going 'no. no. no. god no. no. absolutely not'.

[covertleathers]

They're two sides of the same coin.

[genericpuff]

yeah i don't think this is the kind of advertising rachel needs right now-

[saccharine-dreamer]

Rave Review 2024 Spring/Summer Collection

[lacewise]

The Lace Guild Books, review:

Let’s start with “Basic Technical Instruction”. It is very good at making the basics comprehensible for first time needle lacemakers, and it (very fortunately for me) will stop you from making the worst and easiest possible mistakes. I always like to revisit the first part of the pamphlet when I’m tacking down a new cordonnet… Mostly because from experience, I know if I don’t, it will be disastrous. This is because it’s one of the slowest possible things to do, so it can be several months between projects, even if I’m working every day and have multiple ongoing projects at different stages. The diagrams are VERY easy for beginners to understand, the instructions are well-written, in-depth, and build upon each other, the stitches are named so you can research them further, and there are a bunch of patterns with different motifs that get more complex and in-depth as you progress.

It also does assume you’re working with thinner thread (dentelle 80 from DMC, I think) but… like… don’t do that if you don’t have oversight from a professional? I know some people recommend size 3 crochet cotton but size 10 or 12 is fine (and is where I started). As a little tip (and sidenote): don’t use knitting thread. I’ll demonstrate in a video later but if you use knitting thread you are asking for trouble. Knitting thread (and some embroidery thread, I promise I will get threads and film it to show you exactly why) can’t really stand the constant rubbing against paper and metal you’re going to be doing. It’s asking for knots and other problems. Use crochet thread! Or really, really thick sewing thread! Stuff that is made for weirdness and rough handling!!!

Back to the review: the main problem (and the reason people try to skip it or might choose to buy a Doreen Holmes book on the subject instead) is the basic instruction manual is very easy to outgrow. Because it’s for the absolute fundamentals, there’s very, very little talk about stylistic choices and lace traditions.

That’s where the “Intermediate Technical Instruction” comes in. Sort of. It’s not really fully intermediate, but it assumes you’re comfortable making stitches and know basic terminology and are ready for more. It transitions you into intermediate but adding new skills and showing off different traditions a new (but not novice!) lacemaker can theoretically accomplish. I highly recommend doing several patterns from “Basic Technical Instruction” before starting this, but please at least complete the first one before starting on a more advanced pattern!

Speaking of patterns, all of the patterns in these books are basically decorative samplers. It’s more interesting and teaches more skills than simple squares, but it’s not meant to make *make* anything (which you can absolutely ignore). Pat Earnshaw, Margaret Stephens, and Catherine Barley’s books all do have patterns you can put to use, but only Catherine Barley and Margaret Stephens’s teaches how to make traditional lace in the way you think to use traditional lace.

[freshthoughts2020]

[hazeltailofficial]

WORLD GOTH DAY

JustFab Vera Combat Boot Review

@hazeltailofficial / hazeltail on youtube / hazeltailofficial on tiktok / hazeltailofficial on ig

[pookiethebloodsucker]

Happy new years!!!!!!!!! Hoping yall a kind year.

[adelle-ein]

i keep meaning to write down my thoughts about fashion dreamer and just not feeling like it

But anyway: It's fun, I enjoy it, I have an embarrassingly high number of hours in it. There's something to be said for the "sandbox" nature of it all, and I really do like making outfits for and being dressed up by real people, as well as being able to download and use others' clothes. You're not limited by stock/inventory/customer requests a la Style Savvy. I can't even count how many fucking times I had to do that toothpaste hairstyle request in Fashion Forward, so many white side ponytails wandering my town... I also really like that you can have and save four muses.

That said, there's downsides. The gameplay ends up being limited without any of those options, and it's a shame that you can't change others' hair/makeup. I'm glad that the NPCs are still very silly, although I don't think they quite capture that just...slightly unnerving bizarreness of Style Savvy ones lol, maybe because they're more like cartoon characters. I'm okay with all this, since it's a different game with a different goal -- the thing that bugs me is that aspects of the dressup have become limited. Way fewer options for layering tops compared to SS, no separate neckwear/bracelets, no bags, no nails. In a sandbox game, you feel those changes. Fewer clothing items in exchange for full customization makes sense to me, but taking out entire categories feels super limiting and it's really a shame. I also, as always, wish the clothes were unisex and that there were more body type options -- both of these are improved from SS but still nowhere near what I would like. There's lots of gorgeous clothes and outfits, but it feels harder to put together something that's your own, even with the customization.

And of course, idk how much longevity the game has, since one day the servers will be gone and then there won't be much game left. Finally, it's buggy/laggy/crashy...which is true of almost every switch game I've gotten in the last three years or so, but I'm still not happy about it.

I do think the updates have significantly improved if not totally fixed the game. Gacha sucks less, color sorting, other little tweaks that make things a lot smoother. The fairs and their completely over-the-top outfits are fun too, and I've seen datamined clothes that I can't wait to have from the last few updates.

Anyway yeah, it's not really style savvy 5, but it's a good dress-up game option for switch and I'm happy about that.

[mythalsknickers]

Mythal’s Thoughts about Veilguard: D'Meta's Crossing & Return to the Ritual Site

A Beacon on the Edge

Welcome back to part three of my longer series regarding my thoughts as I progress through my second playthrough with my canon Rook, Part One and Part Two can be found here. In this section we will cover the quests following the return to the Veil jumper camp with Bellara. Beyond this point will be covering more of the game. So as the favorite witch of the wilds says.

The Spoilers of New must be preserved. No matter how exciting they are.

This is my spoiler warning for D'meta's Crossing and subsequent Quests including Harding's personal Arc. Please read at your own risk. Additionally I am adding a Trigger Warning for Body Horror, Blight Gore, NPC Non Companion Death. This is not a "Disney Game" or a "Disney-ified verison of Dragon Age" The blight in this game is in many way more disturbing than in previous installments. I advise caution. If you are sensitive to Body Horror, and Zombification please take care of yourself.

A Crossing of Blight

We return to the Veil Jumper camp and are greeted with grime news they have evacuated three Dalish Settlements and lost contact with a settlement known as D'meta's Crossing. Locationally speaking D'meta's Crossing is across the lake from the Veil Jumper camp, we don't know how far that is exactly. We do know it is a hub of trading for all the local dalish settlements and clans. D'Meta's Crossing is very early in the game, I would argue it is still Prologue because the world has not opened up yet, and the Vi'Revas (Solas' Eluvian) is still locked only sending you to Arlathan. We are greeted upon first look a deserted and quiet settlement. Up until you hop over a barricade you'd be forgiven for thinking this game is not dark, and lacking the typical darkness of a Dragon Age installment.

We are immediately greeted with the Blight devouring a village the likes of which we have not seen since Dragon Age: Origins and the very beginning of DA:2 in the case of Lothering which we did not even truly get to see. Ostagar was dark, but it was not a bustling village where the citizens could not escape. It is very apparent here more so than in Arlathan that the blight is quicker, and alive. Notably this comes from a dialogue with Harding where she says the blight is typically "...dead, and static but this is alive." This blight pulses, and has a heartbeat. It spawns darkspawn from the pools of just blight ooze.

You learn from blood magic addled villagers that lived, that they were to gather everyone in the center of town, and find the veil jumpers and bring them to the mayor. In addition to being under the influence of blood magic, the villagers that survived are blighted. Upon finding the Veil Jumpers you learn that they were used as the catalyst for the gods; Elgar'nan and Ghil'nain's ritual. D'meta's crossing was beautiful expansion on the unnerving feeling of the Blight being changed in Bellara's introduction quest, as it is unexpected and sudden. I know when I went in on my first playthrough I was expecting a Redcliffe Village situation, but to find that was very much not the case.

A Return to the Ritual

Our return to The Veil Jumper encampment is heralded by a raven that Scout Harding seems to recognize, and the well versed player recognizes her a moment later. Morrigan, reportedly an old colleague of Strife's Bioware I will sell my soul if you give us that lore. She offers her assistance as an Arcane Advisor and advises Rook very briefly to journey back to the Ritual Site and recover Solas' Lyrium dagger. Before we get into that, I do want to talk a little bit about Morrigan. In this iteration of her we get more of what I feel is a Mythal/Flemath influence in her wardrobe and how she speaks. Her words seem more deliberate and less scathing than usual, none of this is a bad thing in my humble opinion. As for her new outfit, I am personally a fan, I love the detail and layering work. It still maintains what I would call "The Morrigan" feel and vibe while also looking more substantial than her previous non formal wear outfits.

Our return to the ritual site is marked with a conversation with Harding and Neve about the regrets and what could have been done better, before heading in and meeting the antagonist of this quest. A Lyrium Ghoul. I have some questions as to what this is, and the how and why of it all. We have a chase to the end of the ruins, where we finally recover the dagger and something happens to Harding. It seems on first glance during the cutscene she is infected with a type of lyrium poisoning, before the cliff face gives way and Harding falls. However the anxiety of her impending death is short lived as she reappear emerging from a Lyrium vein claiming "Isatunoll" and the imagry around this brings me back to Descent and Shaper Valta when she was struck by the Titan.

It becomes clear as we enter phase two of fighting that Lyrium Ghoul, that Harding has gotten some kind of magic from the Lyrium dagger, and that is not necessarily a good thing, or a bad thing. It is only in the mission wrap up back in the lighthouse does the group (Neve, Harding, and Rook) toe around the idea of Harding being reconnected to a titan, which if it the case Harding would be our first dwarf that did not have to go deeper to the Titan to survive reconnection.

The Criticism of Mythal

This is finally the first time I have solid criticism of the game. Morrigan's sudden appearance is something I both love and hate. It is extremely on brand for the character. However with the lack of available information on how long the Veil Jumpers have been working in Arlathan, and the additional lack of information regarding Strife and Morrigan working together in the past, a little too nebulous for me. Additionally up until Veilguard, as far as we knew in Lore Arlathan was not habitable, or at very least welcoming to outsiders. Which begged the questions of how did the Veil Jumpers establish their foothold, and when was D'Meta's Crossing founded? While I was over joyed to see a permanent Dalish settlement, why was the mayor a human appearing man? None of these were quite explained at all and I doubt we will be going back to D'meta's crossing in the game but maybe it can be expanded on in an artbook or world of thedas book. Though I'd like to see some of this fleshed out in games.

[anadorablekiwi]

… I wanna make an Amber cosplay

[himluv]

DA Review Series: The Missing

<<< Previous Review: Dragon Age Day Stories

This is my second to last review. All that remains in my marathon of Dragon Age tie-in media is the Vows & Vengeance podcast, and we only have two more episodes of that!

When I started this project, we didn't even know for sure DA4 would release this year. And now we have less than four weeks to go until launch?

I have WAY too many feelings about that.

Title: The Missing Author/Illustrators: George Mann/Fernando Heinz Furukawa/Tomás Aira/Álvaro Sarraseca/Keiran McKeown Publication Year: 2023 In-World Year: 9:45+ Dragon Verdict: Plot-wise there isn't much happening here, but if you want to meet some of the factions and their representatives, this is a must read. Plus, it's more Varric!

The Missing seems to take place after Tevinter Nights. Varric is Viscount of Kirkwall, and Charter has a big favor to ask: take Scout Harding and chase down a lead on Solas. Varric is reluctant, not just because of his duties to his city, but because Lace is young and has people she cares about. And he isn't so sure this is a job they'll be coming back from.

Lace isn't swayed by Varric's warning, and so the pair take off to follow a lead into the Deep Roads. While there they meet up with Wardens Evka Ivo and Antoine and help them fight back some deep stalkers and an ogre! They do find an austere little room that appears to belong to Solas, but the only new info they find is an invitation to a Magisters house in Vyrantium.

So, Varric and Harding say farewell to the Wardens and hustle on over to Vyrantium. And by hustle I mean they get into a montage of misadventures that seems to span quite a bit of time. Varric's hair grows longer and even grayer, and he inexplicably bears a nasty pair of scars on his face by the time they sneak into the Magister's house.

Inside, they her turned to stone and two familiar Antivan Crows asking pointed questions. That's right babeyy, Teia and Viago are back, and they had a contract to kill this Magister for being a suspected Venatori.

(Side note here that Lucanis was working in Vyrantium hunting Venatori and you can see in one of the panels a little "Wanted" poster that I'm pretty sure is supposed to be him. Are Teia and Vi searching for him as well?)

After a bit of a scuffle with the Magister's husband, their next clue sends Harding and Varric to Arlathan Forest in search of an artifact called the Crucious Stone. The Venatori want it, so Varric hopes to get to it before they do. But, something is wrong with Arlathan Forest. The Veil is splitting open in places, distorting time and reality in little pockets. If they want to find the Stone, Varric and Harding are going to need some help.

Enter the Veil Jumpers, particularly Strife and Irelin. They lead our dashing duo through a gauntlet of Arlathan's idiosyncrasies, and while they get to the temple before the Venatori, the Stone is gone. Solas beat them to it. He even left a little note for Varric, basically begging his friend to trust him. That he's trying his best to fix the world with as little collateral damage as possible.

But, in frustratingly typical Solas fashion, he's a little too lean on the details of his plan, and Varric is more convinced than ever that Solas must be stopped. With the Stone gone, their next stop on this little tour of Northern Thedas is Minrathous. Because if anyone has a lead on Solas, it's Neve Gallus.

We finally see the woman herself and she is magnificent. She reveals that "Solas" is a popular name these days, and that he's been freeing Elven slaves all around the city. He's a veritable hero to those he's freed, and he seemingly asked for nothing in return for his generosity.

This fact more than anything else seems to bolster Varric's belief that Solas can be saved. That his friend is still in there somewhere under all the Elvhen Glory. And they are so close to catching him, until it's revealed that the Venatori have a plot to take back their slaves.

Harding, Varric, and Neve all agree that preserving the elves' freedom is more urgent than chasing Solas. So away they go to save the day.

Which I believe sets us up directly at the start of Veilguard. Varric and Harding are in Minrathous, working with Neve to find Solas. I think this comic covers a bit more time than is evident on a single read through. I'm really curious if we'll get to learn how Varric got his scars?

But mostly I'm just so excited to actually SEE this slew of characters we've met in tie-in media over the past decade. So soon y'all! So soon!

[gigginox]

i like that guy who does the archery videos in slutty little outfits. im not particularly interested in archery and hes not my type or anything i just enjoy seeing men wear slutty outfits