#these will be in january as lil prints in my shop so please give them a look soon!!

[fauxpapillons]

they shall hold hands

[spiltscribbles]

Miss you and your marvelous writing!!!! Just a prompt if you’re up to it 😊 exes wolfstar staying friends but sirius gets into a new relationship and he brings his new boo to somewhere he took remus and remus gets sad 😭 but they get back together eventually

Notes: OMFG BABEY! this is so SO beyond precious of you! i adore you to bits! thank you for the sweetness and for this scrumptious angst🥺🥺 i really hope you like it😭😘😘💜

.-

SEND ME A PROMPT  |  A Reblog means SO SO much! I ADORE YOU💜💜

.-

“He can just be so… So” James pauses right then, takes off his cap with the hand that’s still clutching his baseball bat, and ruffles his hair with the other.

“Un-opinionated,” Remus offers half heartedly as they turn the block to the small coffee shop nearest school, both of them freshly showered after the required morning workouts for Tuesday and Thursdays. It’s the first semester in which Remus has actually joined in on the seven minute track, considering the fact that even despite their crazy contradictory schedules with all the sports and extra curriculars they each had, Sirius always made it a point to buy their ice coffees and drop it off to Remus, sometimes leaving them a quarter of an hour late for first period, or as just a quick drop and dash if one of them had an exam. 

It was sweet, considerate. It was Sirius showing how much he cared because he’s never been one for words, even if he would frequently print off the little texts Remus would send him about how Sirius made him feel, and hang it up on the wall besides his bed, along with photos of them and Remus by himself and a few of their other friends too.

But yeah… None of that is really a thing anymore, not the coffees or the texts or the promises of being one another’s always. Not after calling it quits in early January because they knew by August they’d be working with thousands of miles between them and a three hour difference on top of that. It just wouldn’t have been feasible in the long run, and sure— Remus was the one to broach the topic and he knows that Sirius was hesitant about the logical side of it, but sometimes Remus wishes Sirius had fought harder, had argued louder, had wanted Remus more. But that’s a ridiculous expectation, and he had only admitted as much to Lily. And at the end of the day, it was the right choice, because it’s only early May now, and Remus can’t imagine how sick he’ll feel once catching his flight to Berkeley, and they’re steadfastly back in the best friends category of things. He can’t fathom how it would’ve been if they spent all these months and the ones after being together in all those intimate ways, knowing that they’ll be so far apart soon enough.

It was the right decision for the both of them and their friendship.

“Yeah, sure. Let’s go with that,” James says, bringing Remus out of his gloomy contemplations while opening the glass door to Three Broomsticks, sporting a thin smile that he always has on when he’s trying to be kind even when he’s irritated as all get out. 

Remus snorts at him, elbow checking his side as he walks past. “Well he’s sharing that dorm with you and Sirius in New Haven, so I guess you’ve got that to look forwards to.”

James’s face pulls into a grimace and their typical barista nods their way, already receiving their orders through the app and sparing them having to wait in the queue. “Maybe Pete’ll grow his own personality in university, yeah?”

“Sure Prongsie,” Remus says, noncommittal as he checks his phone and lies against the windowpane, already exhausted by the morning. “And if he doesn’t, I’m sure Sirius is about to blow his lid any day now.”

“It’s going to be funny as fuck, and you won’t even be there to see the debris,” James counters, sounding pleasant enough even though Remus knows that he’s nearly as pissed off as Sirius is about the decision for him to go back to his home state for undergrad. 

“You’ll send pictures though.”

“Of course Moony my old friend,” James jokes, tossing him a wink as they straighten once spotting their coffees being rung up. But as Remus takes a step forwards, he notices that a familiarly tan pair of hands are reaching for them, and when Remus looks up he feels like an idiot for not noticing him sooner. Because there Sirius is, dashing as ever in their school’s maroon blazer and tan pants, and his hair is windblown and shining as it falls midway of the nape of his neck. But Remus doesn’t really have the chance to appreciate just how damn good looking his ex-boyfriend is, rather, he’s more distracted by how Sirius doesn’t even notice him or James as he pivots around and hands over the second cup to a beaming Gideon Prewett. Their heads incline while they exchange a few words that are absolutely impossible to pick up in the crowded cafe before they bump their shoulders together and walk out the opposite door.

And it feels like nothing else watching that exchange— like their was a hammer and pick chipping away at his stupid, weeping heart.

“I think they’re just doing a project together,” James says lowly in Remus’s ear, clapping him on the back in reassurance, and Remus loves him, but he’s not in the mood for false platitudes, feels like there is a ugly, burning fire festering deep in his stomach and making Remus want to hurl all over the wooden floors.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” he replies instead, mild as he discretely picks up his phone again and opens up to the last conversation he had this morning.

R: need intel 

L: Say more sexy things to me, lover 

R: sirius and Gideon

R: what’s going on there

L: I’ll take a look, dw

Buoyed by Lily’s scary levels of detective skills, Remus returns his phone to his satchel and signals James to follow him to pick up their actual drinks. “C’mon, Flitwick hates it when we’re late.”

.-

“Do you want the good news first, or the bad.” Lily asks Remus later that morning during their shared free period, dropping her bag on the tabletop that they typically commandeer towards the back of Hogwarts’s library, nearest the windows and tucked away by the shelves.

“Is there actually any good news? Or are you just saying that to make me feel better.” Remus asks, single brow cocked as he shuts his history book and tosses it to the side.

“Well your hair looks especially nice today,” she offers with a small smile, sitting besides him and ruffling his curls.

“Thanks, I suppose. But I’d rather just get to it. And don’t sigh at me like that! All long suffering and all.”

Rolling her eyes, Lily gathers her hair into a high pony before turning to Remus fully. “You’re my best friend, I love you more than just about anyone. You know that, right?” Lily asks him, stiff stance relaxing when he nods in turn. “Then understand that I’m saying this from a place of love, but you don’t get to be mad at him, okay. You’re the one who called it off Re, you’re the one who wanted you guys to go back to being friends to avoid that messiness in August. And you know I respect the decision, but also it wasn’t the only one to be had. I mean look at James and I—“

“You’re going to Columbia Lils,” Remus bristles, hates how defensive he’s getting all of a sudden. “That train ride is like two hours and some change at the very most. It’s not the same.”

“You guys could’ve made it work,” she insists, green eyes blazing in the dim light. “He’s crazy about you, and you’re in love with him— Like ass backwards in love. You can’t just cut that off like it’s nothing, damn it, Remus.”

He can feel his own ears reddening and Remus hates it, hates how today had started off so innocuous and now it’s an absolute shit show. Remus hates that Lily is always correct about everything, and hates how Sirius probably is regretting telling Remus he still fully intends to ask him out to prom, and hates how much he loves him— how whenever he looks at Sirius it’s just a deluge of wanting and adoring and regretting and needing to feel his lips against Sirius’s own again like a drug, how he’ll never forget how he tasted like coffee beans and cigarette smoke and the strawberries he ate every morning besides his breakfast. Remus hates it all and he can’t figure out how not to feel like suddenly everything is slipping out of his hands like sand drifting through his fingers.

“He’s probably not that crazy over me anymore considering he’s getting Gideon Prewett coffees now, so maybe it’s the right decision after all.” Is what Remus decides to tell Lily instead of that whirlwind of clashing feelings.

“Oh Christ,” Lily huffs, dropping her head back like she’s asking for strength from the heavens above. “Look, Dorcas tells me that they’ve only been out twice. And Marlene says that it’s nothing intense. Just a movie and then he went to go watch his nephew’s little league game.”

“Oh,” Remus intones, because, no. No he will not start crying like this is some fucking Nicholas Sparks novel, and he’s the wayward lead making all the worst decisions. He’s not going to cry damn it!

He is not a bird, and this is suppose to be happening, and none of this has any real consequence at the end of the day. He and Sirius broke up, and Sirius can go out with whoever he pleases— even if it’s good looking, ginger athletes.

Remus is fine.

“Remus,” Lily gently consoles, lacing her fingers into his own that’s resting on his lap, and squeezing for good measure. “Benjy told Mary, who told me during Calc that Gideon doesn’t expect anything. Sirius told him he’s not looking for anything long term.”

“That’s dumb,” Remus retorts, trying to hold everything in so that Lily doesn’t give him that concerned, doe eyed face of hers, like when he’s spent a week living off of protein bars and double shot espressos preparing for finals. “Gideon’s great, and there on the soccer team together, they would be perfect.”

“Remus, stop.”

“And he’s going to Dartmouth, so he’ll be super close for like weekend excursions and all of that.”

“Remus!”

“The more I think about it, Lils, the more it makes sense. They just fit.”

“Sure, those are all nice attributes,” Lily says, peering up at him disappointedly. “But he’s not you.”

Like a legion of angels singing in the distance, the bell begins to shrill for next period and Remus is spared from giving that statement any mind.

.-

He spends the rest of the week acting as if he hadn’t even seen Sirius that morning whenever around him, and internally analyzing each and every exchange between them, and comparing to them to when he sees Sirius chatting with Gideon. And it’s not fun to say the least. It’s like a flashback to when he was trying to hide his crush on Sirius back in Freshman and most of sophomore year, but somehow worse. It’s worse because Remus had him, had Sirius in all the ways someone could ever want an other. He had Sirius’s languid morning kisses, and Sirius’s bark like laughter. Remus had Sirius being nervous the first time Lyall came for his typical Christmas visit, and Sirius had to try and impress him along with Remus’s mom as more than just the friend he hung around with at school. Remus had Sirius’s gruff voice when they were in bed and getting tangled into one another, and Sirius’s dopey looks in the middle of class when he’d be gazing over at Remus instead of the board. And if Remus is being honest, he knows he still has all those things, but it’s suddenly and searingly clear that some time— sooner rather than later— they’ll all leave, abruptly disappearing and shattering Remus’s world in their wake. Because eventually all of those different facets of Sirius’s won’t be Remus’s anymore— they’ll be Gideon’s or some other boy he meets in New Haven. And Remus can’t even be upset at it, he doesn’t have a claim to any of Sirius anymore, doesn’t get to call any part of him his.

And it’s probably the worst Remus has felt since that first night after their break up, because he’s eating every moment he has with Sirius like he’s famished and Sirius is the last meal he’ll ever know. He wants to memorize every part of him before he can’t have any of it. He wants to unravel every layer of Sirius, and kiss it for the final time, and it’s like saying goodbye a thousand times over, strangling his heart and splintering something desperate deep inside of him.

Like now.

It’s edging on midnight, and they drove up to the lake front near their suburb, with Sirius lying with his head on Remus’s lap and his long, muscled body lying against the tattered blanket beneath them. And his eyes are fluttered shut while the speaker they brought croons out the indie playlist they like most from Spotify.

And Remus can’t help but feel like this is one of their last nights like this, alone and quiet and together without any other specter of some other partner. So he watches him, watches the moonlight pacing over his nose and the high bones of his cheeks and across Sirius’s eyelids too. Remus watches his ink  like lashes kissing his skin, and wants to touch the divot of his cupids bow like so many times before while his other hand cards through Sirius’s hair. 

And Remus lets himself want Sirius and wonders if he’ll ever stop wanting, craving, loving him.

“I can hear you thinking Moons,” Sirius says, fluttering his eyes open and crunching up before Remus can even respond. “What’s going on?”

“Huh? What do you mean? I’m fine.” Remus all but sputters, folding his knees against his chest and wrapping his arms around them, feeling somehow vulnerable in blistering ways. “Nothing is going on.”

“Pff,” Sirius gives him a pointed look, settles down so that they’re side by side and tries to get Remus to look at him head on. “You’ve been strange all week, Moony.” 

“That’s not—“

“And then tonight, you didn’t even tease your ma when she was telling us about that patient who puked all over her shoes.”

“Just tired is all.”

“But had enough energy to smoke half the joint I brought.” Sirius says with a snort, looking frustrated again when Remus didn’t even flinch a smile at the counter. “Remus, talk to me.”

“It’s fine Sirius,” Remus sighs, suddenly remembers how exhausting all their arguments were in the past. How Sirius tries getting him to speak everything in his mind, as if Remus could even put them into words. 

“Okay, then tell me why you rejected my offer to go to that Frank Ocean concert. You’re obsessed with him.”

“’S in July,” Remus reminds him lightly, focusses on the way they can see the North star glimmering against the horizon instead.

“And, so?” Sirius asks, sounding more than a bit scathing. “You’re not leaving for another month after that, you trying to cut me off completely by the summer or something?”

“Don’t be an idiot.”

“Don’t be condescending.”

“Sirius, just leave well enough alone. Holy shit.”

“I can leave it alone if you can actually tell me what the fuck is going on with you,” Sirius snaps, standing up now, probably because he always likes using his height advantage on most people whenever he gets all pissy.

“You can be such a prick sometimes, you know that?” Remus snarls at him, following suit and dipping his head back just slightly so that they’re eye to eye. “Not everything is on your schedule, you know that.”

“My schedule!” Sirius’s brows jump to his hairline, and he breaks into that manic laughter that springs up only when he’s so angry he can’t put his thoughts together. “I’m trying to do as much shit with you as possible before you leave, because for some stupid fucking reason I’m going to miss you when your across the fucking country! But yeah, whatever. If you’re actually just sick of me and my presence or what the fuck else, you can just—“

“I would’ve assumed you wanted to go with Gideon,” Remus blurts out, simply unable to hold it back any more, unable to pretend like he’s not suffering a thousand fresh paper cuts every time he even glances Sirius’s way these days. He can’t do this, can’t pretend to just be friends when they were— when they are— so much more than that. “To the concert I mean. I just assumed—“

“No,” Sirius says, seething as he storms up to Remus— close enough that the tips of their noses brush up against each other. 

“No? Excuse me?”

“No Remus you don’t get to do this!” Sirius repeats, voice going frayed at the edges as their glances level. “You don’t get to pretend as if I want anyone more than I want— than I’ve always wanted you. And you don’t get to float around for the rest of your life pretending as if this’ll ever change for me. As if you can’t hit me up in fifteen years when I’m married with kids, and ask to get back together, and think  that I wouldn’t drop it all for you.”

Remus’s heart begins to thud, loud and painful against his ribcage, and his lungs feel like they might collapse the instant Remus let’s the tears swimming in his eyes sprinkle out. “Sirius, I ca—“

“I’ve been in love with you since before we were suppose to mean what that meant, damn it, Remus! And you’re the one who called it off!”

“It was the right decision.” Remus croaks out, plunging his hands into his hoodie’s pockets, doesn’t want Sirius to see the way they’re shaking.

“”For you. The right decision for you.” Sirius presses, his gray eyes dark underneath the stars. “And you know I’d do anything you wanted of me, but you don’t get to be mad at the ways I cope. And you sure as fuck don’t get to be jealous of fucking Gideon Prewett, as if he can hold a match to you.”

“Oh.” Is all Remus can gather to say, peering back down at his shoes and pressing together his lips, feels the most lost he ever has while around Sirius. “I love you too, you know that. You know I love you so much that it hurts sometimes— That was never the problem.”

Sirius makes a strangled sound deep in his throat, and the next second, Remus can’t feel the warmth of his body besides him because Sirius is darting over to the cusp of the lake and kicking at a rock. “Fuck, Remus. You can’t just say that, all right! You can’t because none of this is fair, or okay. And I fucking hate it and I hate this and—“

“Maybe we can try,” Remus says, quiet but unshaken. And he watches as Sirius slowly turns back around, face scrunched up in utter confusion, but eyes glittering with something like hope. “I love you Sirius, and you love me. And Lily’s right, fucking hell she’s so right. I can’t just turn it off, okay. I’ve tried and I’ve tried, but I can’t. I can’t be around you and not want every part of you. But I also can’t let myself stay away from you. So let’s try, and it’s probably a stupid difficult decision, and we’re going to be frustrated and we’re going to miss one another but I know there’s going to be no one I want more and I think you migh— Oof.”

Remus can’t continue rattling off any of the reasons why they should get back together, because Sirius is somehow magically popping up in front of him— his large hands cupping against Remus’s jawline and his thin lips crashing against him, and Remus can only wrap his arms around Sirius’s torso and give him back all he’s pushing forwards.

And it might’ve been a minute or an hour that past, but Sirius is pulling back with a face that looks lighter in ways Remus hasn’t seen on him since the breakup all those months ago. “I’d literally agree to anything if it means we can stay together, Moony. Absolutely anything.”

Remus feels the strain against the apples of his cheeks as he beams at him at the sound of the oath. “Yeah, me too Padfoot. Always and forever, it’s you.”

.-

My Other Wolfstar FIC💜

[hannahbee12719]

💌 Get to know me 💌

Tagged by the queen of compilations herself and one of my favorite blogs on this site, Ana @xjoonchildx. Thank you for the tag 💛

When is your birthday?

January 9 ❄️

What is your favorite color?

Yellow!

What’s your lucky number?

Idk that it’s lucky, but I like the number 19

Do you have any pets?

Yes! I have two cats, Pippin and Louise 😸😸

How tall are you?

Nice doctors tell me I’m 5’ but I’m really 4’11”

How many pairs of shoes do you own?

A lot lol. I love shoes! Unfortunately, all my pretty heels sit abandoned in my closet because my current job doesn’t allow them 😭

Favorite song?

I have such a hard time picking favorites because I have a lot of love in my lil heart, but gun to my head, it’s a tie between Magic Shop - BTS and Morning Comes - Delta Rae

Favorite movie?

This is even harder to pick than a song 😩 I am a huge movie lover. I’m going to have to list of few of my top faves to give the gist of it: My Neighbor Totoro, The Princess Bride, Pride & Prejudice, Emperor’s New Groove, Mary Poppins, Singin’ in the Rain, High Anxiety (any Mel Brooks movie really), You’ve Got Mail, A Mighty Wind, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (JKR is a troll but these books and movies were my greatest escape as a child) , this list is getting so long help lol

Have you gotten into trouble with the law?

I have been pulled over a few times, but other than that, no. I’m a no-fun rule-follower who’s terrified of getting in trouble lol

What color socks are you wearing?

I’m not wearing any socks, but I have blue toe nail polish lol

Bath or shower?

Shower for getting clean. Soaking in a tub sounds really nice, but is not as nice in reality imo. I’m too short to lounge without drowning, and sitting straight up in a tub is not it when you’re over 5 years old 😅

Favorite type of music

I like lots and lots of types of music. I’m not into anything really heavy metal or country music in general. Other than that, it’s fair game for me.

How many pillows do you sleep with?

3 normal pillows and a husband pillow (like the husband style pillow that looks like the back of a chair, not my actual husband 😂) My bed is against a wall so I create a cozy little nest for myself lol.

Which position do you sleep in?

I start on my left side and sometimes end up on my right side or stomach.

What don’t you like when you’re sleeping?

Having the door open or having cold feet

What do you have for breakfast?

Typically, I have coffee and a Kind energy bar

Have you ever tried archery?

No, but I’d love to! Just for target practice/fun though. I could never be a hunter lol. I have tried ax throwing though! That was a ton of fun!

Favorite fruit

Cherries 🤤

Favorite swear word

“Fuck” simply because I use it most often

Do you have any scars?

I’d imagine that everyone has scars. I have many, but my most notable one is the one on my neck from surgery I had when I was two that makes it look like my throat was cut lol.

Are you a good liar?

Probably not lol. I’m a fairly emotive person so I feel like it’d be easy to tell.

What’s your personality type?

INFP-T - the Mediator, Type 9 Enneagram

What’s your favorite type of girl?

I feel like this question is geared towards people who are romantically attracted to women so I feel ill-equipped to answer it. When making friends, I’m generally drawn more to people who are friendly and like to laugh and/or with whom I can have an intelligent conversation.

Left or right handed?

Right handed

Favorite food?

I really enjoy a lot of food. My go-to comfort food is fried chicken so we’ll go with that.

Are you clean or messy?

I’m a messy person by nature, but I’m trying to be better about that 😅 I’d like to clarify that it’s clutter and not filth. I do clean but I can be disorganized.

Favorite foreign food?

Italian food is the first that comes to mind. Pasta and risotto and cheese is just so good 🤤 But I’ve also had really good French, Korean, and (more authentic) Chinese food that I have really, really enjoyed. I just love food lol.

How long does it take for you to get ready?

My daily routine takes 15 minutes (I shower at night). If I’m putting on a full face of make-up and doing my hair, an hour and a half lol.

Most used phrase?

Idk that I have one lol

Are you a good singer?

I would say I’m a decent singer. I had several vocal accomplishments in high school that I’m proud of, and I’ve been asked to sing solos here and there since then. I’m not highly trained or polished but I do love to sing.

Do you sing to yourself?

I put on full musicals in my car and in my shower 😂

Biggest fear?

Spiders and heights 😖

Do you like long or short hair?

On me, I like mid-length hair due to the gumdrop shape of my head and my inability to style long hair nicely lol. I wish I could pull off short hair though *sigh*

Are you into gossip?

I like being in the know, but I don’t like rumors or malicious gossip, nor do I spread anything people tell me in confidence.

Extrovert or introvert?

Friendly introvert. I’m anxious about starting conversations, but I can absolutely hold them once started. But I do need time alone to recharge after social situations.

Favorite school subject?

History! I loved it so much I got a whole degree in it lol.

What makes you nervous?

Being at a party where I don’t know anyone but the host who’s inevitably busy the whole time. That feeling of constantly being in the way in crowded areas. And phone calls lol. If you love me at all, please text me if that’s an option.

Who was your first real crush?

His name is Mike. We ended up dating for a little in 9th grade, but I was not in a good place. We did become friends again later in high school, and I think he’s a really sweet person.

How many piercings do you have?

5 - 2 in each earlobe and a helix in my right ear

How fast can you run?

Bless people who can run and love it. You won’t catch me running except when it’s down pouring and I don’t have an umbrella lol.

What makes you angry?

Cruelty, racism, phobia of any lgbtq+ people, mysogyny, anti-maskers, anti-vaxxers, purposefully selective thinking, injustice. Just don’t be a jerk.

Do you like your own name?

Yes ☺️

What are your weaknesses?

My fear of confrontation, apologizing when I shouldn’t, food lol

What are your strengths?

My big heart, my perseverance, and I’d like to think I’m good friend

What is the color of your bedspread?

White with peaches printed on it

Color of your room?

White

Tagging (only if you want to ☺️): @oenothera5, @teainthelibrary, @jikooknoona, @triviafics

[greaterthannine-blog]

Quarter-Annual Favorites: July, August & September 2017

A Richer Take on "The Favorites"

You probably know the term "favorites" from the plethora YouTubers and beauty bloggers of past and present plastering their half-formulated opinions on a monthly basis. Those dodeca-doses of diluted opinions more often than not have about as much substance as an unfilled cream puff; decadently appealing on the outside, but wholly disappointing in their entirety. 

I believe those sorts of monthly reviews are too time and money consuming to be sustainable. A month just isn't enough time for me to purchase, use and adequately evaluate things I want to use regularly. For me to be thorough, I need more time. Plus, I don't want to scour retailers and internets just for the sake of producing "monthly favorites" content. That's a fuck-ton of cash and I don't want to gain readership based on displaying exorbitant consumerism. That just doesn't feel genuine.

Altogether, those factors considered, I'm going to do Quarter-Annual Favorites! Every quarter or three months of the year, I'll publish a collection my favorite things. A year will be divided into quote-on-quote "seasonal" quarters with the first being January, February & March, followed by April, May & June, then July, August & September, finishing with October, November & December. Since I didn't launch this site until August, I missed the first two quarters, so I'm just jumping right in with the summer one.

Style

Tom Ford Grace Cat-Eye Sunglasses in Brown & Tan: 

If there's an accessory that I love most, that would be sunglasses. I'd been on a hunt for these Tom Ford's when I stumbled upon a pair for sale on my favorite website ever: The Real Real. These sunnies retail for $480 but I copped them for $95. They have been sitting on my face or top of head ever since. 

Printed Scarf: 

While we're also on the topic of the head, I have to mention this lil' cherry & pear print hair scarf that I snatched from my mom's closet (I honestly couldn't find an equivalent for the life of me, so here's a lovely Hermès scarf). This is a perfectly sized small scarf that I either wrap a French-girl-esque manner snugly around my neck with a lil' knot or tie it around my hair to frame a ponytail.

Dr. Martens Valentine Arcadia Shoes:

While I've had these shoes for many months now, I've only been wearing them regularly as of the past couple months. They're leather and have a English school-boy feel, which gives them quality yet quirky character.

Riveted Leather Bracelets: 

I love consignment (and if my love for The Real Real doesn't show that then I don't know what would) and a while back I purchased these genuine black leather studded bracelets (a not-quite-so-similar similar) at a local consignment shop for $12. Adorned with denim rivets, these bracelets are a chic and spunky wrist accessory.

"Tomorrow Will Be Better" Strap iPhone Case: 

I'm a sucker for phone cases, and this one has been horribly useful. The strap on the back has a velcro strip on that allows you to strap the case (and your phone) to almost anything. Because I like to use my phone as an activity tracker, being able to attach my phone to my belts is ingenius.

Miscellaneous

Tod the Succulent: 

In one of my many farmer's market excursions, I purchased a succulent for $1. His name is Tod and he's great. If you want a Tod, please go to your local nursery.

Bonsai Care Set: 

Speaking of plants, I began a grand plant-care experiment by purchasing three bonsai trees. I am determined to keep these high maintenance shrubs thriving and this  has aided in my quest with tools to move soil and trim. 

J. Herbin Roller-ball Fountain Pen & J. Herbin Éclat de Saphir Ink Cartridges: 

The allure of fountain pens is real, but I could never get used to their somewhat scratchy writing. Then I found this J. Herbin roller-ball one that I use with cobalt blue ink. The roller-ball nib makes writing graceful, smooth and scratch free. It's honestly the only pen I've used all summer.

Duck Silver Duct Tape Regular and Mini: 

This is silver duct tape, and not the regular-duct-tape-silver, it's chrome. I've been using it to tape photo prints and paper into my sketchbook and journal to add a dash of reflective dimension to pages.

IMG Fashion Camp: 

I attended this camp at IMG Academy campus in Bradenton, FL and boy was it fan-freaking-tastic. I talked bunches of amazing people in the industry, my favorites of which were Bon Duke, Jimmy Moffat, Ivan Bart, and Brooke Wall as well as IMG WME peeps Rachel Fleitell, Jibran Siddiqui and Peter Knell. I also made some great buddies, Alexandra, Shawn and Ian, at the tennis courts. I'm going to make an entire post or two about this camp and my experience, so keep a look out for it.

Now for the Actual Favorites

I now present to you the first Quarter-Annual Favorites for July, August & September 2017. There are five categories for this first post. If I ever have the time or desire to expand for more than five areas per edition then I will, but for now five non-exclusive categories are the way to go. This quarter's categories are:

Style: which encompasses clothing, shoes, accessories, jewelry, etc.

Photography & Tech: which is exactly what it seems.

Beauty: which is very self-explanatory for today's day and age.

Media: which includes books, magazines, films, TV shows, podcasts, YouTube, other blogs, websites, you get the gist.

Miscellaneous: which is a complete mishmash of things that don't fall under one of the other categories.

For each thing I mention, I've written lil' tidbits that I recommend you read because information is important and all that snazzy-jazz. Plus, I imagine you want to know why I like these things above others, right?

IMPORTANT:

item links are attached to their names, so to go to that thing's page, just click on the name in this black typeface.

Beauty

Fresh Vitamin Nectar Moisture Glow Face Cream: 

Brightening, whitening, radiant, glow are the four adjectives plastered all over my top shelf. So, when I laid eyes on this moisturizer I knew it was love at first glance. It smells of citrus-y creamy candy and evened my complexion in a couple weeks. I swear I will never use another moisturizer. Ever. Go buy it.

Glossier Balm Dot Com in Cherry: 

My lips are about as dry as a prune buried for multiple millennia under 50 feet of Sahara Desert sand. So, in short I need some heavy duty moisture for them, even during summer. This Glossier one hydrates without seeping into the face flesh surrounding the lips (which is a real and legitimate problem people) and gives a lil' pop of cherry red tint. It does smell of cherry medicine or Icee, but I can ignore that.

Burt's Bees Lipstick in 502 Suede Splash: 

For as long as I can remember, I have been an advocate for very light or "no-makeup makeup." Luckily, there lip colors that aren't matte and are formulated to look like your lip color. This one is my lip color but better, and elegantly fades with time. And it's cheap. Perfecto.

Chanel Joues Contraste Powder Blush in 55 In Love: 

I love blush. A nice flush of a peachy beige nude suits my skin best and this Chanel blush has been my go-to this summer. It possesses a barely detectable smidge of in-pan shimmer that brings just a tad of definition to the cheeks. The only issues are it's price and it smells of old fancy lady. But then again... It's Chanel.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Bronzer in Nude Bronze Light:

My issue with bronzing and contour is it makes people look like they've smeared sparkly dirt on themselves and have been burnt to a crisp. And for those reasons I've disliked bronzer. That is, until I discovered this Hourglass one. It produces a light sun-kissed shade that hardly looks like a contour. It looks ultra natural; a criteria that makeup must meet for my approval.

Photography & Tech

Olympus 35 RC Point & Shoot Camera:

Out of my two metal-body point & shoot cameras this one works best. It has a nifty-ass manual rangefinder focus which allows you to focus (albeit limitedly) on the subject in frame.

Kodak Professional Ektar Color Negative 100:

 Typically I reach for AgfaPhoto Vista Plus 200 but that has recently become difficult to acquire, so I've branched out a bit. This Kodak is slightly more saturated and the temperature is minutely warmer than the cool-prone Agfa.

Nintendo 3DS XL & Pokémon Moon:

I've been a Pokémon fanatic since I was seven and only recently have I had time to get back into the games. The 3DS I bought two years ago and Pokémon Moon have been a wonderful get-to-know-you-again experience this summer.

Aukey USB-C to USB 3.0 Adapters:

For graduating high school I received a new laptop from my Paw-Paw (grandmother). However, it only has USB-C ports so these adapters have been lifesavers to connect anything to my laptop.

Media

Vivi Magazine October 2017 Issue:

I know that October isn't a month in this quarter of the year, but because this is fashion, this issue was available in August and plus it featured one of my three role models Kiko Mizuhara (who funny enough is a professional model). This is a very vibrant and stylish magazine that I pretty much buy every month. I purchased my copy from Magazine Café and requested in the comment box the October 2017 issue, but you can also order it here.

her. magazine v. 04 spring/summer 2017:

Another favorite magazine!  This mag was created by The New Order founder James Oliver, a native New Zealander. It features Asian women in creative and artistic fields. I love reading about how these ladies started out, made it to where they are now and what they currently do in their craft. Terribly inspirational for a lil' hapa like myself.

Ready Player One by Earnest Cline:

I brought this book with me to IMG Fashion Camp in August. Some good ole science fiction was the perfect escape from the social-media obsessed teenage girl demographic surrounding mefor the week I was down in Florida, and I believe this book lives up to the hype. While it had a fairly predictable plot, it was a very interesting and detailed read. And the protagonist, Wade Watts is the ultimate lovable nerd-geek.

Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew:

If you didn't know, Pokémon is the best thing ever. And accompanying my game-playing revival has been a resurrection of watching Pokémon the series and especially the movies. Getting to sit back and rewatch one of my favorite films (no joke this is one of my Top Ten Favorite Films) has been exceptional, especially since it features Lucario, one of my favorite Pokemon.

The Grand Tour Season 1 (Not Pictured):

Top Gear was one of my all-time favorite TV shows. That is, until the departure of the best and most nincompoop-ish hosts in the world. And now it has become terrible. Fortunately, the three British Stooges have made a deal with Amazon to produce The Grand Tour. It's not quite as good as Top Gear used to be, particularly regarding the weird-ass Celebrity Brain Crash segments. But regardless of it's oddities, it is still hilarious. Go watch it. Now.

Hope that this Quarter-Annual Favorites: July, August & September lives up to some already sky-high standards.

Tell me your quarterly favorites in the comments! I really would love some recommendations and feedback!

And as always,

Thanks for popping by.

Toodles.

Abe

[eleanorguestillustration-blog]

Ben the Illustrator- Interview by by Sean Hodge- 12 Dec 2009

1. Hello Ben, please tell us a bit about yourself. Where are you from, what training do you have, how did you got started in the field, and could you tell us about your creative background?

Sure thing. So, I'm 33 and to put it simply I'm an illustrator. I grew up in the South East of England, in a little village surrounded by some awesome woodlands and hills. When I left school I went up to London to study art, then I studied animation for 3 years. This was the mid to late 90s, there was a lot of very exciting stuff going on in animation with Michel Gondry, Shynola, Hammer & Tongs and a whole load more making awesome music videos, that's what I dreamt of doing. I studied traditional animation and it was at a time when the industry was really changing, with Flash and 3D software becoming much more widespread, so once I graduated in '99 I instantly had to paddle hard to keep up with everyone. I got a lucky break from Skint Records (home of Fatboy Slim who was huge at the time), they were doing some really good stuff at the time and investing in a lot of videos for their smaller artists, just as I was graduating they commissioned me to animate and direct a promo for Cut La Roc (hiphop/breakbeat DJ) which was a massive drop in the deep end for me, but really good times, a massive learning experience. This lead to a few more videos for Skint, Domino Records, Channel 4 (UK TV channel) and Sony Japan. It was fun, but really hard trying to find my way in this massive animation/design/film world. The internet was nothing like it is now, so there wasn't the communities and the ease of communication we have now to sell ourselves and show our work. We had to get things into festivals for the right people to see them. After a couple of years going it alone I joined forces with some guys I'd studied and worked with before and we formed a small animation/design studio. I was working on the design/creative direction side of things, while also taking on illustration projects, and sometimes having to step in as production staff on animation projects. Being a small studio we all had to take on a thousand different tasks. Again, it was fun, I learnt a lot, but we had to work hard. We got to work on lots of children's TV animation for the BBC, and amongst other things like t-shirts and editorial work, we really indulged ourselves in the possibilities of the internet as it grew. Then in 2005 I was getting tired of having so many job titles within one studio, and I had an epiphany! I had this thought, all I really wanted to be was 'Ben the Illustrator' so I called it a day in the studio and went solo. Again I was dropping right in the deep end, starting everything all over again, but it was worth it in the end. Not long after that I met Fi, and we started working together, left London and headed out to the countryside. We're now married and living in a lush little place in the South West UK, called Cornwall, we're by the sea and surrounded by magical woodlands, a lot like where I grew up.

2. Could you tell us about your collaboration experiences working with your wife Fi. How are the various roles of "Ben the Illustrator" divided between you two? How does having such a close partnership benefit the quality and output of "Ben the Illustrator?" Above everything else, I love it, it's always a blast working together, having a share in everything. We do both play quite different parts, which I guess is why it works out well, I'd probably be too stubborn to work so closely with another illustrator! So, essentially I'm the illustrator, obviously, I don't really have many other jobs outside that, except maintaining our main websites. Fi's main role is managing 'Wish You Were Here,' our home wares brand, this is almost a full-time job, maintaining the online shop but more so doing all the promotion and dealing with orders. We're lucky to have a few good stockists now too, selling our art prints, so that takes Fi's calm and creative business mind to keep everything rolling along. It's great how many artists/illustrators/designers are selling their work as prints nowadays, but I know that I'd never have been able to sell my artwork so successfully without Fi's managing the brand, the products and everything that comes with it. While that takes up a lot of her time, my time is spent more on commissioned illustration work, advertising and editorial, and finding the occasional day to work on new artwork for prints to hand over to Fi. When we have a commission that's very conceptual, like ad campaigns, we work together, Fi has a great imagination and frequently comes up with the ideas behind my illustrations, so in these cases we work more like a design studio, analyzing the brief, brainstorming for ideas and developing the project from beginning to end together. Even though I'm the illustrator, we still work together while the image comes together, discussing color schemes, compositions, moods, etc. It's a great way to work as a business, seeing everything throughout together, always having another mind to bring something else to a project or a piece of work. Our partnership ensures a higher level of quality and a much fresher more original outlook on design and illustration than if I worked alone.

3. You have such a well-defined, colorful, and happy style to your illustrations. How did this develop? What inspired this work and how long did it take before you felt it really came together? Thank you, honestly, thanks. It started coming together very gradually, over a couple of years. While I was working as part of a design studio I would work in varied illustration styles, whatever answered the brief, but I guess for those years I had a thread of one style coming together, creating places, taking inspiration from nature, using bold colors. I've always been a huge fan of Pop Art and early 80s graffiti (the NYC Wild Style era), so I'd learnt from the greats about how to use color, to be brave with color and to find a balance between different colors. Towards the end of my time as part of a studio, I was working on a commission for Smart Cars, illustrating a car driving through various landscapes, there was this one piece, with the car driving across a desert with mountains on the horizon. Originally I had the ground in bright orange and the mountains in brown, the car was black and white (the client's requirement), I actually remember staring at this piece for ages, I think I even hated it for a while, it just wasn't very exciting, the color palette was so limited, but since it was a desert I couldn't throw in trees or anything with color. Then (and I guess this was quite a pivotal moment in my career!) I figured that there was no rules on what color those mountains could be, so I played with them, effectively changing them into a rainbow, but in the graphic form of a mountain range, and then it all came together, I loved what I'd done, it even gave me a rush, the client and the advertising crew were psyched with it, job done. Since then I've always been conscious of progressing and developing and always trying to keep things fresh.

4. What do you think makes a great character design? And how do you go about developing a character's story and personality? Character design is such a funny one, especially nowadays, it's easy to make a character, but it's not easy to make a brilliant character. Anyone can slap a smiley face on a tree or add a kawaii face to an ice cream, but it takes a bit more to really design a character. Personally I don't think it matters what it's for, but you have to have a story in your head for a character, even the smallest details, just something that tells you what kind of character it is, and why you're creating it. Character literally means personality, so give a character some personality. There are some amazing character artists working at the moment (Peskimo, Tado, Noferin, etc.), and the best are those that can design a well-rounded character, not just add faces, it's something I even get a bit annoyed with! Seeing people mimic character designs without thinking what they're actually designing. For us it's usually the life-story or the personality traits that come first, once we've invented a persona, the character design often follows quite naturally.

5. Who is Speakerdog and what is he currently up to? Also, could you tell us about the Speakerdog paper toys project and what you love about it? Awwww, lil Speakerdog, he's his own man now really, it's like we conceived him and did loads of stuff, and now he's bigger than us, just taking care of himself! Okay, Speakerdog is our own illustrated character, he started as a fun thing, just a doodle really, but he's developed into being this spokesman, a mascot for environmentalism and all sorts of good times. We've had exhibitions of prints and painting all over the place, and we sell posters and customized paper toys at The Speakerdog Shop. The paper toys developed a few years ago, I was really getting into what Shin Tanaka was creating, and decided to engineer a paper toy out of Speakerdog. Since then we've continued with the project, now inviting artists to customize the template and design their own Speakerdogs, there's about 300 different designs now available. We do love it, we get no money for doing it, they're free to download and all, we just love doing it. We get emails from little kids, students, adults, parents, teachers, all sorts of people that enjoy making Speakerdogs. We now have schools in the UK making Speakerdogs as part of their art classes?!?! Sometimes the schools ask us to set briefs, giving a theme or a topic, it's all good. Unfortunately, Speakerdog isn't up to much at the moment! We've got a baby due in January, so we're taking a few months out of everything, so we've decided to hold back on new Speakerdog projects until after then. We've got some great things planned though, for next year, we'll be launching a whole load of new Speakerdog 'things' in Summer 2010!

6. Could you let us know about your personal projects and about "Wish You Were Here"? With art prints, cushions, calendars and more, what do you plan to add in 2010? As I said before, WYWH is pretty much Fi's business, I know this sounds soft but I'm proud of her for what she's done with it, it astounds me when I see the prints going out to buyers sometimes, we're always especially proud when prints go to people in New York, Paris, Tokyo and Australia, it feels like we're really reaching out to the big cultural places we love and take inspiration from. It's become a major part of our business as a whole too really, a lot of clients come to us having seen what we've done with WYWH. It's a blast though, it brings in more 'interior design' related jobs, which are always good. 2010 will see more new art prints, but we're also planning on some new products, mugs probably being the first to go public when it's all come together.

7. What key business decisions have had a positive impact on your business? What commercial work are you most proud of so far? It's nice that you ask me that, a lot of people underestimate the 'business' side of being an independent illustrator/small design studio. If you're doing it for your income, if it's your career then you do have to keep a business head on a lot of the time, you can't just be the wild, creative 'artist' all the time. A few years ago I read this incredible book by Paul Arden (a former creative director at Saatchi, he sadly passed away not so long ago). It's called 'It's Not How Good You Are, It's How Good You Want To Be' and it's about managing yourself in the creative/advertising world, and it completely changed my path! Before that my business knowledge was taken from a few small courses I had done, enough to learn accounts and basic practice, but nothing that really helped you to manage projects, and to think in a positive, productive way. Now, having learnt from that book and the people we admire, such as UK design studio Airside, who I did some freelancing for some time ago, we're able to manage our business positively and enjoy every moment. The key factors are to keep focused, aim high, enjoy everything, take a risk and never ever repeat yourself. Commercially, I'm always proud of those original pieces I mentioned for Smart Cars, that actually developed into a couple of years work with them, creative illustrations for advertising, displays for trade shows and even designing a mural to be wrapped around a car. That client relationship took me from pretty much starting out through to just a year or so ago, so that's probably my proudest one!

8. What's that happy mix for you with balancing various types of creative projects? Are you most happy cutting personal and client projects in half, or some other mix? What are the benefits of each type of project? Unfortunately it's impossible to control the mix! I love both, the main split of my own time is between client projects and designing/illustrating WYWH products and prints. The client projects always have to take a precedent, they have their deadlines and I have to work to them. There's never a routine mix. Sometimes I'll be working on a client project for a solid couple of weeks, and during that time I might have an image in my head for a new print, but I've no time to make it, that's hard, probably sounds daft, but it's hard to keep working on a project when you really want to get a good picture out of your head and into reality! It's completely random how projects roll along, sometimes they'll be very free and easy, creative projects, pure fun, whether it's for a client or an artist collaboration or a WYWH project, but then sometimes you can have very specific guidelines, like some design projects, which can be hugely technical and require super serious focus, but to be honest, I love it all, that's perhaps why I'm happy with my career, it can go anywhere, even tomorrow is unknown. I enjoy the instability of it all, I think you have to in this kind of job.

9. Could you tell us your opinion on the benefits of working with an agency vs. representing yourself? Why did you choose to work with an agency? What did Agency Rush offer specifically that made you want to be represented by them? First and foremost, they're great, they're a pleasure to work with, and essentially, I get more client projects from having them representing me than not having an agent. I'm lucky to have an agent, there are only so many agents in the world, and a lot more independent illustrators, I know I'm one of the lucky ones. The benefits far out-weigh the negatives, firstly, you've got an entire company promoting you, and then managing a project, invoicing, chasing payments, all of that. Plus, hugely, negotiating a price with the client, of course the agent take their commission, but generally an agent will successfully negotiate a bigger budget, often ensuring their commission without taking much from the illustrator. I know there's some dodgy agents out there, and you have to watch your back, but if you're represented by a reputable agent, then you're in a much better position to build a good career. I've been represented by two different agents before, one was great, and taught me a lot about the industry, however they were a more traditional agent, representing more traditional illustrators. It's vital to have an agent that looks for clients in the fields that you want to work in. Having an agent, as far as Fi and I are concerned, means we can put more time into our own projects, like WYWH without having to spend time marketing me as an illustrator to the commercial market, plus it means that when we have a project, all we have to worry about is the final design/illustration work, not the budgets, planning schedules, etc. Agency Rush are great, when we first looked around for a new agent a couple of years ago, we wanted someone who already represented illustrators we admired, which they did. We wanted someone who is friendly and good to work with, which they are, and we wanted someone open and honest, that we can always talk to about projects, finances, and the general flow of work. Fingers crossed we'll get to work alongside Agency Rush for a long time to come!

10. You've written quite a few vector illustration tutorials for numerous professional publications? What do you feel makes a great tutorial? What approach do you like to take? And will we see more educational material from you in the future? Tutorials are such a good thing, I'm very proud to have written them for Computer Arts, Digital Arts and Vectortuts+! I learnt Adobe Illustrator myself, like a lot of people, and so it's impossible to know if you've figured it all out, so tutorials can be priceless to share the knowledge around the community. I'm flattered to be asked to write tutorials, but at the same time I've learnt so much from other people's tutorials. The best tutorials generally do one of two things, either they instruct you on the best way to use tools, they can give you a clear idea on simplifying the processes, OR they teach you something completely new, perhaps someone has been clever enough to use a tool in a whole new way. If a tutorial doesn't widen your scope or your knowledge, and allow you to use that knowledge, then it's a waste of good publishing space. My approach is to generally set the final product, think what people might want to achieve, and then just work backwards, what do people REALLY need to know? What will people make good use of? We do have one new tutorial coming out in Digital Arts magazine in December, I'm not sure if that's available globally or not, but it'll be online. I'm not sure if I can say what it's about though! Stay tuned!

12. What are your plans for the future? Any creative work coming up, or that you're currently working on, that you're excited about? Just this week I'm working on a nice commission for a book, it's a double-page landscape, but that's all I can say probably. We've just launched our 2010 calendar on Wish You Where Here, that's been quite exciting, it's not a massive product, but it's our first calendar. We're also working on a long-term interior design project for Westfields Shopping Centres in the UK, we've designed a series of murals for the shopping centre in London, and these are now rolling out to different areas, so we're getting to work on different colorways and elements for each location. As for long term plans, everything is actually slowing down a little, we're having a baby, due in January, so that's the big news, that's the most exciting project I guess! It's due in January so we'll be having a break from work at the beginning of the year.

13. Thanks for the interview Ben! Is there any advice that you'd like to give aspiring illustrators and designer who are working hard to grow professionally? Be exciting. That's all that really matters. If you produce exciting work, clients will want to work with you. If people think you're exciting, they'll want to know you. If you excite other people, those people will respect you. If you're working on something that excites you, you're in a wonderful position in life. Be exciting!