#truly inspiring me to draw and paint more | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

prythianpages · 5 months ago

Text

Too Good To Be True | Lucien x Reader

...you're just too good to be true...can't take my eyes off of you...

summary: in which your newest muse catches you red handed.

word count: 1,600

a/n: I do struggle writing Lucien but I had seen this tiktok and wanted to write a meet-cute over it and when I saw this fanart above made by IG user kri_stasss_, I took this as a sign lol. I also listened to the song can't take my eyes off of you like 100x while writing this.

With a sigh, you lean back into your seat, allowing your eyes a break. You had been sitting at the corner of the bustling cafe for over an hour, choosing to surround yourself with Velaris’s warmth and the smell of coffee in the hopes to finally draw something. But your sketchbook is spread open on the table with a half-finished drawing.

You look at the view before you, the Sidra River shimmering like pure sapphire under the sun’s gaze. The leaves of surrounding trees rustling gently in the soft spring breeze and flowers vibrant hues adorn the riverwalk. It’s a beautiful sight–one that many stop and admire. Yet, it is not enough to fuel the inspiration you so desperately need.

The flowing water and distant laughter of children blend into a soothing symphony as you absentmindedly twirl your pencil between your fingers, thoughts drifting. Send me a muse, you plead to the Cauldron, yearning to feel that thrill again.That spark that ignites your passion of drawing. The very one that moves your hand effortlessly across the paper.

The sound of iron against pavement startles you, pulling you from your thoughts. You blink your eyes back into focus and instinctively, they land on the source of the noise. The table diagonal from you, that had been vacant for the past hour, now has an occupant. An occupant who is blocking your view of the Sidra River, the very one that is half drawn across your sketchbook.

But you can’t bring yourself to complain.

Not when there is a man of striking beauty seated there.

His mere presence commands your attention, his red hair catching the sunlight and gleaming like fire. You feel your breath catch in your throat as your eyes trace the elegant lines of his face. Brutal scars mar the left side of his face–from his brow all the way down to his jaw.

Despite this, the male is devastatingly handsome. Ethereal.

Too good to be true, you think, finding yourself captivated by his eyes. His right eye, whole and russet-colored, holds a depth that draws you in. But his left eye…His left eye is a mechanical marvel, golden and intricate, and gleaming with an otherworldly light.

And suddenly, you’re overwhelmed with an urge to touch him. To reassure yourself that he is real and not just a figment of your imagination. Gods, with a face and built body like his, he’d be heaven to touch…

A rush of excitement floods your veins and you feel a familiar thrill coursing through you. Your hands are turning the pages of your sketchbook until a blank page sits before you. And before you know it, you’re pouring your awe and fascination into each stroke of your pencil. Your eyes flicker up and down as you commit the details to mind, heart pounding every time with the fear of being caught.

Though you're cautious about it, you’re too lost in his eyes to catch the way the male’s lips curve slightly upwards.

Lucien takes the last sip of his coffee, admiring the sight before him. The sun is beginning to set, painting the sky in twilight hues and dancing across the Sidra River. Along the riverwalk, Fae stroll leisurely. Couples walk hand in hand, children skipping along the cobblestone path, pausing to catch the fireflies that are now visible in the dimming light.

Velaris was proving to be more beautiful with each passing day—a sight he’d never expected from a place like the Night Court. All his life, he had only come to know the Court of Nightmares. A place that truly lived up to his name. And though there were children laughing and running freely, he couldn’t help but still be wary of the City of Starlight. It was still part of the Night Court, after all.

His eyes scan along the riverwalk, golden eye making a soft sound as it moves, in search of something. Or rather, someone. Just as a frown is about to settle on his face, he finds what he was searching for. The reason why he was at this cafe…despite the fact that the best espresso in town was at a little coffee shop in the Rainbow of Velaris.

You.

You are sitting at a bench, knees drawn up and a sketchbook nestled onto your lap. As the sun continues to make its descent, the street lamp near you croaks to life. It bathes you in its soft glow and he is able to appreciate the slight furrow of your brow, the slight way your lips purse in concentration. He wants to know what you're drawing.

Ever since he caught you staring at him at this very cafe, he had an inkling as to what may be hidden within those pages of your sketchbook. He had meant to approach you about it but you had been so into your sketch, he found the sight endearing and feared disrupting you.

So he had left you to it and showed up to the cafe the next day at the same time in the hopes of seeing you again and he did. That time, your gazes had met and though it had been brief, it felt everlasting. He remembers the way your cheeks tinted with blush before you turned your head away, flustered at being caught. If only you had seen the way he had smiled softly to himself afterwards.

It’s been days since that incident. Though he didn’t find you in that same spot the day after, he came to the conclusion that this was your favorite area to frequent in Velaris. It slowly became his too, his eyes always finding you amongst the busy riverwalk.

Lucien had never been the shy type–at least, not when it came to pursuing people he was interested in. He had just been waiting for the right time–for the right moment to talk to you. And as you closed your sketchbook with a light exhale, his heart fluttered as he realized what better time than now.

Calling it a night, you close your sketchbook with a soft sigh. The sun had been replaced by the moon and the street lamp’s light was too dim for your liking to continue you drawing. You feared messing up what you had meticulously spent hours on. As you rise from the bench and turn to make your way back home, you bump into a smaller frame than yours, the sketchbook in your hold falling from your grasp.

“Sorry, miss!” A lively voice chirps and when you look toward the source, the small child is already far away from you. Kids, you muse to yourself as you turn back around.

Your breath catches in your throat. Standing right in front of you is the male who has become your muse.

But he’s not looking at you.

No, he’s looking at the sketchbook on the ground. Your heart skips a beat, heat rising to your face. The sketchbook had opened to the pages you've been working on—the ones with multiple sketches of his eyes.

You’re frozen in horror, watching as he studies your work. None of you say anything for a moment. It’s when his gaze lifts to yours that you spring into action. “Oh,” you gasp, beginning to bend your knees to gather your belongings. You're absolutely mortified, praying to the Cauldron he can’t hear how fast your heart is racing.

“I’m so sorry.”

Before your hand can reach for your sketchbook, another hand beats you to it.

“Don’t be,” he says, his voice deep and enchanting, causing your hand to freeze in midair. There seems to be a magnetic pull in his words, a sincerity that makes your heart flutter. Is there anything about this male that is not attractive?

“I’ve never seen the beauty of my eyes until now.”

The words are spilling from your mouth before you can stop them. “You’re joking, right?”

He’s knelt before you, his hand hovering over your book. But instead of picking it up for you, he grasps for your hand instead. It’s warm and calloused yet feels so good against yours. Like heaven. His eyes finally meet yours, holding you captive. He slowly brings your hand to his lips, and you don’t think you’re breathing as he presses his lips against your skin.

“No,” he grins as he rises to his full height, using his free hand to grab your sketchbook before bringing you with him. “I’m Lucien.”

It takes you a moment to realize he is waiting for you to speak, his presence overwhelming but exhilarating.

“I’m—” you clear your throat to steady your voice. “I’m y/n.”

“y/n,” Lucien repeats with a smile, finally handing you over your sketchbook.

You take it, immediately clutching the book tightly to your chest and avert your gaze, casting it downwards. “I promise I’m not a creep. I was drawing the Sidra–well, attempting to, anyway. But then you came along, blocking my view and something came over me. You see, I’ve been struggling with artist block and your eyes–your eyes are so pretty”--and under your breath, you mutter–” All of you is, if I’m going to be honest…”–Lucien’s smile widens at that–”and I finally felt inspired–oh gods, I’m rambling. I should just shut my mouth.”

Lucien’s russet eye twinkles with amusement. “I inspired you?”

“Yes,” you answer quietly and bashfully.

“Then perhaps,” he says, his voice low and intimate. “I should let you inspire me as well.”

Slowly, you lift your head back up, meeting his eyes once more. A wave of relief surges through you as you find nothing but sincerity and shared interest in his gentle gaze. You find yourself mirroring his smile, and something warm blossoms in Lucien’s chest—the start of something beautiful.

And he can’t help but think that maybe, just maybe, the Night Court isn’t so bad after all.

a/n: okay, that's enough Lucien for now. Can't keep letting him distract me because I need to focus back on the other Vanserra *cough* Eris *cough*

general tag list: @scooobies, @kennedy-brooke, @sillysillygoose444, @lilah-asteria @the-sweet-psycho

@daycourtofficial, @milswrites, @stormhearty, @pit-and-the-pen

#lucien x reader #lucien x you #lucien x y/n #acotar fanfiction #lucien vanserra x you #lucien vanserra x reader #lucien vanserra fanfiction #acotar x reader #acotar imagine #lucien vanserra #lucien vanserra fluff #acotar fluff

411 notes · View notes

xervn · 9 months ago

Text

like a french girl 🎨

part 1 - paint me | part 2 | art major ellie x dance major reader | ellie photo

ao3 link

summary: ellie had been struggling with finding the perfect model for her art final. that was until she saw you.

18+ MDNI | 2.2k words | tags; college au, pining, only a little explicit, no use of y/n, not proofread

disclaimer: not an art or dance major, don't shoot!

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Scribble, scratch, throw. This has been Ellie’s routine since she moved onto campus.

Why? Her professor told her that she draws the human body like it’s lifeless. Ranting about how they’re too one-dimensional and have no depth, her lines are too sharp or not sharp enough; flat and boring in looks and in feeling.

Now listen, Ellie has nothing against criticism. She respects her professor and she’s aware that her drawings lack “vitality”. It’s been something she’s struggled with for a while now, an effect of some recent events and overall adjusting to college life.

Ellie isn’t unable to grasp the anatomy of the body, in fact it’s the opposite. She knows the human body is complex and needs thorough observation. The way the sun hits the skin, the hairs on a knuckle, the creases of a smile. Wide, small, big, tall; no two bodies are exactly the same.

Really, the imagery is so clear to her, but she finds it impossible to transfer the life and motion of the body onto a piece of paper without truly understanding the person. The way she sees it, every body has a story, and in order to make a good piece she needs to know that story.

Since art school is filled to the brim with inspiring, exciting, and vibrant people, she has, of course, tried to talk with them. She attempted to get to know the models, ask them general questions and hope something clicks. Unfortunately, that has yet to happen. She can’t really ask her friends either without it getting awkward. Imagine, “ Oh, hey guys! Can you guys get naked and pose in one spot for my homework?” Hear how weird that sounds? Even though she’s sure Jesse would definitely be down, she values her eyes.

Any “muse” she could possibly ever want was right in front of her, so why was it really impossible for her to find one?

Well, because Ellie didn’t find anyone interesting enough. She’s not shallow or anything, it has nothing to do with how the model looked, Ellie has had several good-looking models. It was more about how she perceived them. It’s just that she hasn’t seen a model that made her ask questions like: “ How’d they get that scar?” “ What does that tattoo mean?” Stuff like that.

The last interesting model she had was probably a fucking homeless guy she shared a blunt with outside a gas station many moons ago. Till this day, he might be one of her best pieces. There’s not a lot of moments like that here.

Nonetheless, Ellie saw this developing– extremely lame— personal requirement of hers annoying as shit. It’s holding her back big time, but she couldn’t help it even if she really wanted to.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

It’s practically useless to keep trying. The tiny voice in Ellie's head presses her to keep going, keep failing, but enough is enough. She is seriously burnt out and any more of this might kill her. The only thing that could help right now is a meaty slice of pizza and a blunt as soon as she thought of it.

Ellie clears out her desk, knocking the stack of crumpled paper into a conveniently placed trash can; a placement made from her constant trials and errors. She pushes up, and stretches widely, obnoxiously groaning like an old man by the end of it. She quickly tidied herself up, tying up half of her hair into a ponytail and throwing on a dark-green flannel shirt she had to sniff before wearing over her plain white tee. She takes a quick look into her floor-length mirror, making sure she looks presentable before grabbing what she needs to head out.

Just as her hand reached for the silver knob, Ellie felt this overwhelming urge to look back. God, she knows what she is going to look back at, but she really hopes she doesn’t. Unfortunately, her eyes land on her sketchbook, laid flat on the desk underneath a lamp’s warm light. She shouldn’t.

She needs a break. She knows she needs a break, but there is a twinge of hope, faith, lodged somewhere inside her. The same faith that’s kept her from dropping out every day for the past four months. Ellie groans as she drags her feet to her desk where she whisks up the brown book and shoves it in her tote bag with an accompanying pencil. She swivels back to the door and strolls out, silently praying her mood improves in the next hour.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

The cafeteria was surprisingly crowded, but Ellie managed to get her pizza without saying ‘fuck it’ to the line. Still, the thought of eating between this buzzing mess when she was in such a shitty mood turned her off. Thankfully, she knew that everyone would be everywhere but the upstairs balcony, especially during this chilly time of year. No sane person would eat out there, and she’s not particularly sane. Ellie saunters off to the balcony and sits herself at a small table facing the view.

It only took a glance around before she came to the realization that the view is not really a view. There’s only a dorm a few feet away, directly across. It’s a large brick-laid, generic building with wide windows. If it weren’t for the blinds, the view into a room would probably be good enough to read a label on something. Ellie’s freckled face grimaces at the thought, imagining what it’d be like if someone watched her rage as she messed up her homework over and over from this distance. Despite that, she thought it’d probably be a pretty good spot to live in. It’s close to the cafeteria and probably a lot bigger than her 1x1 dorm.

With a twinge of curiosity piquing her mind, Ellie glimpses over the windows, and for the most part, they are all closed.

All closed, but yours.

Yours doesn’t even have blinds. You’re on the 3rd floor and almost completely unobscured in a black camisole, sitting on your questionably roomy windowsill with a leg perched up. Ellie can see the fairy lights strung up in your bedroom, and a line of succulents closer to the window; ordered by size, which she briefly thought was cute.

You aren’t facing the window, so she can only see your back. What she could see, though, is you doing your hair, occasionally swaying to what she can only imagine is music. Your room is high, but low enough for her to identify you if she had the pleasure of knowing you. Knowing you, reverberates in her head. Does she know you? Has she met you before? Amongst that babble, there is one more question she is slowly trying to gather an answer to.

Time passes, most definitely shorter than Ellie would have thought passed. Her eyes have been glued on you the whole time, she even forgot about her, now freezing cold, pizza just so she could gawk at you. She still hasn’t seen your face yet, barely even a glimpse, but she already thinks you are stupidly beautiful just by the way you move.

From the graciousness of your movements alone, she thought there was no way in hell you didn’t know she was watching. At some point, your arms got tired, so you smoothly rolled your aching shoulders back; stretching into an arched, effortlessly perfect posture. Ellie’s eyes traced that slight curve of your back as if you’d disappear if she broke off from you.

There is no way it gets better from that, is what she thinks to herself, only to be shut up immediately after when she sees that perfectness of your back stay as you bend over and shift onto both knees to grab something far away, bringing your shorts in view. So short— so tight , they could easily be mistaken for panties.

It was unexpected to say the least, Ellie could feel her face heating up and had to look around her to see if anyone else could see what she was seeing right now. Ellie wondered about the practicality of those shorts, wondered what exactly they were supposed to cover, leering at the plush of your ass peeking out. She thoughtlessly lets her jaw drop before muttering out a low, impressed, and barely over a whisper, “Well, fuck.”

You must’ve noticed your shorts riding up, since you quickly pulled them down after you grabbed what you wanted. Ellie clears her throat, internally scolding herself for being so gross— so perverted. Her brows furrow in embarrassment from all the dirty thoughts she brewed up in that moment. But for some reason, she still doesn’t look away. Well, there’s a list of reasons for her to look away, but she feels like ignoring it.

Then a cold gust of wind bites past her face, clearly a sign from the universe that she should snap out of it, and snap out of it she does.

What the hell happened to her? What is it about you that she keeps leaning into? Suddenly something clicks in her brain. After months of creative agony, something finally clicked. She has sat here completely fascinated by you and she couldn’t tell sooner?

In all honesty, to say she is just “interested” in you would be an understatement. Yeah, now she thinks you’re the perfect model for her final, but she wants to know you beyond just the drawing. A plus is that you just happened to be hot, and Ellie has never been attracted to a subject before, so the whole thing was new and exciting to her. Just the thought of drawing you made her remember why she loved art so much. Ellie reaches for her tote bag sitting in an empty seat beside her, pulling out her sketchbook with more enthusiasm than she probably ever has. She sets the book down, opening up a blank page with one hand and tightening her grip on her pencil in the other.

She looks back up at your window, ready to sketch your life onto paper and.. Shit. You’re looking back.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Today has been a good day for you, your teacher chose you to teach the choreo you’ve been working on for weeks to your classmates. It was an obvious ego booster for you. You felt good and you wanted to look good too, even if you weren’t going out anywhere. It was just one of those nights. You wanted to experiment with your hair, thinking maybe you’ll do something new before your next practice. Dye it, cut it.. something.

It’s been a while since you started, and after several wrist and shoulder cramps, you were finally finished. You take a look into your hand mirror, peering at your reflection. You’re satisfied now, looking exactly how you’re feeling if you minus the dingy sleep clothes you’re in.

♫ My heart, I never be, I never see, I never know. ♫

Grimes? Really? You pout, upset that your playlist didn’t magically read your mood. What you need is real 2000’s hot girl music. Britney Spears, Nelly Furtado, or Beyoncé for crying out loud.

“Alexa, skip!” You shout across the room, just loud enough for the device to hear.

The stupid thing doesn’t even light up, so you call out a few more times but to no avail. Isn’t the whole point of that thing to be voice automated? You sigh and look around for your phone, and seeing it’s nowhere in front of you, you figure it’s behind. You twist your torso to find your phone behind you and luckily you do. As you pick it up, you casually glance out the window without any expectations.

Did you see a figure in the blur as you looked away? You question your eyes, but you decide to take another look and just find out for yourself.

You peer back down and your eyes meet with someone else’s. The sudden eye contact between you and this woman instantly mortified you. Your heart sunk, and all you could do was raise your brows stupidly. She was surprised too, even in the dim light you could see her shocked expression boring back at you. Not only that, it went on for way longer than it should have. Any normal person would’ve looked away, but her eyes lingered on you before she hastily turned away.

You’ve been sitting here, dressing up your hair, listening to your music without a care in the world. Far too absorbed in yourself to realize there’s someone outside your window. You slide off your windowsill and out of sight. Just as your bottom finally hits the wood floor, you feel the coldness of it against your skin and you’re immediately conscious of the fact that your ass was literally out at some point.

The poor girl was trying to eat her food and you were bending over in front of your window like a harlot. It certainly didn’t help that she looked kinda hot. Did she? You peeked over your windowsill, hoping to get another look to really assess her hotness, but she was already gone. Whatever, maybe she didn’t see? But she looked embarrassed… embarrassed for you probably!

You hide your face in your hands and topple to the side, letting out a fake sob. Oh, god. You can already imagine Dina’s face when you tell her. You couldn’t help but burst out laughing at that thought. That was humiliating as shit, but it’s whatever. It’s not like you’ll see her again.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

side note: if you have any tropes you'd like to see w/ this universe pls do drop an ask 🤭

click 4 more!

#ellie williams #ellie x reader #ellie x fem reader #ellie the last of us #tlou2 #ellie williams x reader #the last of us part 2 #ellie williams x female reader #ellie x you #ellie x y/n #lesbian #ᝰ like a french girl

467 notes · View notes

bixels · 5 months ago

Note

I really like MLP stuff because I feel like a lot of artists choose to set their stories in the 20's(makes sense it's a cool time period). But when drawing their characters and settings they look mostly at the fashion and the architecture and not the drawings of the time. Which always made me sad because the commercial illustrations, comics and paintings look so good and still feel totally modern and fresh even though they are almost 100 years old.

Anyways I just want to say that your art really has that sleek modern feel and I was wondering if there were any specific illustrators that you keep in mind or if I'm just making stuff up in my head

This is a small thing I've also been struggling with art for the AU project. Deciding whether or not I want it to truly feel authentic to the 20s/30s or draw what feels natural to me. I ended up going with the latter because if I'm constantly forcing myself to draw in a style that doesn't feel right for me, it'll stop being fun really quickly and I'll burn out. That's why a lot of the illustrations feel more anime-ish.

That being said, I pull a lot of inspiration from 50s-60s pulp comics (especially in the CYMK color palettes) and 1920s graphic artists like Leyendecker and Hirschfeld. In terms of graphic design, I'll sometimes pull from art deco, art nouveau, or reference the visual flourishes of book covers from the time period.

#ask me #anon #oh btw the entire project is meant to be imagined as a franchise created in the 1960s that looks back on a fantasy 1920s #that's why there are some slight anachronisms #like stella wearing a 60s dress suit #by the way there's still one HUGE thing for the project i haven't posted yet #which is an opening credits sequence to a fake animated film #haven't posted cuz it's not finalized but it's modeled after 50s disney films

222 notes · View notes

clumsyromantic · 1 year ago

Text

NOT ANOTHER RAINBOW LEGACY CHALLENGE

Welcome to this ten generation legacy challenge based on vibrant colors! Inspired by all the other color themed legacies out there, because who doesn’t like basing their sims whole personality on a color (I know I’m a sucker for it lol). I won’t put a long list of rules here, because at the end of the day I want this to be your gameplay and story that you create. I will suggest that you follow each generation, but if something isn’t to your liking, by all means, change it for yourself. With that being said, don’t claim this challenge as your own, even if you tweak it. Remember, though, legacy challenges are all about having fun!

If you play don't forget to tag me here or on instagram @clumsy.romantic or use the hashtag #notanotherlegacy. I would really love to see some gameplay/stories!

Generation One: Licorice.

You never stay in one place too long. As a criminal, you’re always on the run. You don’t commit to anything. The only thing you’ve ever truly loved and committed to is your career. When it comes to actual love, you dip as soon as it seems like things might get serious. You don’t like being that close to people, letting people in like that. You can’t trust anyone, or so you thought.

Traits: Evil, Non-Committal, Romantic. (Additional: Self-Assured, Mean)

Aspiration: Serial Romantic.

Career: Criminal.

Have more enemies than friends.

Have a child with an enemy.

Move to a different world each time you age up.

Only your child(ren) can be your partner in crime.

Get caught cheating at least once.

Max your career.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Mischief, Handiness and Programming skills.

[Packs used: None]

Generation Two: Pearl.

From the time you could hold things, you were coloring, drawing, painting, anything that could help you express yourself. You are the exact opposite of your parent. Maybe you’re like the other one? You wouldn’t know, though. You never met them, nor heard a single truth about them. That doesn’t matter, though, because as soon as you can, you move out of your parents home so that you can start your own life and family. Love isn’t easy, as you don’t truly know what it’s supposed to look like, but with how kind and caring you are, it almost comes easy to you.

Traits: Creative, Cheerful, Family-Oriented. (Additional: Loyal, Good)

Aspiration: Big Happy Family.

Career: Painter.

Complete the Artist Prodigy as a child.

Move to a different world from your parent.

Marry someone with amazing compatibility (or someone with similar traits).

Have 5 children.

Have a bowling night with the family at least twice a week.

Max your career.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Painting, Parenting and Bowling skills.

[Packs used: High School Years, Growing Together, Parenthood, Bowling Night]

Generation Three: Latte.

You come from a big family, and you’ve always loved every bit of it. However, nothing can compare to the love you have for fitness. As a teenager, you become a simfluencer who models athletic wear and shows off your healthy lifestyle. As a Young Adult, you constantly have dogs. You tell yourself all you need is dogs, until you meet another fitness buff who you end up having a baby with.

Traits: Active, Dog Lover, Vegetarian. (Additional: Ambitious, Outgoing)

Aspiration: Friend of the Animals.

Career: Simfluencer.

Have a good relationship with your parents and siblings.

Go to the gym four times a week.

Change your hairstyle once a week.

Have at least 3 dogs as a YA.

Become a B-lister.

Have a baby with someone you meet at the gym (bonus points if they have the active skill).

Max your career.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Fitness, Entrepreneur, Media Production, and Pet Training skills.

[Packs used: Cats & Dogs, High School Years, Get Famous]

Generation Four: Dandelion.

It was hard for you to relate to your parents, as they were much more outgoing and sociable than you were. Keeping up conversations and being around people always made you feel drained. You preferred being by yourself with a good book. It was usually a sci-fi book about robots. It’s no surprise that you’re the first in your family to go to university and you end up working in engineering. Your best friend, perhaps lover as well, is a robot you built. Seems like a good life to you.

Traits: Loner, Overachiever, Socially Awkward. (Additional: Bookworm, Geek)

Aspiration: Nerd Brain.

Career: Engineer.

Attend university.

Build a servo bot.

Be romantic partners with the servo.

Woohoo with the servo in the rocketship.

Only adopt or have science babies.

Max your career.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Logic, Handiness and Robotics skills.

[Packs used: High School Years, Discover University]

Generation Five: Emerald.

You want to make the world a better place for the next generations. Everything you do involves Mother Earth. You live off the land, garden and fish for your food. You raise chickens for your eggs and cows for your milk. You also fabricate and make things for yourself, others and your animals. Some of the things you create you sell on Plopsy for income. You have a baby with someone you’re engaged to be married to. But as soon as you can, you pack up and leave them, taking the baby with you.

Traits: Loves Outdoors, Maker, Freegan. (Additional: Green Fiend, Recycle Disciple)

Aspiration: Master Maker.

Career: Plopsy Seller.

Live in Evergreen Harbor (If you don’t already, move there as a YA).

Live in Port Promise, where you must make the eco footprint green.

Additional Challenge: have the Simple Living lot challenge in Evergreen.

Knitted and Fabricated items can be sold on Plopsy when you need simoleons.

Get engaged and try for a baby until one of you is pregnant.

Once you have reached green for the eco footprint; break off the engagement, take the baby and move to Sulani.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Knitting, Fishing, Gardening and Fabrication skills.

[Packs used: Eco Lifestyle, Nifty Knitting, Island Living]

Generation Six: Turquoise.

Growing up on a beautiful beach with your single parent doing everything for you made you into a spoiled brat. The only thing you actually want to do, besides sleep and chill, is fashion photography. You have a real eye for fashion. Although, you don’t really have a knack for picking up work. You’re more likely to be suntanning than actually doing your job. The few times you do accept a job, you fall in love with the model. Instead of falling happily in love together, you are constantly fighting, and to make matters worse, you have a kid together. Something neither of you wanted.

Traits: Self-Absorbed, Lazy, Hates Children. (Additional: Jealous, Squeamish)

Aspiration: Beach Life.

Career: Freelance Fashion Photographer.

Accept a job once a week.

Have a baby with one of the models that has the Mean, Hot-Headed or Evil trait.

Only have 1 child.

Have a bad relationship with your child.

Move to San Myshuno as an Adult.

Max your career.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Charisma and Photography skills.

[Packs used: Get Famous, Outdoor Retreat, Moschino, City Living]

Generation Seven: Ruby.

You constantly heard your parents fighting over something. They were never not fighting. You found your solace in music; listening to it, writing it, playing instruments, just everything about it. You get married young just so you can move out. But you’re in love with a musician on the side. You’re not really sure if you should keep seeing them, or stick by your spouse. You never really were good with decisions, especially ones that could really impact your future.

Traits: Music Lover, Hot-Headed, Childish. (Additional: Erratic, Dance Machine)

Aspiration: Musical Genius.

Career: Live off tips and fame.

Marry and move out as a YA.

Have a bad relationship with your parents.

Cheat on your spouse with someone who plays an instrument or sings.

Only earn money from tips when you play instruments or sing in public.

Have either a dance battle or karaoke night once a week.

Obtain fame, at least c-lister, from music.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Singing, Dancing and any instrument skills.

[Packs used: Get Famous, City Living, Get Together]

Generation Eight: Magenta.

You’ve always used humor and pranks as a way to cope with everything going on in your life. No one but your best friend really gets you. It’s hard for you two to get over being friends when you realize that you have feelings for each other. Except, after having a baby together, you realize you were better off as friends. You still civilly raise the child, just not under the same roof anymore.

Traits: Paranoid, Goofball, Gloomy. (Additional: Clumsy, Cat Lover)

Aspiration: Chief of Mischief.

Career: Social Media.

Have a childhood best friend.

Have a baby with said best friend.

You and your best friend fall out, but you still raise the child civilly.

Have at least 1 cat.

Max your career.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Comedy, Writing and Mischief skills.

[Packs used: Cats and Dogs, Strangerville, City Living]

Generation Nine: Tangerine.

You prefer the finer things in life. You live in the city, but as a young adult working in law, you often take vacations to Mt. Komorebi. Where, when you fall in love with a local and have children, you take your children there often. Not until you retire, do you and your spouse move there. In the meantime, you enjoy the time you spend there; skiing, snowboarding, rock climbing, sightseeing, etc. You dream of your vacations while at work.

Traits: Adventurous, Kleptomaniac, Bro. (Additional: Lactose Intolerant, Materialistic)

Aspiration: Mt. Komorebi Sightseer.

Career: Law.

Take 2 vacation days a week to go to Mt. Komorebi.

Marry and have children with someone who lives in Mt. Komorebi

Continue living in San Myshuno until you retire and move to Mt. Komorebi.

Steal one item a day.

Max your career.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Skiing, Snowboarding and Rock Climbing skills.

[Packs used: Snowy Escape, Cottage Living]

Generation Ten: Aubergine.

Your parents always showed you the luxurious sides of life. Treating you to everything and anything you could ever imagine. It lit the way for your future career as a critic. You enjoyed being able to put your 2 cents into whatever you could get your neatly, well kept fingers on. You also always looked and presented to be your best self.

Traits: Neat, Foodie, Snob. (Additional: High Maintenance, Perfectionist)

Aspiration: Party Animal.

Career: Critic.

Host 3 parties a week.

Each party has a theme; decorate and cook accordingly.

Get married 3 times (not to the same person).

Have 1 child per marriage.

Don’t get close to your children until they are Young Adults.

Max your career.

Complete your aspiration.

Master the Cooking, Writing and Gourmet Cooking skills.

[Packs used: Spa Day, City Living]

#the sims 4 #sims 4 #s4 #thesims4 #sims4 #sims legacy #sims lets play #notanotherlegacy

509 notes · View notes

a-dinosaur-a-day · 1 year ago

Text

ITS ALMOST FOSSIL NOVEMBIRB!!!!!

We're going to have a CELEBRATION of FOSSIL NEORNITHINES for this November!!! The extinct members of the only group of dinosaurs we have today!

Each day will have a prompt inspired by the evolution of crown-birds and the amazing forms they have taken over the past 68 million years!

You can respond to each day's prompt however you wish - with drawing and painting, writing, sculpting, music, videos, whatever! Just tag it "#Fossil Novembirb" for me to find it, and it'll get reblogged!

I'm so excited to see the art you guys create!

NOVEMBER 1 - THE CHOSEN ONES

Crown-Birds (Neornithes) known from the Mesozoic Era!

Options include Asteriornis, Teviornis, Vegavis, and "Styginetta"!

These are the only dinosaurs that survived the asteroid!

Theoretically there were also early Palaeognaths and Neoavians - if you want to do some spec evo and hypothesize what you think they might have looked like, go ahead! Follow your dreams!

NOVEMBER 2 - THE SURVIVORS

The earliest birds known after the K-Pg boundary!

Options include Conflicto, Tsidiiyazhi, Australornis, Qinornis, and Qianshanornis!

Birds diverged rapidly after the extinction, so also feel free to dive into spec evo into some of the forms we don't have fossils of!

NOVEMBER 3 - RACE TO THE SEA

The first Marine Neornithines and how they evolved in the early Paleocene!

Includes tons of early penguins like Waimanu, Kumimanu, Sequiwaimanu, Muriwaimanu, and Kupoupou

Also includes the first Pseudo-toothed bird, Protodontopteryx, and the earliest known Tropicbird, Clymenoptilon!

RISE OF THE PENGUINS!

NOVEMBER 4 - THE MEGAFOWL

Gastornis (aka "Diatryma", aka "Zhongyuanus") appeared in the mid-Paleocene and was a feature of the Cenozoic landscape until the end of the Eocene - so we have a whole day JUST FOR IT

Show your love for the Megafowl Gastornis! This giant herbivorous bird was fascinating, and has captured imaginations for decades because of it!

Gastornis is also present in many of the ecosystems described below, such as Willwood, Green River, and Messel, so we also just wanted to make sure people didn't keep picking Gastornis over and over again xD

NOVEMBER 5 - IT'S GETTING HOT IN HERE

The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum was the most dramatic incident of rapid global warming in the world since the Permian... until today!

It majorly affected the evolution of many things, possibly including birds!

The Willwood Formation straddles the time period of the warming, and has tons of birds that were evolving during that time period! So, for this day, create things involving birds of the Willwood Formation!

Options include the flighted Palaeognaths Lithornis promiscuus and Lithornis plebius; the possible stem-Ostrich Paragrus, the early half-screamer-half-duck Anachronornis, the early owl Primoptynx, and the fascinating stem-mousebird Sandcoleus! And many more!

NOVEMBER 6 - TROPICAL DENMARK

Birds of the Fur Formation, one of the best collections of bird fossils from the early Eocene!

Includes such friends as Scandiavis (an early shorebird), Septencoracias (an early roller), Pellornis (an early rail-esque thing), the utterly mysterious Morsoravis, and the early swift-hummingbird Eocypselus!

This was a tropical shoreline environment with many of the first members of major bird groups we see today!

NOVEMBER 7 - ANCIENT LONDON TOWN

Across the shore from Fur was the London Clay Formation, a lush tropical forest near the warm shallow ocean

In addition to a truly alarming quantity of plant fossils, this is a notable locality for early birds, featuring many early members of major groups much like the Fur Formation

Options include Dasornis (a pseudotoothed bird), Pulchrapollia (one of the Parrot-Passerines of Prey), Nettapterornis (another stem-duck), Nasidytes (an early loon), Charadriisimilis (an early shorebird), Archaeodromus (a trogon-like member of Strisores), Eotrogon (an actual early Trogon), Lithornis vulturinus (another flighted Palaeognath), Prophaethon (another early Tropicbird), and Ypresiglaux (an early owl) - and so many more!

NOVEMBER 8 - THE RAPTORS ARE BACK

Turns out "Predatory Feathered Thing with Really Sharp Foot Claws" is a very successful niche - not only was there potentially one right after the end of the Cretaceous (Qianshanornis), but other raptors were some of the first birds to succeed around the world in the Eocene

So this day is dedicated to the early raptors of the Cenozoic!

Any "raptor" from the Paleogene is valid - so here are some suggestions: Early Cariamiformes (Seriemas and Kin) like Bathornis, Dynamopterus, Strigogyps, and the first potential Terror Birds like Paleopsilopterus Early Owls like Ypresiglaux and Palaeoglaux Early Accipitriformes like Horusornis Early Falcons like Antarctoboenus, Masillaraptor, and Danielsraptor And of course the ever popular "Parrot-Passerines of Prey" like Tynskya and Messelastur

NOVEMBER 9 - GETTING A GRIP

Half of all living birds are Passeriformes - aka "Perching Birds" - but this wasn't always the case! For most of Earth's history, many other kinds of tree birds were extremely common

Where did this behemoth group of tiny dinosaurs come from? That's the subject of this day's prompt!

In the Eocene, the first birds closer to Passeriformes than to Parrots evolved, and they came in a huge variety of forms! So on Nov 9th, we're going to celebrate this group's interesting beginnings!

Options for this include Parapsittacopes, Eofringillirostrum, Pumiliornis, Psittacopes, Zygodactylus, Primozygodactylus, Psittacomimus, Sororavis, Morsoravis, and Eozygodactylus! Go wild!

NOVEMBER 10 - BAYOU IN THE BADLANDS

Back to specific ecosystems! We're visiting the world-famous Fossil Lake of the Green River Formation!

This environment, during the Early Eocene, was a thriving tropical lake and forest ecosystem filled with tons of early Neornithines as well as mammals and other animals

Gorgeous fossils have come out of this lake, showing truly amazing detail of feathers and other features for these birds!

So here you can feature Prefica (a potential early Oilbird), the flighted Palaeognath Calciavis, the stem-turaco Foro, the early mousebird Celericolius, the possible shore-bird Nahmavis, a potential cuckoo roller Plesiocathartes, the Flamingo-Duck Presbyornis, the early landfowl Gallinuloides, the swift-hummingbird Eocypselus, and the Frigate Bird Trying at being a Gull Limnofregata - and so many more!

NOVEMBER 11 - A NEW DAWN

We're finally moving on to the middle Eocene - and the Messel Lake ecosystem, famous from the first episode of Walking with Beasts (hence the name of the day)!

(If you're going "wait, that episode acts like nothing happened between the K-Pg and Messel, but here you have 10 days worth of stuff" .... yeah. Walking With Beasts skipped the Paleocene and early Eocene and I am... very pissed. Still.)

You know about the tons of early mammals from this tropical lake ecosystem, but it was filled with tons of early birds as well!

There's the early ostrich Palaeotis, the crane-rail Messelornis, the almost-flamingo Juncitarsus, the freshwater Booby Masillastega, the early hoopoe Messelirrisor, Selmes (a mouse bird with stubby toes), the early ibis Rhynchaeites, the early nightbird Hassiavis, the early swift Scaniacypselus, an early roller with known colors Eocoracias, and the early potoo Paraprefica - and many others!

NOVEMBER 12 - PEAK PENGUIN PARTY

As the Eocene continued, penguins achieved true megafaunal status - there were tons of them, they were huge, and they were all over the oceans of the Southern Hemisphere

While penguin diversity never did recover after the Eocene-Oligocene extinction event, this golden age deserves celebration!

Some of these fascinating peak penguins include Palaeeudyptes, Anthropornis, Icadyptes, Inkayacu, Perudyptes, and Kairuku!

NOVEMBER 13 - FRENCH SAVANNAH

As the Eocene began to dry up and cool down, plains grew across the world where the tropical forests once had been

One of the most famous later-Eocene fossil sites for birds is the Quercy Phosphorites location, a French formation with tons of interesting fossil birds!

Here we start to see the early forms of Neornithine Dinosaurs we saw in the Paleocene-Early Eocene diverge and specialize further - often in particularly weird or interesting ways!

So here we have the duck-ish chicken Paraortyx, the secretarybird Pelargopappus, you can also bring back Dynamopterus from earlier, there is the stem-chicken Quercymegapodius as well as stem-parrots like Quercypsitta, the seriema-like Strigogyps, the sandgrouse relative Archaeoganga, Archaeotrogon shows up again, the swift relative Aegialornis, a potential woodpecker relative Sylphornis, and more owls like Palaeoglaux! Lots of cursorial predators in this ecosystem!

NOVEMBER 14 - LOST IN THE WOODS

As the Oligocene dawned, forests did grow back in Europe, though they were now temperate and dry as opposed to the paratropical rainforests of before

This lead to wide diversification of tree-dwelling birds, and so here we will celebrate the birds of the Oligocene of Europe!

We start to really see modern-esque birds at this point, though of course we still have 30 million years of evolution to go!

Here you can feature the early eagle/hawk Aviraptor, the European Hummingbird Eurotrochilus, the seabird relative Rupelornis, the early woodpecker-toucan Rupelramphastoides, the tody Palaeotodus, the proper Passerine Wieslochia, the possible shorebird Turnipax, the mousebird Oligocolius, the hoopoe Laurillardia, and the trogon Primotrogon which we know the colors of!

NOVEMBER 15 - OASIS IN THE DESERT

The Jebel Qatrani Formation of Egypt shows the beginnings of the famous African Grassland animals, as well as many early members of iconic African animal groups such as primates - and, of course, birds!

Taking place in the early Oligocene, this formation was a tropical/subtropical lowland plain filled with ponds and streams and other waterways - aka, tons of swamps surrounded by plains

As such, this place is infested with waterbirds!

Here we have a fossil relative of the Shoebill Goliathia, as well as the jacanas Janipes and Nupharanassa, the giant stork Palaeoephippiorhynchus, the herons Nycticorax and Xenerodiops, and the mystery Palaeognath Eremopezus!

NOVEMBER 16 - AMONG THE GIANTS

Once again we're just fully committing to the Walking With Beasts nostalgia bc these are the birds we wish were in it more okay we said it

Anyways there were some interesting large birds in the plains of the "Land of Giants" episode so picture these guys alongside the Indricothere etc.

In general we're covering the latest Eocene through the Oligocene of Central Asia

Here we have the enigmatic ratites Ergilornis and Sonogrus, the pseudo-toothed bird Caspiodontornis, the owl Heterostrix, and the stem-flamingo Agnopterus

NOVEMBER 17 - IF THE WIND WAS IN OUR WINGS

We all focus on penguins, but over the Cenozoic, plenty of weird birds have evolved for marine life, and boy are they bizarre!

So for Nov 17, we're focusing on the unusual marine birds of the Cenozoic!

This includes any members of the Pelagornithids - aka the Pseudo-toothed birds - as well as the Plotopterids - the Boobies that became Penguins! Pelagornis and Copepteryx are the best known taxa from each, respectively, but there are plenty more!

But that's not all! We have the flightless auks Miomancalla and Mancalla, the large flightless marine duck Chendytes, and who can forget the weird flightless marine swan Annakacygna! Tons of options to choose from!

NOVEMBER 18 - MARCHING IN THE MARSHES

We're now starting our transition from the Paleogene into the Neogene, beginning with the brackish marsh ecosystem preserved at Saint-Gerand-Le-Puy in France!

This Miocene locality preserves a wide variety of birds that are near modern, but not quite - a sort of "uncanny valley" of bird evolution, all set in a somewhat-salty somewhat-not wetland ecosystem

Options for dinosaurs here include Harrisonavis, a transitional flamingo; the early gull/tern Laricola, the enigmatic duck Mionetta, the stork Grallavis, the pratincole Becassius, the swimming-flamingo Palaelodus, the early cormorant Nectornis, the seed-eating pheasant Palaeortyx, the early loon Colymboides, and the mysterious shorebird Elorius!

NOVEMBER 19 - FERN GULLY

Riversleigh is one of the most famous fossil sites in the world, preserving the evolution of the strange and unique animals known today in Australia, during the Oligocene to Miocene transition

Most often, we focus on the bizarre mammals found at Riversleigh, and for good reason - it's a Marsupial Party! - but the birds here are fantastic as well

This ecosystem was a rich rainforest that transitioned over the period of deposition into a semiarid grassland, and covers 20 million years of animal evolution during that transition

Options for birds here include the butcherbird Kurrartapu, the fossil Sittella Daphoenositta trevorworthyi, the Mihirungs ("Demon Ducks") Dromornis and Barawertornis, the Emuwary Emuarius, the early magpie-goose Eoanseranas, the raptor Pengana with flexible ankles, the earliest known species of lyrebird (Menura tyawanoides), the corvid-like Corvitalusoides, the first known cockatoos, the flightless rail-like bird Australlus, the stiff-tailed duck Pinpanetta, the early logrunner Orthonyx kaldowinyeri, and so many more!

NOVEMBER 20 - LAND OF GIANTS

Y'all were probably wondering when we'd get to the Terror Birds and other interesting dinosaurs of South America, so - here we are!

South America, isolated from the rest of the world until the Great American Interchange, featured a wide variety of bizarre and unique animals - not just mammals, but birds and other reptiles as well!

So for Nov 20th, we're looking at the interesting dinosaurs of the "lost continent" during the Miocene epoch, prior to the invasion of North American taxa!

Any Miocene South American Terror Bird (Phorusrachid) is fair game here, so that includes Brontornis, Patagorhacos, Paraphysornis, Devincenzia, Kelenken, Phorusrhacos, Patagornis, Andalgalornis, Psilopterus, Mesembriornis, and Procariama! Note that they did not all live at the same time or even close to each other in location, so do your research on the taxa you pick!

But Terror Birds weren't the only strange dinosaurs in South America at the time! We have the large Teratorn (vulture-like-thing) Argentavis, the *giant* swimming-flamingo Megapaloelodus, the giant Anhinga Macranhinga, the rhea Opisthodactylus, the penguins Palaeospheniscus, Arthrodytes, and Paraptenodytes, the Cathartid Dryornis, the Jacamar Galbula hylochoreutes, fossil Hoatzins like Hoazinavis and Hoazinoides, the giant stork Leptoptilos patagonicus, and the owl Yarquen!

NOVEMBER 21 - FIRST OF THE MANU

Aotearoa has one of the most unique avifaunas in the world today, and I often call it "Mesozoic 2" because of its almost entirely dinosaur-dominated fauna, especially in the past

All great things have to start somewhere or when, and for Aotearoa, that somewhen was after the landmass resurfaced from the ocean for the first time in millions of years - and was quickly inhabited by all kinds of birds and other reptiles (including tuatara) in the Miocene

This ecosystem was a lake bordered by grassy wetland floodplains and subtropical forests, a bit warmer than Aotearoa today

Dinosaurs here include the early Kiwi Proapteryx, an unnamed early Moa, a truly alarming number of waterfowl including shelducks like Miotadorna, stiff-tailed ducks like Manuherikia, and the possible swan Notochen, the small swimming-flamingo Palaelodus aotearoa, pigeons like Rupephaps and Deliaphaps, an early adzebill Aptornis proasciarostratus, flightless rails like Priscaweka, the lake-wanderer Hakawai melvillei, the herons Pikaihao and Matuku, the giant parrot Heracles, proto-keas Nelepsittacus, and the New Zealand Wren Kuiornis. Tons of fun species to choose from!

NOVEMBER 22 - LAND OF CONFUSION

In the Late Miocene to Early Pliocene, the Italian province of Gargano was cut off from the mainland due to rising sea levels, turning it into an island - an island with lots of really strange birds!

This island was cut off from everything else and completely lacked large predators, allowing for a weird variety of animals to evolve and thrive prior to the island rejoining the mainland during the Ice Age

Strange birds of this ecosystem include the extremely old pigeon Columba omnisanctorum, the giant hawk Garganoaetus, the giant flightless goose Garganornis, the giant barn owl Tyto gigantea, the pheasant Palaeortyx volans, and the swift Apus wetmorei!

NOVEMBER 23 - MAKE A BIRD OUT OF YOU

The iconic animals of the Ice Age and recent prehistory had to come from somewhere, and much of this transition is recorded in the Chinese Ecosystem of the Liushu Formation, deposited between 11 and 6.4 million years ago

As grasslands expanded, this ecosystem transitioned from a forest to a wide plains, and many animals adapted for the grasslands accordingly, leading to the appearance of such mammals as Elasmotheriines, Sabercats, Hyenas, Ambelodonts, and a truly alarming quantity of hoofed mammals

Dinosaurs (Birds) adapted to this ecosystem change as well, of course! While most focus on the mammals of Liushu, we're here to showcase the interesting birds that appeared here as well!

Options here include the the very well preserved Falcon Falco hezhengensis, the vultures Mioneophron and Gansugyps, the diurnal owl Miosurnia, the vocally fancy pheasant Panraogallus, the sandgrouse Linxiavis, the Ostrich Struthio (or Orientornis) linxiaensis, and the probable-Ostrich Sinoergilornis

NOVEMBER 24 - ANCIENT SOUTH PACIFIC

Penguins are Bouncing Back! As the Miocene continued and the Pliocene began, many new types of marine birds showed up and were fossilized in locations in Chile (Pisco) and Aotearoa (Tangahoe)

Tons of interesting birds were preserved in this sort of transitional ecosystem, showcasing how birds adapted to changing conditions as the Miocene-Pliocene climatic turmoil continued

These near shore environments are probably more famous for their other animals - things like the giant shark "megalodon", as well as weird whales like Livyatan and Odobenocetops and aquatic giant sloths (like Thalassocnus) and marine crocodilians - but we're here for those dinosaurs!

Options here from the Pisco Formation include the "Toucan-Booby" Ramphastosula, the Cathartid Perugyps, the Booby Sula figueroae, Pelagornithids, Pelicans, and the penguins Spheniscus urbinai and Spheniscus megaramphus, whereas birds from the Tangahoe Formation include the narrow-beaked albatross Aldiomedes, the giant petrel Macronectes, the more regular-sized petrel Procellaria altirostris, the little penguin Eudyptula wilsonae, and the crested penguin Eudyptes atatu!

NOVEMBER 25 - LAST OF A DYING BREED

We all love Megafuana, even though they are usually the "Live Fast Die Young" kind of species - gobbling up resources and growing too big will do that to you

Usually when we hear the term "Megafauna" we think of Mammals and Non-Avian Dinosaurs, but birds have had their share too - and have lost their share as well

So, mainly to cater to the Megafauna Fanbase, here we dedicate a whole day to the giant birds of recent times - Pliocene through Pleistocene - that we have lost to the dramatic climate change of the Ice Age Era. (Those lost in the Holocene will get their own days, see below)

Options for this day include the giant ostrich Pachystruthio, the Mihirung Genyornis, the Terror Bird Titanis, the giant stork Leptoptilos robustus, the giant swan Cygnus falconeri, the giant Anhinga Giganhinga, and of course - we can't forget our friend - the last of the Pseudotoothed Birds, Pelagornis

NOVEMBER 26 - HIGH AS A KITE

In many ways, the real dinosaur winners of the Ice Age were the flying Birds of Prey, as there were many kinds of raptors during the Ice Age and they exploited the new environment expertly

Nothing like being able to traverse huge distances to find places where there are food, amiright?

So this day is dedicated to the fantastic Raptors of the Ice Age, both volant and not!

Here we have some of the last of the Teratorns like Teratornis itself, the Giant Australian Raptor Dynatoaetus, the Australian Vulture Cryptogyps, Woodward's Eagle Buteogallus woodwardi, the tiny Condor Wingegyps, the large Cuban Eagle Gigantohierax, the wandering vulture Neogyps, the Walking Eagle Buteogallus daggetti, the Giant Cuban Stilt-Owl Ornimegalonyx, and one of the last Terror Birds, Psilopterus

NOVEMBER 27 - BEGINNING OF THE END

Oh Holocene Extinctions. As upsetting as they are, they include some of the best known fossil/subfossil birds, so we decided to spend a little extra time on them than they should have based solely on the time length

Here, we highlight the early losses of the Holocene - those dinosaurs that went extinct at the start, largely due to direct human activity such as hunting in addition to the warming caused by the end of the last Ice Age/Glacial Maximum

Days will be dedicated to both Hawai'i (see below) and Aotearoa (again, below), so this is for everyone else!

So options here include the previously mentioned marine duck Chendytes, the giant flightless landfowl Sylviornis from New Caledonia, the famous Elephant Birds of Madagascar, the flightless clubbing-ibis Xenicibis, the weird puffin Fratercula dowi, the giant Bahama Eagle Titanohierax, the Californian Turkey Meleagris californica, and the flightless "Cave Rail" Nesotrochis of the Greater Antilles

NOVEMBER 28 - OLD HAWAI'I

Many, many, MANY unique dinosaurs live on islands. The islands of Hawai'i are no exception, and these islands have lost many unique and fascinating birds over the years - thanks to human activity, invasive cats, colonialism, and climate change

We couldn't possibly ignore them, so for this day, we are hilghlighting these amazing animals found across the archipelago

There are tons of options, but some of our recommendations include the reverse-platypus/Mole Duck Talpanas, the Stilt-Owl Grallistrix, the flightless ibis Apteribis, the Moa-Nalo like Chelychelynechen, Ptaiochen, and Thambetochen, the Wood Harrier Circus dossenus, Hawai'ian Honeycreepers like Drepanis, Aidemedia, Hemignathus, Chloridops, Akialoa, Rhodacanthis, Dysmorodrepanis, Telespiza, and Vangulifer, the Oloma'o and ʻĀmaui thrushes, ʻōʻō's/Hawai'ian Honeyeaters like the Kioea, Kauaʻi ʻōʻō, and Oʻahu ʻōʻō, the giant Hawai'i Goose, the nēnē-nui/wood-walking goose, the Robust Crow, the flightless Laysan Rail, and the O'ahu Petrel

NOVEMBER 29 - OLD AOTEAROA

We're finally here: Pre-Human Holocene Aotearoa, aka Mesozoic 2, aka The Land Where Mammals Ain't Shit

I love Aotearoa so much. Why wasn't I born there. The universe isn't fair.

The ecosystems were very similar to today - podocarp forests and southern beech forests, grass and tussock plains and shrublands, and plenty of coastal habitats, all usually temperate in terms of climate

All named Moa are fair game. All of them, all named members of Dinornithiformes. So the North Island Giant Moa, the South Island Giant Moa, the Bush Moa, the Eastern Moa, the Broad-Billed Moa, the Heavy-Footed Moa, Mantell's Moa, the Crested Moa, and the Upload Moa. Follow your Moa-Filled Dreams!

Obviously there were more than Moa - not just the living species of Aotearoa still with us, but tons of other extinct forms for Fossil Novembirb. This includes the Adzebills, Haast's Eagle (of course), the whēkau/Laughing Owl Ninox albifacies, the New Zealand Goose Cnemiornis, the New Zealand Owlet-Nightjar, the mehonui Diaphorapteryx, the Long-Billed Wren Dendroscansor, the piopio Turnagra, and the Huia

NOVEMBER 30 - SIXTH EXTINCTION

And, for our last day, we cover recent Holocene extinctions (not on Hawai'i or Aotearoa) - the birds/dinosaurs we have lost in the living past, due largely to colonialism, capitalism, globalism, and climate change

Any bird extinct since 1492 not previously covered is fair game, and there are a lot of them. Today, we honor them, however we can.

Some suggestions include the Dodo (of course), the Cuban Macaw, the Pink-Headed Duck, the Northern Curlew, the Great Auk, the Passenger Pigeon, the Carolina Parakeet, the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker, the Labrador Duck, the Saint Helena Hoopoe, and the Spectacled Cormorant; though there are of course many otherse to choose from as well

Kind of a bummer note to end on, but here we are

Living Birds already get tons of time and attention, so we really don't want to include them here - we love them, but the fossils of the Neornithes world deserve love too! So we tried to cover all of the bases, as best as we could!

Remember, Wikipedia, the Paleobiology Database, The Works of Gerald Mayr, the third volume of "Earth Before Us", and the blogs of myself and @albertonykus and @otussketching are all fantastic resources to look for information about these wonderful animals! Also check out Through Time and Clades' "Dinosaurs: The Second Chapter" series and the Raptormaniacs blog from Albert as well!

HAVE FUN! CREATE WHAT YOU DREAM! AND LOVE CENOZOIC DINOSAURS!

HAPPY FOSSIL NOVEMBIRB!

#Fossil Novembirb #Novembirb #Dinovember #birblr #palaeoblr #Birds #Dinosaurs #Cenozoic Birds #Neornithines #Dinovembirb

612 notes · View notes

aventurineswife · 9 days ago

Note

Could I request Welt, Aventurine, Argenti, and Dan Heng learning that their lover made loads of beautiful artwork (paintings, sketches, etc.) of the boys?

“Draw me like one of your French girls”

Summary: Your partner discovers personalized artwork created by you that highlights their unique qualities and emotions. As they react to the paintings, feelings of admiration and affection are exchanged, revealing the beauty and complexity of their personalities.

Tags: Welt x Reader, Argenti x Reader, Aventurine x Reader, Dan Heng x Reader, Artist!Reader, Romance, Emotional Connection, Art as an expression, Self-discovery, Vulnerability.

Warnings: Possible Fluff, Emotional Themes.

A/N: OMFG ITS GRANDPA WELT!! 😍❤️

Welt Yang

Welt returned to his quarters aboard the Astral Express, exhaustion weighing heavily on his shoulders. As he entered, he caught a glimpse of something vibrant against the muted colors of the room. His heart skipped a beat. Scattered across the table were a series of paintings and sketches, each depicting him in various poses, some in deep contemplation and others caught in laughter.

You, sitting on the edge of the bed, smiled sheepishly. “I thought you might like to see how I see you.” you said, glancing at the artwork with a mixture of pride and nervousness.

Welt picked up a sketch of himself wielding his cane, a confident grin on his face, his eyes twinkling with humor. “You’ve captured me beautifully,” he remarked, his voice warm with admiration. “I had no idea I could look this… heroic.”

��Heroic?” you teased, nudging him gently. “You’re more than that. You’re wise, caring, and you always know how to lighten the mood.”

Welt chuckled, his heart swelling with affection. “Well, you certainly know how to brighten my day. This is remarkable.” He stepped closer, wrapping an arm around your shoulders as you both admired the artwork together, the bond between you deepening with every stroke of the brush.

Argenti

Argenti stood in the center of the makeshift gallery you had created in the heart of your home. A series of paintings and sketches adorned the walls, each one capturing a different facet of him—his unwavering resolve, his moments of vulnerability, and even the times he lost himself in the music of his lute, his voice echoing like a gentle breeze.

He reached out to touch a painting that depicted him gazing into the distance, the golden light of dawn illuminating his features, a rose cradled lovingly in his hands. “You’ve seen so much of me,” he murmured, turning to you with wide, appreciative eyes. “This is truly breathtaking.”

You smiled, a warmth blooming in your chest. “I sought to reveal your nobility, to show the world how beautiful you are, both in spirit and heart. Your dedication to beauty inspires me, Argenti.”

A noble light shone in his emerald eyes, and a soft blush crept onto his cheeks. “I am honored by your words,” he said, his voice filled with sincerity. “Yet, it is you who helps me see the beauty that lies within myself.”

“Perhaps,” you replied, stepping closer to him, “but your heart shines brightest, even in the darkest of times. You are a beacon of hope and resilience.”

He smiled, his expression gentle yet filled with determination. “Then let us stand together, side by side, as champions of beauty and honor.” he declared, his voice resonating with conviction. You both admired the artwork, where every stroke and shade told a story of valor and grace—a shared journey of healing and hope, bound by an unbreakable bond that reflected the essence of true knighthood.

Aventurine

Aventurine entered the luxurious apartment he shared with you, his mind racing with the day’s strategies and negotiations. But as he stepped inside, a glimmer of color caught his eye. There, on the walls, were a series of paintings—each one more stunning than the last—depicting him in various poses, from suave and sophisticated to playful and carefree.

“Wow, you’ve been busy.” he said, his voice laced with surprise and delight. His eyes sparkled as he approached a painting of himself lounging with a deck of cards, a devilish grin plastered across his face.

You peeked from behind a canvas, blush creeping across your cheeks. “I wanted to capture every side of you,” you confessed, glancing at the artwork with a mixture of shyness and pride.

“Every side?” Aventurine smirked, leaning against the wall with a playful tilt of his head. “I hope you included my best side—the one where I’m winning at cards.”

You laughed, the sound brightening the room. “You mean the side where you’re charming everyone out of their money?”

“Precisely,” he said, stepping closer to you, the air thick with unspoken affection. “But honestly, this is incredible. You’ve turned my life into art. Thank you.”

As you stood together, the colorful canvases framed your world, a testament to the love you shared—where every brushstroke spoke of adventure, risk, and undeniable charm.

Dan Heng

Dan Heng sat quietly in his corner of the Astral Express, a book in his hands, when you burst in, barely able to contain your excitement. “I have something to show you!” you exclaimed, breathless.

Curiosity piqued, he set the book aside and followed you to a small alcove where a collection of drawings rested on an easel. Each piece showcased him—his focused gaze while on duty, the serene moments of solitude he cherished, and even a candid sketch of him smiling at a passing bird.

“Did you… make these?” he asked, his voice softer than usual, a hint of disbelief coloring his tone.

“I did,” you said, your eyes sparkling. “I wanted to capture the parts of you that you don’t often show. You’re so much more than the stoic guardian everyone sees.”

Dan Heng felt a rare flush of warmth on his cheeks. “You see me,” he said, the words heavy with unguarded emotion. “I don’t often share these parts of myself.

“Maybe it’s time you do,” you encouraged gently, reaching for his hand. “You deserve to be seen.”

In that moment, surrounded by the delicate art that illustrated the depth of his character, Dan Heng felt a sense of acceptance wash over him. With you by his side, he knew that perhaps he could learn to embrace the person he was—past and all—starting with the love reflected in your eyes.

122 notes · View notes

beyondfabric · 10 months ago

Text

Introducing: Mr. Archive

What better way to kickstart 2024 than with one the most beautifully curated, styled and fair-priced vintage stores out there?

Mr. Archive has been one of my go-to places the last few months, be it for visual inspiration on their instagram profile or the browse some of the most interesting pieces around. To be fair, after 15 years of working in this industry is getting more and more difficult for me to find garments and brands that are truly exciting and fresh. If on top of that we take into account the price point of some of these labels, many of which produce in Portugal with accessible costs, my enthusiasm dims even further.

I’ve always been passionate about the universe of vintage and pre worn garments, but this love has been fueled in recent years by the appearance of highly specialized shops that seem to be perfectly in tune with my personal style. I’ve had the chance to chat with Matteo, the mastermind behind Mr. Archive to learn more about this outstanding project.

BF: I came across Mr. Archive fairly recently and I must say that it definitely hit a soft spot within the range of vintage providers currently on my radar. How long have you been in business? What drove you to create it?

Matteo: I'm passionate about my job, believe I have a somewhat general knowledge of the fashion world, but about 4 years ago, I got fascinated by this industry, even though I already knew it. I come from a family that has always worked in the clothing industry.

BF: For me, your selection is perfectly curated, bringing a mix of military and navy-inspired garments, with a twist of Americana. Is this an extension of your own style and taste, or is it more business-oriented?

Matteo: What I propose is all based on my personal taste; I create outfits on the spot, drawing inspiration from magazines, newspapers, etc., and then I elaborate and create. My mom is an artist, and I think I took inspiration from her.

BF: Vintage has always inspired me ever since I got into fashion roughly 15 years ago. There's just something distinctive about the fabrics and the history behind each garment that you can not replicate with new items. How/where do you source your amazing selection?

Matteo: My pieces come from warehouses worldwide; I'm constantly looking for new things, and that's the wonderful thing about my job! I have strong trust in my suppliers!

BF: With sustainability being the word of order when it comes to fashion, have you noticed an increase in demand for pre-owned garments? Do you think part of the solution can be provided by vintage?

Matteo: Recently, there has been an increase in the purchase of vintage and second-hand clothing items. To be honest, I believe that a few years ago, not many people knew about this world, but now it's expanding and captivating even those who knew little about it.

BF: I noticed you have a small capsule of garments carrying your own label, namely selvedge denim and accessories. What's the story behind those? Can we expect more designs in the future?

Matteo: I won't deny that creating my own clothing line would be a great personal satisfaction, a significant growth. I recently created a small line, "MRARCHIVE," currently composed of jackets, pants, and hats. One day, I'd like to expand, but I still have much to learn and study.

BF: Any tips or advice you wish to leave for those more reluctant to explore the world of previously owned items? It's still somewhat taboo for some people.

For many people, this world is still a taboo; they're still stuck in the thought of "they're used clothes." What I think is that one should see the story and originality behind each piece to appreciate its value, both from a historical and an aesthetic perspective. Sometimes, I compare some clothing items to paintings—they should be framed.

You can find Mr. Archive here.

#Mr. Archive #menswear #men's fashion #vintage #pre-owned #style #fashion #inspiration #beyond fabric #men's style #collection #lookbook #store #shop responsibility #military #navy

275 notes · View notes

argetcross · 1 month ago

Text

Happy 4th anniversary to wasting beats of this heart of mine, my Zagreus becomes mortal AU! Another year, some more adventures undertaken.

This year, I've unearthed more concepts and half-finished paintings all the way from 2021. I've included notes under the cut about each piece, as well as more reflections.

If you told me in October 2020 that you'll write a fic over 100k words long, spanning multiple cities, with multiple POVs, I would have said, "Are you sure?". I think I never really imagined I could keep a story running, much less one that demands so much of its author. At the same time, this work has been my deepest and most fulfilling pleasure. It lives in my dreams, haunts my waking moments, and demands I regularly carve my heart out and poke through the viscera. I suppose such is the nature of art.

We've been approaching the end of Part III, and readers up-to-date know I've mentioned planning for five parts in total. Five acts, five biomes: it only feels fitting. Many things I had looked forward to (the chariot race! Kyane and Persephone! The return of Thymoetes!) have come to life on the page, but there's still so much of the yarn left to spin. I never expected needing years to complete this story, but I also feel strongly I am beholden to it now. To Zagreus, to Demeter's children, to the mortals and gods, above and below. I will continue to try my best.

Thank you to jules, val, nan, robin, and spleen for having beta'd for me during these years. This story wouldn't be what it is without you. Thank you to mag, for having crawled through the trenches of creating an enormous fanwork and countless hours of spreadsheeting, with me. To every artist that has ever drawn me anything, it is truly humbling to be able to inspire your work. To the House Party, whose friendship I am grateful for every day.

And to anyone who has ever read part of the story, left a comment, and stepped along on this journey with me, I cannot overstate how grateful I am. I remain baffled and pleasantly surprised that this world of mine can touch your heart. It's a story that I hope, when it completes, you will pick up again from time to time, and take pleasure in its telling once more.

With all my love,

Arget

Notes about each image:

Thanatos and Zagreus by the sacred olive trees of Athena. This painting was based on a photo I took in Athens. The quality of the sunlight astounded me and, in turn, made me think about life and death.

Thanatos anointing the body of the god Zagreus with nectar. This is related to the scene in Chapter 23, when he and Nyx converse by Zagreus' bedside.

Eleusis concepts. For such a powerhouse of a cult, Eleusis itself has a provincial feeling to it. I was captivated by the idea of the sea, and the fact that Zagreus had never spent any time on the coast. This would have been his first experience with it.

Athens. What can I say about Athens that hasn't been said? The trip I took late 2022 provided a lot of the inspiration for the citadel aspect of the acropolis. This is not the Athens of Classical Greece, the polis of democracy, but a fictionalized city-kingdom, under the rule of its royal family. The idea that Callisto had a student living in Athens was both a nod to the extensive trade happening during the Bronze Age and a deconstruction of the Amazon myth that the Greeks told themselves.

Clymene, the Oracle of Delphi. This was originally meant to be a Hades game-like portrait, but I scrapped the idea. She is dressed in the fashion closer to the Minoans, to give her a more Bronze Age feeling. As the head priestess, I wanted to show her age.

Apheidas and Thymoetes sketches. The two brothers are supposed to look night and day from each other. I tried to give Apheidas a pleasant sort of face, in comparison to Thymoetes' haughtiness.

The tapestry sketch. This was one of the first drawings I ever made about wasting beats, in an attempt to understand the type of story I was about to write. Key elements had already been decided, such as the chariot race and the way Demeter and Hades would play the role of the absent gods, for above as well as below. I had not written Apollo at this time, so you see him here with short hair.

Zagreus, reaching for a bloodstone. The chlamys, a gift from his foster-father's wife, has been the simple denotation of mortal Zagreus. Something bright and red, simple for it was woven by a farmer's wife, and barely able to protect his weaker mortal body.

Megaera, hurt and angry, and Than, stricken and alarmed, amidst a storm of paper. This is a scene from Chapter 18, Primordial Winter, that I had always wanted to illustrate.

#hades game #zagreus #thanatos #thanzag #zagthan #wasting beats of this heart of mine #my fic #my art #callisto #megaera #zagreus becomes mortal au #happy anniversary my beloved fic

137 notes · View notes

landinrris · 2 months ago

Text

Football AU snippet in which Carlos asks about Lando's willingness to participate in a friends and family football match for charity. (Very much inspired by Lando's PlayStation match)

Lando’s busy unloading a few vases from the kiln when he hears the back door to his studio unit open. He slides one of the vases onto a shelf and glances down at his watch to see that it’s around 5:30. Probably Carlos then.

He finishes unloading the vases onto the nearby shelf before he picks up a couple and walks back out into his main workshop area. Sure enough, Carlos is there in a pair of joggers and a hoodie sitting on the stool in front of Lando’s painting and glazing workbench. He’s busy inspecting the centerpiece bowl Lando had been painting intricate designs on earlier.

“What’re you doing here?” Lando asks, walking the two vases in his hands over to the table where Carlos is. He places them down to the side before making his way to Carlos and sitting on his leg. He loops his arms around Carlos’ shoulders and leans forward to kiss him.

Carlos grins against his lips and winds his arms around Lando’s waist to tug him closer. He smells like the shampoo and soap from the club's shower stalls and not at all like he’d been working out all afternoon.

“I figured you were still here, and I wanted to see what you were up to.”

“Mmm, just finishing up unloading some things, and then I was gonna head home. But now that you’re here, guess I don’t have to take the tube.”

“That is the only reason?”

Lando scratches absentmindedly at the nape of Carlos’ neck and smiles back. “Yeah, the only reason, clearly.”

Carlos pinches Lando’s ass, and Lando very resolutely does not react to it.

“This piece is beautiful. Is it for anyone specifically?” Carlos asks, nodding towards the bowl. Lando’s done pieces like this in the past, but not this specific kind of ornate pattern.

He’d wanted to try something new, something that inspired him about the way Carlos had been playing these last few months at his new team. He thinks the swirling red and black lines get at that magical way Carlos moves across the field-- that he captured it pretty well. He doesn’t tell Carlos as much now, not yet sure what he wants to do with the piece once it’s finished.

“Haven’t decided yet. I’m glad you like it though. Maybe I’ll keep it for us.”

Carlos squeezes his arms tighter and presses another kiss to Lando’s lips. Lando melts into it, never one to not take Carlos’ kisses when offered. It’s not quite late enough that Lando’s confident they’re truly alone or else he might let himself escalate things.

“There was something else I wanted to ask you,” Carlos eventually says, his thumb moving back and forth beneath Lando’s hoodie and against his skin.

Lando pulls his head back to a more respectable distance so that he can look at Carlos for whatever he needs to say. “What’s up?”

“The team is having a family and friends friendly match in two weeks for charity. I think I mentioned it last week briefly.”

Lando nods. Carlos had mentioned it in passing in the context of Lando donating a few pieces. They'd decided on a few mugs and vases for the online charity auction.

“They were trying to get a headcount of who planned to have a family member or friend to sign up. They are beginning to draw up the rosters. I told them that I would have to ask, but you might be interested?”

Lando chokes on a laugh. “Me? When have I ever been known to play football more than to help you train every so often?”

“Exactly. You will know more than half of the people who will come to play. And there will be a coaching session before any matches are played. Think of the children, Lando. You will do so much for them.”

“Am I not already doing enough?” Lando teases. He rolls the idea around in his mind and thinks about being the one on the field looking up to see Carlos in the stands. What it might feel like. To get a taste of what Carlos experiences every week. The thought admittedly thrills him.

“And who exactly are they getting to play?”

“They are putting together a mixed team. Some of the guys’ girlfriends and wives have agreed to play. A few of their friends. I convinced Teto to come play, and you would be a person as well.”

“Be your wag representative?”

“I do not think you are a wife or a girlfriend the last time I checked.”

“Oh sorry, sorry, your hab representative then.”

“Yes, much better. I cannot make any promises you will be on the same team as Teto though.”

Lando can’t help but groan. He might be allegedly better than half of the people coming to play, but he’ll not be better than Teto of all people. “Play the marginalized card.”

“Lando, I cannot do that.” He drops his face down onto Lando’s shoulder and huffs out a laugh. Lando holds him close and lets the giggles consume him as well, ever the one to feed off of Carlos’.

“Fine, fine, I’ll do it. Let you be the one cheering me on for once. Just tell Teto to go easy on me if we’re not on the same team.”

Carlos lifts his face from Lando’s shoulder and looks at him with a serious expression. “Of course. I cannot tell you how excited I am to be the one watching. I know you will be brilliant.”

Lando swallows and scratches a hand around Carlos’ neck and up to his cheek. He searches for something to say, but nothing comes to his mind. Nothing to do the swirling thoughts and emotions in his mind justice. All he can figure to do is smile and swipe his thumb back and forth over Carlos’ cheek.

Eventually, Lando sighs. “This is gonna be some kind of roleplay kink for you, isn’t it?”

The laugh Carlos barks out is perfect. “Oh, do not think this hasn’t crossed my mind, don’t worry. Maybe after the match though. We need you in peak condition.”

Lando scoffs. “Figures. Okay, let me finish unloading the kiln and then we can go? Maybe we can do something that’s not one of your meal preps for dinner.”

Carlos clenches his hands against Lando’s hips and back and smiles. “Sounds perfect.”

#football au #writing tag #husbands™#carlando #making slow and steady progress! she's at 29.2k rn and we're trucking along nicely

79 notes · View notes

tomioneforever · 4 months ago

Text

For @obsidianpen. Thank you for giving us new chapters so fast. I'm so inspired by the power sharing scene that I had planned to finish this drawing before you released chapter 55, but you have outrun me 😂.

The composition and the pose were fast to established, but the expression, hands and effects are truly a pain in the ass. It takes me more than a week to struggle with the magical effects, hope it turns out well.

Maybe one day when my coloring has progressed enough to paint the effects, I will add color to this one. But for now, let's settle with the grayscale version.

#blood and gold #tomione #true love must win #obsidianpen #tom riddle #hermione granger

82 notes · View notes

epiicaricacy-arts · 3 months ago

Text

without the sour the sweet wouldn’t taste

why are you as a man eating another man’s ear after you failed to make him eat his ex girlfriend. 🤨🏳️‍🌈⁉️

im allowed a bit of toxic yaoi. as a treat

process discussion utc ⬇️

for those familiar with my work you’ll know that i like trying a lot of new styles and experimenting in order to achieve a certain vibe. usually those are heavy painterly styles such as the sunday art inspired by Yuming Li, which is what i’m familiar and comfortable with, both traditionally and digitally

what im NOT familiar with is watercolour. i’ve never had a good time with it 🥲 i just cant seem to wrap my head around the process since its requires me to work backwards (light to dark vs dark to light)

for this piece i just couldn’t imagine myself rendering it in my usual style. i needed to do something new so that i’d stay invested enough in the piece considering that it has two people, meaning double the work. for some reason i thought it’d be fun to do double the work with a style i am completely uncomfortable with but oh well!! i managed to do it 🤷‍♀️ i was specifically looking at the works of Ko Byung Jun, an artist i’ve seen all over my pinterest feed

while i didn’t end up really following the style super closely i still learned quite a lot just by looking at it while i drew. i tried my best to stick to watercolour brushes and an ink pen but as i was nearing the end i needed to make some alterations that i wasn’t bothered to try fixing with the watercolour brushes so i just went over it with my digital ones 🫡 i did my best that’s what matters!!!

i had to repaint rody a few times cause i just couldn’t get it right and the colours never ended up matching vincent. i painted them separately and i think i got possessed while painting vincent cause it happened in like. 40 minutes. and i couldn’t get it to happen again 😔 it didn’t really matter cause i ended up going ham with the curves tool as always but you know 🤷‍♀️

here’s the image without all the effects:

i find lately it’s been more and more common for me to be sketching several iterations of a concept for days, even weeks before i land on something i like. i have an entire separate canvas that i’ve spent 5 hours just doing thumbnails trying to figure out how i wanted to pose these two in a way that would showcase the characteristics that mattered in the story of this piece.

that’s my process for coming up with drawings: i find inspiration somewhere, i figure out the key concepts/characteristics/symbols etc i want highlighted, and i work around those. sometimes i have a composition in mind or just a general vibe i want to portray. for this one i wanted to make sure the towel, rody’s injured finger and vincent’s face could all be clearly seen, while also portraying the fight scene and the vibe i get from the reference song. almost all of my work revolves around a specific lyric from the song which drives the story of the piece. here i interpreted the line “without the sour the sweet wouldn’t taste” as a connection to all the little actions vince takes with rody that can be seen as “sweet.” drying rody’s hair, bandaging rody’s cut. i then asked myself how i could take those actions and make them “sour” or show them in a different light, in which vince is biting the finger he bandaged and pulling rody closer, preventing his escape with the towel he used to dry his hair. what im trying to communicate in this illustration is the idea of “if it weren’t for how i’m treating you now, you wouldn’t understand how kind i was to you then” in an attempt to illustrate the complexities of the way vincent acts towards rody.

i’m truly in love with the story telling of this game. it’s hard to really say anything about how the characters acted during the story because it’s so complex in how it’s done. it’s very hard to summarize their relationship because there’s so much about it i can’t explain without just quoting the game directly. i think it’s such a beautiful portrayal of obsession and just being fucking weird about someone. i wanted to ensure the elements i mentioned in the above paragraph because i didn’t want to be portraying vincent as solely a villain and rody as a victim. i wanted the storytelling of this one illustration to live up to my impression of this beautiful game and i hope i did it justice.

thank you for reading this if you’ve made it this far. i love rambling on all my art posts cause i think it’s so valuable for artists to expand on their work outside of the result alone. i hope what im saying is at most helpful to someone and at the very least a good read. i’m probably gonna take a bit of an art break after this since it took a lot out of me, plus im on the last days of my trip. thank you again for reading!

here’s my dog

#my art #fanart #dead plate #dead plate vincent #dead plate rody #dead plate fanart #dead plate game #vincent charbonneau #rody lamoree #digital art #artists on tumblr #digital illustration

74 notes · View notes

slippytapeworms · 4 months ago

Text

2D -> Falling In Love With You

warnings : none

scenario :

plastic beach definitely wasn't 2d's favourite place in the world since murdoc had forced him here. but what made it bearable was that you were here along with him.

you had recently joined the gorillaz crew as an artist, helping to design new album covers and stage setups. that's one of the many things that enticed 2d about you. from the moment you arrived, 2d found himself drawn to your presence, your laughter, and the way you saw beauty in the chaos around you.

it was a sunny morning at plastic beach, the gentle waves lapping against the shore and the sound of seagulls in the distance. 2d was sitting on the edge of the pier, his feet dangling over the water. his usually spaced out eyes searching for something, or rather, someone.

as he sat there, he just looked back down at the water. his bare feet dangled just out of reach from the water. he wasn't paying attention when he heard footsteps coming closer to him, just small pitter patter to be heard.

2d looked back and saw you. as you walked down the pier toward him, 2d's heart skipped a beat. he tried to act natural, threading his fingers through his blue hair and giving you a lopsided grin.

you return the smile and sit down beside him, your shoulder brushing against his. "what's on your mind?" you ask.

the male shrugs. "just thinkin' bout some new songs... you know gettin' inspired by the view." you don't miss the glance he makes your way, his cheeks warm. "you're good at that, y'know. inspiration."

you laugh, a sound that makes 2d's heart flutter every single time. "thanks. you should give yourself more credit. you help me with my inspiration too, in fact you're my main source of inspiration..."

your words just make him flush and he just nods silently.

⟨ time skip ⟩

over the next few days, you notice 2d's behaviour changing. he would bring you small gifts. seashells he had found on the sand, a medium sized fairy light jar he made himself. he had also given you a drawing he had made. little did you know that he had drawn a visual representation of the sound waves from a recording of him saying 'i love you'.

2d would often seek you out, sitting close to you during meals or joining you during your works around the island.

one afternoon, while you were painting a mural on one of the walls, 2d approached you with a shy smile. "is there something i could help you with?"

as you thought, an idea popped into your head. "i'm glad you asked that, can you stand here?" you positioned him so that his back was flat against the wall. 2d blushed and flusteredly just let you push him up against the wall.

you take out the paint brush and dip it in the paint. "you can relax, just stand there." he nods, his usual aloofness disappearing in a pinch as he relaxes at your words.

2d just watched as you started painting around his silhouette. he adored how you were so considerate to not get any paint on him. he just couldn't help all the butterflies rising in his stomach as he stays still.

goddamn how could you be so considerate and delicate with him? so understanding. you looked at him like he really and truly mattered.

when you were done tracing around his whole being with paint, 2d keeps still. you laugh at the cute, aloof expression on his face and instinctively ruffle his hair. you were just making him a puddle of affection and fuzzy feelings for you.

that's it, he was in love with you.

i'n still fairly new to the gorillaz lore so please don't get mad if i make a mistake of the timeline please !

#2d #2d x reader #gorillaz #gorillaz x reader #fanfic #scenario #Spotify

78 notes · View notes

mouwrites · 10 months ago

Note

hi hi! can I request some headcanons about the ninja (+pixal, if you're up for it) having an artist s/o? okay thank you, also I love your writing!

Oooh yess!! Where my artist ninjago enjoyers at⁉️ I’ve come to nourish you <3

Ninjago - Ninjas (+ Pixal) with an Artist s/o

Jay

Immediately asks if you can draw/paint/etc him

If you agree, he will ask again in the future

….honestly he’ll probably keep asking even if you say no

What can he say? He wants to inspire you ;)

If you have art block, he immediately jumps to pose dramatically or arrange a bowl of fruit or something

He’s equally enamored with the quality of your work and the fact that it came from your hands

He loves all your work, even the pieces you decide to scrap/re-do

“What are you doing?? That was perfect!”

“Jay? How long have you been standing there-”

On that note, he loves to watch you work

Even when you don’t know he’s watching… (he’s a little obsessed)

But the plus side of this is that he knows the exact products you use, and he can see when you’re running low

He makes sure to replenish your stocks for you :) so you won’t ever have to worry about running out mid-project

He also makes sure to flaunt your work as much as possible, especially the pieces he “inspired”

He truly thinks you’re the best artist in the world, and he WILL fight someone over it

Cole

I see Cole as a pretty artsy guy himself, so he’d be thrilled to have an artsy s/o

You might not expect it, but he’s really in tune with his feelings, so to me it makes sense

He’s not quite as artsy as you, but he knows how to appreciate it

He’s more into the performing arts himself, but he has no less respect for other types of art

He’ll totally arrange work sessions for you both, which vary depending on the vibe you’re working with

Feeling like doing something a little dark or moody? Dramatic piano. Candles. Wine/grape juice in wine glasses.

Feeling colorful? Open windows. Flowers in vases. Candy and fruit. Maybe some cartoons playing in the background.

Point being: he knows how to get a vibe going

He really loves to work alongside you, even if you’re not doing the same thing

Sometimes he tries to sketch or paint, but more often he’s just watching you work or practicing moves

(You guys totally have a shared studio btw; wood floors and barre for him, easel/supply cabinet/whatever you need for you)

You guys definitely help each other out too

He’ll teach you a few moves so you can be his dance partner every now and again, and he’s more than happy to be your muse in return

He doesn’t really do performances or anything (dance is just a side hobby), so he has all the more respect for you if you publicize your work

He loves all your work, but he’s also a great source of constructive criticism

“I like this one. It’s darker than your other pieces, though, isn’t it? More drab.”

“Yeah, that’s kinda what I was thinking. I think I was just in a mood when I made it.”

Kai

He’ll make requests, but mostly for things he thinks would be cool

“What if you did one with, like, a car shooting flames from its exhaust pipes? Oh! And the driver is super handsome with a flaming cape and swords and sunglasses that are made of pieces of the sun!”

“That is insane. …I’m starting right now.”

He really admires your art, and he’s honestly a bit jealous of your skill

He actually has a pretty creative mind, just not the means to express it

So he’ll be shy about it, but eventually he asks if you can give him some pointers

He doesn’t want to keep asking you to bring his sharks flying in jets over volcanoes to life forever, after all

He’s gotta learn to be independent!

So he’ll quietly join you while you work, watching you closely and trying to follow along

He gets frustrated when he isn’t instantly as talented as you, and you have to laughingly assure him that skill takes time

He only gains more respect for you as he tries to stay calm

He learns to truly admire your work this way

And with his admiration came a tenfold increase in support

However you share your art, he’s the #1 supporter

Posting online? He’s already liked, commented, and shared on 7 different platforms. At a showcase? He’s dressed sharply, stationed not-so-inconspicuously in front of your piece(s) and getting others to talk about them

Zane

He also has a deep appreciation for art

He doesn’t always understand non-logical things, but art has a way of resonating with him

So to have a partner who makes art…

It adds a whole new level of emotional depth to your relationship

You already make him feel complex things, so seeing art that’s from you is truly an experience

The wistfulness he gets when looking at normal art is only amplified when he remembers that your hands produced it

He likes to be with you when he admires it, squeezing your hand while he takes in the little details

He’s a quiet admirer, but he’ll absolutely attend any events you’re featured in/support any online presence you have

He never gets tired of looking at your work; or looking at you work, for that matter

If you let him, he’ll watch you work

He’s dead silent, which is either a blessing or a curse depending on how easily you get creeped out

Eventually, when you finish, he’ll stand up and join you at your side, admiring the final product

You know he likes it when he reaches for your hand with a smile, letting you rest your head against him

The most you’ll get verbally is “it’s beautiful,” but trust me, he feels so much more deeply about the piece (and you <3)

Lloyd

Lloyd is more curious than anything when he finds out you’re an artist

What kinds of art do you do? Can he see your work? Have you always liked art?

He’s eager to see your work, but he’s not sure he can “appreciate” it properly

You have to reassure him that there’s no one way to “appreciate” art, and however he feels about it, that’s just how he feels

Your response only increases his interest

He ends up getting more into art because of you

The art of appreciation, if you will

He wants to be able to understand your work more so that he knows how to support you

He mostly spends hours just staring at your work, trying to notice the little details

He’d love to watch you at work, too, if you’ll let him

He asks questions all the time, but still tries not to annoy you

He’s actually already a natural at “appreciating” art, but the fact that he’s always trying to learn only makes him better at it

So you can do nothing but smile while he tilts his head, carefully formulating his next question

They’re surprisingly deep at times:

“Do you think this piece uses smoother shapes because you were feeling relaxed, so you moved more slowly? Or perhaps you were just emulating your calmness subconsciously..?”

“That could be it. I hadn’t thought of it like that.”

“Oh, sorry, am I overanalyzing? Sorry-”

“No, no, you’re totally right.”

You’ll ruffle his hair affectionately, and he’ll wrap an arm around your shoulder while he continues to examine your piece :]

Nya

I’m gonna be honest, I don’t see Nya as the type to get all deep over the meaning of art

Like, if it’s pleasing to the eye she’ll appreciate it, but she doesn’t think about it too much

It’s just too abstract for her tastes; the pseudo-reasoning of art critics gets on her nerves

But for your work she makes an exception

Well, not really an exception—she doesn’t take to pseudo-reasoning

She knows you, she knows your feelings, so when she sees your work, she sees a piece of you in it

It’s something she doesn’t see in other art pieces; she doesn’t know the artist, so it’s nothing more than a visual piece for her

But with your pieces, she can dig deeper because she knows deeper information

That’s why she loves your work, and why she loves watching you work

You’re the only artist that makes her feel like she really understands art, and for that she appreciates you

(She still thinks that most critics talk out of their asses though)

On that note, she will fight your critics. She will hunt them down and make them regret ever trying to “understand” your work

“Tch, look at this idiot. He doesn’t even know what he’s talking about! He doesn’t know you!”

“Nya, he’s complimenting my work-”

“But he doesn’t understand it!”

Honestly you think it’s a little funny how she’s unintentionally become one of those critics who argue about a piece’s meaning

Only for you though ;)

Pixal

She has a vast trove of knowledge, but feeling is something she often struggles with

There are few things that actually give her profound emotions

Your art is one of those things

The fact that it came from you, that your hands crafted it…

It stirs something in her, and suddenly the shapes and colors come to life

She asks you about it often, trying to understand

“Why is it… calming?”

“Well, I suppose I used some pretty muted colors, and the imagery is kinda peaceful… I dunno, does it calm you?”

“Yes. It makes me feel calm.”

Obviously you’re proud of her for better recognizing her emotions

And she’s proud of herself!!

Your art helps her understand a part of her that she’s only beginning to explore

And, since it comes directly from you, she credits you with the help :)

She loves to see your finished work, but she also finds herself mesmerized by your creative process

Watching the piece come together, each motion bringing it closer to completion, helps her understand the art itself

She tells herself that it helps her understand her feelings, too

Even though she knows that not every piece is dedicated to her, she always thanks you for showing her your work <3

Thanks for this request!! And thank you for reading, take care you little rockstars <33

(divider by saradika)

177 notes · View notes