onward and outward

frozen sailors, sick wizards, & weird horses. fanart & original content.

[astralwhat]

tree-hugging animal nerd. enjoyer of sci-fi, fantasy, the paranormal, historical fiction, and everything in between. draws stuff sometimes

other art ▪️ buy my wares ▪️ zine bash

faq ⤵️

can I use your art for [personal thing]?

you can use any of my art (that wasn't commissioned by someone else) for your personal icon, profile pic, header, playlist cover, dnd home game, print and tape to your wall, etc etc. as long as it's personal use, not being profited from, and not edited beyond basic cropping/resizing i don't mind! please credit/link back to me whenever possible if it's something posted on the internet.

can I get a tattoo of your art?

again, for my personal non-commissioned art, sure! I'd appreciate it if you leave a kofi tip or buy a little something from my shop when you can. a shout out is also appreciated if you post a pic to show off the tattoo, partly for design credit and partly because I'd like to see it :)

are you open for commissions?

maybe 👍 please email [email protected] with "commission" in the subject line. tell me what you have in mind and I'll let you know if it's something I can do right now.

will you restock [item]?

franklin leg and terror/erebus ship pillows: nah. I might do a new ship pillow eventually, but no immediate plans. feel free to take the ideas and make your own; they're not super original concepts lmao

polar explorer shirts: "all well" and "make history or die trying" are available print-on-demand through both etsy and redbubble. i don't currently plan on restocking screenprinted shirts of these designs.

prints and stickers: will probably be restocked (shop updates are usually in april and november ish), and/or is available through my redbubble shop.

how do you produce your merch?

prints: catprint (US based) my beloved

stickers: I've used stickerapp (SE based) before but I mostly use zap! for stickers now

pins, charms: zap! creatives (UK based)

pillowcases, lanyards, glasses cloths: a group order organized by another artist; dm me for the mailing list

shirts: I used green pea press (AL USA based) for the first screenprinted runs of "make history" and highly recommend them if you're local. I then used print social (now closed) for pre-order campaigns because storing/shipping shirts was too much for my one-man-one-room business. the print-on-demand versions in my etsy shop now are fulfilled by printful

packaging: I get basically all my mailers from ecoenclose, glassine paper from blick, and otherwise just try to reuse brown paper/cardboard/etc for inner packaging as much as possible

will you draw [fandom] again?

[shrug emoji] it could happen. I'm still fond of everything I've done fanart for in recent years, so there's always a chance I'll return to it if struck with ideas and motivation and energy at the right time

what happened to [various original story things]?

I'm tired dude. I haven't forgotten about them I'm just Tired

----

if you have a question or something to say, you can send a dm or ask here, although my response may be a little slow. for anything time-sensitive or otherwise very important, please email me at [email protected]

[astralwhat]

see u in space 🧑‍🚀💫

[astralwhat]

hello i'm running a little spring cleaning sale on some of my older and/or slow-moving items! 25% off through april 5th, no code needed. most of these will not be restocked so grab em while you can :)

[astralwhat]

sooo i was just reviewing my listings & actual existing stock and realized some of these pin designs were listed as sold out when i still have quite a few on hand. listings have been updated and the sale is back on through the end of may!

[astralwhat]

i'm woefully behind on cr4 but please know that i have been thinking about orcish falconers for months

[astralwhat]

hello i'm running a little spring cleaning sale on some of my older and/or slow-moving items! 25% off through april 5th, no code needed. most of these will not be restocked so grab em while you can :)

[zinebash]

✂️ ZINE BASH CHALLENGE 02: INTERACTIVE ✍ ↪ march 1st-14th 2026

our next challenge event is happening soon! you can go ahead and get started planning/making your zines, but you’ll only have two weeks to submit for the gallery page.

for this challenge your zine MUST:

be a mini zine (any style, as long as it uses just 1 sheet of paper!)

feature some kind of interactive element

… but everything else is up to you!

please tag us in your zine posts here so we can reblog! you can also post WIPs and finished zines in our discord. we are not making a download pack for this challenge event, so creators are encouraged to provide their own printables and/or link to their zine shops.

about zine bash | how it works | join us on discord

🖨️️ our last main event was 07: PRINT [gallery // download] 🎶 our last challenge was c01: PLAYLIST [gallery]

[astralwhat]

hello and happy december! I haven't had a lot of art to share over here this year, but as usual, Terror Camp is a great motivator to finally get a few new merch items out! find prints and bookmarks, mugs, hats and shirts, and printable zines at the shop links here ⤵

✨ astralwhat.com/shops ✨

[astralwhat]

hiiii friends followers and terror campers. i regret to report that i've run into some difficulties with printful (the print-on-demand company i recently started using). the printful.me shopfront is now closed (orders already placed will still be fulfilled) i'll add the new designs to etsy as soon as i can.

however, there also seem to be stock issues with some shirts (listed as available on their website, but when ordered i get an email saying they're out of stock). i've disabled all the black comfort colors shirts and will be adding the skeleton designs on a different shirt style, and crossing my fingers that those are in stock for real.

thank you all for your patience! <3

[astralwhat]

Will you be doing any Terror shirt drops coming up? I missed the restock for the All's Well shirt this time last year

hi! my previous designs are available print-on-demand on etsy and printful, and i hope to have a couple new little designs on printful this weekend! having issues with the printful shop, but new designs will be added to etsy and redbuble as soon as possible!

[astralwhat]

a quick little zine about making digital art that sorta kinda looks like lino prints, for the last @zinebash event. plain text is below, and if you want to grab a printable version of the zine, you can do so right here.

[brushes mentioned are from Trisketched and Sajan]

Let's Make a Fake Lino

[Image: a black and white photo of a hand holding an Apple pencil and drawing a lino carving tool, in a style that resembles a lino print.]

Some of my most popular (and personal favorite) artworks are "fake linos." In this zine I wanted to share my process, and a few tips for mimicking a similar lino print-ish style.

But first: what's a lino, and why would you make a fake one?

What's a lino?

The lino in "linocut" "lino print" etc is short for linoleum, which has been used in relief printing as an alternative to wood since the early 1900s. Other materials have since joined the scene, but lino is sometimes used for any non-wood relief print (and I'm using lino here because it's a catchier title)

Relief printing is an art form that uses an object with both raised and recessed surfaces, like a block with a design carved into it. Ink is applied to the raised surfaces, and then pressed onto paper (or other print material).

Why fake it?

While lino is fairly cheap as traditional art goes, there is some material cost.

There's also a need for space, for both the sometimes-messy printing process and for drying prints which may take a few days.

Lino carving is a more physically intense activity than drawing. Even with soft "easy carve" blocks, hand cramps and shoulder pain aren't that uncommon.

For these reasons and more, you may want to go digital, especially if you don't even plan to make multiple copies.

[Image: a lino-style illustration of a skeleton wearing a cap and double-breasted coat with a rifle on its back, and a plaque that says "All Well" in the frame around it. Beneath the art is a handwritten note that says "I drew this on my 'puter :)"]

Design & Drawing Tips

Linocut can be incredibly intricate, refined, colorful, and cleanly printed. But to be easily read as "lino style" you'll probably want your art to be single or limited color, and a little rough around the edges.

High-contrast art is very striking. Use bold lines and allow some areas of shadow or darker would-be coloration to be solid black (or whatever color your "ink" is)

Straight lines and gentle arcs are usually easier to carve than tight, dramatic curves. You can definitely do the latter, but IMO blockier shapes help sell the look.

Likewise, small intricate patterns and very thin lines are tricky (though not impossible) to carve precisely; allow some wibbly-wobblyness and "mistakes."

When choosing a brush, look for relatively hard edges. A little texture is fine (to mimic the texture of paper, or the grain of woodcuts rather than lino) but you don't want it to be soft, streaky, or sketchy.

Carving tools can taper, so use brushes that can as well.

[Image: a screenshot of two brushes in Procreate, called Quick Nib 1 and Trisketched Ink Brush, that fit the criteria above. Underneath is handwriting labeling the first brush as "my main fav" and the second as "detail/clean up."]

If you're using multiple colors, put them each on a separate layer - like you'd print each color with separate lino blocks.

[Image: a sketch of a skull laying on an uneven surface. A semi-transparent gray fill over the sketch is in the process of being erased as you would carve a lino block.]

"Carve" your design by erasing the negative space rather than drawing the lines. You don't have to do that for the entire piece, but I think it helps to do some. You can sketch really thick lines and whittle them down, or add a full layer of color at lower opacity over your sketch and "carve" it out.

Don't fully erase your empty areas! Leaving small marks (called "chatter") is really emblematic of lino prints.

[Image: the finished skull image from above, demonstrating the chatter marks in the negative space.]

Final Touches

If you're using a textured brush or one with variable opacity and have some marks that are a little too soft or light, adjusting contrast can help clean it up.

For designs with multiple colors, try offsetting the layers slightly. It's easy to misalign blocks when printing for real!

Try adding textures to mimic uneven ink coverage and/or textured paper.

[Image: two versions of a scanned watercolor texture. Handwriting beneath describes, "I like watercolor scans, made B+W w/ high contrast, layer mode set to screen."]

Keep a copy of the original, no-added-texture version of your art. And then play around, try different things and see what works for you!

[Image: crops from three prints, featuring a whale, a penguin, and a bear. Handwriting beneath says, "and look at real lino prints for inspiration!"]

I hope this has been helpful! Now go forth and make some fake linos.

...And if you get the chance, maybe try real lino printing too. It's a bit more effort, but it really is uniquely satisfying to make physical, tangible art you can hold in your hands. Plus, the reproducible nature of lino printing means you can share it with friends -- something I suspect will appeal to my fellow zinesters :)

[Image: a fake lino of a silhouetted cowboy on a rearing horse.]

zine made in Procreate

brushes used:

Sajan's "Quick Nib"

Trisketched's "Ink Brush"

fonts used:

"lino" font based on Impact

other text in Courier New

created September 2025 for Zine Bash 07: Print

astralwhat.com

[zinebash]

🎧 ZINE BASH CHALLENGE 01: PLAYLIST 🎶 ↪ november 15th-30th 2025

our first challenge event is fast approaching! you've got a head-start on planning/making your zines, but you'll only have two weeks to submit [form coming nov 15th] for the gallery page (and possible new features on our upcoming website 👀)

for this challenge your zine MUST:

be a standard 8-page, single-sheet mini zine

feature the titles and artists of songs for a playlist

... but everything else is up to you!

please tag us in your zine posts here so we can reblog! you can also post WIPs and finished zines in our discord. we are not making a download pack for this challenge event, so creators are encouraged to provide their own printables and/or link to their zine shops.

→ challenge events are a new thing we're trying out in between the main events. they have a shorter timeline and a more specific theme, subject, and/or style requirement. we want you to make something -- however impulsive, imperfect, or irregular it may be!

about zine bash | how it works | join us on discord

🖨️️ our last main event was 07: PRINT check out the gallery here, or download zines here!

[zinebash]

It's almost time for a new Zine Bash!

From August 4th to the 31st, we invite you to create something on the theme of the PRINT. Want to talk about the history of printing? Make a zine about animal prints you've seen in the wild? Handprint your zine from DIY potato stamps? Sky's the limit, as long as it fits on a single sheet of paper and relate to our theme!

Submissions will be open all the month of August, but we will be reblogging your WIPs and eventual existing zines on the theme in the leadup - simply tag us @zinebash! And once you're ready to post what you've made for the event, don't forget to use the tag #zinebash07 so we can reblog it ☺️

In the meantime... ✒️ resources ✒️ previous themes galleries: small things | cowboys | medieval ✒️ our discord

— your guest host (@kalgalen)

[astralwhat]

small shop update!

tl;dr version:

"all well" and "make history or die trying" shirts are now available print-on-demand through my etsy

"ship and aurora" postcard restocked

mini zines and other printables are being added to my ko-fi

explanations and ramblings:

as mentioned, due to print social closing and etsy getting mad when i talk about redbubble in dms, i decided to start using a print-on-demand service that integrates with etsy in order to offer shirts through my own shop.

i got a couple samples from printful and was satisfied with the results, so now you can get the "all well" shirt as well as "make history or die trying" (and also north up and south up versions of my polar wildlife design) through my etsy.

they're direct-to-garment printed (like redbubble) on comfort colors shirts. not quite as soft as the bella+canvas that i'd used for the locally printed shirts, but i think they're a bit more durable (and maybe slightly less of a lint magnet)

i also listed the medium-sized "make history" sample that's on a b+c shirt in case anyone wants it! (has "astralwhat" in small print beneath the banner like the redbubble version)

the "ship and aurora" postcard is restocked finally. it's on uncoated recycled heavy cardstock this time and looks a little different -- there's some speckles in the paper and it's a slightly "noisier" and lower contrast print than the matte and satin finish prints i've had previously. in this case, that actually makes it a little truer to the charcoal-y look of the original drawing, but i wanted to give you a head's up in case you've seen the old ones!

i'm trying to put more downloadables on my ko-fi -- mini zines, prints, etc. anything i'm charging for and/or that's multiple files is in the shop section, but single file free stuff is in the gallery with high-res downloads enabled. just boat/polar stuff for now, but i promise there's other things on the way!

[astralwhat]

[astralwhat]

print your own cold dead sailors → ko-fi.com/astralwhat

revamped versions of the skeletons I originally drew as little bonuses for shirt orders are now available for download!

I don't really mind if you print any of the art I've publicly posted, but if you're willing to throw me a buck or two for files that have been specifically sized and cleaned up for printing, check out my ko-fi shop :) the ALL WELL Skeletons are there already (4x6" and A6 sized) and more illustrations and mini zines will be added soon.

[zinebash]

we're now accepting all your tiny booklets about tiny things!

ZINE BASH 06: ALL THE SMALL THINGS is now officially live and accepting submissions from december 10th to jaunary 15th! (we started a bit late but you've still got your usual full month to make some cool stuff!)

we're running fully online this zine bash so no physical copies - but we'll be here spreading the zine love online reblogging finished zines, wips and other related work by our zinesters - just tag us!

just make a mini zine, a small booklet made with a sheet of folded paper (check out our resources page for more info) , using our prompt and prompt guide! post it - starting december 10th post your mini zines, tag us and use #zinebash06 so we can reblog and share submit it! use our submission form to submit it directly to zine bash so you can be added to the online gallery for viewing and download!

info doc (currently last events but will be updated soon) 🌱 submission form 🌱 resources 🌱our discord

want some inspiration or just some cool zines? check out our previous events gallery!

:] host

[zinebash]

got some time? make a zine!! we’d love to have you join zine bash 06: all the small things!

and feel free to post some wip stuff and tag us so we can share!

[astralwhat]

Hello. How do I place an order for your The Terror hoodie? I saw someone share it on Reddit, it’s so cool! Thank you.

You can get that through my Redbubble shop! (and thank you!)