Illyrin's Miscellaneous and Favorites @illyrins-mathom-house - Tumblr Blog

ficbinding archive: manacled / alchemised

wow. so, this took a while. i began typesetting this project in june/july 2025 and pasted down the last endpaper on 25 june 2026. 😅

the story: manacled by senlinyu. published as alchemised in september of 2025. hardcover, 1st/1st (US Edition), signed by author on tipped-in page for midnight release at Barnes & Noble

archive notes: since this is a recent pub and a fairly recent fic surrounded by a swirl of Disk Horse, i took the opportunity to collect as much contemporaneous reaction as i could, including:

the AO3 meta, including a list of all tags, collections, and translations related to the fic

fan art. every linked piece that sen called out in their chapter notes (that was still active/public) is included

examples of fan binds

selections from sen's manacled sideblog where they answered asks and gave meta/background on their process

podcast transcripts about the fic

meditations on P2P in general that used manacled (and other recent dramione pubs) as a hook

the binding:

all of Avendell's "official" art is included within the text

i utilized the "official" manacled font (Morpheus) for key parts of the typeset

there is a palimpsest on each chapter heading (and on the front cover) calling back to the original HP fandom

the text is printed on red river bright white coated paper to facilitate the inclusion of the images

all interior text rendered in Alegreya; chapter heds in Morpheus, chapter subheds in Harry P

typeset from a PDF, with an extra volume consisting of compiled contemporaneous notes and news articles/blog posts

rounded and backed casebinding (adapted/faux three-piece bradel binding with french groove)

oxford hollow spine

faux raised bands across spines to create a sense of the editions

made endbands in chiyogami paper with crane motif

dubletta bookcloth with leather spines

titles in holographic black HTV from teckwrap

notes on alchemised:

first edition, first printing US hardcover

signed on tip-in FFEP

published 23 september 2025

condition: fine / new

#bookbinding #manacled

o-rchidae

I got a commission for a bycocket hat with a wolf in a medieval inspired art style. He might look a little too foxy but i think he's neat.

My shop

#art #embroidery #clothing #clothes #costumes #costume

mayleeillustration

Digory and Polly discover Charm…and Jadis. 🥀

#narnia #art

systlin

Protip by the way; if you go into a hospital for a surgery, and you go into your bag, pull out a couple of 6 packs of 5 hour energy, and hand them to your nurse while saying 'I brought these for you and your co workers as a thanks for all you do' you can watch a nurse's face light up like a child finding a playstaytion under the Christmas tree.

If you then pull out the other two 6 packs you saved for the night shift, you end up making their entire week.

It's the little things in life.

#life advice

yorgen-sh

#this is really cool #art

fayriequeene

#beautiful #miscellaneous

atlaculture

Cultural Fashion: Sokka’s Fire Nation Shirt

Unlike the rest of the Gaang, Sokka’s Fire Nation outfit is almost entirely Chinese-inspired. The capelet he’s wearing is inspired by “cloud collars” or Yunjian (云肩).

The shirt he wears is a long, sleeveless Tangzhuang (唐装). Zuko also wears one in Season 1. As a side note, I just love frog clasps, they’re so elegant.

atlaculture

Fun fact, Sokka’s cloud collar is traditionally considered to be women’s fashion. Considering that Sokka would obviously be clueless about civilian clothing in the Fire Nation, the “inaccuracy” of the design choice can simply be written off as Sokka’s ignorance. That said, it is pretty funny that this is the second time Sokka has visited a new nation and ended up in traditionally female clothing.

I think Sokka would agree on my stance that women’s clothing tends to have more flair.

atlaculture

While we’re on the topic of the Gaang’s Fire Nation fits, I think it would be fun to highlight what their modern-equivalent outfit would be.

Aang

Aang’s outfit is canonically a school uniform and inspired by Thai male formalwear. He’s basically wearing a posh boarding school uniform.

Katara

Katara’s design is inspired by the female folk-dance costumes of the Dai people, so I’m assuming her outfit would be something like a street performer’s outfit in the modern day.

Sokka

As I implied earlier, the cloud collar was historically a popular accessory with Chinese noblewomen. Meanwhile, sleeveless tangzhuang tend to be associated with martial arts; I’ve seen quite a few listings online refer to them as “Kung Fu Vests”. So quite a contrast in clothing choices. The modern-day equivalent would be walking around in a tank while wearing a pearl necklace… Which is apparently a thing.

Toph

Toph’s shawl-cape thing is inspired by the sabai (สไบ) worn by female performers in Thai ballet renditions of the Ramayana. Basically, a very fancy piece of clothing. The hairband she’s wearing also resembles costume jewelry. In contrast, her pants are Thai fishermen pants, which are about as practical and unfancy as you can get. In short, she’s basically wearing the modern equivalent to sweatpants with a tutu and a tiara. I imagine Fire Nation locals assume she’s just a very whimsical 12-year-old.

#atla #avatar: the last airbender

lustingfood

Caramelized Onion & Chili Oil Pasta (x)

#recipe

doppelgangerleaverite

can anyone on this gay ass website give me an opinion on which translation of the epic of gilgamesh i should read? ive been wanting to read it for ages but theres a number of common translations and i know translations can make or break a story; i dont want to start with the wrong one

gilgamesh-enjoyer

I've read a few so I can offer recommendations! I started with the Sandars translation, which is a good starting point but a pretty early translation. Benjamin Foster's translation is one of my favourites, and the version I read (Second Norton Critical Edition) includes some really interesting discussion essays with it. Andrew George's translation received an update a couple of years ago so is up to date with Foster's translation, though I prefer how the language flows in Foster's.

I would also recommend Gilgamesh Retold by Jenny Lewis for a translation with a more modern poetic take.

perrenlore

GILGAMESH TRANSLATION MASTERPOST:

Benjamin Foster’s Gilgamesh condenses all the different tablets we’ve found together to make one cohesive narrative which is way less intimidating and therefore my go-to if you want something that feels cohesive while also sticking very close to the language of the original. 10/10

Andrew George is the most thorough and up-to-date, and sticks as close to the text as you can get. It does, however, separate out all the different tablets, and feels very unedited in its style. Definitely not a “pretty” version. 10/10 cuz he’s a legend and this is the most definitive scholarly edition but don’t start with it.

Maureen Kovacs has a lovely translation with some very interesting footnotes on word choices. Her Ninsun is absolutely incredible and if you want to cry your eyes out over Gilgamesh’s fate that’s the one for you. It’s one step up from Foster’s in terms of poetic-ness but still pretty close to the original. 8/10

Sophus Helle is more poetic than Kovacs but BRILLIANT, one of my favourite Enkidus and his Shamhat is wonderful. Top favourite of all time. This is a very good starting point. 9/10

I wouldn’t recommend Sandars simply because it’s prose, and also condenses the twelfth tablet into a nice tidy ending that doesn’t really work with the Standard Babylonian narrative. 6/10

Lewis’ Gilgamesh Retold is more of a poetic retelling than a translation; it’s beautiful but definitely not a starting point. Sweet and gentle Enkidu though, very charming. 7/10

Stephen Mitchell I’m not a fan of. He smooths the poem out into something tame and very expected. This is my personal bias but I really dislike his Shamhat. His Enkidu and Gilgamesh are also explicitly more like brothers, which is a valid interpretation but also again not one I lean towards. 5/10

Herbert Mason’s Gilgamesh has some stunning moments in it (Enkidu! They do not know you like I know you!) However it is nowhere near the real text BUT closer than Lewis’. Changes the ending of the poem so it’s about Gilgamesh mourning Enkidu rather than mourning his own mortality; a much sadder conclusion with less resolution than in the Standard Babylonian. 7/10

BONUS ROUND:

Derek Hines’ play GILGAMESH is fucking DERANGED guys. Ten Gilgillion out of ten.

headspace-hotel

Foster's is my favorite that I've read

meganwhalenturner

Seconding the Sophus Helle recommendations. I loved his introduction to the text and the essays included at the back.

#gilgamesh

officialprydonchapter-deactivat

How do you write healthy parent-child relationships?

dragon-in-a-fez

this might be more response than you want, but interesting (and kinda depressing when you think about it) fact: there’ve been a bunch of research studies where parents have been asked what they think makes a healthy parent-child relationship, and they tend to like…not answer the actual question because they think they’re being asked what good parenting is, which is not the same. so they talk about things like helping kids with homework and making sure they eat well. children, on the other hand, usually respond to the same question with stuff that’s literally just the definition of healthy relationships generally. affection, honesty, respect, spending time together, sharing interests. and the real kicker is, objectively, we know that’s the kind of stuff that actually has a much better impact not only on whether or not the relationship is strong and positive but also the kid’s overall happiness and psychological health.

so, if you want to write a character who’s really intent on being a Good Parent you’d have them putting massive effort into making their kid Grow Up Right, worrying about shit like if they have The Right Friends and they’re spending Enough Time Outside. but if you want to write a good relationship, just make parent and kid laugh together and respect boundaries and be emotionally supportive, like you would when writing a solid pair of friends or romantic couple.

officialprydonchapter-deactivat

No that was actually really helpful and I’m glad you took the time to give a serious response

#writing #writing advice

madebykyra

More photos of my finished Bee Dress (2026)

justgarb

GO LOOK AT THIS BLOG. GO NOW

*faints*

#sewing #embroidery #clothes

suzannahnatters

A few weeks ago one of my historical pet peeves was activated when I heard about a new Robin Hood movie that takes the groundbreaking, unprecedented, bold and visionary step of suggesting that the Middle Ages were a time of brutality, cynicism, and lawlessness.

Sarcasm alert. Everything I've heard about this movie sounds like it was created specifically to annoy me, so I'm going to try to ignore it and just talk about my pet peeve, which is this pop culture myth that the medieval period was particularly filthy, brutal, misogynistic and lawless.

Which is simply not the truth, and here's a true story from 1348 that shows the real Middle Ages.

We know this story because it's a very important moment in the development of common law - that is, the facts and the conclusion of the story were written down and became the basis for how similar cases would be decided long into the future. This 1348 judicial decision (citation: I de S et Uxor v W de S (1348) yb 22 edw iii f 99) is still read by law students today when studying the tort (or wrong) of assault. That's nearly seven hundred years of judges and lawyers looking back at a medieval judicial decision and saying, "Yes! That was a good and just decision!"

To set the stage, it's the 1300s - a century famous for the Black Death, the Hundred Years' War, the Peasants' Revolt, and the Babylonian Captivity of the Church that saw the papacy moved to the French town of Avignon as puppets of the French monarchcy. But that's not the only thing that happens in the 1300s. This century also sees the publication of Dante's Divine Comedy; the Clockwork Revolution in which intricately designed clocks tracked everything from the hours of the day (which were measured in variable lengths) to the phases of the moon and the Sun's path through the zodiac; the creation of gorgeous books of hours and tapestries; the career of Christine de Pizan, the first woman known to have made a living from her pen; the writing of Geoffrey Chaucer and the radical social and religious reforms proposed by John Wyclif and his followers.

About the middle of this century a man known to history as W de S came in the night to the house of I de S and M, his wife, looking to buy some wine. The door to the taven was closed, so W pounded on the door with a hatchet, which he had in his hand. At this, M, the tavern-keeper's wife, put her head out the window and told him to stop. W responded by throwing the hatchet at M, narrowly missing her.

The tavern-keeper and his wife, contrary to what pop culture will tell you, responded exactly the way a couple of pub owners might respond today: they took the offender to court and argued that W had made an assault on M. W argued, in response, that he had committed no crime because the hatchet had not in fact struck M.

You might now be thinking that of course W would have won the case, since no actual physical harm was done to the woman he'd attacked. But you would be wrong! The judge in the case declared that the assault itself was harmful, and that W was liable to pay compensation for the fright he had caused M.

"Ever since then," states my old Torts textbook, "the tort of assault has extended protection to a person's right to be free of emotional disturbance brought about by intentional threats of physical violence."

Law did exist in the middle ages. Women, as well as men, could expect to be protected by the law from assault. And not only physical, but even emotional damages could be awarded for assault...all the way back in 1348.

It wasn't a perfect time, but it was far from the callous brutality depicted on our movie screens.

#history