on the topic of disabled characters, though, i think a LOT of artists give characters mobility aids that their character wouldn't actually benefit from using.
i'm sort of having a mild brain fog moment rn so i can't fully articulate what i'm on about, but i think a lot of able-bodied artists view things like canes and crutches as interchangeable. and they often don't know enough about the wide range of mobility aids to make an informed decision about what their character might actually use based on their disability
i also think that aids like walkers and rollators are sort of viewed as "cringe" on some level, and many people view them to be "just for old people," so many artists will opt for giving a character who has full-body pain and fatigue a cane (which, in many cases, can potentially WORSEN full-body pain) instead. and a lot of people don't realize that most wheelchair users are able to walk, so they don't consider it an option for characters with chronic pain
idk it's kind of frustrating. i've genuinely never, ever seen a character that uses a rollator before. not once. i cannot name a single one. i know of multiple ocs who are described to have full-body pain, dizziness, and fatigue that are drawn as cane users and are never shown with wheelchairs or walkers, though
it's also sort of sad? i've been diagnosed since i was twelve years old, and i only heard of rollators LAST YEAR. and that was only because i saw one irl and immediately asked what it was. i wonder how many disabled people out there don't even know it's an option solely because they're completely underrepresented online and in media
if you're a creative with a disabled oc, PLEASEEE check out this link. it's a very nice and detailed guide for telling which mobility aids suit someone's needs best. it's incredibly important to make the right choice for your character! mobility aids tell you a LOT about someone's lived experience. picking the right one will communicate to your audience #1 what your character goes through #2 that you UNDERSTAND what your character goes through!
THERES MORE TO WHITEWASHING THAN JUST SKIN COLOR THERES MORE TO WHITEWASHING THAN JUST SKIN COLOR THERES MORE TO WHITEWASHING THAN JUST SKIN COLOR THERES MORE TO WHITEWASHING THAN JUST SKIN COLORRRRRRRRRR
posting this with every artist tag i can think of, even if you dont do crochet, PLEASE TAKE RESTS FOR YOUR HANDS!!! no matter what medium artist you are, take care of your articulations
in addition to embedding images in fic, brilliant people have shared codes to imitate a number of social media sites/other online phenomena. some examples from my recent fic:
i (clearly) think this is super fun, and i really enjoy doing it. while it can be frustrating and finicky to figure out, it is much easier than you might have thought, mostly because (as mentioned) people are so kind and brilliant and share code to do this! in this post, i'm going to link some of the code that i've used/consulted and show some examples ~under the hood~ of how the above things look in practice. hopefully it'll help you feel like you, too, can try!!
code/tutorial links for ones i personally have used as base code, most of which have very clear explanations of how to use them that make the rest of this post truly unnecessary:
texting (incl blue messages, green messages, group chat)
google search
gmail (sent email)
instagram
phone lockscreen notifications
generic email/draft email (with scrollbar!)
there are collections on ao3 full of these codes, incl discord, twitter, other social media sites!
that is more than enough to get started, but i love to over-explain things, so just to be super clear, there are 3 steps in how i do this:
Writing, planning images, uploading images if needed (aka the parts with no coding)
Adding the CSS to the work skin
Adding the HTML to the actual text/story/chapter - usually the most annoying part :-)
in more (unnecessary) detail:
writing/planning images/uploading images
i always write out what i want to have without code because i like making sure the actual content/story is front and center! i also want to make sure that i know when the exchange happens for any timestamps. for the above examples, it looks like this in my gdoc:
i also make sure that i have any images that i'm going to include at this point, because it can be super annoying to be almost done coding and realize you want/need to go back to figure a pfp or something out. ao3 does not host images, so you need to either have a link you trust won't die or upload images yourself somewhere else that you can link. i've been uploading to my drafts on tumblr, but that does decrease the quality a little. (personally i'm fine with that but just want to give that disclaimer) i would recommend downloading any photos you know you want to include as soon as you find them so you don't lose track and spend a bunch of time trying to track something down (definitely speaking from personal experience rip)
the only image note i'd add is that i always recommend previewing how the fic looks before posting (duh) and checking specifically if the dimensions look weird. on the gmail code for example it'll make pfps 40px x 40px even if it wasn't originally a square, which can make it look weird and stretched out, so i cropped all the pictures i used as gmail pfps to be square (not 40px x 40px, just square in general).
work skin css
all of the above guides will explain this, but you'll add some base code to a work skin that you apply to your fic. i use the same skin for all my fic as i go, but if you adopt that approach, make sure you don't ever accidentally have attributes with the same names! just to show what this looks like/where to find it on ao3:
combining html/story
all of the above guides will include the html you use in your actual story, and i HIGHLY encourage you to integrate it in your non-ao3 editor and transfer it over from there instead of workshopping it just in ao3 and risking losing it if something goes awry!! (again speaking from experience rip) pay close attention to which parts you're supposed to change from the source code and which you won't change (eg gmail icons). examples cont:
this step is usually the most annoying and finicky and requires the most patience to troubleshoot things. css/html can be very particular and there are some things that would require additions to the base css that you might expect to just work (eg links - adding links to things makes them sooo angry). i usually transfer the html parts into the chapter and troubleshoot before adding the main text because it can be annoying to scroll through all the text for editing it. there will be something that is slightly off from how you wanted it to look, and you will have to call it a day at some point! i often end up posting something when i feel like it's good enough and then going back and fixing it later. consider this permission to do the same :)
that is how i like to do this but i'm sure other people have other ways they prefer! i can imagine doing the coding as you write might be nice for some people but i like to go back and do that when i'm feeling a little stuck or want to work on fic but need a brain break.
i hope this helps people who are interested but not sure where to start!! i am happy to help if you're running into issues but i should note that css is a complete mystery to me and i self-taught myself html to make pages for my neopets so my skillset is...limited...
Embroidery is a craft that uses thread to decorate fabric (and other materials). It’s a great way to spruce up a garment, customise objects, and to hide mends you’ve made!
Embroidery is usually done with embroidery floss, but depending on the base material you’re working on, you could also use yarn, ribbons, or plain old sewing thread. Don’t be afraid to experiment!
Embroidery is easier to do on taut fabric than limp fabric. That’s why most people use embroidery hoops. While not strictly necessary, a hoop will make your life so much easier.
Using the right needle will help, too. Use a crewel needle if you’re working with embroidery floss, a chenille needle if you’re working with ribbon or yarn, or a tapestry needle if you’re doing cross-stitch embroidery on open-weave fabrics.
While there are many types of embroidery from all over the world, this post will focus on some basic stitches you can use in your own work.
Basic embroidery stitches:
For a more thorough overview of embroidery stitches, check out these embroidery tutorials by Mary Corbet’s Needle ‘n Thread.
The following images show some of the most basic stitches:
(Image source)
The 16 stitches in the images above can be combined into any shape or form you want. You might recognise some from my hand sewing post: embroidery is a type of hand sewing, after all.
You don’t need to know all of these to be able to make beautiful things. Even just one of these is a great start for a project.
This sampler by Sew Nancy shows how these basic stitches can be used to outline shapes or form flowers, for example.
(Image source)
Fiorelila used a combination of the stem stitch, satin stitch, lazy daisy, and french knots to spruce up this sweater:
(Image source)
And this person used lazy daisies to add some flair to their jeans:
(Image source)
Embroidery for visible mending:
Embroidery is a useful tool to hide mends you’ve made, or to even accentuate them if that’s your style. This is called visible mending. While this is a topic that deserves a post on its own, here are some quick examples:
Like this fix by Redditor Takemythyme who embroidered a rose over a hole in a knit fabric:
(Image source)
Or like how this person has spruced up their jeans repairs with embroidery:
(Image source)
In this example, The Woolery Guy chose to use flower embroidery to make a hole in a knit fabric look like it was there by design:
(Image source)
For more examples, check out Pinterest or VisibleMending.com.
Conclusion:
Embroidery is a useful skill to give new life to your wardrobe. You can use it to give some flair to items you’ve grown bored off, or even to mend your clothes.
Once you’ve got a few basic stitches under your belt, the possibilities are endless. Be creative and have fun with it!
Just spent the past hour and change recoloring a star wars clone trooper colorwork knitting chart to personalize the the buckets and I can’t even knit colorwork
Ok here’s my quick charts! These are modified from the base clone trooper chart in the “Clone Trooper Hat” pattern in Knitting the Galaxy, I picked it up from my local library this afternoon so I definitely recommend checking to see if yours has access or can borrow it from another library! Ask a librarian about ILL :]
This will be a 2-part reblog bc of the image limit on mobile! In order the images are a picture of the original hat, then Monnk, Gree, Bly, Ponds, Wolffe, Rex , and Kix modified charts.
I’m kinda surprised that nalbinding isn’t as popular as crochet and knitting tbh because it has an even lower barrier of entry tools wise and unlike crochet and knitting it makes fabric that you can cut.
I feel like part of it might be casual people are generally aware of the existence of crochet and knitting, even if they don’t know very much about either, but have never heard of nalbinding
Yeah I hadn’t heard of it until recently and I ordered a big bone needle for myself to try it out and that should be arriving soon.
I was surprised that I’d never heard of it though. It’s older than knitting and crocheting and even though it’s been done all over the world it’s super relevant to Nordic culture and my grandmother and I are both into keeping in touch with our roots a bit so I’m surprised I’ve never heard of it.
It seems like the sort of thing that would be popular even if not as popular as crocheting and knitting, considering the low barrier of entry.
You also don’t need a bunch of different sized needles for nalbinding or whatever. The size of the stitch is controlled either completely freehand or by pulling it against one of your fingers. Most people who have a lot of nalbinding needles seem to either have tried out wood, bone, and metal ones to see which kind they liked or they enjoy carving wood or bone and like making their own needles as an extra hobby.
It’s also a lot easier to freehand and adjust as you go than crochet or knitting and you mostly go by inches instead of rows and number of stitches so a large number of accessories like stitch markers or whatever isn’t really necessary.
Maybe the lack of accessories also makes it unpopular idk. People do like collecting things in their nests.
I've been wanting to do so, I cannot find anyone who can teach me, and any books I can find on it are Ass in the Visual Learning department. Otherwise I'd be making the hell outta some nalbinded fabric
I thought this would be kind of a niche post to make but I was quickly reminded that I’m on tumblr, the website full of gay people with one billion hobbies.
Swinhoe’s Pheasant (Lophura swinhoii), male, family Phasianidae, order Galliformes, endemic to the lower foothills of the central mountain range in Taiwan
It's MAY! You know what that means... Time for #MerMay! And I've got a TON of resources to help you get going on your mermaid drawing adventures this month. Take a look:
Underwater outtakes pack: $1+ 65 ~*aesthetic*~ vibe (murky) photos underwater. Definitely not ideal but still very useful (especially if horror is your vibe) https://ko-fi.com/s/a356a4d3a3
Underwater highlights pack: $5+ 61 various underwater poses. Includes the really cool wave lighting in the pool :) https://ko-fi.com/s/a059e6ffbf
Mermay Mini Pack: $4+ 39 mermaid on the beach poses https://ko-fi.com/s/6f646e5120
Underwater hair pack: $8+ guest pack featuring @nyxnaiastock with 104 amazing flowy long hair images underwater! https://ko-fi.com/s/7d6c327299
I'll be posting more MERMAIDS throughout May and don't forget to tag me when you use so I can repost you too!
It's not perfect- Strawpage's design tools are... not great- but I did my best to bring you all a Tumblr-free transcription of all my lessons. This is probably the most labor-intensive thing I've done for this page (next to the character polls). Four months of blood, sweat, and tears... and now, she LIVES!!!!
Some Notes:
I created it with the intent of Desktop use, so Mobile might have some issues. If it's not working on your phone, try desktop.
Out of the multiple browsers tested (Firefox, Google, Edge, Brave, Safari), Firefox had some issues sporadically.
I'm still going to post lessons on here, first. This page is priority to me, and the website is more of an archive.
The fonts are normal past this opening page.
I will be adding a portion to send funds soon, if'n you are feeling kind and generous.
Thank you all for your patience while I worked on this. It was a labor of love and I hope that it shows. 🙏🏾 Happy scrolling!
Another tutorial I‘ve made, about digital brushwork this time!
You can find more tutorials for a few bucks on my Ko-Fi Shop if you've found this helpful and would like to support me in making more resources like this🙏 ☀️🍃
This is the next priority species for the site, chosen by our Patreon supporters.
One of these wolves has three legs, so there's a bunch of photos of her adaptive run / walk cycles in this photoset.
As always, more photos on the Repository page:
Artists creating derivative or transformative works (without AI) have blanket permission to use these and all photos in the repository as references, including works that will/may be sold.
The Animal Photo Reference Repository is an independent, permanently open-access project and funded entirely by donations
**Patreon** -- **Ko-Fi**
Merlyn Bane Arts @merlyn-bane-arts - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
