Hi! I have no idea how reception is going to go, but I just wanted to put it out there that I’m going to take art commissions from anyone interested. My reason being that I’m struggling to make ends meet and I’m hoping this will help me even just a little bit. So, please have a look at the cards or check out my Google Doc that has a bit more info and examples of my artwork!
Thanks for taking the time to read, consider, and/or commission art from me!
ETA (Oct. 2022): Changed the options and pricing (along with the add-ons) to simplify everything and make it less confusing. Check it out!
…..not even six hours later i got an offer of a well paying full time long-term job with free room and board in queens in nyc, allowing me independence and a way to escape an abusive situation and an unhealthy environment
likes charge reblogs cast, folks, this is the good luck post
the last time I reblogged this post right before I got a great job, in a permanent work-from-home position, with benefits, retirement, and a salary literally 3x what I was making before, doing something I really like.
happy pride to everyone in the community!! happy pride to those who are out, those who are not, those who aren’t sure of their identity yet, those who don’t use labels, those who don’t feel seen, etc, etc. stay safe and don’t be ashamed to be yourself.
I love that four different people on my feed scheduled this joyous person to reblog by 8am on June 1. I look forward to seeing this a dozen more times today.
all i want for 2026 is that gigantic rancid AI bubble to finally burst in such a catastrophic way that the consequences will be so good and i'll never have to see another AI generated image ever again
The words carried Sophie down the stairs and into her room, the door locked behind her. She heard them in her own voice, the French pronounced with the exquisite accent of a native-born Parisienne, and then again in Benedict’s, earnest and so terribly English.
He’d made the offer as a gift. The latest gift, for all that it was not trimmed with ribbon and rosebuds.
He’d given her the time at My Cottage—to be a guest, to wear the clothes of a viscount’s sister, to be waited upon and left to her own devices, to experience what it would be to have been her father’s ward, even if Mrs. Crabtree was quick to remind her she was a maid play-acting at being a lady.
He’d given her employment at his family home, shelter and position and a housekeeper who told her she must not overwork. He’d given her Hazel, hale and hearty, absolved her of any guilt, taken the burden of fearfulness for the other girl from her shoulders.
He’d given her his absence, when she asked it of him, until he couldn’t bear it and she knew, if she had not returned his affections, he would have taken his leave of her without reproaching her, bowing and bidding her farewell with the utmost politeness.
He might well be a rake, but what had happened between them was not a seduction; his embrace was not possession, but a mutual pleasure that upset his experience in equal measure with her innocence. Lady Sophie, the legitimate daughter of her aristocrat father, should be incensed that he would make the suggestion she become his mistress. Sophie Baek, housemaid, must appreciate he honored her with it.
Why was her heart broken?
Carte blanche with Benedict Bridgerton would mean her own house.
But not My Cottage. She could never return there as his mistress and face the Crabtrees. Not Mrs. Crabtree who’d given her such practical advice. Not Mr. Crabtree who’d had offered such fond encouragement.
She would have servants of her own but she could never hope for their respect.
She would be childless, if she were lucky and he was careful.
She would be the mother of a child like herself, nameless in all the ways that counted, a shame the Bridgerton family would try to overlook, unwilling to cast out their brother for his dalliance. A child without grandparents, without connections, borne of a mother who was entirely familiar with the circumstance and still allowed the terrible risk to her child.
She would be a terrible mother or none at all.
When he left, when he married properly, she would be left in a half-world she had made for herself. She would have to survive on the memory of his affection, like the faint fragrance found in linens folded with lavender buds and rose petals. To be satisfied with having once been cherished, but not forever.
He would not remain hers for their lives. He was not made to be a bachelor of the Ton, not with his family and his reputation, his appetite for the most wholesome comforts—a hand-made kite, a sketch of his nephews, Mrs. Crabtree’s apple tart and custard. He would not forget her but his remembrance would be worse, the house and the income the measure of his affections, Sophie reduced to a line in his ledger. She would have to hope he kept her a secret from his wife and steward, to merit secrecy rather than bland acknowledgement of the expense, equivalent with the butcher’s bill or the wine merchant’s.
He had meant the offer as an indication of his regard. His desire, that transcended their stations, his willingness to be modestly abased to become her entire world. He was a sweet man, gentle, protective, but those were the same reasons he would be hurt by the connection and would ultimately regret it.
She was familiar with regret. It would cost her less to shoulder his now than later. And if she refused, well then, she was left with something precious, a tale for younger, more naïve maids to listen to.
Once I was offered carte blanche by a gentleman of the Ton.
I just realized it's been a while since I posted new drawings here so here's a season 4 Polin with their lovely automnal look and looking adorable together <3
This one was done with watercolor and colour pencils :)
I hope you did not find it too tedious, the pair of you, all cooped up like that. The Crabtrees were there, of course. But it was anything but tedious. In fact, it was one of the happiest weeks of my life.
Some myths that need debunking because they're being pushed by bots and it’s making me angry:
1. "He's gonna declare martial law!" Okay, so what then? This isn't something you can enforce nationwide on a country of 350 million people with a military that has a combined force of less than 3 million people, including all support and logistics staff. That doesn't equal half the population of Los Angeles. Y'all need to fucking stop acting like we're approaching a mythical point where shit gets "serious." We're already there. People are already being disappeared.
Civilians are already being killed in the streets. We're there. And you know what? They're already getting near the limits of their ability to force compliance. ICE is dedicating a double digit percentage of their manpower to Minneapolis and they're not controlling shit. People are pushing back. Your default response when the administration says "We will force you to do this" shouldn't be "Oh no they're gonna make us do this!" It should be "Fuck you. Make me."
2. "Americans are doing nothing!" I did a post about this recently, but it bears revisiting: I don't know where the hell you're getting this, because everywhere that ICE or other arms of the federal enforcement apparatus go, they are being pushed back on, humiliated, driven out of neighborhoods, and shown the door. People are fighting back on a truly awe inspiring level. Stop assuming that "doing something" looks like an armed mass of civilians storming Washington and fighting the military in a pitched battle. This is movie bullshit. The world has not looked like that since the early 20th century. What you are seeing, right now, is what "doing something" looks like. Stop it stop it stop it. We ARE doing something, in vast numbers.
3. "He's gonna cancel elections!" This one has been pushed by bots for the last year, and big name people have been picking it up, and it frustrates the hell out of me so I'm going to hold your hand and tell you bluntly: He. Cannot. Do. This. There is no mechanism. Elections are controlled by the states, and they decide when they happen. There is no federal mechanism for control of elections. What's Trump gonna do? Post soldiers at every polling place in every swing state? Do you know how many polling places there are in every district? How much manpower this would require? He doesn't have the people to do it. He doesn't have the mechanical ability to do it. There are no tools to execute this plan. Is he gonna try to make elections unfair? You bet your ass, but our elections have never been fair. Voter suppression has always existed and will continue to exist until we fix it... but a blanket ban of elections or even some ability to make them not happen? Lol. He doesn't have the manpower or the means.
But what if he did? Let's game this out: Congress--or at least the House of Representatives--is not a perpetual body. At the end of 2026 the current congress ceases to exist, and the next one isn't convened until the following year. Mike Johnson will cease to be Speaker at the end of the year and wont be Speaker again in '27 unless his party wins a sufficient majority to elect him. Remember if there are no elections then republicans will not have their seats in 2027. There will be no congress, and without congress, Trump does not have a mechanism for governance. I dunno about you, but those Republican reps like having their jobs, their staff, their salaries, and all the perks that come with office. They do not get those if there is no Congress. That is not something they want.
But he said he was gonna! And? So fucking what? He says a lot of things. He issued an executive order at the start of his second term ordering all school districts in the country to immediately cease teaching "DEI" whatever the hell that means. Do you know what most districts that weren't actively kissing his ass said? "That's nice. Make me." And then he didn't, because the states control their own education systems, not Trump. His words don't have the force of law, and are limited by what he actually has levers of power to accomplish. We are **still having elections.** Several happened last week. The States decide this. Trump doesn't.
The Midterms are gonna happen. They're gonna matter and they're gonna have consequences. And you all need to stop acting like he has power over things he doesn't just because he says he does. That's propaganda and you're falling for it.
As with all things Authoritarian, when Trump says "I'm gonna force you to do this," your response should be as I articulated above:
"Fuck you. Make me."
I love you all. Be safe. Don't comply in advance. Don't give them power they don't have just because they say they do.
-The purpose of the daily loud incoherent Neverending list of demands and changes and threats is meant in part to DEMORALIZE, EXHAUST, AND OVERWHELM you to a point of being too out of it to fight back. Its just as important to pay attention to what DOESN'T work out in their favor. Look at budgets congress refused to cut/lower, federal court after court denying and repealing his orders, examples of the balance of powers actually WORKING - including to vote out and replace people in this regime - instead of miring yourself in what doesnt and what IF it doesnt.
-Look at HOW PEOPLE ARE FIGHTING BACK!!! Find sources that are talking about it and showing pictures and videos - its impossible to fight for a world we cant imagine, but its much easier to keep fighting for a place we see rising up and defending its neighbors all around us. Its one thing to block out all news but the really bad stuff still reaches us all, so make sure the GOOD SHIT the push backs and the wins and the visual reminders that people are turning out en masse for their neighbors and community. If you feel alone and hopeless, watch video of protests and hear the chanting of the people who turned up to put their voices and bodies on the line and say NO and remember you aren't fighting this alone
-Look at HISTORY. It's been made very clear that this is more comparable to the USAmerican genocide of native americans and to the reign of slave catchers in our own country than an exact replication of the German Holocaust (that took notes FROM those), but let's look at both.
American history: Took generations and centuries to accomplish. Ongoing. Used tactics of scapegoating and erasure that remind us this is ALREADY life or death, but that MANY MANY people have built systems and laid out ways to fight. Read about and take cues from leadership and organizations who've BEEN fighting this fight - Black Panthers, Act Up, NARF, Immigration Advocates Network. How can you get involved? How were they successful, how did the government fight back (and how have responses been formulated to counter it?). Look up individual activists and what kept them going, read about the resistance throughout our history, get involved in your community so you can stop FEELING so isolated and alone in this brutal regime and see and feel the people fighting around you. Learn from those who came before instead of acting like there's no marching orders here. Join a group that's BEEN established and fighting so you can get started running instead of starting from scratch. We are not just a history of victims, we are a history of survivors who fought tooth and nail to earn every right we've gotten
The holocaust: For all of the economic and social parallels, the glaring difference I've seen and held onto is how FAST and completely things happened once Hitler took power. Many of the major social restrictions and changes were enacted within the first year, things Trump has been fighting for a DECADE now to have enough support and hate banked to SOMEWHAT accomplish. Much, much more of the community was willing to stand by or take part in attacks against their neighbors - we're talking by factors of thousands - whereas what we're seeing here is people turning out in DEFENSE of their community BY THE THOUSANDS even when their lives are directly threatened. Read literature and journals of the year 1933, or listen to "In Bed With the Right"s walk-through of the year - the parallels are crucial to recognize, but far far more important are the DIFFERENCES, especially in time and scale. It took Trump a decade to accomplish 1/10th of what Hitler and his regime did in a year, and they're receiving more pushback than they EVER have - this is not a done deal to slide into doom
When you do share news try to always include something actionable - this is good for you And the people seeing it, a reminder that "this bad thing is happening BUT here's how to fight it" - donations, groups to collaborate with, who to call, who to support. Don't listen to anyone selling you doom and gloom and no hope, they aid no one but the enemy. Give yourself time to vent and feel demoralized and grieving and Furious, but also give yourself ways to CHANNEL those feelings in ways you can control and affect the world around you and your own community. Take your power back and use it to fight for the people you love
Chaos and violence have such a loud, deep, paralyzing effect. Make sure your resistance, your defenses and actions and hope - because WE ARE STILL HERE WE ARE STILL FIGHTING AND WE ARENT GOING ANYWHERE - are louder
The skirt is mamianqun马面裙(literally horse face skirt, mamian for horse face), a type of traditional chinese hanfu since ming dynasty, originating from baidiequn百迭裙 in song dynasty and not being influenced by any other culture. It is divided into two pieces that are attached at the back of the waist, and there are openings both in the front and back of the skirt(it is said to be covenient for horse riding at that time), with a unique design of spliting that can be seen when walking, pleats concentrated at the sides in a flat shape. So basically the skirt is not a whole piece sewed up, and the pleates are only applied within the specific region around ¼ of each side. Traditional mamianqun fabric is delicate and intricately patterned with embroidery, brocade and golden weaving. Also mamianqun is not stitched and there is no needlework.
In recent years chinese hanfu designers have made mamianqun more comfortable and convenient and better adapt to the daily life of consumers without changing the unique tailoring.
