Monterey Bay Aquarium
Three Goblin Art
oozey mess
trying on a metaphor
NASA
occasionally subtle
titsay
PUT YOUR BEARD IN MY MOUTH
AnasAbdin
#extradirty
Cosmic Funnies
Keni
almost home
Acquired Stardust
let's talk about Bridgerton tea, my ask is open
Discoholic 🪩
pixel skylines
Aqua Utopia｜海の底で記憶を紡ぐ
Mike Driver
art blog(derogatory)
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@simakai
MY NEW SHOP IS UPPPPPPP! Please give it a look, I'd really love to stop depending on Etsy, and there were lots of effort, love and determination put into this shop! I also have a few new products, they're more basic and oriented for local orders, but I'll show them anyway soon!
SimakaiHoodies
And here it is. Finally. PART 2 OF MY PRIDE COLLECTION IS UP ON MY ETSY!!! Even more flags, for an even bigger Pride squad!!! If you want to skip the text and just shop, just follow the link here: https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/Simakaihoodies?ref=seller-platform-mcnav§ion_id=23881519
So! I present three lesbian flags. They were kindly presented to me as options that are 1. doable from a technical point of view - I can procure these colors without too much problem, unlike the Lipstick flag, and 2. are actually used by lesbians and have positive and inclusive symbolism. I chose not to choose between them: I am pansexual, not a lesbian, so I don’t think I have the right to. Customers will decide the one they prefer. :)
I made the demigirl hoodie for my model, but I also offer demiboy, demigender and demiandrogyne on the same listing. I also made demi-ace for my model, but demi-aro is on the same listing.
Just as last time, all my models are what they’re showing! It is very important for me to show actual people wearing their colors with pride. Most of them are friends and acquaintances who answered my call, one of them I recruited from a local center. Also I got more plus-size models this time! It just happened this way, but I’m glad I can show more sizes this time!
With these added to the first collection, I now have 20 Pride flags in my shop. If yours isn’t there, or if you prefer another version of a flag I make, just poke me for a custom one! As long as I can procure the right colors on the right fabric, I can make something for you - and it’ll probably be about the same price as a hoodie with the same number of stripes.
(PS: The first stripe on the first one looks quite red on the picture, but it’s actually a red-ish dark orange, I swear. I’m still looking for a more orange-ish dark orange. I’m also still shopping fabrics to offer the 7 stripes version of the orange and pink lesbian flag, but this might take a bit of time. Please bear with me until then, I’ll post news when I can do it. :) )
(PPS: I know the chevron on the Queer Community hoodie is not suuuuuper intense. I’ll make it more visible on the orders!)
Yearly mandatory self-reblog of my Pride collection! If you’re itching for some Pride merch made by a queer indie (like, litterally, I cut, sew and prepare everything myself, can’t get smaller business than that) check me out, and check it on my new website: https://simakaihoodies.com/collections/2slgbtqia
And after all these weeks waiting, planning and hoping, I’m more than happy to introduce… the Pride Flag collection! Show your pride boldly with a hoodie that definitely won’t stay in the closet! ;)
For those who just can’t wait anymore, here is where you can buy them: https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/Simakaihoodies?section_id=23881519
Here is a little more story for people interested! Yes, all my models are what they’re showing. It was important for me to represent not only the flag, but the varied people who want to show their pride. :) They’re also friends from various groups, and one is my cousin! I don’t often have an occasion to include my family in these projects, so I’m glad I could this time! Also I want to give a big, special thanks to Bahamut Night Photography for snapping us so perfectly!
For every hoodie sold, I will give 2$ to Fondation Émergence! They’re the founders of the International Day against homophobia and transphobia (May 17th) and are very active locally. I may also give more to Amnesty International or All Out when they need to answer some urgent situation around the world. I want these hoodies to do some good, and not just be a cool piece of clothing.
I will try to make more flags to add to this collection ASAP! So far on the list is Aromantic, Poly-sexual and Demi-ace. Don’t hesitate to ask me for a new flag, if I get asked a few times I will add it to the shop, and if it’s very rare/unique, I can make it as a custom order. ;)
EDIT: I’d love to add the lesbian flag to the collection very soon, but sourcing all the different shades of pink in the same good quality fabric is very difficult. I’m still doing my best with my limited ressources to make it happen as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience and understanding!
Yearly mandatory self-reblog of my Pride collection! If you’re itching for some Pride merch made by a queer indie (like, literally, I cut, sew and prepare everything myself, you can’t get a smaller business than that) check me out, and check it on my new website: https://simakaihoodies.com/collections/2slgbtqia
Bangin' saws my man
Because Etsy is a cesspit of AI and dropshipped bullshit now... can you guys drop me links to stores of independent artists?
They can make clothes and accessories, they can sell prints or stickers or pins, they can make tiny figurines (I LOVE tiny figurines), they can make dice, they can make something I haven't thought of, their store can even be on Etsy itself, you JUST have to be sure they're a real person who actually makes their own art.
Artists please self-promote. Non-artists please shove any stores you like at me, brag about your artists friends, and/or reblog so the artists will see this. I want you to destroy my activity page.
Give us recommendations for artists I can get little presents for my wife from. Please. I legitimately want as many artists in the pool as possible.
@nerdykeppie
@optimysticals! @simakai! @mayakern!
And yes. Us. :)
Awww thanks for tagging!
For a marketplace option if you like to browse artisans, I can recommend Artisans Cooperative, they're checking a lot more than Etsy to make sure everything is artisan made, and it's a cooperative so the whole thing is actually owned by many of the artists on it. Including myself!
Here's one of my favorite jeweler: https://www.cutiejaurelie.ca Another jeweler I love that is getting bigger and I love that for them: https://bisoulovely.com/ I love their asian and anime trinkets: https://oppabo.co/ One of my good old friends selling anime merch: https://linktr.ee/carekoart Handmade shoes that I adore, plus I met the owner at the Pride Artisans Market last year and she's lovely: https://anamariadessin.ca/fr
Fate Zero my Roman Empire
if you put the new harry potter show on my dash in any way it's gonna be an automatic unfollow from me, guys. like. it's 2026. come the fuck on
Fabulous news, my darlings! After years of searching, I finally found some nice stretch silver fabric! That means... I can bring back my Mettaton hoodie back! :D :D :D
I put it back on Etsy since the listing was a bit burried but still there, and I'll make one for my own website soon! https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/454186726/undertale-mettaton-ex-inspired-cosplay
Self-reblog, but it's now in my own shop! https://simakaihoodies.com/products/undertale-mettaton-ex-inspired-cosplay-hoodie
Fabulous news, my darlings! After years of searching, I finally found some nice stretch silver fabric! That means... I can bring back my Mettaton hoodie back! :D :D :D
I put it back on Etsy since the listing was a bit burried but still there, and I'll make one for my own website soon! https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/454186726/undertale-mettaton-ex-inspired-cosplay
There are plenty of perils to “monetize your hobbies” but I think the aspect that scares me the most is that you are now agreeing to be yelled at.
A guy who leaves a scathing comment on your fanfiction is probably being a dick. A guy doing that on your published novel is leaving a candid review.
Someone saying your stitch quality is shit on a crochet Facebook group is an asshole. Someone doing that in your Etsy reviews is an unhappy customer in need of recompense.
The exchange of a few dollars locks you out of being able to ignore or block. Even if you’re having the shittiest day of your life or if your confidence in your craft is brittle today, you now look petulant and unprofessional to block any of it out. You’re now a Business and they are your Customer and they are owed their due.
And I'm not trying to be like "no one is ever allowed to criticize me I'm an uwu smol bean" but I do mean the idea of pouring out my whole heart into a piece of art and then being expected, required, to take it lying down like a dog if someone rips it to absolute shreds is, honestly, rather terrifying.
Hmmm. I'm on the fence about this, there's parts that I agree with, parts that I empathize with, and parts that I straight up don't agree with -- but the nature of my disagreement is (hopefully) a reassuring and encouraging kind.
For the original post, about monetizing your hobbies means you are now agreeing to be yelled at -- hard disagree. You are opening yourself up to criticism, absolutely! But I think we should be VERY careful of equating "criticism" to "being yelled at", since there are types of criticism that are indeed appropriate (and which you should reasonably be prepared for) and types that definitely aren't and which border on (or firmly cross the line into) abuse. No one agrees to being abused, even when money is involved.
Using OP's examples:
If I publish a novel, I am indeed agreeing to let people write scathing reviews on the appropriate public venues such as Goodreads, social media, newspaper book columns, and blogs -- my work has a right to exist, and other people have a right to not like it and to talk about not liking it. But I am NOT agreeing to be stalked, doxxed, or the target of a mass harassment/defamation campaign. I am NOT agreeing to let people flood my email inbox or social media DMs with death threats, suicide baiting, or personally-directed mockery. I can and will block them, and it is not petulant or unprofessional of me to do so.
If I make and sell something on Etsy, I am agreeing to communicate with dissatisfied customers, to try to identify the problem, and to fix it if I can -- and, if the problem isn't fixable and the item is still in good condition, I am prepared to accept a return. I'm NOT agreeing to change my whole art style to satisfy an individual customer (ie: "fixing" a piece of intentionally rustic hand embroidery by tearing it out and replacing it with machine-embroidered preset clipart, or re-making a scarf with knitting instead of crochet), and I am NOT agreeing to be stalked/doxxed/harassed/etc. It is not petulant or unprofessional of me to cancel future orders from a customer if I know from past interactions that this person isn't worth the headache.
Monetizing your hobby does have a lot of downsides, but one of the upsides is that you're now the owner of your shop (whether it's physical or digital). You get the responsibility, yes, but you also get the right to politely but firmly ask someone to leave if they're behaving inappropriately. Here's another example that might make more sense: If I owned a cocktail bar, then I'm agreeing to make people the drink they asked for, to bring it over to them in a reasonable amount of time, to avoid allergens if they notify me that there's something I should be careful of, to charge them the price that's listed on the menu plus any applicable local taxes, and to let them write their Yelp reviews. I'm NOT agreeing to let a rowdy drunk start brawls, verbally abuse other customers, assault me or my staff, or act destructively towards my property. If they cross that line, they deserve to be shown to the door and banned from coming back. It's not petulant or unprofessional for me to do that.
So yeah, the exchange of a few dollars DOES open up a social contract between the vendor and the customer, and the vendor should expect and be prepared for some degree of criticism, both reasonable ("When I got this purse, I saw that there's a big hole on the bottom seam where the stitches didn't go through both sides of the material. Can you replace or repair this?") and unreasonable ("Instagram, this is not a good book and nobody should read it!!! it is full of bigotry that never gets addressed. btw i DNFed it on page 5").
But the exchange of the few dollars does NOT mean that you are expected or required to take it lying down like a minimum wage customer service employee during Black Friday. What to do in each circumstance will vary, but the guiding rules are the same as they are for pretty much every other kind of conflict: Behave with honor, know what your principles are, and hold firm to them.
Once, I got someone on Goodreads who left a 2 star review of one of my books and wrote (i quote the review in its entirety): "Meh." I genuinely laughed IRL and said nothing to them. This was correct in the circumstances.
Another time, someone emailed me directly with a LONG wall of text to tell me that they didn't like the use of neopronouns in A Taste of Gold and Iron, that it ruined their experience of the book, and that I shouldn't ever use neopronouns again. I wrote back and told them that they were being rude, inappropriate, and transphobic, and I courteously suggested that they may wish to avoid reading my future books because I will absolutely be using neopronouns again. This was also correct in the circumstances.
In conclusion... I truly sympathize with the fear of criticism. It can feel incredibly daunting to face the prospect of an audience. Even to this day it does make me a bit sad when not Absolutely Everyone In The Whole Wide World loves my work -- but the good news is that over time, you become aware that this deeply-programmed human desire becomes a little silly in any situation outside of "we are a small group of hunter-gatherers killing mammoths with spears, and getting along with my friends is genuinely a crucial survival mechanism."
SO:
You ARE allowed to defend yourself when it's appropriate, honorable, and in alignment with your principles.
You ARE allowed to set boundaries (ie: you're not required to read the reviews of your book, and many people actively avoid doing so).
You do NOT have to make yourself available to all criticism at all times (ie: you are not required to respond to that dissatisfied Etsy customer at 1am, you can wait until business hours tomorrow morning -- this is even advisable to do).
You absolutely do NOT have to accept all criticism, because some people are idiots, and some non-idiots still manage to be astonishingly wrong.
The censor's great
it's gonna be a while yet until I come out with the Big Shrew Zine but in the meantime I spent all afternoon trimming a couple different mini shrew zines that'll go up on the shop probably tomorrow
They're up! come grab a couple shrews. I promise they look better in person than my crappy photos.
Two textless mini zines about monastic shrews (and moles and desmans). Both are 16 pages, including front and back covers. Shrews of the
While occasionally thematically messy and narratively convoluted, Fate’s long history of genderbending is rooted in a genuine interest in ex
read my article
My fellow Canadians, I request you sign this asap. It should have enough signatures to be looked at (possibly even presented in the House?) but the more support we can get behind this, the better. Our country isn't great, I don't believe we are a bastion of fairness or whatever the language used in this petition was, and I think we should completely break the "safe third country" agreement with the U.S. entirely, but this would still be better than the current situation.
This is a petition to allow 2SLGBTQIA+ refugees from the U.S. to claim asylum up here in Canada. It needs to be signed. The fact we have to do a petition for this because our current liberal government is more conservative than Harper's is a travesty, but at least other Canadians are seeing the need to let refugees from the U.S. come up here.
Tagging @allthecanadianpolitics
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