-Widobrave. Exceptional on all fronts. Whatever you want out of this relationship, you can get it. Pining, unfathomable unconditional love, desperate devotion, casual intimacy, the very heart of "which could mean nothing." No one does it like Widobrave.
-Vethstrid. It has to be S-Tier because of how psychologically insane it is. What if you were the ex-lover of the man I'm extra-maritally in love with and I was trying to desperately to get him to fuck you so I can feel okay about returning to my childhood lover too, except he won't so I guess I'll just do it myself. Insane. Can be paired in tandem with Volstrucker Veth AUs, which I think would be delicious
A-Tier:
-Vasha. Veth's bisexual awakening. Big, beefy, mysterious beautiful dark angel who would absolutely "show Veth a good time." What more is there to say?
-Beauveth. What if annoying someone was a sport and then they fucked about it? Effervescent.
-Beauvasha. If you like both of the above things, have you considered combining them? I'm hearing great things.
-Vester. Best friends! Best detectives! A tender emotional connection between two people who's primary love language is hijinks & shenanigans.
-Yeza/Veth (Failing Marriage). Sink your teeth into this trainwreck of a dynamic, two feet from disaster at all times. They love each other, but Veth's not sure she's in love with Yeza anymore, she's seeking advice on wifely duties from her bisexual awakening Yasha Nydoorin, and they're even introducing a brand new baby to the family, which is sure to fix the problems they don't want to talk about! Wow!
B-Tier:
-Fjeth. Solid character parallels and another "what if annoying someone was a sport?" dynamic, albeit one that I think has a little less chemistry than Beau's, and I am admittedly influenced by this ship being treated as a popular joke by the fandom. So, B-Tier.
-Veth/Fearne. What if you combined the allure of Vasha and Vester with a giant goat lady with huge tits who loves shenanigans and furry sex? I think they'd have fun
-Veth/Imogen. Hello mommy issues.
C-Tier:
-Yeza/Veth (Happy Marriage). Milquetoast. Come on, we can do better than this.
send me ☕️ + [topic] and I’ll tell you my opinion on it!
Ohhh no my friend, you have stumbled upon a topic I could yap about endlessly haha. I’ll give the quick and dirty summary list and then activate yap mode below the cut 😆 (with a quick disclaimer I have never made like…armor. I don’t think my attention span could last long enough). And if this doesn’t end up being the information you were seeking lmk and I can edit!
Quick list for making good chainmail:
Make sure you have the right tools
Pick the right weave/pattern for what you want to do (flat vs. round weave, loose and flowy vs. tight and sturdy)
Make sure you have the right size ring for your project - don’t guess, use a guide
Whenever possible, opt for saw cut rings instead of machine cut, you’ll get neater closures
Get really good at closing the rings so they are as invisible as possible
Have fun!
Full yap mode (with pictures) below, you’ve been warned!
Make sure you have the right tools
Depending on the metal and how thick your rings are (the gauge) you’ll need a different strength of pliers. Here are the three sets I use, from lightest to heaviest:
I use the medium strength pliers in the middle the most often, though I used to use the blue handled pliers more when I made jewelry. The heavy duty red-handled ones are for when I am working with steel or a thick gauge (14g or thicker). Plier strength is important because if you have to squeeze or twist too hard to get a ring open or closed, you will either damage the ring or hurt yourself - or both. I have sprained my wrist working with steel before with the wrong pliers, 0/10 do not recommend.
Picking the right pattern/weave
The easiest pattern to start with is probably European 4-in-1, with Byzantine, Japanese 12-in-1, full Persian (or foxtail) and half Persian also being good beginner weaves. 3/4 Persian, captured inverted round, and dragon scale are more mid-difficulty weaves. Those cover most of your more traditional styles, but there are countless artisan weaves out there. You can find pics and tutorials of many of them on M.A.I.L.’s website. For some pic references:
Reference, from top to bottom, left to right: European 4-in-1 (a dice bag before it gets connected into a bag shape); Byzantine, half Persian, 3/4 Persian, captured inverted round; dragon scale; cool weave I found online # 1 & 2 😆
As you can see, some are flat and some are round which lend themselves to different uses. Flat weaves make great bracelets or chokers but are going to hang weird if you try to make a long necklace. Round weaves in particular can be made looser or tighter depending on whether you want it to flow or be more structural. Some people make some really cool sculptures with super tight weaves to where the chainmail supports itself.
Using the right rings
Ring gauge, size, and the inner diameter is how you manipulate a weave to be looser or tighter. There are lots of good guides on what to use for different effects, for example this pic below:
ID in this picture refers to the inner diameter of the ring. In case you’re curious the pic below shows the full run of ring sizes I use with a mechanical pencil for scale. That’s 14g 3/4” ID down to 20g 3/32” ID:
Most weaves have a limited size range they will work for with a min/max/ideal size. Definitely don’t guess or you will waste money. Take it from me, a fool, who has made this mistake and been sore about it.
Oh, material also matters! I work almost exclusively with aluminum bc it’s easy to work with, forgiving, can be anodized into a bunch of different colors (I buy them like that; I would not trust myself with an anodizing machine lol) and really good allergies-wise. Steel is fine but hurts my hands, niobium is gorgeous but expensive. I would personally never work with silver or gold because I’m not made of money and I think I’d cry over every damaged ring. I don't like working with metals that can tarnish either like copper or brass; I want it to keep looking the same over time! So aluminum is just right for my needs.
Jump ring closures
I hate feeling like I am bragging but one thing that sets me apart skills-wise (which even other chainmail artists I have met have praised me for) is smooth closures. Every ring comes split and you have to open/close them as you weave. Practicing to make the split as invisible as possible just gives the chainmail a more professional look. Sometimes if I have to redo a part I have to find the split by feel cuz I just can’t see it (and it’s not cuz my vision is horrible 😆). I have had people ask me if my work is 3D printed which makes me sad bc some of what I sell now takes up to 4 hours of hard work to make but also I guess it's a compliment??
Getting saw cut rings instead of machine cut helps with this as the splits are already much cleaner to start with. If you look closely at the purple dragon scale picture above you'll see some messy closures - the large purple rings were machine cut rings that I bought before I learned better, so it's a good example of what I mean!
Have fun!
The key to doing anything well, or at least just enjoying the journey, is to make sure you’re having fun :) If it ain’t fun, find something else that is. One of the more fun things I make is dragon sculptures. Don’t be too impressed, I did not design this. I bought instructions for it from my supplier and lots of chainmail artists make them. Many of them make them even better than I do, but this isn't my main product just more of a fun thing I do when the mood strikes.
New flavours like this are always intimidating but the more you drink of it the more pleasant the taste is, the cup is big and there’s a lot of tea, after an hour you still haven’t finished it, maybe it’s because of the small sips you’re taking but you don’t want to waste it. You wonder how long it’ll last and if you should finish it before it gets cold.
Lapsang Souchong: If your OC was a scented candle, what would they smell like?
Green: What is your OC’s favorite piece of clothing? (For the modern au with the nightclub and cocktail name)
HI TINY! <3 Thanks so much for asking! I'm getting my groove back here we go:
(I have never had Lapsang Souchong, I'm a fake tea fan. I want to! It sounds so delicious and supposedly the scent is incredible. But I LOVE green tea, I usually order it hot at any restaurant that has a tea selection. yummy and they say it's good for your skin)
If your OC was a scented candle, what would they smell like?
Sweet balsamic (pine notes) and brown sugar incense. Woody, sweet and smoky.
What is your OC’s favorite piece of clothing? (For the modern au with the nightclub and cocktail name) FOR ESPRESSO MARTINI AAAAA oh this is hard. But I think Coadi's absolute favorite piece of clothing are these brown corduroy pants they can wear on their days out and about, for dates or important work meetings that don't currently involve kneeling in the sand/mud for digging up new artifacts.
You take a sip of the tea, which is in a lovely fairy-type-themed teacup. It fills you with all of the warmth of being hugged by a loved one, and you can’t help but smile to yourself.
The taste is floral and sweet, like cherry blossoms and rose. You’re normally not a fan of floral flavors, but this one really speaks to you. It’s soothing and relaxing, making you feel like everything’s alright in the world.
Once you’re finished, you feel satisfied enough to lay down for a nap for a while, feeling warm and fuzzy inside.
This is garbage juice, the leftover product of grease and whatever someone didn’t want anymore, it’s even served in a clearly used plastic cup. You throw it back where it belongs, you’re not drinking that.
kombucha (what do you order on pizza?), i always order mushrooms and bacon/ham :3
butter tea (show me a part of your room you find interesting), my room is deconstructed right now because we’re painting it but my house poster above my bed ❤️❤️
Admittedly I have a hard time labeling any episode as The Best, but it’s definitely super high on my list. As someone who hasn’t read the comics, I was blown away when I first saw the time travel of this episode and 1x16 (which I always consider a package deal, so I always forget they’re two separate episodes 😅 same with 1x13 and 1x14). And killing off Cisco via Eowells?? That “you have shown me what it’s like to have a son” line?? AHHHH (and ofc the visions Cisco gets later…the way this turns him into Vibe omg)
The one downside of this episode is that Westallen kiss. Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s a sweet kiss and all, and the confession is clearly very heartfelt, and it’s at least consensual, unlike the 1x19 kiss that some SBs like to romanticize…but it’s also cheating (Iris is dating Eddie, Barry is…possibly still dating Linda? I don’t remember exactly), and the show is so attached to it that it rubs me the wrong way sometimes (s4 in particular mentions it as something Iris has Cisco vibe her to in order to see). I just…really wish this kiss had happened post-s1 if they were gonna make it the Big Damn Kiss yk? Or at least they could’ve recreated it and made that the big romantic kiss.
It’s not a major complaint, it’s just like a rock in my shoe, so to speak 😅 but the episode overall is SOLID and one of my favorites for sure 💞
