Catrinformation

Lubedcalf is turning footsteps into electricity! Using creepers, every step lubedcalf takes generates a small amount of energy. Millions of steps together can power palpitations and high blood pressure in busy places like Kale's aorta

Continuing to refine the shape + starting to plan markings before I switch to the nice wool for the topcoat.

WHO IS SHE

Got the basic form done. I feel like I can further refine it during the topcoat phase with the nice wool and final colors (this brown is a bit dark). He is still a bit scrappy and I'd like a bit more floof.

Also going to redo the ears, if I have time.

Tonight's rat progress is all fiber prep. I have blended a variety of whites (merino, alpaca, and a little angora) for a more complex top coat - I don't want a brilliant white.

You all knew he was nakey this entire time, right?

Laying in the topcoat is a bit tricky because the fibers are so fine (I had to be extra, lol). What you do is measure a piece a little over 2x the length you want, place on the body, poke a line down the center, fold over the fiber, then reinforce a line at the fold. Smooth down and shape with scissors. Then, progressively move up the body in the direction fur would grow in.

When I'm done, I might hit him with a bit of hairspray to help with the flyaways.

Would a rat wear pants like this, or....?

My final fiber arrived ahead of schedule yesterday, just in time for a neighborhood power outage due to a line going down. But I was able to blend the brown topcoat and am now over halfway done laying in the fur.

Several different rats have played Vonolel in the current All Creatures Great & Small TV show, but I did mostly copy one specific rat's markings, with a few minor tweaks. Let's see if anyone ends up guessing the episode.

I still need to set the whiskers, clean up flyaways and stray fiber, and do some miscellaneous tweaks, but this post is long enough, so let's consider Vonolel done. :)

I learned a lot with this lil' guy - my 5th needle felting piece and first I did without a kit. Made a lot of mistakes, too. But I'm going to cut myself some slack.

Here's everything I have felted to date. It's been a rare craft where my hands don't hurt at all, save for a few needle pokes and one unfortunate scissors snip.

Dolphins doing cartwheels with an aquarium guest.

While there are many things on the Online safety act that i agree should be enforced, the sloppy execution of this act should stand as an issue for every British citizen.

As of July 25th 2025 online platforms have a legal duty to protect children online, by blocking content such as pornography, eating disorder content and content promoting self harm. Along with hateful content and dangerous stunts and behaviours. They are enforcing this by forcing every UK citizen to show proof they are over 18 in order to access this content, by showing a form of ID or banking information. And this is where I have my issue.

No one is opposing the idea of protecting children online, this is obviously a crucial thing. But hiding behind the idea of “for the children” to enforce censorship and mass surveillance is simply cowardly and deceitful. It is disastrous for children especially.

This act has not only caused the blocking of harmful content, but also of sites which contain crucial information for things such as domestic abuse, sexual assault, gender dysphoria, alcoholism, world politics and so much more. With young people now left isolated from these topics, the act is putting them in more danger. It leaves children more vulnerable to these threats as they no longer have access to information that might help them recognise dangerous behaviours that they or others are exhibiting. This act will literally KILL people.

Labelling people opposing this act as predators is ironic since, just a few months ago, PM Keir Starmer and other MP’s voted down the amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing Bill with 364 to 111. This bill was supposed to investigate child sex abuse and grooming gangs in the UK. They instead suggested it should be done at a local level. But they didn’t actually implement any of their suggestions while in office. Strange.. that they are now so obsessed with protecting the children? Since protecting the children is merely a cover.

Not only is this act wildly dangerous. It affects EVERYONE’S anonymity online. Everyone is now required to submit their precious personal information to third parties who will determine whether or not you are an adult. It is a clear breach of privacy. And it especially affects the elderly. They are the most sensitive to hackers and data theft. Having naive elderly people giving their personal banking info seems like an incredibly dangerous thing to do. With data breaches happening frequently already. Having a whole country submitting personal data could have immeasurable consequences.

As a teenager myself, it frustrates me that I am powerless. I can not just leave the country (it would be futile anyways since many other countries are eager to follow the UK’s footsteps). I am trapped under government control and unable to access such crucial information. I refuse to submit to this blatant authoritarianism and we can not allow this to go on.