reference blog

The uh ,,

So I made this art tip by showing how i usually paint in Arcana style!

I only made the tutorial of painting headshot so far, so if you wanna know how i paint clothes or other things, feel free to ask👌

Model ：Richard @heyoojustcallmerichard

The texture i used is the second one under “no texture. ” (all my paper textures and brush textures are mojibake, so everytime i wanna add textures i have to try all of them one by one;^; #lifeishard

I pulled the source file in case ours paper textures are not in the same order👇

A guide on my process for colouring like in the Arcana which I developed through studying the style.

Now, this is just for sprites or for neutral lighting. In the case of most memories/CGs, you have more interesting colours to use, but the process is identical. There are just extra steps.

Using my favourite memories for each character as examples (hopefully, you can tell which ones) you can see this process. All of this happens on layers above the base drawing.

Usually, you set a colour-filled layer to the setting “multiply” over the entire drawing, then using a “screen”, “add”, or “hard light” layer, you add the lighting. Depending on the intensity of the lighting, the outline will be coloured to be lighter.

The shading colour rarely changes, aside from slight hue changes.

Misc advice/tips/tricks below. I may update it depending on if I get further questions.

Ancient Greek fashions

Sadly a lot of them are one shots, but there’s a few longer ones. A lot of yuri manga is tragically too short and I’m always left wanting more. D: 

After some struggles with myself, I ended up putting stories about college aged women so long as it’s not “innocent school life” heavy. 

Yamaji Ebine

Love my Life (this one has a movie. A uni student coming out to her father and finding that her parents were both queer as well.)

Indigo Blue (A novelist caught between feelings for her boyfriend but also her feelings for another woman.)

Free Soul (22 year old aspiring manga artist writing a manga about a black jazz singer. Artist falls for a trumpeter of a jazz band.)

Sweet Lovin Baby (A young woman befriends a lesbian couple and falls for them. With three other short stories.)  

Morishima Akiko

Conditions for Paradise- An OL in love with a world hopping freelance journalist

We’re Aiming for Love Now (Journalist and a cutie in a cosplay store)

Happy Picture Diary - (REALLY FUNNY. An social worker and an editor’s daily life together. All chibi but with some really real lesbian life jokes)

Off-Time (an aging lesbian short one shot)

20-Year-Old Girl x 30-Year-Old Maiden- (one shot, a 30 year old sensitive about her age with a 20 year old woman in her art class)

Princess of the Stars- (short- almost didn’t make it b/c high school flashbacks but it’s college roomies and it’s short and sweet- and challenges that “girls experiment with girls in high school then grow out of it” thing that people in Japan sometimes think)

Other Artists: 

Ohana Holoholo: Torino Shino (Saya lives with her bisexual former girlfriend and her son. Nico, an actor living up stairs and a close friend, drops by for a visit almost everyday.  Somewhat like family, and somewhat not, a story about their lives)

My Unique Day-Sakamoto Mano (women in an acting troupe together. one shot)

Abracadabra- Tanaka Minoru (a magician and a cute girl dealing with confessing to a girl for the first time)

Lonely Wolf, Lonely Sheep- Mizutani Fuka (two women with the same name meet. Warnings for self harm)

Cirque Arachne: Saida Nika (Two women working in the circus in a trapeze act. Stellar cute.)   

Maple Love- Otsu Hiyori (meeting in college; really cute)

Two that I recommend but are set apart from the others because one is written by a man and one is written with the male audience in mind respectively

Kusari ha mou iranai- Uso Kurata; two Office ladies

Octave- Akiyama Haru (seinen manga; a talent manager and a songwriter)

so since the most popular (? at least the one i saw get shared around the most) english picrew tutorial seems to have gotten deleted i decided to make my own, cuz a lot of picrew features are kinda hard to figure out even if you translate the page…

this guide covers the basics of adding items and color options and what various settings do, as well as some slightly more complicated things like layers and using color palettes. at the end i’ve added a section on tags and publishing and stuff.

i’ve tried my best to make this tutorial simple and easy to follow, so i hope people find it useful!

English Surnames

Dutch Surnames

Spanish Surnames

Scottish Surnames

German Surnames

Italian Surnames

Irish Surnames

French Surnames

Scandinavian Surnames

Welsh Surnames

Jewish Surnames

Surnames By Ethnicity

Most Common Surnames in the USA

Most Common Surnames in Great Britan

Indian surnames

Indonesian surnames

Pakistani surnames

Bengali surnames

Japanese surnames

Filipino surnames

Korean surnames

Syrian surnames

Mongolian naming and clan names

Thai surnames

So lets say you’re researching something for a paper (or just for fun) and the research paper you want to read is behind a paywall, or the site makes you create an account first, or makes you pay to download, or limits you to only 5 free articles, or otherwise makes it difficult for you to read what you want.

do not fear! copy the link to the article

go to sci-hub.se         (the url is always changing so its best to check out whereisscihub.now.sh to find what the current url is)

slap the article link in there

Dark mori is a more western take on “goth-ing” that up, and has resulted in blending more witchy styles with japanese mori silhouettes. I often think of dark mori like fashion banshees and general unseelie type vibes, but the general point is it should feel dark but from the forest or with a “nature” aura.

Post apoc fashion on the other hand is highly inspired by science fiction, and is essentially a way to fashionize the styles we like from movies. Mad max without spiky armor, star wars tatooine or jakku fashion, etc. Post apoc fash often focuses more on the “desert wasteland” direction of speculative fiction, and uses sun-protecting layers as well as a lot of dusty colors (charcoals, dusty tans, etc). I’ve also noticed a lot of sedated military greens, and general light inspiration from military utility items to give the clothes a more faux-practical look. There’s usually a ruined industrial feeling to it

Succulents

So maybe you’re a writer or maybe you’re in a fantasy RP group, maybe you just want to make maps. Either way, with the right guidance the process is pretty easy. Here’s some Photoshop and research resources I’ve compiled to make your life easier.

WORLD MAPS How to generate a map in Photoshop (video) How to create (mountain) brushes (video) How to create trees (video) How to create mountains and hills (video) How to create swamps and deserts (video) Tolkien-Style Map Brushes (1)(2) Parchment Textures (1)(2)(3) Calthyechild’s Fantasy Map Tutorial & Resources World Maps to inspire you (1)(2)(3)(4)

Written by Michael ‘@michafrar’ Azzi (and a dozen of guest artists … @unseven, @jinndevil, @pixosprout to name just a few), Pixel Logic is your ultimate tome of knowledge about all things specific to the art of tiny squares.

Weighing in at 242 pages, Pixel Logic spans 9 chapters which quickly leave introductory basics behind for a deep dive into things that make pixel art a unique art form: anti-aliasing, dithering, sub-pixeling, and less talked about—but just as crucial—topics of readability and clean-up. 

While it won’t teach you how to draw in terms of shading and anatomy (for that you can use hundreds of resources on art fundamentals out there already), the book does attack foundational areas that matter a great deal in video games, namely graphical projections and animation.

All topics are neatly illustrated with Michael’s art, guest artists’ work, useful diagrams, and plenty of examples from classic and modern pixel art games. Thanks to the colorful design by Jenna ‘@cyanatar​’ Brown, working your way through the content is just as charming as it is super useful.

If you ever wanted all major areas of pixel art knowledge neatly gathered in one place, your wish has been granted (and then some). Pixel Logic is available in both English and French for the very affordable price of $9 or more, and even comes with an enhanced PDF of the Animation chapter that has GIFs embedded right into the book. You can get the first chapter as a free preview, in case you want to get a taste before you buy.

  Alright, here we go– I put together a list of questions about OCs that you can reblog and have people send in asks for you! I set it up so you can be like, “A3″, “D2″, et cetera… Keep checking in here to the original post in case I add some more to the list! In the meantime, I hope y’all have some fun with this and maybe use it to learn a little bit more about your OCs or get to share things about them!! A. Psychology

What of the Meyers-Briggs personality types they most fit into? INFP, ENFT, et cetera…

What alignment are they? Chaotic neutral, lawful evil, et cetera…

Do they have any emotional or psychological conditions? Are they aware of it? Do they try to treat it? 

Are they a pessimist or an optimist? 

Are they good at handling change in their life?

Does your OC tend to assume their interpretation of events and reality is correct, or do they question it? I.e., “I’m sure that’s what you said” versus “It’s possible I misheard you.”

Is your OC confident in their reactions to life in general, or do they get embarrassed or easily shamed for it? I.e., if something startles them, do they insist it WAS scary? When they cry, do they feel like they overreacted?

Is your OC a martyr?

Does your OC make a lot of excuses? For themselves? Others? 

Does your OC compromise easily? Too easily?

Does your OC put others’ needs before their own?

Does your OC have any addictions? If so and problematic, have they admitted it to themselves? 

Does your OC have any phobias? If so, where did they come from?

Is your character empathetic?

Is your character observant?

Does your OC have to go through their own trials to learn a lesson, or do they listen and learn from observation and lecture? I.e., does your OC listen when someone tries to tell them the importance of budgeting, or do they have to go experience what happens if you don’t budget first?

What’s one of your OC’s proudest moments of themselves?

Do they get jealous easily? Do they feel bad if they do?

What instantly irritates them or puts them in a bad mood?

Are they harsh on themselves?

Do they make excuses often?

Is your OC intended to be found generally attractive? Unattractive? Average? Is there a reason why?

Does your OC place much importance on their appearance? Do they feel confident in it?

What are some of your OC’s biggest personal obstacles? This could be emotional, physical, social… Are they aware of it? Are they trying to overcome it?

B. Social

Do they believe you have to give respect to get it, or get respect to give it?

Do they get frustrated when lines at places like pharmacies, check-outs, delis, banks, et cetera, are moving slowly?

Under what situations would they get angry at servers, staff, customer service, et cetera?

Do they tip well? How easily can they be moved to not leave a tip?

Do they hold doors open for people?

Would your OC let someone ahead of them in line if your OC had a big cart and the person behind them had very few items?

How do they respond to babies crying in public?

Is your OC considered funny? Do they believe they’re funny?

What kind of humor does your OC like the most? Slapstick, ironic, funny sounds, scare pranks, xD sO rAnDoM…

Does your OC find any “bad” or “mean” humor funny? Do they wish they didn’t?

Your OC is running late to meeting someone: Do they let the other person know? Do they lie about why they’re late?

Your OC orders something to eat and gets their order done in a pretty wrong way, something they can’t just pick off or whatnot to correct, or something major is missing. What do they do?

Do they have a large or small group of friends?

Do they have people they are genuinely honest with about themselves?

Does your OC enjoy social events, such as parties, clubs, et cetera..?

Does your OC like to be the center of attention or more in the mix?

C. Morality

Does your OC have a moral code? If not, how do they base their actions? If so, where does it come from, and how seriously do they take it?

Would your OC feel bad if they acted against their morals? If not, would they find a way to excuse themselves for it?

Is it important for them to be with people (socially, intimately, whatever) whose major ideological tenets align with their own?

Do they consider themselves superior or more important than anyone else? Lesser?

Do your OC’s morals and rules of common decency go out the window when it comes to those they don’t like, or when it’s inconvenient? Aka, are their morals situational?

What do they do when they see someone asking for money or food? If they ignore them, why? If they help, how so?

Do they believe people change over time? If so, is it a natural process or does it take effort? 

Is your OC more practical or ideal morally? I.e., do they hold people to high expectations of behavior even if it’s not realistic for the situation, or do they have a more realistic approach and adapt their morality to be more practical?

D. Religion and Life and Death

How religious is your OC? What do they practice, if anything? If they don’t associate with any religion, what do they think of religion in general?

Do they believe in an afterlife?

How comfortable are they with the idea of death?

Would they like to be immortal? Why, why not? If they are immortal, would they rather not be?

Do they believe in ghosts? If not, why? If so, do they think they’re magical/tie into their religion, or are they scientifically plausible?

E. Education and Intelligence

Would you say that your OC is intelligent? In what ways? Would your OC agree?

Which of the nine types of intelligence is your OC strongest in? Weakest? (Linguistic, existential, naturalist, et cetera)

How many languages do they speak?

Did they enjoy school if they went to it?

What’s their highest education level? Do they want to continue their education?

Do they enjoy learning? Do they actively seek out sources of self-education?

Are they a good note-taker? Are they a good test-taker? Do exams make them nervous?

What’s one of your OC’s biggest regrets?

F. Domestic Habits, Work, and Hobbies

What sort of home do they live in now, if at all? How did they end up there?

What’s their ideal home look like? Where is it?

Could they ever live in a “tiny home”?

How clean are they overall with home upkeep?

How handy are they? Can they fix appliances, cars, cabinets, et cetera?

How much do they work? What do they do? Do they enjoy it?

What’s their “dream career” or job situation?

How often are they home?

Are they homebodies and enjoy being home?

Do they engage in any of the arts? How good do you intend them to be? Would they agree they are?

What are some of their favorite things to do for recreation? How did they get into it? What part of it do they like the most?

Would they enjoy a theme park?

G. Family and Growing Up

Is your OC close to their family?

Who makes up your OC’s family, at least the more important members to them?

Does your OC find their family supportive? If not, what would be an example why not?

What kind of childhood did your OC have?

Did they go through any typical phases growing up?

Do they have any favorite childhood memories?

Do they have any childhood memories they’d rather forget or be less affected by?

H. Romance and Intimacy

What is your OC’s orientation, romantic and/or sexual? Has it ever been a source of stress for them? Have they always been pretty sure of their orientation?

Is your OC a thoughtful partner, in whatever aspect of that you want to cover?

Does your OC believe there’s only one ideal partner (or multiple ideal if not monogamous) for everyone, or that there are many people who could be right?

Does your OC believe in love in first sight?

Does your OC believe in marriage (or their culture’s equivalent)?

Has your OC ever cheated on anyone or been cheated on?

What do they look for in partners? (Emotionally, mentally, physically..)

What’s your OC’s idea of a perfect date?

What are some things that your OC finds to be an instant turn-off in potential partners?

I. Food

What are their favorite kinds of flavors– Sweet, salty, sour, spicy, creamy, et cetera?

Do they have any eating requirements or preferences? Allergies, vegetarian, organic-only, religious restrictions…

Are they vegan/vegetarian (if their overall culture/species generally aren’t)? If so, why? Do they think animal products are wrong in all circumstances?

How often do they cook? Do they order out a lot?

Are they a good cook?

Could they eat the same thing they enjoy over and over and not get bored of it quickly?

J. Politics, Current Events, Environmental Aspects

Where does your OC stand most politically? What would they align with most?

How politically aware are they?

How politically active are they?

Is your OC the sort to fall for fake news? If not, do they ignore it or make a point to clarify that it’s wrong?

Are they or would they protest for a cause they’re passionate about?

How do they react to people whose political viewpoints are very opposite of theirs?

How much interest in environmental health do they have?

In reality-based or applicable worlds, do they believe in global warming? Do they recycle?

K. For OCs in Reality-Based Worlds Who Are Unusual in Paranormal Ways (such as magical abilities, being another species, having a curse like lycanthropy, sci-fi abilities, being from another time, et cetera)– Also for OCs where the scenario is similar even if their universe isn’t based on reality

Does your OC have to keep their paranormal aspect (PA) a secret from general society? If so, how? I.e., they can’t discuss their abilities, they have to hide a tail, they have an alter-ego, et cetera. What would happen if society found out about it?

Are there others in their universe with the same or a similar PA as your OC? I.e., others from different dimensions, others of their same species. Do they know about it?

Does your OC have any friends who know about their PA? Any enemies?

Does your OC ever use their PA to get an advantage? I.e., use their ability to be invisible to steal or get out of things, compete in track while their species is a naturally superior runner, use their invulnerability in careers like police work… If so, do they have any hang-ups about it?

Does your OC feel isolated or unrelatable due to the experience their PA brings with it? If so, how do they deal with it?

Does their PA cause issues in daily life? I.e., if they’re inhuman in a human universe and they can’t go to a doctor or risk the doctor realizing they are not human, super abilities with physical drawbacks, they don’t have control of their abilities and must keep to themselves, et cetera… If so, how do they feel about it?

Does your OC’s PA affect their dietary habits so that they are unusual or problematic by their society’s standards?

What are some routines, if any, of self-care that your OC must engage in that are not typical of their society? I.e., having to file their teeth, maintaining magical rituals, drinking blood…

Does your OC have knowledge that they can’t share with the rest of their world that could improve it if it didn’t cause chaos? I.e., a character from the future knowing about technology not yet invented, but they can’t reveal themselves by sharing it?

Would your OC give up their PA if they could? Why or why not?

L. For the Writer/Owner

How have your characters changed since you created them?

What do you consider the biggest themes in your character, if any?

Did you create the character to be like yourself, did they end up being like yourself, or are they very different from you?

Would you hang out with your OC if you could?

Which OC do you think is the most decent morally or behaviorally?  AKA, which is supposed to a “good guy”?

Which OC do you think is the worst morally or behaviorally? AKA, which is supposed to be a “bad guy”?

Which OC do you think is the most attractive?

What’s the longest you’ve had an OC for?

For any of my OCs:

Iwyn Lavellan, Branwen Lavellan, their parents Siona and Tawen

Mira Lavellan

Enara!

What measures are taken to secure the building ?

Are the walls thin? Brief info of who lives in the building. Are they college kids? People that work through the day? Elderly? Is it a mix? Where does the garbage go?

when and for what reasons are your landlords allowed to enter your home? how much of a notice should they give you before entering?

can the landlord make modifications to your home or apartment without your approval? to what extent?

what are the options and conditions for breaking your lease early if there’s an emergency? (this is ESPECIALLY important for anyone moving to a new state/considerable distance where you are not able to visit the apartment/home before you rent – students get taken advantage of ALL THE TIME with this shit)

if your first or last month at the property is a partial stay (i.e. you move in on july 15th, and rent is typically due on the first) make sure you don’t pay the full first month’s rent before you know the area laws! in many states, you are only legally required to pay for the time you are occupying the property

is renter’s insurance necessary? many apartments want at least 30k coverage, which can run a couple hundred dollars extra per year

-ask if there’s been any consistent/frequent trouble with electricity/internet connectivity/cable if you have it

-what KIND of electricity? 

-what kind of heating (hot water/electric)

-how secure is the neighborhood (if you don’t know) 

- Do they have a policy on rent increases? (Also check if there’s a legal limit to rent increases in the area).

- Are utilities paid in a separate check or with the rent?

- Are utilities metered or pro-rated (in older buildings it’s common to be charged by square footage and/or number of occupants, which can leave you subsidizing the people who turn the a/c down to 60 in the summer or the heat up to 80 in the winter - you may not be able to avoid this but it’s worth trying).

- Are there any switched circuits in the apartment. Buildings built in the late sixties through the early eighties often have switched circuits. If they do, then with the number of devices used these days you will probably have to have something important on the switched circuit - tape the switch in the on position! (Trust me).

- What are the rules on hanging pictures?

- Who is responsible for paying for and replacing bulbs in permanent fixtures? If it’s you and there’s a fixture with weird/unusual bulbs (globe style, chandelier style, etc) ask where you can buy the bulbs.

- Take pictures/make detailed notes about damages already present on move-in. Add additional sheets to what they give you if needed because chances are they’re going to be just as nitpicky when you move out to try and keep part of your security deposit.

I’m sure a ton of people already know how to do this, but I only learned recently, so I wanted to share one of my favorite thumbnailing tricks! Color matching is SUPER helpful to quickly map out potential color schemes :D