Tessera

Started swatching for my first new sweater in over a year, trying to get out of my knitting rut and better look after my mental health. I should really knit more @babycocktails.bsky.social designs; the textures are always so delightful. This will look really lovely once I add the stripes, too.

A photograph of an in-progress knit swatch. The fabric is blue and has a lovely, toothy texture.

I've been listening to a lot of piano music while working today, and invariably, whenever I hear something that stops me dead in my tracks with this sense of heartbreaking beauty and sadness and quiet longing, it ends up being Satie. He crushes me every single time, and I love him for it.

Silly meeting doodle based on an equally silly reference photo, just in case anyone else needs a pick-me-up.

Curse the past version of me that started converting ebooks into MOBI instead of EPUB. Praise the current version of me that is spending the winter storm getting my Calibre library in order once and for all. <3 good metadata.

Been working on this one for a while. I *love* how Hornet came out, but the foreground needs more than a little help. I’m going to need to learn how to draw landscapes at some point, but for now it’s time to move onto the next thing. Still really happy with this piece overall, though!

A digital drawing of Hornet, a character from the video game Silksong. She’s holding a needle as a weapon and surrounded by greenery.

The view from my kitchen this morning. I know everyone loves complaining about winter weather, but I find it all so tiresome. There’s beauty in all seasons.

A photograph of the woods, covered in freshly fallen snow.

I am such a nerd. I got access to some new data tables at work (something like 2 years after I first requested it), and I am just bouncing-off-the-walls giddy about the reporting I'm *finally* going to be able to generate.

Was feeling really down on myself last night, and decided to use art as a coping mechanism. This was from a tutorial, so I don’t get any creative credit, but it was fun and got me using brushes I hadn’t used before. Also, painting with color directly instead of relying on layer blending. #ArtWithFlo

Digital drawing of a black cat on a roof. It’s evening, and the sky is bursting with a moody sunset light. The moon and stars are above.

Baby's first commissioned artwork! Although I use the term "commissioned" lightly, and I asked that the $ be donated to my local animal shelter. Sure, I still have no idea how to make objects actually feel like they're sitting in a 3D space, but I was still pretty pleased with how this turned out.

A drawing of bunch of video game characters (Kirby, a korok, a junimo, a metroid, and a goomba) in Santa hads sitting around a bunch of presents. There are Christmas lights in the background. Text reads: "Dwelling of Duels Secret Santa."

I’ve been in a bit of a knitting rut this year, but at least I finally finished some socks. Hopefully I can find a better balance between hobbies next year.

A pair of hand-knit socks. They’re 80s style, with blue/green-tinted rainbow stripes and long rippled cuffs.

John Scalzi@scalzi.com · 8mo ago

I'll go one step further: it's a shitty move to yuck someone's yum. I've been guilty of this myself, and I'm trying to be better. But it's infinitely kinder to say "eh, not for me" than "this is garbage, and you should feel sorry for liking it." If it's not hurting anyone, let people have their joy.

My advice: Like what you like and don't worry about anyone who tells you it's cringe. Life's short and the world's on fire, and as long as you're not hurting other people, you're fine. I mean, I still like U2, too! I don't care who knows it. If other people don't like that, that's a them problem.

For someone who has a dog, I sure was cat-obsessed last month. Check out my cover of "A Cat Is a Cat" from Calico, composed by @slide20xx.com. It's such a cozy little tune... and I even drew the background art for the video. Meow! youtu.be/SoC9HiYnHdA

A Cat Is a Cat | Calico cover

YouTube video by Andromeda

youtu.be

Gib chikn. Gib chikn now.

Photograph of a dog staring down the viewer, begging for food.

Not done with sharks by a long shot, but here, have a palate cleanser: a cheerful prismatic #junimo to counteract the gloom. #StardewValley is my favorite comfort game. Been playing a lot of it again this year; I wonder why…

A digital drawing of a Junimo from Stardew Valley, colored to resemble a prismatic shard, over a dark blue snowy/starry background. Text at the top reads “keeper of the forest.”