An Encouragement

I know I said that I probably wouldn’t have another post until the reveal of a super secret project (Even though that could be mooonths), here’s one. So there.

There are a great many people, including myself sometimes, that feel put down for the type of art they choose to draw, or the subjects in said art that they choose to draw. Whether it be because you draw anime, Disney, realism, Picasso style, whatever. There are groups of people that hate some styles for various reasons. Sometimes those people can be the first that you come across, and you feel as though you should not keep up drawing what you are drawing. I went over a pretty good amount of “I don’t give a crap about your opinion” in one of my previous posts, “Breaking The ‘Rules’”. But nonetheless, I felt that it was important to me, and possibly to someone reading this, to repost this picture.

‘Twas on the front page of DeviantArt and was done by arkham-insanity. It pretty much sums up the whole matter. Whatever style you choose to draw, or going on to other arts, whatever subject you choose to write on, whatever kind of music you want to write (Even if it is rap… >.> Hehe), or anything else… It is up to you. So long as you feel that the subject is right between you and God, then do it! I write morbid murder scenes in my notebook in church. Bloody church! Do I care what people around me may think about it if they happen to read it while I’m writing it? No, because I write what I like and I like what I write.

I don’t know if I’ll actually encourage anyone reading this, but if I do, then fantastic! If you’ve abandoned what you really love to do for something you don’t like so much, just because some people don’t like it, I challenge you to go back to it, despite what they may say. I know from personal experience that sometimes it is hard putting up with teasing, ridicule or whatever else may come your way. But if you can just get yourself past that and get to the point where it doesn’t really matter, then I can assure you that the enjoyment you get out of doing what you love is worth it.

Oh, look!

This poor, neglected blog. It hasn’t had any attention from me since December. How terribly sad.

… Anyway, what has kept me so busy that I’ve not had the time to write on here?

Well, for one, a super secret project. Due to its super secret nature, I shan’t reveal anything more about it at this moment. When it is decided that it isn’t going to be super secret anymore, then I will post again with more details. :D

Also, anime and Skyrim. They’ve eaten my soul. Not that I mind.

Right then! I have a couple of pictures to share on here.

First off, four quickly drawn clothing sketches. Took about 20 minutes on each. I got the reference pictures from HauteLook.com

Second, a speed paint thing that I did. Huzzah.

Third, a quickly sketched portrait of a woman. No idea who she is, but my Facebook people named her Allison Fernwinkle. Yes.

Aaand last, but not by any means the least…. THE UNDERTAKER FROM BLACK BUTLER! <3

My God, I love him. He’s right up there with L and Bakura on my list. So adorable. ouo I’m only 12 episodes into Black Butler and I adore him so very much.

That appears to be all for now, until I write about the super secret project. Maybe I will post about something in-between there, I’unno. Anyway, until next time! :D

MyGlam Review (December, 2011)

Alright, so for those of you who may not have heard, there is a new thing for makeup addicts and non-addicts alike! ‘Tis called MyGlam, the website being http://www.myglam.com. For $10 a month, you get four to five makeup products in a nice, little bag, mailed to you! These products range from deluxe sample size to full sized products. It appears to be founded, or at least run, by makeup artist Michelle Phan (http://www.michellephan.com/) I’ve been following her for quite a long while now, and when she posted a video on her YouTube explaining the bag, I was rather curious.

Upon coming across this, I was unsure. After all, I am a young teen with minimal income, and have to hang onto as much money as possible. No frivolous spending! (Yeah, right. XD) But it is only $10, so I thought, “Hey, why not? If it’s not worth it, I can just cancel.” My bag came this morning… And good Heavens, was it worth it!

To start off, the bag is adorable.

 Picture taken from the front page of MyGlam.com

It is rather nice quality, too! I would guesstimate that the bag alone is worth $7, or thereabouts. It seems to be quite sturdy, and has a cute little mirror inside, attached to it. The mirror on mine is black, not blue as pictured. The bag is one that I will definitely use to hold my makeup now.

Now for the products inside of this magical bag of glamorous wonders. How good were they for the $10 I paid? Let’s see.

I’ll start off with the Soft Matte Lip cream by Nyx.

Picture from MyGlam.com

I was a bit skeptical of this, especially being the fact that I am not always a big fan of lip colors. I don’t wear bold lip colors very often, or very much lip color at all, for that matter. But I tried it nonetheless. I must say, I am thoroughly impressed! The shade that I received is Milan, and it’s a pretty pink color. Perfect for my tastes; slightly bold, but not overpowering. The cream goes on very smoothly, and as claimed, not quite like a gloss, nor like a lipstick. And the best part? It is perfectly matte! This is a wonderful product that I will most certainly be using again and again, and will be heartily recommending to my lip-color loving friends. One of them costs around $6 by itself.

Next on the list is the two products from Urban Decay.

Pictures from MyGlam.com

I’m sure that anyone who ventures even a bit into the world of makeup has at least heard of Urban Decay’s Primer Potion. Tons of makeup artists use it, and recommend it. After using it today, I have joined the group that recommends it. It works very well, making the eyeshadows more intense and lasting. Moving on to the eyeshadow that was included in the bag, which would be Sin by Urban Decay. There’s a good reason that it’s a best seller! It is a gorgeous champagne shade that shimmers something beautiful, and is great alone for a nice gleam on your eyes, or blended with other colors. The case is cute; it looks like a subway token, and has a lid attached. No more lost lids! Huzzah! The Primer Potion costs $19, and Sin costs $17.

Now for the blush paper and oil blotting paper from Mai Couture.

Picture from MyGlam.com

I have a mixed review on this one. It’s the only product that came in the bag that I wasn’t thoroughly impressed with. Let’s get the bad things out of the way, shall we? The blush paper is what I had a problem with. I am not a big blush wearer anyway, but I tried this to see how it was. The color that I received was Sunset Blvd, which appeared to be close to a shade that I wear anyway, when I do wear blush. But for convenience sake, I thought the paper would be a nice alternative. The problem? I could barely see it on my skin. Maybe it was the shade, I don’t know. But I’m very pale, so I would think that peach would show up on my skin, at least somewhat. I understand that it is meant to be sheer, but I couldn’t see it at all, even when I rubbed it on the back of my hand. Maybe an ever-so-slight tint, if anything, but it was barely there. Props to you if you love it, but it just isn’t for me. But that’s my opinion, don’t murder me. XD

But what I WAS impressed with was the oil blotting paper! While I only got a small amount of blush paper, I got the full size packet of blotting paper. It’s a cute little case that is convenient to throw in my purse. It is lightly scented with lavender, which is lovely, and the product works very well! It does exactly what it claims to, that is removing excess oils from your skin without screwing with your makeup. I love it! It is something that I would buy again, and recommend to anyone looking for a good oil blotting paper. Blotting paper by itself is $13, with the wallet carrying case, $25. Blush paper by itself is $17.50, with the wallet, $29.50.

This brings us to our last product in the bag. Lights, Camera, Lashes! by Tarte.

Picture from MyGlam.com

I make no claim to be a mascara expert by any means. I don’t wear it all the time due to the fact that I already have long, dark lashes. But for when I do, this is now one that I would definitely turn to! Most mascaras that I’ve tried feel really heavy and I cannot stand to wear them. This feels nice and light, actually, and it did make my lashes even darker and fuller as it claimed it would. According to the website, you can apply multiple coats of it without clumping, which I can’t say one way or the other. I only put on one coat, so as to whether that is true or not, I cannot say. Nonetheless, it is a really nice mascara that was wonderful to include with the Sin eyeshadow. Put together, it creates a nice daytime look without eyeliners or anything. The tube costs $19.

So all in all, MyGlam is a fantastic deal. Let’s see how much we’ve saved this month alone… $91.50 would be the price of all the makeup together, not including shipping and what not. Deduct the $10 that we paid for the Glam Bag, include my guesstimation of the price of the bag and we’ve saved an amazing $88.50!! Going with the least price on the blush and oil-blotting papers, that is. One thing is for certain; I am staying signed up for this wonderful website. I don’t know if I’ll be doing a product review every month, though I may. I felt it important to review the first bag for those curious, but we’ll have to see about the monthly reviews. (: I love this bag, and I am looking forward to many more months of membership with MyGlam.com.

50,101

I crossed the finish line with 50,101 words. But my book is not yet finished! I guesstimate that I have about another 10k words of plot left, give or take a few thousand. Christmas will put a hindrance on my finishing the book, due to having a slew of Christmas presents to draw, but I do plan to finish it in early 2012. You know, before the world ends. ;D

So congratulations to anyone who is reading this and is a fellow NaNo novelist who finished a book this year. :D Here’s to a published book in the future, and to next year!

Hatsune Miku Picture + Speed Paint Video

Miku! :D And a speed paint video to go along with it.

More info about the picture on my DeviantArt page.

Breaking the “Rules”

Do you know what I often find myself doing, without even realizing it? Trying to please everyone. I speak against it often, and I very well know that I shouldn’t try to please everyone. It’s impossible. Why am I bringing this up now? Because I feel it is important to share this with whomever may be reading this. I don’t usually share overly personal things on this blog, so cherish this. ;D

Let me start with one example to make clear the point I’m trying to get at. A few months back, I read one person’s opinion on anime. He is a comic artist that I was and still am a fan of. He happened to say that everyone and their mother draws anime now, and that people should deviate to different styles. I became so overly worried by this. What do people think of my art?! Am I just like everyone else because of the art style I’ve chosen? I went to the point of questioning my worth as an artist, even almost feeling guilty over it. Now I know what you must be thinking. “Oh Taylor, you silly mongoose! It’s just one opinion! Who cares?!” It’s true. It IS just one opinion. But because of my subconscious tendency to want to please everyone, to never let anyone down, I let it get to me way more than I should have.

I’m not saying that he doesn’t have the right to his opinion of anime. He has as much of a right to his opinion as I have to mine. I’m also not saying that he doesn’t have a point; it’s true that everyone seems to draw anime now. But the fact is that I shouldn’t make it my mission to please him. I don’t even know him, and he probably doesn’t know of my existence. So does it really matter? No. There is no law saying that I can’t draw anime, or any other style, for that matter.

I still am trying to break myself of this habit. Even just now, I made the same mistake again! I read a post on the NaNoWriMo forums about “rules of writing” or some odd thing like that. One of their “rules” spoke strongly against a “character looking in the mirror and describing themselves” scene. On my first or second day of NaNo-ing, I did a scene that was just that. Cole looks into the mirror, and he observes what he sees. Upon reading this “rule of writing”, I stared at my screen for a few moments, pondering this commandment. I, again, started to question my worth, this time as a writer. Is my book now terrible, and not worth writing at all, because of this? I scolded myself for even thinking of writing such a scene, one that has been used countless times. How could I commit such a terrible sin?! I felt guilty, and like I was no longer worthy to participate in the sacred ritual, the NaNoWriMo, which can only include the masters. Those who are trained in these “rules”. I am obviously unfit to try and take a place among these master who always know what they’re doing.

Then, it dawned on me.

Who. Cares.

Who bloody CARES if I write a scene in which my character looks in the mirror and describes himself?! Sure, there are a million other ways to have a character’s appearance revealed, but so what if I choose THAT way?! Why should I feel obligated to abide by this person’s “rules”? I shouldn’t feel guilty for not following their standards. The only standards I should even begin to worry about living up to are God’s standards. This unknown person who took it upon themselves to establish rules to my writing is, in fact, not God. Chances are, they’ll never read my book. I may edit out that scene in which my character looks in the mirror, but so what if I don’t? It doesn’t make me any less a writer, just as drawing anime doesn’t make me any less an artist. I’ve read books that are simply marvelous and the character looks in the mirror, and points out their features. It may not be all of the said features, maybe just their hair color or something of the sort. But I didn’t throw the book aside and say “Bah! This writer obviously doesn’t know the universal law prohibiting such obscene scenes! I shan’t read anymore of this garbage!”

So why, in Heaven’s name, am I writing all of this? What importance does this have to you?

I hate my own faults, but I hate them more in other people, to put it simply. I want to tell you that it doesn’t matter if you do something differently than some other random person. Even if it’s someone close to you, not some obscure internet opinion, it’s okay. I don’t know if someone, anyone, reading this has the same problem I seem to, the undying need to please everyone. But please take it from a struggling person; you can’t please everyone. I know anyone can tell you that; in fact, you’ve probably heard it a million times before. Nonetheless, think about it. There’s always going to be someone, somewhere, that disagrees. Who doesn’t like the way you do things. But ask yourself; does this person’s opinion really matter so much? Am I going to let it impact my life so much that I stop doing something I love because they don’t approve? I try and keep those questions in my head whenever I feel like I am going to torment myself over someone’s opinion of me or something I do. Obviously, I fail at times.

But no matter who you are, whether you’re an artist, scientist, writer, chef, ditch digger, whatever. God loves you, and the opinions of others don’t matter. Do what you do because you love to do it. I LOVE to draw anime. Yeah, I could draw a different style. I have proven that I’m capable of it. But why should I, if what I love to draw is anime? If you are changing or you have changed from doing something you love to something you don’t really like so much, even despise, just because someone said that they didn’t like what you’re doing… Please question it. I hate to see people unhappy, especially if they are for the same reasons I sometimes am. It may be that nobody reading this has this problem. Well then, that’s fantastic! But I hope that if you do, you’ll take the journey of breaking yourself of that with me. I felt the need to share this with you all, maybe for the off chance that it will encourage someone out there. Maybe it will, maybe it won’t.

Another habit I seem to have is rambling about my bad habits. ;D But I digress. A ramble though this was, I hope that it has encouraged someone out there.

Love you all, God bless.

Oh, dear.

Never, under any circumstances, should I write while in pain. Ever.

Last night, I wasn’t feeling all that well. I was getting some really bad stomach pain. But since it’s the NaNoWriMo, I still had to write. Not a good idea, it turns out. The scene I was writing was the reading of the will of Cole’s father, Todd. (Oh, yeah... He dies)… But before I go into that, I must inform you that during the previous scene, that is, the funeral scene, I acquired three new characters that I’ve no idea what to do with. They’re Cole’s aunt, uncle and cousin, on his mom’s side. His cousin is named Vincent. He is one of the very few characters of mine that just came with a name and I didn’t have to think for an hour on what to name him. Unfortunately, I hate him, as do I hate his parents. Todd hates them too, and that comes into play.

You see, I started writing this will-reading scene of mine. Before hand, I watched this, so that may have influenced the loopy-ness. In any case, I did what I planned first, and gave Cole and Ivy their inheritance and what not. Then, against my better judgment, I let Todd continue on. He started addressing his sister in law, brother in law, and his nephew. Me being tired and ill, I didn’t question it as much as I should’ve, knowing Todd’s tendency to want to have the last laugh… and the fact that though he’s usually quiet, he has a very good sense of humor. He left them his, and I quote now, “very precious, very old and considerably treasured potato” which he saved just for them. That’s right. Their inheritance was a potato. But it comes in a fancy box, so it’s special.

Good Lord, I must’ve been loopy to let Todd do that. It’s against NaNoWriMo law to go back and edit (I could end up in NaNo Prison!), so I must continue on with the potato haunting my mind. Though who knows? This potato could work to my advantage. It is the NaNoWriMo, where we take risks, add the most random of things, and hope it works. I think this is one of those risks.

I must spend today in its entirety writing, as I seem to have fallen behind, due to being social, then being sick. Today I feel better, and socializing isn’t required until tonight. I seem to be in my right mind, which is still insane, but in a good way… So I must write. :D