The images linked in this post are NWS.
In 1973, Kinuko Craft provided illustrations for Playboy's printing of Goblin Market. I was introduced to one of the images during a class in college, and it turned out that was the only picture I could find online from the series. I collect some erotica when it strikes my fancy, and this one was really cool... so I decided to hunt down a copy of that issue of Playboy so I could clip the picture and put it in a frame for my room.
I was a bit disappointed by the rest of the illustrations, which weren't nearly so striking. The best-known picture looks like it was based on this Rackham illustration:
(The Kinuko Craft image is linked below; I have labeled it Illustration 4.)
The other of the pictures are rather silly and obviously titillating... but I'm doing my part to contribute to the internet by posting up the rest of the series. :) I also LOVED going through the ads for 1973 menswear; half of the stuff was seriously clothing I would wear!
(Illustration 1)
These are from the September 1973 issue of Playboy.
Say that again and know that if you’re lying to me, I will find you, and I will skin you.
Nothing else will be accomplished today. Let me assure you.
Call out to the flist (and the internet at large) - If you are in the UK and can record and somehow make available online the new episodes of BBC Sherlock for me, I will paint anything you want.
Seriously.
If you can do this, please reply or drop me an email.
We went to the midnight showing of Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.
Some Sherlock fans dislike any deviance from the canon, and so dislike RDJ's depiction of Sherlock Holmes. If you disliked the first RDJ Sherlock Holmes, the same things with bother you about this one. However, I find that the inaccuracies are not the type that bother me. It is an interesting, cohesive interpretation that modernizes some of the things about the books that might otherwise be dull to a movie-going audience. It is a new story, rather than a retelling of the canon, but it does give nods to the canon and bring in some book events... though it uses them differently, some to the same purpose.
The acting was markedly better; there were no parts of the movie that I felt were poorly acted. Irene Adler's diminished role meant that there were fewer opportunities to wince at her terrible delivery... and the addition of Moriarty, Moran, Mycroft, and a new female character were fantastic. Moriarty was delightfully dark, incredibly creepy and intellectual while being rather charming. While not what I had originally pictured, he was a fantastic casting choice and I was thrilled to death with him; he was actually difficult to watch in one pivotal scene because he was so immorally urbane. Moran was amazingly badass and rather charming; he's a character I enjoy across interpretations and I wasn't disappointed at all. The new female character was a much better actress and had a much more interesting role without the thickly-applied, clumsy romance. Stephen Fry as Mycroft was AWESOME. No less fabulous than you would expect. Jude Law reprises his role as pissy, alert Watson, and RDJ returns as the disheveled, slightly pathetic-but-brilliant Holmes. If there is anything I dislike in terms of accuracy about the Ritchie Sherlock, it is that he is rather more poignantly pathetic than any other incarnation... but again, I find his portrayal consistent throughout the movie, and also an interesting take given modern interpretations of Sherlock and his ability to cope with real life needs (relationships, self-care) given the weight of addictions and possible mental illness.
Plotwise, there was enough information to figure out the plot at a good pace. There was nothing super surprising, but nothing boring either. Sherlock enthusiasts will hear one word in the first half hour and will know how the story will end, even if they don't know how the mystery itself will conclude yet. Everyone else might be guessing a little more. The plot was very explosion-heavy, and Holmes really takes a beating throughout the film... to say more would give away a lot.
Romance-wise, Adler-Holmes shippers will be somewhat disappointed. Mary and John are quite sweet, in their limited interactions... the bromance between Holmes and Watson is as delightful as the first movie (they are no less slashable even after Watson's marriage), and the subtleties between Moriarty and Moran make them a great addition to the Ritchie-verse slash world.
The short review is that if you liked the first one, you will like the second one even better. If you did not like the first one because of characterization, the same will bother you in the second. If you didn't like the first one because you didn't like the plot, you may like this plot better as it is much more complex and more cohesive.
Scarves and Monster High
on Etsy.
[gallery link="file" order="DESC" columns="4" orderby="title"]
Oh, and Mandy and I made a cake. It's cherry cake with maraschino cherry filling and chocolate buttercream. I made the cake and filling, Mandy made the frosting. Mandy did the flat frosting, I did the piping. We both went to town applying the edible butterflies. TEAMWORK. The cake is epic.
This weekend I painted 5 Monster High dolls, 3 BJD heads, and 1 Tonner doll. And amazingly, I still had time to do other things. CRAZY. The MH will go up on Etsy tomorrow after I take some decent photos.
This week I feel like I am on crack. HOORAY.
Tomorrow I'm going to varnish the table again and write up some stuff for DoA. AMAZAZING. I think I'll also write and see if Sam wants to hang out on Thursday when I'm off. I need to tone down my twitchiness, though, otherwise no one will ever think I'm fit company....
A picture for you!
Click to biggify.
Today I was pretty productive! Yay!
The main unproductive thing I did today was go driving around town looking for the new Monster High dolls. Roommate and I sometimes like to just go shopping around without buying things, and this was one of those days. Our area has none of the new dolls - Toralei, Spectra, Abbey, or the Sweet 1600 or Skull Shores lines - so it wasn't too exciting. Though we were out for a few hours, we only came home with an ugly dog sweater for Farinelli and a box of Junior Mints.
I worked on some BJD commissions when I got home and they're going pretty well, I think. I am between commissions for the MH dolls (everything is currently in transit)... and I'm at the point now where I can't stop. It's like when I finished the Inklings... and I was just looking around going "Okay, I'm ready. I finished dinner and now it's time to paint faceplates or fiddle with the stringing or... oh. There are none left. What do I do...?" So I bought a few dolls to repaint to put in my Etsy shop and I have been playing with those. They'll probably go up on Monday. I want to buy more to paint, but I need to remind myself that I have projects incoming, so I need to just chill. >_< When the next batch comes in, there will be a LOT of dolls to paint.
I also helped Roommate make cookies to take over to my family's for traditional Sunday-after-Thanksgiving pizza dinner. They are pumpkin cheesecake-stuffed snickerdoodles. They are pretty freaking fabulous and the house smells amazing now.
Anyway, now I'm going to lie on my couch and do nothing. YAY.
Equals disaster. >_<
The lower fat modifications were a bit frustrating... I substituted a large portion of the oil for apple sauce in the cake itself, which worked last time with this exact same recipe, but this time it seems a little bit dense. The fresh strawberry filling took two tries (the first time it didn't set up)... and the lower fat buttercream was a disaster on the first time through. The second time went better, but it didn't spread as well... and decorating was hard. Add to that, I'd cut and aligned the halves while on Dayquil and not wearing my glasses.
Mandy took the frosting away from me because she told me I was just "getting stupid." She's was right.
Here is one photo of the cake that makes it look slightly not-crooked. Good thing I wasn't painting dolls, huh?
It has sparkling sugar and luster dust...
And as I look at it, I sort of feel like I've recreated my last Monster High custom as a cake. What is WRONG with me? T_T
Ugh, I don't feel good still.
After 7 months, the bathroom is FINALLY finished. I'll try to take some pics tomorrow night to share. This weekend we put in the sink, mirror, vanity light, and towel bar. It looks really swank and modern... I really like it. I am wiped, though. Roommate's dad came in to do it and I helped him all day. I love my new sink. It is a vessel sink and it is so classy looking. <3
I am just settling in for the night, already it's almost time to go to bed. OMG. We've also been having problems with our router, so we've had intermittent internet access. Ugh.
Virginia's auction started:
Ebay link
I am possessed with an idea for two MH custom dolls that I want for my own collection. They're so demented that I am filled with absolute glee... but I don't know if I can justify to myself doing them. All the same, I don't think that I can... NOT do them. O_O I'll pick up supplies when I get supplies for commissions. No work on them till in-house commissions are done.
I'm also excited to announce that I have secured a dining room table from the unfinished wood furniture place. It is a fabulous shaker-style table, all made in the US and purchased from a small local business. Yay for supporting local industry and buying quality materials that aren't landfill-bound as soon as they're assembled. Now to just assemble it, do the finishing, stain it, and varnish it. SO EXCITED. The chairs are on layaway. >_< A little ghetto, I realize... but the sad thing is that I am measuring things in chairs at present. Virginia? If she sells, that's one chair. Two commissions? One chair. OMG CHAIRS. *runs around in circles*
So... that's what's new in Armeleialand. Now I need to go to bed. >_< The weekend went so fast.
I am feeling a twinge of the crazy. That's not good.
