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Dragon ATC

2026-03-02T05:52:07Z

Have a cute dragon picture!

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Happy Valentine's Day!

2026-02-14T20:55:03Z

Again, I made the fitting color for the occasion:

Living Rose. :)

I'm kind of busy, but hey, making paint is my way to relax - and anyway, I always need large amounts of dark red, so... XD

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Watercolor! Happy Solstice!

2025-12-21T21:41:59Z

No, this was actually not planned, but a funny and very fitting coincidence: finally, my newest homemade watercolor is ready! Today is the best day to publish a paint called "Living Sun", right? Happy Solstice to everyone who celebrates, and a wonderful time to everyone else, too! :D

Filling the pans took a while: I learned that PY159 is a very annoying pigment, even more difficult to work with than the PB71 I already complained about. It loves to unmix and it loves to make awful lumps that no amount of grinding managed to remove: after an hour, new lumps inevitably formed. I'm soooo glad I somehow got this into the pans!

I added a small amount of PY138 because... PY159 granulates nicely but is not a particularly intense color. So, the PY138 (which is a cool and very intense yellow) unmixes on the paper from the (warm) PY159, and it's an effect I'm actually very happy with. Looks much nicer in real life than in the photo!

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The Chess Advent Calendar

2025-12-02T09:23:52Z

This year's Advent calendar was made by Semja for me, and it's AWESOME! Chess all the way! :D

( Just look at this lovely modelling! )

I always admire when people are good at working with clay and/or modelling paste - it's one of the techniques I've tried, more than once, to no avail. Lucky for me that Semja has this skill!

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Baking. Hazelnuts. Orange marmalade.

2025-11-24T22:00:05Z

It's that time of the year - I may not celebrate Christmas, but I celebrate everything around Christmas, just because. (Yes, I have an Advent calendar again, too. Okay, three Advent calendars. (In exchanges with artist friends, because store-bought calendars are boring.) You get the idea. I really like all the Christmas-y stuff!) Part of that is, of course, the food. So, here's some very classical Christmas baking! (Hazelnuts! Orange marmalade! YAY!) A bit early, but... I don't care. The supermarkets are starting to play that awful music, so, if I have to live with that, at least I can have the good stuff of the season as well, right?

Boyfriend already made an Advent wreath last weekend! (No candles, just branches and glittery stuff.) He met with some friends and they crafted together. :)

And I baked.

( Just in case you are interested in the (very simple) recipe... It's behind the cut. )

These... Won't survive long... XDD

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Gum Arabic Solution

2025-10-25T18:27:57Z

Just what the title says: I made my own gum arabic solution. I want to make my own watercolor binder (yes, I'm trying to save money XD what else?), which needs some more additives (glycerine and clove oil, neither of which I have at home - yet), but... This was pretty straightforward, and I thought I'd share some pictures of the process.

(Crossposted over at prototypediablerie, a community for DIY things.)

( Pictures and description behind the cut. )

I'm very happy this worked so well. :3

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Watercolor: North German Essentials XD

2025-10-17T15:09:47Z

If there is one color that defines the North German autumn, that would be this one.

Okay, technically, heather season is already over, but... It's definitely not a coincidence that I decided to produce this particular shade of granulating purple.

In case you were wondering: yes, the Lüneburg Heath has some heather. XD That's a bit of an understatement, actually: heather bloom is such a spectacular view that people track it online so you can find the best spots for heather-viewing... (Oh, and they have pretty pictures, too.) Ah, unique North German hobbies. XD

By the way, the weather models predict the year's first frost for this weekend. Kale, YAY! (The kale plants need frost before they can be harvested and eaten.) I'm so looking forward to kale season! :)

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Useful color...

2025-10-15T19:35:31Z

... for me. XD As in, I'm likely the only one ever to use this.

My usual "shadow color" is PV23, which is - unless we count some extremely rare and extremely expensive alternative - pretty much the only blue-violet available on the watercolor market, but lately I've been wishing for an even more blue-ish tone and a bit of granulation in my shadow zones, so... This is PV23 together with ultramarine blue (PB29) and ultramarine violet (PV15). I'm very happy with the result, though I'm aware this is a product for a target group of one. XD

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Watercolor-making...

2025-09-28T12:58:55Z

...or: the chemical adventure goes on. I was missing a yellowish color in my little landscape paint set, so, this is what happened. Still very wet; will likely need ages to dry. As usual.

When used relatively dry, the color looks like a relatively neutral "normal" ocher. When used very wet and/or on textured paper it unmixes into warm yellow and (thanks to the PW18, which is a dark dusty rose really) more reddish dark zones.

Pigments: PY138, PY154, PV19, PW18

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Weird Watercolor

2025-09-26T22:34:04Z

This... is PB71, a pigment that's typically not used in watercolor - and now I know why. XD

I mean, after a lot of hard work on finding a binder composition from which the pigment doesn't immediately unmix before drying, I somehow managed to produce something that passes as watercolor, but also, this thing granulates a lot, to the point it's essentially useless unless you enjoy painting snowy landscapes or obscure meteorological phenomena. (Which I don't. But, hey, this has to be the best paint for snowy watercolor landscapes... It's very lightfast, too.) Whatever. It sure was an interesting experience.

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Calycanthus ATC

2025-09-01T16:35:56Z

Another botanical ATC (6,4 x 8,9 cm), and the first attempt to actually use my new selfmade watercolors. Turns out they work as expected, with textures and everything, which is a relief, because otherwise I'd be stuck with a year's supply or so of green paint I hate. XD Of course, I had to use some other (store-bought) greens on this as well, but that's okay. (It's perfectly clear that only two greens are not nearly enough.) I'm just glad I didn't botch things.

Used watercolors:
Michael Harding: Titanium White, Pyrrole Red, Bright Green Lake, Phthalocyanine Green Lake, Dark Morellone Earth
Schmincke Horadam: Dunkelrot
Isaro: Magenta
Nila Colori: Ocra Violetta Armena
My own paints: Living Tree, Living Forest

I didn't need the blue and the brown for this picture (come to think of it, I almost never need blue), but test paintings with those (and, ugh, they really look nicer than in this photo; sorry, bad lighting here) will follow soon.

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The watercolor-making project goes on...

2025-08-09T11:19:38Z

...or: more fun with chemistry. I have to do something useful with my skills after all! XD So, here's my newest color, "Living Tree".

This time, it's supposed to look like leaves - with a bit of granulation to make botanical painting more convenient. I can already predict I'm going to use this color quite often. Maybe the next project is going to be a sky blue - then I have an (almost) complete landscape set!

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Making more watercolor because it's fun.

2025-08-05T15:51:58Z

My newest watercolor-making experiment! Producing this stuff at home is a lot of work, but hey, it gets me some colors not commercially available, so... XD

I wanted a supergranulating multi-pigment color that unmixes when you use it very wet, and I think it worked just fine! On rough (Torchon) paper, it creates these interesting effects. I think I'm going to use it a lot in landscape sketches!

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Knife tip geometry!

2025-06-27T20:50:58Z

First things first: no, this is not a comprehensive list of knife tip geometries! There are so many of them - and most of them so highly specialized - that, if you need one of them, you know... XD So, in order to give a "beginner-friendly" overview, I've narrowed it down to four types that are common enough you may actually encounter them in real life without having to look for them in a specialized store.

Let's look at these in some detail! (With the caveat that, of course, tip geometry is not the only thing that determines a knife's overall function. Material matters. Blade thickness matters. Grind matters. Handle design matters. Size matters. XD And so on. Really, this can only serve as a rule-of-thumb - but we have to start somewhere when trying to determine what a knife is for, right?)

( Explanations of these four knife tips. )

Anyway... This (grossly over-simplified, I know) entry will hopefully help you identify what kind of blade you are dealing with, what its strengths and weaknesses are, and what tasks people will likely use it for. (None of this is intended as legal or professional advice; don't sue me, yadda, yadda. If you do dangerous shit with sharp objects, I'm not responsible.)

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Astronomical acknowledgement

2025-06-21T11:42:21Z

Happy solstice! :3

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Lemon Bars...

2025-05-18T14:56:47Z

... or: interesting exotic food I simply had to try. XD

Lemon bars are not something I'm used to, but a friend mentioned they made them, and I was curious. So, I found a recipe on the internet and made my own. I'm not sure whether they are supposed to be crumbly like that or whether I messed something up, but anyway, they're very edible. Like... very gooey lemon cake. An interesting experience, to be sure. XD

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Never Mock a Fish

2025-04-26T16:38:47Z

Never Mock a Fish (535 words) by EllerWrites
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Original Work
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Original Characters
Additional Tags: Duelling, shadow play, Storytelling, Fantasy, honor duel, Humor, Swordfighting
Series: Part 5 of The Silent Square Chess Club
Summary:

Ah, yes, honor duels and goldfish. Fennar tells an excellent story.

Today's example of shitty writing exists only to express my deep dislike of story structure. German storytelling? Usually linear, with some kind of arc. Platt storytelling? Usually cyclic, with some kind of refrain. How badly can these two approaches clash? YES.

(A trainwreck, but I had fun. And an excuse to use my super shitty goldfish fight scene.)

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Spell Bottle

2025-04-26T00:03:26Z

Spell Bottle (530 words) by EllerWrites
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Original Work
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Original Characters
Additional Tags: Chess, Fantasy, Magic, Dark Magic, Curses, Humor
Summary:

Oh, the things that can happen at chess tournaments... But no worries. Thilo has help from Henrik.

Very loosely based on a writing prompt from yhlee - thank you!!!

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What do I write tonight?

2025-04-25T20:29:58Z

I want to write something tonight, I just don't know what. Oh, but I figured out how to collect the stories (well, "stories", or rather "random scenes") I've written so far in that world in a series on AO3, so, here's the overview: The Silent Square Chess Club. For now, I'll stay in that world, though I've given up on organizing it into any kind of continuous narrative. But what am I going to write?

A) More gratuitous violence.
B) Gratuitous chess.
C) A story about storytelling.
D) Pretend there is a plot.
E) Pretend I'm doing any kind of worldbuilding.
F) Something else. (Help?!? I'm stuck.)

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Shadow Introductions

2025-04-24T20:09:27Z

Shadow Introductions (759 words) by EllerWrites
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Original Work
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Summary:

Vinn is sent to a chess club. Fennar, everyone's favorite shadow theater performer, handles the introductions. Everyone is being their charming selves.

A shorter and funnier scene today. :)

Remember how I was threatening to send poor Vinn to a chess club? Well. I did. XD For a simple "introduce the characters" scene, this was surprisingly hard: I first tried this from Vinn's point of view, but FAILED BADLY because Vinn doesn't have enough understanding of social dynamics to offer any kind of insight beyond basic physical descriptions. Which would be boring. So, uh, Fennar gets the honor. I almost wrote "no violence today", but that would be a lie. Anyway. No physical violence today. XD

I am not going to offer any further commentary, except, if you ever encounter this personality type in real life, I hope you know to RUN in the opposite direction, unless you know for sure he's a friend. He's fun to write, though. LOL

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We like fight scenes, don't we?

2025-04-23T00:33:49Z

Mirror Curse (1803 words) by EllerWrites
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Original Work
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Characters: Original Characters
Additional Tags: Fantasy, Fight Scene, Swordfighting
Summary:

Mirror curses are complicated. Dorion handles the technical part. Cue combat.

Only a few very short comments about the fighting, though I will answer questions if necessary.

( Behind a cut because of, um, violent topic. By necessity. )

Anyway. So, uh, that was a weird writing experience. I have no idea where this story/world/mess is going. (Yes, yes, this is clearly romantic comedy... XD I mean, I could.)

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Easter egg.

2025-04-20T19:52:20Z

The last time I posted easter eggs here, I had no idea this stuff would ever become political - yet here we are. Anyway. I don't celebrate, except I really enjoy painting eggs. (I do not think I would enjoy painting potatoes. I mean, I'd have to try before I judge, but...) Happy Easter if you celebrate. :3

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The trouble with AI

2025-04-13T05:44:33Z

AAARGH. I just wanted chatgpt's help to structure a text. You know - what should be in the introduction, how long should each part be for easy reading, and so on. Unsurprisingly, I'm shit at this stuff, but usually, the AI is of great help - at least when it comes to nonfiction with clear structural requirements. (Letting the AI write texts is, of course, hopeless, so I won't even try. Letting the AI organize text structures before I just write stream-of-consciousness stuff, however? I mean, that could save me some headaches.) Trying to let it organize fiction, however? Wow. WOW. Today, I learned that chatgpt is really Very Fucking American.

Things I learned:
- The AI will not just try to reorganize the plot around an acceptable novella structure (which, after all, is what I asked it to do) but flag any character behavior for editing that does not conform to American cultural standards.
- The AI told me that my characters are too obsessed with honor and duty and I should consider editing that. I'm like... WAIT... I'm actually writing a Fantasy!Medieval!North!Germany setting. With Fantasy!Medieval!North!German characters with according cultural background and mindset. (Come on. It's fucking Germany. At least some of the characters take their oaths seriously...) Apparently, Germany written by a German is not acceptable by genre standards...
- The AI completely unasked (!) changed a scene description from a male character making tea for the group to a female character making the tea. Thanks for the casual sexism, I guess.
- The AI described a female character as "flirtatious". She's... not. She is, however, speaking to male characters. In, you know, plot-related ways. Apparently, that's yet another thing the AI can't handle. (Not a problem with the technology itself, I know, but definitely with the training dataset. WTF.)
- The AI completely unasked (!) tried to give a genderfluid character an issuefic subplot centered around Gender!Angst!American!Style. I mean, I onbviously don't expect an American piece of software to understand historical German ways of gender expression... which is why I didn't ask it to. This character has a perfectly acceptable subplot centered around military technology and espionage, and.no gender issues whatsoever, thanks.
- The AI really wants to change the magic system (which is, of course, North German as fuck, considering the setting) to something ripped off Tolkien.
- The AI is shit at interpreting character motivations in ways that are actually pretty hilarious.

Thanks for the non-help. -_-

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So, I wrote something. Again.

2025-03-31T20:53:40Z

Nothing but Seagulls in Sight (1114 words) by EllerWrites
Chapters: 1/?
Fandom: Original Work
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Original Characters, Original Female Character(s), Original Male Character(s)
Additional Tags: Romance, Paranormal Romance, Shifter Romance, Shapeshifting, Shapeshifter, Billionaire Romance, Parody, Humor, Crack, Breaking the Fourth Wall, Fake/Pretend Relationship
Summary:The world's worst writer makes another attempt at shifter romance. A billionaire shifter businessman makes her an offer she cannot refuse.

This is a sort-of-sequel to the gnat shifter romance (well, "romance") I wrote a while ago. Same bad writer, new bad adventure. The beginning of one, at least. I'm not yet sure if I should continue this at all, but, uh, I had fun?!?

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Reviews of Shitty Knives VII - Arctic Mango Peeler

2025-03-29T16:54:12Z

Today's "shitty knife" is one I bought a long time ago but never posted about it because I wasn't entirely sure whether I should call it a shitty knife or not. It's one of those extremely rare cases where it's actually quite well made, with only very minor production flaws, and the whole shittiness is in the design. It's also a cross-cultural clusterfuck. (Let's not even think about concepts like "cultural appropriation"; it will only give you headaches.)

So, uh, what do we have here? It's a knife that's made in Ukraine (it took a few months to reach me, but I'm not going to blame the seller for that, at least; blame the inconvenient war) and was sold as a "small Yakut knife", though that's clearly not quite what it is. I'd describe it as "crossover knife with Yakutian-type blade design but puukko proportions, made by someone who culturally understands neither puukkot nor Yakut knives" - and if that sounds like a phenomenally bad idea... that's because it is.

( Full review and pictures behind the cut. )

When do you need this knife-shaped object? Ah, yes. Imagine you're stuck somewhere in northern Siberia, and the mango you brought for lunch is (predictably) frozen solid, but you need to peel it anyway. (Who doesn't know this unfortunate situation...) You'll be very grateful for this amazing tool!

tl;dr: This is amazing craft, but, at the same time, so badly designed it's really fucking useless.

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