I browse a lot of art and sculpture on Instagram, and a few weeks ago I stumbled across the most stunning picture:
Glowing purple mushrooms in a sweet open-air lantern? WANT.
This loveliness is the creation of a Ukrainian artist named Katya Sneg, and the second I clicked over to explore her account TheSnowMade, I fell down a rabbit hole of pure magic.
That particular lamp gets even sweeter the closer you get:
But there's more, gang. SO MUCH MORE.
Look at the painstaking detail!
Obviously I am all about that glow, but Katya's creations are somehow just as breath-taking when they're NOT lit up:
I come to you today exhilarated, bone-tired, and still in my jammies at 3:30 in the afternoon.
Yep, it's the day after Dragon Con.
This year John and I did something radically different with our coverage, and I'm beyond excited. You might remember that last year we finally puzzled out a way to take crisp photos in the low light by using black-out flash, but I wanted more. I wanted to capture the feel of the place, to show you all the madness and community and spontaneous play-acting that happens in the crushing Dragon Con crowds every night.
So in addition to my normal photography - both flash and non flash - John and I decided to shoot video every day of the con, and - here's the hard part - to produce a new video for each day of the con, too.
I won't lie, it was the hardest we've worked at any Dragon Con. We didn't attend a single panel or concert, and never even went into the vendor hall or Walk of Fame. Instead, WE FILMED. We took photos and video until the wee hours of the morning, then we were up 'til 5AM editing in the hotel. Sleep a few hours, then repeat, for five long days.
And it was SO. MUCH. FUN.
We got to attend two Epbot meetups, then met a dozen or more of you randomly throughout the con. So there were still plenty of breaks for socializing, laughter, and hugs. I honestly don't feel like I missed out on a thing. I got to do what I love most: commune with fellow geeks & capture great cosplay in new creative ways.
Thursday Epbot meet up, photo by Jen Allen
(We forgot to take a group shot for the 2nd one!)
What's more, by prioritizing our schedule & planning all my Low Fodmap meals ahead, I felt physically better and braver than ever: not a single Xanax needed all five days! YAAAAS. (That's also thanks to my new doctor and hormone regiment; thank God for modern medicine. I feel like a new person, so much stronger and calmer than just two months ago.)
I'll have lots more to show and tell you later, but while I'm still recovering, let me start by showing you our Thursday, Friday, and Saturday videos. (John hopes to have both Sunday and Monday up by tomorrow, so subscribe to our YouTube channel to see those as soon as they're live!)
Thursday:
(This includes the famous Bunny Hutch, where cosplayers mashup their favorite fandoms with Playboy Bunny and Hef outfits)
