#and i really don't want to have to move accounts so i hope this'll help 😭

[miguelo-hara]

I got my account back, but you might’ve been unfollowed from me!

so you might’ve noticed that my account was gone for like a week, unfortunately it got suspended but I got it back now!

BUT, unfortunately there are some technical difficulties with my account, the biggest problem being that it unfollowed a bunch of people from me :(( 

I don’t care about follower count, but I just want to let people that enjoy my blog know that I’m back and that tumblr might’ve unfollowed you from me!

signal boosts are appreciated!!

tagging some mutuals/people I was mutuals with:

@userkenobi @javier-pena @darksber @di-n @adricnchase @trashcora @tesb @kenobismullet @dindiarin @keanurevees @joel-millerr @steveroger @mrcspectr @edwardmunsen @djarsdin @sith-maul @maevemillay @star-wars @skyshipper @pedrorascal @300mirrors @bladesrunner @djarin @obihoekenobi @themarshalstale

#.txt #the annoying thing is i don't even know how many people got unfollowed because my followercount barely changed #and it's so annoying to know my followercount isn't accurate ugh #also support sucked so hard i sent like 4 emails with basically no response #so i dont think theyll be able to help me with this issue 🙃 #and if you think tumblr unfollowing people is a hoax (like i did before this): #i checked with some.mutuals who let me know that they actually were unfollowed from me so unfortunately its real :/ #and i really don't want to have to move accounts so i hope this'll help 😭

[dreamstatesims]

hey girlie, hope you're doing well; having a good day/night:

i wanted to ask if you could give any advice with building and landscaping? i've always been a huge fan of your sim style, and i'm currently looking to get into building myself.

was there any videos you watched or accounts that were able to help you jump wholeheartedly into the wonderful world of build/buy mode?

thank you soooo much in advance <3

hi! i could go on and on about this topic so thanks for asking. last year i wrote about building here, if you recall. since that one was more about "vibe" maybe this one should be a little more technical? idk, i'm a dreamy creative so i'm sure this'll get emotional anyway lol.

i suggest picking a world or architectural style and let one inform the other. then research that style, look at floor plans and dive into pinterest for a while before you start building. if you don't already have one, get one and go collecting inspiration that you can reference later. here's mine, if you wanna check it out.

when landscaping i think about two key things: what style of gardening goes with this build (manicured, overgrown, minimal, etc) and i consider the trees and/or flowers i see in the world around my lot. i'll incorporate some to blend on and off-lot gardening. and i can't emphasize enough how important terrain painting is! in my opinion it really anchors everything down. for example, i paint all around and under landscaped areas, trees, the entire perimeter of the house/buildings, and anything else like pools, decks, driveways. it creates depth and makes it look like these things are really sprouting out of the ground. also paths! even if you don't have stones laid down, think about the routes sims will take to get from one place to another, like from the back porch to the pool, the marks little sneakers leave under the swing set when simmies play, from the mudroom to the trash bins by the garage. grass thins out and you'll see some dirt showing through regularly trodden routes, so paint those on to make the area look lived in.

the simpler the floor plan, the better. even if you pick a floor plan that's complicated, simplify it. you don't need a garage? remove it or convert it into something else. too many little rooms and hallways? open up those spaces or take them out entirely and push the necessary rooms you want to keep into that area. you'll find your builds will be much easier to play in this way and it won't take sims hours to get to the kitchen or up the stairs.

i have general dimensions for rooms that really work for me: kitchen 5x6, 6x6, 6x7 dining 4x5, 5x5, 5x6 living 5x6, 6x6, 6x7 half bath 2x2, 2x3 full bath 3x4, 4x4 owner's suite 5x6, 6x6 bedrooms 4x5, 5x5 hallways 2 spaces wide

maybe a bit tricky, but think about adding rooms in the roof. a play room, guest room, second living room, or office space. hell, even just an attic you can convert later as your family grows. when building attics, i'll lay out the roof design first and then see where i can build rooms inside. for easier gameplay you'll want to then break down the roof into sections so when you lower the walls you can see inside and the camera won't bounce around.

twistedmexi's TOOL mod is an absolute gamechanger and i highly recommend using it to expand your lot outside the lines. EA has decorated the world outside of your lot with fences and other features that suggest you can absolutely push things further. i'll setup whatever i want outside the lot inside my grid first and then move it all out together. i do this for play areas, picnic tables and umbrellas, firepits and seating. i'll put cars parallel parked on the road or in the driveway EA has provided. and don't forget about debug items like electrical poles, post boxes, bus stops, fire hydrants and other stuff you'd see around a neighborhood.

i'm subscribed to a handful builders on youtube that i'll watch from time to time. it's great to see what other folks are doing because this community is so creative and you'd be surprised the little tricks you'll pick up. these are some of my favorite builders: simproved, simsphony, plumbob kingdom, simcubeez, bojana sims.

if you have any more questions on specifics or want an actual tutorial on something, don't hesitate to ask! and that goes for anyone reading this very long-winded post. kudos if you made it this far!

#asked and answered #ts4 tutorial #tutorial

[pinestreetstudio]

Day 31:

This'll be a long one!

Eric came by -- or rather, just walked into my studio without knocking from our shared door -- and chatted with me a bit this morning. They're just getting to the sound design phase of their big project, I guess, and want to record some ambient noise-type stuff.

"What type of ambience are you going for?"

Eric shrugged. "It's a horror type deal, set in an abandoned strip mall. So we'll need your typical whispers and distant groans, but we also need stuff like the building settling and pipes knocking."

"I don't know the first thing about foley, my dude," I said.

He chuckled. "We don't either, but Nolan and Ted have been doin' some light googling. It can't be too hard."

I snorted at that. "I want to criticize your research methods but it's the backbone of my own enterprise. I'm guessing y'all want to use my studio?"

"I mean, yeah. Our own setup isn't terrible but yours is way better and besides, we don't have any baffling or anything."

I thought about it for a minute, or pretended to -- I kinda already had the deal in mind. But he surprised me by shaking his head when I proposed a trade-off of studio time for Vinnie's fiddling.

"I can't make that deal."

I raised my eyebrows. "Should we ask Vinnie directly?"

He shook his head again, reluctantly. "If we do, he'll say yes, but I gotta be honest with you. The kid is broke."

"Aren't we all?" I asked.

"We have side stuff to make money, but all Vin has is art and music. This game deal won't pay off until we complete it, and he only makes so much doing commissions. Between you and me, his phone got cut off on Monday and he's got no way to get it back on. He's living off of coffee and mints right now."

This all troubled me, because I've been there, but I'm almost embarrassed to admit how long it's been since I've been there. Sure, I'm "broke," but my bills are paid and I have groceries and a small but tidy savings account. Vinnie couldn't be older than 22 and his family all lived back in Wisconsin.

"Is he really not eating?"

Eric shrugged. "He lives with Nolan and I know he's been helping him out, but Nolan is pretty broke too."

"Jeez," I sighed. "All right. Let me think."

Eric leaned against the doorframe and waited while I scrolled quickly through my phone, looking through my timelines and memos

I looked up after a minute and said "Okay, new proposal. I lend you studio time and space when I'm not booked. In return, you guys are going to let me borrow Vinnie. I'll pay him for his time, the same as I would for any other color musician. And I'll keep him in mind for future projects."

Eric grinned, a little ruefully and said, "Seems like a bad deal from your perspective."

"It is. It really is." I said, and leaned back in my office chair and rubbed my eyes with both hands. "But as long as you guys don't wreck my stuff, it's not like I'm losing out on anything. And I like Vinnie."

"Let's call it a deal, then. And you're right, he's a sweet kid, if you can't get over what an idiot he is," Eric "agreed," pulling his cigarettes out and moving for the door.

"Hey, wait!" I called, and he turned, eyebrows raised. "What's up, baby?"

"Don't call me baby. I have one last detail for our deal."

"Oh yeah?"

"A piece of information is all I need."

And that's how I ended up with Vinnie and Nolan's address. And if, by mistake, they end up with a "mistaken" grocery/toiletries delivery at their apartment tonight, I hope no one connects the dots. I even threw in energy drinks and candy -- but they have to figure out cigarettes for themselves.