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 Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2007 8:38 pm
This is a PRIVATE RP between
APHISMET
and
CHRYSTALI
Please ask before joining.
Place: Foxhair Paintbrush Artstore, Durem
Time: Winter, Midday
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Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2007 8:48 pm
Aphismet walked into the store, the door opening with the familiar ring of the metal bell. He shut the door behind him quickly, shaking the cold out of his bones as he walked forward.
He knew the layout of this store by heart, and so headed without hesitation to the oil paints, giving the shop clerk a friendly smile. He needed a few refills, Riv had gone through an entire tube of black again. Yellows and reds were also running low, and the two painters needed new canvas to work on. Aph was glad to see Rivener feeling so inspired, but to go through twelve canvasses in a week? He was really costing a lot, but Aphismet didn't have the heart to tell Riv to stop. He'd suffer through it for a while longer, and hopefully Rivener would get his vision onto the canvas, and then would take a breather.
Aph unzipped his coat, and ran a hand through his hair as he stopped in front of the paints. He had a few extra dollars, and so with a smile he thought he might get a few extra colors, like perhaps sienna...
The man was prepared to spend more than a few minutes carefully selecting his paints, and it showed. He was more focused than a laser.
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Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2007 9:07 pm
Alex had taken advantage of the cold weather to take a break from her work and studies. She had left her hair down because of the frigid air and it was bothering her to no end; she was shifting her weight on her feet, making her hair roll off her shoulders and partially into her eyes. With a half-hearted sigh, she pursed her lips and blew it out of her face, trying to keep her irritation under control. The clerk had already asked if she was all right, so she could only imagine that she looked a little distressed by being in the city after a long hiatus by the shore.
It was taking some effort not to feel out of place amongst people again. Art supplies don't just appear on your door step, she thought with a twitch of a smile.
She was running low on materials; it had been so long since she'd picked up any of her paint that most of them had dried over the summer. Her sketches had been begging to be fleshed out, and she didn't feel that the digital canvas was going to do her ideas justice. It didn't help that the magazine had been on her butt for something 'new and fresh.'
"New and fresh, my right cheek," she murmured darkly. She held a bright red acrylic in one hand and a brick colored oil in the other. Her scuplting had been slow and wasn't drying quite as well in the damp weather, so she was trying to find a different venue for her outlet. Alex wasn't really certain about what to use on real canvas, and it showed on her face as she looked between the two with a disapproving frown.
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Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2007 9:15 pm
Aphismet had selected a few tubes, even a few extra blacks (since he knew Riv tended to use a lot of it), and was moving on to the reds. He looked up as he walked over to the crimson section, and was startled to see a girl there. She seemed a little confused, angry perhaps?
Aph froze in his steps. What should he do? He could go get his canvas and come back for the red later, when this girl would be gone... But then again, what was he so scared about? It was just a girl. She probably wouldn't even notice him anyway.
Almost crouching over like a rabbit trying to get a piece of food that was placed too close to a dog, Aph snuck forward and reached out with a twitchy hand for a tube of red paint. Hopefully, he was out of her field of vision.
"Aphismet? What in the hell? Are you alright?"
Damn! The shop clerk had seen him! Aph winced and turned, calling back with a quick (and obvious) lie: "Oh, erm, I'm fine! I just, er... I-I had dropped a paint tube. I'm f-fine!"
The clerk shrugged, thinking that the boy was nice, but a little off his rocker sometimes.
Aph cleared his throat nervously and straightened, offering an almost-inaudible "hi" as he reached meekly for the tube of red he had REALLY wanted, closer to the top.
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Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2007 9:23 pm
The Italian woman lifted her dark gaze from the paints long enough to give the clerk and questioning glance. Alex turned to the voice that was suddenly so close to her, and nearly jumped. The was someone withing talking distance to her, and she hadn't even heard him approach! Get it together girl, she growled inwardly, he's just a guy!
"Hello," she replied kindly to his nervous greeting. A smile crossed her face; the poor guy seemed like he had to squeeze the word out.
It occured to her that he was reaching for an oil paint, and since she was debating oil paints, she should ask a fellow artist about them. She carefully stepped back to allow him to get closer if he needed, while asking hesitantly, "Ah...do you use oil paints?"
She felt like hitting herself in the head. He was buying paint, why wouldn't he use it? It could be a gift, she pouted to herself, even if he DID know where he was going and exactly what he needed...
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Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2007 9:32 pm
Aph startled almost out of his skin by the words. Oh gawd, conversation! he mentally panicked. He never did very well at talking to girls. He had to turn and blink at her a couple of times, the silence stretching uncomfortably as he mustered up the courage to talk.
No need to freak, she just asked you a simple question. Stick to facts, and you'll do fine, he pep-talked himself inwardly.
"Oh, er," he finally piped up, taking a quick step backwards, clutching the red paint with the rest of the blacks, terra-cotta, and ochre. "Er, um... Ah, yes. I-I use oil paint." He opened his mouth to say something, but clamped it shut again, stopping himself from going off on a rant that would most likely end with him putting his foot in his mouth again.
He shot a few nervous glances around, but the shop clerk wasn't looking at them anymore; no help there. The rest of the shop patrons were also keeping their gazes averted, busy with their own shopping. Poor Aph truly was on his own. How he wished he'd brought Riv along! Hell, even Beauregard would have been an asset this time: it could distract the woman while Aph made a run for it. As it was, the man was trapped.
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Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2007 9:49 pm
Alex worked in a field of observation; she watched animals in their natural habitat and studied their actions to figure out what they were doing and why. She had documented reactions to cause and effect for years. So when the man started to get the proverbial 'deer-in-the-headlights' look, she was surprised that she didn't revert to treating him like an animal and trying to coax him into a comfort zone. Quite the opposite, she felt as though her own fears were being reflected in his expression. Part of her wanted to give him her thanks and be on her way, but the part that won was the one that saw a kindred spirit.
She decided to keep what she had to ask quick and simple, while appealing to his shared interested of painting. "I'm...so sorry to disturb you! I just wanted an artist's opinion on canvas paints. I don't know if acrylics or oils are better." Alex bit her lip and looked at the man before her. She didn't want to scare him, merely see someone else's point of view.
The woman started to explain herself without meaning to. "I usually use the computer to color, but what I need to convey goes beyond the pixels. Sculpting isn't going to well in this weather, either. I'm not sure how well the paints will dry, but I'm willing to give it a shot." She tried to offer up her most charming smile, teeth showing and all.
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Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2007 10:01 pm
Aphismet could indeed find comfort in the subject, finding it was easier to speak to someone if he had actual information to give, not just casual banter. With a nervous chuckle, Aph nodded. "Oh, um... I, er, I see. W-well, it depends what you w-want to accomplish. Acrylics are better for people who haven't painted before, because it's e-easier to, um... To take care of. It washes off e-easier from painbrushes, and, erm, it dries much f-faster so you can move on faster." He nodded, and pointed to a few paintings on the far wall. "That one is a-acrylic, so is the one next to it... You can tell by, um, by the drier look of the edges, k-kinda grainy-looking..."
Aph didn't realise, but his voice was gaining back a bit of confidence as he spoke at length about the paintings. His passion for the subject seemed to be outweighing his discomfort. He pointed to other paintings on the other edge of the wall.
"Those, there, are oil. You can see the colors flow into one another more, and there are some messy-looking spots... And oils c-can make better texture too, you can put globs on, much more so than a-acrylic. But, oils take a very long time to dry, and if you don't wait long enough, you'll t-try to paint another part of the work, and end up smearing the underpaint. Or, the colors won't be quite right cause they'll be mixing. And the smell of the turpentine you need to clean the brushes can be toxic if you don't have a well v-ventilated area to work in. And the kind of brush you need can also affect the, er... erm..."
Aph suddenly wrung his hands a bit, the tubes of paint threatening to fall. The man had realized that he'd been going on and on at length about something... "Er, sorry. D-did that answer your question?"
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Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2007 10:20 pm
Alex had been fully engrossed by what the young man was saying, nodding when he gave instructions and making soft sounds of wonder when he pointed out the differences of the paints. She was pleased that his explanation was simple and easy to understand. Excitement started to well in her chest as her understanding of the paints came to fruitation; there was so much she could do with both of the paints!
Her eyes had turned to him as he started to slow and quiet, asking, "Er, sorry. D-did that answer your question?"
He had more than answered her question - he had shown her the answers first hand, and given her more to think about. Alex found herself smiling again, filled with glee as her ideas started to flow. "That's wonderful! It's information I wouldn't have normally considered, so truly, thank you!"
Alex was enjoying speaking to the man - Aphismet, if she remembered what the clerk had said correctly - and found her own passion starting to get caught up in his. This could make for a very long conversation if he wasn't careful; she could go on for hours about something she enjoyed.
"I like the oils," she said with certainty. "Some of my pieces are sunrise and sunset, and the twilight inbetween, so I need colors and texture that can mix without looking tacky. That special fade effect that leads the eye," she spread her fingers, displaying a few of her scars as she made a wiping motion. "Colors are just as important as the way they're used," she continued matter-of-factly, "and the brushes can really lend or take away to what I'm trying to achieve."
She rolled on her heels to face him, bouncing a little. Alex tilted her head to the side, her raven hair spilling over her shoulder, grinning as though she was speaking with an old friend. He's cute, she thought, unbidden. Quickly speaking before the thought showed on her face, she asked, "What do you suggest?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 11, 2007 8:30 am
Aph ran a hand through his hair, stopping it at the nape of his neck, scratching. His eyes were focused on the far wall's oil paintings. "Well, erm, W-what do you mean, what do I s-suggest? For, for you to paint Sunrise and Sunset pieces? ...I-If that's the case, then oil is the way to erm, to go. As long as you h-have a well ventilated area, that is."
He nodded, tearing his eyes away from the painting for a minute, meeting Alex's eyes only momentarily as he looked to the other side, where the paint rack was.
"B-but if you were asking for, eh, for brushes, then I would s-suggest three basic ones: a widebrush, g-good for melding colors in a s-sky... a fanbrush, good f-for trees, clouds, and a few tricky shapes... and a point-tip brush, for small detailling. The sable is the best quality brush, but erm, they can get kinda expensive... I just have a foxhair brushset and it works f-fine..." He chuckled uneasily, his eyes turning to his shoes. "And a-also, don't forget to buy turpentine. I-if you're going with oils, that is."
He just couldn't get himself to look the girl in the eye for very long. Although he was amazed that he wasn't running away yet.
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Posted: Sun Feb 11, 2007 10:40 am
Alex memorized the materials the young man mentioned, making sure she noted where the brushes were. "Ventilation isn't a problem," she thought out loud, "I live near the Cliffs for now, in this really open house. I think there's more openings and windows than doors." She couldn't stop smiling! That's not a bad thing, you know, she chuckled at herself, it just means you're enjoying yourself.
It was when she turned to look at the oil paints that she realized she was clutching the two in her hand...tightly. She put them back hastily, knocking a few more off the rack as she did so. "Oh for the love," she grumbled to herself as some of the other folk gave her annoyed looks, feeling quite embarrassed. "Uhm, thank you for your help, sir," she smiled winningly at Aphismet again. "You are very knowledgable, and I appreciate you sharing your time with me." Not wanting to sound too formal, she added, "Turpentine, right? This started as a simple paint run, and now look at me. I was lucky to have run into you."
She kneeled down, tucking her hair behind her ear, and started to gather the fallen paints. There you go, she thought kindly, you can leave now if you want. Alex glanced up to smile at him one last time, if he chose to go. Certainly, he had better things to do than help some clueless girl with her paint questions!
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Posted: Sun Feb 11, 2007 1:52 pm
"Um, well, do you need help with anything else? P-picking canvas, perhaps? Or, um... " Aphismet was blinking in surprise at himself. Half of him indeed saw the opportunity to run, but the other half wanted to stay and talk. He couldn't believe he had managed to make it this far without making a complete a** of himself. Perhaps he was finally growing out of that stage of his life?
He bent to help her pick up the paints, and attempted a smile in return to hers. Seeing as he was not looking straight at her, and was still suffering a little from uneasiness, the smile ended up looking more like a creepy grimace.
"I erm... that is, you have to pick a canvas, and you'd probably want a few smaller ones f-first, to practice your erm, techniques, get to know the p-paint... And, there a-are lots of colors that you d-don't really need." He got up again, handing her the few pain tubed he'd picked up.
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Posted: Sun Feb 11, 2007 3:32 pm
Alex started to blush a little, the flush darkening her tan skin. She didn't know why, but she was extremely flattered that this good looking young man was interested in helping her, even if it was just for arts sake. "If...if you don't mind, I wouldn't turn down your company. " Her eyes widened at her own words, quickly ammending, "HELP. Your help. Aid. I appreciate it." The light blush started to creep into a more crimson color. "I'm sorry, I, ah...I guess I'm a little flustered. I'm not usually such a klutz."
She extended her hand to accept the paint he was holding out to her, fingers brushing his briefly. "Thank you," she smiled despite her rosy cheeks, turning to put the paint away MUCH more carefully than she had before.
"You're right. I'll need more than one canvas, and I'm not sure which fabrics would be more suitable for this type of paint." She thought for a moment, turning to face the young man again.
"Apparently, being a klutz has also dislodged my manners." She reached out her hand to him a second time, some of the red in her face starting to fade, "I'm Alex."
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Posted: Mon Feb 12, 2007 1:16 pm
Aph smiled nervously and managed to meet the girl's eyes for a moment as he reached out and shook her hand. "Pleased to meet you, A-Alex. I'm erm, Aphismet." He chuckled as he let go of her hand, his cheeks burning lightly. He looked away and brought a hand up to run through his hair, trying to hide his blush.
"Well, erm... We should pick colors for you. Th-there are lots you don't, ah, need... Like these t-twelve shades of red for your s-sky. All you need is a good r-red, and a good y-yellow... No need for orange since you can make it from, er, the other two colors, and you're guaranteed to get the right shade of orange to get from one to the other. And, err... Well, I suppose one of each color is best. No need for teals and pinks and such, since you can get them out of the basic colors." Aph was pointing at a few tubes in particular, the ones he'd started out with himself.
"You should also have a nice big paint palette, with which to work. It should have lots of space, and yet still be comfortable for you to hold." Aph's stutter was slowly dissapearing again as he got carried away on the subject. Juggling his paint tubes under one arm, Aph picked up a wooden palette and examined it, turning to face Alex.
"This one looks like it might be good, for your height; here, try holding it and see if it's comfortable?" He handed it to her, trying to stifle the blush again. That accidental turn of phrase of hers kept coming back to the forefront of his mind, along with her stumbling correction of it.
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Posted: Mon Feb 12, 2007 3:34 pm
Just as Aphismet got caught up in his instruction, Alex was starting to exhibit her for excitable demeanor. She adored art forms of all kinds; to find someone who was passionate about something she was so fond of made her forget that the man beside her was an acquaintance.
As he pointed out colors, she was practically shoulder-to-shoulder with him, taking the recommended paints and observing them as he explained them. She was no stranger to painting, but mixing a different type of paint was like learning all over again. The few he chose were tucked under her arm as she read the last one he pointed out, nodding her approval enthusiastically.
Alex accepted the offered palette with a barely concealed squeal of delight. She observed the wooden tool with her hands, balancing it on her fingertips, curling her thumb through the grip, brushing her palm over the smooth face. Resting it against her arm, she grinned at Aphismet, "Perfect! Excellent choice."
She was practically cradling the palette to her chest, turning to face the young man; she was completely clueless that she might have been invading his personal space. "What do you think about twilight?" she asked excitedly, her eyes sparkling. "It's difficult to find the right hues of purple and the right shades of grey. Twilight is such a beautiful, living thing, always changing and melding that it really doesn't have one color to it. It's hard to focus on a transition that has no finite distinction. Even when I take pictures, it's never the same color!"
Alex looked at Aphismet with a lop-sided grin, truly interested in what his input was going to be.
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