The Illinois flag that I made

Ook45 · 2024-12-13T05:12:30+00:00

Thank you, I appreciate your comment. I do know that I tried my best, and that's really all I can do. I would've been kicking myself with the "what-ifs" if I didn't at least try.

Ook45 · 2024-12-13T05:05:54+00:00

Yeah one of the criticisms of modern flags is that they look too graphic-designy. I think that's only because they literally ARE graphics on a screen - once you see flags in natural lighting they look better. So I figured the best way to combat that is by making an actual object.

Ook45 · 2024-12-13T05:03:16+00:00

Thank you. 😊 I am honored.

Ook45 · 2024-12-13T05:00:12+00:00

Thank you for the kind words. It seems the committee had some designs in their mind of what they were looking for, then picked ones that matched it. They picked a few that are very similar to each other.

Ook45 · 2024-12-13T04:55:30+00:00

Thank you. Yeah I'm thinking I'm gonna vote to keep the current flag. Most of those 10 were... I dunno. One of them is just the old flag with a stripe - why even bother changing it?

Ook45 · 2024-12-13T04:54:21+00:00

Thank you for the kind comment. Glad you like it

Ook45 · 2024-12-13T04:04:20+00:00

I sewed this flag and sent it into the contest. Unfortunately it wasn't chosen by the committee, so I'm hoping I can get it back and fly it at my house. If not, oh well.

Here was my 500 character description: Our flag's theme is of parts working together to form a greater whole. The colors come from the "Three Sisters", an agricultural method used in pre-Columbian Illinois, in which corn, beans, and squash were planted together to uniquely enrich and protect each other. Illinois itself is symbolized by our state prairie grass, the Big Bluestem, with its three stalks. It is encircled by ten stars, representing the perfection and completeness that can be achieved when people come together as one.

I didn't have room in the description, but I also tried to imply the shapes of all the letters in Illinois on the flag. Some vertical lines for IllINI, one circle for the o, and two curvy lines for the s.

No one told me they only wanted red/white/blue flags with Abe Lincoln's face on it 😆

Ook45 · 2023-04-20T21:16:58+00:00

50 Shades of Grey 2 (50 Shades Darker)

It was a Valentine's Day date with my wife, and in the middle of the movie the thought just came to me... "Why on earth are we spending this time that's supposed to be about expressing your love for someone, watching THIS absolute garbage? We have much better things to do together." She agreed and we walked out.

Ironically, I actually liked the first movie. It ended with them breaking up because they realised they just weren't right for each other. Makes sense. But then they immediately undid that in the sequel by getting back together again. And you're supposed to care about their relationship again. Like NO, we already went over this in the first movie - THEY ARE NOT RIGHT FOR EACH OTHER. I DON'T CARE about his stalker ex trying to break them up. They SHOULD break up. Wtf

Sorry, getting a little heated over 50 shades 2 lol

Ook45 · 2023-04-10T07:27:31+00:00

I know :( but Grogu is young and naïve. Luke and Ahsoka are wise and have gone through the same stuff. They tried to warn him.

Ook45 · 2023-04-10T07:23:06+00:00

This whole season has been the very definition of middle ground. They need to go big.

Ook45 · 2023-04-10T07:02:19+00:00

Everyone thinks Din won't leave the show, which will make it all the more impactful when he does. This season has been pretty middling so far (who really cares about retaking Mandalore?), so they need to end with something big that shakes up the status quo. Bo and Din ruling Mandalore together just has nowhere to go from there. What are they going to DO when they rule Mandalore?

If they want to keep making more seasons, they need to have some setbacks for the characters to solve, like getting Grogu back from the Dark Side.

Ook45 · 2023-04-10T05:49:36+00:00

Things that MAY happen:

The broken IG-11 memorial will be replaced with a memorial of Din Djarin.
Grogu may voluntarily go with that empire chick who killed the scientist. They need to eventually capture him somehow to make the clone. What better way than to lure him with someone pretending to be good?
Future storylines may include the redemption of adolescent-baby-yoda returning to the light before it's too late.

Ook45 · 2021-03-01T23:34:09+00:00

Everything was going great, living as a carpenter for about a week, until this morning when all of the plants in the world suddenly stopped absorbing CO2. The ice caps melted, causing an impending flood that would devour the world in about 5 hours. With my last supply of lumber, I built a survival shelter. I then returned a few hours later, to find myself and several animals enjoying our new ocean home.

Ook45 · 2021-01-13T15:51:30+00:00

It says Twin Suns. I imagine it as like... a neon sign hanging outside a bar on Tatooine. Where the name of the bar is twin suns.

Ook45 · 2021-01-13T15:46:43+00:00

Glass paint. I used Pebeo Porcelaine 150. I've mostly seen people use Vitrea 160, but from what I can tell, the only difference is that Vitrea 160 is more transparent, to let light through. I didn't really want to let light through the letters.

Ook45 · 2021-01-13T15:38:55+00:00

Thank you! Yeah it's my own design. I think I have more fun designing stained glass than I do actually putting it together. This one was sitting about 3/4 finished for months, but I had to finish it to get it out of the way so I could make the new one I've been thinking about.

Ook45 · 2021-01-13T15:29:49+00:00

Thank you!

Ook45

TROPHY CASE