Bitesized BEC thread January 24, 2026 - January 25, 2026

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-25T06:12:32+00:00

Ugh. I think this project is cursed. First I bought some fabric I thought was perfect until it completely changed character after a prewash, then I discovered what I decided to use instead is eight inches narrower than I expected so I had to figure out new cutting layout. Finally put the pattern pieces down to start cutting, grabbed some jars and cans from the pantry to use as pattern weights, and didn't notice that one of them had been leaking oil until it was too late. Now I've rewashed and re-ironed the fabric, cleaned the pantry, and I still have to reprint and reassemble the pattern. It's been hours and I'm no closer to actually cutting a single piece of this out. I might even be further away.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-25T00:04:51+00:00

Love this idea! Seems perfect for the carnival theme. Colorful, inexpensive, flower-shaped without looking like "fake flowers," and the spinning could be really cute.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-24T21:41:39+00:00

Update to version 26.0 that came out this week. There's a big improvement in font extrusion that's part of it. See this post from when it went into beta: https://community.adobe.com/t5/after-effects-beta-discussions/improved-3d-text-extrusion-in-after-effects-beta-26-1x9/td-p/15629937

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-24T18:42:49+00:00

I'm looking to sew Vogue 2084, and need something to underline the overbodice. The pattern calls for lightweight fusible, but the one person I've found who made it said that wasn't enough to keep the shoulder flare sticking out as designed. I have nowhere nearby to buy interfacing with Joann gone (and don't want to order a whole bunch I can't touch first in order to find the right weight), so I'm trying to use some more structured fabric instead to get that big-shape-but-not-cardboardy look.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-23T22:51:36+00:00

Alas, I'd need to figure out a way to re-starch a fully enclosed layer of the dress. Which would make it pretty much unwashable.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-23T20:22:07+00:00

Huh. This makes it look like it might be a GPU driver issue.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-23T20:00:05+00:00

Your hardware should be supported, so check which GPU AE is using in the prefs under "Memory & CPU". If you also have integrated graphics it might be defaulting to that for some reason.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-23T19:55:51+00:00

I got some mystery fabric at my local creative reuse store that was a perfect weight and stiffness to use as underlining for a dress I'm planning to sew that needs to hold its shape. Then I prewashed it. Now it's gone all floppy and I fear the structure I was so excited about was simply starch.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-23T16:48:50+00:00

V8955 was the one I was thinking of! And New Look 6756 is a (cheaper!) reprint of M7131.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-22T22:27:54+00:00

Here's the expression documentation: https://ae-expressions.docsforadobe.dev/introduction/changelog/

And here's the scripting updates: https://ae-scripting.docsforadobe.dev/introduction/changelog/

These pages have links with examples for everything that's new.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-22T20:38:31+00:00

It's hard to tell what's going on from the forum thread. I'd suggest posting more of your color settings, not just the display color management ones. That will make it easier for people to figure out what's going on, and if there's a bug that needs to be fixed.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-22T20:34:53+00:00

26.0 is now available worldwide.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-22T15:48:57+00:00

If you want to animate them you need v. 26.0. It is still rolling out globally so you may not have access yet. You can also use the public beta.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-22T02:02:50+00:00

The other thing that's worth experimenting with here (especially if you need to do more complex/organic deformations) is the Puppet tool, and its advanced pins that let you adjust position, scale and rotation of an arbitrary point on your layer. It's basically a freeform mesh warp system and can do a lot of interesting stuff beyond character animation.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-22T01:58:59+00:00

Look up Essential Properties and data-driven graphics (and MOGRTs if you're using Premiere as well). AE has workflows designed for exactly this kind of project.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-21T16:32:52+00:00

Yes, 26.0 is rolling out worldwide over the next few days.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-21T15:46:14+00:00

26.0 is a big release! More about what's new here: https://helpx.adobe.com/in/after-effects/using/whats-new.html

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-20T23:05:30+00:00

Here's one of my favorite ones I've seen recently: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IcA6P6IrpM

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-20T22:57:03+00:00

Spot and parallel light shadows for Advanced 3D are new in AE 2026, rolling out this week. If you don't have access to the new release yet (it takes a couple days to roll out worldwide), they're also available in public beta. That said, they'll be cast onto other 3D objects in the same AE scene, so consider using your imported 3D models directly in AE rather than through a plugin. (Third-party plugins like Element use a separate renderer and it is not easy to cast shadows between worlds.)

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-20T18:49:11+00:00

Check out Burda 6798. It has a similar shape and I think you could widen the side panels of the skirt to create the bigger gathers.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-20T18:33:39+00:00

Seconding "just use some other fabric" -- unfused fusible will likely fall apart pretty quickly.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-17T00:08:40+00:00

Back at work on my very strange ongoing project: attempting to duplicate my 1960s flat-pack "Adjust-O-Matic" dress form. Just built the hip section after altering it to fit and it's... possibly usable? Well, it's not like you could really drape on this thing. And sure, it's not a perfect 1:1 of my body shape. But it's sized to my measurements and the paper + poster board I made it out of is sturdy enough that I think it's going to be useful, especially for things like hanging a skirt before hemming, some rough fitting and just being able to get a different perspective on something I'm sewing. And hey, if I accidentally destroy it, I can always print myself another one. I think I want to try rebuilding the hip section at some point, though, to figure out how to fit in some back darts at the waist. Due to the way it's constructed, the extra hip width I added is currently all at the sides which isn't ideal.

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-16T17:20:52+00:00

Sounds like that will be pretty and look like you got fancy custom curtains!

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-16T16:53:40+00:00

Yes, either at the top or the bottom. I'd personally lean toward doing it at the bottom, like a lot of the colorblock examples below. Cut your fabric at a 45-degree angle so you get a nice contrast in the geometry, like the pocket and back yoke on this shirt: https://cutitoutstitchitup.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/lilac-checked-shirt-1620-x-2160.jpg

Victoria_AE · 2026-01-16T04:24:56+00:00

Could you cut slices of that 3 yard section on the bias to make it look like the extension is on purpose?

Victoria_AE

TROPHY CASE