cultivation
Ever since the final quarter of 2025, I've started dedicating any extra spoons I have towards learning to create 3d art/animation in Blender. I appreciate the process now more than a few years ago, when I started making art with 3D tools.
This year, I've decided to focus on cultivating my foundations: I have to have a good foundation of rigging and animation, in that order. I have been greatly intimidated by the idea of rigging for years: it felt too complex for me. But I need to cross that chasm, and so here I am.
Recently, my experience of learning to rig arms (with switchable IK-FK) has humbled me. There is much to practice. It's the simplest minute details that may get skipped or overlooked.
I've had to build and rebuild the arm rig, examine each and every bone -- every relation, every constraint. Terribly frustrating -- I felt my breath go hot every time I worked and reworked it, unknotting the puzzle backwards and forward. Despite all the frustrations, I did learn a lot about how the arm rig setup works. Failure truly can be a humbling and effective teacher.