Marianne Kirby
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therotund.bsky.social
Marianne Kirby
@therotund.bsky.social
6K followers 1.6K following 2.1K posts
Writer, editor, semi-professional fat person.

SFF/spec/soft horror/whatever. Here for the weird stuff.

she/they
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therotund.bsky.social
Back in my early 20s I thought I never got approached in clubs because I was fat. Sometimes i snap a selfie that even now reminds me of the actual reason: man, in a club I straight up just look like a bitch most of the time. 😆😆😆
I’ll take a cute selfie, I said. I’m having such a good time at this show, I said. A darkly lit selfie of Marianne, a very fat pale femme wearing red lipstick, tiny Ben Franklin looking glasses, and a white DARE tshirt (at the goth club, for irony, I guess), with long curly mostly dark brown hair and the most resting bitch face ever. *facepalm*
October 23, 2025 at 3:11 AM
therotund.bsky.social
BASKING.
Screen shot of the AccuWeather app showing 82 degrees F and a real feel of 89 degrees.
July 24, 2025 at 3:17 PM
therotund.bsky.social
In other news, I’m making fish pants.
Pants in progress - two pieces of a black and white fabric with a weird deep sea fish print hinting at eldritch horrors lay together in the midst of the sewing process. The one on top is a back pocket shape, outlined with red and white gingham piping that has been pinned in place. There’s also a small neon yellow tag that says QUALITY SHIT pinned to the pocket assembly.
June 26, 2025 at 10:34 PM
therotund.bsky.social
I am sure this happens other places but I really only notice it in Florida - you know from miles away that you are going to drive into hella rain.
A landscape photo of the two-lane road ahead and the grey grey sky stretching out, visible in like two-thirds of the image. The clouds are heavy and low and sun is clearly shining on the tops of one set because you can see it through a gap but directly ahead is a wall of rain a mile or two down the road, dark and impenetrable and impossible.
June 6, 2025 at 7:09 PM
therotund.bsky.social
I left work yesterday and started driving to Florida for a family reason. This is the best bumper sticker I think I’ve ever seen.
A closeup of a white Honda Odyssey’s bumper. Next to the Odyssey badge is a white bumper sticker with a blue Grecian key border design banding the top and bottom. The text reads MY OTHER CAR IS AN ILIAD.
June 6, 2025 at 11:21 AM
therotund.bsky.social
My partner does not find this nearly as funny as I do so I had to come here and share it. Bi-cycles! They go both ways!
A photo of a couple of street signs - one is obviously the back side of an all-way stop sign but the focus is on the one-way sign with its emphatic rightward pointing arrow and the sign bolted to the post below it that says EXCEPT BICYCLES. It’s funny because OF COURSE bicycles go both ways. Bi-cycles!
May 2, 2025 at 10:04 PM
therotund.bsky.social
I was so tired when I left the office at 6pm tonight. I offered my ticket to see Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds to a couple of friends. Notice was too short - no takers so I dragged myself down to the wharf and was in my seat a full 3-5 minutes early. Reminder to self: it’s worth it every fucking time.
Nick Cave, wearing his signature black suit and standing in a bright spotlight, leans slightly over a fully engaged crowd, singing “Mercy Seat” - there’s a stage and a band behind him but it’s hard to make them out in the amber stage lighting. The band is fucking dope though, and includes four gospel singers. Some of the band members are projected on the back wall of the stage. So everything looks kind of like a collage except it was real like in Washington DC at the Anthem on 21 April 2025. There is something reminiscent of both Elvis and also televangelists in the mood, which is pretty appropriate actually. The vibes are impeccable.
April 22, 2025 at 3:25 AM
therotund.bsky.social
Because I have some 100% linen on hand, I thought I’d do a comparison burn test.

This linen had a stronger smell. It definitely had the same kind of lingering afterglow. It also produced the same kind of burn line showing where the flame stopped.

The ash was actually really similar also.
A small piece of black linen on top of a slightly larger piece of mystery fabric. They are both black and both show a similar orangey line where the flame of the burn test stopped. Marianne’s fingers are very dirty at this point.
February 22, 2025 at 9:30 PM
therotund.bsky.social
Okay, this ignited quickly and burned with an intense afterglow - it absolutely kept glowing for a surprisingly long time. The smoke had a very light papery smell.

There is dark ash and also there is grey ash. The grey might be the remains of the printing ink?
A burned piece of fabric in Marianne’s hand - their fingers are smeared with both a grey and black ash. The fabric itself has a defined line where the flame reached. Some of the fabric that burned looks intact but pulls apart into brittle fibers extremely easily. Past the burn line, the fabric is totally solid.
February 22, 2025 at 9:24 PM
therotund.bsky.social
I usually refer to this chart from indie-pattern company By Hand London. There are many like it but this one is the one I have saved to my phone.

Also, I added alt text describing the possible results and outcomes so maybe I’ll actually remember all of this now.
A fabric burn test flow chart made by indie-pattern company By Hand London. It starts with a yellow circle that says BURN and then there are arrows describing each potential result. There are a LOT of options on this chart that lead to 9 potential fiber contents: cotton/linen, mercerized cotton, rayon, acetate, silk, wool (and other animal fibres), nylon, and polyester. The options leading to the results describe how the fabric ignited and how quickly it burns, the way it smells, how it behaves during burning, and its characteristics after burning. If it ignites quickly and burns, and then it smells like burning paper leaves or wood, there are two paths to follow. If it burns with afterglow, the next choice is black or grey ash. Black ash means mercerized cotton. Grey ash means cotton or linen or a blend. If it burns with little afterglow, and if it produces a grey ash, then it’s a rayon. If it ignites quickly and melts and it smells like vinegar, it might burn and melt. If that produces a hard black ash, it’s acetate. If it produces a hard black bead, it’s acrylic. It might also ignite quickly and melt and smell like chemicals. That option leads to the same results. If it recoils slightly, ignites briefly and chars, smells like burning hair, and then burns slowly and goes out, it might produce a soft crushable bead. That means silk. If it produces a dark ash, it’s wool or other animal fibers. If it ignites briefly and melts and smells like celery or like chemicals, but then it ceases to burn, it might produce a hard grey bead, which is nylon. If it produces a hard black bead, it’s polyester. By Hand London lists their website byhandlondon.com and their usual social media handle @byhandlondon
February 22, 2025 at 9:01 PM
therotund.bsky.social
Hey, #sewsky how are you at fiber content? I have these two gorgeous fabrics I got at a fabric estate sale a couple years ago - three yards of each. It’s got fantastic drape and weight without being heavy; it’s very smooth and soft. Let’s do a burn test!
Two lengths of fabric, folded on a white work table. One is black with a printed and closely set diagonal stripe made up of a leafy sort of pattern. The other is a black fabric with an all-over tonal floral pattern. Both patterns are a slightly metallic light teal-ish blue color.
February 22, 2025 at 8:42 PM
therotund.bsky.social
Last night I was doomscrolling reddit and this post was like… an unexpected poem and also now I want to whisper little love spells over everything I make. For my own good as well as for others.
A screencap of a Reddit post in the r/crochet subreddit by user Ragdoll232. The subject line reads “My MIL tells me Yarn has Memory.” The post reads “I know she means for shape, but I just want to whisper words of love into this sweater I’m making my husband so it remembers and can remind him how loved he is.”
February 14, 2025 at 7:18 PM
therotund.bsky.social
These shoes I remade for Frocktails have entered my regular wear rotation. I ripped apart some old doc martens penny loafers, did some structural work and then just had fun. Materials: Angelus leather paints, stash leather, ribbon, lace, rhinestone shoe clips, trim, stencils I cut on the Cricut
A pair of fat legs from mid calf down, crossed at the ankle with a grey industrial carpet in the background. The person wears dark wash jeans that are cuffed and hiked up to show pale white skin, low white crew socks, and a fancy pair of loafers with a doc martens sole inspired by men’s Rococo French court shoes: The shoes are primarily a bright saturated purple with silver and lavender accent color blocking and they have a wide strap across the front of the shoe made from a textured leather with a wide purple and pink grosgrain ribbon overlaid and then trimmed out with lavender scallop lace. The straps also feature very large rhinestone buckles. There is a beaded trim going around the body of the shoe as well as accenting the toe and tongue above the strap. There’s some stenciling that’s hard to see; each toe features an eye in a lighter silver color - the back of one shoe says stitch in a calligraphic font and the back of the other says witch in the same lighter silver.
February 14, 2025 at 6:13 PM
therotund.bsky.social
This weekend I went to a barter market - the post-apocalypse economy will be made up of mini zines and earrings if this event was any indication and I’m not mad at it.

Also this HOTTOGO embroidery is, like, very much the kind of thing I needed at work.
Two small pieces of art hanging in an institutional blue-grey fabric cubicle wall. One is a wood block print of a dinosaur/dragon type creature sheltering a rabbit. One is embroidered block letters spelled out HOT TO GO in the nato alphabet - HOTEL OSCAR TANGO TANGI OSCAR GOLD OSCAR. There’s a corner of a blank monitor visible. The art is hung from those cube wall clips that pin into the fabric. This is, of course, a desperate attempt at personalizing the space to ward off despair during the work day.
February 10, 2025 at 2:39 PM
therotund.bsky.social
Hi, I’m Marianne in Washington DC. Learned to sew at six and practiced it casually. In January of 2020, I decided to sew through my small stash/stop keeping fabric on hand - now my stash is eight times the size. 😆 I’m very fat and make almost everything. My current project is this dang blazer.
A shoulder view of a bright pink velveteen blazer covered in metal spikes in a variety of sizes, which is giving “I have an office job but I’m still punk, really I am.”
January 30, 2025 at 3:29 PM
therotund.bsky.social
Just normal things.
A Lisa Frank-like image, featuring unsettling rainbow colors, a crescent moon with a face and open mouth, a unicorn, and many stars. The text reads: THE OLD WORLD IS DYING THE NEW WORLD STRUGGLES TO BE BORN NOW IS THE TIME OF MONSTERS
January 21, 2025 at 10:41 PM
therotund.bsky.social
The most hated by everyone in my life ever is this dental mold I recently picked up for a DOLLAR at a creative reuse center!
A dental mold set made of plaster with some sculpted crowns looking horribly realistic sitting on a bookshelf in front of some random sci fi novels. There’s a box of plastic windup chattering teeth next to it.
December 29, 2024 at 2:42 AM
therotund.bsky.social
The metal torso is probably the coolest piece - I pulled him out of a mall dumpster in the very early 2000s and brought him home on the city bus.
A partial metal torso on a metal stand - the torso has shiny silver pecs and is wearing a feather ruff collar and a black segmented leather pauldron. It’s standing in a corner in from of some framed art pieces with a lot of tentacles and antlers and a giant whiteboard calendar and a gold velvet chair.
December 29, 2024 at 2:38 AM
therotund.bsky.social
Oh no my instant knee jerk response was actually The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster and I’m not sure what that says about me.
A page from Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth, featuring half a page of text and then a sketchy line drawing of a large dog that has a clock in its body. It is reaching up with a back leg to wind the watch style crown sticking out of his back. The text reads: “Just killing time,” replied Milo apologetically. “You see—“ “KILLING TIME!” roared the dog—so furiously that his alarm went off. “It’s bad enough wasting time without killing it.” And he shuddered at the thought. “Why are you in the Doldrums anyway—don’t you have anywhere to go?” “I was on my way to Dictionopolis when I got stuck here,” explained Milo. “Can you help me?” “Help you! You must help yourself,” the dog replied, carefully winding himself with his left hind leg. “I suppose you know why you got stuck.”
December 27, 2024 at 6:59 PM
therotund.bsky.social
Literally 1 month ago I told @lapanique.bsky.social that I looked like a kid playing dress up in my dad’s jacket when trying on leather jackets. Today, I bought this at a sample sale.
A very fat pale femme wearing jeans and a They Might Be Giants Apollo 18 tshirt because they are that kind of nerd poses in a hallway taking a mirror selfie. They are also wearing heart-shaped aviator sunglasses, dark lipstick, and a leather moto jacket that isn’t zipped up. Probably they’d look tougher if they were wearing doc martens but whatever, they have on converse because they’re still a nerd. The femme is obviously feeling this look. It’s me, I’m the femme and I am FEELING this look.
December 13, 2024 at 9:14 PM
therotund.bsky.social
I saw this a little while ago and it's too right.

Good luck with your words as well!
A meme titled "How brain workles" that depicts six line illustration profiles of a head with various weird stuff where the brain should be - none of it is brain matter, which is kind of the point even before you read any of the text. The vibe is existential adhd despair. Each brain is labeled and includes a short list of characteristics. Top row, left to right is as follows. Soup: - *static noises* - what is task - soup Squizzly: - many task - oops bendy - wher go Crumbly: - see outlines of task but it's a sandcastle - no fine details - heck it fell into the moat Bottom row, left to right is as follows. Full of Yarn: - I SEE THE COSMOS - task task task task task - oops should eat at some point On Rails: - TASK only - sleep? Never heard of her Squirrel!: - ooh snacks - squirrel! - 404 task not found
November 26, 2024 at 10:59 PM
therotund.bsky.social
A short- and smooth-coated black and white dog of medium size leaping to catch a tennis ball, with her ears flapping and only one foot on the ground. She is SO into catching the fucking tennis ball. Three other black dogs are milling around in the sandy gravel of the dog park, being chill, entirely unfazed by my dog’s intensity and joy.
November 8, 2024 at 3:48 PM
therotund.bsky.social
This filter is called “dramatic cool” which makes me laugh whenever I use it.

Happy Halloween and blessed Samhain, friends.

(I’m less “wearing a costume” and more “wearing random items I grabbed from my closet.” Maybe next year I’ll have time to make something.)
A silly selfie of Marianne, a pale fat femme wearing red lipstick and tiny old fashioned glasses. She’s wearing an elaborate headdress with large pink and gold horns, a profusion of flowers, and a bunch of ribbon to go with an extravagant black mesh robe with flocked snakes all over it. The general effect with the makeup and jewelry is vaguely a snake priestess/witch. Theres a smear of light because Marianne’s selfie camera has a crack in the screen and sometimes that is magical.
October 31, 2024 at 10:13 PM
therotund.bsky.social
This sleepy dog is snoring on her flat sheep and also my foot so I can never move.
POV: a gangly pointer/pit mix dog with a jersey cow black and white pattern of splotches and her leggies all stretched forward is sleeping with her head resting on the front half of a well-chewed but much-loved flat sheep dog toy and also a foot wearing a white sock - the foot belongs to you so you can never move.
October 9, 2024 at 2:15 AM
therotund.bsky.social
I’m not sure I’ve ever seen my general approach to life summed up in a cartoon quite this well before.
A four-panel comic featuring a profane rabbit and simple background of yellow without any other detail. First panel: the little brown rabbit sits in side view next to some small purple flowers with green leaves and there’s a speech bubble that says WHAT A BEAUTIFUL FUCKING DAY. Second panel: the rabbit is close up in a profile head shot with a speech bubble that says NOTHING BEATS THIS SHIT. Third panel: close-up view of the purple flowers with a speech bubble coming from off screen that says LOOK AT THAT FUCKING FLOWER. Fourth panel: a slightly pulled back view of the rabbit in partial profile with the purple flowers and a speech bubble that says SHIT IT’S GOOD TO BE ALIVE. The whole thing has an air of marveling at life even amidst the shit.
October 5, 2024 at 3:59 PM