Gothic Universe of Shapes Sessionography

Prologue
The earliest "genuine" concept drafts began in February 2014. Most of the concept designs that are mentioned below (but not described) were done in September - November 2014.

Concept shape designs are created for what would become the Gothic Universe of Shapes Series. Rough picture designs for the "Yin Yang", "Spiky Land Mine", "Gothic Gem", "Black Diamond", "Dark Crystal", "Doom Glass", "Circular Table", "Flat Top", "Saddle Top", "Sphere Tech", "Guest Chair", "Plaque", "Cross", "Power Triangle", "Flowchart-Off Page Connector", "Pentagon", "Medical Cherry", "Dark Bolt", "Tombstone" (now re-named "Statue"), and "Bevel" are made.

Rough picture designs for the "Eight Ball", "Cracker of Doom", "Shot-Put" and "Lollipop" are made. New concept designs for the "Yin Yang", "Black Diamond", "Gothic Gem", "Doom Glass" (now re-named "Final Hour of Doom Glass"), "Spiky Land Mine", "Dark Crystal", "Flat Top" (now re-named "Flat Top Tech"), and "Saddle Top" (now re-named "Saddle Top Tech") are drawn. The original concept designs for the "Yin Yang", "Spiky Land Mine", "Gothic Gem", "Black Diamond", "Dark Crystal", "Final Hour of Doom Glass", "Flat Top Tech", and "Saddle Top Tech" were then scrapped.

Rough picture designs for the "Relic", "Floor Lamp", "Desk Chair" and the "Pyramid" are drawn. The "Whistle", "Padlock", "Weight" (or "Anvil"), and "Butter Churn" were added to the list, but no designs for these shapes were made. A rough design for the "Star" (or "Navigation Control") was made.

Pilot Era
17th December 2014 - The master design of the "Yin Yang" is made in Microsoft Word 2007.

19th December 2014 - The master design of the "Eight Ball" is made in Microsoft Word 2007. The "Eight Ball" and the "Yin Yang" were moved to Microsoft Excel 2007 for 3-D/shadow effects. The two shapes were paired up as a 2-Item Set. Both shapes were given enthusiastic response upon creation which led to their selections as two of the best shapes of the series.

21st December 2014 - The master designs of the "Final Hour of Doom Glass", "Black Diamond", "Gothic Gem" and "Dark Crystal" were made in Microsoft Excel 2007. The "F.H.O.D Glass" and the "Black Diamond" were paired together for the 2nd 2-Item set, while the "Dark Crystal" and "Gothic Gem" were paired together to make the 3rd 2-Item set. Unlike the "Yin Yang" and it's 2-Item Set companion "Eight Ball", the "F.H.O.D Glass", "Dark Crystal" and their 2-Item Set pairs, failed to gain a very enthusiastic response, and as a result, they failed to gain selection as some of the best shapes of the series.

24th December 2014 - I forgot to add the cylindrical reservoir to the initial master design of the "Eight Ball". The cylindrical reservoir was added to the master on this day. The concept for the "Pie Chart" was started a day or two in Microsoft Excel 2007, before the cylindrical reservoir was added to the "Eight Ball".

26th January 2015 - An alternate version of the "Yin Yang" with the colours reversed was made. Apparently this is what the "Yin Yang" would originally have looked like, had I not used an image of a "Yin Yang" on the internet for inspiration.

31st January 2015 - Alternate versions of the "Black Diamond", "Gothic Gem", and "Dark Crystal" were made in Microsoft Excel 2007. Additional line work was added to the initial designs. Apparently these new designs of the "Black Diamond", "Gothic Gem", and "Dark Crystal" were closer to the original ball point concept designs which I'd drawn earlier in 2014. Had I made these designs back in December 2014, the three shapes would have gained a more enthusiastic response, and thus would have had a better chance at being inducted into the Gothic Hall of Fame.

1st February 2015 - An alternate version of the "Final Hour of Doom Glass" was made in Microsoft Excel 2007. The shape underwent a significant improvement, giving it a more realistic shape, and even had a more realistic flow of sand. Had this been the version of the "Final Hour of Doom Glass" that dated from December 2014, it would have gained a much more enthusiastic response, and would almost certainly have been inducted into the Gothic Hall of Fame. Too bad the "Final Hour of Doom Glass" already had it's chance by the time the re-worked version was made a month later.

17th April 2015 - The alternate versions of the "Eight Ball" (with the cylindrical reservoir), "Yin Yang" (with colours reversed), "Black Diamond", "Gothic Gem", and "Dark Crystal" were compiled to make the first full house compilation set of the Gothic Universe of Shapes Series. The "Spiky Land Mine", "Circular Table", and the re-worked version of the "Final Hour of Doom Glass" were also featured. All eight of these shapes were collected to form this compilation, because none of them were previously featured on regular full house sets. Interestingly, all the shapes (with the exception of the "Spiky Land Mine" and it's 2-Item Set companion "Circular Table") on this compilation were presented in their previously un-featured re-worked forms, although the version of the "Eight Ball" with the cylindrical reservoir was previously added to Gothic Hall of Fame in recognition for being one of the best shapes of the series.

26th April 2015 - The "Gothic Universe of Shapes, Volume One" compilation set was re-issued on this day, with six added bonus shapes - "Eight Ball", "Yin Yang", "Black Diamond", "Gothic Gem", "Dark Crystal", and the "Final Hour of Doom Glass".

28th July 2015 - The Complete "Pilot Era" Full House Compilation Set was issued on this day. It consisted of all the shapes from the Pilot Era, including the re-worked versions of the "Yin Yang", "Eight Ball", "Final Hour of Doom Glass", "Black Diamond", "Gothic Gem", and "Dark Crystal".

Techie Era
26th December 2014 - Work begins on the "Spiky Land Mine" in Microsoft Excel 2007.

27th December 2014 - The "Spiky Land Mine" was completed on this day, along with a new one, the "Circular Table". Both shapes were paired together for the 4th 2-Item Set. The "Spiky Land Mine" received enthusiastic response by it's creator, upon creation which led to it's selection as one of the best shapes of the series.

28th December 2014 - Work begins on the "Power Triangle" (re-named the "Power Triad") in Microsoft Excel 2007.

29th December 2014 - The "Yin Yang", the version of the "Eight Ball" with the cylindrical reservoir, and the "Spiky Land Mine" earned a spot on the Gothic Hall of Fame on this day. The "Power Triad" was completed, and a new shape, the "Pyramid" was created. Another new shape, the "Floor Lamp" was started on this day.

30th December 2014 - After a complicated session, the previous day, the "Floor Lamp" was finally completed after today's session.

31st December 2014 - Work starts on the "Desk Chair #1", and the "Desk Chair #2" in Microsoft Excel 2007.

1st January 2015 - The "Desk Chair #1" and "Desk Chair #2" were completed on this day, along with three more shapes, "Guest Chair", "Flat Top Tech" and "Saddle Top Tech". The "Flat Top Tech" was paired with the "Power Triad" as the fifth 2-Item Set, where the former of the two gained enthusiastic response from it's creator and was added to the Gothic Hall of Fame. The "Saddle Top Tech" was paired with the "Pyramid" as the sixth 2-Item Set. I got into a bit of an argument with my mind as to which of the two shapes was better, I won, much to my conscience's dismay. However, my conscience ultimately got it's wish, when both the "Saddle Top Tech", and the "Pyramid" were added to the Gothic Hall of Fame. I drew inspiration for the shapes and colours of the "Flat Top Tech" and "Saddle Top Tech" from the Thomas and Friends characters Frank and Wilbert respectively.

2nd January 2015 - The "Sphere Tech" and the "Shot Put (re-named the "Bowling Ball") were created in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The two shapes were paired together for the seventh 2-Item Set, where the former of the two gained enthusiastic response from it's creator and was added to the Gothic Hall of Fame. I drew inspiration for the shape and colour of the "Sphere Tech" from the Thomas and Friends character Bertram.

3rd and 4th January 2015 - The "Pentagon" (re-named "Pentagon Tech"), "Cross" (re-named "Cross Tech"), "Plaque" (re-named "Plaque Tech"), and the "Flowchart-Off Page Connector" were started in Microsoft Excel 2007 on the 3rd January 2015 and completed on the 4th.

5th January 2015 - The "Flat Top Tech", and the "Saddle Top Tech" were given a slight re-design for their inclusion on the "Techie Treasure" Full House Set. The other eight shapes that were included were the "Floor Lamp", "Desk Chair #1", "Desk Chair #2", "Guest Chair", "Pentagon Tech", "Cross Tech", "Plaque Tech" and "Flowchart-Off Page Connector".

18th April 2015 - The "Techie Treasure" Full House Set was re-issued on this day, with four added bonus shapes from the same era, which were previously not included in the set - "Sphere Tech", "Pyramid", "Power Triad", and "Bowling Ball". Interestingly the "Flat Top Tech" and "Saddle Top Tech" are presented in their original 2-Item forms, instead of their re-designed forms that were on the original version of the set.

26th May 2015 - The "Techie Treasure" Full House Set was re-issued on this day, with the four added bonus shapes from the same era, which were previously not included in the original issue of the set - "Sphere Tech", "Pyramid", "Power Triad", and "Bowling Ball". The "Flat Top Tech" and "Saddle Top Tech" are presented in their full house set versions like the original issue, but the original versions of both shapes are featured as bonus shapes.

28th July 2015 - The Complete "Techie Era" Full House Compilation Set was issued on this day. It consisted of all the shapes from the Techie Era, including the full house set versions of the "Flat Top Tech", and "Saddle Top Tech". This also marks the first time the "Spiky Land Mine", and "Circular Table" were reunited with their long lost siblings of which they had long since been isolated from.

13th June 2018 - The Flat Top Tech was given a slight redesign on this day. The redesign is otherwise identical to the original, but the black horizontal stripe on the red buffer beam that was added to the full house set version of the shape was added to this new version.

Swirls Era
11th January 2015 - The "Medical Cherry" and the "Dark Bolt" were created on this day. Interestingly they, along with the "Cracker of Doom", "Lollipop", "Relic" and "Whistle" were originally intended for the Techie era.

12th January 2015 - The "Cracker of Doom" and "Lollipop" were created on this day in Microsoft Excel 2007.

13th January 2015 - The "Relic" and "Whistle" were created in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The "Whistle" would require another session.

14th January 2015 - The "Whistle" was completed. The series would then be put on hold until the beginning of February, when the series' creator would gain access to Adobe Photoshop so he could introduce it's techniques to the series.

23rd January 2015 - The "Pie Chart" was re-coloured and re-sized on this day. The "Deathly Hallows Symbol" was also started. Both shapes would have to wait until they could be edited and completed with Adobe Photoshop. It is interesting to note that in comparison to the Techie Era which comprised mostly of Auto-shape based shapes, the Swirls Era on-wards began to focus more on shapes based on objects that existed in real life.

24th January 2015 - The "Pie Chart" was re-coloured on this day. It would have to wait until it could be colour corrected with Adobe Photoshop, changing it from purple to a dull indigo. The "Padlock", and the "Weight" (now re-named the "Anvil") were also started.

25th January 2015 – Work continues on the "Deathly Hallows Symbol" and the "Padlock". The "Poison Apple" and the "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" ("кишені джинсів" - Ukrainian for "Jeans Pocket") were started on this day.

26th January 2015 – Work continues on the "Deathly Hallows Symbol", the "Padlock", the "Anvil", the "Poison Apple", and the "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" in Microsoft Excel 2007. Work starts on the "Navigation Control" and the "Golden Locket". While the techie era full house set only yielded two shapes that would make the Gothic Hall of Fame. The evidence points out that the swirls era full house set will yield six! More work on the "Poison Apple" would be necessary for it to make the hall of fame.

27th January 2015 - Some rough edges are polished on the "Golden Locket" in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day.

3rd February 2015 - The "Pie Chart" was colour corrected, re-textured, and completed with Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches with Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The "Pie Chart" was paired with the "Lollipop" as the seventh 2-Item Set, where the former of the two gained enthusiastic response from it's creator and was added to the Gothic Hall of Fame. This was the first 2-Item Set in over a month!

4th February 2015 - The "Deathly Hallows Symbol" and "Poison Apple" were edited with Adobe Photoshop CS4 on this day. Apparently the former had to be cut in half, with one of the halves being scrapped for good. The better half was duplicated, and merged with the first identical half, to make the shape symmetrical. The "Deathly Hallows Symbol" was paired with the "Relic" as a 2-Item Set, later the same day.

5th February 2015 - The "Poison Apple" was completed with Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches with Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The "Poison Apple" was paired with the "Medical Cherry" as a 2-Item Set, later the same day.

6th February 2015 - The "Deathly Hallows Symbol" and "Poison Apple" gained enthusiastic response from their creator and were added to the Gothic Hall of Fame on this day.

9th February 2015 - The "Padlock" and "Anvil" were edited with Adobe Photoshop CS4 on this day. One more Photoshop session for the "Anvil" would be required before it could receive the finishing touches with Microsoft Excel 2007. Because I'd been experiencing difficulty with retaining quality of shapes during the Photoshop editing process, any further editing with Photoshop was to be made transparent, so that the high quality resolution of the original Microsoft Excel 2007 shapes could still shine beneath the editing from Photoshop.

10th February 2015 - Further work on the "Anvil" in Adobe Photoshop CS4, and work on the "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" in Photoshop.

11th February 2015 - The "Padlock", "Anvil" and "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" were completed with Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" was paired with the "Cracker of Doom" as a 2-Item Set, later the same day. The "Navigation Control" and "Golden Locket" were also edited with Adobe Photoshop CS4 on this day. One more session was necessary to complete the two shapes.

12th February 2015 - The "Navigation Control" and "Golden Locket" were completed with Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches with Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The "Navigation Control" was paired with the "Dark Bolt" as a 2-Item Set, later the same day, making the "Dark Bolt" the first shape of the series to have to wait at least a month before it was paired with a featured shape as a 2-Item Set. The "Golden Locket" was also paired with the "Whistle" as a 2-Item Set on this day. The "Kysheni Dzhynsiv", "Navigation Control" and "Golden Locket" were added to the Gothic Hall of Fame on this day. The three shapes along with the "Pie Chart", "Deathly Hallows", "Padlock", "Anvil" and "Poison Apple" were included on the "Swirls of Darkness" Full House Set.

17th and 18th February 2015 - A re-worked version of the "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" with the pocket pattern corrected was made. Apparently this is what the "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" would originally have looked like, had I gained access to a picture of the pocket patterns for inspiration.

20th April 2015 - An alternate version of the "Golden Locket" (with genuine chain holes) was introduced on this day.

1st May 2015 - The "Swirls of Darkness" Full House Set was re-issued on this day, with six added bonus shapes from the same era, which were previously not included in the set - "Relic", "Medical Cherry", "Lollipop", "Whistle", "Cracker of Doom", and "Dark Bolt". The "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" and "Golden Locket" were presented in their re-worked forms, with the correct pocket patterns, and chain holes respectively.

1st June 2015 - The "Swirls of Darkness" Full House Set was re-issued on this day, with the six added bonus shapes from the same era, which were previously not included in the original issue of the set - "Relic", "Medical Cherry", "Lollipop", "Whistle", "Cracker of Doom", and "Dark Bolt". The "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" and "Golden Locket" are presented in their full house set versions like the original issue, but the re-worked versions of both shapes are featured as bonus shapes.

22nd July 2015 - An alternate version of the "Deathly Hallows Symbol" (as a necklace with string) was introduced on this day. This was my original intention for what the "Deathly Hallows Symbol" shape was going to be like.

29th July 2015 - The Complete "Swirls Era" Full House Compilation Set was issued on this day. It consisted of all the shapes from the Swirls Era, including the re-worked versions of the "Deathly Hallows Symbol", "Kysheni Dzhynsiv" and "Golden Locket".

25th, 26th, 27th and 29th January 2017 - An alternate version of the "Cracker of Doom" with a more accurate Christmas Cracker shape was introduced during this time. The series' creator had been contemplating a re-worked version of the "Cracker of Doom" for over a year but no re-worked versions had been introduced until the 27th January 2017. In-fact I had to double back on the 29th January 2017 and do some more work on the shadow effects since the original shadow effects were obscured during the process of improving the shape. I can understand why I was unable to get myself to create a re-worked version until now, because it proved a challenging shape to make and an even more challenging one to re-work.

1st February 2017 - The Complete "Swirls Era" Full House Compilation Set was reissued on this day to include the reworked version of the "Cracker of Doom".

Sketch Era
24th February 2015 - The sketching for the "Lava Lamp", "Cold Steel Boomerang" and "Death Stick" were drawn on this day using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. Like all the shapes created during the sketch era, the basis for these shapes were not created using auto-shapes.

26th and 27th February 2015 - The sketching for the "Frozen Heart" was drawn, and the "Butter Churn" was started using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. Like all the shapes created during the sketch era, the basis for these shapes were not created using auto-shapes.

3rd March 2015 - The sketching for the "Butter Churn" was continued on this day, using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils.

4th March 2015 - The "Lava Lamp" and "Death Stick" were completed in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The "Cold Steel Boomerang" was also edited in Adobe Photoshop. One more Photoshop session would be required before the "Cold Steel Boomerang" could receive the finishing touches in Microsoft Excel 2007. The sketching for the "Butter Churn" was completed on this day, using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils.

5th March 2015 - The "Cold Steel Boomerang" was completed in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The sketching for the "Frozen Heart" was completed, with the sketching for the "Glass Ring" which was drawn on this day, using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. Like all shapes created during the sketch era, the basis for the "Glass Ring" was not created using auto-shapes. An early session for the "Glass Ring" had been attempted using auto-shapes earlier in February, but due to complexity issues and the problems caused by the limitations of the auto-shape shapes, this session was scrapped.

6th March 2015 - The sketching for the "Two-Face Shape" was started on this day using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. Like all the shapes created during the sketch era, the basis for this shape was not created using auto-shapes.

9th March 2015 - The "Frozen Heart", "Butter Churn" and "Glass Ring" were edited, but not completed in Adobe Photoshop CS4 on this day. The sketching for the "Two-Face Shape" was completed, with the sketching for the "Traffic Light Cube", and the "Mosquito Blanket" which was started on this day, using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. Like all the shapes created during the sketch era, the basis for the "Traffic Light Cube" and "Mosquito Blanket" were not created using auto-shapes.

10th March 2015 - The "Frozen Heart", "Butter Churn" and "Glass Ring" were completed in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The sketching for the "Mosquito Blanket" was also completed.

18th March 2015 - The "Two-Face Shape" was completed in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day.

20th March 2015 - The "Traffic Light Cube" and "Mosquito Blanket" were completed in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. The sketching for the "Death Flower" was also started using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. Like all the shapes created during the sketch era, the basis for this shape was not created using auto-shapes.

25th March 2015 - The sketching for the "Death Flower" was completed on this day, with the sketching for the "Amber Lamp" which was drawn, using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. Like all the shapes created during the sketch era, the basis for the "Amber Lamp" was not created using auto-shapes.

26th and 27th March 2015 - The sketching for the "Torch of Darkness" was drawn on this day using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. Like all the shapes created during the sketch era, the basis for this shape was not created using auto-shapes.

30th March 2015 - The "Death Flower" was edited with Adobe Photoshop CS4 on this day. One more Photoshop session for the "Death Flower" would be required before it could receive the finishing touches with Microsoft Excel 2007.

31st March 2015 - The "Death Flower" and "Amber Lamp" were completed in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day.

1st April 2015 - The "Torch of Darkness" was completed in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. A text sparkle effect (without the text itself) was extracted from Microsoft Word 2000, and mixed into the light - or rather dark - shining from the torch, before the shape's creation was finalised in Microsoft Excel 2007. The sparkle effect was altered, so it can't be distinguished easily.

4th April 2015 - Four 2-Item Sets were formed on this day. Unlike the previous two eras, all the 2-Item Sets of the Sketch era, including the full house set, were compiled on the same day. This was done to ensure that I made the right choices as to what shapes would be featured on 2-Item Sets, which shapes would be part of the full house set etc. The "Lava Lamp" was paired with the "Death Stick" as a 2-Item Set, the "Cold Steel Boomerang" with the "Glass Ring", the "Frozen Heart" with the "Two-Face Shape", and the "Death Flower" with the "Traffic Light Cube". The "Lava Lamp", "Death Stick", "Frozen Heart", and "Death Flower" were also included on the "Free Hand Sketching" Full House Set, along with the "Butter Churn", "Mosquito Blanket", "Amber Lamp" and "Torch of Darkness".

8th April 2015 - The "Lava Lamp", "Cold Steel Boomerang", "Death Stick", "Frozen Heart", "Death Flower" and "Torch of Darkness" gained enthusiastic response from their creator and were added to the Gothic Hall of Fame on this day. It is interesting to note that the "Torch of Darkness" is the only shape to have been added to the Gothic Hall of Fame, that wasn't included as a 2-Item Set.

20th April 2015 - An alternate version of the "Cold Steel Boomerang" (without the transparent bubble, which was accidentally left in the original shape) was introduced on this day.

4th May 2015 - The "Free Hand Sketching" Full House Set was re-issued on this day, with four added bonus shapes from the same era, which were previously not included in the set - "Cold Steel Boomerang", "Traffic Light Cube", "Two-Face Shape", and "Glass Ring". The Cold Steel Boomerang is presented in it's alternate form without the transparent bubble.

2nd June 2015 - The "Free Hand Sketching" Full House Set was re-issued on this day, with the four added bonus shapes from the same era, which were previously not included in the set - the alternate version of the "Cold Steel Boomerang" without the transparent bubble, "Traffic Light Cube", "Two-Face Shape", and "Glass Ring". The June re-issue also includes the original version of the "Cold Steel Boomerang" with the transparent bubble, that was left as part of the shape by mistake.

13th June 2015 - Since the "Torch of Darkness" was the only shape to have gained enthusiastic response from it's creator that wasn't featured as a 2-Item Set, it was subsequently featured as a 2-Item Set on this day, with the "Mosquito Blanket".

21st July 2015 - An alternate version of the "Death Flower" (without the transparent stripe, which was accidentally left in the original shape) was introduced on this day.

29th July 2015 - The Complete "Sketch Era" Full House Compilation Set was issued on this day. It consisted of all the shapes from the Sketch Era, including the re-worked versions of the "Cold Steel Boomerang", and "Death Flower".

26th August 2015 - The G.U.O.S, the Best of, Compilation Set was issued on this day. It included the re-worked version of the "Final Hour of Doom Glass" from the Pilot Era, the full house set versions of the "Flat Top Tech" and "Saddle Top Tech" from the Techie Era, the "Pie Chart", "Deathly Hallows Symbol", "Poison Apple", "Kysheni Dzhynsiv", "Navigation Control", and "Golden Locket" from the Swirls Era, and the "Lava Lamp", "Cold Steel Boomerang", "Death Stick", "Frozen Heart", "Death Flower" and "Torch of Darkness" from the Sketch Era. Tellingly, none of the shapes from the Final Era were included, focusing strictly on the Techie, Swirls, and Sketch Eras, with the exception of the "Final Hour of Doom Glass" from the Pilot Era. All the shapes included in this Compilation Set appeared on either the original "Techie Treasure", "Swirls of Darkness", or "Free Hand Sketching" full house sets, with the exception of the "Final Hour of Doom Glass" and "Cold Steel Boomerang" which were both originally featured only as 2-Item Sets.

Final Era
13th May 2015 - The "Alternate Process: Purple" and "Alternate Process: Olive Green" were created on this day. The two shapes were paired up as a 2-Item Set later the same day. They were the first shapes created since the "Whistle" that were created solely inside Microsoft Excel 2007. I had originally considered using Adobe Photoshop CS4, but I subsequently decided to briefly return to the basics and just create them with auto-shapes using Microsoft Excel 2007. I drew inspiration for the shapes and colours of the "Alternate Process: Purple" and "Alternate Process: Olive Green" from the Thomas and Friends characters Splatter and Dodge respectively.

14th May 2015 - The "Statue" - a previously forgotten shape drafted during the Gothic Universe of Shapes prologue - was created on this day. It would need to wait upon the creation of another shape to be paired with for a 2-Item Set. The Statue was created using auto-shapes in Microsoft Excel 2007 without any editing in Adobe Photoshop CS4, or use of Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils.

25th May 2015 - Work starts on a new shape, the "Halloween Pumpkin" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. It is the first shape to use Faber Castell Felt Pens in addition to Watercolour Pencils. Like all the shapes created during the previous era, the basis for the "Halloween Pumpkin" was not created using auto-shapes. A version of the "Halloween Pumpkin" had been attempted in Adobe Photoshop CS4 several days earlier, but this version was scrapped, upon deciding that the basis of the "Halloween Pumpkin" was too complex to be done without using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils.

2nd June 2015 - Work starts on the "Firework Demon" and "Crystal Sphere" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, and to a significantly lesser extent, Felt Pens. Like all the shapes created during the previous era, the basis for these two shapes were not created using auto-shapes.

8th June 2015 - The "Halloween Pumpkin" was completed on this day in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches using Microsoft Excel 2007. The "Halloween Pumpkin" and "Statue" were paired up together for a 2-Item Set. The "Halloween Pumpkin" was also added to the Gothic Hall of Fame on this day, in recognition for being one of the best shapes of the series.

9th June 2015 - The "Crystal Sphere" was completed on this day in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches using Microsoft Excel 2007. A text sparkle effect (without the text itself) was extracted from Microsoft Word 2000, and mixed into the shape, before it's creation was finalised in Microsoft Excel 2007. This makes the "Crystal Sphere" the third shape to use this text sparkle effect. A couple of auto-shapes were thrown in to help retain the circular stature of the "Crystal Sphere".

10th June 2015 - The "Firework Demon" was completed on this day in Adobe Photoshop CS4 with some finishing touches using Microsoft Excel 2007. A text sparkle effect (without the text itself) was extracted from Microsoft Word 2000, and mixed into the clear shape behind the shape, before it's creation was finalised in Microsoft Excel 2007. This makes the "Firework Demon" the second shape to use this text sparkle effect, being created before the "Crystal Sphere" despite being finished after. A glowing effect was used to give the shape more detail. The "Firework Demon" and "Crystal Sphere" were paired up together for a 2-Item Set. Admittedly it was rather tough to make the "Firework Demon" reach the standards for inclusion on the Gothic Hall of Fame, but it managed to make the cut, after managing to gain recognition for being one of the best shapes of the series.

12th June 2015 - Work starts on the "Canon Bomb" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, and Felt Pens. The "Canon Bomb" is the first shape of the series to be started by joint usage of Watercolour Pencils and Felts, rather than being drawn solely or predominantly with Watercolour Pencils. After growing tired of the pencils not being able to completely obscure the white sketch pad of which the shape was drawn on, I realised that my future shapes would be better off being drawn with felt pens first, and then adding pencil over the top. That way all or at least most of the whites of the sketch pad could be obscured for when the shape could be scanned, edited in Adobe Photoshop CS4 and finalised with Microsoft Office Excel 2007.

16th June 2015 - Work starts on the "Tornado Top" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, and Felt Pens. Like the "Canon Bomb", the "Tornado Top" was started with felts, and then drawn over with pencils, rather than being drawn solely or predominantly with the Watercolour Pencils.

17th June 2015 - The "Lens Flare" was created on this day in Adobe Photoshop CS4 and finished in Microsoft Excel 2007. As it's name implies, it is primarily based on the lens flare effect which is featured in Photoshop. It is the first shape of the series to be created primarily inside Photoshop.

18th June 2015 - Work starts on the "Shattered Wine Glass" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, and Felt Pens. The "Shattered Wine Glass" was started with felts, and then drawn over with pencils, rather than being drawn solely or predominantly with the Watercolour Pencils. It also marks the introduction of using Faber Castell Lead Pencils.

19th June 2015 - Work starts on the "Poison Berry" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens. The "Poison Berry" was started with felts, and then drawn over with pencils, rather than being drawn solely or predominantly with the Watercolour Pencils. The final concept for the Poison Berry shape is mostly based on the Poison Berry concept, although traces of the drafted Acid Drop concept were re-worked and merged with the final Poison Berry shape concept. The "Acid Drop" concept was however revived on the 1st July 2015, so that there'd be an even number of shapes. The "Poison Berry" concept was now officially separate.

22nd June 2015 - The sketching and drawing of the "Poison Berry" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens, was completed on this day. The sketching and drawing of the "Toffee Apple" was started and completed on this day with Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens. The "Toffee Apple" was started with felts, and then drawn over with pencils, rather than being drawn solely or predominantly with the Watercolour Pencils.

23rd June 2015 - Work starts on the "Party Popper" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens. The "Party Popper" was started with felts, and then drawn over with pencils, rather than being drawn solely or predominantly with the Watercolour Pencils.

24th June 2015 - The sketching and drawing of the "Toffee Apple" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens, was completed on this day. The sketching and drawing of the "Electric Sphere" and "Ferris Wheel" were started and completed on this day with Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens. The two shapes were started with felts, and then drawn over with pencils, rather than being drawn solely or predominantly with the Watercolour Pencils.

25th June 2015 - The sketching and drawing of the "Devil's Spark" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens, was started on this day. The shape was started with felts, and then drawn over with pencils, rather than being drawn solely or predominantly with the Watercolour Pencils.

26th June 2015 - The sketching and drawing of the "Devil's Spark" was completed on this day with Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens.

29th June 2015 - The "Canon Bomb" and "Tornado Top" were completed on this day with Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Microsoft Excel 2007. The two shapes were paired up together for a 2-Item Set. The "Canon Bomb" was also added to the Gothic Hall of Fame, in recognition for being one of the best shapes of the series.

30th June 2015 - The "Shattered Wine Glass" and "Poison Berry" were completed on this day with Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Microsoft Excel 2007. The "Shattered Wine Glass" was paired up with the already completed "Lens Flare" for a 2-Item Set. The outlines of a new shape "Turkish Delight Box" was started on this day.

1st July 2015 - The sketching and drawing of the "Turkish Delight Box" and "Acid Drop" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens, were started on this day. The two shapes were started with felts, and then drawn over with pencils, rather than being drawn solely or predominantly with the Watercolour Pencils. The "Toffee Apple" and "Party Popper" were completed on this day with Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Microsoft Excel 2007.

2nd July 2015 - The "Electric Sphere" and "Ferris Wheel" were completed on this day with Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Microsoft Excel 2007. The sketching and drawing of the "Turkish Delight Box" and "Acid Drop" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens, were completed on this day.

3rd July 2015 - The "Devil's Spark", "Turkish Delight Box" and "Acid Drop" were completed on this day using Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Microsoft Excel 2007. Faint conditioner textures and text sparkle effects were added to the three shapes with auto-shapes.

4th July 2015 - Four 2-Item Sets were formed on this day. The "Toffee Apple" was paired with the "Poison Berry" as a 2-Item Set, the "Electric Sphere" with the "Party Popper", the "Ferris Wheel" with the "Devil's Spark", and the "Turkish Delight Box" with the "Acid Drop". The eight shapes along with the "Alternate Process: Purple", "Alternate Process: Olive Green", "Statue", "Halloween Pumpkin", "Firework Demon", "Crystal Sphere", "Canon Bomb", "Tornado Top", "Lens Flare" and "Shattered Wine Glass" were compiled to make the second full house compilation set of the Gothic Universe of Shapes Series. All the shapes created during the final era were collected to form this compilation, because I had no intention of compiling any more standard full house sets. I decided that I was going to compile three, one from the Techie, Swirls and Sketch eras and none more. The "Crystal Sphere", "Shattered Wine Glass", "Poison Berry", "Toffee Apple", "Electric Sphere", "Ferris Wheel", "Turkish Delight Box" and "Acid Drop" gained enthusiastic response from their creator and were added to the Gothic Hall of Fame on this day.

27th August 2015 - The sketching and drawing of some confetti strings for a re-worked version of the "Party Popper" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens, was done on this day.

4th August 2015 - The confetti was completed on this day with Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Microsoft Excel 2007. It was then added to the original version of the "Party Popper", introducing a re-worked version of the shape. The Party Popper shape was apparently originally intended to be drawn with confetti, but because there wasn't enough space on the page inside the sketching pad, and because I decided it was too much trouble to worry about at the time, the confetti was previously not included as part of the original shape. The complete "Final Era" full house compilation set was also issued on this day. It included all the shapes from the final era, including the re-worked version of the Party Popper shape.

17th August 2015 - The "Absolute Best of the G.U.O.S" full house compilation set was compiled on this day, although it had been done so mentally for quite some time now. This full house compilation set featured all the shapes of the Gothic Universe of Shapes that had merited praise from their creator, and had gained recognition for being the best shapes of the series. Even though the "Death Flower", "Cold Steel Boomerang", "Golden Locket", "Kysheni Dzhynsiv", and "Deathly Hallows Symbol" are presented in their original versions on the Gothic Hall of Fame, when this compilation was made, the re-worked versions of those shapes were included instead.

Comeback Era
The earliest "genuine" concept drafts for the Comeback Era began in November 2017, although many ideas for the shapes had been floating around in 2016 or maybe even 2015. Most of the concept designs that are mentioned below (but not described) were done in November 2017 - April 2018.

Ideas for the "Bevel", "Sword", "Gear", "Turntable", "Spinning Top", "Skip-It", "Yo-Yo", "Paddle Ball", "Lasso", "Slingshot" (now re-named "Maple Slingshot"), "Yo-Yo", "Pinwheel", and "Paper Fan" (now re-named "Folding Fan") are developed sometime between 2016 and 2017. With the exception of the "Bevel", none of these ideas would be drafted yet.

Ideas for the "Origami Cross" and "Fidget Spinner" are developed sometime in 2017, though neither of these ideas would be drafted yet.

Rough picture designs for the "Bevel" are made in late 2017, though the design would be later rejected in favour of the previous design which had already been started in January 2017 using Auto-shapes with Microsoft Excel 2007.

Ideas for the "Balloon" and "Whoopee Cushion" are developed sometime between January and March 2018, though neither of these ideas would be drafted yet.

Rough picture designs for the "Spinning Top", "Pinwheel", "Balloon", "Origami Cross", "Fidget Spinner", "Whoopee Cushion", "Turntable", "Folding Fan", "Yo-Yo", "Paddle Ball", and "Sword" were made between March and April 2018. However none of these drafts would make the final pressing.

9th January 2017 - The master design of the "Bevel"- a previously scrapped shape drafted during the Gothic Universe of Shapes prologue - is made in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. Despite being started in January 2017, it was originally intended to be one of the first shapes of the series, but was scrapped for unknown reasons.

5th November 2017 - Further work is done on the "Bevel" in Microsoft Excel 2007. Since the Gothic Universe of Shapes was supposed to be concluded, and as it wasn't my primary focus at the time, the "Bevel" had to wait over a year until it was completed.

6th April 2018 - Additional detail is added to the "Bevel" in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day, after getting some inspiration from an early Pixar logo from the late 1980's which featured a bevel shape.

8th April 2018 - The "Bevel" is finally completed in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day. I was originally going to scrap this version of the Bevel shape and start over again, but I subsequently decided to modify this version slightly to make it good enough for me to consider complete.

9th April 2018 - The width of the "Bevel" is subsequently adjusted in Microsoft Excel 2007 on this day, since it was deemed too wide in comparison to the other shapes, most of which had been created on a PC with a narrower screen, resulting in the shapes coming out narrower than they probably would have done, had they been made on a wider screen. This would be last time Microsoft Excel 2007 would be used for making and editing shapes for the series. All future uses of Excel would be done using Microsoft Excel 2010 instead.

3rd May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Turntable" and "Spinning Top" were started on this day using Faber Castell Lead Pencils. While the most of the "Turntable" was completed on this day, minus the majority of colouring in with Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils and Felt Pens, not much work would be done on the "Spinning Top" until the 10th May 2018.

4th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Turntable" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens was completed on this day.

10th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Spinning Top" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens was completed on this day. An Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen would be used to draw over the outlines. The sketching and drawing of the "Paddle Ball" was started on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils and Felt Pens.

11th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Paddle Ball" using Faber Castell Lead Pencils and Felt Pens was continued on this day.

12th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Paddle Ball" using Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils, Lead Pencils and Felt Pens, was completed on this day. The shape was mostly coloured in with felt pens, and then coloured in again with watercolour pencils to strengthen the colour. I typically found that when I used felt pens and watercolour pencils together, it made the colours bolder than if I were to use felt pens or watercolour pencils separately. An Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen would be used to draw over the outlines of the shape.

17th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Maple Slingshot" and "Skip-It" were started on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils, Felt Pens, and Watercolour Pencils. The "Maple Slingshot" would be sketched and ready for scanning on this day, while the "Skip-It" would be left for another day to finish the sketching and drawing. Only Lead Pencils and Felt Pens were used to start the "Skip-It" off on this day. An Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen would be used to draw over the outlines of the "Maple Slingshot" and "Skip-It".

18th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Skip-It" was completed on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils, Felt Pens, and Watercolour Pencils. An Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen was also used to draw over the outlines.

19th May 2018 - The "Turntable" and "Spinning Top" were completed on this day with Microsoft Paint, Microsoft Excel 2010, and Paint 3-D. The "Turntable" was officially the first shape of the Gothic Universe of Shapes series to be completed using Microsoft Paint, Microsoft Excel 2010, and Paint 3-D. It was also the first shape to use Microsoft Excel 2010, rather than Microsoft Excel 2007, and the first shape to be drawn outside Microsoft Excel and not be edited with Adobe Photoshop CS4. The "Spinning Top" was therefore the second shape of the series to be completed with these features.

20th May 2018 - The "Paddle Ball" was completed on this day with Microsoft Paint, Microsoft Excel 2010, Paint 3-D, and Paint.NET. The "Paddle Ball" was officially the first shape of the Gothic Universe of Shapes series to be completed using effects from Paint.NET, in addition to Microsoft Paint, Microsoft Excel 2010, and Paint 3-D.

21st May 2018 - The "Maple Slingshot" and "Skip-It" were completed on this day with Microsoft Paint, Microsoft Excel 2010, Paint 3-D, and Paint.NET.

24th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Sword" was started on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils, Felt Pens, and an Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen. Curiously, the "Sword" had been attempted on the 17th May 2018, but completing it was a rather problematic process, so it had to be redone.

25th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Sword" was completed on this day with Faber Castell Watercolour Pencils. The sketching and drawing of the "Gear" and "Fidget Spinner" were done on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils, Felt Pens, Watercolour Pencils, and an Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen. The "Gear" is one of the few shapes of the Comeback Era to feature a mixture of measuring and tracing. Tracing was usually banned from my drawings, though the "Gear" proved to be a difficult shape to master, and its origins came from Microsoft Office auto-shapes. Many of the shapes that I had done with auto-shapes had been semi-traced, so I decided to bend the no tracing rule a bit when drawing the "Gear".

26th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Balloon" and "Whoopee Cushion" were started on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils, Felt Pens, Watercolour Pencils, and an Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen. The sketching and drawing of the "Balloon" would be completed on this day while the sketching and drawing of the "Whoopee Cushion" would need to wait until the conventional whoopee cushion patterns could be correctly measured and drawn, which proved it to be a significantly tougher shape to draw than the "Balloon". Both shapes were drawn a bluish purple. The "Balloon" was drawn with purple felt and blue pencil, while the "Whoopee Cushion" was drawn with blue felt and purple pencil.

27th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Whoopee Cushion" was completed on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils, Felt Pens, and Watercolour Pencils. Admittedly there may have been a tiny bit of tracing involved, but it was mostly just measuring.

28th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Pinwheel" and "Yo-Yo" were done on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils, Felt Pens, Watercolour Pencils, and an Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen. The "Pinwheel" would be drawn free hand with extensive measuring to get the shape as accurate as possible without tracing. The "Yo-Yo" would be drawn using the same process, but the string was drawn entirely free hand without any measuring whatsoever. The "Yo-Yo" was the first shape of the series to use a Paper Mate Liquid Paper Correction Pen for one of the outlines.

29th May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Lasso" and "Folding Fan" were done on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils, Felt Pens, Watercolour Pencils, and an Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen. Both shapes would be drawn free hand. Some parts would be done with extensive measuring, while other parts would be done without measuring.

31st May 2018 - The sketching and drawing of the "Origami Cross" was done on this day with Faber Castell Lead Pencils, Felt Pens, Watercolour Pencils, and an Artline 204 Faxblac 0.4 black pen. Although I had to trace the shape from screen to paper to sketch pad, the resulting efforts were nonetheless original, since some parts had to be remeasured and redrawn.

9th June 2018 - The "Pinwheel" and "Yo-Yo" were edited with GIMP on this day and their file types had to be converted to .png files in order to be editable with Microsoft Paint. Curiously, this marked the first time I did not actively participate in modifying the shapes, although I supervised the session. It also marked the first time GIMP was used on shapes from the Gothic Universe of Shapes.

10th June 2018 - The "Sword" and "Gear" were edited on this day using Microsoft Paint and Paint.NET. Sadly, because Paint 3D was experiencing saving difficulties, I had to postpone the completion of these two shapes which were intended to be completed during this session.

11th June 2018 - The "Yo-Yo", "Lasso", "Folding Fan", and "Balloon" were edited on this day using Microsoft Paint. This session and the next session were solely focused on concluding all the bits and pieces that needed to be done with Microsoft Paint, so they could be completed using other programs.

12th June 2018 - The "Whoopee Cushion", "Fidget Spinner", "Pinwheel", and "Origami Cross" were edited on this day using Microsoft Paint. This concluded the sessions of the Comeback Era which concerned Microsoft Paint.

14th June 2018 - The "Folding Fan" was edited on this day with GIMP and Microsoft Excel 2010. Faint conditioner textures and text sparkle effects were added to this shape using GIMP. This marked the second time GIMP had been used on a shape from the Gothic Universe of Shapes. The "Fidget Spinner" was also edited on this day using Paint.NET.

17th June 2018 - The "Gear", "Sword", "Fidget Spinner", "Folding Fan", "Balloon", "Pinwheel", "Yo-Yo", "Lasso", "Origami Cross", and "Whoopee Cushion" were edited on this day using Paint 3D. I was finally able to add Paint 3D effects to the shapes using another computer, in order to get around the saving issues that I was experiencing with Paint 3D using my PC. Then I was able to get the "Folding Fan", "Sword", "Gear", and "Fidget Spinner" completed with Microsoft Excel 2010. The "Lasso" was later completed with Paint.NET, GIMP, and Microsoft Excel 2010. It was the eighth shape to use faint conditioner texture from a screenshot of conditioner. The "Yo-Yo" was also completed on this day with GIMP and Microsoft Excel 2010. To finish for the day, the "Pinwheel" was completed with Paint.NET, GIMP, and Microsoft Excel 2010. Three 4-Item Sets were assembled on this day. The first 4-Item Set consisted of the "Bevel", "Sword", "Gear", and "Turntable". The second 4-Item Set consisted of the "Spinning Top", "Yo-Yo", "Paddle Ball", and "Lasso". And the third 4-Item Set consisted of the "Maple Slingshot", "Pinwheel", "Skip-It", and "Folding Fan".

18th June 2018 - The final day of finishing the shapes for the Comeback Era. The "Origami Cross", "Balloon", and "Whoopee Cushion" were edited on this day using Paint.NET. The three shapes were then completed one by one using GIMP and Microsoft Excel 2010. Faint conditioner textures and text sparkle effects were applied to the three shapes using GIMP. A fourth 4-Item Set was assembled on this day, consisting of the "Fidget Spinner", "Origami Cross", "Balloon", and "Whoopee Cushion". With that, all the shapes of the Comeback Era were finished.