u/jmstach — reddlx

Colours you can mix with watercolour paint sets

I thought that some folks might find this interesting, it's part of the output from some R&D I'm working on for a project that maps the reachable colours by mixing each of the 2 paints in popular watercolour paint sets. I measure the spectral data for each paint (how much is scattered, absorbed at each wavelength) then simulate blending each pair at every ratio. Each pair traces a path through 3D colour space (CIELAB here), and together those paths build the colourful cloud you see.

The idea is to help identify which paints to add to your collection if you want to work on a particular subject, like landscapes, botanicals or portraits or just explore the gamut available.

This particular one is from the Van Gogh Watercolour Pocket Box.

u/jmstach — 11 hours ago

▲ 257 r/espresso

Right, jumping firmly on the bandwagon. Hoffmann drops a video, the internet writes reaction posts, here's mine. (In my defence: I have an ongoing obsession with water, so this is one of the few bandwagons I'm genuinely allowed on).

If you've been doing the steam-wand-fresh-cold-water thing and finding it's actually working, in part is because your water choice matters more than usual. Hoffman's trick works partly by not trashing the water's chemistry the way a kettle does.

Short version: boiling breaks bicarbonate down into carbonate and CO₂, scale drops out, dissolved gases leave. You end up with flatter, more alkaline water. Heat the same bottle to ~74°C with the steam wand and most of that reaction doesn't run. Whatever's in the water is mostly what ends up in your cup.

Which means pick a low-bicarbonate water or you're wasting the technique. Bicarbonate (HCO₃⁻ on the label) is the buffer that neutralises the acids your espresso is built on. Above ~200 ppm and you're working against your own shot.

Rough shortlist (for folks not blending their own water):

Volvic is still the canonical pick: total hardness about 62 ppm, bicarbonate 71
Crystal Geyser (50 hardness, bicarbonate 64) looks pretty available in the US or Waiakea (34, 34) if you're after a softer option.
Deeside-sourced own-label (Tesco and Waitrose) is the cleanest UK example at total hardness 22, bicarbonate 26.

Skip for the trick: Evian, San Pellegrino, most of the heavily mineralised French and Italian classics. They'll smother your drink. But don't banish them from the kitchen: they make brilliant sidecars. The Italian habit of a sparkling mineral alongside the espresso isn't just custom, those big mineral waters genuinely reset the palate. Just don't pour them in.

Quick label check before you buy: look for "bicarbonates" or "HCO3". Under 100 mg/L is ideal. Above 200 and even the steam wand won't save you.

Right. Back to the spreadsheet...

reddit.com

u/jmstach — 2 months ago

▲ 3 r/mdhandbook

As much as we love, and as clever as the Markdown format is, by design it’s a compromise on legibility.

On macOS, .md files still open as monospace plaintext. The few previewers that do exist treat typography as an afterthought and/or require you to get into things like Brew to install.

I built Markset because I'm a ~~fussy~~ product designer all that bothered me. Most Markdown apps want you to open them. Markset doesn’t: it integrates into Finder. Press Space on any .md file for a typeset preview. Right-click → Quick Actions → Markset for a print-ready PDF. No app to switch to, no file associations to change, nothing in your Dock.

Set on a 16-point baseline grid with a descending-fourth type scale, hanging bullets, and real widow and orphan handling. Swiss design principles, applied to a tool you’ll use every day.

After using it daily for a while, it’s public today. Free. Tiny. Native Swift. No telemetry. Made in London.

u/jmstach — 3 months ago