Beyond the Tags: Creating Space to Explore

🌊✨ merging as a playground ~ the joy of prompting like surfing

~ an invitation to explore more, feel more, and ride with curiosity ~

When I merge, I sometimes tune in to which quality tags ~ positive or negative ~ seem to resonate best with a look. In the past, I’ve often shaped entire merges around these details.

But I’ve come to realize:
by doing so, I might unintentionally narrow the view.
I might present a specific way a model can look ~ one that works, yes, but still only a direction.
And with that, the playground shrinks.

That’s not what I want.

What I want is exploration.
To share merges more like raw gems than polished stones.
To let others wander through the wild edges of possibility,
not just walk the paths I paved.

Because over time, I noticed something:
There are so many visual “rooms” inside each model ~
and most remain unexplored.

That’s why I’ve started to hold back from showcasing merges with heavily styled prompts or a curated set of quality tags.
Not because they’re not allowed ~ on the contrary, try them, twist them, remix them ~
but because even the tiniest whisper in a prompt can open completely new gates. ✨

There is no one right look.
There is no must.
Only curiosity, and the shimmer of “what if…”

Let’s open up the space again.
More freedom. More wonder.
More unexpected beauty.

More waves.

🏄‍♀️ Prompting like surfing ~ a love letter to merging

I was deep in a tinkering session when it hit me ~
softly, like a breeze ~ but deep, like goosebumps.

U know that moment when u’re blending, mixing, merging models, ideas, and prompts... and something shifts?

Not just the outcome ~
u shift.

I used to focus hard on technique.
Greenflags, redflags. Sharp tags, clean control.
It worked. But at some point, something inside me changed.

My inner gaze shifted.
I wanted to feel, not just manage.
Not cover beauty, but caress it ~
like fog kissing warm skin in the early morning.

And then it hit me:

Prompting is like surfing.

We can look cool on the beach, sure.
Perfect outfit. Perfect pose.
But what is surfing without a wave?

The model is the wave.
WE are the surfers.
Our prompt is the board.
And the ride?
That’s where the magic happens.

Yes, technique matters.
But so does letting go.

Follow the moment.
Not the sweet-talk.
Don’t force it. Let it whisper. Let it breathe.

I began writing my prompts like little poems.
Sometimes I just let four words fall into place like ingredients.
Sometimes just one word for quality.
And I ride the impulse.

And sometimes, just sometimes, the wave carries me.
And what emerges isn’t perfect ~ but it hits.
It stirs something.
Under the skin.

🫧 some merges, like waveij or Myrij, are just two of many waves in this ocean.
Not here to define the ride ~ only to invite it.
To glow gently. To move us softly.
To remind: the playground is wide.

If this wave spoke to u,
let it ripple back with a little like ~
so I know which shores to sail next,
and which dreams to dive into together 🌊🫶

with ~♥ Reij