Looking back on 2015

Here we are again, after another year! Wow, thank you all for sticking around even if my blogging was getting very sparse for a while there. This year there's no mosaic (since the site I did my mosaics with is apprently down :( ), so I'll just post my favourite pics from each month along with random rambles and/or lists of what I've been doing.

Up there was Miss January, Hani as a caged bird. The pic got on Flickr's Explored and got way more views than any of my photos normally do. It was a nice surprise though.

In February it was Nuu's birthday :3 The little thing has been with me for over 5 years now! And only this year I got a body for her other head...

Eiko! I didn't get many things for my SDs this year, since it was pretty much a Teenie-year.

On that note, here are my doll purchases from 2015:

- Soom Beyla MD Thunder Play with all fantasy parts
- Soom CW body x2

With these purchases, I actually gained three dolls... The fantasy version of Beyla became Meringue, while the human head got a spare human body and became her sister Fondant. The other spare body went to Other-Nuu, now called Lumina.

I didn't sell any dolls this year, although I was trying to sell Fondant's head for a while. My collection is only expanding.

Hippu (like Nuu) has pretty much kept the same look as last year. Why mess with  a working formula? ;)

This is what I planned for the year 2015:

I already did a wishlist meme not too long ago, so I won't repeat that now. Safe to say, I'll be keeping a close eye on any eligible tan Teenies. I hope it'll be a year bronze, tawny and chocolate :D

I also hope to be making more wigs and hoping I won't have to buy any :D I also hope I'm all set with eyes, except for any needed for newcomers, of course. All-in-all I hope I won't be making many doll-accessory purchases, but instead focus on crafts.

We'll see when I'll be able to return to comissions more actively though. I think most of the first quarter of year 2015 will be spent with quite non-doll-related things, with Lil'Loki due by the 13th.

Mostly I hope I'll be able to keep up with the blog updates more actively than of late. I hope I'll be seeing all of you next year as well!

What can I say, pretty much accurate, I guess? No tan Teenies, sadly :( They were replaced by a bunch of white dolls XD But I did make more alpaca wigs (not as many as I maybe wanted to make) and some smaller crafts by the end of the year. Face-up and especially blushing commissions were plenty, although they always seem to come in bursts... And somehow never when I have actual free time and there is a good amount of light. Everyone wants their dolls customised in the darkest of autumn months.

Hopes for active blogging was a bust though, although I've tried to make up for it now that Valentine's watching over Loki.

Milki, Miss May. She's sporting one of the many new outfits I got this past year. I gave up on sewing myself (almost completely, I did make a 'skirt' for Fondant), but I bought several outfits from Etsy and a local seamstress. I really fell for unique yet affordable pieces in 2015 and I think I'll pay for more commissioned outfits next year as well.

My shopping list for 2016 / outfits+accessories:

- a commissioned set for Cottoncandy (I'm thinking of a loli-styled salopette)
- commissioned pieces for Lumina (I really need a proper shirt and maybe a skirt)
- Teenie-shoes, at least in black, since Hippu has lost his...to Rigel :P
- wig for Meringue
- alpaca wig for Eiko
- magnets! So that I can use all the new horns and other fimo-accessories I plan to make

This photoset of Rigel is one of my very favourites from this past year. I love him with the chess theme! I actually commissioned another outfit for him that looks even more gentlemanly, but I haven't had the opportunity to photograph it yet.

I got the white chess pawn piece now as well and if Soom is going to release more The Chess series dolls, I'll definitely try to snag up more pieces! (And maybe dolls...) Ah, Soom and their special accessories and splits, they'll probably be my doom in 2016 as well. Did I mention that I actually ordered a couple of pairs of their new Happy/Lucky resin wings? Now I did. I have no idea who they'll go to, but we'll see them next year.

I have no photos from all of June :( But getting Meringue finished in July makes up for it!

Meringue was the second doll I did after a solid plan. Rigel was the first, being an evil harlequin and Mery topped it with her carousel horse look. I'll see if I get any new ideas like these next year. If I do, I know it is pretty safe to act on them, since both Rigel and Meringue are very dear to me.


My shopping list for 2016 / dolls:

- Rainbow Dash! I finally want to complete this plan, as it has been in the making for so long. I need a Roselyn head from LM, eyes from Mako and the outfit.
- Tan Teenie! I'll just keep putting this on my list for as long as it takes for Soom to release one I love (comoon R.Beyla and Hati! Or Rru)

I'll also hold a spot for a tan Wolf, as discussed in a past post I made.

Well, my lack of photographing is quite apparent in the late of 2015. I also have nothing to show for from August or September, but in October we had an awesome Halloween meet-up, where Cottoncandy rocked as a mummy.

It wasn't the only meet-up we held this year. In 2015 we started to host larger meet-ups in my city once we found out about a free location to hold them in. Our final Xmas meetup was a small one, but I hope we can hold more popular meets again!

Possible Meet-ups in 2016:

- Valentine's Day ~ It's on Sunday next year, so maybe we'll have a lovely doll meet on Saturday the 13th. I would sure love this, as it is my favourite day of the year :3
- Hanami ~ Other cities in out country have already held these, and I would very much like to host one here as well. If it cannot be done, then I want to travel elsewhere to participate in cherry blossom wonders!
- Midsummer's (Dream? A night meet-up? :D ) ~ We haven't had a proper picnic meetup in years, so maybe in 2016
- Halloween vol.2
- Xmas with more participants :P

November was another slow month, but when the holiday lights were put up, I managed to take some photos of my newest dolls, one of which was Fordy here.

So, for next year?

My other plans for 2016:

Most of all, to blog a lot more! I don't want to have any excuses of not having more photos to share. The indoor lights are first on my list and since my Photoshop accessibility has improved, I shouldn't have any obstacles on posting more frequently.

I hope I'll be spending more time with my bigger dolls next year, especially if I do get RD. I need to get them off their self a lot more often and maybe just even change their clothes every once in  a while or give them a pat on the head.

On crafting I really want to make more alpaca wigs. I also got some fun ideas with fimo that I want to excecute. Both of these are things that I can do in the evening once Loki is already sleeping, so it shouldn't be a problem if I just get around to it. As for face-up commissions, I hope to keep on improving and I hope I'll get as interesting and challenging commissions to do as in 2015.

***

I hope you all had a very good year in 2015! Some say the time flew by and yes, it seems that I have fast-forwarded some parts of the year. Thenagain living through it has been a day-by-day adventure with the baby growing into a toddler. The challenges with Loki have not diminished, only changed into whole new ones. :P But I still hope I'll have more time to myself and to spend with Valentine next year, as we can maybe leave him to sleep over at grandparents' from time to time. Hey, I've actually been planning on a new RPG campaign, being the ever optimist that I am ;)

Have a very happy New Year everyone!