I end up creating infinite little lives

So much for my 'no buying merchandise' policy; I've completely turned into someone who collects little lives.

That said, the amount of merchandise being released in this community is unlike anything before, so I try to only buy things that really strike a chord with me.

Recently, acrylic stands and plushies have become the mainstream for merchandise, haven't they? Every time I see a room where those items are lined up beautifully, I'm truly impressed.

I thought, 'Since I'm at it, I should buy at least one...' and while looking at the official store, I suddenly remembered something.

I remembered that I once saw a handmade plushie online that was so cute, I bought some fabric to try making one myself.
And that I had saved the pattern in some file on my computer.

After digging through folders, I found the pattern. Fortunately, I have all the sewing supplies I need.
Since I'm doing this, I might as well make one in a favorite outfit that isn't available as official merchandise!

So, with that in mind, here is what I made while referring to tutorials online.

This is the plushie I took with me to see the cherry blossoms in my previous post.

Isn't this pretty good for a first attempt...!?

However, I forgot how thin the fabric was, so the pencil lines and embroidery thread show through, and if you look closely, the flaws are quite noticeable.

Actually, the clothes are just a facade, too. I'm currently making a jacket, but it's not going well at all, and I'm feeling discouraged.
Also, I couldn't find the right round glasses in stores, so I'm considering trying to make those out of wire and resin as well.

So, a few days later, the glasses-making challenge began.

I painted them gold to match the actual outfit.
I feel like the wire I had at home was a bit too thick.
Also, I realized after I finished that I put the glasses on upside down. Oh well, it's fine.

Making lenses with resin didn't go well, so I'm going without glasses this time. I feel like I could make them look like colored lenses if I used plastic sheets or something.

Although there are many areas of concern,
creating life is so much fun!

As someone who has always loved handicrafts, I've become completely captivated by the joy of creating tiny lives less than 10cm tall. I have a feeling this is a new rabbit hole.

Fabric for plushies has a high unit price, but the total amount used per doll is small.
Because of that, I still have plenty of fabric on hand.
If anything, the stuffing is what runs out in the blink of an eye...

Working through trial and error to find improvements each time, while doing needlework late into the night, has become my favorite way to spend the night before a day off.

And the second life.

The rough edges from the first one have become much less noticeable. That said, adjusting the length of the kimono was difficult... I couldn't get it to look neat with just needle and thread, so I used a lot of fabric glue.

The third one.

I was able to finish this much closer to my original vision.
The combination of the wolf gold mesh and the initial overalls is completely to my taste.

I was sad that my favorite character wasn't in the Niji-Maru series released by the official team around this time, so I used their expression as a slight reference.
I want to add a few more accessories to this one as well.

The fourth one.
I wanted to bring out an 'oni' vibe, so I referenced the state with red eyes from the thumbnail, but between the eye and hair colors, it looked just like Kuzuha-san until I added the mesh color.

By the fourth one, I've gotten quite used to it, and I feel like my fine embroidery skills have improved significantly. I also painstakingly painted the kimono patterns with acrylics. My only regret is using felt for the fabric under the kimono... it got all fuzzy and lost its shape.

Anyway, I'm satisfied because I've managed to make all the favorite outfits that aren't official!

I'd love to try making them for other characters too... but it seems hard to find the right fabric for the hair, so I haven't been able to start. I think I could make Seme-yon with the fabric I have on hand, so I'd like to make one and display them together.

If I find the time or think, 'I absolutely must have this outfit!', I might make more.

Making my own plushies was a more enjoyable experience than I expected.

By the way, I used these as references for the video and patterns.

By the way, I don't really buy merchandise... or so I said, but I spent February and March enjoying collaboration products to get the cards.

I managed to pull one of the wafers with a 1 in 30 chance out of the 5 I bought, but I couldn't pull the Sukiya one with a 1 in 4 chance in the end.

The feeling of emptiness, wondering what a grown adult is doing... constantly attacks me, and I am the most painfully aware of it myself. However, I have found a joy in my daily life that far outweighs that.