Stitch Sunday
Thanks for the tags @orange-peony, @roomwithanopenfire (your snips were excellent!), and @thewholelemon (I too trap my spouse into helping me resolve conundrums in fic writing).
I was really hoping to have finished my new set of dolls to present today, but given that they are the MOST detailed I have made to date, it is going much slower than normal. So instead, this is more of a progress post.
If you know me at all, you will have guessed that the new ship I've been working on is DeNiall. They own my whole heart, and I love what @mooncello is doing with them in more than a footnote. They are both FULLY realized characters with exceptional backstories, grade A pining, and hilarious personalities to boot. (Don't even get me started on the writing itself. Every single word makes me swoon.)
Such a thoughtful fic deserves a thoughtful set of dolls. Here they are in progress---all cuddled up!
New things I had to learn how to do this round include: tongues and ears that I could pierce (Dev's gauges are in progress so ears aren't sewn on yet ... but look at Niall's adorable little ears), two full heads of hair in difficult textures and more stylized cuts, shoes (!!!), and making my OWN fabric when the store did not carry the pattern I wanted (forthcoming for Niall's shirt. It appears in a future chapter so it is still a secret!). Behold more angles of Niall's hair below. I am SO proud of it because it looks EXACTLY like the inspo pic mooncello sent over when we were planning the dolls.
Both Niall and Dev are also the first set with new and improved joints, AND new and improved (and standardized!) body construction. They are based on the body proportions of the old school Kevin doll (Skipper's boyfriend for anyone who played with Barbies back in the day). Why does this matter? It means I can now use all of my old Kevin clothing as patterns to create clothing for new dolls, speeding up the design process significantly. (Although my daughter dislikes that I've been raiding her dolls and stealing outfits!)
I've really been enjoying pouring my love into these boys alongside the writer. Most of the other dolls I've created I had a plan + canon descriptions, so I only offered up one or two customization options to the writer. With this set, every little detail has come from the fic or has been planned with mooncello. Who could have guessed collaborating to bring their dreams to life would be so rewarding?
Hellos and high-fives from the doll factory: @raenestee, @cutestkilla, @bookish-bogwitch, @hushed-chorus, @emeryhall