Peruserofpieces

No trouble at all, Dark Horse! Thank YOU for being here and showing your support. Thanks for the awesome questions!

It's been an absolute pleasure! Thank you again for inviting me to be a part of this Sir Batbrony, and thank you to everyone who came by to hang out and ask questions! There's a lot of places you guys could have chosen to be on a Saturday night, and I'm humbled that you chose to spend it here with me. You guys really made my night, and I really appreciate it. Thank you all, good night, and God bless!

I'm ashamed to say that I'm reeeally far behind on Season 6 (which is totally unlike me). But as far as Starlight Glimmer goes, I like her! I think she's the perfect pony to act as Twilight's first real protege, a dynamic that allows both Twilight and Starlight's characters room to grow and mature. I think there's something very honest and genuine about Starlight--she knows she's made some bad choices in the past, and she really wants to make up for those actions now. I think she's a wonderful character. The "Reflections" arc, hooves down. It's such a dark, tragic love story with genuine feelings of love and longing and loss, all wrapped up in Andy's distinctly wonderful art style. It's one of the crowning achievements in pony, I'd say. Well, when it comes to pricing a handmade plush, it's important to consider that the price is more than just the cost of the raw materials involved--you also have to consider the artist's time, skill, and labor. As I've mentioned before, most of these plushies take over 25 hours to complete, in addition to all the extra hours spent making and perfecting the pattern, and the years spent honing the craft. It's a labor of love that results in a distinctly unique plush that no mass-produced product can possibly equal. And in many cases, these plushies are entirely one-of-a-kind, especially with OC's. I wouldn't say anyone is necessarily "happy" to fork over hundreds of dollars for a custom plush, but those that do realize the value of the time and effort put into them, which makes it an even bigger honor when someone chooses to buy one from me. That's a high honor that I do not take lightly. And just to be clear, no plush maker charges what they do "just because they can" or to "cash in." By the time I factor in the cost of materials, my time, and any taxes I have to pay at the end of the year, I only make about $10 an hour on my craft. As for the future of craft-makers, I think there will always be a market for well-made plushies. Even after the show has ended, this is a fandom that will be around for years to come, and as more and more people get involved with the social side of the fandom, people will continue to want their OC's represented artistically, whether it be in plush form or in art. :-) I keep going back and forth between Seasons 2 and 4 as my favorite, but I think I have to give a slight edge to 4 for having an overarching storyline that tied a lot of the episodes together, especially since it culminated in what was, to me, the greatest two-parter in the show's history so far. There are fantastic episodes to be found in every season, though. I'm even a big Season 3 fan, despite a lot of the flack it receives. As for what got me into MLP, mine's a common story, I think. It was early 2011, and I was still neck deep in the Chipmunks fandom at the time, when I started seeing all these MLP characters popping up on DA. At first I paid it no mind, simply thinking it was another trend sweeping the internet. But then I started noticing that a lot of prominent artists were starting to make art for the show, including a few of my favorite artists. Eventually I saw a short GIF of Pinkie Pie doing her Evil Enchantress song, and I thought, "Wow...that animation looks awesome." A short while later, I convinced myself to try out an episode, and it wasn't long before I was hooked. I started watching the show while Season 1 was still airing, way back in March of 2011. I feel so old, haha!

I'd like to learn more about clothing design, or even tailoring in general (I wouldn't mind designing some cosplays sometime). I also feel like my overall pattern could be improved in certain areas, mainly the legs and the shapeliness of the body. I'd like to learn more about wiring and internal skeletons, which could open up loads of new avenues for creative plushing, and I'd like to pick up an airbrush and start making custom colors and designs. So many things! I'm always learning new stuff! Looking at the bigger picture, I'd like to start taking more risks with my work. I feel like I've mostly played it safe, and I'd really like to experiment with different poses, clothing styles, and even different characters entirely. I'll get there, though! There's too many good ideas rattling around up here to not let them have their time in the sun. Sure do! I am Peruserofpieces over on DeviantArt, where I'm most active: http://peruserofpieces.deviantart.com/ Drop me a line and we'll talk! And if your OC is the cutie-patootie in your profile pic, then I'd LOVE to work on her for you!

Oh gosh, I hate this question, because there's no way to choose just one! My most favorite episodes are the ones that make me FEEL something. "Magical Mystery Cure" is pure art, from start to finish. It was the first episode to ever make me cry actual full, manly tears. "Twilight's Kingdom" was the second. And "Crusaders of the Lost Mark" was the third. These are the episodes that will always have the biggest impact on me, because they reminded me what it was like to feel alive, and to feel human. It's an indescribably special feeling, and memories that I'll carry with me for the rest of my life. Of course, there are lots of other episodes that I adore for other reasons, too. As the nerdy booklover all throughout school, I love watching the athletically-minded Dash fall in love with reading in "Read it and Weep." As a longtime pet owner, "Tanks for the Memories" hit home on a lot of emotional levels as well. And "Hurricane Fluttershy" is a beautiful reminder that everyone is important and has a special role to play, and that you should never underestimate your own self-worth. I'd give that same piece of advice to everyone I meet, no matter what you want to do in life. I'm not averse to the idea, no. I actually think the deer in the comics are pretty cute! If someone ever commissioned one, I'd take it on. ;-) Ah, you're gonna think this is such a cop-out, but I can honestly get behind just about any ship as long as it's well-written or well-thought out. Heck, who would have ever thought Maud and Trixie could make such a cute couple? <3 I don't get all bent out of shape about waifus and husbandos or whatever--as long as they make a cute couple, I'm all for it. That being said, some of my favorites that I love to read about or see pictures of include OctaScratch, FlutterDash, and the aforementioned Mauxie. And when it comes to shipping, I go for SFW and NSFW equally. ;-) It's fun to add a little spice every now and then. I am the master of making good schedules. I just suck at following them. *facehoof* Time management is something I struggle with constantly. I'm always making these grand lists of ideas that I want to try out, but I never end up having the time to do them. Convention season is always a trying time for me, as I struggle to make as many adorable ponies as I can to show off at the events I go to. Oftentimes in the lead-up to a convention, it's not uncommon for me to wake up at 6:30a.m. and work on plushies all day long until I fall in bed, sometimes at 9 or 10 o'clock at night. And I usually start convention prep at least four months in advance of a convention. The thing is, I'll make a schedule for myself, including an outline of every pony that I intend to make, and I allow myself what I think is plenty of time to get it all done. But sometimes roadblocks happen, especially when I'm patterning out new hair or accessories for a pony. The trial-and-error phase of patterning can last days or even a week or more for a single pony. Like you said, "you can't rush art." These kinds of things happen, and they throw a wrench into the whole schedule going forward, which makes for a lot of long hours in the final days before a convention. Outside of conventions, I try to maintain regular work hours during the week to maintain a sense of normalcy and to prevent getting burnt out. Every now and then though, I'll still stay up late working on a certain project that I'm focused on. It's certainly a lot of time and effort, but when I look back over all the time I've spent doing it, I don't feel like one second of it has been wasted time, so that tells me I must be doing something right. :-)

As far as plushie quality is concerned, I think it's mostly subjective. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, after all. Most plushie makers choose minky as their fabric of choice because of it's durability and softness, but I've seen lots of skilled plushie-makers use fleece or even felt and still make super-cute designs. Myself, I prefer a pony that looks as show-accurate as possible, and that's how I try to design my own patterns. I try to stuff them firm enough that there's no noticeable wrinkling or air pockets inside the plush, and I try to make the facial features (especially the eyes) look appealing both from the sides and from the front (which is a tricky thing to balance). But outside of personal taste, the only things I can think to mention are the usual things that any potential customer should look out for--if you see loose, sloppy stitching that could come undone, or hastily ironed on eyes that might peel off, I'd steer clear. Handmade plushies are a luxury item that people pay good money for, so make sure you're getting something that you know will last. I'm not sure if I really touched on what you were asking. Did I answer your question? Ah, my mistake. I misunderstood what you said. Still, it's wonderful-looking! Your friend should be proud.

First of all, I love your profile pic. That is adorable. *squee* And I'm so glad you like my work! Thanks for taking the time to check me out, good sir. Let's see, the quickest I've ever made a plushie...really, that just comes down to which pony I'm making, and in my experience, Derpy is the easiest and quickest to make. For a big girl Derpy (my regular, 17" size), she takes me about 20 hours or so. For a little girl (beanie, shoulder pony size) she takes about 12 hours. Not too bad. The longest I've ever taken on a plushie was way back when I was just learning the ropes in 2013. That's when I was working on a Vinyl Scratch along with her massive Canterlot Wedding DJ setup, complete with turntable, giant speakers, and colored lights. The whole deal took me a couple of months to make, but this was also when I was cutting my teeth and learning how to do a lot of basic things as well. As far as just regular ponies go, the longest it's taken me would probably be one of my clothed ponies, like Don't Mine at Night Button and Sweetie. The pony I've made the most plushies of, that's easy--Fluttershy is always my go-to pony whenever I want to try out a new pattern design, or just experiment with. She's not only my favorite pony, but I also think she's one of the easier ones to make as well, so she's a good fit. Oh gosh, I have lots of hobbies. I'm a huge video game fan and an avid collector as well, everything from Atari to the modern age. I love to read (mostly fantasy-adventure), I love to write, and I love to draw. I've also just recently started getting into anime. If you want to talk about games later, check out my collection on Backloggery: http://www.backloggery.com/mariomaster120 I also have a MAL page as well: https://myanimelist.net/profile/Peruserofpieces And if you wanna talk books or art, just note me on DA anytime!

I...uh, oh my...I'm too shy to say. *yellow horse noises* ;-)

I love it when I can make a new type of expression for a plush, especially if it's super-squee-inducing adorable. I haven't uploaded her to my gallery yet (consider this a sneak-peak), but this is quite possibly my most favoritest expression I've ever given a plush: http://sta.sh/015cjpkvgrsr I also have kind of a love-hate relationship with clothing. I love the way clothing looks on ponies, and a lot of my best-looking plushies are the ones that have some kind of clothing on them, but I'm not a big fan of actually making the clothes. Clothes are a lot more fiddly and susceptible to mistakes. An uneven hemline, for instance, can completely ruin an otherwise fine-looking garment, and adding little flaps and pieces of velcro for removable clothing is such a fiddly and time-consuming process (but ironically, I prefer to make all of my clothing removable anyway, so...I guess I can't complain, heh).

Thank you very much! I do, I love bringing all my little girls to life. :-) Heck yeah, I'm open to any and all pony varieties! I've made several Flutterbats, if that counts as a bat pony (probably not?), but yeah, I wouldn't mind making more bat ponies, sea ponies, etc. The thing is, most of those other types of pony creatures are fandom OC's, so I don't really get a chance to make them unless someone commissions me for their character. There's just not much to work with outside of a direct commission in that regard. But I DO have an idea for some lovely mer-ponies I've been toying around with. By the way, that plushie you made looks gorgeous! You've got plenty of talent yourself, my friend. And lastly...I don't think I've ever heard of or seen a wolf-pony. I didn't even know that was a thing, honestly. Huh. Oh, yes! I've been to Bronycon every year since 2014, as well as Trotcon 2015. The only reason I didn't return to Trotcon 2016 (as a vendor, anyway) was because of scheduling conflicts. I certainly intend to go back to Bronycon next year, as well as return to Trotcon again. I can think of several conventions I'd like to go to sometime as well, so there may be more!

Haha, well thank you kindly, good sir! My girls are a labor of love, that's for sure. How many total plushies would you estimate you've made? Oh gosh, let's see...between conventions and commissions over the years, I'd say it's well over a hundred. Do you have one of those 'Awwwwwww...' sweet-type stories about one of your creations you could share? Well, my grandma (whom I live with, and has always been my biggest supporter) had wanted me to make her an Applejack plushie for the longest time. She loved her country-girl looks and attitude, so I promised her that I would make one for her at some point. I kept putting it off for one reason or another, whether it be commissions or prepping for my first Bronycon. Then in 2014, Applejack Appreciation Day happened on EqD. I decided to make my Nightmare Night Applejack for the event. I told my grandma that after she was finished, I intended to try and sell her on ebay, but once I had finished her and the event had come to close, I surprised her and decided to let her have her instead. She absolutely loved her, and still has her in her bedroom now. Have you ever had a commission that you were unable to finish, due to difficult designs or too much detail? Thankfully, I haven't run into this problem yet, although I have had to decline a couple of OC requests for being too...let's just say "aesthetically unpleasant."

Haha, well, "best pony" is something that changes practically every day. "Favorite pony"...well, I would say, but I'm too shy.... *yellow horse noises*. Oh gosh, my favorite plushie? Hmm...of all the ones I've made so far, I think the one I'm most proud of for how she came out is my Nightmare Night Applejack. http://fav.me/d82y8rs I think I nailed the look, personally. I'm also pretty proud of my kissing Derpy/Doctor plushies. http://fav.me/d75of7h I'd like to try out more unique poses like that in the future.

Thank you very much for having me on here! I feel honored and privileged to take part in something like this. When did you first start making plushies and what in particular made you want to pursue plushie-making? Let's see, I first toyed with the idea of making a plushie back in 2012. I had tried my hand at a couple of different crafty things, including a cross-stitched Fluttershy, but I was always constantly amazed at the handmade plushies I kept seeing from the fandom. In all the years and all the fandoms I've been a part of, I'd never seen anything like it before, and I thought, "I wanna try that!" My first plushie (a Pinkie Pie) was made entirely with a free pattern I found online using my grandma's sewing machine and several cheap pieces of fabric I found at the craft store, and even though she wasn't perfect, I fell in love with her, and I knew I wanted to make more. From there, I just kept adjusting the pattern to suit my tastes, trying out new ideas and learning along the way. I'm still learning new things even now! (EDIT) Gosh, I remember what it was like to go out and purchase my first sewing machine. I was a poor, broke college student at the time, so plunking down $400 on a good sewing/embroidery machine was a REALLY scary choice to make. But there was something really special about this fandom that made me feel like I truly belonged, and I couldn't remember the last time I had been so excited to work on my artwork. Something about the experience made me feel more alive than I'd felt in ages. It was like I had taken a major, identifiable step towards doing what I had always wanted to do my entire life--be an artist. I've been living the dream for four years now. :-)