Top 10 Toys of 2025
Top 10 Toys is a tradition I picked up from CorsetKitten in 2013. The premise is: pick your favourite 10 toys that you acquired in the previous year. The year of release doesn’t matter. Rank them from 10-1 (1 being the best). Post a photo, description of the toy, what you like about it, what you dislike about it, and why it wasn’t or was #1. Or however much of that you feel like writing. Things you made count, too!
#10 - sixth-scale wood soban
Vague plans for eventual scenes in my main OCs' childhood home included at least one soban (Korean tray-table). At least three attempts to make a 1:6 scale soban fell through. I managed to get a plastic one in 2024, and later found this wood one from DollhouseQueens. The meal came with it, and is not glued down. I'm glad to have found this, the right size, high quality, and relieves me of the need to make one. This is good; the backlog of things to make is long!
#9 - sixth scale wood tankards
After trying various ways to make wood-look tankards, with craft sticks and not-quite-quilling, I gave up and added 3D printed ones to my to-buy list. And then came across these souvenir miniatures from Ukraine. Perfect for the eventual tavern! I regret not buying a few more sets before they sold out, to keep more on the shelves while others were in use.
#8 - Aoshima/Skynet Girl's Mission Code Name Ai
This is my first complete female action figure that was marketed as an action figure instead of a doll. This line predates my collecting jointed figures. I first saw her, along with Miki, in CorsetKitten's Friday Monologues, and it was partly the naive character CK wrote for her, but I just found Ai adorable. So when I found one for a decent price, she had to come home!
As completely expected, her feet are stained. It would be nice to find replacement feet, but more likely I just won't show them.
#7 - PetWORKs 1/6 Boys and Male Album Butler Style Eight
This is my first PetWORKs boy doll. (A theme of firsts!) Ideally I would have loved to get three from the Butler Style lines, but I learned about them a few years after release, and this was the only one I wanted still available on the Global store. I did grab a duplicate outfit, (sadly without the shoes, which were sold out) to dress another footman someday.
#6 - Terri's Treasures Wooden Credenza
Part of a dining set sold through Sears catalogues in 1981. It feels like a piece of history. 🥹 I appreciate textures other than plastic for furniture and accessories in my collection. I'd probably have an easier time finding furniture I like in 1:12 scale, but 1:6 works best for me all around: dolls, clothes, shoes, furniture, space. Good furniture being rare in 1:6 scale makes it all the sweeter to find. This is one such piece that's as good as dollhouse miniatures. It may eventually be used in an office. Or maybe somewhere else entirely.
I had much trouble with the ordering of 5 through 2. It's hard not to let cost factor in. How am I going to use it? (TBH, going by usage would probably make the tankards #1.)
#5 - miniLAND 1:6 scale wall panel
This wall panel from miniLAND.ca was my 2024 birthday self-gift, but since it was out of stock, it ended up being a 2025 purchase. (Momoko for scale.) The double door panel was my birthday self-gift in 2022. I have a rudimentary idea for a room box with magnets to be able to change the configuration of these and another panel or two. I'll need to make an actual plan, and my husband has offered to help with the woodworking part, but that's not even in scope for this year. Without a good way to ensure they don't fall over and get damaged, I'm afraid to use these much yet, hence it not being closer to #1.
#4 - SouoL by LouoS outfits
Three outfits from one of my favourite designers, SouoL by LouoS: Galaxy Girl - Look 1; Starlight and Roses - Look 2; and Kaleidoscope Vision - Look 5. Styles for disparate event types, but each believable on a regular person (as opposed to high fashion looks that would only make sense on the runway).
#3 - Ruruko, Lakeside Alice PS
My first Ruruko~! 🩵🩵🩵
Years ago, I wrote a story of events that took place when my OC Tessa was 10-11 years old. That stays in backstory only, not intended to be told with dolls; mostly because it would have needed a whole bunch of additional dolls, and there was no child doll to play Tessa at that age without rerooting. But now if I did want to tell it in photostory format, Lakeside Alice would be perfect, even including the outfit she comes in. In a bio written in 2008, Tessa's style is noted as "A delicate pastel or white dress with heavy black boots."
#2 - Outlaws of Margoria outfit
This is based on the Outlaws of Margoria outfit from Black Desert Online. I made it during October for a potential Halloween event, but would use it for a character's normal garb in a photostory. It's one of my favourite outfits I've made so far. And I had fun making it, more fun crafting than I've had in a while. The belt is borrowed from After Dark Bellamy Blue. The boots aren't right, but the top and breeches came out clean on the first try, and I was happy to find charms similar to those on the in-game outfit.
#1 - Western Apothecary Cabinet
This is the most time-consuming thing I've ever made, ever! It's not even the best thing I've made, but it's done. It's made of balsa, basswood, craft sticks, and the drawer pulls that inspired the whole thing. It was The Project of 2024-2025, taking from August to late July, hence its spot at #1.
The funny thing is, I don't know whether this is going in an apothecary shop or an alchemy lab. All I knew was I needed to make it myself because nothing available in 1:6 scale quite fit my vision. (The closest, on AliExpress, were only 11" tall. Mine is just under 14").
This is the first time I'm sharing a pic of the finished product on the public web. I meant to write up a blog post with WIP photos first, but there's no requirement to post crafts in chronological order, so it's fine. x)