⚜ The Royal Collections ⚜
Collecting is a hobby I enjoy very much; seeing my favourite characters and items displayed in my spaces brings me so much joy and evokes lovely memories every time I look at them. Please follow the links via the pictures below to read my thoughts about each collection.
Sylveon
Tokyo Mew Mew
Tamagotchi
Cure Prism
Zacian
Miscellaneous
✧Where do you find the things in your collections?
I usually buy from Japanese marketplaces via a middleman, but sometimes I find great listings on local eBay. Also, a good proportion of my treasures were gifted to me or bought in person on trips or at conventions. It takes time and persistence to build up a big collection, but that's part of the fun!Are you a completionist?
Not generally! Some of my collections are bigger than others but where collectors "draw the line" is a matter of personal choice; I think others' completionist collections are very impressive, especially from an archival point of view, but I prefer to collect just the things that look prettiest on display and which mainly feature the collection's subject. Besides, my adoration cannot be measured by the material.Are you selling anything?
No. Please refrain from asking.✧
home · about · sonas · q&a · collections- - - - - - - - - - - - - ⚜ - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Sylveon
"There's a Galarian fairy tale that describes a beautiful Sylveon vanquishing a dreadful dragon Pokémon."My biggest collection, an ongoing project for many years, started before I even knew! She chose me in the form of a lucky badge in a packet of cookies I bought from a Tokyo Pokémon Centre in 2013, and again when my dear friends used a Sleeping Case Sylveon to represent me on a reunion I could not join them on in 2021. After that I decided to consciously collect her. I have a lifelong love for Pokémon, and she is the star of that show.Sylveon compels me, her rose and aqua colours are my favourite, she reminds me of all the people near and far who love me (and I them) when I look at her, especially those items acquired from or with them. She is also my artistic muse, always dancing onto my canvas with ease. Many of my illustrations feature her, I am honoured to draw some of the internet’s favourite Sylveon art.Most of this collection is in storage at the moment, but a few are out for me to admire, most notably my Life Size Sylveon. One day they will all be reunited in a dedicated display space in my future home!I dream of owning (or making) more Shiny Sylveon customised merchandise- she is my signature Pokémon. I already have one, a painted Kids Figure, who I'm very fond of and like to take on little journeys. She will continue sitting on my bedside table until the day I have a special shelf full of twinkling blue Sylveon figures and plushes that she can pose alongside.✧return- - - - - - - - - - - - - ⚜ - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Tokyo Mew Mew
"For the future of the Earth, we'll be of service, nya!"My very first exposure to the magical girl genre was via Mew Mew Power, TMM’s English dub, on TV, and I have been hooked since. TMM remains one of my favourite series to this day. Mia Ikumi, the artist who designed and illustrated the manga, tragically passed away in 2022, however her works continue to touch the hearts of magical girl fans across the globe, myself included.It was young Sol’s dream to own the Strawberry Bell toy by Takara, and I have finally been able to grant her wish- our Strawberry Bell is on proud display, and I’ve been lucky enough to find a Mintone Arrow, a Zacross Whip and, in one of my luckiest finds ever, Mew Ichigo’s elusive Perfect Figure!I eventually plan to complete the weapon quintet by adding the Lettucetanets and PurinRings. I am seeking fully functional, relatively unscratched ones without their box, which is proving rather difficult but I am determined..!I also own three sets of the manga- my childhood Tokyopop volumes, the Kodansha omnibuses, and the Nobi-Nobi edition in French. This may seem excessive, but each one is translated slightly differently, so as a dedicated fan it's fascinating to compare them.✧return- - - - - - - - - - - - - ⚜ - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Tamagotchi
"I like what I like ♡ That's fine! ...is her motto."Tamagotchi is probably what I started collecting first, during the Connection era (which is still my favourite, and I miss TamaTown!), largely thanks to gifts from kind relatives and Father Christmas which added up over time to 13 Tamagotchi Connections. I picked up this collection again in adulthood and currently own about 32 Tamagotchis; vintage, Connection/Plus, and modern.However my favourite model of all is my Arukotch, a rare pedometer Tamagotchi from 1999, which I always wanted to run and was extremely lucky to find second hand. I find the concept and sprites especially adorable, and it’s fun to walk with Arukotchi. The programming is still shrouded in mystery, and I am still compiling data.These days, I have a casual goal of collecting a pink Tamagotchi from each series, if there is one. I’ve also branched out into collecting Pretty Cure digital toys here and there after being charmed by the Heart Cure Watch. My current most wanted Tamagotchi is the Royal Roses Famitama, which features my favourite Tamagotchi, Princess Tamako, on the shell and in the programming.The Tamagotchi Corner Shop trilogy for the Nintendo DS has also played a large part in cultivating my fondness for the Tamagotchi world with its quirky-and-cute flair, which has probably formed the basis for a lot of my sense of humour these days.✧return- - - - - - - - - - - - - ⚜ - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Cure Prism
"Gentle light, soaring softly - Cure Prism!"I used to keep up with newly announced Pretty Cure characters for fun without delving into the franchise any further, but when Hirogaru Sky Precure’s characters were announced, I was immediately enchanted by Cure Prism. Her design appeals to so many of my sensibilities, and she’s also very reminiscent of Sylveon!Hirogaru Sky ended up being the first Precure season I watched as it aired, aesthetically and thematically winning me over, and Cure Prism also became my favourite character in the cast, for her sweetness and our shared dream of illustrating children’s’ books. I own all of her main merchandise so I consider this collection essentially complete, though open to little additions.✧return- - - - - - - - - - - - - ⚜ - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Zacian
"Able to cut down anything with a single strike, it became known as the Fairy King's Sword, and it inspired awe in friend and foe alike."Fairy is my favourite Pokémon type, closely followed by Steel, so I was delighted when Zacian was revealed to have both, as her regal design had already captured my heart. She is probably my favourite box legendary (alongside Reshiram and Xerneas).Crowned Zacian has only a handful of figures and just one plush at present, so I decided to collect them all. She is also a rare example of a Pokémon with official Shiny merchandise- a pin and a figure- as the Shiny Princess this pleases me greatly! I don't usually take much interest in collecting the TCG, but I have most of Zacian's cards, so I may as well try and catch em' all.I look forward to the day that Gen 8 Sitting Cuties are released so she will finally have another plush. For now, this collection is mostly complete.✧return- - - - - - - - - - - - - ⚜ - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Minor Collections
Lucario
I may be strongly associated with Sylveon, but did you know that Lucario shares the title of my favourite Pokémon? For different yet equally important reasons to the former, mainly as my first childhood favourite and the affinity I feel to her noble nature.Lucario's merchandise aesthetic doesn't appeal to me much so I don't actually actively collect her, but I felt it essential to mention her as the few things of hers I own are precious to me. These are mostly sweet nostalgic items, but most notably I decided to acquire the more recent Life Size Lucario plush- her release was announced on my birthday so it was fateful, though it took me several months of deliberation before actually purchasing her. No regrets at all, she's adorable and I love that my two favourite Pokémon not only both have Life Size plush, but that I've been fortunate enough to welcome home both!✧Assorted Pokémon
I own various merchandise, most often featuring Fairy Types; a future collection goal of mine is to have a Kids Figure for every Fairy Pokémon, in due course. I also like collecting Love Ball merch, my signature Poké Ball.I am sometimes inclined to get things featuring generally cute Pokémon, or a couple of Trainer characters (I really want Serena's Kotobukiya figure- she's my favourite game protagonist because she looks like me! My Lively Lillie figure would appreciate her company).A sizeable proportion of all my Pokémon things are from my childhood; lots of random little figures, cards, books and the odd digital toy- I have a Hoenn Pokédex and an Ultra Ball game. The only one I can't find is my copy of Pokémon: The First Movie on a brilliant yellow VHS cassette tape; I'm hoping it's just hiding in some obscure part of the house, but worst case I still keep the memories.And the games, of course- I don't own every single title since my journey as a trainer began in Sinnoh with Pokémon Diamond for the DS, but I own at least one version of almost all main titles and quite a few spin-offs (my actual first game was Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team!).✧Assorted Pretty Cure
Mostly from my favourite season, Go! Princess Precure (shocker, I know)- the Princess Perfume, Crystal Princess Rod, and some Princess Keys. Also the Heart Cure Watch and its upgrades from Delicious Party Precure, the Mermaid Aqua Pact and Mermaid Aqua Pot from Tropical Rouge Precure, and the Shiny Cats Pact from Wonderful Precure which I consider one of the most beautiful magical girl items designed.✧return- - - - - - - - - - - - - ⚜ - - - - - - - - - - - - -