Hello!
Some might remember back in the day when Dragonfly would have member interviews. They were questions about the person and their ponies. I've decided to bring this feature back. Each Friday a new one will be posted. For this week I interviewed long standing member Taffeta!
InterviewPersonal -
Where did you get your user name?Using real pony names for handles was really common back in the late 90s, but all the ponies I wanted had been taken. I needed a different pony for the registry so chose Taffeta kind of at random and it stuck.
What are your hobbies?Writing, gardening, reading. I want to get back to travelling again. I love going to the theatre, too.
Do you have any pets?Not anymore. Unless you count my house plants. I used to have fish when I was a kid. I'd also play with the neighbour's cat a lot, too.
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?Kyoto.
Do you collect anything other than ponies?Not so much now. I still have my Jem and MH collections but am not active with either. I also have quite a lot of mediaeval Japan warrior related stuff, and well, manga.
Ponies -
How long have you been collecting ponies?Since I was 2 years old.
Why did you start collecting ponies?I just got into them gradually as a kid and didn't really grow out of them.
Who is your favorite pony and why?I don't have one favourite; I have lots of favourites.Some ponies I've always loved include Medley, Glory, Princess Pearl.
Who is your least favorite pony and why?I don't like the sundae best ponies, or the CP ponies. The first smell horrible and the others, I don't like the pose.
Who is your favorite Nirvana pony?Brazilian Paradise.
Who is your favorite fakie?I don't collect fakies
Who was your first pony?Windy (Rainbow)
What pony did you get recently?The last pony I got was BF Fizzy.
What is your favorite generation?G1
What is your favorite part about collecting?Finding out infos.
How big is your collection?Too big. :/ G1 alone is over a thousand.
What do your friends and family think about your collection?My sister and I collected together as kids and still share the interest. Parents have always been supportive. My friends who know about them just see them as a hobby of mine. So all generally positive.
Do you still play with your ponies?No.
What rare or popular pony makes you ask why!?Rapunzel. The price is ridiculous.
If you could have any pony remade in a different generation, who would you choose and why?I'd like to see Holly Dash as a G1. She's interesting colours, so it would be fun.
What has been the worst part about collecting?I've been collecting a long time, and nothing goes well 100% of the time. My biggest frustration is basically the same as it was back in 1998, though. Misinformation :/
What is your ultimate collecting goal?I don't really have one. Honestly o.O. I just collect because I enjoy it.
What is your biggest collecting accomplishment?My backcard collection I suppose. I have around 350 G1 cards including MOC. I may like cards better than ponies in some circumstances.
What is your biggest collecting regret?Not keeping my childhood backcards, and losing the MB stickers.
Who is your grail pony and why?Brazilian Paradise, because I loved Paradise as a child. We didn't have SS ponies here, and Hasbro Uk never brought out the regular version they planned, so she's the closest to the Paradise I imagined as a kid.
Do you have it?Yes,
Do you prefer loose or MIP ponies?I love both. They're both equally valuable parts of pony collecting. I just don't believe in trying to turn one into the other, in either direction.
Do you collect Nirvanas?Casually. I collected my first variants a while before the Nirvana term was a thing, actually. I saw my first Brazilian, Peruvian and Argentinian ponies in 1998 when a US collector visited and we met up to trade. I also found some Italian ones at my carboot sale and put them on my site asking questions about them. That was sort of the beginning of the serious variant discussion, but I took them off my site when there were people better placed to do them justice. I'm no expert on Nirvana overall, but I was active in the early variant discussions back in the day.
Quick! Close your eyes and grab a pony! Who did you get?I did this literally, and I got Sweet Clover
Are you a customizer?I have been, though not a serious one. The most recent was a few years ago now though. I have strict rules on what I would customise.
What do you think of custom ponies?It depends on the custom, and on the bait used I think IMO. But really at the end of the day it's about what the creator thinks. I am not a big fan of customising old ponies that aren't bait.
What are acceptable and unacceptable pony flaws, in your opinion?I dislike haircuts. I don't really like faded hair either, but sometimes it's unavoidable. Really discoloured ponies are also a bit sad. All that said, I'd take a haircut pony with original hair remains over a reroot.
Would you rather have a bait pony or a fakie?Bait pony.
Do you watch pony shows/movies?Not for a long time, but in the past.
Which ones?All of the G1 shows, though I was never a massive fan of them. Most of the G3 and a bit of FIM. Also EQG. I don't like FIM but I do like Sunset Shimmer so EQG is fine with me. I have a special nostalgic soft spot for the Revolt of PE because I grew up with it.
Do you read pony comics?I have most of the G1 ones from the UK. I grew up with them. I haven't read any recently.
What is the worst thing you've ever done to a pony?Probably when I was a kid, and Songster and Star Gleamer got a little too close while Songster was dancing. The only time any of my ponies has ever had to have any hair cut - thankfully Mum did a great job.
Fill in the blank!"I wish Hasbro would
start caring about My Little Pony again.""When I was new to ponies I didn't know that
So Soft ponies weren't plush ponies""I think the most underappreciated pony is
Medley because
Firefly steals all the spotlight.""I think more ponies should have
proper accessories and backcard stories.""I don't like
the US names for ponies I grew up with because
it just feels like I'm calling them by the wrong thing.""I love
the history of G1 MLP because
it's so completely messed up."
Big thanks to Taffeta!
Look for a new interview on Fridays!