Spoilered for long text, whoa!
I design textiles and frilly dresses for a living. Right now, I'm working on a spec line based on different types of witches, and it's really quite exciting! I can't wait to get past the prototyping stage and start working with the real materials. There's going to be so. Much. Smocking. And embroidery involved in these pieces.
I love cats and horses. The former means I have two fluffy cats at home. The latter is because of MLP from when I was a kid, and an aunt and uncle who kept horses when I was young. Technically, they still do, but since I no longer live near them, I don't get to go over and ride anymore. ;)
I presently, and hopefully permanently, live in Australia with my partner. I was born in the US, and lived in a few different parts of the country, so my accent gets all kinds of weird reactions over here. I've been asked if I was Irish, Canadian, Russian, Mexican, and German before. The German question having actually been asked in German, go figure. My partner also often gets asked if he's the American, because my accent has rubbed off on him.
I studied graphic design and Spanish in university, with a respective major and minor in the subjects. I also can read Italian at a primary school level, and am currently teaching myself Japanese. I'm also trying to improve my Spanish and Italian because they've gotten rusty from lack of use. I find languages really interesting and fun, and sometimes think I should have studied linguistics instead of graphic design. Alas.
I have Crohn's disease and was diagnosed about six years ago. It's fairly mild, but can make life a little bit complicated, and is a big part of why I'm self-employed. Good days are really good! Bad days are really bad. It also means that my immune system is terrible, so I catch colds quite frequently, and they hit me pretty hard.
I only have a small collection of MLP, most of which are from my childhood and currently in storage. I have a huge wall of MH dolls, however, a handful of EAH dolls, a couple of Pullips, two Hujoo Freyas, and a tiny Island Doll BJD. Customising dolls is something I love to do, especially rehairing. I started out customising ponies in college with one of my roommates, and got into MH customs a couple of years ago. I find it really soothing, and a lot of fun! I'd like to get more into BJDs and Pullips at some point, for the customising aspect, but it's such a big expense, I'm a bit scared to take that step.
I watch a lot anime (after having taken a break from it for several years...) and my partner is a TV show freak, so we're always watching something or another after dinner. We both also enjoy playing video games and board games, though it can be hard to find ones that work for two people without being super competitive. Our favourite board games to play with friends include Fluxx, Catan, Dominion, Mage Knight, and Cards Against Humanity. For video games, it's trickier. We're trying to find good cross-platform games that we both enjoy, because he prefers playing on the PS4 to PC most of the time. We were playing Paragon, but recent changes to the game have completely turned me off, so I'm taking a break...
We also go to metal gigs together pretty frequently. My favourite bands include Epica, Kamelot, Blind Guardian, Sabaton, and Orphaned Land. I used to love jrock when I was younger, and still have a massive soft spot for L'arc-en-ciel, Siam Shade, and a few other bands. Last year, we travelled to the US to visit my dad, but also to see Yousei Teikoku perform at Akon in Dallas. It was kind of amazing.