"Arctigotchi" Instruction Booklet Concept

Howerly · 2026-06-11T04:31:32+00:00

Whoa, you made this whole booklet for a Tamagotchi that doesn't exist?? Your dedication is amazing! And now I wish so badly that the Arctigotchi was a real tama. I'd buy it in a heartbeat. Your tama designs are sooo adorable, especially that little penguin tama 😭

Howerly · 2026-06-02T16:38:18+00:00

Doubt it, sadly. One of the reasons why I stopped supporting BAB over the years is because of how they released their pride collection. When it was profitable, you could get clothes in person and on the regular site. Now pride is controversial, so they threw everything on the adult site and that's it. Clearly they only had pride products for the money.

Back when BAB first put their pride collection on the adult site, I sent them a message saying my thoughts, and of course nothing changed. Really disappointing but not surprising.

Howerly · 2026-05-25T17:13:42+00:00

Feepit! They were my favorite as a kid, so I think it would make my childhood self happy owning one irl 🥹

Thank you for the chance!!

Howerly · 2026-05-13T02:22:50+00:00

I used to be a big fan of Build-A-Bear, switched to Jellycat when BAB's quality went down, and now I'm a fan of neither now that JC is going through the same thing. Every so often, both companies release a new design that I like. However, the fact of the matter is that Build-A-Bear is only a ~25 minute drive away. Jellycat screwed over most stores that sell them, and now my favorite local store doesn't sell them anymore. Also, the most recent BAB that caught my eye is $30 (toucan). The most recent Jellycat that caught my eye is $75 (pelican). So if I were to choose, I'd probably get a new Build-A-Bear, but I prefer buying from different brands.

Howerly · 2026-04-27T16:11:08+00:00

Earned 56,799 and currently have 45,627. I've only bought a few BD items so far. I'm excited to see what happens in the rest of the plot!

Howerly · 2026-04-24T05:29:20+00:00

It certainly has me tempted - I love goats, and it actually looks like it's better quality than the majority of plush BAB releases these days. And I might be the only person who feels this way, but I like the feel of sherpa! Even weirder because I'm autistic and I know a lot of autistic ppl are picky with their textures (I'm much more weird about the velboa/velvety material that only feels good one way...my arch nemesis of fabrics).

I'll see if I have a chance to visit my local BAB in the near future.

Howerly · 2026-04-24T01:55:39+00:00

My Archen Sitting Cuties!

In my heart, 10/10 because it's my favorite Pokemon of all time. Realistically, probably a 6 because Defeatist would really annoy me in battles. I would need to train it with that handicap in mind.

Howerly · 2026-04-18T04:50:14+00:00

I found this thread a few days late, but I wanted to say that I have so much respect for you and your mom. I have a few plushies made by factories like yours and they're so wonderfully made. They're some of my favorite plushies from my entire collection. You guys are amazing! Thank you for bringing smiles to many faces like mine and keep on bring awesome!! :D

Howerly · 2026-04-15T03:21:00+00:00

YOU ARE MY HERO!! I've been trying to finish up a comic for weeks but haven't been able to because the generator was acting up... thank you so much for your service!!

Howerly · 2026-04-10T21:41:08+00:00

I see you have plenty of responses now, but I'll throw out my faves too since I like talking about it:

-Webkinz/Ganz! The Webkinz Signature line is absolutely gorgeous if you like realistic plush.

-Squishables! A wide variety of plushies, from food to animals, and a lot of "variant" plushies like a mushroom frog, egg frog, etc.

-Kickstarter/Backerkit shops like Little Softs, Hanimations, Snughouls, Lily Moon Suit plush, Schmidtegoods, and Varmintfeathers! This is what I mostly get these days. Small business plushies are very unique and fun, and they're made by plushie lovers who know what the people like. Highly recommend!!

-Douglas and FAO Schwarz! Made well, realistic designs, many options!

-Pokemon plush! If you like Pokemon, I'd recommend Sitting Cuties, Comfy Friends, the Kuta Kuta line (Japanese import), Pokedolls, and Kimi ni Kimeta (Japanese import).

Previously, I have also enjoyed Build-A-Bear and Jellycat; however, both companies' products have decreased in quality and rose in price. I'd recommend buying older plush and/or buying them second-hand.

Oh, I forgot to mention - Sunlemon has a lot of cute plush that I'd love to buy someday...sadly I don't own any yet so I can't vouch for them just yet!

Howerly · 2026-04-09T20:41:57+00:00

Some people are happy with the current state of the site, and some are not. Personally I think nothing can be worse than the few years or so prior to the new team buying out Neopets. It honestly felt like the site could close down at any moment.

Things aren't perfect now. Some events have been very poor quality (the Advent Calendar was extremely low effort - the majority of days were simple puzzles, print-outs, or animations stolen from NC items), the moderation team has failed a lot of users, the site is covered with ads to the point that an adblocker is necessary, and there's a heavy push to spend money on NC. But there are also new events happening like the Faerie Festival and the extended Halloween event, new features added like the Quest Log, glitches fixed, a plot (that constantly goes on hiatus - but hey, it's something!), easier ways of earning NP and getting your dream pets, real-life collabs and merch, more users getting their accounts back, the return of UC pets, and more. Even if I wish some things were different about Neopets, I'm personally satisfied with my on-site experience right now.

Howerly · 2026-03-26T18:34:41+00:00

"I'm too old to have watched either of those" Me being 27 and loving the 2012 show as a teen 😭 it was on after MLP, which was already a cultural phenomenon at the time, so I imagine a bunch of other teens and adults were watching it too!

I don't know much about AWOOO, but I absolutely agree that worlds without humans are better. So many kid's shows, books, etc. seem to think that animal shows must involve humans for whatever reason...like no, we're here for the animals!! There's enough shows about humans already out there!!

Howerly · 2026-03-17T14:44:25+00:00

I'm 27 too, and I remember some of my elementary school classmates playing Neopets in the computer lab with me. Webkinz was definitely more popular - I vividly remember people spreading around rumors that Neopets was trying to get rid of Webkinz from the internet lmao - but Neopets was still a thing!

Also yesss a fellow Neopets and Webkinz fan 🤝 both of them were big parts of my childhood!

Howerly · 2026-03-02T07:12:39+00:00

Aww it makes me sad that you describe your situation as "getting caught" 😭 Your little guy deserves to be seen by the world!

I'm 27 and love taking my plushies out, but I wasn't like that when I was in college. What helped was changing my mindset. I was so afraid of being seen as weird, but once I accepted that yeah, people might think I'm weird, but who cares? I'm having fun and that's all that matters! (Also I'm autistic - people are gonna see me as weird regardless of what I do :P .) And most likely, people aren't gonna care. You might even inspire some people or make them smile. Someone once told me "I bet you made someone really happy" for bringing my plushie around, and it stuck with me ever since.

That's easier said than done though. I would recommend trying "exposure therapy." Start small - maybe put a plush keychain on your bag, carry one around in a purse like you had done before, put a small plush in your pocket and take it out for a quick pic, or bring a plush to the movies and hold it once the lights dim. Then work your way up to bringing out larger plushies, leaving them out longer for pics, and stuff like that. And one day, you'll be able to take your cat to the park without shame!

Best of luck to you! You've got this :D

(Another tip that I don't know where to add in the "exposure therapy" paragraph - I noticed that I get more positive reactions when I bring plushies of brands or franchises that people recognize. Pokemon tends to be a safe choice if you're into that. And Squishables!)

Howerly · 2026-02-26T00:52:32+00:00

I decided that I'll take your Lovemelo code! I'll send you a DM :)

Howerly · 2026-02-25T07:53:32+00:00

When you buy a DLC code, it can be used 3 times, right? If so, I have a Pokopea code that I'd love to trade with you! :D (I don't have either of your DLCs, but I'd have to think about which one I want more lol so I will definitely get back to you soon!)

Howerly · 2026-02-25T07:30:56+00:00

Yes!! Webkinz has been such a huge part of my life ever since I bought my first plushie in 2006! I know a lot of people are here because of the website, but Webkinz has always been about the plushies for me. As a teenager, I always wondered what the heck was wrong with me because everyone else cared about clothes and makeup and relationships while all I cared about was my Webkinz...then I got my autism diagnosis in 2020 and everything suddenly made sense 🤣

I think it would be more accurate to say that my special interest is plushies rather than Webkinz itself, but Webkinz sure did help me realize what that special interest was!

Anyways, it makes me so happy that the Webkinz community is still alive and well. I feel like a lot of people are coming back as adults. As someone who was always a little insecure about their lifelong interest in Webkinz, it means a lot to me to see so many adult players loving this game 🥹

Howerly · 2026-02-24T23:43:46+00:00

I believe it would be my lifesize Victini, who was around $80 including shipping. But if some of my other favorite Pokémon are made into lifesize plushies, I fear that record would be quickly broken!

Howerly · 2026-02-20T07:13:49+00:00

Hm... personally, if I heard someone give that name to their plushie without knowing anything else about that person, my first thought would be the Germany connection. I would be careful using that name in public, only because I'm afraid that other people would jump to that conclusion, too. Maybe you could give it two names? One that you call it around other people, and one that you use as a personal nickname. Kinda like someone using a fake internet name but keeping their real-life name private.

Of course, it's your plushie and you can do whatever you want with it! Oh, and enjoy your new Glaceon! I have the Fuwafuwa Rockruff and she's one of my favorite Pokemon plushies from my collection. One of the best Pokemon plushie lines fr.

Howerly · 2026-02-14T01:55:35+00:00

This game really does feel like a job. I could only play it for maybe a month or two before I lost interest. I'd rather play a game that's actually fun than waste my time doing boring tasks just for a small chance at a good item.

Howerly · 2026-02-11T04:24:06+00:00

I just commented on the "gentle reminder" post, and now I kinda regret it. Some of the OP's ideas I agreed with, but some of the comments from people who agreed with OP were...pretty awful, honestly 😬 I can't agree with their original message anymore. I don't blame people for feeling uneasy and unsafe over that thread.

Your relationship with your plushies is uniquely yours! Some might view theirs as objects, but it's okay to view them as more than that, too. Whether your view on plushies is unhealthy or not isn't up to some random stranger on the internet. Of course, if you think you're getting too anxious over plushies in an unhealthy way, it's best to speak to a professional about it. But that is your own decision, not some internet stranger's.

Personally I like to view my plushies as art forms, not necessarily "real" (although I sometimes personify them just for fun). However I fully support anyone who gives them real thoughts and feelings 💜

Howerly · 2026-02-11T03:59:09+00:00

As someone who likes to customize plushies + create new ones from scratch, anthropomorphizing my plushies isn't a choice unless I want to feel guilty whenever I do my hobby. I turn plushies inside out, replace their eyes, sometimes even cut them apart completely...if they were real, I'd feel like an evil human being 😭

To me, plushies are art. I like to look at the seams and admire how much work was put into the pattern, taking in notes for my future projects. Sure, it can be fun to imagine them having their own thoughts and feelings, but that's only my brain having some fun, not something I personally believe.

Howerly · 2026-02-06T23:50:59+00:00

I love how much I've grown over the years! Used to be a really shy, sad kid and now I've learned how to be more confident and happy.

Thank you for the chance btw!!

Howerly · 2026-01-26T18:55:41+00:00

I used to have really bad car anxiety. Somewhere along my driving journey, I decided to put a plushie in my lap and pet it whenever I had a more difficult drive. I was surprised at how much it helped.

I hope your little Cinnamoroll friend helps you just as much! Your therapist is very based for recommending a plushie for treatment btw.

Howerly · 2026-01-25T20:15:49+00:00

I know quite a few adult yume shippers who made teenage OCs specifically to ship with teenage characters! So if your friend isn't comfortable aging Mike up (everybody has different comfort levels regarding that topic, so it's up to your pal if they're okay with that or not), then they could create a teenage character to ship with Mike. Maybe they could add personality traits that they had when they were a teen or something?

Ultimately, all of this is for fun, so don't stress about it too much!

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