Dear friend,
It is with great joy to let you know that The Merry Fairy is taking part in the Steam Idler Fest! This is my first Steam Fest so I am not sure what to expect, but I could not miss the chance to launch an update.
With build 34, you can now choose from several font options and you can also customise the colour of your journal entries. I have prepared 7 font options and made 8 font colours available. Some are darker to work well with light backgrounds and some are whiter (there is, in fact, an almost white one) to work well with darker backgrounds.
There are other changes, too, but they are kinda boring to talk about, as they are more to make the journaling experience at The Merry Fairy more enjoyable and to make room for more features to come.
Instead of writing boring development updates, I'd rather tell you about....
Fairy Socks and other projects!
It took me a while to feel comfortable accepting this, but I no longer identify as a game developer. My heart feels happier with the identity of an artist. The Merry Fairy is one of many ways in which I can express myself - which, to me, is the same with spreading my wings and flying high!
Other ways in which I find joy expressing are:
- Cooking - making food is an art where the colours are replaced by flavours
- Crochet - turning a simple thread into a fun, wearable or usable item is nothing short of magic
- Sewing - there are very few options of clothes for fairies, so I feel compelled to make my own
- Gardening - growing your own food is a very satisfying activity
- Foraging - the forest is always so generous
- Woodworking - I have not yet started ion this journey, but my creativity needs a unique kind of furniture and the forest is more than generous with material for me
I am pretty sure that my curiosity will be stirred by many more things in my lifetime, and I am eager to learn how you, dear kindred spirit, enjoy expressing yourself! Which is why I started the lonely work of updating The Merry Fairy Discord server, where, besides more elaborate updates about the development of this game, you will find my favourite recipes, my crochet patterns, lots of pictures with my garden, and more.
What about Fairy Socks, you may wonder. Well, it is well known that fairies tend to have very cold feet. For many moons, I searched for a good solution to no longer freeze, especially during the cold dark Swedish winter.
One day, the Caretaker told me about an extraordinary encounter: a group of Yarn Fairies had made Fairyland their home! I think it is because of our lovely sheep, whose wool has not been used by anyone. I could not believe it at first, but testing whether you have Yarn Fairies or not is easy: if you sleep with a little bit of scrap yarn under your pillow, they gently replace it with a whole skew of yarn.
It turns out the Caretaker was right! Fairyland does have Yarn Fairies and I ended up with a really generous collection of thick sheep wool. I experimented a little bit with some vests and scarfs, but one day, my hands just made a pair of socks. They were the warmest, cosiest socks I ever wore. Finally, I found my Fairy Socks! They were so cozy, that I made a pair for the Caretaker, too. One by one, the entire Fairyland got a pair of socks from me.
I got so good at making Fairy Socks and I have so much wool from the Yarn Fairies, that I decided to participate at the local handicraft fair that takes place each spring. I now build up my Fairy Socks stock and prepare The Merry Fairy game, which will also be showcased. I already am having a lot of fun with this plan and I really hope I can sell all the socks I will make by spring. If you are into crochet as well, I did my best to explain the Fairy Socks crochet pattern on my Discord server. And if you happen to be around Kinnekulle in the first weekend of May, take a tour at Vårrundan and visit The Merry Fairy aka me (websites are in Swedish).
Other than developing The Merry Fairy and making Fairy Socks, I am eagerly planning for this summer's gardening. 2025 is a special year to me because I am finally daring to try to grow aubergines once again. It is a courageous act, as my first attempt a few years ago resulted in a lot of work and one single ripe aubergine to pick. Besides aubergines, I will also grow tomatoes, cucumbers, paprika, zucchini, beetroots, onions, beans, salad, a variety of condiments and a lot of flowers. In fact, I gave myself a very early start and already seeded a few!
With so many exciting projects, the only risk remains that I forget to be in the present. And the present is such a gift! I don't know about you, but I always fall in love with the current season. Right now, we are going through a long, dark, cold Nordic winter. She is not many's favourite, but I cannot help but be amazed by her sparkling beauty!
Yours,
Fairy