Last week, I promised that you’d get a closer look at some changes I made to my lovely little forest cottage in the Mist, and today, here they are!
My original forest cottage design has probably been one of my longest-standing builds overall in Final Fantasy XIV; I loved it so much (and hated all the floating involved, oh my goodness) that it’s been standing for close to a year now. It’s not often my builds last longer than a few months before I see a new furnishing I want to test out!
This time, though, the inspiration wasn’t just about new furnishings.
Working with the graphics update
The first time I stepped into my house after Dawntrail came out, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It didn’t even look like the same house. Suddenly, there was depth to things like my shaker cabinets, where you could see shadows clinging to the framework and curving down where the overhead lights cast shadows.
You could see uplighting on the plants by the window, where the cozy lantern sat on the welcome bench.
You could feel the coziness of the cushions in the coffee nook in the kitchen.
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My first thought was that I couldn’t wait to start working with new builds because suddenly, I had all kinds of new dimensions to consider when I was designing! But that was also a little overwhelming for my brain at the time, so I left it for future me to think about.
At least, until I noticed something.
Remodeling the living room
As much as I loved the changes to the housing graphics that came with Dawntrail, I actually wasn’t planning on making any changes to my cottage—but I realized after a couple of days of wondering what wasn’t quite right that with the update, the outside frames of phasmascapes had changed.
Now, instead of tucking nicely behind the design, you could see the edges of them sticking out and ruining all my pretty wood textures.
So since I had to get in there and float things to fix that issue anyway, I figured I’d make a couple of aesthetic changes, too.
The most drastic change happened in the living room, which I rotated and restructured to replace the patio door with new windows and a TV. I was particularly proud of that door, but as I lived with it, I couldn’t help but start to feel like it was rather plain compared to the rest of the cottage.
Everywhere else you looked, there was depth and texture and visual interest, but that was a white wall with a door right in the middle of it and not a lot else.
Though it meant giving up the rain effect, I’m much happier with how this design turned out because it feels a lot cozier—which was the whole vibe behind the design to start with.
Adding in some new furnishings
I’m just realizing that I didn’t actually write about this, but there were quite a few new furnishings in Dawntrail that I really liked the look of. For one, they added that neon light item I was rooting for, and exactly how I was hoping for, too! But since it’s a map dungeon drop and I don’t have the gil to buy one, that’s off the table for the time being.
I did manage to get my hands on the materials for a new twintop table, easily one of the prettiest tables they’ve put into FFXIV, and a pair of the new royal leather couches. Ordinarily, the couches wouldn’t be quite my style, but something about the aged decadence of them works with a rustic design.
Plus, combined they saved me about five item slots, which was that much more clutter I could add for a bit of personality.
One thought on “First Dawntrail build and ambient forest cottage overhaul”
I am having trouble seeing the details in your design because the lighting is too dark. I would like to suggest that the lighting be set a little brighter