Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

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Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

So after three months of downloading lots, CC, building houses, placing 'hood deco, making sure the sims were just right, I finally have completed a passion project of mine! :bounce:

I introduce to BoolProp for the first time: Crystal Valley!

Image
Now, what's so special about this 'hood?


This 'hood, as the thread's title implies, is a recreation of one I made 10 years ago! Back in 2011 when I was gifted a laptop for my 13th birthday, I took it upon myself to install my copy of TS2 and the EPs and SPs I owned one by one so that I could get a chance to play with them a bit more in-depth than I did on the family desktop at the time (where I had installed everything I got immediately from about 2008 until then). This 'hood quickly became my go-to place to play, outpacing the then record holder of Pleasantview by a landslide. It also helped that in the summer of 2011 when I made the 'hood, my cousin was staying with us from Georgia, so I had someone to bounce ideas off of and relay this story to a bit. (She, however, was playing on her laptop in Belladonna Cove with some sims she made.)

After that summer, this became the go to neighborhood for me. Wanted to play more of this convoluted story? Wanted to test mods? I booted up TS2 and went on down to Crystal Valley! Sadly it went by the wayside around 2013/2014 as I didn't take backing up seriously then. I used the name only to make a new neighborhood in 2015, but it wasn't a true recreation. Realizing that in 2021 it had been 10 years since I had created it, I figured now was as good a time as any to make this 'hood again! (Giving it some cosmetic updates that my 13 year old self wouldn't have done, like using defaults, and not including the premade bin sims because I have since learned how to stop them from being created.)

Now, it would be a shame if I let my recreation efforts end with just an overview shot, right? Right! So over the next several weeks (I'd say days, but I'll be busy and I don't want to spam :spam:), I'll be posting more about this 'hood! Talking about the different little districts, whose lots I used in this 'hood, what "styles" I was going for in my own builds, and of course, details about the sims that live there!

I should make a little content warning ahead of the posts about the families. There's nothing uber spicy (this is a recreation of a neighborhood I made at 13 after all), but it's really just about same-sex pregnancies? Fitting for this forum's name, this is where I tested out the boolprop testingcheatsenabled true and used the Tombstone of Life and Death to simulate genetic mergers, and two of the households storylines revolve around that. I also dabbled with InTeen in the 'hood back then, which was active in the recreation process, but not actively used outside of spawning sim's biological clocks. Hell, the household I used for that I didn't recreate 100% faithfully, and made it make a bit more sense storywise. (Even then it's not a major part of the Crystal Valley narrative, but rather a creative way to callback to that original household of tester sims.) Again, nothing too terribly offensive, but could be some rather crunchy bits for others that I wanted to give a quick heads up for.

The first street we'll be heading to is Crystal Lane! It's where the first families I made were located, so it's only natural to start there. Not every family will be on that post, seeing as there's four households (Baker, Waters, Lopez, and Rizzo) on the street. The Baker's will be first!

With that said, this ends my introductory post! I hope you all are excited to hear my ramblings, or at the very least let me pretend I'm not talking to myself about this. :rotfl:
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on April 17th, 2022, 1:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by peachy123uk »

congrats on completing your original hood. I certainly will try and read the updates/backstories of your original sims. :)
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

@peachy123uk: Thank you so much! :fluffy:

Without further ado, it's time to talk about the first family: The Baker Family! I'm going to try my best to get the formatting right as I go along, so bear with me as I get that established! The rough outline of what I'll use is as follows:
  • Family Description
  • Pictures of the sim(s), followed by their in-game stats and bios
  • The skill stat reads from top to bottom, meaning that cooking skill is the first number listed, and cleaning is the last
Family Description:
Coming to Crystal Valley for new opportunities, the Baker family is ready for anything! Or, almost anything. This move might take some getting used to.
Image
Starting off the introductions we have the heads of the family: John and Anne!
John Baker
  • Aspiration: Family
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Golden Anniversary
  • Personality: Aries (5/8/6/3/3)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Black Hair, Charismatic; Fatness
  • Job: Architect Career (Head of Construction Company)
  • Skills: 5/3/2/2/2/4/4
  • Bio: John came out to Crystal Valley because his wife had a business opportunity, and he was able to find a new job here. He hopes this move won't bother his twin girls too much.
Anne Baker
  • Aspiration: Fortune
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Earn §100,000
  • Personality: Gemini (4/7/8/3/3)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Brown Hair, Athletic; Cologne
  • Job: Business Career (Field Sales Representative)
  • Skills: 3/4/5/3/4/2/2
  • Bio: Anne is a very career-driven person, but also cares deeply about her family. She just hopes that this is good for everyone; not just her.
Next up are their daughters, Bethany and Kristen.
Image
Image

Bethany Baker
  • Aspiration: Grow-Up
  • Personality: Taurus (5/7/1/9/3)
  • Job: Elementary School Student
  • Skills: 0/0/1/0/1/2/0
  • Bio: Bethany is SUPER excited about moving to Crystal Valley. Why can't Kristen see it the same way?
Kristen Baker
  • Aspiration: Grow-Up
  • Personality: Taurus (5/7/3/7/3)
  • Job: Elementary School Student
  • Skills: 0/0/1/0/2/1/0
  • Bio: Kristen isn't all too happy about the move. Unfortunately, her sister Bethany doesn't see it the same way.
Creation Notes:
  • When I created this family years ago, they were the first of the neighborhood!
  • The names John and Anne are a reference to when I would come home to play The Sims 2 with a friend. Our first couple we made together were named Jon and Ann, so the names even then were a reference and variation to that couple. They did not, however, have twins.
  • The twins are supposed to be identical! They're very similar in this recreation, but I used the in-CAS pacifier to create the two. I thought I could clone one so that they'd be truly identical, but this is TS2 we're talking about. I forgot that while creating the family, haha. :rotfl:
  • If I'm racking my brain trying to think of tidbits, the twins could have been inspired by The Parent Trap, which is something I had viewed relatively before creating the 'hood.
  • John's job is in architecture since I feel that him, along with Anne, are regarded as the unofficial heads of Crystal Valley (despite having an off-screen mayor and council). In the original, he was in the Business career, just like his wife.
That's the quick rundown on the first family of Crystal Valley! For formatting's sake, I'll be talking about their specific house in a separate post (which is similar to a format I've seen on MTS for custom 'hood downloads, where the family comes first and their lot comes second.)
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 2:41 pm, edited 4 times in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

Since there isn't too much to explain in regards to the Baker's house, here's a quick double post!

Lot formats will be as follows:
  • Exterior shots
  • Interior shots
  • Creation notes
The Baker Family Home: 1 Crystal Lane

Image
Exterior
Image
Interior, 1st floor
Image
Interior, 2nd floor
Creation Notes:
  • I've been obsessed with this EA siding ever since I was young. The very light blue of it spoke to me, and I used it on this house.
  • Of the Crystal Lane homes, this is the most unique one! I built it before the others back in the day, and it sticks out for having an attached garage, no foundation, and 100% done with siding instead of brick.
  • The attached garage would have been its defining feature in the recreation, but I wanted to finally try my hand at it after playing for a decade and a half... but more information will come on that when I talk the Lopez family.
  • Yes, the 2nd floor is intended to look that way. Back when I was 13, the "hall" of that house was super spacious and filled with random objects. It pained me to do it, but I was trying to strive for accuracy. I might change the layout in the future, however. The jury's still out on that one.
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 2:46 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by peachy123uk »

I like the family and lot. Yes, the hallway is rather spacious.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by Sam »

:wave:

Lovingly recreating an old 'hood is so nice to see :heart: isn't it fun reflecting on how we used to play the game? :)

Looking forward to seeing more!
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

@peachy123uk: Thank you! I'm still thinking about what to do with the hallway if I were to "modernize" it a bit. I'm thinking of collapsing it, leaving a skill object or two, maybe add a computer? But for now it stays as-is.

@Sam: It's a lot of fun to reflect on how we used to play the game! I'm forever grateful to my past self for branching outside of the three base game 'hoods and creating something new.

So, IRL got busy as my grad class is starting up (seriously, how can making an introductory PowerPoint be so stressful...?), I figured I'd share the next family: The Waters Family!

Family Description:
Moving out of mommy and daddy's posh SimCity penthouse was a HARD decision (more like forced), but Jessica is here in quaint Crystal Valley! Surely, it's not as boring as the others have said, right?
Image
As you can tell, this is a single sim household! Let's talk more about Jessica, shall we?
Jessica Waters
  • Aspiration: Fortune
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: World-Class Ballet Dancer
  • Personality: Leo (4/10/4/4/3)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Red Hair, Logical; Fatness
  • Job: Law Career (File Clerk)
  • Skills: 1/1/6/3/2/4/1
  • Bio: Jessica moved out to Crystal Valley to get away from the big city... and, the worst part, her wealthy parent's wallet. How will she fare on her own?
Creation Notes:
  • Jessica is... sort of an electic mix of the personas of famous celebrities form the 2000s/early 2010s. Although I decidedly wasn't in my Paris Hilton phase yet (that'd come in 2016, it came on late XD), she does have some striking similarities to her. Despite the whole getting kicked out part.
  • She falls into that whole "rich person gets (relatively) cut off from money, learns meaning of life" type trope.
  • Related to the last point: Story-wise, she built the house with what money her parents gave her (they aren't so cruel to have kicked her out without anything), but after that it's money from her job.
  • Eventually she'll get a job in the Dance career, but for now she's in Law. I hadn't watched Legally Blonde back then, but I have since, so her being in the Law career is definitely an Elle Woods reference.
  • In the original, when I left the bin families, she dated Chester Gieke! Well, dated, and then married, and eventually had a child with him.
  • This is sort of a general creation note, but iirc, Chester was her across the street neighbor/next-door neighbor to the Baker's.
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 2:55 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

The Waters Family Home: 2 Crystal Lane

Image
Exterior
Image
Interior, Ground Floor (Garage)
Image
Interior, 1st Floor
Image
Interior, 2nd Floor
Creation Notes:
  • I did mention that I installed the packs as I went along, so her house is heavily based on the Glamour Life Stuff Pack!
  • Yes, Family Fun is the first SP, iirc, but I focused more on the clothing aspect with Chester than on the lot. I think when they had their child did I use the Family Fun objects.
  • I... am going to invest in a gardener for her at some point, because yes, those are the projection of water from the sprinklers you can see in some shots. No I didn't think that through until I went back into live mode after building. XD
  • I swear I had more to say, but really this build can be summed up as "sort of gaudy rich interior that holds well with the unofficial standards for the exterior."
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 2:58 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by peachy123uk »

Jessica is very pretty. Looks like the parents gave her plenty of money to build her house. :)
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

@peachy123uk: Thank you! She's one of my favorites from the 'hood. And although her parents were trying to get her out of the house and have her learn a thing or two about life, they weren't so cruel as to give her nothing to start with.

After a bit of hiatus with IRL affairs and adjusting to grad school work, I come back with our next installment in the Crystal Valley celebration: the Lopez Family!

Formatting will be slightly different, since despite being one of the first families of Crystal Valley, they were one of my later recreations! As such, I did tweak the format of how I got their pictures, so each family member has their own individual headshot.

Family Description:
The Lopez family has always been an eccentric bunch, especially when it comes to business ventures. Will they find sweet success or miserable failure in Crystal Valley?
Image
First up is the family's patriarch: Carlos!
Carlos Lopez
  • Aspiration: Fortune
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Become a Business Tycoon (Business)
  • Personality: Gemini (4/7/8/3/3)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Makeup, Black Hair; Stink
  • Job: Owner of Meals by Lopez
  • Skills: 5/3/3/4/3/3/4
  • Talent Badges: Silver (Sales); Cash Register (Bronze)
  • Bio: Carlos had always dreamed of owning his own business, and now that dream became a reality! Can he help support his family with this new restaurant in Crystal Valley?
Image
Next up is the family matriarch: Elena!
Elena Lopez
  • Aspiration: Fortune
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Become a World-Class Ballet Dancer (Dance)
  • Personality: Pisces (4/3/7/3/7)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Black Hair, Charismatic; Stink
  • Job: Manager of CV Bank and Trust
  • Skills: 3/3/3/2/5/2/2
  • Talent Badges: Silver (Cash Register); Bronze (Sales, Restocking)
  • Bio: Recently, Elena has been promoted to manager at the CV Bank and Trust branch. How will she juggle this new work responsibility with her family life?
Image
Moving onto their two children, we're starting with the eldest: Jorge!
Jorge Lopez
  • Aspiration: Knowledge
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Become Media Magnate (Journalism)
  • Personality: Aries (5/7/7/3/3)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Brown Hair, Creativity; Cologne
  • Job: High School Student (Teen Job TBD)
  • Skills: 1/1/2/2/3/0
  • Bio: Jorge wasn't sure about this move to a new town, but he just hopes that this move will be permanent.
Image
And last but not least: Isabella!
Isabella Lopez
  • Aspiration: Grow-Up
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: N/A
  • Personality: Sagittarius (5/3/7/10/0)
  • Job: Elementary School Student
  • Skills: 1/0/1/0/1/2/0
  • Bio: Isabella is excited to have moved to Crystal Valley! So many new opportunities, friends to make... it's going to be great!
Creation Notes:
  • The entire basis for this family? George Lopez's TV show. I'm not even kidding. I was a big fan of it in reruns circa 2011, so naturally I made a reference in-game with Jorge (who back then was simply George). No other plot beats from that show were taken other than the name reference.
  • While I was recreating them, part of me was like "Oh, I should give them some more cash because they'll need to buy their respective community lots," which I ended up doing. The Lopez family has been running businesses for quite some time now, but have always seemed to move around, hence the note in the family bio and Jorge's bio.
  • The two community lots, Meals by Lopez and CV Bank and Trust, will be shown off when I start talking about the Pine Road lots. I'll go individually through these two community lots, however, since they're my own builds.
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 3:01 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

The Lopez Family Home: 4 Crystal Lane

Image
Exterior, Front
Image
Exterior, Back
Image
Interior, 1st Floor (+Garage)
Image
Interior, 2nd Floor
Creation Notes:
  • As alluded to previously, this house has a bit of 2021 flair to it! See, despite having downloaded houses with attached garages back in the day, and seeing them everywhere within the community, I never attempted one myself. I'd like to thank Sims YouTuber, Tea Addict, for her tutorial. It was surprisingly easy to do! Can't believe I procrastinated learning this for so long. :rotfl:
  • With this house in particular, though it is a bit of a common practice across my builds, is that I reused the hallway bathroom floor plans. It's easier that way.
  • I was a bit of a loss for how to decorate the interior, so I just did my best. Jorge has a workout mat that should be functional, and I figured Isabella would be into dance, so I gave her a small practice area. Overall too I envision that the Lopez's have had a bit of success before coming here, hence their slightly more upscale look compared to the Baker's home, for example.
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 3:04 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by peachy123uk »

Very pretty sims. The house is lovely. I still haven't managed how to make garages after all these years :)
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by Cororon »

Nice builds and pretty sims too! :)
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

@peachy123uk: Thank you! And up until the Lopez's rebuild, I was right there with you. I will say again that Tea Addict's tutorial was very easy to follow. She does it step by step without cuts in the video, and again, I was shocked to learn how easy it was! :idea:

@nooboostar: Thank you! It's been fun getting to share this neighborhood with everyone. ^^

@Cororon: Thank you! Although it was fun to download other's lots for this recreation, it was fun to go back and get creative with my own again. :D

In a bit of procrastination, I decided that hey, why not share another update? I've been chipping away at the schoolwork and interviewing for internships, so I deserve a little break of sharing more before returning to the fray. With that said, it's time for our last Crystal Lane household: the Rizzo Family!

Family Description
Thomas and Kaden had been in love with each other for such a long time, but both were too stubborn to confess to the other. Eventually they did, leading to a successful marriage, and adopting their son, Cameron. However, they were approached by a scientist saying that they could have their own biological child.
Image
Kaden (left) and Thomas (right).
Kaden Rizzo
  • Aspiration: Family
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Graduate 3 Kids from College
  • Personality: Capricorn (7/3/1/8/5)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Brown Hair, Creativity; Jewelry
  • Job: “Unemployed” (Research Subject; Stay-at-Home Dad)
  • Skills: 6/3/2/2/2/5/4
  • Bio: After hearing about the research program, Kaden was all too excited to sign up for it! His family has been very supportive, and that's all Kaden could ask for.
Thomas Rizzo
  • Aspiration: Family
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Have 6 Grandchildren
  • Personality: Sagittarius (2/3/9/7/4)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Blonde Hair, Makeup; Unemployment
  • Job: Education Career (Elementary School Teacher)
  • Skills: 2/3/4/2/3/4/2
  • Bio: Using the grant money provided by the research project he and his partner had signed up for, Thomas moved his family out to Crystal Valley.
Image
And of course, their son, Cameron!
Cameron Rizzo
  • Aspiration: Knowledge
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Become (Medical) Chief of Staff
  • Personality: Capricorn (7/3/1/8/5)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Red Hair, Great Cook; Stink
  • Job: High School Student (Teen Job TBD)
  • Skills: 3/2/1/2/4/5/3
  • Bio: Cameron was adopted into the Rizzo family at a young age. He loves his two dads no matter what, and although not too keen on getting a younger sibling, is interested in the project. Perhaps him and his future partner could undergo something similar...
Creation Notes
  • If you can believe it, this entire family back in 2011? All clones. I wish I was kidding. I took either face 1 or face 2 from CAS, used it for Kaden and Thomas, and then again on Cameron. It wasn't just a problem related to these two, as I once made essentially the same female sim with face 1 also around the same time in a different neighborhood. XD
  • As alluded to in the introductory post, this is the family I used the Tombstone Life and Death on! They ended up having a daughter, Emma. Again, they were already clones, so I guess the game gave me the opposite sex one?
  • Although it's listed on Kaden's bio, he's officially unemployed in-game. For story purposes, he's considered a research subject, but also has been a stay-at-home dad for Cameron up to this point.
  • In addition to the above point: this is a fictional sims universe, and therefore while some stigmas exist, any around this project are next to non-existent. It's my neighborhood and I get to make it as calm or chaotic as I wish.
  • Cameron having the LTW for the medical career? Complete coincidence after I loaded him in-game. Guess he was inspired by his dads?
  • Believe it or not, but you'll believe it, that scientist? Completely off-screen. I never made one back then, and currently, there isn't one in the neighborhood. Given that the three empty lots on Crystal Lane no longer belong to bin sims (Picaso, Ramaswami, and Goodie, iirc), I could perhaps throw a scientist in? We'll have to see.
  • Despite all of this talk of Kaden's pregnancy? He's currently not pregnant in-game! I need to start it for him, but the reason I didn't do it right away is because I didn't get to it right away back then. It'll be happening eventually, though!
  • One last note: Thomas's turn-off for unemployed sims? Completely spaced on that when developing the new narrative. I might be changing that, given the updated backstory of Kaden being a stay-at-home parent.
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 3:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

The Rizzo Family Home: 8 Crystal Lane

Image
Exterior, Front
Image
Exterior, Back
Image
Interior, Ground Floor
Image
Interior, 1st Floor
Image
Interior, 2nd Floor
Creation Notes
  • The Rizzo's have one of the more nicer houses on the block? Guess that research money helps supplement Thomas's teacher income, because I doubt on that alone would've gotten them here. XD
  • The massive empty room off to the side? It's a future room for either their second child, or for their second to share with their future third. I got a bit ahead of myself while planning, seeing as the second isn't even born yet, and they'll need to be in the nursery!
  • If I'm remembering correctly from their first iteration, Cameron was on the first floor, but I don't know if his was the only room. That detail is a bit fuzzy, but hey! A big room to himself on the first floor? That's something to be happy about!
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 3:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by peachy123uk »

nice, pretty sims. I like the house. Family Bio sounds interesting.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

@peachy123uk: Thank you! :fluffy:

Also, hello again everyone! Been a busy week IRL, so it's been a minute. Today I'm still going to do a two post deal, but it's all about lots today!

Let's give credit to two districts just a bit north of where we've been! Take a look at White Daisy Lane and Oceanview Drive! Crystal Lane was a district full of my own creations, while these two districts use lots from other simmers!
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Oceanview Drive Lots: White Daisy Lane Lots:
  • 802 White Daisy Lane - TS2 Exchange Lot
  • 803 White Daisy Lane: Audreysims Family Estate - audreysims14 (Tumblr)
  • 804 White Daisy Lane: The Grand Estate - EP8 Bin House
  • 805 White Daisy Lane: Dustove Family Farmhouse - kamoodle5 (MTS)
  • 806 White Daisy Lane: To be placed.
  • 807 White Daisy Lane: Rose Cottage - Ladysimplayer8 (MTS)
Creation Notes:
  • Although most of these lots are more "modern," than what would have been placed back in 2011, it still fits within the original concept.
  • Yes, that is an Exchange lot! I've had it probably since 2010/2011, and it's survived several computers, haha. Pretty sure that was a front page, featured lot back in the heyday. It's the reason why I named the road White Daisy Lane!
  • Although we haven't discussed the residential Pine Road lots yet, 803 White Daisy Lane is actually a duplicate! The house placed is a bit larger, which is what I was aiming for with this set of houses. 43 Pine Road, which I placed first, is the same lot! I had originally meant to place this starter house by audreysims14, but spaced on it while creating that district. I left it, however, for a bit of character, and that it would've been something I did back in the day.
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 3:05 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

And, as mentioned, time for the next set of lots! This time, looking at the community lots of Pine Road.
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From left to right: CV Bank and Trust, Crystal Park, Park 'n Pool, and Meals by Lopez.
CV Bank and Trust
Manage your money with a credit union rather than a local bank! One of our friendly bankers are more than happy to assist you.
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CV Bank and Trust, Exterior
Image
CV Bank and Trust, Interior

Crystal Park
Looking for a place to unwind outdoors? Crystal Park is the location for you!
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Crystal Park, Exterior
Image
Crystal Park, Interior

Meals by Lopez
Looking for delicious meals that won't break the bank? Try Meals by Lopez! We have something for everyone.
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Meals by Lopez, Exterior
Image
Meals by Lopez, Interior
Creation Notes:
  • Park 'n Pool isn't featured as a lot with pictures since it is a custom lot! Cannot for the life of me find it in my downloads on MTS or Tumblr, however. If I can track it down, I'll link it!
  • None of these lots are play tested. May they actually be functional! XD
  • Ignore how the custom parking spaces are, unfortunately, the wrong direction. This will be true for pretty much every community lot I built. I didn't check this until too late!
  • CV Bank and Trust: Those bathrooms are a bit big, if I'm being honest. I might try and re-work it at some point, if possible.
  • Crystal Park: Looks good? The bathroom is supposed to mimic one of a park in my neighborhood, where you walk in down a short hallway before entering the restroom. Granted, that park is bigger, but I needed a way to fill the space.
  • Meals by Lopez: Doesn't quite know what it wants to be? It's supposed to be like a diner, where everyone can find something, but not quite a fancy restaurant. Also the table placement might not work, given TS2 routing, but here's to hoping!
That does it for our lot interlude! We'll resume with a family next time I post. I'm thinking of going further down the map first, to the Browns, before slowly swinging back up.
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 3:30 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by peachy123uk »

I like all the lots, if i build my own they are usually just a rectangle lol.
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Re: Crystal Valley: A 10-Year Celebration & Recreation!

Post by harmoniouspixels »

@peachy123uk: I understand! Most of mine used to be rectangles back in the day. Took a lot of practice to get where I'm at now!

Dropping in for another update after a busy week! This time, it's on our resident farmers of the region, the Brown Family!

Family Description:
The Brown Family name is synonymous with farming in the Crystal Valley region. Although they haven't had many roots in Crystal Valley proper, Patrick and his family have been changing that over the years.
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Heir to the Brown name, Patrick.
Patrick Brown
  • Aspiration: Family
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Become Education Minister
  • Personality: Scorpio (6/5/8/3/3)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Blonde Hair, Creative; Cologne
  • Job: Owner of Brown Farms
  • Skills: 3/5/3/4/1/1/2
  • Talent Badges: Silver (Gardening); Bronze (Fishing, Sewing)
  • Bio: Patrick has been part of the community for generations. Now that it's his turn to take over the farm, will he be able to see it prosper?
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His daughter Alice (left) and wife Jennifer (right).
Alice Brown
  • Aspiration: Grow-Up
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: N/A
  • Personality: Sagittarius (3/0/8/7/7)
  • Job: N/A (Toddler)
  • Skills: 0/0/0/0/0/0/0
  • Bio: Little Alice still has a way to go before she knows how the world works, but her curiosity is all she needs right now.
Jennifer Brown
  • Aspiration: Family
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: Graduate 3 Children from College
  • Personality: Pisces (4/3/7/3/7)
  • Turn Ons and Turn Offs: Fitness, Red Hair; Fatness
  • Job: Co-Owner of Brown Farms
  • Skills: 5/2/1/1/1/5/3
  • Talent Badges: Silver (Sewing); Bronze (Flower Arranging, Gardening, Fishing, Pottery)
  • Bio: Hippie at heart, Jennifer has enjoyed living out on the farm. Hopefully being close to nature will have a positive effect on her children.
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Lastly, his son, Nathan.
Nathan Brown
  • Aspiration: Grow-Up (Future Family)
  • Secondary: N/A
  • LTW: N/A
  • Personality: Virgo (9/2/6/3/5)
  • Job: Elementary School Student
  • Skills: 1/0/1/0/2/2/0
  • Bio: Nathan is a very inquisitive young boy, with a promising athletic career in front of him. He cares very deeply for his best friend, Leo.
Creation Notes:
  • The entire family here? They're all based around Nathan! This is because I downloaded Nathan back in the Exchange days around 2011. He's packaged as a teen with a pair of custom underwear (tank top edit to put a wolf logo on it, and a custom boxer color).
  • In the original, I aged him down to child and built up a family around him (parents and younger sister). Part of this reason is that I needed potential partners for the spouses of the Baker twins, and he was one of them!
  • However, I have since revisited that, and the aforementioned Leo will be his future partner. (No, really. Leo married the other Baker twin, and despite the two being in marriages, I would imagine Leo and Nathan together. Surprised I didn't just get them together at first, but that was life then. :duh: ) I'll talk more about Leo in the next family intro!
  • Jennifer's free-spirit is based upon the shirt and the shirt alone. I remember I got it from another Exchange sim, who was the founder of a 100 Baby Challenge story on the site. Can't remember if I have that original sim, but the only similarities they share are their clothing.
  • Alice is probably the least developed sim character-wise from the family. I think it's because I made her a toddler back in the day, and I was focusing my efforts elsewhere before her. The 'hood was gone before I really started to get into what made her.
  • Also poor Patrick. Rolled into this version of the 'hood with a career-based LTW. But hey, never say never, since it could happen! I'm bad at farming in TS2, so let's hope if I do get back to playing this 'hood that I can at least manage to not have everything be sickly! :rotfl:
Last edited by harmoniouspixels on July 23rd, 2022, 3:47 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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