Magical Momiji ♥

so the other day i got an email telling me i'd won a blog giveaway...

now after i stopped feeling a tad guilty that i canceled my own blog giveaway (because NONE OF YOU ENTERED IT!!!!) i got a little bit excited to see what it was i'd won! 

(i knew what i'd won but for the sake of the blog... i'm not going to spoil the surprise! now let me get on with the post... thank you!)

anyway the parcel from Rhi-Mixx arrived today...

firstly... how freakin' ADORABLE is that wrapping paper?!?!

i've never received a parcel in the mail with paper as awesome as that, usually it's just boring brown or white packaging not totally super duper like this...

anyway after i'd stopped squealing about how cute the paper was i settled down and opened it (like a normal person)

the box was sealed with this really sweet pink tape covered in tiny little birds (this is by far the most adorable parcel i've ever been sent!)

so i opened up the box...

yay prizes!!!

ok so here's what i won...

soooo many cute things!!!!!

i got a roll of that cute pink birdy tape, dozens of momiji stickers, another roll of tape (with cupcakes on!!!), a packet of momiji printed tissues (which i will probably never use since they are far too cute to destroy with a sneeze), an adorable little momiji printed mini bag and loads more harajuku style stickers!!!

and last but not least a super cute hot pink touchy-feely (flocked) momiji tulip doll

cuteness overload!

i mean just look at the rest of the stickers i got as well...

i'll be honest though, i was more chuffed with the new momiji doll

Rhiannon aka Rhi-Mixx, who ran the giveaway, collects momiji's herself and i sort of do too, i have several kokeshi dolls (which are similar... but NOT the same) but i also already have 3 momiji's that i've received as gifts over the years so i'm glad to have another one to add to my little collection

here they all are together, welcoming the new addition...

one of the points of momiji dolls is that they are message dolls. each doll carries a message in her base that can be filled in by whoever gives or receives the doll

out of curiosity i checked the message in the base of the new doll and was delighted to find that Rhi-Mixx had already filled it in...

if you can't quite make it out it says 'to Jade, Congratulations from Rhi-Mixx'

they are just too cute! i love the story of how they began and what they're all about but i shan't bore you with it on here, you can find it out for yourself if you want to... it's all on their site.

to get hold of your very own momiji doll + find out more about them, you can visit this official momiji site which is chock full of momiji cuteness - momiji dolls

so big BIG thanks to Rhi-Mixx for holding the giveaway in the first place + for sending me such gorgeous prizes!!!

i suggest you visit her blog which is always full of all things adorable and cute, fashion bits, kawaii bobs, really super duper stuff... - the Mixxture

* * *

in other news...

i didn't go to college today mainly because i woke up feeling so ill!

i've been doing a bit of sewing this morning but it's not going to well to be honest!

here's hoping i get a burst of creativity at some point this week!!!

until next time,

that's all folks... 

◕‿◕ ★ xX

Paldies un uz redzēšanos

(that's thank you and goodbye in Latvian, vienmēr laipni ♥)

Super Sunday #8 ♥

so it's that time once again

it's time for another 'Super Sunday' post!!!

now this weeks dedication is a little different...

mainly because the person it's dedicated to... doesn't actually exist!

it's dedicated instead to a cartoon character...

anyway, it'll be easier if i just get on with the post

so this weeks 'Super Sunday' post goes out to the fabulous, the gorgeous, the fictional...

Betty Boop

if you've never seen Betty Boop before i suggest you just scroll through the images on here

you'll soon become a fan i'm sure...

now i know i'm a huuuuuge fan of animation and there are undoubtedly countless animated characters that have inspired me over the years but in all honesty, no cartoon character has inspired me half as much as Betty Boop has!

i really don't know what it is about her, i just love the way she's drawn, the colours (red is after all my fave colour and Betty primarily dresses in bright red) the pout, the curves, the 20's hair, her big green eyes... she's just so awesome!

we never did quite work out how i found out about Betty Boop in the first place but all i know is that when i was about ten years old i suddenly HAD to have everything Betty Boop related asap

i remember having Betty pajamas, slippers, bubble bath, soap, lipgloss, hair bands, pens, notebooks, pencil cases, alarm clocks, mugs, shot glasses, keyrings, ornaments, headbands, magnets, posters, calendars, mirrors... the list goes on!

to be honest i went through a phase that meant if it didn't have Betty Boop on it... i wasn't interested!

my bedroom was absolutely chock full of Betty stuff! i had a sort of Betty shrine on my bookshelf (it WAS as sad as it sounds i should point that out) full of all the little Betty ornaments i'd collected from all over the world + a stack of stuff i bought during my trip to Universal Studios (Betty is now owned by Universal so i came back with a LOT of Betty merch) and a load of bits i got in Las Vegas.

I was a really weird child... i went through a 'rainbow' phase as well but that isn't important right now!

the weird thing is that when my older sister Simone was younger, her nickname was 'Betty Boop' on account of her curves and dark hair, i never knew about this until i all of a sudden became obsessed with Betty stuff

what's even weirder is the fact that my older cousin Sharon (whom i didn't even meet until well after my betty obsession had begun) is also a massive Betty Boop fan!!!

AND my two little nieces Madison and Daisy are also huge Betty Boop fans!!! 

and even my little tiny god-daughter + her little sister both love Betty, they even have Betty Boop dolls!

super weird...

of course it was the modern Betty that i knew all about though, i'd never even seen any of the original Betty Boop cartoons from Fleischer Studios 

so naturally i ended up going out and buying Betty Boop Cartoons on DVD...

the old cartoons are amazing though! even the black and white ones

the characters, the voices, the grainy animation, they're just all so sublime!

of course Betty ended up in colour eventually just like the rest of the animation world, but she still got up to the same crazy adventures in multicolour as she did in b/w

like in this colour cartoon from 1935 in which Betty and her boyfriend Freddie have to fight off an evil villain...

i have that one on DVD that's why i wanted to share it with you all

for even more Betty Boop cartoons check out this awesome site that has archives of all the old Betty toons - Cartoons

she certainly looked a lot different back then to how she looks now though!

 in fact it's safe to say that Betty's had a lot of work done since Grim Natwick first drew her in August of 1930

i've calmed down a lot since my childhood and although my bedroom is no longer stuffed full of Betty memorabilia, i do still have a few little reminders of her scattered about the place...

 i realize now though that it's probably because of my early Betty obsession that i ended up drawing Pin-ups and why my Girls always have big pouts, curves and big eyes...

it's also probably why my fave colour is red!

the truth is, i think Betty will always be a part of my life, she's inspired me a lot over the years

in fact she still inspires me now... all the time!

you see! 

right that's enough stuff about Betty, i can't even think of anything else to say other than...

"Betty Boop is AWESOME!!!"

end of

* * *

in other news,

i've had to temporarily abandon the lollipop painting since the BRAND NEW permanant marker i bought recently, decided to run out halfway through me drawing the design onto the canvas

not cool stationary shop... not cool!

anyway, college tomorrow, not sure what i'll do yet, maybe some new felt plush stuff

who knows!

that's all folks...

◕‿◕ ★

Ви благодарам и Довидување

(that's thank you and goodbye in Macedonian on behalf of Macedonia, Благодарам ♥)

Lovely Lollipops ♥

so remember how i said i'd been working on some new cupcake illustrations???

well i didn't lie, i have been working on cupcake stuff...

i also sort of drew a big bunch of lollipops as well!

and i also may have gotten a tad carried away and coloured 7 (yes 7) separate variations of it!!!

they each have a different theme + flavour posted underneath (yes i KNOW they aren't real but i like my drawings to have a back story... OK!)

so without any further ado, here are the Lollies...

Delightfully Delectable - raspberry, cherry + a dash of peppermint

 Lavishly Lemony - pink lemonade + lemon/lime

Fabulously Fruity - strawberry, orange, pineapple, sour apple, blue blueberry, grape and sour cherry

Sensationally Sweet - cotton candy + tutti frutti

Marvellously Minty - peppermint + bubblegum

Tantalizingly Tropical - mango, pineapple, tangerine, banana + sour green apple

Awfully Appetizing - watermelon, kiwi + strawberry

and there you have it

lots and lots of lovely lollipops!

i did get a bit carried away with these i'll admit, but they were so much fun to colour!!!

there are just so many colour combinations they could be!

what can i say, lollipops are just so... super duper sweet!

anyway i'm planning a little lollipop painting as well so stay tuned for that + the rest of the candy pictures i'm currently working on

by the way, the lollipop photos i just posted are from Tarina Tarantino's gorgeous website, they inspired me with my lollipop drawing. 

they're awesome handmade artisanal lollipops, you can buy yourself one (or one for me... i don't mind) right here - Lollipops

* * *

in other news

i am working on a big pink cupcake illustration (to add to the set) but it's nowhere near finished yet so you'll have to wait for that one i'm afraid!

Sunday tomorrow and this week there WILL be a Super Sunday post!

unless i'm ill... which fingers crossed i won't be!

that's it for now i guess, enjoy the rest of your weekend wherever you are and thanks for stopping by

that's all folks...

◕‿◕ ★

شكرا لكم وداعا

(that's thank you and goodbye in Arabic on behalf of the United Arab Emirates, i'm lucky enough to have visited Dubai twice and i also spent Easter in Abu Dhabi a few years ago, the U.A.E is such a gorgeous country, i just love it there شكرا ♥)