What's this? What's this? There's colour everywhere...

What's this? a BLOG post?! surely not.

but yes, it is. it's been a year + one week since i last did a proper post on here and i thought, hhm... why not start again now! surely it's as good a time as any.

so why the sudden desire to inflict my opinions upon the world once more?

well for one, i was a smidge bored.

and for another reason, it's nearly Xmas time so i figured it might be nice to do a post about some of the lovely stuff i sell in my online shop, you know, as Xmas gift ideas for y'all

so here goes!

over the past year i've tried to expand my range of merchandise a little, so now i can offer even more funky stuff featuring my designs. here are a few of the things i think would make rather nice gifts for people you don't despise.

to start with, if you're in need a nifty stocking filler?! why not get them some groovy vinyl stickers to stick on their stuff - £2.50 for 3 

looking for something for the booklover in your life that isn't books?  then why not get them a bag that they can just carry their books in! + each bag comes with a free 38mm badge - tote bag £10

 

know someone with an iPhone 4/4s, then maybe you could get them a quirky cover for their phone + each one comes with a free matching postcard - iPhone case £10

 

if they have a sweet tooth maybe they'd like one of these pastel pretty cupcake necklaces - necklace on chain £8.50

or if cupcakes aren't their thing, maybe try a Macaron pocket mirror instead. each mirror comes in a little organza bag to keep it scratch free - pocket mirror £3.50

if they're particularly health conscious or the environmentally friendly sort then this set of bicycle postcards might be right up their street - His n' Hers Bicycle cards £1.75

if you're really struggling to pick something then a surprise goodie bag is always a fun gift. Each one contains 8 lovely surprises all bundled up in a sealed dotty treat bag! the contents of each bag are worth anywhere between £12 to £20 but i'll be selling these special treat bags at a verrrrry tasty price - Marvellous Mystery goodie bags £10 each

postcards can be nice framed so why not treat someone to a pair of funky folk art inspired designs - postcard pack £1.75

really not sure what to get the person that has everything?! then a piece of original artwork could be the perfect gift! 100% hand painted and hand drawn by me - original painting on heart board £40

 

 + obviously there is heaps more lovely stuff in my Shop, lots of other tote bag designs + pocket mirrors, postcards, badges, necklaces, greetings cards and stickers galore.
go check it out.
but only if you want to!

anyway i think that's it for now, who knows, perhaps i will resume regular blog posts now. better later than never right?! 

we shall see.

until next time, cheerio folks xX

May Drawing Challenge - Day 16

the theme for today was 'a cupcake with red icing' so obviously this one was a treat to do since i spend a lot of time doodling cupcakes as it is! however, i was at college all day then had to dash to Ramsey to drop some stuff on and i was just realllllly busy so i've only just gotten chance to do my doodle for the day!

anyway here it is...

simple but still delicious i think :)

as i mentioned above, i dashed up to Ramsey after college today because it's the Sweet Ginger Emporium's 1st Birthday! here's a little card i whipped up for the shop earlier...

but wow, i can't actually believe it's been a whole year since the shop first opened!

if you haven't a clue what 'Sweet Ginger' is, basically it's a glorious crafty emporium here in the Isle of Man stocked with all manner of gorgeous bits and bobs as well as some of my handmade stuff + postcards and cards!

 you can read a post all about the Shop right here - ★Sweet Ginger★

anyway until tomorrow, that's all folks... xX

some new designs ★

so lately i've been a bit quiet again, i've been working on new stuff for college


(All images featured in this post belong to Jade Boylan© do not claim, use, distribute, reproduce or trace ANY of her work without her express written consent. All Rights Reserved.)

these new designs are a bit of a mixed bunch! including...

some candy coloured bicycles!

i sold my bike a few years ago and kind of miss it, a lot! i always found bikes particularly tricky to draw when i was younger so i thought i'd have a new go at one or two ones now!

and somehow i ended up producing some funky 'his n hers' bikes

as well as those, i've also been working on two candy character pieces, featuring the Cupcake Princess

 and the Candy Floss Princess

i spotted an amazing Steampunk book in town the other day so after my somewhat failed Steampunk girls (see this post - News and Stuff ) i had a little go at a simple pocket watch instead

and then for some inexplicable reason, i drew a cuckoo clock and created this piece as well

unsurprisingly though, the clock was a lot of fun to draw! 

also, most of these designs are now available on iPhone cases via my Society6 shop 

* * *

in other news, my lovely little cousin Sienna came to stay over the weekend

as you can see, she got her face painted while we were out! it was painted by the lovely Torie at Imagination Station

anyway, once we got home we did lots of drawing and writing, Sienna also gave me a lovely biro tattoo...

other than that, we filled in colouring pages + a Hello Kitty sticker book, we even found some xmas crackers left over from Christmas!

and then there were the wigs... myself, my mum and Sienna spent a while trying them on and listening to music in the kitchen, here's the embarrassing proof!

obviously dyeing my hair blonde or pink permanently is the way forward! :D

* * *

that's it for now, i'm in college for the rest of the week but i have a very awesome Creative Café post to run so keep your eyes peeled for that!

also, in case you were wondering what had happened to the New Year giveaway, i'm saving it for the blogs 3rd birthday next month!

however, i'm only 20 followers away from reaching 1k on twitter! AND when i reach 1000, i'll be holding a special little 'EXCLUSIVE to Twitter' giveaway!!! you can 'follow' me here - @jadeboylan

so until next time, that's all folks... ◕‿◕ ★  xX

Poodles and Pugs ★

so once again i've been uber busy this week working on college stuff (for once...) + various commission bits and bobs! i've also been gathering and preparing prints for a little exhibition, but i'll tell you more about that in a few days...

in the mean time i thought i'd share some new little pieces i've been working on for college!

i have a picture of a pug dog on my desk board at college (amongst various other pics and doodles) and the other day, during a tutorial, my tutor Billee suggested i have a go at drawing some poodles since she used to have some as pets. 

i never really draw animals unless it's for a story or a commission so i figured i should at least have a go!  this was the result...

i'm still not sure how to finish them off but it was fun to have a go at something a bit different

i've also been doodling stuff to do with 'the Cupcake Princess' lately as well and drawing these poodles gave me another little idea...

all Princesses need pets right?! here's the Candy Floss Princess and her faithful pink poodle 'Sugarplum' 

and of course, the Cupcake Princess herself + her trusty little pug 'Muffin' since after all, i do have a lil' pic of a pug on my college desk board!

yeah ok, so i'm still not great at drawing dogs but hey, these were fun to do + colour.

 as you can see i have a thing for candy-bag stripes at the moment as well... 

i guess i should have a go at a little pet for the 'Popcorn Prince' but i couldn't really think of one... 

any ideas?!

* * *

in other news... er, i can't really think of any actually! i've been so busy sorting stuff for college and commissions that i haven't really been up to much else!

hopefully this week i'll get out and about a bit more + i have a super duper Creative Café post to run soon so be sure to look out for that!

so until next time, i guess that's all folks ◕‿◕ ★ xX

Friday Stuff ★

so i've been quiet this week i guess! back to college on Wednesday = uneventful day

ill on Thursday = also uneventful

then today i had a niiiiiice day :)

i met two of my best friends for lunch, Becky who i've known since i was twelve and Courtney who i've known since i was thirteen. it was great to see them especially since Becky will be dashing off back to University this weekend and i rarely get to see Courtney because she's always so busy at work

so we had a nice catch up in the Alpine (of course!!!)

and it was raining sooooo much outside that i decided to stick around a little while longer after lunch so treated myself to a cheeky cupcake to pass the time!

before the girls left they also helped me organize the stickers on my macbook...

i got a few of my own designs mainly because i was curious to see how they'd print out. as it happens they all printed out fab but my camera takes such godawful photos you can't really tell...

i'd quite like to see my CMYK cupcake and Matryoshka stickers though so who knows, i might be tempted to get them next...

to see the full range of stickers available, click here - red bubble

anyway after that i ended up in Waterstones book shop (just like always) and couldn't resist getting a few new Picture Books

i've built up quite a picture book collection over the years but i'm always looking to expand it and i knew i just HAD to have these books!

there's 'Little One's Bedtime' illustrated by Rosie Reeve and written by Suzi Moore

a very cute book full of adorable illustrations!

then we have 'A Bit Lost' by Chris Haughton

a really fantastic book, wonderfully simple yet effective illustrations + an amusing story. amazing colour scheme for this book!

then we have 'You Can't Scare a Princess' illustrated by the fabulous Sarah McIntyre (who was very helpful to me, giving advice during my own FMP picture book project) and written by Gillian Rogerson

Gillian's stories are always so cleverly written and Sarah's illustrations are always divine so i knew i had to get this one!!!

it didn't disappoint! i love love LOVED it!

and then last but not leaste we have 'Hubble Bubble Granny Trouble' illustrated by Joe Berger and written by Tracey Corderoy

it's another fantastic picture book! bursting with colour and wonderfully drafted characters

really super duper stuff!!!

* * *

after that i ended up at Tesco helping with the weekly shop, cue me getting ridiculously excited when i  spotted a pack of Hershey's cookies n' creme kisses in one of the aisles!!!

i know, i'm sad but i LOVE Hershey's chocolate! i've mentioned my eternal love of American sweets before so there was no way i wasn't going to get these!

anyway that was my day, not the most thrilling of days but i enjoyed it nonetheless!!!

* * *

ok so i've spent the past few days working on a couple of new candy characters + a special spooky pinup girl, hopefully i'll get these finished this weekend so i can share them with you either tomorrow or Sunday

so until then, that's all folks... ◕‿◕ ★ xX

News and Stuff ★

so i've got a few things to share today, firstly... i won a t-shirt design contest last week!!!

this is the second time i've entered a design into the weekly contest on All Tropical and i still can't believe i won!

the prize is to get your design printed up and sold in the shop (+ some prize money which has gone straight into my 'iPhone fund')

you can see my design up as the 'winner of the week' on the All Tropical site here - All Tropical

my 'CMYK cupcake' got the highest ratings of the week! which is AWESOME and i still can't believe i won!!!

massive MASSIVE thanks to everyone that rated my design (+ extra special thanks to all the friends that i badgered and nagged via facebook and twitter to vote for my image!)

the design will be printed soon (so i'm told) so i'll let you all know when it's availble to buy via the All Tropical shop

* * *

in other news, i've been working on some lovely vintage themed commissions lately but like always, i get distracted while i'm drawing and often end up coming up with something completely different (aka useless!) 

yesterday, having spent the morning trawling through gorgeous Steampunk websites, i ended up drawing a few Steampunk themed girls based on some fab outfits from Steampunk Couture

these were the results...

Abby Addle - Airship mechanic + goggle repairer

Lady Lorena Kingsford - Anachropologist

Hattie Lewis - Dirigible technician

Miss Constance Wickham - Aerial Buccaneer and apprentice Aerophonotologist

anyway, i know that they're very different to what i usually do and i'm not sure if i like them or hate them!!! 

i'm pretty sure i hate them since i can't draw noses to save my life and for some weird reason i never drew Lorena's hand in but oh well!

i'll let you decide...

ps: in case you were wondering, an Anachropologist is someone who studies Anachropology, the practical study and observation of periods of time in the past. and an Aerophonotologist is a researcher of randomly occurring sounds from the aether. some Steampunk jobs sound so marvellous! 

* * *

also, the August Giveaway closed last night at Midnight 

big thanks to everyone that entered! this time there was a record number of entries, 257 to be precise!!!

i drew a winner this morning using random.org 

the winner was number 5, Caroline Crossley from Weston-Super-Mare, UK

she's the blogs first Europe based winner seeing as the last two were won by people in Canada and the USA

so big congrats to Caroline! i'll be posting out all the lovely prizes to her first thing tomorrow!

but don't worry if you didn't win THIS one... i'll be holding another super duper Giveaway around Christmas time!!!

* * *

not much else to report on today, i've spent the week cooped up inside busily working on commissions

no plans for the weekend... as per usual!

but i have a few more Creative Café posts to get through so i'll do one of those either tomorrow or Saturday

so until then, that's all folks... ◕‿◕ ★  xX