Buzz Buzz

Hello dearhearts, back again. It seems like I might be able to churn out a post every fortnight, so for now i'll try and stick to that. As per usual not much has happened over the past few weeks, I really don't do much or go anywhere anymore.

So instead it's another post debuting my latest illustration. And yes you guessed it, it's another Candy Doll, so without any further ado, here she is...

Oh honey honey! She sure was fun to work on, i've spent the past few evenings (and some of the days) finalising the colours and I think i'm about as content with it all as i'll ever be. I'm also fairly sure that her hair turned out this way because it's how i secretly want my hair to look! Pink fading into Blue = BEST!

And only one tattoo! Initially the plan was to cover her arms in inked sleeves but by the time all the colours and patterns were down it was looking a bit busy so I thought this girl didn't need the tattoos creeping up and down her wrists, so she just has the one, a quote by Victor Hugo - "Life is the flower for which love is the honey.”

She's also a lot brighter than most of the recent girls, the first colour draft had her in pastel rainbow shades with frosted pink lipstick. But once I altered the hair colour I knew she was going to have to be decked out in bolder hues than candy pastels.

recently people have asked me why my Candy Doll girls always have the same or really similar expression on their faces and the answer is kind of simple, A) artist laziness, it's easier to duplicate the same face over and over again than to keep coming up with new ones, B) it keeps them looking similar and part of a series, which is the whole point really.

The idea is that they're this bunch of anonymous girls, different but with similar intimidating stares regardless of their hair, skin or outfit colours. They stare out at whoever is looking at them, so sometimes the easiest way to get that across is to keep the face the same (or barely different) for each girl. 

It's also because my method of working has changed a lot since I first started drawing the Candy Dolls (in 2012) back then I would draw the entire lineart on paper then scan it in and alter it in Photoshop and Illustrator, now I still start with a pencil sketch but it's usually just spaced out bits and pieces on a sheet of A4 and I often don't know what i'll use it for until I actually start working on it. At which point i'll add in all the necessary elements until I have a finished piece.

For example, (sorry if you're not interested because I'm going to explain it anyway!) the latest illustration was almost entirely drawn in photoshop using the trackpad on my macbook, the only part I drew on paper was the hands and wrists, the scan of which sat on my desktop for over a month before I randomly starting adding to it last Friday evening.

Here is the image I spotted on pinterest that originally inspired the piece + the lineart I drew and scanned in next to it on the left.

So as you can see I didn't really have much to work with to begin with, I just knew that I wanted to draw a girl holding up a frame, peering through the gap. So when I finally started adding in a body shape, a face and a cascade of hair, I didn't know what the theme would be. It wasn't until I drew in stripes for the skirt (to make a rainbow) that I thought about bumblebees. Ironic for someone who has a massive fear of bees and wasps and doesn't like the taste of honey!

Regardless, I added in some flowers to mask the frame and it seemed to work so I tried out the honeycomb pattern and this is how she ended up. I also spend an inordinate amount of my time in the early hours of the morning reading stuff on Buzzfeed so who knows, maybe it subliminally left the word 'buzz' flying around my mind.

As you can see the end lineart is dramatically different to the original sketch/scan. I like seeing what i can accomplish on a computer though, it makes me feel slightly less troubled by my crappy real-life drawing skills! I mean i'm still drawing the illustration, just not with an actual physical pen or pencil.

But that's just how I work now, i've always been a clumsy drawer and I find it easier to get a neater line on my macbook than on paper with pencil and pen. I've tried using drawing tablets but I can't get as good an effect with those as I can with my trackpad. It's probably just my stubbornness to change, hopefully one day i'll find it easier to draw looser and messier, i'd love to have a go at a comic but it would take me even longer in my usual drawing style.

Anyway she's now available in my Society6 shop on tees and bags and cases and stuff + there's currently Free Worldwide Shipping on all the cool stuff in my Society6 shop for the rest of the day!

So what else has been happening, well like I said at the start, not much. Oh but I was nominated for the Ice Bucket Challenge by Mama Boylan, which I dutifully did, here's proof of my drenching! i can confirm that there was half a bag of ice in the water which came from the garden hose, brrrrr!

I also took the opportunity to donate to ALS and the MND Association (for the UK). I know it's a gimmicky thing to do the challenge but it's for a really good cause that's increasing awareness of the disease and it's amazing how much money has been raised so far to help with research and people living with the disease.

the only other thing of any note was that I got 8 new books last week, and new books are always cause for excitement in my world! I've already read 4 of them so I should probably save the other 4 for my trip to Coventry this week. I can't wait to see my family over there. It will be nice to get away for a bit, if only for a few days.

Here's a snap of the bookstack on my desk.

Speaking of my desk, it's getting a bit out of hand! I keep rearranging it but the 'things' are beginning to stack up into dizzying towers of clutter, I think i'll have to invest in a new (and much bigger) desk soon!

Although I still managed to find room for this little fella, Norman the novelty Cactus, such a dapper chap!Seriously i cannot begin to convey how excited i was when i spotted this freaking cactus while shopping in town. It's a cactus wearing sunglasses. it has a moustache and a party parasol. it is BRILLIANT!

Ok well y'all can probably expect a post during my stay in Coventry or one once I get back to the island, either way I will hopefully find something to post about over the next couple of weeks. I'll no doubt be posting a heap of pictures to my Instagram feed while i'm away, it's probably where I post stuff the most, so if you want to keep up with me on my trip then I suggest you go click 'Follow'.


Alrighty then, time for me to shut up.

So until next time, thanks for stopping by!

Fashion Post - Mad Men ★

so if you've followed this blog for a while, you might have realised by now that i'm quite a big fan of vintage and retro fashion, particularly fashion from the 50's-60's!

you might also remember that i've mentioned what a BIG fan i am of the show 'Mad Men'

now if you've never seen the show, basically it's set in the 1960s, at a fictional advertising agency on Madison Avenue in New York City. 

it focuses on the character Don Draper (the creative director at the ad agency) as well as those in his life, both in and out of the office including his friends, family and work colleagues. 

The show follows the public and private lives of these characters and since it's set in the 60's, their wardrobes are just incredible, resulting in what is, quite possibly, the best dressed cast on TV!

the actors and actresses are always dressed to perfection in the most glorious outfits, dresses and suits! and although the story-lines are fantastic, if i'm honest i mostly just watch it for the clothes!!!

and although the guys always look verrry dapper in their suits, i'm not gonna lie, i watch it for the girl's wardrobes more than anything else!!! they always all look so fabulous!

another brilliant thing about the show is that it's not filled with generic style actresses, there are all sorts of wonderful women of all shapes and sizes. The 50's and 60's were a time of curves after all so it's only appropriate that the show's casting should follow accordingly...

right well... it's been a while since i did a fashion based post so today i thought i might post some photos of the gorrrrgeous Banana Republic 'Mad Men' inspired collection designed by Mad Men's fabulous costume designer extraordinaire Janie Bryant

as you can see, the clothes in the collection are just exquisite! ladylike dresses and separates + perfect accessories and shoes! it's all very VERY 'Mad Men' for sure!!!

so SOOO gorgeous! they all look like they've just stepped out of the Mad Men offices of 'Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce' 

and unsurprisingly i want just about EVERY dress from the collection! 

but hey, it's not just the women's stuff that's beautiful, the men's collection is just as divine!!!

my my, any fella in a Mad Men suit like that is sure to set hearts racing! i mean, why can't ALL guys dress like that nowadays!!!

anyway, moving on... quickly, before i start to drool over the beautiful girly dresses (and the guys!!!)

the collection is available for a limited time only and can be found in Banana Republic shops or alternatively, bought via the Banana Republic website.

you can shop the collection here - Mad Men Collection

there's also a whole bunch of accompanying accessories like handbags, shoes, hats, scarves, necklaces and sunglasses

now in all honesty, i would give just about anything to own a full 'Mad Men' inspired outfit from the collection, the only problem is... i don't know how i'd ever manage to pick just ONE dress!!!

(All images sourced from Banana Republic and AMC 

therefore all Copyright © belongs to them accordingly)

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not much else to report on tonight, there'll probably be a new Creative Café post tomorrow night so look out for that

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

Paper Dolls and Pinup fashion ★

So yesterday afternoon I dropped 'Sophie Lapin' off at the 'Sweet Ginger Emporium' so she's cuddled up with Pepe now and they make a cute little pair I must say

after that I popped into college for a few hours to print stuff + discuss my essay with my tutor, it wasn't exactly the most interesting of days so I thought i'd skip a blog post

anyway i've spent the past couple of days working on a funky new idea kind of inspired by an old project I worked on

at the end of my first year at college I had to keep a summer journal/logbook documenting my trips and arty thoughts, i'd recently re-discovered my love of paper dolls so I had a go at making my own while I was staying in Andorra

she wasn't that great though to be honest, for a start I coloured her in using felt tips but she was still fun to make + I had a great time researching modern and classic paper doll styles

anyway. . . i'd like you all to meet my new Paper Doll

i've been wanted to make a new paper doll design for a while so it seemed like as good a time as any to have a go at it and this little lovely was the result!

Her name is Sweet Ginger (yes like the shop) and she's from this design

Ciara and Julie at the 'Sweet Ginger Emporium' commissioned me to create this design (only i'm not telling you what it's for. . . yet!) so I took the same girl and turned her into a paper doll

I honestly have no idea how to print her out and sort her properly for sale but ideally she'd either come printed on a nice sturdy sheet of cardstock for people to cut out themselves or she'd come in a cute little packet all nicely laser cut out.

This test set was printed on a sheet of A3 card but the print quality is awful, the ink literally rubs off with a brush of the fingers (which made cutting her out a fun task. . . NOT!) but like I said, it was just a test so it doesn't really matter that she's not top quality

as you can see from the pictures, I had a blast dressing her up this afternoon, ideally i'd like to make a couple of other 'Sweet Ginger' type characters, maybe a blonde and a brunette with loads of other gorgeous little 50's style Pinup outfits

it's been that long since I drew any pinups it's been a really fun project to work on! I only ever seem to draw candy characters and sweets nowadays so it was nice to go back to some retro style pinup designs

what do you all think of her??? good or bad. . .

she was so much fun to draw and edit, admittedly not as much fun to cut out but lots of fun to play with and dress up

i might draw a few more hairstyles for her as well, as you can see she only has 2 at the moment but i'm not sure if she needs any more to be honest

so far the only people that have seen her are my friends Mike + Richard and they both seemed to like her, then again they are boys and she's a pinup so I guess that's expected!

i have had so much fun designing little 50's style outfits for her though! her wardrobe is better than mine!!! i got a lot of ideas for outfits from this awesome site - Pinup-Fashion.net

+ i even drew her a little polka dot apron in case she wants to cook up some yummy cupcakes or something! (yes i know it's just a paper doll, just leave me and my insane imagination alone!)

 Anyway, all opinions and thoughts are welcome so please feel free to leave a comment saying whether you like her or hate her. . . 

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in other news, inspired by the little outfits i created for the Sweet Ginger paper doll i've spent most of this morning trawling ASOS for fashion inspiration to help me design outfits for a more modern paper doll girl, however i immediately got distracted by one of my fave brands instead

i've really been a fan of the Australian brand 'Wheels & Dollbaby' for quite a while now, and i think you'll be able to work out why!

 well for starters their stuff is actually amazingly gorgeous and since the likes of Dita Von Teese started appearing in it's heavenly designs and i've spent many a lazy afternoon at college scrolling through the 'Wheels & Dollbaby' website drooling over the amazing pinup style dresses, cardigans, tops and skirts

if you're unfamiliar with the brand they have this brilliant vintage vibe to their designs, their dresses are pricey but worth it (well i think they are!) + they're always drop dead gorgeous

they strive to create these absolutely stunning designs that are literally made to showcase some serious curves (and we know how i feel about curves don't we!!! remember this - Curves Glorious Curves)

i adore the pencil dresses but i think if i could pick any dress off the site I'd probably pick the 'Gigi' dress purely for it's amazing puffy skirt and gorgeous floral print

but the 'Dita Rose' cardigan (named of course after the fabulous Dita Von Teese) is probably one of my top favourite things on the Wheels & Dollbaby site

it comes in such divine colours and looks so sooooo pretty! i'd absolutely LOVE one! (and you know. . . it is my Birthday next Tuesday so if anyone would like to treat me to one, that'd be awesome! hint hint)

anyway if you want to get your hands on something fabulously flirty from Wheels & Dollbaby either check out the stuff they have on sale via ASOS designer

or head on over to their official website for some pretty pinup fashion - Wheels & Dollbaby

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this evening i'm going to work on my essay for a bit since my tutor told me it's nearly finished (phew!!!) but i have a new sewing project in mind so i might attempt that in a bit

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

p.s. - have you entered the May Giveaway yet??? in honour of my Birthday at the end of this month i've decided to hold a little giveaway again, there's a bundle of cute prizes up for grabs and you have until my Birthday, the 31st of May, to get your entries in (and yes. . . i do intend to post this at the end of EVERY blog post until the giveaway is drawn!)

 ENTER THE GIVEAWAY NOW