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. . . 

* * *

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

* * *

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

Shopping Binge ★

wow it's been quite a few days since my last post!

apologies for that, i wasn't very well on Boxing Day and i just haven't really had much to blog about since then!

those days between Christmas and New Year are like a strange bewildering limbo, i honestly lose track of the date and day, it's scary!

anyway, i got up at stupid o'clock (also knows as 6:00am) to get ready for a trip to town

now i'm not a complete shopaholic, yes i have my moments but i tend to be pretty sensible when it comes to shopping binges

sadly today didn't go quite according to plan!

i had a big list of things i needed to get and for once i actually managed to get everything on the list!

the problem was that i also got quite a few other things as well...

i believe an appropriate term would be 'seriously good haul today' 

amongst these 'things' was a super duper Gil Elvgren Pin-up Calendar for 2011 

my mum got me the little desk version of it for my College desk but i wanted one for my room as well

i also got two gorrrrrgeous children's picture books by two of my favourite illustrators, i always pop to the picture book section to have a skeet and chuffed that i found these two.

there's... the Princess and the Pea

 with artwork by Lauren Child (and photographer Polly Borland)

and the Princess who had no Kingdom 

with beautiful artwork by Sarah Gibb

i also snagged myself a Doctor Who annual (i'm a total sci-fi fan girl ok... live with it! + ANY excuse to look at pictures of Matt Smith... yes i am sad, get over that fact also)

i also went to 'Funny Love' and found a new Popobe bear to add to my collection...

then i spotted a cuuuuute memo holder with days of the week on pegged boards (from Pomegranate in Onchan)

i also popped back to 'Funny love' and treated myself to a luuuurvely little 'fluff' luggage tag

actually i'm pretty sure that it's the SAME one that i bought Charlotte for Christmas, so i hope she won't mind but i loved it so much i wanted one too! 

they're tags are soooooooo cute though it was hard to resist!

and,  last but not least, i treated myself to the truly awesome Dita Von Teese 'Stripteese' book set which includes three little mini flipbooks full of photos of the lovely Dita

i luuuuurve this so much! i spotted it during my first trip of the day to Waterstone's and just had to get it

ah yes... about Waterstone's

i actually made no less than THREE separate visits to the store today and i'm afraid i bought books EVERY SINGLE TIME i went through those doors! 

god knows what the staff thought, the same ones were serving every time i went in so they were probably moderately freaked out!

arrrghhh what is it with me and book shops! 

i bought a few others as well but i can't post them on here since they're going to be gifts for family members 

the point is... i should NOT be allowed near that bookshop more than once a week let alone more than once a day!

three trips... THREE!

there is clearly something wrong with me!!! 

* * *

oh oh AND!!!!

before i forget...

i also got a few more little bits to add to the GIVEAWAY pile

here we have a little fluffy acrylic phone charm from 'Funny Love' + a pot of pretty turquoise eye shimmer from '17' at Boots + a mini Bourjois lip gloss phone charm also from Boots

cute stuff to add to an already cute collection of bits and bobs!

now about this Giveaway... hardly anyone has entered it so far! and i am not best pleased!

i should have explained this before but... there are NO country restrictions for entering the Giveaway!

it doesn't matter where you live, you're welcome to enter and if you win i will post out the prizes to you regardless of how much the postage costs me!

hell i've won stuff from America and Australia before so the least i can do is post stuff out to the winner, regardless of the country they live in for MY own Giveaway!

so come on... get entering already! it's super duper simple and you've still got just over 20 days to enter so there are NO excuses!!!

read THIS post right here to find out how YOU can enter the Giveaway - 

★ ★ ★ Giveaway ★ ★ ★

* * *

and that is it for today dudes and dudettes

i'll post again before the new year, maybe on New Year's Eve

who knows...

until next time,

that's all folks...

◕‿◕ ★

teşekkür ederim ve hoşça kal

(that's thank you and goodbye in Turkish on behalf of Turkey, so thanks for visiting my blog all you lovely Turkish people out there x)

Super Sunday #4 ♥

so... i've been a very BAD blogger again haven't i! to be fair i have been kind of busy these past few days, that and the fact that i haven't been feeling too well (cue sympathetic 'aaaaaahhhs' from you all) anyway, it's Sunday and that means only one thing...

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

so without any further ado... i'm delighted to announce that this weeks 'Super Sunday' post is all about the fabulously stylish, incredibly awesome and utterly drop dead gorgeous super duper star... Dita Von Teese

i am a huuuuuge fan of the lovely Dita, i really genuinely do adore her style and think she has such wonderful fashion sense, she is basically one of my top idols! i just adore her

believe it or not but she's the very  first Burlesque/Pinup style gal i EVER attempted to draw THAT is how fabulous she is!

that's right folks... it's the fantabulous fashion and super duper style of la Dita that first inspired me to have a go at drawing Burlesque Girls so i have a lot to thank her for really, even though she doesn't realise it!

so what is it about her that makes her so damn fabulous...

well for a start she's just generally awesome! did i mention that! i mean ok the reason i'm doing this post now instead of years and years ago is because i FINALLY bought myself a copy of her super book 'Burlesque and the art of the Tease' last Wednesday during the xmas shopping spree.

i've flicked through it literally dozens of times at college as my fashion tutor Billee has a copy in her classroom but i've never really had a chance to properly read the book until now

but don't think i'm only a recent fan of her amazingness... i've been a HUGE fan of the lovely Dita for quite a few years now, ever since i first spotted a pic of her out shopping, dressed impeccably and looking as amazing as ever on some American fashion blog!

that's another thing that makes her so super duper... she ALWAYS looks good, no matter what she's doing or where she is, she always looks stylish and perfectly coiffed and made-up, she just exudes this timelessly sexy glamour and charm

she really is one of the most stylish and glamourous women in the world... as far as i'm concerned she is anyway!

she advocates glamour all the time (little quote from her book there... she claims to advocate glamour all the time and i don't think ANYONE can argue with that fact!)  whether she's performing on stage or just out on a shopping trip, she just exudes this total sense of glamour and style!

she's so timeless as well, with her dark hair, dark eyebrows, porcelain skin and ruby red lips, she could have stepped straight out of a silent movie from the 20's

it's a rarity in today's modern society to find a starlet with such an iconic, classic look and so much charisma and sex appeal, but Dita definitely has it... in spades!

she really knows how to dress to impress as well, always dressing in finely tailored outfits designed to show off her curves, teamed with a pair of killer heels + all the proper underpinnings (stockings, suspenders, basques, slips, waspies, corsets etc etc)  and with her beautifully set hair, flawless skin, glossy crimson nails and her signature red lipstick she always looks incredible no matter what!

it's an incredible feat but she pulls it off rather splendidly i'm sure you'll agree, looking that good ALL the time can't be easy but she manages it with apparent ease... and with a truly marvellous wardrobe to boot!

whether she's rocking a svarokski encrusted corset...

or a designer dress and a pair of Louboutins...

she ALWAYS looks good!

so all i can say is...

long live la Dita!

if you j'adore Dita's style as much as i do then i recommend you get yourself a copy of her book, whether or not you're a fan of Burlesque, it's worth a read either way really since it's just so magnifique et merveilleux!

also... pop over to her official website for a skeet at all things Dita related - Dita Von Teese

* * *

in other news...

my little cousin Sienna came to stay again this weekend!

 here she is modeling her brand new cupcake apron (from the delightful shop, 'Pomegranate' in Onchan, Isle of Man) that i bought her a few weeks ago after my trip to the dentist (my dentist is also in Onchan... in case you were wondering how that was relevant)

we had a great fun on Saturday mooching around the shops in Douglas, we also headed over to the fabulous little Christmas market that was set up along North Quay next to the harbour. 

there were some gorgeous things to see, lots of super craft stalls + a verrrrry yummy cupcake stall.

i also got to meet the lovely Karen Tomlinson aka purplecats corner 

she had a great stall filled with fabulous prints of her pretty artwork + lots of magnets and bookmarks. she also had some original pieces there for sale and really i'm sad that i couldn't get one! 

but after my Christmas shopping day on Wednesday i am literally penniless...

it was lovely to meet her anyway 

you can check out Karen's adorable paintings and prints here on her blog - purplecats corner

or head over to her etsy shop and treat yourself to something pretty - Purplecatscorner etsy

* * *

anyway, today we took Sienna back to Groudle Glen Railway for the annual 'Santa Trains'

now you may remember that earlier this year we took Sienna to the 'Teddy Bear's Picnic Trains' which she absolutely L-O-V-E-D! you can read about that here - Super Duper Train Times

since she loved that trip so much i promised she could go to the Santa ones as well! in fact some of you may remember that i actually created the artwork for the Groudle Glen Railway website a few months ago (you can see it here) - GGR 

anyway we took her down there just before lunch, it was quite a hike through the Glen to the station but it was worth it. the station was covered in multi-coloured fairy lights with Christmas songs playing to add to the festive atmosphere. 

all the Railway volunteers were decked out in their smart uniforms with the added fun of some Santa hats! in fact... Santa himself was there with a few elves handing out presents and sweeties to all the little boys and girls... although Sienna wouldn't go and see him so my mum had to go and get the present instead!

it was still a fun trip though, the train was absolutely packed! it was so festive and Christmassy, a super duper day out indeed, 

so if you live on the Isle of Man i highly recommend you get yourself down to the Groudle Glen Railway next Saturday or Sunday for the last of the Santa Trains (a shameless plug i know but... it's so worth it!) you can pre-book your tickets online here - Ticket Office

* * *

and that's pretty much it for today, a busy day but a fun one nonetheless

i'm staying at home tomorrow on account of today's busy day, that and the fact that i want to sleep in tomorrow morning... it's ok, i'm going into to College on Tuesday so it's aaaaall good!

enjoy the rest of your Sunday, wherever in the world you are

that's all folks...

♥ ◕‿◕ ♥

Dank uwel en vaarwel

(that's thank you and goodbye in Flemish on behalf of Belgium, i've visited Belgium several times staying all over the place, it's a gorgeous country and i look forward to visiting it again soon, dank u xX)