Happy Day ♥

hello dearhearts, crikey it's been exactly a month since my last post on here, i'm really not too great at this whole blogging malarkey am I?!
wait, don't answer that...

anyway I'm here now and I wanted to fill you in on a few of the things that have happened recently to keep me away from here... but then I thought 'nah'.

so instead i'm going to tell you about what I did last weekend because you see last Sunday I became a Godmother! woooooo!!!

I was over the moon when one of my very best friends Hayley, whom I've known since College, asked me to be Godmother to her youngest daughter Imogen. I mean obviously I said 'yes' otherwise I wouldn't be writing this blog. Although I was a little disappointed as I'd originally thought Hayley was proposing to me... oh well, you can't have everything I suppose!

Little Miss Imogen and her lovely Mama, Hayley.

Hayley and I first met the day we were both interviewed for a place on the Art and Design course. Luckily we both got accepted so on my first day of class she was the ONLY person I recognized or knew, so naturally I became her personal limpet. That was in September 2008 and we're still good friends now, so I couldn't have been quite as annoying as I thought! I feel very lucky to still have her as a friend as she's really nice and possibly even more sarcastic than I am! She has two very beautiful and adorable daughters and I felt very honoured that she chose me to be a Godmother.

the amazing (and delicious) Christening cake!

Anyway, the Christening day was last Sunday at St Peter's Church in Onchan here on the Isle of Man. It was a really lovely day, the sun was out and friends and family sat in the church to watch Miss Imogen Evie Reid get baptized. The Vicar was a little over enthusiastic with the holy water so most of the front two pews got baptized as well. I of course got a handful of water in the face, but I didn't burst into flames so that's one good thing!

proud parents! Hayley and Lewis with Imogen in St Peter's Church.

It was perhaps a little more eventful than planned as poor Imogen accidentally had a bump during the service and suffered a little nosebleed, there were some tears and crying but after that things went off without a hitch and after the Christening it was time for a bit of a party! Hayley and her family put on an amazing spread of food and sweet treats including a chocolate fountain (yum!) and more chips and pasty than you can actually imagine.

Gracie, Imogen's big sister.

along with the tubs of jelly and marshmallows and cookies, there were also some cupcakes that I made for the Christening. I'd met Hayley a few days before to take Gracie to the park and I ended up offering to bake some cupcakes to bring along. Now this might not seem like too big a deal but at the time I was in the early stages of a vile cold/sore throat, I had two commissions on the go and I'm not the most successful baker even at the best of times.

mid baking... oops!

So... as you can see, things got off to a great start. I had to wear a mask while I made them (so as not to give anyone else the dreaded 'cold') and it was going quite well; I'd made up the cake batter, I had everything ready and then, splash! While pouring myself a well earned glass of pop I ended up soaking myself and the kitchen floor creating a big sticky mess. Because apparently I am still a child and not in fact a twenty-four-year-old woman (with polar bear socks).

before and after.

It all turned out fine in the end though, after some very helpful mopping from Mama Boylan (thanks mum!) I ended up with 32 mini cupcakes (at about 11:30pm) so I decided to ice them the next morning ready for the Christening. I love piping pink vanilla buttercream onto cakes, it's surprisingly therapeutic and it's always fun to lick the spoon afterwards. Anyway they seemed popular at the Christening as there were only 2 left by the time I went home but it wasn't until I got back that I realised I completely forgot to try one myself!

the print I designed for the Christening.

It was probably more trouble figuring out how to transport the cakes from my house to the venue than it was to the make the ruddy things and i'll definitely think twice before I volunteer my questionable baking skills again in the future! Luckily my contributions weren't a total loss as Hayley had also (cunningly) managed to get me to volunteer for some less messy work. So as per her request, I designed a simple typography print with Imogen's birth info on for the Christening day. You will have seen it at the start of the post as well. Ducks are Imogen's favourite animal so there's four on the print; one each for her, her big sister Gracie and her Mummy and Daddy.

my gifts for Imogen.

I was definitely in a making mood all week because I ended up making two of Imogen's gifts myself. I stitched together a little pink bunny for her room and then I got my sewing machine out to struggle through making a string of pretty bunting. I love sewing by hand but the sewing machine and I do NOT often see eye to eye (it hates me for some reason) so the bunting is a little wonky, but still looks okay. The other gifts were a special laser-cut keepsake plaque and a cute teeny tiny pearl bracelet with her name + a little silver charm with 'goddaughter' on.

me... all dressed up!

Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures at the church and I couldn't manage to lure Imogen away from her mum/dad/grandparents/aunt/uncle to grab a snap with her. So instead you'll have to contend with a shameless selfie of me in the lovely dress I bought just for the Christening (it's from HERE if you're interested).

It was a lot of fun to be part of such a special day for Imogen and her family, so big BIG thanks to Hayley for putting up with me for all these years + asking me to be a part of her child's life!

* * *

as you can probably tell this was more of a personal post today. So if you only come here for the art then i'm sorry but I am a real person and I do sometimes actually go out and DO things. I do have some new illustrated bits n' bobs to share with you but they will have to wait for another time, so I will do my best to post another blog next week maybe.

so until then, thanks for visiting! byeeeeeeee.

Older and Wiser ❤

hello dearhearts, here I am, back at last from my travels! I actually got back late Thursday night but i've been so busy with appointments and stuff i've only just found time to sit down and work on a little blog post to share with you all.

in case you don't keep up with me on social media, let me tell you that yesterday was my 24th Birthday!

Shoot by Laura Stolfi

I spent all day yesterday out with my closest friends in the South of the Island (which made a nice change seeing as I live in the North and rarely get to visit the South any more). I don't really have any photos of the evening out in Port Erin but it was lots of fun, even though it was cold and raining! I'm lucky that they were all kind enough to come out for a few drinks and some food on my Birthday-Eve.

one of my birthday cards, since i'll never really grow up!

I know that to most people Birthdays can be quite a big deal but I come from a family where it's usually 'just another day', we don't really go out for Birthday celebrations or throw parties (I had parties when I was a child but as i've gotten older, Birthday's have become less of a big deal). I don't mind this though, as long as I get a cake, i'll spend the day doing whatever!

this year's delicious Birthday Cake + glitter crown!

I'm sure i'm not the only one that feels this way, but I can often find Birthday days to be a little overwhelming, when family and friends call or demand I make 'proper' plans and expect me to spend the day doing things. I have been known to lock myself in my room on May 31st and refuse to answer any phonecalls or open any presents until later in the day or the evening. I'm not sure why but the stress or expectations of the day can get to me and spark off some anxiety or panic.

a lovely colouring book gift from my friend Simon

 But this year I didn't have any of that! Which was brilliant. In fact NO-ONE called me all day (it was so great!) and I only got one text message. I woke up and had chocolate for breakfast (as is tradition on both Birthday and Christmas) and opened some really lovely gifts, then I spent the entire day in my room reading my new books + listening to music and editing a new illustration. Just another day...

the beautiful book my sister Nicky gave me

Seeing as it was my Birthday and i'm now a 24-year-old (which is scary) I thought i'd take a moment to look back on the past year and some of it's ups and downs! As per usual it's been a mixed year, sad times and happy times and some times in between.

lots of goodies from my friend Lorna including 30 rainbow bouncy balls!

 Since I lost my wonderful job last June, I've been in a constant state of flux, darting from one thing to the other, coming up with and discarding new ideas on a daily basis. I still miss the Family Library more than anything but I try to keep myself busy and relatively structured; spending my time at home trying to build up my online profile and promote my etsy shop via social media every day. As you know I also started painting again and i'm always working on new products for my shop. I'm not making a 'living' per se but i'm trundling along, doing my best.

one of my more unusual Birthday cards!

 It's not where I saw myself being in 2015 when I celebrated my Birthday this time last year, I figured i'd still be employed for one thing, hopefully in my own Flat at long last, maybe learning to drive, who knows. But in the immortal words of the Rolling Stones, 'you can't always get what you want'! So here I am, back where I was a few years ago only now I don't have the excuse of being a college student. It's frustrating of course, I know where I 'want' to be, but like most people, don't necessarily know how to get there. But I intend to figure it out, eventually.

Star Wars Birthday gifts from others and from me!

It's been difficult coming to terms with some of the changes this past year has brought, i've lost a lot of my already ramshackle independence (no steady income means no apartment in town) but by letting myself be cared for by family and friends i've realised that it's not a bad thing to ask for help, there's no shame in needing someone to lend a helping hand or to just sit and listen for a little while.

the lovely Danish watch Mama Boylan gave me.

It doesn't do well to dwell on the negatives, I know that only too well, so let's look at the positives!

Some Highlights of the past year include:

• Reading and devouring book after book from my 'to be read' pile (currently on number 46 of my Goodreads reading challenge).
• Lovely holidays away in Cyprus, Andorra, France, Spain and trips to see family in the UK.
• The helpful support and treatment for my ongoing Depression and Personality Disorder.
• Lots of evening trips to the Movies with my best friends.
• Fun days out with my little cousin Sienna.
• Heaps of unnecessary cheap retail therapy via Ebay (no-one needs inflatable flamingo cup holders from China, but that did not stop me).
• Creating brand new rainbow haired ladies for the Candy Doll Club.
• Some nice new products for my shop and an increase in UK sales.
• Watching my two beautiful nieces continue to grow into incredible young women.
• Working on some new paintings for no reason other than that I want to paint.
• Adding to my ever growing 'desk collection' of random bits n' bobs.
• Making new friends on the island + lots of new internet friends as well.
• Getting new international sales to countries I haven't sent stuff to before.
• Treating myself to Ghostbusters Lego (not even kidding, one of the best parts of 2014!)
• Gaining new followers online and reaching 14.7k followers on Pinterest.
• Finally getting back in touch with long lost friends, because life really is too short not to!

an entire set of beautiful Nausicaa Manga from my friend Danny

May 2014-15 has been a mixed bag but i'm another year older (definitely) and wiser (possibly) so all I can do is continue to take life one day at a time and hope for the best. As always, i'm eternally grateful to my family and friends for being so nice and supportive and brilliant and for always putting up with me no matter how much of a pain I am! I wouldn't be able to make it through some days without them, whether it's a warm hug and an assurance that things will be ok or a sarcastic message telling me to stop being a prat, they're always there for me and if you'll pardon the pun, they keep me sane.

a little graphic I whipped up for my birthday

So that's that, another year done and dusted, and only 364 days left until I turn 25, I'd better start thinking of things to fill the time! 

thanks for stopping by, i'll try to make the next post a little less serious (aka boring).

so until next time, toodle-ooh! I hope to see you again soon xX

 

Post Birthday Blog!

Well... it certainly has been a while since I last posted anything on here! Lets see, it's been just under seven months since I last published a blog. Yikes!

Never mind, i'm here now anyway, that's what counts. In fact you may or may not have noticed that the blog has a brand new look. That's right, here it is resplendent in all of its eye achingly colourful glory. Yay!

So what's THIS post all about I hear you cry? Simple really, on Saturday I celebrated my 23^rd Birthday and I thought what better time to re-commence my blogging habit than on my birthday. Or a few days after it as is actually the case.

Anyway, I thought i'd share a few snaps of Birthday related bits n' bobs with you all. I don't really have anything else to talk about at the moment. so it's going to be a mostly picture laden post. And there will definitely be a significant number of exclamation marks used throughout. Enjoy.

For starters, feast your eyes on this terrifically tasty treat of a Birthday cake! (i can verify that it is indeed delicious)

i was also surprised with a lovely bunch of flowers from my Aunt and Uncle. i hardly ever get flowers so these really were a lovely gift + Gerbera daisies are my absolute favourite flowers.

i got ever so many cards this year, by the end of the day on my Birthday i was beginning to run out of room for them all!

I was very VERY excited to find a little parcel of Birthday cards from my fellow Librarians waiting for me on my Birthday. I was even more excited when i opened the parcel to find presents as well! Even more so when i realised just how brilliant the presents were.

It's no secret at the Library that i'm a bit of a Sherlock fangirl (understatement!) so imagine my delight when i opened up the parcel and find this BRILLIANT Benedict Cumberbatch colouring book 

If i'm not busy fangirling over Benedict and his glorious cheekbones, i'm bound to be rambling on about my other fangirl crush Tom Hiddleston. I'm not sure if i could ever choose between Benny and Hiddles and decide which one is my absolute favourite, so these pencils really are the best thing ever because now i don't HAVE to choose! It's printed on the pencils so it MUST be official.

And as if all of that wasn't fabulous enough, there was even some of my favourite sweeties in the bag! what a lucky duck i am. Yum!

After spending the day at home (in my pyjamas) I made my way into Douglas to meet my friends for Birthday drinks.

My super duper pal Lorna gave me this luuurrrrvely Mary Poppins necklace (which i immediately put on and wore ALL evening). Mary Poppins is one of my favourite characters (i think i secretly want to be her) so i couldn't NOT love the necklace. + it's a locket, so Lorna says i have to put pictures of Benny and Hiddles in it. Obviously!

My flatmate Matt got me a Ghostbusters mug (and a Lady Raincorn wristband) which i was v chuffed with. Ghostbusters is my favourite movie, i can't believe i didn't already have a mug. Well, now i do!

For my actual Birthday outing, i celebrated the same way i did last year, by heading out on the Promenade with my friends to enjoy the atmosphere of the Funfair and the TT beer tent + music stage. Luckily it was a sunny day and a balmy evening so it was all good. As has become Birthday tradition, i slathered on some red lipstick and got vaguely dressed up, i debuted my latest purchase, a lovely vintage circle skirt. 

Here's the obligatory Birthday selfie...

All in all it was a good Birthday. i got to celebrate it with my family and friends which is exactly who i'd want to share a day/evening with. So i'm another year older now, definitely not any wiser and undoubtedly still a big kid at heart (the highlight of the evening for me was getting a big bag of pink Candy Floss on my way home from the beer tent!)

So here's the being 23, completely immature and as ever, utterly oblivious to what the future might bring! Fingers crossed it's a good year...


And on that typically peculiar note i'll say goodbye, i can't think of anything else to write so this will have to do for now!

farewell folks xX

★ Seasons Greetings ★

so, another year, another Xmas been and gone! did you all have a nice day??? i hope you had fun with your family/friends/loved ones and that Santa brought you all some nice goodies :)

i spent the day cooped up at home with my parents at Chateau Boylan, although i've not been very well so i actually spent most of the day in bed feeling poorly!

never mind though, it was still a nice quiet Christmas

i usually post on Xmas eve or Xmas day but this year i decided to take a few days out of it all so i vanished offline for a bit which was great, think i'll do it again next year!

anyway, i thought since it's Xmas time and it seems tradition that bloggers post about gifts and what not, that i'd share a few of the lovely presents i received this year from my family and friends!

i think most exciting of all was the book my dad got me...

it's the new Christian Louboutin monograph, published to celebrate 20 years of his work within the world of shoe and accessory design

it is absolutely chock full of the most gorgeous photos, sketches and written excerpts from Monsieur Louboutin himself mapping his journey over the past 20 years. 

and to think, he began professionally designing shoes the year i was born!

one of my favourite things about the book is the pop-out pages hidden under the cover!

speaking of books, i got a nice stack of them on Xmas day!

among them was this absolutely fabulous book by Vintage lovely, Angel Adoree! a truly fabulous gift from my best friend Courtney

the book is so divine! full of darling illustrations, photos, recipes and tips on how to host the perfect vintage tea party + how to do vintage hair/make-up to go with it!

it also has loads of gorgeous illustrations to accompany the recipes and DIY projects

as well as all the lovely books, i also got a very funky Marc Jacobs laptop cover

so that my macbook can be transported in style at all times!

and a gift that i expect a lot of Manx people woke up to on Xmas day, the very special 'Isle of Man' edition of the boardgame Monopoly

i've also been making lots of cute little fabric badges/buttons using the kit my mum got me

and i now have a cute place to store my earrings thanks to my big sister Simone who sent me this adorable little trinket box featuring artwork by the very awesome Myka Jelina

obviously i got lots of other lovely stuff as well but these were some of my fave things so i just wanted to share them with you all...

* * *

in other news, how are we liking the blog colours? sort of back to normal now only with a new banner for the top, it actually matches my new Facebook Timeline

yes i know i only changed it the other day but i fear this may be a regular occurrence, me changing the 'cover' photo every week or so!

not long now though until the New Year so i suppose i should get my head down and get on with some college work! saying that though i have a smashing Creative Café feature to run over the next few days so be sure to keep an eye out for that!

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

♥ ★ Merry Christmas ★ ♥

i'll keep this short but sweet

i said i'd post so... here i am doing just that!

i hope you've had a wonderful Christmas Day

i certainly have

it's been quiet, just me + my parents but that's fine with me

yes i may have woken up at around 4am then spent the next 4 hours watching movies (equilibrium and treasure planet) on my macbook while waiting OH SO patiently for my parents to wake up...

then came the fun part

PRESENTS!!!!

i hope you all got lots of super duper gifts and that Santa brought you everything you wanted

sadly i didn't wake up to find a pair of Louboutin's in my stocking... 

i did however get loads of gorgeous gifts off my family and friends

so i am verrrrrry grateful for all the presents i received

i hope everyone else had a fabulously festive day x

* * *

it's Sunday tomorrow so watch out for a 'Super Sunday' post

and... yep, that's it really

i have to go because the Doctor Who Christmas special has JUST finished so myself + Mike are discussing it avidly on skype... as we always do after one of the specials!

hey... it's a Christmas tradition!!!

oh, one final thing... 

this is for my mum to say thanks for the Xmas dinner + for being a star

in case you didn't get it... her name is 'Joy'

* * *

♥ ★ Merry Christmas ★ ♥

◕‿◕ xX

Presents, Pullips and Daft Punk ♥

i am starting to get so sooooo excited about Christmas Day!!!

it's so close i can practically taste that wrapping paper...

speaking of wrapping paper, i discovered a pile of prezzies for ME today...

my mum has obviously been very busy this year wrapping stuff and sprinkling bows everywhere by the looks of it...

these ones are ALL for me but check out the piles of prezzies currently laid out in our lounge

now that's just cruel! it's only Christmas Eve tomorrow, i want to open something NOW!!!

it all looks very festive and fun though, check out the sparkly tree above

my mum won't allow me near that one but she always does a lovely job of decorating it all herself so i can't really complain...

THIS is my little tree which is put in the hallway to brighten it up a bit

 as you can see MY tree is very colourful and absolutely chock full of bright baubles!

seriously... there's like three baubles to a branch! it's insane

also... MY tree has fluffy pink lights (courtesy of my older sister Simone) and a super cute hand-sewn fairy from Accessorize

i think we all know who's tree wins...

* * *

in other news, i started gathering research for a possible new college/illustration project today, i'll give you a clue to what it's about shall i...

yaaaay that's right, it's going to be about all things super cute and kawaii!

it's something that's fascinated me for years and i think it's about time i have a go at bringing some of it into my art work!

i've drawn 'Angelic Pretty' style dresses before but i've never really made any proper illustrations based on any of this stuff

also... Pullips will probably be involved somewhere as well, 

now i have of course drawn Pullips before... a few times in fact

what can i say... they fascinate me as well! that's why i like to draw them, sadly i don't own one myself but a Pullip doll or even a cute little Blythe is definitely on my 'to buy' list

there's something so cute about them don't you think!

* * *

anyway, that's it really i guess

i'm hoping to go and see 'Tron Legacy' at some point next week so i've been listening to the Daft Punk soundtrack on repeat all day, how can i describe it in one word... EPIC!!!

you can listen to the main track from the film 'Derezzed' RIGHT here right now + watch some awesome clips from the Movie...

i cannot stop listening to this track... also, how awesome is Michael Sheen in the opening of the clip! not that i'm biased or anything but hey... Michael Sheen is generally awesome anyway!

oh i love it so much! i was a massive Daft Punk fan already but i fully LOVE the stuff they've done for 'Tron' it is so soooo SO good!

in fact i haven't looked forward to a movie this much in a long time... 

apart from 'Tangled', i'd been looking forward to that for almost three years (Disney nerd... sorry) and it was AMAZING!

right well, i'll no doubt be extremely excited about Christmas Eve tomorrow so expect a flurry of frivolously fun and fancy festive images

until then, that's all folks... 

♥ ◕‿◕ xX