Pencilled Pretties, Pastel Pilgrims and Peculiar Pets

Most. Exciting. Update. Ever! (And, also, a little bit cringe-worthy, too!)

 

I made an itty-bitty film! If you have twelve minutes to spare you can watch it- that is, you can laugh at me making a giant tit out of myself and also, talking a little bit about my work. Oh, and there's some super-cute footage of my puppies the day after we bought them home! What's not to love about that, hey?

 

A huge, squishy thanks to my gorgeous fella Dave, who, as well as filming the whole thing, has spent weeks worth of evenings staying up until the wee hours putting this all together for me. I think he's done an awesome job- hope you do too! ♥

Operation leaving Darwin

Darwin darlings, soon I will be leaving town forever, never to return.

These are just a few of my original drawings still available, much larger than my reproduction prints, and all sumptuously custom-framed by the delightful Don Whyte.

Do drop me a line if you'd love to pop round and adopt one of these beauties for yourself. Every adoption comes with an awesome coffee made by me, complimentary puppy kisses, and a few little extra trinkets just for you ♥

juicy sunshine and the purple parrot

 

It seems I'm on a wee bit of a food theme, here!

This was originally going to be called The Blood-Orange Breakfast, as I had initially drawn the little orange-girl with vampire teeth . . . I know, genius. But they looked a bit funny, and the aesthete in me won over. 

Instead, she's just a sweet little cannibal with a weakness for frilly petticoats and stripy straws. Her best friend, Pedro, is a very rare purple macaw, maybe even the last of his kind in the whole world. He understand what it's like to be a little bit different, and he loves Juicy Sunshine very much ♥

cameo lover

Here's a wee tribute I just finished of the very gorgeous Kimbra. I so admire her adventurous outfits that always seem to come together so beautifully and eloquently with that mischievous, infectious smile, like a small child plotting to rob the cookie-jar! 

parasols and paths cherry-scented

Of all the places in the world I have yet to visit on my bucket-list, Japan is right up there. 

This may have a whole lot to do with my many re-readings of Haruki Murakami novels, which are surely more of a surreal parallel to the Japan that exists in reality, but since I was a teenager, his is the country I imagine. And he loves cats, so he's clearly pretty awesome. 

It could also have a lot to do with a lifelong love of Hello Kitty, and my not-so-secret dream to visit Sanrio Land. I also think it would be rather jolly to find me a Totoro and sit on a strawberry-shaped bus-stop. Probably my heart would explode with happiness and I'd need a hug from Keropi to calm me down.

When I finally manage to save my pennies enough for a plane ticket, I would love, most of all, to see Japan in spring. In my mind, I cannot think of anything more beautiful than rows upon rows of cherry-blossom trees in full bloom. This little geisha seems to think the same, as she takes a leisurely promenade through the old city one spring morning.

There were a lot of things that inspired me stylistically with Sora, my little geisha. I am always fascinated to find those stylised, hand painted vintage postcards from Asia in the early 1900's. I know they were terribly unrealistic and manufactured mainly for tourists, but the geisha of yore are so compelling with their quiet, sweet faces and painted lips. 

Like my other girls, Sora is super-stylin'. I was lucky enough one Christmas to get a pack of kimono fabric from my excellent Auntie and Uncle, and I discovered that even in the plainest of patterns, it is incredible: heavy, and lush and so elegant. You might also notice that her okobo are a little like Dutch clogs; I really enjoyed playing with very heavy, pear-shaped forms in this picture. 

Traditionally, I know geisha spend many hours painstakingly styling their hair into impossible up-do's, but Sora is still quite young, and a little mischievous- the breeze is having a grand time ruffling her hair, and very soon, if it's keeps blowing about like that, I imagine her hair will soon be full of cherry-blossom petals!

 Hope you enjoy my little Sora as much as I did creating her x

the hand-blown heart brigade

 

Meet Carmen, and her little dog Bruiser. Carmen saw an ad in the paper one day, about  little puppy needing a forever home. She never really planned on getting a dog, but his lovely blue eyes seemed to be telling her, Carmen, that he needed a human to take care of. She didn't read the paper all that often, so she took it as a sign that they were meant to be the best of friends.

And from the first cuddle when she picked him up from the pound an hour later, they absolutely were.

The Cat-cher and the Cardinal

"Some people say that cats are sneaky, evil, and cruel. 

True, and they have many other fine qualities as well." 

- Missy Dizick