Shop Small – Claire Likes To Doodle*

Can you believe Christmas is now less than a month away? With Christmas comes Christmas present shopping, have you started yours yet? I have and I’m almost finished! I know some people who wait until the last minute to buy their presents and some who buy them throughout the year.

I like to get my shopping done early and always have done so that I have more money for Christmas parties and trips to the German Market throughout December… None of those are happening this year due to COVID… 😛

However this year I have decided to shop small and mostly buy Christmas presents through small and independent artists. Some own their own stores online and host on websites like Etsy. I’ll be writing and sharing more stores with you in the coming weeks.

Today I want to talk about my good friend Claire, who owns Claire Likes To Doodle. I spoke about Claire and her commission work last summer (which you can read here) and we have decided to work together again, but this time to talk about her online store!

Claire opened her store again around July this year and since then she has filled it with loads of amazing goodies – especially her original character Bernard.

Since working together last year Claire wanted to share an update in regards to how her work has changed since then, as well as how Claire Likes To Doodle will be in 2021!

The last time I was featured on Nat’s blog, it was primarily for my chibi work. That was my main focus for commissions and merch too. I’m still a commission artist, I do watercolour pieces and portraits, MTG alters and tokens. My personal work has changed up a fair bit though!

The great (and sometimes frustrating) thing about being an artist is that you’re constantly evolving and changing up your work and style until you settle into what you love creating best. I found that when I was doing Inktober 2019 and I introduced a little monster called a Bernard. Since then I’ve been creating more and more work around Bernards and their world, and people have fell in love with them! I now have an active shop with Bernard goodies, original art and other oddities.

I’ve got big Bernard plans for 2021, watch this space… Once again, thank you Natalee for featuring me and letting me introduce Bernard to your lovely readers!

I really love when independent stores/artists I work with have an input in my posts to tell me all about them and how they got started, their store and plans for the future.

I have been friends with Claire since 2006 and our friendship has grown more and more as the years have gone by. I’m so proud of Claire for how far she has come and I have a feeling 2021 will be her year!

Inside this package there was a lovely note from Claire that really made me smile. As someone who has anxiety and depression this note is very much appreciated. Whenever people write down words like this, whether it be on a letter or a text I keep them and read them back when I feel down. I’ll be doing the same with this note too. 🙂

Claire kindly gifted me all the items in this post (apart from one item which I bought with my own money) for reviewing purposes. Apart from the quote above from Claire, all words are my own and items that are gifted will be marked with an *.

Claire has a variety of goodies on her store to buy from stickers, badges, original work, paintings, stationary and more. I was sent a little bit of everything to show to you today!

First things first – if you are UK based like Claire is – she offers Free UK shipping on certain items. If she does offer this, it will state it on the item in question e.g. stickers and badges. I felt this was an important note to add as I know a lot of people in the UK may be looking for small gift and stocking ideas for Christmas and throughout the year.

The cut off point for ordering in time for Christmas is Monday 14th December 2020. Commissions are now closed until January 2021.

Finally before I start to share the goodies share sent me – Claire Likes To Doodle is having a Black Friday sale! When you use the code “YOULLBEBACK” at checkout you will snag a cheeky 20% discount on everything in her shop. This is valid between Friday 27th November 12am GMT – Sunday 29th November 12am GMT. So, if you like the look of anything here, make sure to go and grab a bargain.

Oh… I also have an exclusive 10% discount code for Claire Likes To Doodle’s store, which will be on the right hand side of my blog moving forward. I have added it here though too for readers who my see some good below and want to make an order. 🙂

Finally… I’ll share with you the amazing goodies that Claire sent me! 😀

• Autumn Bernard – Square Sticker (link)*
• Autumn Bernard – 38mm Square Badge (link)*

A square sticker/badge with a cozy autumnal Bernard, enjoying her favourite pumpkin spice beverage and wrapped up warm. Take a bit of autumn with you wherever you go with this unique sticker.

As regular readers will know, I love enamel pins, badges and stickers! Badges remind me of my emo kid self back in the day, I would stick badges all over my bags and jackets to try and show off who I was as much as possible. This autumn Bernard is so perfect to me purely because I love autumn. It’s my favourite time of the year and Claire has captured that perfectly with her autumn Bernard design. My favourite colour is purple so I love that Bernard is wrapped up in purple accessories and is holding a warm drink. I also love the little pink flushed cheeks, just showing how cold it is where Bernard is. You can show really off your love of autumn all year around with both the badge and the sticker, as well as show off and support Claire’s original character.

• Chill AF Bernard – 32mm Badge (link)*

Need a little calm in your life? I get it. So does Bernard. May this 32mm button badge be a reminder to take a step back every now and again.

This chill AF Bernard is a reminder for everyone right now to take a deep breath and relax whenever you can. With the way the world is at the moment I think everyone could do with this badge as a reminder to step back and take a few minutes for yourself. It can also help with anxiety too to remind people to take care of themselves. I really love this badge and I think I’ll be sticking him on my work laptop bag to remind me to relax for five during the busy work day and grab a drink and maybe a casual chat with colleagues. 🙂 To add as well by the way that both of the badges I received from Claire are amazing quality. They feel really well made and sturdy!

• Flower Crown Bernard – Sticker (link)*

Original design – take this summer-themed Bernard wherever you want to go!

This Bernard reminds me of the summer, drinking with friends in beer gardens, going to festivals and basically summer vibes and activities with friends and loved ones before COVID. This is a sticker that reminds me that we need to be patient, because when COVID is gone – we can all have fun with our loved ones again and make some amazing new memories. The flower crown Bernard is so precious and I love how colourful the crown is! I wish my garden could look more like this. 😛

• Halloween Holographic Stickers (Halloween exclusive piece – not available to buy)*

Sadly these stickers aren’t available anymore, but Claire sent them me so I wanted to show them off to you guys! These were exclusive for Halloween and only stuck around the shop for a short period of time. There were two designs released with a baby Bernard inside of a pumpkin and a Bernard flying on a broom. They’re both so adorable and the fact they’re holographic too makes them feel even more spooky and seasonal for Halloween. The quality of these stickers is thicker than the other two stickers Claire sent me which is really cool! I might not stick these anywhere and actually use them as decorations for the Halloween season and stick them on my kitchen window! 😀 In the future keep your eyes peeled on Claire’s store for more store exclusives!

• Round Cat Painting (Twitch stream piece – not available to buy)

This is a painting I purchased on one of Claire’s streams in the summer during lockdown and sold pieces she painted on stream. Due to to COVID I’ve only recently received it due to not being able to meet up and such. I paid £10 of my own money for this print and have been so excited to add it to my little growing collection by Claire. It’s a little round cat that looks like a Siamese breed. It’s so derpy and cute that I just had to buy it! I’m not a cat person to be perfectly honest with you but the derpy look in this cats eyes just had me! It feels so… Expensive(?) if you will due to the special art paper Claire has used. It was so relaxing watching Claire paint this piece, it’s cool to now have it in person. 🙂

• Artgust – Original A6 Watercolour Paintings – Electric (link)*

Through the month of August 2020, I did a painting every day based on a prompt list put together by myself and my wonderful Discord community. A mix of funny pieces, sad pieces, portraits and Bernards done over 31 days! Each piece is A6 size, painted in watercolour.

The final piece I want to talk about that Claire sent me I was taken back by. I didn’t quite expect her to send me one of her watercolour paintings but I’m not going to complain, especially considering she sent me a Pokemon themed print! Back in August Claire took part in Artgust where you draw/paint something everyday of the month. This was day 28 of August and it’s titled “Pikachu”. As you can see it’s Claire’s original character Bernard who is surrounded by hearts and has a Pikachu on his head. It’s so bloody cute and I love it! This is going to go on my plushie cabinet alongside my other prints. I’ll be keeping it in the cellophane packet it came in to keep it safe. For an A6 print size it packs a punch and not only looks amazing, the quality of the piece itself feels high quality too and expensive.

Claire still has quite a few prints left from the Artgust challenge, as well as one she took part in in October called Annarack October that are all looking for homes! The prints created during October are all Bernard themed too, so if you like the look of Claire’s original character and would like to pick up something with them on, definitely go and check those prints out!

They’re all A6 size and cost £15 each. They’re also unique one of a kind pieces, no reprints here. Once they’re sold, they’re gone. For example if you go onto the website the Electric print is sold out, because of course I own it now.

I’ve had my eye on one for a while now and definitely contemplating buying it soon! It’s the Black design from Artgust. I’ve always loved the look of it and if there’s one style of art Claire does really well it’s the blackout style. She did it for a time on her Instagram page and it’s one I always find myself gravitating towards. Who knows, I may end up buying it after this post is live… 😉

Something else I may pick up soon for when I return to the office for work is the ‘Distanced’ A4 Year Planner 2021. Not only is it handy but also really nice to stick on the sides of my desk for a bit of artwork… Nothing wrong with livening your desk up, eh? 😀

So there you go guys, the first of many independent artists I’ll be talking about during shop small in December! I’m so happy that Claire Likes To Doodle could be the first one I talk about.

Store

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Twitch

What do you guys think of Claire’s designs and store? Will you be adopting a Bernard of your own in the form of a sticker, badge or print? 🙂 Make sure to let me know in the comments below!

Until next time, take care guys and stay safe. 🙂

Claire Likes To Doodle*

If there is one thing I love about being a blogger it’s being able to help out my friends and loved ones when it comes down to promoting something they’re doing, especially a business.

My friend Claire has been a chibi artist for as long as I can remember but she’s also been a great friend to met since the MySpace days which is over 10 years now. How crazy is that? Time does fly when you’re having fun, eh?

As the years have gone on Claire has taken her chibi work from a hobbie to a job and I couldn’t be more proud of her to be perfectly honest with you! She’s worked her arse off to ensure that she can look back and think, “Look what I did!” and fair play to her for it.

At the start of 2019 Claire was lovely enough to approach me to ask if I would be happy to receive a chibi portrait of myself from her in return for a review on her store Claire Likes To Doodle, as well as her amazing artwork.

After months of working with Claire the time has finally come to write the review and share with you guys what an amazing little artist my friend is and why I love her work so much! 🙂

When it came down to Claire and about Claire Likes To Doodle, I decided to conduct a mini interview with Claire about what she does, why, as well as what she hopes for the future! I feel the answers to my questions explain everything better than I ever could.

So Claire first things first, when did you start drawing?

Pretty much as soon as I could hold a pencil! I was a prolific little doodler even from the start, I was always drawing little comics and creating characters and worlds. I actually got into a lot of trouble in secondary school for drawing during lessons in my homework diary… if only my year 9 Geography teacher could see me now.

What made you decide to open your own store?

I did a drawing of a particular wrestling tag team that was very popular on social media, and someone said “Hey if that was available as a print I’d buy it!” So I opened a shop. I’m still tinkering with what to sell on that sort of scale – I tend to do more commissions and things on the fly than anything else.

What’s your favourite things to draw?

I like drawing things that make people go, “What the fuck, really Claire??” followed by a laugh. Recently I’ve found that I absolutely LOVE drawing my daughter – she’s just turned a year old and is getting so funny!

Was there a new style you said you would begin to start drawing in 2019?

I’m really well known for chibi work, but I really want to start working with more realistic illustrative styles. I also want to do some more darker pieces to pull myself out of my comfort zone and explore what else I can do. It’s healthy to venture out of what you know.

What are your hopes for Claire Likes To Doodle in the future?

Honestly, I hope to create the kind of art that people take one look at and go, “Hey, that’s from Claire isn’t it?” I’d also love to really make what I do my full time job. I get to stay at home with my little girl, have the flexibility to take care of myself when I’m not well, and still do something that makes me feel fulfilled.

As I mentioned before, Claire kindly gifted me the chibi artwork she drew for me for reviewing purposes and this review are all words of my own.. Apart from the Q&A, obviously. 😛

Usually Claire would have a chat via emails to determine how you want your chibi character to look, send photos of yourself, etc but this wasn’t the case with myself. She just knew what to draw for me and due to that she did an amazing job! You know you’re working with a good artist when they can just analyse you and work with something great.

For my chibi Claire was such a star and included my Black Milk Clothing leggings and she went out there mixing together colours such as greens, blues and purples to get the iridescent look. She also made sure my chibi was wearing my varisity jacket (because I’m ALWAYS wearing one whether it be my Persona 5 one or one of my Eeveelutions ones from Ohayou! Clothing). She also included my digital SLR camera as well as a cute Eevee on my shoulder. The piece is adorable and I plan to keep it in the office near the gaming PC so I can look at it whilst I play games and such.

So you’re probably wondering by now how you can go about getting your own commission piece done by Claire? Well if you look above there is a price list for all sizes, as well as styles you can have for your commission.

The piece that Claire drew for me is A5 in size and is watercolour – hence making it worth £30 (continue reading for a special discount code).

From someone who has had at least a dozen commissions drawn over the past 6 years, this is an amazing price for so many reasons. Claire doesn’t rush her pieces and always makes sure to create each piece uniquely, with loads of customisation too. She also uses gorgeous watercolours and from what I’ve seen on her Instagram, her colour selection is constantly improving and getting funky! I saw holographic recently and this made me very happy. 😛

Claire is currently open for commissions and can be contacted through either her Facebook page or Instagram. I’ll link her store and all of her social media down below:

Store

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Twitch

Patreon

When it comes down to commissions you can also find Claire over on her Twitch channel Thursday and Sunday from 6pmish GMT where she streams herself as she draws art and occasionally plays games too! Whilst writing this post I’m currently watching her do some commissions for two beautiful blogger ladies I know and let’s just say, they are amazing! 😀

I’m so happy to say that I could help Claire work with some bloggers for Claire Likes To Doodle with the two beauts I mentioned being Estelle from Estellosaurus and Sarah from Raiin Monkey. Honestly make sure to keep your eyes peeled on their blogs and social media for the commissions Claire has done for them, they’re breathtaking!

If you’re a local to Birmingham like myself and Claire then you may be interested to know that on August 3rd 2019 a convention called Not Another Comic-Con will be around for people to attend. BUT that isn’t all! Claire will also be there and she’ll be doing chibi commissions there and then for people, so if you like both the look and sound of her work then make sure to check out Not Another Comic-Con, which I’ve linked.

Alongside everything Claire already does, she’s also recently stepped up her nerdy art game and has started altering Magic: the Gathering cards – a process which involves painting on the cards and replacing the original art with something of her own.

These look amazing and she actually came third place in a competition recently from altering MTG cards, which I’ve added above. Not going to lie, I loved Claire’s design the most… 😉

Overall I really love my new commission by Claire Likes To Doodle and although in the past Claire has drawn various pieces for me, this is my favourite. I didn’t need to ask her what to draw, how I wanted the piece to be, colour scheme, etc. She just did it all from just knowing me as a person, what I like, how I dress, etc and it’s just so personal. Far more personal than any of the commissions I own.

I really do love this piece being in my office by mine and Dane’s gaming PC. I’ve ended up leaving the clear wrap on the piece so that it never gets damaged whilst it sits next to the PC. 🙂

So I mentioned earlier how you can snag yourself a discount through myself to use towards a commission from Claire! The code is “COFFEE10” and is exclusively for my readers. The code will last indefinitely! Don’t worry if you ever want to use the code but can’t find it through the blog quickly, as of now the code will be on the side of my blog indefinitely too – so you can always find it there.

I’m just so happy to have finally worked with Claire Likes To Doodle to not only show you guys her amazing work, but also to talk about how proud I am of my friend. :’)

Do you think you’ll get a commission piece done by Claire? If so what would you choose, how would you have your piece drawn? Make sure to let me know in the comments, I would love to hear what you guys think!

Until next time, take care all and I hope you had a fabulous weekend.

May Favourites ’18

It is already June and we are officially halfway through the year! It’s also one of the most exciting months for me and Dane are celebrate when we bought the house, as well as our anniversary. It’s a big one this year for us, as we’ve been together 5 years and in the house for 2 years. I’m excited for our week off together too, which starts today!

Throughout some of May I was rather quiet on my blog and sadly this was due to my mental health playing up. Blogging wasn’t on my agenda, hell not even reading manga or playing games was either in all honesty. All I did for one week was sleep, I was exhausted. Thankfully I’ve come out of that funk and I’m back to doing what I love! Playing games, reading manga, watching lots of Netflix and of course BLOGGING!

I cannot wait to bring you guys more exciting posts throughout June, as well as the rest of the year! I hope you’re all as excited as I am. For now however, it’s time to talk about my favourites from May.

Image taken from Soap & Glory

 

• Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Mini Hand Food.

You know when you forget about a product you love? Yeah that was me with this hand cream in May. I’m a real sucker for hand creams, especially ones that smell amazing and take care of my skin at the same time. As someone who is prone to eczema on their hands, I have to use hand cream all the time to avoid being in pain later. I remember buying the sugar crush hand cream years ago and falling in love with it. I used it all the time but for some reason, I stopped and I’m not quite sure why. I have a feeling I was savouring this in case Soap & Glory discontinued it. I had a look recently on Boots website and thankfully this is still available to buy! It’s just really helped my hands both at work and at home. I love the sugar crush scent as well by Soap & Glory so to have a hand cream that shares that scent just makes me so happy. I love using it throughout the warmer months, but I also love using it at Christmas as it reminds me of sugar crush gift sets I’ve received. Sadly due to using this hand cream up I don’t have it to photograph, so sadly all you’re getting is a stock photo. 😛

• Lush Santa’s Christmas Shower Cream.

This shower cream is amazing and I wouldn’t have dug it out of my collection so early, but as I picked up two bottles of it I thought I’d have one to use throughout the summer and then one for winter. It smells absolutely amazing, just like cherry cola but with a hint of vanilla too. Due to it being a shower cream it leaves my skin feeling lovely and soft, leaving behind a gorgeous scent! It also lingers in the bathroom for quite some time as well, which is always lovely. Sadly I’ve had a few issues with this shower cream the past month but I still love it so much! Sadly from using this as both a shower cream and bubble bath/bath cream I’ve noticed that the red colour of it stains my bath… Urgh! I made a complaint to Lush about it not thinking anything would come from it but thankfully it did! I’ll write about it properly soon but basically they offered to either refund me and I could send the shower cream back, or they could send me some goodies as an apology, I went for the latter. I’m planning to review this shower cream sometime this month. I know it’s a limited edition Christmas product, but it won’t hurt, will it?

• L’Oreal Paris Smooth Sugar Clear Kiwi Face and Lip Scrub.

I picked this sugar scrub up quiet a while ago… I’m thinking back in April time and I’ve used it loads since then and I absolutely love it to be honest. You’re meant to use it 3 times a week, but I only use it once as I feel that’s more than enough alongside other beauty products I use. This is just such a great face scrub to use for a gentle, yet effective scrub all over the face as well as on my lips. As well as noticing how soft it left my skin after, it’s also helped clean out my pores and left me with lovely clear and clean skin! I cannot wait to review this sugar scrub on my blog this month! 😀

• Carex Fun Bubblegum Hand Gel.

I picked up this hand gel recently as I wanted a new one to keep on my bedside table. I also picked one up for work but that was in the strawberry scent, which isn’t as nice as the bubblegum scent. This is really light in scent and feels lightweight after applying it to your hands. This is never going to be as good as the Bath & Body Works hand gels but this is pretty damn good nonetheless and they only cost a 99p too. I’ll definitely repurchase this in the future as it’s such an amazing scented hand gel for the price!

• Victoria’s Secret PINK Happy Holiyay Body Mist.

This is an old body spray, probably from 2 Christmases ago to be honest with you I’ve only just got around to using it after using up OTHER products! I use this pretty much every day before I get dressed. I spray it all over my skin and the scent lasts all day! I just love using this, especially whilst the weather has been warmer and I need something light to wear instead of perfume. I’ll be sad once I’ve used all my VS PINK body mists up, but it just means I can grab something else in the future!

So now my beauty favourites are done, time to talk about the miscellaneous favourites of the month!

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite TV Show – 13 Reasons Why Season 2 and Evil Genius.

Now I know a lot of people hated on 13 Reasons Why when it came out last year, so those same people if not more will hate on it this year. I LOVE this show so damn much and when I watched season 1 I was going through some shitty and dark places in my life. In theory this show probably didn’t make me feel better, but it made me feel less alone. So when season 2 came out last month I was anxious it would be rubbish. It wasn’t the best in the world, no but it was like seeing old friends again. I really did enjoy season 2 and I cannot believe how it ends! I’m not saying much as I don’t want to reveal spoilers. Let’s put it this way though, if you thought some of the scenes in season 1 were graphic, wait until you see season 2. I felt uncomfortable and that takes a lot for me to feel that way. Be cautious when watching it, especially if scenes from season 1 upset you.

As well as binge watching 13 Reasons Why, me and Dane binge watched Evil Genius in ONE EVENING! One of the girls I worked with was telling me about the documentary and had asked if I’d watched it. It was thanks to her talking to me about it that encouraged me to check it out myself. I LOVE crime documentaries and I’m a complete sucker for them (especially if they’re in the UK!) and from what I had found out about the crime committed in Evil Genius and what it was about, I knew I needed to watch. It’s basically about a crime that occurred back in America in 2003 where I man robbed a bank with a bomb around his neck. From here you find out who that man was, what happened to him, how the bomb came to be around his neck as well as many more. This is all explained in 4 episodes, all an hour each. If you liked Making A Murderer then you will LOVE Evil Genius. I’ve popped the trailer above so you can check it out if you fancy it!

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite Film – Deadpool 2.

Come on, which film did you think I was going to talk about this month?! Of course it HAS TO BE DEADPOOL! Oh man I have so much I could say about this film. First of all, it was so much better than I thought it was going to be. I love Deadpool and I love Ryan Reynolds, so when the two merged together a couple of years back and brought us that sickening leaked trailer, I was so happy. Ryan Reynolds was destined to play Deadpool. SO when the second film was announced I was so excited, yet anxious all at the same time. I love Deadpool but I worried a second film may ruin it. Thankfully, good ol’ silver fox Ryan Reynolds did an amazing job yet again and brought to the screens the anti hero everyone loves. The cast was perfect, the acting was great and most of the the comedy had me fucking crying in the cinema. I want to go and watch Deadpool 2 again, but I doubt I will. I just cannot wait for it to come out now so I can watch it at home over and over again!

Image taken from Wordery

Favourite Book – Snotgirl.

I’m ashamed to say that I bought this comic back at the start of 2017 when it first came out and I have only just gotten around to finishing it. I’ve now ordered the second volume already because I am loving this comic book series already! It’s by Bryan O’Malley, the same guy who brought us Scott Pilgrim (which I need to read in the future!) and I discovered it through the YouTuber NinkComPoop when she was talking about it in one of her videos agggggges ago! I immediately ordered it from Amazon to read and fell in love. I forgot all about the fact I hadn’t actually finished it due to me and Dane moving our comic books around the house. I dug it out over the last bank holiday Monday and finally finished it! It’s about Lottie, a blogger who is out there, doing well and looks good! BUT behind closed doors she suffers with terrible allergies and is snotty due to them. There’s way more to the story than that, but I won’t say anything that gives away the story. I definitely urge you to read it if you’re a blogger and love comic books and manga. The only downside to Snotgirl is well… Lottie herself. She’s a bit of a twat and annoying but meh that’s her character I think. She’s just so pretentious and snobby, very up her own arse blogger, which I hate. That aside, it’s definitely worth reading!

Favourite Song/Album/Artist – Flyleaf and Ariana Grande – No Tears Left To Cry.

Two totally different artists, but that just goes to show the type of music I’m into and how diverse I can be! 😛 First of all let’s address the Ariana Grande song being here this month and why. Due to the radio being on at work (Heart FM) we listen to a lot of pop music, if I had it my way I would have my rock music on, Bam Radio or even podcasts. Some of the music that comes on catches my fancy and recently No Tears Left To Cry has done just that. At first I hated the lyrics and loved the tune, now I love both! I find myself getting excited when this song plays on the radio as it’s just so damn catchy, upbeat but also relaxing at the same time! I’ve never heard one of Ariana Grande’s songs before until now. Sadly the rest of her music really isn’t for me, but she did good with this one!

NOW onto Flyleaf, one of my favourite bands and a band I’ve been listening to for quite a bit of May! I love how I can go without listening to Flyleaf for months but when I come back to them it’s like seeing an old friend. I love listening to them on my way to work as I just enjoy singing along to the words and thinking about what they are and mean. That sounds soppy as anything, but it’s true! Surely others do this and it isn’t just me?!

Favourite Game – Detroit: Become Human.

If there is a game I have been excited for these past 4-6 years, it’s Detroit: Become Human. I knew I needed to get hold of this game as soon as it came out, if not beforehand via pre order. Sadly I didn’t get to pre order it in time so I didn’t get it on the release date, instead I picked it up the next day and oh man am I glad I waited to pick it up! Due to some Nectar points as well as a Sainsbury’s coupon, I saved £10 on this game, so instead of £47, I paid £37 instead!  In all honesty though, at full price this game would have been well worth the money! I’m such a saddo and over the bank holiday Monday, I completed the game in the 3 days! Oh man it is just so good and I cannot wait to replay it already! If you own a PlayStation 4 and have played either Heavy Rain or Beyond Two Souls then you will love Detroit: Become Human, which is by the same people as those two games.

So those were my favourites for May! I’m sure my favourites from June will be just as good. I still cannot believe we’re in June already. 2018 is going by so bloody quickly and whilst it’s great, it’s also so scary that my life is flashing by me.

What were your favourites from May? Make sure to let me know in the comments down below!

Until next time, take care all and have an amazing weekend.

March Favourites ’18

Happy Easter everyone! I do apologise that this post is a day late (well I’m being naughty and putting it up as if it was actually on time… ;P) but it was my first Easter that I’ve had a 4 day weekend and not had to work! I also spent it chilling with Dane, as well as with friends and family which is the best way to spend it.

Now I’m finally getting the chance to work on my monthly favourites whilst I watch some gaming YouTube videos. Finally, here are my favourites for March!

• Palmolive Naturals Milk & Honey Shower Gel Cream.

Not long ago I picked up this HUGE pump shower gel cream and I only got it for £2.00/£2.50 from Morrison’s on a food shop and at first I regretted it but this was near to half price so I was pretty happy at the bargain I grabbed. ANYWAY I started using this at the start of the month and it’s lasting agggges! You only need a little and it foams up gorgeously as well as leaving you smelling amazing and feeling lovely and soft. The milk and honey Palmolive shower cream reminds me of Fuerteventura for various reasons, the main one being back in the day when we first had the house there we took loads of “home comforts” and this was one of mine that my mom bought for me, so the scent always reminds me of my younger years there. Now it’s coconut scents that do it for me! 😛

• Diesel Loverdose Eau de Parfum.

I’ve been using my Miss Dior Blooming Bouquet EDT for what feels like forever and halfway through March I decided it was time to start using something else, something that I love to the moon and back. Loverdose by Diesel is one of my favourite perfumes and this is actually my second bottle now! It reminds me of my best friend Jacqui as when it first came out she got a bottle for her birthday and showed me it. Now when I wear it it reminds me of her. It has a unique fragrance and reminds me of a mixture of liquorice (which is actually contains!) and tequila. If you’ve never given this gorgeous perfume a sniff, then get on it! Even if you don’t like liquorice, you’ll love this. 😛

• Collection Velvet Kiss Moisturising Lip Cream in shade Rosie.

Whilst on a quick shopping trip to Superdrug in March I was having a nose around the Collection stand for my staple eyebrow gel and noticed the lip creams. I used to use these back in the day when they first launched and during the summer months I used these to death! I decided it was time to pick up a new one, but instead of going to the shades I used to use (Cotton being one of them) I decided to pick up the red shade Rosie. I love wearing red lipsticks and I actually haven’t worn lipstick properly for months. Since buying this I’ve used it about a handful of times alone and with a lip liner and it’s so good! It lasts ages and feels so comfortable when wearing it. I’ll definitely be reviewing this in April. You can check out the review one of the old shades Fairy Cake here for the time being.

• Nails inc Nail Polish in shade Dream Dust.

I feel like I haven’t worn my unicorn Nails inc polishes for ages! So I decided to grab Dream Dust to wear every other week throughout the month and throughout Easter. I forgot what a gorgeous shade Dream Dust is to be honest with you. It’s a shimmer gold glitter with a mauve base shade. It’s so shimmery and is definitely an awkward shade to remove but whatever! It’s a shade you can wear throughout the summer, especially for holidays! This lasts a long time too so I’ll definitely make a habit of wearing it more often at work. I loved Nails inc polishes back in the day when I was a student but then I sort of fell out of love with them. Since picking up the Beauty of Dreams gift set before Christmas last year (you can read about it here!) I’ve realised that Nails inc are still an amazing nails polish brand, if not even better now than they used to be!

• L’Oreal Hair Expertise Sleek Smooth Intense Shampoo.

I recently started using a new shampoo and this is actually the same if not similar to one I use when I’m in Fuerteventura (which you can see here) as it’s just one of the best and affordable! When I came home I searched for this shampoo straight away and bought that as well as another type of sulphate-free shampoo. Since starting to use this shampoo my hair has felt so smooth and looked less frizzy too. I’m so glad I started being sulphate free with shampoos this past year as it’s really helped my hair and to be honest since finding budget friendly shampoos, it’s helped my wallet too. 😛 I really recommend the L’Oreal sulphate free shampoos if you want to give this type of stuff a go as they’re super cheap from Superdrug and more often then not, on offer too.

So now my beauty favourites are done, time to talk about the miscellaneous favourites of the month!

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite TV Show – Violet Evergarden.

I feel like I’ve mentioned this anime on my blog in the past and I’m pretty sure it was when Dane wrote a post on here with me not long ago (you can read it here). He introduced me to this anime when it first started but like he always has a habit of doing, he got me to start watching it at episode 3. I watched a couple of episodes but I just couldn’t feel like I was getting into it. Then a couple of weeks ago he said he’d watched episode 10 and that I needed to as well. We started watching the anime together from beginning to episode 11 and oh man, I have fallen in love with the show. Every single episode is also heartbreaking and I was silently crying at most if not all of the episodes. I’ll copy and paste the synopsis as I’m awful when writing what stuff is about without worrying of ruining it!

Synopsis (source: Anime Expo) – There are words Violet heard on the battlefield, which she cannot forget. These words were given to her by someone she holds dear, more than anyone else. She does not yet know their meaning. A certain point in time, in the continent of Telesis. The great war which divided the continent into North and South has ended after four years, and the people are welcoming a new generation. Violet Evergarden, a young girl formerly known as “the weapon,” has left the battlefield to start a new life at CH Postal Service. There, she is deeply moved by the work of “Auto Memories Dolls,” who carry people’s thoughts and convert them into words.

If you fancy giving this anime a go you can find it over on Netflix where it’s in English. It’s being aired at the same time as in Japan, which is amazing. It’s such a beautiful anime both in the way it looks as well as the story line.

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite Film – 10 Cloverfield Lane.

I remember going to the cinema to watch Cloverfield and all the rumours around it of people running out of the cinema to be sick due to the motion controls of the camera. FYI I was fine. 😛 I loved the film at the time and have since then watched it about a handful of times. When 10 Cloverfield Lane was announced I wanted to go and watch it, but no one else was really arsed. Years later it was put up on Netflix and me and Dane decided to give it a go. This is a film that really keeps you on the edge of your seat for various different things! You’re constantly wondering what is happening outside, as well as inside the bunker that the three characters are staying in. You have some awesome character development which is quickly snatched away from you by the time you start getting to know them and liking them. If you haven’t watched 10 Cloverfield Lane, then I definitely recommend it!

Image taken from Wordery

Image taken from Wordery

Favourite Book – I Am A Hero Omnibus Vol. 1 and 2.

This was one (well technically two) of the presents I got Dane for Christmas just gone and after he read Vol. 1 he gave it to me to show me some awesome scenes in the book. I checked them out and as it was halfway through the manga I decided to give it a read for myself and now I’ve ended up reading more than Dane has considering he’s only read the first volume and I’ve now read both the omnibus volumes he owns. It’s about a zombie apocalypse that hits Japan, with our “hero” being an anxious manga artist who sees things late at night and dreams of being a huge manga artist once again. It’s so well drawn and very realistic, you’re just hooked on it and want to keep reading. I actually finished the second omnibus volume in almost two hours… FYI it is a huge book! That and I’m a slow reader. 😛 Hopefully he won’t read this post but I intend to get Dane the rest of the omnibus volumes for his birthday.

Favourite Song/Album – Various…

Meh I wasn’t really sure what music to mention on my blog this month as I’ve just been listening to all sorts really… Mostly stuff I’ve heard on the radio at work, as well as some oldies I love. I’ll post above some of the songs I’m loving and quickly why below.

Dua Lipa – New Rules – I don’t know what it is that I love about this song and originally I was into an 80’s remix I heard on the radio first. I just find the song is really catchy and Dua Lipa has a lovely singing voice too.

Joyce Manor – Make Me Dumb – I first heard this game on Forza Horizon 3 as Dane bought it aggggges ago to play on his Xbox One and since then I’ve loved it! It’s such a catchy and upbeat rock song and due to that I just had to have it on my iPod for drives to and from places.

Paloma Faith – Crybaby – I don’t know what it is about this song but I love EVERYTHING about it! Paloma Faith is an artist I’ve listened to more of since 2016 and her voice is amazing, as well as her lyrics. This song is one that you’d listen to when you feel like crap and you need some encouraging words to listen to. It’s not a slow sad song, it’s an upbeat “pull yourself together, it’ll be okay” type song and I think that’s what I love the most about it.

Image taken from GAME

Favourite Game – Miitopia.

YES FOR ONCE IT ISN’T PERSONA 5 ON MY LIST! Sorry I love Persona 5 so it will come up a lot on here… In fact be prepared to hear about it next month as the anime series for it starts in less than a week now! 😀 Anyway… I got myself a new 2DS XL recently (which I’ll be writing about at some point on my blog) and I feel like since picking this up, I’ve been picking up my DS a hell of a lot more now I have a new one. I’m going to put it down to the screens being shit loads bigger and better at that! I picked up this game the day before I flew to Fuerteventura in September last year and Dane loved the look of it so much he got himself a copy too! Basically you play the hero and an evil guy has come and taken everyone’s faces, so you need to go and fight him and his minions to get them back. As the name suggests, it’s based on your Mii’s, the little customised characters you create on your 3DS and Wii, I don’t think the Switch has really bothered with it. I was close to finishing it before we came back from Fuerteventura but never did. HOWEVER, since picking up my 2DS XL I’ve played more and oh man, I forgot how much I love it! It’s an RPG game but it’s such a lax one at that, which is why I love it so much. Basically if you loved Tamodachi Life on the 3DS and you love RPG’s then you will love this! They do have a demo on the Nintendo eShop so check it out.

PHEW finally I have my favourites from March written down and done! I swear I can’t believe how quickly the year is going already and it’s my last day off of the Easter holidays too. SAD TIMES! 😛

I’m off to go and chill out, whilst attempting to eat some of my chocolate eggs. I bought myself one this year and received one from my manager as well as Dane’s parents. I’m not a massive chocolate person, so my chocolate eggs will probably last months. 😛

How many chocolate eggs did you get for Easter? Also, what are your favourites from March? Make sure to let me know in the comments down below!

Until next time, take care all and Happy Easter!

Shuffle The Music Tag

Image taken from weheartit.com

Recently the beautiful and gorgeous lady that is Stacey tagged me to take part in the shuffle music tag! I love being tagged to do things, especially random tags like this one! I know I partake in enough tags to last me a lifetime, but I don’t recall ever doing a shuffle music tag and if I have, it was a VERY long time ago. I love listening to music, it’s what makes me who I am and over the years has shaped who I am too! It’s thanks to my older brother, as well as people I looked up to growing up that introduced to a lot of the artists I listen to today.

I’m not going to lie, I’m just gutted there was only 15 numbers, I kept wanting to add so many trackers after the initial 15! GUTTED! 😛

As I said before, I was tagged by Stacey over at Simply Stacey for Shuffle The Music Tag. You can read Stacey’s answers here.

Again, thank you so much Stacey for tagging me! I loved reading your answers before I went ahead and took part in the tag! Now, let’s take a look at the rules:

• Mention the creator of the tag and link to their blog
• Thank the person that nominated you for this tag and link to their blog as well
• Shuffle your entire music library (no matter how old songs the songs are) and talk about the first fifteen songs that come up ( anything like why they are there , if they signify something, any story, why you like them, etc.)
• Mention the songs as well as the artists
• Tag 7 people or more to do this tag and please let them know

And now it’s time to press “Shuffle”, and the first 15 tracks on my shuffle list are…

1) Lily Allen|Chinese

Oh man I remember when Lily Allen first came out, I fell in love with her music and sadly after this album I didn’t like her anymore. This is from her second album and I listened to it loads when I was in my final year of college and first year of university. I still really love this song as when I listen to the lyrics it reminds me of me and Dane when we first moved into the house and I was in a dark place. That and it’s just such a sweet and nice song, one you can definitely sing along to!

2) The Offspring|(Can’t Get My) Head Around You

This is a band I definitely grew up listening to and they hold a place deep down in my heart! I remember discovering them through the game Crazy Taxi and it was only when I asked my brother who they were that he put one of their albums on for me to listen to. I only own the greatest hits, but I need more music of theirs.

3) Mylo|Zenophile

Mylo is an artist I discovered when I went to college and it’s an album I always stick on whenever I’m on holiday, or having a “party” at our house as it’s such a chilled album. There isn’t one song on this album that I would skip because they’re all so amazing! I love chillout music so much and this is definitely my go to album when I want to listen to any. This song is so relaxed and chilled to listen to as well. Definitely give Mylo a listen if you want something chilled.

4) Knife Party|Resistance

If there’s a band I love, it’s Knife Party! They blew up years ago and are pretty much Pendulum, BUT BETTER! If you want some music you can listen to whilst driving on the motorway, or something to listen to before going on a night out, then Knife Party is the band to go to! When I was younger and went out clubbing pretty much every night (whilst working may I add! This wasn’t whilst I was a student!) this was my go to artist to listen to before going out. This is one of the newer tracks and as soon as “this is a knife!” hits, the bass just comes in and you can party! It reminds me of the sort of music people listen to whilst off their heads on something to give the more energy. 😛

5) The Bravery|Unconditional

Aww The Bravery! This is a band who I really liked, but not as much as I thought I would! I remember getting this song on a compilation CD from a friend and I loved it so much. Years later I bought the album and I was so disappointed! I remember as a kid reading about the rivalry between these guys and The Killers, The Killers back then were one of my favourite bands and their first album has a place in my heart. I still love this song so much though and it reminds me of when I was younger.

6) Nirvana|Heart-Shaped Box

Oh Nirvana, a band who I was brought up listening to, but due to my age I never understood them. When my brother and I started hanging out (I was 7 and he was 25) he tried to introduce me to everything he loved and it really did rub off onto me… But it only sunk in years later. Star Wars was one of them, Nirvana another. I just love their music, as well as the lyrics and this is probably my favourite Nirvana song.

7) Daft Punk|The Game Of Love

Daft Punk are one of my favourite bands and they’re also on my “band to see before they/I die” list. I was so damn excited back in 2013 when this album was announced and released and I listened to it daily and very loudly may I add. I loved it so much I even wrote a post about it on my blog! I’ll link it here if you fancy reading it. I really love this song on the album, it just sounds so heartbreaking and yet beautiful at the same time. It’s a very chilled song.

8) Queens Of The Stone Age|I’m Designer

Another band who are on my “band to see before they/I die” list! I love Queens Of The Stone Age so much and every time they have come to the UK I’ve not gone to see them! Usually because they’re too expensive for me at the time, they don’t play in Birmingham or because I have no one to go with! I’ve been listening to them for years and Josh Homme was one of my first crushes, aww baby Nat’s first ginger crush too (I wouldn’t even put it that way but Dane is a ginge… :P)! The album Era Vulgaris is definitely my favourite and I used to listen to it constantly when it first came out. Again, another album I hold close to my heart.

9) cKy|Tripled Manic State

cKy are one of my favourite bands and also one that I got to check off of my list of bands to see this year! They were amazing live and my 13/14 year old self was in love the whole night, especially when I got to meet Jesse Margera afterwards! But I love this song so much, it’s definitely an album that I ended up listening to loads when I was in college and just dealing with my depression. It was just like a comfort blanket that I would listen to on my way to and from college.

10) Eight Legs|These Grey Days

This is a song that used to be in a binge drinking advert in the UK and as soon as I heard it, I fell in love and took to YouTube to try and find out what it was! Thankfully I discovered it and thanks to the early days of MySpace, I got to download it for free and officially from the bands page! I still have it to this day and I love it still.

11) +44|Chapter XIII

I’m sorry Blink 182 fans, you will hate me BUT I loved +44 and I now love the new Blink 182 stuff and it’s all for one reason… NO MORE FUCKING TOM DELONGE! I’m sorry but he’s the reason I fell out of love with Blink 182 years ago. 😛 When I was in my last year of school a guy a year above who I was friends with introduced me to +44 WAYYYYY before they even brought their first single out. I fell in love with them and as soon as their album came out, I downloaded it. This album definitely reminds me of when I was really starting to become who I am today. It holds a place deep down in my heart.

12) RushJet1|Son Of Flynn

This is actually part of a chiptune album that came out with LOADS of Daft Punk songs on it and this actually the second album. It’s a huge compilation and this is just one of the artists who features on it. This is by far my favourite song on the second album and is one I listen to repeat if it comes on in the car.

13) Bloodhound Gang|Farting With A Walkman On

I know a lot of people who dislike Bloodhound Gang (because of their stupid lyrics. Fuck it man, I’d prefer that to depressing love songs ALL THE DAMN TIME!), Dane being one of them but they’re one of the bands from my childhood, purely because of The Bad Touch. This song used to come on the dance games back in the day and I remember my one cousin loving it. We called it The Waffle Song because we didn’t know what it was called! Years later, thanks to cKy and Bam Margera I found out who Bloodhound Gang were and it’s been a massive love affair since then. This (AGAIN!) is another band on my bands to see before I die list. Every time they have come to the UK I haven’t been to see them and I regret it so fucking much.

14) Oasis|Where Did It All Go Wrong?

Oasis is another band I was brought up listening to and this was the first album I owned by them and due to that it is definitely my favourite. This in turn is one of my favourite songs on the album and one I have sang to various times, whether I’m upset, happy, or just normal and fine. Of course Noel Gallagher sings, so it sounds lovely. 😛 Although me and my one brother don’t talk anymore, Oasis and Nirvana both remind me of him and I guess it’s him introducing me to such amazing music that’s shaped me to who I am today…

15) Pharrell|Frontin’ Feat. Jay-Z

Oh man, remember when Pharrell was in N.E.R.D. and they played funk rock? Yeah me too! 😛 This was when Pharrell really went out and did his own thing and I fell in love with it! The tune was catchy, the singing was chilled and nice and it just worked. Especially for the time when it came out as well! I still love listening to this song today and it’s definitely a classic to listen to during the summer and especially on holiday. Oh and Jay-Z is on it, so it’s got to good, right? 😛

WOOHOO that’s all 15, even though I wish it was 50! 😛 Please go and give the songs above a listen if you haven’t heard them/of them before. If you’ve heard of any of the bands or songs before, please let me know if you like them down below, as well as the artist/band.

I really enjoyed giving this tag a go and I even typed up some of my answers when I was at work as I’d shuffled the iPod on my way to work today to get the last 5 songs! 😛

Now it’s my turn to tag people:

See The Universe

kkochsongi

A Geek Girls Guide

Little Pink Duck

Lost In Translation

The Mini Mermaid

Married To The Music

I really hope you enjoyed this tag and until next time, take care all! 😀

Independent Artists I Love! #2 JennifairyW

This is the second post of this series and one I wanted to get written and posted on my blog before I go on holiday! This cute little package arrived a couple of days ago and as soon as I opened it I went straight to the computer to get writing!

So my second post for the series is about the lovely Jenn and her store JennifairyW. I discovered her through Instagram a long time ago whilst I was looking for some Eeveelution related merch. One of her Eeveelution charms popped up on my feed and from there I’ve been lusting ever since for products by her.

She recently announced on her Instagram page that she was doing a seconds sale on her Eevee pin due to the pin having some faults. So she popped the limited amount of stock on the website at half the price and I made sure to snap one up before they sold out! I also took the opportunity to snap up one of the Eeveelution charms that I’ve been lusting after for ages… I now wish I’d bought 2… 😛

So alongside ordering the Eevee pin, I also ordered one of the two designs of the Espeon charm.

Jenn’s based in Scotland and I only had to wait 4 days from ordering to have them arrive! I wanted to write a review on her Etsy store straight away, but I’m not able to until the 20th and I doubt I’ll be able to that day… We’ll see if I can before I go on holiday!

I love how she packaged my order by popping it into this little packet. The Eevee pin I ordered was also in a little zip lock bag to keep it extra safe.

Alongside with the pin and the charm I ordered you get one of Jenn’s business cards, which is adorable! You also get a little note from Jenn herself and if you can’t quite read mine it says:

Thanks so much for adopting a seconds Eevee. I hope he and the charm make you smile. Come back soon. Jenn x

I think it’s lovely that she pops a personalised message inside her parcels, it’s such a sweet touch and not only did my goodies make me smile, but also the note!

The first thing of the two I’ll talk about is the main reason for my order with Jenn, the cute AF Eevee pin. He’s so teeny and cute and I love it! The basic colour of the metal as you can see is gold, with the standard Eevee colours of light brown, dark brown and cream. The Eevee pins she brought out for her seconds sale are all meant to have not been printed properly by the person she bought/ordered them from. To me my little pin doesn’t appear to have anything wrong with it and even if it does, I love having a pin that isn’t going to be like all the others! I really hope that Jenn brings out the rest of the Eeveelutions designs she has in pin form too!

Ages ago Jenn was on about doing a Kickstarter for some food related pins, I still hope that she does this as it would be amazing! I’d definitely back it. ^_^

The second item I purchased is probably my favourite of the two, purely because I’ve wanted it for so long! As you can see it’s an Espeon charm and I’m so pleased I ordered it when I did as it now appears to be sold out! All of the Eeveelutions she’s drawn so far have 2 different poses, the only one left for Espeon was the standing pose, which I prefer out of the two anyway. It’s so small and cute! It’s only got a design printed on one side but that doesn’t bother me. I didn’t mean to but I scratched a little on the non printed side to see how if the print would scratch off and alas it never. This is a very good sign to me!

I want to get both versions of all of the Eeveelutions to be honest as they’re too cute to choose between the two! I like the Eevee that’s lying down, the Flareon sitting, the Vaporeon standing and the Jolteon that is sitting. Either way I’ll be ordering some more when I’m back from holiday!

Overall I love my goodies from Jenn’s shop and I already know I’ll be buying the other Eeveelution charms from her store when I’m back from holiday! I kind of wish I had ordered more from her to be honest, but with the holiday I wanted to be good.

If you like what Jenn does, then please check out her store as well as all her the social media! I’ll leave all the links below.

Store

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

I’m so pleased that I started this series off on my blog! There are so many independent artists I want to talk about and share with you guys and I’m so pleased to be able to do that whilst dedicating a whole post to them!

Do you like the look of the amazing work Jenn creates? If so make sure to go and let her know on all of her social media pages!

Until next time all take care and I hope you’re having a lovely weekend!

Little Cup Illustrations

Last week I tried for a competition held by Little Cup Illustrations and I was so happy when I found out I won! I never win things like this, and when I do I’m over the moon. Two days after winning I got home from my boyfriends to find my prizes waiting for me and I was so gobsmacked about how gorgeous my prizes were. I knew exactly what I was winning, but it’s always even better when they’re in the flesh, aren’t they?

I was awarded with three A4 sized pictures, a smaller postcard picture, two keyrings, and a brooch. I wasn’t asked to write about my winnings on my blog, but I felt the need to share with you guys what I won, as well as Little Cup Illustrations, and the artist and owner Gill, who has fast become a favourite illustrator of mine.

I discovered Little Cup Illustrations back around Valentines Day when I went into Tesco to buy my boyfriend a card, to discover what is probably the most adorable card I have ever seen in my life. It was of a couple, a dog and a cat, who were called Fred & Ginger. I took to Google to try and find out who this design belonged to and soon found Little Cup Illustrations. Since then I have been following Gill’s work and have fallen in love with all the new and upcoming designs she has come out with.

She was so damn generous with this giveaway though and I still can’t believe how beautiful the pieces are she sent to me. I’m definitely saving them for when I move out to place into rooms as a staple piece for a bare wall. They’re very delicate prints, which is what I love the most about her work.

So onto what I won!

• Limited Edition Letterpress Print : Ampersand (Retails for £15.00)

This limited edition letterpress print has a print run of 100 with the main feature of the print being a large ampersand symbol with the background being made up of flowers and birds.

This is probably one of these nicest things I received in my prize due to it being limited edition, and for me to get number 3 out of 100 is pretty amazing! It’s a gorgeous ampersand print that is white/cream and a cotton blue shade. This would be gorgeous in a living room, or bedroom, hell maybe even a spare room. This is definitely a print I’m going to frame when I move out, I would be silly not to hang this on a wall somewhere.

• Ballet Dancers Print (Retails for £12.00)
  

These beautiful ballet dancer prints show two dancers with glitter finishes on their skirts.

This is such a gorgeous print and one that I will keep with me a long time. I hope one day I’ll have a little girl and I can hang this in her bedroom from birth until she’s too old and “cool” with her band posters to have wall space for it anymore. Otherwise it would make a nice print to put in a bathroom or a spare room. The detail on the dancers is so perfect and beautiful.

• Brush Pen & Watercolour Print – Brogues (Retails for £6.50)
  

This vintage inspired print shows a pair of brown brogues illustrated with brush pen and a watercolour finish.

I LOVE this print! I love brogues, and although I don’t really wear them anymore, they will always be a shoe that has a place in my heart (alongside Vans, Converse, and Dr Martens!) as they’re just a shoe I lived in whilst I was a uni student. This print will definitely go by my front door where all mine and my boyfriends shoes will be kept. It’s just very apt really and it’s such a gorgeous and bold picture that it’ll be sure to turn heads too.

• Original Brush Pen Illustration – Baby Bear (Two similar retail for £15.00)

This baby bear illustration is an original piece of art in our latest brush pen series.

This is such a gorgeous little postcard image and one I have stuck up next to some of the pictures of me and my boyfriend as it’s too cute not to use yet. I can’t find this for sale on Gill’s Etsy, nor on the Facebook page… So I can  only assume this is a limited edition print or something. Once again, if I ever had a baby this would be perfect popped in a frame and hung on the wall.

• Limited Edition Watercolour Print, Beetle Keyring (Print retails for £6.50)

This Beetle illustration was painted in watercolours and has been made into a limited edition print, with a print run of 50.

This print is gorgeous, yet grim at the same time… In a jokey way! I hate bugs, but this is rather vintage and quant. I’m going to pop this on my backpack as it’s just too nice not to use. On the front of the keyring you have the picture of the beetle, and then on the back you have various little pictures of the beetle as well. I like the variation of this! I couldn’t find these on her Etsy or Facebook page for sale, but I imagine they’re somewhere around. You can buy the print of this, which is limited edition and beautiful!

• Butterfly/Floral Brooch (Can’t find for sale online)

This is a quaint little brooch and something I’ll possibly give to someone as a gift, as I don’t wear things like this myself and it would be an awful shame to let it go to waste and gather dust in my room. Either that or I’ll pop it on a bag as a cute little trinket of sorts. It’s a little butterfly shape, with a floral button in the middle. Very vintage looking, and something any girly girl would adore!

• Puppy Collection – Dachshund (Print retails for £6.50)

As one of our puppy collection this dachshund print is a very cute illustration showing the puppy admiring a flying butterfly.

This is definitely my favourite thing in the whole package I received. Why? Because I love dogs! Especially dachshund’s! I’ve been eyeing up the puppy collection for a while and contemplated picking up some of the prints, but now I (somewhat) finally own one! The print is the same on both the front and back of the keyring, with a cute little puppy sniffing a butterfly. Cute, or what??? This is definitely going on my house keys!

So that was everything I won from the Little Cup Illustrations competition! What do you think of Gill’s artwork? I think it’s so simplistic, vintagesque, and beautiful.

Will you be checking out her work? If so I’ll link all her websites and such down below!

Etsy

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Until next time all, take care and enjoy the rest of the weekend!