Julia Denos

Having fun looking at the whimsical illustrations of Julia Denos.

Kris Atomic

I subscribed and received my copy of Anthology Magazine quite a while ago but couldn't find it because my little daughter decided to hide it because she liked the cover so much, and rightly so... it is really pretty. Kris Atomic's did an amazing job with the cover art and all of designs are such a delight!

i heart fifi lapin

Meet my new desktop wallpaper by Fifi Lapin - "the world's most stylish bunny" according to Elle Magazine!

I would have to agree...Fifi has some very inspiring outfits, and I'm into her latest runway looks. Check out the incredible marigold dress she sported in Paris!

In addition to being a fashion icon, this little rabbit also makes some lovely wall artwork too...check out the beauty below.

Desktop wallpaper is from the brand new {and lovely!} Kindred website. See more of Fifi here...

my love affair with australia

Unbelievably, this week is the 10th anniversary of my journey to Australia where I spent a year studying Plant and Wildlife Illustration. How the heck does 10 years fly by so quickly? I remember it all very clearly, and 10 years ago on precisely this week, I left in bone-chilling -40 degree Celsius Toronto temperatures {is that possible?!}, and arrived in Sydney in blistering +40 degree Celsius heat {is that possible?!}. And right about at this time, while trying to get accustomed to the 80 degree temperature difference, I was 'trampolining' off the thickest, sturdiest spiderwebs I have ever seen {don't get me started on the spiders}, reaching for my shampoo bottle only to grasp a leech that was stuck to the side, and watching in awe as a wallaby hopped past me on my university's campus. That year was such a wonderful experience that I'll never forget. There were many lonely times, there's no doubt - I was a 22 hour flight away from my family and they were usually sleeping while I was awake! But my adventure taught me how to depend on myself. I became very strong and independent...I grew up.

Aside from all that I learned outside of the classroom, I was able to concentrate on painting and drawing for a full year, which was a dream! To commemorate my 10th anniversary, above are some of the illustrations I created, in hopes of creating them into a children's book {I still hope to one day!}. They are patterns in nature, painted in watercolor, and the premise was to get children to look closer at nature, to gain an appreciation for it at a young age.

I will be posting a bit more about my Australian adventure, but in the meantime my thoughts are with those suffering from the horrific bush fires that have been roaring near Melbourne. Here is a blog that is selling various donated handmade items to raise money for those affected - such a wonderful idea.