30 Day Mori Challenge – Day 1 & 2

I found it here, and as it wasn’t exactly the Lolita challenge but with “Mori” filled in, I decided to do it. I think I’ll be doing several days at once this time so I’ll have the spaces to write about other things, too. It’s more of a 30 questions challenge then, I guess…

1- naturally, our first question is how did you get into mori girl?

I guess someone wrote about it in their blog, Victoria Suzanne from Parfaitdoll or Aly from Miss Lumpy, if I remember it correctly. I noticed that my lifestyle was pretty much what one could call a Mori Girl one (together with Steampunk and Lolita), so I started to incorporate it on purpose.

2- who is/are your mori girl idols? who inspires your fashion?

I think Rima Stains could be counted as one of them, but in contrary to Lolita where I have more actual real life idols, Mori relies even more on fictional characters for me. In fiction it’s especially Mary Lennox from The Secret Garden and also many, many fairy tale characters. I’m sure Snow White and Rose Red would make excellent Mori Girls.

Today I will draw… My Favourite Food

Scanner and structured paper seemed not to like each other, but I’m sill quite pleased with how this came out (I especially like the butter, Welsh onion and feather). The original picture is a little more vibrant, maybe I’m trying another scan tonight and update this again.
I love working with water colours and had something very calm and un-comic-like in mind when I thought about this picture, maybe ’cause I’ve been reading so many Mori Girl tumblrs lately.

The “recipe” is the Scoundrel’s, and at the moment I’m thinking about illustrating more recipes to make some sort of cook book out of them. I actually had this idea before, but only with singe recipes. I know several things to go in there…

Today I will draw… My Favourite Animal

I don’t think I will have a decision that easy in the challenge again. It’s an otter, obviously.

The original drawing is a little darker, and I didn’t dare to ink because I feared that it could ruin the cute. Instead I used darker, stronger pencil lines than in my usual scribbly style to mock the inking streaks. I didn’t colour either, same reason as the lacking ink. The only thing I dared to do was a little colour accent with rouge (Yes, I use the real stuff, not just red colour. Maybe chalk would do, too.).

I’m actually very pleased with the outcome of this picture. I did so much better than yesterday!

Thanks for help with the motif go to Seamus, Bleu’s otter pooka from Blue Monday and TheDailyOtter.

P.S.: The Scoundrel’s comment was as follows: slightly overweight otter is slightly overweight and awfully cute ^^.

Which sums it up pretty well.

Today, I will draw… Myself

Day 1 of the 30 Days Drawing Challenge!

Don’t ask me about the trouble I had with this one (belive me when I say that the picture below was not the first try)… My hands felt as if they had been replaced and knew not what to do, and I felt horrible in consequence.

I like the rough pencil work better than the actual inked version as it looks more like me and is more my style than the final result:

The final version is the first time I drew my outlines with real indian ink and dip pen. It worked quite well, but still I’m not entirely pleased. But I’m working on that.

When I noticed that the paper absorbed too much of the water I use for my aquarelles (it looked quite like copic markers, but that is definitely not what I wanted) I decided to stop the colouring completely, hence the very… artsy outcome.

I dare say I’m a little frustrated with this result of day one. But gladly this challenge isn’t only to show off but also to work on my skills, so prepare for more art to come!

Another 30 Day Challenge

Back in the first poll I posted on this blog the results said that you wanted to see more of my drawings and art in general. I’ve been pondering over this a while as I want to draw more anyway, but didn’t know the right way to start again.

And then I found Meri’s drawing challenge.

You might remember the fun I had with the 30 day Lolita challenge, so this was quite the thing to maintain some discipline in my intent to get back to paper and pencil. Plus, I’ve got a scanner now.

The challenge starts today, and I hope I’m able to keep up with the schedule.

Oh, and don’t forget to have a look at Meri’s blog, Tentaclething! Her artwork is so cute!

30 Days Lolita Challenge – Day 1

As it’s spread all though the blogs I’m currently reading, I thought it might be nice to do this, too (I also considered one of the “one picture a day” memes, but didn’t like the fact that it predominantly were pictures I would have to take from somewhere else).

Day 01 – 10 Things about your lolita bubble
(What ever that actually may be. I’ll just do as the other girls and write about mylittle Lolita world.)

1. I discovered Lolita in my middle teens, but sadly I don’t know how anymore. I guess the Natron & Soda forum could have done something to it as well as Paradise Kiss (the manga). My first attempt in this direction wouldn’t be considered exactly ita, I think, but not very close to the rules-that-are-more-like-guidelines-anyway, too.
2. I don’t think that Lolita interferres with my being a major nerd (for Steampunk, Star Trek: TNG, computer games and RPG…) or practising martial arts (first and foremost Savate and sometimes Jiu Jiutsu, other than Canne de Combat, which is rather loliable) or listening to my favourite music (like Dropkick Murphys or Social Distortion). Some people might think it rather paradoxical to be a refined, sophisticated lady on one and a brawling, dirty Boston folk punk on the other day without having to act one of these parts, but I promise, it works for me.
3. When I first met Scoundrel I told him about Lolita, and he already knew. It’s awesome to have a boyfriend who’s a minor in Japanese studies. Though, I’d never try to convince him to wear something like dandy or kodona, it just wouldn’t be the guy I love so much, and I prefer him in plain T-shits and cargo pants, anyway.
4. My favourite styles are Classic, Sailor and Gothic when I’m all dolled up and Country, Punk and Casual for every day. Oh, and Steampunk, of course, but as this is an omnipresent influence with me I don’t count it as a certain style here.
5. My wardrobe is quite small and can’t really grow, thanks to an armoire that isn’t that large, either. But I’m working at it, and as soon as I’ve emptied one of my fabric boxes there will be more space, I hope.
6. I don’t wear Lolita on a daily basis. I like having pockets, and I can’t wear my pocket belt with a petticoat. But I’m trying to wear it more regularly now, though.
7. In Marburg people don’t seem to care if I’m dolled up, at least I don’t get any negative comments. The only bad experiance I had so far was to meet a fellow student of mine that looked pretty disgustedly, but we don’t get along too well anyway, so I didn’t really care.
8. I’ve never been to a meet-up, sadly… Well, at least not yet! :)
9. I actually don’t like Lolita shoes and prefer my Duckfeet or combat boots. They make me look like a doll, anyway.
10. And I think I’m pretty in Lolita. And cute. Cute as a button. It’s strange how few people think that way of themselves, actually.

Day 2 – 10 things you love in lolita.
Day 3 – 10 things you hate in lolita.
Day 4 – 10 different kinds of food you like.
Day 5 – 10 items from your wishlist.
Day 6 – 10 things you can’t live without in lolita.
Day 7 – 10 people who inspire your lolita style.
Day 8 – 10 songs that inspire you for lolita.
Day 9 – 10 things you will never do in lolita.
Day 10 – What’s in your bag?
Day 11 – One day in your lolita life in pictures.
Day 12 – A picture of yourself before lolita came in to your life.
Day 13 – A picture of your favorite sweets.
Day 14 – A picture of your dream item.
Day 15 – A picture of your last lolita purchase.
Day 16 – Your outfit for the day.
Day 17 – What do you want more then anything right now?
Day 18 – A picture of your favorite lolita style.
Day 19 – What’s in your make-up bag?
Day 20 – A picture of a lolita friend.
Day 21 – Your favorite fictional lolita.
Day 22 – A picture of your room.
Day 23 – A picture of your handwriting.
Day 24 – A picture of you from a meet.
Day 25 – Your favorite lolita themed artwork.
Day 26 – A picture of yourself that you like
Day 27 – One song that fits your favorite lolita style.
Day 28 – A picture of the perfect lolita location.
Day 29 – A picture of a lolita you would love to meet for real.
Day 30 – A photo of yourself taken today and 3 good things that’s happened over the last 30 days.

By the way, I know that some of my readers aren’t interested in Lolita at all. But as this challenge falls into the category of Intermezzo, it doesn’t apply to my “only one post a day” rule. So don’t worry, there will be other post, too. :)

10 Things I love in February

1. Wenn Ich tot bin, a song by the german folk rock band Luna Luna. The name of the song translates to “when I’m dead”, but instead of the sad mourning tune you might expect you get an ode to life itself and the challenge to live every day to its fullest so that you won’t regret your death after a live as great as possible.
2. Military Drums. The constant, driving rythm of snares, the humming deep bass drums and the additional tenors of pipe bands from Scotland are a perfect example (you also might listen to the song above), but I’ve always felt drawn to drums. I’d love to incorporate those rythms into my own band, but we’ll see. I’ve got to talk this trough with the Imp.
3. Apples. They might have been involved in a lot of mayhem in several mythologies – the human’s fall from Eden, the Trojan war, the greatest disease northern deities ever suffered from when Iðunn’s (aka Iduna) apples were stolen, thanks to Loki – but they also are a symbol for youth – again, there’s Iðunn, and also Avalon is nicknamed “Isle of Apples” (or a variation of it, to ease possible complaints) – and even wisdom. I love the fact that apples belong to the rose’s family, and they taste good, too.
4. Elfquest. I already mentioned it in my post about what I got for Christmas from the Scoundrel. It’s not that the comics are overly innovative with their stories or characters (at least not today) and I don’t even know if I’d adore them how I do if I got to know them nowadays. But I found the first volume to read in the public library in my very early teens (if I remember correctly) and was stunned by the somewhat wild looks of the elves, the wolves, the big eyes and the characters. Yes, they are epically 80s and reallysome kind of Manowar-like, but what the Care Bears, My Little Pony, Hello Kitty or Lady Lovelylocks are to other girls as a reminder of their childhood (that happened mostly in the 90s but were influenced by the 80s indeed) are the wolfriders to me.
5. Knitting. I just started again with a scarf I began about two years ago and never finished. Defintely not able to do something else than the utmost basics by now, I’m planning to go all megalomaniac while Teli (my knitting goddess) is staying in Norway for her exchange semester to knit Owls (just look at Teli’s blog here, she made the pullover last year).
6. Challenges. When she visited me at the end of January, my mother challenged me to skip all things containing refined sugar for a whole month or more! I think I’m going to be able to do this, even though it’s going to be really hard, but honey is allowed, after all. And if I win, I’ll get a reward, too. ;)
7. Cooking. After I accepted the challenge above and after Lilibeth had told me so much about her cooking projects I thought about it. I really like cooking, and I like to present the results in a nicer way than on a simple plate, all mashed up. And I thought about why and when I stopped doing so and came to the conclusion that I didn’t even know why! So, in future posts you might see some results of my newly-found sense of cooking. At least I hope so.
8. Chokers. Although the word somehow looks awkward, I like the necklaces. Maybe you remember that I once got one in a lucky pack swap last year! At the moment I’m experimenting with styles of chokers for my everyday wardrobe (they’ve got some kind of a Steampunk feel to them), and you can bet that I’ll show you the results.
9. Banners. They’ve got this awfully cool Obey! banner in the PC game Overlord that’s taken from the evil hobbits (yes, indeed) I always wanted to sew for our flat. And then there are the great hall banners in Harry Potter (still a Hufflepuff, by the way) and the whole lot of flying fabric in the Lord of the Rings pictures. I also made a small banner for our crew at the Festival Mediaval 2008 that still has to be somewhere in my bedroom. There’s something great and regal about those flags, as there is about the last point of my February list, too:
10. Speech Scrolls. I love them and use them in my pictures and comics as often as I can. Even the invitations for my Steampunk con had scrolls at the top. And somehow, speech scrolls are a historical kind of speech bubbles, too. Which is pretty cool. I think I need some more clothes with speech scroll motifs…

99 Questions. No Reason. Loads of Fun.

1. Your name? The Hedgefairy.

2. When is your birthday? September.

3. Where were you born? Frankfurt/ Hesse.

4. Where are you now? In my lovely chambers in Marburg.

5. What are you wearing right now? Black bootcut jeans, brown climbing tank top, grey thick sports socks, pastel-and-red River Woods check shirt, a Scoundrel’s silver ring on a leather ribbon and leather supply belt.

6. Your most beautiful moment so far? Something like 4 AM, 2nd of April, 2010, and ever since.

7. What are you reading at the moment? Pride and Prejudice.

8. Have you got a favourite film? Big Fish.

9. Action or romantic movie? Romantic, I guess.

10. What is your favourite song? The Mummer’s Dance by Loreena McKennitt.

11. What are you hearing now? Beauty of the Beast by Nightwish

12. Are you in love at the moment? Yes.

13. The 3 most important things in your life? My friends, my family, my creativity.

14. What is home to you?　Marburg, Aschaffenburg and Frankfurt/ Germany and always there where my heart is.

15. Which languages do you speak? German, English, Latin (badly), Irish, Sengoidelc (old Irish – still learning).

16. Your favourite drink? Ginger ale.

17. Your favourite food? Cheese!

18. Your favourite country? The British isles.

19. What is your favourite pasttime? Being creative and martial arts.

20. CQ or Yahoo! ? Yahoo.

21. What have you been doing last night? Reading until I fell asleep.

22. Summer or winter? Mostly autumn.

23. Windows or Linux or Mac? Windows.

24. What would be the name of your son? Liam or Basil.

25. … and your daugter’s? Lovis or Gwendolyn.

26. What is your favourite colour? Green and red.

27. When was your last vacation? Where? Summer 2006, Scotland. Or alternative: Study excursion, September 2008, Tuscany.

28. Your graduation? Art specialised A-levels.

29. Best age so far? 20?

30. A worldly wisdom? Cheese is one of the primal supporting pillars of the western society.

31. 3 things for the island? The scoundrel, a knive and cheese.

32. 3 things for a good life? A rocking chair, friends and family and a job that I can live by and that I like.

33. Future wishes? Working as a celticist and illustrator or make a living out of my creativity.

34. What would you need for a perfect vacation? My friends, an old house by the sea, some mountains for climbing and really, really good food and books.

35. Money or love? Both, but love a little more.

36. Your hair colour? Henna red, naturally dark blonde.

37. Your eye colour? Mossy green amber mixed with honey.

38. Do you have a nickname? What is it? Otter, Wild Rose (Scoundrel exclusive ;)).

39. Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter? Harry Potter when it wasn’t totally screwed yet, but LotR, also.

40. Continue as you like: “Lost in…”: “Wonderland”

41. First word you think of beginning with “S”! Sea.

42. Favourite web site? Natron & Soda.

43. Film or book? Book.

44. Favourite school subject? Arts.

45. Have you been to university? I am, at the moment.

46. If yes: Where? What? For how long? Marburg University, Celtic Studies, for two semesters so far.

47. How much time do you spend in the interwebs per week? For hours.

48. Have you got the light on at the moment? Yes.

49. What time is it? Three minutes after 10 PM.

50. Favourite activity at the PC? Writing and surfing.

51. How do you vote? Not telling, sorry.

52. Are you satisfied with the government? It would be great it Mad Capt’n Tom was the prime minister of Great Britain.

53. Are you reading the newspaper? No, sadly.

54. Interested in positics? Not really, I’ve got to confess. Not anymore.

55. Interested in parties? Sometimes.

56. How did you spend your last weekend? With martial arts training, relaxing at the riverbanks with my friends, finding a new name for my band and reading.

57. Smoking? Definitely no, for ever.

58. Have you got a mobile? Yes.

59. How’s the weather? Blue skies with some small clouds, not too hot and it’s getting chilly tonight, I think.

60. Are you part of a club or association? Does Savate and Canne at university sports count?

61. Have you ever been to a hospital? Only for visits.

62. When was your last phone conversation? Some minutes ago when I called my mother for the weekly update. ^^

63. When did you write your last E-mail? This afternoon, concerning the Marburg dragon boat race.

64. Have you got a brother? Name? Kind of, if Bambi counts.

65. Have you got a sister? Name? No. I’m an only child, in fact.

66. Who’s the older one? Father or mother? Father.

67. Drinking? If yes, how often? Hardly.

68. Are wonders real? Sure.

69. Are gosts real? Definitely!

70. The meaning of life (in your opinion)? Being happy without harming anyone due to that.

71. How are you feeling at the moment? Very good, thank you.

72. What’s your opinion about the recent TV programme? We don’t have a TV.

73. Talkshows or court drama? None.

74. Have you got a role model? Several. Loreena McKennitt in singing, one of my university elders in academical matters, different illustrators in arts.

75. Munich or Berlin? Berlin!

76. Continue: “In Munich…”. What a stupid question, I’ve never been there!

77. Would you like to migrate to another country? One of the British Isles would be nice…

78. What makes a man wealthy? Being loved and happy.

79. What does nature mean to you? It’s great. It always helps me to calm down and get new energy at the same time.

80. Your dreams? Are vivid and sometimes irritating.

81. Your favourite car? Vintage with loads of packing space.

82. Where did you grow up? Woods, a puppet theatre and in books.

83. How tall are you? 159.5 cm.

84. What’s better, work or school? Hard decision. Depends on work and school.

85. Land of birth? Germany.

86. Drawing or singing? Both. ^^

87. What is extraordinary to you? Thoughts outside the patterns.

88. What are you addicted to? Honestly? Books. Oh, and cheese.

89. Have you got any hobbies? Which? Sure! Music, sewing, arts, reading, books, writing, cooking, singing, history, languages, dancing and sports, especially martial arts.

90. What was your last meal? Uhm… Toffifee, I guess. Or pasta con pesto for lunch.

91. Your last film in the theatre? Sherlock Holmes.

92. How would you describe yourself in one sentence? “I’m a thoughtful bundle of energy, often mistaken for an otter, presumeably with fair folk blood, always inspired and inspiring and I love books and cheese.”

93. Are you naïve? Sometimes, I fear, but seldom.

94. The best age group is…? Every age has it’s pros.

95. Lucky number? 19.

96. Inside or outside? Depends.

97. Do you prefer the coutryside or the city? I’ve tried both and I liked both.

98. What is the most important thing for you in this world? Doing what feels right.

99. Your opinion of the last 98 questions? Unnecessary, but somewhat fun to answer.

I thereby challenge my readers to answer these questions in their blogs, too. If you do so, please link back to your list in the comments!