I'm in the middle of 6 commissions for a small local production so I can't really draw leisurely that much until I finish those 6 but yesterday I finished my first one (YEAY!) and decided to relax with some leisure sketches before bed.
For those who have known me since way-back-when, they would know that my nickname is derived from one of my oldest OCs, Ryu, who I created onto paper when I was 12 after a series of dreams that lasted 2 - 3 months. m9(・∀・) From there I created the world she was in for a manga project called Ginryu, which I have been polishing ever since.
Though with the arrival of other major projects onto the same universe like [INTOXICATED], [Le Noir Pain de Miette] and [Ripple] (yeap, they're all in the same universe), I couldn't focus on polishing Ginryu these past couple of years and I had the sudden urge to revisit Ryu's world again last week. ( ﾟヮﾟ)
So here's my loot.
The 3 main characters of Ginryu; (from left) Ryu, Sakuya and Sekara. I saw one of my favourite artists, Demi-luv do a similar concept so I thought it'd be fun to try it out too. ( ﾟヮﾟ) Full credit of the concept goes to her. And I thought their brief "character descriptions" above them can be some sort of a tagline for the series whenever I do illustrations. (Kinda like Gensoumaden Saiyuki) So far, I'm pretty happy with them.
Bust shots of Ryu and Sekara. I was suppose to do one of Sakuya too (so they can form matching pictures saying each syllable of the Manga title) but I couldn't seem to get hers right so I left it like this haha.
A quick sketch and shading of Sakuya. She literally is a living God since her character is suppose to be an Arahitogami.
Was playing around in Photoshop with Ryu's lineart.
Anyways, I'm off again for now. Need to get back to drawing the commissions so バイバイビイイイ！★
Oh yeah!! check out my previous entry to help out a talented artist in need of help!
sorry for the absence as of late. Was busy but putting that aside....
A friend of mine needs help. She's going through some really tough financial situation right now and she's in need of money. She's still a student, majoring in Illustrations but in order to not burden her parents for any money (since her family is also in a rough spot where money is concerned), she decided to not loan money from them. And plus she won't loan or take money from her friends, (I TRIED LAWL) but... she did tell me that she's maximizing her illustration commissions (WHICH ARE GORGEOUS.)
So! to help her out further, I've decided to help her at least spread the word regarding her works. Here are some samples of her commission works:
Aren't fantabulously gorgeous? ( ﾟヮﾟ) These are just a handful of the gorgeous artworks she's got lying around her gallery, so please if you can spare a few extra bucks, head on over to her Commission Journal HERE and commission her.
Oh and since her internet was discontinued, she won't be able to be online but you can place commissions by commenting on this post with details of your commission and I'll pass it on to her as soon as possible via sms.
Any help you give will be a tremendous relief for her so please do consider! Thank you so much for taking your time to read this entry. m(_ _)m
Just finished another stress relief piece I did with color pencils. I haven't touched color pencils for a really long time and well since this is meant to be a stress relief piece, I didn't dwell myself with the technicalities of it all. Over all I was pretty happy how it turned out.
Though the scanner didn't do it justice though D; it's really hard adjusting it since even here the softer colors completely disappear. ┐('～`；)┌ oh well. If you guys happen to meet me face to face I'd show you the original haha. It's definitely less choppy than the scanned version lawl!
This is one of my few symbolic pieces as I wanted something that would reflect what I was thinking at the moment ( ﾟヮﾟ) For this piece, I was going through a huge moment of self doubt so I wanted to get it out of my system and drew this piece.
The konpeito (if it looks like them at all), represents other people and their potential, mainly it's to represent the people around me whom I admire always for their abilities in their personal and professional lives. Hence them being all in pretty colors and all. I wanted to also portray how much I adore them.
The boy (my OC, Leo), represents my views upon the world. He's at that age where he's old enough but still naive and influential towards others comments thus he decides to stay in the bottle and "grow up" a little more before he becomes a full fledged konpeito himself. Whilst he awaits for the time he's ready, he gazes at the other floating konpeitos longingly, awaiting the day that he too can join them.
The bottle represents the state I think I'm in now. And the red string that holds the bottle jar's cap represents fate. And the kanji sentence 「私の番はいつかな？」 means "When's my turn?".
I've always felt that I'm the last in the race against others so I don't like putting myself in that situation. I always like to focus on the race I have with myself more than anything since I believe that different people have different growth rates. I for one, am a definite late bloomer so I often think of myself as a living proof of that fact. So whenever I do compare or put myself in a race against others, it takes a toll on my self-esteem.
But lately, a friend on mine expressed his views on this subject. He mentions that if you're not winning the race against others, it doesn't matter since you'll miss alot of the jest in things and someone else would've achieved it first. But does that make achieving success redundant? I've been taught that success is success no matter how long it takes you to achieve them. He simply is stating his beliefs I know, but since I respect and look up to him alot I can't help but wonder if that is true? Would I always end up being the "loser" if I were to be in a race against my peers?
But I'm just holding it in until I know my potential for sure. I believe this year will be an opportunity for me to really test my abilities and see if I do or do not have what it takes to even compete with them. But sometimes I just can't help but wonder, as I put in the extra load of effort in, "When's my turn to shine?"
Hopefully that time will be soon ('A`) Hopefully I'll become a konpeito myself soon.
Anyways!! I hope you like it as much as I had fun doing this piece :D
Couldn't sleep... it's 3.30 AM now so I doodled and got this;
One of my all-time favourite OCs, Rui at the tender age of 15 years old ★
He seems to be the only OC that I can write on and on about. This is him at one of the most important turning point of his life, so I wanted to put in that slight aura of distrust in him. He was being bullied badly in school so he often gives off that "don't touch me" aura.
Played around with my copic. I kind of felt happy at the end of this drawing haha. It's always stress reliving when I draw what I want when I want it.
Meiko-chan posing for you in today's motivational post (`･ω･´)
Hey Guys! ( ﾟヮﾟ)
Today's post is to talk about different perceptions between self confidence and narcissism. Now why the sudden urge to voice about this topic you say? Well I notice especially amongst artists I know, they often denote themselves on the note of not to be narcissistic. But I find this to be rather a misuse of the term "Narcissism".
I mean, what's wrong with being proud of your own works especially if you've poured your whole heart and soul into making it? I don't mean that you should gloat or anything but rather just acknowledge your efforts and improvement in skill rather than putting it down and treat it as scrap paper.
Okay, so to shed more light on the proper meaning of this topic, here's what wikipedia's definition for the term 'Narcissism'.
or an indifference to the plight of others.To further explain, the wikipedia page also listed down traits that are believed to belong to Narcissism which I took the liberty of including below:
Okay so we all have a tinge of Narcissism in us whether we want it or not. But where being proud of your own works are concerned, I don't see points above that contribute to reaffirming that being proud of your efforts is an act of Narcissism. So why is it that artists here think that by being sure with what you can or cannot do means that you'll be perceived to be someone filled with self-love?
It does saddens me sometime whenever I see a good artist whip up an awesome piece and you compliment their efforts, all you get is "EH! NO LA. this is scrap laaa". People are paying respect to your work and you. So by saying that it doesn't only make you rude but it's the same as you slapping someone's hand away when they want to shake yours. （ ´_ゝ`）
That statement might seem much to most people but think about it, it's basic manners. We were taught that when we received a gift or anything else from other people, we should say "Thank You". So isn't a compliment a gift of words? Penny for thoughts eih?
And think about it; if we, ourselves are not proud of our works, who else is going to? You can if you think you can. It's all about self-belief. Do you believe in yourself enough to acknowledge the good and bad in you and work on them?
If it's for the sake of Humility that most people tend to respond this way, then I sorry to inform those who disagree that that is not Humility. As quoted from many, many books;
"Humility is thinking of yourself less not thinking less of yourself."
That means, it's simply putting others above yourself but not stepping all over yourself. Everything in moderation. So putting yourself down to the dirt isn't being humble, that's just you painting yourself with a big ol' red bullseye mark and calling yourself a Doormat.
To confess, I was guilty of being the fake "humble" when I first started out in the drawing community too so it happens to everyone obviously. I actually was very influenced by the artists I look up to in the community to the point that I pick up every single trait they have; both good and bad. But reading books about principles and self discovery has taught me many things and amongst those is being proud of who you are and what you can do.
Every one has things only they can do and things they can't, but hey. Isn't that what makes us individuals?Being special in our own way? So what's so demented about standing proud and acknowledging these things about ourselves? Aren't we taught to celebrate our differences?
I've been blessed enough to have parents that instill the right principles in me since young and they also taught me that knowledge is useless until you spread it to others. So here's small bit of what I've been taught;
Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. People often compare their weaknesses to others' strengths so of course you'll end up "losing" in that argument. What we need to do is sharpen our strengths and work on changing our weaknesses into our strengths. Until you can differentiate and be sure of what you can or can't do, the only person you need to be in competition with is yourself.
That's it for today. ( ﾟヮﾟ) I hope this post gives you a few penny for thoughts the next time someone gives you a compliment of your efforts in anything. Have a great day guys!
old picture is old haha. I even had my highlights back then. （ ´_ゝ`）
Hey guys!! How are my little daisies today? （´∀｀）ノ
Okay so most of you who are on my facebook and twitter would already know about this and this would probably serve as extra spamage but......................
I GOT INTO NANYANG ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS HOLYYYYYYYYYYYYYY CRUMBCAKESSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (屮ﾟДﾟ)屮
YEAP!! I was SUPPPER surprised when one of the ladies in Nanyang called my cellphone and told me to check my email or the documents and on top of that, I GOT THE GOVERNMENT GRANT!!! (ﾟДﾟ;≡;ﾟДﾟ) what that means is that, by cutting my fees in half (which is a HUGE help for my parents), I'll get to work in Singapore for 3 years. HOW COOL IS THAT? Σ(ﾟДﾟ) Not only I get my fees discounted but I get a guranteed job the moment I leave University!! ★ I'm feeling ultra blessed right now, THANK YOU GOD!!
To tell you the truth, I was more surprised about the grant than me getting accepted into Nanyang. (((( ；ﾟДﾟ))) I mean, I'm like 10000% shocked for sure at my acceptance but getting the grant was such a far-fetched idea for me, I almost cried when I heard the news. I actually even asked Ms Hiedi (the one that called us and helped us alot with our preparations and all), "Are you sure?!" LAWL!!
But all in all thank you so much for all the numerous support I received for preparing for the exam and all. (´ಥωಥ`) Especially in my moments of self doubt, I managed to pull myself together at the exam thanks to the support of those around me ★
Which means, I'll be in Singapore by July so preparations for logistics, Student Passes starts now. ( ﾟヮﾟ) So from July on, blog posts will be coming straight from the land of the Merlion!!! Do anticipate them!!
On the other hand, I've been slowly getting back into groove of drawing illustrations frequently. （´∀｀）At one time, it seems drawing too much manga has distorted my illustration flow for some reason and I can't seem to whip out illustrations like my friends or how I used to. (´；ω；`) But thankfully as of late, it's slowly coming back. I think it might be thanks to the increase of new music into my iTunes lately.
For this picture, I simply got the urge to draw a "sexy" themed couple picture. I really do appreciate pictures that can emphasize sensuality without showing off more than needed. It's like beautifully written love story without unneeded scenes of you-know-what haha. And plus since I always draw milder couple pictures, I thought why not give one a go. It just so happens that I felt like drawing Nadjwa and Ethan again. They seem to be my favourite duo whenever I feel like drawing couples haha. ┐('～`；)┌
Though I often elate any doodle or illustration I draw of my OCs to the actual story I wrote them in, this picture has no place in 「INTOXICATED」's storyline whatsoever haha. So don't worry, no raging hormone scenes will be entering my mangas anytime soon.
Anyways, speaking of new music, whenever I draw I often have a playlist in my iTunes to match whatever I aimed to draw. ( ﾟヮﾟ) Like for example, whenever I'm writing or drawing Le Noir materials, I'll loop my Le Noir playlists where I have picked music I felt was suited for Le Noir's scenes and moods. SO of course, while drawing this picture, I put on my "too sexy for anythin' yo" playlist (haha YES that's what it's called). I've shared names of a few songs that are in that playlist below.
What about you? Do you have those mood based playlists? ( ﾟヮﾟ) If you do, what are they and what kind of songs you have in them?
ITS HERE ITS HERE ITS HERE ITS HERE ITS HEREEEE!!!!! ⊂（ﾟДﾟ⊂⌒｀つ≡≡≡(´⌒;;;≡≡≡
It came so fast!!! I don't usually order (or buy pretty much anything, for that matter) figurines and anime oriented merchandises especially online since I'm paranoid that way （・∀・） SO ANYWAYS. I ordered a Sebastian Nendroid Figure from a local Figurine distributor website last week since I saw that they had the best price AND they seem to have a reputable customer service so I gave it a go ★
AND IT ARRIVED TODAY (ﾟдﾟ) I mean... that's less than 3 working days man. On top of all that jazz, it arrived in perfect condition!!!
（´∀｀）ahahaha.... hey sexy ★
The website that I frequent to; Animetsu.com has one of the biggest collection of original anime oriented figurines I've seen for Malaysia. They also update their figurine collection frequently with the latest of figurines from Japan for figurine enthusiasts here and Singapore. So far they're my number 1 internet shopping site for Anime goods d(*⌒▽⌒*)b
UWA I was so excited that my hands couldn't stop shaking when I took this picture!! (ﾟДﾟ;≡;ﾟДﾟ)
I definitely would personally recommend this website so far if you're interested in buying figurines online especially if you're from Malaysia ヽ(´▽`)/ For some reason, alot of my friends often have doubts when placing orders for their products online and since we don't get original products too often in Malaysia, I often urge them to buy them directly from the website of official distributors.
GYA. (≧▽≦) ORIGINAL GOODS ARE AWESOME! At first I couldn't choose which expression to use but I decided at last.....
Remember; it is always better to pay slightly more to support original goods than pay a little less to buy bootleg products which usually are not even close to how the original is ヽ(ｏ`皿′ｏ)ﾉ We gotta support the industry! If we truly are fans than we should be the first to support the people who help bring so much joy in our lives ★
THE NEKO-SUKI FACE ( ﾟ∀ﾟ)ｱﾊﾊ八八ﾉヽﾉヽﾉヽﾉ ＼ / ＼/ ＼ Note: Takuya Nagaoka peeking in the background.
So guys, buy original kay? (`･ω･´) The reason they don't bring in original anime goods into Malaysia is because there is no demand. If there is demand, they'll start paying attention to Malaysia as an invest able market and bring in more goodies. Much like how they're with Singapore now ( ﾟヮﾟ) But we as the consumers have to change our habits first to reap the benefits.
I'm a day late but HAPPY VALENTINES to those who enjoy it with another (family or not), and HAPPY S.A.D day to those celebrating being single proudly haha.
For those who are living in Malaysia, we've all heard of the "Valentine Day Trap" campaign where several Muslim Departments rally together in campaigning against celebrating Valentine's Day for Muslims since they rationalized that it's a Christian based celebration (or in some cases, Greek based) and that it promotes pre-marital sex at the end of the day especially amongst the younger generation. Not to mention, they claim that it's a way for the Christians to pull Muslims into committing sins and embracing Christianity. (I know right ;;; )
As a young Muslim today, I definitely disagree with this. I was initially extremely appauled at the deplorable state of mind these departments have for other religions. I mean c'mon. It's VALENTINES.
Sure, yes, Valentines is based on the Christian priest, St. Valentines but it's to celebrate his love for his religion and the fact that he helped alot of people during his time in prison. Today it's not like people go to churches to celebrate Valentines. And not everyone spend it with their boyfriend or girl friend. (` q `;;) I mean, like I always spend it with friends and family. It's to celebrate our love for each other.
I mean isn't that what Islam is all about too? Love and embracing everyone regardless of who they are? I know at least the Prophet Muhammad S.A.W embraced others regardless of how he was treated. Aren't we taught to exemplify him?
Over all in all I was disappointed on how the departments were portraying Malaysian Muslims. Now people in and out of the country has a certain perception if you're a devoted Muslim. (.__.;;)
REGARDLESS! ♪(ﾉ´∀｀*)ﾉ I spent Valentines mainly drawing and doing work. Since my parents went out for lunch and all, I kept at my schedule. Oh and also spent time playing with my 3 year old sister ♡
I also took the time to do a quick doodle to relief stress. IT WAS AWESOME! so here be my loot. Featuring Alois Trancy from Kuroshitsuji II. He's not my favourite but I love love love his designs! Done in a little over an hour with Pens and COPICs. haha it's refreshing to do it in a messy sketchy style ♡
It seems that lately all I've been tied up with is manga work and being cooped up in the house. There's nothing much to report since things have been less than colorful for the beginning of February. I wonder why? (` q `;;)
It's not that I'm complaining, but rather... these days I don't feel like doing anything. Even drawing or positive books don't really give me that much of a kick in the butt anymore ｶﾞ━━Σ(ﾟДﾟ|||)━━ﾝ!! GAH, THE TRAGEDY. I don't feel like my usual energetic self these days.
Maybe it's because I'm anxious about my Nanyang results? Ｏ(≧x≦)Ｏ They only come out end of this month or in March. Or maybe it's because I miss my friends? I haven't seen some since Comic Fiesta 2010 and some I haven't heard of from for weeks already. (; q ;) Or is it because I've run out of new anime to watch? LAWL
It could also be because I'm kinda slacking in my manga work. Ｏ(≧xO;;)Ｏ It seems that recently I and Oyabin have come up with a schedule for all my unfinished manga work which is awesome and all. I mean if you don't plan to finish it, it won't finish. But I tend to feel very discouraged if I don't finish that day's quota and it makes me wanna finish it less and less. (.__.;;) oh dear.
GWAH! all in all maybe I just need a tight slap to the face and snap out of it. (ﾟｰﾟ)(｡_｡)ｳﾝｳﾝ I mean I'm 20 for goodness sake this year. Most kids my age are already in their second year or final year of college /sigh. and I'm not even in one yet. oh my goodness.
Come to think of it, most kids my age have something going for them. Singing, or drawing or entrepreneurship. (.______.;;;) .........................................oh man.
ksbdjfsbdjh OVER ALL IN ALL 8D I'm just gonna lay low and just...... relax for a bit. or do work. or something /orz haha I'm a mess 8D;;;;
Amongst all the power figures in the manga industry, one of my all time hero(ine) is no other than Kazuya Minekura-sensei. I first fell in love with her copic works when I read her classic series, Gensoumaden Saiyuki and Saiyuki Reload. She very well inspired me to pick up copics instead of any other medium and with every new illustration she makes, it propels me to push my skills further than I ever believed they could go.
I often frequent her blog, Nitro to glimpse at the products she makes since I can't get them here and all and I haven't get the chance to go there in a while. So I updated myself with all the entries and to my dismay, read about her bone tumor surgery at the End December.
My heart just....collapsed for her. My kanji isn't too good so I had to use and online translator for alot of the kanjis. She talked in detail about her tumour and what I got to translate was that her bone tumour was on the right side of her face which caused her whole right side to collapse. That and at least 3 long paragraphs of her description of her illness was more than enough to just tear up.
Even through all these, her main concern was her work. She was worried about not being up to par and mentions that there are other people who have gone through worse and still was able to do more. She also apologized to the readers that was looking forward to her manga in the magazines weekly and that she'd disappoint them for a while since she's not allowed to overstrain herself. Even with that she managed to complete 8 designs for the life size cutout and 4 limited edition (detailed) stickers of Saiyuki Gaiden characters.
More than a month later, she updates her blog with saying that the surgery was a success but she'll take some time to get back on track where her work is concerned but she was touched by all the support she received before her surgery and after. It seems a large region of her fans got together and did more than a thousand cranes and sent it to the editorial department of the magazine where she works and they sent it straight to her hospital room. She even commented that the doctors and nurses said that, that was the most cranes they've seen for one person ever. haha. She thanked all the people that worked together for that and those that chartered her back and forth from the hospitals so she could work.
Since I'm pretty late in doing anything I though I should at least do a tribute for her. I mean, I can't imagine if she didn't make the surgery. I think I'd have been devastated and probably go through a huge art block (yikes!). So I acually wanted to draw for her but I'm pretty tied up with work I can't dismiss (.____.;;) so I thought why not post up a cover that I did with my fellow Mass D members last week? (*･∀･)／♡
So here's the Mass D (Iwashi, Me and Oyabin)'s tribute to Kazuya Minekura-sensei. This is for inspiring us through our childhood in Life and on paper with your strong will, determination and wonderful art. So here's the insert song for the Gensoumaden Saiyuki animation series: "Open Up Your Mind" by Mirai.
(sorry in advance fo the pitchiness gaiz haha (` q `;;) we're still learning~) Hope you enjoy it anyhow!
Had a blast of fun when my GAR partner, Iwashi came over for Chinese New Year and we did the one thing we always do when we get together; record songs. haha we looove singing together with Oyabin. We literally sang till we couldn't and when the other two was resting, I decided to take the opportunity to play with Iwashi's awesome microphone and recorded a ton of solo songs ( ﾟ▽ﾟ)/
It's nothing professional sounding, but I was pretty proud of em. I'm always nervous and self conscious when someone is around or when recording so my singing tends to flail haha. (ﾟｰﾟ)(｡_｡)ｳﾝｳﾝ So I was just happy I didn't suck in these past few recent ones. haha so I thought I'd share it with you guys! (*≧▽≦)♪ Hope it doesn't bleed your ears or anything haha.
I'm not gonna upload them all at once since there's so many of them, but I'll put them bit by bit as I feel like it. ♥
For this post, I uploaded "Kimi no Kioku" by Yumi Kawamura from the Persona 3 Soundtrack. ♪(ﾉ´∀｀*)ﾉ It's one of my favourite from the soundtrack. And since I don't have the instrumental fo the track, I recorded it without music (well, it was a spur of the moment thing). So please excuse the fan noise and my pitchy-ness and all haha. Still learning how to use the Audacity Program (not to mention singing in general). anyways let me know what you think! (*･∀･)／♡
Okay so I made it through the exam relatively breathing, though the results are only coming out either February or March so I'll be dying till then thank you. oh and finished up all the Chinese New Year Hamper orders so I haven't had that much of a chance to come online and all.
Right now I'm busy preparing new badges and stickers designs from a few series. ( ﾟ▽ﾟ)/ Need to bring in 'em moolahs soon.
Though I'm just gonna update with a few scribbles and sketches that I did and scanned recently <3 Enjoy~!
my two OCs, Nadjwa and Ethan from Intoxicated cuddling up all nice and warm. ♪(ﾉ´∀｀*)ﾉ did this before bed yesterday.
Naoshi Haruki from the Otome Game; Starry☆Sky~in the Autumn~ as per requested by my Ototou-kun ☆ Did this in between sketching the chibis for the new badges / stickers.
haha a mashup of Rui's all around and a tiny Shinjiro peeking at the corner. I sketched these Ruis after I did all the prints for last AFA X as a stress relief under bout 2 hours or so. I'm particularly partial to the working Rui on the left Ｏ(≧∇≦)Ｏ
well, minor minor updates ♥ anyways, as most who has been up to date with my current plans, I have applied into the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts in Singapore not too long ago for enrollment in this year. After surveying and alot of Colleges and Universities in and out of the country and weighing the price of living and whatnot, I've decided on Nanyang for several reasons:
1) It's not too far from home. So if there was an emergency and my family needed me, it wouldn't be that much of a hassle to get back home.
2) It's reputation. Nanyang has had one of the most impressive reputations for Art Colleges in the South East region so why not!
3) but most of all; It's facilities for the 2D Animation Department is ASTOUNDING! I don't think I can find any other College with this much facility in 2D Animation with the price it's offering! ｶﾞ━━Σ(ﾟДﾟ|||)━━ﾝ!! The rest around this price is offering more towards 3D and this is like a once in a lifetime thing so OH YES BABY HIT JACKPOT YEAH. yes. 2D Animation is my second biggest passion other than Seiyuu and Manga haha.
But there's a catch; I have to pass their entrance exam. Yeap. they have one. Well the school isn't too big and I guess with the huge amount of applicants coming in every year, they had to have a way to filter the applicants.
But I'm extremely nervous to say the least. In fact I think I'd be decaffeinating bricks any moment now. o(>< )o ｏ( ><)oジタバタ I've never had my art evaluated in such a manner and neither had I had classes in art. So I'm pretty worried if I'd even be on par on the normal standard other applicants would've receive.
Neither have I been frequent in competitions either. The last time I was in an art related competition was a Junior Manga Competition and I merely got an "honorable" mention for "Best" concept. But that was highly due to the fact that I was the only 1 of 2 contestants out of 500+ contestants that submitted a shounen piece. But that story is for another day haha.
If you're wondering when the entrance exam is, take a wild guess ( ﾟ▽ﾟ)/
...........it's this coming Sunday.
HAHAOMG. I just feel like running in a hole somewhere haha. My hand trembles everytime I think about it, BUT!!!
I want this. really bad. I believe, by getting through and entering Nanyang, I can renew myself with the knowledge and new environment. It's a chance for me to really strive and focus solely my passion. I really want this, I mean to the point I can't imagine what I'll do if I don't pass. So I'm just gonna keep my chin up and do my best!! 八(＾□＾*) ﾀﾉﾑ I hope I make it through! I've been practicing with my sketches everyday, so hopefully it'll pay off. Wish me luck guys!!(*･∀･)／♡＼(･∀･*)
on the other hand, to keep myself relaxed, I stumbled upon the PERFECT therapeutic tool when I'm, stressed out or doing work. ♪(ﾉ´∀｀*)ﾉ
TADAAAAAAAAAAA! (￣▽￣)ノ＿彡☆バンバン！! the ultimate Hanaji fangirlism tool; Hitsuji de Oyasumi CD Collections!!☆
I stumbled across this ultimate relaxation tool whilst browsing through a few Otome Review Blogs and I think this is made of PURE GENIUS. Why and what actually is this you ask? Let me tell you hoho. (*≧▽≦)♪
The Hitsuji de Oyasumi Series is a series of CDs compromising of famous seiyuus (mostly male), counting sheeps (YES. SHEEPS.) To aid you to sleep better! How cool is that! I was very excited after hearing about it and was even more ecstatic to the fact that the first volume is of my two biggest seiyuu hero/crush to date; Akira Ishida and Hoshi Soichiro. I mean, these guys are responsible for making me so interested in seiyuu in the first place!! To have them actually lull me to sleep whilst counting sheep in the most SEXIEST of ways? AWESOME.
And not to mention, in between the 150th and 200th sheep, the seiyuu responsible of counting will ask if the listener is still awake and according to the type of character played, he will either tease, or tell you sleep soon. Where Akira Ishida is concerned, he played the yasashii character so he kept on counting even if the listener was awake, commenting that she tried her best in sleeping so praised he for it haha. But oh my lord, his voice was...........MAGNIFICENT to say the least.(*≧▽≦)♪
So far they've had an amazing cast joining in the fun including Daisuke Ono, Hiroshi Kamiya, Hikaru Midorikawa, Fukuyama Jun, Mamoru Miyano and many more!!
I haven't tried it when sleeping but I will try it later. So far it's never failed to relax me haha. I'm replaying it over and over and it actually helps me focus more! (ﾟｰﾟ)(｡_｡)ｳﾝｳﾝ Supposedly it's a sleeping aid but so far all the reviewers often comment that with such sexy voices, they ended up rolling in a pool of nosebleed rather than sleep haha!
This will definitely be on my list of things to buy if my trip to go to Japan comes through at the end of the year. Ｏ(≧∇≦)Ｏ I'm a firm believer of supporting original goods so I always buy the original goods once I have the money especially if I download. It's important to support the people that inspire me daily! So JAPAN, HERE I COME ☆
Anyways, wish me luck guys!! I'm gonna do my best and think positive for the Entrance Exam and hopefully I'll be updating here in February with AWESOME news!! Ｏ(≧∇≦)Ｏ がんばります！ファイト・・・・・・・・オオオオ！
Yesterday, I've had the opportunity to experience my first Otome Game; Starry☆Sky~in the Spring~. Since I'm a game n00b and all, installation and patching took ALOT of effort and probably half of my life haha but I managed to pull through.
Well I'm no game expert since I've haven't had much of an opportunity to experience /that/ many games throughout my years but this would be my review :D
Well since this is my first, I'm still not biased about it. As most know, I'm very critical when it comes to Shoujo materials; I tend to repel it if it's overly sappy or cliche. Or rather it depends on how cliche are the materials presented. I'm a firm believer of "Its not where the idea comes from, it's how it's used"
Overall, Starry☆Sky~in the Spring~ offers a tad more originality in the concept department than most Otome or Shoujo themed games (or materials) I've stumbled across so far. I love how the Constellations and Western Horoscopes are used to give the game a theme. I notice most Shoujo materials tend to deviate from the concept and theme once the shoujo scenes start rolling in and Starry☆Sky tends to keep those two well balanced.
In terms of characters, I'll give it slightly above average. There's so much you /can/ do I guess in terms of character building in an Otome Game. But at least the characters didn't reallly leave me saying "Ugh" or out in the cold so that's something. Usually I tend to barf in the sight of shoujo characters haha. I guess same can be said for the dialogues. In terms of originality the dialogues wouldn't be what I'd call original but I guess in terms of presentation, the cliche shoujo lines are executed in a manner that fits the given characters so it doesn't make you feel like rolling around in laughter or barfing yesterday's dinner haha. So props to HoneyBee for that.
Where the Artworks, Backgrounds are concerned, I'd give them a thumbs up. The backgrounds were stunning and character designs by the awesome Kazuaki were extremely drool worthy haha. Nothing for me to complain there. In fact I hope they'll have an artbook out so I can buy it haha. The art for the game is simply GORGEOUS.
Well over all I'll give this game 3/5 rating. It's pretty much sligghtly above average in terms of shoujo material for me. It's not below average either I feel, it just lacks the overall UMPH I usually look for in Shoujo material. After finishing the game, I didn't get that feeling of wanting to revisit certain scenes for it's awesome-ness or anything. I just felt like "Oh.... it's over" but that could be just me haha. Any previous games I've played with an Otome influence were often RPGs and all so the plot was heavier and longer. So probably that influenced my judgement in plot and whatnot.
But overall would I recommend this game? Yes I would. It's an awesome game to just sit back and relief stress from daily life. The easy feeling pacing of the game will help you relax and indulge in the graphics.
I hope to play the other 4 parts soon. Hopefully the different range of men in the other games will give me a broader perspective of the game. (￣▽￣)ノ
My Deviantart Account has been giving me problems these past few days. At first it was denying me from entering my own page (wth right?) and now it's giving me this:
graaah. it's getting on my nerves lawl ;;;; I was editing the KAMCAO devART page too ... (ﾟｰﾟ)(｡_｡)ｳﾝｳﾝ
just thought that today was a beautiful day as I'm sitting down reading my motivational materials and my Baccano! soundtrack playing the smooth jazz rifts in the background so my hand itched to update on that haha. a few snapshots of my desk and stuff around it ♥
what I'm currently reading and listening to. ♪(ﾉ´∀｀*)ﾉ Loving Baccano! soundtrack to pieces! It's extremely relaxing. I'll be sure to add that to my collection of ost someday. I do this everyday to prep myself for work and relax my mind. Oh and this book is awesome. a definite recommended read ☆
my mum bought me this brown polka dotted water tumbler! (*≧▽≦)♪ Too cute for words. Though I think it was quite pricey so thanks mum!
I'll leave you guys with this chibi Shinjiro I'm drawing haha. Thinking of doing Persona 3 Portable Stickers or badges. (either 1 not both). Which ones you think I should go for? (*･∀･)／♡
currently going through a HUGE Baccano! phase. Initially watched this series in Japanese then rewatched the whole thing in English. I LOVE THEM BOTH TO PIECES <3<3 both sides had a marvellous and sexy cast! I was definitely blown away at all the seiyuu ear-candy present in the short 16 episodes. (WE NEED MOAR LAWL!) Ｏ(≧∇≦)Ｏ
Even though the story circulates around the concept that "no one is really a main character of the series" thus having a cast of characters rich with individual concepts, it didn't make it hard for you to relate or like them. (ﾟｰﾟ)(｡_｡)ｳﾝｳﾝ In fact mine would definitely be Claire Stanfield aka Vino aka Rail Tracer aka Felix Walken. LAWL. you have to watch the series to get it BUT HE'S TOO AWESOME ♥
I was initially kinda sad that his character didn't get too much fleshing out (I mean, it /was/ meant to be a 13 episode series and it had a HUGE cast), but I was thrilled to discover that they released an extra 3 episode OVA with the DVD release (on the TOP of my to buy list now). (*≧▽≦)♪ And needless to say Vino had a huge chunk of the limelight this time. ♥♥
Anyways enough with my fangirlism ranting haha. （￣ー￣）ニヤリ For those who haven't watch, it's a huge recommendation. Though be forewarned, it's no mainstream material so alot of talking, character exploring and plot development. So not too much fancy moves, intact characters and whatnot. But a definite recommend if you love Mafia themed stories. ♪(ﾉ´∀｀*)ﾉ
Here is my current wallpaper decorated with Vino's Rail Tracer mode. HE'S TOO SEXY IN THIS MODE OKAY. lawl!! oh and ignore the little fujoshi joke at the bottom there. oh and no, this pic does not belong to me (*･∀･)／♡＼(･∀･*)
Though I hope I get to whip up a few Baccano! themed sketches soon! ♥ Have a great day guys!
a little something I did for the KAMCAO website some time ago. Background image is credited to: 憂雨
Good Evening Guys! ( ﾟ▽ﾟ)/ｺﾝﾊﾞﾝﾊ
Firstly I'd like to thank all my wonderful friends and GAR members that commented on my previous post and even hand me some good old advice that got me looking forward and running again. (*≧▽≦)♪ I'm so blessed to have such wonderful friends that kick me in the butt and pat my head at the right moments. YOSH! I shall do my best!! Thank you to all my senpai-tachis for surrounding me with your warmth!
So how you guys like the new banner and color scheme? ♪(ﾉ´∀｀*)ﾉAfter reading through all the heart felt comments yesterday at my previous post, I thought that the theme ”ぬくもり” or "Warmth" would be a wonderful theme to start on for the year 2011 ☆
So I picked out an illustration that I did that fits the theme best and played around with it in Photoshop and VOILA! Not too shabby right? Ｏ(≧∇≦)Ｏ Oh and the Banner's extra brush is also the same as the background used for above's illustration so credit goes to the awesome artist. I even edited the Font Colors to match the illustration and feel ♡
Other than that, I also added new songs to the playlist on the right so feel free to play whenever you like! ☆ The first song is put as commemoration of the website's current theme and one of my current favourites; "ぬくもり" (Nukumori) by HOME MADE KAZOKU. This song never fails to keep me calm everytime I turn it on. (ﾟｰﾟ)(｡_｡)ｳﾝｳﾝ It's simply wondrous, the effect of the right songs has on your mental state. Other than that, I added "Hello Again~昔からある場所" by JUJU, "Break a Road" by Mamoru Miyano (a recommended listen!) and kept "ふたりごと" by RADWIMPS because I love it too much still. (*･∀･)／♡
I'm slowly getting productive again. I found some Gurren Lagann fanart that I did last year and gonna plan to complete a few before I go to KL again next weekend so I can scan them and upload them here 八(＾□＾*) がんばります！
Let me know what you think 'bout the new look of the blog yeah? (*･∀･)／♡＼(･∀･*)
The Zhang Brothers and Nadjwa having fun on new years days. Happy New Years guys! :D
Hey guys!
slight rant entry so long words and no pics sorry :X do turn away if it annoys you yeah?
been piped up and busy so barely managed to have much time to myself. :D things didn't stop getting busy from weeks before AFA X ; with the prints and preparations. Not to mention had a slight dilemma with having less than RM50 travelling to Singapore haha. Anyways, with the excitement over the weekend of AFA X, the moment we touched down in Malaysia, I found myself with a 3 day fever haha.
Thanks to my good friend, Germaine and "changing shifts in having fever" with my sister, I recovered soon but dived again into work when I heard about a certain publishing companies' Audition announced just 1 month before the deadline. It was an audtion made for manga and opened for international artists. I didn't think twice and dove right in. I didn't even hesitated in the short time period given.
But a chat with a good friend of mine did make me questions my methods in diving into work so fast. He did mention that I was "taking the world on my shoulders" by doing this and frankly, I didn't think that it was that big a deal. If I get it, I get it. If I don't better luck next time...right?
Well as weeks rolled over, I speed up the production process. With the help of my sister cum manga assistant, we were doubling our work pace but the window of opportunity is closing fast. We even had a local convention that weekend so we shifted our work place to our KL apartment. It was treacherous, draining and very taxing on our physical and mental state.
Everytime I feel like throwing in the towel, I'd remember what many told me about my current state in work and I'd burn with a feeling to succeed. To prove them wrong. They'd always mention how when I plan something big, it'll always fall short before coming to light. Well I was determined to prove that, that isn't the case. After all no matter how much effort I put into something, if the result doesn't show, there isn't much to be proud off right?
With these thoughts in mind, I tolled myself to finish the 42 page manga, with the undying support of many of my gar membered friends like Germaine, Iwashi and my sister. Even with my family granting us to stay in KL for an extra week and more to get it done, chances of finishing it slowed down more and more. And as the days passed by, so did the pressure built with the manga.
I had to get everything done in KL before heading back to Ipoh to courier the finishing product since I don't have a scanner big enough to scan my manga papers because of the size. The only place I knew that didn't charge so much was the printers we visit everytime we print stuff for conventions.
And plus, since the deadline was so tight, I was left with only a strict amount of days to ink and scan then return home to ipoh to do minor editing and toning then ship it off to New York in time for the deadline. Apparently the courier needs maximum of 5 days in case of delay to get it there in time. Which means if I don't get the manga done by the 27th or 28th then I won't have enough time to get it there. Even though we had more than half to go, I and my sister refused to give in. The thought of defeat was far to bitter for us to taste even though it seemed all to likely.
On the morning of the 27th December 2010, I and my sister tirelessly inked all night long. Our hands hurt from applying pressure onto our inking pens. The pain shot up all the way to our elbows and without a wink of sleep from the night before, our heads start to scream in pain and our eyes feel heavy. 27th December by the way was the birthday of my youngest sister. And for those who knows me well, I do adore her very much.
As the clock in our living room tolled onto 8 AM, I turned to my sister who was tirelessly inking a page on a carton box on the living room floor. her hands were moving vigorously despite the obvious tire on her face.
"I think.. it's enough" I finally croaked. My sister looked at me with a solemn look on her face. I was thinking she was probably far to tired to show any range of emotions at that point. "It's Iffah's birthday. I think, we should go home." I could see that she was going to object, but she stopped at the sight of tears streaming down my face. She simply hugged me and say "It's ok. let's go home"
I'm not too sure why I cried much myself but I'm not the sort of person to easily tear up when it comes to things like these. All I knew was that I set out a goal for something I really wanted and I failed. It's not so much the contract of the publishing company I wanted so much but rather the fact that I've completed something that I've put my heart and soul into. But I guess somethings are not meant to be.
So we returned home to Ipoh where we enjoyed my sister's birthdays but currently I still haven't drawn anything worthwhile let alone touch the manga since then. I'm not sure if it's the post battle worn blues or just the fact that I drew too much in such a short period of time but for now it's getting harder and harder to draw things. Its as if I'm being hit with an artist block but not quite. like.. a half block.. if that makes any sense haha.
And by not being able to draw, I discover I'm pretty much useless everywhere else. I don't have any other skill I can seem to use to benefit others other than drawing. Made me think though, if I can't achieve my dreams in drawing, would I be as loved and reliable to others as I am now? I mean, I'm no Mother Theresa to be sure. But even to the handful of people who depend on me, would I be dependable to them as little as I do now?
I have my entrance exam to the Nanyang Academy in a couple of weeks and in my current state I'm not sure if I can score, let alone pass. I've never tested my skills is one and I doubt my level of art is equivalent even to the normal standard there.
So I'm slowly letting my head cool for now and figure things out. I don't know anyway else to handle it other than that now haha. Would appreciate some suggestions tho m(_ _)m
For now it seems, reading motivational books and keeping myself calm with new songs and positive messaged shows and videoclips tend to do the trick. I'm slowly pep talking myself into finishing the manga. now with 10 pages to go and plenty to beta, I hope it comes soon.
Hopefully I can finish the manga before my exam though I'm not too sure what I'm going to do with it now that the deadline is way passed. My parents and several friends suggested that I send it in anyways but I'm rethinking about that. We'll see. I mean, I know it'll be a 0.0000006% chance that they'll consider or even take a look at it if I send it this late but who knows. We'll see.
I do miss my friends though. Dearly. It seems that as I got to see them once for the past 2 months has only served to make me miss them more haha. It seems I depend too much on the little time we spend together in motivating me in my daily life haha. But I guess that's how much I love them (;´ρ`)
Well over all in all, I'll be doing my best to get back on the bandwagon and improve further for 2011!! がんばります！ファイトオオオオオオ！！( ﾟ▽ﾟ)/
here's a little reward for you who stuck through my post today haha. here's the list of songs I use to relax myself lately <3 Hope you guys enjoy it ;DDD
I am a freelancing comic artist / entrepreneur out here to make aspirations a reality. Born on this tiny strip of land called Malaysia, I'm striving hard to make it out here in the harsh realities of life. Currently an avid stalker of anything that has huge boosters, karaoke and manly talk.
The 3 main characters of Ginryu; (from left) Ryu, Sakuya and Sekara. I saw one of my favourite artists, Demi-luv do a similar concept so I thought it'd be fun to try it out too. ( ﾟヮﾟ) Full credit of the concept goes to her. And I thought their brief "character descriptions" above them can be some sort of a tagline for the series whenever I do illustrations. (Kinda like Gensoumaden Saiyuki) So far, I'm pretty happy with them.
Was playing around in Photoshop with Ryu's lineart. 
