Disney Princess Keychains!

I've never met this girl in real life, but I can honestly say that Joanne is one of the sweetest girls I've known. ^^ Joanne is a self-proclaimed fan of my drawings heehee and she's one of my nicest customers ever too (I do commissioned artworks, in case you were wondering).

Anyway, here's the story! Just today, I received a package from Joanne and inside were these super duper cute Disney Princess keychains! According to her, this was supposed to be a birthday gift, but it came in really late (no worries at all Joanne!). She also said that these looked very much like my drawings and that these fit me. And guess what? I absolutely love it!!!

My favorite here is Jasmine, because of her pants which are all POOFY! Haha! They're all so adorable!! I can't decide where to place them for the world to see, so for the meantime, I'll just display them on my shelf! Ack! They all look so perfect! Thanks for this Joanne, these are really great and I really appreciate them! Hope you'll always keep in touch. Good luck with your work, I know you've been busy!

Walt Disney Classics Collection

The Walt Disney Classics Collection (WDCC) is a collection of wonderfully done sculptures of different characters and scenes from the various Disney movies.... AND I LOVE THEM! Just looking at pictures of the sculptures makes my heart melt (with crazy happiness because they are so beautiful, and with envy because they're so expensive). I have an entire folder in my desktop dedicated to just pictures of the hundreds of sculptures and I ogle at their beauty. I use them as references for my drawings from time to time as well. They're just so good...! Anyway, Here are some of my favorite pieces. I'd buy them all if only I were rich. Haha.

My absolute favorite is the Indian scene of Peter Pan. It's so cuuute! And Peter Pan's my favorite Disney movie as well (next comes Mulan and Aladdin). Wendy John and Michael's positions look so natural here and it's amazing. Also Tiger Lily, look at her, the way she's positioned, you almost actually believe that she's really dancing. The craftsmanship is amazing. I like the totem pole at the back as well. Heehee and the color scheme also! Heck, I love everything about it. It's so perfect!

Another one is the Pinocchio set, one with Gepetto working on Pinocchio at his toy shop. I haven't seen the movie for the longest time but the detail in this piece is just perfect. I love the wood was done, and the details on the shelves and the other props (like the cute clock) are just so pretty. I love how the color red isn't so saturated here. It makes the colors blend well. The tone is just perfect and nothing seems out of place. The warm colors make it all so inviting, as though you'd like very much to join the scene. At least that's how I feel about it . Heehee.


Next one's the model of Cinderella's first dress. I remember when I was kid, I really hated the part when the evil step sisters ruined Cinderella's pink dress because I honestly loved her look more when she had that dress on rather than the blue silver one that the Fairy Godmother conjured up. I love this pink dress, it reminds me of a very delicious cake! Look at the little birds with the ribbons ^^. Heehee. So cute. The one on the right side, with Cinderella holding her dress, is so pretty! Her expression is so cute, I love it. She really looks so happy. And the way the dress 'swings' is so o__o. How do they do it?!

I love the set versions and another pretty one is this Beauty and the Beast set, just after the curse was broken. I love that scene. The human forms of the characters were done so nicely heehee, they all look so cute still even when they transformed already. Cogsworth and Lumiere are the best turn-outs. I love their human outfit. It's so clock and candle ish still. Haha! Anyway, like before, the movement is depicted so well in this scene too, especially in Belle. I like how they drew the french maid's costume. Sexy but not slutty. lol. Still very Disney!

And the last one that I'm gonna post here is this Mulan one. Again, movement. But what I love most about this is the color scheme that they used... and Mulan's costume. I'm glad they didn't do the army costume, I honestly hate her look there. So manly (yes, I know that was the point of it but I still didn't like it). The colors aren't so bright but they still managed to make it look lively. I really love this piece. Mulan looks great here.

One other favorite set of mine is one with Alice having a tea party. I'm not gonna place a picture here anymore because the entry looks super crowded already haha. But it's one heck of a design really. Go look for it. It's so cute. Reminds me of my Polly Pockets. It's super colorful too!! And you know how much I adore color!!

The sculptors for these collections are really amazing. I admire their skills. Sculpting isn't really one of the art forms that I know how to appreciate but expert or not, anyone can appreciate the sheer beauty of these pieces, and I'm sure to that you'll agree.

I have only seen these in real life once, and that was in Hobbes & Landes at Serendra if I'm not mistaken. And only once because, I rarely go to Serendra(I'm always at Rockwell, haha, you'll see me there every Sunday if you frequent the mall). I want to visit that place again, and I will soon (whenever I'm not at Rockwell, lol). They're such eye candies!!

You can see so much more from this site (Thanks for the link Mari!) http://www.wdccduckman.com/ Check them out, you'll be inspired (that is, if you admire amazing creativity and/or adore Disney haha)!

Be Be Your Love

Be Be Your Love is a song by Rachael Yamagata from her great album Happenstance. My favorite of hers has always been "Paper Doll" but for the past weeks I've been playing THIS song over and over again. And no, of course not, it has nothing to do about how I'm feeling right now (sarcastic obviously).

About the drawing:

This drawing on the right was a doodle I did during Economics class (at 7:30 am, my brain is still dead), that's why it's sketchy. I was just doodling using my black pen, with the song playing in my head, and had no plans originally to photoshop it whatsoever. I just drew how I felt like at that time. It has no concept --- just two people standing side by side.

I photoshopped it later that day to see if I could pull of a sketchy style. Took a background somewhere (I honestly forgot where, if you are responsible for this please let me know so I can give due credit). Had a hard time deciding over the patter and colors but hmm, I personally like the way it ended up.

The top I was wearing that day is similar to that 'random girl' *ahem* in the drawing, only mine was pink and white. And as for the 'random guy' *ahem*, well, he's just looking cute with his clean cut look of collared shirt and closed shoes.

He always looks cute.

About the song:

These are the lyrics to the song. The chorus just repeats over and over again, so I didn't post the latter part anymore. But gosh, the chorus. THE CHORUS! IT WAS MADE FOR ME!

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If I could take you away
Pretend I was queen
What would you say
Would you think I'm unreal
'Cause everybody's got their way I should feel

Everybody's talking how I, can't, can't be your love
But I want, want, want to be your love
Want to be your love, for real
Everybody's talking how I, can't, can't be your love
But I want, want, want to be your love
Want to be your love for real
Want to be your everything

Everything...

Everything's falling, and I am included in that
Oh, how I try to be just okay
Yeah, but all I ever really wanted
Was a little piece of you

And everybody's talking how I, can't, can't be your love
But I want, want, want to be your love
Want to be your love, for real
Everybody's talking how I, can't, can't be your love
But I want, want, want to be your love
Want to be your love for real

Everything will be alright
If you just stay the night
Please, sir, don't you walk away, don't you walk away, don't you walk away
Please, sir, don't you walk away, don't you walk away, don't you walk away

---

Yes It's an emo song. Yes this is a happy blog. Yes this is a happy post. No it's not ironic. I am happy about this! Not because I can't can't be his love, but because ... I'm just happy about this feeling that I'm feeling.

How can I go emo over someone who says 'hello' to me in such a cute way?

Posh Tots

I came across Posh Tots (see their website at http://www.poshtots.com) from a magazine article around a year ago (or more). If this is your first introduction to the site/shop, then I bet you will shriek (just as I did) once you take your first look at the front page. They hold the best and most expensive children's furniture ever. Here are some of the things that I really loved.

The first ever Posh Tots item I came across with was this Cinderella Coach bed (yes, it is a true bed bed, a bed where you can sleep, a true bed bed) and it is still by far, my favorite item from their entire shop. It's so pretty! If you look at it from a practical point of view, it doesn't really work out that well, I admit, because of it's shape; Like... where are you gonna put it? It would look awkward anywhere unless you place it in the center, but if you place it in the center, you can't maximize your space, etc etc). Anyway, I still LOVE THIS! I'd love to have a bed like this. Then I'd really feel like a princess, even before I dream!



These are sample of the different knobs that they have. They have the most colorful and unique knobs ever! Heehee. I WANT KNOBS LIKE THESE (ok, I want all their items, but yeah... i had to emphasize that). I've semi decided that my yet-to-exist daughter's bedroom would be pink white yellow and green. Ok... guys would be afraid to date me now because of my very detailed future life plan. Moving on...

Another cute thing is this Whimsical Shoe Armoire! It is also oddly shaped like the coach bed and like the coach bed, you'll have a hard time positioning it, but who cares?! It's so adorable! Haha!

I think what makes Posh Tots so special to me is the fact that they make a lot of fairytale themed furnitures. Being the big little girl that I am, I can't help but just freak (in a good way) at the sight of them. They have the best fairytale themed stuff ever and not only that, but also other themed things like pirates, butterflies, etc. They're so cute. I'd love to tell you in detail all the items that I love from their site, but that would take too much space. Anyway, I'm sure you'll look at their site anyway, so enjoy. But you know what will really surprise you? The best part of it all? Their playhouses. Ha! I bet, you haven't seen playHOUSES like these before! Look at those Victorian Playhouses! They could practically live there! So much for my Little Tikes!

(edit at 5:54pm: Haha, I just re-read my post and I sound like someone so excited and so much in a hurry.)

Polly Pocket

When I was younger, I absolutely loved Polly Pockets. I'd work really hard at school so that when I get an honor, I could guiltlessly ask my parents to buy me a new set. I'd have friends over and ask them to bring their own Polly Pocket sets so that we can all combine them and as though create an alternate world. It was also what I would ask for my birthday or as Christmas gifts.

I still remember my first three Polly Pockets ever. The very first one was a pink heart shaped set (which when I researched was a 1989 set) with three doll pieces; polly, a dog and a cat. I lost the original cat now, but I was able to find another cat replacement. The second one was a blue flower shaped set and I couldn't remember if it was one of my aunts who gave it to me, or if I got it from a Christmas party at my pre-school. It was a garden themed set, with a bird on the background even (on the stickers of course). The third one was another pink heart but the shade of pink this time is darker. It was a winter cottage styled set and I think this was my favorite out of the three. It had a reindeer, a snowman and a cute Polly in winter clothes. But the Polly piece was broken in two already, and I couldn't find it anymore.

So over the years I collected more; from people's gifts and from my rightfully earned prizes. Polly Pockets also became more complex in design and back then, I was amazed at this. One of my all time favorite sets is this Winter set that I have, which is shaped like a storybook when closed but when opened, it's so pretty and sparkly that you just couldn't help but stare at it for a long time. I also liked this horse show set (which I have no idea where I got from, I'm just sure I didn't buy it) because the Polly riding a horse in the middle would even spin and you could press a sound button so that there would be horse sounds. Heeehee. It's so cute! I also had this treasure chest design set. It was so nice. Polly and her friends could swim and dive. And you can make Polly stand on this balcony thing, as though watching her friends in the pool. It's so cuteeeee!

Then they started the magnet moving Polly thing sets. The first one was extremely nice. Three sets combined in one huge stage and you can move Polly around. I had that (I asked it for Christmas) and I remember spending so much time playing with it. It was their breakthrough design I think, and sadly, it was also one of their last good sets to ever be made again. And it was also the hardest to clean... mm, moving on.

I don't know, maybe I just really grew older, but after buying that huge magnet Polly set, I only bought one last set (a smaller magnet Polly but with a water park theme). The last set I had was I think one of their last good designs because after that, whenever I stopped by to look at toy stores, the latest Polly Pockets just don't look like Polly Pockets anymore! It was like a miniature sized hard plastic-ed Barbie doll with separate play things and moveable objects. The true essence of the original Polly Pockets was gone and it sucks. No more pocket sized playsets and inch tall dolls. I would honestly say that I loved the toys back in my generation better than the ones now. The Bratz dolls, for example, are really odd... as though there's a huge marketing plot behind it to turn all young girls into sluts at an early age. And the Barbie dolls back then were much more simpler and there weren't so many Barbie characters. Now you can make a whole army of Barbie and her friends. I liked our old toys, the simpler Barbies, Air Dancers, Polly Pockets, and those other dolls which I forgot the names of (there's this one wherein there's a princess inside a flower and the flower opens and closes... haha, I'll find out what that's called). And oh my gosh, I just found out that there's an Air Dancers cartoon?! What the hell man! Haha.

I miss the good ol' Polly Pockets. I guess I'll have to scrounge the net, flee markets and other such places so that I can add more to my collection. They look so pretty, especially in pictures, and it would be a shame not to appreciate them for their true beauty.

Before and After Pictures

I was looking through my old photo albums because I wanted to scan some childhood pictures which I can post here. At first I was just pulling out pictures of my past Disney cakes (they were plentiful, mind you haha), but then I started to notice something eerily familiar about a lot of pictures. Take a look at these three sets, and I think you'll get what I mean... Just a note, I did NOT do this in purpose (by this, meaning, actually take pictures of my present self copying my kid pictures). I really just saw the similarities the other day. Everything is just coincidental. Really.

MICKEY MAN

A friend of mine once told me that I was "born a Mickey Man". He gave that statement when I told him that I just realized that the first words I ever spelled were MICKEY and MOUSE because of that Mickey Mouse Marching Song. Haha! Oh, sure, I may not know I was spelling then (or maybe I did, you'll never know), but I still SPELLED, technically. M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E! Mickey Mouse! ^^

My brothers laughed when they saw this set. Look at my extraordinarily happy expression on both! And the pose! The pose! It's almost the same even! Haha! I don't think I still have that Mickey hat. Boo.

BLUE RIBBON

Everybody who's met me in person know that I always (ALWAYS) wear a ribbon on my hair. I have a bunch of ribbons of all colors and friends who visit my room alway point to my ribbon rack thing and some even take pictures (lol). Yes, it's one of the main attractions in my room. Anyway...

I did NOT know that I used to wear ribbons when I was little too! I remembered wearing headbands, but not really ribbons. I love this kiddie pic because the hair looks exactly like my present hair (only my bangs are a little more styled now). I showed that childhood picture to my friends before and the first thing they'd say was always "Oh my god, you were wearing ribbons already then?!" Hahahaha...!

WACKY BIRTHDAY PICS

One other well-known Sheena fact, I love doing wacky pictures! Especially wacky pics with my fingers in a 'peace sign', Japanese style! And I recently just got my brothers into having wacky pictures with me. My mom hates it. Haha. But I hate not being happy in pictures. Doing wacky poses always make you look so happy! Look at our childhood picture!!

And if you noticed (It's more unnoticeable on the left pic), both pics were taken from my birthdays! Yey! Look at the cakes (I'll post a more detailed picture of the kiddie cake)! And we're on the same places as well. Heehee. Now you can see how the three of us looked back then.

I think I was nearing my awkward stage during that time on my kid pic. That explains my weird hair...

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NowI have only one thing to say: some things never really change, now do they?

My Disney DVD Collection

Fake DVD's are so rampant here in the Philippines that it does not even SEEM like a crime anymore to buy them. You can buy SO many movies for only 50php (what's that, less than a dollar now?) and the quality of most of them (that is, if you know how to ask and where to look) is GREAT; the subtitles are correct, the pictures are clear, audio is wonderful, it's PERFECT. Perfectly illegally as well. Sure the government raids fake dvd hotspots once in a while, but they resume their activities almost immediately. You can't blame anyone for wanting to purchase these fake dvds when the copies are as good as the original and when the original costs more than 10 times the price of the fake one! Anyway, I could go on about this, but I am not blogging here to rant about the way some systems work in the Philippines. Moving on!

So as you've probably guessed, yes, I admit to buying unoriginal (note the euphemism) movies for 50php at Metrowalk. I have an odd sort of philosophy when it comes to this. I believe in buying the original only of those movies that you truly truly love; those movies worth spending the extra cash on even for just those short behind the scene clips that they can't include in the fake ones, those movies wherein you know that the people behind it really really gave their hearts out for the film. Not many movies have those qualities, and so, I do not own a lot of original dvds. Enough said.

But I do have an original dvd's collection and this includes the Lord of the Rings Trilogy (I have the boxed extended versions), Star Wars 1-6 (but I'm currently lacking the 2nd movie still), the Harry Potter series (though it does not really fall so much on the categories I mentioned above, Harry Potter is something I love so, there), and of course, my Disney collection.

The thing I love most about Disney dvd's is that they release platinum, special, gold and/or two-disc editions of some of the movies. The best ones I've watched were those of Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast because they had entire sections truly devoted to the making of the movies and the commentaries were not at all boring to watch. I would always prefer to get the two disc edition, but on some cases, I've settled for the single disc, like my Cinderella and Alice in Wonderland dvd's.

But you have to understand that original dvd's here aren't really cheap. The usual two discs (or even one discs) cost 750php, roughly $15 up. Luckily (or unluckily) though, because of the rampant selling of fake dvd's the companies here are forced to slash prices off. Disney dvd's are always on the slashed off list. From 750php, they'd be reduced to 299php ($6), yes, even those special editioned copies! This is when I buy them! And since they would usually go back up, you have to keep a look out when they'd start marking them down again.

Collecting Disney dvd's (or any sort of dvd for that matter) isn't really that easy, or at least, I don't want to think that it is. It's always happy to go to a store, find that they've lowered prices, and scrounge for those title that you're looking for. And since, not all Disney titles are sold here in the Philippines (I think I've memorized even what titles are sold on which shop -__-), I still have to buy some online, but I don't do this often. The only ones I bought online are Peter Pan and Little Mermaid, and whenever I buy online, I use the money I earn from doing commissions ^^, and that makes it even more rewarding. And of course, since Disney wants to create even more hype (hype is what I'd like to think they're making, not profit), they've released only limited editions of some titles (like Snow White and Sleeping Beauty) and you'd have to go looking for these copies at various collectors shops. I heard once that they had dvd's which they sell only in Disneyland Parks, but I forgot what titles those were.

So let's list what I have so far:
1. Aladdin
2. Alice in Wonderland
3. Beauty and the Beast
4. Cinderella
5. Hercules
6. Little Mermaid
7. Peter Pan
8. Pocahontas
9. Tarzan

So you're probably asking (if you haven't realized already) how I watch the other films? From unoriginal copies, I'm afraid. While I'm still waiting to acquire the other titles, I've settled myself on watching the films on fake dvd's, but I can assure you that it is only temporary. Once I get my hands on those real ones, bye bye to my old copies!

It may take me a little more time to complete my collection (I have like... 20+ more to go? haha) but that's the fun of it! Disney, release those platinum editions now!

On Birthday Cakes

This is my 18th birthday cake (last year) ! Pics below are from my 19th, just yesterday July 31

Birthdays come only once a year, and the best part about birthdays? The cake, of course!

Since I was a kid, I always looked forward to birthdays (July 31st!) because of the cake design. I've had all sorts of wonderful characters in my birthday cakes such as Cinderella, Little Mermaid and even the Powerpuff Girls. I'd always be the one to choose the design and it would always make me super happy!

As years pass, the cake designs on my cake have been changing as well. No more silly figurines. No more extra lollipop candies on a stick. Well, at least, that's what they wanted me to have. So for the next few years, I would oblige to having simple (but nummy) strawberry cakes. No more special toys for me. I don't remember much about those birthdays.

Now doesn't that say something?

Then I realized that just because we're growing older, doesn't mean we have to grow up. Who ever said that I had to stop liking cartoons once I reach 18? Whoever said that I couldn't have pink fluffy cakes with Disney Princesses on top anymore?

My childhood is something I wouldn't give up so easily. I might end up not giving it up at all. But that's ok. Because being a kid at heart can bring you a lot of happiness in life. Remember how it was to be carefree and alive; when nobody cared how long you'd spend on your dollhouse? Or when the only decision you had to face was which outfit to have your Barbie wear? It was the most joyous feeling. I can still remember a lot about those times. Sometimes, people ask me how I can remember those little things from way before when I was still a child, and not remember what I just said a few minutes ago. It's quite simple actually. Those memories stuck because they meant something to me. My Aladdin playset was more than just a stupid toy; I've had countless adventures and struggles (the way I had to switch Genie's head all the time. phew!) with it, and by doing so, I not only kept myself busy, but allowed my imagination to flow.

People dread birthdays as they grow older because they know that they are just that: getting older. But do we really age with time? Do the number of candles in our cake tell us how old (or young) we really are? Are years even important in the end? You already know, of course, that the answer to that is that it does not. Age is merely a number. In some other planets, you could be a million years old already (taking into account the number of revolutions it takes to the sun) and still it makes no difference. What matters is how we are inside; how we still see things, how we feel and how we are like. You don't count in days but in dreams. It doesn't matter how many days have passed, what matters is how many dreams you've realized.

And you know what's the best part about birthday cakes? You get to wish every time you blow the candles out.

*Edit August 2: I've been looking at past photos and found loads of pictures of my past cakes. I want to share them here but I'll just post a new blog for that. Keep a look out!*

*Edit November 30: I keep on forgetting to put a link here. Here's an entry about my childhood cakes!*