Featured Artist :: Lunabee

This week's featured artist is Lunabee!

Senioritis: Hey Lunabee, thanks for sitting down with us. Where are you from?
Lunabee: Newcastle, UK

Senioritis: Can you tell us a little about yourself please?
Lunabee: I am an illustrator with a love of creating cute characters with a darker side to them. I illustrate digitally with my trusty wacom tablet and mac and I also paint toys which I have been doing for just over a year.
Senioritis: Very cool! We love your characters and your custom toy work. We have yet to try using a tablet but would love to pick one up at some point; looks like much more fun than a mouse ;)

Senioritis: Marlon Brando: Streetcar Named Desire or the Godfather?
Lunabee: Either, I'm not a fan!



Senioritis: Lunabee, how would you describe your work to someone who has never seen it before?
Lunabee: Cute, Creepy, Fluffy, and Bright.

Senioritis: What's the best business tip you have ever received and who gave it to you?
Lunabee: My Dad who told me, in the nicest way possible, to 'toughen up kid' when I first started out with my design/illustration business. I think there's a fine line between being nice and being walked over.
Senioritis: Excellent tip indeed and I think it's something we all need to be reminded of every now and then.



Senioritis: Lunabee, what's your favorite sport to either watch or play?
Lunabee: I love cycling but I don't have the patience to sit watching sport, I'd rather be off doing something creative.
Senioritis: Interesting point. I find that even when I'm watching some type of sporting event I usually have my laptop in front of me and I'm working on something.

Senioritis: Chevy Chase: Fletch or Three Amigos
Lunabee: I adore Chevy Chase. I'd prefer National Lampoons Christmas Vacation but Fletch if I have to choose between these two :)
Senioritis: We would go with Fletch as well & all of the Vacation movies are classics. Chevy Chase is a comedic genius!

Senioritis: Do you have a favorite quote?
Lunabee: 'All I can do is be me, whoever that is' - Bob Dylan
Senioritis: Ahh yes, the wisdom of Mr. Dylan!



Senioritis: If you could jump in the DeLorean and go back in time; what’s one thing you would do differently in your business?
Lunabee: Speaking solely for the 'toy painting' side of my business, I really don't think I would change anything. It's been a steady learning curve that I am still on and I'm enjoying every minute of it. I've probably made a few errors of judgement along the way but I've learned from them and that’s the most important thing.
Senioritis: When we first got into collecting vinyl we tried to make a custom and man was it a disaster. We have since given up on the custom side and stick to the collecting side ;) I'm not sure people truly appreciate how much time, energy, and effort goes into designing and painting pieces that are sometimes no bigger than the palm of your hand. We think your designs rock and we're glad to hear you're still enjoying the process!

Senioritis: If the $100 bill needed a redesign, who would you put on it?
Lunabee: Well being from the UK I'd feel pretty guilty having it be my choice but if it was I think I would have to go for Bob Dylan. I am a massive fan of his music and him as a person; he is utterly inspirational to me. It’s a very personal choice so I'm not sure everyone would be happy with that!
Senioritis: It's ok Lunabee, there are quite a few Dylan fans on this side of the pond who we're sure would have no objection ;)

Senioritis: Where can we find you on the web?
Lunabee: lunabee.co.uk is where you can find any toys I have up for sale. I try to ensure that I get 1 -2 toys up a month at least :) The lovely TOYSREVIL blog is normally very much on top of all my releases and news. I also have my twitter account which I use daily to keep my followers up to date on what I'm working on.



Senioritis: James Bond: Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Pierce Brosnan, or Daniel Craig?
Lunabee: Daniel Craig all the way, Bad ass Bond is awesome!
Senioritis: While many of our featured artists are partial towards Mr. Connery, we're with you. While we appreciate all Bond films and actors we're a bit partial towards the newer films with Daniel Craig. The newer Aston Martins aren't too shabby either ;)

Senioritis: Any shoutouts Lunabee?
Lunabee: Huge thank you to my very good friend Cris Rose for getting me involved in the whole toy customizing scene in the first place, I wouldn't be doing any of this without his guidance and support. :) Also a shoutout to my favorite artist 64colors who constantly inspire and amaze me with their work!

Thanks for taking the time to sit down with us and let us know a bit more about the person behind Lunabee's awesome creations. We wish you continued success and look forward to seeing your new designs. Please swing by Lunabee's site to check out her new LE skelanimal release and pick up some of her sweet work!

The Week That Was (Senioritis Style)

Happy Sunday everyone! As you may have noticed (or maybe not), we did not have a Friday Finds segment this past week. This was due to the fact that 2/3 of senioritis was doing some exploring in lovely Vermont and internet access was a bit on the spotty side. We will make it up to you, our wonderful readers, by bringing you an awesome Vermont inspired Friday Finds segment next week; but for now we leave you with the week that was.

We have family in the Boston area so we made a quick stop on our way to Vermont. While in Beantown we stumbled across a Party City (or something similar) and thought they might have some supplies we could use. No supplies but my sister thought it was a good photo opp to pay tribute to Famous Senior Groucho Marx. It didn't feel right without the cigar or mustache but Groucho, we salute you! (If you look closely you'll catch a glimpse of what's coming next at senioritis.)



Enough horsing around, off to Vermont. Our ultimate destination was South Royalton which Vermonters call the little green city that never sleeps (ok, I might have made that up). En route to South Royalton we found Queechee.

Queechee is most commonly known for it's Gorge, which is sometimes referred to as the mini Grand Canyon (that one I did not make up), but we found some other really cool stuff there as well.

The first of our findings in Queechee was an awesome little diner:



What a cool spot, the perfect throwback diner. It was like walking into a time warp. I went with the farmer's breakfast and it did not disappoint! 2 eggs, 2 french toast, ham, homefries, chocolate milk and the best maple syrup I've ever had. Unfortunately I didn't think of snapping a photo until I already had a clean plate ;)

Next up on the Queechee list was the Cabot cheese store. I must admit I'm not a cheese aficionado but wow, I never realized there were so many types of cheese. There was even a list of what beers & wines go with different types of cheese. Mooooo, my best Cabot cow impression:



Our final stop in Queechee was one of the coolest places I have ever seen, a toy museum. This toy museum was like a stroll down memory lane; it inspired me and made me a bit envious at the same time. The toy museum was made up of about 12-15 wood & plexiglass display cases and the ceiling was covered with different board games. I definitely want to have a display like this one day:

















The last quick stop on our way to South Royalton was the Ben & Jerry's factory in Waterbury, Vermont. We went on a tour of the factory, got some samples, and checked out the gift shop. Unfortunately we didn't have the time or manpower to take on the Vermonster (20 scoops of ice cream, hot fudge, banana, cookies, brownies, and all of your favorite toppings):





We finally got to South Royalton where we cleaned a bit, put together some furniture, and had an all around good time. One of about 5 or 6 pieces that we put together:



While leaving South Royalton my sister discovered that horse drawn carriages are still a popular means of transportation:



It was a jam packed week with lots of traveling and lots of cool new discoveries but as always it's good to be home. Have a great evening and we'll see you during the week ;)

Featured Artist :: A Little Stranger

This week's featured artist is A Little Stranger!

A Little Stranger - Unique plushes and art by Holly Stanway

Senioritis: Name and location please.
ALittleStranger: Holly Stanway. London, UK.
Senioritis: Great, a new friend from across the Atlantic! Hi Holly!

Senioritis: Can you tell us a little about yourself Holly?
ALittleStranger: I’m a plush designer and model maker living in London, UK. I’ve been sewing, painting and generally doing things with my hands for as long as I can remember and decided very early on to make it my career. While at university studying foundation and art and model making I started to create plush toys as gifts for friends and eventually started selling them online via etsy.com. I’m now proud to be selling both my own work and that of other independent artists in the A Little Stranger shop.
Senioritis: Wow Holly that's great that you knew what you wanted to do from a young age. Your shop is filled with absolute awesomeness! We love your work as well as the other artists' lines that you carry, very sweet.

Senioritis: Holly, how would you describe your style to somebody who has never seen your work or heard about A Little Stranger?
ALittleStranger: Colourful, cute, charming, creepy.
Senioritis: How's that for alliteration ;) We would have to agree, as we browsed your shop we found plenty of work that falls into each category!

Senioritis: Do you have a favorite color Holly?
ALittleStranger: All of them! I like rainbows :)




Senioritis: Are your a righty or a lefty?
ALittleStranger: Righty.
Senioritis: Hmm, initially we thought that we would find more lefty artists but based on our weekly interviews it seems to us that the vast majority of artists are righty, go figure.

Senioritis: Do you have a favorite quote Holly?
ALittleStranger: "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." - Dr Seuss
Senioritis: Dr. Seuss knew what he was talking about.



Senioritis: If you could have lunch with someone famous, past or present, who would it be?
ALittleStranger: David Bowie, but he'd have to be dressed as the Goblin King, and we'd have lunch in the glass ballroom bubble. After our fine feast he'd sing to me.
Senioritis: Now that's what we call a lunch! For those not familiar with the Goblin King.

Senioritis: What's your favorite cartoon, from now or when you were a kid?
ALittleStranger: Care Bears, I still love it now!
Senioritis: Not sure if it's true or not but we heard that there will be a new Care Bears to the Rescue movie coming out sometime this year (don't be mad at us if it's just a rumor :).



Senioritis: Where do you see yourself and your business in 10 years Holly?
ALittleStranger: As long as I'm stil happy, I'll be happy. I'd love to be working for myself on my own designs, and have more room to work, in a really beautiful studio space. And I'd have a lot more guinea pigs!
Senioritis: We think a beautiful studio space is something every designer would love to have!



Senioritis: Are there any websites you'd like to share with us Holly?
ALittleStranger: ALittleStranger.com
ALittleStranger Shop
http://twitter.com/alittlestranger

Senioritis: Any shoutouts?
ALittleStranger: My boyfriend & best friend Jonjo, who helps and supports me with everything I do. He puts order to my creative madness, ha!

Holly, thanks so much for introducing us to the world of A Little Stranger; we love your style and can't wait to see what's next. We wish you the best of luck and continued success!