Have a peaceful Christmas, everyone! May love and warmth embrace you in all your days. Cheers! Here's a little illustration of the family -- there must have been such an immense kind of love between them. I hope your holidays are well and are filled with love. Cheers and love to all of you, wherever you may be.

Hello everyone!

I am delighted to let you know that some of my latest artwork has been featured on iLeGaLit, a non-profit online magazine focusing on art and culture, and founded by Lucia Bihuncová from Slovakia. I am humbled by this opportunity and thank Lucia for this exciting venture. 

She inhabits the gardens and meadows, her being floating in the air as the wind takes her to other flower fields, meandering in the simple beauty of floras. The sun, she adores. And, it is in the moonlight that she takes comfort with, lulling her to deep slumber until the sun would embrace her with her warmth. Her song you'd hear as the wind blows, singing in the duet with its airy spirit. So, each time a gentle breeze would touch your skin by the meadows, know that she is with you, loving every simple being that nature has brought for all of us to revel and love.

Belonging to no land, Salima conjures magic for nomads, making sure that their lives are comfortable and full of magic. She looks up to her older brother Baldouin, studies spells and tries to learn Magical Philosophy and Diplomatic relations like him. He dotes on her and makes sure she is always safe in her travels. She, in turn, is fond of Margaret and wishes her brother would forget his studies for a while and follow his spirit for once. One only falls in love once for a person like Baldouin, she thinks. She travels to distant lands with her brother's friend Daario whom she has taken quite a liking to. Oh, and her Flaming skies enchantment is a work of art and is rather a bit of a terror to see but is still a wonder to behold.

Jo March “Late at night my mind would come alive with voices and stories and friends as dear to me as any in the real world. I gave myself up to it, longing for transformation.” Little Women, Louisa May Alcott (film, 1994)

I have been in love with Jo's person --there is something about Jo that I see in myself. I am tempestuous, full of restlessness and full of stories filling my mind and heart to the brim, often times occupying my days and long into the night. I love our home so much but I long for adventures, to see the world and all its simple beauty. Like her, I am a little bit on the boyish side who prefers anything than that which confines me to one place, always seeking the dirt and sweat.

I meant to draw her for tomorrow, you know, Wednesday? Ha, really now.  If I were to become trapped in a desaturated world, I'd be Wednesday. Or maybe anyone from Tim Burton's world. Anyway, quick inktober for today though. I've got some things to do within the day but of course before sleeping, I shall read. If not, I shall definitely become young Ms. Addams here.

Dorian loves to make all kinds of potions. His expertise in herbs, fungi and river water makes him a favorite candidate for a membership for the elite order of naturalists. He doesn't like authority though, and often gets into trouble with Geeta. He's fond of waking up early in the morning to walk around the forest and after that he'd prefer to take his tea in the greenhouse with his friends.

Naturelle loves impromptu magic duels...she's a natural at it. Oh and she's good with puns too. Anyway, she inherited her abilities from her father who happens to be a cousin of Baldouin. Well, she does like being related to Salima, but that solitary wizard who can't even talk to her good friend Margaret without making mistakes in his spells? Why, magic casting expertise runs in the family, why can't he keep his calm like the rest of them? In her spare time she loves to explore the school's impressive architecture and hopes to create the next best library filled with sunlight and an indoor river. One can dream, she says.

She's brave, highly imaginative and has lots of spunk. Coraline is one of my favorite films, though I have yet to read the book. Neil Gaiman's books have always been so whimsical with a touch of innate intimacy and familiarity. I believe I shall love Coraline the way I do with his other books.

She's a witch of wisdom, with knowledge that goes far back to the early settlers of the land, heart as strong as the desert. She prefers to stay in one place despite her nomadic upbringing, believing that her spirit is always travelling with the wind even though she is still as a rock. Like an oasis, her appearance changes like the passing of day. She is actually Baldouin and Salima's mother, but it is rumoured that their father is the spirit of the desert himself, and hoping to keep Fairuza forever, gave her the ability to live her life like a moon -- in cycles. Baldouin thinks she is like a phoenix, young then old then begins again like the rising of the sun and moon. Of course, the bit about Fairuza's husband is all myth, since he is as human as her children. So, is she the one who is a magical being, or is her husband truly a spirit of the desert?

Rouen fights rebels from using magic for selfish reasons, mostly against those who raid villages and spread terror across the land. She is also a strong advocate for the right to do magic for uses other than scholarly studies.

Jane Longfellow

Jane is the daughter of two adventuring professors of the village school. Having been to many strange places, they told all of their journeys to Jane. Her imagination would run wild but what she loves the most is using her magic to conjure amazing images of her daydreams and her parents' stories out of thin air to the amazement and admiration of all those around her.

~

 This year's Inktober was both such a thrill and a challenge. It was filled with so much thought and whimsy, technical difficulties and headaches as well. But with all these, I am happy. 

 Cheers to all of us who did this lovely dance with ink. 

She lives deep within the depths of the mysterious forest, sleeping high amongst the tallest trees and walking among the humblest of creatures. She feels every sigh of the wind and hears every word from every living being. Her touch lets her see into the lives of others, making them a part of her soul, their memories becoming hers as if their lives were hers as well. The remains of those who had lived with her she incorporates into her clothing as a way to let them live on, that even in death their lives will continue to be remembered and still be part of the forest.

I have always been so in love with the concept of giving gifts. There's the warm intimacy of actually wrapping carefully selected gifts and tying them with ribbons and such things. I also love to write handwritten notes. I believe that it connects us even more to one another, that we are always in each other's thoughts and hearts each day. And this Christmas, the act of gift giving becomes even more important as we celebrate this season of peace and warmth, cherishing not only Jesus' birth but also the love we share for all.

Obsessing over paper (a wee bit obvious but hey) for so long a time, I have been making my own Christmas gift tags for two years now and it has brought me happiness even in their simplicity. Now, I decided I'd share it with others as well.


Have you ever loved a gift so much, whether it's from a friend or from someone really special to your being, that you hung that person's gift tag on your tree, or stuck it in a book so you'd remember that lovely feeling each time you come across it? Well, I am known to be such a patron of such an act. And I know there are lots of people who do the same as well. So I made these gift tags for everyone to send to their loved ones this season of extra love, peace and warmth.





Each gift tag is made of thick specialty board, two of the designs have gold foil, and golden strings are included as well for tying on to gifts. If one is interested, please have a visit on my Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/mariel.ypil

Thank you for reading this and here's to more warmth in your autumn days!

Cheers!
Mariel
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