Why Kawaii and Stamps by Sliekje

The original "little king" digi stamp that lead me to Sliekje. Hat tip to Jessica for her use of the image on a great card.


I am not really sure when I started loving "Kawaii", but I know the love affair began young- before I even knew what "Kawaii" was! I remember having a very earnest discussion with my mother one day in the car when I was six or seven about how I loved Hello Kitty items so much, I wanted to open a "Hello Kitty Superstore" when I grew up. Although my husband probably believes I have amassed enough Kitty stuff to realize my dream, I never became a Sanrio products distributor. I did, however, keep my love for cute alive all these years, and I embrace this newest wave of Kawaii conciousness that is sweeping the world at the moment.

"Kawaii" is a Japanese loan word that means cute. Not just anything cute is kawaii, though. Kawaii refers to innocent, child-like cuteness most often associated with little animals, children, or child-like adults. Kawaii images often feature anthropomorphic animals, foods or objects. You can see then how Hello Kitty, my favorite faux feline, fits neatly into this category. A subcategory of kawaii, anime or manga-style drawings, is also making inroads into the craft world. "Chibi" (another loanword that means 'little') style drawings of little children are popping up everywhere.

I am also a big fan of vintage, so it is no surprise that when I find something that looks a bit vintage AND kawaii, well, I'm hooked. Today, I found just such a pairing in the artwork of Sliekje- a Dutch blogger who makes free digistamps and posts them on her blog.

First, I am amazed at this artist's generosity. She could clearly be selling these images for profit, but here she is, giving them away for anyone to use.

Secondly, I just love her work. Although Kawaii is usually seen as a Japanese inspired artform, the Dutch have a history of Kawaii-style illustration, too. Dick Bruna's Miffy is a great example. Sliekje continues this tradition with her artwork. It is very kawaii- especially her children- She draws many chibi style children with their big, innocent eyes and sweet faces:

Could anything be more kawaii than this chibi sweetie?

Third, the feel of her drawings, especially of her animals, is very reminiscent of old embroidery patterns. Remember those? My grandma still has closets full of fabulous old hand-stitched towels and doilies from the ladies who lived in her nursing homes. I have a few of these pieces, and I treasure them.

A vintage embroidery pattern.
Sliejke's Cupcake Hamster. This would be just as adorable on a tea towel as a card!

Of course, I have downloaded tons of these digis, and I will be using them all over the place. I just wanted to offer a shout out to Sliejke and a sincere thank you to her for her generous gift of these images to the crafting public. If you like them as much as I do, stop by her blog and leave her some love (and download a few of these great images!)