Cute Happy Fun Time

I love my scanner.  With a few clicks of the mouse, ephemera bits take on a new life.  I love kawaii  (cute) Japanese graphics, and so I save the packaging from Japanese products, including snacks, household goods and craft supplies.

This happy kitty was cropped from a scan of the logo for a packet of origami papers.  I made the mosaic in Picnik, an online photo editing program.  I love Picnik--I have the "premium" package ($25 a year) so I can keep photos I like to use again in my history.  I doctored the colors on the kitty in Photoshop, then bumped the picture into Picnik.

We love Pokenmon in our household.  This is a header from a packet of origami paper that features the popular "pocket monsters" in a variety of designs.  Pikachu is my favorite.

This eye-catching girl in her kimono is another graphic from a packet of origami paper.  Not only is her kimono made with the prints featured in the assortment, she is styled like a kokeshi doll, the popular, collectible, small wooden dolls made by craftspeople in Northern Japan.

This sweet fawn was scanned from the lid to a Bento box that my daughter's best friend purchased at FIT, the Japanese "Dollar" store in Bellaire, below the I-10 in Houston. Deer are very popular kawaii subjects, in part because the deer is considered by Japanese who practice Shinto, a spiritual faith indigenous to Japan.

We'll end with a scan featuring Japan's most famous kitty, Sanrio's, "Hello Kitty," shown here sipping tea in honor of the biscuits in the box.  Although the biscuits are shaped like Hello Kitty and her family, she doesn't seem to mind.  And she looks as young as ever, even though last year she celebrated her 35th birthday!  What a kitty.