Miss Cupcake is 3” tall, made of vinyl, and costs $11.95 making her very affordable, and definitely on par with the rest of the vinyl toy world. Sold in a blind box, you have the chance of getting one of the four main characters… then there’s the mystery cupcake. Who you’ll get, no one knows, you’ll just have to buy one and see for yourself! Miss Cupcake can be found in retail stores around the US from Chicago to Milwaukee, and Phoenix, and they will also be arriving soon at
shops in the UK as well. You can also purchase them online at Urban Outfitters’ website, and the stores are also carrying a DIY Miss Cupcake in store as well!

Here is a little bit more about olive47 and her Miss Cupcake toys when I had the opportunity to interview her! Enjoy!

Who are you and what do you do?
My name is olive47 and I like to colour. I am a graphic designer/ street artist/ toy designer/ printmaker/ and sometimes cult leader.

How did you come up with the concept of the Miss Cupcake toys?
Miss Cupcake was a character I was using in my street artwork. The producer, Dreamland Toyworks emailed me one day and asked if I would be interested in doing a line of toys with them. Obviously I said yes; and she seemed to be an obvious choice. We’re looking at introducing other characters next year, so be on the lookout for those.

What is your favorite medium to work with?
I have a Masters in Printmaking, so I have a big love for screenprinting. I also love my Print Gocco.

What inspires you to do what you do?
I’ve been drawing and painting my whole life. I couldn’t really do anything else, so I try my hardest to make it work.

Whatever is going on in my life inspires the themes I work with visually. Other sources of inspiration for me are 1950′s science and nature books, my garden, and my cat, Wigglebear.

Any advice or tips for someone trying to open his or her own online business/shop?
Be very organized. Everything else will follow.

What is it that you like about cupcakes?
They are small and easily portable, unlike large cakes. Oh, and the little paper holder keeps your hand from getting messy.

What do you love most about your job?
I am a freelance designer in “real life”, so I love being able to work from home most of the time. I feel trapped when I’m in an office environment, so this enables me to have a little more flexibility in my life. Also, I don’t have to spend any time commuting, so I can use that extra time to work on the artwork and toys.

Check out olive47, her work and her toys at www.olive47.com!

You may find yourself asking, what is a Plushkill Forest? It sounds like something cute, cuddly and possibly deadly, but no worries, it isn’t really deadly. Imagine your grandfather or uncles’ hunting collection, you know, those lovely animal heads mounted proudly on the walls of their basement or den, kind of creepy, unless you are into that sort of thing.

Jess, the creator of the Plushkill Forest, has found a less violent and much cuter way to display such creatures on your walls! Everything from your classic buck, to ponies, bunnies and even unicorns have been beheaded, mounted and are ready to be put up for display! It may sound a bit strange, but I have to say that they are quite awesome and I love strange. Out of the line of plushies that are on the website, I really love the Plushkill Forest Moosetake plushie!

According to Jess, the idea for the Plushkill Forest plushies came from a desire to kill things without actually killing things; she could never do that! “Plushkill Forest allows me to be a fearsome and heartless hunter for pretendsies!”

Along with the Plushkill Forest line of plushies that are for sale on the website, you can also find an array of tote bags, magnets, tees, and accessories.

Jess currently lives in Savannah, GA, and is very interested in unicorns and other awesome mythical creatures.

She will be at the Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn, NY on June 5th and 6th to sell her crafty wares and to also unveil some new “fresh kills” in the Plushkill Forest line along with other new items such as “half assed critters” and some deer foot silverware sets! Jess will also be having a solo show in Savannah, GA in July at Black Orchid Tattoo and more info on that event can be found on her website.
I highly recommend checking out her awesome work if you are in the area for either of these events and pick up a Plushkill Forest plushie of your own!

Check out the rest of the products at: thecherrybox.com

Website: secret-b.com

“In 2001 the flagship store opened in Harajuku, Japan. Secret Base is a toyshop, which mainly carries original toys and collaborates with artists they are fascinated with. One of the key words for the brand is ‘MADE IN JAPAN’ which Secret Base has always stuck to. Secret Base is also responsible for creating today’s toy trend, ‘See-Thru Soft Vinyl.’”

Secret Base is known for their awesome and original vinyl toys, but they also offer a wide array of tees, hats, keychains all all kinds of other wares!

Secret Base has also collaborated with BALZAC who is also based out of Japan, and they are one of the Misfit’s protégés.

Check out Secret Base and their whole line of products at secret-b.com