Hi folks!

I found this G1 Cotton Candy at a car boot sale today. I say "Cotton Candy" - she's actually closer to Peachy in colour, but she's got Cotton Candy's symbol, so that's the name I'll go with.

Looking at her blue eyes, I thought she was just an Italian at first (not uncommon to find in Belgium), but then I noticed that she doesn't have any hoof marks and that only half the plugs on her mane actually have hair in them, which I haven't seen on Italians before. The plastic is quite soft and squeezable, and her head moves freely. She's got air-brushed blue eyes, and, as I said above, her body colour is peach, rather than pink / light pink (as her head moves so easily, I took a peep inside, and it's the same colour there, so not faded).

Here are some images:

https://imgur.com/a/rM2UUtQ

Any idea where my mystery lady is from?

Manatees are my favourite animals. I love the way they look, the way they move and interact. The other day, my friend, Pseudomonas, and I were talking about a manatee sanctuary. The people working there had given the manatees names. I don't remember what they were, but I didn't think they were very fitting. I thought manatees should have names like Shadow Dancer and Mystique, names alluding to their grace. Pseudomonas argued that those more sounded like names of "My Little Manatees"... and the idea was born.

I've only taken up drawing very recently, and I'm still developing my style, but I do like the way they came out.

These three were among the first I drew, simply in pencil with highlights in gel pen.

http://i664.photobucket.com/albums/vv2/SnorkMaiden/IMG_20160117_171832_zpsbkgwhavo.jpg

Here are my OCs, Hope and Destiny (who's normally purple, but my coloured crayons didn't come with purple, hence the colour change). Again, it's pencil, this time outlined in pen and coloured in. I think this is the technique I'll stick with.

http://i664.photobucket.com/albums/vv2/SnorkMaiden/IMG_20160124_155108_zpswupdeq1i.jpg

Next, I'm planning to do a few superhero manatees. Here's a quick sketch of one: Batmanatee!

http://i664.photobucket.com/albums/vv2/SnorkMaiden/IMG_20160127_131914_zpszcp2ovyz.jpg

Do you like them? If I draw some more, I might start a blog to show them off.

First off, I'm not much of a cook. I do enjoy it, though, so tonight I thought I'd give it a go and try making my own pasta sauce.

I used this recipe:

http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/29333/cheesy-tomato-sauce.aspx?o_is=LV

I don't think I made any mistakes with the recipe. The sauce looked just like in the picture. The problem was the taste. It was very bland and didn't taste like much of anything, even when I added more tomato puree and herbs to it. In the end, I couldn't use it at all and had to eat my pasta with store-bought tomato sauce.

So, here's the question: What could I have done to get more flavour into the sauce? Which spices / herbs can you recommend to compliment tomato? Also, please share any nice (vegetarian) pasta sauce recipes you've got. I do want to try again, but next time, I'd like to produce something edible.

I'm staying with my family for the holidays. Today, we took a few boxes with books to a charity shop and had a look around as well, of course. I didn't expect to find anything, as we'd only been there on Monday. Goodness, was I wrong!

I found a lovely Show Stable in a colour combination I haven't got yet. It's in a really good state, even the stickers, and it came with three ponies and quite a few accessories, too. Here, have a look:

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A little background: My friend's getting married in September. After searching in vain for a dress in the more traditional stores (M&S, Primark), I told myself, "Why not go for something I truly love?" I went online and found this amazing shop that sells medieval / fairy tale / gothic-style clothes. It's something I wanted to try for ages, but I never got the chance (or the nerve) to go for it... until now!

Here's the dress I bought (I went for the wine red):

http://www.thedarkangel.co.uk/en/product/419wn-gabriel-dress

It arrived earlier this week, and it's even more stunning than in the pictures.

Now, here's what I need help with. As you can see, the dress has got a very nice neckline, so I'm wondering about what kind of necklace and other jewellery would go with it. Also, there's the question of nail polish / no nail polish / if yes, which colour? In order to do the dress justice, I want to stay traditionally fairytale in style, maybe a little Elvish?

I thought we could all brain-storm together and see what comes up. Of course, other advice for styling is welcome as well! If you've got a similar style, I'd love to see pics, too.

It's finally happening. After years of flat-shares, I'm at last earning the kind of money that'll allow me to rent my own place (If you're wondering what took me so long, check out where I live). I'm so happy, but also a little anxious because I've never rented anything on my own before.

What I'd like from you guys is some advice, both general and specific, on what to look for in a flat, how to deal with rental agencies (I'd prefer a private landlord, but mostly, it's done via agencies these days), how to avoid stupid mistakes that'll cost me a lot of money and so on.

Thanks in advance!

Hey guys,

My friend's girlfriend entered this modelling competition that will win her a free boutique dress. It took ages to persuade her to enter because she's a little shy, and it would mean the world for her to win. So if you could have a look at the entries and find that Hannah, 26, London (top row, left-hand side of the page) is the prettiest (which she is!), could you please vote for her? I'm afraid you can only vote if you've got a FB account, but I suppose most of you do anyway.

http://offerpop.com/Contest.psp?c=533156&u=1252478&a=448952861833126&p=131256033588394&rest=0&v=View

Thanks a lot!