I was SO EXCITED to be asked to create a piece for the Hello Kitty & 99 Friends show opening this weekend at PIQ Products in New York! Of course I am a lifetime Sanrio fan, and I've had tons of favorite characters over the years. When I got to choose my character for the show, I immediately thought of Queenie Lou, the adorable rainbow swan that accompanied the Deery Lou friend characters in the late '90s. I did a papercut for the show, which you can see below!

Here's the show details:

HELLO KITTY

& 99 FRIENDS

APRIL 16TH-MAY 14TH

PIQ GRAND CENTRAL TERMINAL

SHUTTLE PASSAGE

Opening Reception: April 16th, 7pm

A celebration of Hello Kitty and her many companions, featuring original art, custom vinyl, & designer toys from over 100 renowned artists!

All pieces will be available to purchase in store and online starting April 18th. Items will ship after May 1.

FEATURED ARTISTS:

Simone Legno • 64 Colors • Noferin • Mab Graves • Frank Kozik • DGPH • Candie Bolton • Bubi Au Yeung • Camilla d'Errico • Carla Wyzgala • becca • Simona Candini • Josh Mayhem • Melissa Contreras • Anke Weckmann • MykoWu • Adolie Day • Peter Kato • Dolly Oblong • Jeremiah Ketner • Mike Lowery • Wren Salazar • Jared Nickerson • Brent Nalasco • Nakanari • Tasha Zimich • Flat Bonnie • Zard Apuya • Sugar Fueled • Hungry Ghost • Jenn & Tony Bot • The Jelly Empire • Mark Nagata • CJ Metzger • Franz Keller • Samuel Guerrero • Elle-Designs • Misha • Lilidoll • Penelope Love Prints • Fair Rosamund • Fly Okay • Team Kitten • SoKo Cat • Kristian Adam • Gemma Correll • Richard Page • 100% Soft • MissHappyPink • PetPet • Naoshi • Yoko d'Holbachie • Jon Paul Kaiser • Podgy Panda • Merry Happy Studios • sugarhai • MJ Hsu • Yumiko Kayukawa • Burn 353 • Mizna Wada • Jay 222 • Kukubee • Vincent Scala • kHyal • Carrie Jardine • Juan Muniz • Mochimochi Land • The Graphix Chick • David Stevenson • Crowded Teeth • Bored INC • Little MADI • Silvia Portella • Rosey Cheekes • Robo Roku • Sharodactyl • Murphypop • Sara Richard • Piktorama • LOULOU & TUMMIE • Javier Jiménez • Okkle • Helena Garcia • Audrey Miller Art • Randall Paints • Crummy Gummy • Bubblefriends • Poked Studio • Jellykoe • Furry Felines Creatives • Horrible Adorables • Mary J. Hoffman • GenkiGoth Studios • Seulgie • DexDexign • Bianca Roman-Stumpff • Mariangela Tan • Melodreama • SaoZen • KiraKiraDoodles • POPprolific • Hammyhaus • Amber Renée

I found out this week that "Hello! Exploring the Supercute World of Hello Kitty" at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles is being extended by another month and will now be on view through May 31, 2015! This makes me super happy, because I've been itching to take a trip down to LA to check it out before it leaves, and I haven't had the chance yet. The show even has it's own app (here's the link!).

Below are two art pieces from the exhibition, by Brandi Milne and Gary Baseman.

Hello Kitty x TADO 'Pomme Party' from wearetado on Vimeo.

Cute new Hello Kitty + Blik Wall decal collaboration!

Adorable (and super affordable) new tees from Uniqlo & Sanrio. I LOVE the Little Twin Stars and My Melody ones! So super cute! A portion of all sales will go towards preventing cervical cancer through the Hellosmile foundation.

Sugoi Life is sponsoring this super-cute San-X Rilakkuma Fluffy Meals re-ment giveaway! Leave a comment on this post for your chance to win 3 sets of the adorable Fluffy Meals set! Extra entries (so leave additional comments) for following Sugoi Life on Facebook or Twitter, and for sharing this giveaway. Also, they'd love to see some photos of what the winner does with their prize!

Sorry, this giveaway is open to US residents only. Giveaway closes Sunday, June 17th at midnight PST.

Super darling new Rilakkuma re-ment sets now available from Sugoi Life! I love how realistic the treats look!

Wow, looks like even Hello Kitty is having a hard time choosing between Edward and Jacob!
I'm not a Twilight fan, but these tees are pretty cute!

I am loving the new collection by Forever 21 for Hello Kitty. The subdued imagery and retro feel give the collection a sense of glam, without being too over-the-top branded.
The collection is available as of November 18th.

Love this jewelry collection by Neivz for Sanrio!

Take a look at the amazing new collaboration between Friends With You and Hello Kitty! Supreme cuteness! The collection launches this week. Here's some more info from the press release:

Sanrio and Miami art collective FriendsWithYou are launching a limited-edition collection that will make its debut next week – on October 18. Wish Come True for Hello Kitty combines pop icon Hello Kitty with the unique artistic style of FriendsWithYou; this first time collaboration of collectible items will be available exclusively at select Sanrio stores nationwide, and at www.sanrio.com & www.friendswithyou.com online stores.

The limited-edition Wish Come True for Hello Kitty product collection includes apparel, accessories, home/office/desk supplies and gifts, featuring Hello Kitty in the cute and colorful world of Wish Come True. The collection will capture the hearts of all disciples of supercute!

Junko Mizuno will be signing her crazy Chococat vinyl this week at Kid Robot San Francisco! Details here. Purchase the toy here.

One of my favorite pieces for the Sanrio exhibition, by Miss Kika, is now for sale as a print from Japan LA!

Eeeeek! Look at the cuteness created by 64 Colors for the Sanrio exhibition.

If the preview images on the JapanLA blog are any inidication- the Sanrio Small Gift exhiition opening this weekend is going to be amazing!

Small Gift Los Angeles is a 10 day carnival-style event open to the public Friday, November 12 – Sunday, November 21 at Barker Hangar in Santa Monica.

More Info @ Japan LA