I am completely taken by the work of English artist Fiona Hewitt and her special retro Asian imagery. Inspired by vintage toys, communist-era propaganda, the Fifties, the Forties, sweets and Chinese packaging she has perfected this highly stylized design style. Fiona has several fine art prints available for purchase on her site and has also developed an absolutely gorgeous line of children’s activity kits under the name Dumpling Dynasty. They’re so simple in concept (when was the last time you saw a kid’s shoe shine kit?!) but meticulously detailed with lush colors, text and illustration. Find all of the Dumpling Dynasty kits here.

If the title of this post didn’t ring a bell, it’s from the old English nonsense rhyme:

Diddle, diddle, dumpling, my son John,

Went to bed with his trousers on;

One shoe off, and one shoe on,

Diddle, diddle, dumpling, my son John!

This post contains essential information towards obtaining your Domesticity, Playthings, Design merit badge. Leave a comment on this post or a question for the Grand Poobah below, or trackback from your own site.