For SCK’s 18 year anniversary, we’re sharing interviews with all the current SCK staff so you can find out a little more about the people behind the blog.
Allison is the most recent addition to the team, joining in 2023, and our only current US resident. She often writes about kawaii artists, cute animals and pets, and Sanrio, Disney and plushies. You can read all of Allison’s SCK posts or find her on Bluesky @secretzoo.
Introduce yourself!
Hi! I’m Allison. I work in animal care and also care for my own tortie cat and two Jack Russell Chihuahuas at home. My idea of fun is getting cozy with a cup of tea and a good fantasy book, but don’t get me wrong – I do like to travel too, especially for sightseeing, theme parks, and shopping. I enjoy music and art as well – I love to sing and play acoustic guitar and have been trying to teach myself to draw.
Where do you live and what’s it’s like there?
I recently moved to Lake Tahoe, and it was my first time seeing snow falling, which I absolutely loved! Although, after a while I found myself missing flowers and it was amazing to see all the wildflowers pop up in spring. It’s so nice to be in nature here, but it’s also a pretty small town, so I do miss having bigger stores nearby. It can be a little difficult to get my kawaii fix here.
How did you become interested in kawaii culture? How did you find SCK?
The Hello Kitty/Sanrio store, probably! There were a few in my hometown growing up and I think I spent all of my allowance on stationery and candy (the gum was a favorite!). I also got Pokemon Red for Christmas when it came out and I remember watching Sailor Moon on Cartoon Network after school.
I wish I could remember how I found SCK, but I would guess it came up from a web search I was doing on a cute something! SCK did introduce me to Jellycat and Squishable – as if I needed more plushie temptation… I have yet to get a Jellycat but have since been to a Squishable store and picked up a few friends :)
What cute products or characters can you never resist adding to your kawaii collection?
Oh gosh, I’m a sucker for Disney plushes, especially imports from DisneyStore Japan. I’m also partial to cute Nintendo characters like Kirby and Yoshi. And I love collecting kawaii prints from my favorite artists.
Pick 5 posts from your time at SCK that you’re proud of
- Studio Ghibli Themed Candles – This was one of my earliest posts and it went viral so that was very exciting for me!
- Jellycat 25th Anniversary – Jellycat ended up getting in touch about working with us after this post, yay!
- Visiting Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood – My first travel post, I had fun sharing personal adventures and photos from my trip.
- Clean + Planet Aware Skincare Brands – We got some good feedback on our Ethical Kawaii posts, I was happy to contribute with this one.
- Kawaii Draw This In Your Style Challenges – I went down a really fun rabbit hole discovering all these DTIYS’s and I hope to participate in more of these in the future.
Who are your favourite creators to follow?
- There are so many artists I love, but recently I’ve been enjoying Woolblossom for silly, random, and fun artwork.
- Darling Desi has become a favorite YouTuber for her seasonal content and book recommendations.
- My other favorite would be TheTimTracker. They live in Florida and are always covering theme parks and other fun attractions.
- I’ve been a longtime supporter of Pikaole and Paraply on Patreon, but a new favorite is autumnalwood. Their art is very comforting and nostalgic to me.
Got any more questions for Allison? Ask them in the comments. Look out for Q&As from the rest of the team soon, and you can also leave a question for Founder/Editor Marceline.
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