We are Méli and Malice!
Adorable, isn’t it? 😉
You must probably wonder why our face is a cloud?
In French we have an expression “avoir la tête dans les nuages” (having the head in clouds), which means “being a dreamer”.
The person who draw us is a dreamer, so that’s why we are clouds !
This site is dedicated to us, our adventures, illustrations, with Japan and France inspiration 🙂
Bonjour !
My name is Emilie, I’m French and I have been living in Japan since April 2011.
At first, I used to teach French to kids and adults in Yokohama and the surroundings. Now, I’m fully working as an illustrator.
Méli et Malice was originally a site dedicated to teaching French, where I offered my own teaching material. To explain the concept of my website, I started to draw Méli and Malice characters.
Over time, Méli et Malice took up more and more space, and it became obvious I wanted to work fully on my illustrations. This site is now dedicated to the characters Méli and Malice, their adventures and the merchandise sold on the online store.
To keep this touch of French so important to me, merchandise products are generally written in French and, more recently, in French / Japanese and some English!
I really like the Fukushima prefecture, so I introduced it to Méli and Malice.
There they met Akabeko, the famous red cow with whom they became friends!
Have you ever heard about Akabeko? It’s a legendary animal from the Aizu region of Fukushima.
It is said that a red cow appeared a long time ago, to help and protect the villagers.
“Aka” means “red” in Japanese and “beko” means “cow” in the Aizu dialect.
A part of the profits of the Akabeko merchandise will be donated to a pet rescue in Fukushima.
※ You will often see me sign under the name of 「Emilie B.N」 because B and N are the abbreviations of my French and Japanese surnames.
What is the creation process?
All illustrations are hand drawn.
The first step: the illustrations are drawn with a pencil or a pen.
The second step: the lines are smoothed on the computer.
The third step: color. It’s the longest … but also the one I love!
I add color on the computer pixel per pixel or small group of pixels, using my mouse !
This process allows me to know my drawing in every detail, to correct, if necessary, small things and above all … to slowly see its birth.
Each illustration needs several hours and a life scene that combines several illustrations needs days or even weeks.
It’s a tough job but so exciting!
Méli et Malice’s name and characters are registered and protected under the copyright law. Thank you for respecting my work and not using them without prior authorization.