I binge-watched 'Cruel Summer' and got nostalgic for '90s stuff

Last week, having walked home from the market—a nice, effortless stroll but for the danger of contracting coronavirus—I cleaned the house, fed the dogs, showered, and played with my kids to watch four episodes of Cruel Summer. Set in a small town in Texas in the early nineties, Freeform's new series tells the story of two teen girls: the dorky Jeanette Turner (Chiara Aurelia) and the popular Kate Wallis (Olivia Holt). It reminds me of Pretty Little Liars, but when I first heard the title I thought it was a biopic of Bananarama in their prime years.

Cruel Summer is just so-so, but it has enough charm to keep me interested. The secret is to make things that appeal to my inner teen without equating youth with stupidity. It's also loaded with iconic throwback hits, including songs by The Cranberries, INXS, Mazzy Star, and 4 Non Blondes. If you were a kid in the '90s, the soundtrack will likely take you right back.

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The Adorable Sculptures of Yen Yen Lo

These images are from a series of wall sculptures created by Yen Yen Lo . Here you can see her intricately textured ceramic pieces, looking downright adorable. Yen Yen Lo's eye for the unique and whimsical is delightful. Apparently they are not intended for kids under 16. Fifteen-year-olds cannot be trusted with fragile stuff. Get them a Funko Pop instead.

Feast your eyes on the making of 'Heisei Mary'

This is a time-lapse video of Japanese artist Shohei Otomo drawing Heisei Mary — a naked Sailor Moon-like figure completely covered in tattoos. The highly-detailed body ink features Spiderman, Darth Vader, Hello Kitty, Naruto, Street Fighter and Dragon Ball characters to name a few. It's really satisfying to see an artist's process, the way their illustration grows and grows out of nothing. Shohei is known for his hyper-realistic sketches using ballpoint pens. Born in Tokyo in 1980, he is the son of Katsuhiro Otomo, the creator of the manga Akira . He exhibits his work regularly in Japan and Australia as well as in Mexico and France. Three weeks worth of work are sped up into less than four minutes.

James DeRosso's ceramic monsters

I really like these whimsical ceramic creatures by James DeRosso. Yes, they have bulging eyes and toothy grins, but they're not scary at all. The Portland-based artist started making cute monsters while he was a student to jokingly create gargoyle-like guardians for the kiln. After other students kept taking his quirky little figures, he realized there was a market for them. "I'm enjoying the whole monster making niche," James says. "It's amazingly gratifying to be doing ceramics full time and especially to be a teacher introducing kids to the joy of clay." Be sure to visit his website and like his Facebook page for the latest monster news.

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