A mini solo exhibition by illustrator Sekiya Yurie, who creates cute worlds in pastel colors, is being held at the Isetan Girl Gallery on the second floor of the main building of the Isetan Shinjuku store. It runs until November 4th.

The venue is decorated with plush toys of Sekiya's round-eyed characters "Mero, Ruu, and Kyun" (large: 150,000 yen, medium: 50,000 yen, small: 15,000 yen), creating a sweet, cotton candy-like world.

Specially ordered T-shirts (6,500 yen without embroidery, 23,000 yen with embroidery) and icing cookies (1,000 yen) are available for this promotion. On the first day, dozens of women in their twenties flocked to the gallery as soon as it opened. Popular items include a letter set (1,000 yen) featuring the aforementioned characters and tights (3,900 yen) with all-over illustrations. The buyer in charge commented, "I think women who love cute things are incorporating cute, eye-catching accessories to accentuate their outfits." While many women continue to love flat, two-dimensional, girlish characters like KikiLala, My Melody, and Hello Kitty into their adult lives, Sekiya's work, featuring pastel-colored characters with big eyes and a fantastical world featuring sweets, may be gaining popularity. Yurie Sekiya, an illustrator born in 1987, is known for her illustrations of animals and cute girls featured in fashion magazines. Her manga, "Peropero Sparkles," is scheduled to be published by KADOKAWA Enterbrain in December 2014.