Starry eyes glimmer with bright, star-shaped highlights that capture pure excitement. Whether someone’s enjoying a tasty treat or struck by a brilliant idea, these glowing eyes perfectly express a heart full of exuberant joy.

Look to the heavens for this collection of illustrations featuring starry eyes.

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Have you ever heard of the term “me ga shiitake” (目がしいたけ, lit. “shiitake eyes”)? If you’re wondering, “What on earth do mushrooms have to do with your eyes?” “me ga shiitake” is actually a reference to shiitake hanagiri, a cutting technique used in traditional Japanese foods such as hot pots and simmered dishes, where shiitake mushroom caps are decorated with a beautiful flower pattern. In anime and manga, characters’ pupils are often changed to shapes resembling these decorated shiitake caps or diamonds to convey their unbridled joy. When a person has a literal twinkle in their eye, you know that whatever they’re looking at is bound to bring them absolute happiness!

Enjoy the illustrations below and share these characters’ happiness with them!

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Shimmering and glittering eyes have been one of the identifying factors of anime and manga practically since their inception. This effect, tagged on pixiv as 目がしいたけ (me ga shiitake, lit. sparkling eyes) allows characters to better express a huge surge of emotions that normal eyes just can’t. It’s an iconic part of the art form and though it’s evolved over the years, it doesn’t look like we’ll be seeing the end of that sparkle anytime soon.

Anya Forger (from Spy x Family) has become known for some of the funny faces she makes, a majority of them have that signature sparkle. 

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