Julie and I have character similarities. I good along pretty good with her (and still do)I wanted to put more black in the background at first but that would have caused the character to fade away. Plus the cross haching add a bit to the style and I used the very cool border (I agree with you on the border) to balance out the black a bit. I think this is one of my best "quickies" as of late.
And yes, you should finish your drawings too. *sends guilt*