Texas Lolitas Unite for Tea

Yesterday was the biggest meet-up I've ever been to ♥ I had a wonderful time setting up (soo early) with Tiffany and an even better time enjoying the yummy treats with everyone! I'm so happy that there was such a great turn out!

The day started out with an intimate tea party plus games and an old home/tea shop, followed by a trip to the State Capital and an art museum garden for photos. Lastly, a few of us cooled off at a cafe for drinks.

P.S. Tiffany's car said it was 106-108 degrees F that day ;A:
 Tyler's Flickr 

Photo by Tyler Westlund (bottom center)

Charades ♪

At the Capital

I didn't want to get any closer to the edge ;~;

Pretty (handsome?) Tiffany

Parasol battles!

♥

At Laguna Gloria (Photo by Tyler Westlun)

Cupcake volley ball!

A wild prince appears

School-style photo (photo by Tiffany)

My outfit + hair & make

Photo by Tyler Westlund

(Pre-heat) make-up

Thanks for reading ♫ I had a really wonderful time everyone!

July Lifestyle Ideas

I am in love with this IW print!

• Add a bit of summer flair to an outfit with an over-sized handmade sea shell necklace
• Try a tropical new flavor of tea like lychee nut or hibiscus mint 
• On the subject of tea, check out this adorable strawberry tea leaf strainer!
• Turn your favorite bakery item into an accessory! Etsy carries oodles of yummy cabochons suitable for pins, brooches, necklaces, earrings, rings and more! You can easily make inexpensive maching accessories for sweets prints or otome coods
• Try a new style of make-up - blush near the corners of one's eyes is a popular trend in japan among many different styles ♥
• One of my favorite places to shop for (super cheap) is Ebay! Most companies ship internationally and you can find plenty of loliable items or even gift items from Japanese magazines ♪
• Like air mail/par avion motifs? (hint hint, IW's new print) This Etsy seller creates wearable paper bows
• One of my favorite ice cream flavors in Japan was local sea salt - while I can't find a recipe try experimenting with your own unusual flavors of ice cream, try different nuts or exotic fruits
• Give yourself a honey facial ♥ It may be a sticky and a bit itchy but after 10-15 minutes your skin will feel baby soft. Honey also has wonderful antibacterial properties
• Check out this translated interview with Kyary Pamyu Pamyu ♥

BABY Bag Review

A few days ago I received my BABY mook and bag from YesAsia. The shipping was very fast, especially since it came from Hong Kong! The mook itself is a bit thin but I really like the print library and snaps from various BABY events. One more point that I would like to add (that wasn't covered in the review link I posted previously) is that the page the bag is attached to (well, the plastic wrap) is intended to be cut out! That means when I peel off the plastic bag (and inevetiable peel off some of the paper on the page) there is no damage to any of the mook content! The opposite side of the page is a solid print that could be great for crafty things ♥

The bag itself is tiny, I could fit my android, some loose cash and a lip gloss and keys. I'm actually not bothered by this because for one it was a great price and two I'd rather carry a much smaller bag with only essentials if I run out for a quick errand or just want to pack light. The material is pretty standard Lolita faux-leather as well. I don't own any other BABY bags but the material is comparable to Innocent World's "leather". The simple design makes it easy to coordinate with both Lolita and non Lolita outfits as well ♥

Packaging

Cover :)

Oh no!

No fear - this is the other side!

Ta-da!

Inside space

Overall I'm very happy with this item, both for the price and quality :)

Doll Classica

I've been a big fan of Midori Fukasawa's work in the Gothic & Lolita Bibles. When I saw this photo of her on Tumblr I was very intrigued by the book she was holding. After a bit of research, I learned that she has released a personal fashion & style book (very a la Misako Aoki).

Her book "Doll Classica" is currently avaliable for 1286 yen or about $16 on Cd Japan (hurry though, there are only 4 remaining copies as of now)!

Youtube channel Kawaii Girl Japan also featured footage from a special tea part that Midori hosted celebrating the release of her book. Please check it out! I can't wait till mine arrives, I'm really looking forward to seeing her style and personal like (major creepin) c:

BTSSB Mook + Pochette

While searching CdJapan, an online Japanese magazine and goods shop, I stumbled across this jewel! (Although I ended up purchasing a copy through YesAsia). BABY has recently released their first ever mook, which includes hair and makeup ideas, coordinates and a detailed print catalog. Even better, it includes a cute (tiny) black hear pochette ♥ All for the very reasonable price of 1400 yen, or about $16. I'm still waiting on mine to arrive in the mail, but a lovely EGL member (who likely lives in Japan or somewhere that carries the mook locally) posted a review. I promise to add my photos and thoughts when it arrives!

Unfortunately, due to the high demand of this item, both websites I found that stocked the mook are currently sold out :( I heard Amazon Japan may carry it, or you next best bet would be a shopping service.

I think it's really great that baby is releasing this mook, especially since it includes a very affordable accessory (like most Japanese mooks and magazines). I really wish American magazines would include presents more often. I know while I was in Japan, those free trinkets on magazines and food products really suckered me in! XD

Wing Shoes Review

They're here! They're her!

Yesterday my wing shoes finally arrived! After months of searching and wishing, I finally found an Ebay company that made shoes based off of the Vivienne Westwood design in my size! I'm not one to actively search out replicas of things, but I knew that I would never be able to find, afford let alone fit into the originals. I feel more of leniency for shoe replicas (well, at least in my case) because most shoes are not avaliable in larger sizes. Being a women's US shoe size 11, I have a hard enough time finding shoes as if. There are plenty of shoes I would buy in a heartbeat, but simply are not made in my size. And not amount of diet or exercise is ever going to make my foot smaller! Long story short, I'm happy with my shoes (and I wish I had smaller feet, I would really love some platform converse). You know it's bad when they don't even make replica shoes in your size.

Now onto a short review. I ordered the shoes from eshoehouse2010 on ebay on May 23rd and they arrive in my mail box yesterday. They were $39.99 with free shipping. They are also avaliable in red and brown, sizes US6/UK3/AU5.5/EU36/23CM through US11/UK9/AU11/EU42/26CM. They fit true to size with virtually no extra room/length. They arrived individually wrapped in this cardboard box and plastic bag.

Though there was a big dent on the box, the shoes were fine and avoided any scratches with the fabric bags.

The shoe themselves had a strong "new shoe"/fake leather plastic smell upon arrival but quickly aired out. I am unsure as to how sturdy the fake leather is, so I am being gentle with them. The ankle strap/wigs have a velcro closure. i have to strap the fairly tightly to avoid a big of a heel "lag" when I pick up my foot, but I think I've got it down. The platform is also manageable; about 5cm/2 inches.

Overall I think they are good for the price, but I need to see how sturdy they are. While I would rather have the original design, I'm just happy to finally have a very similar pair!

June Lifestyle Ideas

• Use glitter glue to create cute sparkly summer freckles (a la Kyary)
• It's summer, and that means watermelon! Not only is it delicious and hydrating, it's great for your skin
  
• Try unusual summer drink flavor combinations, like cantaloupe and basil, strawberry and rosemary or watermelon and grapefruit
  
• Love cute sweets? Check out my cafe themed tumblr
  
• Send a letter to a friend or spruce up your usual correspondence with cute (and cheap) stationary
  
• Sun is essential to healthy skin and overall health so try to spend 10-15 minutes outside everyday (remember your sun screen)
  
• Sunflowers are my favorite summer flower - try adding sunflower seeds to a yummy summer salad
• Here's a simple and quick hair bow tutorial
  
• Enjoy looking through Japanese street fashion snaps? Try RID SNAP
  
• BABY's new Porz Kercheif line is to die for! See it here