First up is the OP. The bodice seems well fitted and the shape is quite cute. I think the sleeves look an okay length, although I am a bit unsure about how baggy the sleeves look. The sleeves definitely need a bit of puffiness to them to give them a cute shape, but I think the sleeves are too puffy. It just needs to be a little bit more toned down. The cuffs are gathered neatly and I love that the lace and bows finish off the cuffs in a cute way, but have been kept to a reasonable size. I really dislike the waist bow. The shape looks a bit bizarre, it sticks out strangely and the ribbon used for the bow is very shiny. I really don't feel the waist bow is needed at all and the dress would look more balanced if it wasn't there. The bodice is broken up by 2 vertical lines of lace. The lace used has a pretty design and it helps to break up the plain areas of the bodice without being too distracting. I think the collar has a cute shape and the lace lining the edge of the collar gives it a cuter appearance. The collar is maybe a bit wide though and could do with finishing a little bit further away from the shoulders. The collar is topped with a cute ribbon bow, which is a good size and a lovely shape. However, once again the ribbon is a bit too shiny. The stitching on the ends of the ribbon sticks out a bit too. The back of the dress offers no shirring, so size flexibility is a bit limited. I think the zip has been relatively well concealed. The print lines up against the zip line fairly reasonably. The stock photos show that the high-waist skirt seems to have quite a good length to it. The skirt has plenty of volume and flares outwards well. The skirt shape looks quite cute in the stock photos. The skirt design is kept simple and so, the print is displayed brilliantly. The bottom hem is then finished off with a line of bow themed lace. I really like the choice of lace but don't feel it has been attached in the best possible way.
Here we have the JSK. The bodice looks well fitted but I feel the shape is very basic. I really hate the neckline shape. The straps are very thin and look quite flimsy, although wider straps would not have suited this style of bodice. They are lined really well on the outside with some pretty lace though. This lace has been well gathered and creates a lovely shape. There is a waist bow which isn't too big, but I do feel the size looks a bit odd. There is something about the waist bow which really stands out, and not in a good way. The ribbon used is once again very shiny. I don't feel a waist bow was the right choice for this dress. Perhaps a ribbon belt would have looked a bit better than a bow. This bodice also features lines of lace, which helps break up the empty space on the bodice. The neckline features a subtle line of thin lace, a shiny line of ribbon and then a ruffle of the printed fabric. I don't feel the ruffle really works here and it also seems to stick out at an odd angle. The sheen from the ribbon is also quite obvious. I do like the lace though. The ribbon line is topped with a small bow, which helps to finish off the neckline and is the prefect size. The back of the dress is fully shirred so there is plenty of size flexibility but unfortunately, the shirring is not concealed and is not that appealing to look at. The back is quite short though, and when the waist ties are worn it helps to conceal the shirring a little bit. The stock photos show the skirt has plenty of volume and it flares outwards well. There is plenty of petticoat room. I personally would have preferred the waist to be a bit lower down and then had a rounder skirt shape though. The skirt is kept simple again, so the print is displayed very effectively. The bottom hem is then finished off with the bow lace, but again I am not so keen on how the lace has been attached.
And finally, a close up of 2 bits of the print (sorry for the picture not being that great a quality). This series comes in pink, sax blue, grey and black. After Cat's Tea Party, I am starting to warm to the idea of a grey/pink combination and I do feel the grey version of this print works very nicely. The black also looks very interesting with the 'pops' of red in the print. However, I feel the pink version is a bit overloaded with pink, with the pink cakes and pink background. As for the print itself, the cakes are drawn to AP's usual standard and they are very neatly framed. I really like the details on the cakes, especially the cupcakes with their little decorations. It is really clever how the frames of the cakes are made up of whipped cream. I felt that was quite effective. The bows at the top of the frames offer a refreshing 'pop' of colour. The cookies in the background are cute too. But then they had to go and spoil it by adding that houndstooth background. I have never liked houndstooth in regular fashion, let alone in lolita fashion. With this print, the houndsooth looks far too busy and it makes the rest of the print look far more cluttered than it actually is. Unfortunately, this is a real deal-breaker for me.
So I feel this had the potential to be quite a standard Angelic Pretty cake themed series. The print would look very cute if it hadn't been for that background. I also feel the dress designs are okay, but could have been a lot better. So this is not a series I will be going for. If I absolutely had to, I would pick the OP in grey. I think the design of the OP is a lot stronger than the JSK. Overall, I am not that impressed and I am much more excited about some of the upcoming releases.
No comments:
Post a Comment