Nov 2012 Ox Loli Meet- Lolita Scavenger Assassins!

On Saturday the lovely Michelle hosted the Nov 2012 Oxfordshire Lolita meet. The theme was Lolita Scavenger Assassins and the plan was for Michelle to send us out around Oxford whilst trying to solve clues. Eventually, we would be able to find the secret base. So for this meet I decided to give Military Lolita a go.

I should point out that I didn't have much time to plan my outfit. In the end, I threw this ensemble together after raiding Primark and using a lot of what was already in my wardrobe. I think this is the shortest time I have ever thrown an outfit together! In the end, I used some basic black Bodyline items. The hat, most of the jewellery and the boots came from Primark. The bag is my beloved IW crown bag. The idea for this outfit was to combine black, wine and gold.

It gave me the perfect excuse to wear my Juliette et Justine tights! I think this picture is a good example of what they look like worn. When I review these tights on here I did say the colour looks a bit faded when worn. I wore a solid coloured pair of wine tights underneath, which did help a tiny bit. Obviously when you compare the colour to the wine bits on my blouse and bag, you can see the tights are quite a bit lighter, but I still adore the tights. I don't think they looked out of place in my outfit at all.

So, I didn't get many pictures of any actual clue solving or us rushing about Oxford. In the end, we all sort of came together and worked as one big force. This was the group going downstairs inside the Museum of History of Science to find one of the clues. Michelle had put a LOT of thought in to the clues. Some were more obvious than others. There were one or two clues that just completely baffled me! I was kicking myself when Michelle explained all the clues at the secret base location. It turned out that James had earlier guessed the secret base location! The secret base ended up being the Debenhams Cafe. It is somewhere our group ends up going to frequently because it is the only cafe that can hold our group! Oxford has so many beautiful boutique style cafes and we can never get in to them...

This was my favourite of the group photos we took. So enjoy us being creeps!

There were owls outside the Westgate Centre again! I have seen the owls here a couple of times and they were there again when we did a bit of shopping at the end of the day. They are so adorable. I really love how this little owl has such a grumpy face! I wish I could take you home with me, little owl...

It was a very fun and energetic meet. I was impressed by how well Michelle planned the scavenger hunt. It was a really great day. I think everybody enjoyed themselves. I am just glad I wore sensible boots for all that walking we did!

Juliette et Justine Shopping Review- Positive

I recently placed an order through the Juliette and Justine website for the first time and so, it is review time! Please note I placed this order through http://juliette-et-justine.com/ and not through their Rakuten store.

Ordering Process

Ordering from JetJ can be a bit daunting at first. I was able to browse the website quite easily but there is a lot of stuff which could be confusing to newcomers. That is where this post from EGL comes in- http://egl.livejournal.com/13287632.html

That EGL guide is your new best friend! By using it, ordering from JetJ was a lot easier and I knew exactly what I was doing. I even remembered to use my discount voucher from the TPC 5th Anniversary event! I did have to go back because whilst I was filling out the form, the colour I wanted sold out, but after adding my 2nd colour choice to the cart everything went smoothly.

Communication

JetJ responded relatively quickly. They get a lot of orders from overseas so I think they are quite confident when it comes to dealing with foreign customers. I understood exactly what they were saying and what I had to do and when. I got an order confirmation email on the same day I ordered and was invoiced about 4 days afterwards, which is how long I was expecting. After my order was shipped out I even got a follow up email, thanking me for my order. It is nice to see JetJ care about their customers.

Shipping

I got a shipping confirmation email 3 days later with my tracking number. I didn't really get a chance to use the tracking number as my parcel arrived just a few days later. It did look as though the tracking was updated frequently though. I was very impressed with the shipping speed.

My order was shipped in a strong plastic bag with one of JetJ's shopping bags inside. The bag was sealed well, so I was confident my item was safe inside. I only ordered a pair of tights, so I wasn't too worried about the contents moving about. That being said, I couldn't feel the tights moving around at all and they didn't have much space to move anyway.

Such a pretty shopping bag!

And inside were my lovely new tights and some information, including my personal details. As you can see, I managed to get the cross patterned tights that they were selling at the TPC event, when the person in front of me got the very last pair! I chose burgandy but I really wanted the cream ones. But I am very happy with my 2nd choice of colour.

I don't quite understand why the waist band is so decorative when nobody is going to see it, but I suppose it is a nice finishing touch! The quality is exactly the same as the other pair of JetJ tights I have. They are not the strongest pair of tights I own, but they are still pretty good. I don't feel as though I am going to ladder them as I pull them on. The tights also feel very soft.

The only thing I would say is that the colour is quite a bit lighter when worn, especially when you compare this flat photo with the next photo.

And here is a worn photo. I apologise because this probably isn't the greatest photo. Although nearer the bottom the colour is still quite rich, it does start to fade more towards the knees and the top half. It is mainly noticeable around the knee area, which I suppose is where you would expect this colour fading as you bend your knees and the tights will have to stretch more. It probably doesn't help that the sizing is not that generous. I wouldn't consider myself plus-sized, but I am probably nearing the maximum measurement for these tights. I definitely wouldn't recommend these to anybody larger than me. That being said, most of the more faded colour will be hidden when I wear lolita. I would definitely still recommend JetJ tights, but I would say that if you are going for darker colours, then proceed with caution. I have decided I am going to layer another pair of tights underneath to give these tights more depth. Apart from the colour problem, the design is beautiful. I absolutely love the gothic looking crosses and even when the design is stretched you can still see the cross detail. 

So I would say this has been a very positive experience. Juliette et Justine are very kind and helpful towards their overseas customers and I felt very valued as a customer. My tights were shipped with great care. The tights themselves are also good. Yes, the colour fades a bit, but that is quite common with tights like this. I would definitely order from Juliette et Justine again. Maybe next time I will order through their Rakuten store to see if their service is just as good there.

Tea Party Club 5th Anniversary Event!

I am feeling very unwell, so I am sorry if this post doesn't live up to expectations. So... the TPC 5th Anniversary event was held this weekend! I only attended the main event on Saturday but I hope everybody had fun at the Sunday tea party as well. I apologise if I didn't get the chance to talk to everybody. I have seen some pictures that have been uploaded and I can't believe how many people I missed! Then again, this event was absolutely huge. Although this event was to celebrate the TPC 5th Anniversary, there was a lot of excitement about Juliette et Justine being invited as guests. I believe this is their first party for the brand? Head designer Mari Nakamura was there to represent the brand. GLB editor Mariko Suzuki, doll designer Koisukihime and make-up artist Akira Tanaka were also present. How exciting! Kyra, who organised this event, has been absolutely amazing. And congratulations to Kyra and Dom as well! I was so excited to witness Dom's proposal and everybody in the room was crying and screaming with happiness.

After a quick browse around the various stalls, we all moved in to the other room to meet the guests. We had a really massive Q&A session. I really hope that somebody out there managed to record what was said! I think there were loads of interesting answers from the guests. Mari hinted that she had thought about making different sizes, so that may be something to look out for in the future. We also found out some interesting facts. Did you know that international lolitas make up 40% of all of JetJ's purchases? I think this is interesting because I really got the impression that the guests wanted to be more accommodating to western lolitas. There were also really interesting questions about how Mari comes up with her ideas, Mariko's favourite parts of the GLB and lots of hair and make-up tips from Akira. Koisukihime was also really lovely and we got a lot of insight in to how she designs her dolls.

The guests up on the stage!

Urgh! Shiny face! I won 2 raffle prizes during the day. In case anybody was wondering what I won in the morning raffle, it was this pair of Baby the Stars Shine Bright socks with a berry design. Seeing as I am a fan of berries, it was quite appropriate that I got this prize. I was so ecstatic to get a prize that I literally jumped up and chucked all the stuff on my lap on to the floor! Maybe that is why my poor camera was playing up! I didn't get that many outfit shots during the day because my camera decided to be very naughty.

The venue was also a brilliant choice! We loved this mirror on the stair case, so we had to get a picture. There are so many great places in this hotel where we could have taken pictures.

We also got to watch a fashion show for JetJ. It was really fascinating seeing all of the model's outfits. They were so well put together. I have to admit that before this event, JetJ were not really a brand that I considered a favourite of mine. But for most of the fashion show I was stunned by how beautiful JetJ is. I found myself lusting after many dresses and accessories. I even brought a pair of tights after I saw how good they looked when worn.

I think that my favourite outfits were the ones worn by Chokelate, although the red Alice themed outfit was also a favourite of mine. My first thought when I saw this outfit was that I really wanted the tights. In fact, I may use my discount coupon on them. 

Yay! Chokelate! I didn't get many good shots due to all the flashes going off and I was sitting further back, so I am glad I at least got a fairly good one of this outfit. I recommend viewing the ones that Anarchy Photography took and can be viewed on their Facebook page. 

My aim for my outfit was to wear classic, but to not upstage the people wearing JetJ. I chose my Meta lucky pack dress and teamed it with blush and peach coloured items. I am so glad I finally managed to work peach in to an outfit! It has been a goal of mine for ages. Almost all of my outfit is off-brand, especially Primark. I was so scared that I was going to look cheap! The rose crown, blouse, shoes and some of the jewellery is all Primark. The tights are Dorothy Perkins, the rose attached to my chest is Bodyline and the bag was the one I got in Camden on my birthday. The hardest task I found was matching up the colours. I really struggled with the cardigan so I am glad it was hot enough to take it off for most of the day. 

We all got a postcard signed by Mari and Mariko. What I thought was a really nice touch is that instead of printed autographs, they were actually all signed by both ladies! We had to go up to a table to get the postcard and we all shook hands with Mari and Mariko. I think I made a right idiot of myself. Mariko put out her hand to shake my hand and I put out the wrong hand! I could feel my face going red. Mari said I looked pretty so I thanked her politely. 

The latest GLB was being sold at a special price of £16 and features some of the dresses we saw during the day. Normally in the UK a GLB will cost you £20-25 if you buy it from somewhere like the Japan Centre in London. We also got a poster of the cover as well. Everybody was given a JetJ Autumn/Winter catalogue with a 2000yen discount coupon.

This was the poster I won in the afternoon raffle. I really love GLB cover art, so I am thrilled to have gotten 2 GLB cover posters. 

I think this post is already picture heavy, so I wont post everything I brought during the day. But here is a worn photo of the JetJ tights I got. These were not my original choice. I wanted the pair with the crosses on them and I was heartbroken when the person directly in front of me got the very last pair! It is my own fault for not buying them earlier in the day. So I picked up this classic, floral design instead, which are still very pretty. The lady behind the stall had previously said that they would suit me and I was determined to get at least one pair. The pattern gets a little faded towards the top where they have to stretch a bit more, but I still love them.

And finally, I would love to say a huge thank you to Kyra and everybody else who made this event such a huge success! I had a fantastic day!

My Dream Painting Dresses

Okay, so I am feeling very excited about the Tea Party Club's Juliette et Justine event this weekend! Ahead of this massive event, I thought I would further my excitement by doing a JetJ inspired post.

Juliette et Justine are probably best known for their painting dresses, such as Amour d'amants. Whilst they have also released a lot of other beautiful pieces, it seems the painting dresses have become very popular. However, JetJ have to use paintings that are part of the public domain. This is due to public domain pictures not being subjected to copyright.

But let's just say for a moment that JetJ could use any painting they wanted? Which paintings would you like to see them use? Here are my choices.

Ballet Rehearsal On Stage- Edgar Degas

Degas is my favourite artist, so he was always going to be on my list! JetJ could use any Degas painting and I would snap it up! But the reason Degas is on this list is because of the way he captured dancers in some of his most well-known works. I always picture ballerinas as being elegant, graceful and beautiful; qualities that could be appealing to lolitas as well. And when it comes to pictures of ballerinas, it has to be Degas! I feel his paintings captured the movement and grace of ballerinas the best. I could have chosen a number of Degas paintings, but I selected this one because I felt it would be the most suited for JetJ. It really feels as though you are standing at the side of the stage, watching the ballerinas rehearse.

Starry Night Over the Rhone- Vincent van Gogh

It is not as famous as the shorter named Starry Night, but I personally feel this one is more beautiful. The scene is so romantic with the glowing stars, the reflection of light off buildings in the water... I wish I could go to Arles and see this scene for myself. Night scenes are also very appealing with the deep colours. However, I admit that this painting would probably not transfer well to fabric. It is still gorgeous though.

The White Water Lillies- Claude Monet

A bit blurry, but I think it adds to its charm. I just think it is such a beautiful and peaceful scene, and that is why it got included on my list. It is the kind of scene where I could imagine seeing a lolita walking across the bridge. I love the use of colour too.

Sistine Madonna Two Angels- Raphael

It is an image I have already seen on multiple items of clothing! Angels are a popular theme in lolita and when I think of angel paintings, this is the first one that comes to my mind. The image is romantic and I can really see it fitting JetJ. 

Birth of Venus- Botticelli

A very famous image! Out of all the paintings in this post, this is one of the ones which I would most love to see JetJ do. It is not too hard to imagine how the finished dress would look. It is very classic and beautiful, the sort of thing I could imagine lolitas snapping up instantly. In fact, it would probably appeal to an even wider audience. 

Salisbury Cathedreal, From the Meadows- John Constable

I blame my mum for this one! I grew up seeing Constable paintings on a frequent basis. My mum owned coasters, table mats and pictures of Constable's paintings. In fact, I think I even saw a painting of his on a biscuit tin once. His paintings have so much detail to them and again, I wonder if this would come out well on fabric. Cathedrals or religious buildings are something we are used to seeing in lolita, usually with gothic lolita.  I feel this painting is a slightly different take on cathedrals than what we usually see. It is also framed well by the trees and river in the foreground and the rainbow in the sky.

Ophelia- Millais

I have been championing Shakespeare themed prints for a very long time and this is the scene I most want to see make it on to a dress! It depicts Ophelia singing in the water, just before she drowns. Yes, it is a bit grim, but for me it is one of the most iconic Shakespeare moments. And the painting depicts the scene in such a beautiful way. The foliage is so life-like and Millais put a lot of effort in to using the "language of flowers" and also putting Shakespeare's description of the scene to good use.

To be honest, there is a load of painting out there which could work with JetJ. As you can probably tell, I like impressionism and also scenes which I feel have a romantic, beautiful look to them. Some of my choices are probably more obvious than others, but I made this post based on my own opinions. I would be very interested to hear what other paintings people think would make a good JetJ dress. The possibilities are endless.

Meet the Juliette et Justine Designers! And more! Come to London!

In September, there will be a MASSIVE event here in the UK. Kyra of the Tea Party Club has done an absolutely amazing job so far, but we need to get as many people to come as possible! So I am trying to raise a bit of awareness in the hope that more people will come. I appreciate that a lot of my readers might not be UK-based or have the money to come, but there is no harm in trying!

This event is a huge deal, because it is a chance to show Japan just how popular lolita is in the West. You never know, if this event is a success, it may lead to even bigger things in the future! This is the first time Juliette and Justine have done an event like this (not even Japan has had a JetJ event like this) and the editor of the Gothic Lolita Bible will also be present. At the time of publishing, 124 lolitas are attending.

A short video here- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2LzRov9LCw&feature=youtu.be

Facebook event here- https://www.facebook.com/events/246701262106339/

Tickets can be purchased here- http://teapartyclub.shops.pipfrog.com/

Hopefully that is all the information you will need! Seriously, this event is going to be AMAZING!!!!