Taobao Haul August 2016- Picture Heavy

It's time again for me to do a review of my latest Taobao haul. My folder of Taobao wants has gradually gotten a lot smaller! I think that this will be the last time that I use Taobao Ring, and this time I really do mean it. Taobao Ring charge you a base rate of 15 yuan shipping from each Taobao store, regardless of how much they actually paid for shipping to their office, which does add up if you order from lots of shops. I also had an item missing, which I will get in to later.

First up is this wig from Kyouko. I wanted a twin tail wig which looked a bit more subtle in comparison to some of the larger twin tails you see. Twin tails are not really popular in lolita anymore, but I find twin tails suit me better than single pony tails. Apologies for the slightly washed out photo- it has been pretty much constant sunshine in my neck of the woods lately. As far as the colour goes, the listing is fairly accurate. The actual wig is maybe just the slightest bit blonder than it appears in the photos. Interestingly, this wig has turned out to be very close to my own hair colour! The bangs are super long. I found that the base wig fitted my head okay, but it would have been a better fit if it had been a little bit bigger. 

The part looks fairly natural. I found that the clips for the twin tails gripped on quite firmly. Maybe the tops of the twin tails could have done with being a bit fuller and a bit better disguised so that they looked a bit more realistic. 

The fibres feel soft and I would say the softness was on a similar level to my older Lockshop wigs. There were a few straggly fibres and a slight bit of tangling, but I found they brushed out easily enough. The curls on the twin tails looked better with a bit of brushing out as well. The other good thing about the twin tails is that they are the ideal length for styling in to buns, as demonstrated in the product listing. More than anything else, I wanted to give Kyouko and Taobao wigs a go because I hadn't really been happy with the last Lockshop wig I ordered (Mermaid Beachy, which tangles like crazy and the fibres are not well blended) and I wanted to see what else was on offer. I would say that this wig is good quality for the price paid. I got a free wig cap as well.

After getting these constellation clips in gold in my last order, I decided to go ahead and get some in silver in this order. Unfortunately, one of these was missing from my order with no explanation from Taobao Ring. I looked on the listing and at the time, it looks as though the missing design had gone out of stock. However, usually there would have been a note left on my order page to say that it had become unavailable, and this was not done. It is a bit frustrating, because just one clip was missing and it was super cheap, so I don't feel it is worth me complaining to Taobao Ring about. They probably know that I wouldn't kick up a fuss over something that small as well. As I am unlikely to use Ring again, there is not much point them offering to take it off my next order, seeing as there wont be a next order. As for the clips themselves, the 4 that did arrive were as good as expected. They clip very firmly in place and have a very sturdy backing to them. Again, I had a bit of trouble un-doing some of the clips because of the style of clasp. But the clips are otherwise perfect and I am very pleased with them.

Something else I have ordered again, is this Miss Moe Bolero which this time I got in navy blue. Instead of repeating myself, I will just link you to the full review I did of the bolero here. The colour of the navy bolero is a bit darker than it appears in the photos. I had to turn the flash on to get the details to show up properly.

The ruffles were once again done very neatly. I couldn't really find any faults anywhere.

I am glad Miss Moe decided to use black elastic instead of white. You cannot see the elastic at all when the bolero is worn. 

On turning the bolero inside out, the stitching has been done very neatly here as well. I could not find a single fault. There were no loose threads or anything. I love that this chiffon design is light and airy and I hope to get the chance to wear these boleros before Summer ends.

I also ordered some socks and tights from Mu Fish, who are my usual go-to for Taobao leg wear. I have purchased these lacy ankle socks multiple times before. The wine coloured ones are a new addition to their listing, so I decided to give them a go. Weirdly, the quality of the wine ones seems to be a bit different to the standard I have come to expect from getting these socks previously. 

The first thing I noticed was these weird loose threads on the socks, which were quite thick. These appeared on both socks and seemed to be there deliberately. I carefully cut them off, as I think they make the socks look messy.

The fit was the same as usual and they had plenty of stretch. The socks felt soft and pleasant to wear. I think the wine colour looks a little bit brown in person, although you can definitely tell what colour they are supposed to be.

I did notice the socks seemed to be a little bit thin along this seam. You can see my skin slightly where the material is obviously a little bit thinner than the rest of the sock. I have never noticed this with any of my ankle socks from Mu Fish previously.

The lace is of a reasonable quality. It is good enough for a cheap pair of ankle socks like this. I will continue to buy my ankle socks from here, as and when I need them, although I don't think I will be getting the wine ones again.

I also got these constellation tights as well. As you may be able to see, they are completely identical to the navy constellation tights James got me for my birthday, which is interesting because those were supposedly from a different Taobao store (Yidhra). The fit is the same, the mesh is the same and the feel of the tights is the same.

They even have the same Popo Shop logo near the bottom, by the ankles. At least with these tights I feel the colour was a bit more accurate. With the navy ones, they look so dark that they could be mistaken for black. I am curious to see if any more designs appear on both Mu Fish and Yidhra, as they are clearly using the same supplier.

Finally, I got myself this macaron umbrella from here. After taking the umbrella out and undoing the velcro, I accidentally set off the spring-loaded mechanism and got a lovely big bruise on my knee for my trouble. So I can confirm that the sping-loaded action is very powerful! Putting the umbrella up was super quick with just that one press of the button. Getting the umbrella down proved a little bit more tricky. The spring is so powerful that you really do have to forcefully push the umbrella down and make sure it is all the way down. I liked the matching carry bag, although it could do with being a bit bigger. I did the umbrella up as neatly as I could and I was really struggling to get it back in the bag.

Here is the umbrella up. The material is a bit wrinkled, as you can probably see, but not enough to make me not like the fun design. As I mentioned, it has been super sunny lately, so I have not had a chance to test this umbrella in wet weather. The material seems decent enough, like any standard umbrella.

The colours of the macarons are so vibrant and fun. I really love the print.

The frame feels very sturdy and I am very hopeful that it will not turn inside out in strong winds. I am keeping my fingers crossed!

There were a few small marks under some of the deepest pink coloured macarons. It seems some of the dye may have rubbed off a bit, which you may be able to see underneath the macaron in this photo. I have high hopes for this umbrella and hope it does a good job as its intended use. If nothing else, it makes for a very powerful and painful weapon. 

The umbrella store also gave me a free pair of slippers. Usually I love free gifts, but I feel these slippers may have contributed a bit to the hefty shipping fee I had to pay to ship my order to my place. The box I got my order in was massive, and it was completely stuffed. I would hate to have paid extra just for a free gift I didn't really ask for. I don't really use slippers either, so I doubt I am even going to keep them. They are probably going to end up going to a charity shop unless I find somebody who really wants them.

So this was generally quite a positive order, although not everything ran smoothly. It looks as though I am now on the search for a new shopping service, or I may just go back to Taobao Spree and put up with their weird payment system. I was especially pleased with the wig and bolero. I am also excited to see how well the umbrella does with the UK weather, although my poor knee hurt for ages after I accidentally set it off! The socks and constellation clips were okay as well, so I am confident I will get a fair bit of use from everything in this order.

Taobao Haul June 2016- Picture Heavy

It's time for another Taobao review! I needed a bolero for a wedding anyway, so I decided to stock up on some new accessories whilst I was at it. Despite indicating that I was going back to using Taobao Spree, I did end up using Taobao Ring again. My thinking was that there wasn't really much that could go wrong with the packaging and what I was ordering. I was considering trying Buynosaur, but after hearing some negative stories I have decided against using them. Taobao Ring actually did quite a good job with this order and Monica was very helpful when one of my items was taking longer than expected.

And today's mystery packaging is... a load of foam and a few sheets of newspaper! To be fair, it was packaged quite securely and this packaging is an improvement over the random nappy bag I got with one of my previous orders. Most of my accessories were put inside the bag I ordered. The only slight issue was that one of the corners of the bag got slightly bent, but thankfully that seems to have sorted itself out with no long-term damage.

First up today is this bag from Loris. Loris has not always had the best of reputations in the lolita community. Am I the only one who recalls the infamous EGL post where they posted a video of them placing a brick in their bag and swinging it about in response to their negative reviews? This Loris bag seemed to be exactly what I was looking for, so I decided to risk it, seeing as it was a fair price. I can confirm that I am really happy with the finish on this bag. It is a really nice shade of gold and I can't find any faults with it. After giving this bag a thorough examination, I can't see this bag breaking unless you seriously overload it. I wouldn't say the quality is on the same level as the Japanese brands, but it isn't a great deal different. 

Here is the slight mis-shaping caused by the packing that I mentioned above. I have thankfully managed to un-dent the bag and luckily it was just this one corner.

The charm on the zip pull is a star shape and pretty similar to those you see used by Angelic Pretty.

I don't know if you can see it that clearly, but there was one small loose thread. The stitching was otherwise very neatly done and I couldn't spot any other flaws.

Size-wise, it is similar to many lolita bags. It is big enough to hold the essentials and possibly a few small bits as well. There is a zip pocket inside as well, which is useful. The only thing I would say (and the same thing happened the last time I got a bag from Taobao, but a different store) is that there was a slight smell inside the bag. The smell wasn't as strong this time (last time it smelt like fish that was a day or so past its best and it actually made me gag) but I am still going to have to give this bag a proper airing and de-odourising before I can properly use it. Despite this setback, the bag is actually better than I was expecting. Once I get the smell out, I expect I will be using this bag a lot. So I wouldn't say Loris was completely perfect, but from this experience I would say I was pleased with what I got.

Next we have these Rain House earrings. Taobao Ring warned me that the boleros I got may take 14 days, but surprisingly it was these earrings that held up the order. One thing Ring did tell me though, was that the gold pair may have defects to them, although I am yet to find anything wrong with them. I liked that the earrings came in a proper box and each pair of earrings came in a small bag so that they didn't get tangled up. You can even see that I got given a free pair of neon pink star shaped earrings, but they are not really my colour! 

The earrings have a really pretty design to them. I love the dangling charms and the moon has a cute design. The only thing I would change about them, is I would have liked the moon on the other earring to face the other way, so that both moons face the same direction when worn (hope that makes sense!). I will admit that after a few hours of wear, my ear did go slightly green. I suppose you have to expect that with cheap jewellery though and at least there are ways to prevent the green from coming back. I would consider ordering from Rain House again, but I will be keeping in mind that they took their time. After looking at how simple the earring design was, I was amazed that they held up my order for well over a week.

I also got another of these cuffs from Red Maria. After last time where my 'vanilla' cuffs turned out to be more of a mushroom grey colour, I decided to get a pair of 'generation' cuffs. Well, I say a pair, but halfway through my order Red Maria decided they only had one available. Taobao Ring made a note on my order, but didn't email me to let me know, so I only found out when I logged in to check my order progress. Weirdly, I looked at the item page just now and generation is available again. Maybe I will try and order another cuff, so I have a pair. I usually like Red Maria, but this situation with the cuff has been frustrating. On a more positive note, the generation colour is a lovely ivory, slightly yellow shade. If I am able to get another cuff I think they will make a nice pair of wrist cuffs. I appreciate these are meant to be bracelets, not wrist cuffs, but I think wearing just the one cuff looks weird.

Next up is this ring from Cutie Creator. My initial reaction was "holy f**k, that ring is massive" and I wondered how on earth I hadn't noticed the large size when I ordered it. I don't think this photo really captures just how massive it is.

Then I tried the ring on, and I realised just how heavy the ring is too. In fact, I can't see me realistically wearing this ring for long periods of time. Something else which is not that obvious in the item photo is the strange use of lace on the base. The shape and design of the lace does not really fit in with the strawberry and cream theme. It reminds me a bit of butterfly wings. Aside from being way too big and heavy, the strawberry looks really nice. The whipped cream at the base is very basic though. It is the same stuff you find in some deco-den kits. It feels soft to touch and I am amazed it is supporting the strawberry at all.

The base of the ring has a nice design to it and I like that the size is adjustable too. Sadly, I think I wont be buying from Cutie Creator for a while. I have not been that impressed with anything I have gotten from them recently, and this massive ring just confirms my fears.

My quest for the perfect sheer gloves lead me to Haruhi Clover. When I initially opened the packet, I was pleased. The material used feels so soft. The bows are massive though. They need to be about half their size and I do worry the bows are going to get in the way when I wear them. I am pleased that Haruhi Clover did seal the ends of the ribbons though, and the bows do have a cute, well formed shape.

I then started to notice a few problems with the gloves. My first concern is the wrist elastic. It is so thin and you have to be really careful putting the gloves on, or it will snap. Elastic this thin and flimsy is not acceptable. I am just glad that the gloves were not that expensive. I have had some really good quality items from Haruhi Clover in the past, so this is disappointing.

I then came across another problem. No effort has been made to create a neat hem and the rough edge has just been left as it is. As this is on the inside of the wrist, it wont really be visible when worn, but it is still a worry.

Once I managed to ease the gloves on without snapping the elastic, the sizing was okay. The fingers were a bit long on me, but I seem to have short fingers. I still think the wrist details look a bit bulky.

Here you can see more bits where there is extra material and nothing has been done about it. It isn't that noticeable when worn, unless you are really looking for it. I will still order from Haruhi Clover, but I think it is safe to say that I wont be buying their gloves again. It is a shame, because with a little bit more care and attention they could have been okay gloves.

Next is this headdress from Emomo. I saw this and thought it looked like a new twist on the old-school rectangle headdress design. The materials feel lovely and soft. The only issue I could find is that the lines of pearls could do with being a bit more flexible, as with this style of headdress you need them to be flexible so that they sit right when worn.

The bows are nicely formed with a cute shape. I also think the gathering for the ruffles has been done well. After feeling along the edges, I can see some effort has been made to seal the ends of the ribbons. 

There are also clips to help hold the headdress in place. I especially appreciate that ribbon has been used on the ends of the clip. The clip still has a good grip, but the ribbon here helps to prevent damage to hair when worn and it also looks a bit neater. The stitching on the underside was also done quite neatly.

Here is a worn photo. The ribbon is a really good length, although I actually found the clips were so good that I didn't really need the ribbon to help secure the headdress. It does make for a lovely decoration though. There is one ruffle which was determined not to sit the way I wanted it to, but I think this may be me being very nit-picky. Overall, I am impressed and I think I will be ordering another colour next time I place a Taobao order.

I got this choker from Sakuya Lolita. The lace used is of a good quality with a pretty design. The ribbon threaded through the lace only has a slight sheen to it.

The star charms are cute and the pearl chains are well spaced out. I think the design has been quite well thought out and executed.

There is a bit of room for size flexibility as well. The star charm finishes off this little chain nicely.

Unlike the Cutie Creator chokers I have, this choker was actually a decent length for my neck. The CC ones were too long in length and as a result, the details didn't sit right. I will say though, that when I initially tried to put the choker on, the clasp broke off. So I had to get the pliers out to close this little gap in one of the metal loops to stop the clasp from falling off. Once that was sorted, I was able to put the choker on and I barely needed the lengthening chain. I really like how the choker looks when worn. Everything hangs where it is supposed to. Sadly, it looks like this choker has been shelved, so I wont be able to get the same choker in black! It is worth keeping an eye on the Taobao store though.

Finally, I got these chiffon boleros from Miss Moe. After my experience with their gloves in my last order, I was a bit wary about ordering these. Miss Moe are not known for having the best of quality. I wouldn't say these boleros are the best of quality, but they were definitely better than I was expecting. The material used feels soft to touch.

The ruffles have been gathered okay. There are places where it could have been done better, but generally they look okay.

I was a bit disappointed with the elastic on the sleeves. At least it isn't as thin as the elastic on the Haruhi Clover gloves! It is still pretty thin though, so you have to take care when taking the bolero on and off. After turning the boleros inside out, the stitching was of a satisfactory level. There were a couple of loose threads, but nothing dramatic.

Apologies for the 'normie' clothes, it had been a long day. Google Translate was able to translate the sizing chart okay. The sizing seems to be pretty accurate and I found my boleros fit me very well. In fact, I can say with confidence that my boleros look just like they do in the worn photos on the item listing.

A little bonus photo of the back. You can probably see that the material does wrinkle slightly, but nothing too bad. A bit of steam should get those wrinkles right out. These boleros have actually proven to be quite a nice surprise. I still wouldn't recommend Miss Moe if you are after good quality, but I do think you get a fair deal considering the cheap prices. There is not really much to complain about here.

Considering I only placed this order for the boleros, I seem to have had some pleasant surprises with this order. The ring from Cutie Creator is the only thing I am very disappointed with. The gloves from Haruhi Clover could have been better as well, but at least they are wearable. I think my favourite part of this order has to be the Emomo headdress. I ordered it on a whim, and it turned out really great. I am happy that this has generally been a positive order.