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 Order August 2015- Picture Heavy

It is time for my latest Taobao review! I placed this order right at the start of July, but it only arrived last week, as some head bows I ordered were holding things up (At the time of writing this, they still hadn't arrived at Taobao Spree, so I just decided to leave them out of the review). Everything else arrived at Taobao Spree in a reasonable amount of time. This time my Taobao Spree agent was Cici. I have been so used to getting Ray lately! I remember really liking Cici, although after getting Ray so many times, I have noticed Cici is a little bit slower and Ray is a bit friendlier and more willing to help. But Cici is still a very good agent and I still received a good service.

Here is how my box looked when I first opened it. The box could have done with a bit more padding, especially considering some of the items in my order. The box was well sealed up though, to the point that I had trouble getting in to it.

My first items are these squishy doughnut key chains I got from here which are for an upcoming meet I am hosting. You do not get to pick the colours you receive, so I ordered a few, just in case I got some of the less popular colours. Thankfully, I don't think the colour choices I received are that bad. There are definitely some stranger looking colour combinations available. These key chains were super cheap and as expected, they are perfectly squishy! I was a little confused as to why I had to attach the strings myself, especially as the macaron ones already had them attached (see below).

I also got these squishy macaron key chains from the same store. This time I was allowed to pick the colours I wanted. The blue colour is a bit darker than I anticipated, but otherwise I really like the key chains. These key chains are properly sealed up, so I haven't opened them. But I can see the macarons have a nice appearance to them and they are very satisfying to squish!

The bags the doughnuts came in were not sealed up, so I was able to pull one out to show in this post. Sadly the sprinkles are a bit loose, so some of the sprinkles did fall off. They could do with something to help seal them, so they stay in place a bit better. As mentioned, these key chains were super cheap, so I do feel I got a reasonable amount of value for the price.

Next up is a head bow from a store I have purchased from before- Kira Kira. I will be honest, I am not too happy with Kira Kira this time around. I wanted to order this other hair clip from them but after initially saying it was okay, I was then told it wasn't available. And after just checking their page, I see this clip is still pictured on their site. So either it has become available again or they have not bothered to take down the listing. But back to the head bow I did manage to order, I think it has a lovely shape to it. It is a bit bigger than I was expecting though. It is a proper head-eating bow! The gold lace and trim used is of a reasonable quality and similar to that I have seen used by the Japanese brands. The lace does sit a little strangely on the bow in places though. I think it is because of the way the bow material has been gathered in the centre. The star charm dangling on one side is cute and also of a good quality. The star charm is fairly small though, and gets a bit lost in all the lace and the sheer size of the bow. The head band feels a comfortable size for an adult's head and was covered neatly in fabric, which is a nice touch.

The stitching on the bow is quite neat. I feel the seam in the centre of the bow could have been concealed a bit better, but otherwise it is a fairly nice bow. I do find that because the bow is so big, it can be a little bit difficult to balance on my head though.

And next up is my latest purchases from Mu Fish who I buy from quite frequently. I have reviewed the ankle socks on the far left before, so I wont review them again. I am ordering another white pair not because there is anything wrong with the quality (which is good) but because some colour transferred from my shoes and I was unable to fully get the mark out. So I am really glad the price is good!

I also got these navy crew length socks. I was expecting them to be a bit longer in length, but I am sure I will find a use for them. The pattern on these socks is pretty, although the "transparent" part of the socks has a lot of golden shimmer to it, which is quite noticeable. It didn't look as obvious in the stock photos. The other thing I find a bit weird is the ruffle at the top. I am not sure if I am meant to fold it over or wear it as it appears in this photo! The size of the socks was quite generous. My feet are actually slightly bigger than the socks are intended for, but they fit me fine with a bit of extra stretch to spare.

These are the transparent diamond socks that Mu Fish recently added to their store (worn over blush coloured tights). This time the transparent part of the socks is in fact a bit more transparent, although there is still a bit of tell-tale sheen there. I got both colours and I have to say, I am very surprised by the difference in quality between the 2 colours. The black socks are perfect with neatly defined diamond shapes. The lines start getting a little fizzy near the top, but otherwise the black ones are perfect. 

The white socks however, had a lot of issues. As you can see in this picture, the diamond edges are a lot messier on the white socks and there were even some random blotches of white in the middle of some of the transparent diamonds. The quality is so bad, I am not even sure I am going to keep the white pair. I don't really understand how the quality can vary this much, just because they are a different colour. Perhaps I just got given a bad white pair. But I definitely wont be ordering another white pair to find out. As for the size, both pairs fitted me but there is a limited amount of stretch to the socks. These are definitely not plus-sized friendly. The socks are a good length for me, but I am only 5'4'' and with the limited stretch it may not be worth getting these socks if you are a lot taller than me. 

Finally from Mu Fish, I got these strawberry print tights. I was surprised to see the bottoms of the tights were yellow, as this wasn't shown that clearly in the stock photos. The tights were a good size and I found them to have plenty of stretch. Although the print looks a bit faded in my photos, I could have pulled the tights down a little bit to stretch the print a bit less. I feel the print looks a lot better in person than it does in my photo. Unfortunately, I was having troubles getting decent photos of these on my own! The print is very cute and I am looking forward to wearing them. After the disappointments I had with some of my other Mu Fish stuff, I am relieved these tights turned out fine.

Next up today is these shoes from Angelic Imprint. These were not my first shoe choice, but sadly the store I wanted to order from decided to they wanted to stop making shoes in my size (so frustrating!). I received the shoes in a zip-lock plastic bag and the heels were suitably padded with tissue paper. I was a bit annoyed that no attempt was made to pad the shoes with bubble wrap or something similar though.

My shoes arrived covered in a layer of dust. This was easy enough to remove, but it still isn't too great. It makes me wonder how long they have been sat in a warehouse before I ordered them. The heel feels quite sturdy, although you may be able to see in this photo that the sole has been attached a bit wonky and has little air bubbles. So I am a little concerned about how well the shoes have been constructed. The stitching on the shoes seems relatively neat and the bows are a cute shape.

And here comes the annoying bit. When you put the shoes on, the strap with the bow on does not un-do or have a buckle anywhere. It is simply elasticated. So when you put the shoes on, you have to stretch this elastic and slip your foot in. This wouldn't be a problem, except the elastic is quite tight and does not stretch a great deal. I have wide feet and I had some serious issues trying to get my feet through this elastic loop. It just seems like such a terrible way of doing things and probably done to keep things cheap.

Eventually, I managed to get my feet inside the shoes and after walking about for a few hours to break them in, I can say these shoes are quite uncomfortable. I am hoping once I have worn them a little bit more I will find them more comfortable but so far, it is not looking good. 

Here is a little side view of the shoes. Don't be fooled by the little gap at the back of these shoes. That is just the way my feet seem to want to sit in the shoes when I wear them. They actually seemed an okay size at first. These shoes arrived with some free gel cushions and I can now see that this should have been a warning sign. I wont be buying shoes from this store again. The main issue is definitely the elastic and the narrowness of the shoe itself. I am supposed to be wearing these shoes at Regalia. Wish me luck...

And just when I thought I had had enough disappointments with this Taobao order, I finish today's review with these Fuwa Boom over-skirts. If you look at the listing, you will notice they are very careful not to show a back view of these over-skirts when worn by one of the slim models. I was about to discover why. At first glance the over-skirts look quite cute and the material they are made of is quite soft with no stiffness to it. I feel the pleats at the front are a bit too straight, but the over-skirts hang fairly nice from the front view, as you will see below. You can wear the over-skirt with the detachable bow or without if the dress you are wearing already has a waist bow.

The stitching is done neatly and the lace is of a good quality. Look at how tidy the edges are. Although I am not overly fond of the pleats, I do like the shaping along the opening at the front.

Unfortunately, the elastic leaves a lot to be desired. It is cheap and sloppily done. The over-skirt is one-sized but I found the size to be far too big. I am hardly plus-sized, but I am not the thinnest lolita either. This over-skirt is huge on me. I also found the bow on my navy over-skirt was poorly shaped and was crooked.

The 'fastenings' are messy and also a bit confusing. The listing for the over-skirts does give a good idea of how you are meant to use the hoops and the buttons, but I found it didn't feel that secure. On a positive note, I was given some spare buttons and some additional pearl beads, so I could alter these over-skirts if I so desired (and I probably will have to).

I decided to give the white over-skirt a go with my Sugary Carnival JSK. For reference, I am wearing my Classical Puppets bell-shaped petticoat underneath, which is giving me a reasonable amount of volume underneath. As you can see, from the front it does not look too bad.

From the side however, there is visible signs of drooping. I didn't notice until after I took this photo that there were button holes on the over-skirt meant to be used with the waist tie buttons (this of course, depends on the dress or skirt having waist tie buttons). If I had spotted these holes sooner, perhaps the back would not have been slipping down so much in the photo. However, when I tried this out later, I still found the over-skirt was too big for me and the elastic puckered strangely. The elastic is simply no good at all. It is cheap and does nothing. So for me to wear these over-skirts I am probably either going to have to replace the elastic or alter it some other way. If anybody has any suggestions then let me know.

So as you can tell, I have been left feeling a bit disappointed by this order. The tights, some of the socks, the head bow and key chains turned out great but the rest of the order has a lot of problems with it. I even had issues with my white diamond mu-fish socks, and they are usually my go-to Taobao store for socks. I don't really know what else I can say about this order. I just hope my next order goes better. And that the head bows I am waiting on don't turn out disappointing too.

September 2014 Taobao Haul- Picture Heavy!

I placed another Taobao order last month and today I shall be reviewing my order! It was quite a big order, although I wont be able to show some of the items to you all because I am hoping to do a give-away if I reach 300 followers. When I last checked I think I had about 12 followers left to go. I don't want to push people to follow me but if you know anybody who might be interested in following me, then maybe we can get this give-away started a bit sooner!

I wont be reviewing Taobao Spree as by now, I am sure you all know that I really like their service. I did have a different agent this time though. His name is Ray and I think he is a new employee. He was very friendly and his English was very good. He seems to know what he is doing as well so I was quite comfortable to have him assigned to me instead of Cici (Cici is still my favourite agent though!). We even talked about how much to declare the value of the order to customs. Taobao Spree usually mark down the value on their packages to avoid customs but as my order was a bit big, Ray gave me advice on how much I could realistically get away with. In the end, my order made it through customs without a charge, despite the higher declaration.

My order was packaged so well that I really struggled to get the box open! In the end I really had to tear the box apart. But at least I know that my package was very secure. The items inside were quite tightly packed so there was no danger of the items getting damaged by moving about.

And just to pre-warn people, this order does include a few replica items. I usually try to avoid replicas as much as possible but I sometimes make the odd exception. I don't wish to get in an argument about replicas. 

I caved in and got the replica gold Milk heart bag. It arrived wrapped in thin protective fabric and then wrapped again in plastic to help protect it.

The gold colour is lovely and the finish is quite smooth. I love how big the bag is too. There is plenty of room inside. I think the 2 hearts may be slightly mis-aligned though. It looks fine when the bag has stuff in it but when you lay it flat you can see it is a bit wonky.

The fake logo is painted on neatly, although since getting the bag I have attempted to remove the logo. You can see how I got on in an upcoming post. I was amazed at how well the original bag has been replicated. You wouldn't be able to spot the difference without some close inspection.

The inside of the bag is lined neatly. It also has 2 pockets inside, which is very useful. I did find the lining smelt quite bad though. I suppose that is because of the cheap materials used. 

The stitching is quite neat. I like the little heart charms used for the zip tag as well.

I think this picture shows just how big the bag is. It is a lot of depth to it.

Overall I am impressed that the bag turned out as well as it did. It could definitely pass for the original bag, although that wasn't really my aim. I just wanted a generic gold heart shaped bag. The bag feels quite sturdy and the price was good. I can tell I am going to get a lot of uses out of it.

And the rest of my order is all from Mu Fish- http://mu-fish.taobao.com/

First up are these sheer ankle socks I got in lavender and white. The lavender ones are quite a warm shade and I found they match quite a few of the lavenders I have in my wardrobe. The white colour is quite bright and stark but it still matches quite well with some items in my wardrobe. The bow design is very cute.

I did spot one loose thread but apart from that I found no other flaws.

And here is a worn photo of the lavender socks. The socks have a soft, silky feel to them and feel very pleasant to wear. I do worry they are going to slip down when worn though. They also feel as if they could be easy to snag. As you can see the sheer parts do have a slight shine to them but it isn't too noticeable unless you are taking photos with the flash on. The socks fit my feet fine. For reference, I usually wear a 25cm shoe (I go up a size for my wide feet). My only complaint with the size is that I wish they were a bit longer. I wish they ended higher up my leg instead of right above my ankle.

Next up is 3 pairs of ankle socks. I noticed the purple ones have a Tutu Anna label on them and I didn't realise they were replicas when I brought them. Weirdly, it is only the purple ones that have this Tutu Anna label on them. The white and purple ones are exactly the colours I was expecting. The pink are maybe a bit more peach coloured than I was expecting. They looked a bit pinker in the listing. They are still a pretty shade though.

Unlike the other socks in my order, these ones came with washing instructions, which is quite handy.

The lace is lovely and soft. It doesn't feel itchy and the ankles are nicely elasticated for a nice fit. The lace is a good quality for the cheap price and quite pretty looking.

The sock material feels soft and they sit nicely just above my ankle. At first I thought the socks had a good thickness to them, although I have noticed I can see my ankle through the sock in this photo. Overall though, I think the quality is fairly good and acceptable.

Next up are these lace patterned socks. I believe they might be a replica of the ones Baby did. I don't know how these socks compare, but it would be good to try and find out.

The socks felt quite smooth. The sheer parts are again a bit shiny. I think the pattern is quite pretty.

The thing that I dislike about these socks is that they have very little stretch to them. I wouldn't recommend these for people who have large legs as I found these clung to my legs quite a bit. The socks end quite awkwardly at my knee. If they had been just a little bit longer I would have been able to wear them as over-the-knee socks but instead I have to roll them down a bit and wear them as under-the-knee. I hear that a lot of people have had issues with the tights being too small but the socks being okay, but I found the opposite to be true. I really think the socks could do with having a bit more stretch to them.

And this is what the pattern looks like when worn. I think some of the lines could have been done a bit neater but they still look pretty good.

Next up are these trainer socks. These were a bit of an impulse buy because I thought the macaron design was so cute! These are a bit tight fitting on my feet (the packaging recommends 24cm feet maximum) but I was able to get them on okay. This is definitely the absolute maximum size though. When worn, you can still see the cute design really nicely. I love the colours. However, there was an issue I had with the product listing. When translated, the listing gives odd colour descriptions for each sock. You can see little pictures of the socks on the listing but the socks I ordered were described as "chocolate" for the colour. As you can see from my photo, there is nothing remotely chocolate coloured or themed on these socks! When I placed my order I put that I wanted the "chocolate" colour on my form, and thankfully I got the correct socks. It is just very confusing.

Finally, I got a pair of tights. I am really happy with how crisp the feather print is. And even when worn the pattern is still very clear. Even the feathers near the top of my legs were still clear.

I found the tights fitted me very well. I wouldn't recommend these for anybody taller than about 5'5''. I am around 5'4'' and am bottom heavy with fairly chunky thighs. I found the tights fitted me just right but I wouldn't want them to be any smaller. The material felt nice. The tights have a slight sheen to them.

I did spot that the tights were not entirely opaque where they stretched over the knees though.

Overall I was impressed with the quality of the bag and all of my Mu Fish items. I was a bit surprised that I had the opposite issue to some other Mu Fish customers. I found the socks needed more stretch and the tights fitted really well. I was half expecting to have to cut up the tights and turn them in to socks, so I am glad this is not the case. I would definitely order from Mu Fish again. I am really excited about the give-away items as well and hope I will be able to host this soon.