Tutuanna Socks

I was browsing Ebay a few days back when I decided to purchase some ankle socks. I found some I liked, ordered them and thought nothing of it. Then when they arrived, I was pleasantly surprised to see the socks were in fact from Tutuanna! I have been meaning to give their socks a go and now I had unintentionally got a pair!

Sadly, because I got these off Ebay I can't really review the Tutuanna website or ordering process. But I thought I would take a look at the socks anyway. The Tutuanna shop can be found here- http://www.tutuanna.jp/shop/e/etop/#/event/top/sort/sd/currentPage/1 Tutuanna has a lot of cute casual wear, but I was mainly interested in the socks. It is not a lolita shop, but from time to time I do find cute stuff on there which could be loli-able. The trouble is, you do sometimes have to trawl through a lot of stuff you don't want to find the good stuff. 

These are the ankle socks I got. As you can see, they are quite simple in design and topped off with lace.

The material feels really soft. I thought the quality was really good. The socks are one-size and they fitted my UK 5.5 feet perfectly. I imagine they would stretch a bit further, definitely to a UK 6. They sit quite nicely just above my ankles too. The lace looks a bit droopy in these pictures. I reckon it will look better when wearing a pair of shoes.

Slightly off-topic, but you may have noticed I am wearing my Bodyline tights from the post I made the other day (with a pair of solid-coloured peach tights worn underneath). In case anybody was wondering what they looked like worn, hopefully these pictures give a slightly better insight!

Another photo, slightly more closer up. There were quite a few colour options available on Ebay but I went for Snow White, which is slightly off-white, but still quite bright.

A shot of the lace. So it is not the best lace quality I have seen, but it is also not that bad. I think it suits these socks really well. It is very pretty and gives the socks a really girly appearance. 

The Tutuanna label included washing instructions in English. I think they have made the directions very clear.

So maybe one day I will actually order from the Tutuanna website. I am very pleased with my new socks. I would definitely try Tutuanna socks again in the future.

Meta's 10th Anniversary Set

On August the 9th 2002, Metamorphose started up their official site in English. Wow... has it really been that long? Time sure flies! To celebrate this milestone, Meta are offering a special set.

Details can be found here- http://www.metamorphose.gr.jp/english/_gogo_lolita/news/m-metamornews260.htm

I am currently putting money aside for future spending, so I can't really join in. But given the price and the items you get, I do think this could be worth doing. For 10,000yen you get a fully shirred skirt, a blouse, drawers and an original print tote bag. And I think that even after adding shipping (and potentially customs fees if you are unlucky) there is still the chance to make a profit on items if you don't like what you get.

If the example pictures are anything to go by, then I am not too fussed with the choice of skirts on offer. My favourite would be the deer print one (which I have totally forgotten the proper name of!) and I would be happy to get it, but what are the odds that you would get that particular skirt? I would probably be disappointed if I got one of the other ones! Blouses are always a good basic item to get in these packs, although one of the example ones has massive bell sleeves on it. I get a bit bored seeing drawers in happy packs and I would have preferred a pair of socks. Then again, drawers always come in handy.

Possibly my favourite part of this set is the chance to get a tote bag of past popular series. Out of the 8 bags on show, I would hope to get my hands on Twinkle Journey (a very popular choice!), Jewel Butterfly or Royal Rose. Yes, tote bags are easy to make, but it is another item to collect! Meta tote bags tend to be quite spacious. I can carry a fair bit in my March of the Duck tote, without it feeling as though the bag is about to break or anything. It is a nice alternative to the normal lolita purses, which are cute, but not always practical when you have a long day of frilly fun ahead of you.

It sounds really strange but despite not being overwhelmed by the items featured, I would like to buy it. I think the low price makes it worth going for, so it doesn't really feel that risky.

If you are interested, I would get in there quickly. By the sounds of it, this set is only available until the 17th.

Bodyline Order August 2012 Review

It feels like ages since I last ordered from Bodyline! I decided to do a small order this month. Once again, I wont be reviewing the Bodyline ordering process because I have done that quite a few times in the past.

Shipment

I placed my order on the 5th of August (after the Bodyline website had been down for a couple of days again!) and my tracking number came through quite quickly. It arrived yesterday, on the 9th, so it took just 4 days to get here. That seems to be a bit quicker than usual, although I did use their EMS shipping.

My order was placed in this shipping bag, which was thick and tough. There were no holes in the bag at all and no sign of any damage. So it was shipped to me quite safely. I was a bit worried because I ordered some shoes and I thought the other smaller items might get bashed. The shoes were packed in typical Bodyline style- tissue paper stuffed in the toes with those tube things to keep the shoes in shape, then wrapped up separately in a single layer of tissue paper. So not very secure at all. But this is something I have come to expect now and if this is something that concerns you, be careful what you order with your shoes. I still have not managed to get hold of one of those Bodyline shoe boxes, which I know exist!

I ordered shoes 251 in dark pink. I already own this style of shoe in white and red, so I already knew I would be comfortable with these shoes. The shoes fit well and the design is simple, but cute. I went for dark pink because I think some pink lolita shoes look so pale, that you can barely see the colour on them. So I was really pleased with the colour of these. When Bodyline started doing dark pink shoes I was worried they would be a hot pink kind of colour, but these shoes are a nice deep baby pink shade. It reminds me of Angelic Pretty.

My main reason for my order was to get some rose barettes. These are all ACC258. I got 2 cream, 2 orange and I was meant to get 2 red, but only got 1. But it looks as though Bodyline only had one of the red ones in stock, as they have now sold out. Again, I knew exactly what to expect as I had already ordered one of these clips for a meet prize a while back. But one thing I wasn't expecting was how deep the red clip was in colour. It looks a bit lighter on the website. 

The back has both a clip and a pin, just like the popular 2-way clips do. This is brilliant, as it makes them easier to wear in different ways. The roses look exactly the same as they do on the website (apart from the colour of the red version). The lace is okay. I thought the deep beige colour of the lace was a bit dull but to be honest, I didn't really buy these clips for the lace. I just liked the roses. 

Finally, I got tights LEG159 which are under the punk section of the website. I was just curious to see what they would be like. As I opened the pack, I was a little concerned about how long they will last. The material feels very cheap and flimsy. They are also very thin. It wouldn't take much to get a large snag in these and I am actually a bit paranoid about wearing them for long periods. I tried them on briefly. They are one-size but I wouldn't recommend these to anybody over 5'4'' in height because even I struggled to get them up the whole way. It didn't help that I thought they could ladder at any second. I also wouldn't recommend these tights if you are plus-sized. Actually, I don't think I would recommend these tights to anybody at all! They are cheaply made and are not worth bothering with. I will be going to Primark for tights like this next time.

Just in case you were wondering about the pattern, this is what they look like when I put my hand inside them. I had problems lining up the pattern on my legs!

So Bodyline's service was very quick and easy, although they are still having the odd website problem here and there. It is just a case of waiting until the website comes back up again. I am very happy with the items I ordered, apart from the tights. The rose clips are beautiful for the price you pay and I am glad to have another pair of my favourite style of Bodyline shoes! 

Chocolate Rosette by Angelic Pretty

Yes, I am fully aware I am discussing a print which has already come out and sold out, but my print discussions are all over the place because of my holiday! Anyway, we have hit chocolate lolita print season everybody! Unsurprisingly, AP is the main brand releasing all that chocolatey goodness. So today I will be talking about Chocolate Rosette by Angelic Pretty. This series has 1 dress, a salopette, a skirt, a head bow, a beret, 2 socks, tops and lots of different accessories.

This is the JSK. The bodice looks a good shape and well-fitted. The waist is given the illusion of a belt with the use of the horizontal stripes (it has waist ties at the back) and it helps to define the waist a bit. I also think it gives the dress a very neat and smart appearance. At first I thought the small waist bow was an odd shape. It is very pointy and angular; not the typical bow we are used to seeing. But actually, I have grown to like the bow because it suits the dress. The print is not overly sweet, despite being a chocolate print by AP and a more cutesy style of bow would ruin the overall design. Most of the bodice is quite simple, with just some gold trim running vertically up the bodice. I love the subtle use of gold on the dress because it is a nice finishing touch, but it is not over-powering. I adore the neckline on this dress! The pleats topped with more gold trim really mimic the rosette theme. It all works so well together! The neckline is topped with a detachable thin ribbon bow, which is a lovely finishing touch. There is also the detachable rosette with fancy AP style design, which I adore. The straps are a good width and make good use of the stripy print. They are finished off with gold trim too, so they don't look too plain. The back has a panel of shirring which is concealed really well by a ribbon corset. It is lined by gold trim too, so everything has a neat edge to it. The skirt shape is a bit straight considering this AP, but it really suits this series. It is nice to see AP doing a more classic-friendly style now and again. It does look as though the skirt part will flare out quite well and hold a decent amount of petticoat too. The skirt is clutter free and the print is displayed beautifully. The bottom hem is finished off with more pleats. Overall, I found it very difficult to find any obvious faults with this dress. Everything just works together.

I don't normally look at salopettes on here (I don't think I will suit them!) but I may as well take a quick look.  The first thing I noticed about this dress was the way that the lines in the print are used. Unlike the JSK, the lines in the print go at all sorts of angles. I love how the top part has the diagonal lines. It is also nice to have the horizontal stripes along the waist bit as it helps to break up the top part from the skirt. The rosette on the waist is a bit simpler in design compared to the JSK one, but this is a good idea as you want less bulk when it is placed near the waist like this. I do wonder if the waist on this salopette is going to be a bit too low for some wearers. It is placed very low and I really hope it wont sit too awkwardly. The large bow on the neckline is very cute, and maybe appeals a bit more to the regular AP fan, as it is sweeter in design than the JSK. The straps are a nice width and I absolutely love the gold buttons used with the crown design on them.

The salopette also has this cute crown lace. I am not too keen on the way it has been used (I think the JSK pleats are far more awesome!) but the lace itself is so pretty. This is definitely one of my favourite AP laces.

And here is the print! As you can see, it comes in ivory, red, brown and navy. Judging from what I have seen online, navy is by far the most popular colour. I have to agree with that! I think it is because I like the slightly more unusual colour combination. I wouldn't have thought to put navy and blue together in this way. I like the stripe pattern as well. It reminds me of school uniforms, albeit a very cute uniform (I wish my school uniform had looked like this!). I really love all the emblems and rosettes. I can see a lot of work has gone in to this print. The rosettes have been drawn so carefully. But my favourite bit is the shield shaped emblem! The chocolate crowns and the bows add a hint of sweet to the print, but it is not overpowering. The classic and sweet elements are balanced well. I am impressed!

I decided to pick out my favourite bit of jewellery from this series, and this is the ring I have selected. I love the melty chocolate look. It reminds me a lot of some jewellery that Q-Pot brought out. But what I really like is how versatile the ring is. You could team it with pretty much any chocolate print and it should work. The majority of jewellery for this series comes in ivory, brown and gold. I personally like the gold best because I think it adds a more sophisticated touch. I think as well that there is already a lot of brown in the print and gold makes a nice change. I love almost all the of the jewellery released as part of this series. The only piece I have doubts about is the chocolate crown ring and necklace because I think the crown looks too chubby. Also, it is a bit too cutesy when compared next to the rest of the series.

Overall, I am very pleased with this series. It doesn't surprise me one bit to see how quickly it sold out (annoyingly, this series came out on my birthday so I didn't get the chance to even attempt to buy it!). As you may have guessed, I would definitely buy from this series. I love the JSK. I am surprised that AP didn't release more dresses, but I do like the heavy focus on matching accessories for this series. The jewellery and matching pieces would work with so many different items. I am really looking forward to seeing some great outfits using this series!

Angelic Pretty Doll Case

I am doing a quick post today and publishing it a night early, because the 6th of August is in fact my wedding anniversary! I am going off for the day and so I might not have time to do a longer post.

I was browsing the Angelic Pretty Japanese website when I came across a tab on the left hand side which I hadn't seen before. So I clicked on it and discovered this cute little doll case! It makes good use of the Chess Chocolate print.

AP is going through a bit of a big chocolate phase at the moment, so I wasn't really surprised by the choice of print. Chess Chocolate also got a phone cover a while ago. What I like about it is that you can keep a doll inside it and the strap would suggest it is portable too. It is quite a handy way of keeping your doll safe during travel, but also to just preserve it as much as possible. But you can also use it as a mini clothes rail for your doll!

Okay, so admittedly I haven't got any dolls like this, but I have found myself wanting this case anyway! I love the chocolate theme. I adore the little throne because it really does look like it is made of chocolate. I suppose that it is also another collectable item for Chess Chocolate fans. The price of Chess Chocolate has come down a bit now after the initial hype, but there are some very big CC fans out there. I for one, know a couple of people who will want to get this simply because of the print. But regardless of whether or not you are one of those big CC fans, I feel this item would have a lot of appeal. Although, I know some people will find it totally pointless. 

It might be just another novelty item, but I actually love seeing what some of the brands come out with! This is a bit different from the usual tea cups and stuff. I always wonder what they will come out with next...

50 Shades of Beige... and White... and Off-white...

Sorry everybody, I am afraid I am going in to rant-mode today...

I am struggling to put an outfit together at the moment. Why? Because every single colour in the rainbow has so many different shades! It is only since I started wearing lolita that I realised that even white has many different shades! I suppose it is easy enough to get around if you buy items from the same series, because they are almost guaranteed to match. But what if you decide to not buy the whole matching series?

I have discovered that What makes it more difficult is that a lot of the stuff I tend to want is online, so I can't just view it in store. This means that I end up relying very heavily on guess work. Will the colour be the same shade as the stock photo? Chances are, you wont know until you order them or see a review online.

This is something I have previously fallen victim to. The best example would be these tea parties I ordered. They were labelled navy on Clobba and the stock photo looked darker. In reality, they are the colour of AP's blue Starry Night Theater! Don't get me wrong, I still really love these shoes and I opted to keep them, but it just goes to show you how careful you need to be. It is a good job I like that shade of blue anyway, otherwise I would have a pair of tea parties I couldn't wear.

It is just so frustrating! Tomorrow I have the task of taking a bag, a blouse and pair of bloomers with me when I go shopping, just in case I spot any potential items when I am out!

I wonder... how do people get past this issue? Do people settle for a similar, but not identical shade of a colour? Or is there a way to get over this problem? I wish I knew the answer.

P.S- If anybody knows the original source of the boots in the first picture, then I would love to know it! They came up when I searched for Victorian shoes on Google but I have not had much luck so far.

Luna's 24th Birthday Adventures!

Yay! I am finally back! I had a great time during my holiday. Now for a bit of a catch-up!

Firstly, thank you very much to whoever made me a Lolita Valentine for my birthday!

I am number 3- http://loli-valentines.livejournal.com/126975.html#cutid1

Sadly, I didn't get the chance to see the Valentine on my actual birthday because I was in London. But I did see it before I went away, so I only got it one day late! So thank you for the lovely gesture.

I am also pleased to announce that during the week I was away I got given another 2 Liebster Awards! I am not sure if I am meant to do the posting thing again because I have done it already? Well anyway, a huge thank you to The Glass Princess and Chri-chan. If I was giving out awards again, then you 2 would have definitely been on my list! It was a very sweet of you both to give me an award and I really appreciate it.

You can view their posts here- http://the-glass-princess.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/liebster-blog-award.html
And here- http://chri-chan.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/19-der-liebster-award.html

Please do and check out these blogs because they are brilliant and they are also run by very lovely people!

So... what did I do for my birthday? Let's start with what lolita related presents I got!

The first thing I got was this Bodyline petticoat in pink/purple/dark pink. I know Bodyline petticoats are not exactly brilliant at giving lolita skirts a nice poof, but I got taken in by all the pretty colours! I tend to layer lots of flatter petticoats anyway. A lot of people seem to like the yellow/pink/blue petticoat, but some reason I was more drawn to this pink colour combination. It would make a nice little addition to a fairy kei wardrobe. Also, I think it is more fun to wear brightly coloured petticoats, even if nobody can see them!

I also got some Secret Shop star shower socks in pink. I am still gathering items to wear with my Dream Sky skirt. The pink colour was maybe a bit more peachy in colour than I was expecting, although I have not actually tried them on properly yet. Perhaps they will look good when worn. Anyway, I was very pleased to receive these!

Please excuse the silly face I am pulling! My last lolita related birthday present was this Bodyline skirt in purple. It may look familiar, because I already own this skirt in black. You would have thought that 2 different colours of the same skirt would be identical. With the black skirt, I slated the waist ties which have this horrible texture and are covered with polka dots. The purple skirt has this detail too, but I think it actually works a bit better with the purple skirt than it does the black skirt. I am still not convinced by the ties though and I probably wont be using them with the skirt! It is nice to have another simple block colour skirt and I am keeping up my promise to add more purple to my wardrobe.

I went to London for the day! I decided to keep my outfit simple because I knew that I wouldn't have a lot of time in the morning and also, it was boiling hot in London! It has only ever rained on my birthday once, and that was the year that England was totally battered by rain and flooding (so that doesn't count in my opinion!). So I went for an easy to quickly throw on outfit, involving Meta's March of the Duck. I teamed it with red and pink items. As you can see, I found London 2012 Olympics mascot Mandeville. I decided to join in with him and do a bit of pretend running. Shame about the unflattering angle!

We went to Camden for a little bit and we bumped in to the Maids of England event being held in the Stables Market. We didn't have time to go inside, but I got a photo with one of the maids outside. We did have a quick peep and the event did look like it was a lot of fun. If this sounds like your kind of thing, then check out Maids of England on Facebook.

It has been an aim of mine to visit the Chin Chin Lab in Camden for quite some time now. And on my birthday, I finally made it! I got the weekly special, which was Truffle Popcorn and I topped it with salted caramel pretzels. Seriously, words can not describe just how amazing this ice cream is. It is also very interesting watching the staff make the ice cream right before your eyes using lots of cool science stuff.

Of course, a trip to London just wouldn't be the same without me popping in to Laduree for macarons! 

Dinner at Pizza Hut was interesting. We had the rudest waiter EVER! Although, after we told him it was my birthday, he suddenly perked up! Sadly, we were not allowed a birthday candle in the restaurant due to health and safety. But then Ruth came to the rescue! She made me a paper birthday candle and I pretended to blow it out.

I brought myself a few treats in London but this has to be my favourite. I found this bag in a stall inside the Stables Market (I don't know the name of it). The colour is a lovely deep, dusky pink. It looks better in person. I got a birthday discount as well, thanks to my friend Jo. I purchased this bag with a certain dress in mind, but I reckon I will get a lot of use out of this.

I wont bore you all to death with my Center Parcs holiday snaps (they are on my Facebook now, so if you are friends with me, you can see them there) but I thought I would share this with you. We kept seeing deers during the week, but I was unable to photograph any of them. So imagine my surprise when on the very last evening of the holiday we got not one, but 2 deers right outside our villa! There was a mother deer and her baby (it is the baby in this picture obviously!). The pictures are a bit dark because it was evening and also, I didn't want to turn my flash on and scare the deers away. We actually managed to go outside and get even closer to them. They were not that bothered by us being there and kept eating. It was an incredible experience and I will never forget this magical evening.

So that was my huge catch-up post! Hopefully from now on this blog should be back to normal. Although, it is my 3rd wedding anniversary on Monday, so there may be a temporary disruption then. Thank you for sticking with me!