Metamorphose's Dark Night Jumperskirt Review

At the end of the summer, I purchased Metamorphose's Dark Night jumperskirt in Ruby. I chose the medium length because I wanted a more elegant look to go with gothic style, plus I wanted to add this dress in my work wardrobe rotation.

On to the review!

April Daily Coordinate Review // The good, the bad, and the ugly

I did the "thing" and completed a daily coordinate monthly challenge for April. Each day, I put together coordinates and posted them to Instagram. At first, the process was pretty methodical. I selected a main item and built around it. Then it become more exciting and fun as I  put together new combinations and experimenting with strange ones. Later, the challenge became one that were both inspiring and cathartic.

This challenge made me see my wardrobe for what it was and what it could be. I have a capsule Lolita wardrobe, it's small but practical. Given my current Lolita lifestyle, I don't go on many meets and I have to budget my money for other expenses and hobbies.  So my wardrobe reflects this balance. What was most interesting during this challenge is that it made me a more efficient Lolita. At the end of the month, I had coordinates constructed with pieces that I would never imagine pairing that worked so well but I had a few that I no longer liked and wanted to sell.

The challenge gave me a fresh start and the focus towards an esthetic that I could love and build a wardrobe around. I started out as a Sweet Lolita, but, as you will soon see, I leaned more on the classic side. As much as I love Gothic Lolita style, I realized it's not for me. Still I tried working with the few Gothic pieces I had, but I began to get disinterested, bored, and generally uncomfortable with the coordinates. 

Time to step on out and go through 30 days of beautiful outfits and some mulligans.

April 2015 Coordinate challenge, starring my dress form Alice Milky Kawaii Fawn Pastel Angel Smith Martinez the 3rd.

First Anime Con! - Animazement

Today, I attended my first Anime convention, "Animazement"! I was dressed in Lolita and was an example model for OTT Sweet for my friend, Sakuraohki (please check out her Etsy, she makes gorgeous steampunk/victoria themed items that work very well with Gothic & Classic style). There were other Lolita's from my local group who were also models. Everyone look beautiful and had such lovely coordinates! Such a range of styles like sweet, old school, gothic, and classic. It was a great experience to represent Lolita fashion and help my friend with her panel!

Totally has an Instagram filter :|

Details:
» JSK - Angelic Pretty
» Blouse - from Macy’s
» Tights - Joe Boxer
» Shoes - off brand
» Jewelry - Claire’s and other
» Hair accessories all off brand
» Wig - “It’s a wig” in Rafaella

After the panel, I wanted to take in the entire convention from the artist alley to the dealers room. There were panels on many different subjects, but I decided to walk around instead. There were many brilliant cosplays, especially of my favorite fandoms and characters like Dr. Who, Fili & Kili, Game of Thrones, and Trigun (one of my fave Animes). I didn't take any pictures of them because I just wanted to take it in and there were so many things I wanted a picture of.

The Artist Alley was very unique in that there was a variety of original works ranging from comics, art prints, stickers, hats, jewelry, and more. So many talented artists and writers. I was impressed with their skill and dedication. I'm glad they were given such a showcase as this convention to present that work to the masses!

Here's the only pictures I took of the artist alley, dealer's room, and one attendee.

One artist was giving out free business cards featuring one of their original characters! I took one with the character Snow-by-Night, I loved the color of her hair and her look! I'm definitely going to read their story! Please check out their website snowbynight.com

 

It took me a bit of time to find the dealer's room, but when I did, I was completely amazed at all the items for sale! There were weapons, steampunk accessories (the watches were glorious), wigs, plush dolls, anime figures, manga, and much much more. I could have easily spent 24 hours walking around and figuring out what I wanted to buy, especially the Anime dvd sets and steampunk accessories. Ah and all the Dr. Who merchandise that was everywhere! I had to yield self control for I could have done serious wallet damage. I do regret not buying the Battlestar Galactica patches I saw.

 

My spoils were small and very adorable! I purchased a narwhal necklace from Tastypeachstudios ! All of her items were very cute, but she's also a very talented artist as every item was an original piece. Plus the lady, I don't know her name, who I believe is behind Tasty Peach Studios, is a Lolita! She was wearing Angelic Pretty's Milky Planet - new release, and looked so cute in it! Above all, her personality was so bubbly and she was so sweet!

I bought a gift for a friend which I won't describe because it's a surprise! For my mom and myself - since we both love super cute giraffes, I purchased this adorable plush. Isn't she darling?! They had bigger ones but I could bring one that big into my room - already run with plushies - so I settled for the smallest size. She doesn't have a name yet :O!

Wow, overall I would say I had a memorable experience - but in such a way that I'm hooked. I want to attend future conventions, as a cosplayer and as a Lolita! I'm not sure what I'll cosplay but I think I want to do something Battlestar Galactica related! Everyone was so nice and sweet when they asked to take my pictures or ask me about my outfit. I've never been this happy attending an event like this but also as a Lolita. I was so comfortable and felt so elegant. It was very special :D

What an amazing day!

 

My apologies on this post if it doesn't make much sense, I had a migraine in the morning and still recovering from it -_- while at the con.

TFZ sits down with Ivy Frozen Productions

A few weeks ago, I interviewed the designer of Ivy Frozen productions. She was very gracious and took some time out of her busy schedule for the interview. I have been a fan of her work in handmade Lolita fashion for a few years now and was honored to interview her on behalf of TheFrillZone! Please check out the links at the end of the interview to learn more about Ivy Frozen Productions!

Fellas of Middle Earth - Inspired Coordinates

To continue with the fantasy inspired coordinates, it's time to start with the great men of Middle Earth! This post will include two men and one elf: Aragorn, Boromir, and Legolas. The coordinates are heavily based on the character's custom (a generalization) however, I did try to bring in characteristics of their race or personality into each outfit. If you're feeling particularly fancy you can get a replica sword or prop to go with any of these coordinates! Check out the great selection at Replica Dungeon.

One attribute that is missing from each outfit would be a headpiece, I leave that up to the discretion of each Lolita as I thought large Alice bows or headdresses wouldn't work for these. There are plenty of sources to get ideas on what to adorn the head with such as Etsy, Forever21, and accessory shops.

The next post will feature Gimli, Gandalf, and Gollum/Smeagol. I'm not sure if I will do a coordinate post for minor characters. The four hobbits: Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin shall be in a separate post (I have to do those four justice...I can't wait to start!)

Aragorn [Wikia Link]

The journey to the center of the curl!

One day, I watched a Youtube video and 5 minutes later, I chopped off 10 inches of my hair! That’s a story I’ll definitely tell my grandchildren.  Why did I do it? The chemical processes and heat damaged my hair to a point of pure embarrassment. I was unhappy with myself and my hair.  It took 3 years of research and changing my hair habits to allow for full acceptance of my hair’s beautiful curly goodness.

As a Latina, getting my hair washed and set (rollers and sitting under the dryer), was a monthly and soon weekly routine. I wanted acceptable hair for school and I wanted something easy. In high school and university, classes were early and I didn’t want to spend 30 minutes washing and styling my hair, everyday. 

So I chose the easy way out. I washed everyday, using horrible products that ruined my hair and scalp. On top of that, the chemical relaxers and texturizers, not to mention heat (flat iron), was frying those already damaged ringlets. Note: relaxers completely breaks the bond of the hair, making it dead straight, depending on how long the chemical is left in.  A texturizer, softens the bond of the hair, but if left in long enough, it could straighten it. I was drying out my hair and even damaging my scalp. Plus, the processing chemicals smelled horrible and gave me headaches for weeks after the treatment.

My super awesome hockey, Lolita fashion, Victorian, Rococo Room!

Part 1 in a series titled, "My super awesome hockey, Lolita fashion, Victorian, Rococo Room!"

The 'Big Move' is coming up! That’s what I’m calling this semi-cross country trek from New York to North Carolina that will commence early November. I’ll be getting a new room, a bigger one, with two closets! I finally have the space to make this room what I’ve always dreamt of: cute, sporty, and a little geeky.

Picture 1 (Tumblr) / Picture 2: saganaga [Flickr]

Items for the room:

• Bedroom Furniture (daybed, night stand, dresser, and computer desk)
• Curtains
• Lighting
• Rug
• Book cases and shelving
• Accent pieces and artwork

How do you decorate a room with a hockey stick and posters with a feminine, cute aesthetic? This is the gazillion dollar question that I’ve been asking for a few weeks now. I have an eclectic collection of stuff, ranging from hockey posters, autographed pictures, bobbleheads, and other memorabilia. Lastly, my collection of ABJDs needs a dedicated space that will allow for collection expansion.

The conundrum is making a theme work from so many unrelated items. I’ve been looking at pictures of bedrooms with my interested themes: sporty, feminine, and romantic.  To pull off this look, I am constantly looking for inspiration from everything to achieve the theme. The images in this post, achieve what I would want in that ideal theme: sporty, cute, and feminine. 

Pictures -clockwise- 1 & 2 ChiiChick

There are a few restrictions with the apartment. So I can’t drill large holes for hanging a mirror or shelf and the walls are an interesting, yellow-gold color. The wall color will have to be “ignored” since painting isn’t an option. I’m going to Lowe’s to get paint swatches and find printed fabric swatches to build my color palette. 

If all else fails, I could try to recreate Momoko’s room - with the edition of a hockey stick of course!

Sites of Interest:
http://fyeahlolitadecor.tumblr.com/

http://themerooms.blogspot.com/2011/10/sports-bedroom-decorating-ideas.html

Pride & Petticoats: Regency Era & Lolita Fashion

*Copied from my previous blog JoyeuxCherie

I watched Pride & Prejudice a few nights ago, the version with Keira Knightley as well as the version with the dashing Colin Firth! I have grown to love Regency fashion quite after watching these films and reading Jane Austen's novels.  Much of my great disdain for it was caused by my long time admiration for Late Baroque and Rococo fashions, specifically that of France.  Though, that will always be my favorite, Regency is coming to a close second. In this post, there is Regency fashion, empire waists, Lizzy Bennet's Classic coordinate, and bonnets, lots of bonnets!