Hyper Japan – Saturday July 2016

Last weekend I went down to London for Hyper Japan. I had originally intended going for all 3 days but as the event got closer I just wasn’t feeling the line-up so decided to go for the dual ticket for just the Saturday. I had already booked my train and hotel in advance though so I decided to have a relaxing Friday afternoon looking in shops and then visit Camden on Sunday.

Friday Outfit:

Even though I wasn’t going to HJ I still wanted to wear something cute. I kept the outfit simple though due to travelling and it being a warm day. I really love this Killstar dress, the choice of motifs in the print are so random but the colours are lovely and it has cute ponies!

 

Saturday Outfit:

I decided to wear my newer Chibi Bunny dress as I hadn’t worn it yet. I also thought it would be a bit cooler than wearing full lolita though to be honest I was still way too hot! I went for a bunny theme to match the cute bunnies on the dress. I also decorated my bunny bag to add make sure she looked super kawaii too!

Bunny Ears: just standard cheap ones that I added some bows too
Gold Star Clips: ebay
White Hair Bow Clip: Home Bargains
Pink Bows: Etsy, probably Little Mizz Kitty
Wig: Dreamy Store
Bolero: Random offbrand
Dress: Chibi Bunny
Necklace: Handmade by me
Fluffy Star: Little Mizz Kitty, etsy
Accessories: wristcuffs are some I altered from Claire’s, bunny ring Claire’s, bow ring probably Little Mizz Kitty and pink and white bead bracelet was handmade by me.
Socks: Primark
Bag: Bear Factory rabbit that I turned in to a bag.

Saturday I went to Hyper Japan. I didn’t get there quite as early as I wanted so I’d missed the couple of events that I was going to check out in the morning. I spent most of the first half of the day going around the stalls, shopping and collecting freebies and leaflets.

Tofu Cute had a super kawaii photo area with toy grabber machine and bed full of plushies.

I then had lunch from one of the Japanese food stands, I can’t remember exactly what I had but it was really nice, and went to watch the fashion show. The fashion show featured items from Dreamy Bows including by Listen Flavor, Cutesy Kink and models own fashion styles.

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Yucha of Less than Love came on at the end of the fashion show and performed a couple of songs. It was then time for the break and everyone has to leave before those with a Dual ticket or a Saturday second part ticket could go back in.

The second half kicked off with J-Rock/Metal band Esprit D’Air performing on the main stage. I didn’t know too much about them but they were good, just not quite my thing.

The COSParade then followed, I always love seeing the skill and effort that Cosplayers put in to their costumes. Cosplay used to be a huge part of Hyper Japan and a few competitions used to be held there but this year it was really lacking.

I then visited a couple of stalls again to pick up a few more bits before taking a seat for Broken Doll. My feet were hurting so much by this point, I should have taken some flat shoes with me as well. I really like Broken Doll, I saw them last year too. Their music is very upbeat and they tried really hard to motivate the crowd with limited sucess. They are worth seeing though if you ever get the chance!

 

The last performance of the day was Lightning “Break Up Tour 2016”. I listened to a couple of his songs but again it wasn’t quite my thing so I headed off early.

I like Hyper Japan as an event and it had felt over the past few years that it was growing and getting bigger and better. This year felt like it had taken quite a few large steps back. The acts and guests were relatively unknown, they had a few gaps on their stage timetable, the second stage had totally gone this year. Not much in the way of traditional Japanese culture was present. The acts were not as varied as usual either. They did have a lot more crafts you could do but they were an extra cost and you had to book a slot in advance. It also felt like there were less stalls. If it looks like it will be the same next year I would just go down for the day and avoid spending out loads more for accommodation. I just feel a bit disappointed with the event this time and didn’t enjoy it like I usually do.

Sunday Outfit:

On Sunday I headed to Camden Town to go around the shops and market. It was a very warm day and I was travelling back later on so again I kept my outfit simple.

Bone hairclips: unbranded, dont know
T-shirt: Newbreed Girl
Accessories: Little Mizz Kitty, pink and purple bead bracelet made by me

Lolita Fashion Bargains – 50% off sale

Hey cute fashion fans. You know how I’m always on the lookout for bargains? Well I’ve found some awesome ones on ebay. Kawaii-UK has a 50% off sale on 3 of their indie branded lolita dresses. This is a huge saving. As the store is based in the UK there will be no nasty customs and it’s free shipping! (obviously if you are outside the UK this won’t apply).

Infanta – Alice Story JSK in blue. On sale at £32.50

Buy Here!

 

Classical Puppets – Steam Band Mini JSK. On sale at £25

Buy Here!

 

Infanta – Strawberry Sundae OP. On sale at £32.50

Buy Here!

Website: http://whatshalliwear.co.uk/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatshalliwear/

Oh look – more unicorns!! I promise this is my last unicorn themed post for a while. I just wanted to plug a little independent business because the lady running it is doing a great job. The shop is based in Cleethorpes and sells vintage & rockabilly items. I’ve visited it a couple of times but there’s also a website. The lady that runs it is super helpful and friendly, she often has a sale rail in store with some great bargains but also her retail prices tend to be lower than most other stores. She also makes some circle skirts in fun fabric and can even do commissions. It’s the personal service and great customer service that makes me rate her store so high. I placed an order through the website when I spotted these handmade unicorn skirts come up on her facebook page. They were £22 plus £3.95 postage.

I bought it on a Friday and it arrived the following Monday. It arrived in a standard postage packet and came by signed for delivery.

Look at how it was wrapped inside, it’s like a present! Plus how lovely is the mermaid paper ❤ It also had a cute pink handmade price label on it with cut-out heart.

Rainbows and cute unicorns!

The fabric is gathered on to an elastic waistband, it’s not super stretchy so might be worth going up a size if you don’t like it too tight in your waist. The construction is pretty simple but it’s finished nicely and is really full and comes to about mid-calf. There’s a lot of fabric in it. Can’t wait to wear it.

Hello Kitty Cafe comes to London

A Hello Kitty cafe will be opening up in Soho, London this summer. It will open on June 1st and close again at the end of August so make sure you don’t miss it! It’s being run by Cutter & Squidge. I can’t wait to see more photos and information. I wonder what the food will look like.

(Picture credit belongs to Sanrio)

 

More Info Here:

http://metro.co.uk/2016/04/14/a-hello-kitty-cafe-is-coming-to-london-and-will-serve-adorable-afternoon-tea-5816285/?ito=facebook

 

Cutter & Squidge –

Website: http://cutterandsquidge.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CutterandSquidge/

 

Cute Bargain Find

I was in town picking up a few random crafting bits and happened across these cute bows in Home Bargains. They were only 69p for a pair! You can never have too many bow accessories right, so I got 3. They also had some of those really tiny bow clips too in pastel shades but I have so much ribbon I’m just going to make my own of those. I also can’t remember how much they were, sorry! Anyway, just goes to show that cute pretty things can be found in the last place you’d expect so it’s always worth having a good look around.

Boohoo.com Bargain Find – Fur Cape

I’ve just spotted that these cute hooded fur capes have been reduced to just £10 which is a total bargain. I own one in black and its super soft! You can get it in white or black.
*Image credit to Boohoo.com

Boohoo Link: http://www.boohoo.com/restofworld/new-to-clearance/boutique-amy-faux-fur-hooded-cape/invt/dzz95985
If you order before midnight you can get free shipping too! It would work great for a range of styles including fairy kei, gothic, lolita, vintage and Steampunk. I’m sure you could easily fancy it up if wanted or add some cute details like bows just to make it a bit less plain. Fur capes can be so pricey and are often hard to find, especially with hoods so I had to share.

Plus if you don’t like it you can return it for free.

Listen Flavor 2016 Lucky Bag Contents

My last post was about the Listen Flavor lucky bags currently on sale at Dreamy Bows. A couple of days ago mine arrived so I thought I’d share the contents with you.
Pretty pink packet ❤

Inside the packet was this awesome purple tote bag containing the mystery items. The bag fastens with a zip but is made of thin material which won’t be very strong. I’ll probably only use it for carrying light items anyway. The tag was secured through the label at the side so there’s no way anyone could look inside. This lucky pack version seems to have a Rock N Roll/cats vibe to it.

The ‘Wonder Cats’ long sleeved top was already advertised as being inside. It’s a size M but will fit a 8/10/12/14, I don’t think it will fit larger than a small 14 though. The print is super cute and it’s nice fabric which is slightly stretchy. Cats with glam rock makeup, how could you not like it?

I received two t-shirts in my pack. I really like them both. The blue ‘Pounce’ tshirt is a similar fabric to the top above. It’s fairly thick with a bit of stretch, feels nice quality. It’s a size M but would easily fit a UK 12/14 and smaller. This is my favourite item in the pack! It’s super cute, I love the design and the blue is such a gorgeous colour.

The other top with the ladies face on it is much thinner so would be great for summer. It’s also a size M. Due to it being a thinner/lighter fabric it’s not as fitted or clingy and has quite a bit of stretch. I wish it was a slightly nicer colour rather than a peach/beige but I really love the design and fabric. Would easily fit a 12/14 and smaller.

I also received a long-sleeved ‘Thrill Dizzy’ jumper/sweater which is a really nice pastel lilac (my camera is rubbish with purple). It’s an oversized design with really long sleeves. This will easily fit larger than a UK size 14. I personally don’t like the fabric though, it’s really thin and has an unusual texture and feel. I’m not really sure how to describe it. It’s great for summer as it can easily be layered over other clothing without fitting too snug or making you hot. I’m not too keen on the design or the colours used for the logo, also not keen on the Thin Lizzy type reference.

The final item was this hooded top in a mint green. It features more cats but with KISS makeup. It’s an awesome design and I love the colour but it’s made from the same fabric as the jumper above so I’m not too keen on it. It does have a hood and two side pockets though. Again it was a size M but it’s oversized like jumper so will fit slightly larger than a UK 14. If the fabric had been thicker I’d have kept it, even though I’m not much of a KISS or cat fan.

Overall I’m happy with what I got and it’s amazing value. I would risk one again another time.

Pricing summary:

All the items have a tag on which states the Japanese price including tax. I decided to roughly convert these in to GBP so you can see what the saving is like and how good value the lucky bag is.

Pounce T-shirt: 3132 Yen, £19
Cat Lady T-shirt: 4212 Yen, £25
Wonder Cats Top: 5292 Yen, £32
Thrill Dizzy Jumper: 3996 Yen, £24
KISS Cats: 5940 Yen, £35.45

 
The lucky bag was priced at 7560 yen which is roughly £45 (though it was sold at £64.99 by Dreamy Bows due to import costs etc). The items total 22,527 Yen which is around £135 that’s an amazing saving of £90 (or £70 based on the Dreamy Bows price) so it’s definitely worth it.
*Prices based on current conversions and are approx*

Listen Flavor Lucky Bags in the UK

Hello wonderful blog readers, something exciting happened yesterday that I need to share with you. Are you familiar with lucky packs/bags that lots of Japanese shops sell in the New Year? They are called Fukubukuro and are full of mystery items.
Here is a little bit more info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukubukuro

Most of the main shops and brands put one together and you can make a huge saving, though obviously there is always the risk you won’t like the contents or they won’t fit. Plus as the item is coming from Japan you will have shipping and customs on top. It can also take a really long time to arrive. So, here’s the exciting bit, Harajuku based cute/creepy/pastel/punk brand Listen Flavor are stocked here in the UK by Dreamy Bows and they have Lucky Bags! Plus it’s free shipping within the UK (more to Europe) BUT there will be NO CUSTOMS fee. (Outside of Europe there will be though). I think this is awesome news and I hope that Dreamy Bows continue to grow and stock more brands then maybe we can get other lucky packs too.

The lucky bag is available here: http://www.dreamybows.com/listen-flavor-lucky-2016~p483.html
It costs £64.99, shipping is free in the UK and you typically get two t-shirts, a long sleeved sweater top and a hooded top. T-shirts usually retail at £25, other tops are around £30 and hoodies are £40 so it’s an amazing deal. Also you get a cool zip fastening tote bag and one of the items is this super cute “Wonder Four” cats long sleeved top.

I ordered one already as soon as they went on sale and I’m so excited for it to arrive. I shall review it when it gets here.

You can check out Listen Flavor items here on their official facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/listenflavorofficial/?fref=ts

Drix Productions, Mugs – Review

Now that Christmas is out of the way and everyone has opened their presents I can share my review of the wonderful artist ‘Drix Productions’. When searching for Christmas gifts I came across their etsy shop which was filled with wonderfully cute designs that I knew my friends would love. I checked out their facebook too so I could see what other designs they may have and eventually settled on ordering some mugs. They do stickers, mugs, badges, prints, keyrings, jewellery, etc.
Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/Drixproductions
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drix.pro/?fref=ts
The designs I liked weren’t featured on their etsy but I knew they had recently been exhibiting at a convention so I contacted them via facebook to see what mugs they had left. It turned out that they own a special machine so can print whichever design I wanted straight away, how cool is that? As a result they could make me the mugs to order within a day! I placed my order via their facebook page and paid with paypal. They were very fast at responding to messages and extremely helpful and friendly. I even got a slight discount as I was ordering 4 mugs and they sent me photos of the finished mugs to check I was happy before sending them to me. The mugs are £6.50 each (though I got a slight discount on mine) and postage was £3.90 for second class recorded. They posted them a couple of days after I paid and I had them within a week.
Packaging:

They arrived inside a plastic packet, the address label had a cute unicorn sticker on it! Inside the mugs were all in strong individual boxes. I was so worried about unpacking them in case they might have gotten damaged (Royal Mail aren’t always super careful with packages) and the parcel did make a strange jingling sound. It turned out the sound was due to a keyring inside a mug though, no damage anywhere, yay! Each mug was inside a plastic bag in a bubble wrap packet to keep it safe in the box. The boxes are also really strong.

Mugs:

*My photos don’t do them justice, sadly the light in winter is not great so my photos are a bit dull. I always prefer to use natural light though as it shows things more true to colour*

Alpaca ~

Narwhal ~

Raptor ~

Alien ~

Included in each mug was a care information sheet with tips to keep your mug looking great for longer.  In one of the mugs was a cute note, free keyring, holographic unicorn card and extra business cards. I particularly like the note paper they used ❤

I’d asked for 4 business cards so I could include them in the mugs and my friends would know who they were by, I think they actually gave me 5. The mugs themselves look so professional. The colours are really bright and strong and the designs are crisp. The picture has a sheen to it as well, they are amazing quality. Plus, how cute are the actual drawings! so talented! I’m really happy with my mugs, the seller is awesome in every way, the customer service was great, the mugs are wonderful and they arrived so fast. The only thing that makes me sad is that I don’t have a mug of my own, I should have bought 5. I highly recommend them!

Accessorize Cute Jan Sale Items

The January Sales are on and I’ve found some super cute bargains at Accessoriez. Here are my top cute picks.

*All images belong to accessorize.com*

Website: http://uk.accessorize.com

Bags & Purses:

Fox Purse – £4

Owl Purse – £5
*Also available as a bag*

Robot Bag – £10.50
*Can also get a bag charm in the same design*

Space Rocket Bag – £10.50
*Can also get a bag charm in the same design*

Chocolate Milk Carton Bag – £20

 

Accessories:

 

Various Cute Socks from – £1.05

Various Shades of Pastel Nail Varnish – £1.50

Pearl Cat Ear Headband – £4

Bunny Slippers – £6

Panda Slippers – £6

Boot Slippers – £8.50

Polar Bear Boot Slippers – £9.50