Why DIY When You Could Just Buy?

Hey everyone! You might be surprised to see me back with not just one, but now two posts after a very long hiatus, but hey, quarantine and boredom give you lots of time to think. ;) So today I wanted to talk a bit (okay, maybe a lot) about how Do it Yourself, or DIY, has changed over the last 10+ years, as well as people's perspectives, my own included. So let's get started!

First of all, I want to preface this saying I very much support DIY, but I also understand not everyone has the skill set, time, money, or general capability to make their own things. This post isn't meant to shame people who choose to DIY or those who are unable to DIY for whatever reason. We all have our own stories and I'm not here to judge or look down on people in different positions from myself. With that being said, let's get into the actual content here.

When I was a young lass (my father took me into the... Wait, getting off topic here) I was raised to be rather frugal and depend on myself to meet my demands where I could. I learned sewing and crochet from my parents sometime before I have solid memories and many other crafts have come fairly easily to me. (Not including chainmail, but that's a different story.) If I wanted a new doll or stuffed kitten dress, I made it with the plentiful fabric we had lying around from my parent's past projects. When I first started getting into anime and lolita fashion back in the early 2000s, I didn't have the money or resources to buy lolita clothes or cosplays from the wonderful land of Nippon. So I made do and made my own, even if they weren't the best quality. As I got older and my style started changing, as well as my disposable income, I learned how to order online, but my first thought was always "Oh, I could make that." So I'd buy fabric and thread or beads and ribbon and attempt to fashion my own clothing and accessories, looking up tutorials online where I needed to. Sometimes it worked, sometimes I spent my money on a learning experience instead of a completed item. Either way, I forged ahead, convinced that it'd be easier to make things than to buy them. And I know I'm not alone in that.

Many of us who've been into lolita or other J-fashion for years grew up in an age where the only way you could get Japanese brand was by having a friend who visited Japan or going there oneself. And times have changed. Gone are the days of making a JSK with a bedsheet because Baby the Stars Shine Bright doesn't ship to your country. Gone are the days of having to make your own accessories because you don't have access to the style you want. We live in a day and age where you can find and buy just about anything you could want from the comfort of your own home. So why DIY if you can just buy something for 5 bucks off Wish or Amazon?

Well, there's a lot of reasons, but here's a few I personally find myself making:

• For fun
• Internetphobia?
• It's cheaper
• Sustainability

DIY For the Fun of it

A lot of folks who choose to DIY do it for the fun of it. You take time to yourself, you get an enjoyable passtime, and even an end product! Even if none of the other variables I mentioned concern you, it can be relaxing and fulfilling making something for oneself or for others. And if you make a huge mess and don't end up with a useable end product? At least you tried and learned something in the process!

Wait, I Can Use the Internet for That?

So this might just be a me thing, but I find myself forgetting that all the pretty sparklies I see online are only seperated from me by a few clicks and shipping time. I tend to prioritize buying things in person that kinda generally sorta work over the things I actually like and want online because "this is cheaper," or "well I know this fits," or even just "hey, this could give me immediate gratification instead of waiting a month for the end result!" I'd like to think I'm not alone in this, but I'm so used to having to "make do" with what's available, I sometimes spend more money on things I eventually get rid of than I do on the thing I wanted in the first place. But wait, isn't DIY supposed to be an affordable option?

I Could Make That for Half the Cost!

...Or so we'd like to think when we see $500 dresses online and $50 necklaces. Is that really the case though? If you're a skilled crafter who has access to the same sorts of materials used in those "overpriced" items, maybe. But if you're a skilled crafter, you also recognize that cost usually has more meaning to it than just being an arbitrary price. It factors in the materials, the skilled labor and/or specialized machinery needed, the time spent making the item, and how many are being made. The unlined lolita dress you made with $2 a yard fabric from Joann's isn't going to compare to a $200 dress from Angelic Pretty. The $5 necklace you made isn't going to have the same quality and finishing touches and the $30 one from Liz Lisa. If you really can make an item of comprable quality to what you see online, chances are you'll end up spending a lot more money than the original would have cost as well a lot of your valuable time. If you're just making something for fun and you don't mind it looking as professional as the original item though, there's no real harm in buying a $5 bag of beads and some stretch cord and making lots of bracelets and necklaces for yourself. And if you have the skills to turn a bedsheet into a detailed lolita dress, then go for it! Just remember that not everything you see online can be made exactly the same in your living room for a lesser cost. But what about items that aren't expensive? Like that 20 pack of hairclips you saw on Wish for $2?

But is it Sustainable?

An emerging "trend" of sorts that's becoming more and more popular, especially among my generation and younger generations, is sustainability and ethically sourced products. Not to be overly political, but put simply by our favorite Science Guy, "The planet's on [effing] fire," and a lot of us want to do what we can to keep that from getting worse. Sustainable shopping and ethical buying decisions are sometimes more important than simply liking a product for many people. Those impossibly cheap items online? There's no telling what their quality will be until you get the actual item and if you're paying $5 for something that should cost $200, there's a lot more to worry about. As I mentioned before, items made by reputable brands tend to factor the cost of their workers that make the items into their price as well as material costs. So that low quality item you're purchasing could just as easily be made by a very low paid, possibly otherwise mistreated worker. And that's not even factoring in where the materials for that product came from.

So then, you may ask, what makes DIYing better than straight up buying something? Well, that's a tough question to answer. There's really no way to know where the materials you buy came from, especially if you're trying to save money by buying inexpensive materials. And if you buy quality materials from reputable manufacturers, it could end up costing you as much or more than buying the item in the first place. So how are we supposed to decide? Honestly, there's no easy answer. That's the real reason I wanted to write this post, to kinda vent my own frustrations and also give others the oportunity to see things from my perspective. In the short term, everything seems so complicated, but if we start making informed decisions now, maybe there can be less grey area in the future. And that's a start.

What are your guys's opinions? Do you tend to opt to DIY or do you choose to buy things already made instead? Let me know in the comments below!

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I Have Nothing To Wear!

Hello everyone! Today I'm going to be talking to something that happens to many of us all too frequently: Looking at all the clothing strewn about one's room after trying on a bunch of different items and going: "I HAVE NOTHING TO WEAR!" This is a bit of a follow-up to my wardrobe building series of posts (Part 1, part 2, part 3, and part 4) since I've had plenty of time to build a new wardrobe. I recommend you read them first if you haven't already, since they're the foundation for this post. Otherwise, let's go!

 So I said I had plenty of time to build a wardrobe, right? So why am I saying I have nothing to wear now? Well ya see, there's this thing called changing seasons and not planning ahead because who wants to buy a sweater when it's so hot and humid you don't want to even think about leaving your nice, air conditioned room? So, thanks to my planning, I was able to build a very nice Spring and Summer wardrobe, but now the weather is turning and I have no idea what to wear anymore. So what's a fashionista to do?

#1: Re-evaluate your style preferences.
 Alright, so maybe you had the perfect, pastel Fairy Kei wardrobe for warmer weather. Do you want to keep wearing pastels in Fall and Winter though? Or do you want to indulge your inner Goth or rockstar and switch things up completely? It's time to go visit the mall or thrift store and try on everything you can again. I would suggest avoiding buying anything the first few times or keep purchases small and limited to things you already wanted for your wardrobe. If you want to try wearing a different style from what you already own, try to limit your purchases to main pieces that aren't too expensive so you aren't impacting your budget too heavily. *cough*totally did that*cough* Try wearing the new style you're trying for a few days in a row using what you have and any additions you got to see if it's really something you want to wear that'll make you happy.

Here's what happened for me: I have a very cute, pastel versatile wardrobe based around Fairy Kei for the Spring and Summer. When the weather started getting colder, I decided to start wearing Goth fashion more to go with the changing colors of fashion. However, I found myself still wanting to wear my Fairy Kei outfits more than Goth or jewel toned items. I've decided I want to start wearing Lolita more often due to its built in layers as well as ease of layering underneath as well as some warmer Fairy Kei based outfits with some off-white pieces mixed in.

#2: Decide what additions your wardrobe needs.
 Now's the time to go through your wardrobe and pull out all the out-of-season clothing you've been hiding away. Can you make your new style plans work with what you already have, or are you going to have to sell off all your sweaters or shorts and buy new ones? This is a good time to evaluate condition as well as if it fits your wardrobe, so if you have an item that's got a ton of holes and snags that aren't supposed to be there, now is the time to throw it away or fix it. (If you have a sweater that's just shrunk in the dryer, you can stretch it back out with some work. I found this tutorial extremely helpful when recovering a cashmere sweater.) Make a list of any items you feel you need to make your wardrobe more complete and wearable during the changing seasons.

 Since I'm keeping my wardrobe mainly pastel, but still need to stay warm, I decided to talk to some of my fashion friends in the area and see what they do to stay warm as well as re-watch Lovely Lor's Lolita Fashion in Extreme Weather video for ideas. I decided I needed some layering pieces as well as some patterned statement pieces (my wardrobe's mostly solid color), a long sleeved blouse, and some comfy, yet cute shoes that will survive snow.

#3: Go forth and buy.
 Now's the time to start buying the additions your wardrobe needs. Try and get more basic or generic pieces from places like Target, Walmart, or thrift stores (or your country's equivalent) in order to have more money to spend on the main pieces. Probably most of us don't have the money to go buying 1000 bucks worth of Angelic Pretty dresses new, so look into less expensive alternatives. There's a lot of US and international sales groups on Facebook, you just have to search for the type of fashion you're interested in along with sales. (In addition, if you're already in a few sales groups, Facebook will suggest some similar groups in the side bar while you're browsing that group.) Lace Market, eBay, and Storenvy are some good places to look for used or less expensive pieces and there's always Bodyline for inexpensive pieces.

 I want a couple statement pieces with prints, but I very much do NOT have $400 to drop on used Angelic Pretty or Baby the Stars Shine Bright dresses, so I'm considering a couple Bodyline JSKs as well as searching through Lace Market for some less expensive pieces. I also want a long sleeved blouse and colorful socks which can also be found on those sites. I've already got one short sleeved blouse on the way which, even though it's not great for Winter, is something I've been wanting to add to my wardrobe since my current short sleeved blouse is a bit big on me.

 I hope you all have fun with dressing for the changing seasons and that I've given you some ideas to help avoid over-spending!

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Bodyline Wig Review

Hello everyone! A while ago I got two wigs from Bodyline (my first wig purchase from them), so I decided to write a bit about them. I'm sorry there aren't any pictures, but I've been having a little trouble uploading pictures for my blog posts lately (thus the reason they've mostly been text). So let's get started!




 So for a while, I've been wanting to get a couple different styles of wigs to wear with Fairy Kei, so I decided to get a couple from Bodyline since I was already planning on making an order with some other items. Price wise, Bodyline's wigs are surprisingly inexpensive. Prices range from about $10-20 USD (after converting the page to yen for the cheaper prices) for short and longer wigs without attachments. Wigs with clip in ponytails (which seem to be a Lolita staple anymore) aren't that much more coming in at a bit under $30 USD and clip on ponytails by themselves are typically around $8 USD. Bodyline also offers plastic wig stands and wig caps for a bit under a dollar each. For variety, there's a good choice of colors for all of the wigs, but the ones intended for Lolita only come in natural colors while most of the cosplay ones come in a variety of natural and unnatural colors.


 Quality-wise, Bodyline's wigs are surprisingly good for the price. Seeing as how most cheap Halloween wigs cost about the same as Bodyline's wigs, I was a little worried about quality. Fortunately, the wigs are made with uniform fiber sizes (as opposed to the large, scratchy fibers hidden under smaller fibers typically found in Halloween wigs) and feel nice and soft. The fibers aren't overly shiny or plastic looking at all. The overall amount of wig fibers on the wig is a little sparse compared to some more expensive wigs and the underlying wefts and cap can be seen a little bit if the hairs aren't positioned right. Both the wigs I got were lighter colors, so this may be a bit less of a problem with darker colored wigs. However, with normal wear the underlying wefts and cap showing through shouldn't be a problem as long as the wig's styled properly before wear.


 Overall, I would have to say I'm pretty darn impressed with Bodyline's wig's quality and price and definitely plan on buying more from them in the future. For reference, the wigs I got were W014 in purple 3 and W175 in separate 5-10. In addition to the wigs, I also got a wig cap and stand from Bodyline. The wig cap was open topped and works pretty well, but the elastic band on the bottom is rather thin and kinda weak compared to a mesh wig cap I got at Sally's Beauty Supply. I probably won't be ordering any more wig caps from Bodyline and wouldn't recommend getting one unless you're unable to get a better one from a beauty supply store. The wig stand's a little flimsy, but is overall good quality and easily stays upright even with a longer wig on it (with the ends hanging off the edge of the surface it's on). I'm glad I got it as it makes detangling my wigs easier than it was with my stand-less styrofoam head. I would highly recommend getting at least one of these for detangling purposes, but would still recommend getting a styrofoam head for storing or displaying styled wigs as it's a bit smaller in overall diameter.


Check out my Storenvy: animelolitacouture.storenvy.com
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Crafting Woes: How I Save

Hello everyone! Today I'm going to be talking a bit on how I've started saving money with crafting. Be it sewing, hot gluing, modge podge, acrylic, wood, or some other medium, a lot of people do some form of crafting in their life. Essentially taking one or more materials and creating something new with them. But crafting costs can add up if you aren't careful, so today I'm going to be talking about some of the main ways I've been saving money on crafting.


#1: Coupons and Sales
 First things first, when you plan on getting materials to make something, start by figuring out if you can save money with a coupon or wait for a sale. In the case of sales, check the price on an item when it's not on sale if you can and make sure its price is actually lower when it *is* on sale. Sometimes businesses will bump up the prices on items prior to a sale and then lower them back to their original price during the "sale." Coupons can often be found by signing up for emails from a company, but sometimes you can get them from an app or in the store itself.


#2: Do I Actually Need This?
 This is a problem a lot of crafters run into: buying materials that they intend to use eventually for some unknown future project and then never using it. Avoid wasting money by making sure you only but items you'll actually use. And by this I mean go out shopping for needed supplies for an active project you are currently working on. Don't go buying ribbon or lace just because they're on sale if you don't have a definitive plan for them. If you just need thread, fabric, and a pattern, buy those. If you need paint and a clear coat, buy them. Unless you have a planned project (such as adding lace or other accoutrements to a book shelf or boxes), don't go buying supplies impulsively just because the price is right.


#3: Use What You Have
 So, if you're like me, you probably have lots of craft supplies lying around that you either got because it was well priced, or because you had a project in mind that you either never got to, or stopped working on halfway because of procrastination. If this is your case, make up crafts projects that use what supplies you already have. Don't buy anything new for these, just use what you have. Recently I've been trying to use up a bunch of trim, tulle, and ribbon I got that are either impulse buys or leftovers from other projects. I started out using hair clips I had lying around, but quickly ran out, so I decided to start attaching safety pins to the backs since I have a ton of those lying around. Preliminary wear tests show that it's a little difficult to fasten, but it's holding really well so far.


#4: Sometimes, Ya Just Have to Buy It
 I know, I know. We all want to save money and make our own accessories and things, but sometimes it's cheaper to just pay someone who's experienced (and probably buys their stuff in bulk from China) to make stuff for us. I know there's been some times where I've wanted to start making my own Decoden and resin pieces, but I only have so much space to work in and to store stuff in. Plus I don't know how to get certain materials inexpensively and don't always want to buy in bulk (especially if I just want one). Not to mention my lack of skills working in those mediums. Because of these things, I've decided that it's better to pay someone experienced to make certain things for me instead of spending twice as much money and a whole lotta time to make something half as good (or just a mess that I can't use).


 I hope you all enjoyed this weeks post! Let me know if you do anything creative to save money on crafting supplies!


Check out my Storenvy (Where you can buy some of the cute stuff I make): animelolitacouture.sotrenvy.com
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Building a Wardrobe: Part Four

Hello everyone! Today I'll be covering the last step in my wardrobe building series: Buying your wardrobe. Enjoy!


Step Five: Buying your wardrobe
 Last and certainly not least! Let's get to buying the pieces to build your wardrobe up. Use the list you made in step 4 to help you decide on what to buy and start hunting for clothes. I highly recommend checking out second hand sales groups on Facebook as well as Etsy, Storenvy, Amazon, and eBay. Just be sure to read reviews and price compare for online stores. Thrift stores are great too as you can find clothing at much cheaper than regular prices most of the time and have the advantage of being able to try the clothes on too. Make sure you have your measurements handy for online buying so you can make sure you're getting something that will fit you properly.


 Budgeting is one of the most important things when building your wardrobe. Make sure you're spending your money wisely by comparing your desired wardrobe list to your current wardrobe list and only buying items you need. You can always buy more expensive pieces to start with, but I'd suggest focusing on less expensive basics until you have a functional wardrobe. For example, I really want a Kawaii Goods dress, but due to the price I have to think harder about if I want one than if I want ten more pettis from Bodyline (I must own every pastel one). Realistically, I'd actually be buying a petti and shoes or a cutsew and jacket or something similar to that with the same money I'd spend on that one dress. In addition to that, I don't really have a lot of basic pieces I could pair said dress with to make it look good, so my money's better spent getting those right now. In addition to smart spending, budgeting also involves smart saving. If you want to buy a brand new Baby the Stars Shine Bright JSK from their store when you visit with your comm, you probably will want to avoid eating out and buying anything unessential for a while so you don't spend your rent or food money for that month on a dress that you'll probably only wear every once in a while. If you've decided to start saving up for your dream dress, you'll want to put more of your spending money aside so you can buy it if it pops up in your sales group. This can mean less time spent going out with friends or eating out for you, but if you're really serious about buying a piece or saving up to make a large purchase, it's worth it.


 One final word of advice on buying: try to avoid impulse buying if at all possible. This is not to say that you should pass up a good bargain on a piece you want or to not buy anything when you're at the mall though. Rather than grab something and buy it immediately, whether online or in store, take some time to think about a purchase. Whether you text your friend to ask their advice, walk around the store to look at everything else they have for sale, or just make sure you actually can use a particular piece with your current wardrobe, take some time to consider purchases before you make them. I have quite a few items that I'm either selling or tend not to use as much that I wish I'd thought about a little more before jumping and buying them. Sure, that sheer black cardigan is nice, but I have nothing in my closet that it works with and most certainly can't wear it on its own. That cardigan's really cute, but I already had a blue-ish green one in my drawer and most of my tops are blue or green. Just think things through a bit before you buy them. There's nothing wrong with messaging a seller and saying you're interested in an item they have for sale as a way to get your foot in the door, but you can always back out and tell them you've changed your mind after thinking about it for a bit.


Have fun building your wardrobe and don't be afraid to experiment, just don't spend too much on anything you're unsure about!


Check out my shop: animelolitacouture.storenvy.com
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Lolita on a Budget: Mr. Yan Grab Bag

Hello everyone! So recently I decided to try getting a lucky bag (grab bag) from Bodyline. All of the defective item grab bags were sold out, so I went with the 2015 Mr. Yan Grab Bag since I wanted a coat anyways. Here's my review of what I recieved!

*Note* I appologize that quite a few of the pictures turned out blurred. I don't think I'd eaten breakfast at that point and was rather excited about the Luck Bag's arrival. Plus I wanted to open it immediately, so I kinda didn't take a lot of multiples of the same angle...

Sizing
 This grab bag is offered in two sized: 2L and M. Since I generally find myself to be a 2L measurement-wise (thank you Asian sizing for making me feel fat), I went with the 2L grab bag which promised a coat and a surprise item. Unfortunately, my shoulders are broader than average, so the coat ended up fitting a little tight around the shoulders, so I'll likely go with a larger size if possible in the future.

Shipping
 My package was sent out the day after my purchase (or at least got a tracking number assigned) and I was very surprised to find that, for once, the tracking was accurate! For those of you unfamiliar with Bodyline, many times the tracking will show "Leaving outward office of exchange" or something similar for the durration of shipping, occationally updating to show it's arrival in your country, or, if you're lucky like I was this time, actually show when the item's been delivered. All of my mail goes to a post office box that I check compulsively when I'm expecting something, so I was surprised to see that the package arrival and the tracking corresponded for once. My package arrived 16 days after the tracking date showing it was picked up (two days after recieving the tracking), well within the 2-4 week period tro be expected when ordering from Bodyline.

Arrival and Unboxing/Opening
 Like my previous package from Bodyline, my lucky pack arrived in a large, grey polymailer with the paperwork inside a clear packing label holder. The exterior was undamaged and well taped shut

Front of the package (packing slip removed)

Back of the package

After opening the outside package, I found the largest Bodyline bag I'd ever seen! The top was folded over and taped, with a little sticker reading "Fuku008," the product number for the grab bag, in the middle. The bag was mostly opaque, but I was still able to just make out a little bit of lace through it.

Ginormous Bodyline bag!

Barely visible lace showing through!

At this point, I was super excited and quickly opened up the Bodyline bag to find a beautiful coat inside as well as the much dreaded Mr. Yan Bodypillow case! I was only mildly surprised as I knew that such a thing did in fact exist and had also gotten a little impatient and managed to find an unboxing video...

Nice plastic bags around both items!

The coat was gorgeous! It has rose shaped buttons, two front pockets (They're real!), fur collar and cuffs, and a very pretty scalloped edge that ends at about knee level for me. After pulling it out of it's package and unfolding it, I also discovered that there was a little matching capelet as well! The coat is the L460 in Beg available in M, L, and 2L on Bodyline's main page (it was out of stock in almost all colors when I got this coat).

Just out of the bag!

Lying flat

The separate capelet

On my dress form without the capelet

With the capelet front view

With the capelet side view

With the capelet back view

The Mr. Yan bodypillow, which I surprisingly was able to sell shortly after posting in sales groups, was made out of a very nice, plush fabric with a picture of Mr Yan in his wizard costume on one side and his beach wear on the other side. (Pictures are only half of each side due to length.)

Dream Time...

San Francisco

Esta nocheno, duermes conmigo?
Something about "come sleep with me"

Canain? I think it's a city name like the front.

Final words

 As most of Bodyline's coats are out of stock right now (or at least when I recieved this), this was the only way to really get one of their coats. Unfortunately, I found out about the Yen trick a day or two after purchasing this, so I wasn't able to save a bit more money that way. (If you want to know how that works, I reccomend you watch this video as I have no experience buying with this method yet.) I'm very happy with the quality of the coat, which also came with an extra button on the inside tag, and look forward to future purchases from Bodyline. And for those of you wondering, this review is in no way sponsored. I bought the lucky pack entirely with my own money and was not approached by Bodyline in any way or given any discounts besides those available to all shoppers on the site (the Valentine's sale).

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A Whole New World~

Hello everybody! So, lately while I've been getting back into Lolita I've discovered that there's a whole different side of Lolita than what I originally knew. Sure, I might have every major sub-type and several minor ones memorized as well as descriptions of each, but I've never bought Brand. Heck, I've only just recently made my first purchase from Bodyline despite years of drooling over their cute items. So I'm learning that all the knowledge in the world about the Lolita style itself comes down to diddly squat when trying to figure out how to buy that dress you've had your eyes on from Closet Child. So here's what I've learned so far about actually buying and obtaining Lolita clothing.

Paypal: A Girl's Best Friend
 The first thing I learned about when buying clothing online is how to pay for it. A lot of places such as Amazon and Vinted accept your credit or debit card, but when ordering Lolita clothing or buying second hand, Paypal is where it's at. Paypal allows you to transfer funds from your bank account to your Paypal account allowing you to buy items without any transaction fees. This takes 3-5 days (or more if there's a holiday) to acchieve though, so it's not the best option for buying something unexpected such as a desperate sale or an auction. Paypal also allows you to use your debit card like regular, but does charge a small fee for it. One of the nice things about Paypal is that should you not get your item you can always file a claim to get your money back. This only works if you use the 'business' option as oposed to the 'family' option when you're paying though, so be careful!

Budgeting
 Budgeting makes it a lot harder to spend all your money on that Twinkle Mermaid auction that just popped up when you really should be paying rent or bills. While it takes self control, I've found that budgeting helps me keep my finances stable so that when I do obtain pieces I enjoy I don't have to turn around and sell them in order to pay utilities. You can do whatever you want for your budget, but I chose to set a weekly spending limit of $40 for myself. This makes it so that I can still buy cute stuff, but I have to wait a while before buying which also makes it easier to avoid shopper's regret as I'll have several weeks to think about a more expensive item before actually buying it. What's that? You just bought a $200 JSK from Angelic Pretty? No problem. Your budget hasn't been completely blown as long as you lower your spending money for the next few weeks to make up for it. In this example, I'd lower my spending limit by $20 for 10 weeks (or 8 if I didn't buy anything else that week) so that I'd still have a weekly spending allowance, but not have to worry as much about the impact of that JSK on my finances.

Second Hand
 There's plenty of different places to look for second hand Lolita clothing. Lolita sales groups on Facebook and Lace Market. There's also eBay, Closet Child (in Japan and online), and EGL sales on LiveJournal. Prices vary depending on the item and its condition, but usually you can find Brand pieces for significantly less than originally priced. If you're good at removing stains and fixing small damages, you can get even cheaper items this way as many sellers will significantly decrease their prices if an item is damaged. I have yet to buy from any of these platforms, but I know most personal sellers take Paypay. I haven't figured out how to order from closet child yet, so I don't know if they would require a buying service or not.

EGL Forums, YouTube, Lolita Groups, Blogs, etc.
 There are numerous resources for finding out how to buy inexpensive Lolita online. Most of what I know has been gleaned from various sources. If you can, I would recomend finding a friend who's either into Lolita and used to buying online, or just one that frequently orders from overseas or online. Thanks to the help of one of my friends I was able to figure out how Pay Pal works so that I would be able to buy clothes and accessories online without having to worry as much about the integrity of my bank account.

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Steampunk on a Budget

So, Instead of putting together a outfit this time I decided to put together some of my favorite Bodyline items for starting a Steampunk outfit with. Unfortunately, the Victorian styled weapons an other cool trinkets are still your own to find, but with the help of Bodyline you can get a starter outfit and even a pocket watch necklace if you so choose. So, beginning from number one, here are my top 10 starter Steampunk items from Bodyline.

#1 Victorian Dress and Hat

 The thing I love most about these are the very evident Victorian feel they both have to them. I love the design of the sleeves as they allow the contrasting white fabric to show through as well as the lace accents on both the dress and the hat. I like that the dress comes with a matching hat which saves the trouble of fining or making one.

#2 High Collared Blouse

I like the mandarin collar on this blouse as well as the pin tuck and lace details. The frills and details keep it feminine, but it's still a nice, simple look that can easily be worn by itself or under a vest or jacket.

#3 Rose Heart Necklace

I love the delicateness of this necklace as it is intricate yet simple with the shape of the rose and the picot stitching in the outline of the heart. The crystals add anice little bit of sparkle to the necklace as well.

#4 Top Hat

It may just be me, but what's not to love about a nice top hat? Because it's a fairly plain hat, adding on gears, wings, or what have you to match your outfit is easily accomplished without having to work around already present decorations.

#5 Pocket Watch Necklace

Out of all the pocket watch necklaces Bodyline carries, this one is my favorite. I love the roman numerals around the time piece on the outside cover as well as the flower motif on the back. There's a few watches similar to this one, but I like that this one has decoration on the bow as opposed to just a plain one.

#6 Lace-up Boots

I love the style of these boots as they remind me of the button up boots that were more common in Victorian times. The available colors are simple making it easy to get one pair that will work with a host of outfits as opposed to matching the outfit to the shoes. The zipper on the side makes for easier removal and putting on of the shoes.

#7 Layered Corselet Skirt

I like how the layers on this skirt add body without making it overly frilly or cutesy. The high waistline, reminiscent of a corselet or underbust corset in its design, adds a nice, elegant touch to the skirt in my opinion. The main thing I dislike about this skirt is that is only available in black, limiting the range of outfits that could be made with it.

#8 Underbust Corset

I love the lace detailing on this corset as well as the double breasted buttons on the front. Overall I think this is a very elegant and lovely corset.

#9 Knickerbockers

These are some nice trousers for female or male Steampunk wearers that are elegant and simple. They appear to have pockets, which can be handy for hiding cell phones and other items that are necessary, but not Steampunk.

#10 Ruffled Blouse

This is a nice blouse with a jabot and sleeves that can be worn either short or long, depending on the weather. I like the lace accents on the blouse as it adds more elegance to it.

And that concludes my list of the top 10 Steampunk items available on Bodyline. Feel free to leave comments below saying what your favorite item is from this list or what you think of the various items. I'm on twitter now! @animlolicouture

Cosplay on a Budget: Using What You Have

Welcome to another cosplay on a budget article! I apologize for the long gap in between articles. I've been getting a lot of Lolita inspiration lately and not so much cosplay. Now without further ado, here's

Using What You Have

 When I first started cosplaying, I didn't have the money to buy pre-made cosplays nor to afford the fabric and other materials to make my own. And wigs? The only ones I had were cheap Halloween wigs, which don't last long and tend to look rather crummy. As such, I had to be creative and make my cosplays out of whatever I had lying around. As I mentioned in my article about my first convention experience, my costumes were both made with clothing and notions I had lying around. Granted, not everybody keeps scraps of fabric, old clothes that are too small or too worn to wear, and random pieces of lace around their house. But if you're a bit of a pack rat like me, you should have no problem. Even if you aren't you can easily find ways of turning your everyday clothes into a cosplay. So, here's part one of this article:

Make a Cosplay with Materials at Hand

You won't get the best costumes this way, but they'll be recognizable. First, pick out several characters with a hair color and style similar to yours. This will save you the grief of dying your hair temporarily or wrangling with a cheap wig. They can be characters you recognize, characters you like, or even characters you don't much care for. As long as you wouldn't be terrible against cosplaying a character, add them to your list. Now, look at the characters costumes. Would you be willing to wear that or a slightly modified, but still recognizable version of it? If no, take that character off of your list. Also keep in mind that some characters have multiple outfits, some more recognizable than others. If you wouldn't cosplay one of the character's outfits, check to see if there's others. Next step, take a look at all of the detailing and pieces of the outfit. Would you be able to simplify the details and still have the outfit be recognizable? Would you be able to make the various pieces of the outfit with what you have? Once you know the answers to these questions, choose an appropriate character and start putting together their outfit. Is the character wearing shorts? You can easily turn an old pair of jeans into shorts by cutting them slightly longer than you want them and either hemming or distressing the edges. Need a tube top or other tight fitting shirt? Cut off the legs from and old pair of stretchy pajama pants and add sleeves, collars, etc. as needed. Just make sure to cut edges longer than you need them if you plan to hem them and cut head/arm holes smaller than you want them to leave room for mistakes.

Make a Cosplay with Clothes you Already Own

 For this method you'll want to go through the same process as above for choosing a character, but you'll want to look for a character with clothing that could easily be found in your closet. If you already have school girl clothes in your closet, look for a school girl character. My Misa Amane cosplay consisted of a frilly black dress and jacket I'd bought at a previous date combined with some black tights, heels, a black ribbon worn as a choker, and my customized dog tags. This and my hair and makeup done appropriately were enough to get the character across. I'd also used the same dress and jacket for a Freya (Chobits) cosplay a few years earlier. So go look in your closet. Think of what characters you could cosplay as with what you've got in there and you'll have pieced together a cosplay before you know it.

As I mentioned earlier, I've used there methods in the past. Here's a good example of a cosplay I put together the night before a con with some help from a friend. A few cons previously, my friend had cosplayed Liz Thompson from Soul Eater and I'd decided I wanted to cosplay the same character for this con. I had the pants and shoes, but that was about it. My friend lent me the hat she'd made using a couple of blue folders, glue, an old shirt sleeve, and dental floss. Then came the problem of the shirt. It was a red, sleeveless cropped turtleneck which presented several problems to me. The first was that I didn't really have any red shirts, much less sleeveless turtlenecks. Also, I wasn't especially comfortable with the idea of bare shoulders and midriff. What was I to do? Well, my creative friend pulled out an old pair of red, stretchy pajama pants and suggested the idea of making them into a shirt for me. We cut off one of the legs, made armholes in it and hemmed the bottom, then turned the other leg into sleeves and a undershirt thing so I wouldn't have to worry about anything showing that I didn't want too. I've since gotten a better shirt for this particular cosplay, but the one my friend made worked and got the point across well enough. (My friend's outfit for the con was thrown together last minute as well, but I've cut out details on it's creation for space's sake.)

My old Liz cosplay shirt and hat

Lolita on a Budget: Classic Lolita

For some of us, we love the Lolita style, but just can't see ourselves in all of those frills, cupcakes, and bows. But what can a girl do if she's still interested in wearing Lolita? The answer is Classic Lolita which makes use of darker colors and A-line dresses to achieve a look that's more mature, but still Lolita. This look is also good for Lolitas that are getting older and realizing that their suggary rainbows and pony print dress is a little too over the top for them. This is a simple look that can be achieved with a few pieces from Bodyline! as well as some other items. The total price for the Bodyline! elements of this outfit is $127 plus shipping and handling. Here we go!

The main part of this look is an elegant floral print dress available in multiple colors to match with how you look. If you look good in deep jewel colors, the maroon dress is the one that would best suit you. But if you look better in natural colors, like tans and browns, the brown dress is the best one for you. The bright red dress would be best worn if you look good in bright colors. For the shoes, a more classical look is better as rounder toes have a more youthful look to them. These pumps are still cute, but also more mature with a slightly lower heel and a more pointed toe as opposed to the majority of Lolita heels offered. The last item from Bodyline! for this look is a simple off white headband with pearl and rose accents. As an alternative, one can wear a simple flower hair accessory in a natural color or a fresh rose if you have access to one (watch out for those thorns! be sure to remove them before putting the flower in your hair). To finish this look off, wear a pair of opaque off white tights and some off white pearl accessories such as a layered choker and bracelet. Try not to go over the top with accessories with this style of Lolita. You want to look mature and put together for this look, not drowning in a sea of plastic beads and pink kittens. Not that there's anything wrong with that as long as the rest of your outfit fits in with them. I hope you enjoy this look!

All of the items in this outfit plus more in this style can be found on the Bodyline website. No pictures due to the fact that I haven't received permission to use Bodyline!'s images. Check me out on Twitter.

Lolita on a Budjet: Hime Lolita

Who doesn't want to be a princess at some point in their life? As girls, many of us dream of being a princess and with Hime, or Princess Lolita we can make dreams reality! Hime Lolita is definitely a extravagant style, so it can be fun to wear on occasions when one feels like going the extra mile to look glamorous. Perfect princess hair and makeup is only part of the look, and here I'll show you an affordable Hime Lolita look using items from Bodyline! This outfit costs $114 to $167 plus shipping and handling.

The base of a Hime Lolita look is always an elaborate dress. I feel that this pink flared sleeve dress is perfect for the Hime style and it's got the added benefit of removable sleeves, making it so you can wear it as a Sweet Lolita dress as well. And what outfit is complete without a great pair of shoes to go with it? These ribboned heels are pretty and cute and give you an extra boost of height for that added confidence as you stroll along. I felt that a pair of lacy tights would work best with this look and was pleased to find that Bodyline! offers cute bow patterned tights. For that extra touch of glam, a pair of pink lace and bow nails is just the perfect touch. And for icing on the cupcake, put on a cute flower headpiece that is elegant and cute. Or you can glam it up and get a tiara, which unfortunately can't be gotten from Bodyline!, but can be easily found at stores around Prom season. Not everybody has perfect Hime Lolita hair or the time to do their hair up, so if that's you you can also get a Hime wig from Bodyline! in just about any color you want! I hope you enjoy this Hime Lolita outfit.

All of the items in this outfit plus more in this style can be found on the Bodyline website. No pictures due to the fact that I haven't received permission to use Bodyline!'s images. Check me out on Twitter.

DIY Clay Decodens

Recently I've been getting interested in Decoden, cute little items such as kitty faces and cupcakes or other food or kawaii related items. Since these items tend to be rather expensive and a little difficult to find, I decided to try making my own with some colored clay I had. I started by making cherries, then moved on to cookies and macaroons as well as frosting and whipped cream. The cherries turned out alright, but my favorite items are the frosted star cookie I made and the macaroons. For all of the cookies I mixed some pale yellow clay with a bit of brown clay to get a color similar to other decoden cookies I've seen. For the frosting I mixed small pieces of colored clay and some white liquid clay together until the solid clay was mostly broken up, then drizzled it on the cookie. I attempted the same thing to make frosting, just adding more solid clay, but it didn't turn out especially well. This could be because I was using a oven bake clay instead of a self hardening clay like most home made decoden are made out of. It's also possible I didn't add enough solid clay to make a good mixture since I was getting rather tired of breaking up and mixing the clay. Anyways, here's a picture of the decoden I made minus the whipped cream which was added afterwords.

The larger macaroon is in half still because I put whipped cream in the middle after the initial baking. Sorry for the low image quality; I'll try to get better pictures of the items up later. All images were taken by me unless otherwise noted. Check me out on Twitter.

Lolita on a Budjet: Gothic Lolita

 Gothic Lolita is the first Lolita style I tried and today is one of my favorites.The one thing I dislike about Gothic Lolita is that it lacks bright colors, so I enjoy wearing other styles of Lolita as well. For this Gothic Lolita outfit I chose to do an outfit that's mainly black with white accents to keep the outfit from looking too dark. For those that prefer an all black Gothic or Kuro Lolita, I'll do an outfit later on for that style. This outfit costs $120 plus shipping and handling. Let's go!

The most important part of any Lolita ensemble is, of course, the dress or, in this case the jumper. For this outfit I chose a ruffled jumper that comes with a matching katayusha, or head bow. I love that this jumper's cute yet inexpensive and that it comes with a head bow as well making for even more savings. For a blouse to wear under the jumper, I felt that the ladder race blouse in white would be the best since it allows one to wear the sleeves long or short making it a very versatile blouse. Since it's a white blouse it can also be used with many ensembles or by itself with a pair of jeans if you want a casual but cute look for every day wear. I thought that over the knee socks would look best with this look, but a cute pair of lacy white tights could be substituted for a more mature look or to keep your legs warm in winter. I love how cute all of Bodyline's shoes are and these are no exception! The triple bow shoes in black are very cute and I love the little heart shaped clasps on them. To top it all off, I thought that adding a few cute rings would be nice. My favorite ones are the black crystal rose and bow rings. Now add a petticoat and a pair of bloomers and you're good to go! I hope you enjoy this look and look forward to more in the future! Bodyline! is always adding new items, so there's sure to be more looks in this and other styles in the future.

All of the items in this outfit plus more in this style can be found on the Bodyline website. No pictures due to the fact that I haven't received permission to use Bodyline!'s images. Check me out on Twitter.

Lolita on a Budget: Punk Lolita

Punk Lolita is probably my least favorite Lolita, but that is mainly due to the fact that I'm not especially good at putting together punk outfits. Also it's partly due to personal preference since I prefer more cute styles of clothing. Here I've done my best to put together a Punk Lolita outfit using clothing from Bodyline! exclusively. The total for this outfit is $142 plus shipping and handling. Let's go!

The asymmetrical skirt, in blue and black, is one of my favorite parts of the outfit as I like the way that the blue underskirt stands out from the black over skirt. The blouse was a little difficult to decide on, but I eventually found one that I thought would work nicely. This ruffled vampy blouse  in off white is very elegant, but still works for a punkish look. To add a bit of color to the top I chose to use this dark blue ruffled pin at the neckline of the blouse over the ruffle. For a slightly Gothic feel, I decided to pair the outfit with a pair of spiderweb print tights, but a pair of lacy black tights could be substituted as well if spiderwebs aren't your thing. My next favorite part of this outfit is the shoes, chunky heels with chain accents. I love how these shoes retain the more innocent look of the mary jane shoes while having a punk accent with the chains and little skull charms on the backs. The last item is optional: take a couple chous or scrunchies in black and put them around the top middle part of your upper arms as sleeve garters to add a bit more color to the blouse. Alternatively, one can buy or make sleeve garters instead of using the chous. If you don't mind spending a little more, you can also get some cute skull accessories from Bodyline! to match the ones on the shoes. I hope you enjoy this outfit!

All of the items in this outfit plus more in this style can be found on the Bodyline website. No pictures due to the fact that I haven't received permission to use Bodyline!'s images. Check me out on Twitter.

Thrift Store Find: Sweet Lolita Skirt

Whenever I visit a thrift store, I like looking through the linnens section to see if there's anything that would look cute as a dress or a skirt. A while ago I found some curtains with a very cute print and ruffles along the edges, so I bought them and made one of them into a skirt. The skirt turned out a bit longer than the ones on my other Lolita dresses, but it's a very nice skirt. I don't wear it very often mainly due to the fact that I don't have a blouse that works well with it. I found one that works alright as long as I pull the skirt waistband down around my hips though. I plan on turning the second curtain into a blouse once I find a pattern that I like.
 I'd run out of waistband elastic at the time I made the skirt, so I instead used a ribbon I had lying around. It turned out very nicely.

All images were taken by me unless otherwise noted. Check me out on Twitter.

Poll for Blog Content

Hello everyone!
 I've decided to do a little poll to try to find out what my current readers and any potential readers would like to see more of. To vote, simply leave a comment below. This specific poll will close in two weeks time, April 24th 2013, so I would appreciate it if readers would avoid posting comments after that date. Without further ado, here's the poll!

What would you like to see more of on Anime & Lolita Couture?

• Cosplay tips.
• Lolita looks on a budget.
•  Recipes for cakes and other sweets.
• Tutorials such as for hair and crafts.
• My home made clothing.
• Reviews of clothing and items I have.
• My various cosplays. (I don't have many cosplays to my name as of now.)
• Other stuff. (List your ideas in your comment please!)

 Make sure to leave a comment below telling me what you'd like to see more of. Thanks for your feedback!

Thrift Store Haul: Loliable Clothes

So, I've been going to thrift stores a lot lately and have been having a lot of luck finding cute new clothes and things. This time I'm blogging about some cute Loliable clothing I found. I love my Lolita dresses, but unfortunately they're a bit too formal for everyday wear, so I've been expanding my wardrobe to include cute casual skirts and blouses that I can wear on a daily basis. This trip I got a new blouse, skirt, and short sleeved cardigan.

The blouse is a very pretty Gothic Lolita like blouse with a mandarin collar and delicate lace accents. The blouse itself is made of a very thin material, so it's best worn with an undershirt or sweater during chilly weather. I really love the lace on it as it ads a pretty touch to the blouse without standing out too much.

The skirt is very cute. It has a nice eyelet type pattern to it giving it both texture and detail. It's got multiple layers which give it a nice little poof and add a level of cuteness to it. My main dislike of this skirt is the waistband, which is wide elastic. This makes it so that the skirt is a bit uncomfortable to wear at times and also makes it so the skirt slides up a bit as the elastic tries to rest on my waist. Other than those slight annoyances, it's a very nice skirt.

 

The cardigan is a very nice color and works very nicely with my new skirt and a lace camisole. The pockets are deeper than they appear which surprised me at first. They're big enough to comfortably hold a smaller cell phone, but the weight of the phone makes the pocket droop a little bit so it's visible from under the bottom edge of the cardigan.

All images are by me unless otherwise noted. Check me out on Twitter.

Lolita on a Budget: Wa Lolita

 Wa Lolita is one of my favorite styles of Lolita clothing. The cute kimono styled dresses, geta sandles, and traditional Japanese accessories all add to make it a style that is a lovely combination between traditional Japanese clothing and the ultra cute Lolita style. Today I've put together an ensemble featuring Bodyline's cute and inexpensive clothing. The total for this outfit is $115, not including shipping and handling. Here we go!

 

The Kimono dress is definitely one of my favorite Wa Lolita dresses that Bodyline offers. It comes in multiple colors allowing for different looks to be achieved, but I like the blue one the best since it reminds me of cupcakes. n_n I felt that the over the knee socks would look best with this dress since it ends slightly above knee level. Unfortunately, Bodyline! does not sell geta sandals, but they have plenty of cute Lolita shoes that would work well with this outfit, especially the blue and off white ones. The small flower pins Bodyline! sells are very cute and simple as well as cheap allowing for one or more to be bought to adorn hair as well as modded for use as a bracelet or other accessory. The pink ones match the best with the one on the dress. For an accessory, I thought that the Neko purse was a perfect mix between kawaii and the Japanese style. The drawstring allows for a more traditional Japanese look as well as allowing it to be worn around the wrist.

All of the items in this outfit plus more in this style can be found on the Bodyline website. No pictures due to the fact that I haven't received permission to use Bodyline!'s images. Check me out on Twitter.

Thrift Store Haul: New Petticoat

Recently I've been having good luck at my local thrift store. This time I was shocked to walk in and see a black petticoat hanging on the wall! I gave it a try, decided it fit well enough and got it really inexpensively. I was very happy that I had found such a nice petticoat at a good price. And then I decided to try it on under my Gothic Lolita dress and found that real petticoats are VERY poofy. It was also quite a bit longer than my skirt. So I tried it on under a longer skirt that I had made, which it barely fit under. and saw how it gave me a very poofy skirt that looks like I'm wearing a hoop skirt underneath it. Needless to say I have never owned a real petticoat before, just ones that I made myself out of old sheets and bed covers. All the same, I'm happy with my purchase and look forward to finding or making a longer skirt in the Gothic Lolita style to wear it with.

All images were taken by me unless otherwise noted. Check me out on Twitter.

Thrift Store Haul: Sewing Project Supplies

Recently I went thrift store shopping at some local stores. Turns out I was pretty lucky! This post is about the supplies I got for making more Lolita clothing for myself. It's always fun looking through thrift stores. You never know what you can find! This is just a little bit of the things I've gotten from thrift stores in the past. Here's what I got (minus one item since I neglected to take pictures before I started sewing):

In all I got several yards of eyelet lace and a white Eyelet fabric, a bit over a yard of lace elastic, and a new zipper to replace one in a cute skirt I got a few years ago. It was all very inexpensive, especially the eyelet lace which is usually very expensive at craft and fabric stores. Here's some closer pictures:

I'm planning on using both the lace and fabric on a new dress. Now I just need to find a pretty light blue fabric, decide on the design, and get some patterns to make it!

The lace elastic is very pretty. It's a bit too thin for using in skirts or fabric petticoats, but it's nice for sleeves and light weight petticoats.

I intentionally got a zipper that was a bit longer than I needed, so I just cut off the extra before sewing it in. Unfortunately I cut off a bit too much so now I need to put a hook and loop at the top of the zipper.

I'll make sure to do an entry once I make the dress I'm planning on with the lace and fabric. All pictures were taken by me and that's me wearing my skirt. Creative cell phone camera mounts and timers FTW! If you wish to use any of my pictures, please receive permission from me first. Check me out on Twitter.