Recently I have been getting back into watching anime, so I've decided to start doing reviews on the various anime and movies I've watched. Today I'll be reviewing the anime movie titled: The Girl who Leapt Through Time.
The girl who leapt through time is the story about a young Japanese highschool girl who after an extrodinarily bad day discovers she has the ability to go back in time, or "time leap" as it is called in the movie. She uses this ability to change day to day events to more suit her liking, but eventually discovers she only has a limited number of time leaps left and must use them wisely to avoid a traumatic experience. She also discovers that she's not alone in her ability to time leap.
I found the storyline of The Girl who Leapt Through Time to be very engaging to the point I ended up watching it all in one sitting instead of taking a break from it to play a game with a friend. Sorry friend, but this was an awesome movie! The characters were all very believeable, none of them were overly dramatic and there were absolutely no self generated backgrounds or breaks in character as in some animes where the characters will begin talking to the viewer instead of the characters around them. The story also flowed well, giving the viewer moments to pause and observe or think along with the characters. The art style was a more simplistic anime style as opposed to the face eating eyes and unrealistic proportions common in many Shojo and Shonen anime. Overall, I very much enjoyed The Girl who Leapt Through Time and would recommend it to others as well as rewatch it myself. Five out of five stars for this one!
If you would like to recommend an anime or anime movie for me to watch and review, please leave a comment down below, or you can send me a tweet @animlolicouture. Please do not ask me to watch Yaoi or Yuri or any anime that is pornographic in nature as I do not enjoy that sort of show. Animes targeted at more mature audiences will be accepted on a case by case basis.
Raid my closet: Vinted.
Saturday, August 30, 2014
Saturday, August 23, 2014
Selling Clothes: My Experience
For selling off old Lolita dresses and accessories, it's obvious one should go to the EGL forums or a second hand store online such as Closet Child ("No WAY am I donating a $200+ dollar dress!"), but what about ordinary clothing such as jeans and T-Shirts? What do we do if we want to sell those? Well I've been trying to sell some of my old clothes that are still in good condition and here's what I've tried and found!
~Commission Stores~
So, one of the first things I tried to do with my old clothing was take a bag full down to a store called Plato's Closet. They buy your old clothes and sell them at really inexpensive prices. Well, I ended up walking out with the same bag of items minus one or two things I'd recently bought. And since they sell the items so cheaply at the store, they don't pay much.
Verdict: This sort of shop is great if your clothes are the current "in" style that you can find in stores. Just don't expect much if it isn't a big brand!
~Swapdom~
This online service seemed like an awesome idea at first. Got stuff you don't want? We can help you trade it for something you do! Even if you don't want something Person A has to offer for it, if Person B has something you want and wants something Person A has, you can still trade! Horrible explanation there, I know. Pretty much it's a trading service that allows people to form a big trade ring so that everyone gets what they want, even if Person A and Person B don't like the other's items. The first thing I noticed about Swapdom was it's shipping costs. Even if you just want to get something small like a pair of leggings, the shipping often is way more than you would actually want to spend on the item.
Verdict: Good for larger items where you'd expect to pay more, but not so much for clothing!
~Tradesy~
Overall, Tradesy seems like a cool site. Post your items, they clean the cover image and send you a free shipping packet when it sells. Cool! So who wants to buy my stuff? *crickets* Uhm, can I at least see who all's looked at my stuff or who likes it? *Tradesy* Nope. Sorry. Free shipping packet though!
Verdict: Great idea, but I have yet to sell ANYTHING despite lowering my prices multiple times. I don't even know if anyone's looked at them... From what I can tell, you're more likely to have success on this site selling big brand name items like Prada or Coach.
~Poshmark~
I'll be honest here: I haven't really used Poshmark yet. When I signed up for it I didn't know you had to have a smartphone to be able to sell anything on it. At the time, I didn't have a smartphone, but I do now, so I might give it a try. It seems to be aimed more at selling brand name items like Tradesy, but so far all I've gotten is a bunch of emails telling me how I seriously need this random (probably expensive) brand I've never even heard of.
Verdict: Requires a smartphone. Haven't used it.
~Vinted~
Like Poshmark, this site also works on smartphones. However, unlike Poshmark, it's not smartphone inclusive. It has a full site that you can easily sign up through and post clothes through. When I got my smartphone, I decided to give this service a try and I must say, I LOVE it! I've been on five days now and I'm already selling items! Unlike Tradesy, Vinted makes it easy to see how many people have viewed your items as well as see who's "favorited" them. Communication with potential buyers is as easy as clicking the message button on their profile. All users also have a rating given to them by other users who buy from them. Selling items is just as easy. I have the app on my phone, so I just throw my items on a dress form or a hanger, take a few pictures using the app, crop them, put in details, and shezam! Item's up and ready to be sold! When you're item's sold you simply print out a label, put it on a box with the item inside and you're good to go!
Verdict: This is a great site! Easy to use, very user friendly, and easy to sell items. Great for selling any sort of clothing be it a prom dress or a T-Shirt.
Hope this article has been helpful for all of you lovely people and I hope you all have a wonderful day and good luck selling your old clothes!
Check me out on Twitter: @animelolitacouture
Raid my closet! User ButterflyChan on Vinted.
~Commission Stores~
So, one of the first things I tried to do with my old clothing was take a bag full down to a store called Plato's Closet. They buy your old clothes and sell them at really inexpensive prices. Well, I ended up walking out with the same bag of items minus one or two things I'd recently bought. And since they sell the items so cheaply at the store, they don't pay much.
Verdict: This sort of shop is great if your clothes are the current "in" style that you can find in stores. Just don't expect much if it isn't a big brand!
~Swapdom~
This online service seemed like an awesome idea at first. Got stuff you don't want? We can help you trade it for something you do! Even if you don't want something Person A has to offer for it, if Person B has something you want and wants something Person A has, you can still trade! Horrible explanation there, I know. Pretty much it's a trading service that allows people to form a big trade ring so that everyone gets what they want, even if Person A and Person B don't like the other's items. The first thing I noticed about Swapdom was it's shipping costs. Even if you just want to get something small like a pair of leggings, the shipping often is way more than you would actually want to spend on the item.
Verdict: Good for larger items where you'd expect to pay more, but not so much for clothing!
~Tradesy~
Overall, Tradesy seems like a cool site. Post your items, they clean the cover image and send you a free shipping packet when it sells. Cool! So who wants to buy my stuff? *crickets* Uhm, can I at least see who all's looked at my stuff or who likes it? *Tradesy* Nope. Sorry. Free shipping packet though!
Verdict: Great idea, but I have yet to sell ANYTHING despite lowering my prices multiple times. I don't even know if anyone's looked at them... From what I can tell, you're more likely to have success on this site selling big brand name items like Prada or Coach.
~Poshmark~
I'll be honest here: I haven't really used Poshmark yet. When I signed up for it I didn't know you had to have a smartphone to be able to sell anything on it. At the time, I didn't have a smartphone, but I do now, so I might give it a try. It seems to be aimed more at selling brand name items like Tradesy, but so far all I've gotten is a bunch of emails telling me how I seriously need this random (probably expensive) brand I've never even heard of.
Verdict: Requires a smartphone. Haven't used it.
~Vinted~
Like Poshmark, this site also works on smartphones. However, unlike Poshmark, it's not smartphone inclusive. It has a full site that you can easily sign up through and post clothes through. When I got my smartphone, I decided to give this service a try and I must say, I LOVE it! I've been on five days now and I'm already selling items! Unlike Tradesy, Vinted makes it easy to see how many people have viewed your items as well as see who's "favorited" them. Communication with potential buyers is as easy as clicking the message button on their profile. All users also have a rating given to them by other users who buy from them. Selling items is just as easy. I have the app on my phone, so I just throw my items on a dress form or a hanger, take a few pictures using the app, crop them, put in details, and shezam! Item's up and ready to be sold! When you're item's sold you simply print out a label, put it on a box with the item inside and you're good to go!
Verdict: This is a great site! Easy to use, very user friendly, and easy to sell items. Great for selling any sort of clothing be it a prom dress or a T-Shirt.
Hope this article has been helpful for all of you lovely people and I hope you all have a wonderful day and good luck selling your old clothes!
Check me out on Twitter: @animelolitacouture
Raid my closet! User ButterflyChan on Vinted.
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Staying Cute and Staying Warm
Let's face it: Winter can get really cold and knee length skirts can leave your legs freezing. So what's a girl to do? We want to look cute all year round, but we don't want to be so sick we can't show off our ensembles. Well, with the right additions to your wardrobe, you can look cute year round. Here's a list of my top four ideas for keeping warm while dressing cute.
#1: Headgear
This first one might seem a little obvious, but it still doesn't hurt to point it out. Be it a knit cap, earmuffs, or cat eared hat, anything that can cover your ears will help prevent issues such as frostbite in colder areas. In windy areas, knit hats aren't as useful as woven fabrics such as fleece or faux-fur since the wind seems to blow through every crack in the knit. Hats with ears sewn on or other items such as pins, charms, and flowers can be just as functional as plain ones while still allowing you to dress cute. Can't find one? Take a simple fleece cap in a color you like, some ribbon, flowers, or any other decorations you like and hot glue or sew them to your hat. Don't want to mess up your hairdo? Earmuffs keep your ears covered without covering your whole head.
#2: Tights
To keep your legs warm, tights are a must. I highly recommend getting multiple pairs of dance tights as they are thick and durable. I can't tell you how many times I've pulled on a pair of regular nylons just to have my thumb go through them the first time I wear them. Unlike regular nylons, dance tights are designed to be pulled on and off quickly for fast costume changes off-stage. Having been in dance since I was a kid, I know for a fact that dance tights are made to last. I have pairs that I've had for nearly eight years now and they still work wonderfully. Don't be afraid to layer on multiple pairs as the more you have on the warmer your legs will be. I personally have one pair each of pink, tan, and black tights that I layer in that order for warmth or wear one or two at a time for days that are still cold, but not excessively so.
#3: Coats
Like hats, this may seem a bit obvious, but the type of coat may not be quite as obvious. Coats that end at your waist can look cute, but your tush can get a lot colder than with a knee length version. I personally recommend a thick wool coat if you live somewhere that can get especially cold. I got one that's surplus from the Swedish Air Force from Sportsman's Guide, a seller of military surplus as well as hunting and fishing gear. You can also get really cute Lolita themed coats from places such as Bodyline. I can't say how warm Bodyline's coats are though as I haven't gotten one before, so feel free to comment if you know.
#4: Layers
Layers upon layers is a key to staying warm. Wearing a long sleeved T-shirt under a long sleeve blouse, wearing multiple petticoats, or wearing legwarmers are all examples of how you can help keep warm. Be careful not to overdo things though! While you might be perfectly warm outside, you have to be careful you don't over-heat inside. So make sure you have layers that can easily be removed such as a coat or cardigan and always be prepared to slip into a bathroom to take off a layer of tights of petticoat.
Stay warm lovelies, this season and many more yet to come!
Follow me on Twitter: @animlolicouture
#1: Headgear
This first one might seem a little obvious, but it still doesn't hurt to point it out. Be it a knit cap, earmuffs, or cat eared hat, anything that can cover your ears will help prevent issues such as frostbite in colder areas. In windy areas, knit hats aren't as useful as woven fabrics such as fleece or faux-fur since the wind seems to blow through every crack in the knit. Hats with ears sewn on or other items such as pins, charms, and flowers can be just as functional as plain ones while still allowing you to dress cute. Can't find one? Take a simple fleece cap in a color you like, some ribbon, flowers, or any other decorations you like and hot glue or sew them to your hat. Don't want to mess up your hairdo? Earmuffs keep your ears covered without covering your whole head.
#2: Tights
To keep your legs warm, tights are a must. I highly recommend getting multiple pairs of dance tights as they are thick and durable. I can't tell you how many times I've pulled on a pair of regular nylons just to have my thumb go through them the first time I wear them. Unlike regular nylons, dance tights are designed to be pulled on and off quickly for fast costume changes off-stage. Having been in dance since I was a kid, I know for a fact that dance tights are made to last. I have pairs that I've had for nearly eight years now and they still work wonderfully. Don't be afraid to layer on multiple pairs as the more you have on the warmer your legs will be. I personally have one pair each of pink, tan, and black tights that I layer in that order for warmth or wear one or two at a time for days that are still cold, but not excessively so.
#3: Coats
Like hats, this may seem a bit obvious, but the type of coat may not be quite as obvious. Coats that end at your waist can look cute, but your tush can get a lot colder than with a knee length version. I personally recommend a thick wool coat if you live somewhere that can get especially cold. I got one that's surplus from the Swedish Air Force from Sportsman's Guide, a seller of military surplus as well as hunting and fishing gear. You can also get really cute Lolita themed coats from places such as Bodyline. I can't say how warm Bodyline's coats are though as I haven't gotten one before, so feel free to comment if you know.
#4: Layers
Layers upon layers is a key to staying warm. Wearing a long sleeved T-shirt under a long sleeve blouse, wearing multiple petticoats, or wearing legwarmers are all examples of how you can help keep warm. Be careful not to overdo things though! While you might be perfectly warm outside, you have to be careful you don't over-heat inside. So make sure you have layers that can easily be removed such as a coat or cardigan and always be prepared to slip into a bathroom to take off a layer of tights of petticoat.
Stay warm lovelies, this season and many more yet to come!
Follow me on Twitter: @animlolicouture
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