Vivid Beauty contacts review!

So I ordered some prescription color lenses from Vivid Beauty after a friend of mine suggested them. I have really bad vision- and an astigmatism on top of that, so I have trouble finding colored lenses for anything under $100. This site Vivid Beauty has a large selection of lenses and many in my prescription. The best part? They ALL cost around $20, regardless of the prescription. So my -6.5 prescription cost me only $18 shipped.

The seller is inside the USA so shipping only took a couple days and I got my lenses securely packaged with a contact lens case! Now, I ordered just the prescription lenses even though I have an astigmatism because I only planned on wearing them for a few hours at a time, and since allergies make my eyes sensitive anyway- I figured this would be perfect for photo shoots and such.

Their order form was simple and I sent it in then received an invoice request from Paypal ( you can pay other ways of payment). I ordered the blue Nudy series and while they don't completely cover my eye color (which is light brown) they still make by eyes blue and blend well with my eye color under it.

Sorry the color isn't quite true- but you get a good idea of before and after.
I wore these for about 3 hours yesterday and had no problems! I highly recommend you try them- since you have little to lose and so much to gain if it works out! Less than $20 is very little to spend on colored prescription contacts! I am so happy I can finally wear colored contacts for my cosplay and actually be able to see out of them. Now I don't recommend wearing regular lenses if you have astigmatism because it can be bad for your eyes, but if you have a prescription (or even none at all) this is a great place to find contacts!

Check them out at the link above :)

Singer Serger unboxing

So thanks to a series of recent purchases I was able to invest in a better serger, and like a total dork- I decided to do a box opening. So here is the serger I got- it was on super sale for Presidents day and is a 4 thread so I can use it for stretchy fabrics (which my current serger can't handle). The main difference between this serger and the one I currently have is the differential feed (my current three thread doesn't have one). The differential feed helps you feed cloth through the machine so you can sew knits and also make ruffles.

Singer Profinish 745 model

Open it up and it's encased in styrofoam with the manual on top. It's about 50 pages long- but also has Spanish and French if you want to test your dual language skills.

So after taking off the top Styrofoam and I am really happy to see that it is already threaded and has mini spools of thread already in it!




Out of the box! It has suction cup feet.

The inside parts-

This serger (besides being capable of 6 different stitches and being compatible with my juki serger feet) also has a removable storage compartment that when removed, lets you serger arm holes and circles! YAY

The serger also came with an instructional DVD, extra needles, and the standard stuff like tweezers and a screwdriver.

So while this machine was less expensive than any of my other new equipment, I'm hoping the quality will still be good. I haven't messed with it yet, but I got free classes with it, so I can go and learn all the different stitches and what they can do from someone who has used it. I'm sure I will mess with it plenty before then though. Now to magic up some space to put it.

Are all Men Pedophiles Poster petition

So, if you are a lolita, chances are you have seen a petition circulating around about a poster being used for a documentary about pedophilia and the assumptions made about it( you have probably seen it 100 times like I have). I am tired of it, especially because people aren't even bothering to look at the statement issued by the movie "There is a lot of conversy surrounding the film posters. The documentary does not offend Lolita. Wild assumptions about what pedophilia is or isn’t is why the documentary was made in the first place." Personally, I think the only person who has something to say is the model in the photo- and if they used her image without permission. Otherwise- this is no more detrimental to lolita than 4chan or Get Off EGL or Lolita Secrets. For one, the girl looks amazing, and not provocative at all (despite what the petitions say) and secondly, there have always been perverts associated with lolita. We all know this- it is a fetish with some people- as much as we don't mean it to be. There will always be men who find it attractive or think it's perverted or whatever for whatever reasons outside of our own understanding of the fashion. Lolita can look like you are purposefully dressing like a little girl- this movie is about the stereotypes and assumptions of pedophilia- seems like a good image representation to me. This movie doesn't seem to be about lolita or really mention it all- and it looks like a very well done and informative movie that I would actually want to see.
Is lolita supposed to be sexy- no. Do some people see it as sexy?- yes. No matter how much we rant about the fashion being modest and covered up, some people will still see it as sexy. I don't think that seeing the picture will make people think that lolitas are all about attracting pedophiles because WHO THE HELL WOULD WANT THAT? I think we should have asked to post an informative link to what lolita is instead of getting all angry and in their faces. We could have had a chance to share what lolita is with a whole bunch of people. Anyway- the whole thing makes me irritated and annoyed- and I feel like the info on the petition post is over dramatic.

And frankly, anyone who looks at lolita and says "OMG those girls are all about attracting pedophiles and are perverts and whores" is a complete and utter fucking moron and I don't want them anywhere near me in the lolita community. They can stay blissful in their giant bubble of ignorance and stay the hell away from me.

Plaid

So lately I've been a little obsessed with plaids. I've been wanting to make some cute stuff with plaids for a while- but you have to treat them nicely when making a garment with them. If you want to sew plaids- this is a good reference.
There are a lot of important details with lining up plaids that help make the finished garment look that much more professional. Another great PDF reference file about plaids and how to use them is here.
So if you not sewing and you just like the look of plaid, I have a little something for you too, here are some pictures of plaid and lolita. A wonderful combination if I do say so myself.

Now, you might be wondering- aren't some of these tartans or gingham or something? And what is the difference between plaid and tartan and gingham anyway? Well, click on over here and you can read all about the difference between tartans and plaids- because there is a very important one- especially to the Scottish. As of gingham...

Gingham is a checkered pattern but it is actually woven into the cloth with different colored warn, it often has a texture that gives it away. It's medium weight. It usually looks like this...

So, now that you have learned a little bit about plaids you can impress your friends or make a kilt or something. Hopefully some of this was useful, or at least fun to look at :)

Holiday

So I have been thinking a lot and have made a decision. After I finish the commissions for this month I am not doing anymore until at least March. I have less and less time to work and I am devoting more and more of it to commissions and not to my own ideas. At this rate I won't be able to have half of what I want to do for ConNichiwa. So, I'm taking a holiday. This doesn't mean that I'm not going to be making things for sale- I still will. I just won't be doing special commissions (Namie is the only one exempt from this due to previous arrangements). My creativity is dying to come out, and it's killing me to keep putting it aside to work on something else. I need to let it come out and play for awhile. I hope you all understand.

Etsy Shopping Guide

I love Etsy, you love Etsy- we all love it. But you can definitely get stuck with a purchase that you didn't know was horrible until you get it. This could mean quality, size, shape, color. So I thought I would help everyone with lolita shopping (and general shopping) on Etsy. You can find some great stuff on the site, and some real fail. So here are my top 5 tips to help you navigate Etsy with confidence.

Lets talk about photos...
#1. When you find a seller and they have bad or blurry pictures, stay away from them. If the seller can't even find a camera to take in focus pictures of their wares, why are they trying to sell them in the first place? It seems shady, like the person is trying to hide the quality of their stuff behind bad focus. If you really want to find out more about what they are selling, send them a convo (conversation or basically message) and ask them to send you better pictures so you can get a better idea of quality.

#2. Beware of awesome pictures. I know, I just said stay away from bad pictures, but hear me out. Sometimes, bad quality can also be hidden behind awesome model pictures. I personally hate it when there are these amazing photo shopped pictures of someone wearing something, and I can't really even see how the quality is. Sure, the picture is cool, but what about the close up of the item in natural light. Just be aware that amazing pictures that look like they should be in a magazine (and no other pictures) could also be hiding something. I like when sellers have a combo of worn pictures and close up pictures of the item.

Let's talk about policies...

#3. Check the seller's info page and their policy page. You want to know about who you are buying from and where they are, how they ship, how they handle returns etc. If this page is blank, I wouldn't buy from them because they must not have any idea what their policies are if something were to happen to your purchase, and that is not cool. They may also require you to pay within a certain amount of time or they will re-list your item. You can also convo someone and ask them about a policy or for clarification, but if they hold themselves professionally, they should have a policy page all set up.

Let's talk about custom orders...

#4. So say you want a custom lolita dress (not a simple skirt) and when you order it you tell the seamstress that you are a size 12 or you wear a 32c bra and size 5 pants, and the seamstress is fine with that info, you may want to reconsider your order. This is why, making a custom garment requires a ton of measurements in order for it to fit you well and not bulge, bag, or gap on you. If a seamstress doesn't send you a measurement sheet to fill out, chances are she/he is not a very good one and is going to guess at your size. This is VERY important if you are really tall, short, busty, big bottomed, broad shouldered etc. Stretch fabrics are also measured differently than non-stretch (learned this the hard way). It's a sad feeling when you get something and it doesn't fit when you've been waiting weeks for it. That being said, if this happens you should be able to contact the person and get either a refund (send the item back) or send it back to them for repairs (usually with no extra charge since it was their mistake).

Let's talk about being courteous...

#5. Lastly as a shopper, you should be courteous. If you inquire about something and then change your mind, don't leave that person hanging, tell them. Don't buy stuff then not pay for it- that's just mean. Be polite when asking questions and keep in mind you could be creating a great relationship with someone that will DISCOUNT stuff for you in the future. I have built great relationships over Etsy with people I've never met but consider friends. If you don't plan on buying something right away but are curious, then say so. Don't make it sound as though you want to buy something when you don't. Sellers get their hopes up too, so play nice.

So I think that covers the basics of shopping on Etsy.com and will help you feel a little more confident when making purchases there. Good luck and happy shopping!
And I know my pictures have nothing to do with Etsy, but they are pretty.

Here is a short list of my fav Etsy stores-

CuteCandyClouds cute bear hats
CatNapCaps Fairy kei/sweet accessories
KittywoodDesigns sweet accessories
MissSapporo craft items
PrincessPearl clothing
Blashphemina more couture clothing
ElegyClothing clothing/blouses
TheQuaintrella Mori girl type stuff
TwoBackFlats Mini hats of good quality
Silversark clothing
AliceDoll brooches and collars

Now go forth and find your own favorites!

and of course...mine PoisonSugar

Getting Serious

So I feel as though Poison Sugar is starting to expand, I'm getting interview requests and I'm finally finalizing the details to go to New York in September. So, while I'm happy that things are going well I am also frightened to let them get away from me. I like how small my business is, and would maybe only want an assistant to help out in the long run. I like being able to talk to my clients personally and get to know them. I really wish more people sewed like they used too, sewing used to be a part of most women's lives. But now you can barely find someone who knows how to actually draft a pattern on their own. While I don't mind experimenting, I'd like to find some experts to really learn from, and I don't think going to an expensive school is really the answer. I don't want to move to New York and work a job ironing for 5 years to get a chance at maybe apprenticing someone. But that doesn't mean I wouldn't like a little help and tutoring every now and then. I feel I'm at a strange stage with this hobby, where if I cross the line it can become far more than a hobby. The question is, do I want that or not?