No more gets or outfit posts for a while.

It's been a while again since I last blogged and for good reason, not only has my life been a bit of a rollercoaster ride including visits to the hospital and other drama and so I'm sure you can understand the absence but I've also completely lost all ability to take photos, which sucks. My phone camera died when me and my boyfriend moved house and then my boyfriend took our camera to a festival and lost it in a drunken stupor! Talk about annoying. So basically until I get that sorted my pictures of me will be few and far between but I would like to blog some outfit favourites from magazines and such.

I've also purchased a 6-month subscription to Egg and I'm waiting for both August and September issues to be delivered (probably about a week) so I'm thinking about maybe providing scans of those or at least picks from them. Hopefully this camera situation will be sorted out soon.

We got a cat! Well, I got a cat anyway haha. While my boyfriend was in Portugal at a festival I decided to rehome a 9-month old, very fluffy, very gorgeous, very ginger kitty. I wanted to name him Simba but my boyfriend was having none of it. So after much deliberation we decided to call him Kingston. Meep. It's so nice having a pet again. I can't wait to be able to share pictures. Hopefully it won't be too long before I get a camera.

And now to end with a bit of Kuronba/Ora Ora Galspiration so it's not just WALL OF TEXT.

Gyaru, discrimination and you?

Hi guys and gals, I've been a little absent I know. I have just been in a complete whirlwind of bills, housemoves and other shit that comes with being a fully fledged and independent adult. However I wanted to come back with something that actually provokes thought and insight rather than just some gets, you know what I mean? So here we go.

I live in a sleepy town nestled somewhere in the fields of Suffolk, England. Generally it's a nice, quiet and peaceful place with the odd small gang of kids who get slightly too big for their boots however I've found that these places gain slightly more attraction to discrimination than anywhere else I've lived in my life.

In the town I live in there are very few people of other races or ethnicities, everyone seems to be from Suffolk or the surrounding counties; in fact I often get laughed at for being Northern and having the corresponding accent so, as you can imagine, walking down the street dressed in Gyaru attire often attracts the wrong sort of attention.

You know what I find I get called the most when I'm walking down the street in my full Gyaru garb or in fact even for pictures on Facebook? Slut. Slut, Slut, Slut, Slut, Slut. It's a ridiculous word and a ridiculous term for someone who is merely wearing a short skirt or a revealing top. I hate the word as it is, I am completely against slut shamming, if a woman wants to sleep with as many men as she wants let her go ahead and do it as long as she practices safe sex of course (spreading disease and creating life with several random men is a completely different ball-game) but the fact that I get called a slut merely for the way I am dressed is absurd, especially considering I am in a very serious relationship, I have never cheated and will never cheat on my boyfriend and we live together and are planning a life together. I am to no extents or purposes a slut, if you must use that word at all. The mind boggles.

Obviously there are always people who come up to me and are completely amazed by what I'm wearing and how my hair is. I do get compliments, people will ask me how I've done my hair or about my false eyelashes (All my friends come to me before they go out to get me to do their lashes for them) and I've even had to add a girl to Facebook in order to help her order from DreamV as she was certain she was going to have my coat! These are the people who make it worth putting up with the comments from people in the street who are too close minded and ignorant to just accept those around them for who they are instead of trying to believe everyone should conform to one type of ideal. I've always been the type of person to believe in a live and let live way of thinking.

So, do you find you get these sorts of comments too? How does it effect you and your style? Do you find yourself dressing down in order to prevent these types of comments or do you hold your head up high and dress as you chose? How do you put up with these comments?

I have to say, I missed the community while I've been gone ^_^.

My Gyaru Inspirations.

Well guys and gals, I wanted to write a little something about my Gyaru inspirations; I'm talking about the "famous" gals, rather then my inspirations within the "western community". This is going to be quite a long post anyway so bare with me.

These are in no particular order by the way.

Sakurina.

I just love this girl. I love reading her blog and how nice and genuine she seems on there. She's beautiful both inside and out and I think that makes her a great role model. As for her style? I love how it's "alternative" but still gyaru. I like the fact she can wear her trademark rokku style but still then wear the more girly and femine styles and look gorgeous still. I know I'm not the only one who adores her anyway.

Izumi Mana.

I know there's some debate about AV Gals but I love them. I don't see anything wrong with porn and even though most people believe that some-how it's degrading to women, I think it empowers them, shows how desirable they are. But this isn't a porn debate, it's about inspirations and here's why Izumi Mana is an inspiration to me: I think she's cute, her make up is the style I love, her tan is perfect and I think she has a banging body. Out of every "thinspo" picture I've ever seen Izumi Mana tops it. Unf. Haha.

Cocona/Serina.

Again, this girl has had mixed reviews from the community but I love her. I love her bold make-up and her gorgeous tan. I think she's so incredibly sexy and, well... just watch one of her videos and you'll understand. As far as her style? I like the fact she can be casual but still pull of looking Gyaru. I think she's got a bit of the old style that I love the most.

Yuri - D.I.A. Staff.

So I don't know anything about this girl personally other then I always see her on Tumblr, her codenote is a gold-mine of inspiration and she works at D.I.A. Her outfits always look flawless, everything she wears is a total want for me. Her tan is gorgeous, her hair is my "dream" colour, and length for that matter and her nails are ah-may-zing. She's my favourite inspiration I think as her style is exactly what I'd love to achieve. Maybe one day?

Himena Osaki.

She's not Ora Ora but she's flawless and you can't deny it. I love her Hime/Agejo mix and she has always been a massive inspiration to me. She makes me want to go all Hime whenever I see her. Her style is gorgeous and her hair always looks beautiful and her make-up is a huge source of inspiration to me; I usually try and imitate her make-up style most days.

Yumachi.

I would include Aina in this list as she used to be a huge inspiration to me but her style has changed recently and no longer wears anything that really inspires me, however Yumachi just seems to be getting better and better. Her eye make up is more toned-down then I usually like but she still looks gorgeous. In fact Yumachi was my first inspiration when I started getting into the style and she still continues to inspire me today.

Mipochi.

She's just perfect ok? A perfect example of Ora Ora style and the fact she's in both Egg and Soul Sister (my two favourite magazines) proves that. I love the fact that she has a piercing as well because far too many gals in the community say it's no place for piercings... those people should really read through Soul Sister haha.

Risa.

Last gal I'm going to talk about is Risa. I love her because her outfits are simple but still look gyaru. I think she is a great inspiration for Western gals who don't really want to import everything they wear because the items in her co-ordinates are the types of things you could easily find on the highstreet over here, proving you don't have to wear Japanese Gyaru brands to pull off the look. Her tan is gorgeous too; I think it helps makes her entire look.

So that's my main Gyaru inspirations. What do you think? Hopefully this post will go to inspire some of you like it inspires me.

Boyfriend's gifts!

I know I said I'd post my clothes haul today but my camera on my phone is epically bad and all the photos I took look like poo. Once I go to my boyfriend's to see him I can use a decent camera to show you the things I've got. 

But do not fear, I still have things to show you! My boyfriend surprised me with some gifts. Isn't he lovely? Well they were just a couple of little things but meep, I love it when he surprises me like that!

Hello Kitty Charm Bracelet and matching necklace! Aren't they cute? Anyone who knows me knows how much I love Hello Kitty and I think these things are just adorable. Now they can go with my Hello Kitty Lens case, my Hello Kitty Purse, my... I think I've gone Hello Kitty Mental, don't you?

I also have me wearing my new Diamond Lashes!

HERPY DERPY. Sorry for the bad upload, photobucket is having a fail at me and blogger is really awful at compressing files. Wearing my wig, I'm never really sure if it suits me.

Lastly I leave you with...

VELCRO HEAD! Because it's full of Velcro-y goodness.

Sorry for the short entry, feeling a little bit stressed and put-out today and therefore I have no inspiration for anything constructive or useful. I'm thinking about doing a little review on the Diamond Lash eyelashes (the upper ones) when I can utilize a decent camera. Would any of you be interested in that?

Shoppingholics haul!

Omg YAY my stuff from Shoppingholics (as well as loads of other stuff but that would make an epically big post so I'll talk about them tomorrow)! Finally I have diamond lash eyelashes of my own.

These are the eyelashes I bought.

1. Diamond Lash Series 2 No.3 Angel Lash Upper Eyelashes. They are so long and gorgeous. I can't wait to try them out.

2. Diamond Lash Series 1 No.4 Lovely Eye Lower Eyelashes. This style I've seen so much in magazines, especially in Egg.

3. Spring Heart No.12 Dynamite Volume Eyelashes. These look so volumous and glam. I have seen these kinds of eyelashes a lot in Ageha.

I really loved the packaging for the Spring Heart eyelashes. Isn't it cute?

I also got this little thingymajig to put in your hair for volume. It will help give my hair a bit of a break from teasing!

I was also given free gifts!

1. These are little velcro things to keep your hair out of your face. Very handy indeed.

2. These are cucumber eye masks. I can't wait to use these. I always have a problem with dark circles!

3. A face mask. I can't read the instructions or anything but I like the packaging.

4. These are little tools to help apply your false lashes. You put the lashes on the curved article at the bottom and then use the big blue thing as clippy tweezer whatsits to pick it up and then apply it to you eye! I'll let you know how easy it is to use!

Here's a better view of the velcro whatsits that hold your hair back.

Isn't the package just adorable?!

Lastly, I was given a thank you card along with my order but the name was wrong! The order was mine but they had the wrong name in the card haha. Oh well, it was nice to get a thank you anyways.

I really like Shoppingholics. They have a good selection and great personal service, good shipping times and rates and generally I would recommend them to anyone looking to buy Japanese Eyelashes or Circle lenses. Definitely worth a look.

I also have news! My boyfriend and I went to the estate agents yesterday afternoon to hand in our paperwork for the flat and now, on the website the flat is listed as "references pending"! I'm sure our references should go through ok, we've not given any misinformation or anything of the sort so fingers crossed we should be in within the next couple of weeks. I'd be so gutted if not! Meep! I can't wait.

Tomorrow I'm going to update with my clothes gets and hopefully I'll get my Cocona-style makeup tutorial up.

Also, I now have a Poupee girl account. Please add me if you have one too!

Happie Nuts November 2011 Outfit Picks and My idols/Heroes.

All I seem to be posting recently is outfit Picks! I guess at least now, except for Ranzuki, all the Gal magazines I read have been done for November haha.

I used to dislike magazines like Happie Nuts and Jelly when I first started getting into Gyaru. I was a strictly Agejo follower when I first started and I thought that Happie Nuts and Jelly were a bit too tame but more and more I'm loving the outfits that appear in them and this month's Happie Nuts is no exception.

Again I'm seeing another one of those jumpers with the "From the Sky brings Happiness" slogans on it. I need one, can anyone tell me what brand it is? 

Now, I wanted to post about my idols. Not my fashion inspiration but the people who inspire my life and the way I live. I've narrowed it down to my top 3, the 3 people who's lives and words have made me think about my own life and the way I live it. These are in no specific order.

Dolly Parton.

I'm not a fan of country music but Dolly Parton is one of the most amazing women to have ever lived. Her attitudes towards things are fantastic. She lived a typical Rags-to-riches story going from a "dirt poor" family to being one of the most recognised and richest women in the world.

"There was a woman in our hometown, and everybody said she was trash, you know, the town tramp. But I thought she was beautiful 'cause she had this yellow hair, and she had bright red lipstick, and she wore makeup and tight clothes and bright colours and red finger nails and high-heeled shoes. And I thought 'Thats how I want to look!' I thought she was beautiful..."

Coco Chanel

This woman is the biggest inspiration in terms of where I want to go with my career. Her life is a fascinating story. When she was 12 her mother died from Tuberculosis and her father had already left the family and so she was thrown into an orphanage. She started to sing in bars but when her singing career failed to take off she worked in a tailor shop where she became a mistress to a very rich man and was a "kept woman". Eventually she worked to become a licensed Modiste. She opened her own boutique and well, the rest is history.

“I don't understand how a woman can leave the house without fixing herself up a little - if only out of politeness. And then, you never know, maybe that's the day she has a date with destiny. And it's best to be as pretty as possible for destiny.” 

Rina Sakurai.

I don't know much about her past so I can't give you a story for her but I'm sure you all know her as well as I do. I used to love her as a model but what really changed my view on her and catapulted her into "idol" status for me was reading a translation of her blog post from just before her 27th birthday posted here on the Fuck Yeah Sakurina tumblr. Reading that blog entry just described everything I feel, down to the fact she says she wears such heavy eye-makeup to hide her insecurities; I've done that since I knew what make-up was. To know such a flawlessly beautiful woman has normal insecurities just like the rest of us and has overcome them to be a famous model, actress and even singer in her own right inspires me.

"It’s difficult and I was giving up, but you only have one life, if I’m going to live for however many years I should do what I want at the time or I’ll miss out.

I hear that you shouldn’t use the phrase “Someone like me…” anyway.

In the past I hated my face so much that I broke a mirror twice.

How come that girl’s eyes are so big but mine are like this?

How come that girl’s eyelashes are so long but mine are…

How come that girl’s nose is tall but mine is…

How come that girl’s teeth are so nice but mine are…

How come that girl…I hated everything about myself, I got angry, I cried, every day I was irritated.

Right now the reason why my makeup is dark is to deceive everything."

I'd like to ask you all what your idols are, if you have any? I wonder how many of you have the same idols as me or how different our inspirations are.

Shopping Mall Japan Review.

I got another order from Shopping Mall Japan through and I thought I'd write a more detailed review about their services this time, so here goes. I hope some of you find this useful.

Everything arrived in a box, well padded by a ton of Japanese newspapers. I really appreciate how padded-out the packages are to ensure that no, or as little as possible, damage is caused to the items inside.

The items themselves are always packaged in little bags with the auction number and such on a lable on the outside. The items are usually folded pretty well too.

The items were both undamaged and I was really pleased with the way they packaged and sent their items.

I personally use SMJ as you can put down a deposit through paypal and you can bid up to 5x that ammount on as many items as you like. You also dont have to pay the invoices for 2 weeks after you recieve them which is both a blessing and a curse for me!

Their fees are pretty good too but they charge different rates depending on which auction site your using or if you're placing a shop order. If you want to know their fees information just go to their website: http://shoppingmalljapan.com/generalfees.html

They only allow EMS shipping which is at normal rates. As far as I know they dont send items standard post. They usually ship pretty soon after you place your shipping request I've had no complaints with their dispatch times so far.

They support Yahoo Japan auctions, Amazon Japan, Rakuten auctions etc but do not support Mbok so you will have to use another shopping service for that.

Lastly their Customer Service is fantastic. Everytime I've had a query with them they have replied within 24 hours and are always friendly and polite.

Overall I really have nothing bad to say about this shopping service other then the fact they do not support Mbok. I'm hoping this will change soon but otherwise, if you're looking for a great service for Yahoo Japan and Rakuten I really recommend!

http://shoppingmalljapan.com