I started my 4th term of college yesterday. >.> I'm kind of excited, yet I'm not. I only took pictures of the books I'm excited to read and study from. xD;
Yesterday was ok, so far I really like my professors. After my classes were done my friend Evelin kidnapped me and went to go eat at Smokey Bones. Then after that we went to go pick up our other friend Belle and went from there to Millienum Mall.
We went through all the stores, and we spent a lot of time at the Sanrio store there ... I ended up buying a Kuromi small notebook, a Little Twin Stars charm and mechanical pencil.
And ... that's all that happened.
This is how I looked yesterday:
What's your favorite academic subject? I don't really have a favorite, but I guess I'm starting to like humanities now.
Hi hi! I'm going to now write about each of the items that I had bought off of taobao. I'll begin by presenting each item and then talking about what I liked and what I probably disliked (if there is a dislike). After I finish writing about a specific item I'll leave an overall rating of it and them move on to the next item.
Before I start, here's a small key to follow under each item:
(Stock Photo here)
Brand | Item link | Price + Shipping* = Total Cost.
*Shipping is paid for the item being shipped from the taobao store to the shopping service's warehouse.
I'm going to write out the price in it's original Chinese currency (Yuan Renminbi). Next to the chinese price of the item I'll put next to it in paranthesis the approximate price in US dollars. I'll be using an online currency converter to show the approximate price.
1) & 2) Two pairs of Replica Tea Party Shoes. An*tai*na (Nana Lolita) | Item Link here. | ¥168.00x2($24.71) + ¥18.00($2.65)= ¥354.00 ($52.01)
What I really like about these is the fact that there's bigger sizes for those of us who do not have the smallest feet. They have European sizes all the way up to 41 (10 1/2 - 11 in the US).
If you're a girl who wears a 8 or 9 and can't really fit in those AP tea party shoes, then these replica's are the next best thing. I'm a size 7 1/2 in shoes so a size 38 was my best bet.
Once I put this shoes on, it was an instant fit. They fit perfectly on my feet. A nice snug fit is what they feel like on my feet, I was really happy for that.
I don't know much that I can talk about when it comes to the material, I know that I can guarantee that these shoes will be needing A LOT extra care. Not even, these shoes seem like they're going to wear & tear quick.
Just by slipping my foot into this right shoe at about 3 times, and already the right edge of it is getting a bit messed up. I was trying to adjust the top buckle-thing so that it would fit my ankle better. I got a bit frustrated when I noticed what was happening. I can't slip my foot in a rush now without worrying that I might mess up my tea parties that way. :\ You get what you paid for. ♪
Other then being aware about the fate of these shoes, I really love them and I am extremely happy because I finally get to own some tea party shoes.
I give these a rating of: 4/5
3) Strawberry Jam Cutsew, in pink. Infanta | Item Link |¥138.00($20.30) + ¥12.00($1.77)= ¥150.00($22.07)
I've always loved Infanta, and once I saw this cutsew through Qutieland I felt extremely eager to get it. There were two things I wanted the most. Tea party shoes and this cutsew. The model in the stock photo contributed more to my love for this, and so I ended up getting it as I was thinking about what to buy on taobao.
I LOVE IT. So so so much ... it's well made, and it feels comfy to wear. The only weird thing was this bow that came with it ...
This bow is meant to be placed on this shirt, yet it doesn't go well with it. Atleast to me it doesn't. xD;
I give this item a: 5/5
4) White ruffled skirt. HMHM | Item Link | ¥145.00($21.33) + ¥15.00($2.21) = ¥160.00($23.53)
I was browsing for a plain-ish type of skirt so that I can have a coordinate to wear with my new cutsew. I found this one, and I loved the stock photos of it that I chose to buy it. This was the item that delayed my whole order by 2 or 3 weeks.
When I opened up the plastic bag for this skirt, the first thing I noticed were a few tiny black streaks around the waist part of the skirt. They're not really a big deal since they're really faint to see, but if you look really closely you can see them. As I kept examining the skirt I noticed that I was seeing some yellow some where in the skirt ... I was in front of the window so I brought up the skirt more towards the light to see what that yellow was. Once some light went through the skirt I was able to see a yellow-ish undertone from it.
I'm not sure what to really say about this. I looked under the skirt to see some type of fabric sewed within it. I don't know much about the different types of fabric so I can't really criticize this all that well. D: Does anyone know what kind of material causes this to happen?
I'm not too crazy about the yellow-ish undertone, but ... after putting on the skirt with a petticoat, everything ended up looking really nice.
I give this skirt a ... 4.5/5. (Just because I don't know what's causing that yellow undertone. -__- )
5) Strawberry Socks (Most likely a replica) Secret Shop | Item Link | ¥18.00($2.65) + ¥10.00($1.47) = ¥28.00($4.19)
Nothing much to say about these. I pretty much love them! :'3 I love the trail of strawberries going down the side all the way down to the toes area. It really shows through well, especially when you're wearing semi open shoes.
I give these socks a 5/5.
The total amount I spent for all these items (shipping not included) was around ... ¥692.00 ($103.80)
Wow. Compared to brand, this is really cheap. After realizing how much I actually spent I'm pretty happy and even grateful that taobao exists. If not, I probably would have to save months for a pair of tea parties. I do love brand, but I also love offbrand a lot.
What was the least amount you've ever paid for a lolita item?
Whether you made it or bought it, did you feel excited because the cost of it was so cheap?
Before I start posting up pictures, I want to mention the giveaway that Miss Melody has recently posted up.
(click the image and it'll direct you to her giveaway)
The only two mandatory requirements is to follow her blog publicly via Google Connect, and to comment on the giveaway post with some information she's asking for. Check it out! ^.^~
Alrighty everyone, yesterday I went to Walt Disney World in Orlando (actually it's in a city called Lake Buena Vista, but hey you know a lot of advertisement like to say it's in Orlando. xD)
Disney is an hour away from where I live, not too bad unless you work there. I've been to disney dozen of times. To be honest I'm not really tired of the place, I actually really love it. :D <33
As a group (there was the 7 of us, 3 boys and 4 girls), we only went to 3 out of the 4 parks in Disney. We went to Animal Kingdom, MGM Studios, and we finished it off at Magic Kingdom (No one wanted to go to Ecopt lol). I didn't take a lot of pictures like how I wanted to because my group was very anxious and only focused on going on as much rides as possible. They all wanted to go on roller coasters, which I love. <33 We only went on two rides at animal kingdom, two rides at MGM, and most of all the rides at Magic Kingdom.
Here are some pictures of when we had spent a short amount of time at Animal Kingdom. (They're not that great. T_T I was taking pictures as we walked. lol)
Melanie got caught in this picture. She's wearing Nachi's Minnie ears. :'3
From left to right: Melanie, Liz, Nachi, and me.
We're entering the Asia section of Animal Kingdom. Everyone wanted to go ride Mount Everest.
There were some monkeys swinging around on this! :DD <333
The Mount Everest roller coaster. :3
While waiting in line for the ride (which took like 15 minutes) I saw this statue and managed to take a picture of it. There's more stuff in line as we enter the building, but I got distracted by my group as were talking about what ride to go on next.
and ... that's all for animal Kingdom. D: We only went on two rides, Dinosaur and Mount Everest, there are more rides but everyone only wanted to go on their favorites.
I'll post about the other two parks in separate entries that way I don't end up bombarding this post. lol I'm still going to post my review up on the taobao items tomorrow. ^^ Thanks everyone for looking!
Hi everyone! My package with taobao stuff came in the mail today and I was completely ecstatic once I saw the package at first sight. I'm going to be making two reviews. (bare with me. D': )
This post will be about the shopping service I used called, Taobao Spree and another post will be about the individual items from the different taobao shops I had ordered from.
Now to begin! (Click Image to see website.)
Why did you choose Taobao Spree? I first chose this shopping service because of some reviews I saw off of egl. At the time I was checking out reviews for different taobao shopping services since I really wanted to own a pair of some tea party shoes. I found that Taobao Spree had the most positive reviews compared to the other services. It also had no negative reviews, none. So from there I went with this shopping service.
On July 22nd I had paid for my order. I had ordered two pairs of tea party shoes, a skirt, a cutsew, and a pair of socks. All items came from 4 different taobao shops, and all items arrived quick to the service's place except for the skirt. The skirt took weeks for it to be then shipped out (I'm assuming the shop makes their items on demand. The skirt was from the taobao shop called HMHM). The items were all shipped out together on August 22nd I believe ... (the 22nd seems to be the lucky number!)
Then all the items arrived today, August 25th.
Communication: 5/5
Communicating with them was excellent. I communicated mostly with a woman named Doris, and she helped me a lot with my questions and kept me updated as I kept bugging her about my order. They respond to emails really quickly, like within the same day you sent it or the next day. The entire order, and anything related with it is done through only emails. English is not their native language, so the writing may seem incoherent as they talk with you, but it doesn't mean they don't understand. They understood really well what I wanted. Their writing may not be professional, but their service is. I really enjoyed the communication with them. Doris is such a sweetheart.
Shipping: 4/5 The shipping was really good. I paid $48 for shipping ... almost $50 but it was a good price compared to how much other services would of charged me for. (To be honest shipping shouldn't be this much, but believe it or not the other taobao services have way more for shipping. Especially since it was two shoe boxes, and other stuff. Dx ) The items took 4 days to get to my house and I couldn't be happier with that. Though, the box came in a bit beat up. xD;
The paper came shoved in like that, which I don't mind
I'll be making the post about the individual item reviews another day. :'3 Thanks to everyone for looking and commenting on the other posts. I need to look at all your recent posts, been really distracted today. @_@ Hope this review somewhat helps. xD
I was staring at hkittygirl's post about her cellphone charm exchange and I ended up feeling really excited. (I feel stalker-ish. D: ) Her collection was really nice, and it reminded me of how I wanted so many charms a couple of years back. (like 3 or 4 years)
From seeing her post I felt like posting about my really small collection of charms. I do want more (maybe) but before I get more I also want to buy a decoden case for my DS. (or you know ... make one on my own. >.>;)
My pink Polaroid i733 with 3 charms on it. I need to transfer these to my new camera. :c
Some extra charms that I got through those toy machines you randomly see at stores. You just can't resist trying to find change for a dollar with these things. :'3 I've got some toys from these machines too.
This poor Sakura plush is all dirty. That was my fear when it came to buying her. After she got dirty I took her off and was suppose to wash her but I kept forgetting. xD;
Some extra charms.
This use to be a charm, but I had to be dumb and accidently rip off the charm hook-thing right off this. I use it as a small ornament now, but yeah. I can always fix it up though, I have no memory of where I left the hook-thing for this. lol
That's all I have for now. I think I stopped buying years ago because these things gave me some unnecessary anger. The paints chip off, they get dirty. It's suppose to happen, but I just get so bothered whenever I see one of my Korilakkuma charms with an almost vanishing nose. ^^;
Don't you just hate it when cute things you buy somehow get ruined? Like charms or a plush doll. Like dust all over your plush dolls after you dusted your shelves almost every two days. -_-
Well let's see ... I started on my driving classes on Friday (the 13th :D ) and had 2 hours of it. Then I had another 2 hours of it on Saturday morning. All I can say based off how I drive that I need a lot of practice out on the road. A lot of practice on my own. I'm indeed extremely scared of driving, I live an area where accidents are very frequent. A lot of bad drivers out here, I don't want to be a part of that. I'm pretty late I guess when it comes to learning, but oh well. As long as I learn successfully then that's all that matters.
Continuing on, next week I'll be going to Disney World (In Orlando) with a few of my friends. Two of the few work at Disney and they both have the ability to let in 3 people into any of the 4 parks for free. We'll be park hopping, I can't wait! This is going to be on Thursday. Also, my two best friends Evelin and Nachi had planned among themselves to go to the Disney On Ice show that will be held in Tampa. After they had officially planned it they let me and a few others know if we wanted to go with them, and I said yes. :D The show is on September 9th, and the show's specific name is called: Mickey and Minnie's Magical Journey.
The tickets were just bought yesterday, so we're set!
Other than whatever was stated above, all I've been doing is ... basically internet browsing like a mad woman. I've also been really eager about my taobao order I had made on July 22nd. I paid for the EMS 4 days ago after the last item out of the bunch I had ordered arrived at my shopping service's place (once the items come in I'll explain better what had happened). It took 4 weeks for this order to be done all because of one item. I didn't mind it, but now ... I'm just feeling just a tad bit impatient. xD; Have any of you have had the patience to wait a month for some thing(s) you've ordered? If it's something small, like charms or something that was really cheap I normally don't mind. If I had paid a lot for an item I start to get really anxious and worried.~
I spent the day today messing around with tumblr and looking up Japanese webpage material.
Due to a website I found with very pretty webpage material I felt inspired to tweak my layout on here a bit.
and so viola!~
A banner, with old cut out's of me from a few months back, and an extremely cute background from this website. Oh ho! See my skills?
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Aside from the layout, my mom was watching the news an hour ago and it was just said that by August 31st all Combat Operations will be done in Iraq and Afghanistan and that after August is all of the military troops (except for 50,000) will be pulled out early before their suppose time that they were going to be done. At first once I heard the news I was so excited! I messaged my boyfriend who's stationed in Kuawait/Iraq and asked him if it was true.
He told me it was true, but that it's not going to be a quick process and that unfortunately he has to stay at his base until his time to leave (Which is around in December).
There is a chance though they he might leave earlier than December. Around November-ish, maybe. No one's too sure of anything over there according to Tommy.
I'm just really glad that combat operations will be done and that majority of the troops are going to come home early.
I can only say that this is my first time. Before Tommy left in January we had already hit our 2 year mark together. We got together at around June of 2008, and June already passed so that means we're hitting our 3 year mark. The military was all so new to me, and still new me. I never understood what it really was until the day Tommy told me that he was about to be deployed to Kuwait/Iraq. I always hope that he's safe, I always keep in contact with him and I do pray because I'm a firm believer. I may not know all the technical stuff about the military, but I do now know how it feels like to be really grateful of them. It's interesting how we're placed in certain situations and events that end up teaching us something.
Ever since Sunday night up until today I've been watching a lot of bubz's videos. They just seem so interesting to me. Probably because of her cute accent. o///o She has this youtube channel and a comedy channel.
I've been feeling really inspired by her. Anyone ever been inspired or took a great liking to a famous youtuber?
Silly question ain't it? xD; At first I was really inspired by Shane Dawson and kept watching all of his videos because they were so hilarious. I act really goofy around my friends, so the stuff he came up with inspired me to act sillier.
My body is aching like crazy. It started around last night went I got off my net book to go lay down on my bed. It feels as if some people were attempting to pull away all my limbs from my body. It'll go away, but it is a huge reminder that I need to work out more.
Yesterday me and my family (parents, brothers, aunt, and cousins) went to a place called Kelly Park/Rock Springs which is located at Apopka, Florida. The place is basically a park with grills everywhere, a playground, a volley ball court and huge river that extends out to at least a mile from this huge lake. (Since I didn't bring a camera, I looked up some pretty images of the place to show you all. Credit goes to whoever took these.) This is where the river technically starts. If you're on an inflatable raft or inflatable doughnut thing (ugh. D: ) while at this area the current will slowly take you away towards and through a passage that will lead you to the lake. It takes about 10 minutes for the currents to take you.
This image shows the beginning of the passage, but there's more to it.
And the image above is the lake, even though it's not a really good picture but I was trying to find a good one.
As a family we all went into the river and I was extremely hesitant about getting in because the water was really, really cold! I got in just so I can hop on our inflatable pool bed we brought. River currents took me away and I laid there feeling pretty comfortable for atleast a minute before I lost control of my raft and it led me right into all the bushes and nasty algae.
Right after our 'river fun', we left and at went to go eat all the food that we had brought to grill up. Then after relaxing for a bit we played an intense game of baseball which I'm assuming is what really messed me up. xD;
After the game everyone else went back into the river, and I just stayed back at our spot relaxing while laying down on a blanket we had set down on the ground. I took a nap for about 30 minutes and then after everyone was done, we cleaned up and drove back home.
Has anyone ever been to a River? This is the second river I've been to, I think? The first one I can really remember was the river near my aunt's house in Dominican Republic when we went to go visit the family for the summer. I remember it being extremely cold. -__-
Hehe.~ These charms arrived in yesterday when I got home from the mall. I got 5 charms for the price of $5 off of ebay and that includes shipping. ( $1 a charm? D: ) The set came with 3 Korilakkuma heads (the beige bear) and two Rilakkuma heads (the brown bear).
I really wanted these! I've been in the san-x/sanrio mood recently as I've been browsing ebay and other places for 'kawaii toys'. I even came across a website that sells miniature toys of san-x/sanrio characters.
Kawaii Shop Japan They even have some vintage Japanese toys. I got so excited when I saw some Licca dolls on there. I've been keeping my eye on this Korilakkuma figure:
o///o
Does anyone have a favorite San-x/Sanrio character? I tend to change from favorites all the time. I love them all! D:
Yesterday I went to the mall with my mom and cousin. My mom wanted to buy my cousin some new clothes since school starts for her on Monday. I tagged along and got some clothes from my mom as well. (Reason why she hates it when I tag along with her to stores. lol) Here's what I wore:
Yesterday my best friend Nachi came over to my house. *_* I love her!
In the photos she's wearing my short haired wig and my nerd glasses. She had put on the wig like literally after 10 minutes of being in my room. She was really funny with it on, she even made herself look stereotypically Asian. :3
She was reminded of when my boyfriend did the same exact thing back in early June. Except he's actually half Korean. xD
For the rest of the day we talked to my mom a lot about stuff and we both watched two movies before she had to leave. We watched Howl's Moving Castle and train_man (densha otoko) since she had never seen those movies. I highly recommend train_man for anyone who loves a cute, and simple romance movie. It's also based on a true story! :D
Nachi has work for the rest of this week, but I think our friend Liz is planning to go to Disney either next week or the week after that one. Nachi and Liz planned it and they wanted to know if I would go with them. Of course I said yes. *_* I hope we get to go! Disney is so much fun.
