More rain...

The rainy season, although apparently not as heavy as normal, continues to pour water down on Nagasaki almost every day. Even if the day seems to start sunny, sooner or later you'll be caught in a downpour. Therefore, I never go out without rainboots. 

I liked my first outfit with them, but patterned tights make everything better, don't you agree? They certainly cheer me up on gloomy days like these!

First try.

New version!

As you may have noticed, butterflies are a favourite of mine. I like them because they're colourful and playful, and the symbol of Psyche, the Greek mythological girl who became the lover of Eros/Amor. He symbolizes the heart and she the soul. So butterflies are not only pretty but also symbolic; all the more reason to like them :)

More butterflies, this time in the belt. It's a vintage one my mother found. When I was little I played Mary Magdalene in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar (though it's a bit embarrassing to remember) and we wore clothing from the 70's. I had a green dress with wide bell sleeves (and, if I remember correctly, shiny sequins too), and a belt with a butterfly as clasp. I think my mother bought me this belt because she remembered how much I loved that outfit (even though it probably looked ridiculous. I just loved big dresses!).
So, to continue the hippie-style:

Actually I don't think the boots look so good with this skirt so I cropped them off. 

And now for something completely different! Uniqlo has collaborated with Laduree (the macaron shop from Paris, as all of you probably know) and the T-shirts they've brought out are really nice and cheap.
So I dressed up as a pink cloud and a piece of candy.

 

These socks have polkadots and ribbons on the back and were not even 300 yen :3

 

Well, I'm going to leave you with this. The first version of my final paper on persecuted Japanese christians in the 16th and 17th century is finished, but I have a proficiency-test coming up that requires more studying...

More tights :3

Just a quick update about two new pairs of tights I ordered from Rakuten. I think I'm slowly turning into a Cult Party Kei-girl with all those pastels and patterns. I'm not very good at layering though, so I don't think I really follow the 'rules', but well, does it matter as long as it's cute?

 Angels, crosses and butterflies <3

EDIT: I got them from here: http://item.rakuten.co.jp/mzhw/tj-tjt148/ 

Yes, I do think I've become an addict...

Rainy days

The rainy season has officially started. As a Dutch girl I'm used to rain, but I can't say I like it! And Japanese rain is a lot more overwhelming than the usual Dutch drizzle. The season will continue for about a month and after that it'll still be hot and humid. Not ideal weather for fashionlovers, but we'll have to make do with it...

The Japanese are completely adapted to the rain in this time of the year. Umbrella's are everywhere, but when the rain is heavy your feet get wet too. A lot of people just stop caring and wear crocs, but I won't give in to that! Besides, in open crocs your feet will still get wet and I hate that. There are a lot of cute rain boots being sold, but most of them are sooo expensive... Of course I wanted the pink ones with polka dots but they're more than 5000 yen. I'm only going to wear them until the rain stops again, so I just don't want to spend too much money on them. These were the cutest ones I could find for under 2000 yen. I would've preferred higher ones, but they have ribbons so it's alright. Ribbons make everything alright.


(They're secretly from the old ladies' department, shh!)

Here's my outfit for today. Just for class, nothing fancy. The rain makes it cooler so tights can be worn, but I don't think it'll stay that way. Every day is hotter than the previous one.
Also, I got my fringe cut. The hairdresser absolutely loved my dip dye :)

it has pockets!

 

 These see-through umbrellas are also ubiquitous. They're super convenient and cheap, only 250 yen in the Daiso!  

 

And well... Because I'm vain I don't want to wear my glasses in pictures, but this is what I actually looked like :p

Bunch of outfits

Just an outfit-picture-dump with my freshly-dyed hair! I've dubbed the colour "radioactive Barbie", although, as I hoped and suspected, the colour is starting to fade a litte already after a few washings. It's a little more true pink now and less neon, though still very flashy.

Well, here are some outfits I wore recently, either to go to class with, to a party or just to dress up at home.

"School girl"



with my cute Rilakkuma phone case <3

 

I always wear some sort of cycling shorts underneath short skirts like these.
They sell those everywhere here, to protect the schoolgirls in uniforms from perverts' glances and strong winds.

 

"Casual Cult Party- if such a thing exists"

That's one of the cheapest but also most uncomfortable dresses I own.
Made of unbreathing polyester with a very itchy collar, and almsot entirely see-through so wearing something underneath it is absolutely neccessary. But yeah, cute.

 "Spot the butterflies"

 

"Romance"



The shirt is a bit unflattering but I like the way it looks like a dress when combined with this skirt. I really want some white lace dresses, I love that romantic, innocent look.

My hair is in those milkmaid-Timoshenko-braids because 1. it's long enough now (yay!) and 2. I wanted to somehow hide the screaming pink because it clashed horribly with the softness of the outfit.

 

And some from before the re-dyeing! (Okay, I'll stop talking about my hair now.)

 

 

"Cute little bear"

 

"Flowy fabric & flowers"

no head because derp.

 

Say hi to my glasses!

 That's a lovely scarf by the way, I was surprised to find such a beauty at Uniqlo!

Well, I suppose you've seen enough of me for tonight :p Bye bye~

Dolly & dip-dye

It occurred to me that I haven't even shown the things I bought months ago in Grimoire :o

As you may have noticed if you follow my tumblr, I've fallen head over heels in love with Dolly Kei. In February I made a trip to Tokyo and visited the Grimoire shop. Although it's on the expensive side for vintage clothing, I love their shop concept and the way they've made the style popular, so I don't mind to support them by buying some overpriced things (which are lovely either way).
Of course I had to have the Verum tights which you've already seeen, but I bought a belt & skirt as well as a dress.

 

The skirt and belt I bought (with Meruco <3)

 

The dress. My mom says it could be from the 20's but I'm more inclined to think hippie-70's... Either way it's been worn a lot but I love it.

 

Bit hard to see but the hat has a ribbon on the side.

If you think: 'Hey, the tip of that lock of hair is suspiciously pink', then you're right. I dip-dyed my hair again, this time by myself, but to be honest it turned out a LOT darker and brighter than I had planned. It looks cool and I've gotten lots of compliments already, so I don't really mind, but I do have to get used to it. It's just so bright! More suited for rocker-style than for dolly-kei... I hope it will soon fade to the pastel pink I had in mind. Here's a picture of me today to show you :)

 

I find it so hard to position the camera, it always cuts off either my head or my feet...

 

I'm totally in the mood for outfit pictures so hopefully I'll be able to put some up soon :) But first I'm off to karaoke with some friends. See you later!

Loads and loads of socks.

Well, yes.
It has been an awfully long time. I don't claim to be a great blogger and I suppose you all unfollowed me ages ago, but in case anyone is still interested, I thought I'd start again. Rosalynn from Lolita Wonderland gave me the nudge I needed :)
To be honest I don't think my life is interesting enough to blog about. I don't want to be too personal, and I thought a blog consisting only of outfit-of-the-days and look-what-I-boughts would be boring. But actually I enjoy looking at other people's outfit-of-the-days, so I guess it doens't really matter.

Anyways! Japan is a fashion-lover's heaven, even if I'm far away from Tokyo and there isn't one brand shop to be found around here. I'm cheap, anyways, so perhaps it's even better that I'm not tempted. If Grimoire was in Nagasaki, I'd be broke by now... But it's not, and I have to search for gems in the 'normal' stores, but luckily this is Japan and even 'normal' clothes are pretty.

The one thing that really amazes me, is the offer of awesome socks and tights. Lace, prints, see-through, overknee, ribbons, tattoo-tights, they're everywhere! A lot of shops have offers of 3 pairs for 1050 yen, including tights, so even for a cheapskate it's hard not to buy loads and loads of them.

I am lucky I'm short. I'm only 1.63m (which is short for a Dutch girl) and the Japanese tights are usually made for bodies up to 1.65m (which is tall for Japanese). I'm on the tall side for them and some of the tights are almost too short, but I fit easily in most. I have small feet as well so socks (and shoes!) aren't a problem either.

So, let's revive this blog with pictures of some of my recently acquired footwear treasures:

 Cute little bears! I love those ears.

The shoes are also Japanese but I've had them for a while already, so they're a bit worn.

 

  See-trough socks. They're all the rage here, but I still haven't decided whether I really like them or not.

I do really like anything floral with lace, though! 

 

I wanted heart-on-knees-tights for so long! I tried to DIY a pair of tights like these but that didn't work out too well.. When I bought these I thought they'd have a heart on each knee, but this is cute as well.

And different shoes, haha! They were super cheap but the last pair in stock, so they're a little too big for me... I'll search for insoles or something.

And of course, you can't be in Japan for so long without succumbing to the ubiquitous tattoo-tights. (And for 350 yen a pair, who wouldn't?) 

Also, more cheap-but-very-cute shoes.

These just screamed Grimoire to me, but without the high price tag. They're absolutely wonderful. The cute shoes were actually bought in Holland, from Fly Away Fashion!

 

These Alice in Wonderland-tights were some of the first tights I bought here. They may have sparked the passion... Here in combination with cute pink socks with white lace.

 

 

And now the not-so-cheap tights, that I just really had to have:

 

 Celeste Stein's famous Amor & Psyche ones. They're a cult party kei-staple and I wanted them for so long... I stumbled upon them by accident in a secondhand shop in Harajuku, called G2? I believe. You can really see this is an American brand instead of a Japanese one, the fit is much bigger and longer, they even sag around my ankles a bit! Of course this is a good thing for girls who are taller and bigger.

 

And these, the holy grail... Girmoire's Verum tights. I think these are the prettiest ones of all the tights they released, and I love them so much! They're very sturdy too so I won't have to worry too much about ripping them. Still, they're my preciousssss... 

 

Hope you haven't tired of my feet by now :p

I have more but these are the most remarkable ones. I wear tights almost every day and in most of my shoes I really need socks to be comfortable. So if I post more outfit shots, you'll probably see more of them. I hope so, I'll do my best!  

Grimoire

Let me revive this poor abandoned blog to tell you about something really exciting.

I'm in Tokyo at the moment, on a vacation for a few days. Of course I visited some shops, I'll write about that later, but the most notable was Grimoire. I had my doubts before visiting, but it is even more brilliant than it seems on the internet. Really, I love love love it.

I'll write more about the visit and the rest of my trip later, but for now I want to show you my appearance on the Grimoire weblog!

Here are screencaps, I'll put a translation underneath each picture.

Good evening!
Today a very cute customer came to our shop.
It's Maria-chan from Holland!

(Maria is my Japanese nickname, since the pronunciation of my real name is too difficult)

She's an exchange student at Nagasaki University, and today visited Grimoire while on a trip to Tokyo.
Her Japanese is reaaally good, and she seems to love Japanese fashion.
She tried on a Tiroler dress in our shop!!
It suits her too well...

(The picture is a bit bleh, I hate flash (and my comfortable boots clash with the outfit), but it can't be helped.)

I was amazed, she really looked like a local girl!
So cute~ Maria-chan, thank you!
If you come to Tokyo again, please stop by 'ne' <3

I can hardly believe it. They are so sweet! Oh, now I do wish I lived in Tokyo...