Sewing Project! Rose Cameo Stripe Shirred Over-Bustle Jumperskirt

This little beauty was a long overdue commission for a beloved friend on LiveJournal. It was supposed to have been made waaay back in 2008 when I was still living in Japan, but due to various circumstances, got put off again and again until now! But after that loooong time, I love how it finally turned out, and I'm very happy to say that my friend said it was well worth the wait!

It is a fully shirred jumper skirt that is meant to be worn over a separate ruffle underskirt (the photos show a Victorian Maiden plain black cotton ruffle underskirt underneath the jsk). It could also be coordinated with a kinari/cream color underskirt for a different look! The straps can be worn normally or crisscrossed in back. There are 2 detachable bow brooches that can be worn anywhere, but were designed primarily for use on the bodice in front and on the back waist where waist ties might traditionally be. Never a clumsily tied bow again! There is also a 3rd bow, a hairbow, that could be attached to a headband or hairclips depending on how it's to be used that day.









If you'd like to see even more photos, my sew_loli community post is here!

Sewing Project! St. Patrick's Day Skirt

Just a funny little kitschy project for St. Patrick's Day! I found this adorable fabric at the store and had to turn it into a skirt. I have strange tastes!







My favorite part is the itty bitty top hat on the bow! :D



Of course it is fully lined and the bow is detachable. It has a half-elastic waist.

If you'd like to see more photos, my sew_loli community post is here!

Coordinate Snap! Saturday, March 6th - Sleeping Beauty!

On Saturday evening we went to Drag Queen Bingo for the first time in MONTHS! I've missed it so...and they missed us! It was very encouraging to be welcomed back again with such excitement! Unfortunately there were only two of us dressed up this time, but they were still happy to see us.





I just bought this dress recently (of course, as it just came out), and I'm so glad I did! I don't own many of the "big ticket" items in the lolita world, preferring in general solid colors and fun pieces I can coordinate in many ways to really make them my own. Something like this is more challenging to coordinate in a way that somehow stands out from the norm. But it is so very gorgeous, and I love it very much. I can only hope I pulled it off half as well as it deserves!

Outfit rundown:
jumperskirt, bow: Alice and the Pirates
blouse, shoes: Baby the Stars Shine Bright
socks: Innocent World
ring and bracelet made by LJ user chiyu_hime ♥


Earlier in the day I wore a very casual outfit just to get some errands run.





I love this silly panda hoodie to death! Heart E is so funky, with definite emphasis on the FUN! :D

Outfit rundown:
skirt: Angelic Pretty
panda hoodie, hairbow: Heart E
cutsew: Metamorphose
socks: Putumayo
shoes: Bodyline
bag: from Australia care of the lovely and wonderful escoriate! ♥ Thanks hon!! ♥♥
necklace: my mother

Let's Talk About Rings

Below is an English translation of the fourth of 31 essays/short articles in Takemoto Novala's recently published 乙女のトリビア, or Trivia for Maidens, originally published in Zipper magazine.

♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔

Let’s Talk About Rings.
The Rings You Are Wearing

Rings are nice, aren’t they? When you get married, you wear a ring on your left ring finger. Do you know when this custom started? Actually, it can be traced back to ancient Rome. It was thought appropriate to express a holy love with this finger, as it is closest to the heart. Doesn’t that make you wonder whether not only the left ring finger, but also the other fingers as well had special meaning when rings were worn? If so, you’re correct. This time I will teach you about the relationship between rings and fingers.

If you wear a ring on your left thumb, this means you have a strong will, and if you wear one on your right thumb, it will help you exercise leadership skills. The left pointer finger indicates positivity, while the right is most useful in increasing the ability to concentrate. The left middle finger calls for inspiration, and the right middle finger is useful in avoiding trouble. The left ring finger you already know about, so next is the right ring finger. A ring on this finger has the power to calm us down. Finally, the left pinky finger brings us a chance to meet with a wonderful love, while the right ring finger is said to allow us to express ourselves.

There are also meanings to colors: red is to bring success in love, while blue is to being a sincere honest love, and green calls good fortune. There are so many different meanings that can be attached to rings that if we continue to discuss them we’ll never reach the end.

Perhaps you’ve started to wonder now about the rings you previously wore simply because they were cute or suited you. If you just remember this, it will be very helpful to you: wear a ring on your right pointer finger before you have to take an important test for which you must study a lot. If you still should have to take a wild guess, switch it to the left middle finger, and you should be all set! And if you want to find a boyfriend, wear a ring on your left little finger, a pinky ring.

Rings for the little fingers of either hand are called pinky rings, but the left pinky ring stands not only for meeting your loved one, but also for deepening a bond between lovers, and is even useful for when you want a wish of any kind granted, even when unrelated to love.

Then again, this interpretation wasn’t particularly etched in stone by anyone, so if you research it, you may come up with slightly different results. Even the left ring finger, when defined strictly, was not something passed from man to woman as a symbol and vow of holy love, but rather started as a way of binding a woman’s power, which was stronger than that of a man (to make the lover or engaged bound to his rule, and so she wouldn’t cheat on him), as some remaining ancient writings imply. There’s also one school of thought that derives the origins of this ring finger as being a way to gain the affections of a beloved in a one-sided love (according to this explanation, results could be expected if you wear it at night, even if you don’t wear it all day long). The right ring finger has strong connections to the arts, so if you want to become an artist or a designer or go into some other creative field, there are those who say you should wear a ring upon this finger. You should interpret the meanings in the way that suits your lifestyle best. After all, the thing that truly is important for success is how much you believe it will happen.


A Masonic Signet Ring

By the way, though this will digress a bit from the current topic, rings have many names depending on their shape or use. A ring with your logo mark or initial boldly embossed on it is called a seal ring or signet ring, and was invented as a convenient way to combine a ring and a seal. On the other hand, a ring with a word like “Love” or “Forever” written on it is called a posie ring. There are also rings that open like a little pillbox, aren’t there? These are called poison rings. These were used by members of the monarchy and held poison inside of them, for the purposes of ending one’s own life should one be captured by an enemy. Though these days there’s not much use for them except perhaps to put in a digestive pill to take if your stomach gets upset…


An example of a Posie Ring from the 17th century

As for myself, I recently lost my Vivienne Westwood armour ring which I had been wearing on my left pinky finger hoping to meet a sweet love, so I quickly went out and bought a knuckle duster ring to replace it, but after only a week of wearing this on my left pinky finger, I lost it as well! This surely must be a bad sign. Perhaps the God of Love has forsaken me completely…


Vivienne Westwood Armour Ring


Vivienne Westwood Knuckle Duster Ring

♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔

Like Novala, I too love to wear rings. If I take the time to get dressed properly, chances are I am wearing at least a couple rings. But until today, I never knew there were meanings to each finger other than the left ring finger! Considering it now, of course it makes sense that there is, but I never gave it much thought. I always just wear rings wherever it is comfortable and flattering. But I almost always have rings on 2 fingers: my left pinky, and my right ring finger. According to the right ring finger brings creativity, so perhaps it makes sense that since I’ve begun wearing rings with more frequency, I’ve been a lot more productive with my sewing! I’ll have to make a point of always wearing a ring there! On the other hand, literally, I always wear a ring on my left pinky – my Novala signet ring, in fact. So the left pinky ring is supposed to bring love, is it? Perhaps one day my Novala ring will lead me to… （笑）Then again, perhaps not!



By the way, on the topic of the Poison Ring, I must disagree with Novala (gasp!) on there being no modern application for them! Check out this little number:



A modern take on the Poison Ring, this ring from Urban Decay comes with 3 interchangeable lip gloss colors. Novala was wrong when he said there were no good uses to be found in modern life!

Unfortunately no longer available from Urban Decay, I found this on http://www.splendicity.com, and it seems to be from the 2008 Christmas season. How fun! Though I must admit I don't care much for the gaudy yellow topaz cut glass - I'd much prefer a different design.

Sewing Project! Fur Skirt & Cape Set

In the sew_loli lovejournal community, there was a monthly challenge contest for the month of February (actually due the first Sunday in March), the theme being Furry February. I wasn't actually planning to make anything for it, but I found myself in Joann Wednesday night browsing the fake furs anyway. I ended up coming home with 2 yards of luxuriously soft chocolate brown curly fur, and 2 yards of brown lining, as well as 3 yards of pink bunny toile and a little over a yard of a fabulous St Patrick's Day print. Upon planning my project, I decided upon something a little different from my initial intention, and threw aside the lining fabric in favor of making instead a reversible set using the toile as the "lining"! I absolutely love how it came out, and I'd love to hear what you think as well!

I made a cape and skirt set, with detachable bunny ears and tail, and a detachable bow. In total, there are 6 pieces (counting the 2 ears separately! XD).











If you'd like to see even more photos, my sew_loli community post is here!

Let's Talk About the Orb

Below is an English translation of the third of 31 essays/short articles in Takemoto Novala's recently published 乙女のトリビア, or Trivia for Maidens, originally published in Zipper magazine.

♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔

Let’s Talk About the Orb.
That Orb That You Yearn For.

Do you like orbs? You know, Vivienne Westwood’s symbol that looks like Saturn. I’ve been a fan for a long time, but even now, all it takes is to look at the orb for me to get excited.

So, about that orb that we all love so much, do you know why Vivienne chose this to be the image of her shop? Wait, before I get to that, I suppose I should first explain what the orb is. Let’s start by learning some basic knowledge about the orb.


Photograph of the actual official Sovereign’s Orb from the official website of the British Monarchy

To translate “orb” into Japanese gives us 王球 (royal sphere) or 宝珠 (crown jewel). This odd round ball is one of three royal regalia, forming a set of the orb, the crown, and the sceptre. Of course we have all seen photos and images of kings and queens wearing crowns and holding sceptres, but we don’t often see them holding orbs, so it wouldn’t be surprising if you were not aware that this is another way of showing royalty.


The Queen of England at her coronation. Photograph from the official website of the British Monarchy.

I’m not sure myself when the orb began appearing as a sign of royalty, but even back in the times of Alexander the Great, in 356 BC, who became king of Greece at the tender age of 20 and then went on to conquer Asia Minor and Egypt and attempt to become king of the world, he already had an orb in hand. If you should happen to have a deck of cards near you, pick it up and look now, at the image of the King of Clubs. This King of Clubs is actually traditionally Alexander the Great. And this Alexander the Great is pictured holding a sword and an orb.



Basically, the orb therefore represents the privilegentsia and power. England, where Vivienne was born, still has an active monarchy. Therefore, in English, this orb still has power as a royal symbol of the royal dynasty, along with the crown and the sceptre. Before Vivienne became very successful in the fashion world, she was one of the founding parents of the birth of the punk world, bringing the Sex Pistols to debut alongside her husband Malcolm McLaren. One of the Pistols’ most famous songs, God Save the Queen, is actually derisive of the Queen of England, and Vivienne herself at this time was making t-shirts with collages of Queen Elizabeth’s face. So why would Vivienne, with her rebellious message of “Royalty can all go to hell!” use the orb as her own symbol for her shop? If you’re a little bit clever, you should be able to understand, right? After all, the orb is a symbol of power and authority, so she used it as a parody of this.



The English people have a strange kind of irony to their feelings about the monarchy, condemning it as foolish while all the while deep down actually loving it. This can be seen not only in Vivienne Westwood’s creations, but also in the works of Lewis Carroll, who wrote Alice in Wonderland, and Oscar Wilde, who wrote The Happy Prince. They write works disparaging the Royal Household, but still take pleasure in the fact that there still is one. In our own times, the English ballet choreographer Matthew Bourne’s remake of Swan Lake was a parody of the Royal Family as well.

What do you think? In learning the simple reasoning behind the symbol of Vivienne Westwood, without even trying, you’ve also learned abut the history of European monarchies from the time of Alexander the Great to the present! It’s a shame they won’t teach this kind of history in school. I bet your teachers don’t even know who Vivienne Westwood is… If you start to research fashion, however, at times it can be quite academic. Isn’t that interesting? By the way, while we’re on the subject of Vivienne Westwood, did you know that her famous Rocking Horse shoes are not actually named after a rock and roll horse? Actually, a rocking horse is a child’s toy in the shape of a horse but with a sled-like bottom rather than legs that rocks back and forth as you sit on it. The shape of the wood on the bottom of those unique shoes is similar to this toy, don’t you think?



Even amongst those who love Vivienne Westwood, there are few who stop to question just what the orb is. But I want you to wonder about this. In order to become a cultivated young maiden, of course!



♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔

I think the information in today’s selection is probably not so new to most of my readers, but when you think about it as being written for Japanese girls, it makes much more sense. Of course knowledge about European style royal families is not as widespread in Japan as in the West. Even in America, we know a little something about the British Royal Family (though probably not enough to keep our friends across the pond from laughing at us!). Still, I wonder just how much of the information in this article is new information for many of you. After all, there are still “girls who wear Vivienne Westwood but don't even know the Sex Pistols.” And on the other hand, there are Sex Pistols fans who are entirely unaware of the connection between their beloved boys and one of the queens of the fashion world.

For myself, I was not previously aware of the orb as a royal symbol until I became a fan of Vivienne Westwood. I don’t even know if this is something to be embarrassed about or not, as I’m unaware to what degree it is common knowledge. I’m sure any readers from the UK (are there any of you out there?) would scoff at that! But the truth is it is still not as well-known as the crown and sceptre. In fact, I wonder if there are people who would see an image of the orb and think to themselves, “Wow! That looks almost just like Vivienne Westwood’s symbol!” How amusing! And yet, not entirely surprising. These days, the orb is known worldwide as Vivienne’s mark. Of course all lolitas know it, and those interested in fashion in general, but not only us! Even most anime and manga fans these days have seen it in great quantities because of the influence and popularity of Yazawa Ai’s masterpiece Nana, and many of them may even own replica jewelry! In fact, this replica jewelry has become so widespread that now we may find young girls in any mall across America wearing an orb who are not only unaware of its royal origins, but also completely unaware of the name Vivienne Westwood. I guess Novala had more to worry about than just the Vivienne fans who’ve never listened to punk!

Coordinate Snap! Saturday, Feb 27 - Yumemiru Macaron!

It was a friend's 19th birthday celebration on Saturday night, so I broke out my cakes! You can always tell when it's a friend's birthday because I'll be wearing one of my cake hats! :)





I love this dress. It is one of the very few "sought after prints" that I own. I've never been one to collect the famous print items, choosing solid items that can be coordinated in lots of different fun ways instead, but I love this series. One of very few items in my closet that was reserved when it first came out! I wasn't able to use the matching bag for the club, so of course my constant bunny companion came with me to watch my wallet and other items! ♥

Outfit rundown:
one-piece dress, hairbows, socks: Angelic Pretty
cake hat: handmade
boots: Antenna
belt: off-brand/Supre
bunny bear in hair: Baby (strap!)
coat & scarf: Heart E

Coordinate Snap! Friday, Feb 26

Last night one of my good friends was DJing at the dance club I go to. I was feeling quite under the weather, and not really up to going, but I couldn't miss his spot, so of course I had to get all dolled up to go! Nothing like a cute outfit to distract from a sore throat. ;)





I really like this Bodyline skirt. I appreciate it because it is not a knockoff, but was an original design of someone in their design contests. While I can't pretend to be all high and mighty about not buying replicas of brand items (I do own several), I never really feel happy about wearing them, so I prefer original designs like this. I wish they would stop making replicas and concentrate on more original designs! This was one of the cutest things they've ever made, and we can all wear it without any embarrassment! ♥

Outfit rundown:
bow: Heart E
blouse, coat, socks: Metamorphose
skirt, bunny bag: Bodyline
shoes: Antenna
necklaces: Innocent World lion, pearls made by my mother ♥
ring and bracelet made by LJ user chiyu_hime ♥

Let's Talk About Hime-Kei

Below is an English translation of the second of 31 essays/short articles in Takemoto Novala's recently published 乙女のトリビア, or Trivia for Maidens, originally published in Zipper magazine.

♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔

Let’s Talk About Hime-kei.
That Hime-kei that Catches Your Interest

“Hime-kei”. There was a time that was referred to as super feminine as well, but even today, girls who buy clothing from brands like Jesus Diamante, Pinky Girls, DelilaH, and Liz Lisa are all also hime-kei. (Even Delyle, with its cool image, also fits in the hime-kei category, don’t you think?)



To briefly explain what hime-kei is, it’s one substyle of gyaru, just like B-kei, that grew up from somewhere. The goal? To become a princess. To draw a clear line and describe the popular clothing in one simple image, think full frill mode, with the main color being pink. The hair is curled with a curling iron, and piled up into a gorgeous updo. …But wait, with this description, those of you who are unfamiliar with hime-kei may think, “But you’re describing lolita!” Good catch. That’s right, hime-kei is quite similar to lolita. Because of this, it’s not really mistaken to categorize girls who like gyaru style with a lolita taste as being hime-kei. I suppose if this were a test, we’d have to mark that one as correct (after all, there are even people who straddle the line between hime-kei and lolita and go back and forth a lot).

However, the main difference between hime-kei and lolita is that hime-kei girls love shiny things. While lolitas don’t usually have too much interest in shiny things (by the way, while lolitas may curl their hair into long barrel rolls, they don’t usually put it in an updo), hime girls want to have shiny things everywhere they can. Rhinestones and sequins are a must. Their nails, cell phone, even the contents of their bags and make-up pouches are covered in sparkles to the point of ridiculousness. But you know, I feel a certain affinity with the hime girls. After all, it’s so cute!


A tiara from Jesus Diamante

When I buy hime-kei items, I often purchase them at Claire’s. There’s probably a Claire’s in your town as well. They sell many things like fans covered in fur, and tiaras that make you think, when the heck would someone wear something like this? The best thing about Claire’s is how inexpensive it all is. Recently I bought *two* leopard print belts. I mean, they were less than 1000 yen each!

If you aren’t interested in hime-kei, that’s okay, but if you have any part of you that is often drawn in by romantic thoughts, why not include some hime-kei items in your own wardrobe, even if you don’t want to become a full-on gyaru? After all, the main trends in the 2005 Paris Collection were completely hime-kei and lolita!

Christian Dior presented a collection simply covered in sequins, with full flowing skirt hems and plenty of lace and ribbons. Chanel’s theme this time was “French Garden”. That is, he revamped the Rococo aesthetics from Marie Antoinette’s time. This is so essentially hime-kei and lolita, isn’t it? Just think, the street fashion of Japan, hime-kei and lolita, which have been looked down upon and considered in bad taste, over the top, and ugly over the years, have now influenced the world’s top designers! Isn’t that amazing?



To the left: Christian Dior,
S/S 2005, Paris Collection



To the right: Chanel,
S/S 2005, Paris Collection






If you’d like to try mixing in some hime-kei without going overboard with girliness, the first thing I’d recommend is a frilly mini skirt and camisole. These look very cool even with a jersey or with denim, and this level of girliness is often featured in just about any mainstream fashion magazine. Personally, as someone who actually comes the lolita world but still checks hime-kei frequently, while Pinky Girls and Liz Lisa are nice as well, I’d like you to try something a little different and check out Love Boat, a brand that keeps the 109 aesthetic but also has a lolita taste. They even sell stationary and accessories!

If you are someone not interested in hime-kei or lolita, and you say to yourself, “Well, hime-kei is just for gyaru, and frills are just for lolita, so neither of them has any use for me,” your fashion sense will grow stale and predictable. If something strikes your fancy, you should try something from a shop that is different from where you usually shop. You are your own stylist, so no one will get angry with you even if you wear a Comme des Garcons skirt with a Jesus Diamante t-shirt. A coordinate that truly works, even though it’s completely unexpected and unique, is the best kind, don’t you think?

Let’s try something shiny and frilly!

♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔

This article was strange for me to translate. I can’t imagine anyone in 2009, when this book was published, or in 2005-2007, the years in which the articles were originally published (I’m not sure the original publication date of each individual article) not knowing what hime-kei is. It’s been so prevalent since well before 2005 that it comes as a shock to me that this article would be written like this. But perhaps that is only because hime-kei really is so very similar to lolita in many ways, which means that those of us interested in lolita are exposed to a surprising amount of it. On the other hand, B-kei, which is mentioned in this article in a very matter-of-fact fashion, expecting everyone to know it, is completely new to me. I guess I just always considered this style of gyaru to be “standard gyaru style”, and I was never aware there was a separate name for it. I am not surprised that there is, but I am somewhat amused that I had never heard of it. But I’ve never been a very big fan of gyaru.

Hime gyaru, on the other hand, can be quite intriguing. It’s not my thing, but I do sometimes love a mixture of hime with lolita. I think that ever since about 2007, the line between the two has been becoming increasingly blurred. As lolita gets more and more princess-y and over the top, and hair gets bigger and bigger and ever-increasingly elaborate, at the same time lolitas are wearing more and more glitter and bling. Is this the influence of hime-kei, or simply the influence of the popular Angelic Pretty style? Or are those both part of the same phenomenon? Angelic Pretty actually has a very large following amongst hime gyaru. When I used to stop in the Osaka shop at least 3 times a week, chances are that at least one of those times I would see hime gyaru in there buying several pieces of pearl jewelry and extravagant pink princess dresses. Perhaps we could all gain by a little appreciation of this style that is so similar to our own even as it’s so very different.

Anyway, I think I like the current shared trends much better than those I remember from the spring/summer of 2007, when everyone wanted to do the extravagant updos of hime gyaru, ratting and piling their hair atop their head similar to the signature gyaru beehive. (I was not exempt from trying this craze myself!) I think a little rhinestone decadence is a welcome addition compared to that travesty!

Let's Talk About Perfume

Below is an English translation of the first of 31 essays/short articles in Takemoto Novala's recently published 乙女のトリビア, or Trivia for Maidens, originally published in Zipper magazine.

♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔

Let’s talk about Perfume.
That perfume that suits your style.

Even though I never wear anything but Dior Fahrenheit, I own a lot of perfumes. After all, it’s not just the scent itself that is appealing. If the name is wonderful or the bottle is cute, I find myself wanting to buy it.

Of course I own all the famous ones, like Poizon, Chanel No 5, Shalimar, Les Belles de Ricci, and Babydoll. In Novala Castle, you can find not only Guerlain’s Mitsouko, which nowadays is only worn by stylish older women, but also più cologne, which was once the must-have item for elementary and high school girls.

As an author, someone who writes novels, when I’m creating my characters, not only do I decide what shop they buy their clothing from, but also, I choose a perfume for them to wear. For example, Mishin, the punk rocker in Mishin 2/Casako, wears Vivienne Westwood’s Boudoir. After all, it has a saccharine but rocking scent. The aesthetically inclined Aunt Reiko from the horror novel Scale Princess wears Christian Dior’s Poizon. This scent could only suit a woman who chooses an elegant lifestyle of mysticism.

While the note of a perfume (the scent of a perfume is called the “note”) changes slightly from person to person when worn, much like clothing, we don’t want to wear the same thing as everyone else. Because of this, whenever I’m asked to recommend a perfume, I always hesitate. I can only give advice to choose it yourself.

To split perfumes into a few main types, there are refreshing and casual scents, like Gransenbon, and trendy cool scents, such as Dolce & Gabbana. There are elegant perfumes that proclaim that the wearer is quite the lady, like Bulgari Pour Femme, and sexy mysterious types that are noticeable as perfumes such as Poizon and Jean-Paul Gaultier. These are the four main types. By understanding these, you should be able to choose a scent that suits your own personality from the mountain of possibilities.

Even after all this, if I am asked, “Still, tell me one that’s cool right now that you like, even if it’s biased and your own opinion!” well, hmm…I guess in that case, Dior’s Forever and ever. The simple pink bottle is adorable, and it has a rose-based sweetness that is not too heavy, so it can be used for both casual wear and when dressed up. Also, it hasn’t really become exceedingly popular yet, so you won’t overlap with too many other people.

I have worn my own beloved Fahrenheit for many years now, but there are very few men who wear it. However, during the height of the Fuyu no Sonata television drama’s popularity, it became known that Bae Yong Jun liked this scent, and for a while it became very popular with women. It was so troublesome! Bae Yong, how dare you wear the same perfume as Novala!

Anyway, we’ve been talking about perfume, but did you know that there are four ranks for perfume based on concentration of the perfume’s essential oils?

Strictly speaking, “perfume” refers to the highest rank perfume, perfume extract, with which if you apply more than a drop, it will be so strong as to surpass smelling good and be too much. Scents made as perfumes are also very expensive. The next rank is parfum. Most spray perfumes that are commonly used are actually the 3rd rank, eau de toilette. And the last level, with the least scent, is eau de cologne.

Personally, I believe that using perfumes and eau de parfums can wait until adulthood, and yet eau de colognes seem childish, so for teenagers and young women, I recommend eau de toilettes, which are also affordable. However, I’d like you to remember the four ranks of perfumes, perfume extract, eau de parfum, eau de toilette, and eau de cologne, as knowledge that every proper maiden should have.

Toilettes will lose their scent after about four hours, so if you put it on in the morning and go to school, but then have a date with your boyfriend in the evening, you should put it on again. There are many different bottle sizes for toilettes, so why not carry a small bottle in your bag? Should you do this, you will be the master of toilette.

A beloved perfume can life your spirits when worn, even if you aren’t going to meet anyone that day. I like to spray my bed’s pillowcase and comforter with my favorite scent to be wrapped in a content feeling as I drift off to sleep. It feels decadent and luxurious. Please try it~!

♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔ ♥ ♔


This essay by our beloved Takemoto Novala was originally published in Zipper magazine, and was recently included in an essay collection entitled Trivia for Maidens, from which I hope to bring you several essays in the future. They tend to be light-hearted practical essays, as evidenced by the above, and can make for fun light reading. You may even gain some new knowledge! (And we all want that important knowledge that all maidens should have, don’t we?) I personally am somewhat embarrassed to admit that while I was vaguely aware that there are different concentrations of perfumes that determine the name, I could not have named them in the correct order. (And judging by the number of girls who get a giggle out of the name of Angelic Pretty’s Rose Toilette print, I’m guessing I’m not the only one!)

On a personal note, for me, my favorite scent is Vivienne Westwood’s Boudoir. I was probably at least partially influenced by the above-mentioned Mishin when I first read Novala’s first novel, Mishin, which came out exactly 10 years ago (Happy Anniversary Novala!). I was so taken with that novel in general, and fell in love with the character. But how could anyone not love Boudoir?

I only own three perfumes…excuse me, two eau de parfums and one eau de toilette. I wear Boudoir when I am going out or when I just want a pick-me-up. To me, it has a very sexy romantic feel, so I definitely love wearing it. Vivienne Westwood’s Let it Rock is a very strong fun scent for daytime or if I’m feeling a bit punky. It’s very bold and I don’t feel that it fits me personally as well as Boudoir, but it is very fun and puts me in a daring mood! The third scent I wear sometimes is Anna Sui’s self-named Anna Sui. I like this scent, but not nearly as much as the other two. It’s sweet but with a very vintage feel to me. I like to give myself a light spray with this one on for work – it’s fun and keeps my spirits up through the morning, but is not overpowering, and I feel somehow that it is very appropriate for an office setting.

How about you? What perfume is your favorite? Do you think it fits your personality? What led you to choose it?

"Kuro Pink"?

Welcome to my new blog! Please excuse the mess while I'm getting situated!

This blog will be a mishmash of several different things. Most interestingly, perhaps, I would like to commit myself to doing at least 1 translation a week of something interesting from the Japanese side of the lolita world. Be it an essay from Novala, a particularly intriguing entry from a Japanese girl's blog, or some info from a brand announcement, I will try to provide new information from the land where it all began at least once a week!

But alas, I cannot always be so useful, and so much of the rest of my blog will consist of daily coordinate snapshots, reports from any events I should attend, and photos of whatever sewing project I have made lately!

I will do my best to keep this from coming another "LJ #2", so if you'll put up with my occasional randomness and slightly-less-frequent updates than many, I look forward to seeing you, and hopefully your comments, around! よろしくお願いいたします！

Oh, and a word about my blog name seems in order.

When I was still in college, I was a sad, sad, boring girl, and did not allow myself to properly acknowledge that yearning in my soul for all things goth! (Too busy studying, I suppose, and also living up to expectations of what a perfect student would be interested in...) So when I would occasionally express some heartfelt love for something gothic, oftentimes my friends would be surprised.

One day, one friend, in response to something I had said, asked me, "Are you goth? Is your soul black?"

To which another good friend responded, "Are you kidding? Her soul is pink with butterflies!"

Who would have guessed at the time that it would turn out to be both, a lovely pink and black stripe?


And so therefore, this blog, and indeed my life in general, is dedicated to the discovery and celebration of who we truly are - all those who would judge us negatively for such identity be damned!


And besides - they're damned cute colors together! ♥