Investigation Lolita Case #1: Mr. Yan, WHUT!?

Before anything else, I just happened to come across this dishy fishy issue. It seems that this issue has been going around within the Lolita community for a while now.

I got bored so I happened to watch some Deerstalker Pictures videos. The title of the video is Lolita Problems #2. It's an interesting video to come by and I can somehow relate to that video. For quick reference, here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNPi475A2fU

To make this post straight to the point, there's something (or someone) that starts to bother me. They call this person Mr. Yan.

So Who's Mr. Yan?

He's the owner of a known brand called Bodyline. I'm sure some budget lolitas heard of this brand. And yes Brandwhores, this is a BRAND. A brand that sells cheaper lolita dresses. They were known before for selling lolita items made with poor quality materials but I heard that they have been selling quite fair quality dresses. That's based on my research.

I've seen some lolitas giving advice about Bodyline, but to focus on the main idea of this post, we should first understand why the Lolita community feel so frantic about this man who owns a lolita selling shop and is on his 40s.

According to my investigation, there's this certain international modeling contest held by Bodyline every year. Those who win the contest get a chance to see Mr. Yan and have their pictures taken in different parts of Japan. But wait, there's more;

I've been reading reports and blog posts about certain model contest winners having been sexually harassed by this man. The criteria seem fishy too. It's a big wonder how they pick the winners. Many lolitas are saying that the criteria are according to this Mr. Yan's criteria. The main idea of the formation of this contest was for Mr. Yan to find a wife.

Ooooohhhh, I can see that coming, eh?

And so it happens.... EVERY YEAR. Good lord, the contest was even opened for lolita girls age 13 years (which is the age of consent in Japan). If the girl rejects, she will be asked to pay for her airfares and other expenses while she is in Japan-- which is what she actually won in the first place.

Well well well.... as a noob lolita, I don't see this yet as a problem here in this Philippine Lolita community but it's better to be cautious. No one wants a weird lolicon forcing a lolita to marry him. So, I end this post saying that I'm not certain whether these rumors are true. These rumors are still rumors and there's no assurance that this was what really happened. If there are lots of sexual harassment cases against this man, then there should be legal action against it. They should have addressed this problem head on, not by settling this issue by posting on social media.

It's hard to trust the internet. It's not easy to find someone you can talk well at this era, so much more with information related to this. Rumors passed on from one lolita to another may be distorted in some kind. I even saw some posts making fun of this man.


With all that being said, I wish all the newbs lolitas out there good luck!

Sewing is not Easy: Finishing my Lolita Skirt Project

I don't need to settle this with a long post so here I go: after the event, I felt refreshed (kind of) and decided to finish my lolita skirt. Just like the starting phase, arranging the pieces together and pinning them down were tiring. The cotton fabric was a bit heavy and I missed up with the skirt width; it was supposed to be 90 inches instead of 120 inches so yeah.

The color is pretty but the piece itself was heavy ;__;

A little bit of sewing, edging and putting the waistband together and there you go, the skirt is finally done. But, it was not the length I expected it to be. The skirt almost touched my ankles (I'm a short stack, ugh) so I have to return and sit in front of the sewing machine again to sew more. This was the time when I realized that seam rippers and scissors were my sewing bestfriends. I have to cut the ends and sew it again. It was a bit of frustrating but the whole experience made me realized that sewing is not that easy; just because you can use a sewing machine doesn't  necessarily mean that you can already sewing like a pro. You have to learn the basics: drafting patterns, choosing the right fabric (the fabric was pretty heavy so it didn't poofeed well), and sewing the proper hems and seams.\

It was not what I expected it to be but I just noticed a bit of a catch from my finished project:

It was accidental but I just went Eureka moment after I noticed this.

And there you have it; a sewing realization. But it doesn't end there. I may not be the best seamstress but I can always train to be like one.

The New Face of ToyCon ~ Year 2016

Okay, after 7 years of non-cosplay life, I decided to go back again and try to do the hobby I always do when I was in 2nd year high school. But, there's a twist: instead of researching and doing commissions for my cosplay costumes, I decided to go simple and visit the event like a normal spectator.

I've been to Toycon before, the last time I went to Toycon was in 2010 where everything is just starting to build its big momentum. That event was also memorable for me because that was when I started to cosplay as Fate T. Harlaown from Magical Nanoha Striker S series. It was also one of my close-to-accurate cosplay and it was a great experience. The effort was worth it, I found myself being recognized by some photographers and Nanoha fans are took pictures of me and with me. It was so amazing.

So yeah, it just happened that Toycon was the closest event I can attend this month and year (June) and there you go, the tickets are hella expensive than before. It's 500 and not 150, yes. The money paying process was not as easy as before either. Sure, there are longer lines but it was so long that it took me half an hour to get inside. After all that hassle, I just decided to go normie due to my excitement of going inside. 

 

Going to the event in normie outfits was not my original plan. I planned to go lolita during the event but unfortunately I found it difficult to buy a petticoat for myself. So, I just settled it with an altered blouse and loliable accessories (except for the ribbon and jabot because I made those). This can be one of the most budget tactics out there but it really isn't. I have to spend of like 700 pesos just to get the quality materials out there. My lolita skirt may not be done by then so I just decided to go loliable instead. But without a petticoat, it's not a full lolita. So, at the end of the day, I decided to call it otome-ish instead.

Like what I read in the announcements, Toycon 2016 was one of the biggest events anticipated by many hobbyists and fans. I heard that Kristian Nairn, the guy who took the role of Hodor in Game Thrones will come in event as one of the guests. It was one of my main reasons to visit the event. I became a fan of Game of Thrones by reading the books and watching the movies, it's pretty neat and amazing. There were Q&As held for him during the event; a great experience to see him in person. 

The photos are too blurry because of the camera resolution quality .__.

There you go, I hit two birds with one stone; seeing Kristian Nairn for real and experiencing the event itself. After that, I went back going around the stores and window shopping (I'm broke, duh?). The same feeling arose again; I wish I have lots of money. There are also lolita shops there but the only shop I saw selling RTW lolita stuff is Dorotee Sweetlips (or was it Labyrinth Garden?). Yeah, it's a local lolita brand that works on RTW and commissions so if you feel like a lolita then go visit those shops. I'll be sharing the links here later on for future references and easy access. 

So, while walking around the SMX Covention Center, I suddenly found myself entering in the hall where the Manila Major was held. It's prettyyyy crowded and dark. Yes, dark. It brought back my DOTA 2 memories. For those who don't have any idea, Manila Major is one of the biggest DOTA 2 events held in the Philippines. This was also when the best SEA and foreign DOTA 2 teams have their face-off.

Finally, before I left the event, I decided to take some photos of displays I visited on. I'm biased so I only took pictures of stuffs I like, duh.

I took this one for a special someone. It reminds me of that time when he mentioned this character.

Of course, the characters from my favorite series (VN and LN): Steins;Gate and Fate Zero. From the left: Makise Kurisu (Steins;Gate) and Saber (Fate series/Fate Zero).

Characters from one of the Slice of Life series that I appreciated. From left: Azusa Nakano, (right) Yui Hirasawa. Behind left: Mio Akiyama, Tanaka Ritsu (middle), Kotobuki Tsumigu (I can't see her that much from here).

A random doll in Victorian outfits holding a green Coke. Yes, GREEN COKE. Even a Victorian figure is promoting coke now, eh?

JoJo Bizarre Adventure display, I took this picture because I know that most of my friends are into this series. 

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure display part 2

Lelouch Lamperouge from Code Geass series. The pose is kind of ... weird .__,

Archer vs. Kiritsugu (the one with the red and black coats)? I'll bet my money of one of them. Together with Kotori Minami and Eli Ayase as cameos.

Overall, it was a fun and tiring experience. It was the Day 1 of the event so I only saw few cosplayers coming in; I saw one in Mikaela Hyakuya (Owari no Seraph) costume, Harley Quin and the Suicide Squad, and Nisekoi. The rest were in their random J-fashion costumes and few I didn't recognize that much. It was great and I can't wait to get in my full cosplay set for next year's ToyCon.

Comeback is Real,

Still a Queen

My Sewing Experience: Forming the 1st Lolita Coordinate

The Lolita culture has been around for quite long. There are different people indulging in this kind of fashion culture. There can be tea parties, dress-up moments included if you decide to wear a lolita dress or coordinate with someone from the same community.

The Lolita community is interesting; they have a round of rules and guidelines here and there about what a Lolita should be. As someone new to the community, I found myself confused; whether to follow these rules or just ditch these rules and play my own game. It's fashion after all.

Buying a brand lolita dress will not be easy for me. I'm a child who grew up in a 3rd world country (or developing country, to be formal) and buying brand stuff will burn my pockets. I have pockets, too duh? Offbrands aren't as cheap as you think; they make replicas and sell those in not-so-affordable prices.

So, what kind of option left for me? I'm so knee-deep into this lolita thing and I want to experience this. In the end, I decided to start sewing.

The least thing I would plan to do is to sew. Sewing classes can be a bore to me at times but remembering the basics from your Home Economics teachers help a lot. When I first touch the sewing machine, I felt excited... enthusiastic, too at all this lolita thing. I'm picturing my ideal lolita outfit as I stepped on the pedal and anchor down the machine's presser foot. Yes, it's a good feeling to realize that you can also sew using this contraption.

The first project I had was a high waist skirt. It didn't turn out well but I managed to analyze the flaws behind its parts. The next day, I bought a yard of white fabric and a blouse to sew my very first official lolita blouse.

It may not be the most neat one I made (yeah, noob problems). At least, it has the ideal shape of the kind of blouse I want to wear in the event. The event will be two weeks from that day so I need to hurry a bit. I got a yard of eyelet to put some fancy aesthetic in my blouse... and Voila!

I just need to add the other ruffle and I'm done.

It looks pretty nice but it needs more work in order to achieve the OTT (over the top) lolita look.

Oh God, lolita skirts are too difficult to find. You need to be particular into details to make sure that  the skirt will fit in the guidelines. My mom, by a chance, got this loliable skirt bought for me. It's pretty sleek, and simple (more simple, actually). It doesn't have the ideal poof or shape when I first tried it on. This was the time when I'm planning to canvas for materials for a petticoat.

While fixing my lolita stuff on the table, I managed to look into this interesting article in FYeahLolita that talks about Aesthetic vs. Silhouette. It's a nice article for starters and an eye-opener too. From there, I realized that petticoats are not really that necessary in forming your lolita outfit... it depends on the outfit. After I took some time to re-read the article, I decided to postpone my petticoat-making session until the event ends. There are only four days for me to prepare and I still haven't decided on the overall look. Instead of sewing another skirt, I just went into using my lolible skirt for this coordinate. I tried that one as many times to observe its shape and silhouette and it really matches the Classical Lolita type. So, with the altered blouse and jabot collar that I made, I brought the whole set with me to the event.

Pretty nice, huh?

And there you go, with black tights and fancy flats, I finally formed my first coordinate. It may look a bit of Ita-esque and otome-kei but I'm still learning to improve my coordinate. Maybe next time it might look nice and pure lolita, who knows? Never stop learning, peeps.


The Aspiring Doll,
Still a Queen

Hello!

It's been a while since I try cosplaying in events so I'll be posting some stuff about my experiences here in this blog. Not only that; there are tons of stuff... Yes, tons.

We're cool now, right? So let's get started!

On the side note, this is a personal blog, not a tutorial website. I'll not be posting any tutorials in this site. Might as well search somewhere else specializing in those. My sewing skills aren't that good, so are my props making skills. Having your costumes made by a professional seamstress is also great.