Walk Through Namba - DevilInspired Overdress

My good friend from Portland has been in town recently, so we've been exploring all over Osaka together. Last Saturday, we got together to do some new release shopping in Amemura (Osaka's Harajuku equivalent) - she got the special dress set at Metamorphose, and we both hit up Angelic Pretty for this week's new items.

Afterward, we dropped our shopping bags off at her Airbnb (conveniently walking distance away).

We took some photos in the apartment, which is very nicely lit with a huge wall of windows!

I wore my new overdress from DevilInspired - they sent it to me last week and it arrived very quickly! I guess China to Japan isn't much of a distance haha.

Wardrobe Post 2017

Here I am, someone who very rarely gets sick, stuck at home with bronchitis. I went to the clinic in Japan for the very first time on Friday, as my bad cough had turned into a very bad and painful cough, and witnessed great Japanese healthcare at work (so cheap compared to America lol). Now I'm on antibiotics, plus a prescription strength cough suppressant and decongestant.

So what's a girl to do, except take the time to photograph her entire wardrobe for her blog..?

Honestly, this has been so much effort that I don't think I would have done it if I wasn't sick lol.

But here is my lolita wardrobe, in its (mostly) full glory...please be aware that this post is very image heavy!

Lucky Packs 2017

New Year's - the biggest holiday in Japan! It's full of customs and traditions...including fukubukuro, literally translated as "lucky bag", also known in English as lucky packs.

What's a fukubukuro?

Traditionally, they're deeply discounted mystery grab bags filled with leftover stock from the year before. Because it's considered bad luck for a shop to keep old stock into the new year, they stuff these bags full to get rid of everything quick. Nowadays, many shops do what they call "happy bags", where they make special items specifically to sell at New Year's and the contents are not a mystery.

This was my second year going fukubukuro shopping in Osaka (the first was during a visit 4 years ago), and I purchased 3 for myself: An Another Angelus (F.i.n.t's sister brand), Swimmer, and Innocent World. I also purchased one for my friend as part of my shopping service from Leur Getter, and she so generously offered the opportunity for me to post photos of it as well!

In recent years, many shops have begun offering reservations for fukubukuro, to cut down on the craziness at opening on release day. If you're in Japan when they begin reservations, it's a really great option to cut down on stress and waiting time! I reserved both the An Another Angelus and Leur Getter bags beforehand and picked them up on January 2nd.

Now what you've been waiting for - the reveals!

Victorian maiden Christmas Tea Party

Happy International Lolita Day!

What did you do to celebrate this year..?

Victorian maiden, headquartered here in Osaka, held a Christmas tea party on December 3rd, which coincidentally happened to be International Lolita Day this year.

It was held at a small British-themed tea house called Three Chimneys. The tea house was decorated for the Christmas season and was so cute!

We had tea service with a big plate of food and unlimited tea.

Unfortunately, even though VM asked about food allergies, etc. beforehand, and I told them I can't eat pork or beef, the sandwiches all had ham in them...thankfully I only have a minor intolerance, so I could just remove the ham and still eat the sandwiches without getting sick, but it was still an annoyance.

VM made little name cards for each of us! I usually go by "Ellie" in these situations because my full name (Danielle) is really long and difficult for many Japanese people to pronounce (and they often mistake it for "Daniel"......)

I really loved this idea! They had these big dice with conversation starters on them - if there was a lull in conversation at your table, just toss the dice for something to talk about!

When we entered, we drew a "fortune card" - one lucky winner got a free dress from her fortune card! These also had topics to talk about - mine was "tell the person next to you about your coordinate point".

My friend MiA and I at our table! We sat with 5 other girls, who were all very nice!

We had mini catalogs at our place settings - the "Louise" series is new coming January/February!

I tried to take a photo indoors, but the lighting wasn't very good...

MiA and I outside Three Chimneys

My full coordinate!

Hat - WEGO

Bolero - Innocent World

Jumperskirt & gloves - Victorian maiden

Tights & blouse - offbrand

Shoes - axes femme

A lot of the guests had the same idea as me - wearing bordeaux for the Christmas theme. Probably 90% of people had bordeaux as at least an accent color lol.

Selfie beforehand~

After the tea party, the staff arranged for us to take taxis to the VM press room to have first access to their sample sale!

Cute display in the front entry to the press room

All the staff! Their theme was The Nutcracker! Toy soldier, doll, and the mouse king.

I got to take a photo with the infamous VM coffin!! If you're unaware, back in 2001, VM actually sold this coffin..! The one in the press room is used as a storage closet.

I wasn't planning on buying anything, but I foolishly tried this on and fell in love lol. Will have to cut back on my luckypack spending now haha.

Freebie novelties for tea party guests! A clear file and a 2017 planner with a reusable VM book cover.

Freebie postcards from the press room!

The tea party was such a great experience and I'm so glad I was able to go! I hope to be able to attend more events like this in the future~

To end, here are some purikura MiA and I took before the tea party!

Until next time!

BB and B Deco Review

Earlier this month, I received a package from BB and B Deco with a super cute macaron necklace!!

All their pieces are handmade with care, using genuine swarovski crystals and pearls! I had seen their products at Sakuracon, with their parent company Bling Up, and was always really impressed with their work.

Because they're made with air clay, they're super light, which makes it really comfortable to wear~

I love the little spoon so much! I can't resist tiny cutlery lol

Maybe it's a strange thing to notice, but it also smells really good!!

The clasp on the back is a heart shape! I love the attention to details~

The little holly leaf makes it really cute for the upcoming holiday season!!

I ended up putting together a porcelain doll inspired coordinate with it!

Unfortunately, the pictures didn't turn out super great because it's so cloudy/dark today ;A;

Bonnet - Innocent World

Blouse - offbrand (Forever21)

Jumperskirt - Angelic Pretty

Apron - handmade by my friend

Tights - offbrand (gift)

Shoes - offbrand (unknown, I've had them 10 years!)

What's your favorite piece from BB and B? c: