Sunday, June 28, 2015

KawaiiClaires Review!!


Hello! Today I'm going to be doing a review here (my first "official" review??) of my friend Claire's Etsy store, KawaiiClaires! She sent me a lovely package filled with a sweet letter, candy, some adorable pastel handmade headbows, hadmade soaps (which I can't show because I used them all up!), and the items which I'll be reviewing today! Claire is a really crafty person and she seems to be always making something new, whether it be soaps, phone cases, DS cases, or jewelry.

A selection of some of her items~

KawaiiClaires is located in Canada, and the theme of her store is, of course, kawaii! Her package arrived really quickly from when she sent it out, and everything arrived very nicely; all the jewelry in individual fabric baggies which I thought was a good touch.

Here is how the package arrived to me; featuring the headbows, soap and candy!

Although these items were free in return for doing a review, her prices are very affordable! I'll get to the individual prices when I review each item, of course, but for example - the large flower necklace above is only around $7! (I say around because the exact one I received is not on the site for sale)

Overall everything is very clean, very nicely made. I don't know anything about resin making, perler beads, or decoden-esque crafting, but everything seems to be very high quality and nothing scrimped on! So, let's get to what she sent me!

This review is obviously going to be picture heavy, so be warned! 


Firstly is this pixel Pokeball pin for $7.50! I wore this on my badge when I was at Colossalcon! I have a thing for pins and badges and such, and the Pokeball is something so recognizable to so many people. This badge is about 2", so it fits anywhere you like! If you like this design, she also has Pokeball headphone holders!

Detail on the back and pin


Next is this adorable strawberry pink heart ring for $3.54. This ring could easily be a staple piece in many peoples' cute wardrobes! It looks a lot like a piece of candy to me!


Although it's hard to see from my pictures (and that's my fault ^_^;) the color isn't just a solid pink, but it has little flecks of red inside! I think what I love most about this piece is that it's not at all small! I love big pieces.


You can see a bit of the flecks of red here. As you can see, it's not a small piece, but it's not so huge that it would hinder your hand movements. I've worn this out and about for a while now, and it's very sturdy and holds up nicely!


The second ring I have is this cute decoden whipped sparkle ring, also for $3.54! This ring is a must have for fairy kei, decora, or even sweet lolita! This ring is a perfectly swirled dollop of whipped cream decoden with chunky glitter all over!


This ring has also been worn quite a bit and it's very sturdy as well. I have lots of decoden pieces from lots of different people, and unfortunately some of them don't really hold up. This one has held up through me reaching in my cluttered bag, worn at a busy convention, and other daily wears.


What I think is the best thing about this piece is how unique the glitter all around it is. On a lot of pieces like this, you see very small glitter, but this one has bigger dots and strands of glitter which really stand out and look like sprinkles atop whipped cream! 


Next is the first of four necklaces, and unfortunately I only have one picture of this necklace for some reason. This piece is the most simple of the four, but still very eye catching! It's also the smallest, but I consider it still very sizable. This necklace has a pastel pink and pastel purple merging with each other with glitter all throughout. It reminds me of Nerds candy! This one isn't on her Etsy right now, but I'm sure you could request it!


This necklace is probably my second favorite! Please excuse the glare on this picture. This exact one isn't on her Etsy, but she has many similar piece with other tumblr-esque/sassy phrases, such as this one that says "I hate you"! 


This piece is extremely shimmery and shiny, and definitely catches the eye when you wear it out! I'm really into the offensive sort of tumblr phrases (I'm not sure how to describe it?) that she puts on these necklaces. 


As I said, I really have no idea how resin pieces such as these are done, but I really love how the phrase is put inside of the resin itself. This whole necklace looks like a glittery lollipop to me, with the glitter frozen in mid-swirl. I really, really love things like these. I love wearing this necklace out in the sun!


Second-to-last is this adorable purple glittery kitty necklace! This one also isn't on the website right now, but again, I'm sure you could special request it! Something cool about this necklace is that if you hold it in the right light...


You see the kitty face! Much like the last piece, the glitter on this necklace is extremely glittery and shiny. The glitter catches the light no matter which angle it's turned at! 


Again, I think the glitter Claire used is very unique compared to other resin makers. It's huge and very reminiscent of the 90s! All the edges of this piece are very clean, and you can tell she took care when she makes these pieces.


Lastly is my absolute favorite necklace! Like the heart necklace, similar pieces with other tumblr-esque sayings can be found on her Etsy, such as this one that says "I ship us" for $7.50.


I think my favorite thing about this piece, besides the fact that the shape reminds me of some jewelry I had when I was a kid, is how big it is! The entire necklace fills up the palm of my hand, so it's definitely a statement piece! 


I love that the huge pieces of glitter inside the resin change color from a yellowish color to a green, it definitely compliments the color of the resin. I honestly just can't speak highly enough about this piece, it's so sturdy, yet not at all heavy to wear, and just so very adorable!

So, that's it for my review! I'm also going to be doing a review on my vlog later tomorrow, so I'll be posting that here if you want to watch me actually hold and move the pieces and see them shine and such in the light!

I can't say just how much these pieces make me smile. Yes, I'm doing this review because Claire is my friend, but I truly do believe that these pieces are well made, fairly priced, and completely cute! I hope you all check out her Etsy store and perhaps order an item or two, or share her shop to your friends!

I hope you all enjoyed this review and I'll be writing soon~

Monday, June 22, 2015

The Past Month - Colossalcon and Such


I started my last post with pictures of my plushies, didn't I? Oops! Plushies are cute and the pink one relates to this post very slightly, anyways.

So, I haven't written here in a month, and I'll get to that in a bit. Excuses, excuses. I also have to talk about my first ever Colossalcon!

It was definitely the most fun I've had at a convention in...ages. I don't know how long since I've enjoyed myself at a convention that much. It helped that I was with good friends and the con was executed very very nicely, but it probably didn't hurt that I only knew three other people besides the group I was with!

Colossalcon is held at a convention center that has a joined hotel that has a huge waterpark in it! I can't swim, so I've never really been to a waterpark. I was a bit scared by the irrational thought of drowning or getting water in my eyes (okay, the latter was not so irrational), but I went and...really loved it! I also feel like I got over another fear by going in front of all those people in a swimsuit, haha. I didn't do too much the few times I was there; I wasn't brave enough to go down any waterslide. But I did go down the lazy river and really loved the wave pool. 

As for the actual convention, it was great as well! It was really spread out in the convention center, which meant it was never too crowded in the halls. I didn't go to too many panels for one reason or another, but the ones I went to were nice, and there were a lot I did want to go to, or thought they looked really cool or fresh. 

I guess my only complaint about the convention was how small the artist alley was. The artists they did have were all great, and I'll post a picture of what I got below, but there weren't very many. The dealer room was very great and well organized, but they didn't really have a video game booth.

At the dealer room, I got (because I don't have a picture) a Gokai Pink little blindbox, a Battle Japan Gokai Key, a really inexpensive Idolm@ster shirt, and got my pink squeaky sheepy in an Amiibo trade! I didn't buy too much in the actual dealer room because I didn't have too much money to spare and I wanted more handmade things from the artist alley instead. I did almost blow $40 on a Decade figure, but it wasn't the basic Figuarts, it was something more advanced. They also had a Riderman Figuarts, but he was expensive, too. I think I do want to start getting figures again though. 


From the artist alley, I got two doujins, some stickers, a JoJo pin, a Sailor Moon zine, a Chibi Moon print for my friend, some Kamen Rider pins and print, and a small Pokemon bath bomb that had a Squirtle charm in the middle!

Unfortunately, my allergies started acting up really early on in the con, and because someone we were driving had gotten sick, me and my fiance got sick as well, me more then him. I'm all better now, but it was pretty bad.


Lately, I've been occupying my time with Splatoon! I wasn't too sure of it when it was first announced, and then seeing my fiance play it so much got me obsessed! I've been drawing squidkids nonstop, they're so cute!! Callie and Marie are the cutest, and so are Annie and Spyke, and just all the squidkids in general... oh yes, the game itself is very fun, too! I'm actually okay at it, with the roller anyways.


I also broke my promise and dyed my hair! I don't really regret it, and it looks pretty cool, I think.

So since I've gotten back, I haven't been too well. My depression and anxiety have been really loud in my head and I felt like I haven't really been able to do much. I'm trying to work through it the best I can, which is going so so. I think I'm going to start searching for another therapist. I think talking to someone who's not in my life and who has a more clinical perspective might be helpful; it was in the past.

I'm trying to accept my limitations, and accept who I am now, the latter of which is proving to be very hard. As always, I struggle with my weight, and I am working to change it, but I want to accept me now as well. I have to accept this is my body now and yes, it can be changed, but this is who I am now. I need to get over the fact that certain things cause me to panic and that is okay and my feelings are valid. And I need to find something that will calm me down when I do freak out.

But, I am feeling better then I have been in a while, so I feel like I can do some things again. Cleaning the apartment really, really helped, because my mind feels more clear, now. No promises, but I am going to aim to post one blog post and one video a week! Wish me luck!

I hope you guys are having a good start to your week~!

Monday, June 1, 2015

I'm 25! This Year's Goals~


Hello! It's been a while, again, hasn't it? I really have no excuse, hehe... ^_^; This is going to be another more personal entry, too, instead of something more structured and professional. But those sorts of entries will be returning next week!

Today, I'll be talking about what my goals are for this year of my life and my plans for the near future!


Well, I dyed my hair! I know I said that I wasn't going to for a whole year but...that was a silly promise. My hair did grow out a bit longer in the few months I didn't do anything to my hair, but I love being colorful! That was my present to myself, along with some clothes I'll be hauling on my vlog soon!

A few days before my birthday, my parents took me and my fiance out to one of my favorite restaurants for dinner. They gave me my present, which was what I had asked for - clothes money! More clothes to haul in a future video! I also used a bit of it to buy a few bath bombs from Lush!

On my actual birthday, I didn't really do anything at all. I was going to hang out with her bestie, but she had important stuff going on, and my fiance had to work all day. But we at least got burgers :P

This is a cover from a sketchbook I'd like to either do a blog or vlog showing~

So, what did I wish for? To be happy. To change myself. I feel like the whole metamorphosis thing I've been posting about really does describe me better then I thought. When a caterpillar goes into its warm and safe cocoon, it turns into goo, pretty much. And that's how I feel. I am surrounded by love and safety, and I feel like weak, useless goo. But I have the potential to become a big, strong, beautiful butterfly. And I will.

I'm going to Colossalcon this week (which I'll talk about in a bit), but when I return, I'm going to go hard. Eating extremely healthy, working out almost every day. Not just where my health is concerned - I'll also be working hard on comics, prints, stickers, et cetera. And I'm going to do these things because they are good for me and they make me happy. 


As I said, I'll be attending Colossalcon this weekend! Not only is it the farthest I've gone for a convention, but it'll be the biggest one I've ever been to! I'll try to take lots of pictures!

After that, I'll be making some posts on here such as monthly favorites, a review of my friend's Etsy shop, and more! I hope you're looking forward to it!