BTSSB Original Print Skirt Happy Pack

Late last night I got my Happy Pack!  I haven't ordered a lucky pack since BABY first offered them overseas back in 2008 (old Lolita is old -_-;;) and this was quite the impulse purchase!  I originally tried to order the JSK pack, but it sold out right away!

To be honest, this pack is not as good as I had hoped, but I'd like to share the contents anyway!

Open!

First up is the headbow! It's a fairly generic style, quite classic and should pair easily with many items.

Nice headbow, looks like Alice and the Pirates

I also got this absolutely DARLING wallet!!  As much as I adore it, I've already got a very functional wallet I made (tutorial here) so I will sell/trade/give it away.  It's no longer on the Japanese site, but I found it for USD$70 on the New York site

Heart Heart Scallop Long Wallet

 I put everything together on Caroline, my dressform :)  The hoodie has adorable bear ears on it!  I quite like it.  It'll be several months before it is cool enough to actually wear out though!
The knit stripe long top is Alice and the Pirates.  It's got extra long sleeves and a boat neck and will do nicely for punk and daily styles ^_^v

Touch of Gold

  Finally is the focus piece, the skirt, which I originally did not love.  I don't like prints with rooms/furniture, but the color is really beautiful and the material is special.  It may be nice to break away from my normal style to do a Classic Lolita with this skirt, but I'm currently offering it on my facebook for US$90 (no longer on Japanese site, and offer on New York site is around $140)
The material is a super silky, flowing fabric that has great hand and moves well.  Maybe it will grow on me?

Recipe for Endless Dreams

Have you ever bought a lucky pack before?  Did you like what you got?

Taipei Metro Mall Intro!

If you ever find yourself in the Taipei area, where should you go for some fun?  If you are into Japanese anime goods, games, and other geek or otaku related items, the Y section of Taipei City Mall is a good place to start!

Welcome!

I like to call the Y section the "otaku" section of the mall because it's where all the Japanese-imported figures, character goods, prints, etc. are located!  Plus, it is ultra easy to find.  Simply take the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT, the metro) to Taipei Main Station  and follow the signs. (You can also go to Beimen/北門 station, which starts at the other end of the mall)

Backgrounds for taking photos?

 Y section is a bit further away from the central Main Station where you first exit the metro, so follow signs leading to M2 first!  Then as you approach Q Square the signs will begin to label the Y section separately.  (If you went the Beimen route, there are directly signs for Y section)

Masks?

 The mascots for Taipei City Mall, DNAxCAT, decorate the walls all the way throughout.  Since this is the "otaku" section, they tend to be Japanese-themed pictures.  They're adorable, and you can buy their character goods!

Welcome to Taipei City Mall!

 So this post is actually just a compilation of the DNAxCAT pictures since photography is forbidden inside the actual shops (sorry!)

This old man is resting in front of this fake food stand

 The otaku goods start to pop up around Y12 or so, with the food (and maid cafes and butler cafes!) at the very end.  At the end of the mall is also where events take place, such as yukata or cosplay events!

Sadly, cannot go inside... this was right outside Maiden Diner

 There is also a stage right at the beginning of the mall, at Y3.  Sometimes there are classic Chinese song performances by old folk.  Sometimes there are Japanese-theme performances to coincide with any events happening that day!

Do you know this depicted event?  Bonus points if you do!

We, too, can dance!

This picture is split by a door

 I enjoy the nerdy atmosphere and being able to browse through so many different types of plushies and figurines.  Be aware that many shops are "cubby shops" where each cubby is rented by a different person, so they set their own prices.  Shop around to see who has the best deal!

It says, "Welcome to Taipei City Mall"

  

Oops!

If there are no events happening, you can often find high schoolers practicing hiphop dance at the end of the mall.  Large, open spaces are difficult to come by, so several metro stations with extra space have put up mirrors to allow these students to practice.

Announcing the yukata special display for the last half of August and event on the 15th and 16th

Cats can do dance as well!

 Usually I start from Y1 and go up the right side of the mall, which is essentially a long hallway split into halves, and then come back down the left side before getting back on the metro.  The end of the left side also has several Indonesian food and goods shops because there are many Indonesians in Taiwan as well.

I bought a couple Pokemon figurines on this day and took my cousin to Maiden Diner~

Does your city have an "otaku" region or shop(s)?  Share photos if you have them!!

Typhoon Soudelor

If you haven't heard the news, we are currently in the middle of a very serious typhoon, Typhoon Soudelor.  While many places have flooded and several of my friends are without power or had their windows ripped out, I am currently still lucky to have power and only minor leaking (I am staying with my mom in her 9th floor apartment.)  I witnessed the roof ripped off the home across the street from us, though!

Trees are being completely torn apart and thrown about and some people have drowned.  The typhoon is hopefully leaving tonight/tomorrow morning!  This is the most serious typhoon I've experienced in the five plus years I've been living here!  There has been at least one landslide as well.

This reminds me of tornado season back in Minnesota, but with rain as well -_-;

Hopefully nobody else dies, and the typhoon leaves tonight.  My boyfriend's flight back to Taiwan from Tianjing, China, is tomorrow... I hope our apartment is faring well.  And hopefully it is not leaking... my Wa-Lolita outfit at my mom's house had to be binned because the water caused the print to run *silently weeping*

There is actually a KERA magazine event happening from 8/6-8/9 here, but I did not go.  Several Lolita friends who did go to meet the models (Midori and I believe Kimura U?) braved the storms in full-on Lolita wear!  The metro is still a relatively safe method of transport, and the event is luckily held very close to a metro station.

Stay safe, everybody! (look at the pixel ribbons and heart I did)

Alice is Coming

Alice in Wonderland is probably the most popular story in the Lolita community.  There have been countless Alice themed prints and the whimsical innocence and essence of the story reflects what Lolita fashion is all about!  So of course when I happened upon 來自愛麗絲/Alice is Coming, of course I had to go!

It is a second-floor restaurant above a Family Mart

It is on the second floor and the entrance is just a little door with a vine-covered hallway.  A card guard watches the door.  Take a right past the bookcase and you'll see the archway of playing cards that welcome you to Wonderland!

Entering

Menu snap! I put jewels by the one I ordered

Taiwan Teddy and Alice Bunny

 The restaurant knows their customer base well - there is a section set up purely for taking photos!  The entire restaurant space is spilling over with Alice paraphernalia as well!

Entire section devoted to photos with props!

Maybe you will be seated in the Queen of Hearts' garden?

 The details in the place mats and coasters are really cute and make you want to keep them!  OK, I actually did take a coaster for scrapbooking ^u^v  Just too cute!

Lovely coaster with a silhouette of Alice in a red rose

Hardcover menu

Playing card place mat

There were many, many puzzles of Wonderland themes that were framed on all the walls!

You're nothing but a deck of cards!

Adorable teapot

       There was a shelf of goods you could buy as well

I actually went twice in a week!  Their vegetarian options for savory foods consists of only two items, but if you've got a sweet tooth then half the menu is yours for the trying!  It is always time for tea, after all~

Round 1: garlic mushroom brunch with French Toast and potato chunks

The plates appear to be custom rose clocks as well

The door Alice tried to go through! This is a fake door on the way to the bathroom

The second time I went, I got the King set meal, which allows you to add $130 to choose any $160 beverage.  I chose a cappuccino to go with my sandwich

Round 2: Vegetarian Sandwich.  The picks are card suits!  I kept mine for scrapbooking

 And the coffee came in this absolutely adorable and completely unique cup!  Definitely an Alice item, it is modeled after three teacups stacked together and really has three handles.  You can choose which one or two to hold on to in order to best get the beverage in your mouth without spilling.  I thought it would be difficult, but it proved to be well-designed and I REALLY WANT ONE

Triple serving?

For the month of August there is a "Mad Hatter's bonus event" where for every $500 spent you earn a ticket to exchange for a cake.  Our combined total for three set meals today was over $1000 so we got two tickets!  Which means... I'll be back...

Have you read both Alice in Wonderland books?  Which did you enjoy more?  I personally get the two a bit confused because Disney Alice combines the two together, and the Red Queen and Queen of Hearts are often used interchangeably despite the fact they are quite different in disposition!  However, I do feel that I like the first book a bit more than the second, Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found Behind it.  

Maiden Diner Maid Event

There are precious few maid cafes in Taipei, so I suppose one cannot be too picky, but I do have a favorite: Maiden Diner in Taipei Main Station Metro Mall (by Y27, close to 北門/Beimen station)

I took my cousin, who is visiting from New York, to Maiden Diner, and learned that there would be an event on August 2, today!

Since they weren't taking reservations and I failed to buy tickets in advance, we tried our luck at the door and bought the last five tickets for the 12-2pm event!  Since my cousin had planned on spending Sunday with my dad, grandma, and my dad's girlfriend and daughter, I dragged them along too ^u^v

I took some photos of the event, and even won the game of Bingo!  (And for those of you wondering, yes, every other table consisted of your stereotypical otaku nerd boys.  We were the only family table there covering three generations)

The event tickets were NT$500 and contained:

1 of 4 dishes

1 of 9 drinks

A Bingo game with the maids

A Polaroid and a button

Maid Yume collecting tickets at the door

I definitely just snuck this photo

Aya clearing our table

I wore light Lolita today:

I'M A WINNER!

Taiwan Teddy introducing: waffles and ice cream!

Taiwan Teddy special on the ice cream and macaron!

Taiwan Teddy with the Maiden Diner message book!  I drew my favorite maid (Maid Remy) as a TsumTsum

Everybody received a random gift bag of a maid Polaroid and a button.  I liked the ones I got!  There were a total of three button designs I believe.

Menu, also showing photo prices for 1-4 maids (NT$100-$300) and buttons for NT$60 (3 designs)

And some photos from the first time I took my cousin there:

I drew Maid Aki as a TsumTsum that day

Sneaky snap of Maid Yume (I prefer her natural hair!) and our food!

Maids and Lolita fashion often get confused together and it annoys many Lolitas, but I personally really adore maids if they've got cute uniforms!  I'm all about that kawaii life ^_~

Are there maid cafes or something similar where you live?  Do you like the idea of maid cafes?  Even though maid cafes seem to attract many odd characters, I definitely think having very cute servers and focusing on the presentation of the food (e.g., drawing on the plates) is a great break from the nitty gritty of reality sometimes.  It's like entering a fantasy world for a short period of time!