Bodyline Golden Shoes Review

I think just about everyone was excited when Bodyline announced that they were to start making tea party shoes in gold.

I was definitely excited as I had been wanting a pair to wear with Crystal Dream Carnival and various other pieces that feature gold detailing.


These shoes are called SHOES251 and they cost around £30. They kept going out of stock quickly, so when I saw them available in size 230 only, I snapped them up. Unfortunately it seems that I need a 235 in this shoe (their sizes are a bit hit and miss). I'm hoping they will at least be wearable for Revelry though, and if not I will endeavour to sell them there.


I'm pretty impressed with how they look in person. They're an odd textured material but covered in patent, making them shiny but not TOO shiny. The buckles are the snap on ones, which I find to be really handy so you don't have to fiddle with buckles every time you wear them.

I only tried them on quickly and they didn't seem overly comfortable, but most of that is because my toes were pressed into the ends! I think if they fit better they would be perfectly acceptable, but it's difficult for me to say as pretty much all shoes hurt my feet!

I'd definitely recommend them for people looking for gold shoes. While they're be cuter with more of a heel (I have definitely grown out of tea party shoes as they look awkward to me now), they're the cheapest gold shoes you are likely to find and they sell out so quickly that if you changed your mind flogging them should be no issue ;P haha.

Crackmilk strikes again!

My other Disney order finally arrived yesterday, and I also picked up these 2 other orders from my bf's over the past couple of weeks. Exciting!


Beauty and the Beast has always been my favourite Disney Princess movie, so I had to have something of this print! The bodycon looked way better but I'd never wear it, so I plumped for the Tale As Old As Time Skater Dress for $95. The print really is stunning in person!


I also figured I'd risk trying a play dress since I'd not worn this cut before. Also the print is so glittery-looking, and it's one of the most memorable Disney scenes ever! It's the Cinderella Play Dress, also $95. I'm not sure about it on me at all as it bunches a lot at the back, feels tight under the arms and across the chest, and shows my awkward little belly button piercing! Hoping it will grow on me since I already ordered another one from the new collection before this one arrived orz


When I saw that the PVC Skater Skirt was going to restock, I had to grab one. I'd literally just got the blue PVC cheerleader so I snapped this up for $60 as PVC feels great to wear! Skater shape isn't as cute as cheerleader, but black is a lot more wearable.


I'd also been waiting for a few more staples to restock, including this Matte Pinafore Pocket Skater Skirt for $75. Skirts with pockets are the best, plus the suspenders mean even heavy stuff won't drag my skirt down. YES!


Matte Bummers are another staple, and a steal at $30. I think they'll be great for under dresses as they're less bulky than the shorts I generally use. They're also longer on than I had expected, making them wearable as shorts too.


I grabbed Spider Eyes Hosiery too for $25. I'm not sure about them still, but they went limited and I panicked haha. They're like a funky version of fishnets!

Lastly, I picked up some Leg Bone Leggings on Ebay for £23.20. I feel like they're a must-have BM piece, and perfect for upcoming Halloween! I feel lucky to have got them for such a good price, especially as they're in perfect condition.

Now that Winter is coming, I'm waiting on some of the fleece-lined pieces! And a few naughty impulse buys from The Jungle Look...ehehe.

Giant Reading Festival 2014 Post

I suddenly realise that I never got around to writing up Glastonbury, so I'm going to try to write a quick Reading post before I end up never doing that either. I'll do a separate post about Camp Loner probably as I don't want to be too image heavy right now. My full album from the weekend can be found HERE, although my decade old camera is definitely on its last legs by now!


This year was my fourth Reading, and as usual I camped with Camp Loner (the best people ever). I ended up getting the Thursday off work so I could get there as early as possible, and the buses in Reading were much better this year. I hardly had to walk which was a blessing as my trolley broke, and once at the gates I got straight through without having to go through the windy barriers. Result! I even managed to put my tent up without help this time! Then proceeded to get too drunk & was sick outside my tent...

Friday

By some miracle I avoided a hangover, and first act on Friday was Gerard Way. I think a lot of people were disappointed, but it was everything I expected really. Kinda like MCR but not as good, and nobody really knew any songs. Afterwards I dashed off and left my friends as I wanted to catch the end of Hacktivist where I managed to catch some of their best songs, which was lucky. Rou even joined them on stage at one point! I stuck around for the Japanese band Crossfaith who blew my face off, Blood Red Shoes who were awesome and chill, and Deaf Havana who I enjoyed a lot more this time since I know them a bit better now. Then it was time to inch forward for...


Jimmy Eat World! Unfortunately this meant missing Twin Atlantic but I have no regrets as they were brilliant as always with a great setlist, which included Authority Song which is one of the funnest to sing along to (it features in my kitchen playlist when I cook every time haha). The crowd reaction was pretty good too. I had wanted to try to get right to the front but it was too busy to risk getting stuck in the middle! Because next was...


Enter Shikari! Which sucked a lot more than I'd hoped. I'd pretty much only bought my ticket to see them. I got crushed against the barrier at the back of the inner circle, could barely breathe, almost got my arm and ribs broken...no bueno. I had to get pulled out after 2 songs and I was really upset about it! I ended up able to see pretty badly at the side where I still had to dodge circle pits, and they didn't even play Zzzonked =[ not that they didn't sound utterly brilliant, I was just a bit bummed out and was the wrong side of the stage to see Rory C's shenanigans. BLAH.

After all that pain I went to see Warpaint for a much needed chill out session, and if you haven't seen them you really should as they always kill it. And then...


MORE JIMMY EAT WORLD! I had a hunch they would play Futures in full to mark the 10 year anniversary of its release, and I was correct. The set was so nostalgic for me as it was the first album of theirs I ever bought and it takes me back to being 14. Kill is one of my favourite songs still, and hearing it live was a bit of a dream come true, sad as it is. By the end of the show I had managed to get quite near the front too! I was a bit annoyed that so many people were just standing around and not singing along or dancing...like why did you bother to cram yourself into the little Lock Up tent if you aren't even into them?

I caught the end of Paramore's set after leaving the tent (I was right to not trust the rumours about a secret set in the Lock Up) and they put on a good show and seemed to be surprisingly well-received for the amount of hate they get. It started raining a little so I headed to Metronomy for a bit to warm up before Queens of the Stone Age.


While I'm still not convinced that they are headline material, their set definitely benefitted from the insane light show. They were really very good, much better than at Download last year. I was kinda grumpy and tired and cold though, which was a shame. Straight to bed afterwards!

Saturday

A whole bunch of us went to catch Pulled Apart By Horses after a nice morning at camp. Turns out I knew them better than I had thought, and while they're a little heavy for me I ought to check them out again some time. I stuck around for a bit of Dry The River since I had missed them at Glastonbury, and then caught a bit of Royal Blood as I'd been told that they were good (which they were). I was really tired at this point, so caught All We Are for a second time at the BBC Introducing stage despite originally intending to go see Lower Than Atlantis (who I got drenched seeing last year iirc). The Hives were a bit of a disappointment after being a highlight of Download, I think they only really worked in the charged environment of a small tent and not on the Main Stage. Don Broco were a bit disappointing too but throught no fault of their own; it was just my poor mood and the fact that I could barely hear them as their sound must have been doofed up. After catching the end of Foster The People Gemma & Panda bumped into me so we all sat half asleep and half singing along to Imagine Dragons before I dashed off for...


We Are Scientists. I liked them aaaages ago after buying their first album on a whim, and had been very bummed out when a bunch of my friends saw them at Give It A Name without me when none of them even really knew who they were. They were definitely worth the wait! The crowd went wild whenever they played an oldie, and it was a full on dance party.

I'd intended to cram myself into the dance tent for the Pendulum DJ set, but it was far too loud. So I walked around the little barrier and sat watching Jake Bugg whilst being able to hear both, which was a bit trippy. I got adopted by a group of people at this point and it was nice to just have people to sit with.


I've never been a huge fan of Artic Monkeys, but trust me when I say they were amazing live. I knew pretty much all of the songs somehow and can definitely see how they were headliners.

Sunday
Somehow Sunday ended up being the most fun day of all. I missed a few bands in the morning as camp was just too fun, and then we all had a laugh at Main Stage most of the day. I'm glad I saw Young Guns after missing them at Download through similar camp-related shenanigans, and we all had a hoot at Papa Roach because how can you not? Sleeping With Sirens sounded good for what they were, but I can't stand the singer's whiny little girl voice. A Day To Remember and You Me At Six were good, and I was too lazy to go to other stages and stuck around for Macklemore & Ryan Lewis instead. Everyone was expecting it to be crap, but it was a crazy amount of drunken fun! I don't think anyone didn't enjoy it, even if it wasn't really many people's usual thing.


Then it was finally Möngöl Hörde time! The most fun set of the whole weekend as I could dance about and wave my glow stick around without getting crushed to death, and they're one of the best live bands I've ever seen anyway. I hope they do more shows in future, even if not for a while.


Then I had time to catch the most of Blink 182. I'd heard from a lot of people that they were rubbish live, but those people were big fat liars. They were playing one of my favourite songs (Down) when I got there, and once again I was surpised to find that I knew pretty much every song. I must have listened to them a lot when I was younger and just forgotten about it! It was a great way to end the weekend. I had to get a huge portion of chips and mushy peas afterwards to refuel!

On Monday the rain came. We all got soaked. But at least it held off until then! And I got a lift back so I didn't have to fight with the crowds at the train station in the rain. Win win!

Now the long wait until next year.

Accidental Shopping!

Since I was in Bristol for a gig anyway, I popped into Primark to return all those black netty things I bought last time. I then inevitably ended up spending more money than I got back D=


The haul! The notebook was kinda expensive at £3, but I use them a lot. And how can anyone resist £1 Skittles?


I had been intending to buy a distressed and incredibily expensive slumpy cardigan in Urban Outfitters, but I bought this one for a quarter of the price. I can't really feel bad for little spending spree when I still saved money overall!


OH GOD I own too many shorts, but these were also a tenner I think, and I love the ragged patchy look of these ones. They fit pretty well too, so I'm hoping they don't stretch!


I get through jimmies really quickly, so I picked up these cute ones for a fiver. I used to have a shirt that I wore to deaath that looked pretty similar, so it's kind of nostalgic. I should have tried them on though, as I only realised that they are too big after I'd pulled the tags off =[


£3 tights that I couldn't resist. I have leggings that look similar, but they dye my legs purple so I can't wear them, so I will probably use these a lot.


I also tried on this cute cat dress...


...and this awesome tartan one! They were both age 12-13 but were a but long for my tastes. I kinda wish I'd bought the tartan one now though as it was so cosy and cheap!

Afterwards I stupidly walked all the way up Park Street to go in Forbidden Planet even though I knew I couldn't afford anything. And my stupid shoes decided to rub really badly! I ended up buying some drinks and a HUGE pack of crisps and sitting in the park reading for hours. I realised I kinda love doing that.

First Solemn Sun Gig!

On Wednesday Solemn Sun played their first gig under their new name in Bristol's Exchange. I'd have gone anyway, but it was actually a free gig which was a plus!


I managed to turn up really early because I thought there might be a big queue, but no one really turned up until after the doors had opened! I sat in the pub for a bit reading, and then I made some friends while waiting which was good. And the bar had Beesting!


I was feeling too self-conscious to wear any of the colourful things I'd wanted to, so I dressed boring in a Drop Dead vest, H&M shorts, Primark OTKs, and New Look creepers. With my stupid huge backpack full of shopping and emergency food, of course.


The running order. I went outside when Champion was on as it was electronicky music that I'm not a fan of.


We missed the start of Wildest Dreams because we couldn't hear that anything was happening from the bar area! It was really good though, reminded me a bit of Warpaint.


Solemn Sun only played a short set, but it was soooo good!


Their sound may have changed, but their song formula hasn't which makes their music immediately recognisable as theirs.


Tfw new buddies figure out that your camera has a huge lag and do hand photobombs...


Everyone else seemed to get setlists. I tried to take a photo of one but I totally failed! It was a shame that they didn't play any old songs, but not really a surprise since they obviously want to leave Jim Lockey & the Solemn Sun behind.


I panic-bought merch (I never got around to buying JL&tSS merch which suuuucks), and I regret it. I have a million totes I don't use already, and the sweater is so plain (there's literally just a wetlook logo on the back that will be covered by my hair), but I got both for £15 so it isn't tooooo bad. The sweater should be really useful when the weather changes though, as it's practically a dress on me so will be good to wear with toasties!

I had a really good night, although I was pretty hungover when I woke up really early this morning! Oopsie. I never learn!

Princesses & Villains Mini Haul

Finally, the long-awaited Disney Black Milk collection was released! It wasn't what I'd hoped at all, but naturally a whole bunch of pieces grew on me. Unfortunately, most of those pieces were super ninja limited, so I couldn't get my hands on many of the things that I wanted! I missed out on 4 pink things I wanted, a mermerald crop, and both PVC bodysuits...but I did manage to ninja 3 pieces on release day thankfully!

The release was a nightmare though. A bunch of things sold out in seconds, but sat forever on the US site that only US customers can use -_-

Once again I managed to skip customs, even though I accidentally sent it to my address instead of the bf's (I used to ALWAYS get hit for customs, even on packges barely over the limit!). I also finally got my first gold package!


My haul! Bit of a colour theme here.


Bits and bobs that came with my order. I'm being overrun with these stickers, I should find somewhere to use them all! I also decided I NEED all the lookbooks, which means ordering every big release night. Oh dear...


First up, the one I was least sure about but grabbed just because I could: The Wallpaper Lemon Crop that was $45. I'm not sure about yellow on me because I'm pale with slightly yellow-toned skin. The shape is so adorable though. If only they'd done a pink verion!


I also grabbed the Wallpaper Sky Blue Reversible Crop for $50. I kind of wish I'd grabbed the Wallpaper Princess Pink Leggings too since they were still in stock for a while, but I decided to wait for a restock on the Wallpaper Princess Pink Evil Zip Dress instead since I already have Merbarbies!


And my little bundle of joy haha.


I'm so incredibly glad I managed to nab a PVC Sky Blue Cheerleader Skirt, although I'm gutted I didn't score a pink one (blue suits me better though, so I'm glad I went for it first!) or either bodysuit. It was $70, and worth every penny. It's so noisy to wear, but it looks pretty amazing. I immediately ordered the PVC Skater Skirt after trying this on since it had restocked the same day, oops!


Rubbish photos, but everything grew on me when I tried it on. Still not sure about lemon though!


Loosely related, I bought these Logo Legs off BSS on a whim for £25 the other day. They're way comfier than my other leggings, and I had been considering them before they went museum, so I'm pretty glad I got them! They're a bit brandwhore-y though...


BRAND-WHORE MODE: ACTIVATED!

I'm actually at 49 instore BM purchases now, which means I'll get a voucher with my next order. Exciting!

First Taobao Order!

After being too scared of using it for ages, I finally made my first Taobao order!


I used TaobaoSpree and the person who dealt with my orders was called Ray. The ordering is a bit confusing, and I'd stand no chance of finding things on Taobao to buy really since everything is in Chinese, but I would definitely use TBS again in future as it was all very smooth. I do wish they'd have an account system like FromJapan though as it would make keeping track of purchases a lot easier. The whole process was quicker than I'd expected.


They even sent this free jewellery in my package!

The only thing I'd say to watch out for is package markdowns, as I think they do it automatically and you might not want that if you're ordering a bunch of valuable stuff.

Onto the stuff!


I knew I needed the doge dress when I saw it on Lolita Updates, even though it looks dumb.


The brand is called The Dream Of Alice. I hadn't heard of them before.


I couldn't decide between OP and JSK so I ordered both, since they were only around £30 anyway.


Both are shirred without zips, and take a bit of wriggling into. They also look a bit yellower than the stock photos, but not too bad.


The OP has detachable neckties...


...and waist ties. The cut is pretty unflattering though.


The JSK is more fitted, but it suffers the same problem as brands like Emily Temple Cute and Innocent World. The waist is too roomy, and the bust is too tight! This is despite the shirring.


The straps are adjustable though, which is good.

As for general quality, they aren't as bad as they could have been. They feel reasonably soft but the fabric is quite sheer and there were lots of loose threads, but I think that's probably unavoidable with this kind of fabric when made cheaply.

I also finally bought some a-line petticoats! I figured I'd give Classical Puppets a go since I've heard good things. They were around £16 each which is the same price as the victoriangirldress Ebay ones.


I instantly regretted buying 2 a-lines since I could do with a new cupcake.


The organza fabric is really nice though and not at all scratchy. They can be squished into a tiny bag, and yet have mega petti power after a quick shake.


However, they are too short. I bought the 'longer length' version purely for my Juliette et Justine dresses, but they have a jellyfish effect from being too short. So I essentially have no use for these petticoats as I don't wear a-line things. Poop.

I'm happy with my purchases though, and proud that I didn't go overboard buying things!