Sakura-Con 2015-- Day 2!

I might be the worst blogger of all time. .__.

In my defense, I just started at a new store (same company, different location) and it's like a totally different world. Good news-- more cute customers, bad news-- SO MANY CUSTOMERS.

But as I am working split shifts all this week, I felt it best and appropriate to take this time and finally finish my recaps and reviews of the amazing Weekend that now feels like a lifetime ago (it's been a month).

DAY TWO!

The second day of con (Saturday) is generally my favorite day. It's the day that has the MOST attendees and usually the most going on. So I had planned my outfit literal months in advance. Unfortunately, when the day came, my shirt I was planning on wearing went missing. Luckily I had a back-up.

Make up from Day Two! Eyeshadows used;  Eyelashes from Daiso,  Lips; Cover up by Benefit,  Black; Gel Eyeliner-- Lorac

Amanda's most adorable of outfits for Day Two! Skirt, Shirt, face mask and Sweater; MintNeko, Bag;  Moi Meme Moitie, Shoes; Doc Marten, Necklace; Forever21

(I actually do not have a picture of my outfit from before I bought my pieces from H.Naoto SO YOU HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL LATER IN THE BLOG!)

We were able to take a little more time getting ready and were definitely not nearly as tired on Saturday as we had been on Friday. After we finished getting ready, we wandered on down to the Convention Centre. We popped in at the h.Naoto booth (of course) and then visited Nike and Stephanie really quickly (and I didn't get pictures of their outfits because I'm a horrible person). Because we got down there a little later, we were pretty close to the Fashion Show starting so we just went ahead and went down to the main hall to wait for the show.

Press was allowed in with the advanced seating so we got really excellent seats that weren't technically in the press area but were way better for photographs and right at the end of the runway.

The show was gorgeous. Truly and absolutely stunning. There were so many different silhouettes and layers and prints and colors. Things that were a little more creepy and things that were a little more lolita. It was all very versatile and interesting and not something I've seen a lot of before which was really refreshing. I think I got pretty good pictures of all of the looks, but I will be sure to upload all of that in a separate post so I don't go overboard with photos on this one. ^^.

After the show we met up with Yuki, who only got to see the finale (BUT STILL) and since none of us needed to fight for any of the pieces (haha) we decided that instead we would go and get celebratory sushi. Which was delicious (except for the wasabi I did not know was going to be on there ;~~; ).  It was a nice little break from the crowd and on our way back, we went ahead and popped in at Starbucks to get beverages for Nike and Stephanie and so Yuki could try the Sakura-ccinno!

Yuki and her much awaited Sakura-ccino. Much love.

It was then that we decided to head back over to h.Naoto and see what was there still. During the show, the very last look had had a piece I was pretty interested in, but I didn't think it would still be there. JUST MY LUCK THOUGH IT WAS (meant to be~~~ <3!) So I tried it on and it fit perfectly and it even looked cute with what I was wearing.  I didn't want to fully dedicate myself to it quite yet though, so I tried on a few other things- some worked, some didn't- and finally settled on a couple of great pieces. We also got our picture with Naoto-san himself (and even one of just him. :D)

Naoto-san! Very personable and took the time to show people how the clothes should/could be worn which I think is really cool. Plus, his own looks were fantastic all three days.

Brittany-Day Two! She looked so good! (and look out for her in the fashion show, too! What a model.)

Amanda and Harry! Harry is the other worker at the booth who we have met/known for years. It is always such a pain to get him to take a picture! But his outfits are always really awesome. >.< He would only take a picture if Amanda was in it with him so we had some leverage this time- haha!

OMG this is my favorite picture from the entire convention. Naoto-san and Amanda. So freaking cute!  The very best.

A not as adorable picture of Naoto-san and me. ^^;; I just don't really know how to look cute. I'm also so freaking tall in those shoes. (This is pre-additional purchase)

Ba and another one of the booth workers! I know I got her information but I don't have it on me right now >.< I'm terrible.

After the show and getting the things we wanted/needed (ha) from the booth, we decided to wander out into the area right outside the main hallway. It's a good place to get a drink and also see a lot of great looks. And It had really great lighting.

My Full look for day two + the Amazing jacket I bought from the fashion show! Skirt and Jacket; h.Naoto Steam, shirt; Gramm, Leggings and Necklace; forever2, shoes Jeffrey Campbell.

Another picture of my make-up/great jacket for funnies.

Dani Winter-- What a sweet and wonderful person to meet. And such a great Lolita Look, too!

Sarah! A beautiful Lolita wearing h.Naoto Frill! Her skirt kind of matched mine but in all black ^^

YUKI AND ME! (My bag is also by Gramm)

Yuki is more glorious than any other human

After hanging out around the main hall for a little while, we went in to see the concert. GARNiDELiA and Kanako Itõ both performed which was really fun to see. They were both different but really good and it was a fun energy to be a part of. We really enjoyed ourselves but then, pretty soon, it was time for Karaoke!

Yuki, Amanda, and I were the only three at first. Then unfortunately, Yuki had to take off because she had work the next day ;_;. After she left, Jordan showed up and the three of us finished out the night!

All in all a really fun day! And we just couldn't wait to round it all out with Day Three!

Beautiful Yuki~ serenad ~~

Amanda~

This one was my favorite :D

Sakura- Con 2015 -- Day One!

I've given myself a little over a week to recouperate from the convention- and by off I mean  I was working mostly and then also laying around with my cats.

But here we are! A week (and some change) later and I'm here to deliver the first of three posts summarizing my exhilarating time at Sakura-con 2015!!


The weekend started off about how you would expect- I had opened the day previously (which meant I was up at 3:40 am) and then stayed up way too late preparing. So when the time came to wake up and begin preparations, I was already exhausted. Starting off strong- woo! Thankfully, I had already decided my look for the day which made getting ready a lot easier.

Here is Amanda's precious look for the day! The sweater and the bag are Mint Neko; a brand off of h.Naoto. The shorts are DVF, the shirt is an old Dir en grey shirt from their first US tour.

Make up look for Day one! Eyeshadows used are; Noise and Black Market by Urban Decay, Poison Plum by Sugar Pill, #70 by Napoleon. I also used Lorac gel eyeliner and Ink liner in Trooper by Kat Von D. The blush is Pale Pink by Bobbi Brown. Lipstick is Cruella by NARS. 

Day one look! The dress is h.Naoto 'Blood', the backpack is Mint Neko,  the shoes are BCBGeneration,  the tights are Forever 21.

We finished up getting ready and headed down walking towards the convention centre. As we neared the shopping district, we started to see more cosplayers about and that was our sign. Convention time was in full swing.  When we reached the Convention centre, we went immediately to get our passes. There was a little mix up on my end, but the staff was really amazing in helping us get things sorted out and in no time at all we were on our way. We definitely wanted to go to the opening ceremonies, so that was our first stop.

The opening ceremonies were beautiful! They opened up with this amazing drum performance (that I definitely thought I had pictures of... maybe they just went away for a while, I'll find them again and upload them later!) The host for the event was so funny and took his time introducing each guest really well so even the ones I didn't know I was feeling excited for. It started with the Consul-General Masahiro Omura coming out to welcome us and give us a challenge to learn more about Japan! He threw out Easter Eggs that had questions and people were to go to the booth and get the answer from them. I thought it was such a cool idea and a great way to get people involved.

And the costumes he came out in were amazing!

 Naoto-san was one of the first Japanese guests introduced and his english was really great. He let us know that he loved Seattle and he loved Starbucks-- can't argue with that logic, right?  He invited everyone out to see his show and let us know when it would be. He had a great look on already and his translator was wearing a Mint Neko t-shirt which I thought was really cool!

I didn't get pictures of all the other guests- my camera was acting up >.< - but the overwhelming sensation from all the guests was how excited they were to be in Seattle and how much they were looking forward to sharing with us whatever amazing thing they decided to bring with them. Whether it was voice acting or production or musicians, it was really great to hear the enthusiasm.

The ceremonies were closed out with this beautiful musical number played on shamisen. It was so amazing and they were so talented.  And they played/sang "Let it Go" in Japanese which I thought was just the very best. 

After opening ceremonies, we made it over to the h.Naoto booth so we could meet up with the booth employees, some of my favorite people to see. We only get to see them three days out of a year so it's nice to catch up. Not to mention I had to see all of h.Naoto's clothes. So we got up there and said hello and I dropped off the goody bags of instant coffee and tea that I had brought from work. It seemed like the only reasonable 'Thank You' for all the years of them taking care of us.  We were also going to be heading out to get some drinks, so I offered to pick some up for everyone at the booth and we headed out. 

As we were looking for the nearest Starbucks, so I could run through the rain in my white dress and heels, we ran into a few people down in the lobby that I just had to take pictures of. They were all so nice, which I think is one of the things that makes con so exciting. 

We found the Starbucks and rushed on over there, picked up some drinks and delivered them off much to Harry's delight. He even took a picture so somewhere out there is a picture of me show casing my incredible waitressing skills (four drinks in each hand yeaaaaah). As we were dropping the coffee off, Naoto-san peered around his merch table to see what was going on to which Brittany let him know it was coffee. His response was instant- "I know. Starbucks." Mission accomplished. 

I wasn't planning on buying anything the first day; generally, I like to wait until after the fashion show so I can see what big ticket items I'm interested in. But then I saw this absolutely exquisite asymmetrical, double breasted, high collared vest/dress. I wasn't going to try it on because I didn't want to fall in love buuuut Amanda made me. And oh man. It had to be mine. Amanda also found this really beautiful charm bracelet that was just made for her. "Steam" isn't really her line, she is a Mint Neko baby, but the charm bracelet was dainty and adorable and very whimsical which I think is just perfect for her.

Isn't it just the best?

We went out to lunch after that, collected all our information and made a plan of attack. Around that time, Yuki made it over! We got to meet up with her and also went (back) over to our friend's booth- Nike and Stephanie! They have this adorable brand called Sugar Star Candies (they are also on Facebook so definitely check them out) which has a ton of really great little accessories.  They're booth was basically constantly busy, but we still managed to bother them into letting us take some pictures.

Stephanie and Nike! I absolutely adored their outfits. I love the contrast and I just think they both look so amazing.

Yuki!  This is her 'casual' look but really it's more like majestically adorable.

We wondered around for a little while longer with Yuki, stopped off at a few other booths but a little before six o'clock we decided to head home for a little while and then come back for the dances that night.

But~ then Amanda made somen and we started watching a documentary about Robert Durst and eventually got too tired to stay alive. So we decided that we would call it an early night and make sure we were up bright and early and fresh for the next days festivities. Because Saturday would be the big day-- the Fashion show and karaoke!


So that was day one! And here were some of the amazing people we met!

 Ba! She was one of the workers at the h.Naoto booth. I really loved her look for day 1 (and I think I have outfit pictures for day 2 and 3 as well :D)

Brittany is one of the booth employees who we've met every year ! She is so fantastic and very sweet to us. She also knows what kinds of things from the merchandise we'll like. ^^

Vicky and Forrest LOVED both these looks  and they were both incredibly nice 

This INCREDIBLE GROUP was with Vicky and Forrest (pictured above) but I did't get any of their names ;~~; 

(I most definitely have these amazing ladies information. I just can't find it RIGHT AT THIS MOMENT BUT I WILL) They were incredibly friendly and had some amazing Dragon Age fan art that we just HAD to purchase.

Liz !! I loved her short hair with her hair accessories.  She looked so incredible and was really friendly. 

I'll see you next time for day 2!

Sakura-Con Survival Guide (sort of)

Sakura-con is TOMORROW. WOO-HOO.

And with everyone being busy busy busy in these short few hours before it all starts, I thought I'd write up a little "Survival Guide" of sorts with all of my favorite items to bring to Con and why I love them~! So let's go~~!

I've tried many an eyelash over the years and many glues to go along. For the longest time, I struggle bugged my way along with applying eyelashes. I couldn't get the glue to dry properly or the eyelashes would go on all wonky. I don't know why I struggled so hard but man did I. HOWEVER, then I tried these bad boys. The glue was what was really amazing for me. For an all day event- like Sakura-Con-  these will ALWAYS be my go to. The glue dries nicely and they stay on amazingly. I haven't had any problems with them at all and I've never had to worry about them lifting or moving. And when the glue dries, I don't have any problems with it showing up. Because the glue dries well and gets really tacky, I find the eyelashes go on a lot easier.

I also really like the look of them- there are so many different options including half lashes for both top ad bottom. Just to further sweeten the deal-- They're only $1.50 at your local Daiso Store!! 

I'm not usually a fan of make up brushes or sponges. Which sounds stupid. I just didn't want to spend the money because I'm cheap. And even though so many people told me to use one, I didn't. But then I was getting unhappy with the way my make up was going on so I went on down to Sephora and bought their brand of make up sponge. And I'm painfully in love with it. I don't even use any primer and it just looks so much nicer.  So for all my make up- and I mean heavy, heavy make up for something like con... like the heaviest of make ups- I like to use the sponge and then beat it with Almay powder to keep my face looking fresh and on point. 

(There was also supposed to be a picture of a compact here because if you have oily face like me, Neutrogena is the way to go. Seriously. It's the best thing I've ever experienced and when you're out all day with make up on for your cosplay or your fashion, you will waaaaannnnt)

SNAAAAAAACCCCKKKKKS.

(and also water)

I think one of the most import an things I've learned over the years is to always bring food! Wherever you're off to, especially at a convention, I think it's a great idea to have a quick and ready to go snack you can munch on while waiting in line or hanging out or whatever it is that's going on. It's also a great way to save money! You'll have food already on you and you won't be tempted to spend money on food at the convention center or at a coffee shop. 

My personal favorite right now is KIND bars. They're very simple, really delicious, and very easy to eat. They're also like... mildly nutritious which is nice. I mean.. as healthy as granola bars can be.  

Also, bring water! Stay hydrated! It makes the whole experience better!

I have a confession. I am a five year old. I'm terrible at waiting in lines. Just... absolutely horrible. I whine and complain and get severely impatient. 

So I need to entertain myself so my friends don't abandon me in a parking lot.  To do this, I tend to have on me my DS on me with a few games and DEFINITELY my charger. It's fun and portable and I don't have anything to really put away which means that when the line moves, I'm good to go.

Another trick I like is card games. Playing cards or otherwise.  It's nice because you can play with other people. It's actually how I've met a few of my friends in lines waiting for things.

To that point-- CHARGERS ARE GREAT TO HAVE. There will be plenty of places to charge your electronics and you will most certainly want to have it. Pictures! Communication! So many things! Bring a charger!

These a just a few of my favorite things for con. I have a million others. But I just picked a few of them that I really liked. 

SO THERE YOU GO AND YAY LETS HAVE FUN AT SAKURA-CON!!!!

I made a big change this week.

I shaved off all my hair.

Doing this is something that I've thought about before, but I always had a reason not to. 'What if I have a weird head?' 'What if I look like a boy?' 'What if I'm ugly?' But the thought came to me again last week to do this drastic thing. And this time I decided to do it.

I've made a lot of changes in this past year and it felt right. And the idea that the only reason I wasn't doing it was because I was afraid of how other people would perceive me? That seemed really wrong. I want to be confident because of how I feel about myself, not because of what other people are saying about me. I was avoiding doing this big thing to my physical appearance- an aspect of myself I've never been shy about- because I was afraid. Because even with short hair, I had people telling me that I didn't look feminine. So what would they think if I had no hair? I got angry at myself like I didn't deserve to have my hair if I was just going to use it as a shield to avoid making people uncomfortable.

So I did it because I needed to. Because I wanted to and I was tired of talking myself out of it. It's just hair. It will grow back if I want it to. Yes, it was scary. But it was also liberating and amazing and incredible to watch as more and more hair fell. I feel great. And I feel confident.  And I feel brave.

I've never been one to base my choices about my image on other people, why start now?

BALD HEAD
Make up;
Eyeshadows; Poison Plum- Sugar Pill, Angel Dust- Clinique,  Graphite- Clinique
Eyeliner; Trooper- Kat Von D
Lipstick; Cruella- NARS