Test, test, 1-2-3!

Testing my new blogger app from my iPod Touch. Now I can blog from anywhere!





I purchased this from Winner's today, but I'm going to finish it with a darker and more antique paintjob.

More little updates...And Dolly Kei suitable iPod Touch/iPhone Cases?

So, I finally recieved my iPod Touch 4 today, which means that not only can I ditch my first gen Nano (lol), I now have something with which to take better photos for my blogs and make videos with, I'm so happy! My iPod is going to need a case, so I've been looking for some that would suit a Dolly wardrobe (all from Etsy):

From toviecorrie


From TinderBloom


From ImaginationCake


From dorydesigns


From EvelynX


Most of these sellers have a few different styles or patterns to choose from. There was actually a lot more surprisingly, these were just my favorites.

I'm also making some other purchase debates. I've been wanting some Celeste Steine tights, but it seems their customer service may be crappy, and you may not get your entire order? Ghastly, we'll see on that.

The Atelier Pierrot Nutcracker print dress I've been eyeing. I know it's sort of a Christmas-ish print, but it's gorgeous and I would wear it all year long! And I think because of it's empire waist I could easily work it in with my Dolly wardrobe. I NEED IT TO LIVE!!!

Maybe not, but I definitely want it very badly.

Atelier Pierrot and some Dolly Kei by MolotovCupcake featuring vintage boots

See? I obviously need it.

Little Updates

As the title says, just some little updates:

1)The make-up tutorial is put off (again), the pictures are just not working as I wish. Which brings me to...

2)My YouTube channel???? I'm probably going to have to do the make-up tutorial as a video, so I set up the channel. No videos yet, but there's some favorites if you want to see what I'm enjoying on YouTube at the moment.
Strange Girl YouTube Channel

3)I'll have some more tutorials later in the week. I was hoping to get some in today, but I haven't been feeling well and wasn't able to get to the fabric store or my usual craft supply store.

And now, a little song for you:

Inspiratonal pictures

SO, I'm changing my "random picture" tags to "inspirational pictures", because I think it's more accurate, and will make more sense to first-time viewers of my blog. And on that note, here are some :)

I've been saving this picture of Courtney Love forever. Think what you will about her, she alway has amazing style.

Antique-inspired Accessories from Annie Antique

The shop appears to be closed for the time being, but the gallery has a lot of inspiration pictures for things very suitable for Dolly Kei

Click here!

Some quick finds

I found some little treasures for my dolly kei wardrobe today/yesturday:

Shoes from Payless 39.95$


Tights from Sirens, I also got them in grey-tone (which were worn in my last coordinate)buy one, get one 50% off:


Close up of tights pattern. It's a neat paisely, bead and lace print, printed on top of lace tights.


AND! A tiny tea service from Winners, 19.95$:

Thank you everyone!

I just wanted to say a quick thank-you to everyone who has decided to follow and/or read my blog. Over 22 followers and almost 3000 page views! I'm glad I decided to do this :)

A Dolly Kei Coordinate

So here's my outfit from today; it includes the hair peice I made in my last post :)

So the full outfit, sorta dark, I apologize for the crappy quality.




Close-up of my necklaces:




I was wearing these:


My boots and tights:




My make-up:


And of course, my new hair peice :)


Dress: Second-hand
Crinoline: BCBG
Cardigan: H&M altered with lace trim
Fur collar: Hand-made
Tights: Sirens
Boots: Spring
Necklaces: Assorted hand-made and altered Claire's
Rings: Vintage, gifts and Claire's
Hat/hair peice: Hand-made

New Hat/Headdress Flower-type thing. Not quite a DIY tut, but you can easily make this yourself.

So I was going through my stuff (hats to be specific) to see what I had sitting around before I jumped right in and made or purchased something new for a coordinate I was creating today. I didn't have anything to suit my mood, BUT I did have a bunch of silk flowers, so I decided to make a new piece.



This looks complicated, but it's really easy to make. All you need is an over-sized silk flower (mine was already attached to a hair clip, making it even easier), some feathers (I used a couple of "loose" ones, and the main ones came pre-attached to ribbon) and some more smaller flowers.

Basically, you just take your flower, fasten your feathers (I sewed mine in, but you could just as easily glue them) in between the petals in a spiral pattern, moving from the outside in, making the feather layers as thick or heavy as you like. Once attached, place your "loose" feathers here and there as you like, and then simply place your smaller flowers in the center (again, sew or glue). You could even subsitute the center flowers for leaves, more feathers, a bow, butterflies, dolls, birds, anything really. You could also attach lace or a fringe to the outside part :)

Music, Coordinate, whatever else I feel the need to ramble about this evening

I was hoping to get my make-up tutorial up today, but my pictures tunred out a little darker than I had thought, so tomorrow I hope!

In the meantime, here's some spooky little tunes for you:









And a little coord:

Southern Gothic Fairytale by MolotovCupcake featuring sterling silver necklaces

DIY Dolly Kei Spoon Necklace Tutorial

Inspired by the lovely spoon jewelry I often see posted on the Grimoire blog, I decided to make my own. This is very simple to do, and the end result looks great and is the exact sort of quirky accessory that looks so good with dolly kei.

So you will need:


-Spoons (or forks, really any sort of cutlery). I'm using vintage spoons I bought from a second-hand store. Smaller spoons will work better (and give you more room for layering them with other things), so I suggest using sugar/salt spoons, or keepsake tourist spoons, both of which tend to be ornate. They don't need to be vintage, you can get some neat little spoons in many tourist shops.
-Glue. You'll need the heavy-duty sort, think superglue etc. I use "Bead Fix", because it will glue almost anything to anything, and it dries fast.
-Jewelry chain or ribbon. I used both :)
-Jewelry bits, gems, flowers, whatever you may want to add to your spoons to decorate them.
-Jewelry closures and connectors (I use Blue Moon)
-Jewelry pliers. Like I always say: not neccessary, but they will make your life much easer :)
-Tweezers: these will make it easier to place the items you are gluing.

So, 24 hours in advance, you're going to want to glue your connectors to the back of your spoons like so:

Make sure the surface of the spoon is clean and dry. Then add your glue sparingly (you don't need a lot, and too much can crack) and add your connector. I used tweezers to place them so I could do it quickly and accurately. Now you just have to wait overnight for them to dry!

Next, decide what you'e going to decorate your spoons with. My spoons had some ugly little pictures on the handles (touristy spoons!), so I simply stuck a needle under the edge of the picture and popped them out. I relaced one of them with a cameo, and the other I decided to leave because it added to the "old" feel. I then added a bow to one (if you tie a bow around your spoon, make sure to add a drop of glue so that it doesn't come loose.), and I added some green hue feathers with black ribbon to the other (again, glue your decorations down.).


After you have your spoons decorated, give them an hour or so to dry. You can now add your chain or ribbon. If you're adding a chain, make sure to add another connector to the one already attached to your spoon so that it hangs "face out". Attaching your ribbon is easy as well: just tie your ribbon into a loop, pull it through the connector and loop through the other side. And done!





These are just suggestions, add as much or as little to your spoons as you like :)

Coordinate pic!

So here's a little dolly kei picture of myself. It's not terribly fancy or amazing since I stayed at home and made jewelry today, but here' what I was wearing:



You can also wear your fur collars on the side like a stole:



Ring shot!



Tunic Dress with crotchet: H&M Divided Black
Faux Fur Collar: Vintage
Rings: One is vintage and I think the other came from Ardene
Spoon necklaces: Made by me, from vintage spoons
Hair peice: Made by me from a silk flower and felt



I'll be posting some tutorials in an hour or so, but just wanted to put this up :)

More coordinates, because I'm still awake.

Insomnia strikes again! So I'll be up all night on polyvore:

Blooms in January by MolotovCupcake featuring vintage jewelry

Forest Doll escapes to Romania by MolotovCupcake featuring mod dresses

Brigitte Fontaine - Comme à la radio

Product Review: Claire's Gel Nail Artificial nails

I'm a big fan of artificial nails. It probably comes somewhat from my love of lolita. But I also think they can work well with Dolly Kei (and the girl's of Grimoire have been photographed wearing them, so :P).

Anyhow, I'm always on the lookout for new nails in new patterns and styles. I've seen the ones in Claires many times, but always avoided them. I gave in and bought these ones because the pattern was so pretty and delicate looking.

So I'm admitting right here: I pre-judged these nails. At 5.95$, I figured there was no way they were going to look as good, or last as long, as my 12$+ acrylic nails, or my 30$ nails when I get them done professionally. And I can admit: I WAS SO WRONG!

So the stats: the Claire's Gel Nails retail for around 5.95$. You get 24 nails in varying sizes (although I think these might not work for anyone with larger hands sadly), and bottle of Claire's brand "Pink" nail glue.



Pre-judement that turned out to false #1: The nails will be too long! NOT TRUE! The nails are actually the perfect size for my hands, not long at all. So no need to file them down to a "human" size and messing up the pattern in doing so.

Pre-judgement that turned out to be false #2: These nails are cheap! The glue will be crappy! ALSO NOT TRUE! I've had these on since Friday. They haven't popped off all through: various mannequin changing, wall system changes, carrying around loads of clothing, opening totes of clothing, laundry, dishes, tapping them on everything, texting, accidently hitting them on things and use of various cleaning products.

Taken Friday:


Pre-judgement that turned out to be false #3: These nails are cheap! They will chip and the colour/pattern will come off easily! NOT REMOTELY TRUE! Like I just said, I've had them on since Friday. The pattern looks as good as when I put them on, despite all the action they've been seeing. Not a bit of fade, chip or scratch to the pattern.

Taken today:


I'm really happy with these nails! I will definitely be buying them again. Despite their price being so low, they've proven superior over my usuals. And, they are far more comfortable to wear then the acrylics I usually get, and look more natural. Yay!

She waited at Death's Door: Polyvore Dolly Kei Coordinate

I meant to put this up the other day when I made it, but completely forgot. Go me!

She waited at Death's Door by MolotovCupcake featuring noir jewelry

DIY Dolly Kei Doily Necklace

Today I made a doily necklace to go along with my dolly kei outfits, and decided to document it so you can make your own as well. It's very simple and honestly only took about a half hour to complete.




You will need:

-A doily (what size depends on how big you want your necklace to be. I choose a small-ish one so I could layer it with other things.)
-Some chain or cord (you could also use ribbon)
-Connectors
-Charms/any bits you'll want to add
-Fasteners/closures
-Jewelry pliers (you don't need these, but they make it easier to fasten connectors and things)

I'm using a second-hand doily and charms and findings from Blue Moon Beads "Forged" and "Madame Delphine" lines.

So to start, decide on your placement. Figure out about where you want your items to hang before you start attaching anything:


Once you've decided the placement, connect the pieces for your middle or "main" decorative section:


You can then attach to the doily using connectors (as I did), or you can sew it down, depending on what you've choosen for pieces.


VERY IMPORTANT: Make sure you connect/sew your main piece to the doily securly on all sides. If you don't, the main piece will be too heavy and will pull your doily and make it hang funny. This is where I placed my connectors:


So now you can attach your chain or cord. I suggest attaching it forst to one side, and then hanging it around your neck to easier decide how long to make it. Once you have your length, attach and close the chain to the other side. Voila! A very easy to make doily necklace!

And just to overview:


You could also use this to make brooches, or by attaching a couple together you could make a bib necklace :)

I hope this proves useful! Enjoy everyone!