Happy Hallowe'en! Favorite Snaps of the Week!

I hope everyone is having a lovely Hallowe'en! I spent the night at home, watching Antiques Roadshow and eating candy, haha! Here's a little personal pic of my jack-o-lanterns though :)


And now for my favorite snaps of the last week:


Can we really say "old-school" Dolly Kei yet? This is reminiscent of style we saw early on, but not so much anymore. From ridsnap I believe.



Kaori, understatedly elegant, from the Grimoire blog.


Mai in a fur stole from the Grimoire Almadel blog.

Don't eat too much candy everyone!

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X-rays & Embroidery by Matthew Cox

I love medical curiosities, and I love the dainty art of embroidery. And as it turns out, the juxtaposition of the two makes for strangely beautiful and memorable images.


These are the works of Matthew Cox. Stark x-rays combined with the warmth of embroidery.

From his website:

"Redefinition motivates me to create my embroidered x-rays. The stark clash of two such divergent materials, cloth and plastic, is the simple catalyst. One tactile and labor intensive, the other technical, and quickly a finished product. There’s a wide historical context, one ancient, decorative, and artisanal, the other contemporary and devoid of aesthetic intention. By simply placing one of these materials on top of the other the understood purpose of each is redefined.
For me, stitching has a nurturing aspect and acts as care giving or healing to the injured, a socially feminine sort of action, while the x-ray itself can be considered masculine and unemotional. Finally, my own recognition of what is beautiful [these separately became appealing to me at about the same time]. As an artist who takes on tedious, labor-intensive projects, I am also reacting to the ever-increasing presence of photography in contemporary art – by introducing the process of labor over the quick, slickness of film."



To see of Matthew Cox's work, and to learn more about him and his work in general, click HERE for his official site.


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Favorite Snaps of the Week

Heri, from the Grimoire blog. This is actually a photo for the "staff coordinate selection" bags they're going to have for sale.


Miyoshi, from the Grimoire Almadel blog. I just really like this picture!

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Suppurate System "Dark Decadent Tea Party" Review

Finally! After months of waiting I have them!

I ordered: Skull-Berry Key Necklace, 6,200yen and Coffin Cookie Ring (Type: Ant), 5,800yen (and paid for EMS).

I placed my order on May 6th using Suppurate System's new international webshop. It was for pre-order, so I assumed it would take a little longer to receive them as the items were not in production yet. I received my confirmation e-mail right away. I didn't hear anything else from them until June 24th, when I received an e-mail letting me know that they had indeed gotten my payment, that the product launch was scheduled for July, and that they would e-mail me again when they sent out my items. Months went by, no package from them, no e-mails. So finally on Sept. 28th, I sent them an inquiry with all my order information asking if the line had been launched, and of the status of my order. I didn't ever receive an answer, but my items showed up October 21st.

The lack of communication was very disappointing, as was the amount of time it took to receive my items. Like I said, I knew ad a pre-order it would take some time, but I feel this is a little much.

On to the items themselves:


It arrived in an EMS envelope.


There was some bubble wrap inside (not much), and each piece was concealed in a little plastic bag.


There were also 3 Blood mini posters and 1 Tokami (both bands have done collaborations with Suppurate System).

So the first thing I noticed: They sent me the wrong ring. I had ordered the ant version, and they sent me the bee. I like bees, and I'm not going to bother sending it back, but I ordered the ant. Second thing: one of the berries on the ring is smashed.














The ring is adjustable, but probably won't fit larger hands.


The necklace arrived with the cord being stuck to the back of the key in a way so that I couldn't wear it. I had to tear it off. It looked as if the glue hadn't been dry when they packaged it, and it accidentally got stuck.








The quality for Suppurate System can be hit or miss, but I have to say despite other flaws in this experience with them, the quality is quite good. The key on the necklace is quite heavy and sturdy, all the pieces are secure and of good quality. I wore the key to work today and it held up without problem, and looked great.

I definitely am disappointed with my experience with Suppurate System for this order. Especially where all my experiences beforehand had been so positive. I think for the price of the items, they should have shipped them in a more secure box, and sent me the item I ordered. It seems like it may fare better to just order from their Japanese site and use a shopping service. The items themselves are gorgeous, but the service is lacking.

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Inspiration Wednesday: Vintage Hallowe'en Costume Inspiration!

Sticking with my Hallowe'en theme for October, I've scrounged up some vintage images that would make for great costumes.

















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Hair Inspiration/ Innocent World Winter Release

I came across this lovely hair illustration on Tumblr today, I think these styles would be lovely with Dolly! Imagine them with some tassels, flowers, or other delightful hair pieces tucked into them!


I'm also excited for Innocent World's "Royal Classic" winter release. Look at the tassel-print border! This is going to be a must-have for me for my more Dolly-inspired Lolita coords. This jsk would be so amazing with an embroidered cardigan, patterned tights, faux or vintage fur stole, and a great hat and boots.



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Favorite Snaps of the Week/Dolly Kei Hallowe'en Costumes

Kaori, from the Grimoire blog. Adorable dress with some "loud" accessories, this is how you do "simple" in Dolly Kei.

These next ones also come from the Grimoire blog, but are the staff's dolly kei versions of traditional Hallowe'en costumes:


Miyoshi as Alice in Wonderland.


Heri as Little Red Riding Hood.


Eri as a witch.


Saki as...I'm not sure really. It showed a picture of Katrina from Sleepy Hollow.

What do you think is a good "dolliable" costume for Hallowe'en?

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Trend in Dolly Kei: Black Felt Hats

Bowler, fedora, boater, fez or cloche-shaped, for the last few months it's been near impossible to find a series of Dolly Kei related street snaps/coord posts that didn't involve a hat (most notably from the Grimoire and Grimoire Almadel Blogs).





They're being worn with pretty much everything. The gothier coords, the lighter coords that border on Mori and Cult Party, and the pattern upon pattern overload Dolly. Pretty much any range of Dolly is seeing the addition of a black vintage-style hat.








Luckily, vintage-style felt hats are very in style at the moment for mainstream fashion, so if you can't find yourself a lovely vintage piece, you can probably find one easily elsewhere. I've seen various styles at stores like Forever 21, Le Chateau, Urban Outfitters and H&M.

What's great about a relatively simple accessory like this, is that you can easily add your own embellishments. There's no reason why you couldn't add brooches, a cameo, feathers, ribbon or a scarf. Anything really!

My personal pick: H&M Felt Bowler for 19.95$


And...here's an incredibly awful bathroom pic where I look haggard/like I have a giant head:





And lastly, a couple of snaps from the Grimoire staff in lighter variations.












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