Paris - La Vie en Rose - Part Three

Hello everyone,

This is finally my last post about my trip to Paris. I hope you like reading about my day.

 Sunday, the 22nd of February

I woke up feeling super tired and a bit depressed because I knew it'd be my last day in the house with the best house mates in existence. I was also a bit worried about my outfit. I had gone a bit nuts with creating things to wear the day before the event and although I loved it in theory wearing something so ridiculously OTT freaked me out since it was so damn out of my confort zone. Still I wanted to wear something different for a change and all my other btssb/aatp sets are a bit playing it safe so I gave it a go. 

I asked the girls to help me though because I knew that without the right hair and makeup it would look ridiculously and I couldn't have asked for more, they just made it all come together. 

The interesting part was that out of the 5 of us, 3 of us had circus themed coordinates and I had no idea whatsoever! How amazing is that?

The circus team, all of us looking completely different which is great.

Me and my amazing room mates. They were by far the best thing out of the trip. 

We left right on time to enter the tea party which for me was a bit late because all the staff was there before that. 

We decided to go on foot because according to the map app it wasn't that far from where we were. The weather was amazing, the best it had been so far and it was actually a nice walk. On the way there people stared of course, we knew how ott we looked haha and it was very amusing because along the way we crossed the "rue du cirque" which means circus street and it was totally unexpected and a total obligatory photo moment. 

When we finally arrived there was a huge line of lolitas waiting and of course some of them were familiar faces so I went to the end of the line with the girls, said hello to a few people and then left to the entrance to reunite with the staff. 

I got in, left my coat and went up. I got a short briefing and waited with the rest of the staff for the tea party to start. 

When the time came we stood at the entrance and greeted every guest one by one which was fun. I talked to people for a bit after that and then went to find a place to sit. We tried seating in some areas but ended up in a corner of the room and our party was separated which sucked to be honest. The space was very pink and bright and the ateendees all looked amazing again. 

This was the entrance, the stairs where we stood to greet everyone are on the right in this shot. 

This table was where some of the nicest people sat hehe, the table next to mine - the one there in the back.  

I walked around a bit and asked to take photos of everyone, it seemed natural plus I wanted to redeem myself from taking almost no photos the day before. I still failed at taking photos with people though, and my ott made me a bit more shy, not sure why.

This is the first section of the space, then in the back where I was standing there's another room and then another space in the entrance where tf staff sat along with most of sfe and french cafe.

  

One of the things that made it impossible to move was the space and seating distribution.  I mean for all those people to sit it couldn't be helped but yes people had to ask others if they wanted to pass etc. It made it easier to see everyone's outfits though. hehe

Look, its Fidel in the back! He looked amazing! And I heard the lovely Marlessa in brown there won the best Alice and the Pirates coordinate! She always has the most incredible hair and accessories ever. 

The food was yummy and stunning. There was a tower of macarons and eclairs and some fireworks envolved. Guests all could chose from tea or hot choco which could be refiled. There was also one glass of orange juice per guest and 2 macarons and 1 eclair per guest. But there was a surplus so if one went outside we could get one or two more. There were also other 3 bites of sugary goodness later on. 

This is what I wore (and I'd like to thank the two photographers and my friend Marissa for taking these shots of me!):

Hat: handmade 

Sash: handmade

Scepter: handmade

Bag: Innocent World

Jsk: Alice and the Pirates

Boots: BABY, the stars shine bright

Socks: tutuanna

Necklace: Alice and the Pirates

Shirt: Mille fleurs

With our number tag we also got a couple of papers to vote for our favorite btssb and aatp coordinate. Also there was paper available to write nice notes to friends and people who we admire. I loved that idea and wrote as many as I could myself. And thank you for all the ones I got, i loved them and they made me happy during that plane ride back.

 

There were so many amazing outfits that day I wish I had taken more photos but the time was limited and it was all a bit confusing for me so again I failed to take many shots. This time I also did not get photos with the btssb guests, most of the atendees and my friends. I always regret that but its too late now.  

After this I unfortunately had to rush and leave because of my plane. So I said my goodbyes and rushed out. I asked for a cab because i could not get home myself and got home soon after. I took a phew photos of the amazing art in the house, i loved that place so much, i could totally live there. 

How wicked are these? 

I also took some more shots of my outfit and then got undressed and changed to confortable clothes for the ride. I got everything ready on time which was good. 

After I took this shot something happened... i realised I had left my coat at the tea party venue!!!!!! I was so upset with myself for being so irresponsible. I rushed to get a cab, asked the driver to stop there, got my coat (which was weird because the atendees were all leaving and I was running in there to get my coat looking completely different from before) and after I got it i just got into the cab again. 

The driver was super friendly and we chatted a lot in my broken french, he asked me about the event, about my trip, we talked about kids and travelling, it made me relax and feel happier about leaving so suddently. 

I thanked him and got into my bus towards beauvais airport. After getting there everything was pretty easy and I still had time to get some souveniers (got cheese and mustard for my husband and chocolate for mari).

On the plane i decided to have something to eat, some ratatoulle. It was the first time I bought food on a plane, not joking haha. It was ok, I was really hungry. When I arrived in Oporto, my husband and Mari were there to pick me up. I hugged her really close and cried like a baby. I was really happy to be back despite it all.

And that was it. I am sure i forgot a lot of things and people but its been a while now and my memory is terrible so this was the best I could manage. haha.
I was bummed i missed the raffle, the best coordinate election, the group photo and the after party but I was happy that, despite leaving my coat behind, i could get to the airport on time.

Love,
Jo

Japan 2014 -Tokyo Haul

Thursday the 6th of August

Hello again,

Since I'm behing Schedule with these posts and a shopping haul means some photos and no text (exagerating here) it will be fast to get it done.

I woke up early and went to the living room like any other day. The usual breakfast here is coffee (with cream and sugar, freshly made), an individual salad (lettuce, cucumber, tomato, ham and my fav sesame dressing!)and a thick toast with butter or jam.

I always get spoiled in Japan and then get a reality check when we are home. I often even skip breakfast.

 After that and of couse changing diapers, watching tv, rolling around on the floor with Mari and playing with her, I went back to the room and started organizing my purchases and taking out all the stuff from our carry on bags. Since I was doing that it made sense to take photos of all the things I got during this trip to post on poupee and also here of course.

The first item was a present from my husband. He knows how much I love Vivienne Westwood and we had been in the second hand store in Harajuku too but he wanted to give me something special so he tricked me, said he was going to the bathroom and went to buy me this instead. I love it, its colorful so its not going to be easy for me to incorporate it in my rock n roll sort of daily look but its amazing, i'm super happy! I now own my ring, a hat and a hankey haha - worse VW fan ever, right? :P

My new Vivienne Westwood 2014-15 fall winter collection hat.

 And this is what I got Lolita-wyse in Tokyo:

1. Mille fleurs petticoat
2. Emily Temple Cute dot (ivory x black) under knee socks
3. Emily Temple Cute Fairy Tale Frame Jsk (black)
4. Alice and the Pirates cardigan (black)
5. Accessories from Closet Child (2 ring bows, 1 rabbit ring, 1 rabbit hair acc/brooch - not cheap but i like them)
6. Mirror/charm from Q-Pot

 This is all my doll related purchases (VOLKS; Junie Moon, random shops):


1.Volks mook, came with their mascot.
2.Volks necklace for my dolls
3. Volks book kit so my dolls can have a nice looking hard cover book prop.
4. Tickets to dollpal in Osaka (not Dollpa)
5. clothes for my blythe dolls, special colab cotton drss, 2 pairs of socks
6. Last issue of Dollybird - this one comes with a chair kit
7. cute blythe notepad, can't resist stuff like this
8. 3 new rement sets
9. Random plastic bottles to use as props
10. cute kitty cat

 As I left before my new Juliette et Justine arrived here is a shot of it. I finally do not regret getting it, i hate the shirring and those black detachable things for the straps and I still find its too expensive for the lack of detail such as lace etc but I adore the print and it looks nice on.

Juliette et Justine ete des contes de grimm Jsk (black)

Some of you wanted to see my new bunny muchacha mook bag better so I took a photo of it too, here it is (I've been using it a lot here):

Ahcahcum Muchacha bunny bag

 We had one of those instant food packs for lunch, curry. Rice has to be made seperately but its still convenient.

I love the cute plate too.

 In the afternoon we did very little. I remember doing some cleaning and that my husband and Mari spent some time playing in the building's little kids playground.

This is the view from the balcony, that's Sango over there. To go anywhere we have to cross that bridge, unless we are travelling by car.

After taking a bath Mari got to play with her new toy, a kit that will help her train her skills to catch rea fish at a summer festival when she's old enough to try, cute!

 And before we finish the day of course there was yummy food as usual. Mari and myself love mushrooms and enoki, shiitake etc are ridiculously expensive in Portugal and so soooo cheap here. I just try to eat as much as possible.

I really like shabu shabu. Its tasty and not too heavy.

And that was my day after being so tired from all the walking in Tokyo. Calm days are nice as well, don't you agree?

Love,
Jo

Egl Portugal x Lolita en Nuncaxamais (Sunday)

The next day we woke up a bit late and actually ended up taking a bit too long with all the house chores etc to get ready and as a result.

When we left people were actually being very nice to us, but I did leave with my daughter since this was not the oficial day for the event and people are usually much nicer to me when i have her with me.

A very nice woman asking me why I was wearing what I was wearing, she was very nice about it which is refreshing.

The view from where the meeting point was, in the main Oporto avenue, Aliados Avenue.

We walked to our destination, the brunch spot, the famous Progresso Café. We arrived and as usual the staff was super nice, We took a while to sit down and even more to pick what to eat and they were still super nice and patient.
Finally everyone ordered and everyone just waited while chatting. I was pretty tired and I took that oportunity to put some makeup on since i did not have time to put any at home (haha).
When food actually came, Mari ended up eating a big part of my brunch order to an extent the girls asked me if i wasn't hungry. haha She eats so much!

Brunch time!

We were supposed to go visit a Museum but considering the delay and also what the girls would actually experience in terms of sight seeing, we decided to go for a stroll instead.

I love this photo. 

We ended up reaching a place that I love, the Palácio de Cristal gardens. It was sunny so it was crowded! It was still nice to spend some time there and to take the outfit shots for that day, there.

I am wearing my enchanted staff pin, can you spot it? It's so cute!

I finally wore the matching bow i got at enchanted and these grimoire tights that do not match anything... but are so pretty!

Me and Darkmaid again, she is such a cutie, she always looks perfect!

After this, we started walking back downtown and we finally parted ways soon after. I am definitely missing having these girls here and I hope we can see each other again very very soon!

I hope you liked reading about out weekend!
Love,
Jo

Enchanted weekend - Part 1

Hello everyone!

I am finally taking a break from work and it still seems like I have almost no time to do the things I have left undone because of Mari. Babies take so much of one's time don't they?

One of the things is this, making a post about my experience in Enchanted.
It was complicated for me to attend this time for several personal reasons but I am glad I did go in the end.

I went with the same person I went with last year, my fellow Porto lolita, Vânia aka lucythewhite. She has a friend who lives in London and he gladly took us in for the weekend which cut down costs.
The flight was ok... we were both very tired and I went feeling super sick as I had been for the last month. Last year I went when I was sick too so it seems like fate.

We got there, got in a cab and arrived safely to the destination. Introductions were in order and then we slept, like babies because we were beat.

I knew I was arriving late to this, I was part of the SFE team and I wasn't there for the interviews, the meeting, the partying... nothing. I missed all pre-enchanted meetings because of my job.

We woke up and started getting ready which was easy since both of us went with somewhat easy to put together coordinated for both days.

This is where we stayed. It's a really lovely flat, small but with everything brand new. I was in awe when i heard the brutal rent he pays for it though, lets just say its more than I make a month from my current job. 

This dress really makes me look short in this picture. What am I wearing? I wonder.

We walked around 2min to the nearest metro station and just headed to our destination: Liverpool street.
At the station we had to get coffee and eat something, we were starving and in desperate need of coffee.

And just a cappuccino and a a sandwich was around 7/8 euro? Super expensive, London is really expensive.

This area looks like this, a big mixture of old buildings and new buildings. Somehow it works. It is charming.

I just really like this selfie. haha

 When we arrived at the venue location there was a man filming the entrance and I guess he filmed us too. I then found out he was the Kawaii International filming staff. Duh Jo, just duh.

The outside seemed really nice but it was inside that my jaw dropped, the ceiling, just look at that ceiling!

Inside Gibson Hall, London

The plan was to arrive at the event venue at 12 to help setting up and we did just that. The only people there were helpers, stall staff and models at the time but i could already see everyone looking amazing.
When finally it was time to open the doors and welcome guests I was asked to help with the queue so I was greeting guests and directing them to a ticket assistant. It was fun but it took a while so i grew very tired in the end. It was nice because i got to see everyone's coordinates, one by one. I saw a bit of everything and i noticed head gear especially, everyone got really creative! I saw people wearing miniatures of all sorts, antlers... magestic hats, the works.

After watching the fashion show and because I had no time to see anything, I decided to go check the stalls very quickly and ran into people I wanted to take photos of and that's when it occured to me that it might be a good idea to start making use of the camera. I did just that.

My first photo was with the handsome Toni Määttä who was modeling for Fidel's fashion show.

This was the garden area outside where one could take photos. Unfortunately I did not stroll around and failed to see a magnificent gate that some others used to take photos. 

I am happy to have finally met both Lempicka Maria as well as the striking 

Julie d'Aubigny. How awesome do these ladies look? 

It was a clear festival of photo taking!

With my dear Sara L Orcajo impecably dressed in Fidel again. I tell you that man can do no wrong. 

And another amazing woman, miss Ada Nutella who inspired me to continue wearing lolita.

I was so glad to be able to meet Sandra Grummel. We have known each other for many many years online and I highly respect her as a lolita as a person. She is amazing. I was not disappointed when I met her and found that we have many things in common. Thank you for everything! I always love that Sina M. J. Maaliz sports metamorphose gear to these things. <3 I also like meeting new people!

I was super happy to see Vief Cumberbatch again. I did not know her before Frock On, she is one of Vânia's favorite lolitas and that's when i met her, when she made the introductions. I was happy to be nearer to her since she was also part of the team. The lady in the pink dress is Christina Dreijer who is one of my best foreign lolita friends. I just adore her. The other lady sporting that rad outfit she made herself (talented!) is another lolita I have known for ages and only met in person now. This event's main + for me was this, i cannot believe i met so many people i only knew online!

I also took a photo of these amazing french lolitas: Tro-Tro Anthropophagie, 

BloodyQueen Lolita-deFrance and Lunie Chan (the lovely lady behind lunieshop).

 Me with ATELIER PIERROT's designer/CEO Ashizawa. She was so nice. I was thrilled to tell her how much I love her brand and also how Osaka's Ap store is my favorite lolita store so far in Japan. They treat me very well there, always! And a photo with my lady crush, miss Aliki-Anastasia Arkomani who is absolutely amazing. You cannot believe her makeup skills!

Another thing that was a dream about Enchanted was meeting a special group of ladies. One of them is, of course, 

Marissa Barnett who is also a lolita mom and that's awesome. She also always has such original coordinates and her hair is always so perfectly styled. She's that sort of lady who would probably look worse in a wig. That's how fab she is!

I also got to meet the amazing DarthMyrrh Noblechaos, Betty Ho, Abby Woodham, Leechy Nut, Arthael Walkingshadow, and Jo Anna Balsamo who were in my opinion best dressed in both days. I have no idea how people can look this awesome but I want in on it! They are also very funny, nice and passionate people. I am really happy I met all of them and I hope this won't be the last time. 

I borrowed this photo from the oficial photographer because its the only nice photo of me and 

Vânia Rodrigues but also because Josine Maaike Annette and her absolutely jaw dropping outfit and Kari van der Voort who is just a living doll are there. I loved meeting them too, they are both genuinely sweet! 

 Unfortunately I do not have photos with everyone but I hope you do not mind not being mentioned this time. Rest assured you all made my day and I am still feeling like it was all a magical dream!

I missed all the cakes, I hate a square of chocolate that Vânia got for me and I ended up doing minimum shopping due to lack of time and will to shop i guess. I think the variety just makes me confused. haha

There were also amazing performances happening by the end of the day which only made the event more complete.

Everything was just amazing for me and i cannot help but be in awe with everything!

The evening ended even more perfectly, with a nice quiet dinner in the company of amazing people (including a "couple" that was super fun and whom I adore now like you have no idea! Me and Scarlet discussed our local communities and other issues. It was very interesting. All this together with very nice Indian food. Actually it wasn't very expensive for us because Indian food in Portugal is super expensive and we ended up paying more or less the same we would pay at a restaurant here.

After this we said goodbye and returned home by metro. We told João about our day, had a cup of tea and passed out a while after. We were beat, happy but beat.

So what did I get on day one?

1. A publicity leaflet from the printing company for Shades of Wonderland (I am waiting for the english version to be published and then i'll buy that in 2 seconds. I considered the german, that's how amazing that book is!)
2. Contact flyers and cards from people who I talked to and who were all super nice to me. Some brand flyers as well.
3. Enchanted SFE team key/wing/bow brooch, i adore it so much i am going to wear it often even out of enchanted <3
4. Purchase: Aatp headbow - Queen of Snow and the Magic - (i have the matching dress!), bought in the second hand stall - the bring & buy
5. Purchase: Angelic Pretty half bonnet - Eternal Rose Bouquet - (i have the matching dress and socks), bought at the dreamy bows stall.

That is it for day one, I hope you enjoyed reading! Stay tuned for day two.

Love always,
Jo