As a personal friend of Dalin's, I was very excited when she announced that she would be hosting a giveaway contest over at her blog, La Vida Frills. The theme of the contest is "My Dream Outfit," so I thought I would be SOL on this one, as I already own what I imagined to be my dream outfit. However, I decided to sit down and give it a go anyway, and I'm... happy AND sad to say that now I probably have a new dream outfit. I'm happy, because that means that I can now enter this contest... but... I'm sad because now I want to buy everything in this set. Sigh!

Miss Lumpy's dream outfit by herlumpiness


Unsurprisingly, the main color in my coordinate is, as always, light blue. One of my favorite pairings is light blue with dark colors like black or navy; with autumn setting in, I've really been feeling brown lately because it reminds me of whipped hot chocolate and thick vegetable stew and all the other delicacies of autumn. The main reason this outfit embodies my personal style is because it's vintage-y classic lolita enhanced by quirky, eclectic accessories that still remain elegant. I've paired my favorite bonnet, a custom piece by Ophanim Gothique, with a beautiful JSK by Mary Magdalen and a flowy sheer blouse by Victorian Maiden for that classic, old-fashioned look. Because it's getting chilly here, I'd probably feel like jumping off a bridge if I had to cram my feet into uncomfortable, breezy heels; these boots are almost exactly like my personal cool-weather staple, a pair faux-fur-lined vintage leather boots from a thrift store on the Lower East Side, paired with a lovely pair of cream lace tights. These shoes are so comfortable I wear them as slippers on fall evenings! Though I'm usually a big proponent of bags you can live out of, these days I've been packing up a small pochette to tak to class with my bookbag, so I'm confident that maybe I'll be able to use a teeny-weeny clutch like this adorable piece by YSL. Speaking of practical, some of my classes absolutely forbid the use of electronics, so I've invested in a cute rhinestone watch - if only it were this beauty! I'm channeling my newfound love of mori-girl (a love for which I was in serious denial for a time but just can't escape anymore!) with a fur collar and a crazy stag-head ring, and of course, keeping it classy by piling on the pearls until they're practically dripping down my fingers.

I had so much more fun with this contest than I expected to! Readers: What's your dream outfit look like?

I've always felt that the best way to learn something you love is to teach it. Okay, so that's a philosophy I stole from one of my favorite authors, Paulo Coehlo, but the point is, whenever I find something that I really love and want to learn more fully, I've found that the best way to open myself up to knowledge about it is to teach it. The best thing about creative enterprises is that they're every-changing, forever evolving, just like the people behind them, and blogging is no different; just when I think I've figured everything out, I find myself faced with a new challenge.

That's why I'm starting my new series on lolita blogging, which I affectionately term "Operation LoliBlog." This ongoing series will cover more than just lolita blogging but also branding, marketing, and other genres of fashion and aesthetic blogging. I have a handful articles planned already, such as a review of different blogging tools and a few interviews in the works, but what I really need to know is:

What do you want to know?

I know what I find compelling and what I want to learn more about, but I'm not creating content JUST for myself! So, is there anyone you want me to interview or any topics you want me to cover? This series is for all of you out there as well as myself, so please, let me know in a comment or e-mail with the button in the sidebar what you would like to learn more about!

I look forward to hearing from everyone~~


note- I'm tentatively returning from my hiatus. I may have to retreat back into my cave come midterms and finals, but I've been so inspired lately that I just can't stay away any longer! Posts will only be once a week until I get up to steam again, but I have some lovely goodies planned, more than just this!

A quick break from the hiatus to tell you all that I'm not dead! On the contrary, I've been quite alive and keeping myself very busy. This hiatus couldn't have come at a better time- between classes, school/family/social life, and designing my fall/winter line, I can't even imagine what these past few weeks would have been like with blogging thrown in there too! I also didn't forget that I promised you guys pictures of my new hair, so without further adieu...

Are you ready?


'Cause I'm pretty excited about this....

Here's a doozey - a picture of me with no photoshop and only a touch of make-up:

What do you think? Also, like my hair clip? This one was a prototype that I'm keeping for myself, but it was to test out a new style of product I've been playing around with:

I only have two I'm going to be releasing in this style for winter, though, because I think they'll be much more suitable for spring/summer. These are mostly going out to my ladies in the Southern Hemisphere, who are probably sick-sick-sick of earth tones and bare branches!

I've also been devoting myself rather admirably to my studies. I know, weird, right?! Currently I'm studying Renaissance & Enlightenment Europe, World Literature since the 17th Century, World Civilizations in the same time period, War & Peace through Film, and... an introduction to internet applications (read: The Web for Dummies). Everything has proven to be incredibly interesting, and I'm happy to say that I've continued to use fashion as a bit of peaceable excitement in a world of dusty tomes and droning history lectures. Well, no, not really, all of the subjects I've studied so far have been absolutely fascinating (the European witch hunts, how sheep conquered Mexico, and the expeditions of Zheng He, the world' s first explorer). Er... except maybe that computer class (though, the Browser War of the 1990's - that was certainly a humdinger of a lecture! Naaah, I kid, it's fun).

One of my closest friends, Kayla, is in a photography class, and she just finished a portraiture assignment, which I was pleased to be asked to participate in! Here are some gems from our experiments together (in fact, the photos of me above were taken by her, too!):

I suppose that's all that's new for me! I've still been religiously reading all of your amazing blogs that I follow, but even still, how have you all been? I've missed you so!! Hopefully I'll be back to posting again soon, once classes calm down a bit and I have more time to breathe.

Hiatus

brb, getting my mojo back.

School starting, Amaranth Opulent, hanging out with friends again... it's all taking a huge toll on my energy, creativity, and my ability to create content that I'm proud of posting, so I'm taking a short break until I get back into the groove of things. Sorry for missing a post on Friday, I was in the salon for almost 9 hours getting my new hairstyle! It's not at all what I was expecting... you're in for a treat! I'm going to make you wait for it, though ;)

Please check back soon!

This summer, to celebrate the fact that I've successfully conned myself into another semester of college, I decided to do something I haven't done in what seems like months. I bought things for myself. I know, I know - just for myself, not for me to make into things or to give to other people. As should be no surprise, I turned to the wealth of wallet-guzzling talents known as Etsy. I purchased a beautiful hairband from The Elegant Elle and a messenger bag for school from The Bold Banana.



First up: Elizabeth Feather and Flower Headband by The Elegant Elle
The lovely packaging offered me a sweet, hand-written thank-you note with two business cards and promises of a discount on my next purchase. The package was wrapped in green tissue paper and was adorned with a black and green feather and a black ribbon.

This is really such a beautiful piece. It reminds me of the headbands that are popular right now in stores like Icing, but so much nicer quality and with much more soul.

Being worn:

Secondly, my White Rabbit Messenger Bag by The Bold Banana. I can't even tell you how excited I am to use this at school! I have a messenger bag from Mother Garden that I've been using as a laptop bag, but it just is not working for me - the strap is too skinny, so anything heavier than a pound or two and it cuts into your shoulder, and it's a very thin material and not protective at all. It's also bright pink and covered in strawberries. In case you haven't noticed, that's... not exactly my style anymore. So I invested in this lovely canvas messenger bag as a bookbag and laptop carrier. It has a great, understated classicness, and who doesn't love the original Tenniel illustrations from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland?




Yeah, but it can't fit that much, can it? Prepare to be as shocked as I was!

Three notebooks, two mooks, two textbooks, and a laptop, with room to spare! But I'm sure it looks all bumpy and weird when it's closed, right? Well...
I personally barely notice a difference; if anything, the extra bulk makes it look less sad and starved to me. The bag actually had room to spare, too, and could probably fit a few standard-sized textbooks and notebooks with enough room not to crush your snacks (I can't be the only one who enters class equipped with an arsenal of munchies to chose from!) There are also side pockets that snap shut, as well as a few inner pockets as well. I'll have to get back to you after a few weeks of use, but first impression dictates that this is really a great bag for any lolita going back to school or who needs to carry a bunch of stuff on the train or bus to work. The understated screenprint is lolita without being covered in rhinestones and glitter and bows, so it's great for slowly easing your classmates into your style while still preserving a very classic air.