Anime Boston

Please forgive the very personal nature of this post if you're not into that, but I'm very excited and wanted to talk about it here!! :D
I've recently decided that this year I'll be going to my area's biggest anime convention, Anime Boston. I wasn't planning on going originally this year, as my interest in anime is moderate at best and I would like to save for more clothes, but then I remembered next year when the con rolls around I'll be in Florida and with any luck the year after I'll be in New York (which, granted, isn't too far away but I'll also be busy with college). So, I've decided to go this year!!
It's safe to say this is the most excited I've ever been about a convention (though I have only been to three previous years :P). At first I was like, "Oh yeah, I'll just go to the manga library and chill, and check out the dealer's room like I do every year. No biggie." Then I found out that not only is there a Lolita fashion panel this year, there is also going to be a meetup and a fashion show (which I sort of considered participating in, but then I realized that the outfit I plan to wear is going to break a lot of traditional rules, but more on that in a moment)!! Also, if that weren't exciting enough, one of my favorite bloggers (Ms. Caro of F Yeah Lolita!) is going to be running a table in the artist's alley!! I simply adore her bonnets and am definitely going to be purchasing one while I'm there if she has a simple style I like!
So... yes. My outfit. Honestly, cons are the best time to break the "rules" in my opinion. I know it sounds rather mean, but there are plenty of people at conventions "doing it wrong," so if you break a couple of traditional rules and it ends up looking not-so-hot, people are less likely to notice. Yeah, that's a terrible thing to say, but anyhow!!
I finally decided this year I'm brave enough to try some bastardized form of sweet punk Lolita!! I've also been thinking of trying some lighter gal makeup, but to be honest my eyes look really weird with traditional gal makeup due to the fact that I don't yet own circle lenses and my eyes aren't big enough on their own so probably not.
This outfit will include:
A bowtie
Black/white striped tights
Pink Doc Marten knock-offs
A wig (which wouldn't normally be rule-breaking obviously but I'm ordering it from Bodyline so God knows how the quality is).
I guess these aren't all INCREDIBLY bad, though I'm mostly worried about the stockings. Most outfits I've seen with striped stockings have been a bit... meh, so I guess I can just hope I don't end up looking like a hot mess!! I'll also be wearing my Merry Sweet Castle replica so... I just hope I don't run into anybody who hates replicas. :P
So, hopefully I don't end up looking like a hot mess! If I'm anywhere between "meh" and "sweeeet" I'll definitely post pictures when I can get my outfit together!! If you're going to AB, I hope to see you there!

Lolita Game Review: Harvest Moon Animal Parade!!

This is the first time I've ever written a game review (or really, and kind of review) so please bear with me here. :)

As I mentioned before, this is a feature where I will talk about games that are fit to "stereotypical" Lolitas- that is, cute games, or maybe even games with Lolitas in them! (so most likely no violent shooters here, LOL :P)
The game I want to review today is a game I personally enjoy a bit too much: Harvest Moon Animal Parade!

I've personally been playing the Harvest Moon series since I was around 10 or 11 with Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life (which, tbh, I don't remember much about since I was so young and I was stupid enough to sell it so I can't play it :( ). If you're not familiar, Harvest Moon is a game series for various Nintendo platforms (and PS2 and PSP, though I haven't played any of those versions) that's all about farming. In this game in particular, you play as a farmer that moves to a dying town with a little fairy. In order to save the town, you must perform various tasks in order to help revive a tree to save the game's all-powerful entity, the Harvest Goddess. Most of these tasks revolve around farming. Sounds a bit boring, doesn't it? If you can get into it, it's actually quite fun.
First of all: if you're not into time-consuming games, Harvest Moon isn't for you (yes, probably even the portable versions). Whenever I get a new version of Harvest Moon, I immediately turn into an empty husk of a human being for anywhere from two to five weeks, depending on how it takes for me to complete the major plot (seriously, you ought to see my play time for this game when I first got it around two years ago... it's just awful xD). In fact, Harvest Moon Tree of Tranquility is the game that averages the most play time for people who own it out of any game for Wii. But, if you're like me and have a lot of time to kill, then this game is just awesome.
How is this game related to Lolita, you ask? Well... it's freaking adorable. Look at it.

You can get so many animals!! I have three sheep, two cows, a horse, and LOTS of chickens. :) The only drawback is that in your barn, you can only have three species of animals at a time, so if you're like me and DESPERATELY want a goat but don't want to sacrifice your horse, then you're out of luck.
Another feature about the Harvest Moon series is that you can get married. You do this by giving particular male characters presents and talking to them EVERY DAY until they like you enough, at which point you can propose. It takes a while to get anybody to like you if you don't give them presents, so unless you don't want to get married until like the third year of the game (which is as far as I got before I started getting bored with the game) then I'd suggest doing that. You can only marry a girl if you play as a boy, or a boy if you play as a girl. Since all the marriage candidates or little cartoon characters (obviously), none of them can really be called "hot." So of course, I married the super-flamboyant Julius (who would almost DEFINITELY be gay in real life... there is absolutely no offense intended there, just... look at him).

One of the major reasons I reviewed this game in particular though, is because you can wear something that's supposed to Lolita (though the skirt is rather short... and who would want to farm in Lolita anyhow? :P).

There's also a character that dresses in Lolita, even sporting one of those old-school chunky headdresses that I personally have such a love/hate relationship with (they look so good on certain people... but only certain people. And SO MANY of them are encrusted with cheap lace! But the ones that aren't are so cute!).

So yeah, Harvest Moon. I recommend it to people with too much time on their hands that like semi-monotonous tasks, but honestly, that's pretty much it. These games are so fun and cute to me, but there are plenty of people who I know would hate them.
But... just look at those cute little sheep!!

Check this out!!

Recently, a good friend of mine, Lizzy, has started her own blog! Her goal with this blog, she told me, is to "help people realize they can look good without busting your wallet." If you're interested in tips on how to look good for cheap, then definitely check her blog out!!
fullmetalphantom.blogspot.com

By the way, I have a couple ideas for a new section for "Loli game reviews," a feature where I could post games that fit the Lolita aesthetic or "feel." Obviously there aren't a whole lot of games featuring Lolitas, and those games aren't necessarily good, so I won't be reviewing a whole lot of those, so it should be mostly just games with cute characters and such. Expect a review later this week!!

LOTS AND LOTS OF OUTFIT POSTS

So, in case it isn't painfully obvious already, I've been slacking HARD on outfit posts. I've had all these pictures piling up on my camera, and I kept telling myself "I'll get them up there eventually..." and finally it got to the point where I told myself "I'll just do a mass post." So, two weeks after that decision, here is that post!! Unfortunately, since I'm terribly forgetful most of these outfits are undated, but please enjoy nonetheless!!

Rundown:

JSK: Bodyline

Muffler: BABY

Hoodie: Old Navy

Tights: Forever 21/We Love Colors

Boots: Bodyline

This was my Valentines Day outfit!! At the time I didn't have anything with hearts on it (besides my black cardigan with gold embroidery, but I REALLY wanted to wear pink!), so I decided to wear something with sweets instead! It was also very cold, so I wore my fleece hoodie (I know, it looks so frumpy but it was the only thing I had :( ) and my bunny muffler. I thought it looked good at the time, but now I realize that jsk doesn't really fit my body shape too well (my friend took a picture of me and I looked rather like a hunchback- and it wasn't entirely my poor posture's fault!). I'd like to get more jsks with longer torsos, as I believe those suit me much better. :)

Rundown:

Dress: TJ Maxx

Tights: Marshalls

Boots (again!): Bodyline

Those damn boots! I love them so much but I feel like such a loser for wearing them ALL THE TIME. :P

I wore this outfit to see Mary Poppin in Boston (it was such a good play!), so, once again, style was sacrificed for warmth. I didn't have any good heavier tights, so unfortunately I had to go with these less stylish black tights. I really wish I had red tights to match the bows, but unfortunately I don't and this would be the only thing I would wear them with so I doubt that would happen. :(

Rundown:

Sweater: H&M

Skirt: Marshalls

Tights: Express

Boots (not pictured): Borrowed

This outfit looks rather derpy and frumpy in the picture, but it looked much better irl when the sweater didn't puff out weirdly like that!! I don't have any pictures of it since I couldn't find any good lighting, but I had some kickass makeup on that day! I just recently learned to apply eyeliner (yes, I'm a giant loser when it comes to cosmetics :P) so I used some black eyeliner and it looked nice! Rather sexy, if I do say so myself. :P

Rundown:

Both shirts/shorts: Forever 21

Tights: Marshalls

Boots: JCPenney

I liked this outfit, if only for how comfortable it was. I hardly ever wear pants, and when I do I don't EVER wear denim, so when I found these pink denim shorts I was a bit skeptical, thinking they'd be uncomfortable like most denim tends to be for me, but these were wicked comfy! I'd like to get more pairs in different colors. :)

Rundown:

Blouse: Hot Topic

Skirt: Dream of Lolita

Tights: Marshalls

Boots: Bodyline

I love this skirt! I got it from Dream of Lolita for around $20- wicked cheap as far as Lolita goes!! It was rather low quality, though- the lace on the top of the corset part was cheap and scratchy, the ribbon in the corsetting was satin and already fraying, and there was a THIN satin slip with an awfully scratchy built-in petti. It was still worth the price, though, as most of these things can (and will!) be replaced! :)

Rundown:

Headband, cardigan: Forever 21

Bracelet, necklace: Charlotte Russe

T-shirt: Wal-Mart

Skirt: It was a gift, so I'm not sure :(

Tights: Marshalls

Even though it was freezing the day I wore this outfit (Oh, New England weather! Don't you know it's spring already??), I felt particularly "floral." :P You can't really see it, but the tights have little roses on them, and so does the skirt! The necklace, bracelet and headband all have flowers, and so does Minnie's hat on my t-shirt. Even though it was so cold, I felt a little more spring-y that day. :D

Rundown:

Jsk: Dream of Lolita

Blouse: Dream of Lolita

Headbow (not pictured), pearl bracelets: Forever 21

Muffler: BABY

Tights: We Love Colors and Forever 21

Boots, crown necklace (not pictured): Bodyline

Aaaand finally today's outfit!! This one was sort-of kind-of hime-ish, in that there was lots of lace, faux fur and bling to be found! (It's not in the picture, but I was wearing SO many rings! And they were all sparkly!)

I particularly like the blouse and the jsk- they were both cheap in price, but both have REALLY nice cotton lace! I was impressed with the quality. :)

That's it for this outfit post! I'm SO sorry about the lack of these, and I promise I'll try harder from now on to post more and on time!! <3

What a Fake Slut!!

Yes, even though I just did a feminism post a couple days ago, here comes another one since I'm feeling particularly feminist-tastic and the last post was rather lack-luster anyhow, so hopefully this will make up for it :)
One of the biggest part of feminism, I think, is defending women's rights to live the sort of lifestyle they want. I don't mean that I think that everybody that wants one should get a Gucci bag or a nice house- I mean that EVERYBODY should be allowed to do what they want, so long as it's not hurting others and they're still working to get their fair pay and what not. When I say this, oftentimes most people agree with me.
"Of course people should be able to do what they want with their lives!" they often agree, "If I'm happier with a blue collar job on a construction site than I am in an office, who are they to judge?"
However, most people don't seem to realize this also extends to less socially acceptable lifestyles as well. That's why I get so upset whenever I hear otherwise open-minded people see a tanned skin, scantily clad girl walking around the beach and roll their eyes and say "What a fake slut."
Now, let's have a talk about those two words- "fake" and "slut."
For the average American at least, "fake" seems to mean those girls who get breast implants and tans and weaves and whatnot. Of course, usually when I defend a girl's right to be "fake" without getting any crap from other people, I'm usually specifically referring to more alternative fashions, but I feel that more "mainstream fake" like that is fine too, though others don't seem to. So, what's the problem here?
When I asked most people why they automatically hate these girls who are immaculately tan during the dead of winter, most of them replied with something along the lines of "Well, they're always so slutty and full of themselves!"
The ironic thing is, a lot of people saying this say they're against stereotyping at the same time. Well, what do they think this is? Whether you like it or not, it's stereotyping.
I admit- I used to be totally guilty of mentally judging "slutty" girls too. My wake up call came a while ago, when I was walking in the mall by myself. There was one girl who, while not dressed too suggestively, was dressed rather light for the middle of winter and had all the "fake" attributes I mentioned before- tanned skin, piercings, weaves, the whole shebang. I could see people glaring at her out of the corner of their eyes, shamelessly judging her. I'm ashamed to admit it now, but I was right there with them.
While everybody was so busy silently judging this girl, a little kid wandered by, clearly lost. Nobody stopped to help him, except this girl. She gently asked him where his mom was, and he said he didn't know. She left with him to help him find his mother, and though I don't know what happened after that as I was walking in an opposite direction at that point, I do know that what that girl did was nice and she didn't seem like the terrible,  obnoxious person I'd judged her to be.
This made me realize that no matter what, stereotyping is ridiculous and while it's perfectly human to judge somebody a little when you look at them it's best to try to keep an open mind.
However, when it comes to "sluts," nobody seems to be able to do that. Honestly, who are you to negatively judge a woman based on her sex life? If a woman doesn't want to have one partner and would rather sleep around, that's her choice, and I can never understand why people are so bothered by it. Unless she's sleeping with a married/taken man, nobody has any good reason to say bad things about her sex life, unless of course they have religious reservations (though I believe I've met five people who frequently "slut bash" that actually practice a religion at all- many are actually anti-religious, which I find very ironic and annoying).
So, I ask- why all the slut hate? Why does everybody feel it's okay to stereotype JUST with these girls, but nobody else? If you do stereotype now, just know it's a very foolish thing to do, and you're missing out on meeting lots of great people by doing this.

Feminism and the Draft

It's been a while since I've written a feminist article (or any article really.. sorry about that!) so here's one now!!

Sometimes, arguing for feminist points can feel like an uphill battle. As I've said before, people think that the feminist's cause has been fulfilled, and at this point we're just a bunch of man-hating, pushy jerks trying to milk this "feminism" thing for all it's worth. Also as I've said before, that's definitely not true, and there are so many reasons feminism shouldn't die just yet!!
Whenever I'm arguing for feminist ideas, most people who think feminists are just "pushy bitches" will combat with something along these lines:
"Feminists just want all the rights men have when they don't even deserve it! They're not in the draft or anything!"
Even though I don't usually agree with much of anything else these people might say (though I certainly do listen to them- some of the anti-feminist points I've heard have been really good and something to think about!), I do agree that it's rather sad feminists haven't rallied for women to be included in the draft as well. As they people say, how can we expect equal rights if we aren't put at the same risk as men?
Some women may argue that women are generally less physically fit than men, and that is true (I myself am VERY physically weak...), but correct me if I'm wrong as I'm not very knowledgeable of the workings of the military, but aren't there plenty of other jobs to be done, jobs that people could be trained to do?
I've heard somewhere before that not many people in the military actually go out and fight. Why can't women (or men!) who are physically unable to fight be put in those spots? Of course, women could go out and fight as well, if they are physically fit.
So, that's my view point as far as the draft and feminism goes. I do feel it's unfair for women to ask for equal rights when we aren't included in "negative" things like this, so I ask women everywhere: If you want to have truly equal rights and want to be more respected, please fight for women in the draft when the time comes! It may not be what you want, but it is truly necessary in the grand scheme of things.

Motif Monday: Bows!!

Bows are so iconic in Lolita it borders on ridiculous. Whether it be punk, goth, sweet or classic, almost no Lolita outfit is completely lacking in bows. They can be anywhere- on the dress, on the print on the dress, on your blouse, on your shoes, your tights, your socks, and especially in your hair as a headpiece! The best part about bows? They're one of the easiest accessories to obtain!

Bows aren't just for Lolita fashion, so they're sold just about anywhere. Forever 21 in particular has some particularly lovely bows (90% of my bow collection comes from them!) for very cheap! They don't just have bows for your head- there's a large variety of bow-related jewelry, as well. Bows on your wrist, bows on your necklace, bows on your rings... they're all out there and easy to apply to Lolita fashion!

Out of all Lolita brands though, Angelic Pretty has to be the most famous (or infamous, depending on how you look at it!) when it comes to usage of bows. They have plenty of dresses with tastefully places bows like the dress above, but they're also notorious for releasing dresses that are literally bows upon bows... I personally find it cute in a tacky sort of way but lots of people might just find it ridiculous!!

Finally, and I don't know if I'm biased because BABY's headbows were some of the first Lolita items I saw, but I have always felt that BABY makes the best headbows, whether they be plain or the match a specific print. Okay, maybe Angelic Pretty and Metamorphose release similar bows, but... I'm biased, okay?! :P
That's all for bows, which are by far the most common and arguably the cutest theme in Lolita. Next week: Spring motifs!