Review: CuteParade (a.k.a. CatNapCaps)

Hello there,

Sorry I have not updated for a long while. I will get back to doing some more update as I have done quite a bit of purchases since I last made an entry. Well here is my review on CuteParade (a.k.a CatNapCaps was her original name of the shop). She makes a lot of FairyKei accessories and a bit of other stuff. I love FairyKei fashion, but maybe at the moment not so much now as I use to. I still am a fan of it though. Anyways I have made a number of purchases from her before. I decided maybe it is time that I made a review on my recent purchase from her.

Since I have loved all her items I bought from her especially I have met her in person before at AM2 2012 Con & PMX 2011. She is very nice and sweet. I will definitely tell you she is my favorite handmade seller hands down. I have never met anyone that can exceed her high quality and well-made items. She always go over or beyond my expectations with her items. I tend to have low expectations to handmade sellers since in the past my purchases from some are never the best. But she gives me faith that there are sellers who have potential in selling items that are very good for a reasonable price.

Here is my purchases I had bought from her in the past.

This time I decided to buy a My Little Pony: Pinkie Pie necklace as I feel she is the the closest that resembles me from all the characters. I use to like FlutterShy, but Pinkie Pie has grown on me now.

Here is the package.

Actually I was a bit disappointed since the photo she took was quite deceiving about the Pinkie Pie image. When you actually get the item it looks like it was just printed on a flimsy paper. Like she cut off, then during the process of making the reisin slapped it on and then layered it over. I'm happy she layered it instead of like gluing it on top of the reisin. I was just not too happy with it being the paper print because it it a bit obvious from the distance or maybe it is just me being conscious.

Hopefully you can see also it wasn't cut off from the paper really well and the quality of the print.

Also I would like to say that the description did not say this, but the item glows in the dark. The was a nice plus I thought, my star ring also glows in the dark and by the way both the necklace and ring glow very well in the dark. I actually have had a necklace that barely even glows in the dark from another seller. It was so bad that you have to strain your eye and put it in a very dark room to see it even glow just a bit, but I will not say who the item was from. So that's why I really appreciate that her items glow very well in the dark.

Overrall, honestly I am still happy with it. This is the only time I may have been just a tad disappointed. But don't be discourage, it does not change my opinion about her and her items.

Price: 5/5
Quality: 4.5/5
Communication: 5/5 (she notified me when it was shipped)
Packaging: 5/5
Shipping: 5/5
Overrall: 5/5
Will buy again: Definitely yes!

Also apparently she has noticed I purchased a lot from her so she decided to write a letter to me telling me how thankful she is from continuing to purchase from her and threw a Pinkie Pie pin + scented strawberry cat sticker. It was very adorable.

Here is the letter, the sticker, and the pin.

If you want to buy handmade FairyKei accessories, you should buy from her. I will continue making purchases from her in the future. I will update more of my purchases when the Spring semester ends for me. ^^ Thank you for reading!

Liz Lisa, Liz Lisa Doll, and Tralala Lucky Pack (Fukubukuro)

Hello,

Sorry for the long haitus. I have not done much since school started and was temporarily working for a couple weeks. But things have settled. I was suppose to get ahold of an H.Naoto luckypack this year from the San Francisco store, but unfortunately I asked them and the employees said that the higher ups cancelled it this year. Which it seems like they may never do another luckypack again. *sigh* I missed out on the Angelic Pretty Lucky Pack this year just so that I can get H.Naoto LP instead.

With all this money I had leftover to burn for the LP luckily MaruQ was doing reservation for Liz Lisa LPs. I never had my own and I decided to use it on that instead. I originally was suppose to buy one, but over the weeks the other packs started to interested me. I wanted the Rose Bag Boston, but of course that sold out first and I was on vacation during the first week when they were doing reservation. I'm not too bummed out. Looking at the real images of the bag it was not what I expected especially I thought the size was small. So I ordered theDolley Set Tote Bag once-piece style. But then a couple days later coming back from my vacation, I wanted the Dolley Set Tote Bag top & botton style. Luckily I went to the store and Kim, I believe that is her name, was nice enough to let me just switch my one piece to a top & bottom and also decided to buy the Liz Lisa Ribbon Boston Bag. Eventually a week later I decided to go there again (since the LPs have not come out of Japan yet) to purchase the Liz Lisa Doll Uniform Tote Bag. And finally when I picked it up last Saturday I continually debated and asked her if I could upgrade my Liz Lisa Doll Rockn' Uniform Tote Bag to the Liz Lisa Doll Rockn' doll Big Bag. She allowed it and I just paid the difference. Apparently I bought the last Liz Lisa Doll version of that bag so that was close. And boy was I glad with the choice I made.

I research alot for this year LPs. Googling for tumblr blogspot for pictures of the LPs content people got from english to japanese sites and searches. It really helped me in making my decision of what bag I should get.

So I was very eager with my bag here you can see. Each bag is order from my favorite overall content and the bag itself. Plus contents of the items are order from first to last as most to least favorite.

Liz Lisa Doll Rockn' doll Big Bag

Paid: $162.75, Worth: $400 (<-$ based from MaruQ)

Japan Price: 10,500 yen ($117.83), Worth: 30,000 yen ($336.65) (<-$ are based on Paypal currency)

I really loved this bag the most. It is my most favorite bag & content from the rest of the LPs I purchased. I really wanted the Liz Lisa Doll Uniform Tote Bag, but unfortunately I only had enough money for one or the other.

Coat: 11,340 yen / $124.67

I love this coat. It is just lovely. It is really huge and everything I expected to be except the surprise to me was that the fur can be taken off so you do not have to wash it. *gasp* I have never seen a coat that can have the fur part taken off. The inside had some fuzzy wool which was not necessary as washing it enough it would just go bad. It is very warm and the hood overcast my whole head.

Cardigan: 5,145 yen / $56.56

I was happy that my extra was the cardigan like I saw someone else got. It is very lovely and a very thick material. It is just so pretty.

Shirt: 3,045 yen / $33.48

I was extremely happy that I got the white shirt with a graphic that sort of similar to the Liz Lisa Doll Rockn' Roll Tote Bag (black version). I wanted that Tote Bag, but luckily instead I got it anyway with this bag. I did not like the black version of the shirts at all I saw online. I was very surprised the shirt came in this LP. It really just surprised me as everyone's result was a black shirt when I saw online.

Jacket: 9,345 yen / $102.74

Originally I did not like the furry jacket as I felt it would look funky on me and the other pictures showed the trim for the ribbed edges were green. But I can tell you for sure they are not, they are slightly darker brown than the brown fur. It looks better than I thought it would ever fit me. I was about to sell it too when I saw the pictures online. I love it in the end and my cat fell straight asleep on it for hours. I am surprised also the inside is also furry just as it is outside.

I was surprised how gigantic this bag was. So huge that it kept bumping other people with this bag especially at the market. It is very practical if I go grocery shopping, conventions, picnics, beach, barbecues, swimming, and I can think of many times I will need this bag to carry humongous stuff. It looks really lovely and definitely will come in handy.

Short: 6,195 yen / $68.11

I did not have much care for jeans including short jeans. But then it sort of grew to me and actually I am in dire need of shorts as all of mine are very worn out and have not bought a new pair in years. This do not look bad at me, but the big downside is that already when I wore these shorts yesterday the silver buttons near the pockets fell. Like three of them did. So now it left a hole from where it fell off. I will say this is very lovely because the fray at the bottom was actually from other jean scrap and they just sew it on. It is not the usually when the actual jean short was frayed as I definitely think those are not good because when you wash them the fray will develop. That was surprising. I am not a fan of jeans, but this one I will keep and my very first jean.

Total: 35,070 yen / $385.54

Accuracy of the stock photo: 4/5

Love it? 5/5

Keeping: All

Tralala Dolley Set Tote Bag top & botton style

Paid: $81.38, Worth: $200

Japan Price: 5,250 yen ($58.92), Worth: 15,000 yen ($168.33)

Skirt: 5,145 yen / $56.56

I bought this LPs because of the black skirt. I noticed there is no variation of the Tralala back at all. Everyone got the same one. I saw the one piece when someone wore it and I think that it wouldn't have looked nice on me so that is why I changed to a skirt. And skirt is more versatile than wearing the dress and I imagine wearing a skirt more often. I love how the skirt turned out.

Blouse: 5,145 yen / $56.56

I was going to sell this, but after wearing it I realized that this actually looks not bad on me. Too bad I have to wear a white shirt under it. This is really nice.

The bag was not what I expected it to be. I thought it would be gigantic, but it was much smaller than I expected. I wanted to use it to hold my laptop and luckily it does just sort of barely. But I am glad it does because I do not use tote bags regularly. It will be used just for me to carry my laptop to the library and etc. I love how there is double zipper and a zipper for a tote bag is amazing to me.

Sweater: 5,145 yen / $56.56

I think the sweater was not bad. I was hoping it to be white, but it was off white. I was not too fond of the knit pattern sticking out, but I do love how the sweater looks on me with the combo of the Tralala blouse and skirt in the LP.

Total: 15,435 yen / $169.68

Accuracy of the stock photo: 5/5

Love it? 5/5

Keeping: All

Liz Lisa Ribbon Boston Bag

Paid: $81.38, Worth: $250

Japan Price: 5,250 yen ($58.92), Worth: 17,000 yen? (<-This is a guess because I was unable to find the value worth) ($190.77)

I was very disappointed that unfortunately I got the LP that I know everyone who was aware were afraid they would get this set. Even the second version of it looked nice also. I really wanted that cardigan, cami, and the one piece if it looked nice one me. I forgot that there was a third version of this that I did not like. But even though I was very disappointed with this bag, the main reason buying this bag was just the bag. But since I wore them and took pictures, these items grew to me and after all my Liz Lisa Doll LP turned out so well that I think well it was fair since all my LPs from Liz Lisa were good til I hit this one.

I love the darn bag. This is the main reason why I bought it and I was going to sell the rest of the items inside of it, but even though the items did not turn out like the stock, I will keep all the contents inside. Just to let you know what surprised about this bag and all the other LP bags I got from Liz Lisa Doll & Tralala is that they sewed the zipper in without leaving those annoying zipper hang out with holes. See the picture above. It looks so beautiful and nicely zipped all the way with no holes so dirt doesn't come in.

Bloomers: 4,095 / $45.02

I think the bloomers looked the best. My very first bloomers that is not fuzzy. The material felt okay and not super soft/silky. I still like it and the color choice.

Dress: 9,345 yen / $103.73

I thought the dress looked ugly when I pulled it out and was so disappointed that I wanted to sell it. But in the end it actually looks not bad. I do not like though how it emphasizes my broad shoulder.

Coat: 7,245 yen / $79.65

When I first pulled this out I thought that it would look very awful with me. I was going to go and sell this immediately after seeing it when I pulled it out, but after wearing it it looks not too bad. I realized I would wear this quite a bit since the city is always so cold. I was going to sell this to my sister since I told her I did not like it. But when I told her I grew with it apparently she really wanted it more than me I can tell so now she has it.

Total: 20,685 / $227. 40

Accuracy of the stock photo: 0/5

Love it? 3/5

Keeping: All (though gave the coat to my sister)

Here are some outfits I put when you wear all of the items as the set. I mixed one as half Liz Lisa Doll &

half Tralala (it was my most favorite). Order from most to least favorite coordinates.

Thank you for bearing this me and hope everyone else who got their packs like theirs. ^___________^ If you are interested I will post lucky packs if I have time of my H.Naoto Lucky Packs from last year and also Paris Kids Lucky Pack.

Review: H.Naoto San Francisco Store USA Shopping Service

Hello, again. So I am doing a review on my experience with H.Naoto USA's Shopping Service. If some are not aware, H.Naoto speicalize is gothic/punk clothing. In San Francisco they have a shop opened up here last October so the USA buyers have easy access. In my opinion the shop is still a bit limited in carrying items as I am comparing to looking at the online Japan store of H.Naoto. There are lots of items I wanted from the Japan H.Naoto store (that is no in the USA store), but it's quite expensive. Despite they have a World H.Naoto Web Shop they only ship by EMS which is already $20+ at the start. So this November the H.Naoto USA Store and the World Web Shop worked together so that I could obtain some items from the H.Naoto Japan that were not in the USA store.

I was quite confused because I live in San Francisco where the H.Naoto shop is. Looking an reviewing on their policies about the Shopping Service I was quite confused still because I really wanted to get the items with free shipping and just pay the CA taxes. So I called the H.Naoto Store in San Francisco and the employer help clarify that if I did order and choose in the order to  "pick-up item in H.Naoto SF" then there was no shipping fee charge. So at the World Web Shop, on Nov. 23rd I ordered a Mint Neko Ribbon Alligator Hair Clip (Pink/Black/Silver). Maybe about 12 hours later they invoiced me that the total price I had to pay and there was no shipping fee (hurray!). So I proceeded with the order.

The very next day I saw this they just released a Mint Neko Scarf (Black/White) and in the Japan H.Naoto Site it said it was the "last one" so I couldn't help but purchase it immediately on the World Web Shop (I was very luckily they updated immediately because it tends to take days to update new items on their World Web). So I was waited a day or two to get my invoice and they did invoice me, but they charged me with shipping fee of $5.60. I was like telling myself wait did I not press "pick up H.Naoto SF". I double checked and I did. So I was quite confused since the lady at the San Francisco H.Naoto store told me that there was no shipping fee. Well unfortunately I really wanted it so I paid anyways. They got back to me a week (I think) and they told me they were going to ship both the scarf & hair clip combine (which was nice of them to do) on Dec 8-Dec. 15th. But around Dec. 8th I got an email from them asking if I was picking it up at the store. I replied to them yes I am. Then a day later they sent me back partial payment of my money (the shipping fee) and I was relieved to hear that. They told me in response they refunded (partially) my money and that the item was ready for pick-up when I got that response on Dec. 11th.


Mint Neko Scarf (Black/White)

So the very next day of course it was Dec. 12th I picked up my items. I was very excited to take it out and didn't get to take pictures of the bag and package it was in. I was worried to see how it would turn out since there is a 50/50 of it looked better at the stock photo than the actual one. I was very pleased with my Mint Neko Scarf (Black/White)  It was longer than I thought. It is enough to wrap two people. I love how I can make it super long and then shorter. I prefer the long length more. Other than the little print of the mint neko I thought was clearly screenprinted on instead of stitched on. But I was deceived by the stock photo. Since it's really woolly and woven the print will fall off of the scarf easily once I put it in the washer. Even stretching the scarf will damage the darn print. It really should have been stitch on even a patch would've been nice. I think I have handwash it (despite the tags says it is okay at the washer) because of the darn pompoms. >_< But I may put it in the washer anyways because I'm too lazy to handwash.

Look how long and short it can go and I am a 5'1".


Print of the Mint Neko screenprinted on.

Mint Neko Ribbon Alligator Hair Clip (Pink/Black/Silver)

So next I took out the Mint Neko Ribbon Alligator Hair Clip (Pink/Black/Silver). Sorry I have no pictures of the wrapping, but it was well nicely wrapped. But I knew what I saw on the image. The color was obviously orange and not pink as stated in the description of their Website. Orange isn't my favorite color that's why.... I obviously knew it was orange, but I truly wanted to believe it when they said it was pink. So I took my gamble anyways knowing that it looked orange despite description said pink. Everything about this items turned out as I wanted it to be including it being orange. I wish it really was pink because it would be perfect. I'll still keep it anyways since it is the color that bothers me. You can see the difference of pink and orange by the other ones they sold of this in a slightly different color version. As for the material it is nice and soft. It feel a bit chiffon like material, but as I said I enjoyed everything about it except it's orange.

The difference of the orange and pink on different colors version of this item. (these second colors is pink).

this is the orange one (including mine)


Close-up (obviously orange right?)


Neko-chan Kiss loves his hairclip


How it looks like being worn.



I still love both my items and will definitely keep them for a very long time. I got to watch out sometimes items online look different from the actual item. I know now (I think) that when they do purchase they will charge you with shipping fee at first, but later refund it to confirm if you are going to pick the item up at the H.Naoto San Francisco Store. Will definitely be using their shopping services again. ^-^ Hope that helped. Can't wait for luckypacks from H.Naoto SF Store next (this) year, but unfortunately I will not be able to attend as I will be on vacation. Someone is suppose to stand in line for me instead. So toodles and Happy Holidays~!