Fishbourne

 Hello dear readers! How are you?

Sorry for such a long gap between entries. I have returned home to England for the summer and I have been busy enjoying myself!

I still have lots of Tokyo posts to catch up on, but in today's entry I'll show you photos from a day in Fishbourne, near Chichester.

As I have mentioned before, I am friends with a certain Jack who has marvellous Adventures in Museum Land! Last wekend he wanted to visit Fishbourne Roman Palace. I had been there before on a school trip, but I thought it would be nice to refresh my memory and so I tagged along.

Here is my outfit:

Blouse: Vintage

Skirt: Handmade

Plimsolls, socks: Offbrand

Since we were going into the country I thought it would be wise to wear plimsolls, and I put together a 50s inspired coordinate to match them. I looped up my hair to make a poofy ponytail and tied it with a pale green ribbon.

It's simple to do and cute and practical for summer! I will make a tutorial soon.

I won't tell you too much about the museum as you'll be much better off reading my friend's excellent article! However I'll share a couple of photos of the most famous and well preserved mosaic there:

Cupid riding a dolphin

A hippocampus

The mosaic also included an exciting sea-panther but my photo didn't come out well :(

 Although it's not my favourite period in history I always feel a sort of jolly familiarity when I visit Roman sites. Latin was probably my best subject at school and I kept on with it right until I left sixth form. Unfortunately I don't remember all that much of it now!

Outside, a reenactment with 'Roman' soldiers was being staged. It went on a bit but there was a thrilling part where they all rushed at the audience and several children ran away screaming! A the end there was a demonstration of the onager and that was pretty good too.

After we had exhausted the museum we had a picnic and then went for a stroll. We met two very friendly horses!

Lovely horsey! I wanted to take them home with me. 

Since I'm in England for a while, I am going to try to write more about my own country. There are a lot of wonderful things here and I want to share them with you! I hope you enjoyed todays post.

Thank you for reading and see you next time,

Sapphira

xxxx

Junichi Nakahara and autumn colours at Hiro-o

Hello dear readers! How are you?

Today I'll show you some pictures from a lovely day out last week. Aviva had the idea to go to a park to admire the beautiful autumn leaves, and I suggested Arisugawanomiya Memorial Park, since it's close to a shop I've been wanting to visit.

The shop's name is それいゆ (Soleil) and it's the official shop for the artist Junichi Nakahara. Even if you don't know his name, it's likely you've seen some of his pictures of beautiful girls. He was producing work from the 1920s into the 1960s, as a fashion designer, illustrator and doll-maker.

Entrance of Soleil.

The shop was full of pretty things, prints, postcards, clothes made from Nakahara's designs,  useful good like umbrellas, mousemats, notebooks and so on decorated with his images. I wanted to get a book, and there were lots to choose from! Luckily the shop was not too crowded or cramped so we had time to pore over the items and decide our purchases at leisure.

I settled on a book which is a nice A4 size with lots of great pictures and a wide selection of his work. I'm sure I'll never tire of looking at it! His work captures the essence of the era in which it was made, and it's so stylish, nostalgic and sweet all at once. I even felt inspired to make some drawings of my own again (it's been ages since I drew anything properly), they are rather dreadful but I might show you sometime. 

Here's a few pages from the book:

For my outfit, of course I was inspired by Junichi Nakahara! Since I like retro style and have black hair and a short fringe, it wasn't much of a stretch for me but I was still pleased with how the outfit came out. This photo was taken in the park.

Doesn't the park look lovely? All those different shades of red, rust, amber and yellow!

People were fishing in the lake. I expect they have to throw the fish back, but it must be pretty stressful for the poor old things. But I think a lot of people come to feed them too, so it isn't all bad.

I loved this bridge!

Here's a collage of my outfit (getting a bit addicted to doing these collages) so you can see my teddy bear tights from swimmer! This outfit is more on the retro side, so I thought it would be fun to put in a cute detail like that.

Coat: Victorian Maiden

Skirt, necklace: Innocent World

Tights: Swimmer

Bag: Metamorphose

Others: Offbrand

Hope you enjoyed the pictures! See you again soon,

Sapphira

A lovely weekend in Tokyo

Hello dear readers!

Can you believe it's been over three months that I've been living in Tokyo? Time has passed so quickly.  I've already done a lot of things that I've dreamed of for a long time, and last weekend many more dreams came true!

As you know, I live in Koenji, a very nice area full of all sorts of second-hand clothes shops and interesting cafes. My friend Aviva had been wanting to check it out for some time, so on Saturday she came to visit. We both wore retro outfits! I wore my Pink House onepiece.

We found a couple of suprise Lolita pieces, an ancient black velvet Baby onepiece with ladder lace and hardly any poof, and very cute eau de nil pumpkin pants from Metamorphose. I really wanted the pumpkin pants actually, it's been ages since I wore trousers or shorts and I miss them a bit. The colour was very pretty too. I was tempted by the Baby dress too, it was so cheap and so old. We said we might keep it for a Lolita museum!

I really enjoyed shopping with Aviva, she's open-minded to many different styles and has a great sense of taste in all of them. We went to a huge number of shops, and saw so many Gunne Sax dresses! About 90% of the world's Gunne Sax dresses must reside in Japan now. No wonder they were so hard to find in England....

It was pretty tiring, so we had a rest in Hattifnatt cafe, which I blogged about before. I got more sugar cubes! After that, we decided to go to the lolita boutique Seraphim, as it's on the same train line as Koenji. 

I have loved Seraphim for a long time! It's not one of those brands one hears a great deal about in the English-speaking community, but it really is lovely. Since I picked up the flyer in Sumire no Tenmado I was determined to go to the physical shop.

It's located in Kunitachi, and carries not only Seraphim but also various indies brands. I'm afraid it was dreadfully hard to find because though it's not far from the station it is tucked away down a little alley in between some houses.

When we did find it though, it was very charming. There is a little garden to walk through first, with a sign for Seraphim hanging on the gate. Inside it's very small but very pretty, with lots of lace draperies and the items displayed in off-white, antique style cabinets and tables. There are a couple of racks of clothes, mostly Seraphim. There are also some household goods (clocks etc) notebooks, and of course lots of corsages, brooches and other accessories. The shop staff kindly brought us tea while we browsed. There were such lovely things, the handmade accessories were particularly pretty. This tiny, delicate bracelet caught my eye:

I'm very fond of fine, dainty jewellery, and the little chain finished with a pearl where the clasp is is so charming! I think the brand is Bell de Poupee, but I'm not 100% sure.... It was with other Bell de Poupee items! I got a Seraphim members card, which I was very happy about. I love point cards and this one is so pretty, isn't it?

Of course it's a bit dangerous, because once you get one you can't help but feel like you need to fill it....

Please check Seraphim's homepage from here:

http://www.k-seraphim.com

*****

Sunday was the day of the Marui One KERA snap! You've probably seen these in KERA. I've always wanted to participate, and finally I did. This was my outfit:

My theme was "茶色ずきんちゃん" (Little Brown Riding Hood)

I'll tell you a little about the snap process, in case you'd like to participate someday!

It's held monthly at Marui One in Shinjuku, usually the on first Sunday of the month. The date of each snap will be announced in KERA, and you can check it on the blog too. On the day, get there a bit earlier than the snap start time so you can start lining up. It takes place on the 7th floor, by the stairwell next to the Girl's Room event space (behind Angelic Pretty and Metamorphose). 

When you line up, you'll be given a form to fill in with a number on the back. The form is all in Japanese, so be prepared. Of course they ask your name, where you're from, what you are wearing etc and on this occasion they asked what my plans are for Christmas (so I guess the photos from this will be published in the December edition). When it's your turn to have your photo taken, first they'll take a picture of you holding your form with your number on. Then hand the form to the staff, and they'll take a few snaps. After that, you'll be given a slip of paper so you can pick up your photo sometime from the top floor of Marui. Then, you're finished! All that remains is to see if your photo is picked to be published or not. I'm not especially hopeful, but I enjoyed taking part. I hope I can go to the November one!

After the snap I went to Harajuku to meet with a couple of friends and go to La Couronne du Fleur, a lolita indies market. It was a bit tricky to find, in the quiet part of Harajuku, but like Seraphim it was well worth the effort.

I'll list the brands that participated, in case you'd like to look them up. I always find it interesting to look at indies brands. 

・金田アツ子 　・ひかり
・Ange 　・dolce piu amabile
・Royal coffin 　・Jeune fille
・Bell de Poupee 　・Sacherie
・Loulou 　・K plusoi
・Radiostar 　・Bisque doll
・香莉 みあき　・かわい金魚
・lilga 　・Traumerei
・CHIRUBARA 　・NEW ATLANTIS
・孔雀洞雑貨舗 　・SERAPHIM
・遊星商會 　・水中標本
・トリッチ・トラッチ 　・鈴木亜章
・スパン社 　・Hug me,kiss me!!
・RE: 　・Nastro Rosso*
・あっちょんぷりけ 　・sha*lan*ra
・poppemonica

I was really happy to see Sachi of Kokusyoku Sumire there! She looked lovely and perfect and beautiful as always. She was selling the pretty handmade hats from her brand Sacherie. I loved the ones with cat faces! You can see them at her blog entry here. 

I wish so much that my Japanese was better so that I could have talked to her more, and also to the other girls there. They were all so nice! I will keep studying and practising, and maybe I'll get to talk to her again when I go to Sumire no Tenmado in November. I hope so!

Among the lovely things for sale, I found this big gorgeous ribbon! The design is very simple, just two shades of bordeaux velvet combined in stripes, but I find it so pleasing. I think you'll see me wearing it a lot over the next few months, now that the cooler weather has truly arrived!

The brand is Ange:

http://www5.ocn.ne.jp/~xxangexx/

Of course, we finished the day with tea and sweets and purikura!

So with the vintage shops, cafes, lolita boutique and indies market, meeting Sachi again, going to the KERA snap and enjoying time with friends, it was a wonderful, wonderful weekend. I hope you enjoyed reading about it!

See you next time,

Sapphira

xxxx

Jane Marple 60s Dolly Oufit

Hello dear readers!

Today I have just a simple coordinate snap for you. It's the first time I've posted a picture of me in this dress! It was a present from a dear friend of mine and I love it very much. Because of that, I wanted to make sure that when I posted it, it would be an outfit I'm proud of.

So, here it is:

~Rundown~

Hair ribbons- Metamorphose

Blouse- Anna House

Necktie- Vinatge

Jumperskirt- Jane Marple

Tights, shoes- Offbrand

The mini-length and graphic style of this Jane Marple jumperskirt reminds me of the 1960s right away. These days we might think of free love, psychedelia and drug-taking when we think of the 1960s. Personally though, what I like about that era are it's more innocent aspects, and in fact there are quite a few! 

Some of my favourite movies were made in the  early '60s: Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music, My Fair Lady. As well as that, the popular women of the 1960s had a more girlish air than that of the previous decade; slim and delicate creatures like Twiggy and Audrey Hepburn. In fact, it was a time when girls could be girls, and were free to express their cuteness! That's a bit in common with our Lolita spirit, isn't it?

With this outfit I tempered cuteness with primness. Black accents add a bit of hardness to the baby-doll cut of the dress, and while the blouse is frilly the necktie is formal.

I hope you liked my coordinate! What are your thoughts about the 1960s? I'd love to hear them!

See you next time,

Sapphira

xxxx

Vintage Shopping for the Lolita Part One: Where to go in England

Hello dear readers!

How are you this weekend? I hope you're having fun.

Some time ago I asked for some suggestions about how to improve this blog, and there was a request for some more information about where I get my vintage items from. If you read the rundowns of my outfit posts you'll notice a lot of vintage pieces listed! I have always bought second-hand clothes and appreciated their history, and nowadays I think they lend themselves very well to the antique style of classic lolita.

Since this is a subject I have a lot of enthusiasm about I've decided to make a series of posts about Vintage Shopping for the Lolita. Of course, due to my personal taste I can't help things being more geared towards classical style, but I hope that these posts will have something to offer to all lolitas and also to any person interested in vintage clothes.

This first post is about my favourite places to go vintage shopping here in the south of England. I've managed to go to second-hand shops in more exotic locations too but I'll leave that for another time.

1. Brick Lane, London

This area has a huge number of vintage boutiques as well as weekend markets which are great places to find a bargain. I like Rokit which has a couple of shops close to each other. There's a mix of different styles and eras, the clothes are in good condition and are cleaned before being put into the shop (this is not always the case in Brick Lane!) and the prices are reasonable. The selection of dresses and bags is particularly nice. If you are looking for a really stunning vintage piece, I highly recommend This Shop Rocks. Their speciality is ladylike clothing, from beautiful, delicate Edwardian gowns to adorable 50s circle skirts. 

Rokit

101 & 107

Brick Lane

London E1 6SE

This Shop Rocks

131 Brick Lane

London E1 6RU

This polka dotted dress was bought at a Saturday market in Brick Lane

2. Lewes, East Sussex

This historical town boasts a number of flea markets, antique shops, antiquarian bookshops and a Norman castle. I like to go to The Needlemakers, where in the basement there are several antique/vintage shops. There's usually a Judy Garland record playing, another good reason to go! As well as clothes from every decade there are also ornaments, perfume bottles, books, records, make-up, costume jewelery and so on. 

The Needlemakers

West Street

Lewes BN7 2NZ

Black handbag from a flea amrket in Lewes

3. North Laine, Brighton, East Sussex

I grew up and live just outside Brighton, so this is my home ground. North Laine is quite a famous area filled with unique shops of every kind as well as cafes and even a toy museum. My old favourite is Snooper's Paradise, a flea market. I think it's getting nicer and nicer in terms of vintage clothing! The upper floor is now filled with lovely dresses and blouses and skirts and there are several clothing stalls downstairs too. In recent years there have been more and more vintage shops springing around North Laine. One of the nicest I think is Kate & Aud, which has lovely feminine items. The shop itself is rather pretty and classic lolita-ish inside. 

Snooper's Paradise

7-8 Kensington Gardens

Brighton BN1 4AL

Kate & Aud

27 Trafalgar Street

Brighton BN1 4ED

Bag from Kate & Aud

4. Charity shops, everywhere

Charity shops are a fixture in most British towns, and I love them! You never know what you might find- some days it will be nothing but sparkly tops with half the sequins off and giant bobbly sweaters, another day your heart will skip a beat when you discover among those sweaters a blouse with perfect lace or a beautiful summer dress.

I found this pretty dress among the Halloween costumes in a charity shop!

I hope you enjoyed this post! I know that not all my blog readers live in the UK, but if you have the chance to visit perhaps this might come in useful. The next time I write about vintage clothes I think I'll share some general tips for vintage shopping, what do you think? Is there anything you'd like to ask?

Thanks for reading and see you next time!

Sapphira

xxxx

Romantic Wedding Day

Last month it was a very special occasion! My best friend's sister's wedding. 

It was a beautiful sunny day, and everyone was so happy.

I wore this simple button-through retro onepiece, in a pretty peach-pink colour. I don't often wear pink, but I've recently become a fan of this particular coral-y shade. Actually, I'm waiting for a Fairy wish skirt to arrive in a similar colour!

I used two shades of subtle pink for my eyeshadow, continuing the romantic theme.

I put my hair up in a high bun, and accessorised with my faithful floral corsages!

I really like the idea of putting the roses at the back of the bun rather than the front. I've seen some Jesus Diamante models doing it with their huge hime bumps!

Congratulations to the lovely couple, and thank you for the wonderful day! I'm dreaming of having such a beautiful wedding myself someday....

Hope you enjoyed the pictures! Thanks for reading.

PS: Voting for the coordinate competition I entered is closing in a couple of days! Could I possibly implore you for your vote? Thanks so much to everyone who voted so far!

Hina Matsuri

My final collection!

Actually there are four more outfits.... it wouldn't be much of collection with just two, would it?

This week I'm preparing for the show, which is on Monday at 12pm in Earls Court. I'm really looking forward to it! Although it's not Lolita, I think my collection does still show my personality as a designer, in that it's cute and has retro elements. 

I was inspired by the Doll Festival that is celebrated in Japan each year on the 3rd of March. It's also known as Girl's Day, and my designs are very girly indeed. 

I wanted to make clothes that make girls feel happy. Personally, I find that the way I dress has a profound effect on my emotions, and the feel and fit of the clothes has to make me as happy as the appearance. For this reason, the clothes I designed for this collection have a loose, easy-to wear silhouette so you can feel comfortable and cute, and there are lots of pretty details to enjoy like printed silk linings and useful pockets.

I can't wait to see the models wearing my clothes! I hope they'll feel like as pretty as an Ohina-sama.

Retro coordinate

Hello everyone!

My time at university is drawing to a close, and so as you can imagine it's a very busy time for me. My final hand-in is in less than two weeks! I can't wait to see my collection finished, but the pressure certainly is on. Well, hopefully I'll be sharing a photograph of all six outfits with you before long!

I've also got the D live coming up this week! I've had a little break from work this evening and done a trial run of my outfit. I think it's a bit different from my usual style! For now, here's a 1950s style coordinate I wore over Easter to dinner with family friends.

~All vintage and offbrand~

I found this pretty polka dot dress at a vintage market in London's Brick Lane for just £5! It was in a bit of a sorry state and needed a lot of fixing, but actually I love to do that sort of thing so it suited me very well! Although this outfit has a retro effect, this JSK can work well in a Lolita coord too.

Oh, I wanted to say a special thank you to the reader who made me a Valentine a little while ago! I really do appreciate your sweet sentiment, and I feel a great deal of happiness to receive a lovely Valentine. Thanks so much for taking the trouble to make one for me, it means a lot to me.

Until next time then!

With love from Sapphira