Cupcake Kamisama's Lolita World: March 2024

29 Mar 2024

March Coords Roundup

I can’t really think of anything special to say for this part – so let’s not delay any further! Enjoy March’s assortment of coords.

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Coord 1: Granny

I don't know what I did differently from any other time, but that hair actually stayed pretty well for most of the day.

Robert the Rooster keeping it together.

The first meetup of the month was this very chill one that I organised. A new place opened in Manchester called Gran T's Coffeehouse, which aims to create a cosy space where you'd feel like having a cuppa at your grandma's. I contemplated something more granny-ish, but in the end the pull of Polonaise Brillante was too strong, so I didn’t bother resisting. After all, a floral dress and a shawl is very granny-appropriate. The venue was a lot more modern than I would've expected from the vibes description (and the very modern playlist that flung between millennial hits such as Usher's “Yeah” to more recent ones like Dua Lipa's “Levitating” clashed with the granny vibes even more), but the drinks and food were delicious and the whole space was very cosy and inviting. It was also pretty busy too, so it took us a little while of waiting, ready to pounce on a couch seat, but then we stayed until the place was literally closing. And it was a good meetup too! Sometimes all you need is the basic “place, date, time, just bring yourself”, no planned activities kind of thing.

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Coord 2: Spring-like

To further prove the point made above,this is the same hair on day two. A little bit more messy, but still undeniably wavy.

Ever since geting this ring I'd been waiting for the right opportunity to wear it. This coord may not be quite it, but I was done waiting.

My icy fingers very loudly protested any notions of it being spring-like, but sometimes manifesting and being delusional are indistinguishable from one another. I had an unusual these days work from home Monday and really wanted to capitalise on that. The main reason was not having worn this JSK since July of last year - there was one attempt when I couldn’t zip myself up. And it does fit differently now than it used to, but not quite so badly. My initial ideas revolved around doing something with red, but I wasn’t into any of them. Meanwhile sax and yellow is a very cheerful combination. So even though the themes of the accessories are a bit all over the place, even though I was still cold (and layered underneath this), and even though I have to rethink how I wear this dress a little bit, none of this dampened how happy I felt in this coord. Simple as that.

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Coord 3: Dotted Letters

Yay for normalising a ponytail and no makeup in lolita.

When all your post arrives on the same day.

Gosh, working from home is feeling more hectic than I remember it being. Somehow though, I still managed to get dressed and that very fact has been lifting my spirits through the stresses of working from home. There wasn’t that much thought put into the coord itself: it’s been a while since I’ve worn this dress, what haven’t I worn with it yet, what am I feeling like, what practicalities do I need to consider, just that. But sometimes that is all that you need.

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Coord 4: Errands Day

The joy of now having more glasses that match more of my outfits is almost overwhelming.

This brooch is getting tonnes of wear, both in and out of lolita.

I was actually supposed to go to the library to pick up a book the day before, but it turned out that the library closed earlier on Fridays than I thought. So whilst that outfit wasn’t lolita, it still centred around this brooch, and I really wanted to wear it for that particular task, so this look happened instead. I adore this brooch so much, I’m tempted to get the Spicy Book Club one too, but maybe after next payday. And seeing as I was already out during the day, I did a few other bits and bobs (maily drop off a bunch of old glasses for recycling and do my grocery shopping). All perfect things for a casual outfit like this.

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Coord 5: Brown Tones

When I bought this headbow, I had a moment of guilt, knowing that I was impulse buying. But given how frequently I've reached for it, I now feel that I should've gotten it in more colours.

My other recent brooch love. Although this one is not as easy to slot into multiple outfits as the book stack one.

First of all, I'd like to say that I write my coord roundups as they happen and this one I wrote on my phone. The fact that predictive text got pretty much that whole list of items down with barely any prompting from me is actually nuts. Am I that predictable with my styling choices? My phone seems to think that this is my template.

As for the actual coord, it was a working from home day and my main thing was that I wanted to wear this incredibly badass brooch from Folk and Fortune. I couldn't go too fantasy because of time and other practical constraints, but when has daggers and gobelin not worked together like a dream? Once again, wearing an outfit all in shades of brown with some gold touches had me reevaluating my entire wardrobe and the choices within it. I won't jump ship, don’t worry, but it is incredible how intensively the thoughts of adding more brown keep coming back.

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Coord 6: Double the Doll

An attempt was made at curling my hair using hair straighteners. Every time I think I understand how that works, reality proves me wrong.

The inspiration vs the art. Manda Rin did such an incredible job with these Cinema Doll brooches.

Two Cinema Dolls!

When the Vintage Home Show came to Manchester, and to Victoria Baths no less, I signed up as quickly as I could. Looking for fun home decor stuff and checking out the venue for The Queen is Dead? Yes, please! At the previous CLAM meetup it also transpired that both Jo and Gee, TQiD organisers, own Cinema Doll, so since we decided to combine the event with event planning, we decided to triplet that too. Unfortunately, Gee couldn't make it in the end, so tripleting turned to twinning. The leather jackets were probably the most coincidental part of this twinning because we both needed a practical layer and we both would've worn ours anyway. The vintage home show was nice, nothing quite to my taste (or price range), but lots of fun kitsch things to look at nonetheless. Wandering around Victoria Baths and seeing how it will all come together for June was infinitely more fun and I am already so hyped for all the cool photos that will come out of that.

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Coord 7: Kind of Minnie

So many dots!

A somewhat... I guess uncomfortable?, detail shot - but definitely an honest one as that was one of the big feature points of this whole outfit.

There’s kind of no way to wear a red and black look with lots of polka dots without giving off a Minnie Mouse vibe. And that’s OK, Minnie’s style is iconic and recognisable worldwide, so within the comfort of my own home I can do that. I was actually looking for something vaguely retro to wear to see My Beautiful Laundrette at the theatre that evening, as well as something that’d be appropriate for working from home, and this managed to do both.

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Coord 8: More Spring

It's a bit of a shame that the glasses, as great as they are, hide the fact that I toned down my usual blue eyeshadow with a layer of sparkly green one that made it more minty and matching the dress better.

Another ecclectic choice of accessories, some there to match the print and some just to match the colours.

Oh yes, this very much is the same cardi and socks base as earlier this month. These are my only big yellow pieces, so there’s no avoiding some level of repetition. That being said, by this point March was well into actual spring and the blue skies with sunshine warranted something appropriate. Diner Doll is such a bright pastel print that makes it perfect for spring and the outfit sort of came together all on its own. The only thing that I’d change if I could is the hair accessory. I love me a big bow at the back of the head, but I feel this would be better suited either to some clips right where I pinned my hair back or a small headbow. How long have I had this dress? Clearly for long enough to know that I should invest in a few more mint bits. Also, that same evening I went to the supermarket - I was going to change out of this coord because I didn't have the energy to deal with the attention, but I also didn't want to change fully just to go out, so I bit the bullet and just did the thing. And I am very glad that I did because a mother with a daughter (around 7 years old maybe) stopped me to compliment my outfit and the daughter said that I looked like Barbie and she likes Barbie. My heart melted, my eyes watered, it was so worth it just for that one moment.

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Coord 9: Pre-D&D Filming

Some days you just embrace a big sticky-outy bow on top of your head.

These earrings are just as sparkly as the photo makes them out to be.

Was filming before a D&D session when you've woken up with a sore throat a sensible idea? No, probably not. But I was determined to film and had this planned for a while, delayed by something not arriving in time, so I applied all of the precautions I could to minimise the impact. This outfit was one that needed to be put on before I could see that it'd work. The Whering flatlay was all over the place with colours, but once it was on, I knew exactly what to add and how to style it. Sure, I'd have loved to do something more OTT with this concept, but the whole coord was yeeted off the moment I was finished filming, so there was little point in going too hard for a video. I'll just shelve the ideas for later.

~~~

There was a bunch of coords that were due to happen whilst still in March, with it being Easter and all, but at this point I don’t think that they will happen as I fell ill right before that. So if anything does change about that, I’ll just add it to April’s post. This here is still an interesting assortment of coords and colours for March, probably one that has the fewest looks that are fully 'template me' so to speak. There are elements of my template in most of them, but inevitably with a twist. It’s definitely what kept me more interested at a time when the transition between the seasons, the unpredictable weather, and the boredom with the designated autumn/winter pieces can get me down. Once the wardrobe switch takes place, I imagine there will be a bit more of a typical me assortment of looks, at least initially. Or maybe not – I’m excited to see either way!

15 Mar 2024

Be My Valentine event report

A little after the fact, but it’s time for a proper written event report from the tea party in Edinburgh. The boundaries between what is “just” a large tea party and what is an event are quite fluid, however, Fàilte Bhlàth is a proper company dedicated to organising events in Scotland and every visibility boost will help them to put on more. And based on this one, I know that you will all want to get in on this whilst they’re still building up. Just trust me.

On Saturday February 17th a whole host of lolitas descended upon The Black Ivy hotel in Edinburgh. This was Fàilte Bhlàth’s second official event (the first one being a Halloween one in October 2023) and as you may have guessed from the event name, was themed for Valentine’s Day. Nothing is a better Valentine’s Day celebration than showing the love and appreciation that we all have for the lolita fashion community, so I booked myself to go as soon as the ticket sale opened via Eventbrite. And at £45/person this was a very reasonable price for the advertised good times with an afternoon tea spread, an option of adding a fancy drink for a little bit extra, and bingo.

Our venue for the day, photo courtesy of Black Ivy's website.

The event was open to all who could make it, though the non-Scottish contingent was significantly outnumbered (myself included, I counted 5 people). Although “outnumbered” makes it sound negative somehow when that is absolutely not the case. What was beautiful to witness is the unity of the Scottish comm. Most people I had spoken to were actually from outside of Edinburgh and travelled there from other cities. It gave me the same warm community spirit that the Northern comms do with cross-posting each other’s events, the one that says 'we may be from different places, but we are still one'. And judging by the mixing of smaller groups throughout the event, people do actually see each other at various meetups throughout the year, some more frequently than others, which meant a healthy mixing of friendship groups.

Look how different (happier) that same space looks when filled with lolitas!
Photo by Megan Kidd.

I arrived around 20 minutes early and immediately spotted a small group of lolitas waiting outside. One of the many upsides to our fashion is our high visibility – as soon as someone in a petticoat rocks up, you know that they are there for the same thing and welcome you to the circle. Although we didn’t have to wait long for the organisers to arrive and tell us that we can wait inside instead whilst they prepare. The Black Ivy had designated a separate room for us, which despite being behind glass (and thus visible to everyone inside) still offered precisely the level of privacy and natural light that we wanted. The decor throughout the venue is filled with cascades of wisteria flowers, fairy lights, high ceilings, and chandeliers, so everywhere we went was a beautiful backdrop for a photo. Moreover, whilst our food service included hot drinks and water, the bar was open to all who may have wanted a fancy cocktail or mocktail and didn’t manage to get one along with their ticket.

Once the room was ready for us to go in, we filled in the seats as best we could between the two long tables and the window bay. There was still enough room for people to walk in between, whether that be servers with trays of food or us wanting to say hello to someone, without having to worry about any accidental damages. Anyone who’s ever been anywhere in a petticoat knows the importance of passage space, so this was perfect. The organisers provided every attendee with a goodie bag, a beautiful pink paper bag tied with a ribbon, inside which were a packet of heart-shaped vegan-friendly sweets, a fragrance pouch, a bracelet from Belle Dreams, and a large custom illustration commemorating the event created by @muwudraws. Admittedly, I haven’t opened mine until I arrived back home, which is a shame as maybe I would’ve been able to trade my bracelet for one in a colour that I am more likely to wear, but I was too distracted by everything else.

A poor screenshot of the goodie bag goodies.

The service provided by The Black Ivy was excellent. With impeccable organisation and guidance from Caitlyn, our additional drinks (a mocktail called Driving Miss Daisy in my case) were distributed out, everyone’s cups were filled with tea or coffee, and we had all just about settled and our appetites were whetted just enough before the food arrived. The food was delicious, even the bits that I am not usually keen on but tried just to make sure that I haven’t changed my mind were made with high quality ingredients and tasted lovely. Any gaps or delays were addressed by the staff quite promptly, which allowed everyone to enjoy eating at their own pace.

We love an afternoon tea spread with a generous savoury tier.

And the leisurely, friendly atmosphere was the theme for the day. One pitfall that event organisers big and small can end up having is overstuffing their event with activities. As nice as it is to have things to do and something to guide the flow of the day, the main reason why lolitas go to tea parties is to be social. Having the space, physically and in terms of the time, to do precisely that, to catch up with old friends, to make new ones, to commemorate the occasion with a ridiculous amount of photos – that is what made Be My Valentine a success. Not once have I felt like I had to rush and because of the comfortable size of the event, even though I definitely did not speak with everyone, I felt like I made plenty enough new friends and chatted with a good number of people over the course of the day.

Just two people who finally met in person after following each other online for years. I.e. what lolita events are for.
Photo by Megan Kidd.

Of course, let’s not forget the bingo! Fàilte Bhlàth prepared three prizes, two quite sweet and one a bit more classic/gothic (which was highly reflective of the ratios of the substyles, actually – I’d say the event was 90% sweet lolitas, 8% gothic, and 2% classic), and to go with the proper bingo cards the number caller even had a proper mic headset and pack. To those outside of the UK the level of seriousness that people apply to bingo may seem a little daft, but there’s no other way to approach bingo other than seriously. It is a game that requires utmost concentration and even though at the tea party the pace of calling out the numbers was much slower than it is at bingo halls, it still had some attendees not used to the layout of the cards a little flustered. In the end, luck has a way of finding the right people for the prizes, so all three winners ended up with prizes that really suited their styles and outfits.

And another excellent screenshot. I am a total pro at this event report thing.

And then the day came to a close – much too soon, despite it being around five hours by that point, but that is always the case when you have fun. We managed a group photo, although some people did have to leave before this was even taken, and everyone slowly dispersed to catch buses and trains, to return to their hotel rooms, or to find some second venue to continue on with the good vibes (I ended up with a group of super lovely people at a shopping centre’s food court where I proceeded to gobble up a Five Guys burger – and get my outfit complimented by an employee there).

I know that I already said this at the beginning, but it bears repeating: Fàilte Bhlàth put on a fantastic tea party. It had everything that I seek out from events like this: community spirit, care and attention to details and extras, a reliable venue providing good food and drinks, and the perfect balance between the scheduled parts and the free time to roam and socialise. As usual, I returned with my Instagram full of new people to follow and my heart filled with joy. I am definitely going to make effort to attend more Fàilte Bhlàth events in the future and would strongly advise to anyone considering it to do so. As an organisation dedicated to putting on lolita fashion events in Scotland, they are already doing so much to bring the community together and it is clear that with this amount of love received in response they will only continue to grow. The tea party may have been called Be My Valentine, but I think it’s fair (if very cheesy) to say that Fàilte Bhlàth is our Valentine. And before you completely x out of this blog for such a dad joke, if you want to see what all of this looked like, I am linking the vlog below for your viewing pleasure.

8 Mar 2024

1 Dress 4 Looks Take 68

The end of 2023 was really kind to me in allowing me to find not one, but two pieces from my wishlist. Meta’s Vintage Fruit OP popped up on Closet Child and I cannot remember the last time I snatched something up so fast. It is a little disheartening to know that it will be too cold to actually wear this still for a good while to come, so putting these together is one way of releasing all of that excited energy in anticipation of warmer months.

Look 1: Grape Vines

Although I think this idea would look bomb with a deep purple to emulate the grapes better, in the absence of that colour from my wardrobe entirely I've gone with green for the vines. Somehow the mix of lighter and darker tones ends up working pretty well here. I'm probably more likely to do this with the light green Innocent World bolero, but this version gives me options.

Look 2: Lemon

As I was putting this together, doubts kept trying to settle and tell me that I down own enough yellow things to pull this off. But I persevered and the more I added, the more this gave me a summer holiday in Italy kind of a vibe. Very Isle of Capri sipping a limoncello and eating gelato. That wire headband that I got as a freebie with one of the blouses was a little moment of genius, if I say so myself.

Look 3: Apple Pie

Yes, it's a rehash of what I did in 2018, but the idea still works. There's no point in being too harsh with oneself when it comes to OPs because the ease of just throwing them on is precisely the point. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Look 4: Pink Berries

It's me, hi, I'm the problem mixing patterns, it's me. Although there are enough polka dots here on the various laces that I feel justified. How could I not try a red x pink combo, it's too iconic not to. Even though I'm not entirely sure how the double short sleeves would layer in real life, I'm actually really excited to try this out, I think it could end up being really cute.

Let me tell you, taking these summery photographs in winter (because I got onto these early), whilst in my very warm onesie and with the heating on, really hit different. And I'm not usually a fan of summer, I like the idea of it, but I am not built for temperatures over 25°C. But seeing these outfit just makes me yearn for that idealised summer with picnics and sunshine. And when we get there, I will be ready.

1 Mar 2024

February Coords Roundup

In typical and stark contrast to January, February has gone by in a flash. Which is quite nice, I am ready to start bidding wintery weather goodbye and embrace something more justifiably spring-like.

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Coord 1: Manager

I wanted the sparkly green eyeshadow to be visible and juuust about managed.

This brooch and cardigan are a timeless combination.

I started a managers course at work and the orientation session moved from being on campus to being online - which meant that I could dress up and show my dominance early on. Jokes aside, between meetings I didn’t have the time to finish getting ready in time for the meeting, so none of the accessories or makeup were on for that, just the clothes. Not that it didn’t stand out enough in comparison to other people.

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Coord 2: Understated

I need to sleep in my hair braided more often, those are quite nice waves.

Welcome to weird colours photographing weirdly.

This was actually the first idea that I had for the managers course, but in the end decided that it was a bit too muted. Still good enough for working from home (or more like getting through the day at home). The rich brown and green tones manage to highlight one another without either taking too much spotlight. I also slept in braids that night, so wavy hair was on the cards - just need to figure out how to keep it from frizzing.

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Coord 3: The Library

The first time wearing this hat the way it was intended, with the bow at the side. I still think that is wrong, but it lets me use the elastic to secure it.

It feels like I always highlight that brooch in a detail shot whenever I wear it. Although this time you also get to appreciate some of the wonderful array of incredible textures featured in this outfit.

I have finally stopped procrastinating about both giving some books to a charity shop and sorting out my library membership. Both involved leaving the house and going to town, which of course warrants getting dressed in something nice. And book-themed. The touches of grey offset all of the cool tones of the skirt's print beautifully and the entire elegant vintage vibe felt like second skin to me. I've been mulling over the idea of starting some sort of a bookstagram or something, mostly because I want a place to share my thoughts that isn't Goodreads (they're owned by Amazon and I actually don't want to give reviews in stars, I don't think that my approach of “this entertained me and this didn't” works for that). The effort that's required to get any sort of engagement is more than I'm willing to put in, but if I do decide to do that, then having that library card would come in very handy indeed.

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Coord 4: Super Lazy

In hindsight, that was quite a fair bit of blush.

This was the first thing I purchased whilst out in Japan, right at Atelier Pierrot Osaka.

Because really, is there any more lazy way to coord than an OP with just the basics for a coord (legwear, shoes, and headpiece) and one accessory? It’s fine though, it looks nice, there was no point in going all out for a work from home day that involved going out in the rain to pick up some doughnuts. And let’s be honest, the bonnet and shoes were off or changed for that anyway. So, one nice picture just for the Internet. The very definition of no pressure.

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Coord 5: Farmers Market

Will I ever stop trying to make blue eyeshadow come back? I don't know, stick around to find out.

Love at first sight socks. I bought them with the Airline JSK in mind, but couldn't wait that long to wear them.

Ever since I saw these socks, I fell for them hard and been itching to wear them so badly that in typical me fashion I disregarded any semblance of seasonality. This outfit came out even better than it looked in my head and this is totally something that I would wear to a farmers market - if there was one around. But it was a February Friday, I was stuck working, and there were no farmers markets around. So I just lived the fantasy in my head and with the outfit.

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Coord 6: All Hearts

I slept with my hair in a top bun to get a lot of volume, even though I knew that this would die the moment I stepped outside. But it looks so great and the makeup turned out with this nice balance between feminine and just a touch edgy.

Baby's first Erstwilder piece. I feel like part of a very cool club now.

Named after Shreya Ghoshal’s All Hearts Tour that I was going to with a friend that evening, which extended into a friend date during the day. Warm and lovecore whilst still quite simple and comfortable for a whole day of being out, this coord ticked all the boxes. I am actually quite pleased with myself for this impromptu choker which is just a corset lacing ribbon from another dress. It was a great day: bought a mystery date with a book, we then went for pancakes at Fluffy Fluffy, then a quick savoury bite before the concert, and then finally getting transported to the world of joy and wonder at the concert. My teenage self has ticked off a big thing off her bucket list.

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Coord 7: Be My Valentine

For such an overcast morning, this selfie is full of warm tones. Maybe I'm not a cool-tone girlie after all...

Is this more Hermes than Cupid? Sure, maybe. But this is lolita fashion, everything has to be decorated.

Can you believe that between the concert and the tea party in Edinburgh I did not frill once? Coming back late from the concert has knocked me off my usual routine and sleeping pattern, and I haven’t had the energy to plan anything. Thankfully this one was all planned out in advance and just needed executing on the day. For a Valentine's Day tea party I decided to do something inspired by a cupid. Truth be told, all I knew was that I wanted to wear this OP and the cupid inspiration happened after, but that's besides the point. This coord really came together as nicely as I had hoped and was comfy enough to get me through the whole day without any issues. Fàilte Bhlàth, who organised the tea party, put on an absolutely fantastic event, the vibes were very welcoming and even though the non-Scottish attendees were in a very distinct minority, it didn’t feel like that at all. They are putting on some stellar events, so if you ever get a chance to go to one, don't hesitate. I definitely can't wait to come back to Scotland for another one!

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Coord 8: Unfortunate

Am I the drama? Clearly.

Put me in your next film noir.

To go see a show about a Disney villain I entered my own villain era. Although after consulting with the Discord server, this is still classic, just very dark, rather than entering gothic. I guess that’s my superpower, turning everything I touch at least a little bit classic. But that’s fine. The photos are lousy quality because for once, rather than be dressed in this all day, I only changed for the evening and it’s February, so all daylight was gone by then. Unfortunate - The Untold Story of Ursula the Witch was great fun, very gay and camp, genuinely laugh out loud funny. I spotted a few Easter eggs to other Disney films, as well as other musicals, and the show was not shy about making references to pop culture that broke the fourth wall a little. Great fun and would absolutely recommend going if you get the chance.

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Coord 9: Boyish Friday

Sometimes you just gotta be your own prince.

A fake ruff made by folding the neckline of the blouse down added a very pleasing texture to the whole coord.

This ouji coord lived on the back burner for at least two or maybe even three weeks before I finally found it in me to wear it. Not much was on the cards that day, just working and trying to get through to the weekend, so a bit of comfort (shirred shorts with no danger of knocking things over) and warmth (wool jacket) were called for.

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Coord 10: Friendly Visit

That I even had the time to put on a touch of makeup and take these photos feels like a miracle.

Genuinely did not realise that I started and ended the month with the same cardigan and necklace combination.

The last full weekend of February I spent visiting a friend. Between needing to be somewhat practical for travelling and wanting to dress up I landed on this. It has a vibe of trying to bring about spring whilst still being in the winter darkness, but most importantly it was just a comfortable and cute casual outfit. Because I was staying the night, I brought a few bits with me to change it up the day after, but I haven’t photographed that, so have my partial Whering collage (partial because it’s missing the hair clip and not showing the white leggings I had underneath for warmth).

Imagine this with white leggings underneath and very minor jewellery.

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For all that it was packed, February was a good month. So far this year I feel like I am making an effort to be more social, which I may need to be more mindful about at some point soon so as to not exhaust my introverted arse, but I am loving fostering these connections. The tea party in Edinburgh was a big highlight of that and whilst the written report will come later, the vlog is ready for your viewing pleasure already.

29 Mar 2024

March Coords Roundup

*~*~*~*Coord 1: Granny

*~*~*~*Coord 2: Spring-like

*~*~*~*Coord 3: Dotted Letters

*~*~*~*Coord 4: Errands Day

*~*~*~*Coord 5: Brown Tones

*~*~*~*Coord 6: Double the Doll

*~*~*~*Coord 7: Kind of Minnie

*~*~*~*Coord 8: More Spring

*~*~*~*Coord 9: Pre-D&D Filming

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