Trying to be Creative Again

I've been quite busy, but hopefully things are slowing down now. I have finished all my applications! I hope they are all well received. 🙏

I am attempting to try and get back to being creative. I started a secondary Instagram a while ago but I haven't started to really focus on it until recently. I enjoy photography, but it is quite difficult having myself as the model. 😖 I also made a third Instagram account actually! The name is a joke/play on the name of my secondary account. Not sure what I will do with this new account yet. It's set to private for now.

I'm also trying to work on my book. Trying to write an epic is difficult ^^' Right now, I am just focusing on backstory/lore as well as formatting the story arc. Also drawing the characters. I would like to also do some background/landscape drawings as well. 

To be honest, its a real struggle to become creative again. I spent so much time focused on school that I didn't have much time for hobbies. 

I also finally bought the Yolanda Berry River JSK!

I would love to find the head scarf that goes with this. 

I am also thinking about selling or trading my Milky-Chan OP. I just don't really like the way it fits on me? Which is odd because I had it in black before and it looked totally fine. If I could trade it, I'd like to get the Ribbon JSK. However! Every time I look at the dress, I feel like I just don't want to part with it :/

Getting the Dress & Things I Missed Out On

I did the reservation for BTSSB Millefeuille JSK in Bright Green x Ivory! I have wanted this dress for such a long time, holy crap. I can't wait to get it and try it out. I also purchased the Princess Drop head dress in the same colourway. Wooo!

BTSSB Millefeuille JSK in Bright Green x Ivory

Now, let's look at some recent things I slept on and missed out on buying because I'm trying to be better with my money (the pain!).

Who are you?!

This amazing unknown old school Angelic Pretty dress which was listed for an amazing price. My thought process was that if it's still there when I get paid, then it was meant to be. But alas! It wasn't meant to be. *I cry* But now I can immortalize it here in this blog post! Do you know what the name of this dress is? Please tell me, I'd like to know!

Next is this Innocent World Old School Margaret Lace Blouse:

Innocent World Old School Margaret Lace Blouse

I love it. ARGGGH :'( same thing happened with this piece as the one above.

Well, I saved my money... and it went towards buying the Millefeuille JSK instead!

Something interesting, is the similarities between the Millefeuille JSK and that unknown AP JSK. They're both tiered and they also both have that corset lacing going down the front. Is there a name for that style of corset lacing? I am also wondering how ivory the Millefeuille JSK is. In the photos, it looks pretty off-white to me.

It's not a good photo but I'm kinda lazy, sorry.

Also here's my coordinate I'm wearing today. I've been wearing lolita A LOT more lately. Which is awesome!
Coordinate rundown:
OP: Bodyline, Dot OP (?)
Bolero: BTSSB, Baby Logo Bolero
Head bow: BTSSB, Cameron Head Bow
Socks: Angelic Pretty, Toy Parade OTKs

ComiCon

There is a small convention that happens in my city. I went there for a few hours, sadly I went later in the day and missed out on seeing the majority of cosplayers. A friend of mine shared some photos he took though, but it's not the same as in real life.

I did a bit of shopping and also met a larping group. That part was very cool. I wish I had the time to do an activity like larping. There isn't enough time in a day or even a week to do all the things I want to do!

My tiny sticker haul. There were so many cute plushies, but I couldn't decide! The two stickers on the right are from 'the Littlest Gift Boutique'

I didn't take a photo of my coordinate, I wore Bambi Underbust JSK by Innocent World, a short sleeved peter pan collar ivory blouse by IW, my IW lotta necklace. I can't remember what the other things I wore were though .__.;

Renaissance Festival

At the beginning of September, we went to the Renaissance Festival.

My outfit this year was similar to what I wore the previous time. I wish this corset wasn't an underbust corset, I don't know what I was thinking. It was very expensive, so I basically always wear it when I go. I have worn it with classic lolita coordinates before too (with Bouquet High Waist Corset Skirt (L353) from Bodyline in green and Millefeuille bolero from Innocent World in red). I don't know that I have any photos of that coordinate though.

My friend and I at the festival.

I actually bought a few things this time.

A little dish with tiny plants captured in resin, rose scented potpourri and a noodle bowl w/ chopsticks.

The next time I go to the festival, I want to focus less on the stores. Instead, I just want to enjoy seeing outfits and performances.

Overdue Haul Post

I want to post about my last month's haul.

It was after I started digitizing my wardrobe (aka saving images of my items off of Lolibrary) that I realized that I wanted to make a change. I mentioned this already in my Ponders and Pictures post a few weeks ago. I realized I want to move my wardrobe more towards classic sweet lolita. People disagree about what is and isn't a substyle often. I am not claiming this to be a substyle, but for me it is a style/aesthetic that I want to achieve. Maybe I will write more about what classic-sweet lolita means to me later on, but there are already some blog posts describing this.

On to da haul~

From left to right: Charlotte Ribbon Straw Hat (BTSSB), Pintuck Blouse (IW), Lotta Necklace (IW), Musicians of the Forest skirt (IW), Bambi Underbust JSK (IW), Delft Lotta JSK long version (IW), Delft Lotta head bow (IW), Wonder Memories OP (AP), Wonder Memories head bow (AP), Wonder Memories tights (AP)

This is kind of a massive haul... XD  Since moving I have a bigger closet but I've also begun to sell off some things! Hooray!

Charlotte Ribbon Straw Hat by Baby, the Stars Shine Bright

Another straw hat to add to my somewhat growing collection. I adore this hat. The ribbons are so long. The words whimsical, classic and romantic describe this hat. I must find a way to make this hat fit me better, it is too large and would easily fall off. I think I will get some sort of foam and line the inner rim with it.

Musicians of the Forest by Innocent World

I've also heard this print referred to as Band of Forest Animals. This skirt seems really old but it was released in 2009. It is very tight (I struggled to get it onto my dressform) and in addition, does not have much room for a petticoat. Funfact: there is currently no entry for this skirt on Lolibrary!

Look at how cute these illustrations are! I really love the art on this skirt.

Animals featured on the print include a bear conducting the musicians, a squirrel playing the violin, a rabbit playing piano and what I think is a raccoon playing the drums. There are also birds and butterflies.  

The cut itself, in addition to not fitting much underneath is kind of strange. That's another thing I like about it though. It's different from a regular skirt by having this odd overskirt with scalloped edges. Also the bow is detachable. Online, there are pictures of it on an angle on the side of the skirt (as shown in my photo) and pictures of it on the back of the skirt where the scallops of the overskirt meet. Both look like good options.

The cute animals and bows in addition to the scalloped overskirt lend a sweetness to this skirt. The muted colours and simplicity lend a classic vibe.

I am kicking myself because I saw the matching headbow for sale and I slept on it and missed out. 

Lotta Necklace by Innocent World

Ahh another thing I slept on! I feel really lucky to have found it again for sale. Actually, this was originally a phone strap that was turned into a necklace. The person I bought it from had wanted the necklace, but it was sold out. Super cool that they were able to turn it into a necklace! As far as I can tell, it looks nearly identical to the necklace. 

Pintuck Blouse by Innocent World

I own the Victorian Maiden Beth blouse in the pink colourway and I liked having it so much in my wardrobe that I wanted to find something similar but suited to the summer weather. I found this Innocent World blouse which I am pretty sure is their pintuck blouse. Unfortunately, it is more of a faded pink than my other blouse. I still have yet to try to coordinate it with anything so we shall see how it works. The blouse itself is really nice. Here are some detail shots

From these details, all this crocheted lace, it looks like this blouse could be suited to an old school sweet lolita style. However, the very muted colour makes it appropriate for classic.

Bambi Underbust JSK by Innocent World

I've seen this underbust JSK popping up everywhere lately and usually for less than 10,000 yen. What gives? You could argue that this dress is inferior to the regular JSK however, having a piece like the underbust JSK adds some variety to one's wardrobe. The border print of this dress features the forest critters with MUSHROOMS. I want to find a nice brooch to go along with this dress to bring out the red and green from the print to the top half of the dress. As for why I chose this colourway, I am trying to bring out the beige of my Forest Harvest Festival JSK in my wardrobe. 

Some shades of beige.

I also want to comment on the material of this dress. It is definitely different than any others that I own. 

It has this weird diamond texture?

Delft Lotta by Innocent World

The dress is absolutely gorgeous as I mentioned in my previous post Restoring a Coaster + Delft Lotta. I also obtained the matching head bow. It was one of those situations where I thought "there's no way I will find this, but let me look for it anyway". It took a bit of searching but I was pleasantly surprised! :3 This dress is adorned with forest critters, butterflies and cameos of Lotta. 

Wonder Memories by Angelic Pretty

I had never even heard of Wonder Memories before I saw a listing for it on LaceMarket. The pink and blue card suit on the collar, the detachable ribbon at the collar and the shape of the sleeves are all features I love about this dress. The print itself reminds me of the unicorn tapestries, this is what really won me over. Wonder Memories might stand out from the rest of the order. The watermelon pink colour of this dress combined with this cameo motif and gold accents tones down the sweetness of this dress. It becomes more subtle. I purchased the set which came with matching head bow and tights. A weird thing with this dress is that all the lace on this dress is different.

Here are the matching head bows to Delft Lotta and Wonder Memories. They are the perfect size for my head. ^^

Okay, that's the end of this. It was way too long. I shant want to create such a long post again! :<

Kansha: Celebrating Japan's Vegan and Vegetarian Traditions: A Cookbook REVIEW

Since cooking is one of my hobbies, I've decided to include some cookbook reviews on my blog. I am especially interested in the cuisines of different cultures. One food culture that I have spent an excessive amount of time learning is Japanese (surprise). I believe I was originally inspired by anime since many of them include scenes of people eating. Another appeal is that it is such a different food culture than the European-based one I am used to. Okay, I am diverging from the topic at hand!

According to the author, Kansha means something along the lines of thankfulness or gratitude.

This book is really for someone that enjoys cooking as a hobby. The recipes are more difficult because there are a significant number of detailed steps. I find that when I cook these recipes, I must refer back to the book often. It is ironic, because I think my palette is really not refined, so if I were to mess up steps (as I have done many times) I am not sure I could even tell the difference.

I have yet to tackle every single recipe in the book, but below are some of my favourite ones I have made so far:

• Skillet-Seared Daikon with Yuzu
• Heaven and Earth Tempura Pancakes
• Gingery Enoki Mushrooms with Carrots
• Crispy and Creamy Kabocha Croquettes
• Peppery Kelp Squares

I've found some recipes are also difficult to follow because the cooking times do not always work out. For example, it might say to cook something for x minutes but then it does not end up cooked enough.

Unfortunately, I'm not spectacular at documenting everything I've made. So I don't have much in they way of pictures.

Winter pancakes from the Heaven and Earth tempura pancakes recipe

Peppery kelp squares, which we refer to as rice friends (as they are mentioned in the book) is a recipe that I have revisited so many times. They are an excellent addition to plain rice and also with yuba. It is not a main recipe, but a garnish.

I have a new Japanese cookbook on its way to me. It is Japanese Cooking: Contemporary & Traditional [Simple, Delicious, and Vegan]! I have been wanting this book since 2012. Now that I'm done university and have more time to dedicate towards cooking, I am excited to add this book to my collection.

Zero Waste Natto? DIY!

I want to share how I have made natto at home.
Basically, I have followed the steps from Emmy in Japan's DIY Natto in an Instant Pot video as well as following along with Natto Dad's advice on his blog.
The main difference between my recipe and theirs is how I cover the natto while fermenting. Their method consists of two layers of cling-wrap with holes pricked using a toothpick. I don't own cling-wrap. What I have done instead is use a combination of parchment paper and aluminum foil.

While the natto ferments, there is a layer of cling-wrap that is pressed up to the surface of the beans. For this layer, I used parchment paper. I chose parchment paper for this layer because I didn't want the metal touching the beans. I am not sure, but somehow I worry that it could interfere with the flavour (this is totally unfounded). For the top layer, I use aluminum foil. I also add a rubber band to make sure everything is secure.

I also use a sanitized pin/needle to poke the holes in the two coverings instead of a toothpick.

Parchment paper can be composted. Aluminum foil can be recycled. I suppose you could try to reuse the aluminum foil, but it would require sanitation. The rubber band and pin are of course both reusable.

Basically, all I am writing here is that the plastic wrap can be replaced with reusable, recyclable and compostable materials!

Unfortunately, there's a part of this process that isn't zero waste, because you need to start with something. I've started with store bought natto that comes in styrofoam. Since the natto from the store is cut into 9 pieces, we are still getting a whole lot of natto per styrofoam package in comparison to just buying from the store and not making it at home. I think if I make a particularly good batch in the future, I will preserve some of that natto and see if I can propagate from that instead of using store bought.

I also suggest looking for soybeans at bulk stores that allow you to bring your own containers. I bring a mesh bag into Bulk Barn and am able to buy a large amount of soybeans for a very low cost. Hopefully, this post can help someone who isn't sure about making the process a little bit more environmentally friendly.