new logo & first t-shirt design!

this semester, for an assignment, i was required to create a logo which represented myself in no more than three colours. i learned through brand research, draft sketches, and Illustrator vector that the final artwork had not been a simple process. to cut the story short, i managed to design something i like (albeit it may not be to the tutor's expectations) and the result is printed on t-shirts. (you will see more of this logo on my website too!)

i bought two plain tees from Giant, and heat transfer paper from Digital Mall, then i printed and ironed the logo. ta-dah! the result varied from one tee to the other because i printed each one on two different inkjet printers and each tee were of different sizes (M for white, S for black).

i submitted the black tee and kept the white one (as i was only required to submit only one) but i hope it will return to me next semester after assessment is done. if it does not, meaning it has become the university's property as student artwork - i would be in dilemma on how to reflect on this.

anyway, have you ever thought of making a custom printed tee for yourself?

January Taobao Shopping~

CNY (chinese new year) is coming up and i needed some new skirts (it looks as if i have only one chiffon skirt, which is true) and new socks (current pairs are wearing thin to the point of having holes). as usual, i always splurge on one extra item on top of my must-have orders.

if you plan to order from taobao in february, please TAKE NOTE: you will experience delays because either most shops are closed or couriers may stop delivery in china for CNY celebration holiday, thus your orders may only be processed or shipped out after CNY. i personally advise against taobao shopping around CNY.

anyway, here is my january batch haul! i paid for my orders on 17 january and received them on 30 january (2 weeks including weekends OR 10 weekdays). of the 10 parcels, 6 are mine and the rest belongs to minori. the parcel (top-left, placed against green 30cm ruler) was like an overstuffed pillow!

a close up photo of my stuff (except shoulder bag not pictured here).

Schwarzkopf Freshlight Launch + Lolita Meet

when i first heard of the schwarzkopf event inviting lolitas to grace their freshlight launch in november, i was really hoping to attend since i missed MLC halloween lolita gathering. of course, i have heard of both schwarzkopf and freshlight separately, but those weren't my main goal. XD

as the event was held in sungei wang plaza concourse area, there was a changing room provided behind the stage but i only used it to put on my makeup. as i met up with the lolita pack (vinds, iris, azu, emma, sally, stella, and mintos), we were ushered to the media mingle area. i saw balloons everywhere and loads of sweet confectionery on the refreshment table. aside from the cordial juice and karaage chicken, everything was made for the sweet tooth... cakes, cupcakes, macarons, cookies, tarts, pastries, marshmallow and even pocky!

my makeup for the day~

testing Blogger 2.0 app + recent sewing

after trying countless third party blogger apps, i decided to try the official blogger app again because there was an updated version announcement on the pc dashboard. i did not expect it was gonna be this good!

blogger app interface has become more user friendly and had really smooth navigation. no more confusing menu and no more single photo limit. its easy and fast to blog and drafts are even synced from/to the pc dashboard.

weakness of the app is that you cannot arrange where the image appears, and you have to key in labels without auto-complete. temporary solution would be to save your post as draft and arrange the images from pc (which defeats the purpose of mobile app).

anyway, recently i spared a little time from uni to do simple sewing projects. first up, a simple organza petti with lace trim. it does not hold much poof but works well if layered. second one is a dress modification. i cut a long dress diagonally to achieve that asymetrical design and sealed the edge with cotton piping.

i look forward to blogging more!
またね(≧▽≦)ﾉ))

Parkamaya Brand Ambassador Audition

Reposted from BatsuとMaru, 21 October 2012:

Parkamaya, a new Asian fashion retail concept store managed by Parco Japan, will open in December 2012 at Fahrenheit88, Kuala Lumpur. If you have not heard about them, it is time to go to their Facebook page! They are looking for a brand ambassador through a 3-day audition and your votes are counted until 28 October 2012.

Akiko (yours truly) was at Fahrenheit88 to attempt the audition and here is the report! I was first approached by one of the staff to participate in Parkamaya’s audition by having my photo taken at the little studio booth. Despite my repeated refusal (because I wanted to go to the toilet first) she insisted, so it was amusing to see her eagerness to invite me.

Ray Malaysia [Be in the Mag] Mad Over Spots

today i joined my first Facebook contest organised by Ray Malaysia, which is published by Cite in English translation! oh, what a dream come true for me to find an Asian fashion magazine published in English version! Cite also publish Malaysia version of Mina magazine (which i love to read for fashion, too) but it is in Chinese edition, so i could only stare at the photos and figure out tutorials by imagination.

this month, Ray Malaysia is hosting another model search for their next issue, and to participate, you only need to get a photograph of yourself polka dotted (pic below: polka dotted salopette skirt, polka dotted border socks, polka dotted lace on cutsew top; all Bodyline except shoes and handmade accessories) and ONE of the winner's prize is a magazine-worthy makeover! be sure to log on to Ray Malaysia Facebook page, Like them, and Like my photo too! "please and thank you!" - Kim Possible.

a very special thanks to Herman Photography for the photograph - this is an unedited photo of the subject and resized smaller.

remember to vote for me here!

The Muse @ Neo Damansara

BEFORE: my "yin-yong" bleached hair (with leftover makeup after the Evangelion photoshoot last weekend).

10am: finally got out of bed after being awake since 8am. i remember about my appointment today at The Muse, so its time to get moving!

11am: i nearly forgot about the voucher after i got changed into my dress, but lucky for the annoying reminder on my not-so-smart-but-sometimes-is smartphone.

(i believe a smartphone is suppose to ease my life by helping me not being late anymore because i am always terribly fashionably late for anything and absolutely everything. so late that it would be appropriate for my coffin to arrive late for my own funeral.)

12noon: i parked in the basement of Neo Damansara (weekday parking rate is RM1 hourly) and made my way up the elevator.

imagine my surprise when i saw The Muse was all black at first, thinking they were closed! T____T it turns out that the glass was just tinted super black.

after i linked my phone to The Muse wifi, i spoke with a couple stylists about which colour to dye and they suggested a shade of brown from their L'oreal range.

before the dye, the daunting moment of truth: how healthy is my scalp? The Muse scalp test revealed i have the average untreated scalp, perhaps causing my thin hair growth due to the cling-film-like layer on my scalp.

1.30pm: wash time~ the dye has set and i am off to receive my scalp treatment and hair treatment. anxious about being late to work again.

2.30pm: yes, i am officially late.

Beautiful BodyLine~

a few months back, BodyLine's fellow faithful followers must have noticed a steady stream of new prints churning out on the Rakuten site before being updated to the international site. but i know, from long ago (at least a year ago when the infamous Carousel JSK was sold out) BodyLine is most likely able to jump on the lolita trend bandwagon which more members of the lolita community can accept as... Beautiful.

this spring and summer, BodyLine has find their way into my heart again, with more prints original then ever! sure, occasionally they have some 'similarity' to upmarket brand prints and designs such as Angelic Pretty, but i doubt you wouldn't mind much if you weren't a brand whore. just wear what you wish and love!

squirrels and birthday cake? i do wonder how do you name this print~ AND did you notice the wig? ♥

two tone: Bodyline wigs (and some shoes) replica

this is part two; a continuation from my first contemplation on two-tone hairstyle:

1. vertical or horizontal two-tone? definitely vertical. horizontal is everyone's pick currently (trending).
2. lighter colour on the left/right or top/bottom? lighter colour on my right half.
3. which combinations: black/blonde, brown/blonde, pink/blonde, brown/light brown? decidedly brown/brown or brown/blonde depending on how long the chemical stays on my hair.

one major event that pushed me to make the decisions above is the idea of having to buy two boxes or four boxes of dye (since Guardian is having a "Buy 1 Free 1" promotion on Beauteen products). by my calculations, i would have to get three boxes for most of the colour combinations. therefore, i decided to get two boxes of bleach, both would be different tones of blonde bleach.

after concluding about the three issues above, i realised i might still have one more hurdle: parents. but oh well, i will just have to walk in the saloon later this week and get it done on my own, then see their reaction. how bad could it be? the solution is simply to dye my hair back to black.

now, Bodyline seems to have jumped on the hype of two-tone wigs too. what most people have noticed is the wig which is a replica of a Cyperus wig in brown with a quarter of dark brown.

left: Bodyline has actually removed the two-tone wig from the site soon after its release.

two-tone: the hairstyle or the chance?

inspiration since ever: Violet le Beaux.

inspiration one: Guardian pharmacy having "Buy 1 Free 1" sale promotion for Beauteen hair dyes. (at first, i just wanted to grab a couple to re-colour my shoulder-length hair.)

inspiration two: nikki minaj's hair in the music video entitled "knock-out" with lil wayne. (it got me thinking about using brighter colours.)

inspiration three: then i wanted to create something like the wigs from MintyMix~ (two-tone FTW!)

right now, i am contemplating these questions:

super shopping

with free time, comes great amount of online 'window' shopping! plus, it is a great therapy when a mood boost is needed. that is, of course, if you are the kind who will be satisfied with window shopping. there is no fun if you are going to continually rant about how you do not have this-and-that.

now, i did make some purchases instead of just drooling on the computer. the thing is, which should i start off with first? hmmm... decided to start on the things which i bought! ^____^

i have new clothes (again)!

bought the blue shorts and black dress with lace, and shared shipping with minori~

bought these like.. a couple months back but size did not match the said measurements, so i have no chance to wear it.

cute usamimi 「かわいい・うさみみ」

today, i got my first usamimi~ i ordered it from Bodyline last week because it was recently restocked in black color (previously the black and pink were sold out, and i don't really want the blue one). it was so cute and i love it! in fact, i love it so much i am wearing it as i am blogging now.

i spared you from the exposure to a short camwhoring session after this jumpline, but if you wish to see more pictures, feel free to continue to the link below~

Bodyline and me~

it is that time again - time for shopping! i needed a few items to complete my costumes for Comic Fiesta 2010, so i thought, where else better to get them than Bodyline? XD

here are the contents of the DHL box from Bodyline. they were all in Japan just 48 hours ago! these are orders from the November Bodyline GO (group order).

caution: camwhoring ahead!

happy day!

you would think with a title like the above, i had had a happy day today? your guess is right - yes, i was a very happy girl today!

let's highlight what were the little things that made my day:

• the arrival of a long-(nearly-)lost parcel to complete my Sawako costume
• the compliments about my new clothes which i received a day ago
• the fun lunch with my coursemates
• and an unexpected email!

new semester, new outfits

i want some new clothes, please!

a cute fluffy top, don't you think?

it's sem break! day 4

i turned the clock backwards! nah, i just changed the time by two hours back for this post because i fell asleep after dinner and then woke up at 1am because i remembered to blog first. haha~ so today's post will be in reverse chronological order (so i can start with juicy stuff first, instead of the boring morning).

finally, here are the carousel print and removable bow!

before dinner, i was out to berjaya times square to pick up my Carousel JSK from my courier. STOP YOUR THOUGHTS THERE. no, i absolutely, definitely, 100%ly, do not buy Bodyline stuff from ISOCKS. (when i first went to ISOCKS, the only item that i fell in love with was a Bodyline bunny maid set RM350 or so, but if i order direct from Bodyline it will be just over RM100.) it was just a coincidence i was there to collect my stuff in the evening. i did not even get a chance to walk into their shops when i left BTS.

Bodyline JSK wishlist!

Bodyline is being naughty, and i love so many of the new JSK prints. i cannot help but to save up for some of the dresses i want to wear. what are they? well, here are some on my wishlist:

 merry-go-round JSK

(this JSK has been around for a few months, but they sold out too quickly!)

21st birthday yukata - part 2!

i thought there wasnt enough justice done for my yukata with the previous post in part one, coz mostly it was about my birthday. so here i am again, dedicating this entire post to my yukata~ yes, with photos of the yukata being worn too. i hope you can forgive the low photo quality. XD

this was taken with my phone camera on timer, sorry for the headless body!

21st birthday yukata

ta-dah! i am officially 21 years old, legal to vote and all that. i should be older and wiser, but what if i still remain the same? well, i have to tell you, changes are not always visible... but i really am much older and wiser at 21 than when i was 12 years old!

together with my birthday, i would like to wish my fellow gemini (some are june cancer) family and friends happy (belated) birthday: mizuiro, kclee, reggie, james, adrian, melvin, zend, justina, jason, patrick... (i am pretty sure i accidentally included one person whose birthday is not in june.) now, not bad a list for Gemini the Twins right? haha~

warning: there are lot more photos after the jump!

my first Bodyline Japan purchases!

my first Bodyline purchase was also my first purchase using Paypal~ it was a sort of celebratory reward for my first Nuffnang cheque and my first domain too!

minori and i shared the first order that i made at Bodyline in August, and DHL was so efficient that they actually arrived one day before the scheduled time! however, that caused me to miss the first shipment because it was not expected so soon.

size of the DHL white box from Bodyline!