Bodyline Blouse Review L523 L581

I'm always buying main pieces instead of blouses, and it's been some time since i bought some new ones, so i decided to get two off Bodyline that i have been looking at for awhile. I got the "new" blouse L581 and another chiffon style blouse, L523. I wanted to review both of these since i haven't seen much information about either of them yet.

I must apologize for the quality of my pictures in advance, my camera doesn't pick up darker colors so well, but i have done my best to capture some of the details.

Okay, onto the review!

First up, the new blouse L581. I got it in brown, size 2L. It cost me 3599 yen. Unfortunately Bodyline has since put the price up to 4499 yen.

The blouse comes with a detachable bow and small cameo pin. I was surprised that the bow wasn't sewn on to the blouse, but it's nice to have the option to remove it. The cameo pin is of good quality and i will probably use it for other purposes aswell.

The fabric feels really nice to touch and the elastic is very stretchy and not pinchy at all. It fits me very well with room to spare, even though my waist is a couple of cms larger than the max waist measurement, so i'd say it runs slightly large. I had a little bit of trouble telling the back from the front of the blouse as they are pretty much identical, but i don't think it matters too much. There is also no zip or buttons in this blouse, so it relies on the elastic waist. The color is a rich chocolate brown, i believe it's accurate to the stock pictures.

The lace is also pretty nice on this blouse for Bodyline, it's not the softest lace but it doesn't look overly cheap in my opinion. The ruffles are well placed on the cuffs and the neckline and it doesn't look gaudy or over the top. The sleeves are a small bell shape. I would not recommend this blouse for someone taller or with longer arms however as they are not overly long.


Overall i think it's a great blouse, and it was definitely worth what i paid, although i am disappointed that the price has been put up because i would have bought it in another color. Personally i am not sure if i would pay the new price when i could get something of equal or better quality for taobao or secondhand brand. That being said, this blouse is just as nice as one of my Metamorphose chiffon blouses. The fit is great, the lace is acceptable, the material is nice and i am very happy with it.

The other blouse i purchased was L523 in Black, It cost me 2699 yen, again in size 2L.

The back of the blouse. When i tried this blouse on, i was surprised how big it was in the waist. It actually gapes quite a bit on me, and i definitely could have sized down for this one. I was impressed with the way it fit in the shoulders and arms.

The fabric on this blouse is similar to the other one, maybe a little bit thinner but sturdy. It's very soft and the elastic again is very stretchy and the color is a rich true black.

The sleeves on this blouse are quite a wide bell sleeve. I think it would be good for a more OTT coordinate. The ruffles aren't too overpowering and i think they are a nice size in proportion to everything else.


Overall i am very happy with this blouse, and i think it's wonderful for the price and a great addition to the wardrobe. I will be investing in another one in the future, but definitely size down if you are inbetween sizes. As with the previous blouse, i wouldn't recommend it for someone with long arms as the sleeves may be an awkward length.



So thats my review! I hope this will help anyone thinking about buying either of these blouses.

~Emily

Melbourne Community Buy/Sell/Swap Meetup Haul

This past weekend i was fortunate enough to attend the MLC swap meet at the Dan O' Connell hotel in Carlton. I had no idea what to expect, as this was my first lolita swap meet, but i had an amazing time and bought some great things.

This was my coordinate for the day, i went for something simple and easy to change out of just in case i needed to try anything on, which was a good idea because i ended up trying several things on.

I thought i'd share what i picked up on the day, and i bought quite a bit, so here we go!

The first dress i bought was Angelic Pretty's Wonder Party Shirring JSK in Sax with the matching headbow. This dress has been on my wishlist for quite some time, and i am very happy to give it a new home.

The next dress i bought was Peppermint Foxes Crowning Glory JSK in Navy. I have also been lusting after this dress for quite awhile, and i got it quite cheap because of a factory flaw with the printing, which doesn't really bother me. I am so happy to add this dress to my collection.

The last dress i bought was this older Bodyline dress. It's without a doubt my best purchase of the day, i only paid $15 for it and it is the nicest dress i have ever had from them. I'll definitely be keeping this one.

Here are some socks i bought. From left is AP Coat of Arms OTK in Navy, AP Drink Me OTK in Sax and super cute offbrand lacy socks.

The Drink Me socks were the first thing i bought when i walked in the door, they have been on my wishlist for awhile and i was so excited to see them there. Funnily enough they match perfectly with Wonder Party which i bought shortly after.

Accessories~ I wish i bought some more but i was just so overwhelmed by all of the things and i was having such a hard time deciding on what to buy. The little Peppermint Fox stamp brooch is my favourite, and i finally have a plain red beret, success!

I bought some adorable art from my lovely friend Bonnie and Thaleia from Pep Fox. I can't get enough of those tiny plants! I also bought this cute bunny towards the end of the day. He's happily sitting on my bedside table. I can't wait to get frames for these :)

I finally got a new wig aswell, i pondered on a few that day but i am very happy with this one, it's nice and soft and the perfect length.

The last thing i bought was this Infanta blouse for $10. I couldn't say no to a cheap blouse, and you can never have enough blouses in your wardrobe.


Overall i think i did great! I spent a lot more than i thought i would and i got some great deals and knocked a few things off my wishlist, and all of the girls had very reasonable prices. I'm looking forward to another swap meet in the future.

~Emily

Teacup and Teapot Collection

I have been working in a vintage store for coming up two years, and doing so i get first pick of some lovely items. I realized after a while that i was unintentionally gaining a small collection of vintage teacups.

So i thought i would share with you some of the lovely things i have collected, some vintage and some new but all are very pretty!

First up i will share my teapots, i haven't as many as i do teacups, perhaps i am fussy but i hardly ever see any that i simply must have. But i love this vintage Japanese teapot with its lovely gold detaling and mint color.

The other teapot i like to use is this one, it's not very old but it's very cute and useful, with the teapot and teacup in one. I have a couple of other teapots but they aren't really worth showing.

 I paid a pretty penny for this Royal Albert trio, but it was absolutely worth it. I was smitten by the cherry blossom print as soon as i saw it at work and i had to buy it.

I also got this amazing vintage teacup from work. It has a pearlized look to it and the little claw feet sold me on it. My boss gave me a matching cream jug for free, how lucky!

Another beautiful trio from work. It actually matches very well with the mint teapot i have even though they aren't from the same company. Can you tell i like gold details? ;)

I thought this little japanese teacup was cute so i bought it, instead of two separate saucers for your cup and biscuits, you get this one which has plenty of room for both!

And lastly is this Maxwell & Williams teacup which i was given to me from a friends mother. I think the little butterfly is so sweet.

I hope you enjoyed taking a peek at my little collection!

~Emily

Closet Child/Y!ja Haul Part I

Over the last few weeks i have aquired a couple of wishlist pieces aswell as some lovely new additions to my wardrobe, so i thought i would share!
I will be doing this in two parts, because there is still more to come ;)
I used Buyee for my y!ja purchases, i may do a review of their services in the future.

Chocolate Quartet Napoleon JSK in Ivory

After selling the collared version of this dress i was a little regretful because i really loved the print and the details are just beautiful, so i added this version to my wishlist.

I picked it up quite cheap from Closet Child not long after and i am so happy with the cut of this dress. If you are looking to buy this dress i highly recommend it, but you may be surprised to know that the Ivory color actually has a subtle minty color to it, i quite like it though.

Innocent World Trump Rose JSK in Green

I found  this lovely 2007 Innocent World JSK while browsing y!ja randomly. I thought it was beautiful, and even though i have had issues with Innocent World before i decided to give it a go.

                                         
When it arrived i was pleasantly surprised that it was made from a nice corduroy  fabric, which will be great for the colder months, and it actually fits me very well, the bodice is quite flattering. The details on this dress are so nice and i love the tiered skirt.

Angelic Pretty Jewel Ribbon Boston Bag, Berry Berry Bag and Innocent World Rose Lace

Book Bag

I also got a few of bags recently, the strawberry bag and the book bag being wishlist items for me. I got the AP Boston Bag from y!ja and the other two from Closet Child.

I have been looking for the red version of the berry bag for quite some time, and the Innocent World book bag i thought i would never find for a non-outrageous price so i never bothered to officially put it in my wishlist. I found both for a great price and thanks to my Closet Child nabbing skills now are both mine!

Alice and The Pirates Pearl Bolero in Wine/Red

I also got this cute Alice and the Pirates Bolero from y!ja for less than 3000yen. I told myself i would get more boleros this year because they are great versatile items, and i love using red as an accent color so i decided to get it. It's somewhere between Wine and Red but i'm sure i'll be able to match it with other pieces.

Angelic Pretty Melty Ribbon Chocolate Beret in Bitter and Musee du Chocolat Necklace in Ivory

And lastly i got these two items from Closet Child. The beret has been on my wishlist pretty much since the series came out, and the necklace is the same color as my Musee JSK so i couldn't pass it up.


I hope you enjoyed this post! I will be doing the second part of this haul in a few weeks or so when i have everything in my possession.


~Emily

Strawberry Picking

On Thursday i had the absolute pleasure of going berry picking for the first time. I have always wanted to try and since finding out that there was a farm only about an hour away i was delighted when my boyfriend offered to take me.

The weather was perfect and i had so much fun picking out strawberries straight from the plant. I wanted to pick the blackberries too but the girl working wasn't too keen on the idea of taking us to where they grow haha, maybe next time!

I was also very happy because my new Rococo Soul strawberry dress arrived just in time for me to wear it!

This was my outfit for the day. JSK from Rococo Soul, Blouse Metamorphose, Angelic Pretty bag and offbrand/bodyline accessories.

After strawberry picking we went for ice cream and had a nice drive home.

Unfortunately i didn't get a good picture of the strawberries before digging into them but i assure you, they were amazing! I made strawberry pancakes and helped make strawberry upside down cake, and i'll be munching away on strawberries for awhile i think!

~Emily

EGL February Wardrobe Theme

Following January's Wardrobe theme, February's theme is "Dress me Up", a fun idea to invite people to share their wardrobe and put together an outfit for a partner from the items they own. This year i decided to participate, and i got my partner Rolicherry, who has her own blog here: http://rolisramblings.blogspot.com.au/


She put together this outfit for me using my Rococo Soul Age of Sail JSK and my new Metamorphose bolero.

And here it is worn.

Overall i think it's a pretty cute outfit, it's definitely something i would wear to work for a more casual outfit, (in fact i did wear this to work before taking photos!)

I decided to show my interpretation of the outfit aswell just for fun, something a little bit more dressy.

I didn't change too much of the outfit since i didn't want it to be completely different, i just changed the headwear and shoes and added a bag.

I opted for these Vivienne Westwood heels because i felt the elegance of the bolero needed some more mature shoes in a different color to break up the brown, and the bonnet with some beige and brown bows to make everything a bit more cohesive.


I had a lot of fun participating in this event and i hope to do it again next year, and thankyou to my partner for putting this outfit together for me!~

Birthday High Tea at By Josephines

This previous weekend i was lucky enough to have high tea with two lovely girls to celebrate my 20th birthday. I was so excited to go back after visiting the shop to make my booking.

Before meeting up with the other girls i had some time so i did a little bit of shopping. I came across this adorable shop that had a whole area just for hello kitty. Unfortunately they were pretty expensive so i just took a photo to admire.


We had a table set up for us ready for our arrival with a drinks menu with a very nice selection of beverages.

I decided to go for this refreshing raspberry and mint drink, i was surprised when it came just how minty it was! I ended up taking the mint out since it was a bit too strong for me.

The beautiful treats we were supplied with! My favourites were probably the cute mini sandwiches on the bottom right and the raspberry and orange blossom tarts up top.

We were also given this cute little bowl of mini macarons! I can honestly say that Josephines macarons are the best i have ever had.

Here was my outfit for the day. Dress, Headbow and Tights by Angelic Pretty, Bag by Metamorphose and the rest is Taobao and Offbrand.

I just had to get some macarons to take home with me. They were packaged very carefully in this lovely tissue with a sticker on it.

I got 3 earl grey macarons because they were my favourite, aswell as orange blossom, gingerbread and rosewater flavoured macarons, all of which were delicious!


I had such a fun day, i felt very spoilt and i'm very thankful to have spent it with such lovely people.

~Emily