Thursday, November 22, 2012

Shop Review: Ayuda Me


For a long time I have steered away from purchasing on Esty because of steep prices, scary shipping costs, and generally I never have been crazy about the site. HOWEVER when Gaia Online (a website I have been a member on since 2007) had a Lolita forum (which has disappeared from the "Hot Topics" section and I can't find it now) I noticed just how many people had an Esty or a Storenvy and sold things at reasonable prices.

I like Storenvy's format better than Esty and so I ordered from a collection of shops there. Each seller ships their items independently (although there is an option to make all of your orders arrive at once) so I thought doing independent posts for these would be a great way to keep a constant flow of posts going.

You can check out my Storenvy, click "STORES" for a list of shops that sell Fairy Kei / Mahou Kei / Lolita / Etc accessories, wigs, and other goods. I currently do not have a shop, but that may change in the future ~

The first shop is owned by Misi and is called Ayuda Me. She mostly sells bows and has a couple other item. Although she does not focus on Fairy Kei items she does have one collection of pastel bows that fit very nicely into the theme of all things sugary sweet. Priced at $2 USD a piece it is reasonable.



I bought the bows in pink, green, and purple. The bows have a lovely star print with bubbles and sparkles. I think these bows are absolutely dreamy and perfect for any Fairy, Magical Girl, or Lolita. Eeyore was kind enough to model for me since I looked like a mess today. (Today is Thanksgiving, a holiday in the States where people spend all day cooking a feast and then sit down at the end of the night to eat and be thankful for all that they have been given in their life.IN SUMMARY: it's a day where women slave over a hot stove all day.)

They have an alligator clip attached to the back of them. There isn't room for an extra pin to be added so it will be difficult to wear these stars as brooches. That being said I think they are the perfect pastel colors (the purple close up is a little darker due to shadow) and it doesn't seem like I will have any problem with fabric bleeding (when I tested it). This is very important because it rains so much in Oregon. TT n TT I love the rain but rain is not very nice to most of my clothes and accessories.

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Communication: 10 STARS / 10 STARS ~ She sent me an email thanking me for my purchase and informed me that she would be shipping them out the following day. The following day I received another email with tracking information. Sweet & Simple.
Shipping: 10 STARS / 10 STARS ~  Provides tracking number. She only ships to the United States and Canada - which works for me but may not for international readers.
Arrival Time: 10 STARS / 10 STARS ~ Arrived within a few days of my purchase. The price for shipping was reasonable.
Product Safety: 9 STARS / 10 STARS ~ All items arrived safely, however !! IT RAINED. So the ink on the outside of the envelope bleed onto the thank you note she included. Luckily it didn't ruin any of the bows but it is a scary thought! Minus one star for no protective packaging.
Product Quality: 10 STARS / 10 STARS ~
The bows and clips are firmly attached to one another and all of the bows are shaped lovely.

Grand Average Total: 9.8 STARS / 10 STARS

Overall experience: The seller communicated well without the emails being overbearing or annoying. She was quick to ship the items out and they arrived within a few days of purchase. The bows are a nice quality and decently priced. I would recommend this seller to a friend but with caution - the bows are not protected from  rain in the packaging!

**I was not sponsored (meaning payment in goods, services, or legal tender) by this designer/seller to promote his/her products.

Shop Review: KAWAII GOODS

I wanted to do a review for this store for two reasons: firstly, I couldn't find reviews after 2011 and secondly, most of the reviews were only so~so about the company. So here I am at my computer typing up a lovely little review for the shop. Well, it's hardly little but you guys enjoy the details.

Not surprisingly, this shop is actually quite popular as a lot of bloggers have made reviews for Kawaii Goods. Most of the reviews are positive but a lot of them explain a lack of communication and explain the hot gluing of a lot of items to be rather garish. I am here to tell about my experience so you may see how the shop has changed since 2011. ^^

I ordered from this gal four times within two weeks and spent over $130 USD in her store in that short amount of time! Why? Because every item in the store is so amazing. I certainly can't say it's "thrifty" of me but for what I received: quality, amount, customer service, etc, it is really a reasonable price and the shipping isn't too bad either: especially because it is so easy to spend $40.00 USD in the store which qualifies you for free shipping.

Order One:
Starry Bear Heart Necklace ($12 USD)
Fuzzy Starry Bear 2-Way Clip ($8 USD)
Starry Bow 2-Way Clip ($7 USD)
$7.95 USD  Shipping
Order Two:
Fuzzy Bear Headband (Lemon) ($12 USD)
Dreamy Sky Wings 2-Way Clip Bow ($5.50 USD)
Dreamy Sky Wings Necklace Ver.3 ($12 USD)
Dreamy Sky Wings Necklace Ver.2 ($12.USD)
Starry Dreamy Bow 2-Way Clip ($5.50 USD)
FREE SHIPPING
*Order Three: PREORDER (Shipped Out Yesterday Actually. xD)
Fuzzy Bear Headband (Pink) ($12 USD)
Fuzzy Deco Bear Hat (Ivory) PRE ORDER ($25 USD)
Skeleton Hand 2-Way Clip ($6.50 USD)
FREE SHIPPING
Order Four:
Fuzzy Bear Ice Cream 2-Way Clip ($12 USD)
$4.50 USD Shipping

*Order Five: PREORDER
Heart Bear 2-Way Clip Ver.3  ($12 USD)
Fuzzy Starry Bear 2-Way Clip ($12 USD)
Sweetie Dream Tights PRE ORDER ($20 USD)
FREE SHIPPING

*Order included a preorder item, therefore the items are not shipped out until everything arrives. I am still waiting for these orders.



My apologies! I didn't take a picture of the packaging - on my old blog I used to BUT with future orders I shall take pictures since the packaging is important. It's becoming difficult since my mail doesn't come until 4:30PM usually and now it is getting dark very early here since Winter is arriving. So daylight is slowly not becoming an option.

SO ONTO THE FIRST ORDER I thought almost eight dollars for shipping was steep until I saw how well it was packaged. Three little items needed a huge envelope because it was mummified in layers and layers of bubble wrap! I struggled to get the package open, needing scissors to carefully cut my way into the package. Everything was safe, nothing damaged, and I just about died from the cuteness - honestly, I thought I could feel my heart melting.

I wasn't certain about this necklace when I ordered it - I adored how it looked but the bear's head looked heavy so I thought while wearing it, the necklace might tilt to the side with the bear on it. Thankfully Mister Bear's heavy head is balanced out by the stars and heart handing on the opposite side. I have worn this necklace A TON as it is my new favorite and I have never had a problem with it tilting. However. . .I did have a different problem.

I was out at lunch with a friend, happily eating my way through a delicious soup when K (that's what I am calling her here) pips up and says "Didn't you have a charm on that chain?" I looked confused, wondering which item she could possibly be talking about - and then she pointed to my necklace. I felt my heart skip over several beats as panic rose within me. Had it fallen off onto the floor somewhere when we were browsing through Sanrio? Or perhaps when we were getting ice cream? Maybe when we stopped into Claire's to see if they had anything cute! Luckily it had fallen onto my napkin in my lap so the charm was safe and sound.

I thought I was prepared for everything since my purses often weigh so much but sadly I don't walk around with pliers to fix jewelry. So I took the easy way out - hooked the charm back on and bent the ring so it would not fall off again. . .as elegantly and discreetly as I could since we were in a restaurant. Totally fixable but it is something you should be aware of~ ^^ Now I wear this necklace absolutely everywhere.

Onto the star clip which is one of the nicest fuzzy stars I have ever purchased! Maybe this girl just happens to know what she is doing more so than the rest of the girls. I adore the ones with pearls and more lolita-esque items but I love that this clip looks for Fairy Kei! The starry bear, the shape, the colors - very Fairy Kei! My only concern - and this is always a pet peeve of mine - is that you can see the clips from the front. I thought that if she put the alligator clip on the bottom and the pin on top that they might not show. If it really bugs me down the road I might try to carefully remove and hotglue them. For now I have so many other accessories that I made due without it or a style my hair to cover up the clip and pin.

Lastly is the Starry Bow which has gotten a lot of wear already as well. Everywhere I go people comment so positively on the necklace and bow and want to know where I got them! This product is made so well and the quality is so nice that I honestly have no complaints at all with the item! I love it: easy to wear, adorable, reasonably priced, sturdy.



ORDER TWO CAME WITH SO MANY CUTE GOODIES!

The packaged arrived as it is shown above in the yellow envelope. The envelope does have some bubble wrap on the inside so keep things safe. Then it was packed into the flat-rate shipping box. Inside everything was wrapped in a cellophane bag.

WHAT! A! HAUL! First things first - the bear headband. I wanted this in white and then as soon as my paycheck came in the next day it was sold out in white. The remaining colors were lemon, purple, or blue. I picked the lemon since I really wanted one. I have to say that I am so happy! I was a little weary when ordering: what if the headband turned out to be a bright yellow or if the headband was too small for my head and became uncomfortable to wear? I am so glad that I went for it because all of my worrying turned out to be a waste of time. It is a perfect pastel yellow and the yarn has sprinkles of blue, white, and pink which make it super cute. The yarn is super soft and it is large enough that it still fits on my head for long hours without making my head sore. Yet my sister, who is much smaller than myself (and I don't know how that happened), can also wear the band comfortably. It doesn't have a habit of sliding around which means I don't need to constantly check my head to see if it has fallen off haha ~ The pink stars and purple bows are placed symmetrically, which I am picky about so yay~ The pink actually makes it look like the inside of the ears, which I think is super cute. Recommended product!

Next onto the 2-Way Bow Clips for $5.50 USD each. Both are super cute, I love the idea, but I did run into a problem with these. The yarn likes to droop on the bottom, causing little rings to appear under the bow which is really unflattering.


(A special thank you to my giant Eeyore for having no shame in modeling the droopy bow) I can pile up accessories to cover it up, or if I throw my hair into a cute sidebun and put the bow on top it tends to keep the yarn from drooping. If you aren't moving around too much you can tuck the drooping yarn into the bow itself. Pushing them up through the center of the loop makes the bow appear fatter and look cleaner.


It's a cute idea and the design is sugary sweet but they design should be thought out a little more. If you have a way to fix the bows then it's a great price for them. If not, I hope my tips help. Would I recommend these? I really want to say yes but unfortunately with the unattractive drooping I am going to have to say no. I can't think of anyone who would want intentional drooping on their bows.


Onto the necklaces: right away I tightened the circle chain loops on them so the charms wouldn't fall off and so the pearl chains wouldn't break. Then I fawned over them for an hour, putting outfits together to showcase the necklaces when I wear them. I LOVE these because they are very fairy kei but also very mahou kei (magical style - very much like fairy kei and spank but mixed with all of your favorite mahou shoujo flair)! The pearl strands are so cute and they both pay perfectly. With the star the resin edges can poke at your skin (not break through the skin, more of an itching sensation like a tag in the back of a tee-shirt or dress) so I recommend wearing the star shaped necklace with a top/JSK/etc that has a neckline that is higher than where the resin star hits just so the itch doesn't bother you. Super happy with both of these. I would recommend these in a heartbeat!



ORDER FOUR - but third in this post since I had a preorder order.

This is my FAVORITE ACCESSORY/JEWELRY IN MY COLLECTION. Can you believe it? I have a new favorite! It used to be the My Melody x PiPi bag and phone charm exclusive in Japan.
 
(I also have the cosmetic bag as well. Thought about getting the tissue box cover but I decided against it.)

Now I have a new favorite item which is the ice cream bear clip. I love the shimmering pink jeweled eyes, the pink pearl nose, and his little mouth/nose shape. The star tail hanging off of it is super sweet too. I might actually love this more if it was just a bear head but I am too afraid of damaging it if I try to take the white cone shape off. TT ^ TT Still, I LOVE MISS FUZZY BEAR. ^^ It works so well with OTT Sweet, Mahou Kei, and Fairy Kei which are my three styles of clothing. Plus it hangs so beautifully~ I recommend this product to anyone and everyone in sugary sweet styles!

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Communication: STARS 10 / 10 STARS ~
Never had to contact Claudia so I am giving her full stars since I have no reason to put the rating down. She sends conformations when the orders have been shipped and it automatically sends your order details once you buy.
Shipping: STARS 10 / 10 STARS ~
It's easy to reach free shipping and her prices accurately cover the cost of shipping.
Arrival Time: STARS 10 / 10 STARS ~
Items arrived a couple days after order. (Aside from the preorders, obviously.) I call this speedy shipping!
Product Safety: STARS 10 / 10 STARS ~
NONE of the items arrived damaged or broken.
Product Quality: STARS 8 / 10 STARS ~
The two yarn bows are very droopy and need constant adjustment, or need to be hidden by other accessories.

Grand Average Total: STARS 9.6 / 10 STARS ~

Overall experience: I would recommend this store in a heartbeat! All of the products are so adorable, well made, reasonably priced (I mean, look at Etsy and Brand) and very unique! Product seems to rotate out fairly quickly - at least the fairy-kei items do. So if you see something you like you must be quick to jump on it. I noticed that the fuzzy hat I ordered was only up for two days before it sold out! The white bear hairband also sold out quickly so I missed my opportunity at getting it. (So sad, I already had outfits planned around the white one. TT ^ TT) If you are looking for accessories I recommend this store!

KAWAII GOODS SHOP
KAWAII GOODS YOUTUBE
KAWAII GOODS TUMBLR
KAWAII GOODS TWITTER

**I was not sponsored (meaning payment in goods, services, or legal tender) by this designer/seller to promote his/her products.