Pretty Wonderland

Pic from weheartit

I’m very excited about todays featured blog, The Lost Princess. I started following blog maintainer, Skye, when she had another, equally beautiful blog by the name of Princess Portal. Through her amazing point of view I really learned to embrace the idea of living beautifully and became inspired to create Pretty Wonderland. As Skye closed the chapter on Princess Portal and opened a new one with The Lost Princess, I was once again blown away by her heart filled words and dreamy pictures. The Lost Princess is such a captiving source of inspiration to me and I am overjoyed to feature this very special blog here in Wonderland. Thank you so much for coming to visit, Skye!
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The Wonderland Ten

Name: Skye

Blog Name: The Lost Princess

1. What made you decide to start a blog?
I enjoy writing and taking pictures and keeping a blog is a way to share these things with kindred spirits. It also feels like having a little imaginary home online.

2. How would you describe your blog in 10 words or less?
nostalgia, enchantment, childhood, tea, dreaming, forest, whimsy, inkblots, sherbet, buttons.

3. How did you come up with the name for your blog?
It is a combination of faery-story names, including but not limited to; the Lost Boys of Neverland, A Little Princess and George MacDonald’s story of the same name. The word ‘Lost’ has a different meaning to each of
us, and I like that because I hope people will read their own stories and experiences in to my words and pictures.

4. What’s your favorite thing about running your blog?
The surge of inspiration that comes, very rarely, and sends words swirling around my head that simply must be written down. Apart from that, and more often, I love having little talks with people in the comments.

5. What advice would you give to people out there who want to start their own blog?
Do not worry about being original, just tell your own story in a way that makes you happy. You’ll be unique by telling your own heart-truths, and not worrying about what others write.

6. List one of each of the following categories that you would recommend as a
source of inspiration:

Book: The Last Unicorn

Movie: The Witch of the West is Dead

Blog: Oh, I can’t pick just one… The Feather Circus and Delicate Diaries, because Vera and Lulu are such darlings.

Artist: Kinuko Y. Craft

Music: Cokiyu

7. Where’s your favorite place to daydream?
My garden, which is small but filled with lovely green things.

8. What stores do you like to shop at?
Pigeon Hole and Mr. Sparrow

9. If you could have an item from any story, what item would you want to have?
An alethiometer.

10. And lastly, it wouldn’t be Wonderland without a tea party… so what type of tea would you like?
Violet tea, please.

Your secret from Jean-Sebastien Monzani on Vimeo.

My friend Amber sent me this adorable video and I had to share it with you all. It’s a brillant little piece that really captures what Pretty Wonderland is all about. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do <3

Last weekend my prince and I went to tea for a lovely quadruple date with Victoria, Aly and Dalin and their boyfriends. We went to one of my favorite places in the city, Alice’s Tea Cup (chapter 2 location).

I shared a “Mad Hatter” tea with my dearest one. A “Mad Hatter” consists of a traditional tea set-up on a three tiered tea tray: scones, tea sandwiches, cookies and of course, tea. The prince and I got two buttermilk scones and a blueberry ginger scone with clotted cream and raspberry preserves. He had the lapsang souchong smoked chicken breat tea sandwich, while I had the smoke salmon tea sandwich. For our desert tray, we split a lemon curb tart and mixed cookies. The tea I selected was my favorite – lavender earl grey. My prince had the phoenix desert blend, which is a black tea melody of vanilla, honey and caramel. It’s my favorite to have during the winter time. I also sampled their alcoholic beverages for the first time as well. I split a Queen of Hearts drink and an Alice’s belini. Both were alright, but I wasn’t truly impressed with them as I felt they were a little too strong for my liking. I’m looking forward to sampling a few more in the future and seeing what else they have to offer in their mar-tea-ni’s selection.

Here’s a picture of us ladies:

And our princes:

With the intense summer heat, I opted for a more causal outfit:
Shirt: Offbrand CandyLand T-shirt
Skirt: Offbrand Miracle Candy AP Replica
Socks: Secret Shop white and pink candy socks
Shoes: Super Love Girl parapara platform sandals
Bag:Offbrand AP Replica Candy bag
With my curl hair falls I got at the mall and numerous offbrand accessories, mostly from Claire’s Accessory Shop.

And my sparkly eyelashes…

What I do is use a double wand mascara. I coat on the white primer, then the black mascara. While my eyelashes are wet with the makeup, I dunk my finger into a bag of glitter so that a bunch of glitter gets stuck onto it. I then blink my eyelash against the glitter and voila! The glitter gets stuck to the eyelash and the makeup dries, holding it in place and giving you adorable sparkly eyelashes.

You can use any type of glitter you like and even mix and match to create your own blend. I use Kirks Folly’s Folly Dust glitter because I love all the colors and star and moon shapes. Just be careful not to put your finger too close to your eyeball so you don’t get any glitter into your eye. Keep your finger just at the top of your eyelash to be safe and tilt your head forward and not back so that the excess glitter goes into the bathroom sink and not into your eyes.

pic from weheartit

When mankind began, clothing was not a product of fashion but of necessity. It provided warmth and protection essential to survival. Being social animals, we evolved to form social groups complete with social dynamics, ranks, jobs and positions. Visual indications in clothing and jewelry helped to distinguish these ranks and positions. The chief could be identified by his necklace of animal teeth. The teeth represented the animals he had killed, which therefore indicated his strength and thus his right to rule. In the days before trade developed, color helped identify the location one came from. People could tell the residence of others by the colors of their tunics, because certain colors of dyes were only available in certain regions. Holy men and women wore specific robes to set them apart from everyone else.

The pattern of using clothing and adornment to identify ourselves continued, transforming from pragmatism to self expression. The birth of fashion. For example, purple is regarded as the color of royalty. The reason is because purple garments used to only be worn by royalty because purple dye originated from a marine mollusc that was hard to come by in the Middle Ages and thus very expensive. Only the aristocracy was able to afford it. As a result, it became a symbol of wealth and luxury. Anyone wearing purple was displaying their wealth for all to see.

As the trade industry grew, new dyes, fabrics and jewels became more readily available. It was easier to obtain clothes designed for aesthetic appeal rather than just practicality. For a long time, there was a noticeable separation in what the upper class wore as opposed to the lower class. Nobility was able to indulge in fashion because they no longer had to worry about physical tasks with their peasants doing their labor for them. For the peasants, they dressed for practicality and not fashion. However, as generations passed, the gap grew smaller and the dress of the common man came to more closely reflect that of the rich. In modern times, a variety of styles, colors, cuts and fabrics are easily available to most of the world. We no longer can distinguish based on appearance alone. We base this social rank on brand names which are popularized by celebrities, our new nobility.

As the decline of the aristocracy gave way to the rise in power of Hollywood royalty, fashion became a way to denote social groupings. The flappers of the roaring 20’s were associated with the feminist movement because they chose to cut their hair short and forgo the constraints of corsets and tight clothing. Thus women dressing in such a way may have been considered scandalous at the time. In the 70’s, girls who wore tie dye shirts and bellbottoms would be associated with the hippie subculture and thus could be assumed subscribe pacifistic sentiments. Fashion is no longer set by the ruling class, but by the common man.

Aesthetics are now a way for us to distinguish subcultures. Yet despite how much time has passed, there is still very much the same. We chose to dress in a way that matches the identity of our pack. Different subcultures have different ways of dressing. A young man dressed in baggy jeans and a baseball cap has chosen to dress that way out of a desire to match his pack. Same with the man with the leather jacket, tattoos and multi piercings. The same with the girl in high heels carrying a Prada bag. We choose our clothes as a form of expression. As a way to show what tribe we are in.

While fashion allows us to identify one another, there frequently is the backlash of assumed motivation and ideology based purely on our presented aesthetics. That young man in the baggy jeans may be a straight A student working toward a degree in biology, but he may easily be assumed to be a criminal due to that fashion style being popularized among urban gangster subcultures. Likewise, the man in the leather jacket and tattoos could be a virtuoso of the violin, but some may assume he only listens to hard core rock and roll because many rock stars dress in the way he does. The girl in the heels may be assumed to be a self absorbed rich girl because of carrying an expensive name brand bag, while, in fact, she may be a kind hearted volunteer for a local soup kitchen. Well then why do they choose to dress in such a way that would clearly place them in one category or the next? Perhaps the kid in the baggy jeans just hasn’t given fashion enough thought – maybe he was just wearing his older brother’s hand-me-downs because he can’t afford new clothes after paying for college. Maybe the man with the tattoos does, in fact, hang out with bikers but he just also has a great love for classical music. The girl with the high heels may have saved up for that bag with the tip money she earned from her waitressing job. While we may assign certain assumed stereotypes, preferences and behaviors to ones choice of attire, it’s simply unfair to completely judge a person based solely on their aesthetics.

So are aesthetics good or bad? If dressing a certain way is going to raise so much fuss, then shouldn’t it be best to dress according to the status quo? Well that depends on you. In my opinion, the important thing is to be self aware. Wearing something just for the sake of wearing it because everyone else is, is doing yourself a disservice by robbing you of your own self expression. However, if you genuinely feel attractive and like a certain style on you, you should wear it regardless of popularity. You should dress for your own bliss and no one else’s.

For example, I simply don’t feel attractive wearing a lot of popular fashion choices. They don’t suit my body type nor the self image I wish to project. Instead I choose to dress in various quaintrelle subculture fashions such as lolita and mori girl styles. Working a full time corporate job, it’s not possible for me to wear this style on a day-to-day basis. However, I also do not feel comfortable wearing the high fashion looks that I see many of the other women wear in my office. I prefer to allow my aesthetics to slip into my work wardrobe to be business appropriate while still being within my own personal tastes. This is something I already covered in a previous article, so I won’t bother to reiterate it again. However, I would like to focus on the aesthetics within lolita fashion itself and how it is not immune to the same prejudice from within its own community that we see from those outside of the community.

Anyone who dresses in a style that is not the norm is used to getting looks, insults and snickers behind ones back. Most people will misjudge the fashion for a costume or a fetish. This sort of judgment makes it hard for the fashion to be taken seriously by the average person and popular media. It can be very hurtful to girls who dress this way because it makes them feel happy and pretty. Going out and risking the ridicule is the price we pay for being true to ourselves. But it is ten times worse when that ridicule comes from our very own subculture.

Anyone who dresses in a style that is not the norm is used to getting looks, insults and snickers behind ones back. Most people will misjudge the fashion for a costume or a fetish. This sort of judgment makes it hard for the fashion to be taken seriously by the average person and popular media. It can be very hurtful to girls who dress this way because it makes them feel happy and pretty. Going out and risking the ridicule is the price we pay for being true to ourselves. But it is ten times worse when that ridicule comes from our very own subculture.

Sadly, I’ve seen too many cases of girls fashion one another based on their aesthetics and ideologies of how and why they wear lolita fashion. There are numerous sub-styles within the subculture and rather than embrace this variety, it is more often a splintering of factions. I think we must become aware that while we may be into the fashion for different reasons and may like different styles we, as a community, need to learn to appreciate and embrace our differences rather than allowing those differences to separate us. We already have a hard enough time dealing with outsiders, let’s not let the same ignorance and judgmental mindsets affect us as well. Whether a girl fancies herself a princess, a vampire, a doll, or a fairy… we’re all just girls in pretty, frilly dresses having a good time, right?

Whatever aesthetics we are drawn to, it is important for us to recognize that while we may not share the same tastes in fashion and ideology, it does not make someone else’s aesthetics any less meaningful and wonderful to them. Try to go beyond the surface to get to know someone before judging them based on presentation alone. You may be pleasantly surprised in the person underneath and make a wonderful friend in the process.

pic from weheartit

- Catch fireflies to make a fairy lantern (make sure to let them go, though)

- Visit the beach, collect seashells on the beach, look for mermaids, build sand castles

- Drink cute, fizzy drinks like frozen mint lemonade or bubble tea! Yum!

- Wear your hair in pretty updos to keep you hair off your neck on hot days

- Make ice cream cones an accessory and a snack

- Keep a fan and parasol close at hand to keep you cool and looking adorable

- Eat salads garnished with edible flowers

- Visit local faires and carnivals

- Go natural. Opt for minimal to no make-up for a natural look so you don’t have to worry about sweating your make-up off. Lip gloss, water-proof mascara and a touch of blush is a great way to go.

- Make a lemonade stand that sells pink and blue lemonade and ice cubes in the shapes of stars, hearts and gems! Then donate the money to a charity.

pic from weheartit

Congratulations to commenter #1, Kawaii Mikuru! You are the winner of Pretty Wonderland’s first anniversary giveaway ^.^ As shown in the previous post, you have won three adorable Alice in Wonderland accessories from Claire’s Accessory Shop.

proof screencap

Kawaii Mikuru please use the contact form located at the top of the page to send me your mailing address and I will send the gift out to you.

To everyone else, thank you soooo much for all the kind words. It means so much to me to hear from you and makes it all worth while. I never really knew if I would be able to actually get an audience, so it’s always so nice to hear from my readers and learn that you are enjoying my blog. I hope I have helped inspire and brighten your days and hope I can continue to do so.

Also, please don’t hesitate to drop me a line and let me know what type of things you’d like to see more of here. I always welcome feedback and want to keep making Pretty Wonderland a place where you all want to keep visiting.

Many thanks and much love,
Princess Crystal

photo from weheartit

Yay! Pretty Wonderland is one year old today!
When I first started this little venture, I just wanted an outlet to express my creativity and promote inspiration. I never had a goal in mind. It was just an ephemeral whimsy that blossomed into a reality.
Now a year later, I’ve spoken on a panel, been interviewed for a documentary and made so many wonderful friends. Opening myself into the blogosphere world has helped me connect to so many inspiring people who truly energize my heart.

As a way to thank all my lovely readers, I wanted to do a little something special to celebrate. Therefore, I’m offering a free giveaway for the following loot:

This giveaway features several cute Alice themed products from Claire’s accessory story: one “Drink Me” bottle necklace, a Wonderland themed charm bracelet and a black rose compact mirror.

If you would like to enter the giveaway all you have to do is leave a comment to this post. One lucky reader will be randomly selected on Thursday night and I will announce the winner on Friday.

Thanks again everyone for making my Pretty Wonderland any even brighter, happier place! <3

We all dress for the weather and the season, but lately I’ve noticed that my fashion tastes change with the seasons. Of course I wear Lolita throughout the year (though I usually find summer is a bit too hot for me to be buried under so many layers, so I usually stick with lighter quiantrelle choices), but here are four of my other subculture fashion favorites for each season:

Summer

Fairy Kei by childdoll featuring DC Shoes shoes

As I mentioned, I don’t wear much Lolita clothing in the summer due to all the layers. As a winter princess, I wilt very easily in the heat, so I either opt for flowy, wispy sundresses for a toned down Lolita-ish option or spunky, colorful fairy kei styles.

Being a child of the 80’s, I adore Fairy Kei. It’s very reminiscent of my childhood with all the bright rainbow colors, fluffy hair and incorporation of my favorite cartoons and toys – My Little Pony, Rainbow Brite, Punky Brewster.

I like this style for summer because its brightness matches the intensity of the summer. Everything is brighter and livelier in summer, so why not have your clothes reflect that? It’s a great way to incorporate Lolita accessories and still dress adorable without completely melting under layers of petticoats, stockings and bloomers.

Good fairy kei summer motifs include: balloons, candy, ice cream, stars, rainbows

Fall

Grimoire Style by childdoll featuring Oasis coats

For me, autumn brings to mind apple cider, pumpkin pie and falling leaves. There’s simply no better style to capture this magical time of year than grimoire style.

Grimoire (also called dolly kei) was started by a shop of the same name in Japan. The style reflect an old world Eastern European look that is very reminiscent of fairy tales. It is very similar to mori girl fashion, but tends to be darker.

With the use of faux fur stoles and blood red capes, it’s perfect to keep warm while still looking very fashionable. And just think how great it would be to go apple picking in a coordinate like this? It’s very much a grimm fairy tale princess style and truly matches the tone of autumn. It makes you appear like you just emerged from a dark forest. Be careful of wolves and warlocks!

Good grimoire fall motifs include: Apples, books, candles, mirrors, keys

Winter

Hime Style by childdoll featuring Juicy Couture jewelry

Perhaps it’s because I was born in the winter, but I’ve always felt that winter and princess go hand in hand. I always think of gilded sleighs, the ballet and grand balls at winter time. It’s just such an opulent time of year. A very princessly time of year. And that calls for hime style.

Personally, I don’t distinguish much between hime lolita and hime gyaru for my personal wear (I know I am probably getting tones of dirty looks ). I like them both and I don’t force myself into dwelling on wondering if what I am wearing is more gyaru or lolita (unless I’m going to an event, in which case I’d make sure to dress appropriately). For my personal hime wearing days, I am happy to call my style Princess Style and leave it at that, so hence I am not distinguishing hime style here either, because both work well for winter and are my ideal winter season wear.

Winter is a great time to wear tons of layers, drip with jewels and adore yourself with gorgeous winter coats and cloaks. It’s also the time that gives plenty of opportunity to wear your pretties out in public outside of meet-ups, because most ballet companies have a winter repertoire. It’s so nice to see a ballet dressed like a princess.

Good hime winter motifs include: Crowns, roses, feathers, cameos, bows

Spring

Mori Girl Style by childdoll featuring TopShop

And last we come to spring. In the season defined by cool breezes and fresh blossoms, mori girl fashion is a prime choice for this gentle time of year. The loose, flowy garments with layers of chiffon, lace and cotton are easy to adjust with the often fluctuating temperature of the season.

Everything is so fresh and new in the spring and mori girl fashion matches that vibe for me. It’s the perfect time of year to visit parks and gardens or to go berry picking. Dressing in mori girl in the spring is sure to make you look like a woodland princess.

A crown of woven flowers and a bundle of wildflowers clutched in your hand are the best accessories for springtime. Mori girl fashion always reminds me of famed dancer, Isadora Duncan. I like to channel my inner Isadora by dancing barefoot on moss dressed in my layers of chiffon and lace. It makes me feel like a fairy princess.

Good mori girl spring motifs include: Nests, flowers, deer, butterflies, mushrooms

Pic from weheartit

Around the Lolita community, there are a number of questions that frequently get asked. But the one that tends to strike a nerve is the question of age – “How old is too old to wear Lolita?”
Given that the fashions aesthetics value a youthful and childlike appearance, it’s only natural for this question to be asked and it does make sense for young people to ask this question.

You can find lolitas on both side of the fence – some say that there is no age limit, others say thirty is the limit and others insist you must stop once you have children of your own. As for me… well I am thirty years old and am married and I have no intention of assigning myself any age limit to dressing in a way that makes me feel beautiful and happy.

To me it seems rather ridiculous how much people assign time limits on things based on age – “I must be married by 30”, “I have to have children by 35”, “I have to stop dressing this way by 25”. There is no divine rule floating around which dictates who we should be by any given age. We determine who we are, not our age. Age really is just a number. Yes, it denotes how long we have been alive and thus gives others an idea of how much experience and/or wisdom we might have attained, but it in no way should define where we stand in the world.

When my mother was my age, she had a drivers license, was married, two children and a house. I may be married, but I don’t have any kids, I don’t own a home, and I don’t have my driver’s license (it’s NYC subways for me ^.^). Do I feel ashamed or “less of a woman” because I don’t have these things in my life? Absolutely not! In fact, I would venture to say I am a great deal happier in my life at this point than my mother was. Why? Because I am living for ME. I don’t make any excuses for who I am and I’m not trying to live by comparing myself to someone else. Yes, at thirty, my mom was in a very traditional female role and that was right for her, but that doesn’t mean it’s right for me.

We are all different, unique people with our own sets of goals, ideals and wishes. I’ve never bothered paying attention to what society tells me I should or should not do or feel given my age. I’ve always enjoyed dressing up in frills, collecting dolls and reading princess stories. That’s who I have been since I was a child. Should I stop now because I’ve hit some magical number that should dictate what I should or shouldn’t like? Should I suddenly toss out all my dresses and bows in exchange for pencil skirts and dress suits? Of course not!

Trapping oneself in this mindset is dangerous because it gives power to the continued constraints society places on females. There’s no place for youth in the media. Just take a look at how they hypersexualize young women at younger and younger ages, robbing these girls of any semblance of childhood and instead filling their heads with body image issues by as young as ten years old! Is that really something you want to give power to?

I’m proud to be thirty and be a Lolita. Not only to laugh in the face of convention, but also because, quite simply, I do not like other styles. I don’t feel comfortable in the popular clothing trends for female today. They don’t appeal to my aesthetics. They don’t make me feel like myself and they certainly don’t make me feel pretty. When I don my pink ruffles, lace stockings and fluffy petticoat, I feel like a princess. I feel pretty. I feel like myself. I feel alive. Who are we to deny that feeling to anyone based on something as trivial as age?

To anyone out there struggling with this question, I simply advise you to stop caring. The world makes enough demands on us, don’t deny yourself something if you truly love it. Stop worrying about what other people think. It’s your life, not theirs. They can assign whatever landmarks they want to their life, but they have no right to do the same for yours. Live your life for your dreams and your joys not on a generic template of time.

If you find yourself uncomfortable but don’t want to “give it up” completely, considering just transitioning from one style to another. If you started in sweet styles, but feel you may have “out grown” it, maybe look into picking up some classic pieces, or try to incorporate Lolita accessories into casual wear to still give you that extra sparkle. Personally, as much as I adore OTT sweet, I have found myself to be more drawn to hime and classic styles lately. It’s a natural drift, nothing I’ve forced on myself. I happen to like the look of the cuts and styles on me. You just have to keep playing and experimenting with style until you find something you like.

So to end, my answer to the “age old question” is that the time to stop dressing in Lolita is a personal decision. Stop dressing when you don’t like it anymore. Just follow your heart. It’s the best compass you’ll ever have.

pic from weheartit

It’s been a while since I’ve had the chance to post a new blog profile, but I think this one is definately worth the wait…

Eye Candy Creations is, as it’s namesake implies, a treasury of eye candy so sugary sweet you are likely to come away with a few cavaties just from looking! It is an utterly adorable showcase of an artist named Jenn whose imagination and vibrance come through in her beautiful work. It’s like stepping into a candy land of crafts and whimsy. I highly reccomend checking this blog out. It’s not one to miss and one we are very happy to feature here at Pretty Wonderland.
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The Wonderland Ten

Name: Jennifer

Blog Name: Eye Candy Creations

1. What made you decide to start a blog? Three years ago I was just getting into Altered Art and selling my work on Ebay before I switched over to Etsy. I noticed several artist had blogs and thought this would be a brilliant way to market my creative work, share my passion and interest for home decor, vintage collectables, etc.

2. How would you describe your blog in 10 words or less? A blog that makes you feel happy and inspired.

3. How did you come up with the name for your blog? I love the word Eye Candy and that is how I would describe my creations. Sweet, whimsical, pretty and sugary like candy.

4. What’s your favorite thing about running your blog? The FABULOUS friendships I have made. Blogging has opened so many doors for me and opened my eyes to a whole new creative and inspiring world. I’ve been so fortunate and lucky to have made solid friendships with ladies I have met thru blogging. I also enjoy making people smile and a feel a bit happy after visiting me.

5. What advice would you give to people out there who want to start their own blog? Start simple and develop your blogging style. My blog has evolved over the three years. Im very personable and share alot of myself with my readers. Make your blog unique to YOU! Share a picture of yourself. It’s makes your blog more personable. After you first 2-3 post blogging just get’s easier and easier. The words flows from your heart, and you’ll soon be addicted like I am.

6. List one of each of the following categories that you would recommend as a source of inspiration:

Book: My biggest inspirations come from Stampington/Somerset magazines. Full of creative artist. It’s visual Eye Candy!
Movie: The Wizard of Oz
Blog: A Fanciful Twist
Artist: Sandra Evertson
Music: Neko Case

7. Where’s your favorite place to daydream? In my little studio

8. What stores do you like to shop at? Anthropologie, Hobby Lobby, Antique Stores, Barnes & Nobles

9. If you could have an item from any story, what item would you want to have? Glinda the Good witch sparkly crown and wand

10. And lastly, it wouldn’t be Wonderland without a tea party… so what type of tea would you like? Im boring…I like Green Tea the best.