Stylish Surprise from Modcloth + Forever 21 Finds!

So one of my favorite websites has sort of hopped on the "Lucky Pack" train so to speak and they are now offering periodic "Stylish Surprises." You basically pay $15 and then they send you something totally random in the mail! You also get to specify your size. I like it because (a.) you get to try something totally new and maybe out of your usual fashion comfort-zone and (b.) the price! $15 is totally a good deal considering you could anything from a formerly-expensive dress or a really nifty coat or pair of pants.
The obvious downsides are (a.) while I may be a size M in dresses, usually, I am almost always a size L in coats! And some brands run differently in terms of sizing so yeah... and (b.) you might end up with some hideous reject that couldn't even be sold after many sales and discounts on their website. So .... knowing the pros and cons, I decided to dive in and buy 2 items. So for $30 + $4 shipping I got the following:

Item 1: Dress.


It's wayyy too tight on my hips. Uncomfortable. If I had smaller hips, I could pull this off! But it looks bad, like I am a sausage being stuffed in casing. ;___; I am seeing if I can swap it for a different dress!

Item 2: Coat.




Oh god. I LOVE THIS. It's a little tight in the arms, though, a sad thing... like I said, I am always size L in coats. But I could wear this in late fall when it gets chilly out but I don't need to wear long sleeves underneath. I can't wear long sleeves underneath this because it will be painfully tight. But the torso part fits me so well. Coats confuse me. Sometimes the sleeves will be too tight and the torso part fits just right so if I sized up to make the sleeves fit better, the midsection part is too big. Curse sizing! =___=

Click below to see my F21 finds!




My finds!


Yesterday I went shopping at the mall with my friend Elle! We went to Sephora where I dropped a lot of my paycheck.... ~___~; (I got a Clarisonic Mia 2, YAY FINALLY!) and some Urban Decay Makeup. And thennn we went to Forever 21 where I spent like $90 (ugggh!) on clothing. BUT I got 3 dresses and 1 top and I love them all!

White Sundress:


Navy Blue Dot Dress


Orange Ruffle Top:


Peter Pan Collar Retro Dress:



I love them all! I have worn most of these already. Here is a photo of me wearing the last one from today:


Via Instragram. My Instragram username is TheFlyingAce so please follow me and I will follow you back! :)

So in Love with Bernie Dexter!

Bernie Dexter is a pin-up model and fashion designer. I love her retro inspired designs!

I just bought this dress from Modcloth:

"Scene and Believed" dress.

http://www.modcloth.com/shop/dresses/scene-and-believed-dress


Click below to see more designs!



This is so so cute! :D


She makes pants too! :D


Florals <3


Another painting-like dress. My boyfriend loves the colors on this one but he's a fan of green so I could see why! :D


This one was really popular on Modcloth.

Here are some places where you can buy her stuff! There are stores all over the world that carry her lovely designs:
http://berniedexter.com/where-you-can-buy-bernie-dexter-clothing.html


The reason why I prefer Modcloth is due to their free shipping if you spend over $75 and excellent return policy especially for US customers! :)

A Tale of Two Dresses

So yeah, Modcloth.com....

I saw two dresses I really liked on there. Two RED dresses. I don't own a whole lot of red stuff and I wanted to change that! Because I really do love the color red...it's so flashy! When you walk into a room wearing an all-red dress people can't help but to stop and stare! (Hopefully in a good way?!) LOL!

So yeah. Originally I saw this one and wanted it badly:


Aren't You Precious Dress in Ruby

But it was totally sold out and there was no plan to ever restock it! My heart was crushed!

So instead, I ordered this dress!


Lady Love Song Dress

I tried it on (click the jump to see those photos...there's a few of 'em) and I was kind of on the fence. It was a nice dress but it wasn't cheap, first of all. I wasn't sure if the quality of the material was on par for the cost.

Secondly, omg, it really shows off every CURVE in your body! Which can be both a good thing and a bad thing. A good thing if you're feeling pretty confident and want to show off your bod' but a bad thing if you just maybe went to a dinner and ate quite a bit...because whenever that happens to me, my stomach looks pooch-y and plump, haha. >__<;

So yeah. Well here's the real dilemma. Someone just returned the Aren't You Precious Dress (the first one I posted) and there was both a size S and a size L but no size M! Of course, I am generally a Medium. So I was torn. I read some comments and they said size M was kind of big so I opted for the S. *fingers crossed* LOL. It's probably going to come in the mail in a few days. So I think I will just try it on and see which of these two I like better. They're both around the same price...so I can totally return whichever one I don't like and keep the good one!

And of course I see this and start drooling too. >___>;; Modcloth is evil. It sucks you in! @____@;;


So my question is simple, dear readers: Which red dress do you prefer and why? :)
(if either!)



Photos of me wearing the second dress:


Front


Side


Up Close


See what I mean by hugs your every curve?? xD I need to get some shapewear for this if I keep it!!

"Artka" TaoBao Shop!

Yesterday night I was helping my boyfriend browse for a cheap suit and tie on Taobao.com. And during my browsing, I discovered a really, REALLY cool shop! It's called "Artka" and they have a pretty nice selection of dresses and sweaters. My favorites are mostly the dresses....they have skirts and tops too but really, the dresses are what caught my eye! Here are some of the ones I love the most below.

Tell me which is/are your favorite/s!! :)





I think I might order this lovely red dress. It's the dress that drew my attention to Artka's shop in the first place. :) It reminds me a little of classic lolita and sweet lolita but without too much over-the-top-ness. :D


This blue dress is to die for. Seriously. I love it so much! It definitely reminds me a little of traditional Chinese garb and yet somehow it's also kind of European...like "Gypsy" almost maybe? It comes in white too but blue is my favorite by far!



I am so tempted to buy this dress too. I LOVE sleeves...so unique! And the print with the flowers reminds me of a watercolor painting. :D Here is another shot of it.


Another one on my wishlist for sure...it reminds me a lot of Juliette et Justine or even Millenoirs...both classic/gothic lolita brands. :D I am debating whether to order it or not. My BF said he didn't like the black lace on it. But I adore it. *__*; Apparently this is from their "lolita" collection.


Another one I am positively in love with! It's so lovely...also kind of reminds me of Millenoirs brand. <3 More of a turquoise blue but I still love it! A lot of these remind me of paintings too and I think they were inspired by paintings because if you go to a dress product page it has all sorts of artwork on the top.


A blouse version of one of the blue dress above.


Reminds me a lot of mori girl style! I really want this one but I already own a lot of these colors!! >_<;;


Another one that looks sorta mori/dolly kei.


GORGEOUS black dress! Soooooo much love! <3


Red dress with black accents...reminds me of ethnic garb as well.


I love the belts on this one...I think it might be a little hard for me to pull off though for daily wear.... LOL!


A simple grey and white dress. Reminds me of Juliette et Justine.


I don't think I'd buy this one myself but it's really lovely and worth mentioning. I could see it being used in a really awesome dolly kei coordinate! :D


AWESOME BOOTS. 'nuff said! I REALLY want these but the biggest size they come in is EU39 which is like a US8 ish. I am about a US9 or a EU40/41. =___=;; I think I am going to see if I can get someone who speaks Chinese to ask if they can make them custom for me one size larger. :D These really remind me of Amir's clothing from Bride's Story...I mentioned it a few posts back. It's a manga about a girl living on the Silk Road in the early 1900s! These remind me of her boots. :D Even this model is wearing very similar style boots! I want those too! xD


I really adore this sweater. It's so simple and mori looking and yet has a unique design to it! :)

They have skirts too. Some are long and floaty and some are just...denim!


I really like how they have some basic and casual items which look outdoorsie/mori-like, and then they have CRAZY extravagent looking items...some of which look like they were inspired by Rococo paintings!



The prices seem to range like $40 - $70 US. That's kind of expensive for TaoBao, IMHO, but still cheaper than dresses at, say, Grimoire, or Anthropologie! :) I definitely plan to make an order. I will make another post once I receive my goods with a review of their shop! :)

Oh and unrelated to Artka but my BF found a really cool belt on Taobao that comes in many different colors. He said it reminded him of the Artka stuff. xD How cool!



So tell me what you think, everyone!! Do you like these dresses? Any favorites? I will definitely post pics of whatever I end up getting. I can't get too many because they're not very cheap...so I imagine I will have a very difficult time deciding. >_<;;;