JAPANESE DOLL EYELASHES & CHEAP SUSHI IN SHINJUKU. PURIKURA EYE-ENLARGING STICKER BOOTHS IN TOKYO GAME CENTER, ABSINTHE JELLY.
I’m going to let you in on a little secret: our favorite sushi restaurant in Tokyo. Hibari is a cheap but melt-in-your-mouth fresh conveyor belt sushi parlor, located a few steps to the left when you exit Shinjuku Club Marz (map here). Since it’s open all night, we often head here after dancing at monthly Goth event Midnight Mess. Daytime, this is the prime spot to ogle spiky-haired Japanese host boys!
Skull tshirt: Mari’s Rock, from Closet Child Shinjuku
Gothic vest: Gramm, from Closet Child Shinjuku
Lavender casual skirt: Algonquins, from Closet Child Shinjuku
Ashi dashi pencil knee highs: gifted from Sock Dreams
(Count de Sang is wearing a Tokyo Gore Police t-shirt.)
Mihoko is always the picture of elegance. Her clothes are by Moi-meme-Moitie, Mana’s Elegant Gothic Lolita brand.
That night, the sushi restaurant was invaded by spooks and schoolgirls. Everything is 130 yen (about a dollar) a plate, so we ate a lot!
Makeup: Using gifted Sugarpill Cosmetics black eyeshadow, I did a cat eye. Above, I applied lavender eyeshadow to match my skirt, and blue eyeliner below. I put matching pastel heart stickers on my forehead, and Dolly false eyelashes. The effect is dramatic up close, but softer from far away.
Hair: I pinned the top to one side and covered it with dollar store paper flowers.
Shinjuku’s kabuki-cho district is known for scantily-dressed hostesses. This advertising truck drove by and Yukiro ran out to be part of the action.
Look who’s here… I Am Sebastian! V-fingers for joy!
We picked up more spooky spooks and went into a noisy gaming center for purikura (sticker picture “print club” booths). The latest machines feature technology that make your eyes Godzilla-sized.
Sebastian and I did our best imitations of the kawaii gyaru models.
About ten of us piled into the tiny booth and tried to fit our faces onto the screen. See how the machine makes us white as snow, with big and shiny eyes? (I have a guide to taking perfect purikura and decorating the print-out stickers in this post.)
Funny story: great minds think alike, so Yukiro and I both gave Cotton Bale fake eyelashes as a gift. And them the purikura machine spat out yet another free pair… so she’s stocked up for life. On the right, Kana and I did a shoot-em-up zombie video game and got a bit too excited.
The night didn’t end there. Five of us went upstairs for all-night, all-you-can-drink karaoke. The photos aren’t fit to be seen by the public… however, let me sing the praises of Kana, who invented absinthe jelly and brought it for dessert. Aren’t spooky friends the best?
Do you and your friends like to go for sushi, purikura and karaoke? Where are your favorite haunts?
PS: Tokyo friends, come watch Yukiro’s musical debut this Saturday at Midnight Mess! He’ll be singing original songs and a Lady Gaga cover, and performing a one-time-only vulgar act. All details here.
Japanese Word of the Day: Shibafu = Lawn
Song of the Day: Dalida – Besame Mucho (My favorite era of the tragic Egyptian chanteuse.)
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EDITH LEBEAU ART: FAIRY TALE & MYTHOLOGY PAINTINGS. LAST CHANCE TO WIN FREE MIYAVI CONCERT TICKETS, LA CLUB NOKIA & VANCOUVER COMMODORE.
La Carmina portrait
Edith Lebeau is a fellow Canadian, growing up in Quebec. The artist is inspired by mythology, movies and fairy tales, and always paints women with a strong expression: “The look is the most important thing in my work; it’s the way the character tells the story to the viewer…” More of Edith’s vibrant paintings are on her website.
I’m always eager to promote artists on my blog — if you’re interested, send me a rendering of La Carmina and/or Basil Farrow and I’ll feature you in a post.
In random news… if you’ve been following me on Twitter, you’ll know that my other computer refused to start up. What happened? The Cantonese computer guy looked it over and announced… “Mao moh!” That’s right — CAT HAIR. My darling Basil Farrow is responsible for clogging up the fan, which overheated and killed the video card. But how can one get mad at this plush Scottish Fold when he tries to fit into a shoebox that’s too small for his girth? As some of you Tweeted, ROTFMAO!
Since we’re in random mode, here are some outfit posts that I took on Takeshita Doori in Harajuku. Wait, what happened to my hair? Gotcha: that’s my friend Heidi, who was visiting me from Hong Kong. I dressed her up in h.NAOTO Frill and an Innocent World bunny purse.
THIS is me, in an Innocent World dress from Closet Child Harajuku. Although it could very well be my friend in an orange wig, right? These photos got us thinking… what makes up a person’s style and “image”?
While my friends and I may change things up, we all have our little trademarks. The colors we like, the way we apply eye makeup, the types of accessories we pile on. Kanae has completely different makeup/styling above and in this post, but it’s still Kanae.
The way we adorn ourselves broadcasts who we are. Kanae and Comte de Sang’s lobe piercings alone scream Gothic Underground. A closeup of a hand with yellow gold rings, in contrast, would tell a very different story.
I’m curious to know about your personal approach to adornment. What type of hair styles, makeup, etc do you favor, and does it reflect an alternative outlook? Let’s discuss in the comments (you can post as Guest without registering).
I’ll get the ball rolling…
† HAIR: I’ve been dying my hair with bright, alt colors since I was 14. It doesn’t feel right to have black or a “normal” shade on my scalp. I had short hair in 2006 but it didn’t fit me; I’m most at home with long, layered chop jobs.
† MAKEUP: Love false eyelashes, stickers on the face and having fun with colorful eyeshadows.
† NAILS: Kept short so I can type, but always painted. Yukiro has inspired me to experiment with DIY nail art.
† PIERCINGS/TATTOOS: None whatsoever (perhaps surprisingly!). I’ve never been able to think of skin art I’d want to wear permanently. I prefer to adorn my clothes and hair with kawaii toys, flowers…
How about you?
PS: Final chance to win MIYAVI tickets! It’s easy to enter my contest for passes for the LA and Vancouver shows here.
Japanese word of the day: Odaijini = Take care
Song of the Day: How about this epic Visual Kei playlist on YouTube. NoGod, MUCC, Moi dix Mois, Mix Speakers Inc and more.
LA CARMINA
