CUTE ANIME GIRL DRAWINGS, ALICE & THE CAT. BLACK PEACE NOW & YOSUKE SHOES: OPA OSAKA, EGA ELEGANT GOTHIC LOLITA & ARISTOCRAT BOYS FASHION.
Looky-loo: it’s La Carmina and Sebastiano Serafini!
These cute manga/anime-style drawings are by Alice and the Cat, a talented designer and illustrator — born in Milan and living in Tokyo. Her kawaii illustrations have been exhibited at Tokyo Design Festa, the huge art event I reported on in 2008 and in 2010. (Do check out these posts if you missed them; Yukiro is shirtless in this one.)
Seba and I are quite the team, ne? We’re working hard, and soon we’ll share our wild collaborations with you! And you can look forward to our Hollywood invasion (Dec 28 to Jan 10). (There’s a new Seba in America category for this special series.)
Before we jet to not-so-sunny LA, let’s finish up our dark fashion tour of Osaka, Japan. Shopping for Goth/alt clothing is more difficult in Shinsaibashi than in Harajuku, since the stores are spread out (rather than concentrated in Laforet and Takeshita-doori). In the 2F basement of OPA, there’s a boutique for Yosuke shoes. I love this brand. Inexpensive, stylish, and never falls apart.
Next door: Black Peace Now. One of my favorite brands for men’s Elegant Gothic Aristocrat fashion.
Peace Now is brighter and cuter, while still retaining some dark elements.
The eye-patch wearing teddy bears and bunnies remind me of the Pirate Basil logo that Naomi made for our coolhunting and TV hosting company.
You can locate these shops and more on my Osaka shopping map. I’ll compile my Shinsaibashi Gothic Lolita Punk store reports soon.
What do you think of Alice and the Cat’s illustrations? Don’t they look like me and Seba? Do you have any favorite kawaii manga / anime artists? (My blog’s banner is by reader Angela Che.)
Japanese Word of the Day: Keisei = Formation
Song of the Day: Gamma Ray – It’s a Sin (Heavy metal cover of the Pet Shop Boys tune. SHRED!)
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MAID CAFE IN TOKYO JAPAN: ANGEL & DEMONS, CAFE BAR PRAY. CUTE COSPLAY COSTUMES, WEIRD RESTAURANTS IN AKIHABARA.
O, the bizarre world of Japanese maid cafes! Since I photographed and wrote about the phenomenon in my Tokyo Theme Restaurants book, the Dutch Pepsi TV show wanted to shoot at an Akihabara cosplay cafe. Naomi and I made arrangements with Cafe Bar Pray, a newcomer with an Angels and Demons theme.
Here, half of the servers are innocent seraphs, and the rest are devilishly cute temptresses. Which side of the counter would you sit on?
Naturally, I chose the dark side. My outfit theme was Evil Queen Step-Mother.
Long trailing Goth dress: gifted from Lip Service
Victorian tulip choker: gifted from Yifat Aharoni
Long lace gloves: Spider, Hong Kong Lolita brand
Hair clip: Daiso
I bonded with the cafe manager, Tamao, over our orange hair. He’s a pro at mugging for the camera.
The adorable “Raphael” is the number one maid in Akihabara. (Yes, there’s an annual contest for Japanese maids!)
Each maid has a fake name, age (most are hundreds of years old), and rank in the heavenly hierarchy. Pick your favorite. She’ll give you her name card and prepare her special cocktail.
The maids charm the customers with games, skits, and light-hearted conversation.
Cafe Bar Pray is my new favorite. You’re allowed to take photos inside, the decor is swanky, and there’s a relaxed, anything-goes atmosphere. A nice change from the typical tense otaku hangouts.
The Dutch TV host, Bo, got dolled up like an angel.
We taught her how to make cute poses and decorate Polaroid photos for her admirers.
Can you guess who was our favorite customer-boy?
At Cafe Bar Pray, it doesn’t matter if you choose good or evil. You’ll be smiling from the moment the girls greet you with “Yokoso!”
The Dutch Pepsi TV shoot was great fun. Don’t forget to check out my behind-the-scenes photos and videos in this and this post. There’s more madness to come.
Have you ever been to a maid cafe? Would you want to visit one? Which angel or devil is your favorite?
Japanese Word of the Day: Kokuren = United Nations
Song of the Day: Era – The Mass (Carmina Burana and Gregorian chants meet dance beats!)
LA CARMINA
