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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BASIL IN A CAT STROLLER! PAMPERED PET ACCESSORIES. STROLLERS & CARRIERS FOR PETS.
Remember when CSN Stores sent my Scottish Fold fat cat a giant parcel? What on Earth could be inside? Only the most epic pet product in existence… a Kittywalk Systems Sport cat stroller!
For our inaugural stroll, I dressed like a crazy cat lady. Half hippie, half bag woman. My clothes match Basil Farrow’s fur color.
Big blue circular sunglasses: from Halloweentown in Burbank, CA.
Fitted jacket with corset back: I got it ages ago in Hong Kong.
Baggy knee high socks: Also an old thing from the streets of Hong Kong.
Fuzzy dreadlock scarf: a DIY project.
Smiling kitty backpack: gifted from Limebarb. It increases the kawaii quotient of any coordinate!
Basil is not afraid of anything (except tin foil and belly dancers), so he enjoyed being rolled around outdoors in his personal carriage. Check out the top right photo — what a good little boy.
The removable “cage” has soft netting over the front, so your cat can look outside (with a cute squishy-face). This stroller comes in pink as well, but I thought blue would be the more manly choice.
The Kittywalk Systems Sport pet stroller is constructed as well as a human one: there are cup holders, spaces to store items, and levers to lock the wheels in place.
Looks like this kitten is ready for another walk! Many thanks to Wayfair for the fabulous pet stroller. Come see more of Basil Farrow’s sideways-feet on his blog, Facebook and YouTube videos.
PS: My latest Global Gothic column for Lip Service Webzine is up. “The original Goths weren’t the members of Joy Division (haha) but the Visigoths and Ostrogoths – the East German tribes who invaded and ultimately decimated the Roman Empire. Today, Deutschland remains a Gothic hotspot, albeit in the black-lipstick-wearing, subcultural sense.” I interview my friends about Germany’s dark fashion trends and Schillerndes Dunkel, a new reference book on Goth culture. Come read it here!
Do you spoil your pet? What’s the most ridiculous item you’ve gotten for your baby?
Japanese Word of the Day: Moonbeam = Gekko
Song of the Day: Moon Kana – Hebi Ichigo
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