TV

I'm not quite sure what's going on, but people have been constantly contacting me lately about all sorts of queries - mostly lolita-related. The two latest additions being somewhat of a surprise, and I'm really not sure how to feel about it yet. First, the local news wanted to interview me, and spent a good couple of hours asking all kinds of questions about lolita, the dresses I make and sifting through my wardrobe.

And now, a national TV channel has contacted me, and if it turns into something (I don't know - they could be asking several people and choosing among them), it might mean an unexpected trip to the capital. It seems lolita suddenly got interesting, which is a good thing I suppose. Hopefully it will spark some life into the dreadfully boring Swedish fashion. ^.~

The most frightening thing about this, though, is that quite a lot of people will see it and I don't know what to wear! @.@;;;

Pumpkin Pasties recipe

 
As any Harry Potter-fan, one of the things I love in the books is all the interesting food. Yesterday happened to be my birthday, and although I rarely throw parties I decided to do so this time, and decided that if I was to recreate a Great Hall dinner this was a good opportunity. I must have been cooking from morning to afternoon, ending up with a variety of dishes I found on this list: Harry Potter Food

Some dishes that appear in the books aren't really represented in real life - or weren't until the books came out. One of those things that I was really dying to try was the treat Harry buys on his first trip to Hogwarts, from the Tea Trolley: Pumpkin Pasties. Now, before this party I'd never had pumpkin, and I wasn't really sure where to buy any. The recipe I found and wanted to try was a non-sweet one - as I'm not all that fond of too much sweets - and wanted something a bit more, well, food-ish and less dessert-ish.

That recipe said to use canned pumpkin, but the pumpkin I eventually bought wasn't canned but fresh. I had a lovely talk with a really sweet cashier from the middle east, who explained with much patience the difference between different pumpkins and what you could do with them. He was delighted to hear I was doing pasties, and I was quite surprised he knew what a pasty was as it doesn't really have a Swedish equivalent.

I'm going to share the recipe with you, with some changes that I made to it. The original had cheddar cheeze, but I didn't have that so I grabbed the left over cheese I had in the fridge, which happened to be Gouda. All measurements are approximate and not definite. Any spices can, of course, be fresh.

Pumpkin pasties (16+ pieces)

1 1/2 cup fresh, minced pumpkin (Or equivalent canned - just squeeze the water out)
1 cup of your favourite cheese, grated.
Thyme
Salt
Pepper
Rosemary

Dough: 2 sheets of puff pastry, sliced in 8 equal pieces
Glaze with egg white

Mix all the ingredients, and heat the oven up to  200ºC (or 400ºF). Put out two baking trays with parchment paper. The pasties won't grow so much, but to be on the safe side, only place 8 on each tray.

Place some filling on the sticky side of a puff pastry piece (in the middle, shape the filling with a spoon), and with your thumb, press along the filling until the filling is shaped like half a moon. Cut off excess pastry with a pair of scissors, and then use a fork to seal the edge. Make a few holes in the top with the fork.

Glaze the pasties with egg white, and send it into the oven until golden brown. They're delicious both warm and cold, and can safely be heated in a microwave oven. Enjoy! <3

Rude hagglers

You know, as an artisan I come across a lot of people interested in what I do, whether it be dresses or my handmade dolls. There are a lot of people that don't argue, accept the price for what the handiwork is worth, appreciating the art and the work of the artist.

And then, there are the "whiners". I'd like to call them whiners, because they have two things in common: they want the item, but they argue that the price is too high even if it isn't. I find this behaviour insulting, since I put a lot of time and effort into sewing, sculpting or beading, and I don't think my prices are over the normal. Still, it keeps coming back. I never cut my prices unless someone offers to by many of an item, and when these people realise that, one of three things usually happens: a) they accept the price, realising their haggling didn't work, b) they disappear without another word, realising their haggling didn't work, and c) they pull a sob story or similar.

I can accept the first two, but the third just infuriates me because it's rude and tasteless. Some woman tried to make me cut the price 50% (!!!) on an item because it was to her "wedding", trying to flatter me with claiming it looked "just like an old lost heirlom". Right, as if. The latest addition to these tasteless, rude whiners were some person claiming their father was dying (!) of cancer, and they wanted to buy one of my works as a present. Then, when I told them the price wasn't expensive, they said he'd died (!!!!). I'm speechless. It's so plain obvious it's a made up story, since you just don't tell a random person on the net such a thing. I'm horrified that people can make up something like that. Just how twisted do you have to be? What is it about internet that makes all these creeps turn up in droves? Is it because it's so easy to lie when you write? That it's so easy to put away a message and ignore the consequences, and ignore the fact that it's a real person on the other end.

I mean, this is the pouting little child gone haywire. I just don't understand what kind of person it takes to use such arguments. To draw sob stories like they were a trumph card. And what people actually buy these stories? I mean, why would these people pull such stories if they don't work?

I'm just upset that people who doesn't craft doesn't realise how much time, work and materials it goes into making something pretty. I suggest these people go and try to make it themselves, and maybe then they'll realise just how rude it is to ask an artisan to cut the prices. Sure, haggle on commercial items, but never, ever, ever haggle on artisan work.

Work

Even though I was highly disappointed by the news article yesterday, a lot of people contacted me after seeing it, some trying to cheer me up and others for more photo shoots. All in all, I'm not upset anymore, I'm just trying to push that thing out of my mind and focus on people who appreciate art a bit more.

I have work today. I was called in the other week by a library that needed a manga artist quick, so that's where I'm going. I like these manga lectures, because they allow me to travel a bit and meet a lot of new, interesting people. It's also a great way for me to advertise myself as an artist, since more and more people hear about me. I've held so many lectures and courses by now I really can call myself a pro at it, although there's sometimes mishaps anyway. It can't really be avoided, especially if children are involved. Some children are simply more difficult to handle than others, and I'm not all that good with naughty kids. I tend to be a bit harsh, perhaps, but I feel it's necessary.

I thought I'd step by a large fabric store as well while I'm there. I don't really have time to sew much, and I don't really need any fabric - except perhaps a complement to the sakura fabric I bought for my sister's wedding - but it's always nice to wander around and see what they've got. I don't go there often since it's quite a bit of travelling and I rarely have time, so it's a good opportunity.

I always wear some level of lolita when I hold lectures, but the weather today is really boring so I don't know. I was considering wearing Shiro, but I'm a little bit worried it'll get dirty. With all the dirty, slushed snow it might not be a very good idea. Everything's visible on white! We'll see what I decide, it's still a couple of hours before I leave.

Snowfall and shortbread

(Another cute picture by KaYa <3)

While I do prefer spring and early summer if I could chose the weather, one have to admit that snow can be very pretty when it's just fallen. It's been snowing here most of the day, and the white blanket that's covering the ground reminds me a lot of icing sugar. <3

Weather like this is perfect for indoor activities, such as games, studying - or baking. Admittedly I do not eat all that much cookies, candy and other sweets since that would quickly spell disaster for the figure (and the cut of the dresses... I may have a very large collection, but they're all close cut and just one size...), but I love baking sweets anyway... The other week I made candied pineapple, which was delicisously albeit a bit sticky, and I frequently make macarons. Today, the choice fell on shortcakes. There is something about shortcakes that makes them melt in your mouth, and I really like that. I dislike heavy cakes, so I very seldom eat chocolate cakes, but the light quality of macarons and shortbreads suit me fine.

I thought I'd share one of my favourite shortbread recipes with you (and along with it my favourite resource for cookie recipes). It's a sweet variation with white chocolate and raspberry jam: Shortbreads with White Chocolate and Raspberry Jam Why don't you try it? They are very easy to get right and taste delicious! <3 I added an extra thing to them to keep them sealed together and not dribble jam all over the place: use some icing to keep them together. Just line the bottom part, and place the jam on the inside. It will be sweet, but what else are cookies for?

Upset

 
Well, now the newspaper is out, and I'm upset about it. Silly as it may be, I'm disappointed in how they treated it, because I don't like the picture they chose, and I also don't like how they squeezed it in on the room that remained after they smacked on a huge ad beside it. So yes, very disappointed, especially with how big a deal they made of it. Even told the photographer to take 'wrapper pictures' and everything, and then used another girl for the wrapper. Also, they neglected to correct the text in the article, even though they went through the pains of sending it to me for correction. I have no idea what they were going at, really, and I'm this close to ranting about it.

Oh well. At least they tried. And I approve of them also high lighting the fact that there are some boys that dress as lolita as well. The fuzzy line between lolita and decora was not, however. It's up for anyone's grab whether they are the same thing or not, but I don't think so. Decora is much more, well, heavily decorated than lolita.

I think the pictures taken by KaYa was much better, then again, the photographer for the newspaper had much less time to work with. I'll be very upset if it turns out there were better pictures than the one they chose... I look silly on that one, mid-grimace or something... *sigh* I feel almost insulted, but I know better than that. Anyway. I didn't accept for attention, after all, but I do feel a bit like the poor cat on the picture right now. I find it very hard to believe that after two hours worth of photographing, the chosen picture was the best they could pick. So, no. Not happy.

On the bright side, I made cake yesterday, and next week is my birthday. The plan right now is to have a Harry Potter-themed party, and I'm much looking forward to it! <3

Photoshoots

(Picture property of KaYa. <3 Subject is...well...me and my wardrobe. ;D)

A lot of things have been going on lately, and I've never been busier. Just trying to fit my jigsaw of a schedule together has been very tricky, and among those things there have been a few photoshoots. Tomorrow there will be a short interview in a Swedish newspaper, and some pictures from one of those shoots. I admit I am a bit nervous, I haven't been allowed to see those pictures yet... I've only been told they turned out great, but I don't know, and I won't know until tomorrow. ^.^;

It's not the first time I end up in a newspaper - I've been in several, but not one as big as this one. I do admit I'm a little bit worried. I don't care much about what people think, and I don't dress up in lolita for attention - but some things just simply ring to deaf ears. I'm sure there will be plenty who think I'm just in it for attention, that I'm too old for this, that I just want to be 'special' and so on. It's a bit sad, really. I just want to say something to any of you who find my blog through the news article: I'm simply me, no one else, nor am I trying to be. I don't dress up like this for attention - I do so because I love lolita, very much, and I don't feel comfortable in any other fashion. And no, I don't do that make up every day. I usually try not to molest my skin with makeup, because that's not very good for it.

I also want to take the opportunity to thank KaYa for coming by, all the way here. It's amazing how you can find a friend in the oddest fashion! I'm happy you've been following my blog, and I'm even happier that you decided to contact me and meet me. It was great to meet you, the pictures you took were great, and the cookies tasted de~licisious! <3

Learning kana

I'm sure most people who've found themselves interested in Japan has thought it: I wish I could learn Japanese... This isn't so much a matter of learning it to be able to talk it, as a matter of learning how to read it. Even with a basic Japanese vocabulary, actually reading it takes a bit of an effort to learn. Why? I think this is probably common knowledge, but I'll say it anyway: Japan uses so called 'hieroglyphs' (no, that word doesn't only apply to old Egyptian writing, but all pictorial alphabets) called Kanji - but that's not all, they use 'kana' as well. While you need to know about 2000 kanji to read a newspaper, there are also the kana 'Hiragana' and 'Katakana', which are simplified 'alphabets' that are easier to learn than kanji (and you can build all words using only kana). Hiragana is used for Japanese words, while Katakana is used for foreign words and names.

I say that you 'can' build all words using kana - you can - but that doesn't necessarily mean that's how the word is most commonly writen. You can get by using it though - children learn kana before they dig into kanji, and often kanji is explained using kana, since a kanji can be pronounced several ways while the kana only has one meaning per sign. Uncommon kanji often get explanatory kana in tiny letters, so it's good to know kana.

But how to learn it? It's, after all, 96 signs if you add them up. It's individual of course, but as for me, I realised that the best way for me was to first learn to read before I write. That is, learn to recognise the kana and what sound they represent. The best way for me is repetition, over and over again, and I found that this site: www.kanagrams.com, was an excellent tool for repetition, and learn to quickly read a sign. After only using it for a little while, I begun being able to read the Japanese comments on, let's say, youtube. The feeling when those signs finally makes sense is so great! <3

YOHIO

(Picture credit goes to YOHIO alone.)

Media has been practically buzzing lately, and everyone is talking about the 17 year old YOHIO - musician, visual kei artist and very pretty boy. Note the order of those. It seems to me that people first look at YOHIO from the aestethical point of view: he's very pretty. Yes, he is. And next, they see him as a visual kei artist (for those unfamilar with the word, it is a sort of visual style adopted by mainly Japanese rock bands within a certain genre). Fanservice, crossdressing and all that jazz. And last, they look at him as a musician. As a talented young boy making great music.

Is it only me that is saddened by this? Nowhere in that list is a person. A human being. When I first heard of YOHIO, I thought 'he must have been so lonely growing up...'. The bitterness behind the attitude feels like a stab through the heart for such a young person. He talks to birds and squirrels, and doesn't care about what people say about him. No. That's not true. I know from personal experience that children can be extremely unforgiving when it comes to someone being different, and there's not a single person alive who can go completely unfazed from spiteful words.

There is one difference though. The independent one can rationalize it and push it aside as childish, although it's not entirely without pain. You don't get that kind of independance if everyone is kind to you. YOHIO is blessed with a wonderful family and amazing friends, and I'm glad. Most of the bitterness is in the past, and that's good.

So. YOHIO, if you ever come across this blog post, and read this: I think you are a great and strong PERSON, who is very TALENTED and have great TASTE in clothing. I like your STYLE. I think you are a very good MUSICIAN, and the music you write and play is great. I love visual kei, and have done so for a very long time (back in the days when Malice Mizer was still active), and it got stuck here, too. ^.~ So I think it's great that you like visual kei as well. And finally, I think you have a beautiful soul. Yes, the outer shell is pretty as well, but I think it is the soul within that glows so brightly it makes all the difference in the world.

So keep on going and don't stop - I'm eager to see what awaits you in the bright future ahead.

A little creativity...

...goes a long way. ^.~

I may not have been complaining much here, since that's not what this blog is about, but I get a bit frustrated at winter since I can't always wear Lolita. Especially not since I'm still at University, and the days are so very long. One of the downsides with the fashion is that it trades pretty for comfort (unless you are wearing Casual), and while that's okay if you are wearing it just over the day or a few hours, being in a full get up from six in the morning to eight in the evening just doesn't work.

So during long days and days when the weather is terrible, I wear pants and regular clothes (which in my case means dress pants and classy combinations), something I'm not comfortable in and don't like. It just isn't me. So in order to make those clothes a bit more fun, I've been a) looking around for some more punk'ish clothes and b) perk up clothes I do have. I did a bit of a test today, taking one of my white turtle neck jumpers (one that is a bit too big - well, not a bit...it's medium and I wear extra-small in those...) and made it a bit more fun with pink lace ruff and some felt hearts and satin bows. <3 I have to say, it turned out pretty cute, and I'll be able to wear it for casual outfits. I'll probably adjust the jumper and start on the others once I think up a nice design. I usually wear the white turtle necks as a substitute for blouses in school, as they are easier to wash often. It's practical. They'll be a bit more fun with some lace on them though. ^.~

Do you try to perk up 'regular' clothes sometimes? Or think about it? Here's a trick for you: if you are sewing in a stretch fabric, like most tops are these days, put a piece of paper beneath the fabric. That way, it doesn't stretch out and get pulled out of shape as you sew. Happy creativity! <3

Odd one out

(From SuperLovers)

There's been quite a lot interviews lately, for several different reasons, but some of them on the subject of Lolita. I've had questions through the years about my style, but most of them along the line where I buy my clothes. When I say that I sew most of them, people are surprised, and I'm a bit curious why.

Sweden is one of those countries where fashion is pretty main stream. Nothing really sticks out, and if it does, everyone has it so it's still main stream. (That said, just because many wears it doesn't mean I think it looks good... *thinks of a lot of leggings*) But if you can walk through store upon store and think 'there's nothing here for me', then there isn't many choices left. Either you sew or import, or find that obscure little shop nobody knows about. I'd say I do all of those three.

There is so much interesting fashion out there (especially from Japan, and sometimes Korea) that you just don't find here, because they'd not have enough customers to get by. Of course, finding things this way means you have to sift through a lot of things to pick out the items that suits your style, I've to this day not found any brand where I like everything. Most of my things follow a certain...hm...feeling, I suppose. I don't buy clothes to fit in, I buy clothes and accessories because they appeal to me, sometimes because they will match something.

I think it's a mistake to not buy clothes with your heart, since I feel they reflect the You quite poorly if you do. That said - of course 'regular' clothes have their time and place as well, but even then, I don't dress up in just about anything. You'd never catch me in jeans, for example. I just think that it's a shame so many people are terrified of dressing in something that sticks out. People like me and others who dress differently shouldn't have to be thought of as 'brave' or some such nonsense. It's not a matter of being brave at all. I'm not afraid to go out dressed in clothes I like because I'm not ashamed of the person I have become, and I'm not afraid what people will think about me, because if I walked around worrying about such nonsense, I'd not be able to take a single step forward as the person I am today.

I'd be walking around as someone else.

A pink story

It's been sort of a running gag lately among my class mates at University, but I really do love pink. I just gravitate toward pink things, the latest addition to the collection: a pink kettle. It doesn't really matter what it is - if I plan on buying one, and it comes in pink, then why not? *giggles* I do have a feeling a certain somebody will draw a line at a pink car, though... But quite honestly, I'd probably buy a white one and decorate it with pink stickers. There's no such thing as 'too much pink' in my book, but pink certainly comes out better in combination with white.

To be honest, I hadn't really reflected over how much pink things I have, and that my Emacs (sort of a programming tool) had pink background was to begin with just funny things, as I'm now the only girl in my class (I'm studying to become a programmer). But when I was setting up for a lecture a little while back, I took off my pink earmuffs and pink mittens, hoisted up my pink backpack, pushed my pink bento box (with pink chopsticks in a bag with a pink snap bow on it...) aside, took out my pink pencil case, and from it I retrieved my pink pencil with the pink ruler and pink markers... It's a small wonder my notebook and cellphone isn't pink as well!

The funny thing is that for some reason most of the pink shades settle in two nuances - the one on the kettle, and a lighter, pastel colour which work well together. Now, don't look so shocked. I may love pink, but I don't overdo it to the point where it gets tasteless. ^.~ But I suppose that depends on your own personal view of pink.

But I just love pink! <3