Kitacon 2015 plans – I'm gonna be so Japanese that I'm Japan

Hello guys!


It's finally time again for me to attend a convention! Last time I was at a con was back in August, can you believe it?? Well, I can – it's called the autumn-winter syndrome, aka the major lack of anime/cosplay events up here in the land(s) of the.... reindeers. lol


Ehrrm. Yeah.
But seriously, Kitacon's seventh return is coming up next – more exactly on 14th November. o/ Actually, at the beginning of this year there was a lot of uncertainty regarding if Kitacon would even make it this year; there had been some kind of money/funding issues and, well, when early spring rolled in and there hadn't been a word about Kitacon on their social media pages etc I wanted to contact them and ask what was going on. I don't remember the exact reply I got but it was basically them heavily implying that if they didn't get the cash to make the con happen (it's a free entrance event for all visitors) it would either be postponed until the later half of the year or there would, likely, be no Kitacon 2015 at all. But luckily, somehow, they got the money problems solved and –BOOM!– we get a Kitacon after all, even though it got reduced to a one-day event instead of the usual two days.
I'm happy that Kitacon is back after all these uncertainties and rumors going around that it wouldn't happen this year. Sure that it's a small con and all but it has its charm; it's cozy and a great way to go and be a colorful geek for a day and hang with friends. C:


But yeah, I'm obviously heading for Kemi, Finland, to take part of Kitacon. Just as always. Gotta support the local cons!
Regarding my cosplay plans.. or well, plan, I haven't written anything in stone just yet. Fairly recently me and Jäätynyt Enkeli watched all seasons of Hetalia, save for the newest one. While he had already seen them I hadn't.
See where this is going? ... Yeah.
So, while I didn't really get into it as much as he did it was still a mostly enjoyable way to kill off some time. I can't call myself a part of the fandom but I guess I'd be something like a, err, casual fan? I did like some of the episodes a lot better than others and well, I did get my fair share of laughs and facepalms lol. The thing is that because I didn't have any clue what to cosplay to Kitacon I started wondering if I could easily throw together a cosplay from Hetalia – partly because there's a lot of room for canon casual outfits and inventing your own designs and also because... I want something new but still simple.

Who can see it coming?

Character: Japan (Kiku Honda)
Series: Hetalia

Yeah, I know. Of course – the obligatory kimono guy is the one I can pull off the easiest, who, in this case, is Japan himself. DUN DUN DUUUUN. He was my favorite in the show anyway, so why the heck not? :') I should have a black wig somewhere that should work just fine for him, huehuehue... ~

In case anyone noticed then yes, this is not the usual color version of the main kimono outfit he's most commonly wearing – the one with the blue-gray kimono and brown haori. I randomly saw this image of him and thought that the colors were nicer (less dull lol) and, yeah, I can totally closet cosplay this, thanks to my kimono collector/wearer hobby. xD
If I'm not mistaken it's official art from/for the fourth season, The Beautiful World. I can't remember this outfit actually being in the anime; I've only seen it on this one and only artwork so far so... yeah.



But yeah, I might be doing some quick costest before the con, just to check so that what I have in mind to use for him actually is passable (in terms of color) and, well, that the wig works for him too. :s I also reserve the right for any changes, which basically means that if it's raining of super wet outside on Kitacon day then I'm likely to not cosplay at all because duh, I don't want to risk ruining my vintage kimono...

That about wraps it all up nicely, see ya there!

[Sponsored] Lens review: EOS Bubble Blue

Hullo hullo ~

It's time for yet another lens review! This time immah be talking about an ultra bright blue pair called EOS Bubble Blue. ヽ(・ω・)ﾉ
Psst, these lenses can also be identified by their code number thingy, which is WM-101 for the EOS Bubble series.

I've been wanting to try these lenses for pretty long and then, one day, my lovely sponsor LensVillage gave me an opportunity to try 'em... and of course I was game on! o/

This review is all 100% my honest opinion, even though this pair of lenses was sponsored. I really value being honest to all my readers.

You can use my discount code "SAMURAI15" to get 15% OFF on your purchase from LensVillage!

Base curve: 8.8 mm
Diameter: 14.8 mm

Water content: 38%

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

Note: My lenses came in TheDollyEye's vials, but the manufacturer is still EOS. TheDollyEye is just a rebranding label. Some big circle lens producers like EOS, Vassen etc sometimes do this. It doesn't mean that you received the wrong lenses or fakes.

I had seen reviews of these lenses before I got them myself and yeah, I was aware that they'd be super vivid and that's totally why I wanted them!

So yeah, as per usual I put the lenses to soak for 8+ hours before wearing them and, heck, need I say that I was eager to try 'em on??

One lens in.
My real eye color is blue-gray (mostly blue) with a slight greenish tint.

I popped the lenses into my eyes no problem and once they were in I didn't even feel that I had contacts on! Eff yeah, I love comfy lenses!

They stayed super comfortable for the total 5 hours that I wore them, with only some minor feeling of dryness which occurred around the 1,5 hour mark.

Lens photos incoming!
All photos taken by me during an October afternoon with a semi-clear sky! There's no color filters or such on the close-up photos and that's so that the colors would be as true to real life as possible.

Facing window. (not sun side)

Flash photo indoors.

Bathroom light.

Indoors, natural light.

Indoors, natural light.

Indoors, lamps on.

Indoors, back against the window.

Super bright light. I'm standing very close to a window indoors.

These lenses definitely give me the vibes that they're meant for more "out there" type of looks. The blue color is bright enough to deserve the "IN YOUR FACE" stamp, lol. Personally I really dig the effect it gives; I'm a fan of vibrant lenses – lenses that gives your eyes the look of some fantasy character. ♡

The only downside these lenses have (if you can call it that) is that the pupil hole is so big, which means that the majority of your real eye color will show in the middle. The EOS Bubble series basically just adds a rim of super vibrant color to the edges of your eyes. While I do like the effect some others don't find it as flattering, especially on light eyes because it gives a more "clashing" effect than what the same lenses would look like on dark eyes. (dark eyes would just make it look more "natural" because the pupil and the iris are closer in color)

All close-up photos below are taken outdoors while I'm standing on a balcony on the third floor, with the sun being hidden by clouds.

Facing the sun.

Same as above. Sideway glance.

Back against the sun.

Facing the sun, but with my head tilted up towards the sky/roof.

Half-way turned towards the sun.

Facing the sun. Cloudy.

These lenses are supposed to have a big diameter (14,8 mm) but they just don't seem that big for me. Not like I mind because I like lenses both big and small. But I do think that the main factor for why these don't look as big as other lenses of the same diameter is because the EOS Bubble series completely lacks a dark limbal ring. This feature almost always gives the illusion of bigger and more beautiful eyes so yeah, lenses without it tend to not give the "big eyes illusion" as well.

Personally I do like the design of the Bubble Blue just as it is; it has charm in it's simplicity and I like how the simple design itself, combined with the super bright color, makes the lenses look unnatural but in a magical and appealing way. Sometimes less is more ~

Lastly I have a batch of distance photos!

B-B-BONUS PHOTO!

I had no idea that I could do this kind of
"crazy hat maker" face... o_o xD

Seriously, if you like your blue lenses super-duper blue then the EOS Bubble Blue just might be one of your best choices! ;) These are a good pick for cosplayers and anyone who isn't afraid of donning lenses that are sure to make you stand out!

Use my discount code "SAMURAI15" to get 15% OFF on your purchase from LensVillage!

Short summary:

Color: 10/10
Super bright and vivid cyan blue shade that really pops out! The color is awesome, period.

Design: 7/10

Very simple design with no dark limbal ring. The inner edges fade out towards the pupil, for a slight blending effect.

Opacity: 10/10

Disregarding the big pupil hole the blue color itself is as opaque as it gets.

Enlargement: 5/10

Even though an 14.8 mm diameter is considered bigger than average (at least for me) these don't look very enlarging. I think the lack of a limbal ring is a big factor for why these don't pull off the "big eye illusion" as well as lenses that have the dark rim do.

Comfort: 8/10

Surprisingly comfortable. As soon as I popped them in I didn't feel them. Before the 2-hour mark I felt some slight dryness but that went away. I wore the lenses for 5 hours with no issues.

Naturalness: 0/10

Realistic... where? :D It's a rad lens for rad people! Forget these if you want something natural.

Thanks for reading! I hope you found this review helpful! ^_^

Thanks to my sponsor, LensVillage! ♡

Lens review: I.Fairy Hanabi Green

Hello peeps!

It's circle lens review time again! C:
Remember how I earlier this year reviewed the Hanabi Blue and fell in love with them? Yes – ever since then I've been wanting to have the green pair really bad! The cravings got even bigger after my awesome friend FankiKitsune bought and reviewed the Hanabi Green on his cosplay blog. *_* I had to try them myself too!
Yep, so this review is totally about the I.Fairy Hanabi Green lenses, occasionally also known as Vassen Hanabi Green! Let's go!

Yes, I received a different vial for each lens; I assume this is mainly because
one lens comes with prescription and the other is plano and thus of
different production batches. The expiry dates are years apart too, lol.

Always remember to check for the authenticity stickers – I.Fairy lenses
have those too!

Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 16.2 mm

Water content: 55%

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

The first time I wore these lenses they were super comfortable, just like the blue ones. I popped them in and for maybe one minute my eyes were a bit watery but after that the following 8+ hours I had no issues; these lenses didn't sting, blur my vision or anything – they were really comfortable all around. I wore them for a full day at an art/comic exhibition and had no issues with dryness, like I've had with a lot of my other lenses lately. The comfort really is top-notch, at least for me.

One lens in.

These lenses look pretty damn big, but they don't eat up my eyes to the point that it looks downright freaky. I still think that these could be wearable for more "daily looks", if that makes sense haha.

Lens photos incoming!
All photos taken by me during an October afternoon with a semi-clear sky! There's no color filters or such on the close-up photos and that's so that the colors would be as true to real life as possible.

Indoors in the living room, standing close to the window.

Indoors, natural room light. (lamps off)

Indoors, room light. (lamps on)

Bathroom light.

Flash photo.

The green color is really great; it still shows up nicely and definitely looks green, even from a shorter distance. Personally I really adore green circle lenses and these are definitely one of my favorite green pairs I've had so far! ♡ I think they would work great for cosplay and most likely some J-fashion styles too ~

All close-up photos below are taken outdoors while I'm standing on a balcony on the third floor, with a setting sun.

Facing the sun directly.

Mostly turned away from the sun.

Half-way turned away from the sun.

Turned away from the sun.

The design has this kind of swirl towards the pupil hole and the lenses sport a rather thick black limbal ring, which gives an illusion of bigger eyes and also looks anime.

These lenses have a kinda big pupil hole, which means that your real eye color will show in the middle – personally I have no problems with this but I know that some people dislike the look it gives, especially if you have light eyes. I think it's good that the pupil hole isn't super narrow because it makes it so that you don't see colored corners when you move your gaze fast or that you get, err, a kind of "tunnel vision" sight. I prefer having my sight as unobstructed as possible so yeah, I say yay for roomy pupil holes on circle lenses – even if it means that my real eye color is visible in the center.

I do think though that some lenses with really big pupil holes usually look better on those with naturally dark brown eyes because, err, then it just looks like the brown iris blends with the black pupil and looks much more natural (aka you can't tell where one ends and the other begins) because there isn't a visible "color clash" as there is on light-eyed people, where the lens meets the iris. I'm sorry if my explanation is clumsy, I don't know how to explain it cleverly. OTL I hope it's understandable lol.

Lastly I have the distance photo! ~

If you're interested in checking out other colors of the Hanabi series I'd recommend you to take a look at my other reviews! ^.^ Reviews here: Blue, Gold

Bonus!
Comparison photo of Hanabi Blue (left) and Hanabi Green (right).

In short I'd just like to mention, once more, that these are a good choice for cosplayers looking to do some green-eyed characters! These lenses give the "anime eye" look, at least according to me – big eyes, defined black rim and with a color that pops! All my yes!

Short summary:

Color: 9/10
A very lovely medium-light green shade. It's vivid and definitely shows up as a true green, which is awesome.

Design: 8/10

Cool swirl design combined with a thick black limbal ring – yessssh!

Opacity: 9/10

Seems to be really covering, without looking overly fake/costume-y.

Enlargement: 8/10

These are big... but they don't feel huuuuge.

Comfort: 9/10

Really comfortable. I could wear them for 8+ hours with no discomfort.

Naturalness: 1/10

The print and color brightness is anything but natural. These are best for sizzlin' fabulousness!

That's all for this round! Ciao ~ ^u^
Shiro Samurai out.