June 6, 2016

[Sponsored] Lens review: GEO Xtra Forest Pink

Hello peeps!

Here I am, once again, with a circle lens review to share with you all. ^_^ I know that I've done a lot of lens reviews lately (sorry ;-;) but I have a lack of other content to post for the moment, so please bear with me. Don't get me wrong though, I do love reviewing circle lenses but yeah, normally I'd space them out more, for the sake of variety. I'm also recovering from a big surgery and thus my cosplay making is on a stand-still – I thought lens reviews are a lot better than the blog going into hibernation, right?

This time I'll be reviewing the GEO Xtra Forest Pink (aka WT-B67) circle lenses, sponsored by the amazing LensVillage! I really want to recommend you to go check them out now because they've done a complete overhaul of their store and now it's all new, fresh and inviting! They've also been running sales lately so you might find something you like for a cheaper price as well. ;)

This review, although sponsored, consists of 100% my honest opinion. Always.

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: 40±2%
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)


As per usual I've never had any problems with LensVillage and I always get my lenses in a very timely manner, which is approximately two weeks! They've always been very kind and helpful and the lenses come securely packaged in some kind of foam, bubblewrap or such to protect the glass bottles from breaking during transit. With these GEO lenses I also received an information sheet with desciptions on how to insert lenses and care for them etc – really handy for beginners! With every LensVillage order you also get a business card and a free lens case. :) Oh and yeah, of course are all their circle lenses authentic and GEO lenses, like mine, come with the anti-fake stickers that you can check up online to prove that your received pair is genuine.

What came with my LensVillage order.
Okay so, the Forest Pink lenses appear to be a very light pink when you look at them in their vials; it's a pretty shade but the irregular black stripes help make the lens look a bit more natural but also gives it an alluring touch! Once worn the pink color darkens a bit but it's still on the lighter side, at least on my light blue-gray eyes.

I noticed as soon as I took the lenses out of their vials that they're really thin. I actually had problems inserting them because of that and it took several tries to get them on, especially the right lens. Once the lenses were in they were really comfortable from the get-go, except that they seem to blur my vision very slightly. These lenses don't sting or anything and I honestly don't feel that I even have lenses on!
I have sensitive eyes and normally I can't wear lenses for many hours before the first signs of dryness kicks in but these I could easily wear for 8 hours with no issues at all – I could have worn them even longer if I wanted or needed to. These lenses have amazing comfort, at least for me. ^^

One lens in.
Actually these lenses are quite big, not crazy big but they do give a notable enlargement boost. If you're looking for cute pink lenses with a moderate dolly effect then these could be for you! I do like the color and the design is really nice even though it's fairly simple; the simplistic design makes the lenses versatile and the black streaks provide a sort of deep and beautiful touch to your look.

Lens photos incoming!
All photos taken by me during a June afternoon with a mostly cloudy 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 in my apartment. (sun side, cloudy)
Bathroom light.
Flash photo.
White corridor light.
Yellow staircase light.
In the staircase, natural light coming from the side/back.
Indoors storage room. Natural light from the side.
Outdoors, facing sun indirectly. (aka sitting under the shadow/roof)
Outdoors, back against light.
Outdoors, facing sun.
The color coverage is surprisingly solid, even though at first glance one might expect the color to blend and thus "disappear" more, at least based on their light color when not worn. The naturalness is also not too shabby, especially for being a pink lens. :) These shouldn't give your neighboring grandma a heart attack, hehe. 
I also want to say that I can see these lenses being used for many different purposes, j-fashion being the first to come to my mind but these would lend themselves to cosplay and daily fashion looks as well, especially if you're looking for that little extra touch ~

Distance photo!


Want to see reviews of the GEO Xtra Forest series in other colors?
Check out these: Red

Psst, discount code "SAMURAI15" cuts 15% OFF on your purchase from LensVillage!

Short summary:

Color: 8/10
Beautiful lightish pink lenses that show up well!
Design: 7/10
Fairly simple design but it's versatile and eye-catching with all the black streaks.
Opacity: 8/10
The colored parts are a lot more covering than I initially thought they would be.
Enlargement: 6/10
Decently big. Gives a moderate dolly eye effect.
Comfort: 9/10
Really thin lenses that are super comfortable. I can wear them 8 hours or more with no issues, save for really minor and occasional vision blur.
Naturalness: 2/10
Despite being pink (with a lot of black streaks) these don't look too odd. Still not natural though.

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this review.
Thank you to my ever-so-lovely sponsor, LensVillage! ♡
Shiro Samurai out ~
 

May 31, 2016

Lens review: Vassen Bambi Green

Hello people!

Time for another circle lens review! I'm gonna review the Vassen Bambi Green lenses, also sometimes known as Vassen Bambi Queen Green. ^^ These should be the same lenses as the Kimchi Bambi Green as well, since Vassen is the company that manufactures the lenses that both Kimchi and I.Fairy sell under their own brand.

But now, let's get on with the review!



Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.5 mm
Water content: 42%
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)


If you've been spending some time with circle lenses you'll probably notice that these lenses look extremely similar to the super popular GEO Princess Mimi Apple Green lenses (I've reviewed them here)! I honestly first-hand bought these contact lenses just because I wanted to compare the two and see if they were actually identical or not – more about that later!

One lens in. Notice enlargement.
Okay, so the color is pleasantly vibrant and the green is actually a true green and not one of those greens that either disappears into your (light) eyes or that ends up looking all muddy and shit; they don't end up looking blue-ish/teal either – just simple real green and that's awesome. I'm assuming that these would show up well on dark eyes too and I like how they have yellow in the middle to make them appear a bit more natural; it also softens the color so that it doesn't clash with your real eye color.

The enlargement effect is definitely big enough that you won't miss it, but it's not so big that it would eat up my eyes. These lenses will definitely provide you with a dolly eye look, if you're looking for that, but I'd also say that these are quite versatile and I could see myself wearing them as a daily fashion lens, as well as for cosplay. :)

Lens photos ahead!
All photos taken by me during a May evening with a 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 in my apartment.
Apartment room light, lamps on.
Apartment room light, standing under yellow lamp.
Bathroom light.
Flash photo.
White corridor light.
Yellow corridor light.
Weak yellow light in staircase.
Facing a weak lamp in the staircase, natural light in the back.
Indoors storage room, natural light from the side.
Weird blue light.
Outdoors, back against sun. (aka facing wall)
Outdoors, indirectly facing sun, aka standing under the roof/shadows.
Outdoors, facing sun.
I had no problems inserting these. I don't feel them much in my eyes because the lenses are quite thin, but I do experience some occasional dry bouts and minor itchiness; I've also had a few occasions when one lens suddenly blurred my vision for a couple seconds, nothing bad though. The first time I wore these my eyes had been watering and itching (likely because of the bright sun) before putting them on and I think that affected why I only managed to wear them for 2 hours before my eyes were like "take them out plz". Please notice though that I have sensitive and/or dry eyes. The second time I tried these I could feel that they started drying already after 30 minutes; I also found myself rubbing my eyelids and poking the inner corners of my eyes a lot. 1 hour in I'm blinking hard, keeping my eyes closed and really wanting to take the lenses off so yeah, I can't say anything else except that these dry way too fast for me. :( Then again, eyedrops would solve that problem!

Okay so, these lenses are overall really likable; the design is quite simple but that makes them really versatile and yeah, the color is definitely bright enough that if you like green lenses you should give these a try! The Vassen Bambi Greens could be a cosplay lens, a j-fashion lens or even a fancy everyday lens! The only issue I have with these is that the comfort is lacking, for me at leaast.

Distance photos!



Want to see more Vassen Bambi lenses?
I have some more reviews: Blue, Pink

And here comes the bonus comparison photo I took to show how the GEO Princess Mimi Apple Green and the Vassen Bambi Green differs from one another! At first the Vassen Bambi Green seems like a rip-off but there's actually a fairly notable color difference!

GEO Princess Mimi Apple Green on (watcher's) left, Vassen Bambi Green on right.

Short summary:

Color: 8/10
Beautiful true green lenses! The color shows up well and it's quite vibrant!

Design: 8/10
Beautiful and versatile design that makes your eyes look full of life!
Opacity: 8/10 

These change my eye color, no doubt.
Enlargement: 8/10
These are big but not so big that I couldn't wear them for daily looks as well.
Comfort: 4/10 

Below average. Not really uncomfortable per se but they dry out really fast for me.
Naturalness: 2/10
These are not as natural as the Princess Mimi because of the brighter color and the yellow inner ring. Too big and flashy to be realistic.

Thanks for reading my circle lens reviews! ^.^
Shiro Samurai says bye bye ~

May 27, 2016

Lens review: Kimchi Misty Blue

Yobedooo~

Circle lens review day today! :) Today I'll be showing you the Kimchi Misty Blue lenses, which are actually prettier than one might first think! Personally I've grown really fond of this pair, especially because of the beautiful design which is surprisingly versatile in its uses!

But now, review time!



Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 16 mm
Water content: 55%
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)


Lens to the watcher's right shows wrong side out.
In the vials the lenses appear as a darkish blue with, perhaps, some minor hints of violet. The color is really pretty and the design, although the series is called Misty, looks much more crystal inspired. The design is irregular and kinda jagged, yet graceful and with an air of mystique and depth to them. The lenses have quite some black too so they are sure to appear a bit darker when actually worn – but nevertheless they will look beautiful on any eye colors, I'm pretty sure.

One lens in.
As you can see the enlargement boost is there but it's, surprisingly enough, not as big as I maybe expected. I'm used to both Kimchi and I.Fairy lenses always being bigger than average but this pair doesn't feel overwhelmingly big at all – I'm assuming the lack of a thick limbal ring adds to the impression, although the lenses do have a small black ring for definition.

These lenses felt very very slightly uncomfortable when I first put them in but that feeling went away quickly. I noticed that when I blinked my eyes did those squirty "eye sounds" for quite some time and I guess that might just be because my eyes were trying to get used to the lenses being there. You know, that sound and feeling when you blink and just when your eyelids pass by/touch the contacts... :') lol best description ever, 10/10.
Comfort is kinda average but please, don't take this for granted since my lenses were to expire this summer (had I not opened them) and I have sensitive eyes anyway. For me they actually started to give the first hints of dryness already around 1 hour of wear and after 2-3 hours I considered taking them off a couple of times. These lenses keep alternating between waves of dryness and then suddenly feeling comfy again!

Lens photos ahead!
All photos taken by me during a May afternoon with a semi-cloudy 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 in my apartment, cloudy.
Bathroom light.
Flash photo.
White corridor light.
Yellow corridor light.
Dim yellow light in the staircase.
Facing an orange-ish lamp in the staircase, with
natural light (from a window) coming from the side.
Indoors storage room, natural light.
Outdoors, back against light. (facing wall)
Outdoors, facing light (cloudy) but being under the roof/shadow.
Outdoors facing sun, cloudy.
Outdoors facing sun, clear sky.
The blue color is deep and surprisingly intense, even though the design has many black portions in it. I honestly expected that the black would "dull down" the blue's vibrancy but it did not – and that's amazing! I really love the shade of blue because it makes my eyes look serene and fairytale-esque. ♥ The Misty Blue makes my eyes look crystalline and it's seriously super pretty!

Distance photo!


It's a really graceful cosmetic circle lens with a magical flair that, despite its intricate print, works just as well for more casual looks as well as cosplay and j-fashion. I'm actually positively surprised by how well these lend themselves to everyday looks with minimal makeup! Needless to say it's a very versatile and multi-purpose circle lens that can see a lot of use with many different people. :) 
These colored contact lenses enhance my light blue-gray eyes and make my peepers fit into that perfect middleground between fantasy and passable for everyday! I love these and I'm sure they would look dazzling on brown eyes too ~

Short summary:

Color: 9/10  
Beautiful deep blue color that has great vibrancy, despite the amount of black in the print.
Design: 9/10
Gorgeous crystal-like design with irregular edges. Gives a magical and graceful flair.
Opacity: 8/10
The colored parts are surprisingly covering. The "blending line" is discreet as well.
Enlargement: 7/10
For being a Kimchi lens these don't feel all that big.
Comfort: 6/10
Rather average. Start to feel dry after a couple hours but this could very well be because my lenses were to expire this summer, had I not opened them.
Naturalness: 2/10
The detailed and dark print is too 'busy' to look realistic on light eyes.

Thank you for reading my contact lens reviews!
Shiro Samurai says bye bye ~