Chibicon 2018 – In the name of work I attend programs!

Hello dudes and dudettes!

Omg it's not a lens review!? xD Yep, I went to a con this past weekend and this summary is a tiny bit late but I've been running back and forth into hospital these past days and it's been really hectic. Fucking glorious to wake up into a pool of your own blood so yeah, haven't had time to even think about blogging tbh. And before anyone asks, yes I'm alive and it's nothing dangerous (hopefully).

So yeah, back on track. Chibicon it was, alright. It was held on 6th October in Oulu, which was a Saturday. Pohjankartano once again served as the con building and, as far as I know, it's one of the best places in Oulu to host a con!

Chibicon poster.

It just dawned on me that it was quite a while since I last attended a con, namely Närcon on summer. There was a lot of ifs and hows when it came to my Chibicon journey as the original plan was that I'd hitch a ride with Sacchan, but as luck would have it her car broke down mere days before the con – of course things can't go smoothly for us. :)) So yeah, there I was with no ride and I had applied to be a con worker like a week before the con and got accepted, so now I didn't want to be that one person who bails out last minute as it's kinda douchy once the schedules are set and the others are counting on you to show up. Literal panic. 

I tried to look for busses but for some reason they were expensive as ass and weirdly enough the train was cheaper. I was staring at the adult prices and ripping my hair out before I realized that hey, I am actually studying in Finland right now. So on Thursday before the con I walked into my school's office thingy and got a temporary paper proof that I'm studying (I don't have the student card thingy yet) and boom, cheaper train ticket granted!

My last minute plan was to leave for Oulu on Friday night and sleep over at Karri's place but turned out mom couldn't give me a ride to Kemi so late and so I had to take an early Saturday train instead, which meant no need for sleeping accommodation. I feel a bit sorry for Karri as he was really looking forward to having me there (he even cleaned!) but yeah, I'll take the times that works for mom as my poor ass is so broke that I have to save on everything that I can. ^^"

Chibicon entrance once the doors opened.
There was a massive line.

So I took the morning train to Oulu and I was there around 8 something, which turned out to be really early as once I got to Chibicon I quite literally only saw Urumi putting up their table and the security guys. I headed up to the third floor which was reserved for the staff only. I think I sat there for about an hour before I started hearing noises of other workers arriving and went back down to the first floor. I met up with some other con workers, got my badge and then they put me to work – cutting tickets for the main programs (cosplay competition, AMV competition, cosplay date etc) with a cutter. So I was sitting there cutting a lot of colorful papers until the con's doors officially opened and then I was free to roam around for a short moment before my first working shift started.

Con worker badge.

I was working as an "ohjelmavänkäri" or "salivänkäri" for the ceremony hall ("juhlasali") and the little stage in the main hall, which is a bit hard to translate but basically I was the person who watched so that the main programs (which were held in the ceremony hall) ran smoothly. My work tasks were to pay attention to the stage (if someone trips, needs help etc), make sure that the attendants sit in the right color-marked seats according to their seat tickets, watch so that no one is obnoxiously loud or rude and so on. Pretty basic stuff.

My first work task was to watch over the start of the K-POP Random Dance Game on the little scene. They didn't need any help when I introduced myself before the start and so I just sat in the audience and watched for about 15 minutes until it was clear that everything was running smoothly and then I left to the green room to go get something to eat.

Green room when the con had just opened.

I've been a con worker on most of the cons that I've attended lately and I think I'm getting to the point when it would feel weird to not be able to have access to the green room. xD Like it's so convenient to be able to just drop your stuff there, charge your devices and go grab something to eat whenever you feel like it. 

My next job was to watch over the AMV competition in the ceremony hall, which started at 12:00. I made my way there 15 minutes before start and then I was walking around the seats making sure that all the colored papers were stuck to the seat edges of each row, as they would drop down quite often as the tape didn't stick well to the surface of the seats. I was always sitting near the scene and just... watching. I'll admit I've never attended any AMV competition before as I just didn't have the interest (and I'm a lazy fuck, lmao) and so this was something new to me. I'm not sure if I've ever even watched an AMV before. xD I agree with most of the ones that won but there were some that I was not a fan of. *shrugs* I did notice a growing inspiration to make an AMV myself but I have no damn clue how so yeah, probably not gonna happen lol.

Next up was the cosplay date. Same thing again, make sure that the colored papers have not fallen off and go ask if the program holders need help. They told me that they do not need me at all and so I pissed off and went to check the con and eat as my free time was otherwise really limited. I had more work hours than the 4 that I had been told, why is it always me?

Einesburgeri hell yess! :DD

All con workers were promised one warm dish (either hamburger or vegan/vegetarian options) and while I half expected something cheapo I was not expecting like the cheapest plastic-packaged burger from the store. xD Literally bread and beef only and not even actual beef but chicken-pork mix beef. There was cheese, ketchup and dressing to put on before microing it and I think that's about it? Felt a bit... dry. At least by the time I got to eat, I'll admit I was not among the first ones as I had so many work shifts with no breaks between. It was still okay but even the McDonald's euron juusto would have been better, lmao. And I don't even like McDonald's.

Chibicon main hall.

Chibicon cafeteria area.

Chibicon was a bit lacking in terms of activities. There was no video game room, no karaoke room, no rhythm game room, no drawing room... barely anything else than the programs, some panels and meetups, an anime room, Artist's Alley and some merchandise sellers and other con's booths. As a visitor I would have been bored really fast and probably thought that the 10€ entrance fee (at the door, advance tickets were cheaper) was a bit steep.

Merchandise sellers were pretty much only Urumi (not that I expected much more from a small con in northern Finland). Urumi is always a welcome sight as they sell legit stuff but my ass is so broke right now that I can rarely afford to buy anything and most times I know I can get the same thing for cheaper if I buy it online myself. I do like looking at all the cute and pretty stuff though! Window shopping is always fun, heheh.

No con without the obligatory sweets.

Happy to see Digimon and Monster Hunter getting some love!

There was a lot of Pokémon this time..

... and I mean it.

MonHun figurines!

I think these Kyogre, Groudon and Rayquaza straps were new?

Did I say there was a lot of Pokémon? xD

Don't forget the Ginga doggos!

Omg, Ōkami merch!
Shame it was too expensive for me.. for noodle stoppers at least.

I did not bother to go check out the anime room because honestly, I don't understand why you'd pay to get inside a con just to watch anime that you can do at home for free (and you can watch any show you like)? It never made sense to me, I'd rather use that limited time to explore and hang with friends and basically anything else except watch anime. xD 

I did not cosplay, I was considering it briefly but I've been so exhausted from all the hospital visits that I didn't feel like I had the energy to bother. And most cosplays that I would have wanted to wear needs some altering anyway. I noticed though that it seemed that a majority of the congoers went casual – I didn't see all that many cosplayers from what I can remember and now I'm not counting the "peruukkicossaajat". I did not feel like I missed out on something because I went casual, I'm actually happy I did, lmao.

Lip sync battle. Yes, that cosplayer performed the original
Pokémon opening in Finnish and was the funniest performance
because of a joke that ran through the whole program.

14:00 it was time for the lip sync battle in the ceremony hall. I had no idea what it was before this but as it was my job I had to stay for the duration of the program. It dawned on me quickly that it's like a light-hearted song contest... except that you don't sing. The premise is basically that you have two contestants (often cosplayers) who pick a song, that fits the character somehow, and then perform it and the winner is the one who gets more noise and cheers from the audience. This is the kind of shit on which you need to have excellent stage charisma, creativity and dance/choreography skills to pull off well, otherwise it turns really stale and cringy fast. I'll admit it was entertaining overall but I think it suffered a bit from a lack of participants and cancellations.

After the lip sync ended it was time for the main program of pretty much any anime convention – the cosplay competition. It started at 15:00 and this time I noticed two guys sitting on "wrong seats" as I saw that they had green tickets but were sitting on blue seats. I went up and they said that they were photographers and that's why they had sat on seats so far in the front, despite having middle row seat tickets. I didn't feel a need to ask them to move to their right places as, by the time the competition started, there were still many seats empty as the hall was big.

Cosplay competition.

But yeah, the cosplay competition. I haven't attended it in years and a wave of nostalgy hit me. I should probably participate again but I have such crippling stage fear that I always come up with reasons not to. Most bigger cons also require a performance nowadays so I guess I'm stuck to the small cons that still run the "lavajuoksu" style, lol. Basically make a pose on scene and walk away style. Maybe someday...

All cosplay competitors.

The ones who placed.

It was pretty easy to guess who would get a prize while the competition was running and my picks were mostly right in the end, haha. Congratulations to all the winners!

The last program that I worked on was the FFFight in the main hall stage. It was hosted by Team Yli Ysitonnia (Team Over Ninethousand) and they were really funny! This was were laughs were had. Before start I finally got to feel helpful, namely fetch them a computer from somewhere so that they could get the music to the show. It was a bit last-minute as I had to wait for a person to show up but it all worked out after a slight delay. 

I've watched Final Fantasy Fights before and know the deal, it's this kind of silly fighting show in FF style between any congoer who wants to (playfully) beat someone else into a pulp. The main point is to entertain the audience and the winner is once again determined by who gets the most noise from the audience. My favorite fighter was the dabbing "jonne" (suomalaiset tietävät) with the cap, dunno what his name was but he looked like such a typical memelord jonne and I think he knew it. xD

Between my short breaks I had time to explore the con. It's your typical Pohjankartano convention except that Chibicon didn't have a lot to do, as mentioned earlier. There was the Matsucon kirppis, a second-hand booth ran by Matsucon were congoers could leave their stuff for sale. It was mainly manga. 

Second-hand booth.

My favorite thing at the convention was the Artist's Alley. For some reason it was held in a classroom on the second floor and it was a bit... crammed at times. I don't really get it why it had to be on the second floor as there was nothing else there except for the anime room and the lecture/panel/meetup rooms and most people spent time on the first floor. There was a fair amount of empty space on the first floor so I don't see why AA wasn't placed there together with Urumi, the second-hand shop and the con booths? More visitors, more visibility, more space. *shrugs* The classroom worked okay but in my opinion it felt a bit like a wasted opportunity to not have the artists downstairs. :/

View of Artist's Alley.

MCrafts table. A lot of nice stuff!

I bought some Pokémon stuff from the table above for both myself, Frozen Angel and Firith. The seller was really nice and we talked a bit too. All my Chibicon purchases were from AA, I like to support fellow artists. I've considered selling stuff on AA too but I don't know if I'll ever actually do it as I'm so lazy, lmao. Would be cool though!

When the con was on its final minutes I was up in the green room packing my stuff. Karri shows up suddenly and oh boy I haven't seen him in ages! I took my stuff, left my badge and said goodbyes and headed out to town with him. We had a lot of fun, went to a bar to have a drink as we had some time to kill before my train would arrive. We talked about all kinds of things: movies, martial arts etc. Time went by really fast and it was sad to leave him so early, I hope we can go to Skecon together!

~~~~~

Chibicon was okay overall. Nothing special but I had my share of fun and despite traveling alone I actually surprise-bumped into Sacchan once! Seemingly she took the bus. Except for Karri and her I didn't run into any familiar faces – not like I would have had much time to socialize during the con anyway. Chibicon would have been a lot better if it had more activity rooms as I know that some people I spoke to afterwards (who didn't/couldn't attend the con despite being interested) said things like "glad I didn't pay 10€ if there wasn't even a [insert activity] room there" so yeah, says a lot. I can't deny that the price tag seemed hefty for the lack of content. I'm glad I went as a worker as that kept me busy at all times and I got to participate in programs that I would otherwise not have attended, which gave me a lot of renewed interest in participating in stuff in the future!

All in all I'm glad that the north gets these kind of geeky events and Chibicon did well with what they had. It's definitely a "hang with friends" type of con and beginner-friendly. As a one-day con it works with the content it had and I'd continue attending Chibicon in the future as well.

Thanks for reading!

~ Shiro Samurai out.

Lens review: Vassen Sweet Bliss Brown

Hello peeps ~

Today's review will feature the Vassen Sweet Bliss Brown, also commonly known as Vassen Cloud Nine Brown. This is definitely a cosplay and j-fashion lens if you ask me, it looks really 'anime' and has a vibrant color!

Let's roll!

Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.5 mm

Water content: 42% 

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

These lenses have this really bold, striking black rim with black lines running along it that creates a cartoony effect. The coloration is unique on these as it seems to be done in this kind of "teary eye" blocks with different transparency levels – which makes it so that it's not a solid, fake-looking color when worn. Your real eye color will show through at the transparent lines between each colored block but it actually gives a nice effect. 

One lens in.

Vassen lenses are typically pretty big and these are no exception. The design of the lenses is lovely and it stands out with its great color coverage, bold shade, super cute and animated look. One thing to note is that this seems to be the kind of brown color that can look extremely different depending on the lights! The color is intense and it shows up really well and the lenses provide distinct dolly eyes.

Lens photos below!

All photos taken by me during a September morning with an almost 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.

Natural room light.

Yellow room light.

Unlit corridor.

Bathroom light.

Flash photo.

Facing window. (shadow side)

Outdoors, back against sun. (facing wall)

Outdoors, facing sun while being under a shadow.

Outdoors, facing sun.

Comfort is decent, it's not the best I've had but it's certainly not the worst either. I don't have any notable problems getting them on and I don't feel them much once worn (there is still the slight "something's in my eye" feeling) but they seem a bit unpredictable with the dryness. I have a hard time grading comfort accurately as my eyes are so stinkin' dry but I'd estimate anything between 2-4 hours to be reasonable for these, assuming your eyes are just as sensitive and dry as mine, lmao. For more "normal eyes" you can add 2 hours, probably. These are not bad by any means, actually quite average.

To sum it up this is a great lens if you like really bold and colorful lenses with a lot of 'pop'. It's definitely something to consider for cosplaying and for most funky youthful fashion dudes and dudettes out there. These lenses make my eyes look youthful and somehow alluring and the vibrant brown color is really nice too! If you like brown lenses that steer toward the more unnatural and fantasy looks then these should serve you well.

Distance photo! 

Want to see Sweet Bliss lenses in other colors?
Check these out: Gray, Green, Pink, Red, Violet, Blue

 

Short summary:

Color: 8/10
Bold and cute, very distinct brown that really stands out! Can look really different depending on the light.
Design: 9/10
Unique "teary eye" design that creates a very animated appearance.
Opacity: 8/10 
There's some transparent parts but overall the color coverage is really solid.
Enlargement: 8/10
Dolly it is.
Comfort: 6/10 
Decent. No notable discomforts but seem a bit unpredictable with dryness. Wearing time estimated to about 2-4 hours on super dry eyes, which is pretty average.
Naturalness: 2/10
No, I don't think so. Way too big, cute and colorful to fool anyone.

Thanks for reading my blog!

Shiro Samurai out.

[Sponsored] Lens review: I.Fairy Lucius Blue

Hello sweethearts!

I present to you today a circle lens review of a really pretty blue pair – the I.Fairy Lucius Blue! The lenses I'm reviewing in this post were sponsored by the lovely LensVillage! I was already their customer before the partnership and I can honestly say that they are one of my go-to stores for circle lenses – they have a lot of lenses to choose from, many brands and LensVillage also holds sales often and have good shipping deals too. ♥ Go give them your love!

This review, although sponsored, consists of 100% my own, genuine opinion. I value honesty very highly when reviewing and won't compromise it. Ever.

Psst, I have a new discount code! Using 15SHIRO at checkout takes a cut off the price!

Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 16.2 mm

Water content: 55%

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

I've said it many times before but I've never, to my memory, had any problems with LensVillage or their customer service. I always get my lenses in a timely manner, which is in approximately 2-3 weeks. They are always easy to deal with, speak good English (it's common that Asia-based lens stores have poor English skills) and the lens bottles come securely wrapped in some kind of foam, bubblewrap or similar to protect them from breaking during transit. ^^

Lensvillage packaging.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I always put newly opened lenses to soak overnight in a multi-purpose lens solution and I recommend you do it too. The thing is that the solution that the lenses come stored in is of a stronger kind and might hurt your eyes so yeah, better safe than sorry if you ask me. Sight is not something to toy around with.

Honestly, this is a lens that I've been wanting to try for years. It's not all that special by design as several lenses sport a similar print but there is something with these, I don't know what, that has made me keep them on a list of lenses to try out someday. I'm happy I got to try these and I must say that the Lucius Blues did not leave me disappointed!

One lens in.

As you can expect from I.Fairy lenses these are really big and dolly. The color is focused to the edges and that in turn creates a pretty cute effect in my opinion – I'll admit that normally a big pupil hole is not one of my favorite things but this design really works with my natural eye color for once! It creates this splash of color and despite the blue being really vibrant it actually, somehow, manages to mix well with my natural gray-blue eyes. I can't call it a natural blending effect but there is something with these that makes it work and I can't help but love the outcome.

The blue is a lighter blue, kind of a sky blue and it's incredibly beautiful in tone. One of my favorite blue shades and on lenses it's so pretty! The black rim adds an illusion of the eyes being bigger, more youthful and animated. The color is concentrated on the edges and it's opaque with a streaky design, avoiding the "block of color" effect.

Lens photos below!

All photos taken by me during a September morning 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.

Natural room light indoors.

Yellow room light indoors.

Bathroom light.

Unlit corridor. (poor natural light)

Flash photo.

Facing window. (shadow side)

Outdoors, back against sun. (facing wall)

Outdoors, facing the sun while being under a shadow.

Outdoors, facing sun.

Comfort is good. These are really thin, easy to insert and don't obstruct my vision in any way. I don't feel any scratching or some other unpleasant shit and I barely feel these in my eyes, despite having ultra sensitive eyes that rival the deserts in dryness. I would estimate wearing time to be in the 4-5 hour range on dry eyes, which is really good in my standards and it would probably equal about 6-8 hours on "normal eyes". These would last me a full convention day with potential need for eyedrops.

I'm in love with these lenses, not gonna deny it. They are so cute, bright and completely magical in their appearance! I can see them being used for cosplay, j-fashion (especially pastel and cute looks!) and pretty much anything you can think of that would benefit from big blue eyes. ^^ I feel like it's a really eye-catching color and one of the most gorgeous blue shades; I love these and would buy them again in a heartbeat. If you like colorful big lenses then I'd warmly recommend to give these pretties a go as well!

Distance photo!

Using 15SHIRO at checkout when buying from Lensvillage gives a nice discount! It works on most products in their store!

Short summary:

Color: 9/10
Incredibly beautiful and alluring sky blue lens. One of my personal favorite colors.

Design: 8/10

Humble by its simplicity but provides a striking effect! Super cute and youthful.

Opacity: 7/10

The colored parts provide good coverage. I have no complaints.

Enlargement: 8/10

Really big and gives instant dolly eyes.

Comfort: 7/10

Really good. Thin, almost invisible to wear and an estimated 3-5 hours of use on super dry eyes.

Naturalness: 2/10

This is a big, dolly fashion lens with a cartoony blue shade, it's not really natural.

Thanks for reading my blog! I hope you found this review helpful!
Thank you, LensVillage! ♡
Shiro Samurai out ~ 

Lens review: Neo Dali Heart Green

Hello cuties!

I have prepared another lens review for today so without further ado let's get down to business! Today's circle lens review is about the Neo Dali Heart Green lenses, a super cute pair with good color too!

Let's do this ~

Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.2 mm

Water content: 45%

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

In their vials the lenses look like a super fresh, vivid and light summery green and it's pretty different from the usual green lenses you see. I was captivated by the color and had my hopes up that they would stay the same once worn. Luckily I wasn't led into a disappointment but the color does still look quite different on my eyes – it turns into this medium green that packs a punch and it's still beautiful, thankfully.

One lens in.

There's a slight enlargement boost, it won't make or break anything but you can tell the difference. The lenses have a black limbal ring combined with green streaks and some black marks on the center hole – upon a closer inspection you'll notice that there's actually a band of hearts running along the whole design of the lens and those also make up the black "dots". It's super cute and I haven't seen it on any other lens before!

The green color shows up well and it's a good shade that I can see plenty of use for. It's not really a natural green but it's pretty nonetheless and the color vibrancy is good. They are decently opaque and go quite well with my natural eye color, which is a blue-gray. If anything I wish that the pupil hole was a tad bit smaller as it's pretty big on these and that means that a lot of my real eye color shows through in the middle; it's a common trait with circle lenses but it sometimes looks weird and especially if you have light eyes, as circle lenses generally are aimed for an Asian market.

Lens photos incoming!

All photos taken by me during a September morning 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.

Indoors natural room light.

Indoors yellow room light. (bright natural light from the side)

Bathroom light.

Flash photo.

Unlit corridor.

Facing window. (shadow side)

Outdoors, back against sun. (facing the wall)

Outdoors, facing the sun while being under a harsh shadow.

Outdoors, facing the sun.

Regarding comfort I think I got the short straw with these. I suspect I got a Monday example as these feel a bit irritating to wear and dry out really fast. They feel stingy (almost as if there's some dirt on the lens but the feeling persists no matter how many times I clean and reinsert) and also blurs my vision, despite that the big pupil hole should technically prevent that as my iris isn't obstructed by the lens. I noticed that already 30 minutes in they started to feel really dry but after that jumped back to almost normal so yeah, funny dry bouts. I suspect I could wear these for maybe 1-2 hours at best as they do annoy me in many ways. I always feel that I have them on (the "something's in the eye" feeling) and they just feel really unpredictable on my naturally mega dry eyes. I've generally had good experiences with Neo's lenses before so that's also why I think I just lucked out and got a bad pair this time. :/ I should buy these in another color and see what my eyes says...

All in all the Neo Dali Heart Greens stand out from the sea of circle lenses mainly because of their unique design with hearts. It's a fun and adorable lens and goes well with many styles. The color is really solid and if you want your green lenses to look green and not turn into some muddy shit then this is a choice to put on the list. I'll just keep my fingers crossed that others who buy these will get comfy ones and not inherit my Donald Duck luck. xD

Distance photo!

Short summary:

Color: 7/10
Not as light as they look when not worn but still a pretty grass-ish green that is satisfying.
Design: 8/10
Super cute design with hearts creating the pattern of the lens!
Opacity: 6/10
Definitely makes my eyes green but my real eye color seems to affect the color outcome quite much.
Enlargement: 3/10 

Quite small. Good if dolly eyes aren't your first priority.
Comfort: 3/10 
Kinda annoying to wear (dry bouts, unpredictable, blurs vision) and I constantly feel them in my eyes. I suspect I got a Monday example as wearing time is only around 30 minutes to max 1-2 hours and that's on super dry eyes.

Naturalness: 4/10

The color is too green to look natural but the size is okay-ish so I can't write them off completely.

Thanks for reading!

Shiro Samurai out.