Lens review: Vassen Diamond Blue

Hi guys!

Another lens review up for you all to dine on, let's do this! It's the Vassen Diamond Blue today, my third and likely last color from the Vassen Diamond series. I was surprised once again by how the blue ones became my favorite, despite being the "most boring" color as my eyes are naturally gray-blue.

Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.5 mm

Water content: 42% 

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

It's a sparkly diamond print that's impossible to miss. It's really pretty and gives glimmery gemstone eyes in a second. The black detailing adds depth and a crystalline reflecting look when worn, it's honestly beautiful! I feel like because of my real eye color being similar to the lenses it looks even more gorgeous than usual and I'm in love, haha. *q*

One lens in.

It's a fairly big lens and it has a pretty light-ish blue color that even looks a lil' dreamy coupled with the diamond print. It's a youthful, precious design and the overly artsy print actually doesn't clash as much with my eyes as one might initially expect, most likely because of the closeness in color. Of course it doesn't fade perfectly either but I like the look anyway. There's also a thin black limbal ring to help make your eyes 'pop' more and add an illusion of bigness.

Lens photos ahead!
All photos taken by me during a morning with a semi-clear sky with the sun super low on the horizon line (polar night is a thing here). 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.

Facing window. (shadow side)

Flash photo.

Outdoors, back against sun. (facing wall)

Outdoors, facing the sun while it's blocked by a roof.

What had me surprised was that this blue pair was actually more comfortable than the green and the red – I probably just got lucky but still. I was really taken by how thin and invisible these were to wear, I literally didn't even feel like I had lenses on as soon as I popped them in! They're really comfy and I would estimate around 4-5 hours of wear, possibly 6. I do have really dry eyes naturally so anything past 3 hours is already good. 

I feel like the camera doesn't really do these justice, I swear they look more alluring in real life! There's something magical happening every time light hits the eyes and it's lovely. These look so nice with my natural eye color, almost like a really fancy enhancing lens! I was positively surprised by how much I ended up liking these and I would recommend them to anyone who likes to try more fabulous lenses. I can definitely see these used for many different fashion styles and yes, I would say that they are versatile. I can also see these work for cosplay, especially for shoujo or bishounen characters.

Distance photo! 

 

Wanna see more diamonds?

Check these out: Green, Red

Short summary:

Color: 7/10 
I'm surprisingly fond of the lightish medium blue shade. It evokes a feeling of calm.
Design: 7/10 
A glamorous, fancy diamond print that provides sparkly and gleaming eyes.
Opacity: 7/10 

There are hints of transparency but the overall color covers well.
Enlargement: 7/10
These go into the dolly category.

Comfort: 7/10 

Really thin and I literally don't even feel them. Anywhere around 4 to possibly 6 hours on really dry eyes, which is definitely good.
Naturalness: 3/10

Unless you were born to be fabulous then I don't think so.

Thanks for reading my blog, I hope you liked this review~

Shiro Samurai out.

Lens review: GEO Animation CP-A1

Hello guys!

I still have time to cram in a few more reviews before this year is over so here goes. Today I'll review the GEO Animation CP-A1, a pink animation/crazy lens! I'm gonna have to say that I didn't really expect these to look as creepy as they do. xD

Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.2 mm

Water content: 40±2% 

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

The design is very obviously made to mimic manga eyes, sparkly shoujo eyes in particular I'd say. There's a lighter pink half and a darker half, separated by black parts which are probably supposed to be "shadows" in a very cartoony way. There's these thin streaks all along the pink areas and sometimes they are accompanied by white thicker streaks meant to be light reflections.

I remember being very curious about trying these out and I was not quite prepared for how freaky they look in real life. xD It's not as bad on the photos but my first reaction was almost jumping back from the mirror, lmao. Like there's something that looks off but I can't pinpoint exactly what it is and this sadly makes me not quite like these lenses as much as the other GEO Animation lenses I've tried.

One lens in.

They don't look as weird on photos as they do in real life, somehow? Actually look pretty okay on photos, haha. I have to admit though that I had a hard time figuring out which way you are supposed to wear these, aka which part of the design is supposed to be up and which down – I took a wild guess and poked my eyes until the lighter half was up. Oh and yes, these do spin in your eyes. Slowly.

As is to be expected these look really... anime. The colors are super opaque and bright and the design is really far from natural. This is a cosplay lens or perhaps for some really funky colorful fashion styles? There's a slight enlargement effect so it's suitable for most people.

Lens photos ahead!
All photos taken by me during a morning with a semi-clear sky with the sun super low on the horizon line (polar night is a thing here). 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.

Facing window. (shadow side)

Flash photo.

Outdoors, back against sun. (facing wall)

Outdoors, facing sun while it's blocked by a roof.

These are thin and comfy to wear. It's worth noting though that these lenses do greatly obstruct my vision in the sense that a part of my vision field is black at the corners. It's a bit annoying and makes a sort of 'tunnel vision' effect that's more or less constantly there as soon as I step outside the door. I can't imagine these being all that nice to drive or bike with because of the restricted vision. But besides that little detail I have no issues with these and I do think that I could wear these somewhere around the 3-5 hour mark.

So yeah, it's a cosplay lens definitely but I just personally somehow don't like these as much as I thought I would – mainly because of hos unsettling they look face to face. They're okay on photos and even look great from a distance but afhdsfdsjs, I just can't explain why I'm not warming up to them. I think it's something with how obvious the thin streaks are in real life and it somehow makes these look eerie and "too busy"... but I'm not sure at all. I guess some would love these lenses but I feel like the other GEO Animation lenses do the anime look better. It's not bad by any means and definitely worth a shot if you need this kind of pink-violet color as it's really hard to come by. I'm sorry this sounds so negative, I don't mean to. ^^"

Distance photo! 

Short summary:

Color: 9/10 

Really bright violet-pink color that shows up well from a distance.

Design: 6/10 

It's cool with the 'anime eye' look but something makes them look creepy to me.

Opacity: 10/10

Really covering, as you'd expect from an animation lens.

Enlargement: 4/10 

Small-ish size increase. Suitable for most.

Comfort: 6/10 

Thin and comfy. Beware of very prominent black corners and 'tunnel vision' outdoors (at least in the light conditions I had).

Naturalness: 0/10 

I was legit afraid that I'd scare the piss out of a small kid who passed me by while I was outside taking photos...

Thanks for reading my blog!

Shiro Samurai out.

Lens review: Neo Ring Black

Eey ~

I'm gonna be honest, I'm not 100% sure what the name of these lenses is but I'm gonna go by Neo Ring Black as that's what my order confirmation says. Their identification number or whatnot is N019. I bought these from Honeycolor a long time ago and I can't seem to find them anymore, at least not the yearly version. ^^"

Oh well, let's do this review anyway!

Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.2 mm

Water content: 45%

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

It's really rare that I review a black lens, haha. There's not that many to begin with and I think black lenses in general are meant to be like an "enhancing lens" for dark eyes. With that said they tend to look really, shall we say, intense, on light eyes? :D Like the effect is cool and a bit creepy at the same time. I personally dig it but it's not for everyone.

One lens in.

The color fades nicely towards the center and yeah, it's definitely black. It's really dark and eye-catching and really draws attention to your suddenly super-dark rimmed eyes. In a way I guess it can be called dolly but yeah, I'd say it borders more on the supernatural territory than on the cute one, lol. It's an interesting lens nonetheless and fun to play around with – I can definitely think up some funky outfits to wear these with!

 

The size increase is there but Neo lenses tend to stay within moderate range so it's not particularly big in any way. The colored part of the lens is focused on the area around the edges, which leaves my natural eye color fully visible at the center – it 'clashes' as the contrast is really huge going from very light to full-on black, despite the smooth blending trying to ease it.

Lens photos ahead!
All photos taken by me during an afternoon with a semi-clear sky with the sun super low on the horizon line (fuck you polar night :D). 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.

Facing window. (shadow side)

Flash photo.

Outdoors, back against sun. (facing wall)

Outdoors, facing sun. (last rays of sunset)

Outdoors, facing the sun while it's blocked by a roof.

Outdoors, standing under the shadow of a storage building.

These lenses are thin, invisible to wear and overall quite nice actually. Sometimes they feel a bit dryish but most lenses do that to me nowadays so it's hard to tell when it's the lens and when it's just my eyes being dry and crappy, lmao. I expect to be able to wear these for around 3-5 hours, which is on the better half of good as I have really dry and sensitive peepers. 

All in all black lenses are interesting on light eyes because of the effect they bring in play. Some will love it and others will think it's way too unnatural but I personally am some sort of fascinated. It's a nice lens and especially cool for visual styles, dark styles and why not cosplay too? Goths, emos and the like might get a kick out of these and basically anyone who is curious about rocking eyes with massive black edges. Thankfully the fading effect mitigates the worst 'clash' effect and thus I think these are likable even on non-dark eyes. :)

Distance photo!

Short summary:

Color: 8/10
I wish the color reached a bit further in but it's black and that's about all you can ask for.
Design: 7/10
Streaky fade effect with super-dark edges. Looks pretty cool and keeps the worst 'clash' effect away.
Opacity: 6/10
The further outwards the more opaque. Color gets weaker and fades more towards the pupil hole.
Enlargement: 3/10 

Quite small, although the blackness really fools you into believing otherwise.
Comfort: 7/10 
Invisible to wear, thin and overall pleasant. A bit dryish sometimes but I can still expect to be able to wear these for 3-5 hours on super dry eyes.

Naturalness: 2/10

Highly unnatural on light eyes but it would sound differently if I had brown eyes.

Thanks for reading!

Shiro Samurai out.

Blog 7-year birthday!

*drumrolls*

Happy birthday to blooog, happy birthday to blooooog, happy birthday to---,

...

... nah, fuck this. I'm horrible at singing.

Today is happy birthday day for my cosplay blog, clocking in at 7 years of existence! Yes, I totally forgot to post on the 6th birthday and some previous years too but oh well, shit happens. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
As per usual I'm happy to still be around and be relevant, even though my blog has been really circle lens heavy lately, which might not be to every reader's liking. ^^" It's just that I have a shitlot of lenses that I need to review as I bought a lot back some years ago and didn't do reviews often enough back then so now the pile caught up on me, lol. I can almost say with certainty already now that next year will be circle lens heavy too and after that it will subside and become more cosplay focused again!
To be honest I wish I worked more on cosplays but school is eating up what little energy I have (and honestly I don't want to look at a sewing machine once I get home as that's what my class room is filled with, lmao) and so it's been a kinda unproductive year.

I know that cosplay blogging is past its prime at least in my home countries but screw that, I always loved blogging so I'm not going anywhere! I just really enjoy documenting everything I do carefully and then returning to look back at it years later – bonus points along the way if my ramblings help a fellow cosplayer out or inspire someone to check out a new convention etc! I mainly blog for myself but I of course appreciate every single reader and visitor that I've had over the years, thank you for visiting my blog! ♥ Oh and a thank you to all my sponsors over the years too, it's been a blast to work with you all!

I sadly don't have any giveaway for this birthday post but I think you guys can live without one for this time, right? Riiiight? :D No? ;_;

I don't have so much more to say, I wanted to keep this short and save the wordy treasure chest for the yearly summary instead, on which I'll bring up some things I've had in my mind – if I remember by then, lol. It'll be up before you know it anyway so stay perked for that!

Yo-ho and thanks for all the years together!

~ Shiro Samurai

Lens review: EOS Dolly Eye Green

Hi guys!

I'm pretty excited about bringing you all this review of a really popular lens, the EOS Dolly Eye Greens! I feel so nostalgic saying this but back when I first got into using circle lenses in 2013, thanks to cosplay, I already then saw the Dolly Eye lenses recommended everywhere. It was one of the very first lenses I knew by name and pretty much every cosplayer had tried them at some point, lol. I'm not sure if their fame is still holding up but nevertheless it's a really great cosplay lens!

Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.2 mm

Water content: 38~42%

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

This is without a doubt a cosplay lens no shit Sherlock – the tiny pupil hole (in circle lens standards, that is), the super opacity, the vibrant color, the anime-like print with a thick limbal ring... everything just screams cosplay! Another extra good thing with the EOS Dolly Eye lenses is that they're quite small actually, which means that they're really versatile in the sense that they can be used for both male and female characters equally.

One lens in.

So what we have at hand is a super opaque and cartoony lens. It's impossible to miss and really stands out, which totally means that it's highly unnatural too. The design itself is really simple but that's a good thing as such a classic, keep-it-generic print works for so many characters! Yep, I constantly refer to cosplay because come on, I'm a cosplayer and these used to be the number one cosplay lens when I started out and probably still are in people's minds. xD 

The green is really intense and highly pigmented. It's not radioactive but it's damn noticeable and shows even from greater distances – yep, it's great for cosplay photoshoots even when you aren't limiting yourself to close-ups just to have your lenses show, lolol. 

The black limbal ring adds a dolly touch and brings the 'anime eye' effect together. These also have such an impeccable opacity that they rival crazy lenses! The Dolly Eye lenses are sure to completely cover your real eye color, whatever it might be.

Lens photos below!

All photos taken by me during a November afternoon with a semi-clear sky with the sun super low on the horizon and blocked by a roof (fuck you polar night :D). 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.

Facing window. (shadow side)

Flash photo.

Outdoors, back against sun. (facing wall)

Outdoors, facing (setting) sun.

Outdoors, facing the sun while it's blocked by a rooftop.

Outdoors, standing behind a building's shadow.

These lenses are thin and invisible to wear, a pleasure. I can see me wearing these for 4-6 hours at a time, which is better than average when taken into account that my eyes have gotten more dry and douchy over the years. The thing to keep in mind though is that because of the notably smaller pupil hole there is a very real possibility of blurred vision in poorer light conditions along with seeing green corners whenever you move your eyes. Happens to me but I don't mind, that's a typical payoff of a great, vibrantly colored costuming lens. 

If you've ever wondered what the fuss is with popular lenses then the EOS Dolly Eye lenses do earn their mark – they stand up and shine even today when there's considerably more options to choose from in the market than back when they first started making word in the cosplay community. These lenses have everything: a great green color, versatile size, perfect coverage, good comfort, anime look and a small pupil hole to hide your real eye color from showing too much in the center and ruining the effect. Honestly, seriously consider getting the Dolly Eye Greens for your green-eyed cosplays if you haven't already, they'll definitely show up!

Distance photos!

Wanna see more Dolly Eye lens reviews?
I thought so, check these out: Pink

Short summary:

Color: 10/10 

Awesome medium to darkish green that's a definite win.

Design: 7/10 

Highly cosplay-friendly simple yet really cartoony design.

Opacity: 10/10 

Perfect color coverage and it's not even a crazy lens!

Enlargement: 3/10 

Far from as dolly as one might think because of the name. Should be "EOS Cosplay Eye" instead, lmao.

Comfort: 7/10 

Thin and invisible to wear, estimated 4-6 hours on super dry eyes. Warning for obvious green corners in vision field and perhaps blurry sight in poorer lights.

Naturalness: 2/10 

Nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnope.

Thank you so much for reading my blog! Have you ever tried EOS Dolly Eye lenses? :)

Shiro Samurai out.