April 25, 2019

Lens review: ICK Petal Brown

Yoo~

I was supposed to write this yesterday but I completely forgot because Avengers: Endgame happened. xD I work at the cinema so I watched it of course, it was fucking awesome! But yeah, this is not a movie gushing post, this is a lens review post and today it's the ICK Petal Brown that I'll show you guys. Let's do this!



Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 15.0 mm
Water content: 42%
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)



It's a cute doll-like lens, pretty big and the dark limbal ring adds to an 'anime eye' look as well. The color is a soft brown, kinda toffee or caramel in color I think. The lenses are a single color but the different levels of transparency make for an amazing blending effect and thanks to that these look really good on my light eyes!

One lens in.
As you can see the pupil hole is pretty big but because of the way the color fades it doesn't clash at all and looks really seamless, in terms of color transition from lens to iris I mean. The black limbal ring is not a solid, bold black but more of a faded or kinda diluted black and it also adds to the overal soft and delicate look. I think that the ICK Petal series are absolutely lovely and one of my favorite lenses in the dolly category.

Lens photos ahead!
All photos taken by me during an April 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.
Poor natural light indoors, facing a dark corridor.
Flash photo.
Facing window, not sun side.
Outdoors, back against sun. (facing wall)
Outdoors, facing sun.
The design actually looks like some sort of ancient magical spell or such when you look closely, it's very detailed and unique. I can definitely see these used for j-fashion styles or just alternative fashion in general. Possibly cosplay as well, if you are looking for a more pastel-ish or soft approach to a character.

Comfort is great – these lenses are thin, invisible to wear and just really comfortable all in all. There's no random itchiness, red eyes or any notable annoyance. I estimate that I can wear these for like 3-5 hours, which is really good as my eyes are really damn dry naturally and anything past 2 hours is generally good for me, lol. For 'normal eyes' wearing time would probably be more like 5-7 hours or such.

Distance photo!


Looking for other ICK Petal reviews?
Check these out: Blue, Green
 
Short summary:

Color: 7/10 
A cute fresh, soft and soothing brown. The color is like caramel or toffee light.
Design: 8/10 
Artsy print with a magical-looking unique pattern. Really detailed when up close.
Opacity: 6/10
Color coverage makes my eyes look brown but the transparency also does a stellar fading effect.
Enlargement: 7/10 
Definitely a dolly lens. Big and cute.
Comfort: 8/10 
Thin, comfy and I don't feel them in my eyes. Estimated wearing time around 3-5 hours on super dry eyes, probably like 5-7 on 'normal eyes'.
Naturalness: 4/10 
If you don't count the size and dolly look then it's actually not dumb at all.

Thanks for reading my blog! Do you like these lenses too?

April 22, 2019

Lens review: ICK Petal Blue

Hi everyone!

Yeah it's one more lens review again, this time the ICK Petal Blue that I have been drawn to ever since the first time I saw them – the design is really different and, as far as I know, there's not a "copy lens" out there with the same design.



Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 15.0 mm
Water content: 42%
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)



If you look closely you'll notice that the colored area is actually not just a solid blue color but in fact a detailed, really artistic pattern. I don't know what it reminds you of but, as a gamer, my first thought was that it looks like that kind of symbol that appears when a character is casting a magical spell in JRPGs and such. xD 

One lens in.
My natural eye color is a light blue gray mix and these lenses go really well with that. They fade beautifully towards the center, erasing any risk of a 'clashing effect' – it could be that a lot of the good blending comes from both the lenses and my eyes being blue but I do think that the Petal series will likely be good at this regardless of eye color as the design is soft and has varying transparency.

The color is a pretty, fresh and youthful blue. It's not too unnatural of a shade but it certainly still stands out. These lenses also come across as really dolly, thanks to the thick dark limbal ring and the overall big size. When worn these lenses remind me of the popular 'Candy' lenses (EOS Sugar Candy and Vassen Sakura Candy etc) in terms of overall look, except that these are softer in appearance and I'm pretty sure that the Petal lenses have the black rim a bit toned down in intensity.

Lens photos ahead!
All photos taken by me during an April 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.
Shitty (natural) room light in a dark corridor.
Flash photo.
Facing window, not sun side.
Outdoors, back against sun. (facing wall)
Outdoors, facing the sun while being under a shadow.
Outdoors, facing the sun.
I like these lenses, they are gorgeous and have that perfect look for j-fashion and 'anime eyes'. These lenses are magical, mystical and sport just enough color to keep it interesting! Sadly the pattern is only really visible up close, but that's to be expected with pretty much any circle lens on which intricate designs are a part of the color itself and not like drawn in black or something. The I.Fairy Trinity Green comes to mind to illustrate what I mean with 'drawn in black'. 
But honestly, I'd recommend getting these if this kind of lens is a part of your aesthetic.

Comfort is fine. Thin and overall pleasant to wear, no itchiness or some such. I noticed they started perhaps to dry a bit early but that's impossible to say for certain as my eyes are ridiculously dry naturally and it's hard to know if it's the lenses or just my eyes having a bad day.

Distance photo~


Want more ICK Petal reviews?
Check these: Brown, Green
 
Short summary:

Color: 7/10 
A cute fresh, soft and soothing blue. A bit light in shade but really pretty.
Design: 8/10 
Unique print with what to me looks like a magical casting spell design. Super nice!
Opacity: 6/10
Color coverage is decent, my eyes look blue for sure but it's not insanely opaque or anything.
Enlargement: 7/10 
Definitely a notable size increase. Dolly and adorable.
Comfort: 7/10 
Thin and comfy in general, no real issues. Maybe dries a bit fast but that could just as well be my naturally dry eyes having a bad day. Estimated wear 3-5 hours on super dry eyes, probably like 4-7 on 'normal eyes'.
Naturalness: 4/10 
Ignore the dolly style and it's actually not that bad, thanks to how delicate the appearance is.

Thanks for reading my circle lens reviews, there's more to come!
Shiro Samurai out ~

April 20, 2019

Lens review: Beaucon Vibrant Match Violet

Yo pups!

I'll bring forth the next review and today it's the Beaucon Vibrant Match Violet, a super bright and medium dark violet that's hella awesome in its own right!

Let's roll out this review!



Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.0 mm
Water content: 45%
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)


I've reviewed a few other Vibrant Match lenses in the past and these are just like the others – small, sorta realistic print and really packs a punch in color! Because of their design and size I do think that these lenses are surprisingly versatile, for cosplay they're definitely suitable but I wouldn't write them off for more casual looks either – assuming that you want a super vibrant lens.

Okay so, the enlargement effect is minimal but it's there, the color is a darker violet than what you usually run across and it's pretty and captivating as hell. Thanks to the small size these lenses actually have a small pupil hole too, which makes your eye color show through notably less in the center.

One lens in.
My natural eye color is a light blue gray and the color coverage is stellar, there's nothing to complain about. The design, despite the unnatural color, is fairly realistic as well.

Lens photos ahead!
All photos taken by me during an April 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.
Poor natural room light, facing a (dark) corridor.
Flash photo.
Facing a window. (not sun side)
Outdoors, back against the sun. (facing wall)
Outdoors, facing the sun.
I'm a bit torn when it comes to comfort, on one hand there's nothing really wrong with these – they're thin and comfortable and overall all fine to wear. Except for one thing. Remember that I mentioned that the pupil hole is smaller on these than on the average circle lens? Yes, I can't be 100% certain but the same moment I put these lenses on I noticed that my vision was constantly blurred. Like so blurred that it felt like I was in a perpetual haze – and if I looked at a window there was this massive glow around the window, as if light leaked out and Jesus was about to show up or something, lol. It was surreal and disorientating. As soon as I took one lens out the blur effect instantly vanished from the lensless eye, so it must have been the lens. Now it's probably worth mentioning that I nowaday have glasses that I wear daily but even so my sight is never blurred to that degree so it was the lens for sure, but I can't recall other Vibrant Match lenses blurring my vision like these did so either I got a Monday example or the (not so long) past expiry date did something. Yeah I know, shouldn't wear expired lenses but I immediately threw these out after taking the photos.

This is a good lens for all of those who want a really strong, bold color but doesn't want big lenses. There's few colorful small circle lenses in the market that have enough vibrancy to work for cosplay and the Beaucon Vibrant Match series work for that. I feel that for cosplay lenses in particular that it's important for the color to be opaque and vivid so that it shows up from distances as well, especially on photos.

Distance photo~


Psst, you interested in seeing other colors of the Vibrant Match series?
Check out these reviews: Blue, Green, Brown
 
Short summary:

Color: 8/10 
Super nice violet that is on the dark side. Join the dark side, we have cookies.
Design: 7/10 
Fairly realistic design and size, if we only ignore the color itself.
Opacity: 8/10
Color coverage is really good, great for cosplay and j-fashion.
Enlargement: 2/10 
Really small, a good choice for those who don't want or can't wear big lenses.
Comfort: 5/10 
Thin and comfy, estimated wearing time 2-4 hours on super dry eyes. Blurs my vision a lot, to the point I feel like I'm in a constant haze or that I'm high on something lol..
Naturalness: 5/10 
The color is obviously not natural but otherwise these would kinda work. Kinda.

Thanks for reading my circle lens reviews!

April 18, 2019

Lens review: Princess Pinky Eclipse Green

Hello folks!

A short break and now I'll get back to pouring out more reviews! Today I thought I'd show you all the Princess Pinky Eclipse Green circle lenses, a really big and cute design that features a lovely 'halo effect'. Let's go!



Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.5 mm
Water content: 38%
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)


This is a really big, really dolly lens with an unique design and a pastel green color. It's super adorable and there's not really any other lenses quite like the Princess Pinky Eclipses out there, except for the I.Fairy Moonlite series which has the same design but a lot brighter and more opaque colors.

One of the first things I always do before wearing any new lenses is to put them to soak overnight in multipurpose lens solution that I buy from the local pharmacy, I don't recommend wearing lenses directly out of the little glass bottles. Just don't do it.

One lens in.
The color is a really soft, diluted green. It makes me think of a misty meadow or something calming like that, it's honestly a pretty color despite my initial reaction of "grandma curtain green", lol. There's a really big size increase and because of the transparency of the colored areas you can actually see on the lens where it passes past your natural iris and onto the whites, which creates the halo effect that I mentioned above; it's extremely pretty in the right light conditions!

My natural eye color is a blue gray and because these lenses have a big, completely open pupil hole (like almost all enlarging circle lenses do) then a lot of my real eye color is visible in the center. There's no real effort to blend these as the color starts pretty abruptly and honestly, the random small black dots that line the pupil opening just makes the inner edges of the lens all the more obvious – it's like "HEY JUST IN CASE YOU DIDN'T SEE IT ALREADY THE LENS STARTS HERE", on light eyes at least. But honestly, who the fuck buys these lenses and expects them to look natural? :D This is definitely more of a fashion lens than something daily and discreet. 

Lens photos ahead!
All photos taken by me during an April 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.
Shitty natural light indoors, facing a corridor.
Flash photo.
Facing window, not sun side.
Outdoors, back against the sun. (facing wall)
Outdoors, facing the sun.
These lenses are generally comfy, although I can tell that I'm wearing lenses as they are not quite invisible to wear. It's honestly pretty much a non-issue though as it's really slight but I did wonder if they were not a tiny teeny bit thicker than other lenses that I've worn lately? Again, no big deal. I'm pretty much nitpicking to be honest, lmao.  But honestly, based on my impressions I do estimate that I could wear these for the average-ish 3-4 hours and yes, it might not sound like much but bear in mind that I have ridiculously dry eyes, which means that anything past 2 hours is already good for me.

It's a really cute, youthful lens with a touch of something alluring and captivating. It's not realistic but that's not the point either and I immediately think of j-fashion when I see these lenses: decora, lolita, pastel goth and such. It wouldn't be a dumb choice for cosplay either, especially if you need this kind of super light green (that doesn't blend and disappear into your eyes as light green lenses tend to do) as it's pretty hard to find. So yeah, if you want lenses that trample ever so slightly into the magical territory then consider getting these!

Distance photo!


Want to see more Eclipse colors?
Check these out: Pink, Violet

Short summary:

Color: 7/10
Calming, very light green. Diluted color, in a good way. Shows up as green despite the lightness and transparency.

Design: 7/10
Simple, super adorable print. A dotted inner ring, a single color and a thin black limbal ring.
Opacity: 6/10
Surprised by how well the green shows up despite being so light. Transparency provides beautiful halo effect!
Enlargement: 8/10
Really big and eye-catching.
Comfort: 6/10 
I can feel them slightly, maybe a bit thicker than other lenses I've worn lately but honestly it's no big deal at all. Generally comfortable, estimated 3-4 hours on super dry eyes.
Naturalness: 2/10
These are not meant to resemble a natural eye. At all.


Thanks for reading, more reviews are on the way!
Shiro Samurai is out.