What's My Japanese Clothing Size?? -- An Easy Guide

hey everyone! i get a lot of questions from all of you about what size to buy japanese clothing in, usually trying to convert it from US or UK sizes. let me tell you, that's not the way to do it! the process is very easy and works with bodyline, angelic pretty, rakuten, etc-- ANY site that shows the measurements of their clothing in CM.

so let's look how to find your size!

whatever you do, do NOT convert your clothing size using any kind of online chart. for one thing, numbered sizes vary a lot. for example, medium isnt the same with every company or country, and a size 5 might be a lot bigger in japan. THE SAME GOES FOR SHOE SIZES!! i cannot stress this enough. girls in my lolita group are always asking how to find their shoe size to buy from bodyline, because japanese shoe sizes are in centimeters instead of arbitrary numbers. i made the mistake of trying to convert my shoe size to japanese using a chart and ended up getting shoes that were either too big or too small.

so in short, whatever size you are in your native country, you might not be in a japanese brand. 

as japan uses the metric system, the measurements of japanese clothing will be given in centimeters. even if they're sold in lettered sizes like S, M, L, etc. they will usually have a description of the measurements in the details of the page.

to find out how to measure yourself for clothes, click here! to measure for your shoe size, simply take a tape measure and measure the length of your regular ol' foot without any socks or shoes on. 

now, consult the measurements on the site. for example with bodyline, they will have the measurements for each letter size in a little sidebar above where you add the item to your cart. make sure to double check everything before you buy it, and always buy a few CM bigger-- you don't want buy something that has your EXACT measurements because that would make it skintight (unless that's what you need). if there's elastic measured flat instead of stretched, then buying something that matches your measurements should be okay.

with shoes, you just want to buy a size that matches your foot measurement. always round up! you might find sometimes you'd want to buy something a half centimeter bigger in case of socks/tights/etc.

and that's it! it's really easy, and i only went into so much detail to make sure i covered everything. if there's still anything you have questions about, feel free to ask me and i'll get back to you as soon as i can! i hope this helps.

Bodyline Seifuku (Sailor Uniform) Review

hey everyone! sorry i haven't been posting. this summer has been unexpectedly busy for me, and when i'm free i'm honestly too tired to do very much! but it's been a fun summer so far.  

so for today i will be reviewing bodyline's summer short sleeved seifuku! i got this for my birthday recently. the model on the website is COSTUME410. they offer it in many different colors, but i chose very pale lilac-y pink (the model is wearing it). 

now, usually when i buy anything from bodyline their M is a pretty good choice for me. the measurements for the M on this seifuku looked good to me, but when i got it it was pretty small. the top fit okay, but it was too short-- it's a sort of cropped top that hits around the end of your natural waist, and then a high waisted skirt. but the skirt was very very tight and too short, and though the top wasnt exactly too small it ended too high on me.

i also didn't know about the thread connecting the pleats at the bottom you were supposed to remove, but i was informed of that pretty quickly.

so i went back and ordered a 2L and it finally arrived recently. it fits pretty well! i'd still like the skirt to be a little longer, but if i wear shorts i would feel perfectly comfortable with it.

as you can see, the ratio of where the top ends and the skirt begins is perfect and just as intended. the skirt fits perfectly fine. there are two little spots of elastic in the waistband of the skirt, and it closes with a zipper and a hook. 

the seifuku top closes with a zipper straight up the front, but it's covered by a seam. this makes it a little hard to zip, but if you're careful it's fine. it also created a few stray threads on the inside after a few times of zipping and unzipping, but i just pulled them off. i don't think it would cause any long-term damage even if that keeps happening.

here's the seifuku on the hanger, looking a little wrinkled from wear. the construction is nice and it looks very clean-edged. my favorite element is the bow, as it's so big and adorable! the material of the white fabric on the top is relatively thick and somewhat rough, but that's (to my knowledge) how actual seifuku are, and i've seen some people complain about this like it's an issue of quality, which it isn't. i think if you were to buy an authentic seifuku from j-list or anywhere, it'd be the same texture. it didn't bother me at all, as i fully expected it.

the white middle section of the top is sewn into one side of the collar and snaps closed on the opposite side. the little triangle of fabric is the same as the rest of the white on the top. i always wondered how those little triangles worked, so it's interesting to see that and i'll have to file away the info for cosplay!

the skirt is very very lightweight and almost see-through, but it is opaque. it's perfect for hot weather! i will probably wear this with ankle socks and my light pink converse in the summer, but it would also be great with tights or high socks and cardigans when it's colder. 

here is what the bow's strap is comprised of under the collar. the bow is fully independent of the top (as in, it doesn't snap on anywhere.) it's basically a bow sewn onto a bra strap- theres a place to hook it on like a necklace underneath the collar, and an adjustment piece just like any bra strap has to make it longer or shorter so that it fits well. i had to make mine a lot bigger to fit around the collar.

❤REVIEW RECAP❤

quality-

 i think the quality is pretty good. i'm not crazy about the zipper making stray threads, but it's not too big of a deal. i did have to buy a size up as measurements on the original size weren't super accurate. 4.5/5

 services -

i love bodyline and have never had any problems with them, and i've ordered from them a lot. the second seifuku took a while to arrive and update on the tracking, but that was just the US post's fault. the seifuku didn't come in a heart bag, but i think they just do that for lolita fashion items. 5/5

so, that's it for today! if you've been looking to get this seifuku, i think it's really worth it. it''s adorable and i can't wait to wear it! 

don't forget to like PKC on facebook for updates!

New Trend: Oil Slick Look

hey everyone! i wanted to share something i've been noticing around a little bit recently in fashion that i think is really cool. i've only seen it over the past few months or so, but it seems to have been surfacing since 2009. anyway, i love it and the best way i can describe it is an oil slick look. it's a dark color such as gray or black with a rainbow effect on the surface that looks like an oil slick or bubble solution.

leggings from Black Milk

i found the most common way this look was achieved was on patent leather items, and with the nature of the effect, it really does look best on something shiny.

Dr. Marten lex shoe

Dr. Marten langston black petrol boot

T.U.K. mondo creepers available at Urban Outfitters

heels by sportmax

coach madison

gucci

jeffrey campbell has done a lot of oil slick shoes:

but this cool effect isn't limited to patent leather and shiny shoes!

asos

source

it's also something that is common in nail polish and can be achieved with makeup.

source

this manicure was made by swirling these colors together!

other than the above method for getting an oil slick manicure, some polishes inherently have this effect to them. this glitter polish by wet n wild i just reviewed has the oil slick effect to it.

wet n wild "gray's anatomy"

 i also got this polish for christmas in pursuit of the oil slick rainbow and i recommend it! the only bad thing about it is that it takes a lot of coats as it is very thin. looking at photos online from other bloggers, it seems to work best with a basecoat of black or another dark or like color.

both available at asos

i havent tried these polishes by accessorize, but they look very cool. i like the variations on the effect with the different colors.

so, while it's not a very summery trend with all the black and dark colors, do you like the oil slick look? i really do and i think it could become a much bigger trend this year, especially in the fall and winter. i do think it would look cool on a black tank top and i'd like to see it in jewelry more, and those ideas would totally work as summer items. plus, any of the shoes could go with summer outfits. what do you think?

remember to like Pizza-Kei Cute on facebook for future updates!

New Trend: Fake Thigh Highs

hey everyone! how's it going? i'm on summer break now so i should be able to post tons for you all.

i noticed a cute trend for a new type of tights i hadn't seen before lately i wanted to share with you: fake thigh highs! 

fake thigh highs are tights which have a portion printed black where a thigh high sock would cover, and where your skin would normally be showing there's pantyhose. other than the fact that this means no more slipping thigh highs, this allows for tons of cool designs to be printed on and the idea of the top of the sock to be played with!

there's generally two ways i've seen these being made-- by either adding a cool design to right above the thigh high that looks like tattoo tights, or by making the top of the "sock" portion into another shape.

 

"tattoo" style thigh high tights from Temptations

bow suspender tights from ASOS

music note tights from rakuten

totoro thigh high tattoo tights from taobao

cat tights from ryuryu

urban outfitters thi

so as you can see, i think these really only come in varieties of black at the moment. i don't know if it's something to do with the pantyhose portion, so both sections have to be made out of pantyhose material, or what-- but i'm sure that soon enough there will be even more variation on this theme. it looks really cute and i bet it'll get even more popular.

even though there's only black, i think black tights with a colorful spring outfit are a great match. i like to wear black tights with something really colorful to add contrast and ground the outfit. plus, i think these are pretty sheer and lightweight for the most part, and you have to wear them with something shorter to show the effect, so i think they're still great for dressing for springtime.

what do you guys think about thigh high tights? are you disappointed they only come in black? looking to see a type of design you haven't found yet? have a favorite pair already? leave me a comment and let me know!

and don't forget to like Pizza-Kei Cute on facebook for updates about new posts as well as just a lot of photos of cute clothes i love!

Lolita 52: Favorite thing to put on my head

hello everyone! today i wanted to do a short little lolita 52 post for you all.

what is my favorite item to wear on my head when i'm wearing lolita? well, it bleeds into other fashions too, but i love big poofy chiffon bows. i have three that i wear with lolita-- a cream one, a black one, and my very favorite, a ribbonholic one i reviewed here.

i love these big soft fluffly bows because they just look really cute! i don't have specific matching headbows to anything in my closet, just those pin-on bows that bodyline includes with their items. those can be pinned to a headband and made into a headbow, but i don't like how floppy that is. i've done it with ok results, but i just love the look of a fluffy bow clipped on the side of my head.

i wish i saw more bows like this around, but i don't see them too often. if you know of any good stores that sell big puffy bows like this, let me know in the comments, and i might have to review them!

that's all for today!

OOTD: Sailor Moon t-shirt, mint jeans, sequin Sperry Top-Siders

hey cuties! got another ootd for you today from this past friday. it was a bit colder and i was actually really cold in this when i was outside. but it's going to be warmer this week! ♡ 

this is a very mahou shoujo-inspired outfit, though i wouldn't really call it mahou-kei. 

 

 💗☆outfit breakdown☆💗

cardigan - vintage

sailor moon shirt- hot topic

jeans - forever 21

watch - sanrio.com (reviewed here)

pink heart ring - walmart

sugar bunny ring- bought at youmacon a few years ago

other bracelets- handmade

hair balloons- etsy

sperrys- macy's.com

minnie mouse socks- target

hope you enjoyed this outfit! it was a lot of fun to wear and i loved coming up with it so i knew i had to share it. i'll leave you with a photo of the beautiful pink tree i saw on campus the day i wore this outfit.