Wonder NW

Portlands newest convention is Wonder NW a teeny little con located at the Crown Plaza near the convention center. It encompasses all levels of geek-ocity, from anime to comics, from video games to roleplaying, no nerd-tastic stone was left unturned!

It was also the first convention I went to alone. You heard me, no friends joined me on this little excursion I was left to my own devices at a convention! It's almost unthinkable. But the choice was mine, I haven't been to a convention in awhile and I decided since it was so close and so cheap (6$ for 1 day) I just had to make it out for one day! That day just happened to be the day of the lolita fashion show, and I just happened to be finishing up (but not quite done) with my latest lolita creation.

So I woke up early, got dressed and went down to register for the convention, and then, since I was so close I bullied Gloria and Shannon into having breakfast with me at Vivace.

I guess they don't look too beaten up about it.

Gloria had a mocha, Shannon a chai latte, and I got myself a tropical iced tea, and we shared a french style banana and nutella crepe with whipped cream and slivered almonds.

I also remember to take a picture of my nails which were quite cute even though pictures of them kinda suck. The stickers stayed on well for the most part, but multiple layers of OPIs top coat will to that. In fact only one came off on it's own, and it was some cherries the other hand. The color is Sally Hansens Hard as Nails in Cardinal. Only took one coat too, so impressive.

After breakfast I did a quick walk through the dealers room, my favorite part about this room was all the older toys and comics that you could buy, my problem being I really don't care about buying that stuff.

I managed to snap a few pictures of people in costume. This is Captain Red Coat the leader of PDXYAR! a local pirate group that seemed to be helping run the con.

The Baroness from G. I Joes, looking way to friendly to be a villain.

I don't know what this is from. Still kinda cool though.

After that I found a quite place and called Rose. We talked for about an hour, about how James was doing, and then about how I missed her being here and costuming with me. It's sad, but this small convention could have been a lot more fun with someone else to costume with. Eventually I was discovered by a guy in a Diablo 2 bloodthirsty cow costume named Chris, and feeling. I expect, sorry for me. Dragged me off to meet the group he was with. It was nice of him, but it just wasn't the same.

After a bit, it was time for the lolita fashion show

Again I didn't know anyone at the con so I totally stole all these pictures of me. After looking at these pictures I've decided I need a fluffier petticoat an something for my wrists.

Everyone was doing sweet and elegant poses and stuffs and I was like, I'm gonna be super grumpy!

I think my dress was well liked, I got a big reaction when I told the girls about Spoonflower.com and that you could make and buy your own fabric online. After the lolita show was over the coordinator had prizes to give out, but instead of giving them out she put a bag of prizes on the floor and the lolita fell on it like a hungry pack of hyenas. Which is maybe not a flattering comparison, but that's really what it looked like.

It had items in it ranging from a Baby the Stars Shine Bright head bow, to a cheap plastic lunchbox (I think it was a lunch box at least). Which is kinda lame, if your gonna give out prizes to everyone, everyone should get the same thing. Also lame is that there were a few girls in outfits that were completely brand. The whole dress, wig, blouse, shoes, socks, ect.. put together probably cost like 500$, and of course they got the brand items. Like jeaze, don't you have enough? Let one of the girls in the altered dresses have it, they probably can't afford it and would be more then delighted to acquire their first brand item. Where as you will stuff it in your closet and probably only wear it every now and then.

After the lolita show I didn't stick around for pictures I just took off and got myself the hell out of lolita, even put on a wig. If you didn't look closely there was no way you were gonna recognize me, (which was what I wanted) and then I went to the Costume Contest. Kinda boring actually, no skits and they spent so long getting ready that we kinda saw all the costumes already, they were just along that wall the whole time. They did give out some fabulous prizes, makes me wish I'd have competed, but Bronte wore her Big Sister costume (again) to the contest and was hands down gonna win.

After the contest I left to hang out over at Shannons place for awhile before meeting Jim and Jojo at the Bosavona Ballroom for Geeklesque. Just think your favorite sci-fi and fantasy characters dancing and getting naked, and there you go. The highlight of which was when a girl dressed as Harley Quinn belly danced to the Dresden Dolls song "Missed Me". There were also some triva contests, and I kick myself for not going on stage because I knew most of the answers *sigh*, but what are you gonna do.

In conclusion Wonder NW is not a bad little convention, it could do with some better organization and a larger space but it's just fine for what it is. Not really worth two days though, because there was only one panel going at a time there just wasn't enough interest for me. One was just enough.

Etsy Review: Ink & Paint

Ink & Paint is another one of those etsy companies I've had my eye on for awhile, it's a good example of a company doing one thing and doing it well. It first landed on my radar a few years ago when a pale blue cameo with an old picture of Winnie the Pooh and Christopher Robin landed in my Suggested Shops page. It was super cute but sold before I could get my greedy hands on it, after that I was a constant browser of the shop, I liked the Glinda, Last Unicorn, and Van Gogh pieces and thought about purchasing one of those, but in the end I'd rather have a piece that meant something to me. So I opted for something custom made.

After that decision was made it got more complicated, what picture did I want to use? What colors? Something dark or light? What did I want to be able to wear it with? It was down to two pictures.

First up Kamui from X/1999. X was my first taste of CLAMP and holds a very special place in my heart. I chose this picture because of all the red in it (though most pictures of Kamui include plenty of red) because I thought I might want a piece that could go with a new Lolita dress currently in the making, but also the sword hilt is quite close to his face and would make for some good visual interest in a cameo.

My second picture choice was of Sora from Kingdom Hearts. He my favorite character and this is a beautiful image from the opening sequence of Kingdom Hearts II. Right before Namine puts him into the deep sleep. I like this idea cause he could constantly looks like he was trying to escape from my pin.

In the end I couldn't choose so I got both. I sent Julia a message with the pictures, resin and rhinestone color suggestions. I wanted both of them to be broaches, but I wanted Kamui to be in what is normally the pendant setting, and then I wanted Sora in the broach setting but laying on his side. I asked her if that would be okay.

This is where customer service got really awesome. She said all those things would be fine, and instead of just catering to me we had a conversation about colors which I love. And she put together a mock up of what my pieces might look like when she's done.

First the quick mock up of Kamui which she set on a pendant setting similar to what I was asking for. Julia mentioned having the larger rhinestones as a smoked topaz to bring out the color of the sword. I never think of stuff like that, it's crazy.

I gasped when I saw the mock up of Sora. I'm not just saying that, I actually gasped, it's so pretty. I originally thought about using light gray stones on this, but when I saw the mock up with the light amethyst and Julia thought it might bring out Soras skin tone I changed my mind.

She finished Kamui first, and sent me a picture of the final product. The pendant hook was not actually attached and she said so in the message she sent the picture in.

Sora came out dark in this picture cause she took a quick photo before packaging it up, but it looks just fine in life. Julia had to make Sora twice because the first one got an air bubble in it.

The broaches were sent USPS in a basic mailer box. It was actually huge compared to the product, and wrapped in tissue paper.

Each broach came in a little organza bag. Julia included a banana split Dumdum which I promptly unwrapped and stuck in my mouth. There was also a note that said...

Thank you so much for your Ink & Paint purchases! I had fun making them and I hope they're just what you wanted.
Cheers and enjoy,
Julia

I love them!

They're quite thin and light, but sturdy. The rhinestones are placed on perfectly and are super glittery in life. Also she must have access to the best printer ever cause both Kamui and Soras pictures were pristine. Except the stones the whole thing is coated in a clear varnish that was a sort of rubbery feel, and my only complaint is the it's especially sticky on my Sora pin and is constantly attracting dust.

I would defiantly buy again, in fact I already have big plans for a charm bracelet when I have money again. My big plans do often go by the way side so we'll see. Fo now I'm just really happy with what I do have.

Edit: Julia contacted me recently about the stickiness on Sora and explained about her process then offered to let me send it back for a newer coat. How good can customer service get? I mean to offer assistance so long after the exchange process has been met. Oh yes I will definatly be buying from ink&paint in the future.

Okami Review

Okami has been out for awhile now, but I just got around to playing it on the Wii a few weeks ago. I took me so long because I once watched Randall playing it and he seemed to be having a difficult time, I wasn't paying that close attention, but it clouded my opinion of the game enough that whenever I went to reach for it I would suddenly change my mind. But play it I eventually did, and here's my opinion.

Okami is amazing to look at, it's closer to a Japanese watercolor then a video game with backgrounds to die for.

At first glance I though it was a game for young children, I had plenty of data to back me up on that because all of the characters talk in this game INCESSANTLY! It would figure that very young children would need all that information. They talk so often, and so annoyingly that I've just started skipping through all of it, as a consequence I have little to no idea what the story line of the game is. Usually this means when somthing happens I fail the first time because I had to skip past whatever it was they were telling me to do.

After awhile it becomes very apparent that this is not a childrens game when resident tree goddess Sakuya quickly goes from this outfit...

Not entirely demure on it's own, there's an opening on the back that shows her tush.

To this one...
And then does some fan service and pushes up her breasts... Hmmm.

I have to say the game play is enjoyable once you skip past all that talking. As you continue along you receive new paintbrush powers such as making the sun or moon come out. Bringing life to plants or areas on the map. Even slicing and dicing your enemies. It can be slightly frustrating when you're trying to made a circle and it just won't work, but most of the time it's pretty entertaining.
You're regular fighting is fun as well with wide swings of the Wii remote and pushing the jump button. Okami even brings the nunchuck into play, when you swing the nunchuck to the side your character Amatarasu will dodge to the side. Boss battles are few and far between, which I enjoy. I dislike boss battles because I prefer the adventure/platform parts of games, but I do see their merits at times.

All in all if you can get past the talking Okami is a fun game, I don't feel frustrated playing it, but I don't feel like it's super easy to play either. It's been out for while so it won't be expensive to get a hold of if you're interested.

Pumpkin Carving

Can you tell what I carved yet?

After the Pumpkin Patch we made plans to get together and carve our pumpkins at Heathers house the following Thursday. I was the first to arrive. I also started my pumpkin at home first since I knew it would take awhile to finish and I had to work early the next morning.

Here's the lady of the house carving her gigantic pumpkin on the floor. She carved a classic jack o' lantern face on one side of her pumpkin, and an owl face on the other

Gloria joined us, though Shannon was on call for most of the evening and had to stay home. She provided us with conversation most of the evening, as I was too tired to do anything but listen and nod. Although I did manage to make a few jokes about the Jason movies 7 and 8 that were in in the background all evening.

She carved the Bat Signal!

Seth with his Pumpkin, creepy cute one eyed vampire ghost thing!

I couldn't stay long enough to see Miriams finished pumpkin in person, but she carved a witch Hello Kitty into the side of her pumpkin. I'm told she did an excellent job.

And how did my pumpkin turn out, you ask?

IT LOOKS AWESOME!

Big Daddy from Bioshock! This picture is really blurry, it looks 10 times more amazing when it's lit then in this image. I used a template this year courtesy of Deviantart-er CousticHippy. Thanks so much for posting the template! I adore my pumpkin this year.

Silent Hill Photoshoot

Dear readers, I'm sure most of you think I'm sweet as candy (yeah, right!), but I'm here to tell you I have a darker side, a side few have witnessed, and that is Zombie Arika! Ahhhhhh....


Ummm, yeah. So If you live near the Portland Metro area you will soon realize that we dig Zombies, like REALLY! We have special events like the Zombie Walk, and Zombie Prom. It's really not uncommon to see people walk down the street with fake blood running from their mouths and wielding plastic body parts. And even though there was no specific Zombie event this particular day most people just shruged at the sight of me and said, "That's Portland for you." Yes my friends we live in a great country.


Rose is currently taking a photography class at her college. She was supposed to take several pictures that have the same kind of 'feel' to them between several blocks on Burnside for a total of three hours.

It had been nice ALL week, and then the day Rose and I had settled on for the photo-shoot rolls around and it's 40 degrees and hailing, and snowing, and windy. Seriously, I thought I was going to die this day. We started at 6pm, and had to stay until 9, we didn't have to spend the entire time outside but each time I moved inside to out or vice versa the change in temperature hit me like a brick wall. Later in the evening it was so cold I started getting leg cramps (oh why can't Silent Hill nurses wear leg warmers?!).

The makeup for this was a collaboration between myself and Rose. I did everything on the face including the eyeshadow. I also did all the veins which I love! They look a little dark in some pictures but they were fun to paint. I did gray on the upper part of my body where at Rose did my legs. She also put the blood on me, it came out gloopy to begin with and didn't stay on very well, but we accidentally got some water in the bottle and it came out much thinner and more runny but stayed in place 10 times better than the blood we put on earlier.

My favorite picture of the day! Perfect Zombie pose!

I regret that the costume is not mine. It belong to Roses sister Maura and it was bequeathed to me until she returns from Japan. It is also kind of big on me and we had to put a safety pin in the back so it forms to my curves, of which are pretty minimal anyway.

This one was taken in the children's book section of Powells. We were largely ignored except for one mom who looked over to her kid and asked him, "Can you say Zombie?" I love Portland, if there's ever a Zombie Apocolypse all the kids are going to die.

Here you can see what the skirt looks like untucked. I did my fair share of flashing this day, I can't tell you how many pictures Rose took of my underwear, it was nice to be able to untuck and walk around, still pretty slutty, but not AS bad.

PDX: Arika

It's weird, until I looked at these pictures I never noticed the graffiti of sodapop on the wall of the pool there.

Oh the nitty gritty of a pool, washer of ducks, breeder of west Nile virus!

Maura took this candid picture of me while waiting for my lunch. The lady in the stall and I were trading stories about when we used to dye our hair.

To Powells for some quick shots next to the eggbeater statue! I didn't get any pictures of myself inside the store, the comic book section was too crowded.

And the creepy face statue that tried to eat me. I thought it was a cool idea, but it kinda looks like a dog carrying a bone.

Rock Band on the street! I sang 'Yeah, Yeah, Yeah's Maps' (why is that even on Rock Band?), and 'Weezers Say it Ain't So.'

At the Rose Garden there's this big geometrical statue, it looks oddly out of place. But In the summer there's some sort of water works that makes em more interesting.

I had to climb on it of course.

No remorse!

Then as an encore I had to climb a tree.

And was then promptly told to act like a monkey!

On the way down I broke a branch that was growing at the base of the tree, I felt bad but I kinda figured they would have to chop it off anyway. Don't blame me tree, blame society!