I know what you're thinking. Writing is so 20th Century. You're sort of correct, except writing is so old it pre-dates pretty much everything else on the planet. I love to write letters, it's something I've always done. At school, me and my best friend at the time Rosie used to write eachother letters in every single Spanish lesson. We were in seperate classes but that didn't stop us. These letters sort of turned into a really artistic competition. I'd be given these pop-up cards, letters in paper fortune-teller form, letters that had carefully been folded into the shape of fish! I wasn't quite so artistic but I used a lot of coloured pens to make my letters back almost as impressive.
Since then it's carried on, occasionally, I will write out my love to you on a piece of paper. It doesn't really matter who you are but if I look up to you, you could potentially get a lot. I also like to give letters to people who I feel don't often get appreciated as much as they should. Don't worry though, it's not out of pity! I just like to make sure I make somebody feel valid.
My super cute Rilakkuma letter sets! I love writing really personal letters on these tiny pieces of paper that people can treasure forever, or throw away, I suppose, although I try not to think about people doing the latter!
You can never go wrong with little stickers! (Unless like me you have a friend who's terrified of stickers and the way they feel!) Alternatively cute little doodles work very well too!
Cute cards and little bits of cardboard are also extra fun to include. I love every letter I write to be instantly recognisable as being from me! So that's cute paper, a pastel or bright rainbow theme and a lot of stickers!
Here's my video on my cute, kawaii letter writing style! Hope it inspires you to be more open!
I hate how writing to tell people they are appreciated or loved isn't really accepted. Many years ago as a teenager, I would write my friends letters and make them little photo scrapbooks but if the friend was male, I'd always get accused of being madly in love with them. I hated it and eventually it stopped me from making the scrapbooks altogether. I hated this assumption that I had to be madly in love with someone just because I wrote them a thank you. I'll be honest, the love I feel for people is potentially more than how an average person feels (either that or everybody I've ever met hides their emotions) but I've never really been 'in love' with anybody, a bold statement I know!
So if you've ever got a present or a letter from me telling you how great I think you are that doesn't mean I'm in love with you! I'm not! I love you and cherish you as a friend and don't mind saying things that most people would feel like is a 'bit much'.
Slowly, I am learning to write slightly shorter letters! Not ten page essays for everybody. Unless you want one, of course! I love to cover them in stickers, draw little doodles of hearts and stars all over them. As a child I even used to spray them with perfume (well, more Impulse Body Spray!) - I don't do that anymore though!
Sometimes, I just think we all need to step back and take a moment to write a sentence or two about why we appreciate people. What it is about them that makes you bound up to their front door a little faster than you usually would, let them know that sometimes your cheeks hurt after seeing them from how much they make you laugh and smile. How much you look up to them. You never know when it'll be your last chance to say the things on your mind.
Sorry, the last note really was a bit on the emo side but it's all too easy to forget! Zono xxx
Hello Everybody! Hyper Japan 2017 has already been and gone, I can't quite believe it! This trip to Hyper Japan was my third trip and I thought I would share some thoughts for anybody deciding whether or not to go for Christmas or for the July Convention in the many years to come!
THE LOCATION: Tobacco Dock is beautiful but it definitely doesn't feel like a convention centre. It's pokey, slightly awkward and often confusing. It felt like there was a lack of toilets for the sheer volume of people. The queues were large. It was also incredibly hot and slightly dark. It could have done with a lot more light in some of the more hidden rooms. I wouldn't say I didn't enjoy the convention being here, I just found it difficult to find my way around. Everything was in little rooms and often I felt like that I might be going the wrong way. The staff that actually worked for the convention centre didn't feel particularly helpful and if I did lose my way a bit, they'd just shoo me away and point to a map as I tried to find my way around. Most of the time though, it just felt wrong and it wasn't actually wrong.
Sorry for such negative notes there. I'm just trying to give the full experience. Tobacco Dock itself is full of character, is easy to find from either Shadwell or Wapping station (and about equidistant from each) and once you do manage to find your way around is a lot of fun!
THE STALLS: As somebody that goes to Hyper Japan almost solely for all the kawaii fashion stuff, I was truly in my element. The stalls were absolutely amazing for this. There was so much beautiful art, cute clothes and genuinely amazing stuff to look at. It was like a dreamworld for someone like me! No matter what your J-Fashion style is you will find something for yourself at Hyper Japan. You will find too much, you will not be able to afford everything you want to buy!
As always, TofuCute, Cakes With Faces, Artbox and Dreamy Bows really did make the convention this year. They had amazing displays, cute photo areas, an absolutely incredible amount of stock and really made the place pop!
There were apparently less anime stalls than usual, I can't comment as it's never been something I've really looked at too much but my sister was far more interested in them. To me, it felt like a lot of the anime stalls were overpriced tat. A lot of rip-off posters that had been reprinted and slightly unfortunate looking pokemon plushes! Personally I wouldn't spend my money on it but I can see the appeal to an 11 year old anime fan! There were also some bargains so it's not all a rip-off. My sister also loves the idea that she has super cool anime bags and posters that her friends will find hard to find so that's cool too! I honestly don't think it's a complete waste of money as long as you go into it knowing that you might not be buying the genuine stuff!
HOW BUSY WAS IT?
I went for Friday and Sunday so I can't comment for Saturday (notoriously the busiest day) but Friday was the quietest. Friday was still busy but it felt manageable, nowhere got to crowded, I managed to see everything I wanted to see and didn't feel too claustrophobic.
Fast forward to Sunday and it was packed, it felt like almost double the people. Trying to get into the TofuCute, Artbox and Dreamy Bows stalls was almost impossible, my sister had to wait outside while I got her Ramune as she was too anxious to even attempt to enter. Honestly it was not an enjoyable experience on the Sunday with the levels of people. Queues for food and toilets made it feel like it wasn't worth eating or drinking. (not something I say lightly!)
THE FOOD:If you could bring yourself to try and wait in a disorganised queue, the food was a really interesting and varied selection of Japanese goodies. It was expensive, which goes without saying at all conventions and I don't think it's fair to give the food a bad wrap on this alone. I wish I could have tried it all but the thing that caught me and my sister's eyes the most was the bubble wrap waffles. Honestly, those things were heaven. Sent from above. It was a bubble wrap waffle, some ice cream, cream, chocolate, melted nutella and oreos. A dream come true when you're crashing from a lack of sugar in a hot convention haul. I couldn't recommend these enough. They are seven pounds a pop which is on the expensive side but truly worth every penny!
The other food I didn't get to try but it sure smelled good!
THE PERFORMANCES: Honestly, this is a part of Hyper Japan I often miss and forget about, which is a shame really because it's probably mostly what I pay for! I made sure to see a few this year, I really wanted to see the fashion show but I only managed to watch it on YouTube as my sister was not interested. I watched a few performances, Shin was a favourite, completely crazy J-Rock, not my usual style at all but I really enjoyed his crazy bouncing around the stage and screaming!
MY VLOG OF THE CONVENTION:
Mostly a vlog of the 'kawaii stalls' and amazing artists I met!
OVERALL:
Would I go again? Yes, I love Hyper Japan and will continue to go and support the convention and the amazing artists.
Do I think it's worth the money? Mostly yes, priority entry was too expensive and hardly anybody except my sister used it (but it did mean we cut all of the queue inside - you still had to wait outside like everybody else though!) I do think the Friday and Sunday tickets were fairly priced. Just make sure you see everything and get your moneys worth. I won't be buying a weekend ticket again. At £45 this was too expensive as I missed a lot of stuff due to not being able to attend on the Saturday.
What would I improve?
A lot of stuff. I'd probably change the venue back to The Olympia if I could (haha, obviously I don't have that level of power!), there needs to be more lighting definitely and more toilets. The food stalls could also have done with a better queueing system, the lines were so long and honestly it was hit and miss as to what you were lining up for! The First Aid room also felt pretty hidden and needed better signage from a safety point of view.
Do I have any tips?
Take cash! It makes your life and everybody else's lives so much easier! If you are taking children or anybody that might need a little bit of extra help, you definitely need to arrange a meeting place in case they get lost. It would be far too easy to get lost in tobacco dock! (I am a grown woman and I got lost, many times!) - I'd recommend the fountain as a good place to have as a meeting point.
Watch performances. This is one of the things that makes Hyper Japan so interesting and full of culture. These are things that you can't buy on the internet later so definitely make the most of them! Have fun! Dress cute and how ever you want! I was absolutely showered with compliments both days I attended for my outfits and it made me feel amazing!
I hope I have given you a realistic and informative review of Hyper Japan! Zono xxx
Hello again!
Here is my little viddy about 5 things I definitely recommend you check out/ remember to bring to Hyper Japan festival in London! Have a great time if you are coming along!
Zono xxx
P.S Definitely check out Cakes With Faces stall... her stuff is SO cute and not to be missed!
Hello magical person reading this! (That's you btw!)
Today I’m going to be showing you some of the super awesome jewellery I received from Riku’s Raving Hama Revolution! I received a beautiful necklace and a ton of super cute hair bows! They are made with Perler beads or Hama beads (depending on which side of the pond you are on!) I know a lot of girls are into ‘kawaii’ gamer, nerdy fashion at the moment!
I thought it was an ideal time to showcase what you can get from an independent designer. Riku takes requests so if you like this style of jewellery you can get some for yourself that’s inspired by your favourite video game or anime character.
That’s just one reason you should check out independent designers, not just because they might be able to whip up something super special just for you! Also because anything you do receive is made with lots of love and care! You’re also much less likely to walk down the road and see somebody in the same shirt…
I also produced a video for my YouTube channel! I worked very hard on this video because Riku deserves the attention and hopefully I managed to put in even a fraction of the effort that she did into making my super cute accessories!
Sailor Moon and Pokemon are both massive inspirations to my fashion sense (or lack of fashion sense!)
I absolutely love the magical girl style when it comes to jewellery… sadly I’m not confident enough to go out in a full magical pink dress just yet, however, I’m sure my pastel shoes and glittery cheeks are enough to give everybody around some evidence that I’m a magical girl on her day off!
Pokemon has been a big part of my life since… well, since I was half the height I am now, even since before the 21st century!! I used to have Pokemon posters, a massive tin of pokemon cards and have played every main season game since Yellow! I love that children still recognise Pokemon right now… currently I’m even listening to ‘relaxing pokemon music’ on YouTube to help me write!
The quality of the pieces is really good, the clips on the hair bows are really well stuck on and the chain on the necklace seems very well attached. It’s easy to see a lot of hard work goes into these products. They look super cute on and I don’t have the worry that I often have with handmade jewellery that it could break. Obviously, as with all handmade products, I’d advise to be careful with them but I do think they will survive daily wear and tear! So you can definitely wear these out and take a little bit of 8-bit magic with you wherever you go!
