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Let’s talk about sustainability, baby | Fashion

Let's talk about sustainabilityLet’s talk about sustainability

Sustainability is a hot topic in the blogging world right now. I’ll be the first to admit that I do not lead a 100% sustainable lifestyle. But then I also don’t think that’s entirely possible in the current climate. That said, day by day I am making a conscious effort to change the way I eat, shop, live… everyone’s got to start somewhere right?

Fun fact: I actively boycotted several high street brands and food shops when I was a teenager, after hearing about the sweatshops they were running. I guess the activist in me has been stirring for a while…

Let’s talk about sustainability, baby

I probably don’t buy clothes as much as most people; if I’m being extravagant I might buy a new item of clothing once a month. As someone who cares about the quality and story behind the clothes they’re buying, this has made it much easier for me to be sustainable. So when Rokit vintage offered me to come choose a couple of pieces in their Brick Lane store, I was very excited.

Thrift shopping is a great way to introduce sustainability to your wardrobe. Items of clothing are generally one-offs with character, and most of the time they’re the same price, if not cheaper! And you have the added bonus of knowing that you have kept the clothes from being sent to a landfill/your money isn’t funding fast fashion!

I’ve wanted to add a couple of band tees to my wardrobe for a while. But I wasn’t about to go buy a brand new 90s grunge inspired T-shirt from a high street store – that just seemed ridiculous – especially when I could buy an original. Luckily Rokit has a massive selection of original tees, so I grabbed a couple alongside some accessories that I’d wanted for ages (but couldn’t bring myself to buy from a chain store). The t-shirts may have been pre-owned but the quality hasn’t been affected by this, and they’ve fit into my wardrobe with ease. 

If you fancy checking out Rokit vintage clothing for yourself, you can use the code VINTAGE20 to get 20% off any purchase.

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The items feature in this post were gifted to me by Rokit, however all views, photos and words are my own.

Let's talk about sustainability Let's talk about sustainability Let's talk about sustainabilityLet's talk about sustainability

bloomzy /

Discuss: Test Drive Your Clothes, Before You Buy

Japanese clothing brand GU (a Uniqlo sister brand) have released a new concept into their new Shibuya Parco store (Tokyo) this month. The concept behind the store has been labelled “GU Fitting” and claims to be the first of it’s kind in the world. 

So what is ‘GU Fitting’ and how does it work? Essentially it’s a service that allows you to test drive an item, or items, of clothing before you purchase it. It may sound a little crazy, and you’re probably wondering how it could work, or why it’s even a thing. Well GU want you to be able to really get to grips with their items, so they’re willing to loan you the items for the day. Say you walk into GU’s new store and your eyes fall on a cute dress, but you’re not sure how it will fit or feel. All you need to do is visit the GU Fitting Counter (they take 30 requests a day) with your item/s (3 max) and put in a request to ‘test drive’ them. You can meet up with friends at a cafe, do some window shopping, or maybe even sit around at home. All you have to do is return them by the end of the day. You can then decide whether you want to purchase them or not. 
But won’t people steal the items? This part has a lot to do with the culture, in my opinion. GU are trusting their customers with the items and are only asking for a name and telephone number, no ID or deposit etc. This is because they have trust in their customers. If you lose your wallet in Japan, chances are someone will return it or give it in to the police. It’s because of this that a lot of Japanese people have a very trusting mentality and it translates well into schemes like this. As for the items on sale – most are priced around 2,000円 (around £11.50) or less, so this is purely fast fashion, nothing high-end. 
GU have certainly come up with a unique way to sell their clothing, and with a large selection of on-trend quality items I can see this becoming a big hit with the brand. GU are already considering expanding the project if it is successful, and as a fan of the brand I would love to try the idea out. Will it catch on? I really don’t see it working outside of Japan, without a few changes. I could see it working in the UK if the customer left their card details/with a deposit scheme, however I’m not too sure the idea would catch on. It does seem like something that would only work in Japan, for now anyway. The store will be open until the end of June, so you still have some time to check it out if you’re in the neighbourhood. 

What do you think? 
Would it work in your country?
Would you ‘test drive’ an outfit/item of clothing? 
Source: 1, 2, 3
bloomzy /

Donki’s Fast Fashion….

Donki’s Fast Fashion

I am sure that most of my readers have heard or even been to Don Quijote (Donki for short) in Japan. For those that haven’t, Donki is a discount chain store selling everything from groceries, to electronics and cosmetics.
A lot of Gals shop at Donki because it offers discounted cosmetics and clothing etc. from well known brands – You can find lines by Momoeri and Sakurina in-store, as well as Candydoll by Tsubasa. Not only do they sell known brands they also sell their own versions of 3d nails and lashes, namely the famous MAC-7 impersonation lashes – which are incredibly cheap, check them out @ Mitsu’s post.
However this post will be focusing on Donki’s fast fashion range of clothing. If you remember I mentioned in an earlier post when I bought a set at Christmas;
Based on a onepiece by GLAD NEWS
Donki’s fast fashion is better known as the ‘Tokyo Cover Girl’ brand – it is actually made in China based on popular Japanese coordinates. All of the sets come with 3 items (on average), which range between tops, bottoms, onepieces and accessories. Each set is 3,890円 (£29/$42) which really is a bargain as it can sometimes be hard to find one item in 109 for this price.
And don’t worry about going out of fashion or not having enough choice – they release 15 new sets every month all of which are free size. I should just mention at this point that I am 5’2 and the above onepiece is far to short on me to be worn without leggings etc. so it isn’t made for ‘tall’ foreigners ;D
Some of my favourites from the current sets available are:
This coordinate is extremely cute, and features two current trends:
floral and boater hat.
There’s a slight Delyle vibe to this one.
MeJane style this time featuring two big Summer trends:
Denim and Maxi dress
As you can probably see from these photos, Donki likes to follow the current Gal trends which is important as these are their main clientele. However you probably also noticed the quality of the sets. I was cheeky and I found an open set so I could check mine out beforehand. They do usually have a few sets on show, but this means that if you pick one that isn’t then you have to go by the picture on the front – meaning you can’t feel the quality or texture. Whereas fast fashion may be cheap and cute, you have to remember that you are paying for what you get, so don’t expect anything of great quality. They will use the cheapest fabrics and cut corners, which is true in any market where they try to mass produce cheaper items – for example, the denim shirt above may look denim but it actually isn’t. It’s look-a-like denim, which for someone picky like me just doesn’t cut it. I also don’t like how the skirt is attached to the ‘Delyle’-esque onepiece, it just looks cheap.
BUT if you understand that this is what you are paying for and don’t expect to receive the same quality as you would in 109 then these sets really are a great investment. You also need to remember that most Gals can tell when you’ve just bought the cheap Donki version, and you may not look as good as those with all the brand names. Don’t get me wrong, tons of Gals work offbrand items into their coordinates everyday, and fast fashion has become a big hit in Japan. So for those visiting Japan, or the students/フリーター this is a good, cheap alternative.
What do you guys think of Donki’s fast fashion?
I personally want to get my hands on the floral onepiece set, which looks so~ cute 😀
Source; 1, 2
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Birthday Coordinates…

Hey guys, sorry for my absence over the weekend. It was my birthday on Friday, and therefore I spent the weekend with friends. I was then wined and dined by my lovely boyfriend, and then taken shopping – but we’ll save that for another post.

On Friday, after early morning Japanese lectures I prepared myself for an evening out on the town. I decided to wear my ‘fast fashion’ (keep your eyes out for an upcoming entry!!) onepiece. I bought this from ドン キホーテ in Tokyo and paired it with leather-look leggings and some monotone pearls (which you can see on the left) – so glad these are back in at the moment.

I was basing my look around one that JELLY model, Maya Mori recently wore to an event @ Atom. Apart from the print, these two onepieces are basically the same, and although I am a label whore, in this instance I was happier with the cheaper version.
When I originally walked into the GLAD NEWS store in 109 (sorry I can’t find an image of the onepiece), the first thing I was confronted with was their original version of this dress. The belt (stud detailing and all), shape and style were all the same – but they had chosen a newspaper print. It was nice, and it complimented their style but it wasn’t me. However I do love Maya’s skull & lip print, and would gladly take it off her hands lol.
Comparison of the onepieces;
Each time I step into ドン キホーテ I feel almost as if it were a guilty pleasure. In-between some of the many items they sell you can find Gal style clothing, shoes, accessories and make-up for low prices.
This was my first time buying clothing from Donki, and although this onepiece is gorgeous and good quality, I still feel as though I got lucky. The jacket that came with the set was cute and fit well, but it was made for girls with skinny arms (luckily my fat doesn’t touch there lol) and I didn’t even bother touching the leggings that came with it as they were far too short and were made from cheap material. Therefore I paired the onepiece with a better quality blazer and leggings that I bought after.
Even with my complaints, overall I am happy with the onepiece itself and everyone was complimenting me on it so I can’t really ask for any more.
I hope you guys like the outfit, and I hope I did Maya’s coordinates justice, haha.
Source; 1