Death & Sneak peek of New July Product!

It's been a tough week. I just attended my first open casket Wake yesterday. One of my closest friend's mother died a couple days ago. It was all so sudden. :'( I bawled when I heard she had a few months to live and then a couple days later she passed. I cried a lot over it. I didn't breakdown at the Wake which was a slight relief. Nothing worst then being the loud catalyst of grief - when I cry I get pathetically loud and clogged. My heart and prayers go out to my friend's family. Especially my friend who has been nothing less then precious and to this day remains one of my most steadfast buddies. I love you, A.

That aside, been busy working on new designs! I have also expanded into Men's accessories. Lots of Mori Girl + Mori Boy / Dolly Boy items. Dolly Kei headpiece. Natural Kei + Fur Puffs and Tails are back after so many personal requests! Here's a few quick low quality pictures of my items until I get them photographed nicely. :) Enjoy!

As always, comments are welcome and I don't mind constructive criticism at all. :)

- Blogged from my iPhone

Brand-spanking-new handmade headpiece! Sparrow Skulls! Finds!

The weather has been absolutely horrible here in Toronto. Hot, cold, hot, cold, rain…and I hear there’s going to be snow on Monday. Seriously, it’s mid-late April and we are getting SNOW?! 

I don’t get it. My program has been all about global warming and how weather patterns / phenomenon such as El Nino and El Nina dictate these shifts yet I still am unable to believe just how directly it effects everyone.  This also means a late growing season for farmers and it’ll effect so many things. I can’t grow my edible flowers yet because I’m too afraid to let them grow outside and starting them inside with such dreary weather doesn’t get my hopes up, either.

That aside, I’ve been out of town and away from my studio due to a slight emergency. But, as always I’ve dragged most of my immediate portable materials with me and I whipped up a headpiece two nights ago (along with a few necklaces but I didn’t take pictures). Currently, I am working hard at expanding my collection for the meeting I have with a local boutique owner this coming Friday. I hope she likes my stuff and buys/carries it at her store!

It’s so beautiful. I can’t bear to part with it unless offered a small fortune. :) It’s very Dolly-Kei and I can’t wait to coordinate it. I really love the warm copper charms I imported which add to the overall warmth and richness of red accents and the red wool bow. 

I begin with a brief laying out of what I prospectively want the headpiece to look like.

I don’t sleep for a whole night working on things like this and at 7-8 AM the sun shines.

I bless my items with the first rays of sunshine. Haha. Then photographing commences. 

On another note, I also got my custom order of plastic casted sparrow skulls from an across the border taxidermist after literally almost 2 months of waiting. It was a long and somewhat tedious wait but well worth what I got. I really wish I had gotten most of the skulls drilled because they look really awesome as necklaces. What do you guys think? 

Also, made a nice find at Dollarama recently. I’ve been desperately looking for millenary branches with buds - I tried Queen West, Fabricland…but was then recommend Michael’s. I found exactly what I was looking for at Dollarama instead - with at least 5 colortones in a huge branch for a mere $1. Score! I left with pale green and cream buds.

Blog Giveaway / LJ Community Contests

I’ve been contemplating a Giveaway for a while and since I’ve almost reached 40 readers I might as well act on my urges. However, being somewhat ambitious I also like to multitask – this post will include the Livejournal Polyvore / Coordinate Contests I will be holding at the same time. Feel free to link away and advertise it if you think you’d have friends interested. The more the merrier!

Quaintrella Blog Giveaway

I will be doing ONE Giveaway of my Bowtie Necklace on this Blog. Basically, this is the simplest one where all you have to do is be a Follower of my Blog and comment on the post (be sure to include your email address if possible so I may contact you if you win). Once that’s done on April 8^th, 2011 I will add all the entries into a online randomizer to pick out a winner. J Enter only once, please. Thank you.

Local So_lolita Livejournal Community Polyvore / Coordinate Contest

This one is for the local Lolitas only. You have to be in Ontario and part of the So_Lolita LJ Community. This is for the Gothic Birdcage Dangle Earrings AND/OR Bowtie Birdcage Necklace. Both are new designs for my line http://TheQuaintrella.etsy.com and you can enter for one or both (2 entries each maximum). Basically, use my accessories into a Polyvore Coordinate or Real Life Coordinate. Show me how you would wear it and a vote will be done by the members of the community based on your skills. Feel free to enter my other contests too! I will cover shipping charges for the items if you cannot meet me locally. Deadline: April 15^th, 2011.

International Mori Girl, Dolly Kei, Natural Kei,and Possibly Classic Lolita Polyvore / Coordinate Contest

This one is an International Contest for one of my One-Of-A-Kind textile art necklaces inspired by a very particular Mori Girl brand, Rosey Aphrodina. The Tea Rosette Necklace will never be replicated and has been made with great attention to detail and love. You may only enter this contest ONCE with a coordinates (in the style of your choice). Basically, show how you would wear this piece with your current existing wardrobe or your dream coordinate (with Polyvore) and POST them HERE. There will be two voting sessions which will first accommodate for the communities involved and then the top voted entries will be re-voted on by all communities involved. Make sure to label the genre of style you will be coordinating for. I will pay for shipping charges if the winner isn’t local. NOTE: The base portion of this necklace is made of wool – please be aware of this if you are allergic. Deadline: April 15^th, 2011. (Check the Morigirls and Dolly_Kei LJ Communities for Information in a day or two when I have better pictures up).

Thanks for reading. Happy winning and coordinating! :)

PS - Sorry, for the shit pictures. It’s 4 AM and I’m a vampire who can’t wait for sunshine at the moment. I’ll retake them ASAP when I have the light and energy. 

The Toronto Mori Girl, Dolly Kei, and Natural Kei Community: FORESTDOLL

I have always liked the idea of a local community dedicated to a fashion but had something that reached beyond fashion itself. I created Forest Doll for the Toronto Mori Girl, Dolly Kei, and Natural Kei lovers.

Thanks, Nadine, for this banner picture!

There is a new local community for anyone interested in the Mori Girls, Natural Kei or Dolly Kei fashion in Southern Ontario named forestdoll.   It is open to anyone from the surrounding area of Ontario whose interested in exploring nature, who love vintage clothes, who love crafting, flora and fauna, mushrooms, hiking, shopping for secondhand things, antiques, quaintrelle aesthetics, layering and old things.

Part of forestdoll will also be dedicated to exploring every nook and cranny that Toronto has to offer in terms of vintage stores, antique stores, brands, cafes, folk music, sewing/knitting/felting/crocheting workshops, and fostering what we have in our city and beyond has to offer in relation to the said fashions.

For those interested check the community out at: http://community.livejournal.com/forestdoll/profile