Cinderella 2015

What a marvelous adaptation of this film! Everything was executed brilliantly; the costumes, the gorgeous locations, and great effects in the infamous dress transformation scene. 

I watched the film mainly for the costumes and certainly wasn't disappointed! Dresses looked like a mix between the Rococo era - when the film was set - and the 1950s, which was when the original Disney cartoon version was aired.

All the outfits suited their characters perfectly. The step-sisters and their mother were suitably excessive and gaudy (and I have to admit that I loved that about them; I would wear their clothes in a heart-beat!), as well as colour-coded. The step mother wore poison green and black, which I suppose was to put an emphasis on her toxic personality, and both sisters wore identical dresses in almost florescent shades of pink and yellow, showing that they were both exactly the same, with no personality of their own.

As for Cinderella, the costume designers got her spot on, with plain, yet still incredibly beautiful, country-like dresses. Her ball gown, as magically whipped up by the wonderful Helena Bonham Carter/The Fairy Godmother, is all it was reputed to be. Really, it lived up to its reputation as the best dress of the year! It was the most wonderful costume I've ever seen in any film, and everything about it just sparkled! There was so much glitter and luminosity to the fabric that I was left feeling incredibly envious of Cinderella. Truly, it was magical!

The actress who played Cinderella was wonderful too. She made me feel so much sympathy and love for Cinderella (my first favourite Disney princess as a girl!), which is rare now as I hardly ever find myself engaged in a Disney film. When the sisters and step-mother were horrible to her, and her parents died, I could have honestly hugged her (and kissed her too, if I were to be so bold as to say it; Damn the prince, because I wanted to marry her first! haha).
Helena Bonham Carter is one of my favourite actors, and once again she was outstanding in this performance.

All I can say about this film now is just a stunned... "wow, I really want to see this again"!

Tatton Park

In the Easter holidays I also visited Tatton Park, which is near Chester. I visited this place last summer, where we went to a beautiful summer fair, and I wore Lolita and got sunburnt (I'll remember to use my parasol next time)!
My family and I had a picnic (on which I may or may not have cheated on my diet...) and then my sister and I visited the manor with our father. This was another Georgian home.

 

Another wonderful place we got to see was the Old Hall, and we even had an hour-long guided tour! Supposedly it was on Most Haunted, but there wasn't even a vestige of a ghost there from what we experienced, and the tour-guide didn't believe in ghosts anyway.
The only scary thing there was that the gentleman running the tour dressed my brother up as a knight in chain link armour, and gave him a real axe and sword to hold! For a minute I thought we were all going to die; it's a good job that my brother does have some sense!
It was absolutely freezing inside the hall and barn, and as it was derelict, the rooms had spiders and spiders webs everywhere! That was particularly strange in the parlour that had 50s decor and technology, but less so in the rooms that were Elizabethan.

Old School Chic

Recently I've been pouring through the earliest versions of the Gothic Lolita Bibles, mainly for nostalgia, but also because I'm in love with the Old-School sub-style at the moment. The way that it's not as polished as today's Lolita style is a huge bonus for me, and the slightly frumpy look makes it much more natural and easy to style. It's before the modern print-crazy trend, so it's much easier to make your own dresses and is a lot less busy!

Here's some pages that I loved the most:

 

Both are from the Gothic and Lolita Bible volume 7.
I love this girl; she's really pretty and still has a typically Western figure that Lolita designers seem to forget, yet is still included in the Bible! I think she's a natural Lolita model, with no need for a wig or circle lenses that I think are so excessive. And those clothes are the style I first fell in love with in Lolita; black and white clothes inspired by Victorian things, that also has a slightly Hogwarts feel to it! Also, she makes me really want shoulder-length hair! I need to grow mine longer.

Kamikaze Girls and Novala Takemoto! I must resist the urge to ship Momoko and Ichiko together, but they're so damn cute! And Anna Tsukiya is really attractive...

I love these hair styles and make up; it's so fluffy and sweet!

 

It reminds me of when I first discovered Malice Mizer - which led me to find Lolita fashion. I still listen to them now for hours on end! As a side note, I recall once writing in my French essay that I strive to look like Mana-sama when I grow up! It shows how my style has changed quite a lot in Lolita, although to be honest, I'd still love to wear Mana-sama's wardrobe.

These pages are also really sweet. I like the way they're not as polished as the modern-day Gothic Lolita Bibles, which can seem really fake at times. I just really appreciate natural beauty.

Sizergh Castle at the Lake District

My family and I went to Sizergh Castle last Thursday, which everyone enjoyed. The castle was beautiful on this summery day, and I loved every moment of it!

 A newborn lamb we found! As we approached I grew alarmed at how still he was, fearing that perhaps he was dead. Thankfully he was alive, just weak and very young. I found him really adorable.

 Every ornament never fails to capture my attention for a while.

 These china plates have very intricate illustration on them that would go perfectly with the decor of my room. I love the toile like feel! In the following photos I tried to focus on small, individual details inside the castle for more interest.

 They have the months of the year in French inscribed upon them, and each picture is unique.

 This beautiful faux-shepherdess portrait left me stunned, as the gorgeous blue dress has so much detail and an aristocratic air. No wonder the Rococo and Georgian eras has so much of an influence on Lolita fashion! However the weird thing is, the lady in the portrait is literally my doppelganger - if she had blonde hair, we would appear identical!
 

 Isn't this tapestry cushion the cutest! I would love to have one of these in my bedroom.

 There were lovely daffodils and a wonderful view from the bench that I sat at alone, just taking photos and enjoying the sunny weather after such a long winter.

 Swans may be evil, but they are also incredibly elegant with their long necks and snowy white colour. I love the way the water ripples around it in this photo, and you can just see the beads of water dripping from its beak. I'm quite proud of this one.

 Some people may find it gross, but I love the look of frogspawn, as when I was younger I went through a phase of being obsessed with collecting frogs! The frogspawn appears like lots and lots of monster eyes under the surface of the water.

 The rockery had many interesting plant-life and insects to spot.

A peacock butterfly I only just managed to capture. It may be small, but I love the way it is central to my picture. The reds and purples in the background match the main colour of its wings.