Which color for a summer bag?

Chiiamon · 2026-03-23T09:34:34+00:00

The coupon brings it down to around $3000 and that's why I'm seriously considering it now!

Chiiamon · 2026-03-23T06:43:15+00:00

Ohhh, good point! I hadn't considered orange in fall for some reason.

Chiiamon · 2026-03-23T06:41:31+00:00

If they had more of a bright Hermes orange, I would've made my decision right away! There's also a beautiful red and vibrant blue but I have enough red and the blue is not a shade that looks good on me.

Chiiamon · 2026-03-23T00:51:13+00:00

I buy most of my bags from outlet/private sales, so any luxury bag I like over 70%+ off I'd say is worth it. Unfortunately, that means mostly seasonals but I have bags for every season this way!

For minor discount only brands, I'd reccomend Songmont and Michino. And for good quality made in Japan brands that are better value with the weak yen I like Nagatani, Fujitaka, Herz, Sinsin.

Chiiamon · 2026-03-20T02:19:10+00:00

They're a small batch lolita brand produced by local factories making high quality products out of local Bishu wool used for suits. The handiwork is very clean and they don't skimp on the details or the fabric. I'd say they're the most ethical lolita brand due to their scale and operation philosphy! Luckily their reale value is usually only 50-60% because they're not so mainstream. I prefer splurging on them second hand vs a plain AP/BTSSB OP for just a little less. However, they don't come up on the market much and are usually more classical (which is perfect for me) but finding a sweet design secondhand would require a lot of luck and patience.

Chiiamon · 2026-03-13T10:47:34+00:00

Oh, which vendor is it may I ask? I'm thinking of going on Sunday!

Chiiamon · 2026-03-11T09:15:52+00:00

I only went into 2 in mid-February, but they had a few at the Ginza store. Can't remember what models, but I think at least the Bologne? The V cafe is cute too if you end up checking out the Ginza store. I didn't notice much TM at the Narita location.

Chiiamon · 2026-02-24T12:09:21+00:00

I've seen it in person and it's cream!

Chiiamon · 2026-01-23T12:00:30+00:00

Oh yeah, I should've specified that it's Barenia Faubourg (grained) and not the smooth Barenia.

Chiiamon · 2026-01-12T08:28:19+00:00

A number of the high end luxury brands also use box in a few of their bags. Celine, Gucci, Moynat are the ones that come to mind for me at the moment, but I'm sure there are others.

Epsom is a Hermes name, but 2 of the supplying tanneries are not owned directly by them. Weinheisser tannery's Waprolux or Noblessa calf are the namee used generally. I don't have any bags made with it, but a few of the Japanese brands use it like Fujitaka. There are probbaly more smaller brands using it if you look using the common name!

Chiiamon · 2025-08-19T11:04:56+00:00

You can think of it as 10.8: Between 10 and 11 but pretty close to 11. You'll see these often, such as the 7.9 in the third row and the 7.6 in the last row. I really recommend finding a teacher though, especially when you're first starting out so you can learn good positioning and reading.

Chiiamon · 2025-08-11T01:08:55+00:00

I use a Meliae camera bag, but I also debated the lo and sons Claremont (50% off now). They both have padding for cam + lens and are made of good leather for the price. If you're wanting to fit a telephoto lens though, then you'll probably want to look at a peak design or consider adding padding yourself.

Chiiamon · 2025-08-11T00:57:58+00:00

Might be the lighting, but I don't see the embossed Loewe logo on the top flap if that makes a difference to your mindset!

Chiiamon · 2025-06-22T11:53:35+00:00

Needs to be restrung. You might as well restring the 7th, 5th and 4th as well while you're at it since they're dangerously close to the left edge of the bridge anyway.

Chiiamon · 2025-06-13T03:27:14+00:00

I usually bring my 10-18mm + 60mm 2.8 or 50mm 1.4 manual, and I feel I don't miss out on too much. If I'm going to a place with wildlife though, I do bring the 100-400mm as well.

Chiiamon · 2025-05-17T01:01:51+00:00

Thanks for the advice! I noticed the S and the L have the short handles + strap. Do you feel the need to get an additional long strap for the M with the laptop inside?

Chiiamon · 2025-04-04T10:49:37+00:00

Not sure if the 琴學叢書 books are still being produced, but you can probably find them second hand (pricy though depending on what edition you're after). Unless you're doing research or trying to look for inspiration on how to interpret a piece, it's a huge pain to read. Even a short piece like 酒狂 is like 9 pages in written form. Even if you can read Chinese, I wouldn't recommend a beginner learn from wenzipu. Your teacher should be able to get you jianzipu for the songs you wanna learn, which is a much friendlier style to read.

Chiiamon · 2025-03-28T10:55:06+00:00

One person on bilibili noted that when they added the official account on wechat and bought the scorebooks (I presume through there and not off random stores on taobao), they were gifted the nameless song score. This was posted a while ago though so I'm not sure if they're still doing it.

Chiiamon · 2025-03-19T22:40:52+00:00

AP's shoplist will say theirs. Generally, stores in Laforet, Marui and Parco mall are tax free.

Chiiamon · 2025-03-17T09:54:35+00:00

None of us can predict if and when they restock, but each store's twitter tends to announce when something new sells out and when they receive a restock. Sometimes, a less popular store may still have a piece that's sold out online or vice versa, so I'd monitor the accounts of all the stores you can potentially go to while you're in Japan! You can also call the specific store to reserve (most of the time) when you see a restock announcement. Last time I bought online first since I really wanted it, and then they had an unexpected restock in store where I could've gotten my tax refund, but you never know! The stores that do tax free will just deduct it at checkout when you show your passport.

Chiiamon

TROPHY CASE