Tokyo Kawaii Life order 10 - Liz Lisa Strawberry print 5000 bag (142-0500-0)

I saw this happy bag being advertised on the shop blogs earlier in October before the Liz Lisa x My Melody collab items were released, and I told myself that I was going to go for it and purchase with the collab items I was going to buy. But instead the half anniversary bag was put up, and this strawberry one didn't stock at Tokyo Kawaii Life during the week I thought it would! (Bad release estimation skills wtf.) However, it finally showed up a couple weeks later, and at that point, I hemmed and hawed for about 3 hours about whether it would be worth it because, beyond the 5000yen + tax + domestic shipping, I'd still have to pay international shipping, but in the end, I decided to just go for it :|. I guess I'm somewhat glad I did because they were sold out not 3 hours later.

I have to admit, I was not very optimistic about the contents (supposed to be an OP, top and bottom), and that's why I was so hestitant to purchase. The last happy bag I received from Tokyo Kawaii Life (back then it was still VENT Online Store but regardless) was the Happy Winter Tote (OP, top and bottom), and I wasn't too keen on what I received because it was just filled with what I deemed "crap from the outlet" (basically things that weren't suitable for me personally, and things that I had the opportunity to purchase at outlet/sale prices but purposefully didn't).
After that, I told myself to stop buying them because it was just a waste of money, especially because of the international shipping cost. The surprise element gets me every time - I just love that lol. However, I do use the bag from that Happy Winter Tote every so often so that one isn't a complete loss. And I do quite like the print on this strawberry one - especially to match with my Liz Lisa x My Melody 5th collab OP and phone case so that was another reason I was able to convince myself to buy it lol! In any case, I didn't have very high expectations for the actual contents of the bag.

 The bag itself is quite nice I think! There's even a small pocket inside! The size is one that I don't yet have, and I definitely don't have anything with this print lol. It's a similar synthetic material to a lot of those cheap reusable bags. I'm not sure how best to describe it. Suffice it to say it's not going to last me years and years of everyday use with heavy things in it, but it would probably hold up pretty well for the handful of times that I decide to grab it and go.

When I got the box, I was surprised at how light it was considering how much I had to pay for Tenso shipping -__-. The size is probably what contributed a lot which is annoying, but it's not like there's anything I can do about it. Before I opened the bag, I noticed that there was plenty of extra room in there besides the three items, and at first I was concerned about that lol.

I'm going to share the contents with you in the order that I saw them/how they were revealed to me when I opened the bag -

"Bottom" : ギンガムタイトスカート

 

 Idk where this happened (whether it left TKL like this or at Tenso or locally somewhere) but when I opened the zipper at the top of the bag and looked in, the plastic containing the skirt was already undone and basically exposing this vivid navy check print right away lol. This was definitely the first thing I saw, and I was like wtf. Once I took it out of the bag and realized exactly what it was, I cheered up a bit though lol. I was super pleased to see an item from early Autumn (this season!). This is something I wouldn't have bought myself, especially at full retail (or at a sale price tbh), and I was excited to try it on. Liz Lisa has been doing several skirts at this length and somewhat similar this year since spring, and I meant to try some on when I went to Japan in the summer but never did lol wtf. There's some embroidery in the back left that says "Romantic Love" which I did not really notice in the stock photos (despite there being a specific close up of it) and didn't notice irl until I saw the inside of the skirt and wondered what that was lol. It's pretty inconspicuous in person.

 

I added a navy blazer to complete the look -

 This is going to be an excellent skirt to wear for work! I love the fit and the length! I'm not really big on this check print that reminds me of houndstooth (anymore...2009 was a different story lol), but it looks like an average check pattern from far away and honestly it just keeps it from being too boring. The cut is cute and interesting in the front, and I also like the buttons. This is one of the best items I've ever gotten in a happy bag I think - something not too boring/basic (like a white button down or tank) and something I never would have taken the chance on even at a sale price, but fits well enough and is appropriate for me!

"Top" : 袖オーガンジートップス

 After I had taken out the skirt, the next thing I saw was the color of this top lol. And then the logo on it. At first I thought it was one of those shorter tops from early spring 2014, but soon realized this was one of the pieces from early autumn actually! (I really didn't recognize it because I don't think I had seen this pink color version featured anywhere.) The sheer, half sleeves are a trend point with a number of Liz Lisa pieces lately. This is definitely something I would not have bought myself and the faux French(?) text is not something I'm fond of. Weird English I can live with, but if I don't understand the language it's supposed to be, it just seems weird for me to wear because I don't know what it says lol.

 

I was originally really hesitant about this top. I really had no idea how to style it. My first idea was to pair it with jeans and heels because it's obviously such a casual top. However, I went to go look over to my Liz Lisa rack and for some reason I thought to pull out this pink skirt that my host mother gifted me this past summer! I have no idea what season its from but I'm pretty she got it from the outlet (which is nowhere near her house, and I feel so blessed that she made the trip out there and bought something for me!). Pink Liz Lisa on Liz Lisa on Liz Lisa is almost always a winning combination lol. Anyway, I think the top looks a lot different styled like this than with the denim shorts shown in the stock photos! Still casual because of the material and logo, but a lot more girly with all the pink. What do you guys think? 
I was trying to figure out what else I could wear this top with and noticed this Liz Lisa navy skirt hanging in my room which matched with the navy in the logo.

 

I think I definitely like it with the pink skirt better, but I since I tried it on, I decided to just briefly share it with you guys as well lol. 
Unfortunately, this isn't something I would see myself wearing here where I live though, so I will be listing it on storenvy to see if anyone else is interested!
(Storenvy shop note: I feel like sometimes other people will love the clothes more than I do, and that's why I list them! I would rather them go to a better home than just sit idly on my clothes rack. I try to sell them at prices where I'm not at a loss considering how much I had to pay for shipping while still giving customers a deal comparable, or better, to what they would have to pay to get it from TKL themselves + international shipping. I don't think I've ever really profited at the prices at which I list items - at most I would just break even for NWT items, and I never try to profit on worn goods! I am almost always open to price negotation and better international shipping estimates, so please get in contact with me if you want to discuss anything I have listed!)
EDIT: While the above is all still true, I am no longer selling on storenvy. Please check out my Facebook album the items I am selling. 

"OP" : 音符刺繍ワンピース

 I purposefully saved looking at the OP for last because I feel like a lot of what makes the happy bags "worth it" is the OP because it's such a big ticket item with a high retail value. I cannot tell you how stoked I was to see this dress. Before I even unwrapped it from the plastic, I recognized it immediately when I saw the color and the tulle. My first thought went to the New Arrivals photo of Chiharu wearing it in this exact color with the navy pom pom flatforms!

I was super excited because I didn't expect a dress like this to be in the bag! Besides the sheer aspect and half sleeves, the music note motif embroidered on the hem of the inner skirt and the edge of the sleeves are definite, strong indicators of Liz Lisa early Autumn 2014! Another item that I would not have purchased for myself but a very pleasant surprise to find in a happy bag and nice to get at a discounted price at a very least to simply see it (as an overseas customer who can't physically go to stores and browse the items).

 

 Close up of the music note embroidery -

I really enjoy how subtle it is.
I also tried it on with these grey suede kitten heel boots that I have, and I knew it would be too much grey and very weird, but I just went with it anyway because I had to prove it to myself lol.

 

Definitely like it with the Liz Lisa ankle boots better!
I'm super happy that the OP I received is not long sleeved or made of a heavy material. I feel like I really dodged a bullet there and am really lucky since I had no idea what kind of contents would be in the bag. However, after trying it on, I'm not sure this dress is meant for me. It's a nice dress generally, but I just personally don't see myself wearing it anywhere :| which is such a pity because it's a great dress to have gotten out of a happy bag by chance! But I'm such a grandma now, and I'm not sure what I would do with it. I'm also going to be listing this on storenvy to see if I can find it a better home soon!
I am no longer selling on storenvy. Please check out my Facebook album the items I am selling. 

As it turns out, the bag was full of items from early Autumn, and at the time I received the bag, were all still listed at full retail on TKL! (Currently they are part of a sale.) So really not as bad as I thought it would be (but honestly I thought it would be pretty bad lol). I don't love every single one of these pieces but at least they're recent stock :). I think when I unwrapped all the contents, I was most pleased with the OP because it's the most "normal" item of the 3, if that makes any sense. Like, I feel like this dress would be most easily worn by the most people or that it's something that a wide range of people who are Liz Lisa customers would like (versus the top and the skirt which might take a more specific customer) which is nice to see in a happy bag lately! I don't know if that even makes sense when I explain it lol. Anyway, as it turns out, I quite love the skirt though and I think this was a worthwhile purchase because of that despite the shippin being just about as much as the bag itself :|. Hopefully I can find the top and dress a better home though!

(P.s. I'm going to try to publish this from mobile because I want to see how it works out so hopefully it's not formatted super weird or anything!)

As a small reminder (and I'm sure those of you who actually read my posts are tired of reading these blurbs, but I am constantly getting blamed for not warning people of this, so here I go again) - I am extremely uncomfortable with my personal photos being used for the profit of others especially without a simple source link. In general, I would prefer for my photos not to be reposted without my permission at all, but if you feel the extreme need to do so, I simply ask that you just include a simple link back to my original post. Regardless of whether I watermark every single photo, I do still own the copyright to these pictures and you finding them on Google Image does not mean I do not own them anymore?? (There has been some confusion on that front apparently. And to be clear, Google does even warn you when you click on a photo that the image may be subject to copyright, and Google does not sever the photos from their original pages, so it's easy to find their source if you choose.) I do not blog and post these photos so that others can sell their products that are not associated with me in the slightest. And the response I get when I just ask for my photos to be sourced really discourages me from sharing and continuing to blog. I mean this in the least aggressive way possible, but I'm not just going to throw 80 smiley emojis in this to "soften the tone" because I am serious, and I honestly feel like you should be able to read a paragraph like this without emoticons and not be offended by its message.