Liz Lisa 2015 Web-limited trunk carry fukubukuro - contents and coordinates

I really wasn't planning on purchasing another trunk carry this fukubukuro season (I mean seriously), but I got caught up in the excitement of seeing the designs of the lucky packs during Tokyo Kawaii Life's release on 11/30 and ended up pre-ordering the web-limited ribbon rose embossed trunk in the first half hour. (Instead of discouraging me, the server error actually made me want it more wtf -__-.)
I had been tracking news for Liz Lisa's 2015 fukubukuro for this post so I knew the different types that would be offered, and before the release, I thought I was going to go with the 15,000yen or 20,000yen option. But upon seeing the tote and mini trunk design, I wasn't sold on it just based on how those bags looked, so I decided to go with my gut and get the fuku with what I considered to be the best "bag" for myself. [I had already also pre-ordered the Swankiss Angel Bag fukubukuro at this point, so I'm really not sure why I let myself order the most expensive (online) option though lol.]
☆WEB LIMITED☆ローズリボンエンボスキャリー【2015年福袋】

I don't have a lot of photos of me "unboxing" it because I just kind of opened it, eager to know exactly what each item was since you can't exactly tell when it's wrapped in the plastic. I should have pulled everything out and then opened them but I had no rhyme or reason with what I did and therefore no pictures lol.

 

I read a lot of criticisms from people who were disappointed with this trunk's design/print, but I really quite like it. I think it has just the right amount of cute and class. It does look similar to the 2013 premium trunk carry (believe me, I know), but how does that make it terrible? I know a lot of people who were so interested in getting my 2013 trunk that they "would give up a kidney" which is an obvious exaggeration, but making my point. Offering a similar trunk with the improvement of the super cute embossed ribbon rose print gave people who missed out in 2013 the opportunity to own a pink trunk! (Last year they didn't even offer a pink trunk that was available online so it's not that repetitive imo.) I hope to do another trunk comparison post (similar to last year's) so I'm not going to go in depth about the trunk design in this post. Instead, I'm going to focus on the contents!

Cropped double-breasted coat -

Based on the weight of my trunk, I thought I would be receiving the full length coat I saw in a lot of early reveals. But I was wrong! I was worried that this would just be outrageously wide on me, but it's not that bad I think (although not my preferred fit). It's also not super heavy (especially compared to a knit) so it doesn't seem so foreboding to put on lol.

Wide stripe fold down collar knit OP -

This is probably what contributed to the weight of my trunk since it wasn't a full length coat that did it lol. I do love a good sweaterdress despite them being quite unreasonable here. This one is definitely not something I can ever wear out in Hawaii without drowning in sweat, but it's quite sweet with the neutral colors (sorry the pictures came out a little overexposed) and the ribbon detailing. If you want to keep warm and look stylish and don't want to worry about your midsection being outlined too much, I think a sweaterdress with a boot is such a nice look.

can also be worn as a top!

Furry knit top -

This is definitely a winter item lol. It's made of thick material and kept me VERY warm while I tried it on. I looked at it and I was a little scared because it was already so hot in my house lol. I think now that I'm looking at how I styled this, I regret not layering it over a collared top or adding some sort of detail to the top half somehow. I feel like it needs to be broken up a little bit. This item was definitely a challenge more me, ngl. [coordinate example]

Printed fitted knit skirt -

This was a pretty common type of item in the web-limited fukus from what I can tell but in different prints. Fits about as well as I could also for. There's a few deep creases from it being folded for so long that I will have to let relax, but other than that, I quite like it. The knit material is not ideal for Hawaii, but I can probably wear a lightweight top and cardigan with it and it wouldn't be too bad. I like the color and the print - something nice and neutral without being boring. 

with the cropped coat -

I think this is the only coordinate I could create with the items in this fukubukuro. I saw some reveals where people could have two. This isn't even a full coordinate imo because there's no top to wear with it lol. But that's okay. I thought this combo was very reasonable and makes for a decent spring look despite the items being a bit outdated.

Lightweight "denim" jacket -

This is the one clothing item that's actually acceptable for Hawaii weather lol. It just looks like a denim material rather than being actual denim so it's really thin and lightweight - a perfect casual cover up. And it fits pretty well! Sleeves are a good length and it's actually hugging my natural waist a little when zipped.

Floral make-up case -

I don't wear much make up. All that I need can really fit in my fist tbh, so I don't have much need for this since it has space for make up brushes (I don't even own any) or anything like that. That being said, it would be a great size and storage option if I did have those things lol. I suppose this is not bad for a miscellaneous item.

I think the good thing about the items in this fukubukuro I received is that a number of these items could fit a wide range of sizes - especially the knits and the outerwear. The skirt might have a slightly narrower audience but since it's entirely knit, it can actually stretch a fair amount so that's less limiting than many other bottoms. I also like that I received a fairly even color palate. The "denim" jacket sticks out a bit but that color can really match with most things imo and is great for toning down an outfit for a more casual event. I really enjoyed trying on items that I never would have thought to purchase from past seasons.

  Unboxing and coordinates video -

 

 

   Shipping and customs notes (including for future reference but it's a pretty dry read so feel free to skip) -
There was a lot of hubbub this year because of the message/status customers were getting for their fuku from Sagawa (tracking between TKL and Tenso) that basically translated into something like "contact us by email for more info", but it didn't seem to be indicative of anything wrong. Customers were just panicking because Tenso wasn't processing at their usual pace because they were taking a holiday break (as announced on their home page) which is understandable as New Year's in a big holiday in Japan.
TKL shipped my fuku on 12/29. Tenso processed it on 1/5, and it was sent to the Tokyo post office on 1/6.  I chose to ship with SAL because my past few orders via SAL arrived within 8-9 days. This time, it took around 19 days to be delivered to my house. It didn't leave Japan until 1/13. It arrived in Hawaii the same day, 1/13, (because of the time difference) and was sent to customs where it enjoyed a comfy stay. On 1/22, I received a notice from customs (dated 1/16) saying I needed to provide an invoice (in English) to show proof of value.

I obviously didn't have the invoice, especially in English, because it should have been in the package (Tenso usually includes it), but I called customs on 1/23 (they were closed by the time I got the letter on 1/22) and asked if I could print out my "receipt"(which I took from my order history from my My Page at TKL) and hand write a short translation from Japanese to English. They said it would be fine.

After I faxed it, I talked to the customs investigator who told me that since 27000yen was the amount I paid, that was okay to declare just the price of the fukubukuro (27000yen) (despite all the items inside having the retail price tags attached which equaled a lot more than the price of the fuku obviously). I take this as confirmation of my assumption that declaring what's on the invoice is generally okay. She told me that she might still have to charge me duty fees, but she didn't forsee any other problems with the value of the item(s) that should delay it any longer, and my package should continue on its way with USPS when she was done assessing it. According to the tracking, it left customs that same afternoon. It was delivered to my house on 1/24 and luckily no duty fees! First time ever for a trunk fuku lol. Thank goodness.
It only took forever to arrive with this extraordinary delay. I had a smaller package that shipped with SAL after this one that arrived at my house over a week sooner :| I was not as lazy at writing this post as it seems lol, I promise.

I know a lot of customers had complaints about Liz Lisa's fukubukuro offerings for 2015. I don't want to get into addressing them all (frankly it would just be a waste of time and I'd just end up irritating myself by thinking about it too much), but I think I just want to say that I don't understand why people were thought that their assumptions would be or should be fact. Just because something has happened in past years doesn't mean any company is obligated to continue doing the same things over and over again. I don't know what made Liz Lisa make what seems to be quite a big change from 2013 and 2014 to 2015 - price, content items, type of bag, design of bags, number of items per, quality of content, etc were all different - but I feel like fukubukuro are ALWAYS a gamble and never a guarantee. If you agree to pay for your item by completing the check out process, you shouldn't be a brat and refuse to pay for it upon delivery just because you assumed wrong about what would be included when nothing was ever promised. Yes, I do understand being disappointed - I'm not saying you're not allowed to feel any sort of emotion over thinking you'd get something but receiving something else. But I mean, I always had the non-unrealistic idea of receiving outlet or "unsellable" items in any fukubukuro in the back of my mind since that's primarily what fukubukuro are/were meant to be when they were first created. That may not have been what Liz Lisa has done over however-many-super-impressive-years you were a customer, but that doesn't mean change cannot happen and I'm sure that's abundantly clear now if it wasn't before.

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.