Steps
Products used:
Face: ● Manic Panic Dreamtone Foundation ● Maybelline Dream BB Pure ● Covergirl Concealer in Fair ● Maybelline Fit Me Pressed Powder in 110 Porcelain ● Mary Kay Translucent Loose Powder ● City Color Contour Effects + Highlight ● City Color Collection Matte Setting Spray Eyes: ● Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion ● MAC Carbon Eyeshadow ● Mary Kay At Play Baked Eye Trio in Tuxedo Twist ● Urban Decay Electric Palette in Jilted (above brow) and Fringe (outer eyeshadow) ● Mary Kay Brown Eyeshadow (for under eye bag) ● Maybelline Master Duo Liquid Eyeliner ● Eyelashes are from Daiso (Forgot the exact brand! Sorry!) Lips: ● Kiko Milano Black Gel Eyeliner topped with Maybelline Pitch Black Lipstick Prescription Halloween Lenses are from PinkyLens! -Kaz
I have recently been trying to avoid putting makeup on my eyelid since I have some sort of eczema case going on. I decided to leave my eyelid bare with a little Vaseline and create a look around the area instead! Products used: 💀Face: Manic Panic Dreamtone Foundation Maybelline Dream BB Pure Foundation in 120 Covergirl Concealer in Fair Maybelline Fit Me Pressed Powder in 110 Mary Kay Translucent Loose Powder City Color Contour Effects Mary Kay Mineral Cheek Color in Strawberry Cream 💀Eyes: MAC Carbon Eyeshadow (Brows) Kiko Milano Black Gel Eyeliner topped with Maybelline Master Duo Black Liquid Eyeliner Urban Decay Slowburn Eyeshadow from the Electric Palette Urban Decay Revolt Eyeshadow from the Electric Palette (Inner corner highlight) 💀Eyelashes: Nature is Lovely Eye Lash topped by Yue er Gong zhu Eyelashes ( 2 pairs total) 💀Lips: Maybelline 845 Pitch Black   Short lipstick review:
I thought this Maybelline black lipstick would be so much better than bargain brand / Halloween makeup, but it is HORRIBLE. Not worth the $7.99. It doesn't apply evenly or even better than 99 cent store lipsticks; It gets on your teeth and the color fades very easily. You're better off buying Halloween store black lipstick! -Kaz
 Products used:
•Face: Manic Panic Dreamtone Foundation •Eyebrows: Carbon by MAC •Eyes: -Bargain store black kohl eyeliner (Regular pencil) -Mary Kay At Play Baked Eye Trio in Tuxedo Twist -Generic brown eyeshadow -Urban Decay's Electric Palette. Slowburn and Savage. -Generic Daiso eyelashes. •Lips: -MAC cremestick liner in Velvetella -Mary Kay creme lipstick in Poppy Please 💣Warning: Use Slowburn and Savage at your own risk, not meant for use around the eye area. I'm wearing a $5 cosplay wig from Ebay, and a tablecloth as a shirt which also doubles as a head dress for my Kyo cosplay. I wrapped gauze around my head before I put a wig cap on. Stay creative! 💕 -Kaz  Recently A-To-J Connections was lucky enough to interview DaDa, ex-vocalist for VELVET EDEN and current designer for plus-size Lolita brand KOMACHI2266351DarkLolita after the brand's debut at Anime Expo 2016 in Los Angeles, CA! The interview covers his thoughts on the brand itself, the transition from musician to fashion designer, and the future. Be sure to check it out!
DaDa is best known as the vocalist of the Darkwave/Visual Kei band VELVET EDEN from 1998-2002 and again from 2010-2016. DaDa is also the designer of the debut line of KOMACHI2266351DarkLolita which is a brand that focuses on bringing Lolita fashion to plus-size people. The debut line features Lolita-inspired tights with a heavy Gothic aesthetic. The brand debuted in the summer of 2016 and looks forward to expanding its line in the future. A-To-J: Thank you for the interview, can you please introduce yourself? A-To-J: インタビューの機会をいただき、ありがとうございます。自己紹介をお願い致します。 DaDa: KOMACHI2266531Dark LolitaのデザイナーのDaDaです。よろしくお願いします。 DaDa: Nice to meet you. I’m DaDA the designer for KOMACHI2266531Dark Lolita. A-To-J: Can you tell us about your transition from visual kei artist to fashion designer? A-To-J: ヴィジュアル系アーティストからファッションデザイナーに転身されたのはどうしてですか。 DaDa: バンド活動は20年以上続けないと、以前から決めていました。ちょうどその時、ファッションデザイナーをやらないかと打診されました。 DaDa: I decided long ago that I wouldn’t continue being in a band for more than 20 years. It just so happens at that time I was asked if I wanted to try being a fashion designer. A-To-J: Have you encountered any challenges while making this change? A-To-J: ファッションデザイナーに転身して何か困ったことがありましたか。 DaDa: 何もありません。新鮮な気持ちでデザインに集中できています。 DaDa: None at all. I can focus on designing with a fresh feeling. A-To-J: You introduced your new brand KOMACHI2266531DarkLolita to the US at Anime Expo, what is the concept behind this brand? A-To-J: DaDaさんの新ブランドKOMACHI2266531DarkLolitaがアニメエキスポでデビューしました。ブランドのコンセプトを教えてください。 DaDa: これまでの日本のゴシックロリータファッションにダークなロックテイストを盛り込み、さらに進化させたファッションを展開していきます。. DaDa: We’re incorporating a dark rock taste into the conventional Gothic Lolita fashion in Japan and will furthermore develop it into an evolving fashion. A-To-J: The brand has an interesting name, is there any particular meaning behind it? A-To-J: 面白いブランド名ですね。何か特別な意味がありますか。 DaDa: KOMACHIは日本語で「美人」の意味です。2266531という数字に意味はありません。 DarkLolitaは今までのロリータファッションとは違うものを作っていきたいという考えです。 DaDa: In Japanese KOMACHI means “Beautiful woman”. The numbers 2266531 has no meaning. DarkLolita symbolizes what we hope to make, something different from all the lolita we’ve seen to date. As a fan of Japanese fashion and a resident of Los Angeles, it can be hard to acquire certain styles and specific sizes. Many popular Lolita brands are targeted toward native Japanese clients and this is well reflected in their sizing charts. The largest size that they offer is, arguably, the equivalent to a US sized medium; even with this leeway it can still be tight in certain areas such as the chest, shoulders and waist. Finding a perfect fitting for a larger sized model is hard to come by. Even as a designer, with each piece costing so much, it is anxiety inducing to modify the size ourselves.  Thankfully, these experiences can now be avoided. In 2015 KOMACHI2266531DarkLolita was launched. KOMACHI2266531DarkLolita features and specializes in Lolita inspired fashion for plus-sized women in Japan as well as the West. Reasoning for their particular sizing charts was because “seeing the lack of options for plus-size women when it comes to Japanese niche fashion in particular, [they] decided it was time for a change” and to “allow plus-size women to express themselves through their clothing and portray their personality without being limited by size.”  The designer for KOMACHI2266531DarkLolita’s debut line is DaDa, VELVET EDEN’s formal vocalist. With his history in dark wave visual kei, the inspiration for the “dark Lolita-inspired dresses with a heavy gothic aesthetic” could be seen. What is also great about this brand is that everything is designed and manufactured in Japan. This company is under the sunkrad company label, which is owned and managed by Dynamite Tommy, the godfather of visual key.
Their amazing designs are eye-catching and gorgeous. With their intricate prints, cut and textile, each piece is definitely a statement that can be worn for any event or time of day, casual or formal. Be sure to check out this amazing company and their designs. This summer will be KOMACHI2266531DarkLolita’s debut as a “new dark Lolita-inspired brand.” Everyone will be able to witness first-hand their work. KOMACHI2266531DarkLolita will debut as a featured fashion line at Anime Expo 2016’s fashion show.
Let’s face it, not all of us can be as thin as those doll-like models, and unfortunately many fashion styles are just too niche for the sizes to cater to everyone. KOMACHI2266531DarkLolita gives an opportunity for all women to explore and “to look on the outside the way they’ve always dreamed.” - Eunice  We recently stopped by The Well in Downtown LA for a special pop-up shop event featuring Taro Hanabusa of mold jewelry brand fangophilia and Takeru, vocalist of SuG and designer of million dollar orchestrA. We were lucky enough to interview Taro about his brand and some of the history behind it and what he hopes to accomplish in the future! fangophilia is a custom mold brand that was created by Taro Hanabusa in 2012. It features mainly teeth and finger pieces created in silver, but more elaborate pieces can be made to the customer's specifications. Each piece is created using a custom mold process that ensures that each is unique to its owner and is hand-crafted by Taro himself. His brand has proven to be quite popular overseas with pop-ups in many countries like Singapore, Thailand, and the US and can be spotted on celebrities such as G-Dragon, CL, as well as many others. A-To-J: Hi! Thank you for this interview! Let's jump right into this. We understand that you were a dentist before? Taro: Yes, I am a dentist. A-To-J: How did you go from being a dentist to designing custom mold jewelry? Taro: When I was working as a dentist I usually made molds of patient's teeth. So, my jewelry design is very similar to my dentistry work, except that I'm making custom body jewelry. I started my brand about four years ago with this idea in mind. A-To-J: So you're still a practicing dentist? Taro: Yes, but now I don't have enough time to do dentistry work. So now I only work one or two days a week as a dentist. The other days I make jewelry. A-To-J: What is the inspiration behind the name “fangophilia” Taro: About four years ago I started my brand. At that time I was making on teeth jewelry pieces and I was often making fangs. So the brand name came from that.
A-To-J: Do you mind explaining the vision and concept design behind “fangophilia”? Taro: I've liked body modification for a long time, like piercings and tattoos. I think my jewelry design is a kind of body modification, especially things like the pointed ear and teeth pieces. So my brand concept is kind is sort of like body modification. A-To-J: I heard a quote from you that stated the way you make your silver pieces is not currently being done by any other designer. Can you explain to us a little bit about what that method entails and how you physically create your products? Taro: Most of my jewelry is custom made by making molds of the customer's body parts. So for example if the customer wants custom teeth, I'll make a custom plaster model of the customer's teeth and use that to make the piece. So my jewelry is individually made by hand each time. Last time I came to the US I came to LA and New York and stayed about one month. During that time I got about eighty orders and had to make and take back so many plaster models! A-To-J: About how long does it take to make each piece? Taro: It depends on the size and design. To make the seventy or eighty pieces that I just mentioned I needed more than one month to make that amount. So when I'm in Tokyo I'm making jewelry every day. It's so hard! (Laughs) A-To-J: You make a lot of teeth pieces, which are relatively small, but do you also make pieces that are larger and take more time to make? Taro: Yes I do. Sometimes the customer orders teeth, finger, or ear jewelry, but other times they order face masks or big pieces like the entire neck or clavicle area. My biggest order was a whole hand. All silver! It was a really big order! (Laughs)
A-To-J: What’s the biggest challenge you face in creating these types custom mold jewelry pieces? Taro: It's hard to make the big pieces since they take more planning and time. I plan to make a lot more full face masks and other big pieces again though in the future. A-To-J: What is the greatest compliment you’ve received on your pieces? Taro: My jewelry is kind of a "strange" style of jewelry. Many famous artists are interested in my jewelry though, like Lady Gaga, Marilyn Manson and KPop stars like CL and G-Dragon and others. Them liking my work is the biggest compliment I get. A-To-J: I understand that “fangophilia” was launched in 2012 - what are the main differences between it’s inception and today? Taro: When I started my brand no one knew it and my style is very different from "normal" jewelry, so for about one year it was not doing so good. After that year though my brand became famous little by little. Now I go to many foreign countries to take orders. I'm going to Europe in the Fall and New York in November. So the difference is that now I go to many foreign countries to get orders made. It'll be my first time in Europe too this fall, so I'm very excited. A-To-J: Where do you see the brand in ten years? Taro: I'm not really sure, but I know that I want to make bigger and bigger pieces. Like a whole body piece or something like that! A-To-J: Is there a reason you work mainly in silver? Taro: My pieces are mainly in silver, but sometimes customers order pieces in gold, but gold is so expensive. A-To-J: Is there any other brand or person who you would like to do a collaboration with in the future? Taro: This time I did a collaboration with Takeru (of SuG) to make this finger ring. Besides that I have some silver jewelry designer friends and I sometimes collaborate with them.
A-To-J: I saw an article that Korean Pop singer, CL, and the American artist, Nicki Minaj, are fans of your work. Have you made any other interesting connections while traveling with your brand? Taro: I met Marilyn Mason about five or six times and now I think I'm almost friends with him. When I saw him last fall I got a tattoo from him! (Laughs) A-To-J: I heard that you were just in New York for a pop-up shop as well, how did that go? Taro: Yes I did a pop-up shop in New York last month. It was a very good turnout. A-To-J: Did you learn anything from that experience? Taro: Well, my English is not so good, but most of my customers are foreigners so now I need to learn more English! (Laughs) A-To-J: Did you experience any culture shock with your American customers as compared to your native Japanese clients? Taro: I don't really have Japanese customers...so I think 95% of my customers are foreign people. Only 5% of my customers are Japanese. So there isn't that much to compare them too! A-To-J: What are you looking forward to most with this event in Los Angeles? Taro: Now I have many friends in Los Angeles, so for me Los Angeles is very fun! (Laughs) A-To-J: Can you tell us about the special collaboration piece you brought to this event that was designed with Takeru of SuG and million dollar orchestrA? Taro: At first Takeru called me about the collaboration and after this he drew the design out and sent it to me. I made the shape of it after that based on his original design.
A-To-J: Who is the model for the finger?
Taro: This is actually a standard size and not based on either me or Takeru! (Laughs) A-To-J: To follow up with that, is there a piece or pieces that are your favorite from today’s showcase? Why? Taro: My favorite pieces are always the biggest ones. The face mask and whole hand are my favorites from these. Most customers don't order big pieces though. Most of them want teeth, ear, or fingers because they're easy to wear. No one really walks around wearing the face pieces, these are mainly show pieces for photos and such. I want to make more pieces like that though in the future. A-To-J: If there is one thing that you would like your American fans to walk away with understanding about “fangophilia” today, what would that be? Taro: If the people are interested in my jewelry I want them to come to my events and feel free to have fun! (Laughs) A-To-J: What have you learned with your international showcase that you started in March of this year, going to Singapore, New York, and finally Los Angeles? Taro: LA I think is the best place for me because I have so many customers in Los Angeles. I also have many customers in Thailand and Singapore, but I have never been to Europe. I think I have many customers in Europe, like in the UK and Paris, so I'm very excited to go to Europe! A-To-J: I understand that most of your business comes from abroad, what’s your method for successfully reaching these international audiences? Taro: For me social networking is very important. For me Instagram is the best tool to connect with my foreign fans because anyone can see it. It's very important to me. A-To-J: What are the future plans or projects that you have in mind for “fangophilia”? Taro: Now this year I will go to many countries to take orders, but now that I have so many orders every month I don't have times to make new pieces, like samples. So when I have more time I want to make more samples that are big pieces! (Laughs) A-To-J: Do you have any special messages for your American fans? Taro: Do you really think I have fans? A-To-J: Yes! Of course you do! Taro: Message...I come to LA often, but I want to go to other cities besides LA. So if there is someone who wants to order big pieces I can go to other cities, so if there are people who want to order please contact me! A-To-J: Thank you very much for your time! To learn more about fangophilia please visit: Website: http://www.fangophilia.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fangophilia Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fangophilia/ The above interview was conducted by Manuel Figueroa with on-site and post translation by Christina Aoun. All photos by Manuel Figueroa.  Recently A-To-J Connections was lucky enough to interview Takeru, vocalist for visual kei band SuG and designer for the brand million dollar orchestrA. This interview took place in Los Angeles during his pop-up event that brought together both his brand and the unique mold jewelry pieces created by Taro Hanabusa and his brand fangophilia. This event allowed fans to pre-order pieces from both brands and to meet Takeru himself. An edited video of the interview can be found at the conclusion of this article. Takeru is the vocalist for the band SuG who were prominent in both the visual kei and oshare kei scenes in the mid 2000s. Over the course of their ten year career they have released five albums and eighteen singles. They recently released their third mini album "VIRGIN" in March and will release their nineteenth single "SICK'S" later this year. million dollar orchestrA is a "street gothic style" brand created and designed by Takeru. The designs are closely linked to the music of SuG with the current line being named "VIRGIN" after their most recent release. A-To-J: How did you come up with the name “million dollar orchestrA”? Takeru: It's a funny reason actually. I wanted to start my fashion brand six years ago and my staff said to me "You need to name your brand tomorrow". So I went home and I thought "What's the name? What's the name?" Well, when I was younger I was in band, and the conductor was the "orchestra leader". For me, both as an artist and a designer, I saw myself as that kind of leader so that's how the name came about. Also, I want to make a million dollars! (Laughs) A-To-J: What is the inspiration behind your designs for million dollar orchestrA? Takeru: SuG's music inspires the designs. We have a shirt that has a "SICK'S" design on it and there is a SuG song that is also titled "SICK'S". Every time I do a song with SuG I make a design to go with it. Our new collection is "VIRGIN", named after our new mini album.
A-To-J: In particular, what is the concept behind your newest line, “VIRGIN”? It has a great cool punk feel to it. Takeru: I love the concept of the word "virgin". It's a hard concept to explain. Do you know "shoki shoudou" (first impulsive action)? It's sort of like the spirit of when I was a junior high student, you know that sort of "teen spirit". "VIRGIN" as a line is meant to capture that same idea of teenage spirit. For the songs, in the mini album it's like I'm singing them for the first time. A-To-J: You mentioned that “VIRGIN” is also the name of the most recent SuG album, but is there any other reason for this name? Takeru: One of the reasons I named both the album and fashion line "VIRGIN" is because of "Virgin Suicides". It's a famous movie that Sophia Copolla directed. It inspired me along with the idea of "teen spirit". "Virgin" is also my favorite word. A-To-J: Among all of the fashion pieces you’ve designed, do you have a favorite? Takeru: All of them are my favorites, but this leather jacket is the best. My favorite style is "rock" style. Rider jackets with boots or rock-style t-shirts. Inside this jacket, it is all original patchwork. I cut out the paper by hand and made it all by myself. I made other designs in this line with this patchwork style. Whenever you see patchwork I have done it all myself. A-To-J: Is it hard to do all that by hand? Takeru: It takes me about one hour. One hour while listening to rock music! (Laughs)
A-To-J: You’ve been singing with SuG for over 10 years now and in bands before SuG - did you always want to be a fashion designer or did it come up as an interest later in life? Takeru: At first I wanted to wear original clothes for SuG in our releases. Back then that was the only reason. I didn't want to be a designer, I just wanted to wear original clothes. A-To-J: Also, SuG as a band transitioned in recent years from the look and style they had at debut. What brought about this change? Takeru: I'm not really sure why.... Every time we do something new, we change. It's emotion; it's my heart saying to me to do what I want to do. A-To-J: Does your music with SuG ever influence your fashion designs? Takeru: Yes, all the time. A-To-J: Do the designs of million dollar orchestrA ever influence SuG's music? Takeru: Kind of. Sometimes I come up with a design for million dollar orchestrA and then I come up with a song afterwards. Sometimes. A-To-J: What are the difficulties you find trying to balance your both your career as a musician and as a fashion designer? Takeru: It is the same I think. Music, design, writing lyrics, all these things, they're all creation. Creating these things is my whole life. I can take one creation and use it to help another. My mind and body are like a factory, for me everything is creation. A-To-J: You're also coming out in a movie called "Shoujo Tsubaki" Takeru: You know! (Laughs) A-To-J: It's based on a popular horror manga. What are your thoughts about this project? Takeru: I was really surprised by the offer. My favorite character from the manga is Kanabun and that's the role they offered me. When they told me I was like: "Eh? Kanabun?!" A-To-J: So you were a fan of it before? Takeru: Yes I was! Unfortunately there are no plans to bring it to the USA. I'm really sad about that. A-To-J: Is this your first time working with fashion in the United States? Takeru: Yeah, it is my first time. I hope to work here more in the future. I traveled to New York before for three weeks. It's my favorite place, New York, but I wanted to see other parts of the US. Now that I'm in L.A. it's like my little dream came true. (Laughs) A-To-J: What sort of reaction do you anticipate for your clothing line here in the US? Takeru: From the few people I've met here so far I don't know... I hope it will be accepted though! A-To-J: Can you tell us about some of the pieces you chose for this pop-up event? Takeru: This patchwork shirt is a favorite of mine. I made much of this piece myself. My style of music is in it. There's a lot of artists here.
A-To-J: Can you tell us about your outfit today? Takeru: The chief point of my outfit today is actually this jacket I mentioned earlier. It's my first time making a rider jacket. The rider jacket is the most important clothes for me since it represents my fashion brand. A-To-J: Are you a fan of any US fashion brands? Takeru: America brands? One of my favorite brands is Supreme. Do you know of it? A-To-J: No, I hadn't actually heard of it before. [Note: We had misheard his answer.] Takeru: Really?! It's a hip-hop style; street culture. Supreme is actually very famous in Tokyo! A-To-J: What are some of your favorite Japanese fashion brands besides your own? Takeru: Japanese brands? Junya Watanabe and UNDERCOVER. UNDERCOVER is my favorite Japanese brand. A-To-J: We noticed on your Instagram you posted a photo of a "VIRGIN" metal ring that was made in collaboration with fangophilia. Do you mind explaining what the thought was behind the design? Takeru: Yes. When we first talked about the collaboration I drew the design out by pencil. It's almost the exact design that I drew that day.
A-To-J: So million dollar orchestrA was launched in 2010, correct? Takeru: Correct! A-To-J: What are the biggest differences between the fashion line when it started over 6 years ago as compared to today? Takeru: High level up! (Laughs) Now my fashion concept is "street gothic style"; the street style and the gothic style and look mixed together. It's an original concept I think. A-To-J: Is there anything you want to do while you're in the U.S.? Takeru: I want to shoot a gun! (Laughs) Yeah, I think it'll be a good experience for me. Maybe it'll be an inspiration for the next album! A-To-J: What are some of your future plans for Million $ Orchestra? Takeru; I try to make all the items available to everyone in the world. Now my fans can buy million dollar orchestrA items via Paypal, but my website is only in Japanese. So I'm trying to translate the website into English and other languages. Hopefully sometime in the future, they can buy it easier than now. A-To-J: What are some of the future plans for SuG? Takeru: We are trying to make a world tour. It's what we hope for. Also, in the summer we're going to be doing our first oneman show in Mexico. We're going to try to do one in the USA too. A-To-J: Do you have a special message for your American fans? Takeru: Thank you for supporting us in SuG! We will try to do a USA tour soon! It's something we really want to do! So if you're support is big then I think we'll be able to make it! Thank you! We at A-To-J Connections thank Takeru for his time and encourage everyone to check out both million dollar orchestrA and SuG! Links will be provided below. For More Information: million dollar orchestrA: http://million-d-orchestra.com/ SuG: https://sug-web.jp/top.asp The above interview was conducted by Manuel Figueroa with translation and assistance by Christina Aoun. All photography by Manuel Figueroa. Interview with Takeru Vocalist of SuG & Designer of million dollar orchestrA
Make-Up Used
•Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion •MAC Coppering eyeshadow •MAC Carbon eyeshadow (used for eyebrows as well) •Covergirl Invisible Concealer (To clean the cut crease and eyebrows) •Kiko Milano Black Gel Eyeliner •Urban Decay Revolt eyeshadow (as an inner corner highlight) •Maybelline Pumped Up Colossal mascara •Top lashes are from Daiso •Bottom lashes are Ever Lash #EL43 (I cut the ends and divided them into three seperate single lashes) •Face jewels are Cina Nail Creations Nautical Pearls -Kaz  PC: Manuel Figueroa  PC: JRockinLA Takeru, lead singer of the visual kei band SuG and designer of million dollar orchestrA, and Taro Hanbusa, designer of custom jewelry brand fangophilia, teamed up for a pop-up shop event in downtown Los Angeles. million dollar orchestrA is a “street gothic” Japanese fashion brand started in 2010 and fangophilia is a custom-made silver jewelry brand with a “body modification” concept - a perfect pairing for the pop-up shop. The event was held across two days, Saturday May14th and Monday May 16th from 12:00 PM until 8:00 PM at The Well in Los Angeles, California. An interesting choice in venue, The Well is home to a boutique and hair salon during the weekdays and the back becomes a party area on the weekends. Upon entering The Well, attendees of the event had to walk past the boutique to the back of the room to find the fangophilia and million dollar orchestrA pieces. A flyer notifying fans of the minimum purchase requirements for fan activities was the first sign that this area was for the pop-up shop. A minimum purchase of $200 was necessary in order to get a picture with Takeru, though any purchase would get one an autograph, and time to speak with him. There were two racks full of clothes from million dollar orchestrA’s eigth and newest line, “VIRGIN”. The pieces were all in shades of black, grey, white, and pink and they were mostly in the form of long flowing shirts and hoodies. Of the more stand-out items was a stylish black leather jacket that was seen being worn by mstr_of_disguise on Takeru’s Instagram. For those that are fans of Takeru’s band SuG, you will notice that “VIRGIN” is also the name of SuG’s most recent mini album that dropped on March 9th of this year. The influence of Takeru’s musical profession can be seen further in the pieces themselves, with one shirt in particular that had the word “SICK’S” (a song off their “VIRGIN” album) patched across the entire piece.  PC: JRockinLA Directly across from these hangers was a bench divider that was the backside of the hair salon but also served the purpose of displaying both the professional shots of each clothing item and the physical “VIRGIN” line jewelry pieces. There was a set of dangling half-heart earrings with the letter “fa” etched on one and “te” on the other so that when the earrings are placed next to each out they complete a heart with the word “fate”. Silver necklaces and bracelets were among the other custom designed jewelry with a lover’s flair that Takeru had designed. The centerpiece was an event special item that was a collaboration between Takeru and Taro - a whole finger ring with the word “VIRGIN” inscribed across the middle. Continuing down the divider, Taro Hanabusa’s fangophilia products could be found at the far end. Sporting classic fangs, teeth grills, and nail rings, the collection also had more uncommon face pieces and even a full metal hand. Fangophilia’s founder, Taro Hanabusa, is originally a dentist from Japan who began making fangs (hence the name fangophilia) and finding that he had a talent and passion for it. Now his brand has been worn by recognizable names such as Nicki Minaj, Lady GaGa, CL (Korean band 2NE1) and GDragon (Korean band Big Bang). He admits that almost 95% of his customers are from overseas which is why his Instagram is vital for reaching his international client base (@fangophilia). And if all of this was not enough, attendees of the event might have been treated to the sight of Taro lightheartedly playing catch with the hair salon’s Yorkshire terrier – a physical representation of the excitement and memorable experience that the fans attending had gained that day. -Christina (JRockinLA)  PC: JRockinLA For More About The Brands:
million dollar orchestrA: http://million-d-orchestra.com/ fangophilia: http://fangophilia.com/  A few weeks ago, I received the amazing and exciting opportunity to guide around Japanese fashion idol Shoushi Ogawa throughout the great city of Los Angeles! So he had arrived at noon on a cloudy March 12th at the greatly confusing LAX airport. He was kindly picked up by our voluntary chauffeur of the week, Beari King, and our very generous photographer, John Woo. We later met at the small Little Tokyo Hotel where I was greeted downstairs by our trusty food guide Jamie Lee. I was ecstatic, nervous, but excited. My heart was racing and I was unsure of what to expect. Would he be kind and talkative? Would my crappy Japanese be enough? Every thought in my head suddenly stopped when I spotted Shoushi's lime-green glitter platforms and pale purple braids. We were quickly introduced as he was taking his bags into the small room. There was a slight language barrier but regardless we were able to comfortably talk and plan out the week. He had a large number of pages bookmark in a small California guide booklet and was adorably excited to start his busy vacation. His priority was flea markets and vintage shops as he planned to open a new online store in April. We made sure to get the job done as well as introduce him to new and exciting locations. We began our first day, a late afternoon, at our first stop in Hollywood. The look on his face made me feel as excited as he was. The very innocent and gentle vibe he gave off added to the enthusiasm we all carried. He made stops to many stores including The Sweet Shop where he picked up a few Oscar souvenirs for his mother and brother. As nervous as we were we realize that we had forgotten to eat! Our usual cravings or not, it turned out all that Shoushi wanted was big hearty American food.  After a brief stop at IHOP we made our way back to the hotel using the metro rail. The sun had set and we were growing tired. It was quite fun teaching him how to use a TAP card (used to ride Los Angeles' Metro system), the confused look on his face was adorable. As we reached Union Station, Shoushi continued to talk about how jet lag and absolutely tired he was. He was amazed at how big the city was and wanted to do the most he could fit into his short week here. I said my goodbyes to him as we exited the train. That first hug is always awkward but it was quite funny and sweet. I left John and Jamie to escort him back to the Little Tokyo Hotel and made my way home. I was incredibly sleepy but satisfied. That was only our first day. Our series of adventures continued as we introduced him to Universal Citywalk and Koreatown two days later. He had found a life-size cardboard cutout of K-pop band EXO and was adorably excited to take a picture with it. That same day, a nice young girl had recognize him and asked to take a picture. It was pretty interesting to witness. Shoushi in general and he was very lovely to talk to. The verbal culture change was amazing as well. He was very jet-lagged, but still managed to have the energy to walk around the entire city (even down to Long Beach!). A few days afterward, we exerienced our most exhausting day yet. It started with a quick trip to the post office. John and I spent hours helping him send items back to Japan. As we filled out paperwork, he would strut back and forth as if the place where a catwalk from time to time. A mini break it seemed. The stares we would get from the others waiting in line made it quite amusing. We later escorted him to a friend's house where he would stay the night. Exhausting as it was it was still worth it to me. The others escorted him around some remaining days while I was busy with school and work. My last day with him fastly approached as we hit up the Melrose Flea Market on Friday of that same week. John and I walked around Melrose Avenue while Shoushi visited some different stores around the area with a new friend. When we later met up again, we decided to grab some food at Little Tokyo Hot Pot Galaxy where Jamie had also met up with us to eat. After the short uber ride there, we sat down in the restaurant where we talked about what he wanted to do for his last day here. It was about 7 PM so we didn't have much time, but we did our best to make the most of it. He was really excited about LA Fashion Week. Although he didn't receive an invitation, he was still hoping to make it to the after party that night. After we stuffed our faces with ramen I asked, probably for the fifth time, if we could please head over to the mall (The Little Tokyo Galleria) and take some purikura. It was really all I wanted that week, but we were so busy. We quickly rushed over to the mall before it closed and took our cute photographs. The machine was dying but after a few kicks it started working just fine. I was pretty surprised to find out that purikura in Japan were only about $4 compared to the $10 here and that the templates the machines used were at least 10 years old. After a bit of fun at the Galleria, we finally called it a day and called up an uber to head to Jamie's house where we would all stay the night.  Expecting to go immediately to bed, Shoushi began getting ready for this LA Fashion Week after-party. We were pretty shocked. We didn't actually think that he was actually going. Regardless, I was excited that he was excited and was super glad he had a chance to go out one last time before he left the next morning. He left for the party at around 11 PM, all glammed up and such. I felt like a mother letting her son go out for the first time. The hours passed slowly as Jamie and I decided it would be best to wait until he was back home safe. I mean, we all know how dangerous LA parties can get right? Especially with strangers and all.Though our bodies were half-asleep, we were fully woken up by a call to open the door as Shoushi had finally made it back. It was 4 AM and we were very tired. After making sure everything went alright we finally got some shut eye.
The sun came up and morning had arrived when we quickly woke and realized it was a bit late not to rush through our goodbyes. We had about an hour to help him pack everything up and get him to a friend's house where he would then get a ride to LAX. As saddening as it was, I was relieved the week was over. I was tired from going out almost everyday, morning to night. I knew I would forever be grateful. I left a bit earlier than him since I had to catch a train home. The last few hugs were anything but awkward and it was lovely to hear him talk about how much fun he had one last time. I was happy that he got to explore this great big city and without a doubt would do it all over again if I could! -Kaz |
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