Catch Up Post: The Minori Tea Party 🍰

Hey everyone!

Seems like such a long time since I updated here! I ended up getting ill for an entire month (I'm only just getting over the last of a dry cough!) which threw all of my creative pursuits out of the window. I managed a couple of bloomer commissions during October (with difficulty. The fatigue was real, and working for an hour required a day's recovery from it) but otherwise, most things got neglected. It sucked wanting to see people, socialise, and experience my favourite season, but not being able to. Still, being laid up in bed with too much light sensitivity to check social media gave me a lot of time to think, which did me a world of good after spending so much of the year feeling like I was going at 100mph. It sounds strange, but I feel quite refreshed after that bout of illness, and ready to take on what's left of this year.

I thought I'd do a couple of catch up posts talking about a few things that I have been up to this season so far, before I got ill, and after. 

So, prior to falling ill...

Not too long after my last post was the Minori Tea Party at the start of October. I wasn't feeling amazingly that day, and the weather was grey and drizzly. Feeling a little fatigued, I headed to the Grange White Hall Hotel, for afternoon tea. 

It's just on the other side of Russel Square, which was beginning to look autumnal.

The food was a lot better than I expected. I thought it wouldn't be up to much due to the fact it would be served buffet style, but it was actually a very large spread, and everyone was able to have seconds and thirds etc, if they felt so inclined. 

I particularly enjoyed the sandwiches, and ended up having seconds! There were some good vegetarian options, too, which tasted great!

I'll let you in on something-- I'm very apathetic when it comes to meeting "celebrities" or "famous" people. I've yet to feel truly starstruck, or excited to meet someone in the same way I know other people can be. I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing; I think it's important to remain grounded about the fact that no matter how well-known someone is, they're still just another person like you at the end of the day! I've met Minori once before at Enchanted in 2014, and she's pretty chill-- you never get the sense that she sees herself as being above anyone else, and I couldn't help thinking she just wished she shared a language with us so she could hang out like any other attendee and relax with people! I think it would be cool to meet some of these Japanese guests we get at these J-fashion events in a different, less stuffy setting, as like I said before... I don't really get the whole "meet and greet" thing.

This lighting does me absolutely no favours, but we endure. I felt like a giant compared to her! Minori's look was very intricate as ever, and I was amazed by how big her false eyelashes were!

The hotel had a small astro-turfed courtyard where we took a group photo, and later on, I was able to sneak off with Reina and Charlie for our own outfit photos in natural lighting. On the way, there was a surreal moment where I was accosted by a few people telling me that I should make bloomers with pockets. Well, I'll definitely think about it!

I went for something a little different than usual, with my Meta Vintage Cameo jumperskirt. I don't wear it too much as I'm not classically inclined, really, and see it as more of a normie piece. But it was nice to have a change, even if I did miss the more cutesy themes of my usual pieces!

We managed to get a group picture once back indoors. The lighting in the room wasn't great, but this still turned out pretty cute! Shame I didn't match the purple theme going on here! Their outfits were so lovely!

After our little photoshoot, it was more or less time for the raffle. I didn't win anything in the end, but that was to be expected. I've never been known for having much luck where these things are concerned! Some of the prizes were really decent, and I hadn't expected there to be so many.

Over the course of the day, we'd all been writing messages and adding stickers to a book to give to Minori as a gift. She had an interpreter with her, but it must be difficult to be in an unfamiliar environment, surrounded by people you don't share a language with. She coped with this with so much grace, and overall seemed very good-natured.

The event started to wrap up as daylight began to fade outside, and I headed off with Reina and Charlie to Covent Garden for a mooch around. On our way, we found ourselves surrounded by people dressed as zombies, fake blood and latex injuries included. I wouldn't have minded, were it not for the fact it all seemed in very poor taste given the fact there had been a terror attack that very same day, plus the fact they kept growling as they walked past us, or breathing creepily at us. By all means, dress up how you want, do whatever it is you want to get your kicks, but don't involve people who haven't consented to your nonsense. It was the final straw for me when one of the zombies deliberately staggered close to me-- and ended up smearing fake blood on my white bag despite my best efforts to step out of the way. Thankfully, this wiped off without too much hassle, but I couldn't help feeling pissed off about the complete lack of  respect for other people displayed by these zombie prats.

It was with some relief we finally made it to Art Box, and I couldn't help feeling immediately better once surrounded by all the kawaii stationery and lifestyle accessories! After a trip into a very crowded Forbidden Planet, we finally decided to head home. 

Overall, the tea party felt very stuffy and low energy compared with DMC, where the entire day had felt like a chilled out party or something. I don't suppose it helped that I was feeling a bit ill, and the heat of the room wasn't helping matters! There was also an atmosphere of "post-Tea Party Club" uncertainty lingering in the air, with this being the first London event since DMC. Still, it was lovely to hang out with friends, the food was great (I actually wish I'd taken some home with me!), and Raven organised everything so well that the event actually wrapped up a little early! She did an excellent job!

"Let's get a group selfie!" *Instax develops to reveal a picture that mainly consists of my face*

How do you guys feel about "celebrities" or "meet and greets"? Have you ever been harassed in the street in the name of other people's fun? Been to any tea parties lately? Been in poor health? Let's catch up! I'd love to hear about it all in the comments!

Thank you so much for reading. See you next time! ❤