Circle lens review: I.Fairy Eclipse Gray

Hello folks~!

As you can probably tell I'm desperately trying to deduce my backlog on these reviews and I'm happy to announce that pretty soon the oldest batch of these reviews will be finally done. Phew. Don't worry though, there will still be many more reviews to come so I won't run out of content in a long time.

But let's get down to business! This review is about I.Fairy Eclipse Gray, a very beautiful gray lens that in my opinion can be worn for multiple purposes.
Photos for this review were, once again, taken by Shiro Samurai - thank you! :)

Important note: I got these lenses from someone who totally lost interest in wearing and reviewing circle lenses. These lenses had a wrong prescription for me and I think that these were close to their expiration date/already expired so I can not grade the comfort. However, I will say a few words about the comfort in general - pretty much my first impression of these. Remember: wearing lenses that are past their expiration date/broken/have the wrong prescription for you is a dangerous thing to do and it can damage your eyes for good so seriously, don't do it. I wore these lenses for half an hour and then threw them away so I had these on only for this review. Thank you.

And, as per usual, this review is non-sponsored.

The vials of the lenses.

The lenses in their vials.

Base curve: 8,6 mm
Diameter: 16,2 mm
Water content: 55 %
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

Inserting these was pretty easy despite the lens being bigger than the ones I usually wear. I recall these being very comfortable to wear despite being expired and having the wrong prescription for me; in fact I didn't even feel the lenses in my eyes! Had these been "fine" I would have likely been able to wear these for the full 8 hours. So yes, definitely considering to buy these in the future too; at least at the very moment I'm writing this summary they are still sold at Ifairycon's website. 

One lens in to show the enlargement.

Let's just casually double my eye in size I guess? :'D Like many other I.Fairy lenses these ones truly do deliver in size and the enlargement effect is very noticeable. So yes, if you need gray lenses that make your eyes look huge - with this color, for example, for a cracked doll look - these are the ones to buy in that case!
The color of these lenses is pretty dark gray and I'd say that the name of these beauties describes them pretty well. In my light-colored eyes these turn out partly black but ngl I like that. The gray parts blend nicely in with my natural eye color meanwhile the black parts of the lenses give my eyes a mysterious, deep, almost ancient look - and these actually remind me of storm clouds. So yes; these lenses truly are mesmerizing.

I also love the design; it's very unique and makes these stand out! However, I think that the pattern does look prettier in the vials than in my eyes - maybe these just blend with my eye color a bit too much which makes the light gray parts of the it almost disappear? Don't get me wrong, these still look pretty when worn too, I just wish the pattern would have stood out a little bit more.
These lenses would be perfect for multiple characters, especially for girls; the one that immediately comes to mind is Homura Akemi from Puella Magi Madoka Magica. I also think that these would look very nice in certain alt styles, for example emo or gothic lolita. Like I mentioned in the beginning, these could be easily worn for multiple purposes.

Now to the lens photos!

These pictures were taken on a rather cloudy day in June 2021. These aren't filtered in any way; they've only been re-sized.
(Note: we took pictures of quite many lenses on the same day so the light conditions are going to be the same in the next few reviews too.)

Natural roomlight.

Yellow roomlight.

Bathroom light.

Flash photo.

Facing window.

Back against the sun.

Facing the sun.

From the distance.

• The color is 9/10. A very beautiful mixture of different shades of gray plus black. I expected these to be a bit more on the light gray side but these are pretty none the less.
  
  
• The design is 9/10. A unique pattern that gives your eyes a very mesmerizing and mysterious look.
  
  
• The opacity is 8/10. This lens is pretty opaque, however in light-colored eyes the light gray parts let some of the wearer's own eye color through even though they also blend beautifully together.
  
  
• The naturalness is 2/10. I mean, if I see someone with eyes that naturally look like this I will run since they are probably possessed or something.
  
  
• The enlargement is 10/10. The effect is very noticeable.

Aaand one more done!
I just checked and I have two more reviews left of this oldest batch so stay tuned for them! 💓After them I also won't put in the clarification about the "same light conditions" since, obviously, they won't be the same anymore in the reviews following those two.

Until next time.

-Firith

Circle lens review: GEO Magic Circle Black (CM-836)

Hello everyone!

This time I will be reviewing a new circle lens color for me: black. I have worn black circle lenses for one costume almost ten years ago but back then I wasn't writing circle lens reviews yet - besides, I'm not too sure if I ever want to review a pair bought from a store that has previously lied about the life span of some lenses and probably would have went on with their lies had I not complained about misleading information... Maybe in the future, just for comparison. However, the lenses for this review were bought from a good shop (likely PinkyParadise or HoneyColor) and go under the name GEO Magic Circle Black (CM-836).
This is one of the reviews I should have published years ago but procrastinated with writing it because I didn't want to procrastinate with studying, so let's finally get to it! 

Photos for this review were taken by Shiro Samurai, thank you very much!

Important note: I got these lenses from someone who totally lost interest in wearing and reviewing circle lenses. These lenses had a wrong prescription for me and I think that these were close to their expiration date/already expired so I can not grade the comfort. However, I will say a few words about the comfort in general - pretty much my first impression of these. Remember: wearing lenses that are past their expiration date/broken/have the wrong prescription for you is a dangerous thing to do and it can damage your eyes for good so seriously, don't do it. I wore these lenses for half an hour and then threw them away so I had these on only for this review. Thank you.

Like all my previous reviews, this circle lens review is also non-sponsored.

The vials of the lenses.

The lenses in their vials.

Base curve: 8,6 mm
Diameter: 14,2 mm
Water content: ~40 %
Life span: 3 months

(NOTE: I didn't officially find the life span for these exact lenses since they're seemingly not available anymore on any websites. However, the other GEO Magic Circle Black lenses that are in stock right now (CK-105, XCK-105 and CK-108) have a three months life span so I assume these have had the same. However, if I'm wrong these have likely been yearly lenses.)

Inserting these was pretty average; not easier or harder than with most lenses I've worn. I recall a memory of these curling a bit around my finger but nothing too bad. Pretty average experience I'd say. These were also fairly comfortable to wear (despite being expired and having the wrong prescription) so I think I could've worn these for at least 4-5 hours had these been otherwise fine. 

One lens in to show the enlargement.

As you can see the enlargement game isn't too strong with these ones - the effect is there but it's not too notable. That's not that big of a surprise though considering that their diameter was pretty average, 14,2 mm. What surprised me was the color. When I saw these in vials my first thought was "You call THESE black? You've got to be kidding me!" - I mean, in their vials they look gray and VERY transparent! I was prepared for a disappointment but instead of that I got positively surprised; these lenses actually looked black in my eyes. They also made my gaze look quite intense. The gray part blends perfectly with my natural eye color (I have light-colored eyes) - I mean, even I can't really tell (in most light conditions) where the lens stops and the real color starts! The thick, black outer rim is seemingly the most opaque part of these lenses and I think it's actually it that builds the illusion of black eyes even though most of the lens appears light gray.

I loved the design. At first it seemed quite simple but when I saw its actual effect I was sold (and thus pretty sad I can't buy these anymore). I can think of a few cosplays I could wear these to - for example Yumi Ishiyama from Code Lyoko - but to me these look more like alt style lenses. For example, I could easily imagine myself wearing these to a gothic/gothic lolita look; these kind of remind me of a creepy doll to be honest.

To the lens photos! 

These pictures were taken on a rather cloudy day in June 2021. These aren't filtered in any way; they've only been re-sized.
(Note: we took pictures of quite many lenses on the same day so the light conditions are going to be the same in the next few reviews too.)

Natural roomlight.

Yellow roomlight.

Bathroom light.

Flash photo.

Facing window.

Back against the sun.

Facing the sun.

From the distance.

• The color is 8/10. They indeed do deliver what their name promises, however I feel like these still show up a bit gray-ish instead of being pitch black.
  
  
• The design is 7/10. A bit on a simple side but still give your eyes a mesmerizing effect.
  
  
• The opacity is 6/10. The outer rim is indeed very opaque but otherwise the lens is not very pigmented; it's likely designed to enhance the gaze, not totally change the eye color.
  
  
• The naturalness is 3/10. These are on a small side and black eyes do exist but I really can't imagine seeing eyes that look like this by nature.
  
  
• The enlargement is 5/10. You can see the effect but it's not exactly "in your face".

Well, that's one more off the list! Slowly but surely, at this rate the backlog is nothing but a memory in a few months. Continuing with these for a while now so if you find circle lenses and reviewing them interesting, stick around!

Until next time.

-Firith

Circle lens review: I. Fairy Tofi Gold

Hello all!

I haven't written a circle lens review in a long time since I've had so many con summaries to write but now I'm back with these! The first pair after the review hiatus is I. Fairy Tofi Gold, a big golden lens with a beautiful pattern. These are still being sold at Ifairycon's website so if you want to grab your own pair, head there.
Let's go~!

(All pics in this post are taken by Shiro Samurai, thank you very much once again!)

Important note: I got these lenses from someone who totally lost interest in wearing and reviewing circle lenses. These lenses had a wrong prescription for me and I think that these were close to their expiration date/already expired so I can not grade the comfort. However, I will say a few words about the comfort in general - pretty much my first impression of these. Remember: wearing lenses that are past their expiration date/broken/have the wrong prescription for you is a dangerous thing to do and it can damage your eyes for good so seriously, don't do it. I wore these lenses for half an hour and then threw them away so I had these on only for this review. Thank you.

And, as usual, this circle lens review is non-sponsored.

The vials of the lenses.

The lenses in their vials. Both right (on the left in the lower pic) and wrong side shown.

Base curve: 8,6 mm

Diameter: 16,2 mm

Water content: 55 %

Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)

Inserting these was fairly easy. Even though they were expired I didn't feel them in my eyes basically at all. They made my vision a bit blurrier though than some of the others I reviewed that day even though almost all of them had the same prescription; I guess these ones had passed their expiration date a long time ago before I got around reviewing them. Based on this experience I could say that these would be pretty comfortable to wear if they weren't expired and I'm actually thinking about buying a pair of these for myself in the future. Yeah, I liked these a lot.

One lens in to show the enlargement.

Uh... Yeah. My first thought about these lenses after seeing their name was "Okay, it says I.Fairy in the title so these must be huge" - and I wasn't disappointed, look at that enlargement! The effect sure is there; these made my eyes double in size or at least I feel like it when I look at the picture above. The color stands out beautifully (even though it showed a bit more green/brown in some lights than I had expected it to show) and blends surprisingly well with my natural eye color in some lights. I have gray/blue/green mix eyes by nature - gray being the dominant color - so yeah, I most certainly do have light-colored eyes.

The pattern screams sunflowers for me, not going to lie. The print reminds me of flower petals with a magical twist; I could imagine wearing these with a costume inspired by fairies, spirits of nature etc. I also think these would be great cosplay lenses: they sure do have that enlargement effect, they're rather bold in color and they clearly show up even from a distance. Actually thought about ordering these for my Ayame Sohma cosplay - when I get around re-making that one, the old one has the "retired" status.

Now to the lens photos! 👀

These pictures were taken on a rather cloudy day in June 2021. These aren't filtered in any way; they've only been re-sized.
(Note: we took pictures of quite many lenses on the same day so the light conditions are going to be the same in the next few reviews too.)

Natural roomlight.

Yellow roomlight.

Bathroom light.

Flash photo.

Facing window.

Back against the sun.

Facing the sun.

From the distance.

• The color is 8/10. Beautiful, golden color - yet it turns more brown or green in some lights. However, I liked these a lot.
  
  
• The design is 9/10. It's just... Magical. I don't know how to describe it otherwise. Not the most usual pattern out there, that's for sure!
  
  
• The opacity is 9/10. You can't really see my own eye color (and it also blends pretty well with the lens meaning it hides itself also pretty well). The only exception to this is the pupil hole that lets it show quite much but tbh that doesn't really disturb me.
  
  
• The naturalness is 1/10. Seriously, this color and pattern sure aren't anywhere near natural - especially combined with the huge size!
  
  
• The enlargement is 10/10. It's what you could expect from a lens with such a huge diameter. Or from a lens that has "I.Fairy" in its name.

Okay, so that's one more done~!
I still do have a huge backlog on these reviews; I have gotten lens pics taken during the years but haven't really had time to post reviews/had to prioritize other blog posts before them. But now I'm slowly trying to catch up with these too!

Until next time.

-Firith

Matsucon 2024 - Small panic a day keeps the doctor away

Hello everyone~!
After this post I'm finally back on my schedule! As the title says, this is my Matsucon 2024 summary - let's see how it went! 

All photos © Shiro Samurai if not mentioned otherwise.

A Matsucon poster. Not sure if this was the official one..?

Our trip to Matsucon started on 9th of August, the Friday before the con (which was held on 10-11th of August). I left work a bit early so we could catch our bus - yeah, this time we chose a bus instead of the train since the schedule was more fitting for us. 

Our mountain of luggage, including a PS5 and a TV.

Our Onnibus trip went... I can't exactly say well (in short: Shiro Samurai got stuck because of accessory chains and he literally spent an hour trying to break free but eventually managed only after breaking the chains plus the bus almost crashed into a truck) but we got to Oulu in one piece. I had reserved a ride via Menevä Taksi - their mobile app is very easy to use and it's been quite handy in many situations (and no, this wasn't a paid commercial lol) - and it took us to the hotel. Hotel none other than the trusty Sokos Hotel Arina. 

This time our hotel room had the summer night theme. To be honest the tar one has been my favourite by far but this was quite pretty too!

Shiro Samurai decided to get some rest meanwhile I headed out to meet my co-worker Julia and her date - we had agreed to meet at Coffee House in the Valkea Shopping Center. I had also bought some Arnold's donuts via ResQ app (which was created to reduce the food waste) and wanted to fetch them. At first ResQ only operated here in Finland but now when I checked their page they operate in certain towns in Sweden, Estonia and Germany too! The idea of the app is that local restaurants, cafés, grocery stores etc. can sell their products there that would otherwise go to waste - and the price is very affordable! Again, not a paid commercial. Sorry for getting a bit sidetracked here but there is a reason for that: during the weekend we bought almost everything we ate via the app and we'll definitely keep doing this in the future too, so cheap and hey, it's always nice to be able to make decisions that have a positive effect on the planet~!
When I was done I texted Shiro Samurai that I was coming back to the hotel room. It literally took me a few minutes to get back there - and the minute I step into the room I hear cursing and see my traveling buddy squirming in pain on the bed. The reason? He had been deep in thought and hadn't heard my steps - which resulted in a fright recoil when the door handle made noise which in turn resulted in his shoulder dislocating! I'm still not sure how is that even possible but yeah, still sorry about that ^^'

During the evening we went to eat at Itsudemo; we had been looking forward to that sushi buffet after a good experience last year! However... This time didn't go so well. The sushi pieces on the trays seemed dry and like they had been there for a while, they came apart very easily AND there were no refills on certain sushi sorts during the 45 minutes we spent there. Also one of the dessert cakes was still half-frozen. I swear to god our experience last year was much better...

After the disappointment dinner we did some shopping, bought a few more things via ResQ and then went back to the hotel where we just chilled for the rest of the evening. Neither of us had to be at the con the minute the doors opened so yeah, we decided to sleep a bit longer and have breakfast a bit later than we usually do.
On Saturday morning we woke up and quite immediately went to eat some breakfast. I must mention that I really like the detail Sokos Hotel Arina has at its restaurant (where the breakfast is also served); they have a screen that shows how much food waste there was on the previous day's breakfast! I think this is actually quite nice - and sure do hope that it makes people act more responsible. I belong to those who were taught the "take a full plate at the hotel breakfast because it's included in the room price - it really doesn't matter if you can eat it all or not" mantra and well, let's just say that I don't agree with it, at least not anymore.

When we had eaten - and I had taken a shower - it was time to put on our costumes. Funny enough, they were the exact same ones we wore in Nekocon; I cosplayed Kiki (I competed with the costume) and Shiro Samurai wore his Hotaru costume. We had plenty of time to put on our costumes and left the hotel on schedule! 

The entrance to the con - the venue was, once again, Pohjankartano's school.

The program chart/list and the floor plan of the building - super helpful!

 

This year we both worked for the con. Shiro Samurai had volunteered to work in the green room meanwhile I had decided to try out something totally new for me; I had volunteered to work as a program volunteer. A program volunteer, in short, helps out the program hosts and sees that everything goes smoothly - and preferably in schedule. Sounds easy enough but I can say now that it's not for everyone - especially if customer service isn't something you enjoy, don't volunteer as a program volunteer.
However, my first task of the day was to let the cosplay info guys know that I had arrived and was ready to get my costume pre-judged. I was given the schedule and at this point I had about 40 minute of free time so we decided to do a quick stroll around the venue and leave some stuff in the cloakroom. 

It was pretty crowded downstairs.

The merchants were downstairs; this included both the artisans (such as si3art and Jasu Wonder World) and stores (such as Manga Cafe).

 

We noticed quite immediately that something was a bit off; usually the air circulation at Pohjankartano's school has been quite good. However now it felt like we were suffocating and sweating after like, what, 20 minutes? The reason for this was revealed later that day; I don't know if there had been a misunderstanding or something between the school staff and the con staff but seemingly the AC wasn't even on! Well, that explains the bad air quality which only got worse in the upper floors where the Artists' Alley, flea market etc. were located...

Overview of the Artists' Alley.

The arcade room was also upstairs...

...and of course there was also space for the tabletop games!

 During that 40 minutes some of the cosplay volunteers approached us - or, well, Shiro Samurai and asked him to take part in the competition. Unfortunately he didn't have his full costume with him (read: no props) so he had to decline but that made us wonder how many had actually cancelled their participation? I suppose it was quite many since I got the number 13 - and I was the first one to get my costume pre-judged AND to go to the stage! At first I was under the impression that they had decided to pre-judge my costume first since I had a work shift soon after that but well, apparently that wasn't the case.

Proof that I was number 13. Photographer: Olivia.

 

After the pre-judging I think I just hung out with Shiro Samurai in the green room. Since the air quality was horrendous I didn't feel up to checking out the Artists' Alley - especially not by myself - so yeah, I just sat there and drank some coffee before my shift started.
The first shift I had went very smoothly; it was a relaxation workshop and tbh I almost fell asleep myself :'D It sure was a good program to watch over just before the cosplay competition! After that I took the laptop (that belonged to the person in charge of the programs) and speed-waddled to the first floor... Only to find out that I wasn't in any hurry at all since some things had gotten a bit delayed and it affected the cosplay competition's schedule too. Luckily it wasn't anything too bad even though some things, for example checking out the stage, got a bit rushed.
I didn't place this time either but, to be honest, I wasn't exactly waiting for that to happen. I'm still trying to build up the stage confidence I had years ago so yeah, I'm just happy if I manage to get myself on that stage.

After the competition it was time to go to the hotel. Shiro Samurai had went there in advance right after his shift had ended; he had felt uncomfortable because, well, his shoulder still hurt and the air quality wasn't too good in the green room either so yeah, I had booked him a taxi back to the hotel right before the competition started.
We lagged there for a while and checked out the ResQ app - and, well, we also had one plan in mind: fetch some boba tea. Yes, we... Kind of are addicted to it lol and there happened to be a boba/sushi place (namely Sushi Bowl & More Tea Oulu that seemingly doesn't have its own web site) near the hotel so yeah, we totally went there. Especially because there was some sushi on the ResQ app and it happened to be from the said store lol :'D
After the ResQ haul we came back to the hotel, chilled for a while and then decided to get some sleep - we still had another con/work day left.

Sunday morning.
Ugh.
I seriously didn't feel up to even going to the con anymore; I felt tired and laggy and I sure was happy that I had decided not to cosplay on Sunday. Shiro Samurai had planned to cosplay Leon S. Kennedy from Resident Evil 4 but eventually that didn't happen either. So yeah, we just had breakfast, packed our stuff, I got guilt tripped by a semi offensive taxi driver and eventually arrived at the con venue. I sprinted to my work station, namely the room called Pieni Kirsikka, and soon minnalabanana (the person in charge of the programs) and some technology volunteers showed up too. You see, my first duty of the day was to watch over the voice acting workshop and that required a video call connection to Japan since its host was Yukari Honma. She is known, for example, as Sato from Vampire Princess Miyu and as Emili from Beyblade and Beyblade G Revolution.
And, because this required a video call connection, it was more than guaranteed that there would be problems... And there were some :') I'm not going into details since they really aren't even that interesting but yeah, let's just say that we were late for about 15 minutes. Luckily not more. And let's just say that I managed to get the programs in that room back on schedule - eventually.

She told how to utilize different chakras in voice acting - it sure was interesting!

The next program held in that room was a watercolor painting workshop, hosted by Jasu Wonder World. I was given the permission to leave after everything was ready for the workshop. At this point I decided to upstairs to have a bread or something - but it somehow turned into sending Shiro Samurai to fetch more boba tea for us. I mean, we both wanted it, I couldn't exactly leave the con place since I had to check on the workshop every now and then and his shift hadn't even started yet soooo... It was pretty much our only option. Unless we wanted to use Wolt and pay a couple of euros extra for the delivery which wasn't exactly the most optimal option.

Our boba teas! 💓

I think it was also at this point when we heard the sentence that made it to my blog post title (well, in a freely translated form but anyway). We were just chatting and then we heard someone say "Pieni paniikki pitää hengissä" ("A small panic keeps you alive") with literally no context at all :'D I mean whoever said it was quite right though - or at least that was the theme of my day. Being a program volunteer was quite hectic in the end and it also required quick problem-solving skills - luckily I've worked in different industries (for example food industry) before because that experience sure was gold! And no, by this I don't mean there would've been drama or such; it's just that things don't always go 100 % as planned and you need to be able to react quickly to solve any problem that comes in the way, no matter how big or small it is. 

After Jasu Wonder World's workshop was over there were two programs left in that room: a relaxation workshop (basically the same as Saturday) and a book talk about some manga series that could be found in libraries in Oulu. Those were easy enough to watch over - and after them I just put everything back in place in the room, checked out that there were no windows open etc., and my shift was over~! At that point I decided to check out both the Artisans' Alley and the Artists' Alley once more - and tbh I was beyond happy when I spotted some Zydrate vial stickers at the latter! The Zydrate comes in a little glass vial~
For those who are not familiar with the reference: check out the gothic musical Repo! The Genetic Opera starring Sarah Brightman and Paris Hilton, you won't be disappointed.

It was almost as crowded on Sunday than it was on Saturday (this pic was taken on the latter).

As a Miku Hatsune fan this was indeed a joy to see. Too bad I can't attend any of the concerts since they are all abroad...

There were hardly any queues to the cloakroom and the info stand.

After checking out the tables for the last time the con was already nearing its end and we begun to clean up the green room - I didn't have that much else to do so I decided to help there. It takes quite a lot of effort to deconstruct a convention overall so yeah, each pair of hands available was more than welcomed! We couldn't stay until the very end of that though; we had a train to catch. So after an hour or two of cleaning up we had to leave - and that was the official end of our Matsucon 2024 trip.

Matsucon was overall a pleasant experience despite a few hiccups here and there (mainly meaning the problems with the AC). Even though being a program volunteer was a bit hectic I kind of liked working as one - don't know if I'll apply to be one next year though, we will see how much energy I will have then. Probably will volunteer to some position though! Conventions overall have hard time getting volunteers to work for them these days; after all many people are so stressed out and burnt out that they just want to relax and have a good time with less responsibilities during their free time. And nothing wrong with that; I don't work at every convention I attend to since I want to have those "more relaxing" ones too. However, the conventions need volunteers and people in charge so yeah, offering my help when I can.

But yeah, this is the end of my Matsucon 2024 summary - and now I'm finally back on my schedule, yippee!
...also known as prepare for at least dozen circle lens reviews, I have a huge backlog on them... Oops. 

Until next time.

-Firith