I really regret having to make this decision, but I think it is for the best. At this time in my life I don’t have the amount of time to put into Costume Maker Magazine that it, and everyone helping, deserves. This whole experience has been so enjoyable and I thank everyone that has worked with me and contributed to the magazine. The two issues were only possible with your help.

Once I get out of college and figure out my life I may consider restarting the magazine. I guess it depends how things go. :]

Though no more issues are being created, Issues 1 and 2 are still being sold.

Thank you all for your understanding,
Selina

The store turned out to be in Xi Men Ding, an area I’ve heard described as Taiwan’s equivalent to Japan’s Harajuku. Below is a photo of one of the streets in Xi Men Ding so you can get an idea. :]

The shop is called Moe Point and is on the 3rd floor of a building called Moe Moe Center. It’s hard to tell there is a cosplay shop here since the first floor is a clothing shop. A bookstore (with a lot of manga) is on the second floor and a maid cafe is on the 3rd floor next to the actual cosplay shop. :p

The cosplay shop itself was pretty empty when I got there. They seemed to be in the midst of rearranging their inventory. I asked them about the shop and they told me it was one of two or three cosplay shops in Taiwan (I can’t say for sure since I lost my page of notes…).

There didn’t seem to be much else besides lolita clothing and accessories for sale, but it was exciting nonetheless since I’ve never been to any stores like this in the US. :]

I regret not asking what the setup in the corner of this next photo is for. I’m assuming it’s meant for dressing up and taking photos in.

And here’s a close-up of the glass case from the last photo, filled with mainly lolita accessories.

Overall the store was rather empty, but still had a large variety of dresses and styles. To me the prices were surprisingly high, but that may be because I usually shop in cheap clothing stores when I’m in Taiwan (you can’t beat a dress for less than 3 USD ;p ). Their prices were a little lower than what is charged when you purchase lolita clothing online from Japan, but not low enough to entice me to purchase anything.

Despite the prices, I’d still recommend visiting the store, if just to look around. The workers are friendly and informative and the clothing is super cute. :]

I really didn’t see that many cosplay related items while I was in Taiwan. There were the usual anime figurines, clothing, toys, etc but nothing particularly for cosplay. Mainly I only saw lolita clothing. It’s exciting to see how the fashion trend has spread. :] Here’s one last photo for you guys, of one of the few lolita shops I came across while I was in Taiwan.

Please let me know what you guys think of this post! Are you okay with it not being a How-to? Any questions, comments, or concerns are greatly appreciated!

I just wanted to let you all know that Costume Maker Magazine’s website has been completely redone. Gone is the messy old site created with the content manager system Drupal. It has been replaced with a sparkling new, Wordpress-driven site!

The only downside is that the user accounts couldn’t transfer because of the database change. L I really apologize for the inconvenience, but hopefully the change will be worth it. :]

Here are just a few of the changes that you should check out:

People can now submit articles to the site’s blog!

Now people can submit content to the website as well as to the magazine. Articles, reviews, how-to’s, etc. are accepted and can be submitted with new forms found at this page, Submit Content. I’m also looking for content for Issue 3 of the magazine, so if you’re interested you can visit here or just email me. :]

More ways to advertise!

There are now more ways to spread the word about your shop or business. Not only have the kinks been worked out of the Costume and Supply Shops List (you can submit your shop through a simple form), but there are also ads available on the right-hand column of the website at very affordable prices. Advertising in the print magazine is also still available, and all ad related info can be found here.

I don’t want to bore you so I’ll leave it at that for now, but I hope you’ll have a chance to explore the new website!

Thanks for all your support,
Selina

Just send me an email if you want me to send the full-size file. :]

Here are the pictures our group took this weekend! The convention was amazing, as always. xD
Click on the pictures for a larger picture, and just send me an email if you want me to send the full-size file.

[slickr-flickr tag="acen08"]

There’s also a problem with the navigation links not appearing on the tops of pages. I’ll try to fix that asap!

Oh, and here are a couple of things I’m working on adding to the site right now:

-User submitted images appearing on their profiles
-Recent blog entries appearing directly on user profiles
-Adding articles to the site
-And so many more things

If you have any ideas of what else to add, don’t hesitate to tell me. ^^ Thanks!

Beware: This site’s under heavy construction!