Cosplay Online Shopping | Review: Three Smitten Kittens (Part 1)
6:34 AM
I am happy for the month of December because I have many blog posts I want to share with you. One of them is reviewing Three Smitten Kittens aka 3SK.
(Warning: long and image-heavy post)
(Warning: long and image-heavy post)
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| The new logo of Three Smitten Kittens aka 3SK |
HOW IT STARTED
I’ve known the owner, Jackilyn Chipeco, even before she started 3SK---around 2011. I think she took a picture of me and my bf as Kenpachi and Yachiru and after that, Aki (as I call her) became one of my first cosplay friends.
Then around late 2012, I saw she was starting a business of creating polymer clay items and asked inquiries about my Irisviel brooch. I was just inquiring, but have no plans of having it made yet. But when I saw her strawberry jewelry set, I asked if I can have one made for my friend. It was already Christmas and decided to give personalized gifts to my cosplay group. In the end, Aki made the strawberry jewelry set and personalized name keychains seen below:
Then around late 2012, I saw she was starting a business of creating polymer clay items and asked inquiries about my Irisviel brooch. I was just inquiring, but have no plans of having it made yet. But when I saw her strawberry jewelry set, I asked if I can have one made for my friend. It was already Christmas and decided to give personalized gifts to my cosplay group. In the end, Aki made the strawberry jewelry set and personalized name keychains seen below:
Product #1: Strawberry Jewelry Set and Personalized Name Keychains
Price: P1750 for both
And since then, I go to Aki when I need some cosplay accessories done that I can’t do on my own.
PRODUCTS/SERVICES AVAILED FROM THREE SMITTEN KITTENS
And since then, I go to Aki when I need some cosplay accessories done that I can’t do on my own.
PRODUCTS/SERVICES AVAILED FROM THREE SMITTEN KITTENS
After the Strawberry Jewelry Set and Personalized Name Keychains, I had other cosplay accessories made in 3SK that showed the great customer service of the store.
Product #2: Irisviel von Einzbern Brooch
Series: Fate/Zero
Price: P300.00
Price: P300.00
This is the first cosplay accessory I had made from Aki. Our cosplay shoot was at the end of January 2013 and asked her about this as early as November. I wanted my Irisviel cosplay to be perfect and I was thinking whether to make the brooch myself or have Aki do it. But when I saw the finished looks of the jewelry set, keychains and other cosplay accessories, I felt she would do a great job. So I gave her all the reference pictures, descriptions, details, my go signal and paid full payment to her bank account.
After a few days, I got some updates from her through FB PM (just like with the jewelry and keychains) telling me where she was on the brooch and some works-in-progress (WIPs). In the weeks going to the meet-up date, Aki gave me various updates and WIPs such as the ones below (pictures from Aki):
If you notice, it has a wooden finish. See, my descriptions to Aki were: it should look like old wood, but not too old, and still look rich and elegant. Since Irisviel belongs to a family that has been there for generations, there is the possibility her brooch is a family heirloom and has been passed down. So it should still look old wood but still have the royal finish. I don’t know with you, but as the various WIPs came, I started to see the fruits of my descriptions. Aki got everything: from the old wood look to the 3D finish to the cross to the “wood scratch” details to the red dots on the diamond tips. I was already excited to get the brooch.
When it comes to cosplay-related and figure-related merchandise (especially fragile ones), I prefer meet-ups to be safe (except when I am really very busy) because sometimes our shipping couriers are not very careful with some packages. We met in SM Fairview, paid the minimal meet-up fee, got the item, talked to Aki for a bit and thanked her. When I got home, I immediately opened the package and was excited to see the finished look:
When it comes to cosplay-related and figure-related merchandise (especially fragile ones), I prefer meet-ups to be safe (except when I am really very busy) because sometimes our shipping couriers are not very careful with some packages. We met in SM Fairview, paid the minimal meet-up fee, got the item, talked to Aki for a bit and thanked her. When I got home, I immediately opened the package and was excited to see the finished look:
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| Brooch with ribbon. Ribbon provided by me |
And of course, this part will not end without pictures of me wearing the brooch:
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| Photo by: Lian Tablan |
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| Photo by: Lian Tablan |
Product #3: Uiharu Kazari Flower Headband and Judgement Armband
Series:To Aru Kagaku no Railgun
Price: Flower Headband – P450.00; Judgement Armband – P100.00
The next cosplay accessories I had made was a flower headband and the Judgement armband of Uiharu Kazari from To Aru Kagaku no Railgun. Since the flower headband is very meticulous and detailed (as you can see in the pic above), I definitely can’t trust my beginner art skills to do that. And again, after seeing Aki’s great work in previous products (especially the Irisviel brooch), I trusted her with the headband and armband.
Though, I believe it wasn’t very easy to do the flower headband. In our FB PM exchange, this is how it turned out:
Though, I believe it wasn’t very easy to do the flower headband. In our FB PM exchange, this is how it turned out:
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| Click for larger image |
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| LOL :)) |
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| Pics from Aki |
So I was not surprised with price. But it was okay because I totally got my money’s worth when I saw the finished look of BOTH the headband and the armband.
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| Pacakging from Three Smitten Kittens |
The only problem I had was 1-2 leaves fell off when I took the headband out and addressed this to Aki. She admitted that too and told me the headband is not for everyday use because the leaves tend to fall off. But it can be super-glued back and that’s just what I did on the day of the photoshoot---and the leaves stayed.
And of course, here is me wearing the headband and armband:
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| Photo by Lian Tablan |
Product #4: Jiraiya Headgear (For Boyfie)
Series: Naruto
Price: P200
This was sudden because the shop where we were supposed to get this already ran out of stock, so I had to turn to Aki because we didn’t have time to make it. I think this was just done a week because we needed it for Cosmania held last Otober 5-6.
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| Pictures from Aki |
I got the headgear and paid for it through meet-up again in SM Fairview. Despite the size in the picture, the headgear fit my boyfie’s head (which is a bit big) and is very comfortable, thanks to the stretchable string used. My only concern was one of the horns fell off, but we glued it back and it was okay again.
And of course, here is a picture of my boyfie wearing the headgear:
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| Photo by Rina Vallejo Lappay |
VERDICT
Love
- Great customer service. Aki gives updates, WIPs, suggestions, and concerns regarding the products that she is making for you.
- She will also tell you what materials she is using and why the price is like that for your product.
- Aside from FB PMs, she also gives updates on her projects in their FB page.
- Fast and smooth transactions
- Easy payment modes
- Aside from creating your cosplay and non-cosplay accessories, she also helps you in how to make the accessories. For instance, while we were discussing if she can make my Mulan medal, she also told me ways on how to do it on my own. Same with Mulan’s sword. In the end, my bf and I made both and she was happy to find out we did them on our own.
- She also has a blog where she gives suggestions, advices, concerns and more on her arts and crafts as well as on cosplay topics and issues.
- Very interactive and approachable
Don’t Love
- So far, I can’t find anything that I don’t love with Three Smitten Kittens or with Aki. She has been very helpful to me in providing me great made-to-order cosplay and non-cosplay accessories.
Tips
- Make sure to provide clear and proper reference pictures for your made-to-order accessories.
- Give detailed instructions and descriptions so Aki can get the look right. This is especially applicable if you are very OC. XD
- She is more reachable in FB PM.
Would I recommend?
A BIG YES! Whatever made-to-order cosplay and non-cosplay accessories you have in mind, I recommend her.
Grade
10/10
No bias there because I really love her products and services :D
Where to reach her:
~Hainrihi
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P.S.
Don’t forget to join my giveaway! Get a chance to win P500 gift voucher from Three Smitten Kittens and have that customized cosplay accessory you always wanted. Click on the image below to know how to join:
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