Shipping tips

This post may not apply to your countries post system. But maybe some of the information does help you to improve your online sales.
Sometimes, shipping can be very expensive, especially when you want to ship with insurance to another continent. Some potential buyers withdraw from a purchase when they see the shipping costs. Here are some tips that may (!) help to reduce the shipping costs.
I write about the system here in Germany, so maybe there isn't anything similar in your country but here are some small tricks that can help to save money.

Compare the providers
Here in Germany we have the German Post/DHL which is the main business who puts the mean invoices in your letterbox. But there are also Hermes, DPD, GLS. It depends on what you want to send but sometimes, the price is less when you send it with another provider.
For smaller items, you can use the XS-package from Hermes, for example, which is only 3,89€! (insurance up to 50€ within Germany)

Check online offers
DHL, for example, has an online-only offer which includes a 2kg (a dress doesn't weigh more than that) package with insurance within Germany. You can't get it at your local post office. There, the minimum is 6,99€ for a 5kg package with insurance. BUT the very same package (5kg, insurance, within Germany) is even 1€ cheaper if you register online and buy it from here. It's a very simple system and you can pay via Paypal.
Hermes has the same system: 4,69€ for a package size "S" when you label it online (pay later at the shop) and 5,49€ when you label it by hand.
Another example from DPD: They also have an online-only offer for packages size "XS" but you also pay less when you pay online directly. Size S package online: 4,20€ and with payment in the shop 4,50€ (okay, it's not that much cheaper but for bigger packages, the difference can be up to 2€!)

prices may not be up to date!

Registered airmail
An international package with insurance can be very expensive (like 35-45€) but some items can be send as "Wertbrief international" You can use the shipping calculator for this. Choose "Versandtasche" and "Einschreiben" (registered airmail). Then, you can choose insurance up to whatever the value of your item is. Every 100€ insurance costs 2€. So for 200€ it's 4€ more.
Example:
1kg bubble-wrap envelope to the USA - 7€
+ insurance up to 300€ - 6€
+ registered airmail - 2,15€
= 13,15€ in total

A 5kg package with insurance up to 500€ to the US
= 35,99€ (minimum price)
Sometimes items are too heavy or too bulky for registered airmail but for some dresses, blouses and accessory, it's a great deal!

Please keep in mind to send everything with insurance. I lost some stuff over the years because I didn't want to pay the extra money for insurance. It's also important for your Paypal seller's protection!! There are many scammers out there who want your stuff and your money!!

Hope this was little bit helpful for some of you :)

Vienna Weekend

Before I continue with my Japan posts, I write about my last weekend in Vienna.

Friday
Aimee and I arrived around noon at Vienna airport and were able to check in earlier at the hotel. We changed into some comfortable Lolita clothes and headed to a Palatschinken/ Kaiserschmarrn restaurant. We both LOVE Kaiserschmarrn and ordered two small portions each. It was soooo~ delicious!! Full and happy, we did some sightseeing. I always wanted to see the emperor's tomb and it was breathtaking and very interesting how much the style of the coffin changed during the centuries.
We also visited the Stephansdom (cathedral) and the Manner shop (delicious waffle snack) after meeting up with other Lolitas at the Prater. It's a fun fair with a famous ferris wheel. We took a ride (a round?) in this particual wheel but I didn't feel very well... After that, we walked around and some of the girls drove the bumper car or visited rollercoasters and we ate some snacks. It was a fun evening, I enjoyed it very much.
Kaiserschmarrnpr0n

In front of the Stephansdom

The coffins were so elaborate

tomb

At the famous ferris wheel

Saturday
Unfortunately, Aimee's alarm clock went nuts and beeped at 7:25h! Way too early but I couldn't sleep anymore, so I read a bit. Two hours later we got up and got ready for the Tea Party. We arrived a bit too early but were able to talk to some of the girls who were there already. I also got a twin, Mio wore the same dress in blue. When we entered the venue itself, it reminded me of 2013. It looked quite the same but that's nothing negative. I checked out the stalls and bought a Meta necklace.
I talked to some other girls I haven't met for a long time and it felt really good. When they opened the buffet, I was even happier. The food was so good and there was plenty - thank God!
The Q&A was a bit hard to follow because it was a bit loud and the translator too quiet but the questions are always the same, so no problem. The we took a group picture and I won a cute necklace at the raffle - yay! I feel, I haven't done anything that day. It was over so quickly. But it was a very nice and well organised event.
Afterwards, we ate Lasagna at the Naschmarkt and made ourselved ready for the after party which was a concert.
We arrived when the second band played. It was not my music but the show was nice and we talked a bit with some other girls in the bar area. After Meinhard, there was a little Burlesque show and it was really funny because Fifi started wearing a cat fleece onesie. After that, there was Lolita Komplex and the show was great! The atmosphere felt right and we did a wall of kawaii, haha :D There were two more burlesque dances and Die Milch. They were sooo funny and cute! The music was better than I expected it to be. They also talked in English and a tiny little bit in German - so cute!
It was a great evening, I enjoyed it even more than the actual tea party.

Mini Wiener Schnitzel
Punschkrapfen and Sacher cubes
Rose Birdcage triplet 

Sunday
On Sunday, there was a J-Fashion J-Fashion Bring and Buy and Aimee and I decided to twin our Brigitte JSKs. There was so much to buy! New and second hand stuff! I bought a Liz Lisa jacket and we talked a bit with the other girls but we didn't stay very long. We wanted to visit Schönbrunn castle that day and it wasn't that far away but it was very tiring because many people wanted photos and out feet hurt very much. So we decided to come back on Monday for a guided tour. We were at the hotel quite early and weren't in the mood to go to a restaurant, so we stayed there and relaxed (and watched Schwiegertocher gesucht, hahaha)  





On Monday, there wasn't anything Lolita related. We took the guided tour in muggle clothes and then headed back home.

It was a wonderful evening, I loooove Vienna. It's a beautiful city with beautiful people. I want to come back!!