Xianyu — Updated method to get the product URL

It's been more than a year since my post about buying on Xianyu for the first time. I had not bought a second time on Xianyu until yesterday evening. That wasn't planned. I had actually gone shopping earlier in the afternoon and had tried a cape-trench coat, that even though didn't fit me, made my figure look not that bad. So I went on Xianyu to buy a Bobon21 sort of trench coat I always liked but thought wouldn't look good on me (I have some hope now).

As I was making the purchase, and relying on what I had written in that blog post, I realized the section "Getting the product URL" is obsolete. In fact, yesterday, the method described wouldn't work, on Yoybuy at least. There seemed to be a bug when I pasted the link in the entry field and it wouldn't display the item*. I tried a couple other stuff for 15 minutes, got really frustrated with the website interface and finally gave up to head over to TaobaoRing (that is now 42agent). Then I came up with another method to instruct the buying agent to successfully purchase the item in the Xianyu app. It's more reliable, a bit longer, but definitely worth it IMO.

*The said bug is a no-brainer to solve. I don't know why I didn't think about it at the time. Please scroll down to "Edit August 29th 2021" for the fastest way to get the product URL.

Updated method

(can be used with any proxy I guess, but here I used TaobaoRing aka 42agent)

1. Go on the item's page on Xianyu. Click on the "three-dots icon". A menu will appear.
2. In the menu, click on the icon contoured in yellow:

3. This gives you the item's QR code. Take a screenshot of it or click on 保存在相册 ("save in photo album"):

4. Transfer your QR code picture to your computer (I need to do this because I can't upload a picture on Imgur—I'm guessing it's cuz I don't have the app nor an account. Personally, I just share the picture with my Google Drive to make the transfer which is fast enough for me.)

5. Once the QR code picture is on your computer, go to Imgur and upload the picture

(I just realized maybe Imgur would be banned from China, but it seems not!)

Copy the link Imgur gave you.

6. Go to the proxy's website (whichever one you chose). In the order form, paste the link from Imgur:

When the buying agent clicks on « LINK », it leads him/her here

Then confirm/submit your order, and that's it!

The coat I had ordered was successfully purchased some hours later (after receiving the OK to pay the first charge and paying it):

I was pretty satisfied with the smoothness of the transaction

Note: I will be posting the stuff I got on Xianyu in another blog post in the future.

Enjoy shopping.

Edit August 29th 2021

As 42agent adapted this post for their blog, they made me discover another way to lead a shopping agent to an item in Xianyu. I then realized it's the same method I once used and which I thought didn't work anymore (it does still work, actually). Thus I suggest following the three steps below instead of the six steps above.

1. On the item's page on Xianyu, click on the "three-dots icon". A menu will appear.
2. In the menu, click on the icon contoured in purple:

3. Then, just paste the link in the order form of the proxy you chose.

To clarify, here's what the copied link looks like:

The portion I highlighted in blue is the "working link" (I believe the buying agent is already aware of this). I have no clue what the leftover part is for.

Anyway, if you copy-paste the blue part of the link into your browser, you should be able to see your item on the Internet:

Liz Lisa knit, OPs, cardigans and shoes haul

It has been profusely snowing yesterday. I really can't wait until it actually feels like spring. Today is monday. I haven't done anything productive this weekend and for unclear reasons, have been avoiding writing this post. But I eventually came to write it, so here are Liz Lisa items I bought on Fril or Mercari in December 2018 and January 2019 and received last month.

The LL strawberry jam OP was bought on Mercari with Japonica Market, the shoes are from tokyokawaiilife.com and the other items were bought on Fril with From Japan.

Haul

Liz Lisa cable knit sweater

This sweater is from the 2018 fukubukuro. I absolutely loved this sweater from the moment I saw someone wearing it on IG. I love its shape, the collar, the sleeves, the bows... I was happy to find one new with tags for a respectable price, although far from very cheap.

The sweater is not made to be tight and falls nicely, not too baggy. However, the threads near the collar are very "spaced", which shows quite some skin when worn. I'm a tad disappointed as I have to wear a tank top underneath. This is my first LL knit sweater, and I don't know if the others being sold are like this (or, because it's a fukubukuro item, the fabric is a little cheaper—and that is why I personally don't buy fukubukuros but that's just my impression.)

I'm sorry I don't have a try on picture at the moment, I forgot to take one. I'll probably post one here once I have one, otherwise you may see it in future publications on my Lookbook.


Liz Lisa strawberry jam OP in red

I know I sound like a broken record, but I've been wanting this OP for a very good while... (and I still a list of LL items I want to get, but thank God it's getting shorter) but every time I wanted to buy it on Fril or Mercari, I would hesitate because of the price and someone else ended up buying it. This time, however, I thought the price was very good although I had some hesitancy because there was only one picture (and it was a stock photo) and because the seller stated she wasn't the first owner (there wasn't more info as to whether she was the second or third though.)
Nonetheless, I had been looking for this dress for months and it appeared like the only good deal in a long time. I didn't want to lose another opportunity again either, so I bought it.

This dress is extremely pretty with an adorable print. It doesn't have sleeves which I'm not fond of, but it's perfect for the summer season and I always thought of wearing it with a cardigan anyway (this also hides the criss-cross ribbon on the back which I've never been a fan of.)

However, the dress does have some noticeable damage such as the red stains from the fading ribbon on the collar.

I've seen this discoloration a lot of the strawberry jam OPs and skirts and really wanted to avoid buying one with this issue. Also, there's a (very) little stain under the second button and it is not the print:

But since it's very hard to find this dress anymore, I don't want to sell it. Still, the seller said the dress was exempt of any stain or damage which turns out to not be the case, which is slightly disappointing.


Liz Lisa x My Melody 11th collab OP in white

I've wanted this OP for a while but couldn't find it at a reasonable price, but most of the time, wouldn't see it on Japanese flea markets. I had actually also bought the pink version (in the same order I had bought the white one) but I felt something was off when worn (I don't know what exactly) so I sold it.

What I like the most about this OP is the print and the two ribbons on the waist. I used to dislike the hole on the upper back of the dress but came to feel neutral about it.

Liz Lisa dolman sleeve cardigan & tricot cardigan in pink

I put aside these purchases for a long time because I considered purchasing LL cardigans more like a boring necessity than something exciting like an OP. However, I've been wanting LL cardigans for a good while to wear with my dresses. I was eyeing these models for some time, found them both in good condition and at a really good price, and thought it was finally time to buy them.

For the pink cardigan, I actually wanted to buy the white one first cuz you can pair it more easily, but I couldn't find a good deal.


Liz Lisa ankle ballet shoes (TKL.jp or TKL.com)

I had stayed pretty distant from LL shoes since I had bought a pair of boots in size M that was too small for me. However, I had also been looking for a nice pair of black flats (criss-cross straps or mary janes) but could never find any that looked good and that I wanted to buy until I saw these shoes. The M size was 23.5 cm, and considering my Bobon21 pumps and flats were 23 cm and fit me okay (except for the shoe vamp for the flats!), I thought it was worth giving these LL shoes a chance.

I'm glad I gave it a risk because the shoes fit perfectly. Unlike the Bobon21 flats, these LL ones leave enough space to wear them with socks. They are very comfortable. I am tempted to buy the same pair but in silver, since it's so rare I like a pair of shoes.

Note: I ordered them on their international website and did end up paying customs fees again.

Cherite by Prime Pattern, Lodispotto...

This haul being done... I've been liking a lot Cherite by Prime Pattern lately. I already liked their OPs' patterns from the 2018 fall collection, but I thought the fit looked a bit boxy. Their spring collection looks amazing though, although the clothes are more modest and mature than what I usually like.

Here are some items that caught my eye:

I actually only like the top, but it's a set... sigh.

(source)

Both the top and the skirt look pretty

(source)

Lovely skirt and the belt gives it an elegant look

(source)

Cute shirt

(source)

Love this blue-grey with white organza combination

(source)

I've also discovered while wandering on Fril, that Lodispotto used to make OPs with prints similar to more old school Liz Lisa and Ank Rouge. I bought one that I really liked at first sight. I'm really excited to see how it looks and fits. Since then, I had only been buying OPs from Liz Lisa (except for a Bobon21 JSK/dress).

Have a nice evening.

Trying out a hair moisture treatment from LHC

Last update on my hair was this post. Since then, my hair has considerably grown, but my ends are starting to thin out again. I've been trapped in that infernal cycle of thinning ends for a long long time now. If I trim the ends of my hair, I will again have to grow out my hair, and when my hair will have grown in a couple months to a year, I'll be facing the exact situation as right now.

To prevent the above circumstances from happening, I've decided to try caring more about my hair. My current hair routine is fairly simple: washing hair every day (mostly around 8 pm) with shampoo and conditioner, then Moroccan oil application on the roots + ends of my hair after washing. I also occasionally use dry shampoo. I flat iron my bangs and very rarely my entire head (maybe 1 time every three weeks).

I recently bought the Apple Cider clarifying shampoo from Live Clean because I wanted to wash my hair less often, and with the dry shampoo, there would unwanted product residue that I'd want to wash off. However, my hair still looks very greasy on the second day even with dry shampoo, so I've mostly been continuing my bad habit of washing my hair every day (except during the weekend when I don't work and can wear a winter hat to go outside).

I've also wanted to use hair masks or hair treatments. Even though my hair is far from being dry, moisturizing it one time a week cannot be a bad thing, and can maybe do something for my ends. 

Back in 2011, I once used a repair mask from Paul Mitchell to repair my damaged bleached hair. I don't really remember how my hair felt after the mask, but I don't recall any bad memories from using it and one thing I do remember is that it made my hair smell extremely nice as if I had just came back from the hair salon. However, I read on the Internet that professional hair products weren't worth their expensive price and that DIY hair masks could do the same job.

Two weeks ago, I found this moisture treatment on Long Hair Community (LHC). People were raving about it and I thought why not join the party. But because I couldn't find pure aloe vera gel in stores, I decided to get an aloe vera plant to get the gel from the real source! I didn't find aloe vera plants in stores near me so my mother bought me one. I waited until I visited home (March 2nd) to try the treatment.

Second-day hair, you can see the thinning ends

and some overall greasiness

My new aloe vera plant

I never liked plants and I surely don't have a green thumb but I'm making an exception for this one since I get something very interesting out of it.

Getting the gel out of the leaf is hard, messy and time-consuming. The gel is very slimy and sticks to your fingers. Maybe I used the wrong technique but anyway, I really hoped the hair treatment would be worth this hassle.

It took 5-6 leaves to get a little less than 1/4 cup...

I used 1/4 cup of honey and 1/4 cup conditioner,

and a little less for the aloe vera gel

I forgot to heat the mixture in the microwave before applying it on my hair, but it seems heating serves to prevent the hair from going lighter and doesn't have an impact on the effectiveness of the treatment (but anyway I'll try the treatment again and write an update here.)

After applying the treatment in my hair, I wrapped it in a shower cap and waited two hours before washing it off (no shampoo or conditioner).

The above picture was taken the morning after the treatment the evening before. My hair smelled really good, but it's because I used 1/4 cup of conditioner. Apart from the amazing smell, I didn't feel my hair easier to detangle, softer or shinier, nor did I notice anything different. However, my hair became extremely greasy later in the day (which was to expect cuz of all that conditioner and my thin hair being easily prone to greasiness).

I also had some white stuff which I'm not sure comes from the aloe vera gel or the honey:

In sum, this hair treatment was not much worth it. It didn't mess my hair, but it didn't improve it either (from the outside, at least) and made it very greasy. I'll try it one more time with a little less conditioner, a little more aloe vera if I'm patient enough and won't forget to heat the mixture in the microwave before applying it on my hair.

Have a nice evening.

Edit March 9th 2019, 17.47: I did the hair treatment yesterday and kept it for about 3-4 hours in my hair (washed it off around 7 o'clock). Still had a lot of white stuff in my hair and can confirm it comes from the aloe vera gel that isn't perfectly liquid when applied in the hair (there are some more solid, gelatinous stuff—I know some people mix the aloe vera gel from what I've seen on YouTube though). 

Added less conditioner than aloe vera gel and honey. Didn't forget to heat the mixture 15 seconds this time. Didn't notice anything different in my hair. Had to take a shower the morning after because the roots of my hair were very greasy. Although a lot of people are praising this hair treatment, I will personally not do it again.

Edit May 31st 2019, 22.02: in foresight of the upcoming blog post, thought I should update this one. Actually, I did make this hair treatment again, about 2-3 times, because my aloe vera plant still had leaves that had to be used. The last time I did this hair treatment, which was like last week, was surprisingly not as bad as the previous times. I washed the treatment in the late evening, and I was able to go the work the day after without the need to take a shower – and not that greasy hair.