Ordered on-July 14th
Items Ordered-Syaoran Ver.7-99 Sakura Ver3 Sakura wig
Paid for- As listed above
Package sent-Aug.20th
Package arrived-Aug.21st
First off we contacted CosplayHolic through their website after I found and fell in love with their Tsubasa costumes. After we firmly decided to cosplay Tsubasa we scanned the web for a new place to buy the costumes. Since the other shop we had bought from had horrible customer service (old site will not be listed but I will tell you if you want to know.) we badly needed someone who was good at English, replied to our e-mails and had good reviews. I came back to the link I had saved of CosplayHolic's ebay page. We decided on the costumes listed above which are artbook versions.
Costumes as shown on the site.
We sent a email on July 8th. We got a reply on July 9th. Which impressed us. It took weeks for the last place to reply so it was a good sign and a relief. They were very kind, knew what we were asking and answered all our questions. So we sent a few more e-mails back and forth trying to figure out how much a rush order would cost. It wound up being too much so we went ahead and ordered normal shipping. All together we ordered the two costumes above and the Sakura wig plus the headdress shown on the ebay listing for Sakura's hanfu.
Four items in total. They gave us the tracking number before they shipped the item. I was a bit worried because it wasn't working. We asked what shipping they used and to our luck it was Fedex airmail. Once the tracking number worked it went really quick. It stayed at the Lantau Island HK port for a day then BAM! It shipped and in ONE day it was shipped to the states. I have never had such quick shipping. Now remember we ordered this before their busiest time (August because of Halloween) so please ask them ahead of time about shipping and about their busiest times.
I live in Oregon. The package arrived in Memphis TN and stayed there until the next morning when it was very quickly shipped (I believe it was flown by plane.) to Oregon within one day. I watched carefully and as each update came I got really excited knowing our package could ship today. And it did. Around three our package came! This was the quickest shipping from China we've ever encountered. It really made us impressed and happy.
We were really worried when they estimated the shipping time between 10-25 days. Today we have 10 days left to the con. But when it shipped within one day that worry faded. I tore open the box (Which was a lot smaller than I thought) everything was prefect and beautiful. We're fairly new cosplayers but this....these costumes are truly a work of art.
Please note that their costumes are NOT pre-made. They do list sizes but you can and I suggest you do, is list your measurements so everything fits you to a key. Don't be afraid to add one to your measurements in case your worried about the size and fit. Please give yourself at least two months ahead of the con before ordering your costumes. So you don't stress.
Picture time!!
This is the box everything was packed into. I didn't take any pictures as I opened it because I was too excited. There were no dents and everything was neatly packed. They really put their hearts into packing and folding the items neatly so everything fits.
Syaoran costume
What was included
- Outer vest
- Inner vest/shirt
- Pants
- Belt
- Attachable sleeves
- Upper arm bands
- Long headband
Front of outer vest.
Just like the picture shown on the site. Sorry for the poor lighting in my picture. The green is bright. There are a few flaws but nothing that would ruin the costume/wearing the costume. So they are livable and I might be able to fix them.
The buckles are metal, heavy and have three holes. Everything is sewn on flawlessly. No stray strings, no uneven stitches. I'm impressed. My hubby loves his costume and everything fits him perfectly.
Flaw #1. On front of the outer vest. Small stains of what looks like glue. Pink smudge, very light not noticeable in less pointed out.
Flaw #2 long light pink smudge. Once again very light and not very noticeable. Really it doesn't bother us at all. It might be able to be removed.
The stitching around the arm hole. Not real stitching so we don't have to worry about it snagging. It glued on pretty darn good too. Looks wonderful from afar.
Once again, sorry for the poor lighting/bad flash. The lights in my room are awful. The inner black shirt vest. Zipper works nice, well sewn.
Back of outer vest. No flaws. Everything is stitched nicely. No lose strings. Very impressed and over all pleased.
Pants. Love the pants. The green sakura is painted, very nice, not that cheap fabric paint that cracks either. Fit true to the size given.
Bottom of the pant leg. The gold buttons are shiny and smooth. Once again the stitches are perfect and flawless. Very pleased. Every detail is just like the one shown on the site and it's the same as the artbook version. I'm so happy and my hubby loves his outfit.
Other leg. Again more buttons. Even and nicely sewn. No flaws on white side.
Buttons on the pants. One fell when my hubby was going to take them off. But buttons are VERY easy to sewn back on. So I'm not worried nor upset about it. Things like this happen.
We do have the button btw.
All the accessories. Top right, The long headband. This is awesome! No flaws. Nicely made and is the right length. Below that is the two green armbands. The black belt (And yes the sakura is supposed to be PINK.) Then the sleeves. They attach by two bands.
Close up of the belt. Few flaws on the pink part. smudges of black. Nothing to be worried about. It's too small to really see. I highly doubt anyone will be looking THAT close to my Hubby's waist.
Close up of the bottom of the sleeve. Sakura is done nicely! No flaws on either sleeve, front or back.
Close up of the headband. This is my favorite part besides the pants. So cool! I can't wait until I see it tied in with the wig. I hope it wont be too heavy. Although if it is I can easily clip it in so he wont have issues with having to be retie it.
Sakura Costume
- Top with sleeves (Like a coat)
- Sakura corset
- Outer skirt
- Inner skirt
Top. This is fully attached. The fabric is soft, light but is not see-through which is important to me. I'm large in the chest and don't like to show much skin. It fits but becomes a bit baggy with the corset on. I wish it was attached to the inner skirt so it would be easier to slip on.
The stitches are clean, no stray strings. It's not snug or tight around the bust which is also important. It fits! I'm very glad. It's styled and created like a traditional Hanfu top. I'm pleased.
Close up on the inner sleeve. LOVELY!!!! This was one of the most loved parts of the outfit and they did it perfectly!
Top part of the sleeve. Very nice. They pay close attention to detail. I like the fact it isn't faked. You can stick your finger into the hole and feel where they stitched the fabric together. It's not just glued down to make it look like there is a space. I'm over all pleased with the top.
The top is closed with two snaps. Evenly placed so the top stays shut. It's sewn in firmly. These wont be coming off at any point.
Peek at the inside. It's very nice! These guys are seriously professionals. By the way they are not created in a factory like most cosplay sites. These guys work as a team. And they do a good job!!! The inside is silk or whatever (Not good with fabrics) but is smooth and will help keep me cool.
Oh gosh. This is my favorite part. When I tried it on my hubby said I swim in it. I do. I'm short but that's good! This skirt is supposed to be long and flair out onto the floor. And it does. It's soft fabric, most likely silk or chiffon. Very smooth, flawless. It's not cheap fabric like the fabric on my other cosplay that I bought from the site we used to buy from.
Close up of the inner skirt. Shiny but not cheap shiny. It's very nice!
Inner skirt is closed by a zipper, which does not fall down once zipped up. And a single button. The skirt is heavy but these clip it shut. They are sewn in firmly and flawlessly.
The middle piece of the costume, the corset. It's tight! But it keeps all the pieces together and doesn't slip. I'll have to have help putting it on but that's not an issue for me.
Did I mention the bells are real? The chime beautifully! I'll be very loud and hard to miss at the con.
Close up of the bottom of the corset piece. The bells are so cute! I'm so glad it's real bells. I wasn't sure because most cosplay places don't use real bells. They use fake plastic bells that break or beads. I'm glad they used bells! It made my day. The gold fabric is also really nice! It's soft and smooth and shiny. As well as the red fabric.
Close up on the sakura. There are some small flaws. But they are too small to really notice right away in less your peering face to face with the fabric. Which no one would during a con.
Flaw #1
Little dots of yellow. No big deal. It blends well so you can't really make it out. It's nothing to freak out or be upset about.
Flaw #2
Some of the black parts are over lapping the yellow middle. But once again like all the other flaws it isn't something that is noticed right away. I'm not upset in the least.
See? You can't notice the flaws at all! It's really nice. I'm very pleased with the fabric choices and how everything has turned out. This piece does work like a corset. It makes my waist look slim and small. I love it.
Back side. It's cut as it should be. I'm amazed by how closely they looked at the details. These guys put their heart into making these pieces. They really show off their talents and I'm proud to be wearing their art.
It's shut by thick Velcro. I'm not a fan of velcro but it'll stay shut. The only issue is that it'll have to be closed by someone else. But once again that isn't an issue with me. I cosplay with my hubby.
See how flawless the fabrics are sewn together? It's very nice. They did a great job.
The outer skirt. This goes on before the corset. It's heavy but stays on with walking and movement. It jingles! All the bells work and is music to my ears. No flaws.
This piece is hard to explain because there are multiple parts of it. It flairs and covers the inner skirt so the inner skirt looks like a flower.
There are three sections of "strips" (With sakuras on the bottom.) When worn over the inner skirt the two side sakura "strips" fall on the sides making it look nice and full. The other one is on the back.
Close up on the bottom. It's flawless. I like it a lot. Everything is correct detail wise.
Close up of the side detail on the outer skirt.
The three sakuras. I'll need to iron it out a bit but at least they neatly packed everything inside that box! I bet it save us a lot of money having it in a small box.
Another view of the sakura detail.
The outer skirt in full. Lots of bells! I'll be so cheerful. I love it. CLAMP's styles their outfits so they are eye catching and unique, this piece has caught that. And a lot of people have trouble creating them in real life. This team did a wonderful job bringing it to life.
Another view more of the top part. It's sewn on firmly. Nothing will be falling off. They thought of everything carefully when creating these pieces.
Last view. The fabric colors are dead on. I'll show the artbook versions at the very end. They did a good job picking the colors.
Sakura Wig
- Very full
- Can't see netting when moved
- As shown on the site
- The color is a brown/honey color
Sakura wig (Middle) is very natural and real looking. It's soft to the touch, full and as I said above it doesn't show netting. The brown wig on the right is the wig for Syaoran (Bought from another site) and is very thin. So I'm glad it's thick and not like that one. Their wigs are well made and real.
The headdress is also as seen on the site. One flower did fall off when I move the headdress and I must have placed it back on the wrong spot. There is an empty spot now on the left. So I'll just put it there. This is how it'll look on the wig during the con. The bangs might need be trimmed a bit, they are loooong. But that's a good thing. I can style it to fit my face.
Empty spot. I'm guessing the flower went there. The top part of the band is like the flowers sold in art stores. They can pop off and be placed else where on the band. So I like it a lot. It's very pretty and better than the foam one I would have had to make it myself. I was so glad they sold these. If you want one you'll have to ask about it in a e-mail. It's not yet on their site.
Close up on the flower. This picture also show the nice color of the wig.
The bottom of the strings have lovely little silver half balls. I like them. They are very eye catching.
Can't see the netting. That's how a good cosplay wig should be.
They did a good job with details. Sakura's wig has a little pony on top and they did a good job on making it stay up without damaging the whole top part of the wig like it is with our cheap Syaoran wig.
Side view. They got the side strands like they should be. Not too thick but thick enough to look like how Sakura has it in both CC and Tsubasa.
Back view. I love how fluffy it looks! It's cut correctly too.
Overall scores
Syaoran outfit- 4 1/2 (Would have been a five but there are stains)
Sakura's outfit-4 1/2 (Only thing I would change is having it all in pieces)
Sakura wig-Five stars (Perfect)
Sakura's matching headdress- Five stars (No flaws)
Overall I'm impressed with this company. We will be buying from the again in the near future. They are very kind, answer all the questions asked, are patient. The shipping is fast when not during a busy period and Fedex shipping is the way to go when shipping through other countries. It does cost more but is worth it in the end. Keep in mind these costumes are custom made and they do not have pre-made costumes even through they do list sizes. You can have your costume made to fit your measurements without an extra fee! Their wigs are nice and will last a long time if taken care of right. All the styling you need to do is trim the bangs to fit your face and shake it out. The costumes all fit and were not missing any pieces. Everything came on time, before the date Fedex said it was supposed to. That's impressive. The people who crafted these pieces pay close attention to detail and make the costumes based off the original designs without missing any key parts. The make time for the costumes is around 15 days. That is not a long wait. But make sure you give yourself enough time and order around Two-three months ahead of your con in case it is a busy period. Feel free to ask the CosplayHolic members questions. They are very kind and will answer them for you.
Would I recommended this site to others?
Yes! We'll be buying from them again. Not only do they not charge extra for doing custom sizing but they are also willing to take commissions for any costume they don't have on their site or ebay account. They always speak English (Or at least understand what you type) so don't worry about having any misunderstandings.
Overall score of this company- Five stars.
I hope you check out their site and give them a try. I know I cannot wait to prance around in my lovely Sakura hanfu during the many cons to come. This is one cosplay I will always love and will be proud to wear. If anyone asks where we bought our costumes I wont be ashamed to tell them we bought them at CosplayHolic. In a world where most cosplay sites steal pictures and use cheap fabric or miss key parts of the cosplay, this site is a gem among stones. It was nice working with them and I'm glad we got our costumes in time for the up-coming con in nine days. You can also check out their facebook page for more reviews and words from buyers.
Please make sure you always do your research before buying anything online. Some sites carry stolen pictures. Some sites have poor and slow shipping. Save yourself from the hassle and do a little research. I did my research on this company BEFORE we contacted them. I felt comfortable ordering from this company. I cannot wait to buy more from them in the future. My fiance and I plan on cosplaying for the rest of lives. Even teach our future children about the fun hobby of cosplay. So we are so glad we have finally found a site where we can buy costumes that we cna't make ourselves.
Thank you for reading I hope you have found the answers you were researching. If not please feel free to ask me anything. Either through one of the link provided below or through comments.
Happy cosplaying.
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