An*Tai*Na Lolita shoes REVIEW! Antaina, Taobao shop :) Review model 9988B - tips and sizes!

Taobao shop and shoe factory An*Tai*Na makes Lolita shoes in every possible model and colour you could ever dream of!

They also create great cosplay, punk and other alternative fashion style shoes.

The prices are amazing - even including long distance shipping.

This is my review of my order from An*Tai*Na.

International orders are handled through email with the manager, missyoyo0510@gmail.com

I first browsed through Antainas Taobao site and settled for two pairs of low-heeled Lolita shoes, in gold and red. Model "9988B".

The model is inspired by Baby the Stars Shine Bright "Antique Ribbon Shoes" (<3 thanks to Lolita Fashion Mentor Shannon for info <3) but they are an original An*Tai*Na design, so don't worry about wearing a replica! :)

Miss Yoyo communicates in good English and is very helpful and friendly from start!

She is very concerned that you should order the right size in shoes straight away, and emailed me this picture as to how I should measure my foot:

It wasn't all that easy to measure my foot! I ended up getting different measurements all the time, but luckily I had purchased a pair of (wrong sized) 9988B before in Chinese size 42. 

My Bodyline shoe size is 255, and the 9988Bs in CH sz 42 are 265.

I would use Bodylines shoe size conversion chart to help choose the right shoe size, if you have trouble measuring. 

It's not as complicated as it looks! I.e. I have EU40 (European shoe size 40) that translates into Japanese size "M" 25.5 = 254 mm. M and W stand for Medium or Wide girth, how broad your foot is.

I emailed back and forth to Miss Yoyo, 'cause she insisted me to order a larger size than I thought would be good for me. She was very friendly even through all my insecurity how to make the right measurements, and when I decided to choose Chinese size 41 (25.5 cm shoe inner length), she was quick to make the final order for me!

It seems that the orders are made especially for you. My final email reached Miss Yoyo the 30th October, and she let me know that the factory needed 7-10 work days to complete the products.

Hi Maria,

Please browse the final order by following details:

Model 9988B:

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a1z10.3.w1017-2293476668.37.0GAfuU&id=19245710680&

Color: one in gold and one in burgundy matt, please browse attached 2 photos,

Size: 41 (25.5cm shoes inner length),

USD 32/pair, total USD 64,

Shipping by register airmail to Sweden, USD 37.55, transit time: 12 to 20 working days (please attention: risk of lost parcels by post office system is around 1/100)

Paypal trade fee: USD 4.02

Order total amount: USD 105.57

Delivery plan: we need 7 to 10 days to finish your products,

Please advise parcel address and TEL NO., thank u,

We will send a new payment request within today, please attention it, thank u,

Greetings,

Yoyo

The communication was very clear indeed, Miss Yoyo sent attached photos on the products I wished to buy, as well as the internet link to strictly confirm that there was no misunderstanding when making the order! ^^

Now that is excellent customer service! :D

These are the shoes I ordered.

Price: 32 USD/ pair

Shipping: 37.55 USD

Paypal fee: 4.02

Order total amount: 105.57 USD = 689 SEK (ca 345 SEK per shoe! :)

The shoes where shipped from China (I got a tracking code :) 8th of November and I received the parcel 3 weeks later, the 25th of November.

 The outside of the parcel, plastic bag and brown packing tape.

 Two individually plastic wrapped shoe boxes.

An*tai*na*

 Handwritten colour, code and sizes are accurate!

The shoes are in one plastic bag together (I would have preferred that they are individually wrapped up in one small plastic bag each, so they don't touch each other, but the shoes looks perfect anyway! :)

 One big plastic bag for the shoes.

 Wiii! They are so pretty :D
On this photo, the far left red bow seems to be off-centred, but it is not.
The bows have some degree of moving freedom,
but when I checked they are attached properly and it is easy to centre the bow.
The bows do not deviate from the centre, when I wear the shoes either.

Logo in shoes

Waiting for my next coord ^^

I love these shoes - they make me so happy! :D

The details of the shoes are lovely. You can tell that they have put a lot of design into these shoes - The lace trim, the straps, the heart clasps and the bows!
I also love that the red shoes have dark brown wooden heels and that the gold shoes have lighter brown wooden heels - this makes them harmonise better colour-wise.

They are really comfortable as well and they fit my feet perfectly (probably thanks to Miss Yoyos thoroughness with sizing!).
I can't wait to get them in beige, brown and navy as well (:

REVIEW UPDATE  (1 March 2014) >>>
Over the past 3 months I've been wearing these shoes for several occasions.
They are amazingly comfortable, I've been wearing them for several hours at meet-ups, without feeling sore.
I'm definitely going to get them in more colour ways!

Review:

Did the items match the pictures on Taobao? 5/5 Absolutely!

Where the items of good quality? 5/5 Very good quality, great details.

How was the sellers communication? 5/5 plus stars for being thorough with sizing! :)

Cost versus quality? 5/5 Absolutely affordable!

New (3 months review update) > Comfortable? 5/5 Very comfortable, the heel height makes them gorgeous yet still easy to walk in. 

I'm giving An*tai*na model 9988B 5 out of 5 Hazelbelle nuts! :D

Hope you enjoyed this post!

Hugz/ Mary Hazelbelle