1) Do you wear lolita everyday, whenever you can, or only at meets?
I mainly wear lolita to meets, and when the weather is cooler, I'd wear it when I really feel up to it on my days off. If I live in a less conservative area and had a much bigger disposable income, I think I'd feel more comfortable wearing on a weekly basis.
2) How many ott vs normal looking vs casual or toned down main pieces and accessories do you own?Probably 1 over the top piece and the rest being comparatively toned downed pieces and accessories. The ott piece isn't very ott by today's standards, but it has many ruffles and it's hard to coordinate for just going out casually in.
I'm actually in the process of selling half of my wardrobe, but this might give you an idea of what my style is/was like.
3) Do you own more prints or basic color pieces?
I own more patterns with simple prints or simple prints than solid colors now, but it used to be quite the opposite. It would be nice to own one OTT print.
4) What color schemes are the ones you like wearing the most? (please be specific, don't just say "red" or "pink" but specify what they look like or what hue they are)
Definitely reds. There aren't any specific shades I prefer since the color itself tends to work with my skintone, but I absolutely hate reds as well because it's so hard to coordinate accessories like head-bows and shoes because brands version of reds are not created equally (it doesn't help that I tend to shop second hand, and so for some reason, sellers tend to sell the pieces separately, making it hard to hunt matching sets). If it were easier to find and not as expensive, I'd like to own more navy and other jeweled toned pieces, especially in plum (seriously, why are dark purples are hard to find?!). I'm ok with muted pastels like a dusty pink, in particular, but I have to avoid Earthy tones and regular pastels.
I also have a fondness for all black pieces, as I've expressed in one of my previous posts.
5) How do you like your hair/wigs? Any length, color or hairstyle?
I've almost always worn my hair naturally. I have a natural colored and styled wig (though a different color than my own), but I've grown to hate it because the maintenance and fitting. Maybe I'll have better luck with a different brand. My hair is currently longer than bob length which I curl sort of a Kimbra style, but when it was long, I've had it up in a donut bun, a ponytail (curled or uncurled) for casual looks, and curled as well.
6) Is there any particular trend that you love?
Not really a trend, but I like that old-school looks are sort of making a come-back, and the coordinates are way more cohesive than in the past. I also kind of have a thing for coordinates worn without blouses.
I'm kind of weird when it comes to trends. I usually enjoy seeing new things get tried with lolita up until (new) people without a sense of direction start piling on all sorts of trendy items at once. I'm usually a quiet observer: doing my own thing, a little behind on the times (I've gotten comments about my wardrobe being out of date), and seeing new things crop up every month. I think part of it has to do with the very nature of Harajuku youth street fashions - it's been like this since Harajuku became a neighborhood for American families to settle down in. Close proximity to everything created a lot of trends and micro-trends to appear at an alarming rate, and the internet is making it much faster that I feel exhausted by the whole thing. I've seen a lot happen in the past ten years, and although I've expressed interest in expanding my style, I'm also quite content wearing what I like, how I like to.
7) Do you consider yourself sweet, classic, gothic, a combination of some, or wear all styles?
I've worn all three styles, but I think non-ott classic suits me the best.
8) What substyles of lolita do you like? Sailor Lolita? Country Lolita? Punk Lolita?
Definitely sailor lolita which sucks because a lot of the pieces tend to run small or a bit of a challenge to wear because of the big collars, and there aren't as many open neck cutsews or blouses to wear sailor dresses with. I usually wear country lolita in the summer and I still find it very endearing because of the old-school elements like gingham and fruit prints.
9) What other fashions do you wear?
My every day style is really boring (t-shirts and jeans), at least until the weather gets cooler so I can start layering pieces;as for J-Fashion, I've given mori-girl and fairy-kei a try, but I've found that otome-kei and ojikawa-kei suits me best. I seriously can't wait to bust out the tights and skirts, and dressy pants and sweaters!
I adore neo-dandy looks that take inspiration from preppy Ivy League fashion and classic Ralph Lauren pieces. It makes me sad that dandyism is almost exclusively a male-centric fashion (thanks, Beau Brummel), but I'm glad that while unpopular, Ojikawa-kei is a thing for girls who want to meld cuteness with masculine pieces.
I've always wanted to wear a bonnet. I love hats and have a sizable collection to wear with lolita, but never a bonnet because I've found them quite risky to wear, and even if it were flattering, they'd be saved for fancy meets which seldom occur in my community, and so I haven't found it economical to buy one yet.
11) What themes influence you the most and build your wardrobe around?
I guess for my more OTT attempts because old-school styles are near and dear to my heart, I quite like the antique doll look: lots of frills, lace, and ruffles, ringlets, peaking bloomers, and clunky heels. I love witches and fairytales, but don't really do any costume-like coordinates, unfortunately.
For everything else, I like polkadots, florals, berries, and pastry prints (like bold Emily Temple Cute patterns rather than Melty Cream Donut). My eyes tend to seek out for these things when I'm window shopping.
12) What outer sources influence you in lolita? (Examples: Betsy Clark, Holly Hobbie, Sanrio, a play, a movie, an anime, a book, etc)
My wardrobe doesn't accurately reflect this, but I really look up to Audrey Hepburn as a person as much as she an actress and style icon. I like the idea of (wearing) timeless classics and combining comfort with style, as well as (an appearance of) effortlessness. Over the top styles are fun, but simply not for me, and I think I'm my most happiest when I'm comfy. I also adore the costumes Mary Lennox wore in The Secret Garden (1993), and I often find myself wearing coordinates inspired by them. I like the idea of dressing up as an upper-middle class child living out in a country estate (because young women/women my age would have already been wearing long skirts with bustles, however, I've always wanted to try aristocrat). I also enjoy darker versions of classic lolita (since I don't really go full on Goth) and wear kuro lolita, emulating some kind of mourning attire inspired coordinate.
13) And finally, what time period do you like mixing in your lolita wardrobe the most?
I think it's a mix of (but not altogether) Edwardian children's wear for fancier meets, and mid-1950s through 1960s for casual ones. I absolutely love pinafore dresses and I'm still on the hunt for Meta's pintuck tiered jsks in almost all of the colorways. I think it's an interesting time period because it was when children were breaking away from dressing up like their parents, and their clothes were back to being kid-centric, making it easier to romp around in.
I enjoy visiting vintage stores/antique malls/retro upcycling boutiques for much of my lolita accessories, and I love trying on pill box hats and coordinating them with lolita. I also like pieces such as simple peter pan collared cutsews, Meta's letter jacket styled parkas (I regret selling mine), and mod pumps (why are these so hard to find?!). I like the idea of making retro coordinates inspired by Jackie-O. Due to being a person of color, I wouldn't have been welcomed in the 1950s-60s, but I certainly love the fashions, even when crinoline skirts stopped being in vogue.
I'd really like to try a 1920s inspired coordinate someday, even though it's the antithesis of lolita fashion, although, I do recall Juliette et Justine once making overtly frilly pieces inspired by 1920s evening wear.
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