January 2018 Mood: Cozy, Red, and Classic

Instead of Style Inspiration, I figured it would be easier just to do monthly mood collages based on what sort of Lolita style I'm feeling. This month, I've been really into a sort of Classic color palette based around red, brown, and green. Mostly, I've been eyeballing a lot of Baby, the Stars Shine Bright products because I ended up placing a small order from BtSSB New York to celebrate the end of my two-year break from school.

Recently, I've been really enjoying a few different key things: Underbust JSKs, more casual-style pullovers, cozy cardigans, bonnets, and lace-up sort of OTKs. I actually have the red-and-white Baby OTKs on order along with a pair of pink ribbon hair ties and an Usakumya pen (which is going to be my special note-taking pen for my only in-person class this semester).

Of course, any school set for me won't be complete without my Innocent World Angel Wing bag - it's just the right size for some notebooks, a textbook, and a few other odds-and-ends like wallets and things. Just skip it if you bring a laptop to class.

Here are a few coords I've mocked up; most of them are simple, easy outfits to wear to class. I've never been big on too many accessories, so most of them use minimal accouterments or the design details on the pieces themselves, such as the decorative collars of the blouse and turtleneck.

What are some color palettes or styles that you've been leaning towards this month? Let me know down below!

The Work-Ready Lolita

My life has literally been revolving around my new job for the last couple of months, and that means that most things have been put on a back-burner: this blog, for instance, and definitely Lolita fashion. Of course, my employer has a loose, if kind of odd dress code, so I've been daydreaming about the coordinates I could throw together for work. I used to wear it often when I worked at my university bookstore, and the habit of trying to figure it out is hard to break.

In my experience, most new Lolitas, or people planning on getting into the fashion, start out wanting to go full-stop Lifestyler, and figuring out how to coordinate for work can be the most daunting: does the dress code allow for Lolita, will my coworkers complain or harass me for it, will my boss mind? So, I decided to make this post all about navigating the waters of the Work-Ready Lolita!

1. How to Decide if You Can or Should Wear Lolita

This is probably the most important section to consider-- you absolutely need to conform to your place of work's dress code. Knowing the clothing rules inside and out is imperative, but here are some other things to consider:

• Does my job require a uniform? The simplest part of this process is the uniform. Obviously, if you have a full set (slacks, company shirt, etc.) that you have to wear, then wear it. Leave the Lolita at home. Other places have partial uniforms (I have a work cardigan, but can otherwise wear whatever within the rules).
• Is Lolita comfortable enough or appropriate for my work duties? Even if you can technically wear a full coordinate to work, you have to ask yourself if you can honestly do your job in your frills. For instance, if you do a lot of moving around for most of the day or do a lot of bending and lifting, then a dress might not be the best choice. And keeping your outfit comfortable will have a surprising effect on your demeanor: if you're wearing a pair of shoes that you can barely stand for the length of a meetup, then wearing them to work isn't a good idea.
• Are some days better for wearing Lolita than others? Many retail workers, like myself, know that shift length can vary wildly, from four or fewer hours all the way up to twelve or more! Shorter shifts are going to be more Lolita-friendly than long ones.
• Ask your manager if it's okay. This is the best piece of advice I can give you: ask your manager or supervisor, and do it before you wear Lolita to work. This is the most surefire way to figure out if you'll be allowed to wear Lolita, and you might be surprised! Just be sure to bring pictures of your dresses and coordinates, if you have them, to give your manager an better idea.

2. Tips for Dressing in Lolita While At Work

Fannie Rosie is my ultimate Lolita style icon,
even if she doesn't wear Lolita a whole lot,
anymore. Her outfits are great examples of a
work-appropriate way of coordination.

Now, assuming that you've checked everything above and have decided that you can finagle a Lolita coordinate, you have to figure out how to pull it off appropriately! 

• Find your base color - Most companies have certain colors associated with them, or will require you to wear neutrals. If you can make sure your coordinate utilises these, then it will look profoundly more professional. Sticking with black, white, navy, and grey is usually the best way to go.
• Make it work with your uniform - As I said above, my job and others only require a partial uniform. As long as I have my black cardigan, I'm pretty good. Luckily, I also have a lot of pieces that not only go well with black, but also look better with a black cardigan or bolero, anyway. If you have a similar partial uniform, then make part of your wardrobe work with it!
• Styles and prints - Be smart about the kinds of styles you wear to work. You do still need to look professional to a certain extent, and not every Lolita print pulls that off. And I'm not pointing a finger at the super-Sweet Lolitas and the carousel or bunny prints: Classic girls, I'd advise you to swap out your bonnets for a simple floral corsage or side-bow, and my Gothic sisters will want to leave the skulls and bats at home and instead choose jeweled cabochons.
• Keep your hair and makeup work appropriate - Unless you work in a salon, bright pink hair  or the super-teased Mana pigtails are likely not going to fly with your employer, nor will having glitter all over your eyes. Go back to old-school Lolita, when hair was often straight or pulled into a cute or elegant style: braids and buns are perfect, here!
• Go easy on the petti - You don't need me to tell you that the petticoat is the natural predator of all things that live on a desk or a low shelf. Smaller petticoats are easier to move in and are less destructive; if you can live with your outfit not being whole-hog Lolita, maybe ditch the petti altogether.
• Avoid the Brandwhore Print - If you don't know what I mean by "brandwhore print," then please take a look at the FYeahLolita! post all about them. A lot of places, especially retail, don't appreciate it when their employees wear logos; even if no one at the office knows what Innocent World is, it still counts as a logo. If the brand name is subtle enough and you aren't sure, absolutely ask your supervisor if it's okay.

3. Biting the Bullet -- Skipping the Frills

Let's face it: Lolita is obviously not appropriate for every job, and you won't be able to get away with it. However, there's nothing wrong with still wanting to look cute and elegant. Little touches here and there will make your time away from your wardrobe more bearable.

• Every Day Elegance - The very first thing I'm going to point you toward is the FYeahLolita! post about bringing touches of Lolita into your everyday life, as well as the one about dressing more maturely. This is mostly directed towards people who want to start bringing more Lolita themes into their lifestyle at large, and people who feel they're growing out of the more childish aspects of the fashion, but they still apply very much to Work-Ready Lolita.
• Have a kawaii area - Keep something kawaii and your style near your locker or desk to brighten your day, like Sanrio writing utensils or Rilakkuma post-its or memo paper. Your coworkers will probably think it's adorable or charmingly quirky, and so may your clients (if they happen to get a look). 
• Be subtly kawaii - Accessories are your friends. Pearls are easily one of the most versatile forms of jewelry in the Lolita world, and they're usually 100% acceptable to wear to work. If you have a looser dress code, it can be easy to wear something fancier or otherwise more noticeable, like bow clips and floral corsages. Shoot, I have a fuzzy, mint green bow with pastel stars sewn on that I occasionally wear to my job.
• Don't be afraid to be That Employee - Be Brittany from Accounting who always wears a fun necklace on Friday. Or Sam from HR who likes to wear lace-trimmed, puff-sleeved blouses. Or even Bri the Receptionist who has the damn adorable and kind of weird bunny-bear for a purse. Your coworkers and supervisors care less than you think they do, and it'll very easily become another personality trait that they know you by.

Not all of us can live the 24/7 Kawaii Lifestyle, and that's okay. But there are always ways of bringing each area of your life back to Lolita, whether that be wearing simple black-and-white coordinates or taking all of your meeting notes with a Sentimental Circus pen.

Lolita 365 Cluster: Coordinate Challenges

I'm sorry that this post was late! I recently started a new job, and they've been having me very busy with training!

There have been a couple of themed coordinate challenges on Lace a la Mode's page in the last week, so I thought I could throw them together in this post! Let's get started~

Day 163: Design a Coordinate Based on a Book

I actually did a couple of these a long time ago, centered around the main characters of the Gregory Maguire novel, Wicked.

"The Glindaberry Bush" is from a very specific scene in the novel: it's just after the death of Nessarose, the Wick Witch of the East, and Glinda and Elphaba have a strained reunion. The description of Glinda's style is quite outrageous, and perfect for OTT Sweet/Hime Lolita.

The Elphaba coordinate was a lot of fun, since she was the main character and there are so many symbols to associate with her. Almost all of it translated into accessories, such as the Innocent World bag for the Grimmerie, the black rose-patterned scarf, the flying monkey pin, the broomstick necklace, and the mirror ring. Of course, we also had to throw in a big, beautiful witch's hat and a couple of other Gothic accessories to round out the look.

Finally, I had to make a coordinate for Nessarose. In the books, she's described as being very much style savvy in her youth. During her introduction scene, as a teenager, she's described as wearing apple-green silk and a black shawl that all of the students at Shiz university wear. Along with a pair of silver beaded shoes (the Ruby Slippers were originally silver, though in Wicked they were described as having no color), I also added in a crucifix (she was extremely religious in life), and some more generic Classic-styled headwear, tights, and wristcuffs.

Day 164: Design a coordinate using contrasting colors

Lavender and yellow is my favorite Sweet color combo! That's part of the reason why I love Angelic Pretty's Sugar Pansy so much in the yellow colorway. I also would like to pair yellow with the lavender Dream Sky print.

Did you do any of these challenges this week? What's your favorite contrasting or complimentary color combo? Let me know in the comments below!

365 Lolita Lifestyle Photography Challenges

There were lots of topics for this challenge since the end of May that have had to do (or I made do) with pictures, so I decided to put them all on one post!

Day 148: Carry Something to Take Notes On and Fill it With the Wonderful Things About Your Day

Or: I took a long walk around the lake and took pictures of some of the good things I saw.

Day 151: Photograph Your Favorite Lolita Purse

Ruby had a long day at Colossalcon-- I loaned her and the rest of a coordinate to a friend. She's been chilling in my desk ever since.

Day 154: Design a Coordinate Based on a Uniform

This is usually a pretty easy challenge: there are a lot of pieces, particularly Angelic Pretty, that look like they were inspired by the typical school uniform. Lots of pleated skirts, and plenty of sailor-collar-styled tops and dress bodices. I wanted to try something different, though I can see a lot of other people trying this out for their uniform of choice, too.

This is based on the girl's uniform from Ouran High School Host Club. It's definitely a warmer outfit because of the layers, but using a cutsew instead of a blouse should help that.

June Style Theme - Strawberries

For me, June has always been the true beginning of Summer - the weather is hot and sunny, school lets out, and I have Colossalcon to start it off (two more days!). This year, I have something extra special to bring in the new season.

Strawberries come into season this month, and that includes my special Pineberry plants. These are a sweet way to kick off your summer, and easy to incorporate into your Lolita life!

1. Wear a Berry Print

This one's the most obvious. Every year, the brands put out berry prints, usually in spring. 2016 has so far seen Baby, Angelic Pretty, Meta, and Innocent World release strawberry-covered dresses, most of them featuring strawberry desserts, but you can almost certainly find plenty of older releases on the secondhand sales.

2. Go Berry Picking, or to a Farmer's Market

A lot of Lolita comms have berry-picking meets in the summer, but don't just restrict yourself to meetups! Picking your own strawberries, and even getting them at a local farmer's market, is often cheaper than buying them at the store. Besides, you usually find better-tasting berries that way. Just be sure that, if you choose to go to a Farmer's Market, you go early-- strawberries are one of the fastest-selling items!

3. Dress Up Your Outfits With Strawberries

If you don't want to shell out for the hottest strawberry print, then don't worry-- strawberry accessories are everywhere, and come in many styles. It's easy to throw them into any Classic or Sweet wardrobe, even if all you have are solid pieces.

4. Learn How to Cook or Bake With Strawberries

Of course, if you're going to go out and buy strawberries, you might as well learn fun things to do with them! Besides making a great, easy snack, you can throw them into all kinds of recipes, from pies and cakes to salads, spreads, and drinks.

5. Wear a Strawberry Scent

Even in mainstream fashion, strawberries are popular summer themes. Cute, cheap lip gloss or perfume are easy to find anywhere, and add a touch of the berry craze to your outfits even outside of Lolita.

Water Lilies: The Dress Print I Desperately Need to See!

There was a 365 Lifestyle Lolita challenge topic last week that asked us what paintings would we like to see on a dress. Of course, the first thing to spring to my mind was a Monet Lily print!

The Water Lily Pond

I know that Juliette et Justine sort of has the monopoly on painting dresses, right now, but if I could pick another brand to make a Monet dress, I'd be interested to see a Victorian Maiden or even Moitie spin on my favorite artist.

Nymphéas reflets de saule, or The Willow's Waterlily Reflection
by Claude Monet

In fact, with inspiration from the above painting, I threw together a Monet-inspired coordinate on PolyVore using a Moitie JSK!

Monet is known for his floaty colors that can be surprisingly rich; everything is a haze of color, like you're looking through light, and you have to take a step back to see the bigger picture. Moitie's Rose Print JSK is perfect: the chiffon overlay hides the brightness of the orange flowers and has a very watery, Monet-like effect on the print.

Navy is the primary color in the painting, but you can't ever fail to notice the lesser accent colors: after all, nature does not make landscapes in one color, but many. That's why I brought back the light blue and the greens in the accessories.

What are some paintings that you'd like to see as Lolita dresses? Let me know in the comments below!

Trends I Loved, And Now I Don't

For this installment of the Lolita 52 Challenge, I went with a couple of trends that either never took off while I was around or haven't been around for quite some time (and one that will never really go away). Either way, here are a couple of "trends" that I used to really enjoy, but now I really don't.

1. Sweets-themed Sweet Lolita

This literally used to be #1 on my
wishlist.

This was my major obsession when I first got started: my first "coord" was cake-themed, I was in love with the Bodyline sweets prints, and Sweet Cream House was my dream dress. I've long since fallen out of love with this, though a couple of sugary prints are still on my wishlist.

2. Mini Bonnets

Momoko from Kamikaze Girls really inspired my love for them with the embroidered bonnet that started her short-lived career at Baby, the Stars Shine Bright, and I owned a pink BtSSB mini bonnet for a little while, but it looked far too childish on me. I gave it up last year, and now I prefer full-sized Classic or Gothic bonnets. I might snag a mini if I can find it in a nice jewel-tone, though...

3. Character Coordinates

I absolutely made a Mrs. Puff coordinate

I was obsessed with making these on PolyVore for a long time, and they were good practice! I'm particularly proud of the Glinda and Elphaba coordinates. But character-themed coords feel too costumey for me, now, and I want Lolita to feel like real, normal clothes again.

4. Split-Color Wigs



I'm constantly straddling the "do I like wigs or not?" fence, but the split-colored ones were definitely favorites of mine a couple of years ago. Now, when I see wigs like this, I can't help but think "Meh..." Personally, the closest to a split-color that I could see myself buying would be the MintyMix blonde-to-pink fade that's no longer on the website. Otherwise, I'd rather just go with a single color.

What are some trends that you used to love, but don't anymore? Let me know in the comments below!

Share a Piece of Lolita Advice

This was the 365 Lifestyle Lolita topic for April 22nd, but I wanted to really think about this before posting. I've been a part of the fashion for about four years, now, but I still feel like I'm brand new, so being asked to give advice to Lolitas is a little... eh.

I feel more comfortable directing my advice towards new Lolitas, or people who are thinking about jumping into the fashion and are working on their first coordinate. I'm new enough that my own closet is still recovering from newbie mistakes, but I've been around long enough to recognize what my mistakes were, and how to fix them.

So, Floating on Macaron's First Rule of Lolita:

Your Dress is Not the Only Part of Your Coordinate

From lolitafashion.org

This really sounds like a no-brainer, but half of the people I see getting ripped on for being "ita" get it because they're wearing a dress and shoes... and nothing else. You need your petticoat, your blouse or cardigan, your headwear, your socks, and your accessories, and it all has to go well together.

Made with the Sweet LolitaMega Dressup game
on DollDivine

I whipped this up on a dollmaker, and it isn't terribly far off from what I was talking about above. Your dress can be as cute as can be, but this isn't a full outfit, and doesn't look like one. Not for Lolita, anyway. However, a blouse and a few accessories can fix this:

No, I didn't change her facial
expression; this is just what the
doll looks like with lip gloss on.

Lace-topped socks, a white blouse, a pink headbow, pink purse, and a floral corsage make a simple, but very cute coordinate.

My closet fell very hard into this trap: I have tons of dresses, but almost no blouses or proper accessories, and definitely not enough socks. Even my shoes are suffering, because two of my go-to pairs crapped out on me within the last year.

I'm currently holding off on buying new blouses for a few reasons, but that just means I can focus on saving to replace my shoes (I need two or three pairs at least just to round out my outfits) and to collect more accessories (thank God for OPs).

I know that Lolita fashion is expensive, and that even a cheap outfit will still run you around $100, but it's so worth it. If you put in the effort, you'll be rewarded with a very special, beautiful outfit.

What's your first rule of Lolita? Let me know in the comments below!