Something That's Not My Style - But I Love It, Anyway!

Here's another topic from the Lolita 52 challenge from FYeahLolita -- I feel like everyone who follows this fashion sees a certain style and adores it, but wouldn't wear it. The one that I, personally, think of is something that I think a lot of people like but don't want to wear:

OTT Sweet Lolita

You know the kind I'm talking
about.

Giant petticoats, bigger hair, a dozen bows and clips of various sizes, rings on every finger, brooches, crazy prints, themed purses-- in other words, exactly what was going on when I first jumped into Lolita fashion (which was about a year after the rerelease of Sugary Carnival) . Coordinates that want to blend pastel-colored Hime-inspired wigs with Decora style and pour it onto a Lolita outfit take a lot of work, and a lot of accessories.

I really do love the style; it's so much fun. Being elegant or princessy is great, of course, but it's the difference between going to your favorite coffee shop and hanging out at a festival.

We still have OTT Sweet Lolita today, but it's definitely changed in the last few years. Far less about pastel vomit and candy-colored wigs, and more about maximum opulence. Every coordinate is a work of art that is painstakingly prepared like this Crystal Dream Carnival outfit that I just can't get enough of.

Seriously, click those links. This coord is
a masterpiece.

As you can see, today's OTT Sweet focuses less on having the biggest hair and the most accessories, and is instead about craftsmanship. This is being reflected by the brands most obviously by the fabric they're using. There's less straight-up cotton going around, and more organdy, shantung, jacquard, and lots of chiffon.

I keep thinking about trying to eventually pull together one or two OTT Sweet coords just to have in my closet for when I don't want to wear black or be so serious, but that's a long way off, at the moment. If I did, I might go with Angelic Pretty's Dream Sky or Marshmallow Bunny.

 

What is a style that you love, but probably wouldn't wear? Let me know in the comments below!

My New Garden!

The 365 Lifestyle Lolita Challenge topic for April 12th was "Create a wishlist of flowers you would plant in a garden," but because my garden shopping for this year was coming up soon, anyway, I decided to turn it into a blog post about my new balcony gardens!

Sage, lavender, rosemary

Sweet basil, onion chives, and lemon
thyme

They're so cute~ I plan on hunting down some other plants that the stores we went to didn't have (Since two of my planters have space for more), but for now, we've got quite the collection!

Lavender and Rosemary

Sweet basil

Lemon thyme

I love keeping an herb garden for making tea, cooking, and for a few other things (sage makes a great rinse for brown hair), and I'm very excited to have one again! Before now, I've always lived in a stand-alone dwelling and had a yard, so my plants could go directly in the ground, but this is my first time in an apartment. Railing planters were necessary. They're easy enough to put up, but I would definitely recommend putting them all together during the day (instead of at night, like me).

I'm also ecstatic to have these! They might look like regular old strawberry plants, but these are, in fact, pineberries!

Ripe pineberries-- mine probably won't
look this pretty.

Pineberries are a hybridization of the Chilean and Virginia strawberries, and were originally native to South America. White with red seeds, these little berries are supposed to taste like pineapples! I first learned about these in early 2011, when I was researching hybrid foods for a project about genetically modified organisms in a high school Microbiology class, but these little guys wouldn't be available commercially in the U.S. until a year later.

Because they didn't do "well" ("critical responses were mixed" says Wikipedia), pineberries were restyled as "Hulaberries" in 2015 and can now be found as plants in Home Depot. In fact, while desperately trying to hunt down chamomile at 9:30pm, that's where I stumbled upon them and eagerly snatched up a set of starters!

  

Now, if I had the space to grow flowers, I'd probably stick with snapdragons, marigolds, geraniums, and roses. I could probably squeeze some snapdragons and marigolds out onto the real balcony, but definitely not rose bushes. One day, I'll have a yard again!

What are some flowers that you all would like to plant? What do you like to keep in your garden? Let me know or link me to your own blog posts in the comments below!

The Witch's Apprentice (Coordinate)

The April 15th 365 Lifestyle Lolita Challenge was to build a coordinate around your newest dress. For me, that's my Sorcerer's Horoscope JSK in black and white by Baby, the Stars Shine Bright.

Quick Outfit Rundown:

Jsk: Sorcerer's Horoscope (BtSSB)
OTKs: Astronomical Clock (IW)
Headbow: Logo Ribbon Charm Headbow (AP)
Blouse/Shoes: Offbrand

I decided to opt for something more simple, even though the dress itself is super fancy... mostly because I'm lacking in the "fancy" department! Most of my wardrobe was built around the idea of wearing Lolita several times a week, so a lot of what I have is toned down or casual. Still, I can't resist pairing that JSK with this lovely Angelic Pretty headbow!

Another quick 365 Topic from this past week was "What dress are you currently coveting?" While my wishlist is quite extensive, recently I've been daydreaming the most about Angelic Pretty's Holy Lantern and Horror Garden JSKs.

 

It doesn't help that everyone's been getting their Holy Lantern orders recently! So jealous! And Horror Garden at my last check was still selling for well over its retail price. Maybe in a year or so it'll go down, and I'll be able to get my hands on it.

What dress are you currently coveting? Let me know in the comments below! And share pictures of coordinates you've made with your recent purchases!

Purses That I Love

So, this is another topic from F Yeah Lolita's Lolita 52 Challenge, and I thought it would be enjoyable to blog about. If I ever decide to stop wearing Lolita fashion for good, the fun and adorable bags might be one of the few things that I carry over into "regular" life. In fact, the bag I use for everyday now is one I use in Lolita, too.

Ignore Usakumya for a hot second and focus on the beaded purse
next to her!

I dug this up at an antique mall for less than $20, and I was surprised to find out that it was made in the 1950s. It's made from a fine knit, embroidered with tiny pink roses and beads woven throughout the material, a style known as Corde. I believe it was popularized by a brand called Lumured, but because the Google is being fussy about telling me more about the terms "Lumured" and "Corde," I can't tell for sure. But if you're interested in finding a purse like this, then they're the two keywords that will hunt it down for you!

Other (actual) Lolita bags that I'm obsessed with are two more that I luckily already own!

Innocent World's Angel Three-Way Bag

When Innocent World first came out with the Angel accessories, I thought they were tacky as hell (in a good way, but I didn't think I'd ever use them for Lolita-- I was proven wrong when they made Cesky Krumlov). Tacky or not, I fell in love with this bag, and really wanted it for school!

Especially since you can convert it into a cute
little backpack!

I'm pleased to say that it actually worked pretty well. It doesn't fit a laptop by any means, but it's been a wide-spreading trend at my university for instructors to ban them. That leaves plenty of room for notebooks, pencils, my wallet and keys, and occasionally a textbook or two if they're small enough.

Baby, the Stars Shine Bright's Usakumya

Of course, I can't talk about Lolita bags and not bring up Usakumya.

My poor college roommate was so disturbed when I opened up the package carrying my pink Usakumya Pochette. "It's eyes are red, it's demonic!" cried literally everyone who saw it. To which I always pointed out that they were, in fact, hot pink, but they chose to ignore that fact. Actually, my roommate ended up naming her. After shooting down some more colorful options, we settled on Ruby.

As much as I love Ruby, she's very small and doesn't hold much. I've been able to get by with her at conventions, primarily by carrying my cash loose, without a wallet. I'm not too worried about the ease of theft. Have you ever tried to open one of these? The zipper, unlike the one on the larger specimens, is located on top of the head, underneath the bunny-eared hood. I'd definitely notice if someone tried to pick that pocket.

As much of a pain as it is to use her as an actual purse, I still desperately want a whole collection of Baby's stuffed animal bags! Usakumya of every size and color, and even a few of the Kuma Kumyas!

What are some Lolita purses that you love? Let me know in the comments below!

Lace and Giverny!

There were recently a couple of easy-to-do challenges for the Lolita Lifestyle 365 page, so I decided to combine them into one post. First, we were supposed to photograph something with lace on it.

I have a vintage nightgown/dressing gown set that I found with really pretty lace detailing, so I thought it would be perfect for this!

Another challenge that I really liked was "Make a coordinate based off a city." Of course, I was very tempted to pick "Paris," but then I thought "You know, Paris wasn't my favorite city in France." So, I chose the village of Giverny.

What is Giverny, you might ask? Well...

Giverny is a small town in the north of France, and, in my opinion, is one of the most beautiful places in the world. I can't explain why I love it so much, but the fact that this is where Monet lived and painted from 1883 until his death in 1926 certainly helps. In fact, this is where he painted his famous waterlilies!

You can see why I love it so much. It's just gorgeous, and there are few better fashions to capture that beauty than Lolita! I just hope I managed to pull it off:

I decided that a Mary Magdalene floral print would be best, and I centered everything around flowers! For the hair, I thought something princess-y or almost bridal would finish off the romanticized village lady, topped with a Victorian Maiden floral corsage or a delicate Moi-même-Moitié ribbon.

Dream Dress Aesthetic Collages

March 18th's 365 Lolita Lifestyle Challenge was "Create a collage of your favorite dress and beautiful images in the same color." I'm going to pick two of my longest-running dream dresses for this-- how do you pick just one?

First, we have Innocent World's Fairy Tale print. I already have this print in green and in the highwaisted JSK, but the black, square JSK has always been my favorite. One day, I'll own it.

Then, I made a collage for another original dream dress, Mary Magdalene's Fraise Cerise OP in red and white. I fell in love with this dress when I was first researching different substyles, and a magazine shoot of it was added onto the LoitaFashion.org Country Lolita page. The image immediately stole my heart. Mary Magdalene is one of those brands that I never think about getting, because I don't think I'll ever fit into it, but it rekindles my love for Lolita every time I see it, whether worn or on a mannequin.

For funsies, here's the photoshoot image that I was talking about!

Too beautiful, I melt every time!

Did you make any aesthetic collages for dream dresses? If you did, link them to me down in the comments, I'd love to see them!

How I Fell in Love With Lolita

I saw this on a list of blog topics posted by another Lolita in my comm, and it's a story that I like to share!

Mostly because I get to gush about French pop music lol

I was about 13 and in the 8th grade when I first heard the term "Lolita." Surprisingly, it was neither the fashion nor the book; it was the song "Moi... Lolita" by the French pop singer Alizée Jacotey.

I had to choose a famous French person to do a project on for my French language class, and because I was lazy, I picked the first female singer on the Wikipedia list. I don't regret my decision, though, I really enjoy her music! Anyway, "Moi... Lolita" was her first hit, and the song that made her famous, and I had no idea what the term "Lolita" meant. So, I typed it into the Wikipedia search bar, and a few things popped up.

Of course, the book was top of the list (and is what the song is referencing), but my eyes fell onto another article: Lolita Fashion. While this article is the last place I'd ever direct anyone to learn about the fashion, it's still the page that put the idea into my mind.

These were the first pictures of Lolita fashion that I'd ever seen, but I can't say that it was love at first sight, like so many others that I know! I liked it, sure, but this was the "costuming" I used in a chapter of one of my earlier National Novel Writing Month books. It took me six or seven years to finally decide to start wearing it.

While these Old School outfits were what first attracted me, the pieces that brands were putting out the year I started really researching were very different.

I know that Baby and AP weren't the only two brands doing anything in 2013, but these were the prints that I remember the most vividly from when I started.

I came in on the end of the OTT Sweet trend, right before the waistlines started rising and the hemlines started falling. Baby. the Stars Shine Bright quickly became my favorite, but Angelic Pretty influenced a lot of my decisions during my first year. I went on an Etsy bender and bought a dozen sweets-themed accessories (none of which I have anymore), and my first co-ord featured a cupcake-printed circle-skirt and a cake slice headband that I'd made out of felt.

Since then, my style has switched from Pastel Princess to more Old School Sweet/Classic. While I was making my wardrobe post for this year, I could hardly believe that a year before, my closet had been almost entirely pink! I actually rather miss the pink, but that's a problem for another time.

How did you fall in love with Lolita? What was the fashion like when you first started? Leave comments or links below and let me know!