The Lolita Basics
Image from lolitafashion.org
The Skirt - The skirt is arguably the most important part of a good lolita outfit. The standard shape is either bell-shape (pictured above) or A-line. The bell-shaped skirt has extra fabric gathered near the top so that it flares out at the waist with the most volume around the hips. Its flare looks similar to a bell. In comparison, the A-line skirt slowly gets wider as it goes down. The most voluminous part of the A-line is the bottom, so it looks like an A. All skirts should be no more than a few inches above the knees; any larger gap is pushing the boundaries of what can and can't be considered lolita.
Undergarments - Petticoats and bloomers! Petticoats are required to give skirts the iconic lolita poof, and bloomers can give a little more volume to the skirt, keep the petticoat clean, and prevent strangers from seeing your undies if you're hit by an unfortunate gust of wind!
The Blouse - If you're wearing an OP (one piece dress), then you won't need to worry about wearing a blouse. However, you will if you wear a JSK (jumper skirt) or normal skirt. Covering the shoulders is one of lolita's basic requirements! If you wear a JSK and want your outfit to be undeniably lolita, you must wear a blouse underneath it, no matter how hot it is! Alternatively, you can wear a bolero made in a breathable fabric to hide the shoulders but still stay cool.
Shoes - There are no specific rules regarding shoes, besides the fact that they should match the overall aesthetic of the outfit. For example, when wearing a fancy dress, don't wear converse! When you're wearing an all-black outfit, don't wear brown shoes! Shoes that work well with lolita include mary janes, tea parties, the notorious rocking horse shoes, lace-up boots, and miscellaneous fancy heels. Shoes that don't look great are sneakers, almost everything open-toed, excessively steep heels, loafers, and anything else casual-looking.
Socks - Just like the shoulders, a lolita's legs must be covered. Ideally you should wear knee-highs, OTKs (over-the-knees), thigh-highs, or tights; however, recently ankle socks have been growing in popularity.
Headwear - You must wear something on your head, even if it's only a small bow or headband. Popular choices are the Alice bow (the large bow worn directly on the top of the head), the rectangular headdress, the half-bonnet, hair corsages, the full bonnet, and the mini top hat.
Hair - Nowadays a lot of lolitas wear wigs; however, they're certainly not a requirement. All you need to do is have nicely styles hair, preferably in a natural color or an unnatural color that matches your outfit (for example, pink hair with a pink Angelic Pretty dress). Acceptable hairstyles range from long loose curls to elaborate updos. As long as it doesn't look out of place, it should be fine.
Choose a Style
There's three main distinct styles of lolita. Of course, your personal wardrobe or even specific coordinates may be a mixture of these.
Sweet Lolita
Sweet lolita (also called ama lolita) is the most child-like and currently most popular style. Its color palettes are almost exclusively bright pastels, and brands like Angelic Pretty often release dresses covered in animal, dessert, and castle prints that work exceptionally well with sweet. Large wigs, accessory overload, and loud prints are extremely common.
Gothic Lolita
Gothic lolita focuses on being dark and elegant. Outfits are usually all black/gray or monochrome, though sometimes deep jewel tones are added into the mix. While sweet lolita can be considered cute, gothic lolita can be seen as darkly beautiful. The (in)famous black/white combo that used to be the lolita color scheme is considered gothic lolita.
Classic Lolita
Classic lolita is the most toned down, mature, and refined of the three major substyles. It has the heaviest natural kei and historical influence. Most classic lolita outfits use either solid colors or floral prints, and if pastels are used, they're usually much more muted than what you'd find in sweet lolita. Accessories are generally minimal, and headwear like bonnets and vintage hats are often used. Classic is the tamest style and can sometimes be passed off as a very formal outfit for church or a tea party.
Where to Buy Lolita
There are a variety of places to buy lolita clothing, ranging from the extremely costly to the relatively inexpensive.
Big Brands - Large Japan-based lolita brands put out the highest quality items, and molded the fashion into what it is today. For example, the most popular brand for sweet is the legendary Angelic Pretty, Moi Meme Moitie is known for its stunning gothic pieces, and Mary Magdalene has simple yet elegant historical pieces perfect for classic. A few others include Baby, the Stars Shine Bright!, Metamorphose Temps de Fille, Juliette et Justine, and Victorian Maiden.
Indie Brands - Lolita indie brands are very small, and usually run by one person or a tiny handful of people. Many make items to order, which make them a perfect choice for lolitas who can't fit into restrictive brand sizing. Two of my favorites are 4 O'Clock and The Floral Notebook. An almost complete list of indie brands can be found here.
Taobao Brands - Taobao brands are still technically indie brands, but they deserve their own category. Taobao is basically the Chinese equivalent of ebay or amazon, and a lot of the merchandise there sells items for very, very low prices. However, there's a catch: you have to pay for international shipping, which can get really expensive. You will also have to use a shopping service, though some brands will allow you to e-mail them and order pieces directly. Some of my favorite Taobao brands that I've ordered from are Chess Story and Infanta. I'd also recommend Classical Puppet's petticoats, as they're fairly inexpensive and very long lasting.
Bodyline - Bodyline is a Chinese costume shop run by a rather creepy man named Mr. Yan. His items can be of questionable quality and it takes a trained eye to pick out the good items, but Bodyline has gained immense popularity among lolitas because of how cheap it is. Any lolita that will never be able to afford a wardrobe of brand will probably pad it with Bodyline pieces.
Second-hand Sales- Want brand, but have a limited budget? Just missed a release of a dress you fell in love with? Second-hand sales communities like the EGL Community Sales and Closet Child are popular places for lolitas to sell their items. You can pick up dresses after the value has gone down. Also, if you're willing to look past a strange stain or missing waist tie, you can buy a slightly damaged item for a fraction of the retail value! Like Bodyline, second-hand sales communities are a great way for lolitas low on cash to afford the style they love.
Conclusion
Lolita is a fashion that may be daunting to the beginner. Just do your research, hunt for the best deals, and make sure you have a good idea of what is and isn't lolita before putting together your first coordinate. Good luck, and have fun!
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