leaning towards darker styles; Pirate-y outfit

From the browns and dark reds of autumn, my interest has moved to darker styles in winter. I've begun to develop a fancy for gothic styles, and also, surprisinly, for ouji and aristocrat.
My sudden love for gothic and aristo is probably because of Sena Jun, the actress who plays Death in Takarazuka's musical Elisabeth: 

Who could resist that?

I know, however, that gothic doesn't suit my face. I have a bit of a childish face, with round cheeks. I think gothic works better with high cheekbones, the typical 'vampire' face. Of course, it's all about how you carry yourself, so face doesn't have to matter much, but still I think gothic doesn't really suit me.

(There's also been a quite embarassing period in my life in which I tried very hard to become friends with the 'cool goths', and I was, well... a terrible wannabe. So I'm not eager to try it again.)

Also Akira, the model for the G&LB, made me love aristo and ouji. She has the same coolness around her as Sena Jun, the same nonchalant sexyness combined with elegance.

Strangely, I can only find 1 picture of her: 

I'm still not very fond of Mana, though. I know he's a very important figure in the lolita subculture, but I just don't like him very much. Although Moitie does have some beautiful clothes...

Gothic has such elegance, and its darkness fits the winter perfectly!

This picture shows the beauty of aristo and gothic lolita perfectly: it's romantic, elegant, dark and mysterious...



from http://newvoguechildren.blogspot.com/ I believe...

Since I'm not confident enough of my gothic-skills yet, I'll stick with darker classic. And, following Akira: pirate!



Skirt: handmade (copy of a Victorian Maiden skirt)
blouse & watch-on-a-chain: shops in Singapore
Everything else: offbrand



It's my first try at anything remotely pirate-y, so I hope it looks good. I definitely need a hat. I only have cute or ladylike hats, no pirate ones. My father has a Mexican sombrero, though, I bet that would look awesome! XD

I wore this to college with black corduroy pants instead of the skirt, and it looked quite dandy to me, but I wasn't able to take good pictures. It's just too dark in my room. Hopefully the sun will break through soon, then I'll take more pictures.
I really want to try out more gothic and ouji! But I'm afraid that once spring really arrives, my mind will be filled with pastel colors, long flowing dresses, air and sunlight, and not with the dark elegance of gothic...

Hesitance to join the local community

As I've said before, I would love to be part of a lolita community. Sometimes I wish Singapore was closer, their community is so lovely and I've met so many sweet girls there. When I look at the German, Finnish or Swedish community I get the feeling all of the girls there are nice, talented, and dress great. The same can't be said about the community in Holland, unfortunately.
It's true that I've never met any of the girls in the community, so I might've gotten the wrong impression, but from what I've seen on their forum, youtube and various other sites, I've formed a very negative image of them.
There is a shop in Holland that sells lolita brand clothing (for twice the original price... -.-) and it's seen as the centre of the community. I get the feeling that the girl who runs the shop sees herself as the Queen of Dutch lolita, and that all the other girls are like her ladies-in-waiting. I don't like that.
Besides that, I've only seen two Dutch lolita's who dress themselves well (chokelate and ludivine).
The rest wears JSK's with nothing underneath it, skirts that are way too short, bare legs, or do nothing with their hair... In short, I think they look sloppy. Of course, there might be very well-dressed lolita's that just aren't active on the internet. But it's logical that I haven't found them yet, then.
There's a forum for Dutch lolita's, but I'm not a member there. I know it would be a good way to get to know the local lolita's better, but I have many objections against it. First, I don't like the site. It doesn't look good, and there's a lot of bad grammar and badly spelled words. Somehow that's a huge turn-off for me.
Furthermore, you have to send in some sort of application first, with a lot of personal information and a picture, and the shop owner (who also runs the forum... like I said: Queen Bee) has to approve of you before you're allowed to join. They say it's to prevent creeps from joining the forum, but I see it as a way of selecting 'ladies-in-waiting'.

I don't like all of this. I wish there were nice girls in pretty dresses, with whom I could go to conventions, have high tea, have a photoshoot at a park, etc. Girls with the same fascination for beautiful clothes as I have.
But I guess I won't find girls like that in my country. And even if there are nice lolita's, I might have offended them gravely by this post...

Dream or nightmare...

A few nights ago I had a dream. In the dream, I went to Paris, to the Baby, the Stars Shine Bright shop. I was completely happy to be there, the shop was beautifully decorated, the window displays were pretty, there was lolita everywhere~ In the window there were two mannequins, one for Baby and one for Alice and the Pirates. I felt some of the fabric of the Pirates dress, and it consisted of layers of soft, floaty ciffon in a beautiful dark sea-green color. Perhaps a mermaid or sea inspired dress, there's pirates in their name after all.
Then, I went looking for a dress for myself. I wanted a dress from AatP with a print on it, so I sorted through the racks... but there was nothing suitable on there! There were many things, but they were all very normal. Black T-shirts, denim skirts, it seemed like a regular warehouse. There were, however, many amazing shoes and boots. But I wasn't looking for shoes, so I kept searching for dresses. I finally found 3 skirts with at least an AatP print on them, Vampire Forest, one black, one red and one ivory colored. I was happy to finally have found something AatP, even though it wasn't a print I like, but the skirts were short and straight, like normal mini-skirts... I was so disappointed that I woke up.

What I would have liked to find:


Dream in Midsummernight JSK

Queen's Coach JSK



Cinderelly Jewelry OP




The reason for this dream is that I'm considering going to Paris in april or may, as a romantic trip with my boyfriend. I've never seen Versailles, so I definitely want to go there, and we might spend a day in the Louvre... And just walk around the city, to feel the atmosphere. I hope the weather will be nice.
And, of course, I want to go to BABY! Although I'm not very fond of sweet, Baby is my favourite in that category. Their dresses have such an innocent and cute feel to them, they're not as overloaded and harsh as Angelic Pretty can be. Alice and the Pirates is my favourite brand, next to Victorian Maiden. But VM doesn't have a shop in Paris, and AatP has! I love their prints, especially the princess ones. Sleeping Beauty was my first dream dress, and now it's Dream in Midsummernight. I also love Cinderella Jewelry from Baby. 

I only hope they'll have dresses I like in stock... I don't want to buy more than 1 dress, and maybe an accesoire, and I only want to buy something I really, really love. (considering the price... I've never spend more than 100 euro on a dress, so 250 or 300 is a big step.)



My nightmare was (and is) that when I am there, they will have nothing I like... But, there is an Angelic Pretty store in Paris too, so who knows? If Baby doesn't have anything, I might change styles and come back with something OTT sweet XD

If I go to Paris at all, that is. It's only an idea now, but I would really like it! 

Daily outfits

The weather is slowly getting better, and this means it's easier to wear lolita. Although I did get caught in a downpour today... But that won't stop me from wearing pretty clothes!
I try to wear casual lolita to college as often as possible. My friends like it, and I think most people who study Japanese do. Sometimes I'm afraid that teachers won't take me serious, though. That they'll think I'm just another 'otaku'. But I tell myself that true professionals will look past my clothing, and only at the papers I write and the texts I translate. (And hey, almost everyone my age makes a statement trough their looks and clothing, so they should be used to it. My class is full of gothic, emo, scene and general "harajuku" styles, so I think they can handle one lolita.)

But, onto the clothes!
For this first outfit I wanted to have a more mori girl inspired look, down-to-earth and natural. Unfortunately, when I came home from college it was already dark, so I couldn't really take a good picture... This was the best I could get:

JSK- Bodyline
everything else- offbrand

I think that, if I want to make it more "mori", I need a vintage blouse or a long coat. I also should wear my hair down and slightly curled, with flowers or lace ribbons in it. And maybe woollen socks instead of these tights. But, this is lolita, not mori girl ;)

Also, meet my hair at its new lenght! It's lost 20 cm, and I've got some sort of long, sideswept fringe. It's called a lock in Dutch, but I have no idea what the English word is. It's pushed back in this picture, anyways.

I'll take better pictures of my new hair once the light is better.

The next outfit is about as elaborate as I'll go, for class. It's the 2nd lolita dress I ever bought (from Bodyline of course), and admittedly, not really my style anymore. Also, the bodice is a little short so it's more of a babydoll on me. But it's still cute, and I can create many different looks with it (from sweet to semi-gothic, depending on the coord).

JSK- Bodyline
everything else- offbrand

You can see my "lock" a little better in this picture. I think it makes my face less stern because not all my hair is pulled back, but I still don't really know what to do with it. I don't like the bald spot between the lock and the rest of my hair... I still have to find the right way of wearing it.

I also sewed a sailor onepiece in the past few weeks, but unfortunately, the hem is very uneven so I'll have to do that again. Still not finished... But I can show you a few pictures anyways~

pulling the skirt straight so you won't see the uneven hem...



I'm so proud of the sailor collar! It was my first time sewing one, and I think it came out really well :) I might sew myself a few cutsews with a collar like that. This onepiece was inspired by Metamorphose's many sailor pieces, though I didn't copy any specific design. I just wanted to use these cute buttons and trim!

But do you see how uneven the hem is? I'll have to get the trim off and do it again completely. T.T

When I finish it completely, I will post better pictures. And then I'll write about my sewing some more, and show more of my work as well. Hopefully the light will be better soon, and the weather warmer!

Love for local shops

We all know brand is expensive. Luckily, if you can't afford to buy directly from the big names, there are many alternatives. You can always buy second hand, from Bodyline or Taobao, or sew it yourself. That's what I mostly do. However, you shouldn't think that lolita clothes exist only in Asia or in your own imagination. Shops in your own city can carry items that are very useful for lolita. Of course they won't have everything, I haven't found a stunning onepiece or even a loliable skirt yet, but blouses, shoes cutsews and accesories can very easily be found in mainstream stores.
I needed a few cutsews, so I went shopping~ The jewelry I already bought earlier. The following items were all purchased in local warehouses. H&M has a lot of skirts and shirts that would be perfect for gyaru, or accesories for mori-girl. I see so many Japanese influences in their clothes! Six's jewelry collection is awesome and very cheap, and cute heels can be purchased at any shoestore.

Now onto the picture spam... First, the jewelry!

Mori or Dolly style earrings, bought at H&M

...and their matching rings!



Awesome earrings from Six

And now onto the cutsews~ I'm very happy with these, they're super cute! They're also quite short, so they look good above poofy skirts. The only downside is that they're meant for warmer weather, so I can't wear them yet...



from H&M. Pretty flowers, and puffy sleeves!




...also from H&M. I love the lace and the little pearls!

 Legwear:

floral tights from V&D



close-up of the flowers on the tights~



I also got an adorable black cardigan from H&M, with a scalloped neckline and little hearts woven in the fabric, but it is almost impossible to photograph. It only shows as a black blob. It's just too dark in my room, I suppose.

I hope I didn't bore you with all those pictures. I only wanted to show that there are many cute things to be found in local shops. The good thing about shopping locally is, besides the ease of access, that it's much cheaper. Especially when bought in a sale, like I did~ ^^
So, just keep your eyes open and your imagination active, and you'll find some treasures!

2 outfits, waiting for spring

Today I didn't have much to do, and it was too cold to go outdoors for fun. So I stayed at home and tried on a few dresses, longing for warmer days.

 


All Bodyline & offbrand

I actually don't like the blouse I'm wearing with this. I bought it from Bodyline when I just started building a lolita wardrobe, because I thought blouses were absolutely neccessary for lolita. But now, I realize there are very few blouses I like. I much prefer cutsews, cardigans or turtlenecks. But... I don't have a proper cutsew at the moment, so the blouse will have to do.

My accesories! The necklace was a present from my dad when I was younger and still danced ballet. The bracelet is vintage and the rabbit and deer rings from H&M. And my nailpolish clashes horribly XD

 And now, my one and only BABY onepiece! It's actually the only brand I have... The rest of my wardrobe consists of handmade, offbrand and Bodyline pieces. But I do plan on buying a little more brand, it's just too lovely. Expensive though...



I feel like Marie-Antoinette...

I have a clip-on fringe that I sometimes use with sweet styles. I don't really like my face with a fringe, but I think my hair looks too plain if I wear a headdress or bow without a fringe. And it's almost a perfect match with my haircolor, so I think it looks okay.

With fringe!

See? It looks much better with a fringe. I'm going to the hairdresser soon, I'm tired of my long hair. It gets in the way of everything and I can't do much more with it than if it was half as long. The lenght is pretty, but also quite useless. I'm not sure whether I will get a fringe or something like that. I think a straight fringe doesn't suit my face, and I've got the clip-on one already, should I want it. I'll have to think about it some more...

I can't wait until it's warm enough to wear short-sleeved shirts again, and sundresses, and bare legs... But we're still in the middle of the winter. The next outfit post will be more weather-appropiate, I promise!

My goals and resolutions

A new year has started, and because everyone and their mother is writing about their resolutions, I will do that too. I do have a few, though some are not neccessarily related to lolita.

1. Get to know at least one local lolita. I'm a little prejudiced against the local community, but I'd love to be proven wrong. I'm sure there must be nice lolita's in my country. So maybe I'll join the national forum, or go to a public meetup, or comment on a blog... I don't know yet. 
2. Get a new haircut. My current hair is brown, straight and long. It reaches my bottom, and although I love long hair, it does get a little inconvenient. I dye it in a different color once in a while, but it's getting boring. I've had this haircut since I was 15, and now I'm almost 20! It's time for a change.
3. Stop biting my nails. I have this one every year, and I've broken it already, but I will still try! I want to be proud of my hands!
4. Sew more. I have so many ideas for dresses and jumperskirts, my sketchbook and fabric stash are overflowing! Hopefully I'll have time to sew a lot in this new year.
5. Draw more, and post more drawings. I sketch a lot of designs for dresses, but I haven't made a real drawing in a long time. I also want to post some of my art on tumblr and on this blog.
6. Be an active lolita blogger! First I have to announce this blog on daily_lolita and egl. I don't have any followers yet, which is not surprising because no one knows about it yet! Then I have to post regularly, and about interesting subjects. I want to write about more than just the latest brand releases. I just hope people will like what I write...

Well, I hope everyone will have a very good 2011, and will be able to keep his/her resolutions! I'll do my best to keep mine.