Firstly, I wanted to introduce a new kind of series on my blog since I decided to join the Lolita Blog Carnival! I wasn't confident enough of my blogging capacities (and mostly if what I had to say was interesting enough) but I decided to take the plunge and join this wonderful Lolita blogging community! :3
The subject that was chosen for this week was...
5 Things I would tell a beginner Lolita to avoid!
My advice lean a little bit more towards things I wish people would have told me when I started the fashion though and it's closely related to my first failed attempts at being an acceptable Lolita. XD;
Trying to sew/make your first Lolita clothes if you have no experience.
Making your own patterns, choosing the right fabrics and sewing clothes with the proper techniques can be hard enough on their own, but it is especially true when it comes to Lolita fashion! I would avoid trying to do this if you are either a beginner at sewing and/or a beginner in Lolita. Lolita clothes have a certain quality standard, construction and embellishments that is drastically different from regular clothes and it might be difficult to get the hang of it at first, especially if you have no experience with both sewing and Lolita fashion. Most of the time, your clothes might look okay according to you, but they will lack the quality and construction that is mandatory for Lolita clothes. I know that my first attempts at sewing my own Lolita clothes were a horrible mess. It will result in a waste of your time and especially a waste of your money too! Most beginner Lolitas think it's less pricy to try to make their own clothes but it's not. You better take your money to buy from real Lolita stores and have proper clothes with the proper quality for the fashion. :3
Trying to sew/make your first Lolita clothes if you have no experience.
Making your own patterns, choosing the right fabrics and sewing clothes with the proper techniques can be hard enough on their own, but it is especially true when it comes to Lolita fashion! I would avoid trying to do this if you are either a beginner at sewing and/or a beginner in Lolita. Lolita clothes have a certain quality standard, construction and embellishments that is drastically different from regular clothes and it might be difficult to get the hang of it at first, especially if you have no experience with both sewing and Lolita fashion. Most of the time, your clothes might look okay according to you, but they will lack the quality and construction that is mandatory for Lolita clothes. I know that my first attempts at sewing my own Lolita clothes were a horrible mess. It will result in a waste of your time and especially a waste of your money too! Most beginner Lolitas think it's less pricy to try to make their own clothes but it's not. You better take your money to buy from real Lolita stores and have proper clothes with the proper quality for the fashion. :3
Trying to find proper Lolita clothes/accessories in local/normie stores.
I'm sorry, but H&M never made a Lolita dress or a Lolita skirt. Neither Walmart or even your local gothic/medieval boutique. Most of the beginner Lolitas are often trying to find "Loliable" clothes in normal stores and will just take the first frilly skirt and white button up shirt they can find to make their first outfit. Been there, done that. Again, as I said before, it's a waste of your time and money. If you really want to start wearing the fashion, you better buy from Lolita stores and get proper Lolita clothes that fits the aesthetic of the fashion.
Wearing too much "normie fashion" elements with Lolita.
This one is kind of related with the previous one... Wearing a pair of regular dressed up shoes, a loliable cardigan or turtleneck and a regular beret can be acceptable if you are going for a casual/daily look or even Otome fashion, but for a proper Lolita look I think you always should go for clothes and accessories that have the proper Lolita aesthetic. Most of the normie clothes lack the frilly details and fanciness that are what makes Lolita fashion so unique and elegant. Most of the Lolita clothes, even the most simple ones, will have some details that will make it Lolita: a cute embroidery, some cute bows with pearls or rhinestones, buttons shaped like roses or pearls, scalloped/frilly edges or special details like shoes buckles shaped like a heart. This is what makes or break Lolita fashion signature look and aesthetic.
Not building your wardrobe with limited styles and colours.
This is probably the most common mistake made by beginners and I know this was my biggest one. I really think that when you start Lolita fashion, you should firstly stick to one of the main three styles (Sweet, Classic or Gothic) but also stick to only 3 or at most 4 colours when building up your closet and your firsts outfits. I know it can be exciting to start buying everything you remotely like on Lacemarket, but I would keep in mind a general colour scheme for your closet, at least when you are starting out the fashion. It will make sure that your get the most outfits you can from your pieces and that they can be easily mix and matched together to create different looks with limited pieces. My rule of thumb now is that I don't buy a dress, blouse or skirt if I cannot make at least 10 different outfits with it! ^w^
This one is kind of related with the previous one... Wearing a pair of regular dressed up shoes, a loliable cardigan or turtleneck and a regular beret can be acceptable if you are going for a casual/daily look or even Otome fashion, but for a proper Lolita look I think you always should go for clothes and accessories that have the proper Lolita aesthetic. Most of the normie clothes lack the frilly details and fanciness that are what makes Lolita fashion so unique and elegant. Most of the Lolita clothes, even the most simple ones, will have some details that will make it Lolita: a cute embroidery, some cute bows with pearls or rhinestones, buttons shaped like roses or pearls, scalloped/frilly edges or special details like shoes buckles shaped like a heart. This is what makes or break Lolita fashion signature look and aesthetic.
Not building your wardrobe with limited styles and colours.
This is probably the most common mistake made by beginners and I know this was my biggest one. I really think that when you start Lolita fashion, you should firstly stick to one of the main three styles (Sweet, Classic or Gothic) but also stick to only 3 or at most 4 colours when building up your closet and your firsts outfits. I know it can be exciting to start buying everything you remotely like on Lacemarket, but I would keep in mind a general colour scheme for your closet, at least when you are starting out the fashion. It will make sure that your get the most outfits you can from your pieces and that they can be easily mix and matched together to create different looks with limited pieces. My rule of thumb now is that I don't buy a dress, blouse or skirt if I cannot make at least 10 different outfits with it! ^w^
Being afraid to wear Lolita outside of meetups and/or conventions.
I know that this is something that isn't accessible to everyone, especially when you are first starting out the fashion, but as a daily and lifestyle Lolita I couldn't exclude it! ^w^'' Lolita is primarily a fashion, clothes that are ment to be worn on a regular basis when acceptable/safe to do so. I think that you shouldn't be afraid to wear the fashion out even if you have no special occasion. It will makes coordinating different outfits easier for you if you do it regularly, but will also makes you more comfortable of wearing the fashion in public and dealing with the stares and comments. It will also confirm more easily if you love wearing the fashion or not if you are just starting out. It's also always positive to have more visibility for the fashion from people that are going out and about so it will be more accepted from the general public as an alternative fashion. ~
I hope you enjoyed my little insight on the subject, I know I really enjoyed writing about it and I'm pretty proud of myself for my very first Lolita Blog Carnival post! ^w^
I know that this is something that isn't accessible to everyone, especially when you are first starting out the fashion, but as a daily and lifestyle Lolita I couldn't exclude it! ^w^'' Lolita is primarily a fashion, clothes that are ment to be worn on a regular basis when acceptable/safe to do so. I think that you shouldn't be afraid to wear the fashion out even if you have no special occasion. It will makes coordinating different outfits easier for you if you do it regularly, but will also makes you more comfortable of wearing the fashion in public and dealing with the stares and comments. It will also confirm more easily if you love wearing the fashion or not if you are just starting out. It's also always positive to have more visibility for the fashion from people that are going out and about so it will be more accepted from the general public as an alternative fashion. ~
I hope you enjoyed my little insight on the subject, I know I really enjoyed writing about it and I'm pretty proud of myself for my very first Lolita Blog Carnival post! ^w^
Please, check out the other blogs that have participated in this week's Lolita Blog Carnival!
Cupcakes-and-Unicorns
Gotas de Baunilha
Queen-and-Commander
A-Princess-Fairytales
The Bloody Tea Party
Floating on Macarons
Sanakanin
Gotas de Baunilha
Queen-and-Commander
A-Princess-Fairytales
The Bloody Tea Party
Floating on Macarons
Sanakanin
Until next time my fluffy strawberry macarons. ~
This is so true, especially avoiding normie clothes. I know that I've been guilty of that in my beginnings, but unless you really know what you're doing and what Lolita is, you will not be successful at incorporating offbrand pieces into a Lolita coord. Even now when the current high street fashion seems favourable for Classic/EGA blouses with lots of ruffles and frills.
ReplyDeleteSame thing for me haha! ^^'' I often see advice saying that you can find some offbrand blouses in thrift shops and things like that and it always rubbed me the wrong way. ^^''
DeleteI am kind of guilty of combining my lolita wardrobe with mainstream clothing, haha. But I think it has to do with the style I usually wear- it would be very, very difficult to coordinate Sweet with the type of blouses that usually appear in thrift stores.
ReplyDeleteI agree wholeheartedly with what you said about newbie lolitas sewing their own garments, however. Most of the time, it's a recipe for disaster, especially when they cut corners using bedsheet cottons and papery lace. When I made an overdress using proper materials and construction, it all added up to nearly the same amount charged by indie brands!