Showing posts with label non-research. Show all posts
Showing posts with label non-research. Show all posts

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Breaking the Lolita Lifestyle Mold

From Tumblr
Living the lifestyle of a Lolita is different for everyone. The clothes are wonderful and really make me happy. The different types of styles, colors, prints, hairstyles, and people that are involved with the sub-culture are fascinating to me. At the same time, there are so-called "typical" Lolita activities, hobbies, interests, and overall way of thinking that I just don't share.


"Oh, Christina, you special snowflake you! *rolls eyes*"

Call it what you want, not everyone's interests fall under the same few categories of:
  • Tea, herbal treaments, vegetarinism, or organic. OK, I will admit that I'm a vegetarian (but not by choice, eating meat makes me physically sick!), and I do drink tea, but not everyone relates to these topics. I know quite a few meat-eating Lolitas (actually, I can even see some of them being able to go hunting, but regardless). 
  • Pink, light blue, or black. What happened to the rest of the color chart? Green, purple, yellow, or even (gasp!) orange! Are these colors immediately off-limits? I can see how an orange-colored coordinate is very uncommon, but what's wrong with a Lolita liking orange? 
  • Mana. Mana sucks to me. I can't stand his music. But Gackt? Rammstein? Trey Songs? 3OH!3? Now that's some music! I'm an open book to the music industry, and truly listen to just about anything (even certain country songs have a place in my heart). Yes, Gothic Lolita is a huge part of my wardrobe, but if Mana didn't exist, I'm pretty sure my life could continue uninterrupted. 
  • Needing a boyfriend who loves Lolita/wears Lolita with you. My boyfriend hates Lolita fashion. He likes that it makes me happy. Otherwise, he thinks I look absolutely ridiculous in it, especially if I wear prints. He also does not like the sub-culture, the idea of guidelines, and the entire premise of "dressing like a little girl" (his words, not mine). At the same time, he's a perfect fit for me, and makes me incredibly happy. So why do Lolita cross out potential partners because they are not interested in Lolita culture?
  • Being crafty. Not everyone can sew/knit/crochet. Not everyone can deco. Everyone does not have the creative gene. 
  • Needing to make every single part of your life about Lolita fashion. Lolita is awesome, but it is not everything I am. I remember once seeing posts on the communities about how to "loli-fy" your job. If you work in construction, wearing a fancy, frilly outfit does not make any sense. Also, I have other interests, like video gaming and computer programming. Maybe I would rather a Nintendo controller purse than a leather one with a giant bow on it once in a while.
  • Loving other parts of Japanese culture. Yes, the majority of Lolitas in past surveys have shown they have heavy interests in other parts of Japanese culture, but there is still a minority who really like Japanese fashion and that's it in terms of Japanese. Not everyone likes Japanese animation, music, food, etc.
  • Not cursing, being vulgar, or anything above the rating of PG. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm afraid to say that the majority of Lolitas are older, and because of that, there is no law that says we cannot have potty mouths, be unlady-like, or enjoy a sexual joke or two. Unfortunately, Lolitas are not perfect. We are human like everyone else, and occasionally we might say a curse word or two. We might even imply a sexual innuendo. Wearing frills does not mean we cannot be that way once in a while (or all the time, who's stopping you?).
As today spawns the start of the new year 2011, I say be yourself! Do you want to be a Lolita that also live-action role-plays on the weekend? Awesome! Have you a knack for electrical work and enjoy the feeling of a frilly skirt? Go for it! Would you rather drink Mountain Dew all day and throw wet tea bags out the window at people walking by instead of consuming them? Fantastic (but seriously, it might not be a good idea... )!

This post was inspired by a question I got from someone who assumed I only played Japanese role-playing games because I love wearing Lolita fashion. Stomp on ignorance and do what you want!

What other things that people assumed you did (or did not) enjoy or do because of your interest in Lolita fashion? What about other interests you have?

Friday, December 31, 2010

Frills Friday: New Year's Eve in Black and White

Some Lolitas believe that black and white combinations immediately land you in the "not doing it right" category. When done correctly, I think black and white can be gorgeous. This coordinate definitely showcases the beauty of this color combination. Enjoy this coordinate, and see you next year!

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Thrills Thursday: Second Meta LP; AatP Releases Tartan Bag

Metamorphose released another lucky pack set due to the popularity of their light and dark sets. It was released on Tuesday, but it seems like they are still available for purchase. It's a set containing a skirt, blouse, bloomers, special original bag, and various accessories such as socks and jewerly.

From Metamorphose' sale page
Tartan fans? Alice and the Pirates released this adorable tartan-printed bag on the 28th. In case you haven't gotten your holiday fix yet for all the new releases of holiday-themed clothing, Alice and the Pirates has got you covered. The applique is a cute carousel, which I particularly like because it's not overwhelming. It comes in red x red, red x green (pictured), and red x blue. Also, it is made of velveteen for the colder months.

From Alice and the Pirates Online Store

Friday, December 24, 2010

Frills Friday: Merry Christmas Eve with Holy Night Story!

To celebrate the holiday, Holy Night Story seems like the perfect dress. Here is the perfect coordinate of Holy Night Story's jumper skirt version in red. She went along with the toy soldier theme, and matched the accessories perfectly, down to the brown, military-like boots. This is holiday-Lolita done right! Enjoy the holidays if you are celebrating!

From daily_lolita LiveJournal community

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Thrills Thursday: Brand Winter Lucky Pack Bonanza!

This week was lucky pack and sale pack week from different brands, including Metamorphose, Baby, the Stars Shine Bright, Angelic Pretty, and Innocent World. Each had a different take on the packs’ contents. You may have missed the actual sale of the packs, but the best part of these type of packs is the eventual mass sales on the EGL comm sales LiveJournal community with items that people do not want from their packs. This varies per person, as a Sweet Lolita may not want the black pieces from her pack, or a Classic Lolita may not want a bunny-shaped scarf from her pack.

If you’re looking for a certain item from the packs, this is a great time to post a “want-to-buy” (!WTB) post about it as well as people get their items.

Here’s a small overview of the packs that went out, and certain popular items in the packs.

BABY, THE STARS SHINE BRIGHT

BtSSB released 3 different type of packs – shoes, bags, and accessories. The shoes pack contains 2 pairs of shoes in a size you select, but the style is random. The bags pack contains 2 different bags, and you can select nothing in preference for them. The third pack, the accessories pack, contains a pair of socks, a piece for your hair, and some sort of bracelet, ring, and/or necklace. The shoe or bag pack is the best deal for the price, as you are basically buying one shoe or bag and getting the other free.


METAMORPHOSE

They released their winter packs (now sold out), and typically they contain a dress (usually a jumper skirt), a blouse, a pair of socks, a head piece (hairbows or clips), and some sort of necklace, bracelet, etc. The only thing they let you pick is what type of color shades you will get, between light and dark. Light usually contains pastels, white, pink, etc. whereas dark usually contains black, burgundy, dark blues, greens, etc. This year, they released a pink glitter bag with their summer lucky packs. Because of the success of those packs, they included a black glitter bag with the winter lucky packs. Value-wise, the dresses are worth between $200-300 U.S. dollars, so basically you are getting a discount on the dress and everything else free.


ANGELIC PRETTY
AP is releasing information about their winter lucky pack on December 29th, according to the Angelic Pretty USA website, so next week’s Thrills Thursday will contain more details on what the lucky pack will contain and their release date. Since it’s their first lucky pack in the United States, the pack may be different from past sales.

(12/24) UPDATE: A person directly e-mailed the Angelic Pretty USA store on information when the lucky pack will be released. The release date is confirmed to be New Year's Day (1/1/11) for Angelic Pretty USA lucky packs. AP Japan already released lucky packs in their stores, spanning several different types of packs and colors you can purchase.

INNOCENT WORLD
IW didn’t release their lucky pack this week, but people are beginning to receive their lucky packs from the sale last week (keep an eye on the EGL LiveJournal community for posts regarding IW lucky pack contents). They had two options with their lucky pack, basically a cheaper one and an expensive one (one containing more items than the other). In my opinion, their lucky packs, although more expensive, contain the best bang for your buck. Typically in the more expensive option, buyers receive two dresses (a one piece and a jumper skirt), a skirt, a blouse, a cutsew, a pair of socks, and a couple accessories. Recently their winter packs have also contained a coat, which by itself is worth $400 - $600 depending on which coat you receive (considering that’s what you pay for the lucky pack, it’s like receiving the dresses, skirts, etc. for free).

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