Unexpected fun facts about Lolita fashion

Lolita fashion 

Lolita fashion is a subculture that originated from Japan and is highly influenced by Victorian styles from the Rococo period. This particular fashion style only emerged in the 1980s with a distinctive characteristic, which is its “cuteness”. For the newcomers to Lolita fashion, this article will walk you through the main difference between “Lolita” and “Soft Girl” fashion, as well as introduce to you the two main nouns used in this peculiar style. The Lolita style of dressing as we know it today came about in the 1990s, where it was photographed on the streets of Harajuku and featured in magazines like Fruits, Kera, and eventually Gothic & Lolita Bible. It was originally worn by members of Visual Kei bands in their performances, notably Mana of Malice Mizer, who created the first Gothic Lolita brand, Moi-même-Moitié, in 1999. Thereafter, due to the growing popularity of Visual Kei and widespread publication of street fashion magazines, Lolita fashion was then introduced to the world outside of Japan, becoming what it is today.

The main difference between “Lolita” and “Soft Girl” fashion?

In Lolita fashion, there are various subcategories that you can choose to style your dressing from. The three main categories include: 'Gothic', 'Classic', and 'Sweet'. Many other substyles such as 'Sailor', 'Country', 'Hime' (Princess), 'Ero' (Erotic), 'Guro' (Grotesque), 'Oriental', 'Punk', 'Shiro’ (White), ‘Kuro’ (Black) and Steampunk Lolita also exists. However, soft girl fashion focuses on pastels and plaids, completed with miniskirts and trucker jackets. The main difference between both styles would be that Lolita fashion focuses on dresses whereas Soft Girl fashion incorporates jackets and pants/jeans.

Lolita fashion comprises mainly of these five items. The top is usually a blouse that can be either short or long sleeved, paired with a Jumper Skirt (JSK) or

One-piece Dress (OP) which usually comes to the knees. These skirts and dresses resemble petticoats with a flare and frills at the bottom. As for the accompanying footwear, the two main options are high heels or flat shoes with bows. These shoes are partnered with knee or ankle length socks depending on each individual’s tastes and preferences, as well as the weather. To complete the look, wigs and headwear such as hair bows or bonnets are adorned to match the vibe they are going for, although it is completely optional.

On the contrary, for Soft Girls, their outfits mainly consist of these five items. Firstly, a pastel T-shirt or Plaid top that is usually pink, purple or white. For the bottoms, they are usually accompanied by lighter colored denim skirts or pants. In comparison to Lolita fashion, the footwear of choice by Soft Girls are low or high cut sneakers rather than heels. Pastel colored socks that match the shoes and outfit that is put together will be chosen and more often than not, trucker or denim jackets that are also pastel colored is used to complete the look.

Another main difference between the styles would be the clothing designs. Lolita fashion almost always incorporates frills at the hems of their outerwear. On the other hand, Soft Girl fashion focuses on color blocking or plain colored clothing items. It is very easy to spot the difference between both fashion styles even as someone new to Lolita fashion. Lolita fashion places a very heavy emphasis on laces which can be easily spotted on the sleeves. Many joke that the sleeves always bring them a large inconvenience especially when they are dining in hotpot restaurants! In comparison, Soft Girl fashion looks more ordinary and casual, and might not be as eye-catching as the elegance or cuteness portrayed by Lolita fashion.

Now that you know the components that make up a complete Lolita outfit, where can you buy them? Of course, you can buy the various components separately and mix and match them yourself to customize your outfit. However, there are also sellers who sell the full set to save you the trouble of putting together a whole outfit especially if you are new to the Lolita concept. The biggest retailer of Lolita clothing that I would recommend is Lolitain. It offers custom Lolita dress, and there are always multiple sales ongoing, so if you are looking to give Lolita fashion a shot, and at low cost, this is the website to visit! For reference to Lolita fashion inspiration, you can check out this page compiled by our style ambassadors at Lolitain. This page shows the various ways in which you can style a Lolita costume, especially if you are just starting out.

Pain Lo and Full Set

In this second half of the article, we will be introducing to you the two common nouns associated with Lolita fashion. These two terms are “Plain lo” and “Full set”. Firstly, “Pain lo” means to go out without wearing a full Lolita outfit. Secondly, “Full Set” means to go out wearing a full Lolita outfit. Such as Bustle, headdress or hat, Lolita makeup, Lolita shoes, etc. When do people usually don on a full set of Lolita clothing?

There are no fixed rules as to when you will need to wear a full set of Lolita dress or not. Ultimately, the choice is yours, and often times, people wear full sets to community meets with others who are also into Lolita fashion. At meets like these, they will dress in full sets and share their knowledge and opinions on how to better style the pieces they have. There are many of these communities around the world for you to partake in if you are new to Lolita fashion. For the occasion of tea party, Lolita girls should be brave to attend. This is a gathering of Lolita family members,After all, the purpose of the tea party is to make friends with Lolita girls, let them exchange Lolita culture and share beautiful Lolita skirt together.

“Pain lo” is more commonly seen as these are more casual and can be easily paired with t-shirts and footwear styles. Both “Plain lo” and “Full sets” worn by others can be commonly seen along Harajuku, namely in Takeshita-Dori where there are tons of Lolita fashion stores in the backstreets. There might also be a Japanese subculture community in your area which you might find others with similar hobbies and tastes in Lolita fashion. It is a great idea to keep a look out for these communities to find out more about styling the various components in this distinctive style.
With this, we hope that this article has given you a better insight on Lolita fashion and where you can shop at if you are looking to try out this unique style of fashionable Lolita dress. For affordable Lolita fashion clothing, check out our website Lolitain and have a great time mixing and styling various pieces together to achieve the look you desire!