Dress Experiment

Not that long ago I said that with what I’ve collected up until this point means that I could probably get something different from my usual style and still make it work. So I thought it’d be good to put my opinion to the test – by using former and current dresses that have captured my heart, but which don’t fit the usual pattern of my Lolidrobe – and see if I could make three outfits with each of them using only the things I own at the moment.

For the purpose of making this post a tiny bit easier, I only used JSKs. I did have a pretty long phase of drooling over Fanplusfriend’s Ten O’Clock Cinderella, but as it is an OP, I’d struggle to coord it anyway. And as I obtained a slightly crazy number of blouses since the beginning of the year, it makes more sense that I focus on JSKs. But I deliberately picked pieces which would be challenging to incorporate into my Lolidrobe, so no solids, florals or pieces in colours that already feature heavily in my wardrobe. I’m including pieces which I don’t physically have yet, but which I’ve either ordered and/or which haven’t arrived yet, but won’t mark these in any way; items in brackets are better substitutes to what I have used, but which I don’t actually own.

Dress 1

My first choice is Baby’s Soiree of the Beginning of My Memories JSK I, a dress I ooh’d and aah’d over while I was in Japan. Somehow it made me think of the barbecue in Gone with the Wind, probably because of the staircase on the print, the massive skirts of the ladies pictured and the colour. It simply had to be the green one, the print stands out against it so nicely. I now realise that the more rococo feel of this JSK would’ve proved difficult for me to coordinate, as I don’t have anything else that’s this rococo, but I think I can give this a better go now than, for example, this time last year.

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Outfit 1: I guess this had to be my first try, seeing as it reminded me so much of the barbecue in Gone with the Wind. It’s light, it’s summery, great for hotter weather.

Rundown: JSK; offbrand charity shop chiffon blouse; Cutie Creator straw hat; ankle socks; Cutie Creator’s cream wristcuffs; nude heels; BtSSB Bird Cage parasol.

Outfit 2: The blouse should bring out the pinks in this print, but as it’s a long sleeve one, it adds a bit of an autumn-like feel to it. Simple, yet elegant.

Rundown: JSK; vintage pink blouse; pink flower crown; pearl necklace; pink tights; nude heels.

Outfit 3: I originally tried to pull off a white/cream version of this look, but I missed a bit too many pieces. So although black isn’t what I usually go for, this is more outside the box for me – and it lets me use my only black blouse, which I often neglect.

Rundown: JSK; Soufflesong  Half Sleeve Trumpet Sleeve blouse; Resailan Jewelry Box tights; black Mary Jane heels; black glitter orchids hair clip (Rococo-style hat).

Dress 2

Next we have Angelic Pretty’s Sweet Cream House Collar JSK, the 2012 edition. It’s one of those prints which I kept seeing so often that I began to like it, until it reached a point where I now want it quite a lot (but would only get it if I could find it cheap). I like it in both beige and brown, but with slight preference for beige. I don’t know if it’s a feeling that beige would be easier to incorporate into my wardrobe or that the print seems less overwhelming, but from being totally indifferent to this dress I went to adding it to my daily dress search as well as my wishlist, which is quite a jump.

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Outfit 1: There’s no need to overcomplicate things when the JSK has a print this busy and this gorgeous. I guess this is a more casual look, but with still plenty of sweetness to it.

Rundown: JSK; offbrand charity shop chiffon blouse; Cutie Creator straw hat; ankle socks; brown Oxford shoes.

Outfit 2: It’s almost a variation of the previous one, making it a more elegant event look rather than a daytime picnic one. Although I can imagine a very elegant Lolita reading a book in the park during a sunny afternoon in this too.

Rundown: JSK; Soufflesong Ice Prism white blouse; Cutie Creator straw hat; Innocent World lace gloves; Innocent World Wendy OTKs; nude heels; BtSSB Bird Cage parasol.

Outfit 3: I love wine, it’s one of my favourite colours and feels incredibly luxurious and royal. Adding it to this dress not only tones down the sweetness, but also a touch of maturity and an autumn feel.

Rundown: JSK with collar removed; Miss Point Earl Grey blouse; red flower crown; cream tights; Secret Shop tea parties; pearl necklace.

Dress 3

For the third and final dress I picked Angelic Pretty Victorian Letter Long JSK in green. I discovered it around October/November 2014 when this JSK came out and Angelic Pretty still did newsletter e-mails where they’d tell you that there’s a new release coming (why don’t you do that anymore, AP?!), and really fell for it. Even as recently as last December I still had it on my wishlist. Soon after that I realised that I don’t have any green or brown in my Lolidrobe, but also that long cuts might not be too flattering on me (and I like Lolita legs), but there’s still some love for that amazing print in me.

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Outfit 1: I feel like you simply have to make something glamorous with it, even if only for the sake of the Victorian part of the name.

Rundown: JSK; Soufflesong Ice Prism white blouse; cream tights (optional); white boots (brown heels); Imperial Fiddlesticks ivory headbow; pearl waist belt; BtSSB Bird Cage parasol.

Outfit 2: Luckily, there are some red accents in the print – not many, but noticeable enough. And luckily green and red tend to match rather well. This is quite a toned-down coord, but it’s still elegant.

Rundown: JSK with front bow removed; red vintage blouse; cream tights; Bodyline S274 heels; Angelic Pretty Twinkle Sky headbow; Dear My Love heart bag.

Outfit 3: This one actually started with the socks… and then I realised that the green on this dress is quite muted, which should match the dusty pink blouse I have. After that it was all about the finishing touches.

Rundown: JSK; vintage pink blouse; Innocent World Wendy OTKs; pink flower crown (Rococo-style hat); nude heels.

And this is it: three dresses I adore and three coords with each of them. I must say that virtually none of my expectations were met – Baby’s Soiree proved easier to coord than I thought, despite missing a few ideal pieces that’d fit the Rococo theme, as did Victorian Letter, while Sweet Cream House turned out more difficult to coord than I expected. All of this made me re-think how much I actually want these dresses and if I really should get any of them, considering how the coording process went. By that measure, I should favour Victorian Letter over Sweet Cream House, since the latter was the most challenging of the three. Nonetheless, this is definitely a great exercise in planning your wardrobe additions: it makes you think critically about what you are able to create with what you have, as well as forces you to think outside the box if you really want a certain dress.

In the end I think I proved my point: I am now at a comfortable enough stage with my Lolidrobe where I could add something new and different – a colour, style or maybe even cut – and still be able to wear it without having to add too many new pieces. Having said that, this experiment has further opened my eyes as to what sort of things I am missing at the moment (namely leg- and headwear) and what I should continue investing in if I really am to make my wardrobe as versatile as it can be.

I’d love to hear your opinions about the above outfits, but also about your wardrobes: could you add something new and different and still make it work without having to buy new things? Would you want to do that or are you happy with what you have?