Why is Oldschool Lolita so Nostalgic?
I had been thinking about it recently, as I watch more and
more people pursue what we now know as oldschool as their primary lolita style.
What got me in particular is that although I didn’t even become aware of lolita
fashion until 2010 – by which point it was firmly in the OTT Sweet craze –
looking at oldschool pieces and coords still makes me feel nostalgic. It should
be impossible, I never actually witnessed the early lolita style we now call
odschool, so let me share a couple of thoughts on this.
It takes us to a simpler time
Lolita fashion in the noughties was slightly more ‘messy’,
for lack of a better word. Nowadays we take matching colours and themes (or at
least substyles) pretty seriously, but that wasn’t the case back then. Black
platforms with pastel dresses were commonplace (a more direct Alice in
Wonderland inspiration perhaps?) and a certain degree of mismatch was normal,
as people made do with what they had. Also, when you think about the hair and
makeup back in the 2000’s, even in the West it was a lot simpler compared to
now – blending was something that only makeup artists knew and slightly frizzy,
spikey hair was what you saw in all teen magazines. Looking at oldschool lolita
reminds us both of those simpler looks and to have fun with what you wear. Just
like a sweet you had often as a child or seeing a certain film can bring back
childhood nostalgia.
Kamikaze Girls
For many of us it’s a favourite film. Regardless of whether
Momoko was the one who introduced you to lolita fashion or not, when looking at
oldschool coordinates, you will probably think of her and that will bring some
happy memories. Not only that, since Momoko was living the dream, whilst at the
same time being painfully removed from it (middle-of-nowhere village, weird
family life, daydreaming about a time long gone etc.), it is easy for us to
relate, as we dream of that lolita lifestyle while our own daily realities are
often far from kawaii. For me the nostalgia that this film triggers also
relates to my time in Japan, as I look at the familiar backgrounds and little
things that aren’t mundane and daily in the UK.
Both Momoko's coords and that rich shade of green that only rice paddies in summer have give me tonnes of nostalgia! Image from the film, I do not own. |
The history of each piece
Even though I don’t wear oldschool lolita myself, I do own a
couple of pieces that are certainly from that era. I believe my oldest main
piece hails back from 2007, which means it is already 12 years old – and more
importantly, still in remarkable shape! Holding a garment that has been taken
care of for so long and which was made during those early days, when lolita
fashion finally started resembling what it is today, is incredibly humbling.
And more so, to think of the journey that an individual piece makes before
making it to you – how many hands has it been in, how many miles did it travel
in its lifetime, what kinds of meetups it may have been worn for etc. – that definitely
makes me feel very nostalgic.
It *may* have been the first kind of lolita I saw
Now this isn’t something I can be absolutely sure of, hence
I’m putting it last. As I’ve said in the past, the first time I saw lolita
fashion was on my sempai at university, who was a daily lolita at the time. For
the life of me, I do not know what was the dress she wore when I first met her –
however, I do remember that it was pink, very frilly and definitely not
printed. As that was 2010, this would make it quite likely that it was
something oldschool in style, even if the details may have been more modern
(like lace and other trims). She no longer wears lolita to the best of my
knowledge and I wish that I could find some pictures of her from around that
time just for me to look at. However, still when I see a pink x white oldschool
lolita coordidnate, it brings me back to those first days at university when
everything was wonderful and I was all star struck (and before reality of my
university hit me in the face like a shovel).
While what I remember my sempai wearing was much poofier, with more ruffles and more princessy than this, it's certainly a style that makes me think of her. Image found via Pinterest, I do not own. |
All of this coming from someone who doesn’t wear oldschool
and wasn’t in the fashion when oldschool was the only kind of lolita available…
Do you feel the same way about this style? Do you wear it? How does it make you
feel? Or maybe you’ve been around in the fashion since those early days and continue
wearing oldschool? What about it makes you feel nostalgic, if anything? What is
the oldest piece that you own? Let’s see what lolita antiques we can find
between ourselves!
I think these are all totally accurate! There's something about that kind of quirky make-do quality to the older coords that make it super charming to me. I got into lolita in like...2004-5? So it's definitely a nostalgia thing for me, the first lolita I fell in love with!
ReplyDeleteI can imagine just how much more nostalgic it must be to someone like yourself who got into the fashion so early. What do you think about how lolita evolved now? Is the current look something you like or does it make you want to dress more in oldschool?
Delete