AYWi30C #8 - As Classic as You Can Go

Here was a struggle of a different kind: which kind of classic lolita do I do for this prompt? People who don’t wear and/or follow classic underestimate how many different types there are within it. It’s the same as with sweet or gothic, where there are many distinct looks sitting under one broad umbrella. There’s the OTT classic, casual classic, oldschool classic, vintage classic, country classic, classic that borders on otome, classic that borrows from mori, that cute and quirky mismatched look, a simple streamlined one, grandma’s couch… And given that my wardrobe could accommodate basically all of the above (with the exception of maybe grandma’s couch as I don’t have a floral that’s this much in your face), how do I pick one? Heck, given how many of my main pieces are classic, how do I even pick a dress to start me off? These were some VERY tough decisions to be made!

In the end I asked my followers on Instagram to pick my main piece for me. And I must say, they surprised me. Once they selected red as main colour, I fully anticipated them to go more OTT, but the majority vote was this: Metamorphose’s Classical Sister OP. And I can see exactly why. It’s that by-the-book classic lolita: simple cut, solid colour, elegant, a little Victorian. So it was only fair to put together a coordinate that would play up to all of those vibes and be your by-the-book classic lolita.

| Metamorphose Classical Sister OP | Baroque x Sakizo Repose of Queen tights | Innocent World shoes | offbrand hair clip and earrings | My Inspiration necklace and brooch | Wicked and Whimsy ring | Star Glazed Delights ring |

With dresses like this, particularly when they are one piece dresses, I actually think that less is more. Although this particular OP is by Meta, the style is not too dissimilar from what Innocent World, Mary Magdalene or Victorian Maiden do with their similar cut OPs. Taking inspiration from those brands, and particularly Innocent World, it was crucial to carefully consider each piece before it was added, looking at colour, style, theme, detail etc. So while at a glance this may not look like a lot, certainly not compared to the OTT sweet lolita madness from the previous prompt’s post, each element has been very carefully considered before being chosen.

Although the pops of pink and lilac don't appear in the rest of the coord, they are so tiny that they don't matter that much. And truth be told, I absolutely love them.

Generally speaking classic lolita relies on ivory as a base colour, however, the trims on this dress are white. Whilst I tried it first with ivory tights, as I was using the detachable collar and the cuffs, it simply did not work. So I dug deep to fish out these tights. Solid, simple main pieces are perfect for wearing with patterned legwear, they allow it to stand out without looking too much. And this white matches the whites of the dress spot on.

Showing off with some brand shoes, although they are looking a bit rough. (In my defence, that is how I bought them.)

Ideally I would’ve loved to pair this with simple Mary Jane heels in a matching wine red. However, that’s not something I own. My choices were black Mary Janes (which I’ve seen Innocent World do, but decided against it myself), short wine boots or these shoes. Although they are the only playing cards themed item in the coord, the colour matches well and the shoe cut allows for tights to be seen, which is why I went for them over the boots

With classic lolita, particularly the simple kind, it's even more about quality over quantity.

I kept accessories simple, focusing on getting a few of the right pieces than anything/everything that matched. It’s incredibly easy to go overboard and go from simple by-the-book-classic-lolita look to something way more dressy and leaning into OTT. There are several lolitas on Instagram who balance this incredibly well and let me tell you, it is not as easy as it seems. The key here is not having little, but for the pieces you do use to work just right. That’s the difference between someone consciously doing simple classic lolita coords and a newbie who doesn’t have that many accessories to begin with.

These are some of my favourite pieces in my collection. It's particularly obvious with the Wicked and Whimsy ring, which I seem to wear basically every chance I get.

The necklace was the first thing I knew I simply had to use. Floral embroidery is as classic lolita as you could get, which matches the lace on the dress. Once I had this, I knew I had to use the matching brooch too. If you were ever on the fence whether to get pieces from My Inspiration, I strongly encourage you to do so. They are sure to compliment your classic lolita looks and thanks to their size and quality craftsmanship, they are excellent as statement pieces. The rings were there primarily to keep my hands from being too bare. And because I love those two rings, they’re amazing.

There is something so elegant in just the combination of white and red.

I wish that I had a vintage hat that could match this, as I feel this coordinate and this OP are just made for being worn with a hat! Alas, in the absence of one, I dug into my hair accessories to find something suitable. Again, I was using Innocent World’s Instagram feed for inspiration, both for an accessory and the hairstyle, as they have to go together well. And again, their mantra is keeping things simple, as well as this is supposed to be as classic a coord as I could do, so a flower clip seemed like the best choice. You will see later in the video that I styled my hair into braids then pinned them up, for which a side clip like this works very well. And as that hairstyle exposed my ears and neck, I picked my most trusted pair of pearl earrings.

Probably one of the most beautiful pieces of lace I've seen.

The detachable bow is quite small and normally sits at the neckline, but since I've removed the ribbon, it adds that pop of interest to the waist seam.

Simple and elegant cuff. (And also stupidly small, even my tiny wrists struggle with it!)

If you didn't know that this was Meta, you'd assume it's Innocent World, wouldn't you? This design is just so their style!

To keep this coordinate as classic as it could be, I kept the detachable yoke and cuffs, though skipped the waist ribbon as it has crosses. And yes, it’s only after taking the photos that I realised that I put the cuffs backwards on the flatlay – don’t worry, they’re the right way round in the lookbook video. Whilst personally I prefer the dress without those, as the OP’s neckline is very flattering on me, they do add a more Victorian look which just seems more classic. The yoke is finished with some beautiful pintucks, as well as rose lace, which also adorns the bottom of the skirt. The cuffs have a tiny bit of ruffling and all those little finishing touches are what we admire lolita fashion for. It could’ve been a very plain dress otherwise, but if you care to look at it in more detail, you will see the depth these extra bits add.

Not the best view of my hairstyle, but a decent enough view of the makeup. I am particularly proud for having managed a liquid eyeliner line this thin!

Whilst my makeup or hair weren’t particularly exciting for this look, I thought that I’d share a closeup of them anyway. Just like the coordinate, your by-the-book classic lolita doesn’t need much to make it all feel finished and polished. Emphasizing your natural look with just a touch of makeup is enough, although if you’re feeling very confident about your face, by all means go bare faced. Since it’s me, I couldn’t resist adding some lipstick, although I talked myself out of red (my first instinct) and went with a subtler berry tone (a new favourite of mine courtesy of the Colourpop x Disney collaboration).

Left outfit is from May 2019 and right is from October 2019.
Despite me reusing some pieces (well, here boots specifically), thanks to all these removable pieces both coords look sufficiently different from each other. And hopefully from this one too. I still would like to try dressing this piece up one day - though at the same time I want to wear it with the Brigitte Regimen socks again and again!

I’ve only had this OP since March this year, but it seems like it’s become a firm favourite already. It is genuinely very comfortable and easy to wear, which helps a lot and is what I wanted from it, but the simplicity of it makes it super versatile. Already I’m planning to wear it to my family Christmas dinner, if I don’t find anything else to wear for then. Having said this, I’d also love to dress this OP up one day into something a bit more elaborate (I’m thinking my Shinku Rose overdress maybe). Though by the time that happens, I’ll probably wear it several more times in various other simple ways.

I had literally just put up my Christmas tree when I filmed this and since I’m posting this in December, it’s only fair to include some festive shots. My tree is only tiny, a hand-me-down from my Mum as part of my moving out gift package, though I’d love to move it somehow so that it can feature in all of my outfit shots over the Christmas period. Not sure how I’ll manage that yet, but let’s hope that I can figure something out.