The final month of the year usually brings with it a lot more red looks and a lot more last minute squeezing in of coords I haven’t had the chance to wear previously. This year is no different, even though I also know that I wasn’t quite as intense about dressing festive every day as I have been the previous two years. Can you really blame me though with the year that we’ve had?
*~*~*~* Coord 1: Last Pre-Festive
| BtSSB Secret AIR MAIL from Sweet Kitty JSK | A.R.W. blouse | offbrand bolero and beret | Angelic Pretty Alphabet Marine OTKs | Irregular Choice Flickety Kiss shoes | DMC badge | Enchantlic Enchantilly Queen Cat Secret Library ring | handmade ring |
No idea why the light was like this that day, let's just roll with it.
Sometimes I feel like this badge doesn't get enough love considering how many things it matches.
Not that there wasn’t going to be anything completely unfestive in December, but this was the last day of November and I wanted to get some of that energy out before December hit properly. The whole coord came together because I wanted to put these socks together with this JSK, and while I like that part, I would’ve wanted more of that more royal blue throughout the coord rather than the navy. Maybe if I leaned more into a true tricolour and added more reds I would be less bothered by the shades of blue, but I also didn’t feel like going properly tricolour. Next time I will. Still, this isn’t to say that I don’t like the outfit, just that I think I’ll work on it in the future.
Love how ouji is the perfect thing for completely makeup-free looks, but the camera is less keen on those for my taste.
The most festive brooch that I own. For now. Working on getting more.
This is an even more toned down version of what was in the 1 Dress 4 Looks Take 53 post because sometimes overfancifying stuff isn’t the right thing to do. It’s as simple as that, really.
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Coord 3: Winter ILD
| L’Esprit de la Noblesse La Bibliotheque JSK | Sentaro blouse | Innocent World Union Flag Lame OTKs | offbrand shoes | Rose of Sharon hair clip | Puvithel Crystal Heart earrings and necklace | Ebony & Ivory brooch | vintage brooch | Le Petit Four Emerald Palace ring | handmade ring |
I have almost lost these lashes to the weather. That I didn't is down to pure dumb luck.
Due to a slight mistake this 2-way clip usually works better as a hair clip than a brooch. Unless I can use the alligator clip to attach it to clothes.
After being Naked-chan until scarily close to the event, I indulged the most festive of colour combinations: green and red. And thank Mana-sama that I took pictures before leaving the house because as soon as I did, I exposed myself to the most horrible weather that looked at the one hour of hair styling I did and threw it in the trash. There were generally lots of little things going wrong on the day and stealing my spoons until I was running on fumes, but even with that I was able to find a few moments to enjoy being around my friends and enjoy finally having a fancy ILD in person. And having a coord that I really enjoyed also helped, this is the sort of outfit that this JSK deserves.
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Coord 4: Snow Prince
| Fan+Friend Alice Knight shorts | Axes Femme cardigan | Metamorphose Snow Crystal OTKs | offbrand boots and toppers | vintage hat | Celestial Castle hair clip | Sweet Dolly House Snowflake Cookie brooch |
I did have a cutsew underneath, but only so that I wouldn't wear the cardigan directly.
Fun fact, I forgot to take this brooch off the cardigan and ended up washing it. Both came out fine.
I said I was going to wear this, didn’t I? It’s an ever so slightly modified version of the coord from 1 Dress 4 Looks Take 52, one that made it that little bit extra seasonal. Of course, the reality is that the boots and the hat were only on for a photo, but that still made for a comfortable coord to spend the day working in.
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Coord 5: Surprise Classic
| Mary Magdalene Deborah Doll JSK | Infanta Swan Lake blouse | Angelic Pretty Brigitte Regimen OTKs | offbrand shoes and hair clip | vintage brooch |
That joy you feel when the dress does fit in the end.
Since it's Mary Magdalene, minimal details are the best. And this brooch compliments the lace.
The surprise here is that this dress fits. When it first arrived, I was missing like an inch to be able to zip it up. And then I invested in some new bras, a few of which are unpadded and decided “ah heck it, let’s try” - and suddenly I was able to wear it. I might still have it altered if I ever find some matching fabric, but for now it turns out that I don’t need to. As soon as I discovered that I can fit into this dress I had to wear it and to me overcomplicating coords with Mary Magdalene’s pieces is doing them a disservice. This dress is so nice in its own right that going traditionally classic lolita with the outfit was only fair. It made for a very comfy work from home coord too and I felt so gorgeous throughout the day. Though in hindsight the blouse being a lighter ivory than the socks bothers me a little. Not so much when it was worn, but on the photo it bugs me a bit.
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Coord 6: Winter Lady
| BtSSB Soiree of the Beginning of My Memories JSK | Infanta Swan Lake blouse | Metamorphose Snow Crystal OTKs | offbrand boots, boot toppers, capelet and toppers | vintage hat and brooch | Peacockalorum muff |
After searching for so long, I have finally found a good capelet to replace the old one I had.
There was also another detail picture of the bow from the dress pinned to the muff, but this one is nicer.
My weekend started by hanging out with a friend. The original plan was to go to Chester to enjoy somewhere pretty at that pre-Christmas time, but not only was the weather a bit miserable, we both actually didn’t enjoy the thought of going somewhere that would likely be crowded, however pretty it may have also been, so it all worked out for the best. This is still what I would’ve worn to Chester, so the outfit plan remained unchanged. And why should it? All the fur bits, even though the top two and the bottom two are different shades, work together to make this pretty summery dress into a very wintery outfit. There isn’t a thing that I’d change about this outfit and I wouldn’t mind wearing this or a version of it again in the future.
Super quick selfie with just a touch of blush is growing to be my go-to.
This was the first (vaguely) Chrismas jumper I ever bought, actually.
Day two of that same weekend. Too casual to be a coord? Oh well, tough. I was at home all day and decided not to pretend that shoes ever happened. And the only accessory I would’ve worn with this would be some bow clip at the back of my head, so that wouldn’t show up in pictures anyway. Frills can be cosy, let’s normalise that.
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Coord 8: Sax and Pink
| Metamorphose Shirring Tiered Ribbon JSK | offbrand cutsew | BtSSB Forever Enchanted Midnight Spell bolero | Red Maria tights | Sosic Shop shoes | Innocent World Organdy Bow Rose clip | Tiny Passerine Creations necklace and ring |
I have been experimenting with robe curls (waves, really) and I think they will actually become the new go-to quick-curl method.
Letting the Tiny Passerine Creations cameo necklace shine in this coord.
I was practically dismayed when I realised that I hadn’t worn this dress with pink yet. So it was time to address that for something warm, comfortable and cosy for working from home. Few things are as comfortable as full shirring and that is a hill that I am willing to die on.
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Coord 9: Festive Visit
| Lady Sloth Winter Spices skirt | Pretty Rock Baby Spring Break Upper East Side cardigan | Innocent World Belle Epoque OTKs | Hush Puppies boots | bows from Haenuli’s Whipped Cream Kitty JSK | offbrand earrings | vintage Christmas brooch | Once Upon a Cookie Treat Jelly Cookie necklace |
A change of scenery (and sadly also lighting).
All the cardigan details!
Visiting a friend at Christmas time is the perfect excuse to dress up, one that I wouldn’t miss in the world. This cardigan is really doing the rounds ever since the weather turned cold enough and rightfully so since it is so good it’s making me regret not getting it in other colours. A comfortable skirt and cardigan is just the combo that one needs for an evening of chatting and hotpot.
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Coord 10: Christmas Eve
| Chrysanthemum’s Concerto Lost in the Garden of Eden JSK | Ank Rouge cutsew | Axes Femme cardigan | MuFish tights | Irregular Choice Flickety Kiss shoes | bows from Haenuli’s Whipped Cream Kitty JSK | offbrand earrings | Sweet Dolly House Snowflake Cookie brooch | Twinkle Kitty Boutique ring | Bows and Crossbones bangles |
Evening light was even worse, but this is what Meitu is for.
Or in this case, turning on the flash.
Christmas Eve dinner is a dress up occasion, but this year I decided to keep it on the cuter and more comfortable side. I am here to prove that gingham doesn’t have to be restricted to summer and I really like how this coord came out. It’s cosy and homely, the shirring offered all the comfort I needed whilst overindulging in food, and the addition of snowflakes turned the classic red and white colour combo into something more seasonally appropriate. Everything I wanted from my Christmas Eve coord.
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Whilst I genuinely thought that I would be able to squeeze in something else between Christmas Eve and the end of 2021, I also genuinely haven’t. And that’s a good thing. As you will soon read from my 2022 goals, the plan is to take things a bit slower and make room for other types of fun in my life. So with that in mind, as it is New Year’s Eve, I would like to wish you all the best possible start to 2022 that you can have, with as much rest, inspiration, support, and energy as you can to enable you to make the most of the time ahead of us. Enjoy yourselves responsibly and see you on the other side!
We all thought this year would’ve been different. We all thought that things would get back to what we knew before the pandemic hit. That is not what happened. And somehow we managed to coast along that limbo for another 12 months. Well done to us for achieving that!
Overview of Purchases
Whilst there were still no big events to save up for and to prioritise over getting new clothes or accessories, I also really don’t feel like I’ve done that poorly over the course of the 12 months. But maybe that’s because I haven’t looked at the numbers yet...
12 main pieces (1 sweet skirt in ivory* and 1 classic OP in red*)
3 tops
4 pieces of outerwear (1 classic faux fur capelet)
5 pieces of legwear
1 pair of shoes
1 bag
1 corset
1 wig
and 48 sets of accessories (1 sweet-classic gold pendant, 1 pair of wrist cuffs in white, 1 pair of wrist cuffs in green*, 1 gothic headdress in black*, 1 classic hat in ivory, 2 classic brooches in black x ivory)
It seems like I’ve settled on a rough number of new additions I make each year, averaging somewhere around this. Even though 76 things sounds like a lot of things to get, when it’s spread over the course of a year it becomes much more reasonable. I still continue to tell myself that I don’t really need anything, that I should stop or slow down, that it’s time to focus on the other styles I want to wear… yet still come back to lolita. Part of me feels that it is time for a substantial wardrobe reshuffle, to be a bit more ruthless and decisive, but I can’t quite bring myself to do it emotionally, let alone physically. So we’re coasting along, continuing to add pieces at this pretty steady rate and hoping that, as always, things will work out in the end.
The Year of Exploring Casual
Not necessarily in the strict sense of wearing casual lolita that much more than I have in 2020, for example. This is more to say that I’ve been consciously thinking how I can carry on wearing lolita a lot more regularly without feeling the pressure of creating social media content. Because so far if I’ve worn a frilly outfit, it’s made an appearance on this blog and then eventually landed on my Instagram grid with its 3-picture format. But that does create an environment in which dressing up can start to feel like a chore, where everything has to be a photo-worthy look and takes up that mental energy which would otherwise be saved. However, I still want to have a record of the outfits that I wear, since I use this for my own sake (and finally having a proper coord archive really helps with that). As the year drew to a close and a partial return to the office had me rethink things anyway, I finally started to get to a point where I had a plan on tackling this, trying to get things such as mirror selfies for those more laid back looks, whilst leaving the space for ‘proper’ outfit shots for anything that felt like I’d put effort into it. Maybe one day I will be in a position to have my photo setup out all the time, so that all I’d need to do would be to pose and snap, but this isn’t happening anytime soon.
Working out photos during my trip to Poland was a very helpful experience in helping me balance enjoying my time with having a documentation of the outfits I've worn.
The Year of Getting Noticed
It certainly felt like I was. Between the Bibelot Rose subscription box and the free glasses from Ublins, that’s already like 200% more exposure than I ever thought I’d get. Then there’s the fantastic opportunity that I’ve had to help host the MinoRinRin Talk Show for Hyper Japan, reaching 1000 subscribers on Youtube and over 2000 followers on Instagram… In my head I may feel like I’m still the same old me, but I can no longer ignore that it’s not that simple anymore. I mean, let’s assume that the lolita fashion community is equal in size to Rufflechat (which has roughly 12k members). That means that just over 15% of the community is following me on Instagram. A gigantic oversimplification, but really puts the scale into context within our niche community. Because no, lolitas will never be influencers in the same sense of the word as someone reviewing mainstream fashion or makeup or whatever will be. But even though not everyone following me on Instagram is a lolita, that’s still a significant number of people. People, real life humans, somewhere out there across the world. Mad. Bonkers. Mental. Thank you to everyone who has noticed me like that, it’s very humbling. Scary too, but mostly humbling.
I still don't quite believe that this has happened. This email sits in my inbox and yet it feels unreal.
The Year of Slowing Down
The slowing down came in two major forms. On the one hand I have been physically slowing down with how I engage with lolita fashion. My main outlets, besides wearing it, were blogging, meetups and YouTube. But I often have to choose what I dedicate my energy to in the evenings and except for the meetups, the other two can be easily pushed off the priority list. Which isn’t bad, I remind myself of the golden rule I often give others which is to create the content that you yourself would like to see. So if I’ve nothing particular to say or show, surely it’s better to wait than to force something just for the sake of it. With YouTube there’s also the added element of watching what other people create, which I’ve also haven’t done in a while. I’ve not fallen out with any particular creators, again, I’m simply dedicating my time to other things. And it’s been much needed. Variety is the spice of life and whilst I’m sure that one day I will catch up on the lolita fashion side of Youtube, not engaging with it now in a viewer capacity is actually doing me some good.
For example, this year I've done both Camp NaNo. And I would like to do them again next year. It's obviously time away from creating lolita-focused content, but it's the sort of slowing down that was good for me this year.
The other way in which I have found myself to be slowing down is in my consumption. More specifically: in what type of things I buy rather than how much, since the overview of purchases doesn’t necessarily point to any changes in behaviour. My wardrobe is quite large, there’s no two words about that. And whilst I still don’t always know for sure what it is that I want, I am perfectly happy to wait. Wait for the right piece to appear somewhere second hand. Wait for an independent creator to make it by hand. Wait to save up for a commission. This is a wider approach to my life in general that I’ve adopted over the past few years as I tried to make my lifestyle that little bit more sustainable, so it spills over to other types of things that I might buy and lolita fashion is but one of them. And even though I may fret that I’m running out of storage space yet still buying things, overall I do find this whole slowing down thing to be beneficial to me. I think that this is something that I would like to actively expand into going forward, but as of right now my ideas haven’t clarified enough. Maybe by the time it comes to setting my goals for 2022 they will…
Review of 2021 Goals
This, on the other hand, I can confidently say that I’ve done very well at, and I am very proud of having achieved all of these goals I set out for myself.
Did I create 1 lookbook video for charity: yes, an almost last minute effort, but one that I am incredibly pleased with. You can see the lookbook here.
Did I plan my Disneybounding outfits: despite the trip no longer happening in January 2022, the outfits continued and you can find them here.
Have I had a loita photoshoot: yes, and as a collaboration with the incredible James the Enthusiast, which made making this goal even more special.
Did I overhaul my earrings collection: yes, you can read about it here.
I’ve gotten to this point of the post and feel a little underwhelmed. Normally there is something distinct about each year that I review, something that stands out one way or another. But 2021 was remarkably… even? Even though I’ve done things, hardly any of them stand out over the rest in terms of grandeur. Despite blogging regularly, for the most part it felt like the usual types of posts peppered a little with miscellaneous bits. Does anyone else feel the same? We’ve accepted that things are a bit shit and learnt to roll with that somehow. Hopefully 2022 will be better in that regard (one astrologist I half-follow tells me that it will), bringing us a few more things to be looking forward to and to do.
As usual, I will talk more about my actual plans for 2022 in more detail separately in early January. Right now my priority is to continue enjoying the chill time between Christmas and the New Year’s as much as I can. Because, you know, the world is still a bit crap, so every bit of joy or rest that we can steal is worth more than gold. Hopefully you can also enjoy some rest and chill - you deserve it.
I’m not sure if I mentioned it anywhere (I probably have), but I decided that I wanted this skirt, which is BtSSB’s Dreaming Sherbet, after casually browsing Lolibrary in search of inspiration for a capsule wardrobe that hasn’t happened (yet). And it popped up on Fril or something not too long after for a reasonable price, so I got it. It turned out to be a perfect thing for summer, a perfect thing to use as an underskirt, and a perfect thing for comfort - an all round winner. Pieces like that deserve to be celebrated, so here we go!
Something simple and pretty traditionally sweet lolita to kick the post off with. What I love about this outfit, which you can sort of just about make out on the photo, is how both the blouse and the skirt have this raised dot texture to their respective fabrics. It means that what could otherwise have been a pretty solid coord suddenly gains a new level of depth. If I were to wear this, and one day I genuinely might, the Milky Candy brooch would probably go somewhere around the waist, I like wearing it around that area, it spices an outfit up even more.
Look 2: Botany Student
| Axes Femme blouse | Fi.n.t. cardigan | AatP Lace-Up Ribbon OTKs | Bodyline shoes | Cutie Creator headbow | offbrand earrings | Tiny Passerine Creations necklace | Le Petit Four ring | Violet Fane brooch |
I guess this would also fall under light academia or Ghiblicore? It definitely gives me those sort of vibes, that person with a book full of nature sketches, whose hair is always a little messy and cheeks a bit redder from the wind, who has an endless supply of tea for whoever might be visiting and who will greet their guests with a quick ‘sorry for the mess’. That’s this person’s outfit.
Look 3: Japanese Summer
| vintage haori | offbrand obi and socks | Irregular Choice sandals | Cutie Creator hat | Pink Up Fanny’s Dressing Table hair clip | handmade earrings and bracelets |
The obligatory more experimental look, this time taking the form of wa lolita. Like with many of these more experimental looks, I think that this could work when worn. Obviously then there would be something underneath the haori, but to me these layers could work. And now that I look at it, maybe I’d swap the red earrings for the short red wig and bring some colour balance up top that way. But it’s another one of those ‘slice of life anime protagonist’ outfits and it’s why I like it as much as I do.
Look 4: Fancying It Up
| Millefleurs Georgette blouse | Miss Point corset | AatP Arabesque OTKs | Sosic Shop shoes | Manda Rin Designs hat | Innocent World Organdy Bow Rose clip | Tiny Passerine Creations Duchess’ Tea parure | vintage brooch |
And wrapping the post up on an obligatory ‘let’s make a casual thing fancy’ coord. Which I am also very pleased with. As usual with sax blues and mints, none of these colours really match, but they are separated enough and there are enough of them that it ends up working together rather than against each other. My original plan for this outfit was to whip out the Triple Fortune bonnet, which would also be nice, but it could also have ended up being a bit too overpowering (unless I maybe added an underskirt too or something else to add more volume or bulk to the coord). However, I have opened up my EGL UK Secret Santa present literally minutes before I started taking photos for the post and this hat was too perfect not to use - so it got its first feature literally from the moment it came out of the giftwrap.
Of course, this skirt will also have plenty of casual options to explore, which will likely get worn before any of the above looks get to see the light of day. But as usual, it’s nice to have those options in the bank, for when I feel uninspired or just want something a little different. And even though more casual options will likely happen first, I do genuinely look forward to getting a chance to wear all of these outfits at one point or other.
This is such a big topic that I may have bitten off more than I can chew. It took me a while to find an angle that I wanted to tackle this from and that allowed me to pass on my hot takes in a cohesive and comprehensible way. In fact, it probably would’ve made more sense to leave this topic further down in the series, focus on some of the other aspects of advanced coordinating first before approaching something that sounds like an exit to the world outside of lolita fashion. However, there are so many outside influences within lolita fashion already and so many lolitas eager to do all sorts of style mashups that it seemed appropriate to try now. So that hopefully some of what I say can give you the tools and the confidence to realise whatever mashup is itching to emerge from your imagination and to put to sleep the worries of being called ita for trying that.
There are two ways of looking at a topic such as “Beyond lolita”, both complex enough to warrant entire posts of their own. For the sake of leaving space for the other things I’d like to discuss in this series, I will condense these as much as possible, whilst leaving in as much detail as I can. The two angles are actually best described as directions: that of going in and going out. In other words, talking about “Beyond lolita” is having conversations about the outside things that influence this fashion, as well as another one about the unrelated things that we project through the lens of lolita fashion.
When you stop to think about it, the outside influences on lolita fashion are how some of the minor substyles or popular themes emerge. Wa lolita is just a blend of two distinct fashions. Sailor and military lolita are simply incorporating those sorts of cuts with our coords. Hime lolita, despite the current lack of understanding of its origins, came about as a result of the extravagance of hime gyaru finding its way to marry with the lolita silhouette. Whilst lolita fashion encompasses so much more than that, arguably its most important pillar is the silhouette - and there is a lot of fun that you can have within that parameter. How else would we have such diversity of looks that are still recognisably lolita fashion?
Introducing an outside influence into lolita comes with a set of decisions and compromises to make. The better you understand that non-lolita thing you are bringing in, the easier those decisions are to make. Because the key is to blend them with balance: too much of one and it overpowers the other. Start by breaking down what is the most important thing that makes this other thing its own. Just like when we break down what is the most important part of lolita fashion, the shape is what we identify first, other influences will have their own things. Once you have that, you could look for aspects the two have in common, then start building your coord armed with that knowledge. Hime lolita worked because it was the hime gyaru hair and makeup styling imposed on a lolita silhouette then supplemented with princessy accessories that both styles are rich in. This exercise becomes harder the less specific your particular outside influence is, for example distilling something like the dark academia aesthetic to a few core elements will take you more time to nail down - but that’s the risk you have to accept when reaching beyond lolita with your coords’ influences and inspirations.
Ultimately, there isn’t a template that I could give you on how to do that successfully. Going beyond lolita is a very personal thing, everyone wants to showcase something different in their own unique way. Looking at the, by now iconic, comparison of cosplay vs cosplay lolita may give you some pointers on what to look out for, but it boils down to very similar things as having a solid lolita coordinate does: balance, depth, intentionality, quality of pieces, the overall styling and attention to detail etc.
What you bring into the mix depends on you. This is why the risk is worth taking because it allows us to express ourselves better through lolita, to share another facet to who we are using clothes that we love. Bringing our unique point of view to an outfit is like telling the world another part of our story in a way that they can see and hopefully relate to, even if not necessarily consciously understand. For example, I’m pretty open about the fact that as much as I enjoy gothic lolita, it tends to end up looking more classic when I try it. It seems that for all my fondness for the occasional darkness, that darkness doesn’t feel like me unless it’s softened with some elegance. As such the first time I wore Haenuli’s Just One Bite for a Halloween meet in October of 2019 was one of the most gothic ways that I’d worn it so far, where stuck to playing up the print and its darker themes. I still like this coordinate, I felt good whilst wearing it, but in comparison to the other looks I’ve done with it this one is solidly in the middle in my own personal ranking. Once I’d stopped trying to fit myself into the gothic mold and find ways of wearing this dress that feel closer to my heart, it inevitably ended up bringing inspirations outside of lolita fashion. Like a more old Hollywood glam in this look from September 2020, where the hair and makeup styling together with the accessory choices and the cut bring in just about enough balance and intentionality to pass this as an ero lolita coordinate. Or like this more folksy witchy look from June of this year, which was a way for me to blend some of my heritage and the musical influences that were inspiring me at the time with lolita fashion. Both of those feel a lot more me, not only because they’re less traditionally gothic, but also thanks to the other aspects of my style and personality that I was able to bring to the fore here.
Just because a dress is gothic doesn't mean that that's the only way you can wear it. Don't let such things stop you.
On the flipside of that, to me going beyond lolita fashion is to truly embrace and live the words that we so often use to explain ourselves: that these are just clothes. Because they are. Clothes for us to express what and how we feel - which sometimes means embracing that we’re using garments intended for lolita fashion in ways that their creators did not have in mind and that do not fit under that label anymore. There’s nothing wrong with that, in fact, I’ve found that the longer and more regularly someone wears lolita, the less they care about which arbitrary label fits their look best.
Whilst I had noted down to talk about things “Beyond lolita” previously, my original take was mostly the first side that I have talked about. What spun me back to this angle was a comment left by vivchibilove, who had asked for a guide to “wearing lolita pieces in different ways. Like the spectrum from the most normie you can make a lolita piece, to a casual but definitely alternative outfit to undoubtedly very much lolita. How to use lolita pieces and inspiration in your everyday style and how to use stuff from your normal wardrobe in lolita!” Just like what influences one brings into lolita is highly subjective, so is how one chooses to wear their clothes. The short answer is that only you can decide what to wear and how, and that if you know enough about what makes something lolita fashion or stops it from being so (which I’d expect the intended audience of these posts to be able to recognise), then that’s all you need. Put the outfit together in a way that you like, visualise your concept, identify what are its key points, execute it, and then see what label it might fit under, if you even need or want to put a label to it. As I said earlier, there isn’t a template that I can offer because everyone’s style, preferences, options, references, possibilities and many more differ so widely. Moreover, some non-lolita styles will be easier to blend with your lolita items, like vintage fashions, Western goth, preppy looks, while others will be a big stretch e.g. athleisure (no pun intended) or what society considers to be sexy mainstream wear.
However, what I can offer is a visual representation of what I would consider the full spectrum of ‘normie to lolita’. In fact, if I were to split that spectrum into identifiable categories and points of formality/extravagance, then it’d probably go something like this:
Transcription: Completely normie → Normie but with slightly more lolita-inspired styling → Casual lolita → Regular lolita → Themed but not OTT lolita → OTT tea party extravaganza
The first hurdle is that what is OTT for one person is casual to another. What is casual for me could be pretty dressed up for you, which is also what makes creating a universal template or checklist impossible. Moreover, there are cultural differences to consider, such as what degree of formality different occasions call for (e.g. British Christmas is extremely laid back and casual by my standards as a Polish person for whom Christmas requires at least your church Sunday best) or what those levels of formality even are (things like skirt length, how much shoulder is visible, how deep a neckline is appropriate etc. - some cultures still equate formality with modesty while others not so much).
As such, the above categories are heavily based on how I wear my clothes, on the occasions that I’d find myself reaching for something. For example, what I term to be “regular lolita” is my term for ‘the happy middle’ or the ‘by the book’ version of this fashion, where the outfit meets all the requirements of a lolita coord and is neither too much nor too little. To me that’s something that I’d be comfortable wearing to a meetup, like grabbing lunch, but also it’s something that’s even good for a weekly grocery shopping trip. But for another person that style could be what they wear every day, while for yet another it’d be what they wear to a convention once a year when they can dress up some more. The pictures you see below have been arranged in the same order to showcase how the scale looks like for me. The most notable are usually the extremes, the no petticoat look on the completely normie side and making everything as big as I can on the OTT tea party extravagance side. Someone else might not have as many levels in the middle. For you there may be no way to wear lolita in a ‘completely normie’ way. And that’s ok. These are your clothes, so it’s your decision how far beyond lolita you wish to take them.
The OP examples featuring Lady Sloth's Look at My Dreamy Sky OP.
The JSK examples featuring Haenuli's Lovely Memories JSK.
The skirt examples featuring Song and Temple's Fairytale Library skirt.
As a fitting break from the usual format of these posts, my suggested inspiration this time won’t be lolita. Because whilst there are lolitas who are fantastic at blending all sorts of things with this fashion, at incorporating things we never would’ve considered and making them theirs, I also am a firm believer in finding inspiration anywhere and everywhere. Someone wearing a diametrically different style to yours may not seem like a source of inspiration, but there is plenty of value in seeing a point of view you otherwise wouldn’t have. And amongst the many people like that whom I follow, @dandywellington is the number one inspiration for me. I don’t wear menswear, vintage or otherwise, I merely and occasionally dabble in ouji, which Dandy doesn’t. However, it is clear as day that the man has heaps of style and his own perspective. I enjoy looking at how he puts things together, but also listening to him explain his reasoning. Some of the biggest tips or sources of inspiration that I’ve employed into my own style came from his Instagram and YouTube channel. Take what he said about menswear, for example: “because the silhouettes largely haven’t changed in decades, it’s all about the details”. Sound familiar? Yes, lolita fashion’s silhouette also remains largely unchanged, even if it’s a far younger style than vintage menswear. In the same video I just quoted he also said that there is not one source of inspiration for himself, that he likes to pick different tricks and ideas from different people - which I 100% feel and what I apply to how I wear lolita. If what you want is to wear a ‘traditional’ or ‘by the book’ lolita, then that’s fantastic, be the best version of this that you can and search for inspiration from the traditional sources like magazines, brand ads and other lolitas. But if your goal is to use lolita as a base for self-expression, looking beyond it at totally unrelated things for inspiration is a good first step to take. And on my part I wholeheartedly recommend Dandy Wellington as one of those sources of inspiration.
Some of Dandy's incredible outfits, all showcased on his Instagram page.
It feels like I have condensed a lot of very grand and somewhat abstract ideas into one post. It certainly feels like I had to use the big brain myself and hopefully I have accomplished conveying all of that. My aim was to avoid splitting this post into more specific discussions about either of those points of view on the “Beyond lolita” topic. The Advanced Coordinating series is meant to be broad so that anyone can take my opinions on board without feeling like I’m imposing a particular type of lolita onto you. My way of wearing this fashion isn’t the alpha and omega, so whatever your own style or preferred fanciness level is, I want you to be able to find something of value in these posts, something to get you thinking about how you wear it. Nonetheless, there may genuinely be areas that you’d find beneficial for me to elaborate on, in which case flag them in the comments. And if your question does feel too specific for another post for this series, I will do my best to point you towards a good source of inspiration or a source of mentoring.
I’ve realised that I am yet to do a villain coord. There were sidekicks and main characters, but not a villain yet. So even though it would’ve been more thematically appropriate to do one in October, I haven’t - and I’m doing it now.
The Character
Whilst I can’t claim that Mother Gothel is my favourite Disney villain, she’s certainly a good villain as far as the wider Disney pantheon is concerned. She has a great song, a great outfit, her motive isn’t the most complex one, but she’s executing it well. Plus she’s part of a great film, I do enjoy Tangled a lot and still like singing the songs - Mother Knows Best included.
| Metamorphose Gold Braid Tuck Pinafore JSK | Innocent World Rose Lace Millefeuille bolero | offbrand cutsew, tights, flats and hair pins | Hush Puppies boots | Cutie Creator headbow | Promised Land Creations earrings | Wicked and Whimsy ring | 4 Aces ring | Patisserie Pink Bottled Stardust brooch |
In what is a bit of a return to how these posts used to go, i.e. with packing in mind, this coord is reusing the JSK from Disneybounding Coord 3 and the top from Disneybounding Coord 4. Mother Gothel’s outfit is very simple, just the dress with an accent belt, sometimes a cloak and her signature hair. So I ended up picking up her dark colour palette to run with for this coord. In a way this makes it a safer Disneybounding outfit, since it couldn’t really be accused of cosplay. It would’ve been nice to have a few more specifically themed accessories to tie the character in a little bit more, but it doesn’t look bad without those.
The black may be great for making the red pop, but as usual it's a nightmare to photograph.
Other than the fact that it is beautifully layerable, what I love about this cutsew is how the texture, whilst subtle, ensures that no area looks like a flat block of flat. The black complements the red nicely and makes it pop. Again, Mother Gothel’s dress has an open neckline, but that might not be too practical and having a high neckline steers the outfit away from being too close to cosplay.
One day I may even learn how to tie those bows in a way that's less wonky.
The same with the bolero. I did consider using my Sentaro blouse for the sleeves, but that would’ve been too fancy for a walk around a theme park. It also adds so much more texture that keeps the outfit extra interesting. And that does feel quite in the spirit of Mother Gothel. Her outfit may be simple, but it’s not lacking in detail - just like this one.
If I feel extra fancy, I could always layer some coloured solid tights underneath these ones.
Although I probably could’ve reused the black polka dot tights from the Perdita coord too, that wouldn’t quite be the right look for this coord. However, I didn’t want to introduce a print on the legs either, that wouldn’t feel right. This meant simple black lace, since solid tights in turn would feel a bit too flat. Though they might still come out as an option in case that extra bit of warmth was needed after all.
Actually both of these feel like deceptively sensible choices.
As often is the case with these posts - two shoe choices. The practical flats and the more look-oriented boots. And granted, I have done a fair share of walking in these boots, so would likely hold up in these alright, despite them being heels. Although from what we’ve glimpsed in the film, Mother Gothel wore flats of some sort. Then again, she had a long dress which hid them, so taking a few creative liberties feels justified.
Having hair accessories figured out before the hairstyle is a risky move though.
Now here comes the part that I am much less sure of: the hair. Whilst my initial instinct went towards something red, I didn’t feel like any of my options. A black headbow, on the other hand, is a nice nod to Mother Gothel’s hair. I threw in the pins as a potential secondary colour options, even though I don’t yet know what hairstyle I’d go with. But they’re small, so they’d be easy to pack, and again, bows don’t necessarily match a villain like Mother Gothel.
Wicked and Whimsy ring for a wicked villain. And a heart one for a heartless one.
These studs are large enough to be visible, yet remain pretty subtle overall.
More in a villain theme, the rings are a more deliberate choice, particularly the Wicked and Whimsy one. Precisely because of the ‘wicked’ part, which is perfectly appropriate for a villain inspired coord. The heart one from 4 Aces is a touch less themed to the character, though we could argue that this is the only heart that Mother Gothel would ever have. As for the earrings, whilst they’re not quite in the style of what Mother Gothel wore, that’s also not a style of earrings that I own. So in lieu of those a simple black pair seemed a perfect fit.
Disney didn't give us enough canon in the film to confidently say how much education Mother Gothel has had in the arcane arts. She may know far more than we've been told.
Last of the accessories is the brooch. It may seem like an odd choice, considering how it’s the most visibly themed item in the entire coord, but hear me out. We know that the Mother Gothel from Tangled was at least a learned woman. She may have been a witch, though beyond her knowing what flower to use to maintain her eternal youth we’ve not seen her perform any magic, so we can only presume that she was educated in some of the mystical arts. So it is perfectly plausible that she could’ve had items such as bottled stardust at her disposal. I realise that this is very tentative, but as mentioned at the beginning, I don’t have much else that’s actually themed to Tangled or Mother Gothel, so this is the next best thing.
One final gratuitous detail shot.
In the end I do think that this coord managed to keep the spirit of the character, staying simple and more on the understated side, whilst still packing in a good villain look. Not that I personally aspire to be a villain, far from it, but they do generally have a great sense of style. And you know what? Now that I see the coord side by side with the photo of Mother Gothel, I am very pleased with how this whole look came together, I really think it captures her essence in a way a good Disneybounding outfit should.
The Park
It was surprisingly hard to decide which park this coord would suit best. And in a way I feel like Mother Gothel might be best left for an Epcot trip? Even though neither the coord nor the character feel like they’re particularly fit for any of the region-inspired areas of the park, bringing a villain to Magic Kingdom just feels wrong. And as we’ve already established, she is a woman of knowledge, so she could appreciate an opportunity to further her knowledge by visiting the various lands and realms. Very tentative, but so is pretty much everything else about this coord, which only further serves to say that it fits.
Though I guess Mother Gothel wouldn't look too out of place somewhere pretty like the Germany part of Epcot either, right?
Summary
I do feel like at least one more character-specific accessory would help tie this together a bit better - this is something to think about.
The hair situation definitely needs working out. Left loose would be perfect, but that’s not suitable for the pins. But this is also Disney parks, so curling it feels like too much effort (unless I figure out a good non-roller way).
I guess this is also the time to consider makeup, since Mother Gothel’s is quite distinct. Do I try to do something like it or do I stick to a more lazy approach of ‘this is for the parks’ plus whatever the weather allows? Though it’s the least of my worries here.
