September Coords Roundup

Wow, as if this month played out like a change of seasons should: warm in the beginning and pretty chilly in the end… Not that I’m complaining, I’m loving the fact that layering up and cardigans are once again on the metaphorical menu. But to look back at what I’ve worn and physically observe the change in temperatures is wild.

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Coord 1: Chill Picnic

| Haenuli Whipped Cream Kitty JSK | BtSSB 134*405 shirring blouse | offbrand socks and shoes | BtSSB Secret AIR MAIL from Sweet Kitty headbow | handmade necklace and bracelets | Cutie Creator wrist cuffs | Sweet Dolly House Cookie Bon Bon ring | Banned Retro Bella belt |

Had this been an October look, I could've used it for the final prompt of the No Buy Support Challenge.

I love the subtle detail that the bracelets over the wrist cuffs add.

My original plan for this picnic fell through because only the week before I had sold my only mint blouse. So that idea will have to wait for another time. And as ideas with other dresses weren’t quite coming together either for a variety of reasons, and as I wanted to be comfortable, I opted for a basic sweet coord. It’s not what I intended to wear originally, but it was cute regardless, as well as delivered on the comfort that I needed. The picnic gradually grew smaller in numbers until there were only three of us, though the intimate atmosphere made it even more chill and relaxing. I made a potato salad and an apple tart, the latter being a massive success and a great kick off to the cosy autumn season. All in all, this was a really lovely day and time flew by.

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Coord 2: Casually Getting Seasonal

| Song and Temple Fairytale Library skirt | Angelic Pretty Logo Embroidered Turtleneck cutsew | offbrand tights and shoes | Naked Lace Company barrette | Metamorphose Rose Letter necklace | handmade bracelets |

Every time I wear this cutsew I tell myself that I'll get more. And then don't.

Don't know what it is about this pairing, it just works.

It felt like way too long since I wore frills (even though it had only been four days) and it was time to scratch that itch, capitalising on working from home. The outside world was still quite mild-to-warm, but inside was comfortable enough for a long sleeve cutsew and tights. The stress of the new academic year ramped up my desire to be cosy and enjoy the season. This may not be the most autumnal looking coord, but with the jewel tones and soft cosy layers it certainly felt it.

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Coord 3: Friday Blues

| BtSSB Secret AIR MAIL from Sweet Kitty JSK | Banned Retro cardigan | offbrand socks, earrings and ring | Deary shoes | Haruhi Clover headbow | Metamorphose Rose Letter necklace | Candy Kitsch ring | Angelic Pretty Cute Ribbon wrist cuffs | Angelic Pretty Charlotte’s Bear brooch |

The month of super lazy hair and makeup stylings? Look, my energy has had to be prioritised elsewhere, it is what it is.

How often I wear this brooch absolutely does not reflect how much I love it. Every now and then it makes me wonder whether I actually want to add Charlotte's Bear JSK to my wardrobe, but inevitably I always conclude that I'm fine with just the brooch. If money was no object - maybe.

The toss up was between this dress with the red turtleneck and this dress once again paired with a lighter blue. Having quickly tested the two options in flatlay form, the blue felt much more exciting, a sort of combination of the March 2020 and July 2021 coords. Though I will admit that once it was on I wasn’t that big of a fan of how the cardigan and the dress layered together, the end result was a bit more bulky than what I was hoping for. Oh well, sometimes it just be that way. And for a work from home Friday, at the end of what felt like a very long week, there was no point in being too harsh on oneself. I mean, the Queen had died just the day before, which put a lot of things into perspective.

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Coord 4: Anniversary Meetup

| Summer Fairy Limited Menu JSK | Ank Rouge cutsew | Dancing Days cardigan | Angelic Pretty Fancy Candy OTKs | Bodyline shoes | Angelic Pretty Twinkle Star headbow | offbrand hair clips and necklace | handmade earrings, choker, and bracelets | Twinkle Kitty Boutique bracelets |

This picture says exactly how I feel about this dress and this coord.

It's a burger. On a lolita dress. What will be the next bit of dumb nonsense to capture my heart like this?

In the end I wore a slightly different outfit to the anniversary meetup since it was definitely too warm for a jacket and I stubbornly stuck with wanting to do tricolour. But screw that, the look that I did wear was super cute, super comfortable, and I got to be extra iconic by eating a burger whilst wearing a burger dress (no messy accidents either!). This fast food piece of nonsense was a big winner and so was the meetup where we gathered round for a private screening of Kamikaze Girls. I can’t even remember when was the last time I saw that film, but I still love it and plenty of new little details were discovered. (If you want some to keep an eye out for during your next viewing, look out for either the original Usakumya or for Enchantlic Enchantilly’s designer, Fumiko-san.)

The things that I will do for aesthetic. Although I also just wanted a burger.

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Coords 5-7: A Trio from Travelling

A 3-in-1 deal, go to the post for more details!

I have written more about these three coords in this month’s No Buy Support Challenge post, so make sure to go over there for details and more thoughts on them.

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Coord 8: Fantasy Foret Day 1

| L’Esprit de la Noblesse La Bibliotheque JSK | offbrand top and brooch | amavel Cardigan | Innocent World Short Boots OTKs | Elf Armorie Cupid’s Heart shoes | Cutie Creator headbow | Vanyar Wig | Fantastic Grim Jewelry necklace | Enchantlic Enchantilly Queen Cat Secret Library ring | Amadea Kingdom The Adventurer D20 brooch |

My library may not be that large, but that doesn't mean that I can't be its custodian in the most fashionable sense.

Channelling some of this scholarly mood right here.

Whilst this outfit has not changed since the initial plans, it has grown with accessories and final styling. And I am so pleased with how it came out, every element did exactly what I had hoped it would: the colours worked together beautifully, there was enough detail without pushing it into the OTT territory, and the whole thing was comfortable enough to wear all day. Because with my panel not starting until 5pm my time, I had a good few hours to spare, so being comfy was important. The panel went so well too, I am still on a slight high from that, I managed not to trip over my words too much and everyone in the livestream chat was so lovely and positive, it actually makes me want to cry happy tears! I tuned in to Fluffy Kawaii Jo’s and Jenna’s (Lovely Lace and Lies) panels before mine, since panic mode of not wanting to miss my slot kicked in just like that pre-departure be-at-the-airport-3-hours-in-advance mood, and watching those helped me relax a little. If you caught my panel live, thank you again so much, it means the world. If you did not and would like to catch up on it, I believe that you can still watch it on Twitch whilst we wait for the recording to move to YouTube (and I can’t remember if it will be on my channel or Rose Foret’s, so maybe keep an eye on both).

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Coord 9: Fantasy Foret Day 2

| Metamorphose Classical Sister OP | AatP Arabesque OTKs | Elf Armorie Cupid’s Heart shoes | AatP Sheherazade headdress | Tiny Passerine Creations The Duchess’ Tea earrings | offbrand necklace | handmade belt and ring | vintage brooch | Brightlele wig |

This necklace has lived with me for probably twelve-ish years now and if this isn't the first time I've worn it myself (other than trying it on), then it's definitely the second. I swear to God, Indian bridal jewellery still has a hold over me, that stuff is what OTT magpie's dreams are made of!

The thing that started it all.

Then came the tea party. The coord is one that I put together in flatlay form first to demonstrate the points I was making in the panel about coordinating with not a main piece as a starting point, and this is the final look. Nothing changed from the flatlay itself, just like in the coord above, so it’s just a flatlay vs worn differences with some styling. I did contemplate the ginger wig, since it still had the braids I added back for the AYWi30C #24 lookbook and braids feel very dwarven, but the colour wasn’t working with the dress. So the bushy ashy blonde wig it was because the volume of it also felt very dwarven. As a “fantasy hipster”, i.e. someone who’s against elves just because everyone else likes them so much (and I admit, when I play fantasy RPG games, my race of choice is always humans), for the Fantasy Foret tea party I tried to channel some dwarven aesthetic. Across the various lores they have a pretty cool look, very easy to embellish with gold, and I feel like they don’t get enough love. So with this chain of office worn as a belt as my starting point, I put together the whole coordinate using the gold x wine colour scheme and the geometric shapes as my main running themes. I explained the various elements of the coord a little bit more in the panel, if you fancy watching that, this is just the gist.

The tea party itself was really nice - I got outnumbered by the Americans, which I guess I should’ve expected given that my time slot was 6pm UK time and the majority of the audience for Rose Foret's events are Americans. I enjoyed it though, met people I wouldn’t have otherwise met from the wider lolita community (and in the process discovered that one of them is in my own comm’s group - we really are a small community even by worldwide standards!), and everyone was so sweet. Keeping the tea party quite structured and moderated was a very good idea on the part of the organisers: it meant that time flew whilst having fun and without any awkward pauses to disrupt the flow. I would definitely love to do more of those, but the reality is that a 6pm Sunday slot is not ideal for my lifestyle and with my current job demands, so hopefully there will be better alternatives in the future.

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Coord 10: Fisherman’s Friends

| Violet Fane Charming Town skirt | offbrand top and shoes | Hell Bunny cardigan | Innocent World Anchor OTKs | Naked Lace Company barrette | Dear Celine badge |

I contemplated adding a necklace, but didn't have the time/energy before rushing out of the door, since I was in the office that morning.

A sign to represent the state of my emotional energy throughout most of the month. That I managed this much is a miracle.

A very slightly modified version of what I originally planned, with the changes being made mostly for comfort reasons. The bulk of the outfit remained the same and I am very happy with how it worked out, the skirt carried those navies and the sailor vibes precisely in the way I’d hoped it would. Charming Town seaside edition when? The musical was also really cute, very wholesome, though I am currently upset that there isn’t an official cast recording because Parisa Shahmir has a wonderful voice and I want to listen to two of her solo songs on repeat. Pretty please, someone?

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Not to be the meme of “me on September 30th vs me on October 1st”, but I am surprised at myself at how much I have planned for the upcoming month and how much of it will be at least a teensy bit spooky. Though I also want to catch up on just being seasonally autumnal before it gets proper miserable. So here’s to that. September has ended, I have woken up and can’t wait for what’s coming!