Just Do It - Goals for 2022

Well, it’s been more than a while. Nearly five years! I come back to the blog as a “32-year-old lady” (love you, Jenna Marbles) who has been living in the North-West of England since October 2019. There’ve been many times when I’ve wanted to start this blog up again but I’ve not felt enough motivation until now. 

Outfits from the last year…

I’ve been wearing lolita fashion on and off since my last post. But would you believe I haven’t been able to make it to a meet for the last two years bar two online meets with my Perth Comm. On top of that, the only lolita purchases I’ve made has been a blouse and a pair of shoes. I’ve begun wearing lolita more recently and I finally realised a lolita fashion dream of mine, singing whilst dressed up. 

The convergence of wearing the fashion more often, having a better handle on finances and becoming more mentally resilient has led me to set some pretty big goals for myself. 

1. Develop my lolita wardrobe through vintage shopping
   
2. Wear lolita more often in daily life 
3. Exercise more, improve my mood and lose weight

1. Develop my lolita wardrobe 

I want to dedicate £50 a month to spend on expanding my lolita wardrobe. Specifically I want to go to vintage shops and get blouses, cardigans and shoes that will suit a casual lolita wardrobe. 

2. Wear lolita more often

I would like to wear more thought out clothes in my daily life. I often wear very casual clothes outside of lolita and going out. I feel like if I am more conscious of what I wear it will improve my self-image and self-worth. I’d like to wear something that inspires me and gives me confidence. 

3. Exercising more

Since 2017, I’ve gained 25kg and lost 10kg. I still fit into some of my pieces but many are too tight. Ideally, I’d like to get back to my weight in 2017. More than that, exercising will greatly improve my mental health and now that I’ve started coming off anti-depressants, I would like the natural mood boost that exercising provides. Lolita fashion is just another motivating factor in going to the gym. 

So, where does the blog come in?

Basically, accountability. I’d like to track my progress with these goals using the blog. I think it would make an interesting story to see how my style shifts when I start incorporating vintage pieces and I plan on going to meets in the near future too. With the goals I have, it gives me a reason to blog every month and provide updates on what I’ve bought and what I’ve worn.

Next month I hope to update you on

• My current wardrobe 
• Outfits I’ve worn
• My exercise routine

I hope you’ll join me on this journey and if you have some lolita goals for this year let me know. 

Low Energy Lolita - Tips for Bad Mental Health Days

Hi all...

Long time no see. It's been a few months again and a bit up and down at that. Without going too deep into things, I have been dealing with some mental health issues for a while but particularly in the last four or five months. This has affected my ability to do everyday things including, of course, wearing lolita fashion. 

I reduced the amount of meets so that I had time enough for self care. As a result, the days when I went to meet ups were very important to me. There were some times when I would be having a bad mental health day but a lolita meet so I would need to wear low maintenance looks for those occasions. I wanted to share with you the items I like to use on those days.

Just a disclaimer, I understand that it is not always possible to wear lolita and go to meets when you are experiencing depression. Depression affects each person differently so you will need to make your own judgement on whether you have enough energy to wear lolita or go to meets. 

With that said, here are the items that I gravitate towards when I'm having a tough day. Most of these items are about getting a decent enough look whilst minimising effort and discomfort. 

Elasticated Onepiece

A one-piece is exactly that: a full outfit with one piece. Less pieces, less time, less effort; all things I consider when I don't have a lot of energy and don't feel good. It's gotta be stretchy too. Whether it's shirred or with an elasticated waist, I love an OP that gives you room to breathe. I find the more restrictive my outfit is, the more anxious I feel so I stay away from corsets or any tight fitting clothing. 

In my wardrobe (from the left)

Abandoned Night Chiffon OP by Baroque

Mystic Chiffon OP by Alice and the Pirates

Girly Note OP by Metamorphose Temps de Fille

 

Other Ideas (from the left)

Angel Wing Cutsew OP by Alice and the Pirates

Charming Dot by Angelic Pretty

Beloved Bloom Lace Puff Sleeve dress by Metamorphose Temps de Fille

The sack dress, fully-shirred bust OP or fully-shirred back OP would all be options for comfort and cuteness. 

Overknee Printed Tights/Socks

Printed tights add interest to your outfit. When I'm in a low mood, I tend to want to show even less skin than usual. Cotton overknee socks are often too hot in the Australian weather and I feel like they make my legs look wide so I prefer tights or socks in a stretchy fabric which cover skin, are cooler and often look better on my legs. 

My Wardrobe (from the left)

Kingdom Tights by Beth

Funeral Procession of Rose socks by Alice and the Pirates

Other Options (from left)

Elizabeth tights by Innocent World

Cream Cookie Parade by Angelic Pretty

Milky Pony Carnival by Angelic Pretty

Look for tights with a pattern down the middle for a leg slimming effect. 

Cardigans/Capes

Just like an elasticated one-piece, wearing a comfy cardigan or cape is a way to hide arms or décolletage without the discomfort of a blouse. While a blouse can feel constricting and starchy, a cardigan or cape is stretchy and soft. There's also nothing better than a knit or fluffy cape to help make me feel cosy and comforted on a bad day. 

My wardrobe (from left)

Bunny Ear Fur Cape by Baby the Stars Shine Bright

Cardigan with Fur by Baby the Stars Shine Bright

Other Options (from left) 

Rose and Little Bird Hood Cape by Innocent World

Heart Cardigan by Innocent World

Arab Knitted Short Cape by Alice and the Pirates

Soft, fuzzy and comfy is the aim with capes and cardigans. 

Make Up 

Generally, putting on makeup to match my lolita look is one of my favourite parts of lolita but when I don't have a lot of energy, I don't want to spend time on doing intricate makeup so I find the following items really useful. 

A medium brown eyeshadow and a glittery white eyeshadow 

Brown is a fairly neutral colour with many shades to suit all skin tones and dress colours. It's a colour that you can brush over your lid for a light shade or build up to create depth. Adding the white shadow near the tear duct in the inner corner of your eye creates depth and opens your eyes. This means you don't need to spend time choosing colours and creating looks. 

Pen tip Eyeliner and mascara 

Pen-tip eyeliner with mascara adds drama without the mess of false eyelashes. For me, false eyelashes are annoying to apply on the best of days, so on a day where I lack motivation and energy, having an eyeliner that draws smoothly is essential. This gives the illusion of dramatic eyes and with mascara it's often enough for my coordinate. Your face may not look "beat to the gods" but it's dramatic enough to carry the lolita look. 

Blush and Highlighter

Use a blush pallet with high lights and blush in one compact. Usually I combine two or three different colours from a couple of different pallets on my cheek, I will do some contouring around my face, put blush on my cheek and add a tiny bit of highlight. On a rough day I can use one pallet and a few strokes to minimise fuss and get colour and dimension on my face. 

Medium coverage lipgloss 

Rather than a creamy lipstick or a clear lipgloss, I would chose a lip gloss (in pink, of course) with medium coverage (and glitter, lots of glitter) for a quick but finished look. The reason why I don't chose a lipstick is it makes me look more mature and I prefer the glassy, less defined look of a lipgloss. 

Lip Stain

I also use lip stains because it leaves a soft impression and stays on your lips so you don't need to reapply often. 

Here are some looks I put together on some of the days I wasn't feeling well. They required minimal effort and were comfortable enough to wear for the duration of the meet. 

A comfortable outfit for an afternoon Murder Mystery Meet

Cats Window Velveteen OP with Putumayo 

Cotton Frill JSK by Victorian Maiden

Offbrand knit with chiffon sleeves

Offbrand tights and shoes

Detachable Shoe bows by Baby the Stars Shine Bright

Necklace by Innocent World

Christmas in July!

Mystic Chiffon OP Funeral Procession of Rose tights by Alice and the Pirates  

Cardigan with Fur, Logo Beret, head bow by Baby the Stars Shine Bright

Off brand shoes 

Relaxed and cosy for a Sailor Moon marathon. 

Girly Note OP by Metamorphose Temps de Fille 

Bunny Ears Fur Cape and Mini Usuakumya pochette by Baby the Stars Shine Bright

There are my tips for when you're not feeling well or don't have a lot of energy. What are your tips when you're having a tough time? I'd love to know. 

Hoping you are able to take the time you need to take care of yourself. Wishing all of you health and happiness. 

Until next time...

Fashion Show @ Madman Anime Festival

The Madman Anime Festival Lolita Fashion Show

It's been a dream of mine for a while now to participate in a Lolita fashion show and the Madman Anime Festival presented a perfect opportunity to get involved in one. 

Working full-time I haven't had a lot of time to do much Lolita so when the organiser asked for a coordinate picture, my submission was a previous outfit I had worn. I was very excited when it came to the day and spent quite a lot of time on preparations which included going all out by putting on bottom lashes!

I only found the wig at the last minute as it was tucked away in a totally non-Lolita bag (most embarrassing behaviour). I was really happy with the way the outfit turned out. 

  

We all met up in the foyer and were led to a green room out the back of the theatre stage. It was a proper, proper dressing room with lights around the mirrors. I took a couple of dressing room pictures with all the frills inside the one room. 

 

The good lighting created perfect selfie conditions and this created a photographic frenzy from the shutter happy amongst us (including myself). 

Here are some of the outfits from the fashion show. I apologise if I didn't get around to taking a picture for those that didn't get one. 

Prince and Princess. The only pair coordinate in the fashion show and superbly done. The princess's head dress is actually made by the model with string of pearls that hang between the spires. Making sure the headdress was secure looked like a task but it surely paid off for the walk. 

   

I love the blend of old-school Lolita here with the head dress and rocking horses mixed with the relatively recent trend of adding boz jackets to frilly dresses. Usually reserved for the comparatively unfrilly gothic and lolita or aristocrat sub genres. 

 

The walk that these two frill-seekers did during the show was nothing short of adorable. I've always loved the Bodyline Cinderella Bunny print!

 

I actually love this coordinate. Particularly the dress which is from Taobao. The fabric was lovely too. 

 

Well, you can tell what I thought from this filter. #godess

I loved the all white coordinate balanced out with darker shoes and accessories. 

I really love this print and the umbrella made the whole coordinate look so elegant. 

This coordinate was a deliberate mix of genres. Spooky and cute. The horns were a great touch, I thought. I would like to implement some in a coordinate one day, myself. 

I really enjoyed dressing up, seeing everyone and their amazing coordinates and planning the fashion show. Unfortunately there were some hiccups with the organisation of the show that did put a dampener on things. We were forgotten in the dressing room and ended up starting an hour late. However, the show came off smoothly and we went into the festival afterwards to enjoy the show. 

There was a room filled with many stalls with DVDs, manga, merchandise and other things; a stage for interviews; movie room and a maid cafe. I was only interested in going to the maid cafe and checking out the Sailor Moon goods because it's usually quite expensive at these kinds of events. The line to the maid cafe was really long so I went straight to the stalls. There were cardboard cutouts of LoveLive characters and some posters of popular anime. I enjoyed posing in front of a Sailor Moon poster and taking selfies. I also got my picture taken in front of a cherry blossom background and got a print out for free! 

In the end, I didn't end up buying any merchandise or going to the cafe. The Sailor Moon DVDs didn't even tempt me. I was hoping for a box set with pretty cover art. Unfortunate but on the positive side, I didn't spend any money. 

I really enjoyed dressing up in lolita after a long while and enjoyed participating in the fashion show. I hope I can do it again next year. 

Beret, Necklace, Blouse, Kumya-Kumya, Socks: BTSSB

JSK: Krad Lanrete - Phantom of the Opera

Head bow: Innocent World

Ring: Q-pot

Shoes: off-brand 

First Lolita Meet 2017 - High Tea and Spontaneous Cocktails

It was high time for High Tea...

Well, it's been a while! I've been back in Australia for a while now (since June 2016) and living in Perth. 

Amongst adult-ing for the past nine or ten months, I've not been out in frills or updated the blog. However, I had the most marvellous chance to head out for a high-tea at the Crown Casino this last weekend. Although the weather has been incredibly hot recently, I was enthusiastic about joining the Perth Community for cake and a cup of coffee.

Thoughts on Preparedness...

When the actual day came, the weather was warm but not overly hot. I had decided previously that I would wear Esprit de la Belle Époque de Paris by Baby and wear it with the matching bonnet, which I hadn't had the chance to wear out as yet.  I chose a short-sleeve blouse (the same one I picked up at Baby the Stars Shine Bright Kyoto in April last year) because of the summer heat and my go to off-white wrist cuffs. Honestly, I can't say how useful the Innocent World haul has been for my wardrobe. I knew that the brown bag and the shoes would match the dark brown bows on the dress and just like that my outfit had come together. Thanks to my lovely friend Stephanie who gets the all the preparedness awards for bringing a nifty little camera and taking outfit photos of everyone, including mine. 

Bonnet: Esprit de la Belle Époch à Paris - BTSSB

Blouse: Spring Garden Chiffon Blouse - BTSSB

Jumperskirt: Esprit de la Belle Époch à Paris - BTSSB

Wrist cuffs: BTSSB

Socks: Esprit de la Belle Époch à Paris - BTSSB

Shoes: Innocent World

Despite being fatigued from the past few weeks, I became incredibly excited when I tried on the bonnet with a wig and the colours worked well together. I even had enough time to paint my nails and put on some fake lashes so I felt extra special.

If there's something I've learnt about getting ready for meets over the years, it's "prepare in advance". Knowing what you will wear, how much time it will take to get to the meeting place and giving yourself enough time to shower, get make up on, get dressed, change bags and do a last minute check makes things much easier on the day. I will decide what time I need to start getting ready and what time I need to leave the house to get to the meeting place in good time a day or two before the event. Conversely, I've found concentrating on getting ready too much really tires me out so I try not to spend too much more time than usual on doing makeup. I'm sure everyone has their own personal balance. How do you feel about getting ready? Is it tiring or invigorating?

High Tea at the Atrium...

I arrived earlier than expected and waited to meet up with everyone. It was lovely! The lobby had a gorgeous decoration in the centre to celebrate Chinese New Year. It became a feature of our outfit photos when everyone arrived. 

I hadn't seen many people for a long time. It was wonderful to meet up with some people I hadn't seen in a while and meet some new people in the comm. First, we took obligatory outfit shots and then headed in for high tea. I snapped a little shot of all our frilly butts before we went in to The Atrium.

The high tea was a buffet and needless to say there were a number of cute desserts available. Many of the lolitas were drawn to the many colourful macaroons on offer and I couldn't help getting a plate full of colour coordinated sweets. Afterwards, I chose a plate of savoury food to balance out the sweet. Well, you wouldn't think that such small cakes would take up so much room but I was close to full so after a final plate of some fruit and marshmallows dipped in chocolate I was done! I regretted eating a full breakfast as I felt it undermined my ability to fully enjoy the dessert buffet.

A Conveniently Placed Bar...

After we left the buffet, we chatted for a while - catching up on recent happenings or simply reminding each other of what jobs we do. A member had prepared a prize lottery for us and I got a gorgeous blue hair clip. It was very unexpected and it seemed that everyone thoroughly enjoyed getting hair clips, bangles and even Sailor Moon socks! Finally, we got tired standing around in our tea parties and t-straps (and Mary Janes) so it was onto a couch with a conveniently placed bar right beside it. And that is how the unofficial cocktail meet began. I ordered a cocktail called Purple Rose (pictured below). Again, I was ruled by my desire for colour and thematic coherence. 

 

I was not alone though, and was very pleased when the lolita wearing Angelic Pretty's Melty Ribbon Chocolate ordered a chocolate cocktail. 

Chocolate goes best with chocolate 

Looking sophisticated in Melty Ribbon Chocolate

Check out @Rafiraga on Instagram

The chatting lasted for another couple of hours and even when we dispersed, we ended up re-grouping in the car park to discuss how UN-lolita most of our cars were. There must be a collective noun for lolitas somewhere - a giggle, a gaggle, a fluff? Perhaps it's a different noun depending on the style - a murder of gothic lolitas, for instance (I'm sure there was a chat about that on LiveJournal at some point). In any case, lolita was just a fashion when I began and it has become a social activity and a friends circle. I'm so thankful to have a group of people who live close by and are into the fashion. It was a while between drinks (literally and figuratively) but I really enjoyed getting back in the frills and having a chat with my frilly friends from the Perth Community. 

 

Packing for Japan

Hi all... 

It's already two weeks until I move out of my country town and three weeks until I head to the land of the rising sun for a few months. 

I have been thinking about what to take with me for a while and after seeing Roli's Ramblings post on packing a weeks worth of outfits I decided to give it a go myself. The items are chosen using a system based off the hypothetical wardrobe posts that are common on her blog, they dictate the amount of items and and the item traits in order to create a complete and versatile wardrobe for many different occasions.

Here is what I chose based on Roli's formula...

Three Main pieces

One one piece, one jumper-skirt and one skirt including one solid-colour piece.

• Mystic Chiffon One-piece (navy), Alice and the Pirates
• Collection Chocolatier Douce Praline Jumper-skirt (Sax), Baby the Stars Shine Bright
• Wonderparty Skirt (Brown), Angelic Pretty

Mystic Chiffon OP from Alice and the Pirates is my solid colour piece. I chose Collection Chocolatier Douce, praline jumper-skirt because it's my favourite, most versatile piece and simply perfect for the spring weather in Japan. Lastly, I picked out my Wonderparty Skirt by Angelic Pretty. My first impression laying them out on the bed was that they may clash or prove to be difficult to coordinate.

Three Blouses

Two neutral blouses including one short-sleeve and a different coloured or dressier blouse

• Pintuck Blouse (Off-white), Baby the Stars Shine Bright
• Sheer sleeve knit blouse (off-white), Off-brand
• Carolyne Blouse (beige), Baby the Stars Shine Bright

As I discussed in my wardrobe post, I don't really have any short sleeve blouses that are in working condition so I chose two long sleeve white blouses: one plain pin tuck blouse from Baby the Stars Shine Bright and a dressy knit that I use as a blouse which I picked up for $15 in an off brand shop. For the third blouse I chose my Carolyne blouse in beige (it's shiny so I initially thought it was gold), which is also a dressier piece.

Two pieces of outerwear

One short-sleeve and one long sleeve

• Short Sleeve Knit Cardigan (Off-white), Metamorphose
• Cardigan with fur collar (navy), Baby the Stars Shine Bright

I chose my short sleeve cardigan from Metamorphose and a long sleeve cardigan from Baby with a detachable collar. Detachable items are really useful for easily creating versatility, however the drawback is that they often are bulkier than similar items without the detachable pieces and this can make it difficult to create a nice line for those who are just on the edge of brand measurements, like myself. 

Leg wear

One pair of stockings, one pair of over knee socks and one pair of ankle socks including one solid colour piece

• Esprit de la belle epoque de paris over-knee socks (ivory), Baby the Stars Shine Bright
• Kumya Kuma over-knee socks (beige), Baby the Stars Shine Bright

I chose two pairs of over knee socks: one, a translucent pattern and the other, a beige pair with kumya kuma on them. I currently have no solid colour opaque tights that are in working order.

 

Accessories

• Hat: ivory beret, BtSSB 
• Pin: navy beret ribbon pin, BtSSB; chocolatier pin, BtSSB 
• Barret: brown barrett with yellow roses, BtSSB;  Ivory Ribbon and Crown Barrett, Innocent World
• Headband: two  striped ribbon head bands in navy and brown, Innocent World
• Necklace: Alice teatime necklace, BtSSB, original crown and trump necklace, Innocent World
• Ring: Alice teatime ring, BtSSB 

For accessories I just pulled a few accessories together considering colours in my wardrobe and luggage space. 

Shoes

Two pairs of shoes that go with everything

•  Ribbon pumps in chocolate, Innocent World

I already have a few pairs of shoes in Japan, a pair of flats and heels in white and a pair of boots and heels in brown, that I couldn't bring back last time so I will only take one pair of shoes over that suit most things in my wardrobe.

After picking out what I will take over the first thing I noticed was that it was easy to see the holes in my wardrobe using this method. It was very easy to see that I lack plain coloured pieces, in particular leg wear, something I will need to rectify in the near future.

Outfits

Here are the outfits I came up with from my hypothetical suitcase...

As you can see there is a large variety of outfits for a different weather and occasions. I probably could have created more if I hadn't have become so tired due to changing outfits so often. 

Observations

I had no idea these cardigans would come so in handy, simply layering the cardigan can change an outfit drastically. 

Doing this experiment really shows me how versatile my wardrobe has become over the past two years and it has further solidified my view on the positives of having a wardrobe based on colour palette.

Changes

As I'm going to Japan for far longer than a week (three months actually) so I would like to add a few more items to my suitcase. Specifically, two more jsks: the Dear Bunny JSK, which I promised to twin with a friend with and my Kumya Kuma Sweet Chocolate JSK, which I just really want to wear in Japan; I would also like to add a pair of plain coloured woolen tights to keep my legs warm during the cooler spring months.

All in all I'm really satisfied having done this challenge. The formula really worked for my wardrobe and it has allowed me to create many different outfits. Even if I wasn't going overseas, participating in this challenge has given me lots of coordinate ideas and has shown me where the holes in my wardrobe are. If you're stuck for outfit ideas or need a start on packing some lolita fashion for a trip I would recommend using this challenge as a starting point.

Until next time...