Lolita Fashion in Japanese Culture

Lolita fashion is a fashion subculture originating in Japan that is primarily influenced by Victorian clothing as well as costumes from the Rococo period. Lolita has made this into a unique fashion by adding gothicand original design elements to the look. From this, Lolita fashion has evolved into several different sub styles and has created a devoted subculture in Japan. The Lolita look consists primarily of a knee length skirt or dress, headdress, blouse, petticoat, knee high socks or stockings and rocking horse or high heel/platform shoes.

Although the origin of Lolita fashion is unclear, it is likely the movement started in the late 1970s when famous labels including Pink House, Milk and Angelic Pretty began selling clothes that would be considered "Lolita" by today's standards. Shortly after that came Baby, The Stars Shine Bright, and Metamorphose temps de fille. In the 1990s, Lolita fashion became better recognized, with bands like Malice Mizer and other Visual Kei (or visual type) bands coming into popularity. These bands wore intricate costumes, which fans began adopting as their own style.The style soon spread from its origins in the Kansai region, and ultimately reached Tokyo where it became popularized throughout Japanese youth culture. Today, Lolita fashion has grown so much in popularity that it can be found even in department stores in Japan.

In Lolita fashion, it is generally accepted that "Lolita" does not refer to Vladimir Nabokov's famous novel. Adherents present themselves more as Victorian children or porcelain dolls and prefer to look "cute" or "beautiful" rather than "sexy". While there are Lolitas who agree that the term 'Lolita' does not necessarily have anything to do with sex at all, the right to make this determination is up to the individual wearer. 

The name is ironic since the fashion was created to fight the growing exposure of the body and skin in today's society, specifically in regard to young women. Lolita fashion can even be considered a movement where girls ranging from pre-teens to late 20s fight the current fashion with modesty. It allows a woman to feel young, cute, beautiful or off-limits, depending on which type of Lolita a girl chooses to be. 

One follower of the Gothic Lolita fashion explained:

"We certainly do not do this for the attention of men. In fact, the fashion frequently alienates men. Frequently, female sexuality is portrayed in a way that is palatable and accessible to men, and anything outside of that is intimidating. Something so unabashedly female is ultimately kind of scary—in fact, I consider it to be pretty confrontational. Dressing this way takes a certain kind of ownership of one’s own sexuality that wearing expected or regular things just does not. It doesn’t take a lot of moxie to put on a pencil skirt and flats. It’s not, as some commentators have suggested, some sort of appeal to men’s expectation that women should be childlike, or an attempt to pander to pedophiles. Pedophiles like little girls. They don’t like grown women who happen to like dresses with cakes on them. I’ve never been hit on by a pedophile while in Lolita. We don’t get into it because it is some sort of misplaced pedo complex or anything, and the objective isn’t simply to emulate little girls, despite the name Lolita."

It is often assumed that girls who dress in Lolita follow a Lolita 'lifestyle' in which they seek to emulate the mannerisms, etiquette and the aesthetic of historical time periods, specifically that of the Victorian era. Although some do choose to follow a strict Lolita lifestyle, there are others who simply enjoy wearing the clothes. For the majority of Lolita, dressing in the fashion does not mean changing personalities and habits: It may simply be a preference of style or a statement for modesty.The majority of Lolitas greatly dislike the suggestion that their fashion is a 'costume', and as such the clothing requires quality material, often going far beyond the quality expected of mainstream clothing. There are many Lolita clothing stores around the world and on the Internet, but because of the multiple piece designs, the high-quality materials used and the fact that it is an unconventional fashion, clothing and accessories are often very expensive. A single outfit can easily cost in excess of US$300.Because of the cost issue, many girls take it upon themselves to sew their own dresses and make accessories as a hobby.

Styles

There are four main styles that fall into the Lolita genre. There are..


1. Gothic Lolita
Gothic lolita, sometimes shortened to GothLoli, is a combination of the Gothic and Lolita fashion. The fashion originated in the late 1990s and has been speculated to be "the social backlash" in response to the Japanese fashion Gyaru; however, many adherents of the Gothic Lolita fashion are inspired by music, especially visual kei, "the visual rock genre" in which musicians combine rock music with visual effects and costumes.

Gothic Lolita fashion is characterized by a darker make-up and clothing. Red lipstick and smokey or neatly defined eyes, created using black eyeliner, are typical styles. Though Gothic make-up is associated with a white powdered face, this is usually considered bad taste within the Lolita fashion. The outfits usually use dark color schemes like black, dark blues and purples, sometimes with accents of white. As with some Western Gothic styles, cross jewelry and other religious symbols are also used to accessorize the Gothic Lolita look. Other accessories in the Gothic Lolita style include bags and purses which are often in modernly common shapes like bats, coffins, and crucifixes.

Like many other Lolita fashions, the visual kei movement was responsible for helping to introduce and popularize the Gothic Lolita style. One artist in particular, Mana, a Japanese musician and fashion-designer, is considered to be the major force behind the popularization of the Gothic Lolita style, though he is not credited with creating it. Mana’s own Gothic Lolita fashion label, Moi-même-Moitié, has grown to be very successful. To describe the designs of his new label, he encouraged the use of the terms Elegant Gothic Lolita (EGL) and Elegant Gothic Aristocrat (EGA).

2. Sweet Lolita
Sweet Lolita, also known as ama-loli in Japanese, is heavily influenced by Rococo styles as well as Victorian and Edwardian clothing. Focusing on the child and fantasy aspects of Lolita, the Sweet Lolita style adopts the basic Lolita format and uses lighter colors and child fantasy themes in its design.

Makeup used in sweet Lolita is common throughout most Lolita styles. A natural look is emphasized, to help maintain the childlike feel of Lolita. Light pastels and natural colors make up the Lolita makeup color scheme.

Sweet Lolita places its focus on the child-like aspects of the Lolita style. Outfits consist of pastels, gingham or other colorful prints, lace, bows, and ribbons to emphasize the cuteness in the design. Popular themes in the sweet Lolita are references to Alice in Wonderland, fruits, sweets and classic fairy tales. Jewelry often reflects this fantasy theme. Headdresses and bows are a popular hair accessory to the sweet Lolita look. Bags and purses are often very cute with princess-like designs and often in the form of strawberries, crowns, hearts, and stuffed animals.

Examples for Sweet Lolita brands are Angelic Pretty, Baby, The Stars Shine Bright and Metamorphose temps de fille. Emily Temple cute (sister brand of Shirley Temple, a Japanese boutique), Jane Marple, and MILK are brands that carry more clothing that would be considered more casual, and are available to purchase at department stores in Japan.


3. Classic Lolita

Classic Lolita is a more mature style of Lolita that focuses on Baroque, Regency, and Rococo styles. Colors and patterns used in classic Lolita can be seen as somewhere between the Gothic and sweet styles; it is not as dark as Gothic Lolita, but not as cutesy as sweet Lolita. This look can be seen as the more sophisticated, mature Lolita style because of its use of small, intricate patterns, as well more muted colors on the fabric and in the overall design.

Designs containing a-lines, as well as Empire waists are also used to add to the more mature look of the classic style. Most classic Lolita outfits, however, still stick to the basic Lolita silhouette. Shoes and accessories are less whimsical and more functional. Jewelry with intricate designs is also common. The makeup used in classic Lolita is often a more muted version of the sweet Lolita makeup, with an emphasis placed on natural coloring. An example of the classical Lolita brands are Juliette et Justine, Innocent World, Victorian Maiden, Triple Fortune, and Mary Magdalene.

4. Punk Lolita
Punk Lolita (or Lolita Punk) adds punk fashion elements to Lolita fashion. Motifs that are usually found in punk clothing, such as tattered fabric, ties, safety pins and chains, screen-printed fabrics, plaids, and short, androgynous hairstyles are incorporated into the Lolita look. The most popular garments are blouses or cutsews and skirts, although dresses and jumper skirts are also worn. Common footwear includes boots, Mary Janes or oxfords with platforms. Common Punk Lolita brands are A+Lidel, Putumayo, h. NAOTO and Na+H. Many of the Japanese punk Lolita fashion brands take influence from London's famous Camden Town Markets. Vivienne Westwood, who, though not a Lolita designer, has items and collections that reflect Lolita sensibilities, especially in her Japanese collections, is popular in the punk Lolita scene. Males have known to take up Punk Lolita fashion, and as well as Victorian style Lolita fashion.

Lolita Culture

In Japan, despite still being a subculture and fringe fashion, Lolita fashion is mass-marketed and has wide visibility particularly in the streets of Tokyo and Osaka, on television, in manga and computer games. Outside of Japan it is still a widely unknown fringe fashion although it has slowly begun to spread to other countries. Lolita fashion, along with cosplay and other Japanese cultural phenomena, can sometimes be seen at concerts and anime conventions throughout Europe and the United States. The style has not yet been mass marketed outside of Japan, although increasingly Japanese brands are available for purchase abroad directly from the brands. However, there are plenty of dedicated fans filling the still-remaining gap. Lolita fashion magazines are widely available for purchase on the Internet and at Japanese bookstores which also deal in anime and manga. Adherents often sew their own homemade Lolita outfits, sometimes offering them for sale to make up for the difficulty of acquiring them from Japan. Apart from most Western fashions, Lolita tends to hold higher expectations to those that dress it. Higher quality clothes are favored over "cheap" lace and cosplay-esque designs. Many adherents also purchase Lolita outfits and accessories online from Japanese brands such as Baby, The Stars Shine Bright or other fellow Lolitas.

Gothic & Lolita Bible

One magazine in particular, the seasonally published "Gothic & Lolita Bible", has played an instrumental role in promoting and standardizing the style. First published in early 2001,the 100+ page magazine includes fashion tips, photos, sewing patterns, catalog descriptions, decorating ideas, and recipes. Tokyopop has been releasing the English-language version of the magazine since February 2008.