Happy reading! (=
For a lot of people, whenever Japanese clothing is mentioned, the first thing that comes to mind is kimono. And they would be hitting the nail on the head. However, what they might not know is a whole new Japanese culture which very much like the Japanese themselves, always changing yet still keeping the essence of it all very much intact. And this particular culture is the street fashion in Japan which is gaining more popularity now than ever before. Those who are wondering why is that so, they will, I hope, understand why after reading this post. And I will try my best in explaining what it is in the simplest way possible. But first, I would like the readers to know the most important rule in the Japanese street fashion; make what you wear your own. And this simply means, be creative, be unique and wear what you want to wear how you want to wear it. THIS is the essence of the street fashion in Japan.
Lolita
This fashion movement started in Japan in the 1980’s and has
evolved greatly since. Nowadays Lolita Fashion has grown to be relatively
popular all over the world. Relatively popular for an obscure Japanese street
fashion, that is. Lolita Fashion is emphatically not about looking sexy and is instead
about looking cute or elegant.
To know more about the anatomy of Lolita, click on this link.
http://www.lolitafashion.org/anatomy.html
http://www.lolitafashion.org/anatomy.html
Containing many different themes within its boundaries but
the more well-known styles within Lolita fashion are as follows:
§ Gothic Lolita - is Lolita with a heavy influence from the Eastern and Victorian
Goth style. Often characterized by dark colours. Skirts are usually worn knee
length with petticoats beneath for volume. Blouses or shirts are lace-trimmed
or ruffled in the Victorian style. Knee length socks with boots, bonnets, brooches, and a parasol finish out this style of Lolita. In short, it “combines aspects of a Victorian girl’s
attire with a dark gothic mood.”
§ Sweet Lolita - is the most childlike style, mostly characterized by fairy tale themes and innocent, childlike attire. It is inspired by baby dolls and Hello Kitty, and is popular among the SweetLolis.Pastel colours are used, as well as other muted colours like black and dark reds and blues.Large head bows, cute purses, elegant parasols and stuffed animals are popular accessories for Sweet Lolita.
§ Aristocrat - is a Japanese street fashion that is inspired by what is thought to have been worn by Middle
Class and higher social status Europeans in the Middle Ages, as well as the upper class in the 19th century. The fashion includes long sleeve blouses and shirts, long skirts, corsetry, and pants and dresses that are styled similarly for men and women, since it is centred on androgyny and elegance. Makeup, when worn with the fashion, is on the darker side, may be heavy, and can be worn by both genders.
§
Madam - the feminine version if Aristocrat, is more
influenced by 19th century fashion. The fashion includes, in addition to the
above, dresses with feminine but not usually frilly styling in a variety of
colours. Makeup, when worn, is usually mature and on the slightly heavier side,
though not excessive.
Now, if you are interested in
knowing more about Lolita, these are two links which may be helpful to you : http://www.lolitafashion.org/what_is_lolita.html
Gyaru
First
of all, this is a fashion section specifically aimed at girls. So guys, you can
skip this and read on about the next fashion on the list!
GYARU ,
(Japanese transliteration from the word ‘girl’) is sometimes known as ganguro, but is a subcategory of gyaru. It is a type of Japanese street fashion that originated
in the 1970s. The original ganguro look is no longer popular in Japan. Gyaru
is a huge uproar of girly-glam style, breaking all the rules of "what is pretty", and dwelling on man-made beauty (wigs, fake lashes, fake nails
etc.). Gyaru is also heavily inspired by Western fashion. Contrary to
stereotype, not all gyarus dress in a sexually provocative manner. The gyaru look is varied and is not limited to blonde hair and tanned skin.
§ Ganguro falls into the larger subculture of gyaru. Ganguro
typically includes brightly coloured outfits, mini-skirts, and tie-dyed sarongs. The ganguro style consists of bleached hair, a deep tan, fake eyelashes, black and white eyeliner, bracelets, earrings, rings, necklaces
and platform shoes.
§ Kogal (kogyaru) look is based on a high school uniform, but
with a shorter skirt, loose socks, and often dyed hair and a scarf as well. The girls sometimes call
themselves gyaru(gals).
This style was prominent in the 1990s, but has since declined.
These
two are just
the main subcategories of
gyaru when
in fact, there are more of them. But the ones which I
anticipate will
be the more popular version of gyaru
will probably be himegyaru, Hime literally
means ‘princess’. If you’re already thinking
of
Disney princesses, then I’m sorry but you’re walking down the wrong
path!
http://www.japanlinked.com/Japanese-Culture/gyaru-gal-styles.html
Now that we know the categories, the next big
question is how to be one? Since gyaru is a fashion culture which depends a lot
on heavily-applied makeup, without proper makeup wearing, no matter what you wear, you’ll still look plain. So, this here is a link with tutorials on how to
be a gyaru!
A kindly REMINDER to all; although gyaru is the
excessive part of the fashion culture, the clothing tends to look a bit simple
since it is very much still a street
fashion, so remember, if you’re thinking of dressing up as a gyaru, make sure
you’re not wearing something that you would wear while going out shopping, but instead something that you would WANT to wear going out shopping but it’s TOO
fancy for the likes of our society.
Bosozoku
While bōsōzoku fashion has
not been popular since the 1990s, the stereotypical bōsōzoku look is often portrayed, and even caricatured, in many forms of Japanese media such as anime,
manga and films. The typical bōsōzoku member is often depicted in a uniform consisting of a jumpsuit like those worn by manual laborers or a tokko-fuku (特攻服), a type of military issued over-coat with kanji slogans. These are usually worn open, with no shirt
underneath, showing off bandaged torsos and matching baggy pants tucked inside tall boots.
Among other items in the bōsōzoku attire are usually round
or wrap-around sunglasses, long hachimaki headbands also with battle slogans and a pompadour hairstyle most likely akin to the greaser/rocker look or perhaps because of the
hairstyle's association with yakuza thugs. The punch perm is considered a common bōsōzoku hairstyle as well. Surgical masks are also stereotypically worn by bōsōzokus perhaps to conceal their identities although these types of masks are also worn by allergy sufferers in
Japan, especially during autumn.Females are also shown dressed in a similar
style but dress in a more feminine manner with long and often dyed hair, high-heeled
boots and excessive make-up.
Visual Kei
Visual kei is a style
created in the mid-1980s by Japanese musicians consisting of striking makeup,
unusual hair styles and flamboyant costumes, similar to Western glam rock and glam metal. Now, this is a good time for me to give you a suggestion,
especially those who are working on a budget. Remember last year RockStar Dinner 2011? Well, with visual kei, since it’s similar to rock music and
clothing, you could recycle your clothes from last year. HOWEVER, you will have
to add a few items to make it more visual kei rather than just rock-ish.Some
of the items are chain brooches, black flowers, metal rings and tapes. Yes,
tapes. Take a look at these pictures, perhaps then you’ll understand what I mean.
Dolly Kei
Dolly
kei is a newly-emerging style based on Japan's view of the Middle Ages and European fairy tales, especially the Brothers Grimm. It
includes a lot of vintage skirts, dresses, etc.Dolly kei, also known as "dolly style" or
"antique doll" fashion. Wearers of the fashion choose vintage clothes and layer them to achieve this striking look. Accessories are all vintage or
reconstructed vintage pieces; some whimsical, some a little mystical. Dolly kei can be worn short or long. Short looks are worn with
solid-colour or pattern tights. Wearers of dolly
kei often use interesting vintage bags with embroidery, tapestry, and quilting
on them. A few common elements of dolly kei are: paisley, tapestry, embroidery,
tights, boots, and platform sandals, layering, mixing patterns and colours, ethnic-looking
pieces, vintage clothing, fur accessories, tassels and shawls with fringe, floral,
morbidity and mysticism and defined waist. We specially include this fashion culture because it can be
adopted to be worn by the majority of tudung wearing Muslim girls. The long-sleeved clothing with layering will definitely go well with your tudung! Also, for those who have a liking for fairytale elements, this is exactly the
kind of fashion you can work with!
Mori Girl
Mori girl is a Japanese street fashion that
looks woodsy and natural. A mori girl dresses in earthy colours and loose
dresses and layers. She enjoys wearing vintage and handmade pieces that make
her look like she lives in a forest, hence the name "mori" means
"forest" in Japanese. Mori girl style is, above all else, comfortable. Loose, dreamy layers made from natural fabrics like cotton
and wool, along with crochet, knit, and fur pieces are all part of the look.
Mori girls wear soft tights, socks, or leggings, sometimes with a pattern of
stripes or floral. For shoes, comfortable clogs, boots, or flats are popular.
There seem to be a lot of round-toed styles in mori girl footwear. Some typical characteristics of mori girl fashion are: loose clothes, vintage or handmade items, natural and earthy colours, everything soft
and comfortable, layering, looking like part of the forest and lots of
knit-wear, crochet, and fur. Mori girls tend to
wear their hair in romantic styles like braids, waves, or even frizzy curls.
Short bangs are popular. Vintage leather satchels and pochettes are often used
with mori girl fashion, but basket bags are also very popular. The straw bags are
often intricately decorated with lace, flowers, and scarves.Mori
Girl is easily mistaken for Dolly Kei and though there are other
dissimilarities, but the most striking difference between the two is the colour
palette. Unlike Mori Girl’s staple creams and faded browns, Dolly Kei uses a
lot of sumptuous jewel tones like ruby red, brilliant gold, deep violet and malachite green.
Natural Kei
