Hosting a Tea Party

A Tea Party can be either an official event of a brand, convention or your local community or private people in your comm can host it. Actually everyone can host it, and it is what it is called - A little (Victorian inspired) party with tea. At least in most cases.

At official or more public events (like those Tea Parties brands or your comm hosts) often happen raffles and a question and answer with a more famous/public person of the Lolita scene.

Of course not everyone is able to organise a raffle or a model to come to your tea party, but there are plenty of other ideas to make the Tea Party more interesting. The following points hopefully give you everything you need for hosting a quite successful Tea Party or at least give you inspiration for it.

1. The Basics

One of the most important things is to be prepared. Keep in mind that everyone has a different taste and is really into aesthetic things, so it is recommendable to prepare:

• different sort of teas
• water (without gas and with gas)
• maybe some other drinks if somebody doesn't like tea
• food*
• decoration **

*Regarding food you could ask others to bake something nice if they want. Beside cake, macaroons and little morceau, cookies or baked goods in general can give a nice variety.

 

 ** Decoration can change the whole atmosphere. If you have the opportunities, may organise something to decorate the table nicely. 

2. Games

Games are always good to go against the boredom.
The good thing about Lolita is, that everyone there (sooner or later) has a huge knowledge about different "Lolita things". You could maybe prepare little jewelry, sweets or something similar as prices and do a quiz or a competition regarding e. g. print names. You can generally form usual games into Lolita games.
For some inspiration:

Print Charade
This is really huge fun. You can search for prints of which either the content or the name is easy (or hard) to imitate.

Describing Prints without words
Here you can also search for some print names and eliminate some words that are directly or easily describing it. Without those words the person has to describe the print and the others has to guess which print it is.

Who am I?
This should also sound familiar to you. You are searching for celebrities or famous persons (of "our" world of course), write it on a post it, put it on the forehead of your friend and your friend has to ask Yes/No question about his new identity.

The new Maki & Asuka
Somebody gets the name of a print (maybe with picture example) and has to draw it on a piece of paper, visible for everyone while drawing. The first one who guesses the print either wins a price or can choose the next person to draw a print as a little reward.

Other games
If you organise the tea party at home, you could also make everyone bring another full coordinate or at least another piece, whether it's a dress, a blouse, a headdress or another main piece. Then you make two raffles. In one you put the names of everyone who is participating, in the other you put a specific style or specific criteria of a coordinate. (Sweet, Classic, Gothic Lolita for the beginning. To make it more funny, you can also throw other styles in the raffle and look what's the result.) Draw the person first, send her out (maybe with another person) and then draw the new style she'll dress in (Maybe ignore your first choice if it's her regular style). Then you have to choose a new coordinate. Don't forget to make pictures of it!

3. Photos = Memories

Make sure to get photos of the event. Maybe prepare pictures of the food and the decoration before it is eaten and messed up. You could also prepare a good camera and make coordinate photos of everyone when they arrive. Group photos are also a nice memory. Later, you can send them to them via Facebook, Whatsapp or even make them a "memory paper" or even a framed collage of the nice pictures you get.

Tips beside that

Little gifts are always a nice idea. Whether you do them in form of game rewards, welcoming gifts or in form as a framed collage a few weeks afterwards, your guests will be happy about it.

Furthermore, a theme can make the preparations easier for both sides. You can involve it in your decorations and maybe even in your food plans and your guests (and you) can involve it in their coordinates.

Your guests give you constant feedback of your actions. Always prepare enough tea, enough to eat and take care of the needs of your guests. May play games if you want, make a little photo session, prepare places where they can put their coats, bags and shoes at to make the beginning more organised and try to involve everyone. If you follow at least this instruction, everything will work out well!

Have fun, lovelies!

Replicas

If you want to know, how to distinguish replicas from originals, click here (coming soon).

Replicas had been a huge topic the past few years. Since brands strongly limit their stocks and do not and cannot give a guarantee on rereleasing a specific print, the demand sometimes is higher than the offer - And then replica makers get their profit of it. They are stealing the print or cut (or both) of a dress from a specific brand and simply fake it. This is often made with famous prints. But this isn't the only reason for making and buying replicas - Sometimes the original is the wrong size or the wrong price. It has been a problem for years, at least in the eyes of the brands, but how bad is it to buy replicas?

The opinions differ a lot here.

There are many replica haters outside who can't understand at all, that someone is buying a replica. But there are also people asking, where the problem is, and sometimes they buy replicas themselves and sometimes they do not.

It is indeed your own decision whether to buy a replica or not - But let's face some facts below.

The quality of replicas are never as high as the quality of the original.

The print is a stolen copy, which is first of all illegal and bounded to chemics. Sometimes, the texture of the fabric is shiny or feels very cheap.

Replicas often cost more than the half of the original.

On a new Replica you can spend up to 150 Euro. Sometimes you could even get the original for 50 Euro more, or you could wait until you saved another 150 Euro and spend it on the original.

You will never get back what you have paid.

Replicas are nothing worth to be honest, at least not if they can't go up or down to specific sizes. But still if they are plus size friendly, you shouldn't get more than the half of what you paid back when you resell it and reselling it is actually just as criminal als producing or buying it.

Replicas are destroying the brand.

This sentence sounds quite unreal since brands tend to have really high prices for their stuff, but it is true, since the high prices are found in the high quality at first and in the guaruantee to survive from it. at second. Lolita brands can be glad, that most Lolitas appreciate the difference of an Original and a Fake that much.

Last but not least: 

The designers get really emotional when talking about replicas. 

They can't understand it, since they invested very much energy and creativity in the dress and their design and print is just stolen away by some cheap replica makers.

It's understandable that sizing and pricing is often an issue when it comes to Lolita Fashion - But you should maybe think of it if it would be worth it to just wait a half year longer, alter the dress or help beautiful little taobao brands to survive by buying their originals.

If you are okay with all of this, it's fine too.

Thank you very much for reading.

The Different Styles of Lolita Fashion

Aside the three main styles Sweet, Classic and Gothic Lolita, many other substyles have developed over the years. There are actually too many to make a post about it, but let's try our best to get the main stuff together.

Generally: For actually every substyle the term "OTT" exists. "OTT" is short for "Over The Top" and simply describes an "overdone" coordinate with many bows, huge headpieces or huge hairstyles. OTT coordinates often look like art and really lifts up the features of the single substyle, but keep in mind that being OTT is not required to do a full Loli Coordinate!

Let's start with the three main substyles.

Sweet Lolita

Sweet Lolita Fashion has taken the hugest influence from Harajuku. This substyle is marked by its bright pastel colours and cute themes. Print themes are often toys, sweets, cakes or cute animals, but the dresses can also be very plain. The favourite brand of almost every Sweet Lolita is Angelic Pretty, because they became loved by so many because of their way to pull off Sweet Lolita looks. On the left side, you can see an example of two Sweet Lolitas on the streets of Harajuku. They were snapped by tokyofashion.com. You can find out more about their coordinates here.

Classic Lolita

If you are searching for the most historical correct part of the fashion, Classic Lolita is made for you. The colour shemes are a bit more toned down. Pastels are pretty unusual in this substyle. Bordeaux, ivory, brown, dark green or navy are more common colours for instance. Some Classic Lolita dresses remind of historical persons like Marie Antoinette, as you can see on the right girl in the picture, or simply historical inspired dresses like you can see on the right. Classic Lolita has become more popular the past years. Typical brands for this substyle are Mary Magdalene and Victorian Maiden for example. Of course other brands like Innocent World, Baby, the stars shine bright or Angelic Pretty are also producing many dresses that apply on the classic style. If you want to find out more about their coordinates, click here.

Gothic Lolita

Gothic Lolita was one of the first subtyles that developed in the beginning of the fashion. It is bound to darker colours, most likely black, bordeaux or something similar. Contrast rich colour shemes can be seen in this substyle too. The coordinates sometimes feature dark themes, sometimes even grave themes. A big inspiration for many Gothic Loli's is Mana Sama. Mana is a singer and designer. He is not the founder of the fashion, but he got a big influence on it nowadays, too. He is the owner of the Lolita fashion brand moi-meme-motie, which is really famous in this substyle. Many Gothic Lolitas prefer natural makeup over dark eyes and dark lips. You can find out more about the coordinate here.












Will follow soon:
Sailor Lolita
Pirate Lolita
Carnival/Circus Lolita

The Basics of Lolita Fashion

(I don't like to call it rules again, so I named it basics instead.)

If you take a bunch of Lolitas and compare them to each other, they all have a few things in common, no matter which style they are coming from.

Today we want to learn about the principles of Lolita Fashion. There are a few, but they are just a few things that identify us like bright coloured hair identifies a Punk for example.

The first thing to mention: Everyone can wear Lolita, as long as you feel comfortable with it. It's no matter if you are a girl, boy, something in between, 12 years old, 70 years old - The rule that has to apply is, that you feel comfortable with it!

To introduce you correctly into this topic, this will be a bit longer. For the short version, scroll down. It is just important that you understand step by step what makes a main Lolita piece a main Lolita piece and so on.

The main piece

The main piece of every Lolita Outfit is a dress or skirt. There are also some styles (Ouji for example) that do not require a dress or skirt, but these are exceptions. They are still Lolita, but they are more the boyish side of Lolita - We will come to this in another post.

There are two types of dresses in the fashion:

The One Piece

An One Piece is easily recognized by one thing, all One Pieces have - Sleeves. Sometimes they are as huge as in the picture on the left, but they can also be short, long, like a sewn-in blouse or anything else that covers your shoulders. One Pieces are always pretty high closed on the collar. It is often shortened as 'OP'.

(Dress example: Musee du Chocolat Princess OP by Angelic Pretty)

 The Jumperskirt

A Jumperskirt is a dress that always requires a blouse. It only has straps in most cases, but it never covers the shoulders completely. It is often shortened as JSK.

(Dress example: Cameo Window JSK by Angelic Pretty)

To make a dress a Lolita dress (or a skirt a Lolita skirt), or to make it "loliable" there are three things that have to apply:

1. The length

The dress should end on your knees or at least a few (only a few) centimetres above it. Actually, everything that is longer than knee-length is fine for the fashion.
If your skirt is too short, there are also underskirts that have ruffles on the end, which are made to make your skirt longer.

2. The shape

The shape is also very important. There are two kind of skirt shapes in Lolita which are both reached through petticoats.

Bell shape

The first and more common is called "bell shape". It's called like this because it some sort of looks like a bell. Can you see it?
(Dress example: Marchen Ribbon JSK by Angelic Pretty)

A-line

The second and less commong shape is an A-line shape. If you go down from the waist to the end of the skirt, it looks like an A, or a V that is turned around. This is why it's called A-line.

(Dress example: La Prière One Piece by Alice and the Pirates) 

 A-line? Bellshape? Huh?

Sometimes you cannot clarify if your dress needs an A-line petticoat or not. On the Jumperskirt on the left side you can tell it pretty easily after a few looks, but sometimes you just have to figure it out yourself. Browsing around CoF, instagram or tumblr can help finding out which sort of petticoat is better.

(Dress example: Marine Kingdom JSK by Angelic Pretty)

 

 

3. The quality! 

Lolita is a fashion that especially focuses on quality. You do not have to buy from the big brands, but there are a few things you should check before buying the dress.

The lace is one of the most important things in Lolita when it comes to quality. Your dress do not have to have big ruffles or much lace - Some dress design would be even thrown off with those kind of features, but sometimes the lace is what makes a dress look either expensive or cheap.

Let's move on to what makes your skirt the shape it is on the pictures you have seen above - Petticoats!

Petticoats/Panniers

 Petticoats (they are often called Panniers, too) are one of the most important things in Lolita Fashion! If you don't have one, your skirt will not stay up like this. But since this look is, what takes a lot of the Lolita aesthetic, a Petticoat is as important as your daily food should be!

They come in all shapes, lengths and sizes. Here is an example of a petticoat:

A petticoat is commonly made out of organza or tulle. You should prefer a petticoat that is specially made for lolita, because wedding pettis tend to loose the poof very fastly. They are made to be worn only for a couple of hours, so they won't do you any favours if you want to wear them more often. Swing dance pettis often have the wrong shape.

Petticoats should not show up under your skirt when you are moving. To protect your underwear from unwanted looks when you walk upstairs, you can wear bloomers underneath a petticoat.

They are generally looking like the underwear of your grandma, are super functional, comfy and are a good option to keep you warm in the winter season since there also exist bloomers, which are made out of velvet or something similar! They are not a requirement for a full lolita coordinate, but they sometimes really help. Of course you can also wear your pyjama shorts or a normal shorts since they are not made to show up under your skirt, too.

Headwear

Your headwear is also an extremely important part for Lolita Fashion! Even if it's only a bow in your hair, it's important to put something on your head for balancing out your coordinate.

For headwear itselfs actually exist no rules. You can literally put anything on your head that you like - And suit your coordinate. But let's take a look at the three most common types of headwear in Lolita.

Headbow

Headbows are a big bow either in the middle of the head or the side of your head. Bows on the side of your heads are also called Sidebows. Very many dresses have the suiting headbow for the print.

 

 

 Bonnet

Bonnets are coming in pretty much all shapes and sizes. They are the most historical headwear you can find in lolita fashion. There is a difference between Full Bonnets and Half Bonnets. Full Bonnets are closed in the back of the head. Half Bonnets are not closed in the back. In the picture on the left you can see a very big Bonnet. It stands up. There are also bonnets that are a bit floppy and more ruffled, so they only stand a bit.

Beret

Berets have become a big part in lolita fashion in the past years. They are a mixture of a well balanced coordinate and being too over the top. Many lolitas who are wearing Lolita Fashion on a daily basis like to wear Berets because they are not as big as a Bonnet or a Headbow and often give you an elegant vibe in your coordinate. They are perfect for the winter season!

Leg- & Footwear

The last big part of Lolita is the Leg- and Footwear. The appropriate foodwear is important to complete a coordinate.

Legwear

You are actually pretty free in choosing your legwear, as long as you are wearing at least ancle socks. It is just important to make clear that at least a part of the leg area is fully covered. Anything else looks first of all uncompleted and is simply not very appropriate, since Lolita is not made for showing much skin.

knee highs

tights

ancle socks

over the knee socks (OTK's)

Footwear

Shoes are of course also very important. There are some kind of shoes that are really famous with the fashion, but you can actually take everything, that suits your coordinate concept.

Here are the three most common types of shoes. Of course there are plenty more styles you can go for!

boots by Baby, the stars shine bright

Tea party shoes by Angelic Pretty

Mary Janes by Jane Marple

(until here every of these pictures belong to the specific brands. I took them from lolibrary.org)

 

 

The Coordinate

Alright, let's come to our goal: The full coordinate. We have cleared up the major parts: Headwear, Main Piece, Footwear.

So, here are the three set-in-stone rules that make Lolita to Lolita from head to toe:

1. Headwear!

2. An appropriate main piece!

3. A petticoat!

4. Appropriate foodwear!

If you think about these four things, nothing can go wrong if you make everything suiting each other. Now, let's see some coordinates from fashion magazines to show you what the full coordinate can look like and what principles should also apply on yours.

The model in the picture is wearing the Day Dream Carnival One Piece by Angelic Pretty. Since it is an One Piece, no blouse is required. She also wears a headbow, ancle socks and shoes that are some sort of like high tea party shoes. Her outfit is completed by various other accessories.

The girl in the picture (her copyright is on the lower right corner of the picture) is wearing the Wonder Queen JSK by angelic Pretty. She is wearing a blouse underneath since blouses are a requirement for JSKs (Jumperskirts). She is wearing a bonnet and various hairclips/ haircombs to complete her coordinate. The socks and shoes are also completing the coord in some way. She took the brown from her jabot on her chest and repeatet it with the shoes and the sleeves on her blouse, which is a smart way to include a colour that is actually not in the print. Since she uses not too harsh white tones, the coordinate works well together. The thing she does is tricolour coordinating.

I hope this post clarified some things to you. If you want me to get even more detailed, let me know in the comment section below!

What is Lolita Fashion?

Lolita Fashion is a fashion street style which originated in the streets of Harajuku, Tokyo. It is originally inspired by the style of Victorian and Rococo era and developed in many directions nowadays. (Find out more about the different styles here)

The name 'Lolita' was most likely chosen because it sounds cute for Japanese people. It has nothing to do with fetishs, age playing or anything sexual and there is also no connection to Nabokov's novel 'Lolita', even if they are namesakes.

One interpretation of Lolita Fashion is being feminine without showing too much skin. There are some rules you have to follow to make your outfit Lolita. Click here to find out more about the few principles and aesthetics which make your outfit to a Lolita outfit.