Miss Lumpy: Lolita Lifestyle and Aesthetics

Back from NZ and an Amuse-Bouche, of sorts!

2012-01-17T01:42:00.000-05:00

Yep, I'm back stateside (for some reason. No one has been able to convince me yet why.)! After about thirty hours of transit each way, I'm safely back in the USA and am about to sift through two weeks of missed life. I know I said I'd probably be able to update while I was there, but... I lied. I'm sorry! Please don't hold it against me!
New Zealand was amazing. It was beyond amazing. This picture was one of hundreds I took just of the mind-numbingly beautiful scenery hidden behind every other curve in the road- crystalline beaches sparkling under summer sunshine; cliffsides made spiky by a covering of flax and manuka trees; swamps overpopulated with mangrove trees under the grey skies of a summer storm; pastoral hills that look eerily similar to those of my own state, except elongated into craggy peaks that reminded me what sheep's hooves evolved to grip, so unlike their American cousins existences.
Not to mention the people. The individuals I encountered on this trip were some of the kindest and most sincere of any I've ever met, and I've done my unfair share of traveling and meeting people from all over the place. Everyone from the baristas in the cafes to my flight attendants to the amazing individuals who introduced us to their indigenous Maori culture just went above and beyond all of my expectations of how people treat each other. But I guess when you live in perennial summer, there's no real reason to treat strangers as hostilely as we do here in the Frozen North.
Speaking of summer, I came back to my computer to realize that my amazingly talented friend Kayla had found time to edit some of the pictures she and I took at a pastoral-themed photoshoot in... July, I think? So, while I fight jetlag and get back into my normal blogging schedule, her's a little bit of an appetizer for you!

The idea behind the photoshoot was to echo the heavily natural aesthetic of the pastoral convention of literature (think Christopher Marlowe's "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love" and anything about shepherds and shepherdesses and their comparatively innocent lives in the countryside of England and Europe). Hence the natural makeup, mishmash of layers, and hippie-dippie hairstyle. I'm planning on writing more about the pastoral convention and how you can incorporate its aspects into lolita, mori girl, and a slew of other fashions, so keep an eye out!

For more, check out Kayla's post on the photoshoot, or her Flickr!

I Do! Weddings and Lolita

2011-12-30T10:46:00.000-05:00

No, don't worry, I'm not getting married! Well, actually, I might be engaged but it's kind of up in the air and rather complicated right now. However, the lovely photo above as well as my duty as bridesmaid to my good friend Tina prompted me to consider the nature of weddings and the place of lolita within them.

The wonderful thing about weddings is that they're as customizable as you want them to be: pet lovers will have their dogs walk down the aisle in the bridal party, grooms' cakes which satirize the new husband's obsessions are getting more and more popular, and who hasn't seen photos of retro-inspired weddings? However, for some reason, lolita weddings seem to be a bit of a taboo in the community. Maybe this is because lolita is seen as more obscure of a fashion, not one that a couple is likely to have in common in their lives (unlike, say, punk or rockabilly) and therefore it's more likely that only on partner of the pair may actually have much of an interest in it. Or it could be because lolita is seen as childish; "things like that have no place in the most important day of your life," I can just hear a mother-in-law-to-be say. And personally, I kind of agree. I don't see myself ever having a lolita wedding, but I feel like lolita is so deeply ingrained into my aesthetic that it'll manifest itself in the proceedings somehow or other.

If you're interested in adding some lolita touches to your own celebration, here are a few tips:

♥Themes that would lend themselves well to lolification are fairy tale (think lots of carriages and tiaras and glass slippers), floral themes like cherry blossoms or roses, or Victorian-inspired with high-collared necklines or bustled dresses.

♥Floral arrangements: Consult the language of flowers, a Victorian means of communication that ascribes different meanings to different plants. Check here for Wikipedia's article on floriography. Some flowers with particularly lolita-friendly meanings are asters, lilacs, geraniums, and moonflowers.

♥Favors: Especially if you have lolitas in attendance or in your bridal party! Some lovely ideas for lolita-inspired favors include monogrammed fans (maybe with a little pamphlet on the language of fans), a small box of personalized truffles, or even a small deck of playing cards.

♥Reception: Instead of a fancy, expensive dinner party, have a tea party around brunch time. That way, not only is it often cheaper to rent venues earlier in the day, but you can also connect to your inner Mad Hatter!

♥Bridesmaid gifts: Anything with pearls, trailing ribbons, or rhinestones!

Lolitas: Are you planning on getting married? If so, will you include lolita in your festivities, or is it an "appropriate time and place" type of deal?

(Oh, also, heads up- starting Monday, I'm going to be in New Zealand for two weeks! I'm planning on having some articles scheduled to go up while I'm gone, but that may or may not happen.

An Affirmation

2011-12-21T10:30:00.000-05:00

An affirmation is a declaration of something that's true; an affirmation prayer is a religious or metaphysical technique that focuses on a positive outcome instead of a negative one (thanks, Wikipedia!). While "prayer" is a term I shy away from, because I dislike anything that has religious connotations, I think of an affirmation as being a collection of positive thoughts that sees you through hard times, and I think it's important for everyone to have one.

Here's the affirmation I've taken to saying to myself before bed at night, or some variation thereof:

I am a creation of love and beauty. Everything I do spreads positivity and happiness to the people around me. I share the light in my soul with everyone who is dear to me, and I strive to be someone who makes their lives better simply for knowing me. I am cool and calm and collected, and completely comfortable with myself no matter how I look, dress, or feel. The negativity I encounter is nothing compared to the joy I hold within me, and even the darkest of my own depressions can be beaten by it.When I am in doubt of my own awesomeness, I remember that I am a goddess of love and beauty in my own way. I am powerful and capable, and obstacles fall before me; everything I strive for I can accomplish, and if not, it's because accomplishing it will not further my growth as a human being. Everything I have encountered comes together within me to shape me into the person I am today, no matter how awful it seemed at the time. With the love, peace, and joy within me, I am unstoppable. I am fearless. I cannot be beaten.

I think it's really important for everyone to have an affirmation that will lift their spirits when challenges seem insurmountable. If you don't have one yet, I really suggest writing one for yourself! It can be as simple or complex as you like; this one is rather long, but another mantra of mine that I find myself falling back to time and again is as easy as "Breathe. You can do this." The important part of your affirmation is that it reminds you of everything you're striving for and how amazing your life will be once you accomplish these goals. It'll get your through difficult times and remind you that whatever you're living through at that moment, no matter how dire it seems, will someday be one more challenge you've learned and grown from.

Do you have a motto?

Share your own affirmations in the comments section!

If you don't already have one, what would yours be?

Common Lolita Beauty "Don'ts"

2011-11-30T10:00:00.000-05:00

I'm definitely not an beauty expert, but every lolita -hell, every PERSON - knows that make-up has two affects on your overall look: it either enhances or detracts. There are some lolita make-up moves that I've noticed in the past few years which seem, to me, rarely to do the former and almost always do the latter.

As with any part of your coordinate, everything you do with your make-up should be considered objectively to make sure it's enhancing the image you're going for. If you were wearing a completely sweet coordinate, for example, entirely of mint and pink, would you put on a big, black, gothic headdress? It may be interesting circumstantially, but for the most part, I'd advise against it. It's the same with make-up: if it detracts from the look of the rest of your outfit or overpowers it or negatively draws attention to itself, you're better off going without.

As always, remember: there are exceptions to every rule, so don't think of these as hard, concrete facts. Almost everything I mention here, while I'm typing, I think, "Yeah, but there was that really cute girl at the meet-up who..." or, "Yeah, but what about that picture you saw on Tumblr the other day?" So if I knock down your favorite make-up tip, please don't be offended! There are right ways and wrong ways to do everything.

A Loose List of Lolita Make-up Don'ts:

♥Over-concealing: One of the biggest parts of lolita make-up is a porcelain, doll-like appearance, and that's not always very easily-achieved by us humans, who're prone to redness, blemishes, and even skin tone. However, it's important to resist the urge to go really crazy on the Erase Paste, as concealers and foundations and primers and powders can cake up really easily and look overdone. Over-doing it will draw attention to whatever it is you're trying to cover up and can settle in the lines in your face and make you look old, which is not exactly the way to achieve effortless, light, child-like beauty. Lord knows I can be prone to this one myself, hence why it's right at the top of the list!

♥Lining the lower lash line: Now, this isn't always bad, but in a lot of alternative fashion I often see heavy black liner under the eye with nothing in the lid. Here's the problem with that: a dark, heavy line along the bottom of the eye pulls the onlooker's eye down and makes it look like the wearer has heavy undereye circles (could I have said the word "eye" more in that sentence?!) Instead, what looks better is a thin line of eyeliner all along the upper lash line (maybe getting a little thick toward the outer edge, or finish with a cat-eye if you're feeling fancy) and line only the outer third of your lower lash line- from the outer corner to the iris, or colored part, of your eye; this will make your eyes look wider and brighter, and therefore more awake. Bonus points if you use a soft shadow instead of thick, heavy liner on the lower lash line.

♥Pink or red eye shadow: To be perfectly honest, I almost didn't include this one, because I see it often, and it's very often done right. However, with certain skin tones, pink or red eye shadow or liner will make your eyes look red, making you look tired, like you've been crying, or like you have pink eye, none of which are very loli at all! If you're very gung-ho about using one of these colors in your make-up look, try to either find a shade that compliments your skin tone, or pair it with a neutral and use the pink/red as an accent color.

♥Wash your face at night!: This is such a big one for everyone, but especially lolitas, to go back to that porcelain look we try so hard to emulate. If you don't wash off your make-up and sweat and all the other nastiness we accumulate during the day, it'll cause breakouts. I'm pretty sure everyone knows this, but it bears repeating! A daily cleanser and a moisturizer should be used once a day, and deep exfoliation once a week. Another quick fix are make-up remover wipes. Or, if you're thrifty, bathroom wipes with vitamin E and aloe- they have to same active ingredients but are much less expensive!

What are your least-favorite make-up techniques that show up on lolitas often?

(No naming names!)

Photodump: Lolita Brunch!

2011-11-16T10:55:00.000-05:00

Last weekend, I helped my friend Marrisa host a lovely little brunch for our local lolitas. It was a most excellent afternoon- much fun was had all around, or so I'd like to think! Here are some shots of the food we provided:

The table, minus Marrisa's salad and plus a photobombing Remi

In another life I went to school for food photography.

...in this other life, I was probably also a lot better at it than I am in this one. Oh well.

Remi + kitten: One of many more to come

Everybody!

Jillian:

Gloria:

Remi:

Marrisa, our hostess:

Me- more here!

Aaaaaaand.... catspam. I have no regrets.

Remi + Toby = OTP. Seriously, I have no idea why I have so many pictures of her with this cat, but they're all so damn cute!

I think I lied. Actually, in another life I'm a cat photographer.

♥Tips for hosting your own Loli Brunch ♥♥Offer a variety of options! Scones or waffles or cinnamon buns are delicious brunch staples, but make sure you have something that isn't so decadent. Marrisa made a delicious grilled pear salad, and I brought granola with soy milk.♥In the same vein, as always, make sure there are no food or pet allergies that you need to watch out for!♥Get creative with drinks. Everyone was excited to try the iced hojicha Marrisa had made as well as taking their pick of a plethora of teas. Another cute idea would be Italian sodas- buy a bunch of cutely-colored syrups and some Sprite or seltzer and let your guests concoct libations to match their outfits.♥Experiment with table settings! Mismatched glasses, silverware, or place settings give a wonderland vibe; use vases or milk bottles as pitchers for cold drinks; plain white teacups on vibrantly-patterned chine saucers are a stark contrast and bring life to the table.♥Have a communal bonding activity, especially if you don't know everyone well. We happened to luck out by having ridiculously personable cats to play/camwhore with and later on in the afternoon we played Text Twist, but a cute card game or a craft would be nice too.

Extra: This is how Marrisa actually, literally got me into my corset this morning! Re-enacted for the sake of the camera.

Daily Outfit: 11/6/11

2011-11-09T10:06:00.000-05:00

This is what I wore to help host Loli Brunch at my friend Marrisa's apartment this Sunday. It was a lovely afternoon full of sweets, cats, and sex jokes- de rigueur for my local gals!

What I wore:

Dress: BABY, the Stars Shine Bright

Corset: The Lady & The Leopard (Local company)

Bonnet: Handmade

Magpie Nest brooch: Amaranth Opulent

Socks: Uniqlo

Boots: Forever 21

A close-up of the Magpie Nest:

This is one of my favorite AO pieces, like, ever. I love making Magpie Nests, but they're so difficult to ship that I only ever make them on commission or for myself (occasionally for events I'll be selling at, like local craft fairs or anime conventions).

And because I promised cats...

Don't worry, there'll be plenty of Toby and his brother Tux in the meetup report next week! Also, love this pic because you can see my brand new septum piercing- after years of pining after it, I felt the need to shock myself out of a dodgy patch I went through last week, so I took the plunge. I ADORE it. I feel so much more like myself with it- so much more Taurean, too! It's the piercing of the Bull ♥

And apologies for not updating last week! The entire Northeast was under a blanket of unseasonable snow and most of the state lost power. I'll make up for it by all the posts I have planned for coming weeks, promise!

Daily Outfit: Halloween!

2011-10-26T10:30:00.000-04:00

So, technically this isn't a daily outfit, but I decided a few days ago to try and put together a Halloween costume for myself...

Here you have it! Flapper-loli!

Rundown:

♥One piece: BABY, the Stars Shine Bright

♥Fur: Vintage (inherited from my Grandmother)

♥Hat: Forever21

♥Heels, pearls, tights: Offbrand

Unfortunately, as of yet I'm not sure if I'll even be wearing this costume this year. The two big events which I was invited to are both happening on the same night, and the one I'm actually going to is probably going to include something mosh-related, which I would never subject my old-school velvet BABY OP to! So that's why I'm posting it here, a few days early: I love this coord, so I have to use it for something! It'll be perfect for wintertime, though, so I'm sure I'll get to bring it out at least once this season.

And now, I leave you with my Halloween playlist- songs that capture the way the holiday feels for me: creepy and slightly psychotic with violent undertones and something that you just can't name hiding barely under the surface. I promise I'll try not to fill the entire thing with Florence and the Machine (under the cut so it doesn't kill your browser, but don't worry- they're just youtube videos!).

Murder by Death: Fuego!

Florence and the Machine - Howl

Florence and the Machine - Drumming Song
The Decemberists - The Rake's Song
The World/Inferno Friendship Society - Me Vs. The Angry Mob (who else is going to Hallowmas NYC?!)
And because I just couldn't let a Halloween post go without one of the classics...

Til next time...

Happy Halloween!

Mori Glam: Eyelashes by Paperself

2011-10-19T10:00:00.000-04:00

When I was in Sephora the other day, I happened upon what easily became the best discovery of the day: eyelashes made from cut paper. The designs are cut scherenschnitte-style from black paper and because of this are super-delicate and really only suitable for one wear, or so the helpful associate at Sephora told me. I was tempted as I have never been tempted before (well, at least by false eyelashes), but at $19 per pair it was just not a purchase I could justify- however, these would be perfect for a mori-girl photoshoot or event, so I just couldn't help but share! While I know that mori-girl usually puts very little emphasis on make up, I think these could be super cute either with a very understated make up look or for a more gyaru-inspired glam!mori coordinate. Some of the rest of the collection would be amazing with dolly-kei, too!

Deer & Butterfly Lashes

Full collection (image pilfered from Google)

Paperself Website

Paperself on Sephora

Why This Lolita Walked at SlutWalk: The Importance of Protest to Alternative Fashion

2011-10-12T09:44:00.000-04:00

If you're someone who wears alternative fashion, every time you change your clothes you make a choice: Today, should I be myself, or should I be whomever society expects me to be? Do I wear petticoats and corsets, or jeans and T-shirts? Do I express the beauty within me, or do I hide myself away in a disguise of normalcy? Do I want to be stared at, laughed at, glared at, or do I want to be ignored behind a hoodie and leave the beauty to rot in my soul?

Many people and most lolitas know the now-cliche Japanese saying: the nail that sticks up gets hammered down. Even though the proverb originated in Asia, it is clearly illustrated in almost all cultures and almost all countries. If you look different from the rest of those around you, you're a freak. You're not a person anymore. You're public property. You're there for the amusement of others, for them to take pictures or videos or scream insults at or question innocently or whatever they want to do with you, and if you rise against it, you're the one who's being inconsiderate.

Now, when you put on clothing that's out of the norm, a certain amount of attention is expected, maybe even welcome. Imagine if you lived in a world that was only made up of shades of grey, a world of white and black and slate, and then all of a sudden into your line of vision flashes a huge burst of pink. It's strange, it's new, it's weird- what would you do? Of course you'd do a double take. You'd probably stare, too, and if you were capable you'd probably go over and ask it questions, and whether you laughed or respected it would depend on who you are as a person. That's probably what it's like to see someone wearing alternative fashion, and that's why I'm not offended by second glances or repeated looks. It's okay, I'm weird- I don't expect you to take my existence lightly. I also know that it makes me stand out, and that standing out can be dangerous. However, from the average person walking down the street, I do expect respect, so when people take pictures or videos of me without my knowledge or tug on my curls to see if they're real or lift up my skirt to see what holds its shape (all of which have happened, and unfortunately most are not isolated incidents), I don't take it lightly. It is an affront to my person, to my physical and mental safety and well-being, and that is not something that I as a person deserve to have violated, no matter what clothing I choose.

Possible trigger warning ahead: discrimination, abuse, and rape are discussed past here.

Hopefully by now you see where I'm going with this. No person of any gender, race, class, age, sexual orientation or definition, or ability deserve to feel like their safety is threatened because of how they look, dress, or act. No matter how "safety" or "threatened" is defined, there is nothing about a person that means they do not deserve complete and utter respect.

Please note that I'm not putting being laughed at and being sexually assaulted on the same level. Bullying and rape are two very different occurrences, and they vary hugely in consequence. However, I believe that they are part of the same problem, that they stem from the same ideas of privilege, hatred, and negativity: because of how you look, an aggressor thinks they have the right to punish you for it. Rape is regarded as being more of an act of aggression against a societal construct that is focused on an unfortunate person (wrong place, wrong time, wrong clothing or demeanor), and I believe that often harassment over one's clothing or appearance often has the same basis: lashing out against something that bucks the status quo in a manner that offends the aggressor.

Please also note that I'm not saying that people get sexually assaulted because of their clothing; I've known plenty of people who were raped or molested or harassed wearing jeans. The clothing doesn't matter; in the cases I'm extrapolating on, however, the person's clothing choice was the catalyst for their harassment.

I have been sexually harassed in lolita, and so have many other people. Almost all lolitas (or at least, almost all the lolitas I know) have stories of people who tried to take pictures up their skirts, touch them inappropriately, proposition them or make unwanted sexual advances. It is assumed that because someone is wearing unusual clothing, they are doing it because they want attention, and some modern barbarian decides that it's their responsibility to teach that person a lesson, because god forbid someone likes to be looked at; or it is assumed that it is a sexual fetish and, since they're parading it around in front of everyone, they clearly deserve whatever some scum decides to give to them.

This is something that is faced by many people every single day, because of the society they live in: their neighborhood or their upbringing or any other number of things. Those of us with the privilege not to have to fight that at all times must recognize this; it is incredibly solacing to me that I can walk out of my house and take a train or go to the library or the movies and not have to constantly fear for my own safety. I am incredibly thankful for it, and I am thankful for the privilege it allows me to dress in ways that inadvertently happen to get attention without much threat to my own person. However, not everyone is this lucky. I think, first and foremost, that there is a certain amount of privilege inherent in people who wear alternative fashion, and that it's important right here and now to acknowledge that.

That being said, just like a person does not deserve to be molested simply because they are wearing revealing clothing, my friends and I deserve to be able to go out for a drink or dinner and not feel like our own safety is in jeopardy because we're wearing petticoats or top hats or ballerina heels. To me, it seems like this should be obvious, but to many people in the world, it isn't. And in the privileged society we live in, when we don't like something, what do we do?

In the words of my fellow marchers: What do you do when you're under attack?

Stand up. Fight back.

The time to sit passively and hope for change is over. It's such a cliche these days, but our ancestors fought hard so that we'd have the right to stand up for ourselves, and it is in their honor that we must rise against oppression in every sense, in every way, even this oppression which seem minute to anyone who's never had to face it. "Why don't you just change your clothes?" they ask.

"If the woman in the short skirt isn't asking for it, which she isn't," I respond, "Why am I?"

I'm not saying join a SlutWalk. I know there are a lot of inherent problems with this particular institution, and a lot of people are very, very opposed to them. However, when I decided to participate in SlutWalk NYC, I decided that the controversy surrounding it, while at times well-deserved, did not negate the positivity of its message in my mind. If you disagree, if the wrongs that are attributed to it overwhelm the rest of this movement, I'm not asking you to ignore that and march with a group you disagree with. However, I am saying that you should not sit passively back. Find a movement and join it. Do something to raise your voice because you have the right to and what's the point in having rights we don't use? What's the point in just complaining about the problems in the world if you're not actually doing something to fight it?

Or don't. Don't march, don't shout, don't kick up a fuss every time you're laughed at, stared at, screamed at. But if that's the course of action you choose, don't be upset when nothing changes. Our society is lazy and it likes the way things are: it'll only change with constant prodding and poking and forcing it to, and if you don't do it, who will?

Most pictures are from Pavement Pieces - I lost the source for the close-up of Remi and I, so if it's yours please let me know!

Daily Outfit 10/1/11 - SlutWalk NYC

2011-10-02T18:09:00.000-04:00

SLUTWALK. SLUTWALK WAS THE BEST THING EVER. OMGOMGOMG SLUTWALK.

...Okay, now that THAT'S out of my system! This weekend was SlutWalk NYC, and my friend Remi and I marched together in lolita to share our experiences and lend our voices. I'm going to do an article about why I think it's super important for followers of alternative fashion to get behind movements like SlutWalk, but for now, here's what I wore!!

Rundown:

Headband: AliceBands

Cutsew: AatP

Corset: Lolita Nouveau

Skirt: Handmade (off the comm)

Socks: Metamorphose

Shoes: Bodyline

Parasol (which I didn't actually bring): Angelic Pretty

The walk itself was amazing; it was absolutely above and beyond the best moment of my life. Unfortunately, during the speeches afterwards there was a massive downpour, and Remi and I had to go take shelter in Forever 21. I also brought my camera totally ready to take a crapton of pictures AND videos, and of course forgot to charge the battery. FAIL! But I've found a few pictures of us with our sign (which said, "Am I asking for it, too?"), so as soon as I've contacted the photographers and requested permission to use them they'll be up! Look out for my full article about it, too :)

EDIT: The article is up! Check out The Importance of Protest to Alternative Fashion here

PS- check out my new hair! I think this is the first pictures I've posted here with this cut. I love it, but it'll be better when it grows out a bit- the stylist wanted to make sure it had enough volume, but he ended up making it a bit bushier than I'd like it, haha!

Little Tidbits: Fall layout and musings on Japan

2011-09-25T09:59:00.000-04:00

First of all, check out my new fall/winter layout! I wanted something that would reflect both the changing of the seasons (theoretically, at least- today was in the high 70s and mostly sunny. I wish fall would hurry itself up!) and the new direction I'm taking my blog in, which is away from solely lolita and into other alternative fashions. This layout is more mature and earthy and I think it suits my personality, blogging style, and aesthetic much more than the last one! The photograph in the header is by Nina Lin, an incredibly talented friend of mine from New York. What do you guys think? I have a few more changes in the works for it, too, but those will come over the next few weeks.

Secondly, in my last post, I mentioned that I was doing an assignment that might interest you guys: a few paragraphs of descriptive writing about Japan. The assignment for my creative writing class was to devote a paragraph each to three different places you had been- just open up and write every detail you can remember about them, no matter how long-winded it becomes (kiss of death for me, if you know my writing style!) A few people expressed interest, so I figured, since it's kiiiiinda relevant (is there really anyone here who isn't a Japonophile?), I may as well tack it on to this housekeeping post!

The first paragraph, describing a closed kindergarten I passed by on my way to school during my third trip (senior year of high school, rural Japan):

Himawari Youchien had its door barred. All that showed above the garage-like barricade was the sign, a hand-painted sunflower and simple hiragana labeling the kindergarten. I passed by it every day for ten days on the two mile walk from the train station to my high school. The road wound like a vine down the hillside, and I was always struck by the iconicity of the scene; winding mountain roads in rural Japan are like endless plains are to Nebraska, or urban sprawl to LA. On one side was a small water garden, a pond with an elaborate waterfall and lilies floating like candles for the dead. On the other side squatted a plain white building made of something akin to brick but almost plasticine in its glossiness, and further down the road had to swerve sharply to avoid a small corn field half the size of my American backyard. The steps up to the small door were cracked and lichened; if they were an alcove there would be a thick layer of very unJapanese dust covering them. There was an ancient, rusting padlock on the gate, and the windows were harshly curtained with yellowed linen that might once have been white. The brightly-painted yellow sunflower, its fresh green leaves and succulent-looking stem were a harsh, confounding contrast to the general feeling of abandonment and disuse.

And the second, about Meiji Jingu in Tokyo:

(My own picture, these are the two oak trees in the first courtyard.)

There was a certain stillness in the air that breezed breathily through the ancient oaks. The only sound was the crunch of gravel and the murmur of pilgrims punctuated pizzicato by their clap-clap-clapping, and then drowned out by the big bell ringing the prayers up to the Shinto gods. The first courtyard of the shrine was nearly empty; aside from a periphery of scattered stalls where shrine maidens sold ema and cell phone charms – charms for lovers, for students, for drivers, for pets – the only things there were two massive trees. They were rung round with prayer boards, a wooden circle with rows of pegs hung sometimes nine boards deep, and most of them read the same things. I pray that I make it into university, I pray that I pass my exams, I pray that my sister finds a boyfriend, I pray that my mothers gets well, I pray for world peace. They were written in Japanese but also in English, in French, in German, in Korean. The second courtyard is a vast emptiness with archways on each side leading to paths through the surrounding forest, and at the opposite end is a huge arched doorway, through which a large rope and slatted box are visible in the darkness. There were people nearby, taking pictures or tossing coins into the box and clap-clap-clapping their prayers, women in modest skirts and sandals and men in polo shirts and khakis contrasting harshly with the white-and-red kimonoed miko sweeping floors and raking gravel, their long black hair tied into ponytails at their napes.

Quotes for the Lolita: Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson

2011-09-11T14:43:00.000-04:00

I'm starting to think I have a problem with finding ways to associate fine literature with lolita fashion. Oh well, at least it makes blogging easier! One of my favorite classes right now is an English course called "The American Renaissance," focusing on American writers from the 1803's-1860's- think Thoreau, Melville, and, my current focus, Emerson. This weekend we were assigned his essay "Self-Reliance," which was written around the 1830's or 40's and discusses the importance of non-conformity and being true to one's self. Now, while Emerson was writing to and for male academics of his era, I've been struck during this reading by how pertinent it is to followers of lolita fashion, who mostly have to follow their own internal compass but often get bogged down by the "rules." Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the essay, all of which I think a lolita could really benefit from:

"There comes a time in every [hu]man's education where he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide."*

"Whoso would be a [hu]man, must be a nonconformist"*

"My life is for itself and not for a spectacle."

"What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. This rule, equally arduous in actual and intellectual life, may serve for the whole distinction between greatness and meanness. It is the harder because you will always find those who think they know what is your duty better than you know it. It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude."

"[...]conformity makes them not false in a few particulars, authors of a few lies, but false in all particulars. Their every truth is not quite true. [...]every word they say chagrins us and we know not where to begin to set them right."

"To be great is to be misunderstood."

"Insist on yourself; never imitate. Your own gift you can present every moment with the cumulative force of a whole life's cultivation; but the adopted talent of another you have only an extemporaneous half possession."

"Do that which is assigned to you, and you cannot hope too much or dare too much."

"For everything that is given something is taken. Society acquires new arts and loses old instincts."

*Note: The original quote uses the gender-specific word "man;" however, it can still be surmised that Emerson was speaking to all people, not just penis-bearing individuals, hence my edit.

What is the lesson that can be taken away from these quotes, and how does it relate to lolita? Well, if you haven't picked up on it so far (you must be new here...), I am all for sartorial self-reliance. I believe it is the natural state of a person's aesthetics to be constantly evolving, and if one forces oneself to pigeon-hole into one style they are doing a disservice to themselves and their society- or subculture, as the case may be. It is only through standing on one's own feet and supporting one's own ideas that one reaches their true potential. This isn't to say that finding and using inspiration isn't important; however, one must take the essence or the details of an inspiring source (the softness of textures in mori-girl, or gyaru-style stilettos) and absorb them into one's own fashion without emulating the source outright. It's only through experimentation and absorption that a person's fashion style evolves, not through emulation and mimicry.

What do you think? Do you agree, or do you think that emulation is the sincerest form of flattery? Or do you think that I should shut up and stop pretending that Emerson was writing about floofy dresses and petticoats when he wrote this essay?

EDIT!

Oh, I've just remembered! My assignment for my creative writing class this week is about establishing setting, and our homework was to write three paragraphs about a place we've been. Mine's still in the works, but it will be three paragraphs about places I've been in Japan. Would you all like to see it when it's done? I know a lot of people have been asking for more detail about my Japan trip - I know, I know, I still owe you one article on it- it's coming, promise! - so if you're interested that'll be posted later this week! ♥

(Picture from F Yeah Nerdy Lolitas on Tumblr and originally posted to the sew_loli livejournal community)

Operation LoliBlog: The Balancing Act

2011-09-02T06:56:00.000-04:00

School, work, family, and friends- we all have them, to some varying degree. Let's face it: as little as it can seem like it at times, there exists a life outside of our computer and away from our blogs. Not only is there nothing wrong with that as a blogger, if anything our passions and commitments make us stronger as writers because our experiences give us more to pull inspiration from. For example, my Literary Lolita series is based entirely off of books I'm studying in school as an English major, and almost all of my daily outfits are coordinates I put together for a day in the city with my friends. However, as a blogger, one will often encounter the problem of budgeting their time, and while this is true for all of one's commitments, as a blogger it seems to be even more pivotal. It's so important for us to take the time out to write, to brainstorm, to create truly inspired pieces for our adoring public while also being a source of catharsis and relaxation for the blogger. But when you're taking five classes and working two jobs and still have friends and dates and family (who has two thumbs and all of the above? This guy!), it can get hectic, to say the least, and often your blog will be the last thing on your mind. There's one little trick that can make this whole blogging thing that much easier, and that is a magical thing called scheduled posting.

And it isn't only you who benefits. Having a blog schedule makes blog-reading easier. Say your readers regularly read a large amount of blogs: I'd say most people have a handful they check often, some have over thirty on their blogroll or RSS feed, while some have over a hundred bookmarked that they look at only rarely. All of these readers' relationships with blogs is made possible by schedules. The blogs that they check every day are often updated every day; those which are read only through an RSS feed may update two or three times a week; and those which are checked only a handful of times a month probably update as many times sporadically. How often do you update? How many of your casual readers could you upgrade into devoted followers if you only changed your blogging schedule?

Scheduling posts doesn't only make blog-reading easier. It's also a great way for you to keep track of your blog. If you have a busy lifestyle and only find yourself able to sit down and write once or twice a month, you have two options: only post once or twice a month, or on these days, sit down and crank out three or four articles at once and schedule them to post for you throughout the week. It's a choice with one determines for oneself, based upon what one can realistically accomplish.

More importantly, though:

If you're having trouble meeting the needs of your blog, though, it may be time to reevaluate, and now I'm not just talking about scheduling but in general. If you're no longer happy, engaged, or interested in your blog, something's gotta give or this ennui is going to show, either in your own satisfaction with your work or that of your readers. While I'm not telling you to stop blogging completely, it's important to have a creative outlet that you can keep up with. It may be time to decide what of your needs your blog is meeting and on which it's falling flat. For example, I consider Miss Lumpy to be a blog where I discuss in-depth ideas on fashion and lifestyle, and that's what it always has been and always will be. However, when I started college, I realized that, even though it certainly went into philosophy, it was lacking a certain depth that I craved. One thing I was really loving about my English classes was the literature I was studying and how I related that in my mind with all of the above topics, so I started a blog series based on that (which is still being updated often despite already being a few years old). That being said, this blog is still not feeding my needs as a writer, an artist, and a person, so I have come to the conclusion that it is time to reevaluate.

As my personal aesthetic turns further from lolita and I begin to branch out in my sartorial desires, not to mention my interests outside of fashion, I am finding the current state of this blog to be less and less satisfying to write. If you've noticed a lack of lolita-based philosophy articles in the past few months, that would be why. That's why, as a new school year begins and I continue growing and evolving into a higher version of myself, I have decided that it's time not to grow away from this blog, but to start including other sides of myself. There is so much about myself that I find personally satisfying - my intellect, my personal relationships, my experiences and hopes and dreams - which I'm yearning to discuss with all of you and encourage all of you to share as well. I've done this a few times in the past, and it's been something I've wanted to do more of ever since. Consider this a warning, then, and I apologize from deviating so much from my original topic of keeping of with your blog (consider this the section of "making your blog keep up with you"), that things are going to change around here; I'll probably start leaning away from the strictly lolita side of things and include more of my life than I normally would. I'm taking a creative writing course this semester, as well as some really interesting history courses, so don't be surprised if you see more than a few related posts on those subjects!

In the end, the important thing to remember is that, as a blogger, you blog for yourself. You may have thousands of adoring fans or you may have a private blog open only to your dearest friends, but either way, in the end your blog needs to be about yourself and what satisfies you as a writer and a person in need of creative expression. Otherwise, what's the point?

Literary Lolita: On the Sweet Lolita's Bookshelf

2011-08-27T02:20:00.000-04:00

What makes a work of literature a sweet lolita piece? Sweet lolita literature is a different breed from gothic and classic lolita. It is from a much different time period, starting about 1800 and going through the 1980's. Like the fashion itself, sweet lolita literature is more modern than its counterparts, but it is also focused on Europe and North America. Children's literature features heavily, especially those books which are written seemingly as children's novels, but are actually geared more towards adults. Other common themes are uniqueness, love, self-exploration, and the beauty of the world around the subject. Sweet lolita literature is light and effervescent with deeply-resonating undertones.

On the Sweet Lolita's Bookshelf...

In no particular order:

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Serendipity book series by Stephen Cosgrove, especially Flutterby
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There by Lewis Carroll
Tales of my Mother Goose by Charles Perrault
The Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti
Any anthology by Shel Silverstein, but especially A Light in the Attic
Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Margaret
Andrew Lang's Fairy Books, compiled by Andrew Lang
Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder

As always, fellow lolitas! What's on your sweet lolita required reading list?

And this concludes the Lolita Required Reading series! I may end up doing a few more, or maybe just one big post of a few lists for specific substyles, but I think everyone is sick of seeing these things by now! Sorry that this post is a little late, I was in Boston all week with friends and now I'm running around like a chicken with its head cut off trying to get ready for school before the hurricane hits. Sigh!

art in this post by Cinnamoron on DeviantART

Literary Lolita: The Gothic Lolita's Bookshelf

2011-08-17T00:14:00.000-04:00

What makes a work of literature a gothic lolita piece? A work of gothic lolita literature is a little more broad time-wise than the classic lolita pieces; it can include everything from the Bible to modern vampire novels. However, for these works, I drew mainly on a similar time from as the classic lolita pieces, namely around the 1500's-1900's, also mainly written in Europe and North America. Gothic literature is actually its own genre, so this list taps greatly into those classics with a few other unexpected additions. Victorian horror is a heavy hitter in this list, but early science fiction and fantasy also make an appearance. Common themes in gothic lolita literature are, obviously, gothic classics like vampires and murder but also the supernatural in general, malaise with society, ennui, discontent with the modern world, and a deep-seated feeling of one's own strangeness. It is an escape from the false brightness of modern life like a London or Paris back alley; dark and shadowy, these works have a slightly foreboding air and rarely end happily.

On the Gothic Lolita's bookshelf...

In no particular order:

The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells
Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe
A Modest Proposal by Johnathan Swift
Grimm's Fairy Stories by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Dracula by Bram Stoker
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Anything by Edgar Allen Poe but especially his poetry and short stories
Les Fleurs du Mal by Charles Baudelaire
The Legends of King Arthur and His Knights by Sir James Knowles
Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
The Duchess of Malfi by John Webster
A Light in August by William Faulkner
Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice

I have to admit, as someone who doesn't dapple much in gothic lolita or gothic fashion in general, this was a difficult one for me! So I encourage my more gothically-inclined followers to please add your suggestions to the comments section below! I'd love to see what you all recommend~

Literary Lolita: The Classic Lolita's Bookshelf

2011-08-08T00:11:00.000-04:00

You know I love anything related to literature, so today it occurred to me, just for fun, to make a list of my reading recommendations for lolitas. However, as I was thinking about it, I realized that the books I wanted to recommend may not really inspire followers of every style, so I'm breaking them down into sub-styles. This is my required reading list for lovers of classic lolita; if it goes over well, I'll work on gothic and sweet lists, too!

What makes a work of literature a classic lolita piece? It was probably written between 1600-1900 in Europe or North America. This collection focuses mainly on novels but also includes essays, plays, and poetry. Early science fiction and the pastoral convention feature heavily. It focuses on themes like the domestic sphere, nature versus society, tradition, art and its importance to the human soul, science and its effects on humanity, and the importance of knowledge of oneself and the world around one. Like the lolita herself, it is classic and timeless with an implication of scandalous experimentation which, though it would cause little commotion these days, certainly rustled the petticoats of its time.

On the Classic Lolita's Bookshelf...

In no particular order:

Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe
Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne
Walden by Henry David Thoreau
Beauty and the Beast by Marie Le Prince de Beaumont
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
A collection of fairytales by Hans Christian Andersen
The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells
The Picture of Dorian Gray
The Passionate Shepherd to his Love by Christopher Marlowe
Anything by Shakespeare but especially As You Like It, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Twelfth Night, or King Lear, or most of his sonnets.
A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf
The Poet by Ralph Waldo Emerson
Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by Anonymous
Il Canzonere by Francesco Petrarch
L'Allegro and Il Penseroso by John Milton

Fellow classic lolitas! What's on your bookshelf?

Part of the Literary Lolita series

Daily Outfit 7/16/11

2011-07-26T01:15:00.000-04:00

I went to a swap meet in NYC, and I thought it would be GENIUS to wear a corset and six other layers in ninety degrees Fahrenheit! Go me! Luckily I was at least smart enough to bring my favorite fan- this beauty is one that was left to my family when my grandmother passed away when I was a young'en. It has this smell that I always associate with her- the perfumed Dragon's Blood incense from our church mixed with facial powder and maybe mothballs. Even though I really only have one or two memories of her, as I wasn't even two years old when she died, the smell always soothes me.

Rundown:

Bonnet: Handmade by me
Overdress and underskirt: Forever 21
Blouse: Thrifted
Purse: Angelic Pretty
Socks: Can't see in the pics and I don't remember... Tutu*Anna, I think?
Shoes: Bodyline
Necklace: Vintage

The swap went amazingly! A lot of the things I don't wear anymore got loving new homes, and I brought home a few amazing finds myself. Also, I was very proud of myself for putting this outfit together and being almost entirely brandless! I feel like brand is great for an easy coord, but it's tailor-made to go with lolita; in my opinion, outfits made without relying on a crutch like that are much more interesting, so I'm going to make a point to include lots of offbrand items in my coordinates from here on out.

Thank you so much for these immaculate photos, Nina! I forgot my memory card for my camera so without you this outfit would have been lost to the sands of time :( or I just would've reverted to cellphone pictures, haha!

Also, sorry if the coding is screwy on this post. Blogger's fucking up tonight. I've been trying to fix it for like twenty minutes but it's late and I'm cranky and no1curr anyway, right?

An American Lolita in Tokyo: Outfit Snaps

2011-07-21T01:19:00.000-04:00

So despite my best efforts, I didn't end up getting photos of what I wore every day. I did warn Stefan that he'd be the official photographer in exchange for my Japanese prowess, but even still, I felt bad stopping him every few hours and being like "WAIT TAKE ANOTHER OVER HERE!" I did manage to document most of the days, though!

Here they are in order. I have a few towards the end where I'm not certain which day they're from, but for the most part I did pretty well!

Day 1: NOT scaring the rural folk in Hakone with lolita clothing:
Dress: H&M
Shrug: F21

Explored scenic Hakone-Yumoto. It was really important to me that Stefan see both urban Tokyo and a more suburban area, since so few people get to do so. Because our trip was extended by two days, we were able to spend one taking in the breathtaking natural beauty of central Tohoku.

Day Two: In Transit from Hakone to Tokyo All offbrand- Target and JC Penney, I think.

purely practical outfit for navigating shinkansen, subway, and the trek through Ikebukuro. Luckily it was waaaaay easier to get from Hakone to Ikebukuro than from Narita airport to Hakone. I think the trip took us a total of three or four hours. Not too bad, but still exhausting, so we just took a look around Ikebukuro after settling in.

Day 2: Ochanomizu and Akihabara, Take One. First day in lolita! Cutsew: I Do DeclareCardigan: H&MSkirt: Lolita NouveauSocks: MetaHeadband: Cocoa MousseNecklace: Amaranth Opulent

Casual lolita for Ochanomizu (the music/instrument district where we purchased Stefan's guitar) and Akihabara (ended up being our most-frequented district, strangely!) I was kind of upset when this photo was taken because I realized I'd left almost all of my makeup except lipgloss and mascara at the hotel in Hakone D:

Day 3: Harajuku! ...in a typhoon.Dress: BABY, the Stars Shine BrightPurse: Mother GardenSocks: Betsey JohnsonShoes: BodylineHair nest: Amaranth Opulent

Met up with a wonderful expat for soggy, typhoon-laden shopping. The ridiculous weather didn't stop me from going about my business, though (Stefan was shocked at how many people were still out and about- bad weather in America means pretty much everything stops) - I still dropped a couple hundred in Closet Child and Wonder Rocket almost entirely. I have no regretssss ♥
Day 4: Mori-inspired-gyaru or gyaru-inspire-mori or some shit like that,Dress: MoMo by Wonder RocketCardigan: Emily Temple CuteSocks: Tutu*annaShoes: Target?Headband: Cocoa MousseNecklace: Amaranth Opulent

Went to the Tokyo Tower in this one, as well as Zojo-ji, which is one of my favorite temples. It's famous for allowing people to take pictures like this:

which is just cool. (ohai, Stefan!) We also had a nice chat with some businessmen who were helping us find the nearest train station, in which they asked why we had decided to come to Japan now and why we weren't scared of radiation poisoning. Ohhh, Japan.

Aaaaaaand from there it gets a bit hazy. That's the last of the regimented "this definitely happened on this day" photos.I thiiiink the next day we met up with some more expats to shop around Ikebukuro's Sunshine City shopping center (which was awesooome!). Excuse the silly shoes! We were a little early, so we went to relax in the sun on the hotel's terrace, and as shoes are not permitted inside the hotel, we were required to wear outdoor shoes.

Dress: BABY, the Stars Shine Bright

Bolero: BodylinePurse: Angelic Pretty (Late birthday present from Stefan!)Socks: Secret Shop June 1st was spent revisiting the places we wanted to explore more fully- Sunshine City Mall (holy beans, I could've probably spent two full days there), Harajuku, and Akihabara. Unfortunately I didn't get a full outfit shot, but here are a few bits to piece together, haha:

Not gonna lie, with was mostly to show off my crepe. Chicken curry crepe ftw!

Dress: Alice and the PiratesBlazer: BABY, the Stars Shine BrightPurse: Angelic Pretty
And then, shopping in Shinjuku! We met up with another American who was also on vacation for an hour or two and went to Marui. Then Stefan and I had lunch at Italian Tomato (which was surprisingly good!) and donuts at Mister Donut for dessert.

And Stefan, the ever-charming and ever-manly:

So there you have it! There's only one Japan post left, and that'll be a Q&A answering questions anyone has. Please leave questions in the comments below this entry or e-mail me by clicking the button in the sidebar to ask your questions about traveling in Japan!

Daily Outfit 7/10/11

2011-07-12T17:00:00.000-04:00

ConnectiCon, the local fandom convention in my state, was this past weekend. I've always had a love-hate relationship with CTcon; on the one hand, I supported it its first few years and will always have a special place in my heart because of that and the fact that, as a general fandom convention, it encompasses more than just "anime" (they always have a large steampunk presence as well as a lot of alternative fashion, sci fi, and Western comic fans). However, that being said.... it kind of sucks in general, and the people are usually not the sort I like to hang about with, to put it lightly. That's why I was pleasantly surprised this year when I found myself socializing and making lots of new friends, as well as reuniting with old ones and spending more money in the dealers' room than I should have -- it was like a flashback to the conventions of old, back in my formative years, and my inner fifteen-year-old enjoyed herself immensely.

I really don't plan on making a habit of frequenting conventions the way I used to; to be perfectly honest, the only reason I went on Sunday was to visit The Lady and the Leopard in the dealers room, purveyors of period-inspired clothing and, mainly, corsets. I've decided this was the summer of corset-buying, something that's been put on the back-burner of my wardrobe-building for far too long. When Angelina posted on my local lolita community saying that the company she worked for would be selling at the convention, I certainly knew where a portion of my savings account would be going!

Since I was unabashed in the fact that I didn't want to do anything but shop, my friend Savannah and I only went up for one day. Here's what we wore!

Sailor for summertime!

Ahoy there ♥

I don't know if you can really tell, but I was trying to channel a pin-up vibe with this outfit. The shoes are these really adorable rope wedges with navy and white striped fabric, ankle straps, and a peep toe. They just scream "Pin up" to me, so I tried to go for a 1940's hint with a vintage hat and cat-eye makeup. I wish I'd realized how wrinkled it was, though... I pulled it out of my luggage from Japan (okay, yes, there are still a few bags I haven't unpacked...) and didn't have time to iron it before I left. It's not that bad, but Taurus-the-perfectionist is internally raging at my bad time management skills!

Rundown:
Sailor OP: Offbrand (from a children's clothing store!)Hat: VintageShoes: PaylessSocks: Tutuanna

And the ever-beautiful Savannah, also looking lovely &retro!

Rundown:Blouse and bustier: Offbrand Skirt: BodylineFascinator: Forever 21Shoes: TargetFur stole: Mine! Vintage, inherited from my grandmother

And I couldn't really talk so much about corsets without showing you guys the one I bought! It was the first of the display that I set eyes on, and I knew it had to be mine. I tried on a few, but this was the first one and I could tell immediately that it'd be the one I took home. They even had this same style and pattern in powder blue, but somehow I resisted and followed my gut with the chocolate brown one. It was definitely the right choice, because when I got home I put together a lovely mori-inspired coord for a meetup this weekend. I can't wait to show you guys! Anyone who's friends with me on facebook or follows my tumblr have seen a sneak preview of it, but everyone else will unfortunately have to wait until next week to see it!

Also better shot of me makeup, woo!

(PS: Also, thank you everyone for your patience concerning my Japan articles! I have a few more pieces to post, and they'll be coming in the next few weeks, I hope. This summer has been a lot stranger than I anticipated, and my blog-schedule is definitely suffering for it... ♥s to all those who's stuck around despite that!)

An American Lolita in Tokyo: Monstrously Huge Trip Overview

2011-06-22T09:31:00.001-04:00

Woo, sorry for that little unannounced hiatus! I was getting my shit back together here at home after returning from my trip and being a panelist at International Lolita Day in NYC (welcome, to anyone who's started following me from there!) This monstrously huge article is the uber-overview of my trip to Japan, a detailed write-up of everything I felt was worth talking about (things I wish I had known before I left or that I think will be helpful to anyone planning their own trip). I'll start with the itinerary, what we did and when, before going on to general information and impressions. The next post will be all of my outfit shots from my trip, and then the final post will be a follow-up Q&A based on questions or comments I receive on the first two posts- so if you have anything to say, say it here!

(note: Any discussion of money in this post will use yen as its currency. In order to keep from confusing ourselves during the trip, Stefan and I referred to our money in yen, instead of converting everything in our minds, so that's how I've continued to think of it. Plus, that way this information is more accessible to people besides Americans! An easy way to mentally convert yen to USD is to move the decimal point over, or remove the last two digits; this isn't exact anymore, and I wouldn't plan your trip around it, but for the intents and purposes of reading this article it'll help anyone who's confused. Alternatively, use a converter, such as www.xe.com.)

Itinerary:

Day One was spent in transit. We landed in Tokyo at 2 PM, and didn't reach our hotel in Hakone until about 9 PM due to navigating the public transportation system, fighting with our luggage, and getting some technical details about our return flight sorted out. We promptly fell asleep as soon as we were in the room, which is awesome, because it meant we had almost completely conquered jet lag and gotten ourselves into a healthier sleep schedule than we have even here.

Day Two was spent around Hakone. Hakone is an absolutely lovely area, full of natural beauty that I don't think I've ever seen rivaled anywhere else in the world. It's a smaller city, much more rural than Tokyo, which I chose kind of arbitrarily based on what I read about it at Japan Guide (a really indispensable resource, in my opinion.) We walked around the area our hotel was in (Hakone-Yumoto), which had a beautiful river and a quaint downtown area.

Day Three to Ten we were in Tokyo. We took the bullet train up to Tokyo then the subway to Ikebukuro to get to our ryokan, which was a really great place to stay. My brother had recommended it because all of the staff spoke English really well, as well as Japanese and often other languages too. The room was, as I had expected, tiny, but it was also cheap and served our purpose; all we had to do was sleep and keep stuff there.

In Tokyo, we went to Ochanomizu, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro (obvi, we were living there!), Akihabara, and, of course, Harajuku, with a few really short sojourns elsewhere (Nippori and Shibuya, I think). Surprisingly, the district that we went to most often was Akihabara, also called Electric Town, once the hub of Japanese geekery and "otaku" culture and now a slightly watered-down tourist attraction, but still pretty awesome. We also spent a lot of time in Ochanomizu, which is apparently considered the guitar mecca of the world, where I translated the purchase of Stefan's new ESP Horizon III guitar and totally leveled up my Japanese language skill set (funniest thing ever! I'll have to tell you guys about it sometime- the employees totally thought we were just stupid tourists until Stefan broke out the fat stack of bills he'd be paying for the guitar with). Our next-most-frequented was Harajuku. I think we went twice: once to scope it out, see what was in which shops, and again to pick up items my friends requested as souvenirs.

Details:

Money: Good lord did I spend too much. I didn't go much over the budget I set for myself, but I ended up having an extra $400 saved up of spending money, and I charged about $100 extra onto my credit card. About $150 or so of that were requests from friends, which I am now collecting back, so some of it went to that, too. As far as food costs, I'd say my original estimate was about accurate. Some days we went out for a nicer lunch or dinner, but we still rarely went over the estimates of 1000 yen for lunch and 1500 yen for dinner. Breakfast we could have done cheaply, but we usually spent a bit more than our allowance of 500 yen (our most expensive breakfast was 800 yen or so each because we went to a cafe). Our favorite spots for food were noodle or curry shops (be warned, ladies- you'll probably be the only women eating here) and convenience stores, at both of which we could easily get a full meal for under 1000 yen. In fact, let me just tell you about the amazingness of Japanese 7-11. The back wall of all the konbini (short for "convenience store") we went to were lined with refrigerated cases of freshly-made meals- everything from sushi and riceballs to beef curry and salads. An illustration:

My lunch our first day: cold soba noodles and green apple juice, about 400-500 yen:

Shopping: My favorite place to shop was, of course, Harajuku. It's not exactly the mecca it used to be when Gwen Stefani brought it into Western eyes, since many alternative fashion brands have branched out (take the Marui Young building in Shinjuku, the biggest alternative-fashion-only mall I saw there), but it's still just so much fun to clomp up and down Takeshita-Douri, if for no other reason than to be a huge tourist. You can also trek up to Meiji Jingu, which is a beautiful shrine nearby. As far as Harajuku's must-sees: For lolitas, I'd say you absolutely have to go to La Foret and Closet Child. I did a panel on lolita in Japan the day after I got home, and I really should have retitled it "An Ode to Closet Child" for all the waxing poetic I did. I bought a velvet BABY dress, a navy plaid BABY blazer, and a light blue Angelic Pretty summer cutsew for a total of 16,000 yen, which I could have easily paid for the dress alone- and am pretty sure I almost did a few months ago. On my first excursion to Harajuku (the only one in which I bought things for myself), I spent around 30,000 yen and bought this:

Red velvet BABY OP (Closet Child)
Blue plaid BABY blazer (Closet Child)
Brown Bodyline bolero (BL)
Red Bodyline perfume bottles skirt (BL ~ ended up selling this to a friend because it's a bit snug)
White and blue bow socks (BL)
Three pairs of socks from tutu*anna
Lavender Sugar Pansy socks (Angelic Pretty Laforet)
Brown Angelic Pretty pochette (AP Laforet ~ Birthday present from Stefan)
Blue Angelic Pretty summer cutsew (Closet Child)
Brown floral maxi dress (Momo by Wonder Rocket)

Another ridiculously fun place to shop was Yodobashi Kamera in Akihabara. Akihabara is kind of the electronics and geekery district, and Yodobashi is a mall that takes everything that genre encompasses and crams them into one huge, eight-floor mall. We made the mistake of visiting on a Saturday (completely by accident- our internal clocks were still suffering jetlag, so we thought it was Friday) - absolutely DO NOT do this! It was awful. There were so many people that we couldn't do any actual shopping and basically just spent the whole time fighting off anxiety attacks, haha. The lines were long, there were lots of people and loud kids running around, and it was just not a pleasant experience. Stefan went back a few days later and said it was much better. It was also in Akihabara that we visited Don Quixote, which I think is like a duty free chain store that just sells all sorts of random stuff- everything from international foods to make-up to otaku/geeky things. It reminded me of a Christmas Tree Shop on cocaine, for anyone familiar with that company. However, it was the only place in Japan where I found prescription-free circle lenses, and their Dolly Wink lashes were cheaper than at Yodobashi, along with an impressive spread of Japanese makeup brands like Kate. They have multiple locations around Tokyo, too, not just in Akihabara.

Lodging: In Hakone, we had a beautiful, spacious tatami room. It had a table in the middle which we pushed off to the side at night so we could roll out our futons, which we then folded up and stored in the closet every morning. This is a very traditional Japanese-style room that is available in many hotels and is often cheaper than the Western-style rooms. This room cost (I think) 9000yen per person per night; that price included both breakfast and dinner but excluded internet (WiFi doesn't seem to be super common in Japan). Here's our room in Hakone...

(yeah, also, that's the Japanese definition of a "spacious" hotel room, haha!)

The dinner was "teishoku" style: they set out for us a multiple-course meal of traditional Japanese food (mostly different preparations of seafood and meat with soup, rice, salad, and stewed vegetables, served with iced oolong tea). The first night we got there, like I said above, it was around 9 PM. We had landed in Narita at 2 PM and had been traveling through Japan for seven hours (due almost entirely to our own stupidity and the pressing need to run around like headless chickens), and this was after the 15 hour flight which was after the 5 hour flight. We had been in transit for well over 24 hours, and so when we got to the hotel we weren't interested in doing anything but sleeping. When they asked if we were ready for our meal, I made it look like we were really hungry and said "Yes, please!" only to recoil in horror when I saw that they had laid out four tables of food for us. Get ready, this is the most disgusting you will ever see me look:

And this was after putting a dent in it. It was also then that I realized that... I don't really like traditional Japanese cuisine very much! This was an awful time to realize this, when I was forcing myself to eat as much of it as possible in fear of insulting our hosts, and it's possible that I barely fought off a total breakdown from stress XD;

Hakone-Yumoto Hotel Asuka

Anyway. The point is to contrast this hotel room with the room in Tokyo, which was:

So small I couldn't even get a picture of the entire thing! As you can see, it was big enough for our suitcases and our futons, and that's basically it. Mainland Japan is a pretty cramped place anyway, where people rarely even have backyards, but in Tokyo space is a premium and as a rule you will get much, much less than you'd pay the same amount for in other places (even within Japan; when I went in high school, my hotel room in Kyoto was about the size of a standard American hotel room). We didn't have a closet in Tokyo, and the one in Hakone was tiny and more of a coat-closet than anything else.

However, the ryokan catered to foreigners, so there were plenty of people for us to chat with in the lounge as well as a staff that spoke perfect English to assist us. It was inexpensive (around 6500 yen for two people per night), and they had a kitchen for us to use as well as a pretty big flat screen to watch TV on (there was also free wifi in the lounge; there were technicians there our last few days wiring the rest of the hotel, too, so they may have expanded that by now). We met a wonderful couple from Adelaide, Australia, who said that if I'd like to take a weekend there when I study abroad in Melbourne to shoot them an e-mail. So sweet!

Kimi Ryokan Ikebukuro

Speaking of speaking English, how did we do with the language barrier? I noted that almost all of the signs in Tokyo were in English as well as Japanese (and Korean and Chinese, in a few places!), so it is totally possible to get around without speaking a word of Japanese. That being said, I cannot recommend it less. If you can, you should take a few practical Japanese classes and learn the writing system, at least hiragana, katakana, and a few simple kanji; at least enough to read some signs and ask for directions, because the information on the signs is not always translated perfectly. However, all of this is only if you are staying within Tokyo or maybe another large city, and even then only in the touristy areas of the city. The further you get to the coutryside, the fewer signs there are in English, so be wary of that when you're planning your trip.

This paragraph is probably time-sensitive for the next few months, but I feel like a few words devoted to the tragedy in Sendai are needed. Our trip at the end of May was completely uncompromised by the effects of March's tsunami and earthquake. I can't speak for anywhere besides Hakone and Tokyo, but there was no damage, no food shortages, not even that much inconvenience that we faced. The only things I noticed were: due to power shortages, the city wasn't as bright as usual, in that there were fewer street lights and neon signs lit up; for the same reason, many escalators were down; and there were fewer other tourists (or at least, there were fewer non-Asian people around. I know that sounds kind of racist, but there are very few white or black people in normal times, and that number was only a tiny fraction of what it usually is). In that same vein, I noticed something really surprising: I actually got less attention walking around in lolita than I did walking around in normal clothes. The only thing I can think of it that they assumed a white person wearing Japanese fashion is more likely to be a permanent resident, and they really had no idea why anyone would come to Japan right now for tourism (the latter half of which I was actually told, basically point-blank, by a businessman I was chatting with).

But what about lolitas in Japan? I didn't have many run-ins with Japanese lolitas; the ones I did speak to were very polite, but not terribly friendly. It wasn't like in America, where I feel like our interest in this strange, obscure fashion lends itself to a nature comradery and makes us more likely to want to be friendly with other lolitas than we probably would be with normal people (in public, at least). This could also just be a difference between Japanese people in general compared with American people in general, as in Japan friendships are seen as a much more serious relationship than I was raised to think of them as (I'd love to hear how non-American Western lolitas feel about this, especially those with experience with Japanese lolitas!) As far as Western lolitas in Japan, I used the lolitasinjapan livejournal community and arranged a meeting with three different girls, all of whom were incredibly sweet and not at all internet stalkers, so I really recommend it for anyone who wants to get together with shopping buddies. It was really awesome having someone to show Stefan and I around the areas I was unfamiliar with.

I guess I can't really think of anything else to say... I feel like there's so much more I should be talking about, but I just can't think of it! So, thank you all for waiting while I took my much-needed break, and again, please let me know in the comments section what you'd like to hear more about and I'll do my best to answer all of your questions!

(part of the Lolita on Location series)

When you see this....

2011-05-25T08:45:00.000-04:00

photo by me: Nagatacho Station, circa 2007

I'll be in the air, somewhere above the Pacific Ocean, on my way to Tokyo. I'll make up for this awful filler post as soon as I can with fashion shots around Tokyo, tips for planning your own trip, and a little travel diary of what I'm getting up to in the Glorious Land of Nihon.

See you all soon! ♥

50 Tidbits of Advice for Lolitas

2011-05-19T10:16:00.000-04:00

Miss Lumpy's Rules for Life

Eat lots of fruit and drink plenty of water
Create an amazing facial care regime of exfoliater, cleanser, toner, and moisturizer with SPF
Observe nature and the universe
Read The Secret Garden
Pick flowers and thank the universe for their loveliness
Love someone today
Experiment with everything and anything that makes you happy
Wear lipgloss- or don't, because nobody's really looking closely enough to care
Eat a lot of things that make you feel amazing
Listen to beautiful music created by talented men and woman
Carry a camera and take pictures of the things around you
Go for a stroll today
Sit in the sunlight for at least fifteen minutes a day
Plant a garden
Make hot chocolate
Bake
Create
Every time you get any amount of money, put 10% of it into a savings account. Don't touch it.
Learn self-defense, because the world isn't always as beautiful as you are
Wear red lipstick
Smile at other beautiful girls, and occasionally at beautiful boys (maybe!)
Learn a new skill this year, and keep at it until you perfect it
Kiss your friends
Free yourself from someone who has hurt you
Kiss and tell
Turn your cellphone off for a whole week- better yet, turn off your computer, too.
Ask someone who inspires you who they are inspired by
Make new friends
Buy a few perfumes and wear them on special occasions- or whenever you feel like it
Eat spinach
Take vitamins
Learn to ice skate
Read Poe. Read Thoreau. Read Whitman or anyone else who urges you to observe the world around you.
In fact, read anything on Project Gutenberg
Memorize your favorite poems so you can recite them on command
Why bother being negative? It'll only make you sadder and drain your energy. Instead, replace every other negative thought with a positive one (because replacing EVERY thought is a bit of a jump!)
Forgive often, but never forget
Live for yourself, because in the grand scheme of things, no one else REALLY matters
Get a tattoo
Drink good wine
Once in a while, pick someone in your life and show them how much they mean to you
Wish upon a star
Do a research paper, even if no one will ever grade it
Stay up to watch the sun rise at least once a year
Go to sleep to birdsong
Keep a potted plant and talk to it when you're lonely
Sing along really, really loudly to wildly inappropriate songs
Do your nails if you feel like it; match them to your coordinate so you feel like a princess even after you've taken it off.
Find something to fight for
Remember that, no matter what, you are beautiful, strong, and capable of handling everything the universe gives you.

[this entirely-for-fun post partially inspired by these articles at F Yeah Lolita]

[also- today is my birthday! Happy 22nd to me!!]

Review: Escapist Fashion Screenprinted Tee

2011-05-11T09:08:00.001-04:00

And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming.
And the lamplight o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted---nevermore!

If you don't already know that I'm a huge literature nerd, this must be your first time here. So a few months ago, when I first saw Escapist Fashion's Nevermore Raven Cameo tee, I knew I had to have one. The design is just so classy, so elegant, and so pretty that it perfectly suits the evocative poem by Edgar Allen Poe that serves as its inspiration. I messaged Megan and she was sweet enough to send me one to review for all of you!

The package was shipped a few days after our conversation, and I received it in perfect condition a few days after that. The shirt was packed in a plastic shopping bag, and then in a bubble mailer which was then duct taped closed.

The shirt itself immediately became one of my favorites. It's so soft and comfortable and fits me perfectly. There's an Escapist Fashion tag sewn over the manufacturer's tag on the back of the shirt, but it's soft and doesn't feel prickly or itchy at all, as tags sometimes can. Megan also included an adorable playing hard hairbow as a surprise! So sweet~

As you can see, the print is a little smudged, and it makes the words a little hard to read. However, I don't think it takes away from the general appearance of the shirt or makes it any less striking. In fact, I think the fact that it takes a little more effort to read it adds to the shirt- at first you'd just think it's a cameo of a bird, but then, if you take the time to read the "Nevermore" you realize it's actually a reference to Poe's "The Raven." I also really like the stippled effect of the ink. I've had screenprinted shirts that had ink so thick it cracked on the first wear, so it seems like this one's more durable. Speaking of durability, I've also machine-washed and dried this once or twice already and had no problems with it, which is great with lolita clothing!

Another angle of the screenprint:

Coordinated:

Rundown:

Shirt: Escapist fashion

Skirt and boots: Bodyline

Underskirt: Metamorphose

Brooch: Alice and the Pirates

Socks: Offbrand

Hair accessories: Various- BABY, H&M, and offbrand from Japan

Conclusion:

I'd give this shirt a 4 out of 5. The screenprinting it a little blurry in some places, but for the most part, it's an excellent addition to my wardrobe. It's great for a casual gothic look or with a mini skirt or jeans to wear to class. I definitely recommend Escapist Fashion- Megan was wonderful to work with and the quality of her work is really quite lovely. I definitely recommend Escapist Fashion, and would definitely buy from her again! ♥

Escapist Fashion blog
Escapist Fashion on Facebook

Sakura Matsuri 2011 at Brooklyn Botanical Gardens!

2011-05-04T12:36:00.001-04:00

Also known as the pinkest post you're likely to ever see here at Her Lumpiness!

This year I was finally able to make it to the Sakura Matsuri lolita meetup at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens! It was so amazing, totally worth the trip and making myself ill with exhaustion- the flowers were all beautifully in bloom and gave life a rosier tint than usual, and it was lovely to see all the girls I hadn't seen in ages, as well as meeting a few new friends! Unfortunately, as mentioned, I did make myself very ill from the past week's school stress on top of a minimal (to put it lightly) sleep schedule, so the latter half of the day was not the most enjoyable experience. However, it included bubble tea, sushi, and my friends taking care of me on the train home, so I suppose there are worse ways to spend evenings ♥

I didn't get many pictures, but here are the few I did manage to snap:

Being goobers on the train: Bonnet mustaches! My ribbon was chafing my chin, so I scootched it up to under my lips.... and then it just went downhill from there.

Savannah:

Tina:

Some much less goober-y ladies at the picnic:

Andrea of Weekend Lolita

Bianca- it was so nice to finally meet you!

Andrea's fab IW socks, which all of us were lusting over

Skirts (Nancy's and mine- I kind of had an obsession with detail shots that day...)

My bento! I made these for myself, Savannah, and Tina (though Tina's was sans meatballs). We had macaroni and cheese, chickpea salad, sweet barbecued tofu, green beans, edamame, and Asian turkey meatballs. I also made us onigiri for breakfast/snacking- we went pretty Asian in honor of the festival, haha!

A shot of the cherry blossoms

And now, to what I wore! Jeez, I look so dour in this photo...

Rundown:

Blouse: IW
Skirt: Lolita Nouveau
Bonnet: Handmade
Tights: Sock Dreams
Boots, sweater: Offbrand

Savannah and I were photographed for Mighty Harajuku! I was so proud- I've wanted to be since I heard about the project, so I'm so happy that I finally was! Stay genki Japan♥

Ugh, those bonnets... what a wreck! It was 2 AM the night before and I was still cooking when Savannah realized we hadn't even started them yet, so she started doing the cutting and gluing, and as soon as the bento food was done I finished mine up and helped her with hers. We finished everything around 4:15, and it was 5 before I was asleep, then up at 8:30 to start getting ready... that's why, as soon as we got home that night, I promptly went to sleep for 17 hours. I feel so much better! I should get a full week's sleep in one night more often! I've made a vow with myself to never subject myself to less than 6 hours of sleep again, which with finals breathing down my neck is probably wishful thinking...

It's officially spring! What are you doing to celebrate it?

Ooh, we have a "location" option on blogger now! Nifty! Wonder what it does...

Daily Outfit 4/23/11

2011-04-26T16:56:00.002-04:00

I did it- I gave Anime Boston another chance. This time, I tried my hand at vending in the Artist's Alley, where I shared a table with Carolyn of Ophanim Gothique. I had help from the lovely Miss Marrisa (check out her blog here!), who manned my table while I meandered about the con and let me nap on her when I got back. While I'll hopefully have a few more photos to show later in the week, here are some outfit shots of what we wore!

♥Rundown♥:

Bonnet: Ophanim

OP: Angelic Pretty

Cardigan (purchased at the con from Kathryn!): Emily Temple Cute

Socks: Angelic Pretty

Shoes: Bodyline

Corset (shown below): Lolita Nouveau

Shame the only picture I have of the corset in this outfit is such a shoddy one... in which I was sorting through my drugs... (Don't worry, they're just tylenol and ibuprofen!)

♥Rundown♥:

Bonnet: Ophanim

Cardigan and top: Offrand

Skirt: Candy Violet

Socks: Fan + Friend
Shoes: Bodyline

Jewelry: Offbrand & Ophanim

Amaranth Opulent did a pretty good business that day! I sold more than half of what I brought and definitely met expectations, profit-wise. And it was so nice to see everyone again, or meet you all for the first time! I've been saying that my experience at this Anime Boston would be what determines if I continue going to cons, and despite an absolutely wretched beginning of the day (missing our bus and forgetting my wallet and umbrella at our friends' house, after fifteen minutes of sleep all night), my experience this Saturday really was a great one. It was really nice to just chill with Caro, her boyfriend Justin, and Marrisa, and seeing everyone was really great too. If the opportunity comes up to vend at another convention, I might jump on it, but as far as general attendance goes I think this'll probably be my last time. I'm just too old for this crap! I started going to anime cons when I was 12- that's almost a decade of cosplayers, otaku, and all the other things that come with conventions, and I'm really not sure if I'm up for the money- and energy-drain anymore!

Readers: Do you go to anime conventions? Do you like it?

Bonus: What I wore at AB last year!