† Name/URL: Hatsumi Chalini † Age: 26 † Location: Guadalajara Jalisco Mexico † How were you introduced to Gothic Lolita fashion?
It was like 6 years ago, basically with some magazine scans in a internet forum and was amazed about it.
† What do you find appealing about GL style and culture?
The whole aesthetic of the concept draws attention to me, so elegant. † What are your favorite GL clothing brands?
Oh I'm in love with the romantic punk style of Vivienne Westwood, such a fashion icon, but also some other brands like Putumayo,Atelier Boz,Miho Matsuda and Moi-même-Moitie, and even some original designs made by costume designers. (and mine, lol. I have this small brand of hand made accessories called "Lolitadoll Atelier"^ ^) † Any other comments? I found inspiration in different things, like music, movies, art and even friends! there is so much you can add to your own style ♥
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I find myself at clubs that play electro house (Justice, MSTRKRFT) and it’s the same thing over and over, and I can’t help but wonder – what would happen if the DJ suddenly blasted Malice Mizer’s “Illuminati”? I can only imagine a roomful of club kids wiping their oversized glasses in confusion. But if the DJ were to spin Aural Vampire’s “Innsmouth”… now that would turn the room into Dracula's ball.
Aural Vampire (yes, it’s a play on “oral”) is a Tokyo duo that churns out the most scrumptious Electropop/Darkwave. Think 80s-influenced female-fronted synth (Ladytron, Metric) with a bite of dark/glam industrial (Rammstein).
The band is on an indie record label called “Tokyo Lolita Style” – three words that can also describe their stage image. With her long, blonde princess hair and cat eyes, singer/lyricist Exo-Chika looks as innocent as Dracula’s Mina Harker. But ask her to say “ahhh” and she’ll bare her blood-sucking canines (like in the video above). Her style is more Gothic than Lolita, as she avoids the frills and girlish silhouettes. Exo-Chika often performs in black armbands, corsets, and garters; her partner Raveman lurks in the back, his face covered by a blood red Jason-esque mask.
Here’s some mandatory listening: nine tracks from Aural Vampire's 2004 album, "Vampire Ecstasy." Pump up the jam, switch on the disco ball, bounce around… I know I am!
New photos from NYC...
Inside the MoMA's PS1 museum in Queens. Dress: Westmend Boots: Dr. Martens, re-strung with two shades of green suede.
Inspired by the Super Lovers showcase outfit in the previous post, I added a touch of green and dark violet to my usual all-black palate. Antony lent me his hat.
We stopped by Kinokuniya. Strangely, the Japanese bookstore did not carry the US version of the Gothic & Lolita Bible! Nobody working there had even heard of it.
I tried on a beautifully-made velvet and cotton dress from Beth by Victorian Maiden. I love the silver playing card symbols that run down the front. Too bad that the asking price (for the dress plus a black, long-sleeve, button-down shirt) is $315...
Gothic Lolitas no longer need pricey plane tickets for a pilgrimage to Mecca, a.k.a. Marui Young. The Shinjuku department store recently launched an English-language website that sells Japanese Lolita brands – including Algonquins, Victorian Maiden, and Black Peace Now – and offers shipping to over 130 countries and regions. Hallelujah!
Marui One’s site includes an informative section called LiveJ, with original articles and media about J-pop culture and fashion. There’s a D’espairsRay video; an interview with animator Aimee Major Steinberg about US Goth Loli culture; a two-part analysis of hand painted lacquer chopsticks (random, but awesome).
LiveJ has just posted a nifty “Fashion Brand Review.” The latest offerings from four designers are assembled into “recommended outfits”; you can click on the links to buy the individual pieces from MaruiOne.jp. Ronan and I decided to comment on each showcase:
RONAN: I could see this being something good if it were streamlined a lot. Maybe a little less puffy and busy? Perhaps just the top half with a pair of ordinary jeans?
CARMEN: The skirt especially is too busy.
RONAN: Yes. Too much.
CARMEN: I like the top, without the bow tie. It’s too casino-worker.
RONAN: I agree.
CARMEN: What is with the black appliqué over her right eye? I want to rip it off!
RONAN: Much better.
CARMEN: I dig the way it’s classy but still really artsy.
RONAN: I actually really like this one.
CARMEN: What do you think of the dark red, dark purple, and leopard print shoes? Does it work?
RONAN: Sort of. It's not really my speed but the rest of the outfit is subdued enough that it's not bad. The shoes I could go either way on. Something more staid, just leaving the leggings as the one colorful item, would be good too.
CARMEN: The frilled blouse is awesome.
RONAN: The blouse is also good. I like that this one bridges the divide between ridiculous fashion stuff and ordinary every day wear. It's subtle enough for me to not hate it. And the model is cuter than the last one.
CARMEN: Ronan, it's the SAME MODEL! She just has different hair.
RONAN: Wow, seriously? So much better in that one!
RONAN: And now she looks bad again! Anyway, this one I hate everything from the waist down. The waist up is good.
CARMEN: Bondage pants - always a no-no. I LOVE the schoolgirl punk look when it's done well.
RONAN: Yes. Again, with a normal skirt or a pair of jeans, that top would be very cool.
CARMEN: Do you like ties on girls?
RONAN: Depends. There's a high risk of coming off as too self-consciously stylish. I think it's okay in this case.
CARMEN: I like the cut of the blazer, and the Brit patch is a nice touch.
RONAN: Hate everything.
CARMEN: What specifically irks you?
RONAN: I hate it all. There's not a bit of it I like. That's all I have to say about it.
CARMEN: I don’t like the detailing on this Black Peace Now jacket, but the cutting and fit are always impeccable. It comes through, even in the midst of this disaster.
Now it’s your turn to be fashion critic. What do you guys think of these outfits?
American Gothic Lolita buzz tends to gravitate towards San Francisco, possibly because of the city’s large Japanese population. For a while, there were rumors that Baby, the Stars Shine Bright would be opening a store. Nothing’s come to fruition – but perhaps something grander is on the horizon. A year from now, Viz Media (the Japanese entertainment company that released Kamikaze Girls) will be opening a three-story complex in San Fran’s Japantown. And in a nod to Shinjuku’s Marui Young department store, the second floor will be dedicated to selling Gothic Lolita clothing by your favorite designers.
Behind this venture is Seiji Horibuchi, who founded the Japanese entertainment company Viz Media in 1986. Two years ago, he launched Viz Pictures, which releases live-action features to complement the manga, anime, toys, and related merchandise the parent company already handles.
Horibuchi revealed his plans to open a “J-Pop Center” in the heart of San Francisco's Japantown. The three-story complex will house an expansive café and a 150-seat art house theater specializing in Japanese films. Visitors can buy household goods, food, fashion, toys, magazines, manga, you name it. "We might even have high-tech robots."
Most exciting for us? The second floor will be dominated by fashion boutiques, just like the ones found in Japan's Marui department stores (pictured above), with a particular emphasis on Gothic Lolita designs. Horibuchi cites gosurori's worldwide appeal and calls it "a 21st-century phenomenon."
No word as to which Lolita brands will be crossing the ocean in 2009-10. But we may as well start saving up for a mega shopping spree in San Fran...
† Name/URL: Dorothiel † Age: 24 † Location: Italy † How were you introduced to Gothic Lolita fashion?
About 4 years ago. I've started to listen j-rock (because of my passion for Japan) and I fell in love with Mana-sama and so, searching pics about him, I knew GL style...I've adored it since the first look.
† What do you find appealing about GL style and culture?
I think that is very important to keep a little bit of "childish" vision of the world, during all our life; it's also a way to be anticonformist (and I am anticonformist)! Gothic-lolita is exactly this.
† What are your favorite GL clothing brands? Angelic Pretty,Moi Même Moitié, Metamorphose. † Any other comments? Be what you feel to be!
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On a frigid day like today, I like to light a clove and stroke my cat and ponder the aesthetic similarities between Gothic Lolita and Goth. Intriguing, isn’t it, how the Japanese style/subculture adopts the trimmings of Christian imagery without the blasphemous implications. A partial explanation: the religion is nearly as rare in Japan as Shintoism in America. Christianity was heavily banned until the Meiji restoration of 1873; today, only 1-6% of the population identifies with the faith. And so, Japan has legions of Gothlolis who wear crucifixes and rosaries and pose for photos in cathedrals – not to provoke, but because the imagery charms and amuses them.
Hence the existence of the Christon Café. This improbable Jesus-themed restaurant is so popular that it now has locations in Shinjuku, Shibuya, Osaka, and Fukuoka. Each cavernous location is piped with organ music and outfitted with stained-glass windows, Medieval altars, and church artifacts pilfered from France. Those who yearn for the intimacy of confession can request a booth with red velvet curtains. The kitsch-factor is through the vaulted roof. Weeping, bloody statues of Christ? A gigantic, scowling gargoyle at the bar? Candlelit tables and menus shaped like crucifixes? Done and done.
Funny, isn’t it, how we lust for sushi – while at Japan’s trendy Alice in Wonderland,Vampire, and Christon Cafés, the cuisine is what we’d call standard Italian/French fused with Asian. Christon’s cocktails include “Small Devil” (strawberry cream and cassis) and “Joan d’Arc” (vodka, ginger ale, raspberry). Dishes start at $8, and portions are small by American standards. Some selections: Peking duck rolls, shrimp spring rolls, Caesar salad, and salmon/spinach pasta. Sinners may want to consider the “God-hand-made humberger.”
You’ll often see Gothic Lolitas perched on the leather couches. Christon is also a popular wedding spot; it’d suit the Gothloli-themed ceremony I described in this post. EGL-designer Mana would approve. Every year, he hosts an exclusive Moi-Même-Moitié event at the one of the Tokyo locations (only 200 tickets are sent out to fans who spent more than 20,000 yen ($185) in his shop). Mana escorts you across the road, arm in arm, and presents you with a blue rose. Inside, you wait to be taken behind a curtain where you can shake his hand and have a photo signed. Judging from the spellbound faces, Mana is more of a deity to his devotees than any of the icons in the restaurant!
Info:
Shinjuku Address: 8F Oriental Wave, 5-17-13 Shinjuku. In east Shinjuku, on Yasukuni Dori just west of Hanazono Shrine. Nearest station: Shinjuku.
Tel: 03-5287-2426
Shibuya Address: 2-10-7 Dogenzaka, Shibuya-ku
Tel: 03-5728-2225 Osaka Address: 2-5 Shinsaibashi, Osaka. Opaque Osaka Building, 6th floor. Just north of the Ebisu-bashi bridge, on the left side of the Shinsaibashi-suji covered arcade.
Tel: 06-6213-2516 Fukuoka Address: Grand Bldg 1F, B1 2-9-5 Daimyo, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka Open: Varies (usually 5pm-5am, 5pm-11pm Mondays). Menu English/Japanese. Reservations necessary. There might be a cover charge of ¥300 ($2.85). URL: http://www.ug-gu.co.jp/restaurant/christon/christon.html
