That Old Feeling

Summer is only halfway through and all ready I'm longing for the colder months... I love the free time, getting to relax and pursue my own interests, but summer is a very bland season for me style-wise. For some reason my creativity with outfits seems to channel itself better when I'm trowing more things on, adding more details. The summer heat in Puerto Rico makes the layered looks I love very impractical. My favorite style that involves a lot of layers is lolita fashion. Lolita fashion was the first time I feel in love with clothing, it was a gateway for me to start experimenting with my style. That initial fascination has now grown to a greater appreciation and interest in the fashion world.

Of course, getting into lolita wasn't all that easy, considering how much more expensive it is than mainstream fashion, and also my size. A lot of lolita clothing was, and still is, designed with a more petite figure in mind. I'm short enough that I've never had trouble with the length of skirts and dresses. But being a size16, there were fewer options that would fit me within the Japanese brands. I can fit into the fully-shirred items from brands, but I don't always like how they look and get tired of the same dress cut. It's also hard for me to find blouses that would fit into the lolita style but would still look good on my figure and fit my size. Thankfully I've also been able to find pieces made for my size by lolita seamstresses, and vintage items that fit into the aesthetic.

Building up a lolita wardrobe has taken time and patience. And it's really sad that, though I love the clothing, I hardly get to wear it. Very often it's not practical, either because of the heat or the fact that it's not comfortable for the day's activities. I guess you could say my indulging in such an impractical style is an act of resistance... though less logical than my usual acts of resistance. Even if it's just been months, it feels like centuries since I've worn it... Since I've smiled at how petticoats make my skirts flare out, filling me with a whimsical happiness. There's a spring to my step when I wear my favorite dresses. I long for that old feeling. As a sort of tribute to my first fashion love, I've decided to share some pictures of past outfits. (I wear the classic, gothic, and punk lolita styles, but I don't have pictures of all my outfits within those styles.)

These first two were outfits I wore to picnics, don't really know whether they're classic or country lolita:

Top: unknown

Skirt: unknown

Tights: Wet Seal

Shoes: unknown

Accessories: Claire's

Hat & Flower: Claire's

Cardigan & Accessories: Forever21

Dress: Baby, the Stars Shine Bright

Tights: unknown

Shoes: unknown

Wristcuffs: Hot Topic

And the next are gothic lolita:

Headdress & Parasol: Alice and the Pirates

Jacket: she said...

Dress: Innocent World

Tights: Wet Seal

Shoes: Vigoss

 Earrings & Belt: Forever21

Top: unknown

Skirt: In the Starlight

Tights: Sock Dreams

Shoes: Payless

I'm eagerly looking forward to autumn and to the fluff of my petticoats. For the season I'm hoping I can add more brown and blue to my lolita wardrobe, and maybe some of those painting printed tights that were so popular a while ago, as well as the blouses I so sorely need.

(P.S. Props if you know the song/singer which inspired the title of this post.)