Chiharu's Creative Corner

Lolita (ロリータ) is a Japanese street fashion and a subculture which originated in Japan that draws its inspiration primarily from the clothing and general aesthetics of the Victorian and 18th century French Rococo period, but also takes influences from current fashion trends. It's widely known for its intricate and delicate doll-like appearance based on the concepts of kawaii and otome. 

The lolita fashion tends to have a distinctive silhouette, which is achieved with the use of corsets and full petticoats, and often focuses on the cute or feminine, sometimes taking inspiration from antiquity. The general look therefore consists primarily of puffy knee-length dresses and skirts, lacy blouses, and varying forms of headdresses. Hand-held items such as dolls and plushies are sometimes carried in order to emphasise the childlike look, and make-up is often kept to a minimum.

It's true that most fashions are open to various interpretations, the term lolita is used exclusively to describe a very specific look that is created by abiding by a number of strict guidelines and principles. The “rules” of Lolita fashion don’t exist to limit the wearer, but are rather qualifiers of what makes an outfit lolita.


Although the term "lolita" may be off-putting to those who first hear about the fashion because of the connotation it holds from Vladimir Nabokov’s famous novel, which changed the meaning of the name for most people in the Western world revolving around a sexually precocious young girl and her relationship with an older male protagonist. The original followers of lolita fashion, as well as the majority of lolita fans across the world today, don't consider the style to be an explicitly sexual one. The concept of lolita fashion is typically thought of as cute or exquisitely charming, but most adherents believe that neither the term nor the style has anything to do with sex.

While sometimes synonymous with perceptions of bondage and other sexually-related ideas in the west, tends to be just the opposite when coupled with lolita fashion in Japan, as Tiffany Godoy’s Style Deficit Disorder informs us: “Abstinence, girlishness, and virginity were prominent themes. Girls covered up so very little skin was exposed, and wore lace and other frilly material almost to excess. They covered their legs with knee-high socks and wore Odeko shoes, characterized by a prominent rounded toe, rather than high heels.”

It's generally assumed though that the name of the fashion comes from a distortion of the meaning while word-borrowing from English. In the case of the fashion, the term “lolita” only refers to the child-like nature of some of the clothes and is also used because of the beauty or cuteness of the name. Lolita fashion is emphatically not about looking sexy and is instead about looking cute or elegant.


No one is exactly positive when the fashion appeared, but it's commonly believed to be back in the late 1980's with the emerge of brands such as MILK, Pink House and Pretty now Angelic Pretty. Early Lolita fashion was largely influenced by natural-kei, and would hardly be recognized as lolita by today's standards. The fashion was relatively unknown, until the early 2000's, when it got it's big boom through visual-kei bands, such as Malice Mizer, who incorporated dramatic make-up, strikingly unusual hair styles, and extremely elaborate and androgynous-looking costumes into their rock, punk, and metal performances. Malice Mizer's guitarist Mana fronted the fashion scene, and popularized the term Elegant Gothic Lolita when he opened Moi-même-Moitié, a Gothic Lolita brand.

Fans of this musical style began adopting similar costumes into their own street looks, and consequently, there was a distinct line between those who wore lolita clothing as a way of supporting the musical scene, and those who dressed in Lolita clothing only as a fashion trend. Lolita began to gather worldwide support gaining enough momentum as the fashion became more accessible through a variety of physical stores and clothing lines outside of Japan, and online web shops existing purely as a means of selling and showcasing lolita clothing in all of its varieties. The depiction of lolita is present in music videos, film, manga, and anime.

From 2000 to present, Lolita fashion has undergone an extensive metamorphosis. Early designs were rather simple, and often in the now infamous black and white color scheme. gothic, kuro and shiro were incredibly popular, and ama lolita was very toned down. Up to 2005, clothing prints were relatively rare, and the few that existed consisted of simple motifs. During 2006, the brand Angelic Pretty introduced the beginning of the ama lolita style as it looks today. The prints got more intricate and detailed, floral prints became more rare. The style changed from a more classic look, to a more childish and cute over-the-top look. ama lolita is presently the most popular lolita style.


The majority of lolitas just happen to like frills and historical clothing, a few prefer to lead a "lolita lifestyle" which one sees Lolita as more of a philosophy of living beautifully rather than just dressing it. A lifestyle Lolita generally dresses daily in the fashion, interacts with the local lolita community and may have feminine hobbies such as baking, sewing, embroidery, and other old-fashioned women’s activities. Some lifestyle lolitas adhere to the ideal of leading the life of a princess, and surrounds themselves with beautiful things and adopts certain mannerisms such as extreme politeness or ladylike behavior.

Community interaction is a large part of being a lolita, and is something that is enjoyed both by general fashion fans and lifestyle lolitas. Local lolita communities often arrange special meet-ups, where lolitas of all ages participate in activities such as picnics, tea parties, and visits to museums, amusement parks, or even art galleries. Every meet-up has its own specific rules and clothing codes. Many lolitas who don't dress in the fashion on a daily basis, sees meet-ups as a perfect way to go over-the-top with their outfits and show their love for the fashion.