Hello!
This post is going to be a collection of resources where one can learn about the history and rules/norms of lolita fashion. Beginning with a disclaimer, there is a bit of discourse in the community about the importance of rules, and what the rules even are. As for the history of the fashion, it is more straightforward. Both are pretty complex and interesting!
Let's tackle "rules" first! Consider another subculture: goth. What are the "rules" of being goth? Do you have to wear all black? No, some goths wear all white, some goths wear colors. Do you have to wear heavy makeup? No, but some goths do. Do you have to listen to goth music? No (before the mobs come after me), according to goths in my life the music is not imperative.
Lolita fashion rules function much the same. Do you have to stan Mana-Sama? No (but why wouldn't you??). Do you have to wear brand? No, it's expensive as hell. But replicas are art theft, so you certainly can't wear those. It's complex! I will make a list here of the simplest rules as I understand them, and under each rule, I will give the exception.
1. Lolita fashion requires a certain silhouette, which is achieved with a petticoat. The petticoat can be A-line or cupcake shaped. (Exception: old school, aka pre-2008 lolita style, did not use petticoats of the same volume as are popular today, and sometimes did not use them at all.) (Exception: many classic, ero, punk, etc. lolita brands release items that cannot even fit a petticoat.)
2. Lolita outfits are called "coordinates" or "coords" for short. A "complete" coordinate includes the following items (listed in order from head to toe): headpiece, blouse, main piece (can be a dress - jsk, or skirt - sk, or salopette), wristcuffs, petticoat, legwear (socks or tights), accessories (necklace, ring, bracelet, hair clips, broaches, etc), and shoes that are lolita-approved - like tea parties or rocking horse shoes. (Exceptions to this are too many to name - of course not every coord is going to have every one of these elements.)
3. Lolita fashion is not sexual, and should not be traditionally "sexy" (yes, even ero coords!). Lolita is largely a high-coverage, feminist, anti-establishment, anti-fast fashion, fashion movement - created to empower the wearer without sexualizing them. (Ero lolita is an almost-excpetion, but I'll have to ask my friends who wear Ero more about it - maybe I'll even make a whole post about the Ero substyle.)
Now, here is a list of resources that elaborate better then I ever could on those basic concepts. These resources all have info on "rules" and "history" of the fashion, with lots of incredible photos as well.
LOLITA FASHION INFORMATIONAL RESOURCES:
Here is "Lolita Handbook" - a LiveJournal time capsule from 2011, but still relevant:
https://lolita-handbook.livejournal.com/ . This LiveJournal covers history, explanations of what the fashion is, how to create an outfit, lolita etiquette, and even goes into substyles. It's a great resource!
Here is "F Yeah Lolita" - a lolita fashion & lifestyle blog:
http://www.fyeahlolita.com/ . It has posts on topics including this amazing one that explains the beginnings of the fashion: http://www.fyeahlolita.com/2010/02/old-school-lolita-in-90s-80s-and-70s.html
Here is "F Yeah Lolita" - on Tumblr:
https://fyeahlolita.tumblr.com/ . Same as the other blog, but with more tumblr flare - reblogs of posts from other lolitas, asks answering burning questions about the fashion, etc.
Here is "Lolita History" - another blog:
https://www.lolitahistory.com/ . This site in particular has an incredible "collection of lolita stock photos and low quality scans of sections of out of print fashion magazines (most are over 10 years old). " In their own words - which can be found here: https://www.lolitahistory.com/gallery/
Here are some less history and rules focused blogs and otherwise that I enjoy. (aka these are just pages run by lolitas documenting their own journeys in the fashion, and they are wise and cute so much can be learned from enjoying their pages.):
COOL LOLITAS TO FOLLOW ONLINE:
https://cynicalneoprincessism.blogspot.com/
https://www.youtube.com/@PinkFakeFlowers
https://www.tumblr.com/fannyrosie
https://www.youtube.com/@EnyoBowBtch (plus sized lolita!)
That's all the resources I have to share! We live in such an amazingly connected time, where all this information is easily accessible - yet it can be hard to find if one doesn't know where to look. I hope that this post can be a resource that can help anyone interested in learning more about lolita fashion!
Till next time ~
5. 23 . 25
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