Tips and Tricks: Lolita, Starting Your Wardrobe (part 2)

As promised in this post, I am going to continue on with this series! I am doing this, once again, because I want to help you out with your first steps in Lolita. Where I only had some things from the internet, I want you to have the inside story. So you don't make the same mistakes I did. I want you to get the bang for your buck, and know what might happen so you are not surprised when you get packages.

As in the last post, these are some suggestions with my own examples to help. You could choose a huge variety of different things for your wardrobe, or do your wardrobe in a different way, but maybe this could help you and I hope it does. This time we will focus on the last two things, that you might really really need before you get your dress, blouses and shoes! This post will be mostly about how you can profit from my mistakes, and I made a lot of them when it came to the blouses and shoes. So on we go!

Blouses:

Please, please, please remember your colors when doing shopping for blouses. It is really important to have blouses that match the color scheme for the begging of your wardrobe. If you remember, I choose the simple colors of black and white. (However, these don't have to be the only colors to choose. You could have chosen other colors for your wardrobe.) Some things to remember, if you don't have the money, don't worry about buying brand.

My first blouse, may you not be as dumb as me when getting a blouse and not spend all the money.

Some things to look for when buying your first blouse it to diffidently make sure that they have detachable sleeves. This way you can wear that blouse one of two ways, which will get more wear and more bang for your buck. ( I will talk more about this when we start talking about coords.)

Some other things to also make sure to remember when you are getting your new shirts, besides the colors and detachable sleeves that is. Make sure you don't go to extravagant your first time around, I know that that flowy chiffon shirt would be perfect for your classical coord, but could you wear that during the winter? Would that also match your other clothes? By focusing on colors and simple dress ideas you expand the use of your wardrobe by a whole lot more, so keep it simple and don't worry too much about the lolita sub-styles. After getting a good handle on your wardrobe than you can branch out and buy the flowy stuff, the extravagances that you didn't need in the begging. (Unless you really really want that shirt and it is going to be a huge piece in your wardrobe. What I am saying is don't make snap buying decisions. Get the stuff that can really help out your wardrobe early on.)

Shoes:

Once again, before you jump on to the bandwagon of hot shoe shopping in lolita, I would highly suggest looking through the shoes you enjoy wearing in everyday life. If you love wearing 4-inch heels than you can do that. If you love your tennis shoes more than anything (well you might want to do that more for causal lolita but they are your clothes) you can do that, like if you like your tennis shoes or flats because they are comfortable and close to the ground lolita has shoes that can fit those needs. If you like platforms (flatforms or whatever... you know what I mean), punk shoes, gothic shoes, steam punk shoes... lolita can fit those needs as well! There are tons of styles to look from and use in your lolita wardrobe. But remember to stay with in your colors, and stay with what you like or would normally wear and you are good to go. (click links for examples of the shoes.)

My most worn shoes next to my brown ones! These are perfect!!!! Easy to walk in, something I am used too, and comfortable to boot. Say yes to the shoes people!

 Some helpful tips though. When buying white shoes remember that you will be wearing them... so they are going to get dirty and scuff... If you don't want to really worry about that look into getting darker color shoes that will easily hide that better. 

Also, sometimes the shoes will be uncomfortable, especially if you are used to wearing tennis shoes and flats all the time. Keep the shoes you wear everyday in mind when shopping for you lolita shoes, if you are used to tennis shoes get the flats because they will hurt your feet less, and you can wear them for longer with out worrying about your feet falling off.

Because this has no ankle support I don't wear them much, my feet just fall out of them. They are also the most uncomfortable lolita shoe I own, just because it  is cute doesn't mean it will be fun.

Make sure you get the right size and fit. Or what I mean is that they are structured for you to walk. This means making sure you are getting the right size and making sure the straps will keep your foot in the shoe. (Something I messed up in.) Definitely make sure that the straps are placed so that your feet won't fall out while walking. 

Watch out for the accessories that come with the shoes. Some shoes you will buy will come with detachable bows or the like. These can easily get lost, make sure you remember that when going out and whether or not you want to keep them on when going out. You can get replacement bows or what not that you lost, but that just ends up costing extra money.

Off brand shoes are made with the same material as brand shoes. That is right you read me. So when buying your shoes, unless you want the brand item because it is X brand, don't worry about spending all that money. In the end you pay less for the same stuff when buying lolita shoes. Try not to pay too much more. I mean we are on a budget right?

Fasten your lolita shoes once and never fasten again. So unless you are like me (I can be slow on the up take sometimes...) you might have not known that most lolita shoes come with an awesome secret. When we were younger we had to always do the long fasten thing in our dress shoes right? Where we would have to hook it through the hole and it would take a long time, right??? Well you might have guessed by now that the shoes come with these buttons, so once you fasten the shoe to the right size, you never have to do it again. You just button and un-button to get in and out of your cute lolita shoes. Don't waste your time and un-fasten and re-fasten when you first get them, that is what the buttons are there for!!

So those are just some tips and tricks I have for buying your first blouse and shoes, remember all the basics you learned as well from other sources like the forums and what not....(Avoid bad lace...etc.) And you shall do great! Hope my idiot mistakes mean you don't have to make them!!! If you have anymore tips about blouses or shoes just leave them below! See you soon.

Cookie

P.S. Next Tips and Tricks for you Lolita Wardrobe will be the JSK's, OP's, and the skirts. 

Tips and Tricks: Lolita, Starting Your Wardrobe

Making this post makes me realize a couple of things, that first I have not finished my wardrobe, that I don't know where to exactly start, and this is all a little loose because everyone can do it a different way. This is how I started my Lolita Wardrobe, and some of the things I learned on the way. The things I am missing, the last "essential" things would be some winter coats. As in most things I am going to start from where I started, research. Hopefully this will help you, and me as well.

Many people will say that you should choose a sub-style first. However I would say that you don't have to do that. To start from the very very begging I would choose the colors you want to build your wardrobe around. If you are not sure about this, I would look at what you wear most often day to day. These are clothes after all, and you want to wear something that you will feel comfortable in. Don't even worry about coordination (which we will get to later) when choosing colors. And you can choose one color up to as much colors as you want. These colors will be the bases of your wardrobe, and may change over time.
When I got started I choose the two most often used colors in Lolita, black and white. Many people will say that those are an ita combination, but they shouldn't be based on what you buy.
Those were the first two colors I choose, and have since expanded my color pallet. With my wardrobe mostly stable and well rounded, I feel I can expand on the colors I choose.

The colors that I choose at first

Now that we have chosen our colors that we want to make our wardrobe out of, we must now do the hardest part (in my opinion), saving up for the clothes.
I don't care if you save up loose change, or get a job, or get allowances from you parents or what not, always always remember that you pay for what you get. This meaning that if you buy from a brand name like Angelic Pretty or Baby The Stars Shine Bright you mostly will get very superb quality. Good quality usually means good design, good non-scratchy lace, and you will get full lining (for the dresses and the skirts). If you buy from say...Bodyline or Taboo they are usually without the great details, and the lining... sometimes the lace can be good or bad, so watch which dress you invest in. The last one you could look for is handmade or indie brands. These will usually be just about as good or in between name brands and taboo. Though many people buy dresses first, I would highly suggest against this.
So while at first you save up for a dress, it shouldn't be your first purchase. I would suggest that you first purchases revolve around accessories, headdress, petticoats, and socks. These are the things that will make a good foundation to your wardrobe and in some cases (like the petticoat) hold it up. And not just that, will give you a lot of room to play with your looks.
One of the biggest purchases in lolita is the petticoat. This to many people is like buying the perfect house, it can take awhile, and many people will make many mistakes before finding that gold nugget.
I have three petticoats myself, and these all vary in style as well as poof. In lolita poof factor is a huge deal! How big do you want your poof, you might ask? How big is the perfect poof? These questions, I have learned varies dress from dress. Not only that, but many petticoats lose their poof! This can really suck if you are spending around $50 for a petticoat, and it doesn't hold up.
So here are some tips.

F+F petticoat, which I won't be linking because it loses its poof really fast. And Candy Violet Petticoat that is super super huge.

The Classical Puppets Petticoat, it is the perfect poof... For most of my dresses. You can get them here or here.

Careful what you buy, I would try to stay away from Bodyline petticoats, and petticoats with tulle. Look for petticoats with chiffon or lots of layers. Some of the best petticoats are from Classical Puppets, and the fluffy ones, from Candy Violet.
Petticoats can be a bit expensive, but considering you wear them a lot more often than the dresses, it would be good to invest a little into it. It will be worth it in the long run.
Socks, accessories, and headdresses should be easier. You can get lots of these for fairly cheap and anywhere!

 

All of my leg wear stay with the colors I choose to base my wardrobe on. The first pair or the ones I got from F+F and are pretty plain. The second pair are a bit more fun (the white has see through flower patterns) and I got them from a taboo store, they are secret shop socks. My tights! They are flower patterned and polka dots (which are more see through once they are on).

For socks and general leg covering, like tights...
Tights can match anything and can make some great coords. What is best is that you can get them anywhere. I got my tights from Target, and Forever 21. People like Holly Tea Time (indie accessories) even makes their own tights now! Socks can be gotten from taboo or brand name as well. Secret Shop is a really great cheap alternative if your wallet is a little light. Make sure that even when buying tights or socks that you are still keeping with your colors!

Hair accessories from Claire's and Taboo/indie brands. These all stay with in my color themes.

Accessories and headdresses are the easiest to find! You can find all these at Claire's for a fair price. Or you can find them online, I really enjoy small businesses that sell accessories. Online places, such as Etsy or Holly Tea Time, are good places to start looking. You can find really great handmade jewelry there.
As for headdress, you can have big bows, small bows, and in-between bows! You can get them from anywhere! And I mean anywhere. Target, Claire's, or even Baby The Stars Shine Bright! That is totally up to you and how much you are willing to spend. But make sure that your headdresses match the colors you choose for your wardrobe!


And this is how I started/wish I started my Lolita Wardrobe. It would have saved me some money. So I hope you guys learn from my mistakes. If you have any questions or suggestions, don't be afraid to leave a comment!
Next time I will be covering shoes and blouses, so look forward to that!

Cookie