/cgl/ - Cosplay & EGL

>>10523791
This was the first place on my list while planning my trip to japan. I'm so fucking upset i'll never be able to go now.

Meh. It was bound to happen. I can't imagine places like that attracting regulars. The novelty of such a place wears off after one visit, and the food is mediocre (yes I've been there and tried it) if the carousel show isn't going, it's not that crazy interesting IMO. Always felt like a place that was very manufactured and focused on customers coming there for the gram. Call me bitter, but at least I'm being real here.

The food was absolutely disgusting and all the decoration was grimy. Go to a place that’s actually clean and has good food.

>>10523791
I've seen so many instances of western girls calling their slut sanrio wixclub bimbo y2k egirl shit "harajuku fashion" or "harajuku fashion inspired". They honestly have no idea what they are trying to mimic because outside of random street snap on instagram they know absolutely nothing. They also repost random gyaru magazine pages on twitter and call it harajuku fashion when an actual jfashion enthusiast know that's mainly from shibuya. It's frustrating and sad. Try to tell them japanese fashion should come from japan and japanese shops and they're the first ones who try to cancel you because you hurt their feefees.

>>10523791
Besides of the ugly food and it being a painfully obvious tourist attraction, I really wanted to go there. Not really because of jfashion (I haven't kept up with it since 2016) but because I'm a theme park and sculpture enthusiast and the place itself looked pretty neat, like you truly feel immersed into a colorful monster land or something. I think it being too attached into the harajuku
scene hurt it in the end or something because I'm guessing locals rather eat somewhere else. Covid must have hit it hard with almost no tourism. I feel like if the virus wasn't a thing and the olympics did take place in 2020, perhaps this restaurant would had survived, it would had been loaded with tourists and etc. I just hope in the future I'll be able to see another Sebastian Masuda themed attraction like that.

The restaurant really has nothing to do with harajuku fashion. It was an overpriced dimly lit tourist trap. Locals aren't going to regularly visit to buy rainbow spaghetti and huge slices of cakes and rack up a $100 bill. The place also went through few menu or decoration changes to inspire a repeat visit.


>>10523801
>They also repost random gyaru magazine pages on twitter and call it harajuku fashion when an actual jfashion enthusiast know that's mainly from shibuya

This has been a problem since the early jfashion days. We've based our entire outlook off magazines which were glorified adverts and tried to built a definitive subculture around what is mostly just brand loyalty.

These days most jfashion even fromm japanese brands and shops are korean or chinese trends.

And how much of this is the fault of the japanese brands themselves? taobao knockoffs on aliexpress and dollskill were easier to shop for the average newbie teen than navigating shopping services to buy directly from japanese stores. some have made international ordering easier but it's too little too late.

>>10523811
Watch this video and tell me how this small street full of chinese knockoffs and a korean makeup brand could be influential in any way anymore.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PeHnWIJLNI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uNCM6iEGM0

Everyone walking there looks normal.
Takeshita street is so small and insignificant.
Harajuku fashion is a shell of it former 90's self, it will continue to be so in the future.
Westerners just love shilling the fuck out of what for japanese people is just another street to walk home.

>>10523813
I’m not exactly disagreeing with you, but the idea of harajuku as a paradise for altfashion has always been a myth. harajuku fashion was a tiny niche back then like it is now. the street itself was never influential but the idea of it sold to westerners was

>>10523817
I agree with you as well.
Celebrities like Gwen Stefani and others popularized the idea of Harajuku being a paradise for weirdos and the idea since stuck.
This is why you now have trannies dressing like toddlers on twitter claiming they know everything about it.

I’m more worried about Koenji than Harajuku at this rate. When KIKI2 almost went under earlier this year, I was so scared. Yakusoku is closed now as of this month, and for a while during the pandemic, didn’t Happy Birthday to You take a break? Koenji is the one area I really want to visit... I’ll be devastated if any more places go away.

>>10523826
What are KIKI2, Yakusoku and Happy Birthday to You? it's my first time hearing about those stores

>>10523828
These stores are outside the realm of lolita fashion. They all stock vintage clothing and occasionally collaborate with local handmade artists. If you wear cult party kei, fairy kei, spank style or just like remake-type clothes (where vintage clothing is upcycled into new pieces), these stores are good to check out. They are all on instagram (even Yakusoku, despite it closing), if you’re curious

what are some good spots for gallery art in tokyo? this one is in harajuku but no idea what it is

>>10523791
ANOWVL

>>10523842
take your meds

>>10523826
Koenji and Shimokitazawa are shit and there's nothing there aside from second hand clothing shops.

>>10523794
Yeah, while it is not all foreign tourist, most people visiting are tourist of some sort. When I went with a friend, there were only like 8 other tables occupied and this was before Corona. It is a really big space with quite a lot of tables and there was a lot of staff, but the amount of visitors was already low back then, so it is no surprise that with corona they couldn’t make it. It isn’t somewhere you go to for the food.

>>10523801
this exact shit ruins tf out of my pinterest.

>>10523855
I honestly think that the western jfashion community golden days were 2009-2016 ish, and it's been massively downgraded because of the new influx of zoomers

>>10523874
i agree. it doesn't help that the jfash communityv in japan itself changed so much in just a few years. it's slowly homogenizing. styles dissappear or lose their unique looks. even lolita is starting to look like shitty "mass-production girl" "i am a feminine 2deep4u broken woman doll" type crap. it feels like it's going to get worse.

>>10523889
i really think particularly the chinese fashion influence is exacerbating the problem. no hate for chinese people generally, but i feel like their take on lolita is more of a show of status and femininity than an actual alt-fashion. status symbol clothing always becomes homogenous and uninspired. drop social media's general bullshit on top and what's happening seems really clear. i'm liking what some korean indie brands like lief are doing though.

>>10523911
true that (all of it) it just pains me because jfash used to be so vibrant and individual. i knew it couldn't last forever, i am just worried that eventually i won't have anything left to buy.

I don't know anything about jfash but it makes me so sad to hear that it's dying, it's such a huge loss to the world.
Is it at least documented well so it can be learnt and replicated by individual people
This is so sad. Everything good is over.

>>10523918
>>10523917
have some hope you guys- every single alt style started *without* specific brands catering to them. it's only dead if we collectively stop wearing it and engaging with others over it. new indie brands will be born and new styles will emerge. people have been saying everything good is over every generation for as long as people have existed and done things, then new iterations on good things keep coming along.

>>10523889
this, I feel like the "princess look" and "I'm a doll" feeling was something that always stood out with lolita, but somehow nowadays it feels mass produced and less authentic. I'm not sure if I can exactly pin point my finger on why this is. In a way, I feel like it had to do with printless cotton dresses. There's something to it.

...But also, it's about the people who wear it. It's not like lolita fashion isn't full of people who show off all the time. But there's something about it now, maybe the fact that nowadays everyone is like that? Or what is it? I have no idea.

You guys are so alarmist holy shit. Every time any shop from there closes down there's a thread about how it's the end and everything is on fire. Chill tf out.
Yes, harajuku itself is dying because we live in a capitalist corporate driven hellscape but the harajuku spirit keeps on living as long as we wear the fashion and partake in it in an authentic way.
I do agree with >>10523931 though, it definitely became less authentic because it got more mainstream so off course more people tried to capitalize on that which is why we have so many noobies rolling in wearing some fresh mass produced printed aliexpress garbage bag with a hoopskirt.

Nobody made a thread when To Alice announce they were closing their store in Tokyo.

>>10523918
it's not dying

>>10523918
Stop overreacting. It's just clothes, dude.
>>10523976
>>10523980
Agreed.

>>10523931
>>I feel like it had to do with printless cotton dresses

this is the most painful new shit I've read in my life

>>10523987
That has got to be bait. I don't want to believe it's not bait.

>>10523931
waxing poetic about expensive frilly dresses like this us is way more cringe than wearing generic AliExpress egirl shit

Kawaii Monster Cafe was a tourist trap and it was never on my list any time I went to Japan. To me, even the character cafes were more interesting (Pompompurin, Kirby, etc).

The only reason this scares me is because I know Japan has taken an insane hit to tourism. And from my understanding, tourism is huge in Japan. I can't imagine all the money that has been lost because you can see how desolate the streets are in popular cities. That and Japan Post. They shut down mail to pretty much everyone. I don't know what happens to other places if Japan has to go another year like this. I would want to die if Puroland closes permanently.

>>10523791
what the hell does this one tourist cafe closing have to do with harajuku fashion?

I’m a bit sad now I skipped it on my last trip, but it was 100% a tourist trap. I don’t think it was representative of Harajuku fashion but more like the western interpretation of it. The sculptures were cool. Maybe they’ll be displayed somewhere.

>>10523826
This worries me so much more. I fell in love with Koenji and how it’s full of little secondhand shops like this. I wonder how many others have closed or are in danger? I recognized the name from this photo and feel bad I didn’t think to follow them on Instagram.

>The inevitable death of harajuku fashion

For everyone panicking in this thread, check the archives. We have this same topic pretty much every single year about how the good ol days will be gone or whatever, and yet, so many gulls remain on this board/spending money on jfash. Is jfashion changing? Yes. But is it dying? No. Fashion is cyclical

>>10524084
jfashion is worthwhile because it's jfashion. If it becomes identical to other fashions, it'll be pretty much pointless. (I'm >>10523918 by the way so can't say I'm an expert)

And it does feel like /cgl/ is slower than in the past

>>10523801
Ironically, having lived in japan for the past two years before covid a lot of jfashion scenes have shifted to shibuya and Yokohama. I’d always see j fashion and Lolita outside shibuya station on my home and now that The new mall there has ap, iw and a ton of jfashion shops maybe it might get more settled there.

>>10524089
basically this. alt jfash gets fucked up the more closer it follows normie fast fashion trends. it happened that way with gyaru and it's starting to happen with lolita. fashion does change but the type of change is important.

>Harajuku has been dying a slow death for years on the alt fashion front. You only really go there nowadays to skim closetchild (which almost never has anything good since everyone sells online by themselves instead of getting fucked by the paltry cc payouts) and to try and snag a pair of shoes from bodyline or something. Everything else is cancer makeup, or cheap knockoffs. Laforet isn’t even in the main strip, which is great because then you can visit ap without being harassed by hyperaggressive Nigerian touts.

>>10524100
Woops

>>10523874
>massively downgraded because of the new influx of zoomers
Sorry you're a hag

>>10524068
It was a really cute and cozy shop, and the community around it is (was) very friendly. I really regret that I was not able to visit in person before it closed.

>>10524095
I agree. Many new releases are sort of middle of the road. Sugary carnival it lolita. It can’t really be anything else, or blend as a normie dress, and it’s not really a costume or cosplay thing. A lot of new releases could be worn as just semi normie clothes without a petticoat, or could be construed as a cosplay or something.

Maybe if they stopped pumping out Unrefined ideas using fairly inexpensive materials and Uyghur slave labor they could focus more on the quality of their output.

Icp would have been way better on a nicer fabric, and so many releases lately just needed more editing and design fire thought. It feels very slapped together. I’ll admit baby has been hitting the target with me way more lately but wtf was their shiny polyester tumbleweed phase about?

>>10524093
IW is in Shinjuku, not Shibuya. And I keked when I read Yokohama. May as well say J fashion is popular in Machida too.

>>10524095
>>10524107
Being in jfashion warps your sense of whats normie and what isn't. No AP release is anywhere close to normie clothing for women in their 20s. The closest you'd get is the hoodie cutsew dresses AP makes, but even then the colors they come in, the big heard pockets and animal ears and ruffles disqualify them from being normie.

"Harajuku fashion" and jfashion in general as westerners have known it is a lie. We liked the idea of an alternative paradise where the lolita's stayed in harajuku and the gyaru stayed in shibuya and each tiny little fashion trend had it's own complete culture and rules. We looked at jfashion like how taxonomists study new animal species. Oh here's some gyaru who wear their white eyeliner a little different than others? Well then these girls are "banba" gyaru and not "manba" gyaru it's completely different style.

Streetsnaps are a lie. KERA would announce when and where shooting occurred and people would dress up to get noticed and their photo taken for the magazine. And that's given us this impression of jfashion wearers in Japan always being perfectly dressed coordinate masters we can't measure up to.


Universal-Dolls piece on this is crucial reading
https://web.archive.org/web/20200122032415/http:/universal-doll.com/2017/10/japanese-fashion-blogs-lie-fake-news-japanese-fashion/

>Five kids sitting on a street that is known in Japan more for its Kiddy Land, wide lanes and expensive cars parking for Chanel and lunch doesn’t equal fashion. It equals what a photographer or that KID wants to be fashion. So many fashion styles happen around it, but our view has been narrowed.

>And yet again Harajuku was not ever Harajuku. A lot of fashionable people who went to Harajuku did it for the early instagram. To get in FRUiTS. Which the founder of FRUiTS, Shichi Aoki, has admitted that he only took photos of what inspired him. Is that all of Harajuku or even 10% or much less 2%? No.

>>10524123
>No AP release is anywhere close to normie clothing for women in their 20s.

Maybe not prints, but AP has definitely had plenty of pieces that just look like normal juniors party dresses.

>>10524142
yeah, emphasis on party dresses as in they gotta be worn to a party or special event. that wouldn't look out of place at a normie party but only if you pair it with normal shoes and accessories, and wear it to an appropriate event. showing up to go grocery shopping in that outfit in lolita styling would get you a couple weird looks.

>>10524144
Nobody mentioned anything about grocery shopping?

In b4 ok conlita, my point being there's a scale between grocery shopping and an actual formal party- going out to dinner or a day of shopping, for example.

>>10524152
>In b4 ok conlita, my point being there's a scale between grocery shopping and an actual formal party- going out to dinner or a day of shopping, for example.

but lolita is meant to be worn anywhere. and aside from a handful of dresses, angelic pretty is far from normie or anything considered normie. especially if you live in a small town where everyone shops at walmart for clothing.

>>10524108
my bad I meant ETC. Plus AP treats the Shibuya store like the new head shop anyways.
I actually lived in Yokohama and went to school in Shibuya. There was quite a lot of street fashion, photo shoots and alt band performances there in the square near the AP Yokohama store. There were idol, alt band and visual-kei esque performances there pretty much every weekend outside the music store.I went to Harajuku 2-4 times a week and saw way more alt fashion in yokohama and shibuya than harajuku, even on the weekends. My point is I don't really think it's dying, I just think Harajuku isn't really at the center of jashion anymore.

>>10524154
you're also totally missing the point of the scale. relative to Japanese normie fashion, much of what AP produces doesn't really stand out as being all that different- It's not really all that "alternative" anymore. Brands like Axes Femme bridge the entire gap from the really popular sweet girl style all the way to their own "kawaii" line. Even some prints, would blend in fairly well, especially some of the toned down color palletes, which blend right in to the woodwork of everyday Japanese normie clothes.

Everyday Japanese style is high fashion compared to your american town where everyone dresses like they're about to go dumpster diving.

>>10524123
no one is operating on the ideas you mentioned. also gyaru was mainstream, that's why it died. it got watered down more and more over time. that's what's happening with lolita and why it looks exactly like fast fashion japanese brands like dreamv. it will just continue from there.

>>10524168
DreamV is a fast fashion brand but it sells what's popular, it isn't deciding the trends. DreamV used to make dupes of liz lisa and Mars and other brands, but now that style isn't popular so they rip off different styles. Jfashion trends bleed together. The dusty pink x black trend will end eventually and it'll move on to something else.

>>10524168
>lolita is getting mainstream
lmfao let me know when i can buy a petti at a mall

>>10524168
DreamV has several different subbrands. DearMyLove and MonLily are the larme stuff and then they have more mature and "normie" styled sections, but nothing on their site looks anything like this.

Even AP at it's most non-AP looks nothing like what you call normie wear

>>10524168
Lolita is not getting mainstream and never will. Even tons of people who wear lolita now don't even wear it as an everyday fashion and only wear it to meetups and events and the occasional nice restaurant. You really think normies are going to come in and start wearing lolita? Delusional.

do you guys not know how normies dress? outside of big rich cities, women come in three flavors: forever21, fashionnova or victorias secret. even egirl style isn't mainstream. alt fashion has slowly become more popular and accepted but it isn't mainstream.

>>10524190
Even this is trying harder/more alt or trendy than most students at my uni or people I see on the street

>>10524179
I long for this style to return desu, it's so fun. Is my only hope searching mercari for old pieces, or are any current brands releasing this aesthetic anymore?

>>10523917
>true that (all of it) it just pains me because jfash used to be so vibrant and individual
I'm sure this was helped by /cgl/ nitpicking the fuck out of everyone

What exactly is Harajuku fashion? Is it shit like 6%DokiDoki or what?

>>10524221
Right? I feel like k8 is the only one far gone enough to just wear whatever the fuck she wants. She’s probably one of the few real “harajuku” fashion people left in the west.

>>10524221
Not to mention being drama/gossip addicts frothing at the mouth to destroy a reputation

>>10524089
/cgl/ is slower because there's no cons so the cosplayers are bored and there's nothing to talk about.

>>10524235
I effing hate k8 but she’s literally the only person doing anything remotely interesting with her outfits. I could really do without pictures in her disgusting depression cave slum apartment tho. I didn’t really plan on buying anything from her, but after seeing inside her house I would sooner set myself on fire.

Everybody is else is just samefagging 2010. At least she’s trying to do cool stuff, and ya sometimes they suck, but I’m grown enough to admit that I actually *like* many of her shoots and outfits.

>>10524240
there are plenty of cute and trendy japanese lolitas. go.kishi, orangecat_hanabi, hanasaki_natsumi, m_s16g, alisacckk, tarte_tanu_utg

western lolitas like prettysourlaura, mewsicbox,

korean lolitas like seol_kee

even lolitas like candy.carnival who are slammed here for looking cookie cutter have done creative coords

>>10524240
Same with Korean Lolita's, they don't always "get it right" but they're creative and it looks fun to me. Either it's wear clothes as clothes, or treat it like a costume which do you want?

>>10524252
1. Thought we were talking more about harajuku fashion, not necessarily Lolita.
2. That be a replica. I own misty sky op, and it doesn’t have any sheen on it, and the hemline def isn’t so fucked.
3. Dolly Parton wig doesn’t equal interesting imho.

Tbh I think k8 has just perfected the art of being so universally shat on that she’s free to experiment and do whatever the fuck she wants.

Maybe if we weren’t so fucking up tight about everything on here and just wore weird shit again jfashion could be more active.

>>10524252
>both western lolitas are fat
the absolute state of America

>>10524258
>dolly parton wig

it's an 80s inspired coord and if it's a replica she hasn't admitted to it. looks legit to me.

k8 i wouldn't even say is harajuku, her style lines up more with western cybergoth and clubkid style with occasional acdc rag or dokidoki thrown in. nothing uniquely harajuku about her.

>>10524267
Who tf would admit to it? If that’s a genuine misty sky then I’m fucking mana sama. Look at how wonky that hem is. Look at the silky shine on the fabric. Look at how wonky the waistline is. That’s a fake right there.

>>10524258
>That be a replica
Holy fuck anon you’re right.

>>10524162
Anon. You are so romanticizing something you don't understand at all. Japanese normie fashion is a long loose cotton skirt or pants with an oversized Tshirt. You can get it at しまむら or Aeon. Axes Femme is way cutesier than normal clothes, it has lace and ruffles

>>10524252
Hmmm I don’t own this colorway, but every other pic I could find of it shows a toned down matte color, even in harsh light. My jsk is straight from ap, and the I don’t see how the fabric could shine like that unless it was a replica. Did they use different fabrics or something? I can’t think of any reason why they would do that though.

>>10524293
Picrel is a good example of what a Japanese normie wears, except they would pick this outfit in all neutrals

>>10523976
>as long as we wear the fashion and partake in it in an authentic way
You mean wearing it for instagram and as a costume for the seasonal teaparty?

>>10523978
To Alice started as a shit quality taobao brand, so who cares.

She definitely wears replicas. Look at the lace. That’s a fake.

>>10524089
jfashion is just crazy and mentally ill people from japan wearing clothes to stand out and entretain themselves, if you were really into japanese society you would understand this. I don't think it's worthwhile, japan is not the jfashion paradise everyone thinks it is, and I'm tired of real japanese fashion being compared to teenagers dressing like clowns for attention. This is why people in the west love it, because it's oh so "weird and quirky" but so much of it looks like absolute garbage badly put together, I have no idea why westerners want to replicate that shit unless they wanted to look unhinged themselves.

Trust me, it's different when you leave the jfashion scene, you start seeing everything with brand new eyes. People who dress like this in harajuku are the furries of japan.

>>10523987
>>10523996
>>I feel like it had to do with printless cotton dresses

Sorry I'm OP of that post and meant to say that for me printless cotton dresses were the pinnacle of lolita fashion.

>>10524252
I’m not sure. On the one hand, this one looks like total Taobao shite. On the other hand her other pic in the dress looks legit and like a totally different dress. Her wardrobe is so large she probably has a few replicas she doesn’t even know about.

>>10524305
K.

>>10524036
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjQ53vpOjv0
Idk it seems lively to me.

>>10524297
cute, comfy and based

>>10524123
>It equals what a photographer or that KID wants to be fashion. So many fashion styles happen around it, but our view has been narrowed.

This, honestly all this post is gold.

>>10524305
Ita thread is that way

>>10524313
I haven't worn lolita since I became 23 and realized I'm an adult with priorities that doesn't want to look like an unhinged colorful weirdo. I need no stupid childish insults like that. But there, you made me respond.

>>10524307
Looks fine here

>>10524314
then why are you here. go do adult things and focus on your adult priorities.

>>10524316
Ok <3

>>10524317
>Look at all my adult priorities, I’m so much better than you guys!
>refreshing thread, responds in .01 seconds

>>10524318
you know she's adult when she makes sure to tell us.

>>10524318
That's just imageboard culture lol, and I have it on auto you silly.

>>10524319
Well shit keep looking like a baby then.

>>10524320
participating in imageboards at all makes you a weirdo and a loser. you think you’re different but you aren’t.

If anyone wants to know how nice and beautiful actual japanese normie fashion looks like, go check out other magazines and websites in japanese, honestly it doesn't get any more legit than that. Here's one example
https://classy-online.jp/

>BUT MUH FRILLS AND COLORS
Society has progressed past the need of frills and colors.
I think everyone into jfashion is more interested into the strange looking clothes than actual things that japanese people wear in japanese society.

>>10524323
sure, I'll take that, but you're also in an imageboard

Here's another example of what a japanese girl would wear ages 20-30
There's still some mix of color but neutrals are preffered

This one is really cute

>>10524326
I am. And I am a weirdo loser who wears lolita. I’m not on here posting about how much better I am for not wearing lolita.

>>10524324
But you don’t need to be into jfashion to wear this. This is standard normie clothing anywhere. If that outfit was on a white woman you wouldn’t care at all.

>>10524332
cool

>>10524333
Yes.

Your mind is kinda warped if you can't tell how the stylization and quality of clothes is different though, uniqlo isn't wallmart

>>10524329
You know most jfashion enthusiasts wear both right? Normie clothes for normie life and jfashion for meeting up/going out/whatever. Being an adult means having priorities and responsibilities, but it also means doing whatever the fuck you want with your time and money

Believe it or not you can have it all

>>10524335
it’s just a cardigan and jeans. there’s nothing special here.

>>10524335
>Your mind is kinda warped if you can't tell how the stylization and quality of clothes is different though, uniqlo isn't wallmart
Wow.

>>10524338
Yeah and that's what makes it based.

>>10524341
go back to /fa/

>>10524336
Agreed.
I’m under no illusion that my fun and flashy clothing is universally accepted and understood by normies. I wear it for fun and my own enjoyment. There are situations in which I also prefer to dress normally for everyday activities. Anon is talking as though we’re a deluded hivemind with the idea that normies in Japan completely understand “out-there” niche styles like lolita. Is it so wrong to have a hobby to indulge in? I don’t think having clothes reserved for everyday activity and clothing for fun and personal enjoyment is such a bad or cringe thing.
Also, since when has other people’s opinions mattered when it comes to clothing? Who gives a shit what someone wears to get ice cream with friends?

>>10524305
>>10524314
Nice try, scrote. We're still going to wear whatever we want regardless of your seething.

Bait thread made by a /fa/sperg

>>10524278
Idk where those replica claims come from. I‘m from the german comm and talked to her a bit last year, she bought Misty Sky at an AP event. She told a story about how she snagged it a day later but was able to mend it.

>>10524123
>And yet again Harajuku was not ever Harajuku. A lot of fashionable people who went to Harajuku did it for the early instagram. To get in FRUiTS. Which the founder of FRUiTS, Shichi Aoki, has admitted that he only took photos of what inspired him. Is that all of Harajuku or even 10% or much less 2%? No.

I've been saying this for years. All the snaps we see in Kera, Fruits, Tokyo Fashion et cetera are fake. They're heavily curated or the snaps are planned ahead of time. It's not an accurate depiction of what's really in Harajuku.

>>10524262

I feel like part of the problem is heavy documentation of every coord and outing. When's the last time you went to a meet that didn't have photos every five minutes? It gets tiring.

>>10524324
Bare feet and high heels is not typical Japanese. Low heels with nylons is far more common, flats or sneakers is the most common for casual

>>10524333
>>10524331
You guys are missing the point, our original discussion was "what is Japanese alt fashion" stemming from someone thinking current lolita is "normie Japanese fashion"

>>10524324
why would i care what japanese people wear in japanese society tho

if lolita has progressed past being "actual jfashion" i couldn't care less, and i think that's the attitude of a lot of jfashion wearers. we like the clothes, we're not trying to stay true to some glorious nipponese image

>>10524421
Agreed. If lolita died entirely in Japan, I wouldn't care as long as there was enough international appeal to sustain my favorite brands. I'd still wear it.

>>10523976
>harajuku itself is dying because we live in a capitalist corporate driven hellscape
How's it supposed to thrive in socialist society then? How people losing interest in niche fashion has something to do with capitalism?

>>10524418
that's not what was said. anons were talking about lolita leaning towards fast fashion trends. learn how to read. this thread is another case of #notmyaltfashion. we have seen alt fashions die or change beyond recognition and lolita is not exempt from that happening.

>>10524434
I mean, it could, but there will always be a decent amount of people keeping old lolita aesthetics alive. There are old school lolitas and there are still people who dress in 2010s sweet styles.

>>10524336
>Normie clothes for normie life and jfashion for meeting up/going out/whatever
I think the point is just that some people on this board primarily only follow what they think is jfashion trends to the point that their "normie clothes" have just warped to seem super weeby to anyone not in the scene. Under no circumstances will people think an AP dress is "normal wear", just because they dont say it out lout doesnt meant they dont think its strange basically

The secret is to wear what you want. We only get one go-around on this dirtball, might as well have a great time and feel nice.

>>10524400
I wish there was a more realistic photographic evidence of what was really worn back then as harajuku fashion

>>10524452
I mean the ones we do have aren't literally fake. They're just a limited perspective/view of what was/is going on. At least for now we have social media of individual people to tell us what and where trends are in a way that's more democratized/acessible than anything was back when you had to be friends with the magazine owner or whatever to get your photo taken almost at all. These days people take their own and show what they like individually on their social media and all and while yes of course only a few are super popular if you tried you could find a more honest account of what people are doing today at the very least, even if we can't recover the past and "real harajuku" that people missed out on.

>>10524221
i don't think so though. maybe you're thinking of ita threads in particular?

in regards to jfash, i feel like mostly it has to do with the style becoming more popular here in the west and people buying up the same shit. if people do try to get creative here, they usually miss the point entirely and wind up looking weird and incohesive.

>>10524252
Look closely at the sleeves anon, that’s a replica.

>>10524425
Even if AP died, I’d still wear my wardrobe. I haven’t bought a new AP dress in YEARS because I hate poly but I still adore my collection. Plenty of brands have died and still have really lively second hand markets.

>>10524324
If bland and boring means society has progressed then I weep for society.

>>10524331
You have terrible taste; the ankle length skirts make short legged people look even more stubby than they already do. It literally only looks good in magazines.

>>10524400
did people not hang out at harajuku then, is that also fake? the photos by the bridge also fake?

>>10524458
>>10524258
to everyone sperging about how it's a replica because it's shiny, the hair also has the same shine to it so it's probably just a strange/bad choice of filter. while I don't own this specific colorway, I own multiple misty skys and everything looks the same as my OPs do, including the sleeves

>>10524307
large wardrobe? she has like...maybe 30 dresses and that's with taobao/offbrand

>>10524467
People hang out everywhere. It’s Tokyo. I think hangout spots are probably more specific to what train line you live on and avoiding peak periods than a specific location. In Tokyo, harajuku isn’t especially aesthetic. There are tons of neighborhoods that look like that, and that have alt fashion stores so people probably went to the most convenient areas for them.

>>10524465
Midi skirts are great if you know how to style them, just like every other piece of clothing. They can easily elongate your legs with the right shoe and top choice

>>10524434
>we have seen alt fashions die or change beyond recognition and lolita is not exempt from that happening.


people were saying this in 2008 when AP began doing the OTT deco trend and people were stepping away from the old school look. everyone doomsdays over the downfall of lolita but it hasn’t disappeared it’s just changed

If lolita is a legitimate fashion, it’s going to have to evolve overtime because that’s what fashion does. Stagnant brands close up and die.

>>10524400
>All the snaps we see in Kera, Fruits, Tokyo Fashion et cetera are fake. They're heavily curated or the snaps are planned ahead of time.
do people really not know this? there are photos of people in line to get snaps and tons of interviews where this is mentioned. do people really think magazines just ~happen~ to run into misako or whatever?

that being said, its no more or less fake than modern insta

>>10524252
go.kishi is Chinese

>>10524500
>there are photos of people in line to get snaps
picture evidence please

>>10524458
Who cares if it's a replica? Inb4 but it hurts brands and artists. Fuck them.

>>10524519
nice bait

>>10524519
It’s not a replica

>>10524545
It is tho

>>10524183
Did you miss the entire timeperiod when American Apparel was a thing?

>>10524324
Ann Taylor exists in the west too, classic casual sportswear isn't exclusive to Japan, anon. Look up photo/video of midtown Manhattan sometime.

>>10524335
>uniqlo isn't wallmart
Spoken like someone who's never regularly shopped Uniqlo. It's barely higher than H&M quality.

>>10524465
Wear that shit almost up to your ribcage with a tucked in tshirt and platforms; it helps a little bit.

>>10524324
>Society has progressed past the need of frills and colors

>>10524451
/thread

>>10524605
>It's barely higher than H&M quality
So is most of jfashion these days TT. They just upsell you on the packaging and the atmosphere.

>>10524511
News flash: you need permission to take people's pictures in Japan. Who is going to sneak a photo of people waiting in line for their pics to be taken?

Anyhow, I've had my photo taken twice by Kera. They post on their Twitter when they'll be taking pictures and the location. You go there, fill out papers about what you're wearing along with your signature and receive your number. You wait your turn and get your photo taken.

>>10524605
American apparel = lolita petticoats???

>>10524572
it’s not

>>10524324
>>10524331
>>10524333

Unrelated but I really hate this trend of weirdly big tan outerwear with no detailing. It's like a gigantic slanket.

>>10524252

So are they your friends or frenemies anon?

>>10524679
They sold legit petticoats for a hot second. tryna find pics

>>10524768
petticoats being sold in stores around halloween time doesnt make lolita mainstream

>>10524768
>They sold leg avenue petticoats for a hot second. tryna find pics

ftfy

>>10524449
People will think I'm strange once they talk to me regardless of what I'm wearing. Might as well wear something I love that lets people know I'm strange before they try to hit on me.

>>10524771
>>10524772
They literally sold their own full line of petticoats for years.

You can just admit that you'd never been in an AA before, it's ok to just not know.

>>10524792
Not gonna lie I thought you said Hot Topic when I responded; but petticoats also make no logical sense for AAs aesthetic. Thigh high socks, CK underwear, jelly sandals, and pleated skirts, among other things along those lines that they used to sell make no sense for them to try to pair with a petti.

>>10524792
They did but I think they were meant to be worn alone. There’s still a 10 year old stock video of one on the AA YouTube channel but it looks like underage fetish shit like a lot of AA promotional stuff did so I’m not going to link it

>>10524822
Imagine thinking this is a petti worth wearing under a lolita dress.

Even leg avenue has more poof than this.

>>10523845
cope

What do you think the state of J-fashion is in Japan? What about overseas?

I feel like /cgl/ has slowed down with regard to non-lolita fashion threads. Are people talking about it somewhere else? I know Discord is a big thing but I hate trying to look for them as well as not being able to keep up with conversations easily.

A few years ago some westerners were trying to make their own J-fashion with party kei. That looks dead. Is still an interest in dressing up in J-fashion in the west? If not what happened?

>>10527940
I’d like to see other fashion discussion too anon. I just got back into stuff after a very long severe depression and this place seems a ghost of its former self. Where is everyone these days?

>>10527940
jfashion talk is definitely alive and well on discord. I think /cgl/ is losing appeal with people who are hesitant to publicly associate themselves with this place out of fear of being labeled problematic by leftist-leaning jfashion communities. There is a pressure to police one’s image and keep it squeaky-clean lately, and it only makes sense that traffic seen years ago has dwindled as oldfags age and leave, while the newer generation is too scared to give /cgl/ a try. I see people in my sphere of fashion discuss clothes on twitter and discord, primarily

>>10529721
how do i get into the lolita discords? do i just have to know somebody?

>>10529724
This. What are newbies supposed to do?

>>10523791
This hits me with major FOMO sentiment. Not because I wanted to go this cafe, just have this feeling like I missed all the fun.

I remember watching Deerstalkers vlog about their Japan trip and visiting shops and cafes and I daydreamed how I would go there one day.

I do pray that the western lolita scene will linger a little longer to survive corona and I will visit at least one European tea party.

>>10529721
How do I find links to J-fashion discords? I'm looking for non-lolita discussion

>>10529727
Sometimes a thread is created that allows people to share discords they are a part of— that’s how I joined the jfashion ones I’m in. If anyone decided to make one again, I’m positive people would share invites

>>10530116
i would typically be patient and wait for the threads but covid has made me even more of a lonely bitch than usual. is there a way to get an invite now at all? dropping a throwaway email or something?

(pls i want jfash friends)

>>10524036
Japan Post is limited because there are no passenger flights to piggyback off of (surprise surprise, no tourists means no planes). You can still send things via boat but it takes months. If you want it faster, FedEx/UPS/DHL, but it'll cost more since it's their own planes.

>>10524105
Nta but case in point.

>>10524252
Putting aside the replica, this isn't a unique coord at all. And no, the wig doesn't count.

>>10530206
I've rewatched her wardrobe video and you can see the ap lace there. It's definitely not a replica but not a super special coord as you said

>>10530206
>>10530211
My stupid ass dropped the screenshot

>>10528045
seconding this, it's only been 2-3 years and this place feels so different, even the usual bickering seems off some how

>>10530206
Lolita rip people apart for trying to experiment and be creative and then complain when everyone's coords are "cookie cutter" and "boring"

>>10530206
Why do people keep thinking this is a replica? Her closet is full of AP, the Misty sky grey brilliant colorway is everywhere for retail and below. The weird drape is probably because she's too tall/big for it (like most people over 5'4 are) and it just got stuck weirdly in the petticoat

>>10530385
It's because /cgl/ is full of coomers now. Seriously, there's like... what, 8 threads of men bitching?

>>10530671
Feels like it's just one or two anons repeating it over and over. Just mentioning CC always ends in drama here

>>10530643
We don't all share the same opinions. I for one love seeing experimental coords, and hate the anons who shit on anything but cookie cutter coords.

>>10530681
>now
The cosplay scene has been dead ever since COVID started. Don't blame the scrotes, blame it on the retarded newfags that keep shitting up the lolita threads.

>>10524154
ok momoko

If Robot Cafe dies I'm gonna off myself

>>10531851
If you think robot cafe is that exciting you should really expedite that anon.

>>10529721
Part of it is fear but I'm sure part of it is the medium, too. I'm in my late twenties and grew up with at least semi anon forums. This is familiar to me and the type of thing I seek for hobbies, even though its not really a thing anymore. But if I was born in 2000 and hadn't seen pre-FB internet, I doubt I would go looking for a place like this

>>10530643
its almost like "lolita people" are actually more than one person with a variety of thoughts

>>10529724
>>10529727
You ask or you use google.
Lolita Mentoring: https://discord.gg/XeZUxd4
Vetting (Requires experience): https://discord.gg/ZWQ6qq4

>>10531851
are you talking about the gaudy tourist trap called robot restaurant

>>10523791
if they would open back up they wouldn't be closing so many places...Tokyo literally survived off tourists. So many places have closed up from having no revenue. Its really sad.
I have money and want to visit Japan again, went late 2019 thankfully, and can't go now. Take my money! ...The joys of COVD.

>>10523791
>Now that more and more shops are closing, what's left?
Plenty of new dark style brands opening in Laforet and nearby, it's just the bright color stuff that ain't in demand anymore.

>>10524452
>I wish there was a more realistic photographic evidence of what was really worn back then as harajuku fashion
That's what web-across.com is for, they make passerby snaps since the 80s.

>>10523791
>Now that more and more shops are closing, what's left?
>I think going digital is obvioisly the awnser, because even Harajuku itself looks pretty normal and not so fashionable now, and for the past 20 years too.

Even the big global fast fashion brands have been closing stores left and right, Forever21 and Claire's even left Japan altogether, it's just that having local stores doesn't pay off anymore in general vs selling everything online from a warehouse.

>>10524305
/thread

>>10540878
> Forever21 and Claire's even left Japan altogether
holy shit, source? I thought forever21 was big there

>>10540557
example?

>>10540878
>Forever21 and Claire's even left Japan altogether
say whaaat

>>10541330
Forever21 has been in a state of financial panic for at least 2 years (before the pandemic for certain), they basically made a bunch of really bad financial decisions and it finally caught up to them
>https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/23/business/forever-21-bankruptcy-chang-family.html

>>10531867
>thinks anon wrote "Lolita people"
Not even that guy but read the post next time jesus.

>>10541330
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/09/25/business/corporate-business/forever-21-pull-japan-late-october/

>>10541332
Chivarize, WRouge, Jamie, AnkoROCK, Kry Clothing, Amilige, Juryblack, Reflem, Travas Tokyo are all dark style brands that opened in Laforet in the past 2 years and still manage to open more all around Japan.

>>10541332
Civarize, WRouge, Jamie, AnkoROCK, Kry Clothing, Amilige, Juryblack, Reflem, Travas Tokyo are all dark style brands that opened in Laforet in the past 2 years and still manage to open more all around Japan.

>>10541330
Forever 21 closed their stores in Japan last year and Claire's announced they'd be leaving months ago. It's not news.

>>10541344
good riddance I hope they fuck off with their shitty clothes

>>10523813
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcH7NOEiig0

So, watching video related and the one from this post, you can really tell how different harajuku culture is nowadays. This video is from 2004.

>>10549236
kys.

>>10523813

So glad I visited the place over eight years ago, when it still was (somewhat) relevant. And even then I have to admit it was kind of a disappointment. The bridge was empty as fuck on a weekend.

>>10523832

I like Vanilla Gallery, but ymmv.

https://www.vanilla-gallery.com/

>>10549236
pretty much everyone moved to osaka because normie tourists in harajuku treat people like animals in a zoo

>>10549327
They really do. Even as a tourist they treated me like that. Osaka was wayyy more chill. Most of my Japanese friends said Osaka people have a weird or different vibe as well and are a bit different than the typical Tokyo people. Maybe they're more accepting of weird clothes as well in comparison to more buttoned up feeling places.

>>10549245
kill yourself more tranny faggot and stream it so I can laugh at your tiny hanging dick.

>>10550052
imagine posting a gyaru picture with accompanying text about harajuku

please kys.

>>10524822
Anon, that's not a petticoat, it's a rara skirt. That being said AA use to be great for gyaru pieces alongside Hollister 10 years ago.

they already announced they will likely reopen in some years so the whole drama was pointless

>>10549251
It's empty because police will come by and force you to leave if you're dressed up hanging around the bridge

>>10555773
Wtf are you talking about? Try replying to a comment or give context you walnut.

>>10554439
>AA use to be great for gyaru pieces alongside Hollister 10 years ago.
i miss that. same with love culture.

>>10555832
the op obviously, newfag

>>10555786
>thread about kawaii cafe closing
>anon posting they announced they will reopen in the future
>"what is this comment about"

>>10555854
don't samefag if you can't reply properly. everyone knows that if the thread has a lot of replies you need to reply back to the OP anyway.

>>10555854
>using "they" as the only subject twice
>said there was drama
Sorry you got called out for being a dumb newfag or ESL chan but what drama and why use an ambiguous "they"?

>>10555854
You couldnt be arsed to reply to the correct post lmao

>>10555786
No they won’t, unless you’re blocking the shrine entrance. People mainly stopped going there because tourists were so intrusive

>>10555948
The tourists are all over Harajuku and harass you no matter where you're walking so wouldn't people who dress up stop going there altogether by that logic?

>>10555956
They mostly have except for staged pics, foreigners, and people who really like attention.

Pixielocks made a video on this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YARhva5n6uo

>>10555948
>>10555956
Let me guess, the tourists are mostly American?

Not to be a weeb or anything, where would frequent J-Fashion wearers go to hang out with like natives? Osaka? Or is it just random luck?

>>10561855
They're mainly European, American, Chinese and out of town Japanese tourists.

>>10561914
Namba in Osaka, also wherever indie brands/artists host a event.