year in egl: 2020

[sword_logic]

i've got two year-end posts to make so i'm gonna stagger them - lolita fashion infodump first! because i am still writing tonight, against all odds.

2020 was my first full year wearing lolita fashion (ehh - i got my first piece in january of 2019, so it's really been two years, but still) aaaand... i don't really know what to say! this year was so. you know. at best, chaotic. but lolita fashion was a constant for me in its own funky way.

i didn't have a lot of "closet turnover" (i guess?) this year, though i did sell the first brand piece i got, innocent world's union jack jsk in wine. i found myself avoiding it purely because it features, well, the union jack, and i felt uncomfortable wearing a symbol like that. i like """""""british"""""""" motifs, which is to say, i like what brands consider to be british or "royal" motifs - keys, crowns, fleurs-de-lis, heraldry devices, whatever - but the flag itself just felt Bad.

i sold my twinkle sky OP too because, god, brand OPs are never going to fit me. i've accepted this. it sucks! my shoulders are too broad, my arms are too long, and i am just too tall. the OP's waist landed at an awkward point between my underbust and my natural waist and it was supremely unflattering. however, i did finally, finally get the JSK in black - i've never bought something so fast on lacemarket. ironically, this was the day that i got a package with a star/constellation-themed dress by a taobao brand, so i sold that (to a friend! so we can twin!) and bought twinkle sky instead. and surprise surprise, the terrible not-quite-underbust cut of the JSK doesn't work for me either, so i commissioned dreamypebble on instagram for a set of strap extenders and they are perfect. i can crisscross them in the back for a super cute look that doesn't leave the straps falling off my shoulders. on that note, the full shirring on this JSK is unbelievably impressive, it's got so much room. AP needs to get back to fully shirred pieces, and back to making OPs with shirring.

this year something really called me to old school too - i got a black/offwhite jsk from bodyline to test the waters and see if it's a style i'd want to seek out a brand piece for, and oh man, hell yeah. there's just Something about the iconic black and white look that gets me. i also got my first Very Old brand piece! twinkle tartan jsk by AP in navy, from 2007 - no shirring, very little give, but thankfully i'm within the measurements. it's such a cool piece and i'm really excited to explore more coords with it.

and petticoats! this year i got one of the wunderwelt petticoats and uh. wow. i didn't really get it before when i'd hear people say stuff like "this petti is too big for X dress" but. this petticoat. this monstrous fucking thing. this has so much volume it's terrifying. i cannot wear this under certain pieces because they don't have a large enough skirt. it's terrifying. however, it does have enough oomph to lift some of my heavier pieces, and it does a great job filling out the pieces that do have a larger skirt.

AND! and. and. i got astro regimen in wine this year. i know barely-two-years is basically nothing when it comes to waiting for a dream dress, but astro regimen (and twinkle sky) were the two very first lolita dresses i ever saw that made me think "okay, i could do this, i could wear this, this could be for me" so it really felt monumental (and i got both of them this year! holy shit!). astro reg is absolutely stunning irl; the print is so vivid, the cotton is so beautiful, the construction is amazing, and i will never be over the star-shaped straps in the back. it's such an amazing piece. until i held it in my hands for the first time, i did not understand what would drive people to buy a piece in multiple colorways. i get it now. i get it now.

i also bought antique cutlery this year! quite recently, actually. innocent world's cuts are really, really flattering on me (it's the only reason i was sad to sell the union jack JSK, it fit so well) and antique cutlery was on my wishlist for a while, so i'm glad i could get it in the color i wanted (wine) and the better length for me (short, paradoxically). i've struggled to coord it, but i'm being gentle with myself about that because like fuck man i've struggled to do everything lately. this fucking year.

other main piece purchases this year:

• lady sloth's my coffee time skirt in lavender
• peppermint fox's gentle fox JSK in brown
• innocent world's icing cookie apron skirt in beige

and it hasn't been shipped yet, but i also ordered mossbadger's chiropteran garden JSK in black! that's the other print that makes up the holy trinity along with astro reg and twinkle sky; seeing it was the final nail in the coffin of actually buckling down and looking into doing this for real. i am so so so excited for this piece. i also bought AP's british crown JSK in mint and that's in the mail too - the mint colorway is really interesting* and AP's royal-themed prints are absolutely jaw-dropping, i've wanted this print for ages too. what a lucky year it's been for me.

overall, i feel like this year i've gotten a better grasp of how to coord things with casual/normie pieces (what works, what doesn't work, how to make something work) and i've broadened my lolita-specific wardrobe a lot too. i've also learned the hard way that some stuff just isn't gonna fit me (buttoned long sleeves... sigh).

other "milestones" (???) this year include buying something directly from AP for the first time (they had a stuart tartan scarf. how could i say no.) and buying a kumakumya bag. two years ago i would have never thought i'd want a kumya pochette. now i cannot imagine life without him chillin' next to my tea dragon plush (jasmine) and my lugia plush next to my TV. he's just... so cute. he's just so fucking cute. unfortunately, it took me longer than expected to figure out where the zipper is.

my goal for next year is to leave off buying main pieces and refine my collection of blouses/tops and legwear. that's it. i really need a new brown blouse (the one i have just sold is beautiful, but too small) and i would love to find a good forest green blouse, though that's a really unusual color for lolita so idk how lucky i'll be in that regard. i also really love those, idk, gilet things? the fancy vests/bustiers that brands release, i'd love to eventually get my hands on one that looks similar to the bodice of tea package that i can slap over other JSKs. as far as legwear goes, i don't quite know what i need, just that i need... something. enchanted dream wear on etsy has been an absolute godsend for my closet, i just need to figure out exactly what it is that i need. (i'm literally never going to go out of my way to buy brand OTKs again, EDW's stuff is such high quality for an amazing price.)

i know i just said i'd never buy brand OTKs, but i think i would actually buy the british crown ones if someone were to sell them for a decent price. they're really cute, and they hit all the Notes™ for me. i updated my lolibrary wishlist recently too with 2021 goals in mind, and there isn't really anything pressing on it; the british crown headdress from the 2018 release is not something i've ever seen listed on LM, i think? but i love the rosette on it, and i've also realized that i really, really want the hat that matches royal crown's tea package. i think i saw it on wunderwelt once, ages ago. the rosette is also super cute! and... i still really, really want astro regimen in ivory. i really want to do a destiny-themed coord, i think the ivory colorway would be perfect for a vanguard coord with my dark blue ghost leggings and some orange thrown in.

additional goal: tie better bows. not just waist ties, but all bows. i'm cursed with the inability to make anything look nice.

additional (actual) goal: be less scared to talk to people. i mean really, this community is a community of people dressing absolutely ridiculously and having fun with it, i shouldn't be scared to reach out to people (though i still am). maybe not a 2021 goal, but whenever it's safe again, i would love to actually go to a meet or tea party.

so yeah, in sum, i feel like this year i grew a lot even with Everything Happening. i hope next year i can continue to grow and learn and have fun and maybe in 2022 it'll be safe to see folks again, hang out, and be ridiculously fluffy.

* by "interesting" i mean "AP does not know what the color 'mint' is, nor does AP understand what consistency means when it comes to (checks notes) sax, mint, or lavender.