Category Archive for Tokyo + Japan
SPANK! FAIRY KEI FASHION PARTIES. COOL 1980S USED CLOTHING & HANDMADE CLOTHING BOUTIQUE IN TOKYO, BRIGHT COLORED HAIR JAPANESE GIRLS.
Happy Valentines Day and Lunar New Year from the Adventure Team! Thanks to everyone who came to our Jpop purikura party last night — absolutely loved your outfits and dancing Lady Gaga with you. Photos to come, of course.
Tavuchi, the green-haired queen of Spank! clothing stores in Tokyo, kindly gave me permission to post some party photos from her MySpace. I think the shop motto says it all: “So cute! Hug me! Love me! Spank me!”
The Spank! shop girls love the 1980s. They’re not only inspired by Cyndi Lauper’s style, but also her “girls just want to have fun” attitude.
Spank! throws candy-cute pop-and-lovery parties, which I must check out for myself when I’m in Tokyo this May. (Co-hosting the Canal Plus documentary with Antoine de Caunes, if you forgot… pas de vacances pour moi…)
I’ve only bought one item from Spank! so far — a black velvet Alice in Wonderland hairband with a big bow in the center, from Marui One. The stores, however, are a must-visit just for the experience… talk about stepping into Jem and the Hologram’s boudoir.
Tavuchi (center, in the green hair) has been getting a lot of attention recently from street style blogs. There’s an entire Tumblr dedicated to her outfit photos, and you can also stalk her on Lookbook.
I confess I’m a sucker for fairy kei fashion. I’ve done many posts about it on this blog; to read more, search for “fairy kei” (on the right sidebar search box). Or click on the Related Posts underneath this post (click on Comments or the post title, then scroll down.) How about you: fairy kei, yay or nay?
The lovely mother and daughter team at Happy Birdycake have been having fun making recipes from my book, Cute Yummy Time! Above are some of their cute creations. Clara and Mya write, “We’ve been having tons of fun with the book and will be working on more next week (making your tofu pandas and gingerbread penguins)!” Join in the fun and play with your food: Cute Yummy Time is only $11.38.
Song of the Day #304: Nolans – Gotta Pull Myself Together (Ok, some 1980s sugar-pop should stay in the time vault…)
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JAPANESE DOLLY FASHION: VINTAGE ANTIQUE DOLL LAYERED STREET STYLE, SHIBUYA BOUTIQUE GRIMOIRE. TOKYO STYLE TRIBES.
Just when you think Tokyo’s style tribes have gotten rooted, a new branch flowers from the tree. Dolly Style, as Style Arena calls it, is my latest intrigue. The style has some similarities to Lolita, in the sense that it draws on age-old European styling. However, Dolly or Antique clothes tend to be used and show some wear and tear — a desirable quality for this tribe.
Think “young girl from the Middle Ages, who lives in mystical shack in the forest, surrounded by antiques and dolls.” The visuals are slightly haunting, in a Grimm’s Fairy Tales manner.
The most striking visuals of Dolly Kei are a giant cross swinging from the neck, Medieval headdress, long skirts and dolls swabbed in rags. The girls are refined, wizardly, slightly creepy — and oh so alluring.
Grimoire refers to an ancient textbook of magic/witchcraft — and it’s also the name of the Shibuya boutique that is ground zero for these used clothes. The distressed dresses remind me of Gramm, a new brand from S-inc (the company that produces h.NAOTO) sold at Marui One.
Drop Japan posted some photos of Grimoire’s Vampire Night. Many of the shop girls wear Gothic and Classical Lolita pieces, but make it into their own expression. Who cares about skirt length? I think the girl in the rocking horse shoes is terrifically dressed.
The gold outfit is stunning; I’d wear the outfit exactly as she coordinated it. Recently, I found some giant flower clips for $2 from a fabric store. Perhaps I’ll incorporate them in my hair…
Song of the Day #302: Polysics – Electric Surfin’ Go Go (Check out adorable Polaroid + Fuji insta-photos of the Japanese band taken by HiHiCaro on Flickr.)
LA CARMINA
