Introduction
Welcome everyone~!
This is an extensive --but by no means exhaustive,- compilation of online lolita shopping sites. The list includes the brief observations I've made on various lolita webshops as I scoured the internet so you didn't have to. I have purchased from a good number of these sites over the years, but have yet to buy from all of them because, well, money is unfortunately not infinite.
I have used asterisks (*) to denote a shop or service I have not personally used. I cannot speak for their quality personally, but have heard they are at best, good, and at worst, 'just okay'.
I have opted to not include any specific indie brands in the list, as it would get way too long. Instead, I included some places where you might find indie items under a separate category. Because many lolita stores carry a myriad of designers' products, you might have the same indie brand in different sites.
Please feel free to use this list as a resource to find whatever items you are looking for. The only thing I ask is that you link or credit me if you reference it on your blog/youtube channel/etc.
Happy shopping~!
Content Guide
Before Shopping
The Brands
Offbrand and Indie Brands
Secondhand
Shopping Services
Japanese-Site Buying Tips
Before Shopping
- Find out your measurements in inches and centimeters
- Find out your shoe size in several formats (centimeters, US size, European Size, etc.).
- Keep in mind that you almost always should look for reviews of items that are indie or bodyline. You want to know if they run small in size, or if they come undone easily. For other items, it is always helpful to check lolibrary and/or directly for measurements.
The Brands
Angelic Pretty U.S.A: Based in California. Official Angelic Pretty store. I've only shopped here for new releases because their shipping is killer. Has gift card options. Ships Overseas.
*Angelic Pretty Japan: You need to use tenso or a shopping service to buy from here. I’ve never done it before, but this is what people do when they are desperate to get new releases fast and snatch them before they are gone.
*Metamorphose Temps De Fille: Metamorphose has a reputation for having good customer service, bmore generous sizing, and eclectic print ideas. They are also known for being one of the first brands to sell internationally. They ship Overseas.
*Innocent World: Innocent World's designer is inspired by European scenes, architecture, and fairy tales. This is reflected in the more mature and elegant style of IW's clothing. They ship overseas.
*Victorian Maiden: Victorian Maiden produces elegant, more mature pieces. They unfortunately do not ship overseas, so you will need a shopping service. You can find some of their items at Tokyo Rebel, though.
*Mary Magdalene: Mary Magdalene is a smaller brand, so they sell out often. Much like Victorian Maiden, Mary Magdalene has many gorgeous classic pieces with florals and subdued patterns. Ships overseas.
*Juliette et Justine: From what I know, Juliette et Justine produces gothic and classic pieces. They are known for their dresses showcasing famous paintings. Ships Overseas.
*Atelier Pierrot: Darker items closer to gothic lolita, but I've heard this brand is also used for punk lolita and that it has some designs that opt for a more classic feel. Ships overseas.
*Moi-meme-Moitie: Mana's brain child and the iconic gothic lolita brand. Prepare to pay a pretty penny for Moitie items. They ship overseas through CD Japan and now are sold through Wunderwelt Fleur.
*Atelier Boz: Good for Ouji, Kodona, and gothic coordinates. Their items --especially their Roland jackets,-- sell out like hot cakes. They do not sell internationally. Needs a shopping service.
*Royal Princess Alice: A smaller lolita brand with bold prints. Ships internationally, but you have to use Tenso (a forwarding service) in order to get it shipped to you.
*Harajuku Hearts: A U.S.-based store that sells several J-fashion brands, including Q-Pot and Royal Princess Alice. Ships Internationally.
*Triple Fortune: Japanese brand that specializes in ornate bonnets. They also make dresses and accessories. The website has you mail order through KERA or by calling individual stores that carry their products. It is likely that you would need to use a shopping service for this purpose.
Offbrand and Smaller Indie-brand
Bodyline: Unless you plan on buying shoes or boleros, it’s not really a beginner-friendly site since you have to be able to discern good fabric/lace from bad one, and lace monsters from good dresses. Their sizes vary, so always check for reviews on the item you are looking at. Ships Overseas.
Etsy and Storenvy: For handmade accessories mostly. Proceed with caution when looking for dresses, as there are plenty of scams. Has gift card options. Sellers ship internationally most of the time.
*Rakuten English / Japanese: A lot like taobao, but you can buy directly from it in some instances. You might be able to find some items and brands from taobao selling directly or reselling here. Might need a shopping service, depending on the store.
Taobao: Needs a shopping service. It’s like a Chinese Ebay, but everything is in Chinese so it might be intimidating to navigate at the start. With Google translate and some patience, you can find some good deals on accessories, blouses, etc. Needs shopping service.
Glitzywonderland: A Taobao reseller. Ships internationally, but the prices are higher than they would be if you ordered through Taobao itself.
Secondhand Brand
Facebook Sales: Lolita Sales in English, Sweet Lolita sales, Angelic Pretty Sales, Lolita Sales Worldwide are some groups you have to be accepted into to buy and sell. You need some kind of feedback for them.Egl-comm-sales: You need an LJ profile and a feedback page on egl-commsales to buy from here. It’s used clothing being sold by other lolitas. Unfortunately, due to most people leaving LJ, it doesn't get much traffic anymore.
*The Lolita Collective: An online lolita consignment store that ships from Chicago. Reasonably priced. Primarily USA based, but it looks like they ship internationally as well.
Lacemarket: Auction site for used and new clothes worldwide. Having a paypal highly suggested, You deal with individual sellers like you would on Ebay. Most sellers ship overseas.
Tenshi Shop: Run by Chibi Tenshi. Has some secondhand pieces for several fashions. Ships Overseas.
Closet Child: Japanese used clothing store. Has English-speaking staff. But if you make an order, you have to commit, because if you back out you are likely to be black listed from it. Ships Overseas.
Wunderwelt: Second-hand lolita. Lots of oldschool lolita as well. English-speaking staff available. International shipping has a 5000Yen discount on orders 50000yen or up. A review can be found here. Ships Overseas. Note that there is a separate branch, Wunderwelt Fleur, which sells new Brand and Indie Brand items. It also Ships Overseas
Mbok and Yahoo Japan auctions: They are bidding sites like ebay where you can find used or new clothing. Most items are under the umbrella 'angelic pretty' tag, but you can search by individual brand as well. They are both in Japanese. Needs Shopping Service a good amount of the time.
Mercari Japan: Second-hand clothes platform. Shipping within Japan is on the seller and is often included in the price. Great bargains! Needs shopping service.
*Fril: Lots of overlap with mercari.jp, but also has plenty of products not listed there. Fril is fairly straightforward to use and can be translated with google translate. Needs shopping service.
*Tokyo Alice: This store sells a good variety of used lolita clothes through rakuten. Be careful, though, since they keep some listings that have been previously sold out. Ships Overseas.
*Grand Bazaar: Otome, Lolita, and other J-fashions available in this re-sale secondhand shop. They list a lot of their things in yahoo japan, so you need to confirm that an item is in stock before the purchase can be completed. Needs shopping service.
*Maiden Clothing: They have secondhand items below retail price. The prices are just ‘ok’ in my opinion, but you can find certain things popping up here. Ships Overseas.
*Fairy Angel English / Japanese: Sells items for several fashions in both its Japanese and English pages. Its lolita stock, however, is somewhat limited. Ships Overseas from its English Page.
*Girly Cute: It has mostly brands that correspond to otome (ETC, F.i.n.t, Leur Getter, etc.) but carries loliable accessories at times. Ships Overseas.
*Violet Blue: A little on the expensive side for secondhand clothes. Needs shopping service.
Shopping Services
In-store
Online
*From Japan (Auction & Online Store)
Taobao
Japanese-Site Buying Tips
- Super useful search terms lists from EGL to use on Japanese Auction Sites can be found here and here
- Google translate is your friend!
- Sometimes, you can also use the English names (Ex. in Mercari.jp or Fril)
- Copying and pasting item titles from lolibrary can help narrow down the search
- Have a currency conversion calculator on hand (same goes with Taobao!)
This is an excellent post. I've been making a reference Google Doc with a similar format
ReplyDeleteHi Pankeiko, this is a very helpful list! And would you mind to include devilinspired.com in your list? Where you can find all taobao indie lolita brands, and without complicated shopping processes and no extra confused costs. If it cannot be in your list, it's totally okay, and if you need more research and want to know more before adding to your list, please feel free to contact me:) Many thanks!
ReplyDeleteHi Vivian,
DeleteI would like to ask some questions and do some more research before committing to endorsing a store I am not super familiar with personally of by proxy. What is the best way to contact you?