Prints and fabric details steal the spotlight, calling to our aesthetic soul and driving us away from the equally important but often-overlooked supporting pieces. Blouses, jewelry, accessories, shoes. You name it; we all have an area we are blind to.
Infatuation with main pieces is a problem that I share and, like many other lolitas before me, that led me to have a mismatched, uneven closet. The infatuation consumed a lot of time, effort, and, most importantly, money. To avoid spending on whatever crossed my path, I decided to make a wishlist. My process to do so is what I am going to share with you today.
The first list I created was of the dresses I wanted. By having a concrete set of prints I really wanted, it was easier to not lose track of the goal and splurge on impulse purchases. You can see that list below:
As you can see, I focused on the prints I wanted and what version of them I wanted them in. But this does not give me enough information about them, and what little information I have is not organized in any particular way. This isn't very efficient, and eventually led me to want and purchase similar prints that were not exactly what I wanted and that I eventually had to resell. I also focused so much on main pieces that I overlooked buying more than one blouse and a small group of accessories, which made my coordinates look too similar to each other.
Don't get me wrong: listing all the dresses I wanted to keep and obtain was a crucial step in moving forward. It helped me understand what kind of colors and motifs I was attracted to so I could further build upon them with the rest of my closet items. I wanted to figure out how to cover all the holes I my wardrobe had, and this was a good start. But it wasn't enough.
So how did I fix the list? First, I recognized that I needed more basics. I had a barely-functional petticoat and one pair of lolita shoes, and this lack showed in my coordinates and limited my creativity. I had to take a good look at my closet and figure out what I had, what I wanted, and what was missing. Where did I start? With my measurements.
1. Take your measurements
When purchasing lolita fashion items, measurements are key. I could want OPs and skirts all I wanted, but buying them would be a waste of money if I could never fit into them. (I'm looking at you, Emily Temple Cute >.>). So I started by taking my approximate measurements in metric and imperial units. I did conversions to Japanese sizes so I could have them on hand, and took out everything on my wishlist that would not realistically fit my body measurements. While initially a demoralizing shock, this helped me a lot in the long run by saving me money and grief.
2. Select your primary wardrobe colors
Do you have 2-5 colors that are consistent in your desired main pieces or current wardrobe? For example, you may like the black x pastels combinations and a variety of black gothic prints, so your primary color would be black. If you check the list I provide above, a lot of the main pieces have black, brown, or pink as their main colors.
3. Pick out accent colors
What are common colors you can find in the prints or details of your main piece? This will help you determine what color you want your supporting pieces to be so you get more varied coords. If you take a look at the dress list, I used to want dresses that had a lot of brown, red, or pink details. Getting accessories in those colors would have helped me bring out the accent colors in the print, making the coordinate more interesting to look at.
4. Common Motifs
Does your list have a lot of flowers? Food? Architecture? Lace detailing? Is there a fabric that's recurring in your closet? Noting patterns will help you determine themes, which will in turn help you buy specific accessories that could work with more than one main piece at a time. For instance, a lot of the prints on my original list were food themed: chocolate, donuts, biscuits. We knew that brown was a main color and an accent color, so getting food themed accessories in brown would help expand my coordinating possibilities quite a bit.
5. Determine what you need
Now that you know what colors and motifs you are working with, it's time to assess what exactly you are missing. Delve in your closet. Do you have only one or two pairs of shoes? Does the blouse you have only match certain things? What about wristcuffs and rings? You pick what accessories work best for you, but at least now you have a starting point to find them rather than jumping into a sea of products that may overwhelm you.
6. What do you want?
After all bases are covered, we still have certain specific items we still want. Maybe it was that amazing wig you saw another lolita wearing, or a specific brand accessory that only goes with one or two things. These items are non-essential but would still be fun to have. This is the category for excess: oddly shaped purses and headwear; gorgeous skull shoulder pieces; giant golden spoon scepters, and violin-themed shoes. Ultimately, this is the true wishlist you would splurge on.
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Below is an updated wishlist --though the measurements are quite out of date. My tastes have changed quite a bit since I started, and so have my needs. If you would like, you can also see the glossary and store list I put together at the end of this list. It was originally intended for beginners or non-lolitas who wanted to buy me lolita gifts, and it's the basis of my Where to Buy Lolita page as well.
This is all that I have to share on the topic of making a (somewhat) cohesive wishlist. I hope you were able to learn something from it, even if it was just comparing what you do now with what another lolita does. If you have any tips on how to put together wishlists, feel free to share them with me!
