Your Closet's Pedigree

So, I got a question from one of the lovely readers of Lolita Charm as of late, which I thought broached an interesting topic.

Recently I've noticed that I like my offbrand clothes much less only because they are not brand. I love their design and shape but I know I would prefer them if they were, for example, Baby. Because of that lolita dressing feels less special and magical. When I first started dressing lolita this didn't bother me at all, but now it does. I wish I could come back to it and like clothes for what they are, not who they are made by. Do you have any tips on how to not discriminate on clothes based on brand name and price tag?

I own offbrand and brand, though brand is the majority of my wardrobe. My offbrand roster includes: Pink Macaroon, Fanplusfriend, Dear Celine, Rose Melody, Secret Shop, and even some beloved Bodyline. I don't feel that I consider my offbrand clothes to be inferior or headed for the dumpster as soon as I can get my hands on their brand equivalent. In fact, sometimes I prefer to purchase offbrand for such things as bags and shoes.

When do I prefer to purchase offbrand?

I purchase offbrand anything that I know is a) roughly equivalent in quality; or b) I have a tendency to trash or be especially hard on. For example, I usually wear my shoes to pieces before I turn them out to pasture. They get scuffed, scraped, and worn through country mud and city streets alike (they never quite recovered from the Washington rainforests or the endless white dust in the Jardin de Tuileries). I rely on my shoes to do an honest day's work, and I can't be mincing around protecting their brand integrity. For this reason I have never purchased brand shoes. For me, it's not worth it. My shoes have always been offbrand names like Montreal, Secret Shop, or Bodyline.

I will also buy offbrand purses rather than brand purses, for the most part. While brand purses are very cute, I know that my purse is going to be filled with pencils, lip glosses, gum wrappers, and the like. I'm probably going to end up putting it on the floor in restaurants or on the seat next to me when riding the train. Like the shoes, it's going to go through it. I've had offbrand purses that have suffered well through being plane carry-ons and general hold-alls, far longer than their price would have dictated. At the same time, I've had bags that became damaged after a few uses because they were, as price showed, cheap.

As for the rest of your clothes like dresses, skirts, socks, blouses, and cutsews, I don't see an important difference between brand and good quality offbrand. So long as the items continue to be well-made and of decent materials, there's no need to worry about your closet being brand or not. Your clothes are like collage materials that you put together into an image that you want to express. Would it matter if those images were glossy designer things or simple newspaper clippings, so long as they gave off the feel and style you wanted? Of course not. And so the same goes for clothes.


Are you worried about other girls disliking your offbrand?

Some girls have worried that their offbrand will be shunned at meetups, from other lolitas, or at lolita events. So long as you've tried your best on an outfit, and chosen pieces that you find beautiful and well-made, you shouldn't be insecure about wearing offbrand instead of brand. Lolita is not a cheap hobby and it's understandable that not everyone can afford a closet full of Moitie and Baby. This doesn't mean that you can't look like a perfectly lovely lolita. For example, here's the Rose Melody model (which you can purchase here):


If you find that other lolitas are disdainful of your offbrand (assuming you are otherwise well-dressed and styled), then they're probably not the lolitas for you.

The Magic of Branding



Let's talk about branding! (I'm a marketing major, so I get excited here - bear with me! ;)


Brand has a 'magical' influence over us for two reasons. First, the brands themselves want to give off an image that you want to obtain. All of their advertising materials - shoots, stock photos, personal graphics, even name - are all bent on making you, the consumer, love and hopefully idolize their products. This is most evident in their brand names. 'Angelic Pretty' is supposed to make you think of shimmering girls with a sweet, delicate light - the way you're supposedly going to feel when you wear or purchase their products. Even more obvious is 'Metamorphose temps de fille' - which is French for 'the changing time of a young girl', implying that you too can blossom into a beautiful lolita. So it's no wonder we have a tendency to put brand on a pedestal. They want us to!

The other is that we, the consumers, perpetuate the idea as a community. If we're all individually putting brand on a pedestal, then of course in larger groups it becomes an accepted fact among the culture. And that idea becomes instilled in incoming members, etc.

Now, I'm not here to say that brand is evil and vile, especially to manipulate our sweet, innocent lolita brains. I deeply admire the buying power and customer base that the brands have built up. But as the consumer, it's important that you realize that brand is not the end all and be all. They just want you to think they are. By knowing this, you can make educated decisions on what to purchase and why.

It's easy to fall into the mindset that brand is always better. But it's not about the name tag of your clothes at the end of the day - it's about how you feel in them, and what styles you can create on your budget. And there is nothing that can make you prouder or feel more beautiful than your own expression of fashion, no matter whose name is on the label.

(Kamikaze Girls screencap from painting-the-roses-pink)

Labels: discussion

posted by Victoria Suzanne @ 12:31 PM