For the Everyday Lolita

Who doesn't want to look like a doll or a princess or even just dress up a bit every day?
But sometimes, it's just not practical to go OTT. So I thought I'd put together a few tips on how to go a bit more casual for the everyday Lolita.

Since school is starting again, I thought I'd mention that if you are in school and want to wear Lolita to school, these tips might be helpful to you, however you should always check with your school rules to make sure Lolita is appropriate before wearing it to school! If it isn't appropriate or you simply don't want to wear full out Lolita, you might like to simply add a bit of Lolita to your everyday look. Some good ways to do this would just be to wear a cutsew with some jeans, or just wear a Lolita skirt with no petticoat and a nice shirt or blouse. An example of a good cutsew appropriate for school -

Shoes are also something you may want to think about. Heels probably wouldn't be preferable to wear to school, but some nice, simple flats would look very cute. Socks can be anything you would normally wear that would go with your outfit. As for accessories, any Lolita jewelry will probably do, but the giant head eating bows probably won't, so you might want to opt for smaller ones or just some cute hair clips.

Moving on, now for my tips on a somewhat more casual Lolita.

The Shoes

It's not really the most comfortable thing in the world to walk around in high heels all day. Trust me, I've tried. And as cute as they can be, they aren't always the shoes you want. There are lots of cute flats out there or shoes with less of a heel and sometimes they can even be found at normal stores. Make sure they fit you correctly though, or they won't be more comfortable than heels after all. I also have a pair of boots that are extremely comfortable from a normal store, so that might be something you want to try too, if it suits you.

Petticoats

Sometimes one petticoat is actually all you may need or want, perhaps two at the most, but multiple petticoats are just not very comfortable some days. If you plan on wearing Lolita every day, only one or two petticoats might be preferable.

Tops

This includes blouses, cardigans cutsews and coats. Blouses are beautiful, but you might want to save the more expensive ones for special occasions to ensure that they remain as nice and pretty as when you bought them, other blouses you can just wear everyday, or even just wear cutsews or sometimes even nice shirts you can find at normal stores. Cardigans come in handy during cooler but not winter weather, plus you can wear them with a normal shirt to give it a more elegant touch. I'm not talking about ratty old t-shirts however, so just use your judgement on what tops will go with Lolita or not. Hint - not the ones with holes in them. 

On the subject of coats, they tend to be rather expensive when it comes to Lolita, even some from Bodyline can be over your budget, it might be worth the investment however, and there are some cute hoodies from normal stores that can work well with Lolita and are more casual than Lolita coats. Here is a hoodie from Alice and the Pirates, for example -

Socks

Knee-high socks are adorable, but sometimes not always practical, and especially in warm weather. It's usually pretty easy to find Lolita appropriate socks or tights from normal stores, ankle socks are sometimes the best choice for warm weather.

Hair Accessories

The giant bow is not necessary. It's absolutely fine if you like it, but it might not be very good to wear everyday for some people, such as myself. In fact, I don't even own a giant bow. Bows are very easy to make, in fact I am considering making a tutorial on how I myself make the bows I wear, so I find they are the perfect everyday accessory. Mini top hats might also be good for everyday if you like them, or headdresses and even bonnets. Giant bonnets might not be so good for everyday use, half bonnets however might be your thing. Sometimes though, I don't even feel like wearing a bow, just a simple, cute hair clip is enough for those days, and they are easy to find anywhere. In fact, you can find any nice hair accessory basically anywhere. 

Hairstyles

Curling your hair everyday is just going to damage it. You can just wear your hair down with a cute accessory or put it up in something simple, like pigtails. A ponytail is generally frowned upon though.

Purses

Purses are another easy to find item, and you may even be able to make them. I've seen many adorable purses that can go well with Lolita, Claires is a good place to look. I wouldn't recommend carrying around expensive brand purses everywhere, unless you want to of course, because they are probably going to get beat up and damaged and not look nearly as nice as when you first purchased them. Purses are probably going to take a heavy beating if you use them everyday, so pick something cheap but nice and durable. 

Accessories

One of my favorite things about Lolita, the accessories! Basically you can choose any Lolita accessory as long as it isn't going to start to annoy you after awhile. To much jewelry might however, so I would keep it limited to a few, nice items.

So there are the tips I have for you on wearing Lolita everyday, I hope they were helpful! 

Also, since school is starting I am more busy lately, but I will definitely still try and post frequently.

Love, Amelia Jane.