A fashionista friend, Anthony Herrera, once despaired after seeing a group of young Japanese tourist women who were decked out in the latest of fashions.
"It's no fair. Their hair is perfect, their bodies are perfect, and their cutesy fashion is always more interesting than anywhere else."
He definitely has a point, and New People is a great place to check out that thesis.
You can buy tabis from the Santa Monica designer PNUT (above)...
...and accessorize them with the perfect socks...
...while reading about Plastic Culture...
...or buy a handmade Bumperboy mini-megazine...
...signed by its maker.
I felt old and unhip at the event, but enjoyed myself thoroughly watching the interesting characters...
...especially the women dressed in various subcategories of "Lolita" fashions...
...which extend from Goth Lolitas to Sweet Lolitas and every variation in between.
6 comments:
My 15-yr old daughter (a big manga/anime fan) was absolutely thrilled when we visited New People during our last trip, as well as the Kinokuniya bookstore. I myself just love to wander around Soko hardware.
Dear momo: I've never been to Soko hardware, so thank you for the recommendation. And do get in touch next time you are doing one of your Bay Area pilgrimages. We can have lunch at the Hunan.
It's called harajuku fashion, or harajuku chic. Look it up, it's fascinating!
Dear Ced: Thanks for the tip.
Wikipedia has this to say: "Harajuku (原宿 "meadow lodging") is the common name for the area around Harajuku Station on the Yamanote Line in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo, Japan. Every Sunday, young people dressed in a variety of styles including gothic lolita, visual kei, and decora, as well as cosplayers spend the day in Harajuku socializing."
I love it.
sfmike, I'll definitely look you up when we visit next--my daughter can't wait to go back to see our family there, and we try to visit once or twice a year. I'll check in next time we go!
Here's a very successful and fascinating book on this fashion called "Fruits"
http://www.amazon.com/Fruits-Shoichi-Aoki/dp/0714840831/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259007094&sr=1-1
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