If you’re anything like us, there’s a good chance you like both lolita and traditional Japanese fashion. Many of us here at RocketNews24 love those lolita skirts, even if we can’t really pull off the fluffy look, and we definitely appreciate the beauty of a well-crafted kimono.
So the news that the Kaga Lolita Project, which combines traditional Japanese fashion with the lolita style, finally has a dress available for sale online has us reaching for our wallets! You might not see any of us actually wearing one, but you can bet we’ll be admiring the dresses from afar, dreaming of twirling parasols on our shoulders.
Check out the dress below and get ready to dig out your credit card!
The Kaga Lolita Project started in 2012 with a design competition, but some ways, it really began almost 500 years ago. We admit that sounds like marketing speak, but the project is described on their website as: “Kaga’s traditional handicrafts for 500 years meet Japanese Modern Fashion ‘Lolita’ from the 21st century.” And they’re not making it up, either! The city is located in Ishikawa Prefecture, which is known for their textiles and fabrics, so if anyone can combine traditional and contemporary Japanese fashion, we think Kaga can!
Though the project has been around for a few years, they only just released their first dress for sale online this year. Based on the Kaga Lolita Project’s mascot character Yo-chama, pictured above, the dress combines the bright colors of Ishikawa’s traditional designs with the fluffy, frilly dresses of Harajuku’s most regal lolitas. The project has also released a YouTube video showing off the dress!
▼ Yes to all of this!
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The dress is available for purchase online from Ishikawa-san Shop and Belsel, though it looks like neither of them will be shipping internationally. The dress costs 46,000 yen (about US$384) through the Ishikawa shop and 49,680 yen (about $414) on Belsel. Both shops note that the dress will be shipped when your order is ready, so even if you do live in Japan, you may have to wait a bit to get it. It also looks like there’s only one size available, so we’re guessing that if you’re much taller than the average Japanese woman, you might need some extra tailoring. And despite all this, we still really want to order one!
▼ Even if we end up just displaying it in our room.
▼ Though it might look good on Mr. Sato…or even P.K.!
As we mentioned above, before the dress and Yo-chama even existed, the Kaga Lolital Project got started with a design contest in 2012. We’ve included the top three designs below, showing what else could have been. While each of them have a certain charm, we have to say that we definitely like the final version best. But that high collar in the Kaga-Yuzen version is pretty badass! It would be perfect for a Victorian-era lolita superhero — she could kick butts, take names, and look fancy doing it.
To learn more about the Kaga Lolita Project, be sure to visit their homepage or follow them on Facebook or Twitter.