If you don't care about Lolita fashion or reading long pointless things then the rest of this article is not for you.
I guess every blog needs an into post, so here's an INTROOO.
I'm Sarah, I've been properly into Lolita Fashion since 2013, wearing it regularly since 2014, and a horrible nerd since forever.
I first learned about Lolita fashion at Baby's First Anime Convention, probably circa 2002 or something. My local Anime Convention had a Lolita Fashion Panel and runway show, and they were short on models and asked my and my mates to model for them. I have no photographic evidence, but most of the clothing was costume-quality (no lining, poorly serged seams, all black n white with cheap lace). But we were babies, we didn't know! It was magical!
My childhood friend actually got into Lolita (circa 2007-8 I reckon) because an interest in Vivienne Westwood led her back down that rabbit hole, and I was lucky enough to learn something about it from her and file it away in the ol' noodle until later.
This seems unrelated but bear with me. I've played piano since I was a wee kid, and kept in contact with my piano teacher for ages. Even into adulthood. My teacher hated recitals: they were frightfully boring for the parents, and the children were often too terrified to perform their music very well. I remember my first few recitals, and I recall some parents would leave after their kid performed. Yikes. After a number of years my teacher decided that it would be fun for the kids if they made a production out of it. Themed the event, costumes, and even some minor acting! It was rough, but the first one (Pirate themed) was great. The kids were still terrified though and the stage was usually crammed with kids staring blindly into space. Later years saw higher production values (I'm not kidding, she had to start selling tickets to try to recoup rental fees and to cover set-building costs). As I grew older I had a bigger and bigger hand in each event. I'd help organise rehearsals, help write the script, make the show programs in professional computer software, make some costume elements. One year I sewed my costume, a big step for me because the last time I'd sewed with a machine I produced literal garbage. I was to be Dorothy, from the Wizard of Oz. The costume was... bad, really, but after I sewed it I realised it looked like something I'd seen before. Down the rabbit hole again, I rediscovered Lolita and then fell properly into it, consuming as much media and researching as much as I could. The entire time from 2012 to the end of 2013 was just researching Lolita and creeping the livejournal group.
That was so enchanting to hear the piano story! How sweet.
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