HA·RA·TUMBLR
HA·RA·TUMBLR is the official Tumblr blog of HA·RA·JU·JU, a community of Japanese fashion lovers. We discuss styles including -- but not limited to -- lolita, gyaru, onii-kei, visual-kei, dolly-kei, mori girl, and other Japanese-rooted fashion movements. This Tumblr is a curated collection of the best Japanese fashion content on the web. Check out the HA·RA·JU·JU community.

rockonannasui:

Anna Sui Spring 2012 Collection e-MOOK preview and mini-review! (As much as someone who can’t read Japanese can review a Japanese publications, haha)

This year, Anna Sui’s e-Mook is loaded will cool stuff. Look for yourself in the table of contents!

While I can’t read them yet I think all Anna Sui e-Mooks are worth getting. They are filled with amazing photoshoots and feature Anna’s alternate lines (Dolly Girl, Anna Sui Mini and her Japanese licensed goods) which are otherwise quite hard to reach and Spring 2012’s is no exception. What I particularly love about it is the “Anna Sui Collection Archive” with two pictures of every single collection Anna has done and an English keyword to sum them up (and Japanese text under.) On top of that, it comes with an iPad case (which I’ll use to carry my books) and a makeup pouch! Here’s a few pictures for you:

Typical Anna Sui style!

Just behind the black makeup pouch is the screen protector for the iPad. It’s useful because you can put cards, pens and whatnot in the fishnet pocket!

Yes, Anna Sui is fashion is “loud”, but it also meticulous about detail. Gotta love it!

So yes, if you get a chance to grab the Spring 2012 e-Mook, by all means jump on it! Especially considering how hard it is now to find a copy. It went out of print extremely fast and after printing 100, 000 extra copies, it’s already on its way to be out of print again. But there are a few left over at Amazon.co.jp!

P.S.: You see that makeup look on the fourth picture? That’s what I’m going to post a tutorial from with the Beach 2012 Collection Eye & Lip Color Palette!! Stay tuned ;)

A must for Japanese magazines and mooks collectors.

Wizzard — Wing Tip Boots — ¥28,140

Some very nice shoes in this collection — I’m a particular fan of the wedges and the snake texture oxfords. Don’t miss your chance to win any pair of these you want!

rockonannasui:

Dear followers,

Thursday, my friends zeech103 and nayzemonstar (both incredible artists, go check them out!) and I went to the Hush Puppies store to take pictures of the Spring Anna Sui for Hush Puppies collection for you! Indeed, today is the last day for two of you to win a free pair of any shoes from this collection! So have a look and make sure of having your choice ready ;) As for the sizing, please be aware that the collection tend to run a bit large. For example, my shoe size varies from 8.5 to 9 but I’m an 8 in these shoes.

Good luck!

Marxy has just released part 2 of his excellent “History of the Gyaru” series. As usual, he does a fantastic job of going beyond the clothes and capturing the backdrop of Tokyo in the 90s, from changing social trends to economic indicators and even the rise of the pager. Mandatory reading for anyone into Japanese fashion.

So how would a new kogyaru recruit figure out how to properly dress in the style? When the kogyaru reached mass consciousness in the mid-1990s, there were still no dedicated “gyaru” magazines that worked with “gyaru” brands to show a step-by-step guide on becoming a “gyaru.”

There was, however, a shopping complex with increasing centrality to the subculture. In the early 1990s, both kogyaru and their older paragyaru-type tanned party-girl big sisters had patronized a store called Me Jane in a generally-ignored fashion building called Shibuya 109. Known later in gyaru circles as just “maru-kyu,” Shibuya 109 opened in 1979 but never achieved any level of popularity in its first decade. Fashion business analyst Kawashima Yoko described its early days as “Like Marui, but worse.” With Me Jane, however, the building finally started to attract a dedicated clientele. Soon kogyaru moved beyond Me Jane and started hanging out next door in a clothing store Love Boat and in the shoe brand ESPERANZA (Kawashima 178). The brands all focused on a sexy, summery style, with shirts, for example, that showed off the belly button.

Shibuya 109’s owner Tokyu noticed this sudden interest in their flailing complex and decided to do a “renewal” of the building in the mid-1990s, asking more stores of the kogyaru fashion variety to become tenants. This turned 109 into the gyaru shopping mecca we know today. As kogyaru wannabees poured into Shibuya, they made a beeline to 109 and essentially understood any store in the building as selling “gyaru” clothing. In this period, Me Jane saw double digit growth every year, ultimately making ¥700 million a year in Shibuya alone (Namba 2006).

visualpolusyon:

名前:Gulico 年齢:21 OUTER(アウター):G2? / ¥10,000

visualpolusyon:

名前:Gulico
年齢:21
OUTER(アウター):G2? / ¥10,000

Great contest being run by fellow HARAJUJU blogger on her Anna Sui news blog, Rock On! Anna Sui.
rockonannasui:

Hey Anna Sui fans! Rock On! Anna Sui is giving two lucky people ANY pair of shoes from the Anna Sui x Hush Puppies Spring/Summer 2012 collection!* You can see the full collection here.
There’s three ways to enter. Enter all three ways to increase your chances to win!
First Entry: Follow Rock On! Anna Sui — you must do this to be eligible, no exceptions.
+1 Entry: Reblog this post
+1 Entry: Ask me a question about Anna Sui, her clothes, products, what she means to me … whatever! (I’ll judge if your question is worth an entry)
I’ll announce the winners here on Rock On! Anna Sui on Monday, May 14, 2012. If a winner doesn’t claim it within 48 hours through my ask box, the prize will be given to someone else.
Good luck!
* Styles and sizes depend on availability. If your requested size or style isn’t available, we’ll work with you to select a different style in your size.
You must be 18 or older to enter.
Open to residents of North America only — sorry!
Tumblr is not associated with this contest in any way, shape or form.
Retail value of the prize is dependent on the style selected; please see Hush Puppies’ website for pricing.

Great contest being run by fellow HARAJUJU blogger on her Anna Sui news blog, Rock On! Anna Sui.

rockonannasui:

Hey Anna Sui fans! Rock On! Anna Sui is giving two lucky people ANY pair of shoes from the Anna Sui x Hush Puppies Spring/Summer 2012 collection!* You can see the full collection here.

There’s three ways to enter. Enter all three ways to increase your chances to win!

  • First Entry: Follow Rock On! Anna Sui — you must do this to be eligible, no exceptions.
  • +1 Entry: Reblog this post
  • +1 Entry: Ask me a question about Anna Sui, her clothes, products, what she means to me … whatever! (I’ll judge if your question is worth an entry)

I’ll announce the winners here on Rock On! Anna Sui on Monday, May 14, 2012. If a winner doesn’t claim it within 48 hours through my ask box, the prize will be given to someone else.

Good luck!

  • * Styles and sizes depend on availability. If your requested size or style isn’t available, we’ll work with you to select a different style in your size.
  • You must be 18 or older to enter.
  • Open to residents of North America only — sorry!
  • Tumblr is not associated with this contest in any way, shape or form.
  • Retail value of the prize is dependent on the style selected; please see Hush Puppies’ website for pricing.
Boris Bidjan Saberi worn by Maeda of Mercury.

Boris Bidjan Saberi worn by Maeda of Mercury.

A bunch of great designers from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York want to go out with a bang and host an incredible event showcasing the future of fashion. These designers are literally the ones who will become the backbone of the next generation of fashion — it’s unfathomable to let these garments go into storage without ever being presented to an audience.
Help them do it by donating to their Kickstarter campaign. There is no minimum donation. If you can’t donate, please reblog this and help spread the word. And if you’re in NYC at the time, you should definitely attend.

mechafaux:

Dear tumblr,
Graduation time is drawing near and my time at FIT comes to a bittersweet close.
Here I have met some of the greatest people… a group of creative, talented, hardworking, crazy, amazing, inspiring, hilarious, dedicated, caring wonderful beautiful people. Together we’ve spent 4+ years sacrificing all of our free time, money, the skin on our fingertips, precious hours of sleep, social life (ha! what social life?), sanity, health, and countless other things for the sake of our art. Together, we’ve spent long nights in the studio creating, crying, sewingsewingsewing, drawing, maybe huffing expensive art markers, hand sewing, seam ripping, embellishing, rendering, sharing, being there for eachother, and making amazing one-of-a-kind garments.
These gorgeous individual works of art that just sit in storage, in garment bags, shoved into closets, unloved, at the end of all this… left to never be seen as they were meant to be - IN MOTION. Something is missing for us.
To commemorate this shared experience of learning & growing together and finally making it to the end of our formal education, we have to let these creations shine and move and walk and stun and inspire an audience. We need to show everyone who we are and what we are capable of. We each have our stories to share…
Please help us reach our goal and put on an amazing show!!
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1846214604/tomorrows-fashion-a-showcase-of-innovation-and-des-0
If you can’t donate, that is fine.. spreading the word is just as important! Please reblog this and when we reach our goal, I will personally mail 2 randomly chosen people original handpainted artworks of mine or whatever you want I don’t know what is a good incentive. A shirt? hm? 

A bunch of great designers from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York want to go out with a bang and host an incredible event showcasing the future of fashion. These designers are literally the ones who will become the backbone of the next generation of fashion — it’s unfathomable to let these garments go into storage without ever being presented to an audience.

Help them do it by donating to their Kickstarter campaign. There is no minimum donation. If you can’t donate, please reblog this and help spread the word. And if you’re in NYC at the time, you should definitely attend.

mechafaux:

Dear tumblr,

Graduation time is drawing near and my time at FIT comes to a bittersweet close.

Here I have met some of the greatest people… a group of creative, talented, hardworking, crazy, amazing, inspiring, hilarious, dedicated, caring wonderful beautiful people. Together we’ve spent 4+ years sacrificing all of our free time, money, the skin on our fingertips, precious hours of sleep, social life (ha! what social life?), sanity, health, and countless other things for the sake of our art. Together, we’ve spent long nights in the studio creating, crying, sewingsewingsewing, drawing, maybe huffing expensive art markers, hand sewing, seam ripping, embellishing, rendering, sharing, being there for eachother, and making amazing one-of-a-kind garments.

These gorgeous individual works of art that just sit in storage, in garment bags, shoved into closets, unloved, at the end of all this… left to never be seen as they were meant to be - IN MOTION. Something is missing for us.

To commemorate this shared experience of learning & growing together and finally making it to the end of our formal education, we have to let these creations shine and move and walk and stun and inspire an audience. We need to show everyone who we are and what we are capable of. We each have our stories to share…

Please help us reach our goal and put on an amazing show!!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1846214604/tomorrows-fashion-a-showcase-of-innovation-and-des-0

If you can’t donate, that is fine.. spreading the word is just as important! Please reblog this and when we reach our goal, I will personally mail 2 randomly chosen people original handpainted artworks of mine or whatever you want I don’t know what is a good incentive. A shirt? hm? 

Black is best (by Reo Ma)
What is “Harajuku fashion”?

Anonymous asked harajuju

I’m scrolling through harajuju forum and looks and I don’t really feel any harajuku vibe in it…I mean, i’m more on the DIY part of Harajuku, recycling, handmade, vintage .. I think that those people are the ones who are setting the trends and they are those who created recognition for Harajuku in the 90s. When i’m reading the forum topics or outfit comments, i just feel like this part of Harajuku is being lowered and I wanted to know what you think about it

Firstly, I’d like to thank you for this comment — it’s pretty interesting and I’m glad to have the opportunity to talk about it.

Although our name is Harajuju we are not a Harajuku fashion focused community. I chose the name Harajuju largely because it’s fun to say, but also because Harajuju is the heart of a lot of street fashion movements in Japan. We also don’t mandate any particular styles on our forum; it doesn’t even have to be Japanese. That said, I think most of what is posted on our site would fit in on the streets of Harajuku.

The thing is, Japanese fashion loving outsiders (meaning, those who don’t live in or haven’t been to Japan — I am one, myself) often have a very stereotypical view of what represents Harajuku fashion. So when someone says “Harajuku fashion,” it’s easy to jump to something like this:

(photos from tokyofashion.com)

However, this is sincerely a “white-washed” view of Harajuku fashion. Harajuku is one of the street style capitols of the world with a dizzying variety of aesthetic cultures. So while the above image is Harajuku, so is the below.

(photos from style-arena.jp — just check out their Harajuku section)

Using “Harajuku fashion” as an adjective of style is ultimately a pretty meaningless exercise. It’s like saying “I like tasty food”; it could mean so many things that in the end it doesn’t mean anything at all. Japanese fashion exists beyond the crazy, the colorful, the loud, the aggressive, the fairy-tale-esque. It’s a spectacular prism of personal expression.

King of details and layering Takahiro Miyashita of former number (n)ine fame delivers another home run for the AW12 collection of his namesake brand, TAKAHIROMIYASHITATheSoloIst. (You can just call it “The Soloist” if you want — sheesh.)

Check out the full collection at Fashion Press.

rockonannasui:

From the Spring 2012 Anna Sui Fashion feature in Japanese magazine SPUR, May issue. To see the rest of the photoshoot, click here.

Our admin Brad-t’s favourite picture of the shoot, but the whole shoot is great!

rockonannasui:

From the Spring 2012 Anna Sui Fashion feature in Japanese magazine SPUR, May issue. 
To see the rest of the photoshoot, click here.

Our admin Brad-t’s favourite picture of the shoot, but the whole shoot is great!

Responses to our “Fashion at Anime Conventions” Exchange

ayamedesu:

LOL SO TRUE. Japanese don’t really wear lolita and stuff…very few of us do. 

Well, that’s not really what I was getting at. Whether or not it’s mainstream has very little to do with whether it’s legitimate or not. If anything, the nicheness of styles like this is what makes them especially appealing to foreigners — there’s just something very uniquely Japanese about particularly subversive Harajuku fashion trends. However, even if a show was to be completely populated by subversive styles, it would be nice to see more than two or three.

iamcupcakeandtea:

As someone who goes to Anime North, I’d like to tell you that year by year AN has been getting more and more fashion oriented people at the con. The lolita community has notice a steady increase of better and better Lolita outfit. And personally I have been trying to push fashion oriented things at Anime North, this year Im bringing 4 panels on lolita, 1 on mori girl, a swap meet and helping in the fashion show. I think you should really consider coming to this convention :) It not going to happen overnight off course. My non-lolita panels usually have poor attendance but I really want to see this take off :)

Thanks for your response. With regards to Anime North, I’m not really convinced — I was there last year and while there was certainly a solid lolita presence there was nothing particularly new or interesting. I sat in on a few general Japanese fashion panels and they were abysmal. There was one in particular where people openly talked about experiences while wearing Japanese fashion, but it was largely a bunch of saccharine “be yourself!” stuff. One guy was sharing his experiences about wearing a jester hat in high school. I guess that certainly is subversive, though.

This isn’t to rag on anime or anything like it — I watch a lot of anime and otherwise nerdy Japanese shit — but I just don’t think the atmosphere of an anime convention is generally very interesting to people who are into fashion. There are exceptions, of course. Sakuracon is having shows for h.NAOTO, Chantilly and Atelier Pierrot. But serious fashion people are likely not going to be hanging around furries and hardcore otaku. In the end, I decided that just because these are Japanese culture conventions doesn’t mean they really align with the realities of Japanese fashion. Still, I wish you luck in your events.