By Stacy Nguyen
Northwest Asian Weekly
In honor of our inaugural Year of the Monkey Fun Fashion Show to be held at House of Hong on Feb. 6, here’s a rundown of the fun, flirty, and often wackiness that is Japanese street fashion!
Images by Stacy Nguyen/NWAW
A GLOSSARY
In Tokyo, one can see a variety of street fashion worn by young urbanites. Like any other place, trends have come and gone, but here are some of the more well-known women’s fashion subcultures in Japan:
GOTHIC LOLITA — a dark, romantic look that borrows from Victorian or Edwardian fashions, sometimes with parasols!
SWEET LOLITA — sweet, feminine, childlike, and often over-the-top frilly and pastel in color
DECORA — a lot of bright, bold colors and cutesy accessories all over the body, from hair clips to wallets to necklaces to pins
GANGURO — really deep tans combined with bleached blond hair, white eyeliner, and miniskirts
GYARU — influenced by the West, very glam, with tanned skin and billowy surfer girl wigs
Inspired? Email us pictures of your Year of the Monkey-inspired garments for a chance to be featured at our fashion show on Feb. 6 at RSVP@NWASIANWEEKLY.COM