What have I learned in 2017 while being into lolita fashion

December is the time people review the thing they have done or learned in the past year. This can be discovering new hobbies, letting things go or just discover something about themselves what they didn't knew before.

This weeks topic for the lolita blog carnival is about this specific topic, a reflection on the things we learned in the past year while being in the fashion. Every year has it's own ups and downs but there is always something to remember. Things you should't do anymore or the things you think back at with the biggest smile on your face. 

My year in 2017 was one with lots of ups and downs. I always try to remember the ups instead of the downs cause that's just the way I am. But let's start with my list of the things I have learned in 2017!

Style swaps, Gothic is NOT for me!

I got the change to try out a new style in 2017, together with my dear friends Rosalynn and Josine. We wanted to make a style swap video together while we had a sleepover at Rosalynn's place in Februari of 2017. Both Rosalynn and I have a youtube channel and we found it a great idea to collab together. 

Josine was our victim to get transformed into a sweet lolita, it was so much fun to dress her up in my own style which was OTT sweet. But of course she was going to transform me into a gothic lolita with a religious theme. She wen't full on with her gothic coord! As much as I love seeing the gothic lolita style on others I felt really out of place in this style. I can't really describe what it was but it wasn't me, others told me it looked good but to me it felt like a costume and I was ready to go to a party. I think it was way to much towards the "religious" part of the gothic lolita style with all the crosses and veils. While if it was more in a classic, gothic combination it would have been more me. But then again it isn't really gothic anymore. 

If you want to watch our style swap video and see how it looked on me, 

please visit my youtube channel: 

Poppy goes Gothic 

Selling things is harder than it looks.

While the second hand market is flooded with items for sale I wasn't able to either sell the items I wanted to sell or to get to the point where I did a giant closet cleaning and sell some dresses that I don't wear that often. 

The items that I managed to get online where offbrand items like loli-able blouses, vintage jackets, one Meta headbow and an indie brand skirt. Nothing very special and definitely not worth putting that much effort in it so promote the sales. So most of these items are still laying on a little pile at the back of my closet. 

I think it was around the 12th of October when I decided that it was time to sort all my dress. Using the kon-mari method I divided my dresses into three piles. Keep, sell and I'm not sure yet. While doing this I started to get really nausea and felt heartbroken seeing all my dresses laying there on the floor. I must say I did a great job in sorting them out into the piles, but the actual step of taking photo's and putting them online was just not for me. The good thing about spitting everything like this was that I was able to organise my dresses again. Though I do know now that I'm not a sellers person, even when I don't wear a dress anymore or when it doesn't fit that well I can't let it go that easily. I get attached to the items I buy and have so many memories attached to them that it feels like selling a part of myself when I sell the dress to someone else. 

Maybe one day I will be able to sell them but for now it's not going to happen. 

Treasure your friends, they are always there for you.

Thinking back on this lesson I've learned this year makes me tear up a bit. Some of you might now that I have a chronicle illness which causes me to have really awful days or even weeks when I have a flare up. During 2017 I had my fair share in the down moments with hospital visits, months of recovery and therapy to get back on my feet, being in a wheelchair and not being able to walk or stand up duo to the pain I had. 

But my friends where always there for me, like when I was sitting in my wheelchair and pushing me around the city to explore the things in town or just to go shopping in the city. Being my granny walking stick on a lolita holiday, calling a cab to get be back to the hotel after the tea party in London when I couldn't walk, even when I asked them not to do that.  Or just asking me if I'm doing ok when I sit on the ground in the door opening to get some fresh air to recover a bit. My friends are always there for me when I'm around them. I mostly think that I was a burden to them and that I didn't deserve the attention but I do know that they are concerned about my health and that I don't need to push my limits that far just to be a part of the things we do together. This is something that will be a part of me for the rest of my life but seeing that my friends where there for me to support me while I was in a down moment is just magical. Even people I didn't know that well where there for me as well and I still can't thank them enough for it. The lolita community is such a caring community when things aren't going that well with someone and this means a lot to me. We are more than a group of people wearing the same style of clothes, we are a family! I treasure my close friends for the rest of my life even when I don't see them that often.

OTT sweet all the way.

Ever since I started with lolita fashion my style was sweet though I do love classic as well. But when it comes to making coords I tend to love my sweet coords the most. I think this comes to the fact that I can get creative with all the things that make me happy. Bows, pastel colors, flowers and big fluffy hairstyles. Everything is so happy and it makes me feel the most like me especially when going to picknick meetings or for meeting up with my friends. While I love classic lolita as well I always found it a more toned down and casual style even when it's OTT. I've tried classic lolita multiple times and yet I feel so casual in it, a bit underdressed and I have not that magical feeling I get while wearing sweet lolita.  Classic lolita will always be my go-to style for tea parties but I will always include a sweet touch in it with the dresses I pick and how I coord it. 

My top 3 coords from 2017

2017 was definitely a year to remember, we had some amazing events going on in Europe. I made new friends and explored my style even further. Wearing lolita fashion is such a big part of me and I can't imagine how my life would look like without these frilly dresses or without the wonderful friends I made along those years of being in the fasion. 

What are the thing you learned in 2017?  Let me know in the comments below, I would love to read them!

See you next week! 

Lots of love, Poppy

This post is in collaboration with the Lolita Lolita Blog Carnival

More posts about this topic: 

Cupcake Kamisama

The Bloody Tea Party

Tomoyo's Secret Garden

Queen & Commander