Primer: Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion Eyeshadow: Urban Decay Electric Palette. I used Thrash, Slowburn, Urban, and Jilted. Gonzo on my eyebrows. Lashes: Daiso bottom lashes and Forever 21 "21k Collection Exclusive" top lashes. Eyeliner is Kiko Milano Long Lasting Gel Eyeliner in Black. No specific brand-brushes used! I use cheap store brand blending and eyebrow brushes that can be found at Rite-Aid WARNING: Use Slowburn, Urban, and Jilted at your own risk. May cause eye irritation. -Kaz   It's the year 2016, and fashion has taken quite a turn, especially having a great influential inspiration from a magical land called Japan. In other words Harajuku Fashion. “Harajuku Fashion!?” we asked ourselves, but that's just a common term that has been adopted over the year. Let's take a deeper look into this different substyles that we have all spotted from the streets all the way to social media. The Mean Streets (1960s-late 1970s): During this time we see young girls start to say “f***k the system” and rebel in terms of standard fashion. The common terms were “yanki, “bosozoku” and “sukeban”. Girls and boys would sport personalized school uniforms, motorcycles gang trappings, and flags with embroidered symbols (sometimes representing a biker gang) and such. The street tough aesthetic went beyond clothing sometimes as well.
Dancing Revolution (Early 1970s-Mid 1980s): This substyle is possibly the reason why Harajuku became a popular location for teens to hang out at. The style was made up of colorful beads, whistles, bows, neon baggy clothes and of course you couldn't leave home without your boombox. The style was called Takenokozoku, a term that came from a shop called Takenoko. Many of these groups would often been seeing dancing to the rhythm of the music on their radios in the streets of Harajuku.
Artsy Gals (Early 1980s-Late 1980s) In the early 1980s an indie record label called Nagomu was funded by a vocalist of a band called Uchoten. It did not become an actual craze until early 1983 when Nagomu Gal was born. It was inspired by punk, Vivienne Westwood, alternative rock, and grunge. However this term wasn’t exactly positive. In reality a Nagomu Gal was viewed more as an annoying groupie. By 1989 the Nagomu label and the style have both shutdown.
Super Dollfie (1989-To Present Day): In 1989 one of the most popular brands in Japanese street fashion was created, Baby The Stars Shine Bright. Inspired by the Rococo era, porcelain dolls, Alice in Wonderland, and Marie Antoinette. Lolita fashion was born. This style found popularity among girls and remains so to this day. This look also brought us gothic lolita and sweet lolita as well as influencing visual kei.
Barbie Style (1990s-Early 2000s) Girls all over japan said goodbye to dark hair and snow white skin and said hello to tanning and hair bleach. Inspired by California style, Barbie, and shows like Baywatch. Kogal style came into the scene. The look was very popular among high school girls. Eventually a stigma arose around the term that associated them with a high number of cases were girls would go on dates with rich businessmen in exchange for expensive dinners and designer goods. The code for Kogals looking for a rich businessman was the school uniform and wearing big oversized socks. Because of this, schools started to ban the look from campuses across the country.
Nasty Girls (1993-2002) Tanning became a very popular trend around this time but some girls decided that just being tanned wasn't enough. They took it to another level,with ultra dark skin, bright loud makeup, and colorful hair Ganguro was born. Society viewd them as “dirty”, during this time later tribes such as Yamaba,and Manba were introduced. The Shibuya 109 building became the spot where these outcasts of society would often been seen. In 2002 the tanning boom faded and tanning salons started to shut down, and the look with it. One of the most poplar brands that decided to shut down due to the negative image this tribe gave them was AlbaRosa. However you can still sometimes spot a gal in the streets of Tokyo sporting this look.
Material Girls (Early 2000s-2010s): Gyaru was born after cleaning up what the ganguro and kogals left behind. Girls began to lighten up their skin and become more “acceptable” in the eyes of popular society. Influential figures of this style are Ayumi Hamasaki and Tsubasa Masuwaka. By having dolly-like eyes, a slight tan, high heels, big curled hair, blinged-out nails, and the latest CocoChanel purse you were ready to go on with your day. 2005 to 2012 was the Golden Era for this fashion. Magazines like, Popteen, ViVi, Popsister, Jelly, Ageha, and Egg were booming with business and the ultimate Gal brand, Co&LU, was as well. In 2014 Egg and ageha did their final publication, largely in part due to the style dying out. The era of ultimate girl power and femininity faded.
Rainbow Bright (1990s- Present): An explosion of color came into the subculture when Decora came along. The term comes from decoration and accessories galore that adorned the followers of this trend. From well decorated heads with about 15 hairclips, sometimes more, colorful beads and necklaces, stickers, etc. The more you look like a walking toy store the better. Rumor has it that Shinohara Tomoe, a Japanese artist/singer/fashion designer/producer was a powerful influence in this style due to her flamboyant and kiddie like way of dressing. DokiDoki 6% was also founded in this period and still is a popular brand among teens and young adults. 2008 Spank branched off from Decora, a combination of 80s aesthetics and lots of neons and pastels. Just think about it as if Care Bears, Rainbow Brite, Barbie, My Little Pony, and Trolls got together and had a party. Today it has largely morphed into Fairy Kei a more muted version of what spank was but more (I mean way more) pastel. Decora is still live and well and is one of the most popular styles to this day.
Harajuku Fashion is art, expressive, and a celebration that comes from inside. It's inspiring and it surely is empowering and fearless. Remember to wear what you want, how you want. Wear what makes you happy and take on the world! <3
-Usagi Visual kei sets itself aside as one of Japan’s most unique music movements. It’s well known that visual kei is not a definitive for a set music genre [many different bands play various and differing music genres, but still fall under the umbrella of visual kei]. It is more defined by the unique, androgynous aesthetic of how the costumes, the hair, the makeup, and the attitude collide together to give each band a unique concept that pairs with their music and the image they wish to convey. From years of seeing bands come and go, there are common and reoccurring fashion elements that are seen being adorned by your everyday band members. Various statement pieces and items that you may have noticed that are not unique to any one band. Hair and makeup aside, I’ve compiled a list of fashion trends often seen decorating a visual kei band member. Many of these are the elements that give visual kei the eccentricity that we all know, love, and want to replicate. 1. Facial Covering
We’ve at least seen one musician or another wearing an eyepatch as a statement piece to go with their current style concept. Face covering [eyepatches, faceveils, nosebands, etc.] are often added for a member’s personal image in the band. The best example for this would be Reita, bassist of The Gazette, who is best known for always having his nose covered by a strip of cloth [the noseband]. Another example is seen with Kiryu’s guitarist Takemasa, who is always onstage with a veil that covers his whole face below his eyes. Offstage they carry on the masquerade with facemask as well. One reason this occurs is often due a member’s personal complex about their appearance, which may not appeal to their fans [as tragic as that is]. 2. Silver Jewelry  It’s commonplace to see a visual kei musician covered in silver bling. Silver seems to be quite a common favorite style-wise. You will often see a vk artist wearing several pieces of jewelry, from ring covered hands, brand necklaces and bracelets, and ears covered in silver piercings. One of the most popular and most often seen items worn is Vivienne Westwood jewelry. Honestly, every visual kei musician and their mother own a piece of jewelry with the famous orb symbol of Vivienne Westwood. Other common themes seen in jewelry include crosses, roses, fleur de lis symbols, and heart motifs being showcased. Band members will often be seen worn wearing multiple bracelets, rings on each hand and a statement necklace to pull together the whole look. Other popular jewelry brands worn are Material Crown and Artemis Kings. Sometimes, bands will have jewelry collaborations with brands in which they’ll release a limited edition jewelry line. 3. Articles of Clothing Connected/Covered by Straps and Buckles
Many times, when you take a first glance at a bands look, you may often think that their stylist ransacked a Final Fantasy cosplayer’s closet. Clothing covered in chains, belts, and straps are the bread and butter of a visual kei artist’s onstage costume. One notable example would be the garter pants. Often seen as a staple in the closet of a visual kei fan, these hybrids of thigh-revealing short shorts and flowy leg covers gained notoriety when worn by Guitarist Uruha of The Gazette in their early days. Though often seen as very common place in costuming, band concepts tend to be styled in many unique and various different ways. Thank their stylist! 4. The Transition From Piercings to Tattoos  Without over-exaggerating, every band member has at least one body piercing. Whether it’s just a regular ear piercing or being covered in body piercings such a Royz’s guitarist and his 20+ piercings, it is an everyday staple of the visual kei look. But, a strange correlation is often seen with bands that come into their own and mature. As they find their niche on the market may gradually tone down the flashiness of their looks as they evolve, which includes trading piercings for ink. We can see this with bands that have been around for years that may have left visual kei style such as with Dir en Grey where the vocalist Kyo has gone through vast transformations since their days as a visual kei band, going from numerous piercings to many intricate tattoos. The charm of visual kei that we, the fans, love is how small pieces come to bring together a unique aesthetic that represents the band’s music. With every new single or album, we anticipate their new music and a new look that collide together into one whole. The styles and aesthetics of our favorite bands change and evolve with every new era the go into. It’s a natural occurrence for a band to grow out of the loud aesthetic they debut with as they grow as a band. But, the common aspects of visual kei stay true to these trends. We see reoccurring staples and clothing that can give an individual band member a unique look that stands out, as well as making us, the fans, want to replicate such a look for our own fashion taste.
-Paloma |
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