All of the Lolita dresses are adorned with bows, ruffles and lace. Eyelet lace is used extensively, but not to the exclusion of other laces. Hemlines are invariably trimmed with lace. The dresses vary from knee-length, above-the-knee length, to full-length. They can be sleeveless, have short (usually puffed) sleeves, or they can have long sleeves. Necklines can be high, low, round or square; and some are criss-crossed with ribbon. Petticoats or frilly bloomers are worn underneath the different types of dresses to provide structure. Corsets may be worn to accentuate and define the shape.

Gothic Lolita:

These dresses are characterized by the use of dark-colored fabrics. Black is the predominant color for Gothic Lolita dresses, but purple and dark blue are used also.

Sweet Lolita:

the Sweet Lolita dresses are more child-focused, and emphasize cuteness. They are usually of soft pastel colors, and pink fabric with white lace is particularly popular. Influenced by fairy tales, the designs carry themes that include animals, flowers, and fruit.

Classic Lolita:

The Classic Lolita dress assumes a more mature style, and is the most mainstream of the Lolita dresses. They share the same basic A-line or bell shape common to Lolita dresses, but empire waists are also used. Typically, the colors of the Classic Lolita dress are much more muted, and the patterns on the fabrics are smaller and of greater intricacy. The overall effect is one that is elegant and demure. Sophistication is key to the Classic Lolita dress.

Punk Lolita:
Classic punk elements such as chains and safety pins are vital elements of Punk Lolita dresses. Favorite fabrics are checks and plaids, along with screen-prints. The dresses take on a worn and dishabille appearance.

Princess Lolita:
These are courtly dresses, influenced by 18th-century French/European aristocracy, and usually worn with tiaras. The dresses are characterized by a bustle at the back of the skirt.

The various styles of Lolita dresses can be individualized to suit particular tastes, and many adherents of Lolita Fashion do just that.

Lolita dresses are not fashion statements by and of themselves. The choice of accessories is an important consideration, as is the hairstyle and make-up (if worn). The type of dress usually determines the choice of accessories and hairstyle.

Official Site：http://www.babyssb.co.jp/

Style：Sweet lolita

Introduction：Since movie: Shimotsuma monogatari acted by Kyoko Fukada and Anna Tsuchiya got really hot, BABY has become a well-known Lolita dress brand. Because the style belongs to the most fantasy and gorgeous Sweet lolita series, so BABY is the most wanted Japanese brand for the girls who first get into the lolita world。

☆Angelic Pretty☆

Official site：http://www.angelicpretty.com

Style：Sweet lolita

Introduction：AP style is the same as BABY Sweet lolita series. quite a lot of designs are styled “Alice”. In recently year the creativity of design is getting better and better,  and have a obvious trend to catch up with BABY.

☆Mary Magdalene☆

Official site: http://www.marymagdalene.jp/

Style：Classic lolita

Introduction：One of my most love brands, also a famous Japanese lolita dress brand for classic style. Its design combine noble and sweet especially is favored by lolita girls in west counties. Just look at the accessories, you know the level of dresses will be superior.

Lolita Fashion originated in Japan and is heavily influenced by clothing from the Victorian age. This fashion first began in the 1980′s in Japan and gradually it’s influence is expanded all around the world. More and more young women in the Europe and America like to wear Lolita dress and discussion is the hot on the internet.

Gothic Lolita is getting the most attention in the west where many people consider it equals Lolita fashion while it is only as a subset of the whole Lolita fashion family. Just like other fashions, Lolita dress has variety of styles, like Gothic Lolita, Sweet Lolita, Punk Lolita, Elegant Gothic Lolita etc. Each style has their own feature but don’t have clear border.

The word “Lolita” became famous thanks to the novel from Vladimir Nabokov that describes an unethical relationship between an old man and a young minor girl with name ‘Lolita”. Japanese borrowed it from English and use it to refer to child-like, cute nature of clothing or a girl. Lolita Fashion should be emphatically about looking cute instead of about sexual meaning.

Beside the name of a fashion, someone would like to live a Lolita style life in which Lolita is regarded as a philosophy of living rather than a dress style. Some people enjoy living in Lolita life style usually try to think themselves never grow up and live like a princess, use beauty stuff to decorate themselves, and doing a lot of feminine activities like sewing, embroidery and baking and the like.

Gothic advocator love to wear dress layer by layer, from corselet to waistcoat，from coat to cloak, equipped with jewelry all around.

If take the recent Paris fashion show of autumn and winter as an image, that’s a dark night goddess: dead white skin, bloody eye contact with white or blood-red or dark black, shape line, simple fabrics, high neckline’s single color gown, it feels fully  abstinency, stately and grim of victory era( while lace, ribbon, bowknot and girdle is popular to show the noble and elegance of women).

Gothic dresses aim to give people a feeling of mystery and noble, and usually couples with accessories with religion implications, like cross to form an atmosphere of cold beauty.

Gothic is always related to vampire, I especially like the actor dresses in the the movie: “Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles”, I smell the Gothic all through the movie.

As the name stated, classic lolita is the most elegance series in all lolita dresses. Its design likes the noble young women in Britain of 19th century, not only classic and elegance but also pure and sweet.

Classic lolita uses pure color for cloth mainly also, but it must be simple and elegant, can’t be glare. Other than white,black, pink, blue the four basic colors, all kind of beautiful flower-patterned cloth are also favored choice of Classic lolita.

Different from Sweet lolita, besides of classic lace, classic lolita rarely uses lots of ordinary shape and general quality lace. On cloth where lace is used, Classic lolita will replace lace with fold of same cloth material.

In a word, Classic Lolita dress is not simple but conciseness. Because style is generous and elegance, its more suitable than other lolita dresses to wear in ordinary life and more acceptable by parents and folks. When young girls are tired of exaggerated Sweet lolita and unusual Gothic lolita, Classic lolita will sure become their obligatory and final choice.

Its interesting to know that those who can express most temperament of Classic lolita is not the middle shcool grils but the young mature women who are over 20 with work and life experience.

Representative brand: Mary Magdalene, Victorian maiden, JULIETTE JUSTINE

I fall in love  with the lolita coats when I saw them first time. This really can be called elegant and aristocratic. Image in the cold winter, you wear such a coat, thats should be warm and looks nice! But Mary’s dresses are very very expensive, each cost hundreds of dollars.

Be ware to buy cheap replicate from online stores other than official site, many of them are just ripped off or of shitty quality.