When I told people the name of my comic, Confessions of an American Lolita," I got a lot of wry grins and cocked eyebrows and "hmm. Kinky"s. NOTHING could be further from the truth! First off, it has nothing to do with Vladimir Nabokov's novel of the same name. I'm not talking about anything remotely sexual. At ALL. I'm not talking about dressing girls up and exploiting them or anything of that nature. So, what AM I talking about? Elegant Gothic Lolita! Elegant gothic Lolita, or EGL for short, is a street fashion style that takes cues from historical women's and children's wear. There are traces of the tidy Victorian period with its delicate laces and the extravagant Rococo period, with its pearls and bows. I won't go into the history of the Lolita we recognize today, but the modern Lolita stems from ideas set in the 1970s! Lolita's emphasis is on sweet, innocent elegance. While "Gothic" is in the style's title, don't picture a bunch of black-nailed preteens stalking about your local mall in torn-up clothes. The whole point of Lolita is elegance. No matter what the sub-genre, Lolita always must be done in a refined, delicate manner. Lolita is intended to be beautiful- picture an antique porcelain doll. These dolls can either look creepy and haunting, or sweet and innocent. It's no different with Lolita! Lolita style has a very defined silhouette- often likened to a bell or a turned over teacup. Punk, Sweet, or Gothic- near all Lolita sport this shape, with a handful of exceptions. Each piece is painstakingly made with rows of ruffles, tiny pintucks, fine laces, and hand-cramping embroidery. There are bows and pearls and swirls and beautiful, intricate patterns. Petticoats are worn underneath the skirt to give it extra pouf, and bloomers for modesty. Every outfit is painstakingly coordinated with matching accessories like parasols, hairbows, hats, and jewelry. There are literally dozens of Lolita companies, and most Lolita are faithful to their favorite brands. Likewise, there are dozens of sub-genres in Lolita- Gothic, Punk, Sweet, Kuro(black), Shiro(white), Sailor, Pirate, Wa-Loli(Kimono Influence), Deco-Loli(a mix with Decora, another street fashion), just to name a few. Sweet Lolita could use motifs such as cupcakes, candies and toys, and Gothic Lolita might use symbols like crosses, ravens and wrought-iron gates, but they are both Lolita. There are even Boystyles, which tend to emulate a dandy-like look, and EGA, which is a longer, less-cutesy style that resembles fine Victorian ladies and gentlemen. Lolita is at the moment primarily based in Japan, with Japanese companies, very few of whom ship overseas. The major companies such as BABY, the Stars Shine Bright and more recently Angelic Pretty, have started shipping to the US, and some have opened stores in other countries. Because it's a very isolated style, pretty much all Lolita rely on the internet to order their clothes through shopping services, hear news from their favorite brands, and chat and share with other lolita who share the same interests and style. Which brings us to... The Online Lolita community! There are hundreds of Lolita communities on the internet, international communities where Lolita all over the world can meet and chat with each other about their love for the style. The largest Lolita presence, at least on the blogosphere, is EGL. Lolita will come to these communities and share insights to the apparently mythical Lolita Lifestyle of nibbling cakes and being elegant every day, laugh about the media's goofy conceptions of Lolita (Gwen Stefani, we're looking at you), organize regional meet-ups, and most of all, share photos of themselves in their carefully-arranged coordinates. These communities are nearly 99% women, with a handful of boys. Most of them are young, between the ages of 16 and 22. The average age of a Lolita is 18, according to a recent EGL poll. As such, this sometimes makes Lolita communities a literal crucible just waiting to set off. Occasionally a new member of the community, who might be misled by an anime or manga that featured a Gothic Lolita-esque character, will appear wearing an outfit made with very poor quality sewing and materials. Reactions range from a kind Lolita cheerfully offering advice and improvements, to a highly offended Lolita who snaps about the newcomer being wrong, and to leave the community and never come back. In fact, there are entire communities, called "Wank" communities, dedicated to prodding and poking "Ita"-Loli, or "painful" Lolita- Lolita who haven't perfected the style yet. Wank communities do have their place- since often scam artists that con Lolita into bad sales are exposed. The Lolita will sneak off into these communities, often behind the offenders' backs, and gossip eagerly. It is a community like this one that Emily encounters in the first arc of Confessions. Thusly, Lolita have gained a bad reputation online for being vicious and cold. In reality, most Lolita I've encountered, save a handful, have been nothing but the kind, sweet, and fun ladies that they look in their fluffy dresses. For every bad apple there's a dozen pretty flowers! DISCLAIMER!! This is a very, very VERY little nutshell that I've squashed Lolita into- it only gives enough information to understand the comic, really- so if you want more information on Lolita, written by women with probably far more insight than I, Click LINKS for more information and links to the Lolita brands! (C)2007-2008 Lilly Higgs