If you’ve never heard of Gothic Lolita, Wikipedia has the broad but somewhat underwhelming definition of a “fashion subculture originating in Japan that is based on Victorian and Edwardian clothing.” When you really dive into the subculture however, you realize just how rich that fashion is. Luxurious coats, frocks, and dresses all dolled up to the nines with bows, frills, and yes… embroidery.
I wanted to touch on Gothic Lolita fashion here, because even thought machine embroidery is certainly making its mark in the fashion world today, Gothic Lolita takes it to a whole different level. Many of the dresses from specialty shops in Japan are just covered with intricate baroque-style stitches that are particularly lush for the commercial machine embroidery world. In this instance, the medium of machine embroidery allows what once used to be a unattainable, expensive embellishment of the Victorian high class to flourish in a whole subculture of mass-produced goods. It makes luxe goods an everyday item for those expressing themselves in the GothicLoli fashion world.
Take a peek at just a few of these lush embroidered items…
via mylolitadress.com
via fanplusfriend.com
via mylolitadress.com
via steampunkstory.com
via lolitadressesshop.com
via ozzon-japan.com
via fanplusfriend.com
If you’re interested in the Gothic Lolita fashion world and how it pertains to embroidery, we did a small piece about it, creating our own designs and outfit.
Really, there is tons to explore, including all kinds of subgroups off this one already intricate fashion culture. As the season turns a little darker, let yourself explore some of the stranger places and fashions machine embroidery might take you!
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Gear Threads is brought to you from the offbeat gals at Urban Threads. Created by illustrator Niamh O’Connor, Urban Threads is revolutionizing machine embroidery one edgy, elegant, innovative, and/or offbeat design at a time. Discover the future of digital stitchery at www.urbanthreads.com.
