FRUiT Flavored Fashion

Japan has great urban fashion, but you don't see a lot of it in Second Life. Kimonos...of course. Anime and cosplay...sure. Neko style is probably the closest to Japanese street fashion, but it is grungier and less eclectic.

For those who are not familiar, there is a thriving subculture among the young people in Tokyo(the Harajuku district in particular) famous for their colorful, over-the-top fashions. This street fashion is chronicled in the magazines such as FRUiTs and Fresh Fruit.

I love Harajuku style but I certainly couldn't pull if off in RL. So... I decided to make it in Second life!

Isn't she lovely?!? I am so proud. Putting this outfit together was actually hard work. But it was so worth it. So, here's the look:

Skin: virgo by BP*- Great Japanese skin for only $L300!!! There are many other styles, so check them out!!
Hair: Boho burgundy by Cake!- I had already chosen a hair for this outfit (which I will blog about later when I write on Japanese designers in SL. I have been sitting on that article for a month at least now. Damn my perfectionism.) Then I happened upon an ad by Canimal that featured this hair and I became manic. I HAD to have it. It was just too perfect. So I emailed Canimal and begged in the forum for someone to PLEASE tell me where it came from. All the while, I am TPing to every decent hair store I can think of trying to find it by accident. This went on for a day. I was desperate and distraught. No hair looked even passable now that I had had a taste of what could be. And then, miraculously, I went to Cake for a completely different reason (socks) and THERE IT WAS! This flexi hair has a perfectly placed beanie that is scripted with 20 different textures. My new favorite hair hands down. Canimal never responded BTW (:-s).
Eyes: Black by BP*- Bettie Page makes a bit of everything and they are all great values. These eyes are darling and have a lovely highlight for that sparkling doe-eyed look.
Black undershirt by me- Inspired by a freebie turtleneck, I needed an undershirt with a similar lolita vibe. So I made it, simple but cute. And every outfit needs a touch of black, right?
Dress: Orange LAME Stripey Jumper by Sh*t Happens- Although many "FRUiTs" wear lolita dresses, I wanted a look that couldn't be mistaken as anything else. I wanted a smock shirt or jumper and Sh*t Happens was the only store that really delivered. The dress reminds me of the first attempts of crafty mothers to DIY a toddlers outfit. And I love that. I wanted something that looked homemade and bright. This dress comes in three lovely colors and they are only $L100 a piece. Nice.
Tights: fruit punch by Sh*t Happens- I had originally wanted striped leggings for this dress, but when everything came together I liked the contrast in patterns throughout the outfit. These leggings are a steal at $L25 for 6 pairs in bright colors.
Legwarmers by Gritty Kitty- Legwarmers were one of the hardest pieces I had to find for this outfit. There are a lot of leggings out there, but classic Harajuku leggings are usually one of two varieties: big poofy paw-like ones and loose fabric tubey ones. The Gritty kitty legwarmers are certainly the first type. You get four set for $L200, which is a pretty good deal. They are big and bulky, but they have great button details as you can see here.

Armwarmers: by Canimal- This are simple, cute arm warmers with little buttons down the side. The set comes with 6 colors and two textures. The plain textured ones are a little plain and flat, but the knit textured ones are nice and understated. The colors are subdued and pleasant.
Gloves: by Sand Surf Shack- These gloves came with the free outfit Urban October that you can purchase at the Gnubie Store for $L1. I thought they were the perfect wild touch.
Shoes: Strap Shoes by ***Angelic Doll***- I got this black pair of shoes for free and they are pretty cute. You can pick up a pack with 3 colors for $10.
Necklace: Inyannyan Choker by [Yuki]- You may know [Yuki] for her feather-soft hair, but she also has a few accessories including this adorable silver kitty choker, I thought it married nicely with the undershirt.
Earrings: Harajuku Girl CHIYO by PuNk Couture- I got these for free during the PuNk Couture clearance sale. There are four girls to choose from and you can mix and match to your hearts content. The images are super cute, but you can only see them from the front.
Umbrella: Ami by *TWEET*- I love this umbrella. It is so cute and cheery. The Pack comes with silver and gold detailed umbrellas and a matching scarf. You can get this umbrella in four lovely colors and it is perfect for a rainy day. *TWEET* seemed like an up-and-coming designer, but there hasn't been a release since 2006. This is a shame since all of her designs are darling and unique.

I submitted my new look in the Second Style Diversity Fashion Challenge. I figure I might not have been traditional enough, but I wanted to showcase diversity within a culture as well as showcasing some of the great Japanese SL designs. You can see my entry here. Normally I would say something like "vote for me!" but voting has been down and I'm not really sure what is going to happen.

In conclusion, I think you can agree that FRUiT-y fashion is quite simply...lovely :-)