I was looking through the Electric Alice stock room the other day and noticed that on one of the t-shirts and bows there was a picture of a teddy… the exact teddy I was given as a baby. It was then I realised that my haggard, old, pink teddy was actually a Popples!
So of course I used trusty google to find out everything about my, now vintage, Popples. Here’s what I found: Popples are a group of colorful, furry creatures that posses the unique ability to ‘POP’ from a furry ball to a cute and cuddly character.
Original Popples include: PC (Pretty Cool) Popple, Party Popple, Pancake Popple, Puzzle Popple, Prize Popple, Puffball Popple, Pretty Bit Popple, Potato Chip Popple and Putter Popple. (I see they like their alliteration!)
Popples are enjoying a huge comeback in Japan right now, since their cute retro vibe and pretty pastel colours match perfectly with the recent Fairy-kei trend. 6% Doki Doki is leading the way with their exclusive collaboration items, but you can also find loads of real vintage Popples toys in the Harajuku Nile Perch store, as well as cheap Popples stickers and stationary in stores like Kiddy Land.
And to round out this little tour through the world of Popples, here is the opening to the official cartoon from the 80s. Enjoy! =D
Do have a Popples?? Or have kept something for eons, never knowing what it was?? Let us know in the comments!
What’s the most random/quirkiest/nicest comment you have had when wearing street styles, especially Lolita?
At Electric Alice we celebrate all kinds of street styles, but based on personal experience, it’s the sweeter styles that attract the most attention. But why is that exactly?
Lisa: I always get little old ladies saying ‘you look darling!’ and I once had a convenient store clerk say ‘you should be in movies’. I wasn’t sure what type of movies he was referring to but obviously took this as a compliment. Also I get little girls just staring; I don’t like children so this freaks me out…
Imo: I agree, it’s always the grannies who are the most forthcoming with compliments! Just the other day I had an elderly woman approach me at Berkeleow so she could say: “Excuse me dear, I’m sorry, I just want to read what’s written on your little bow! Oh… Angelic Pretty. How lovely! It’s nice to see someone with the courage to wear interesting things.” I’ve also had really tiny children ask if I’m a fairy princess. Some people do stare at you rudely, but most just seem genuinely interested. What really blows me away is how people seem to think candy colours, frills, bows and super-girly prints are weird, but not look twice at a hardcore punk, goth, emo or raver. In a way I kind of like it! Now that wearing “rebellious” fashion has become mainstream, covering yourself up and being hyper-cute feels like the new way to rebel!
Tulle, Tulle, Tulle… I don’t follow a lot of runway fashion, but every now and then something will catch my eye. This time it was Viktor + Rolf’s Spring and Summer collection ‘Credit Crunch Couture’ and their obvious emphasis on tulle.
I am a lover of tulle. Without tulle I wouldn’t have my beloved petticoats and my dresses would be flat, ballerinas would just be wearing tights and half the clothes I own would only have a top half.
Viktor and Rolf’s Summer Collection contrasts tulle, leather and crystals giving the collection an edgy elegance. The garments look like they’ve been attacked with a machete, leaving little holes where you could hide a hello kitty. The mixture of pastel pinks, soft blues and creamy yellows are complimented with crystals, making the clothes look almost candy-like. The concept is supposed to imply the impact of the financial crisis on fashion… but all I see is My Little Pony!
Okay, so I’ve posted enough pictures of me wearing thatsameMonomaniasweater, so I figured I’d get my head around the brand and its style a little better. That’s when it hit me: what on earth IS this style, anyway!?
Searching the faithful Tokyo New Tribe style listings revealed no matches – and yet the look seems so familiar. So typically Japanese. It’s got the cute prints, the oversized garments, the sense of whimsy, the bold colours… it just doesn’t seem to have a name. Personally, I feel there’s something in this look that comes from American Hip Hop style, what with the big shiny prints, the baggy shapes, the chains and the box-fresh sneakers. There also seems to be an element of the French New Rave look that popped up a couple of years ago, back when acts like Justice, Klaxons and Sneaky Sound System were massive. (Remember the fluoro, the all-over prints and all those endless endless Christopher Kane knock-offs? It took General Pants MONTHS to give up on that look.)
Well, whatever we call it, I like it. It’s got a refreshing edginess that you just don’t get from Lolita or Fairy-kei and comfortable modern shapes you can’t find in gothic or punk – all without losing the free spirit of Japanese street style.
Do you like this look? Tell us what you’d name it!
With perhaps – and I mean perhaps – the exception of Anna Sui and Luella, Betsey Johnson is the only high fashion designer who consistently parades bright, bold, frilly, whimsical and wonderfully feminine designs on the runway. She one of the only designers who lets her models do it with a happy smile – heaven forbid they look like they’re actually enjoying their clothes! And she’s certainly the only designer who’s 67 and famous for doing a cartwheel at the end of her shows!
(Click on the thumbnails to enlarge)
I’ve never been a huge fan of runway fashion. The price of the average garment is an obvious obstacle, but wearability is the other main issue. I’ve always noticed Betsey because she designs things I’d actually want to wear. Things that you’d be noticed for wearing. Things that remind me of the irreverence of Tokyo street style. She doesn’t seem to design to be avant-garde or patted on the back by her contemporaries – which I think has something to do with the fact that she’s never sold out to a large corporation. She’s not tied to the look of an old-fashion “house” like Chanel, so she can create what’s really in her heart.
But that’s just me. Do you guys follow any runway designers? If so, who? And, this is probably one of those chicken-and-egg questions, but do you think runway fashion is more or less valid than street fashion as a barometer of style? Or in other words, which comes first: the streets or the runway?
