Two styles that have emerged almost simultaneously are Mori Girl and Dolly Kei. We talked about Mori Girl last a little while ago in this post, but a few commenters rightfully pointed out that some of the outfits we posted could be considered Dolly Kei. Which begs the question: What exactly makes a Dolly Kei outfit? The name doesn’t exactly give us any hints. The word “kei” (系) in Dolly Kei, just means “group” or “style” – and the English word “dolly” could be applied to a large range of styles. So let’s look at some pictures! Click on any to enlarge…
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The thing that strikes me the most is the colour pallete. Unlike Mori Girl’s staple creams and faded browns, Dolly Kei uses a lot of sumptuous jewel tones like ruby red, brilliant gold, deep violet and malachite green. This lends an almost regal air of decadence not seen in Mori Girl, which favours a natural feeling with no emphasis on luxury. The fabrics and materials are themselves more luxurious, with lots of rich velvet, raw silk and delicate embroidery with golden thread. Fabrics that I’ve only ever seen on heavy curtains in English castles are suddenly transformed into beautiful dresses, belted with enormous gold tassles and finished with the tail of a fox!
The look appears almost 100% thrifted, primarily from vintage stores like The Virgin Mary, Tarock, Rosy Baroque, Nude Trump – and of course, the famously gorgeous Grimoire, pictured above. What a treasure trove! (Click here for a great article on Grimoire.)
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Photo on the left © Valerie Fujita.
Another importance element of difference is the strong Northern and Eastern European influence – to me it’s equal parts Romanian gypsy, Russian matryoshka doll and Norwegian bunad. What’s interesting about this is that the wearers are referencing typically working class clothing, but remixing it with such sumptuous gold jewelry and beautifully curled hair that it suddenly looks rich and luxurious.
Makeup, by contrast, is kept simple with a blushed cheek, natural eyes and maybe a slick of red lipstick.
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So what’s your opinion of Dolly Kei? Have you tried it? Would you wear it? Or do you define it differently? Let us know in the comments! <3
I love Dolly-kei more so than Mori but finding the clothes for Dolly-kei can be difficult and there aren’t too many rules (which can be a good thing!) so it can be hard to know what goes with what. I would love to see it spill over to the West more. Gives off that warm fuzzy vibe
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Imogen Reply:
July 27th, 2010 at 12:26 am
I agree! I find vintage shopping to be really difficult these days, now that anything vintage is automatically cool. Having said that, I think some clashing prints would be a good start, with some really OTT accessories like a big belt with a gold buckle. Maybe granny’s got something hidden away you could borrow! :3
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Comment by Jb — July 26, 2010 @ 5:35 pm
To me, Mori Girl is more lived-in, as would be the attire of a girl who lives in the forest. In my opinion Dolly kei has a fresher taste.
Dolly Kei- even if it has the appearance of an antique doll, it is a well preserved doll that has been kept in a glass case. It’s fragile and not a single detail is dulled or downplayed. It has definition and elegance that Mori Girl lacks. It also relies on architecture with clothing- there are a lot of angles, flares, tapers and plays on volume, in the clothes as well as eyemakeup and hair.
Mori girl is comfortable. The looks seems to develop and flow naturally as moss on a tree, not really worrying about key pieces or definition. If there is a highlighted acessory it almost seems like it was emphasized on accident. While it shares the layers of dolly kei, the clothes hang naturally without being forced or exaggerated. The eye travels on a vertical path as if examining a tree or a mushroom, or something else that has naturally manifested from the forest floor.
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Comment by Erica — July 27, 2010 @ 7:35 pm
OMG! I loved Dolly Kei but I had no idea what it was called!
There is a similar style that has taken off here in New Zealand (where I live) And I own quite a few pieces from this style and I am slowly collecting them up. I just thought it was plain doll like vintage, like the sort of thing my porcelain dolls would wear, with colours like that of royalty from the Elizabethan times. It would be TOTALLY AMAZING if you started stocking up on the style! I am looking at buying some of your things in the future and I have been following you guys for quite a while!
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Imogen Reply:
August 6th, 2010 at 10:27 am
Wow I’d love to see some pictures of New Zealand dolly kei girls!! That’s awesome. We really are looking to stock dolly kei type clothing, but since it’s really 100% vintage we are not sure we’ll be very good at scouting it out — let alone compete in that very saturated Market. But it’s on our minds!
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Adelaide Reply:
August 6th, 2010 at 6:02 pm
YAY!! You guys are awesome! When I finally have a fulll outfit I will send you guys some snaps! ^.^
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Comment by Adelaide — August 5, 2010 @ 8:25 pm
gente eu adorei esse site ele é muito legal tem varias coisas novas todos os dias ele é d mais
só que nao entendoo que voces disem por que sou brasileira e voces japoneses ingleses e tudo mais
bjs adoro o sitee
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Comment by emily — December 22, 2010 @ 6:33 am
I love dolly kei, I think it is becomming my top Japanese fashion. I wish I would pull it off, but living in the west I`m not to sure if it would work :/ But I admire the creativity and the individualality
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Comment by Hannah — July 1, 2011 @ 7:18 am