Harajuku Girls: A Guide to Tokyo Fashion
I named this blog post after Gwen Stefani’s song that I’ve been obsessed with since I was in high school! I love Japanese pop culture, and Gwen’s ska music always resonated with me. It’s been a dream of ours to go to Japan, and I’m so thankful it finally happened!
Following recovery from jet lag, I wanted to see what the girls in Tokyo were wearing. What’s their style? After noticing their street styles I was ready to shop!
Shopping in Tokyo was a dream! It reminded me of shopping before fast fashion online shopping really took off. Shopping in Japan, just like everything else, is an intentional event.
After the first day of being there I quickly realized that I overpacked and wished I had brought several other wardrobe options.
Things I wish I brought with me to Tokyo:
Along wool coat because all the women wear them in all sorts of colors usually at the length of the calf or ankle. You will see many more dressy coats than you will casual. I also wish I brought a long coat in another color other than black. The Tokyo girls dress very stylish and they don’t wear black on black. They know how to color coordinate. Though I do personally love black on black, I believe that it takes a level of sophistication when styling to put different colors together. All of their coats are really beautiful and a wide variety of neutral colors with ties around the waist. Some of the colors I noticed were tan, blush, olive, and blue. I’m inspired next year to get a coat in blue.
Bringing my blush colored sneakers would’ve been nice in addition to my new balance sneakers (which a lot of women had on surprisingly in the color grey that I have). Non-athletic looking sneakers would’ve been more versatile with the dressier clothes that I bought in Tokyo. However, you’ll find women in new balance sneakers with a long denim skirt, and it looks pulled together! It was difficult to find my size shoe in Japan because I wear a 39 and Japanese women are smaller on average than American women. I’ll expand more on sizing below.
I also wish I brought some flat and comfortable boots. We walked miles every day, and while I have comfortable over the knee suede ones, I couldn’t wear those for days at a time. I was very impressed with the Tokyo women though and the way that they walk all over town in all kinds of shoes and heels!
Shopping in Harajuku:
We started in Harajuku because it’s been a dream of mine to be one with the Harajuku girls. Harajuku is cute and trendy! There are lots of cardigans, accessories like bows and belts, short skirts, and platform shoes with rhinestones! The style reminded me of what the girls wear in anime, and it’s also fairly affordable. A cardigan might be $20 or so, and I bought a few pieces that make me feel very much like Misa Amane. :D
Shopping in Ginza:
Next I went to Ginza, which is an area of Tokyo known for the best and the finest shopping. Ginza Six is the department store with luxury brands. I found a hat shop called CA4LA, and sock shop called Tabio. Both stores had me really excited—gorgeous hats and socks in all different colors and fabrics. Something else that made me happy to see was that people were actually shopping in these small stores! There were lots of customers. I notice that when I shop in other locations such as in the US the stores are kind of dead, especially in a shop dedicated only to socks.
The saleswoman at Tabio looked beautifully put together and since I wanted to shop where the locals shop I asked where she buys her clothes… Lumine!
I arrived at Lumine before the store opened and I waited outside with the locals! Everyone bows upon entrance into the store in the morning. It was quite a sight to see this ritual and so fascinating to experience the level of respect that everyone had for the store and for each other.
I hope to visit Tokyo again and go back to Lumine. Japanese brands are so damn chic! The stores had new Spring collections showing oversized tops, dresses and skirts— lots of layers on layers of clothing, such as vests, blazers over long tops. Commission didn’t seem like it existed (even if it does) because I did not feel pressured to make a purchase at any store. All of the salespeople are so kind, helpful, polite, and also gracious when you buy any items.
There were lots of trousers and boot cut pants with looser silhouettes. I saw women wear lose clothing like this all around Japan. Most of the heels are 2-3 inches tall and very sensible for running around town. Elegant and lovely are words that come to mind when I saw these outfits.
I bought a few of these styles from Lumine and discovered that my favorite brand in Tokyo is Adam Et Ropé! They have a great mix of classic and trendy looks.
Walking around Tokyo, I also noticed that women don’t really show their ankles. I don’t know if that’s because of winter, but I was the only one sometimes with ankle cleavage. They also wear stockings underneath their long skirts I guess for more warmth. If they are showing their legs with a short skirt they wear skin colored tights. This seemed pretty smart to keep legs warm.
Shopping in Osaka:
We took the bullet train from Kyoto to Osaka one day where we went to the department store Parco. This store was similar to Lumine with tons of floors (12-13). Osaka was not as cosmopolitan as Tokyo but it was close! I really didn’t notice much fast fashion in Japan. The clothes are high quality but affordable! It makes sense and aligns with the belief systems of the culture (the longer we explored Japan, the more we found that people are intentional in everything that they do.) They have a great level of respect for other people, animals, food, products, and jobs. They don’t believe in wasting things. They are purposeful with their actions and quite thoughtful. They don’t rush, rather they move through life with grace. Japan has the perfect mix of traditional and modern ways.
Some other interesting things I noticed about shopping in Japan:
Before you enter the dressing rooms you must take off your shoes. This is the same custom practiced nearly everywhere in Japan including the inside of hotel rooms and even some restaurants.
The checkout process takes a bit of time. Again, there is no sense of urgency really. They wrap everything so well and if there is a new piece of the clothing items you are purchasing in the back room they give that one to you so you don’t have to buy the one on the floor that everyone tries. They tape each bag closed and walk you all the way out of the store to bow and say goodbye.
Sizing is so interesting in Japan. Everything is a lot smaller overall. Roughly 99% of the shoes I asked to try on didn’t come in my size or were sold out. Tops are generally size F which is one size fits all, and the bottoms usually come in sizes small, medium, and large.
You will never see people walking around in athletic attire unless they are on a run. People are always dressed up a little bit (think dressy casual or business casual) and even to shop. I noticed minimal makeup and sometimes glitter eye shadow and bedazzled nails. Most women had crossbody bags and also wore a crossbody phone case. I assume to have one’s phone accessible without having to reach into a bag? Gwen was right when she said their accessories are dead on!
Kimono fashion:
I had the opportunity to dress in a kimono and have my hair done just like the women in Japan. It was an amazing experience and so special. We saw Japanese women of all ages wear kimonos to temples and also to take formal pictures outside. I noticed they would wear a fur collar around their neck while it was cold outside and rather than the kimono sandals, they wore small boots. Apparently the sandals are not comfortable and the boots look stylish. Again, so chic! Their hair accessories are also elegant with flowers and pearls that weave amongst their braids. I loved seeing the hard work that goes into putting a kimono on because I didn’t realize how many layers were involved and the tradition behind it.
