[art] Gyaru fashion freebie zine

 Check out my blog post below on making a diy gyaru zine for a girly y2k fashion market! I did 2 illustrations for it, the rest are photos and images online.

 https://starsbegantofall.com/2026/07/04/art-gyaru-freebie-mini-zine/

[coord] Cyber Neon Girl - summer ILD 2026

Finally posted my summer ILD art market tripletting coord, Cyber Neon Girl jsk in the black colorway from Metamorphose Temps de Filles! Only my fellow lolitas can understand that sentence completely, maybe, lol. Check out my blog for my rundown of this coord, and yes that's Steve Buscemi Starscream on my bag.

 

 https://starsbegantofall.com/2026/06/26/fashion-cyber-neon-girl-for-summer-ild/ 

[diy] upcycled Larme-kei Liz Lisa dupe from shirt

Now for a thrift-flip or upcycle of a regular men’s shirt into a cute larme or girly style skirt inspired by Liz Lisa and Otome no Sewing! Check my blog post below for the details of how I made this skirt.

 

https://starsbegantofall.com/2026/06/17/fashion-liz-lisa-larme-skirt-upcycle-from-a-shirt/ 

[diy] Otome no Sewing white ruffle skirt

For my last project for Me-Made May I also finished a five year old white ruffle underskirt from Otome no Sewing! But I don't have a dress or skirt to wear with it, oh darn, guess I'll have to make a new one!

 Check the link below for more details. 

https://starsbegantofall.com/2026/05/25/fashion-ruffle-underskirt-from-otome-no-sewing-volume-16/

[diy] Misako Aoko sewing hair accessories

 Oops, I forgot to post my latest projects for Me-Made May this year! I made a blog post about 2 new sewing projects from Misako Aoki’s sewing book volume 1 (reviewed here), a pair of hairbows and a beret! Please check out the post below for more details on how I made these items.

 

 

https://starsbegantofall.com/2026/05/14/fashion-misako-aoki-sewing-book-hair-accessories/

 

 

[review] Bonnets and Sweet Tea southern US lolitas zine - recipe and sewing pattern!

 I received my pre-order of the Bonnets and Sweet Tea – Lolitas of the South zine published in 2025 and I am excited to share my thoughts on this cute little zine and the apron sewing pattern and the recipe that came with it.

 Check out the blog post link below for more, including a review of the apron sewing pattern included with the zine! 

Bonnets and Sweet Tea zine!

 https://starsbegantofall.com/2026/04/16/zine-fashion-food-bonnets-and-sweet-tea-zine-and-apron-and-recipe-review/

 

 

[diy] handmade lolita and gyaru on shop!

 Make sure to check out my blog and also etsy and ko-fi for handmade lolita and gyaru clothing and accessories! I had fun using up cute fabrics from my stash to practice making stuff for my atelier and I'm offering a few of those items on my shops. I have about 3 more fabrics I want to make stuff with, so keep an eye out the next 2 months!

 

 https://starsbegantofall.com/2025/10/12/shop-etsy-re-opened-with-actual-sewn-stuff/

 

https://starsbegantofall.com/2025/10/23/fashion-handmade-lolita-set/ 

[diy] Otome astrology blouse

 Finally finished this blouse after 2 years! I started on this otome peter pan collar blouse using this cool quilting cotton from Joann's but gave up halfway because the fabric was too stiff/scratchy. Then I decided to finish it 2 years later for an easy win. Still not sure if it's wearable, but I got some practice into making blouses and decided that was good enough. Check out more in my blog post below!

https://starsbegantofall.com/2024/04/17/fashion-diy-otome-otona-kawaii-astrology-map-blouse/

[DIY] satin Juliette et Justine classic lolita handmade dress

 Now for the actual entry for the #literally20dollarlolita challenge on Tumblr, working on my stash of fabrics that I've hoarded for years. I've always wanted a dress from Juliette et Justine but my waist measurement is too big and most of the dresses that pop up on Lacemarket don't have shirring, also expensive and not the design I want. Here I'm replicating the typical classical painting dress with this beautiful satin print fabric of butterflies and roses that really have no other use and I probably wouldn't wear any other way. Check the full construction blog entry of the dress (plus hairbow) at my domain!

https://starsbegantofall.com/2024/02/24/fashion-satin-dress-for-literally20dollarlolita-challenge/

[diy] Barbie skirt revamp of a refurbish?

 Continuing from my previous post several months ago about the Barbie skirt for the Barbie lookbook, here is a post about how I can possibly do this skirt justice. So far, no good ideas, but if you guys have any, let me know, please!

https://starsbegantofall.com/2024/02/15/fashion-barbie-retro-shirley-temple-skirt-revamp-ideas/

[DIY] otome no sewing sew-along - donuts!

 Mmmm donuts...

Check out the sewalong post of my "We have Angelic Pretty Melty Cream Donut at home" dress!

https://starsbegantofall.com/2023/09/13/fashion-otome-no-sewing-donut-op-dress-sewalong/

 

[DIY] re-fashion and altering Meta Jewel Leopard jumperskirt

 Posted originally at my domain.

 

https://starsbegantofall.com/2023/07/23/j-fashion-re-fashion-and-altering-meta-jewel-leopard-jumperskirt/

I dunno if anyone is actively following this blog, but if you still are, I recommend also following the blog at my domain starsbegantofall.com for lengthier J-fashion posts, such as this "sew with me" post on how I made a low-waist jumperskirt dress with broken zipper into a top and skirt combo that is not as tight!

Stay tuned for worn photos... whenever... It's hot here, okay?

[diy tutorial] Precious Bbyz cutsew from a regular t-shirt how-to

 I was feeling inspired and generous watching thrift flips on Insta/Youtube and I attempted a lolita style cutsew tutorial for you that is doable and not nonsense. If you have a t-shirt with a cute print that you  don't want to wear as a baggy unisex shirt anymore, this is an easy tutorial for you to dress it up but still be comfortable (unlike some lolita fashion cutsews ahem.)

Materials:

- a unisex short sleeve t-shirt that fits across the torso but is too long (from Precious Bbyz!)

-1/8 or 1/4 inch elastic (depends on your sleeve hem)

-thread, a regular sewing machine (no serger/overlock needed), pins, scissors, ruler

Steps:

First, get your t-shirt that fits you across the shoulders and bust, but is too long. This is not a resizing tutorial despite some shirring in the back so it does have to mostly fit already.

Mark where the shirt hits at your natural waist and add an inch (for lolita) or crop it up higher or lower if you want. The cut-off portion will make your ruffle so you want at least 4.5 inches cut off at the bottom (to make a 2 inch ruffle as in my shirt). Also carefully cut off the ribbed collar at the neck, that can be thrown away. Cut off the very bottom hem close to the double-stitching line to use as binding for the new collar.

Cut the cut-off bottom portion in half lengthwise to make 2 long tubes of cloth. Then cut the tubes apart at one end and sew the short ends right sides together to make one very long strip. This is your ruffle, proceed to hem one edge (because you cut off the original hem already) by folding over once. Since knits don't really fray, you don't need to fold over twice, I prefer it folded once so the material retains its flexibility.

For the collar, we are using the original bottom hem as the new collar to replace the ribbed collar we cut out.  You do need to finish the neckline so it doesn't stretch out and curl and get worn down, and the bottom hem which could not be used in the ruffle is perfect for this.  You can use the hem as is and just sew it on the collar right sides together, then press the collar up and topstitch the seam allowance down, just make sure you stretch the collar while sewing to keep the collar lying smooth against your collarbones (that was my first mistake lol). Alternatively, you can use my method to "neatly" cover the unfinished edge.  Undo the stitching on the original bottom hem and unfold it so you have a long strip of fabric with a fold down the length, which is now your makeshift bias binding. For either collar option, measure the length of your new widened neckhole and decrease it by 90% and then add seam allowance overlap of one-half inch, and cut the bottom hem to that length, and most importantly, make sure to evenly stretch only the collar as you sew it to the body of the shirt. If you're using my bias binding method, sew right sides together of your makeshift bias binding to the collar, then fold over using the original fold as a guide, then stitch in the ditch from the front to secure the back of the binding to the shirt. Note, you do not need to fold the back of the binding again like you do with wovens because knit fabric won't fray, hooray.

For the sleeves, you want to puff the sleeves for a lolita style cutsew, but since the shirt mostly fits you, the sleeve isn't big enough to make a truly gargantuan puffy sleeve. But I like to use the hem of the sleeve as a casing for elastic and this does add a little puff to your sleeve. The same as in my previous tutorials, I cut small slits on the inner sides of the sleeve hem right by the seam and then thread a thin elastic (I used 1/8 inch elastic from Daiso back when I made masks that are now no longer recommended) through the hem and then sew the elastic ends together. The elastic should fit comfortably around your bicep when flexed, and since the original sleeve is a little wider than that, there should be a small bit of puff when you finish.

Back to the peplum ruffle, gather the ruffle in your preferred way and pin to your shirt bottom hem right sides together. Sew down with a straight stitch. Flip your ruffle down the correct way, press the seam allowances up and topstitch the seam allowances to the blouse. This will keep your ruffle from flipping up while wearing. You can also overlock/zigzag the unfinished ruffle edges but if you topstitched, you won't need to since it won't fray past the topstitching.

Finally, if you want the fit to be a little more fitted, but don't want to mess with cutting up the sides of the shirt, you can add a little shirring elastic on the back. This will only take in the width by one or two inches, though.  Mark where you want the shirring on the shirt. Cut a piece of thin elastic that is at least once inch shorter than between those markings. Pin one end of elastic at your marking and you can start sewing it down while you pull the elastic to meet the other marking. Don't stretch the fabric, only stretch the elastic.

 

You're done! Now you have a cute top that is perfect to wear with jeans or shorts or lolita skirts, with a breezier neckline and cute girlish details. I purposely made this cutsew to highlight the print and be comfortable and easy to wash and use no other materials, so no elaborate ribbons or fake collars like in my previous cutsew tutorials. But you could easily make a square neckline and add ribbons to tie across like the old-school lolita styles, just make sure you have enough of the bottom hem saved to bind the neckline. You could forgo the peplum ruffle and sew the ruffle to the sleeves instead, or use the cut off scraps to make ribbons or bows. So many options, all comfortable and relatively easy to do.

If you have an overlocker or serger, and an actual twin needle or elastic stitch setting on your machine, you can get much more professional results than my regular machine, but since the new neckline should be big enough to fit over your head and the waist doesn't need to stretch too much, a regular straight stitch works.

If you want to see the very speeded-up video tutorial, check my instagram reel here!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by t nguyen (@atelierinsomniel)

 

The reason I made this refashion was because I didn't like the cotton fabric of this shirt. It's a beautiful color and quite thick, but it's scratchy to me and the huge print makes it not great for sleeping in. But I wasn't going to throw away a shirt from an indie lolita artist, so I experimented on it for making this tutorial. I'm so happy with the results, this is cute, relatively easy to do (once I realized my collar mistake and redid it), and doesn't have the fussy details of other cutsews. I'm eager to refashion other cute printed tees into cutsews now!

[coord, diy] Otome no Sewing qi lolita top and accessories

Heyo, this was supposed to be my March sewing project to work on during my vacation, but it was a bit more complicated than I expected and I just finished in early May lol. This coral gold-foil brocade fabric was leftover from my robe a la francaise inner layers. I bought a hefty yardage from Aliexpress thinking I could make the outer gown from it, but it was so bright and orange and stiffer than expected, I had my doubts, so I pivoted to making just the bodice and inner petticoat skirt from this fabric. I had a bunch leftover, especially from the edges where the floral printing blurred, and since it was technically from China and meant for cheongsam/qipao or furniture, why not challenge myself to make a qi lolita outfit? How hard could it be? I made a qipao like dress from a commercial Western pattern before, and I sewed a hanfu costume myself.

It was hard! Should have expected that lol.

I used a pattern from Otome no Sewing volume 16. In case you aren't familiar with Otome no Sewing, they have patterns for all of their more complex pieces technically printed in the pattern paper, but you have to combine different dress patterns and make a few adjustments on your own for the variations. The qi lolita top is actually a variation on an old school a-line dress pattern, we're just adding a fake side closure for the frog knot closures and drafting a mandarin high collar instead of peter pan collar, then attaching a ruffle peplum at the waist.

You may wonder, what is difficult about sewing this top? First off, installing a zipper is always hard for me. Secondly, without any shirring, it required tailoring to fit my body and it still is a little loose. Thirdly, the fabric is a slippery jacquard brocade that frays when you glance at it. Finally, the directions do not provide for a very clean finish, especially when you're like me and don't measure out seam allowances to the millimeter.

But I persevered, even sewed a lining for the bodice and finished most of the seams by hand. It may not be the most attractive top, the important thing is I tried out some new techniques and it will not fall apart readily. The hair bun covers are also from the same Otome no Sewing mook, the hairbow (not pictured) was made from a Gothic Lolita Bible.

[top, hair bun covers, bows: handmade; skirt, shoes: Bodyline; socks: Metamorphose; earrings iconografi; rings: BisouLovely, off-brand]

As you can see by the photo, the fit isn't tailored through the waist, I could have taken an inch in from the back all the way up. The model in the mook had a slightly loose boxy fit as well, but when you think qipao, you think very nipped in and figure-skimming, so the looseness doesn't match my vision. Also, the zipper was 2 inches short, so the collar is flaring out a little rather than hugging my neck. That's okay, though, since the gold lace I used was extra scratchy. (I did have other gold laces but they were a muted antique gold which would not complement the bright brassy gold in the print.) If you look closely at the cuffs and collar, you can see where I struggled to make a clean outside finish due to the slipperiness and fraying of the fabric - top stitching crooked, lace sticking out unevenly. From a distance, it looks fine though, it's fine.

I didn't have enough fabric left for a matching skirt obviously, so I just made two embellished bows to pin to this plain cotton bodyline skirt. This was not an easy color to work with, not sure how I could have made a more coherent coord with only scraps left and not buying anymore fabric. However, this photo of me with the braided hair loops and bun covers is just very cute! I appreciated this challenge and am now browsing to see if my Hello Kitty sewing machine has a zipper or ruffler foot to make the difficult steps easier lol.

Would I make something like this again? Probably not. I don't really see an occasion for me to wear this (or honestly any lolita) out and about, but since it's a shirt, I can imagine myself wearing it with jeans actually, that might be very stylish!

Some people, probably not you, but some people, may ask, is it proper and acceptable for non-Chinese people to wear qi lolita, or non-Japanese people to wear wa-lolita? I already answered this previously. The first part of the answer is, if you can easily buy it officially from the makers who are of said culture (assuming you have the funds of course), then it was meant to be sold to you and you can wear it. Therefore, qi and wa lolita can be worn by non-Asians, there's nothing sacred or private about it, they stock it at the American and European shops. Now, are you wearing the dress respectfully and at an appropriate time and place? That will be the final piece of the answer and depends directly on you and the environment that you are in, which is different for each lolita.

That's all from me.  Summer is already here in Texas and I am reluctant to wear lolita when it's broiling outside, but I do have 2 more lolita sewing projects and a few accessories I want to make (a hooped petticoat skirt for summer for starters). As for this blog, I am trying to find a way to integrate all my blogs into my own domain but blogs aren't as troublesome as social media, so moving this fashion blog is not a huge priority, it's more getting away from twitter or instagram (already ditched facebook).

Oh wait, here is a photo of the outfit with the hairbow, forgot I took one. If you click through, you can see I added a cherry blossom charm from Daiso and beads and gold brass charms to the bows, so cute! Ignore the droopy skirt lol.

[coord] revamp lucky pack dress and lovecore outfit

Today I'm bringing you a Valentine's/Galentine's lovecore coord salvaged from a 2021 lucky pack dress from Long Ears Sharp Ears, a Taobao brand from China. I already showed off the qi-lolita dress from that same lucky pack last year and finally got around to fixing up this jumperskirt so I can wear it this year. 

Here is the before photo, the left photo includes all the accessories that came with the jsk in the lucky pack: 2 hair clips, a choker, 2 wristcuffs. The chest bow, waist ribbons and overskirt are not detachable.

This is an adorable print of castles and keys and bunnies and kittens, labeled "the Lock of Heart," but what makes this a true lucky pack item in the tradition of Japanese lolita brand lucky packs is the mish mash of various fabrics and trims likely gathered from leftover stuff in the warehouse and/or a design they clearly nixed for production. Nothing wrong with that, I love the qi lolita dress I got even though it was missing a skirt/belt that was part of the set for sale. But this red jsk I just couldn't love, too much going on, and I didn't feel like I could resell it as is either. So I pulled out the scissors this year and did some cutting, to at least get some cute photos out of it if I can't ever sell it. This is my first major alteration of a brand (albeit a lucky pack item from a Taobao brand), as I never did get around to fixing the zipper of my Meta dress.

What do you think of this after photo?  Much better now, in my opinion. I took out the shiny holographic ribbon from the choker and hair clips, left the wrist cuffs alone, and cut out the shiny lace overskirt and Frankensteined chest bow.  I tried to remake the chest bow with just the red fabric and key charm and a strip of white lace, but the bow part was made of 2 sewn rectangles instead of a properly sewn tube, so it could not be rescued into any bow-like creation and then I broke the pin I sewed onto it.  I gave up by that point, it was not destined, lol.  Now I like the idea of lace overskirts, but sometimes they obscure a perfectly good print underneath, which was the case in this dress. Also the lace used for the overskirt was a weird green-tinted gold lace that did not go with the reds and pinks and blues on the print. There is still a hint of the holographic ribbon in the shoulder straps and the back corset lacing, but I was not going to unpick the straps to remove it.

[jumperskirt, choker, wristcuffs, hairclips: Long Ears Sharp Ears; blouse: Innocent World; hairband: Liz Lisa; necklace: Angelic Pretty; socks: Baby the Stars Shine Bright; shoes: Sosic Shop; ring: Metamorphose; earrings, ring, jacket, purse: offbrand, Shojomonsta]

And here is a lovecore Valentine's themed coord I put together just for kicks. I think I'm going to sell this wig as it doesn't look good with my skin tone and the wig cap part is too small for my giant head, so you can see my hairline underneath. I guess I could wear this if I did go to a Valentine's meet, red and pink are always on point, and while there isn't much lovey going on in the print, the keys do represent the key to your heart according to the print name lol.  Anyway, even with all the wonkiness of the wig and wild hairclips contrasting with my tired face, I do like this set of photos and felt the half hour spent cutting away the extra fabric was worth it! 

[coord] follow-up worn photos of Otome no Sewing jsk

This is a follow-up post to my original sewing post about my second Asian-inspired handmade jsk from Otome no Sewing, now worn on an actual human body! I do this because the cut/drape of the actual clothing is slightly different than on a mannequin or on the floor. Again, very comfortable due to the high waist, if not super flattering, and easy to coordinate with just some floral kanzashi hair combs and hair sticks. 

Jsk, brooch: handmade; blouse: yesstyle; tights, necklaces: forever 21; shoes, fan, earrings, hair combs: taobao; rings, bracelet, hair stick: bisoulovely, handmade, off brand, etsy

Without diving too deep, the print is generic enough to classify as either wa-lolita (traditional Japanese) or qi-lolita (traditional Chinese), no hard evidence that lolita is popular enough in Korea or Vietnam or other Asian countries to warrant a substyle term. There is a very high likelihood this print was designed in America (the midWest if the selvage print is correct) so differentiation between 2 different Asian cultures was not expected or needed for the target audience. For example, all motifs present can be found in Japanese culture, but China is also well known for these same motifs and styles of illustration. Perhaps the only part that can offer any discernment is the pagoda in the mountain brush painting motif (China, the much larger nation, would have more of these rounded mountains than Japan.) Anyway, that's why I pulled out the Chinese silk fan instead of the Japanese paper fan, you could go either way, but I just felt Avatar Earth Kingdom vibes, which is more or less Chinese vibes.

I like how this coord turned out, no changes for next time, but once again, it was very hot due to the wig and polyester of the blouse. Or maybe I'm going through menopause. I would say this is a dress I can wear without a blouse, as the model in the magazine did, and therefore would be a lot cooler/refreshing, if harder to place as lolita. 

This is my last diy handmade lolita for a while. I have at least 12 unworn dresses from actual and indie brands that I need to wear, definitely one for Halloween. I only have one more project I really want to do before the end of the year, but other than that, just little accessories to use up fabric scraps and help me resist the urge to buy more fabric that will languish in my craft room for years. Wish me luck! Again lol.

[coord, diy] handmade Otome no Sewing dress - Asian print #2

 I sewed another dress using a different pattern from the same Otome no Sewing volume as my koi fish dress, with the second Asian print cotton I bought at Joann's. This time it's generic pink and earth-tone scenery with bamboo and plum/cherry blossoms and chrysanthemums and birds and a pagoda building. My favorite part of this print is the gold foil accents, it makes a dull brown color scheme stand out, great for autumnal vibes or Earth Kingdom from Avatar. Now I originally wanted to make a blouse and/or skirt from this fabric, but after working on the koi fish dress, I felt the cotton for both prints was too thick to make a comfortable blouse. Obviously it was meant for quilting rather than fashion, but it was still very stiff and scratchy to touch after machine washing and drying. So I decided to make another shirred back jsk, inspired by a wa/qi themed example dress in the mook.

I made some changes to the pattern as I only bought 2 yards of fabric and this needed over 2 meters for a size large. First, I lined the bodice with leftover white cotton muslin. I also lengthened the skirt a little but that meant the ruffle was not as full, so I took the fullness out from the back ruffle which you normally wouldn't be looking at anyway. Instead of sewing a fabric ruffle trim as shown in one of the versions, I used flat cotton lace from Daiso that I gathered. The technique for how to put the dress together was also different from any other shirred back dress I've made before, and I think I prefer it so far. Let me know if you want in on the secret. This time I added no pockets, but hear me out, it's not flattering to put pockets in a high-cut dress like this because it will squish the petticoat oddly, make you look like a squash gourd.  Also I was lazy.

[jsk: handmade; blouse: Yesstyle; tights: off-brand maybe Forever 21; necklace: Forever 21; flower brooches/pins: handmade, Taobao, Michael's maybe; shoes (not shown): Bodyline]

I am very pleased with how this dress turned out, even though it's not a flattering cut (as with most baby-doll dresses), that just make it super comfortable and perfect for eating a lot of snacks and drinking a lot of tea. Unfortunately, I ended up with only a handful of fabric scraps and could make just 2 tiny bows, which I might add some tassels to and pin to the dress somewhere. (Notice the photo has no bow tassels on the dress, that's because I didn't have the right color in my stash and I'm too lazy to buy some.) Because I ran out of fabric, there are no matching hair accessories for this dress lol. I looked in my closet and surprisingly couldn't find anything suitable except flowers. But that's okay, qi/wa lolita doesn't need big old bonnets or hairbows or clips, you can do just fine with flowers! Mighty convenient.

That's it for my Asian-inspired lolita dress series, though I might post a worn photo once I buy some tassels. Check out my insta for some larme/Liz Lisa fashion, I might make another post focusing on kawaii J-fashion that's not lolita if I have enough outfits. Currently, I have fabric set aside for one more lolita dress that I'm super excited to see how it turns out, but before I get back to stash-busting, it's the season for struggling with my historical costume and cosplays. Wish me luck lmao.

[walkthrough] how to sew a dress from otome no sewing - image heavy!

In case anyone is interested in how to sew from Otome no Sewing, I've made a quick walkthrough of how I made my recent koi fish jumperskirt (Otome no Sewing volume 14, page 15 #25). This tutorial is meant for intermediate sewers who have sewing machines, if you are a true beginner, I recommend picking up a sewing book or checking out newbie tutorials on Youtube.

For those of you who are little more experienced, I highly recommend Mode a la Belle's youtube channel and blog for detailed instructions on how to sew from Otome no Sewing, as well as Simplicity and drafting your own patterns. They also scan in and generate dress patterns, here's the jsk that I chose to make that you can actually purchase at their online shop and print out your size range and make on your own. A true lolita sewist's resource!

If you can't read Japanese, which I'm assuming is most people reading this English blog, here is a very helpful blog that translates common terms and whole patterns to get you started. I've used their tutorials and patterns before, would recommend~

http://www.japanesesewingbooks.com/2012/01/17/understanding-a-typical-japanese-sewing-pattern/

Many other lolitas have posted sewing videos and pattern reviews on blogs, they come up in a quick google search. But here is my walkthrough and helpful notes and learning points (not mistakes).

Preparation Steps

• Select your design and gather materials needed. 
• You will need minimum 2 yards/meters for blouses/skirts, and 3 to 4 yards/meters for dresses so be aware.
• I only bought 2 yards of cotton so I left out the waist ties and used cotton muslin as strap and bodice linings and shortened the ruffles.
• Trace the desired size pattern on scrap paper or draft the pattern as instructed, and label each piece clearly, including grain lines and notches and placement markings.
• Otome no Sewing only goes from Asian small to Asian "large "(which is like a medium petite in Western sizes) so to draft a larger size, follow a resizing tutorial such as this one.
• This pattern had the bodice front and front facing in the included pattern paper. I taped together scrap paper and traced out the large size pattern bodice. All the other pattern pieces were basically rectangles, so I marked them out on the fabric with chalk and marker.
• Add seam allowance (1/2 inch, 5/8 inch, etc) to appropriate areas or remind yourself to add seam allowances and don't forget. Common mistake!
• Optional but highly recommended: make a mock-up or muslin out of scrap fabric, or drape the paper on your dressform or your own self to make sure you won't need adjustments before cutting into your final fashion fabric.
• Here's my materials photo for reference! Note, I only have a small household Janome sewing machine, not an industrial and certainly not a serger. That affects the decisions I make when sewing lolita dresses. 

[coord, diy] handmade Otome no Sewing jsk

 As expected, I bought more fabric instead of using up the fabric I already had, but in my defense, Joann's had a coupon and also the fabric I already had on hand was not suitable for sewing lolita as it was mostly low quality polyester or didn't have the right texture or color for any clothing item except the specific cosplay I bought it for.

So after getting tired of working on my ballgown (the sleeves, curse the sleeves), I switched to figuring out an Otome no Sewing volume 14 pattern and making use of one of my recent purchases, a premium cotton print of koi fish in water. Although a bit "Asian-inspired" instead of Asian, the cotton material itself was soft and sturdy, the print quality very pretty and soothing to look at, and I really wanted to try my hand at another sewing pattern from a more recent issue.

The sewing pattern I chose had a half-shirred bodice and straps that buttoned in the back with a ruffle on the skirt. It required 3 meters of fabric, but I had only bought 2 yards lol. I decided to not make the waist ties (I rarely can tie a good bow with them anyway so no big loss) and would line the bodice and straps with white cotton muslin instead of facing it with the fashion fabric. Losing a yard of fabric also meant my ruffles were half the length they were supposed to be, so the dress was a bit short compared to what the model wore. Thankfully I am also short, the dress didn't look scandalous even with a petticoat under.

I used lace trim as recommended on the pattern but realized I didn't have enough and had to buy 2 more spools of lace (but I used almost all of it, okay???) The two lace trims were shiny polyester "bridal" Venice lace for $2.99 for 2 yards. They look kinda cheap and low-quality on their own, but when paired with this koi fish fabric, they resemble fish or dragon scales or stylized waves and complement the print perfectly. Big brain move there. I used small lace for the straps and bow (which I wore as a headbow here but could also be pinned on the dress), and a larger version of the same lace for the ruffle hem.

[JSK, headbow, bracelets: handmade; blouse: Elegy Clothing; necklace: Luxmira; earrings: BB and Deco, Taobao; rings: Liz Lisa; socks, shoes: Baby the Stars Shine Bright]

This isn't the greatest coord ever, I think I should have worn bright gold shoes instead of antique gold ones, but I was getting sweaty in this new Dreamholic wig and didn't want to change. I did try to style it in a more wa-lolita style after but due to the sweatiness, none of the later photos turned out well. I will try again another day.

Anyway, I love how this dress turned out, very comfortable due to the shirring, Asian-inspired but not tacky. The main problems I had while sewing were 1) deciding to French seam seams that should not have been French-seamed, and 2) the button-hole maker on my sewing machine isn't working so I had to hand-bind the button holes and they look super messy. The pattern is very easy to follow if you have experience with sewing lolita, I only adjusted due to the amount of fabric I had and also I didn't like their dart placements. I may one day post a run-down of how I approached sewing this dress if anyone is interested!

Anyway, back to working on my gown... sigh...

[coord, diy] handmade underskirt - casual gothic

I'm back with a quick coord rundown of my purple underskirt made to go with a gifted/donated black overskirt. This over skirt is handmade of a sheer burnout velvet (I think?) fabric with a band of velvet on the bottom. The pattern has skulls and an overall gothic feel and only needs a plain underskirt to show off the design (and also be decent lol). I do have a few plain color skirts but they were heavily textured and trimmed and I just needed a smooth surface, no frills or lace. So I finally got to making the underskirt years later. I chose purple just because I got these Cryptoglitter socks in purple and black that had bats and such and sort of matched the gothic scheme, and also I like purple. And I had enough of this cheapo broadcloth so that if it didn't turn out well, no loss.

[cutsew top: Angelic Pretty; skirts: handmade; stockings: Cryptoglitter; boots: off-brand; hairbow: Metamorphose; bracelet 1: Larme; bracelet 2: off-brand; purse: Hot Topic]

As you can see, even though I chose the warmest, most reddish shade of purple I had, it still was cooler than the stockings' shade of hyacinth purple and also very saturated. But it's not so mismatching that I would buy a different fabric just to remake it. Also the Meta swan cameo on the barrette was yet a different shade of purple, though you can't see it because it's on the top of my head. The skirt was French-seamed so it can be machine-washed, but the fabric was meh and cheap-feeling and the elastic waist was just a tad too loose due to me compensating from a previous pair of pants in which the elastic was too tight. (One day, I'll get that measurement right.) The skirt is also not perfectly shaped due to using a fully elastic waist on a rectangle base, but you can't tell that because the overskirt is just so amazing and distracting lol.

I guess if I ever needed a casual Halloween coord, I have something with a fully elastic waist ready to go. The only alteration I might make to this coord is to sew/obtain a black and purple bracelet or wrist cuff to add some interest to the wrists if I wear it with a short sleeve shirt like I did here, maybe like a cute frilly scrunchie made out of the purple fabric with black lace trim. Other than that, the hair was super cute, I felt like what's her face from Beetlejuice. Lydia.