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On August 12, Lady Gaga arrived in Tokyo to kick off the Japan leg of her worldwide artRAVE: The ARTPOP Ball. The pop icon is no stranger to Japan, and has proclaimed her love for the country on multiple occasions in the past. Not to mention the fact that her quirky fashion style seems perfectly at home with some of the bizarre outfits you’d find in Tokyo’s Harajuku district.

One of the reporters from our Japanese sister site happens to be a dedicated ‘Little Monster’ himself. Although ‘Lady Jun’, as we’ll call him from now on, is fascinated by Lady Gaga’s eccentric fashion statements, one question has always bothered him–is it possible for a normal person to create an outfit in Lady Gaga’s signature style without breaking the bank?

Enlisting the help of his fellow reporter and amateur Sailor Venus cosplayer Yoshio, the two headed over to a Japanese 100-yen shop (the equivalent of a dollar store in the States) to find out for themselves. The end result of their mission? Well, let’s just say that their creation was a bit puzzling. 

Armed with only 3,000 yen (about US$30) and their creative minds, Lady Jun and Yoshio went to the 100-yen store Can Do, which sells all kinds of basic lifestyle goods but doesn’t have much in the way of actual clothing. After debating their plan of attack for almost an hour, the two finally walked out with bags full of goods.

▼Some of the merchandise at Can Do

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Their purchases included several jigsaw puzzles, double-sided tape, a baseball cap, red slippers, a photo frame and underwear (thank goodness that was in stock, at the very least!). Because Lady Gaga is a well-known lover of Japan, in her honor all of the puzzles they bought depicted famous places throughout Japan, including Mt. Fuji, Kyoto’s Kinkakuji, and Himeji Castle.

By now you’re probably wondering–“How on earth are they going to incorporate jigsaw puzzles into a believable outfit?” But remember folks, this is the queen of outlandish fashion we’re talking about here.

▼A close-up of the loot

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▼So many jigsaw puzzles!

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To make their Lady Gaga-inspired outfit, Yoshio began by wrapping the two-sided tape around the upper half of Lady Jun’s body. But due to the oppressive heat that comes with the Japanese summer, Lady Jun’s skin had soon broken into a horrendous sweat, and applying the tape took two whole hours. Man, what some people have to endure in the name of fashion…

▼The transformation process begins.

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▼Notice our in-house celebrity Mr. Sato chortling in the foreground.

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▼Finished! Lady Jun, you’re a real trooper. We hope someone bought you an ice cream for all of your suffering.

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The next part was a bit more fun–Yoshio proceeded to haphazardly stick hundreds of the jigsaw puzzle pieces onto the tape! That’s got to be a real headache for the person who gets to sort them back into their original boxes at the end of the day…

▼Attaching one of the puzzle boxes to a cap? Why not!

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▼“Baby I was born this way!”

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▼A strategically-placed picture frame full of the unused puzzle pieces and some red sandals add the finishing touches.

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▼The finished look

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What’s the bottom line of their creation, according to Lady Jun? “I can’t really lift my arms, but it’s very comfortable to wear. And it’s nice and cool!”

We think Lady Gaga would be proud of all of Yoshio and Lady Jun’s efforts for the sake of innovative fashion. Maybe this look will even become the prototype for a new line of marketable ‘Cool Biz’ fashion items for Japanese workers during the summer months. Wouldn’t that be an interesting development…

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Photos: RocketNews24