We sent two of our Japanese writers to dress up in matching Kiki & Lala Little Twin Stars cosplay in Harajuku!

Maison de Julietta at LaForet Harajuku is a store specialising in Lolita fashion, with a dressing service and expert advice available. It’s also the perfect place to go if you’d like to just try out the look since the staff will dress you, do your makeup and hair, and even take some studio-quality photos for you to take home, too.

While our Japanese writer Meg is undeniably a master of all things cute, her partner in crime for this frilly mission, Midori, who writes for our Japanese sister site Pouch, was slightly more apprehensive. Despite harbouring a secret love for cute things since kindergarten, she’s always felt that frills and lace synonymous with Lolita fashion just don’t suit her. Undeterred, Meg dragged Midori along to the salon for a full Lolita makeover (after all, you can’t dress up in matching adorable twin character fashion without a twin, can you?)

Upon arriving at the salon, our reporters were met by rack upon rack of beautiful pastel Lolita fashion from various brands, including BABY, THE STARS SHINE BRIGHT. They couldn’t help being shocked by the price tags, though. (Lolita fashion can be very expensive, with most dresses starting from 10,000 yen (US$87). They were also surprised upon chatting to the staff to find that the store sometimes gets customers who are in their eighties! (Keep an eye out for Lolita grannies to snap on your next trip to Tokyo!)

The Kiki & Lala dress-up plan comes in three categories, all of which include hair, makeup and photo session. The difference is in the extras, which include original design dresses and a full photo album. Meg decided to be Lala (in pink) while Midori opted to become Kiki (in blue.)

Midori was surprised at the amount of padding and elbow-grease involved in the dressing process — her dress required three petticoats in order for the skirt to reach maximum floofiness levels. Hair and makeup was a similarly elaborate operation, involving wigs, false eyelashes, and special Sanrio brand makeup.

After some personal shots and much squee-ing, our reporters were ready for their professional photo shoot with a Kiki & Lala themed backdrop. The photographer was reportedly a pro, and talked our girls through several poses, even providing props. Despite feeling a little self-conscious at first, our Meg and Midori soon got into the swing of things!

After their photo shoot, our reporters changed back into their street clothes and discussed the experience, remarking on how refreshing it is to try out a whole different look when there’s someone else doing the choosing and outfit coordinating. Even if you’re a little intimidated by Lolita fashion and worry about looking silly, the staff at Maison de Julietta are total pros who will ensure you wind up one cute and confident Lolita. One warning, though: Lolita fashion can be addictive. The staff told our reporters that the majority of people who come for a trial dress-up and photo shoot return again within the month to buy their own Lolita pieces…

Store information
Store Name: Maison de Julietta（メゾン・ド・ジュリエッタ）
Address: BF 1.5, LaForet Harajuku, Jingumae 1-11-6, Shibuya, Tokyo
Opening Hours: 11:00 to 21:00, every day (“last orders” for dress-up are one hour before store closes)

The Kiki & Lala Plan is available until the end of March, 2016.

All photos © Pouch
[ Read in Japanese ]