Sebastian Masuda: Kawaii Meets Art and Fashion at Japan Society

Hey everyone, I hope life has been treating you well. Last month I was able to attend Sebastian Masuda's lecture wit Tiff at Japan Society called Kawaii Meets Art and Fashion. I had to bust my butt to get there after work, but it was SO worth it. It was wonderful hearing about Sebastian's journey throughout his career. As someone that is getting into Japanese fashion, it was amazing to learn about someone that is revered in the fashion.

Sebastian Masuda also known as "King of Harajuku" is an icon of Harajuku and kawaii fashion and culture. He opened a store for his label 6%DOKIDOKI in 1995. It is the only remaining store from the early era of Harajuku fashion. He is also known for being the art director of Kyary Kyary Pyamu's hit smash PonPonPon music video. Sebastian is also an artist and has art exhibitions throughout the world.

He spoke in Japanese which was wonderful practice for me. There was a lovely translated that did a wonderful job conveying his feelings and thoughts. Sebastian talked about using the concepts of shock and color in his work. He's heavily influenced by Harajuku fashion and culture, because it's where different cultures come together. The fashion contains a mix of different styles and age groups. He also talked about what kawaii was. He explained that kawaii is creating your own very small personal universe, and it cannot be obstructed by anyone. This private space doesn't have to be colorful; it's anything you imagine. This resonated with me because when I first came across j fashion, I saw it as a way to express myself and the many sides of my personality. He also highlighted the importance social media has played in connecting others and spreading Harajuki and kawaii fashion and culture.

Meeting Novala Takemoto and Wearing Lolita for the First Time

Hello loves^^ January has flown by so fast; it literally felt like it was December yesterday. The one perk is that hopefully we can experience Spring weather soon. Earlier this month Tif and I found out that the Baby the Stars Shine Bright/Tokyo Rebel store in NYC would be having an event with Novala Takemoto. I'm super mad that I missed AKIRA when she came, so I def wanted to meet Novala. Being new to the Lolita fashion, I'm still learning, but I had already heard that Novala, Mana, and Misako Aoki are very revered in the Lolita fashion community.

I decided to spend the night at Tiffany's house on Friday after work so we got get dressed together. Her family's house is really warm and relaxing, and it was nice to meet her family members. Saturday morning we woke up a little late since the event wasn't until late afternoon. Boy, did we have some outfit shenanigans lol We changed outfits a few times due to fitting issues on both sides and were both semi-frantic and frustrated. Eventually, we both let the other know that the other looked fabulous. We both were just overthinking our individual coords but that the other looked awesome. It just goes to show that people tend to be hard on themselves. Tif is really the bomb, I'm so happy that we became awesome friends. My previous job was very toxic for both of us, but she is one of the best things that came out of it for sure.

We made it to the store around 3:15, 3:30 and luckily there wasn't a line which surprised us. Novala greeted us as soon as we walked into the door and shook our hands. He was very nice :) He even complimented me on my hair and took a picture of it on his cell phone.

We took a picture together and I got his autograph ^_^