D.i.a. Revival

 D.i.a. Is Back!

So the iconic gyaru brand with western influences, d.i.a., has risen! At first, I thought it to be a prank, but they have been having promo pictures of their new goods being showcased by with the latest gyaru models from the ever so controversial egg mag.

It’s nice to see that brand come back after so long, and with some pieces that nod to their original style before they started to tone down for a more onee gyaru version of themselves. 

There are mixed feelings from the gaijin gyaru community. Some think the styles are lackluster or just flat out boring. Is this due to the Reiwa styling trends compared to the Heisei styling a few decades ago? Others are excited that the brand is back and there are cute tops available.

What are your thoughts?

A Brand That Will Probably Stay Gone

 

With more items being available for gyarucoming from Japan itself, (D.i.a., Ma*rs, and even some newer brands), Alba Rosa comes to mind as well. 

最近、日本からもっと平成ギャル服ことが現れた。例えばDia、Ma*rs、新しい平成系服ブランドも』。外人ギャル達が他のブランドが頭に浮かんだ。。。AlbaRosaだ！

However, Alba Rosa wasn’t originally a brand that catered to gyaru; they (those gyaru) just found it cute as hell. 🌺

しかし、AlbaRosaはギャルブランドじゃなかったわよ。サーフブランドだったね。この時は、このギャルがヤベ可愛すぎと思ったんだ。

「ペラペラじゃないですけど、メンゴメンゴね」

“GyARu is SupPosEd tO ScAre oFf mEn!”

 There is SO much misinformation going on about the purpose of gyaru makeup, so much so, that @🎀kitkat🎀 , comments on an old montage of my most extreme gyaru makeup (Manba, super large eyes with a droop), to tell me 

Huh? The video was about doing white filled droops correctly, so why the comment in the first place? Just saw a video tagged “gyaru” and had the copy paste button at the ready? No matter the meaning of the video?

College Daze

It sucks hearing from a so called friend that she miscarried a baby with the man you had a crush on. You block it out, not wanting to think of them going at it to even get to such a conclusion thats being used to play on your sympathy. Or, is it slap in the face?

 You’d  think with so much time spent on various projects, working with a gyaru brand twice, using every braincell in an internship at a top Chicago University, blogging, researching, and pushing myself at different jobs that I’d get over the pain of being painfully naive and nooby with a colleague and a complex situation that got out of hand. 

2010 Fan/Portrait art by Ashley A. Woods

 Black Gamer Girls + Work Exploitation

In 2010, I met Ashley, a black comic book artist, at a local anime convention. She was tall, with a short haircut and was in a cosplay of one of her own original characters. She was bright, nerdy and bubbly, and we clicked instantly. 

Daily Drills Viral Bubble Dress

 I came across a post of a creator talking about a new brand called “Daily Drills”. I assumed it was about equipment and tools or even practicing language learning reps until I started to read the comments to later see what the brand was about. 

Some of the items of this brand are basic, even outside of alternative fashion. One piece stuck out to me as the most bizarre one; the bubble dress. Bubble dresses were a bit cute for millennials in the early 2010s, after all as a gaijin gyaru who loves fashion, I had a few myself. I initially thought it couldn’t be that bad...

Resume Under Attack! : Invading Jobs and Harrassment at Work

Cross Posted from  Jan. 10, 2024 1:16am 

When I was a young college student, involved with gyaru fashion, blogging, and event coordination, looking feverishly for jobs 14 years ago, I initially did not take into account bad actors who may use my resume for nefarious means. I was unaware of the blindspots I had with this once simple situation. 

I had given my resume to a woman who claimed she would assist me in updating it for the jobs that I wanted, and I thought she was doing me a favor. After a quick turnaround time, I was equipped with a shiny new resume, ready to send it to various businesses around my city to support myself and content creation. 

Unfortunately, this simplistic act of providing my base resume in 2010ish became a minefield of data for an overeager stranger who was now privy to all the info

Mens Wear Part 1

I get requests from time to time about men's fashion. I realized I do not talk about male fashion much on my channels. So with this post, I will change that. Most of whom read my blog identify as women, so the content is geared to that.

*The pictures belong to their respective owners.*

Gyaru-o from a Japanese magazine

Gyaru-O

Yes, Gyaru would not be complete if there were no male counterpart. Gyaru-o from a Japanese fashion magazine sporting a dark jacket with a grey shirt and extremely distressed jeans. Accessories include a silver cross, and an ornamented belt. Brown, slouchy boots keep the look casual.

Bounce Kogals & Commentary

Graphic design by Lisha-2013

I recently shared a graphic design mock up (2013) on TikTok  based on the movie Bounce Kogals by Harada (1997). It’s a film that I watched in college, around Diamond gyaru circle days (2010-2011) for a gals’ night in with a made from scratch Osakan themed dinner with a healthy side of natto. Delicious.✨

It’s a poignant story of Maki, a bold and strong willed ko Gyaru in the ever so iconic kogal uniform, and an adventurous young student, Lisa, whose lives intertwine and those that exploit them in Tokyo, Japan. 

Momoa Graduating and More Gyaru-fied 109

As January has been a clusterf*ck of events, let's focus on something else. There's been a few things that are going on in the JP gyaru world.  Let's cover them, shall we?

Soon to be ex egg model, Momoa

One of them is that Momoa is retiring from Egg Mag come this April. I briefly watched the video about her upcoming graduation from egg.

What Bacteria Lives In Your Makeup Brushes?

 How Much Bacteria Lives on Your Makeup Brushes (and How to Prevent It)

Did you know your makeup brushes could be a breeding ground for bacteria? Without regular cleaning, they can harbor thousands—if not millions—of harmful microbes. Here’s everything you need to know about how bacteria accumulate and what you can do to protect your skin for kawaii gyaru makeup.