1539/Fashion Un-Conscious

Fashion Un-Conscious
Date of Scene:	06 May 2020
Location:	Pearl River Mart
Synopsis:	Time for some Goth-inspired shopping, with Andi meeting none other than one Gothic Lolita.
Cast of Characters:	Andi Benton, Gothic Lolita

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Andi Benton has posed:
Sunday. No work, but paycheck cashed. It was time for a little window shopping, maybe even a small purchase or two. The place? Pearl River Mart in the city. The reason? Well, Andi had a craving for some ramen, but upon finding out how much different stuff could be had in the place, she got to wandering.

The young woman's exploration found her checking out some of the clothing, a mixture of styles to be found there. She came in her usual purples and blacks, creating the punk-goth style she has, or at least thinks she has. "Hmm, interesting. No. Hell no. Maybe. That's different.." she mumbled to herself, sifting through this and that.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    In Chinatown, lo mein is more likely than ramen, but there's certainly a mix of Asian styles at Pearl River, from the latest clubbing gear to the most gothic designs, alongside more traditional Chinese dresses. And all manner of discount knick knacks, Chinese masks, and any manner of import goods at much cheaper prices. Perfect for spending a limited paycheck on something special you stumble over of course.

    Walking down one of the aisles is a girl who stands out partially because she's certainly Japanese rather than Chinese, complete with an all black outfit, stockings, gloves, and her hair done up in a pair of short pigtails. From the way her head tilts back and forth, she appears to be windowshopping herself..well, if there were windows. More shelf and hanger shopping, relaly.

Andi Benton has posed:
Ramen, lo mein..well, Andi didn't have a ton of experience with different cultures, but she's here, she's curious about a few things, and..she's turning around just in time to see someone else approaching, also favoring black and not much else. She shifts the stud in her tongue against her teeth for a moment, a speculative expression taking shape. Short dress, but more to go with it, snug-looking. Andi's long sleeves and leggings are sort of a thick mesh but ragged and snagged in places, with a well-worn purple dress of a similar length. The clothing takes a backseat for the moment.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    The other girl looks to be perhaps a bit older than Andi, but not by much...then again, she's got that youthful look that makes it hard to nail down age for many Japanese women moving from teen to adulthood. It's mostly the curves that give away that she's older, really. The black lipstick and black nail polish certainly add to it as well, in addition tot he expertly applied mascara.

    A brown-eyed gaze falls on Andi as the girl pauses, then smiles, changing direction slightly to approach her. "I like your look." she says politely. "More punky than I go for....but it works well for you."

Andi Benton has posed:
Andi Benton looks the other one up and down with her blue eyes, that and the pale skin a contrast to her purple hair. She's gone through a level of maturation of her own, but it's not on the same level. "I..like the lipstick. Very moody," she replies, and she rubs a brow near the piercing that's there. "Did you come here for anything specific? I just started checking stuff out."

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    Ebon lips twitch up in a slight smile at that as the other girl raises a delicate brow. "Thank you. I normally like dark color, but black appealed this time." she says, her internal HUD scanning over Andi, marking the piercings and elements of her outfit, with a tag floating over her labeled 'An Unknown Goth Approaches'.

    "Honestly, not specifically. It's been a long time since I've been able to just browse." Lolita says, completely honestly. Being in stasis for years will do that to you. "Perhaps we could roam together, in a proper hunter gatherer shopping formation.' Her eyes twinkle a bit at that with dry humor, before she offers a hand. "My preferred nomenclature is Gothic Lolita...though Lolita is fine, if you prefer. Or Lol, if things are being thrown at my head and time is of the essence."

Andi Benton has posed:
Andi Benton has no idea who or what she's dealing with. The being before her /seems/ normal as can be, as far as human appearances go, not so much stylistic choices in attire and makeup. "Gothic Lolita? Is that, like, a pseudonym for something else?" she questions, adding, "I'm just Andi."

At the least, the hand is accepted and she gets a glance and feel for what the gloves are made of. "Either way, there's some neat stuff around. I saw a glimpse of a few things in the window before I came in. I'm down for some hunting and gathering."

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    Another smile from the other girl. "More a preference that led to a name." Lolita says simply, tilting her head slightly. "But I'll answer to it, either way." The HUD updates the tag to "Gothy Andi" in her head. Lolita has a nice firm grip...not like she's squeezing down, but it's steady certainly. She might work out? Or something. She doesn't really look like that though. The gloves appear to be lace, soft to the touch but with a bit of stiffness to the embroidery involved. "A pleasure to meet you Andi. Shall we then?" She offers an arm.

Andi Benton has posed:
"All right then, I'll bite. What's the whole gothic lolita style all about?" Andi asks. It sounds as though her stylistic variety isn't that widespread..yet. She takes note of the lace, not to mention the cross. Definitely gothic, as far as she's concerned. "How about this row?" she asks, gesturing toward one with a variety of outfits.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    "Certainly, let's see what they've got." Lolita glances over as they walk. "The official definition would say a gothic lolita style is an outgrowth of the basic lolita style - bell skirts, jumper skirts, or dresses worn with petticoats. It gives what's considered a classic style 'cupcake' look to the skirts, the sort of puffy bell look, like the top of a cupcake." She smiles. "The more decorative, the better, of course. Gothic lolita sticks to dark colors and makeup...black, dark purples, reds, or blues, those sorts of shades. Normally it involves stockings, gloves, chokers, or various themes associated with religion or death...crosses, anhks, bats, skulls, that sort of thing."

Andi Benton has posed:
"You should see one of the chokers I have at home," Andi replies. "It's got these little skulls with bows on them. You'd die if you saw it. Not literally, I mean, but you know." She's listening to the explanation given, and internally...she may realize she doesn't know half of what she thinks she does about this stuff. So /this/ is what it's like when you meet an expert.

"I'm good with blacks and purples, but reds aren't bad either. I don't, uh, have anything like what you're talking about. It sounds waaaay fancy and delicate."

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    "Mm, with your skin tone it might end up looking a bit odd with too bright colors. It'd make you look washed out." Lolita agrees, then smiles. "Delicate and frilly are part of the fun. But they don't have to be. You can get a very sturdy corset or bardot top made out of leather, for example." She cocks her head. "You look like you're going for more of a rough and tumble look though, yes. More a punk goth look? Spikes and rips? Purple does seem to suit you. I'd imagine a dark blue would work too. Or a nice burgundy."

Andi Benton has posed:
Andi Benton waffles over the punk goth ideas. "Yyyyyeeaaahh, but that's all I have at home. There's not a lot of variety in my closet, if you know what I mean." Not that she's necessarily thinking of buying anything as expensive as it sounds like they could be getting into. She probably couldn't. Cross that bridge when it's reached, Andi.

"How sturdy are we talking, anyway?" comes the question as she pauses where they stand. "I think you're right about the colors, though."

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    "Oh, that varies. Soft or blended cotton is easiest to work with, or some synthetics like chiffon. Even yarn, in kokka gothic outfits." Lolita says thoughfully. "Leather is at the other end, or silk...those are more for special pieces that you build an outfit around. Above all though, you want well-made fabric...nothing too cheap, or it'll easily tear or rip." She stops in the aisle by a selection of dresses hanging or on mannequins. "For example, these qipao, or cheongsam, depending where you are in China when you ask. They're also marked by heavy embroidery, but they can be made from a variety of fabrics. Silk is the high end, but cotton works too. They're more formfitting than a lolita-style dress...no petticoats."

Andi Benton has posed:
Andi Benton's hands clasp together behind her, and she rocks back and forth slightly on the balls of her sneakers. "I guess..I never thought about materials a whole lot." This Gothic Lolita person has probably already pegged her as a poser, with cheap clothes that just fakes the look more than anything else. Most of the kids at the schools she's been in didn't care or look closely enough, but here this one is telling her about specific fabrics, rolling out the names and everything.

"And I haven't been to China, or Japan, or anywhere else that far from the tri-state area, so it probably doesn't really matter what it's called. I've heard silk's super fancy, though," Andi points out. "And I know about leather stuff, a bit."

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    "Silk's a wonderful fabric. It breathes...means you don't overheat, but it's still warm. But you don't have to have it." Lolita looks around, then reaches out to take Andi's hand, tugging her after her as she leads her over to another display. Clubwear, primarily. "Here...if you want a more punk goth look, this will work." It's a short sleeved drop top made out of black lace, with flowering branches embroidered across it with a circular pattern running along the bottom hem, with a high collar. The lace is dense enough to hide anything underneath, theoretically...but the mannequin is wearing a black bikini top underneath. "If you wanted, you could easily get a colored top underneath this too, for contrast?"

Andi Benton has posed:
"Maybe I could.." Andi begins to say to the silk speculation, only to end up off in front of another section. Clubwear, like that, in a place like this? Not what she'd have expected! But, there they are, and there it is. "Yeah, that could be more my style, but.." A grin takes shape, one that suggests mischief in mind. "I could try that, but why don't we check out some stuff that's more out there?" she asks, hopeful that her new friend, if temporary, will get what she's meaning.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    "Alright. I will say the most important thing about a gothic style is your accessories...bangles, pendants, headwear, shoes, gloves, belt, all those things can add a lot to the look." Lolita says, leading her over to a more risque looking outfit...short shorts, a cotton corset and lace. "This one would be good for clubbing, perhaps..." She points across the way to a collection of high waisted skirts. "Those would work well with a top like you have no and some stockings or lace gloves." She motions down the aisle. "Or you could go for more of a hoodie or jumper look like you have now too...the nice thing is you can mix and match parts, of course."

Andi Benton has posed:
"Yeah," Andi says, stopping next to Lolita with her hands at her hips. "I could see some of this for school. It's still pretty tame. I don't think they'd send me home and make me change out of most of that." They take some time to muse over things like that, stuff she could go with in different settings, before it's time to move on to look at more, neither of them in a hurry as more knowledge is dispensed from the experienced one.