confession #7: you’re not too old for fairy kei!

Japanese Streets- Tavuchi & Choco

Dear fairies,

Today I’d like to discuss how I’ve come across a few things, concerning fairy kei, in which girls talk about how they feel fairy kei is too “juvenile,” think they’re too old for fairy kei, or think it’s only for teenagers in which you grow out of the fashion into, say, something like cult party kei.

While I think peoples’, and my own, styles are always evolving in which one could go from fairy kei to another fashion like cult party kei, I think that there shouldn’t be a line drawn as far as what age you say you stop wearing a certain fashion! (though, there are exceptions to people who just don’t have good fashion sense to begin with)

I think people in the Japanese fashion community should be the least concerned with “age-appropriateness” considering how many of the best styles in Japan are many times misconstrued as “childish” or “costume-y” to some critical westerners with narrow views of what fashion really is.

Why even be part of Japanese fashion if you are going to restrict yourself??

With that said, I think people tend to think fairy kei is “childish” due to the dominant color scheme and use of 80s childrens’ characters like Popples and Care Bears. If fairy kei was meant to be for children, then wouldn’t it be a style only worn by girls under ten years old, considering the characters and bright colors?

Of course, on the contrary, fairy kei is usually worn by girls 17 and over! Not to mention, our representative girls at  6% Tokidoki and Spank! are over the age of 20!! Miss Tavuchi was about 23 years old when she began Spank! and will be over 30 years old soon!

Japanese Streets-Yuka

Tavuchi, in an interview, said that her customers range from 12 years old to 40 years old! To her, Spank! is more about the 80s culture than anything else, it seems.

It makes sense that young women (not young girls) would be into fairy kei. After all, those of us who were children in the 80s and 90s, who enjoyed fairy kei inspirations, are now over the age of 18! Fairy kei is nostalgic and speaks to our childhood in many ways, which makes it all the more appealing.

Really and truly, this fashion is for the young at heart.

"Style is style, fashion is fashion." If you have style, then you don’t need fashion, nor do you need to adhere to any "rules" like age limits. Tavuchi created her own style, likely not caring what the "rules" were. 

BOTTOM LINE: If you want to dress fairy kei, then you are not too old for fairy kei! Dress how you want and do it with style and you will be alright.

Do YOU think you are or will ever be too old for fairy kei?

24-year-old Kumamiki is a designer who created her own fairy kei style indie brand, Party Baby! She and her creations are adorable ^_^

Japanese Streets- Kumamiki

~Sparkling Ga Eul

Faith, Trust and Fairy Kei Dust!