Regimental Latte OP : Military Style in my Lolita?

Regimental Latte! Excuse the lazy lack of co-ordination
and badly tied bow.

My second  attempt. This is Infanta's Poker  Pinafore
 Dress. The jacket is thrifted, but originally from
Topshop, shoes are from Bodyline.  Blouse (not visible)
 is from Innocent World.

A few weeks ago the postman dropped off my first ever classic lolita style one-piece: Regimental Latte! Usually having to hear about anything army-related is enough to make me visibly blanch. Much the same can be said about my attitude to fashion and its many forays into the world of 'military' styling. I was never a fan of combat boots, trousers or buckle-laden asymmetrical New Look monstrosities. Khaki has always made me feel positively ill. That said, when I came across this elegant cutie of a dress on EGL Comm Sales my mutinous heart leapt with joy at its simple uniform inspired stripe pattern. It got me thinking about military designs in lolita fashion. I did a quick Lolibrary check, and realised that in some form or another most Japanese lolita brands have released military inspired pieces. The trend seems to be catching on with even indie brands like Infanta taking the metaphorical King's Shilling. Military inspired pieces even seem to span substyles, having been readily adopted into both sweet and classic styles.



So, how to encorporate a dash of military style into your existing loli look? I had a few ideas.

For the Sweet Lolita

Angelic Pretty and, to a lesser extent Baby seem to both have embraced the military look in the past few years. Chocolate Rosette, Holy Night, the 2013 Loyalty Regimental series and more recently Wonder Queen Soldier .
When trying to encorporate a military aspect into your sweet co-ords I'd say your best bet is to go for a more 'Toy Soldier' inspired look. If you're going to make military style work with Sweet Lolita's brighter colour palette and cutesy feel I think this is probably the way to go. Think 'Just escaped from Herr Drosselmeyer's toy making workshop' and you should be on the right track to a cute fairy tale soldier look!

Ideas

• Pastels are definitely do-able, for example with the pastel colourways of this bodyline dress. However, in keeping with the 'Toy Soldier' theme that Sweet Lolita military designs seem to be taking from, consider  slightly more jewel bright colours like London Phone Box Red and Royal Blue.
• Berets! There are tons of cute berets to be found on the internet and on your local high street. Add a rosette, pin or ribbon and you're set to go! Plus who doesn't love berets anyway? I love berets...
• Consider the accent piece. To save on the expense of buying a whole new dress or skirt why not go for a jacket or some military themed accessories instead? The accent piece should probably be something in a similar colour/ colour palette as some of the stuff that's already in your wardrobe. Unless the print of the dress you're planning to wear this piece with is exceptionally busy already, this piece can be as stand-out as you like. If you're choosing a jacket, make sure you look for something that will create an elegant silhouette, perhaps with a shorter cut than the usual women's suit jackets, as it will be sitting over a (probably very) poofy skirt.
• Accesorise, accesorise, accesorise! For folks who love a bit of OTT in their Sweet Lolita this is a must. With this style you could easily even make some accessories of your own. Pin/glue rosettes or buttons to hair bobbles and tie your hair up with them. Striped socks and tights can be found anywhere, at Primark or online and could make a nice addition to an outfit. For the more adventurous (and/or short haired like me) what about this sort of hat? 

For the Classic Lolita

Military inspired pieces have clearly been around for a fair bit in the Classic Lolita fashion sphere. Innocent World seem to fairly regularly feature elements of this style is some form or another. Recently, many Taobao shops seem to be reviving the look. I think I must have seen at least four lapel sporting, button-laden dresses  from Infanta alone upon giving their website only the most brief and cursory of passing glances the other day! I think for the Classic Lolita, a little bit of military inspiration could add an element of maturity to any existing co-ord. Consider for example the Innocent World jacket below. Wouldn't that look lovely, even paired with a floral print?

• Blouses with prominent cuffs/lots of buttons. Although not often seen in lolita I feel you could even give ties a go  if you were planning a skirt/blouse/jacket sort of co-ord. 
• Boots or shiny/patent shoes. Cute lace up boots can be found anywhere. Antaina (TaoBao but stocked by the likes of Qutieland and ClobbaOnline) have all sorts. Unless the weather is 30 degrees where you are, in which case; Never sacrifice style over comfort! 
• With a Classic Lolita wardrobe that already consists of pieces with a slightly more mature feel than sweet you 're probably going to find bits and pieces of military style easier to encorporate into your existing look. But why not go all out? There are lots of lovely military style coats and jackets out there. this Innocent World jacket is on sale at the moment and is very cute. Indie brands like Infanta also have a couple of full length military-esque coats on sale at the moment. 
• Have a go at hunting down the lesser-spotted military themed print! An example would be this particular Surface Spell print:

Although, as a native Londoner, I probably wouldn't really leap at the idea of beef eaters on my dress, ( Not sure why...Feels a little too tourist-y for someone who speaks with a habitual London accent to wear/ Where I live you don't want to be seen to have any sort of interest in the Queen for certain cultural reasons) this is still definitely a very cute print! Innocent World has put out a couple of similar beef eater related prints too before if I remember correctly. Whether or not wearing something adorned with an array of union jacks is really your cup of tea or not, is of course a matter of choice. Personally, I might be forgoing this particular print's look. Still, it's really surprised me how many dresses seem to draw inspiration from/ sport military motifs! 

And there you have it! My very first article written for this blog. I hope you found it interesting enough, and I haven't bored you to tears yet. What are everyone's thoughts on military style in lolita, and indeed in ouji/boystyle or other alternative fashions too? I'd love to hear them!