The other day it suddenly hit me that I was going to turn 30 in a few years. 30. To me, my thirties would mean settling down in my own home, having a stable job and scariest of all… Children. I am not emotionally nor financially stable for any of that yet, and can’t even look after myself properly let another a mini version of myself. It’s absolutely terrifying, especially when it means that I would probably be too old for gyaru.
Be too old for gyaru. I never thought I’d say that, especially because a few years ago I wrote a post on all of the things you can still be/do with gyaru. One of them was that you can still be gyaru when you’re older, but at the moment I am a bit lost with how I feel about that. I think it’s hard to feel in the “gyaru mood” when it’s not as easy to get Japanese clothes over here in the West than it would be in, well, Japan.
Faux fur coat cat bag: Primark
Sweater dress: MA*RS
Boots: Liz Lisa replica (source unknown)
Accessories: F&F at Tesco and other
What would happen if I gave up gyaru? Well, this blog will definitely have a huge change because right now it’s very jfashion-focused. I’d probably start wearing the clothes I’m “supposed’ to be wearing (whatever that means) and just become your average lifestyle blogger.
Maybe I will slowly ease out of my Japanese branded clothes and put away the endless amount of plushies that I currently have at the end of my bed, and Hello Kitty will just be another thing that I used to love.
Maybe I’ll gracefully step down from my gyaru circle QueenE and will start to cease going to Hyper Japan because my friends and the fashion was the only thing I was really interested in, and I would’ve grown apart from my friends as I spend more time trying to adapt to adult life.
And maybe, just maybe, I’ll be sad to experience all of that and will forever be trying to fill the empty void I’ve been feeling.
But what would happen if I didn’t give up gyaru? Well my 30s-50s might be a bit awkward and my children will probably be embarrassed by the fact that their mum has more soft toys than they did, and that she liked pink way too much.
I probably wouldn’t be as rich as my other friends because I spent all of my money trying to find a decent shopping service so that I could still buy my clothes from Japan. I’d still be rolling my eyes at how slow Western fashion was, because that was so five years ago in Japan.
I’d still be seeing all of the friends I made through gyaru, and even if I didn’t see them as frequently as I could I would probably still be cheering them on and liking/commenting on their pictures on instagram or whatever network is popular in the future. Who knows, maybe there will be a massive blogging boom again in the Japanese fashion world!
And, to be honest, I prefer that kind of future.
“Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional”- Chili Davis
So am I too old for gyaru? You might as well ask – are you too old for the things you love? Right now I love the magical world of Japanese fashion too much to let it out of my bony hands. Even though I might not be as hardcore as I used to be and my outfits not as outrageous, I’d like to say that gyaru is a huge part of me and I don’t quite know how to do without it.
I guess it’s like asking if a musician is too old to keep on playing music, or if an artist is too old to keep on drawing. Will they stop? Hell no, because they love doing it! And sure you can say that fashion is a little bit different, but have you seen Baddie Winkle? That lady is killin’ it at 89 and that is my goal. Just imagine how cute I’ll be at 80 with all of my leopard print and a Hello Kitty keyring hanging from my bag. Doesn’t sound so bad, does it?
It can be easy to fall into the trap of feeling that you are too old for something – especially an alternative fashion – but trust me, you’re not. As long as you still love doing it, then you can never feel old.
What do you think? Can you be too old for a certain aesthetic? I’d love to hear your comments below!
Lizzie Bee xx // facebook / twitter / instagram / bloglovin’
Grace Brown
April 12, 2019I love your outfit lady. Keep wearing whatever you want!
Grace x
http://www.gracebee.co.uk
Sarah Nobbs
April 12, 2019Don’t stop doing gyaru if you don’t feel ready to stop! The last couple of years, I haven’t been going to meets because as my health got worse and worse, I starting feeling like I was “too crippled” to go, and I seriously regret it. Ok, age and health are different things, but they’re the same in that they are something we can’t control, what we can control though, is what we choose to do whilst we go through these things. I’ve let myself drift apart from the gyaru community as I’ve become unhealthier, and just like you predicted how drifting apart from gyaru as you get older would be, it is very sad, it is very lonely, and there is a big void in my life where you guys used to be – because I wasn’t ready to give up something I loved so much.
This post has inspired me though. I want to try get back out there again. If you’re happy to rock up in DaTuRa with your 80-year old wrinkled legs, then I guess I shouldn’t be worried about rocking up in my TutuHa in my rusty old wheelchair haha
Lily Chanel
April 12, 2019When I discovered the gyaru style I didn’t imagine it was a style and the teenager angst against the society. When I was in Tokyo (in 2012) I asked to the japanese who looked like a gyaru if they were gyaru and they seemed so unhappy! And i understood that gyaru are girls who have a bad reputation. In the magazines, their style is so cute and they are beautiful but in reality they are so make up and their hair look so fake… Like women, we are lucky because today we can wear whatever we want (sexy like kim k, cute like hummm anybody ^^) so if you want to dress like gyaru style, you can do it. Nobody judge you!
Lena
January 20, 2020Tbh I’m turning 30 this year and am a married mother of 2 kids, my Japanese husband thinks I should tone it down and become a proper shufu but as the kids are starting kindergarten I feel more than ever like I want to experiment with style and makeup! Definitely battling the feeling too old for gyaru. I’m going for various degrees of onee-gyaru. It works really well for me! With my oldest 3 years old, I am no longer the one with the most stuffed toys(I’ve given most of it to the kids lol) and my kids don’t really notice my makeup. They’re used to me wearing jfashion(they do to honestly) and the teachers at my kids’ kindergarten compliment me if I do pickups in full makeup. A little worried about embarrassing the kids when they reach school age so I tend to only do full on gyaru makeup if I’m going out meeting friends. Kind of like keeping it my thing and not involving the kids or husband?(although I do gyaru makeup for dates lol)
I’m generally just afraid of coming off as a “trying to relive her teenage years”-mom haha.
hellolizziebee
January 20, 2020Awh but that’s the beauty of gyaru – that it has onee gyaru styles that is more suitable for those who want to tone it down! Personally I don’t think you should stop doing it if you really love it, and you should never feel embarrassed! I think when I get older I’d want to tone down to onee gyaru, too!
Komi
March 13, 2022I have a question, so my sister (who is ten) is showing interest in gyaru and has done lots of research on it, although I am wondering if gyaru is fit for her age? Is she too young?
hellolizziebee
March 13, 2022Hmmm I personally think that’s quite young but I’ve grown up where I didn’t wear makeup until like… 15 years old haha ^^”