Okay then.. HyperJapan at Earls Court was so not what I was expecting! It’s almost a convention in that everyone dresses up in their favourite Japanese characters from Manga, anime, horror films, trading card games or Kawaii – plus something new to me.. Cosplay (dressing up in costumes of a certain type). Predominantly, the costumes were Harajuku but there are many variants of this. Given that I know nothing about these aspects of Japanese culture – or, what I suspect, is our version of it – I’m a little limited in explanations!
Bunny heads, yes..
Random loose fingers, no.
And these lovely ladies should give you an idea of the ‘look’. There were wigs aplenty for sale – all in shades of pastel – it looked like the entire cast of My Little Pony had exploded there.
Little Twin Star socks…
The delicate art of macaroon decorating!
Kawaii nails.
I’m not sure there is anywhere else in London that you’d see the extremes of these fantasy dressing – certainly I’m not sure I want to see a six foot man dressed as Belle from Beauty and The Beast again with a long Disney-esque wig and a bright yellow ball-gown, nor do I ever again want to see a Sailor Moon with a beard. No issue about people dressing up in whatever they want – I totally get drag and certainly have no moral issues – but you know.. I just felt it was slightly too off-beat for me – as was the sixty-ish lady dressed as a child-doll.
Obviously, I couldn’t go home empty-handed, so I scooped up this dear little thing (gettit!).
Check out Thom at Manface’s post as well.. I think he has a better understanding than me! http://www.manface.co.uk/hyper-japan-2012/
If you want to enter the strange world of Harajuki and Anime, try these sites:
www.strawberrymushrooms.storenvy.com
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