❀ What is Larme-kei?

Hello darlings♥! Today I want to discuss a fairly new style that's slowly, but surely, gaining a lot of steam and becoming quite popular: Larme-kei!

The lovely Mai Shirashi on the 17th issue of Larme magazine.

It's not as well known in the west, and I've seen a lot of confusion as to what it is because of the lack of exposure to it, so I hope to clear some of that up with this post. universal-doll did a pretty awesome post on the magazine that started it all (where I will also source some of my information from) which I urge you to read before this post! It is a great introduction and explains the style as well.

Let's start!

To put it simply, Larme-kei is the style that appears in Larme magazine! (universal-doll covers what Larme magazine is, what it does, and how it came to be)

To give you a general idea, Larme is a magazine that creates every issue with the idea of a "甘くてかわいい女の子" in mind, which literally means "Sweet and Cute Girl". In the west, this comes close to our idea of a "sweetheart".

So, no matter the season or the trends, Larme-kei aims to look like a cute, sweet youthful girl. A sweetheart. It doesn't limit itself to specific cuts or colors, it just molds everything to fit it's own style, which makes highly versatile/adaptive. The magazine focuses more on photo shoots and spreads, rather than street snaps and collages of dozens of different outfits. That way you can be inspired to achieve the same look and "feeling" of a sweetheart☆! Therefore, there are no specific "rules" such as in Fairy-kei or Gyaru, but instead it's more of the feeling you get when you see the combination of hair, make-up, and clothing.

You can really see the best of both Shibuya and Harajuku in this style!

Larme comes from the former Ageha editor Haruna Nakagori, and it definitely shows (in a good way!). It has obvious Shibuya and gyaru influences, as well as Harajuku influences. (In my opinion, it's the best of both worlds!) However, Larme-kei stands on it's own quite well despite taking lots of inspiration from these two styles. 

Larme-kei is characterized by three things: Hair, make-up, and clothing. Unlike gyaru, which places utmost importance on make-up and hair, and Harajuku styles, which tend to be all about the clothing, Larme-kei needs all three to achieve the "sweet and cute girl" look. It's a style that's "quietly bold" by looking youthful and simple, yet having bold, unusual clothes and details befitting a young woman. It often takes inspiration from 1960s Lolita movie (the fashion, not anything else!).

Make-up is very subtle eye but with a bold, glossy lip and usually red blush, as you can see in the picture. You can choose a more common pink or plum gloss instead of red to achieve a more casual look, while the eye make-up is usually the same as this.

The base of the look usually consists of natural looking false lashes, oftentimes brown, with subtle lenses and clear, dewy skin. Eye shadows are fairly neutral, and are usually used to enlarge the eye instead of standing out on their own. The eyeliner that's mostly tightlined but gets thicker as you reach the end, a bright blush under the eye, and a matching glossy lips are the main points of the make up, and can be altered to give a more glamorous look or a simpler one.

The intent is to make the eyes and lips look larger and thus more youthful, but with bold accents that keep it from looking babyish. It's very distinct despite how simple it is.

The hair is Larme magazine is most aptly described as "artfully mussed". It doesn't have either perfectly sleek or curled hair, instead it tries to look more natural by using natural waves and a "messy" look. This adds to the youthful and sweet appearance it strives to achieve.

Even when in an up-do or particular hairstyle, they prefer to
leave a few hairs out to appear more natural and effortless.

Colors are almost always ash brown, chocolate brown, or dark brown. There are a few models with black hair, but generally brown is the color you see the most. Again, the intention is to look youthful, so the hair must look "natural". Models usually sport healthy looking, mussed wavy hair to achieve this look. Length doesn't usually matter, and you can see long, medium, and short lengths in every issue.

Ah, yes, the most difficult question to answer. Because Larme-kei does not follow a particular set of rules, but rather a feeling, the clothing can vary dramatically depending on season and trends. Larme magazine often follows the current trends, but it modifies them to fit the feeling of the style. So, as long as your clothing provides the youthful look, which is dramatically enhanced by the hair and make up, you can wear whatever colors and shapes that you like! Although it is generally either monochromatic or pastels, there is still a wide range of colors that can suit any lifestyle and personality.

Monochromatic with a boxy silhouette. Risa Nakamura wears this style a lot.

A more punk look with bold accents.

Pastel colors and uncommon silhouettes.

It can go from more simple, normcore inspired clothing with a unique feature or two, to full blown Swankiss, to 60s biker babe. It prefers to be a little quirky, but as long as it retains the overall feeling, you can easily experiment. That's one of the best things about the fashion, that you aren't held back by specific rules. However, if that makes you feel a little lost, the magazine and the brands it promotes are a great resource to keep track of trends and get ideas from!

Larme-kei is a style that wants to achieve the perfect balance between youthful, cute, and sweet. I encourage everyone to check out the magazine, as the make-up and hair tutorials are very helpful, and the type of clothing constantly changes, keeping the look fresh and mobile. I think it's very difficult to get bored of Larme-kei because of this. I hope this basic guide can help you better understand Larme-kei♥! Please look forward to a post on Larme brands soon.

for reading!