I thought this theme fit me perfectly, since in my lolita experience there were definite stages of "eh" "vaguely self-aware" and "finally good" I made my first coord in the summer of 2012, and although you might think that such a dramatic transformation couldn't have happened in 2 years, I assure you it did XD on to my first coords!
I can't actually find any pictures of my first coord from summer 2012, but it could have been way worse XD I knew all of the guidelines of the fashion by the time I attempted a coord, so I had an OP, a petti, tights, hair accessories, and shoes. These two are my second and third coords. Way back when I first started I thought I wanted to be borderline gothic/classic, hence the classic and kuro coords. At this point, I didn't wear makeup or do my hair. I found, while looking at all these pics, that my coords improve for a while, then stagnate while I work on my makeup or hair skills. Moving on...
These next two are after my first taobao order and my first brand purchase, respectively. Even though I still had no idea how to do hair or makeup, I realized that darker classic and gothic weren't really my thing, and switched my main colors from brown/black to white/offwhite, which are still prominent in my wardrobe today.
By fall of 2013 I started experimenting with my own hair and realized it really made a difference with my coords. I also bought a set of clip-in bangs but was to scared to cut them so I just parted them weird XD
After I realized that a different hairstyle could make a coord much better, I started experimenting with makeup, too. The photo from October shows one of the first times I ever wore makeup with lolita (excuse the face), whereas the first one from December shows one of my first times wearing false eyelashes. I was so impressed by their effect on my face and fell in love with them. By that time I'd also cut my fake bangs to be straight as well, and liked them even better that way. The coord to the far right is one I wore to a Christmas party to introduce lolita to my extended family, and for the most part everyone was impressed ^^
These are two different shots from a coord I put together in March with my first wig! I'd been stalking it on GLW for a while because it was such a pretty color and decided to buy it on their Black Friday sale. I also got my first pair of good quality eyelashes from Dolluxe, and swore I'd never go back to the ones I'd been getting at Sally's. This is also the first time I tried something identifiable as sweet, and I loved it so much that I started swapping navy for pink in my wardrobe.
Now we're getting recent XD here are two coords that showcase my newfound love of pink! They also show how much better my natural hair looks with lolita now that I got it lightened and cut bangs. I also gave up taobao for the most part and started buying more brand. The dress on the left is MM and on the right is an AP JSK, which was bought on a whim, and I feared it would be too sweet, but it's become my favorite piece!
Here are two very recent coords featuring some wigs I picked up! I like myself best with pink hair, but I needed the brown one, too, for more classic looks. The dress on the left is AP and on the right is BtSSB, showing my recent commitment to buckle down and buy a few wishlist pieces.
And here are my two most recent coords, both from August 2014! I've finally embraced a much sweeter style that I think really suits me. Considering what I came from only two short years ago, as an ita who thought wigs and makeup were the devil and gothic was her favorite style, I think I've improved a ton! I've replaced a lot of the classic on my wishlist with sweet, and can't wait to obtain more of it to make even sweeter coords! I guess I'm not done evolving yet, and I'll probably keep changing up my style until I leave lolita.