It’s a bit of a hard one to explain – yumekawaii is more of a feeling than a specific outfit, and often a fairy kei outfit can be yumekawa!
I’ve made a handy set of collages to try show the difference, since it’s quite hard to explain in words…
Fairy kei outfits which are also yume kawaii:
image sources: KERA, Yuuukacandy @ WEAR, Gallery
The main keywords for yumekawa outfits are “yume” and “meruhen”, which are “dreamy” and “fairytale-like”. It’s a feeling of an outfit, which means that any kind of style, including fairy kei, can be yumekawa. A dreamy outfit often involves layering, pastels, the colour white, and sheer or drapey fabrics (such as peignoirs, panniers, sheer socks, sukajan etc). Since quite a few of those match the looks in fairy kei, this means the two often overlap! A lot of Listen Flavor’s current pastel items are yumekawaii, and look great in fairy kei!
Yume kawaii outfits which aren’t fairy kei
image sources: ayami0509 @ WEAR, WEGO, Yulayula @ Instagram
This is probably the most popular and typical kind of yume kawaii outfits in Japan, as it is easy to wear and looks casual as well as cute. It often includes white skirts (usually sheer), often paired with a pastel t-shirt or sweater. Dresses are often layered over a plain t-shirt for a comfy but cute look. Printed ankle socks and platforms are regularly worn, although white or pastel trainers/sneakers are often worn too. They still give of a dreamy feeling, despite being toned down, which is the main thing! A theme you may also notice in these images is…
image sources: yurimaru @ WEAR, Unsung Hero, Idol
Oversized is a hugely popular thing!! Whether it’s a huge t-shirt tucked into a high waisted skirt, or a massive t-shirt, huge soles on your shoes, or even loose socks, oversized is popular because a lot of people feel it makes you appear smaller, and thus cute and makes people want to protect you - kind of like a small cute animal haha (it’s weird logic but I’m just telling you what goes behind the idea)
But overall, yumekawa is just a feeling to an outfit similar to ~the fairy feeling~ that I talk about a lot. Mixing yume with yami (poison/illness) has also been popular, but I think that’d deserve it’s own post if you want me to go into it more!
The thing is, the jfash community outside of Japan tends to label things a lot. So when things like yumekawaii can appear in multiple styles, it can get a bit confusing! But the people within the japanese community tend to label things a lot less, and just give their outfit a feeling as opposed to a specific style. This is why sometimes you can wear an entirely pastel outfit and it still not look fairy kei! Personally, I think we should try following how we want an outfit to feel more often, as it opens up so many doors to new styles and looks!
I hope that explains it, and I managed to get it across well! ♥
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