Bibliotheca: Fruits of Fall

The end of the month approaches, so it must be Bibliotheca time. September's theme is "Fruits of Fall". Normally, I'd tortuously transform this into an ode to pumpkins and gourds, but it's not the month for that. Both Jewish High Holy Days fell in September, so I'm feeling a little bit more earnest than usual, and the (currently upcoming) federal government shutdown has the entire D.C. area on edge. As such, I'll talk about my feelings on the two fall fruits in my wardrobe and one I would love to see. 

Apples

Apples are probably the most common fruit of fall, both in lolita and out. From apple picking, to apple baked goods, to the seventeen pages of items tagged "apples" currently on lolibrary, apples definitely have solid representation. Apples are also culturally important to me-- sweet foods and apples especially are a central part of the Ashkenazi Jewish celebration of the new year, which usually falls in September. They're a cheerful, quintessential feature of the harvest season in my part of the world.

AATP's Wicked Queen's Poison Cellar JSK I

But apples can be edgy, too. Thanks to the tale of Snow White, there are a number of poison-tinged lolita apple prints, including the iconic Haenuli Just One Bite print and the AATP Wicked Queen's Poison Cellar series. The latter was a long-time dream dress of mine that I finally snatched up in order to do my poison tours at the museums I work with. So, in that regard, apples have a balanced representation, both overall and in my wardrobe.

Grapes

I'm not ashamed to admit it: I like grape motifs mostly for the wine association. Wine grapes are a quintessential sign of fall. I was raised drinking wine from an unreasonably young age, and every year I look forward to the Beaujolais nouveau season, even if I still need to Google it to get the spelling right. 

AATP's Château de Nounours ~Angel's Secret Winery~ JSK II

Wine grapes are so important to me, in fact, that my first major item purchased directly from a brand was also the first wine print I had ever seen. I had been thinking of and posting about my ideal wine print for years at that point, so AATP's release of the dress that I affectionately shorten to "Angel's Secret Winery" was cause for celebration. I actually consider this to be my literal dream dress-- I bought it despite being a college student because I actually saw it in my dreams, enough that not buying it would have seemed like a mistake.

Summer Fairy ~ Loire Vineyards 2.0 Low Waist OP

Grapes also have the distinction of being the theme of my only purple dress. I keep pretty strictly to the black/reds/white theme in my wardrobe, but the embroidery and velvet ribbon on Summer Fairy's Loire Vineyards OP called to me. From here, I would have increased my wine grape dresses to three, but AATP's Secret Adventure and the Winery of Happiness only came in washed out colors, not the stark blacks or vivid jewel tones that I love.

Grapes, like apples, are a study in duality: the childish, isolated table grape emulated by (awful) candy, and the mature wine grape (with accompanying vine of delicious grape leaves). Although grape candy exists out of the natural world entirely, the wine grape is exquisitely seasonal to autumn. 

Pomegranates

Pomegranates have been around for an extraordinarily long time. They play a central role in Jewish culture-- unlike the apple-centric Christian view of Genesis, some Jews believe that Chava ate from a pomegranate. The finial pieces that decorate the Torah are called rimonim, which literally translates to pomegranates. Eating a pomegranate during autumn is also a tradition-- during the fall holidays, even if the pomegranates don't look too great, my dad always gets one to split.

from Wikimedia

Whether in Southern China, Persia, India, al-Andalus (Spain's name when it was cooler), or more recently, California and Japan, pomegranates have traveled far and taken root in the cultural zeitgeist wherever they go. The round, crowned shape and gem-like seeds are uniquely beautiful, with diverse representations in both 2D and 3D art.

from Wikimedia

So where is my goddamn pomegranate print?

I love these suckers, they're bitter and sweet and complicated and red. They're perfect classic lolita fruits, but there's not a single pomegranate-centric print on lolibrary. If someone comes up with a good, non-painting based pomegranate print, please make it in black and red so that I can wear it all the time. I've achieved so many lolita dreams, but yet the lack of pomegranate dress confounds me. Even more than grapes and apples, pomegranates just define fall.

Autumn is the best season, and these fruits are amazing. I may be a proud strawberry and cherry print wearer, but there are many other options. Remember: you can always get fruitier.