What is Kawaii? Cute Outfit Ideas, Room Decor Inspo & More

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Learn where "kawaii" comes from & why it has spread worldwide
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You’ve probably heard the word “kawaii” at some point, but what is it and what does it actually mean? Kawaii is a Japanese term that means “cute,” or “adorable,” but it goes far beyond something simply being cute—kawaii is an entire lifestyle filled with fashion, visuals, characters, movies, and music. In this article, we’ll dive deeper into everything you need to know about kawaii, including what it is, what makes something kawaii, and how you can get the aesthetic for yourself!

Kawaii Aesthetic: Quick Overview

The term “kawaii” refers to a cute, childlike aesthetic that is popular in Japan. The aesthetic is represented with things that are seen as very innocent and vulnerable, such as soft, pastel colors, big eyes, candy, toys, and doll-like clothing.

Section 1 of 6:

What is the kawaii aesthetic?

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  1. Kawaii is an aesthetic that embraces cuteness, innocence, and pastel colors. Kawaii means “cute” in Japanese, and in Japan, kawaii is thought of as the “culture of cuteness.” It’s a major part of Japanese society, and you’ll see “kawaii” things everywhere you look, from the way people dress, to characters on airplanes and buses. [1]
    • The kawaii look is represented by pastel colors, childlike charm, cute animals and cartoons—basically anything that is sweet and innocent. This might be reflected through people’s clothing and makeup, or it can be seen in society in things like food and popular culture.
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Section 2 of 6:

Signatures of the Kawaii Aesthetic

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  1. Kawaii visuals focus on childlike innocence. In the kawaii aesthetic, visuals are the main feature. People interested in this look use fashion, bright lighting, and art to represent the style. Some of the main elements of kawaii are: [2]
    • Bright lighting: In any visual representation of kawaii, you’ll rarely see any darkness or shadows. This look is focused on happy, bright, fun imagery.
    • Soft colors: Colors like pink and white take center stage in kawaii.
    • Edited photos: Many who are into kawaii edit photos of themselves to have the appearance of big eyes, stickers, and sparkles. Posing in cute, innocent ways—like making a kissy face or throwing up peace signs—is common as well.
    • Cartoonized food: Food is a major theme in kawaii style, especially sweets. You’ll often see fruit, cakes, sprinkles, ice cream, boba, and cotton candy in kawaii visuals. Sometimes, bento boxes are made to look like cute characters and animals.
    • Nature: Images and drawings of simplified clouds, rainbows, butterflies, stars, and cute little animals are all very common in kawaii.
    • Cartoon characters: Characters from pop culture like Hello Kitty, Pusheen, Care Bears, Pokémon, and Animal Crossing have all played a major role in the kawaii aesthetic.
Section 3 of 6:

How to Get the Kawaii Aesthetic

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  1. 1
    Dress in youthful clothing. Anything sophisticated or mature should definitely be avoided when it comes to the kawaii aesthetic. Reach for soft colors like pinks, white, and pastel purples and blues, as pieces that are frilly, doll-like, and whimsical are perfect for this style. Stores like Kawaii Babe offer a fantastic selection to start your journey towards a truly kawaii aesthetic.
  2. 2
    Keep your makeup fresh and light. Kawaii aesthetic focuses on glowing, youthful skin, rounded eyes, soft blush, small lips, and bright highlights. To achieve this, reach for sheer foundations, pencil eyeliners, pink lip glosses and lip stains, and white or pink highlighter.
    • Applying a white eyeliner to your waterline can help give off the illusion of big eyes. [3]
  3. 3
    Jazz up your nails with sparkles and pastel colors. Your nails are the perfect opportunity to show off your kawaii aesthetic because you can decorate them with pretty much anything you want. Cute stickers, sparkle polish, soft colors, and kawaii nail art allow you to have an adorable look. Try painting simple designs like strawberries, cherries, or clouds.
  4. 4
    Capture a youthful, playful look with kawaii-inspired hairstyles. Pigtails, headbands, bows, and braids are all charming options that are on-brand with kawaii. In fact, many people use wigs to switch up their kawaii look without committing to any drastic color changes. Wigs come in pretty much any color imaginable, so you can really get creative and have fun with all of the available options out there.
  5. 5
    Consider circle contact lenses. Big eyes are a big part of kawaii, and you’ll see this look a lot in anime and manga. Contacts meant to make your eyes appear larger can give them the bright, doe-eyed look you're going for. [4]
  6. 6
    Use anime for inspiration. If you’re feeling stuck on how to achieve a kawaii look, watch a few anime or manga series. Since kawaii is such a big part of Japanese culture, it can be found in most a ton of anime and manga series. Pay attention to how the characters dress, behave, and even study their mannerisms. [5]
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Section 4 of 6:

Kawaii Aesthetic in Popular Culture and Media

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  1. 1
    Manga and anime Anime and manga both use kawaii as a primary feature in many of the series. Some series that focus a lot on kawaii aesthetic include:
    • Afro-ken
    • Aikatsu!
    • Animal Crossing
    • Baja no Studio
    • Bananya
    • Bonobono
    • Charmmy Kitty
    • Daisuki! Hello Kitty
    • Dinosaur Biyori
    • Donyatsu
    • Girls x Heroine series
    • Gdgd Fairies
    • Gudetama
    • Hamster Club
    • Hamtaro
    • Happy Happy Clover
    • Himitsu no AiPri
    • Is the Order a Rabbit?
    • Jewelpet
    • Kiki and Lala
    • Kemono Friends
    • Kapibara-san
    • Kero Kero Keroppi
    • Kuromi's Pretty Journey
    • Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear
    • Lucky☆Star
    • Luminary Tears
    • Mameshiba
    • Mermaid Melody
    • Mitchiri Neko
    • Mochi Mochi Panda
    • Nichijou
    • Nyanpire The Animation
    • Ocha-ken
    • Ojamajo Doremi
    • Onegai My Melody
    • Pretty Cure
    • Pretty Rhythm
    • Princess Pring
    • Sanrio Boys
    • Sailor Moon
    • School Babysitters
    • Usaru-san
    • Yousei Chiitan
    • Yukai na Animal Bus
    • Yumeiro Patissiere
    • Yuru Yuri
  2. 2
    Music Kawaii music actually takes on an entire genre of its own. Filled with falsetto and electronic beats, kawaii music is all about the artists’ fashion, vibe, and imagery. In fact, there are several sub-genres of kawaii fashion, including kawaii bass, which is a futuristic-sounding style that often samples sounds from video games and anime. [6] Some popular kawaii artists include: [7]
    • NiziU
    • Snail’s House
    • YUC'e
    • Babymetal
    • JO1
    • King & Prince
    • AKB48
  3. 3
    Merchandise Kawaii is a major selling point in Japan. After Hello Kitty rose to popularity, manufacturers began making all kinds of merchandise in the character’s likeness and image. Since then, the country’s cultural obsession with cuteness has only grown, and now you’ll see kawaii images everywhere from government offices to police stations. [8]
    • Pikachu, the iconic Pokémon character, is featured on the sides of ten ANA passenger jets, which are known as the "Pikachu Jets." [9]
    • Japan's larger cities have created their own kawaii mascot characters to boost tourism. [10]
    • Certain Japanese police departments have also adopted kawaii-style mascot characters, which they display on neighborhood police stations. [11]
  4. 4
    Idols Idols are entertainers who are marketed for their image. Idols, who are typically very young, can be singers, dancers, actors, or models. Many idols are part of performance groups that embrace the kawaii aesthetic. [12]
    • Not every Japanese entertainer is considered an “idol,” while not every idol is considered “kawaii.”
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Section 5 of 6:

Variations of the Kawaii Aesthetic

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  1. 1
    Lolita Lolita is a subculture of kawaii that is influenced by Victorian-style clothing. The style typically involves wearing petticoats, skirts, frilly blouses, ribbons, lace, hair bows and bonnets, knee socks or tights, and high heels. Umbrellas are popular accessories. [13]
  2. 2
    Kimo-kawaii Kimo-kawaii combines things that are both cute and gross. Meaning ugly, disgusting, gross, or weird, kimo-kawaii is typically achieved by wearing things that combine things that are strange and macabre with things that are cute. [14]
    • In the mid-2010s, a related style called yami-kawaii or "sickly-cute" also emerged. Similar to its name, yami-kawaii embraces the look of being sick. People often use makeup to create eye bags, injuries, and wounds.
  3. 3
    Fairy Kei Fairy Kei is heavily inspired by 1980s fashion. It focuses on pastel colors like lavender and mint. Clothes are often light and loose, and they typically include images of 80s characters like Polly Pocket, My Little Pony, Strawberry Shortcake, Rainbow Brite, Barbie, Wuzzles, and Care Bears. [15]
  4. 4
    Decora Decora is short for “decoration,” which is exactly what this style is all about. People who embrace this style love to stack on all sorts of hair pins, bracelets, rings, necklaces, and other accessories. Characters from the 80s are also a common theme in the clothing, such as Care Bears or Barbie. [16]
    • Dark decora is a variation of this aesthetic that uses dark colors and doesn’t stick to the typical pastel shades of kawaii.
  5. 5
    Kawaii men The kawaii fashion trend is typically associated with girls , but some men enjoy it as well. While it’s rare to find masculine kawaii clothing, many guys simply enjoy the more feminine nature of kawaii. They might find the pastel colors appealing, or even enjoy rocking kawaii makeup looks. [17]
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Section 6 of 6:

History of the Kawaii Aesthetic

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  1. 1
    The original meaning of "kawaii" was "pitiable." In ancient Japanese, the words "kawayushi" and "kaohayushi" were used to describe something "so pitiable one can't stand it." Totally different from how we use “kawaii” today, this original usage definitely had strong negative connotations. Over time, these words were replaced with “kawaii,” which is now a positive thing. [18]
  2. 2
    Hello Kitty revolutionized the Kawaii aesthetic. When Sanrio’s Hello Kitty character dropped in 1974, Japan instantly fell in love—and so did the rest of the world. Hello Kitty embodied everything about the kawaii aesthetic, from the pastel colors to the cuteness of the character. Soon, kawaii culture started to become a phenomenon. [19]
  3. 3
    Kawaii started a new style of handwriting In the 1970s. The rising popularity of the kawaii aesthetic inspired a new style of writing among Japanese teenage girls. Using mechanical pencils, girls would write in thin, round characters, as opposed to traditional Japanese handwriting. [20]
    • Because this new writing style was very hard to read, it caused a lot of controversy, and some schools even banned it. It eventually came back again in the 1980s when it was seen on kawaii-style packaging and branding.
  4. 4
    Olive Magazine became a leader of the kawaii aesthetic in the 1980s. In 1982, a magazine called "Olive,” became the first magazine to inspire kawaii fashion. Fans often replicated looks in the magazine, which encouraged them to embrace their own sense of style. Some agree that Olive is where harajuku fashion, a Japanese aesthetic that is very similar to kawaii, began. [21]
  5. 5
    Kawaii's popularity has spread to other countries in recent years. While kawaii originated in Japan, the rest of the world has definitely taken notice of its cuteness. Countries all over Asia like China, Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam have embraced the Kawaii aesthetic—even further stamping into cultural history. [22]
  6. 6
    Kawaii has had its fair share of controversy. One study by a student at UCLA shed light on the fact that from childhood, Japanese people are taught to expect women to embody this cutesy aesthetic. Some argue that this is an unhealthy way to look at women because it embraces the idea that females are naive, innocent, and fragile in comparison to men. [23]
    • Similarly, some female J-pop idols, even if they are over the age of 18, are expected to keep up their kawaii image. Many find this controversial because instead of being able to dress and act like grown women, these idols are forced to stay childlike for marketing purposes. [24]
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      References

      1. ↑ https://cotoacademy.com/how-to-use-kawaii-%E3%81%8B%E3%82%8F%E3%81%84%E3%81%84-japanese-culture-cute/
      2. ↑ https://www.ejable.com/japan-corner/japanese-culture/kawaii-culture/
      3. ↑ https://youtu.be/_j69P9oMBeo?si=gzO4jlgOj2CbC4PM&t=55
      4. ↑ https://youtu.be/_j69P9oMBeo?si=2WMk2daluVJoa4bs&t=14
      5. ↑ https://yumetwins.com/blog/magical-girl-anime-the-most-influential-of-the-genre
      6. ↑ https://japancrate.com/blogs/news/what-is-kawaii-music
      7. ↑ https://yumetwins.com/blog/five-japanese-idol-groups-you-should-listen-to
      8. ↑ https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2002-06-24/in-japan-cute-conquers-all
      9. ↑ https://flying-pikachu.com/en/pika_jet/
      1. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20131202231802/http://findingfukuoka.com/2012/01/13/top-ten-japanese-character-mascots/
      2. ↑ https://qz.com/1164167/tokyos-adorable-police-mascot-pipo-kun-is-basically-cuteness-weaponized
      3. ↑ https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9781137283788_10
      4. ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/13/fashion/gothic-lolitas-demure-vs-dominatrix.html
      5. ↑ https://arcadiaquill.com/10446/features/subcultures-of-kawaii-fashion/
      6. ↑ https://j-fashion.fandom.com/wiki/Fairy_Kei
      7. ↑ https://aesthetics.fandom.com/wiki/Decora
      8. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-HjXBgfznI
      9. ↑ https://tokyogirlsupdate.com/kawaii-2-0-theory-vol-2-20160176479.html
      10. ↑ https://www.ejable.com/japan-corner/japanese-culture/kawaii-culture/
      11. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20110514230055/http://www.kinsellaresearch.com/new/Cuties%20in%20Japan.pdf
      12. ↑ https://tokyogirlsupdate.com/kawaii-2-0-theory-vol-6-20160694637.html
      13. ↑ https://www.newsweek.com/cute-power-164150
      14. ↑ https://csw.ucla.edu/2017/07/21/being-kawaii-in-japan/
      15. ↑ https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jpms.12195

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