It's a topic discussed a little by F Yeah Lolita and a few of their replicas are documented on EGL. Strangely enough a community which, for the most part, shuns those wearing replicas, seemingly pushes a shop who's inventory comprises itself on replicas and cheap knockoffs.
By no means am I saying that I don't support Bodyline nor am I suggesting that you should burn your dresses. That would be ridiculous. I myself own a good number of dresses from Bodyline, one of them is even my favorite dress in my wardrobe. Yet, I feel like it's the duty of those more experienced in the fashion to help inform one another, so together we may become more informed consumers.
When discussing Bodyline's replica history, the most documented, to no surprise, have been designs and prints taken from brands I like to call the Godly Few (this group refers to Angelic Pretty, Btssb, Alice and the Pirates, Meta, Moitie, Juliette et Justine, Innocent World...etc.) In fact, all of Bodyline's replicas of smaller, lesser known brands have been completely over shadowed due to a safety blanket Bodyline falls under.
What is this saftey blanket? Well, as Lolita Tips on tumblr points out, the fabric they use is publicly available. Anyone can use it, make with it what they wish, so Bodyline making a dress which looks eerily similar to Classical Puppet's Rose Bouquet is perfectly acceptable.
Classical Puppet's jsk is to the left and Bodyline's op is to the right. It's undeniable the similarity. Both garments have the same name and in my opinion it appears as though Bodyline took Classical Puppet's design and altered it minimally to suit an op while also saving money on construction costs.
If the similarity here doesn't strike as obvious, below are a few more contenders for Bodyline's design theft of smaller brand designs.
left: Bodyline's L515right: Infanta's
Strawberry Sundae
left: Bodyline's L560right: Infanta's Fruit Pie
left: Bodyline's L534right: Infanta's Poker Cards
To kill the argument that it's difficult to make a unique design when working with a print your competitors are using, I present to you Classical Puppet's take on this card print...
Bodyline has even shown their skills at design when creating this dress...
...when Infanta used the same fabric.
And again in regards to Bodyline's Chocoberry jsk and White Moon's Strawberry Chocolate series.
Yet is it is still all together excused online when the topic of Bodyline making dresses too similar to smaller brands is brought up. There's a difference between having the same resources and producing the same finishing product. What Bodyline is doing is acting as though they're so smart, leaning over the shoulder of a fellow classmate and copying their answers to the homework assignment. These actions are inexcusable in the classroom as they should be in Lolita fashion.
Companies like DoL and Oojia fess up to their replica making. You don't see them attempting to pass off a Wonder Cookie jsk as their own work because they know that's dishonesty. There is a demand for replicas, there may always be one, DoL and Oojia know this and work the market.
Bodyline continues to be presented to those newer to the fashion as a shop producing their own prints and designs at lower prices when that simply isn't the case. In fact, Bodyline's L560 is marked much higher than Infanta's Fruit Pie print. Priced at 36.80 USD, you would be able to buy the print in another colorway and still be under Bodyline's 80 USD price tag.
Lately as I've been scrolling down into the Sweet Lolita tag on tumblr, I've noticed that a lot of girls have been interested in the pie print, believing it to be Bodyline's own creation. These girls then wait to save up money for a garment they are unaware can purchased at a much lower price with higher quality craftsmanship. I sit there, looking at my computer, wishing it wouldn't be perceived as rude to point out to them that they're willingly purchasing an over priced replica. Not for the reason most would assume. I care about their interest in the print and design of the dress. If they enjoy the look of it and are willing to pay so much for it, they should be thrilled to know it's sold cheaper somewhere else. As I've learned with my past experience with someone willingly purchasing a replica, they misunderstand me and are better left to their own devices.
Seeing as direct approaches to others turns quickly into unintended drama, I believe the approach taken by EGL should be continued. As a community, we should continue the trend of documenting replicas made by Bodyline, so that those looking into each print, seeking reviews will find the information for themselves. May they be replicas of well known brand items or those of lesser attention, the integrity of design should be held close to our hearts.
-Dakota
