by Fausta Wertz

They say sex sells, and it does, but from the looks of it cute sells in Japan, too. I was just reading in the Wall Street Journal that <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122713804938242481.html">Japan's Latest Fashion Has Women Playing Princess for a Day</a>. Apparently,<blockquote>Part Marie Antoinette and Part Paris Hilton, The Style Affords Pricey Stress Relief</blockquote>I wouldn't want to look like either Marie or Paris, but I'm all for stress relief, so I read on.

There's cheap stress relief, like listening to music one likes, napping, or a little tango practice; and then there's pricey stress relief, like buying some really nice Jimmy Choos or going to a spa for the weekend (without The Husband, thank you. The most stressful thing you could do to The Husband is to subject him to a spa weekend. He's that kind of guy).

And then there's Japanese stress relief.

Strees relief for the <i>hime gyaru</i> (princess girl) involves Jesus. Not Our Lord Jesus Christ, nor Jesus from The Big Lebowski, but Jesus Diamante (whose name means Jesus Diamond in Spanish):<blockquote>They idolize Marie Antoinette and Paris Hilton, for her baby-doll looks and princess lifestyle. They speak in soft, chirpy voices and flock to specialized boutiques with names like Jesus Diamante, which looks like a bedroom in a European chateau. There, some hime girls spend more than $1,000 for an outfit including a satin dress, parasol and rhinestone-studded handbag</blockquote>But wait, Jesus Diamante is not a person, it's a store named after a Japanese musical:<blockquote>Jesus Diamante started the princess boom. Toyotaka Miyamae, 52, who had run an import shop specializing in evening gowns, set up the company in Osaka seven years ago to design feminine dresses tailored to Japanese women, whom he found to be shorter and to have smaller chests than Western women. Inspired by his favorite actress, Brigitte Bardot, he created dresses in quality fabrics that mimicked the feminine and elegant style of her youth.

"What I wanted to do wasn't that unique," says Mr. Miyamae, who named the company after a Japanese musical. "I just made them to fit Japanese bodies."</blockquote>The Journal has a <a href="http://online.wsj.com/video/japan-princess-girls/1C1EB7DD-44FD-418E-A7FE-4DC7327FFBA8.html">video</a>.

Not my style, but someday I'll have to go to Japan and check out the shopping. Undoubtedly some store somewhere in Japan will have something for the tall western woman...