Just the Two of Us: Friendships in the Community
What’s cooler than one stylish individual? Two stylish individuals! Meet Canniny and Larissa, a pair of fashion-forward besties brought together by their love of Japanese street fashion. From twinning outfits to their wholesome friendship, these two are each other’s partner in crime—despite living thousands of miles apart!
Please introduce yourselves.
Canniny: Hello, I’m Canniny. I’m a model and illustrator in Tokyo, I have a very cute dog named Pepper.
Larissa: I’m Larissa, a daydreamer living her pastel cute life in Los Angeles, California!
How did you meet and how long have you known each other?
Larissa: In the spring of 2017 I moved to Tokyo for two months to explore the city I love! I had found Canniny’s instagram and one day she posted a story asking if anyone in Tokyo wanted to hang out! I introduced myself and the rest is history!
Larissa you’re currently in Los Angeles and Canniny you’re in Tokyo. How do you stay connected while living so far away?
Canniny: We text each other sometimes and share our life. We both have a messy time schedule.
Larissa: The two of us can be degenerates sometimes and will sleep at 5 am, but when it’s super late in one hemisphere, it’s casual daytime in the other! We talk through messenger or online phone calls when our fingers aren’t fast enough to express what we have to convey, haha.
What qualities do you love the most about each other?
Canniny: She’s the sweetest, loveliest and kindest person I know. She’s not just a “go out have fun” friend, she cares about me, about everyone she knows. I have bipolar disorder and once I went crazy, she chased me at 6 am in the morning to make sure I was OK. She always talks to me when bad things happen in my life. She’s the best.
Larissa: Canniny can really brighten up a room with her sunshine personality. It’s hard to see it online but she can make anyone smile with her wit and humor. She can also bring art to life with her sense of style and creativity~
How has your common interest of Japanese street fashion influenced your friendship?
Larissa: We have a similar aesthetic and shop together in stores to wear matching clothes! It’s great because we can still think of each other when we wear the clothes separately on our own. We both love to dress up and take photos of our outfits, but doing so together while going out feels so much more natural and fun! It has also helped us create photographic memories we can cherish forever.
What do you love about each other’s style? What are some of the styling tips you’ve poached from each other?
Canniny: I just love everything about her, and there’s no limit to whatever she wears. We do give each other some make-up tips, like what colour looks better and which accessories match the outfits.
Larissa: She’s definitely made mismatched socks cool, haha. And I’ve learned how the utilization of accessories such as belts can really change the vibe of an outfit. We also really love platform shoes but I’ll always try to wear the higher one since I’m only 5ft 0in and she’s a model of 5ft 5in XD
What is your all-time favourite memory together?
Canniny: She stayed in my house in 2019. She sneaked out of the house all the time, and got a huge bag of ice cream and finished it in one day. My fridge was just full of her ice creams. We also streamed until 7am and had a lot of fun.
Larissa: My favourite memory is probably running through the streets of Shibuya till the sun rose, sharing our stories and karaoking with unlimited soft cream.
Okay, so we know what you have in common. What do you disagree on?
Canniny: We don’t really have anything to disagree on, and we don’t fight at all. But we do have totally different tastes in boys.
Larissa: Maybe on how much sugar goes into milk tea, lol. Or how spicy food we share can be.
Has that ever resulted in a major disagreement?
Canniny: Boys don’t affect our friendships XD
Larissa: I don’t think we ever fought, haha.
What’s the last piece of culture that you enjoyed and why?
Canniny: I enjoy the arts a lot. I love all different styles, different stories and different worlds. You can really see the personality from people’s work. When I draw, my brain is in my own world, there’s no troublesome rules, no limit. I can create all the things I want.
Larissa: I just recently watched Frozen and Hunchback of Notre Dame on Broadway online! I love how the stage was set and the actors fleshed out the characters more than what the Disney movies could portray.
Any last words?
Canniny: Be open minded with fashion. And be kind to the people who wear fashion, they are just normal people who like wearing cute clothes. Sometimes it’s OK to talk to people from the internet, that’s how I met my sweet girl Larissa.
Larissa: My dearest friendships sparked from a simple Hello, so never be afraid to try and connect with strangers! Sometimes you’ll find that you have a lot in common and enjoy each other’s aura!
Introduction and questions by Vania.
Images courtesy of @canniny and @sugarycarnivore via Instagram.