Although most Lolita dresses and skirts are 'cupcake-shaped,' with-in that there are many types of dresses and skirts available. Here are some of the styles that you may come across:
Bell Shaped: A skirt that starts at the waist, and flares out into a very large 'bell-shape' at the bottom. This is a very common Lolita-style skirt.
A-Line: A more Classic-styled design that is much more fitted around the waist area than other forms of Lolita skirts / dresses.
Empire Waist: A style of skirt which sits up very high just under the bust before flaring outwards.
Gathered Skirt: A skirt that is 'gathered' at the top for a ruffled effect around the entire skirt.
Flared Skirt: A flared skirt unlile a 'gathered' skirt, and a 'bell-shaped' skirt is very snug around the waist before flaring-out into an extreme angle for maxium flare. These skirts have more of a triangular shape rather than the rounded shape of a bell-shaped skirt.
Pleated Skirt: Probably the most easily recognisable style of skirt from this list, the pleated skirt can be recognised by the 'pleats' running around the skirt that start at the waist.
Tiered Skirt: Like the name says a 'tiered skirt,' is a skirt made-up of a number of skirts placed one over the other in a 'tier.'
High Waisted Skirt: A high waisted skirt is a skirt that fits snuggly around the middle of the waist before flaring out. Unlike an empire-waist skirt a high waisted skirt has a long strip of fabric running around the top of the skirt that outlines the figure of the wearer.
Scalloped Skirt: A scalloped skirt is a skirt with a scalloped-design on the skirt. (A design with consecutive half-circle hems.)
Bustle Skirt: A skirt that pulls up in the back to reveal a ruffled underskirt or faux-underskirt sewn in.