Thursday, December 7, 2017

Holiday Shopping Guide

Whether you call it Christmas, Yule, the Holiday Season, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or simply "Oh god, is it THAT time of year again",  you will probably find yourself in the market for some gifts, and if you have one or more family members of the gothic persuasion it can be hard to find just the right present.
Here are a few of my favorite sites.

Clothing:

One of the best kept secrets of gothic clothes shopping is Chicstar. They make many of the clothes that you will find on other sites, but their prices are better - and yes, they DO have plus sizes, but they don't seem to have menswear. Sorry guys. 
ChicStar

Dracula Clothing: Although I haven't shopped through them personally, Dracula Clothing has decent prices, and a good looking line of menswear.
https://draculaclothing.com/

Wild West Mercantile: Are you looking for a puffy sleeved shirt to compliment a victorian outfit? A snazzy western shirt for a cool gothabilly look? Check out Wild West Mercantile. They've got a huge selection, including costume pieces and accessories. This is a good source for basic steampunk stuff as well.
 Wild West Mercantile

If you are looking for a beautiful accent scarf, or a special hand made dress or ritual cloak, Autumn Moon has a great selection, and as an added bonus it is Eldergoth owned and operated.
Autumn Moon Enchantment

Jewelry:

Some of the most beautiful and inspired gothic jewelry comes from high-end seller Bloodmilk Jewels. I love almost everything on their site - and just because I can't afford it, doesn't mean I can't windowshop! 
Bloodmilk


If you are a UK shopper, and your wallet isn't bursting at the seams, you can find cute, inexpensive handmade jewelry at Metal Liquor.
 Metal Liquor UK


TM Originals is a Seattle based jewelry company owned and operated by one of our very own Eldergoths. She works in enamels, metals, and with resin. I love the coffin necklaces.
TM Originals

Jason Soles is a multi-media artist who creates work in resin and bronze, I'm including him in the jewelry section because I love his bronze vertibrae necklaces. 
Mr. Soles Etsy Shop


Plesiosaur sells adorable enamel pins of octopus, cuttlefish, and other adorable animals.
Cute Animal Friends!

Household Goods

Candles make everything more gothic. Whether you're sneaking down a staircase in your nightgown, or mastering the art of Vampiric Seduction™, you are going to need mood lighting...preferably mood lighting that smells nice.

With scents ranging from Absinthe, to Coffin dark candles offers a wide range of candles hand crafted for those who fear the light.
Dark Candles

If you prefer unscented candles that look ghoulishly gorgeous, then Grave Digger Candles is going to be your favorite place ever. I'm in love with their signature spinal column candles, and vertibrae tealights.
Grave Digger Candles

I love tea - and although I have plenty of sturdy coffee mugs lying around the place, there are plenty of times when only a fancy tea cup will do. Angioletti Designs provides a wide array of teacups decorated with skulls, bats, and attitude.
Angioletti Design

Who doesn't  love movies?  If you are looking for great prices on original (not reprints or reproduction) movie posters check these guys out. They auction thousands of posters every week. Honestly I can't even look at this site until I get more wallspace.
Movie Posters

Monsters and miscellaneous horrors: 

Ann Koi has been making monsters for most of her life, she paints, she sculpts, she does resin casting, and she even wrote and illustrated her own graphic novel. Visit her site and get yourself something strange.

Tinplate Studios claim to be mostly steampunk, but if you look past the airships, you'll find plenty of straight-up horror pieces. Everything from Lovecraft inspired beasties in jars, to teacups containing very special surprises.
Tinplate Studios

As John Waters once said "If you go to someone's house and they don't have books, don't fuck them" La Creeperie is a site that specializes in horror books, if you grew up loving the cheesy paperbacks of the 80's and 90's La Creeperie will steal your heart.
La Creeperie

Tormented Artifacts have little leathery wings that you can add to boots, backpacks, or whatever. They also have masks, purses, and a whole lot of leather. 
Tormented Artifacts



Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Propaganda Magazine and the birth of the übergoth.



 If you were a goth in the 1990’s you probably remember Propaganda.  It was a low budget, black and white magazine that was vital to goth culture in America. 

Between the music reviews and adverts for cassette singles of up and coming goth, industrial, and punk bands, there were gorgeous models lounging on tombstones, entangled in fishnets, or resting (one would hope) peacefully in exquisitely fitted coffins.  Pale and slender with heavy lidded eyes and languid postures, these exquisite creatures inspired a generation. We saw them laid across the page like freshly cut lilies and projected ghostly and dim on the walls of countless club nights and after parties. For better or worse, they were guideposts to what we were supposed to be.

Back in the day, or more appropriately, the night, Propaganda was the only guide we had to help us navigate the dark waters of our personal weirdness, and many of us still have stacks of back issues hidden away like nostalgia landmines waiting to go off the minute we open that box in the back of the closet.

In addition to helping create the American gothic subculture, Propaganda defined the way that goth was supposed to look. There were two basic styles in Propaganda, fetish and aesthetic, but in the real-life subculture, there was much more going on. Post punks and early goths came in all shapes, sizes and colors. We took our cues from glam, punk, horror, and metal – taking what we liked from wherever we found inspiration.

Before the carefully curated images in Propaganda, goths expressed ourselves differently. It wasn’t just attractive people in poet shirts draping themselves over tombstones (Dave Vanian being a delightful exception) there was also HUGE hair, bright colors, and the many of the trappings of the Punk movement from which we were still emerging. I will NEVER stop loving huge, colorful deathhawks. Sorry...not sorry.

The advent of Propaganda, with its focus on decadence and fetishism added refinement to what had, before then, been a riotous melting pot of ideas and inspirations, but it also gave people the idea that there was a right way to be gothic, and that people who weren’t pretty enough, pale enough, or slender enough were somehow doing it wrong. Early photos show goths of all shapes and sizes, and I was struck by how much fun they all seemed to be having. Post Propaganda goths weren’t dour and joyless, but they did take themselves more seriously.

It was during the 90’s that I first noticed how strongly goths were embracing the concept of gatekeeping. Suddenly everyone had gotten the idea that people who were less informed about music, fashion, and the Vampire Lestat, were clearly poseurs who were bringing the tone down for all us*

Some of this attitude came directly from people's interpretation of Propaganda, although I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge the malign influence of Steve Strange during his tyrannical reign as enfant terrible of London’s new romantics as another factor. It got so ridiculous that here was a point in the 90’s when just stepping into a goth club was like being thrust into an all fake vampire production of Dangerous Liaisons. (I still have my fangs and folding fan).

It has only been in recent years that we've started to step back from the idea, that in order to be properly gothic one has to fit a specific set of physical and philosophical characteristics. Goths can be any age, shape or color, and as much as I love the little collection of nostalgia bombs, I have to acknowledge that sometimes the things that bring us together, are also the things which push us away from each other. Propaganda was vital to the development of our subculture, but it also contributed to the rise of the übergoth

It's time to step away from gatekeeping and exclusion, and embrace people with new ideas and outlooks. If we are to continue to thrive as a subculture we should be welcoming new people into the fold, not complaining because these kids today are calling it “emo” and getting it all wrong.

* Never mind the fact that the “tone” of which we speak consisted of dancing around to songs about beers, queers and steers and having incredibly dramatic meltdowns because we couldn’t face the harsh reality of last call.


 



Wednesday, March 1, 2017

Gothic Films 101 free film class!

On the 3rd Thursday of each month, I will be teaching a gothic film class at Scarecrow Video in Seattle.

Before each screening we will talk about the basic elements that define the gothic genre, and afterward there will be a discussion about whether or not the film fits into the genre.

March 16th - Jane Eyre
April 20th - The Haunting
May 25th- Sunset Boulevard
June 15th - I Walked with a Zombie

Scarecrow Video is located at 5030 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, Wa. 98105
Screenings are free to the public and start at 7PM.

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Seattle Eldergoth Meetup!

Join us for an eldergoth meet-up in Seattle next week.

Wednesday February 22nd.
Northstar Cafe:
8580 Greenwood Ave N. ( the big, green building that used to be a Chinese restaurant)
Time: 8 P.M.

This is an informal, hang out and get to know each other event - you don't have to dress up unless you want to.

Reply to this post if you plan on joining us so that I can be sure we've got enough seating.

Thursday, January 19, 2017

Bats Day at the Fun Park

For those of you who aren't into the whole Disney thing, Bats Day is an yearly event in which goths from all over the world swoop into Anaheim and attempt to overrun Disneyland.  I'm told that it is great fun for goths of all ages. The 2017 event will be my first ever Bats Day, and I am already putting together park friendly outfits - even though the event doesn't happen until May.

My past experiences being goth at Disneyland have been, for the most part, extremely positive.
The one less-than-stellar memory I have is of a time when Jillian Venters and I were trailed through the park by a rather zealous church group, who felt it appropriate to pray for our souls, and sing hymms to us until park security politely asked them to leave us alone.  It was here that Jillian truly earned the title of gothic Miss Manners, not by being kind to our dogged Christian pursuers, but by convincing me not to fly into one of my infamous fits of temper and attempt to rend them limb from limb. 

Fortunately for all of us, The Lady of Manners dragged me away from these misguided evangelists and onto the nearest ride. Unfortunately for all, that ride was It's A Small World. By the time the ride was finished, I was either pacified, or beaten into submission by the relentlessly cheerful promise of a world united by friendship. I was mortified and angry at the time, but today it is one of my favorite Disney memories. Time, distance, and a sense of humor are great healers.

I am excited for Bats Day at the park because I've never really been with crowds of goths outside of a club situation. I can't wait  to see what we look like in broad daylight (albeit protected by parasols, sunscreen, and big hats). I really hope to see some of you there.


If you are going, here are a few helpful hints for surviving the California Sun.

1. Sunscreen: Wear it, and don't forget the back of your neck. I always forget the back of my neck.

2. Shoes: Comfort is more important than looks, but if you must wear crocs (I have knee and foot pain and they are often the only things that don't hurt me) try and get the black ones.

3. Parasols: These are lifesavers when you are stuck outside, but can be dangerous in a tightly packed crowd. Try not to put anyone's eye out.

4. Did you know they make black t-shirts that get cooler when you sweat? Search for "cooling tank top" on Amazon, and you'll find lots of other options as well.

5. Why don't they make bras out of that cooling T-shirt fabric? Because they hate our boobs, that's why. Improvise by tucking a damp paper towel or lacy handkerchief into your ensemble. Re-dampen as needed.

6. Dress to survive the heat : PVC looks great at the club, but they it will turn on you like a rabid badger if you wear it in direct sunlight on a hot day.  Yes, I am the sad voice of experience. Cotton and lace are your friends.

7. Stay hydrated:  Bring a water bottle, fill it up at the drinking fountain. You will save a hundred dollars and it will keep you from passing out on the kiddie rides and looking like a fool.

8. Be kind: Remember that there will be thousands of non-goths at the park that day, and many of them may have never encountered us before. If you find yourself being stared at smile and wave, if you are harassed, tell a cast member.  Be especially kind to the cast members, they have seen things...things they cannot unsee.

9: If you are shopping in the dealers room, please try not to block the aisles. It is rude to hog the space in front of a vendor's booth if you have no intention of purchasing anything from them. Step back and let the people who want to spend money get in there.

10 . Don't invite drama: It is going to be difficult. The sun will be beating down on you, the lines will be long, your significant other will probably be making eyes at Maleficent and the Evil Queen, or worse yet, Gaston! This would be an ideal time to storm off into Cinderella's castle for a prolonged weeping and pouting session, wouldn't it? Part of being a somewhat responsible person means doing your best to make sure that the people surrounding you get to enjoy their day. Don't drag them into your drama. Save that for later, at the dance.