Of Wearing Fashion Darkly~~~~

Hello Darklings,

And you Dear Rebecca your wish is my command...

As everyone knows, those who are over the age 40 mark, or in my case Well over the age 40 mark, dressing Goth for everyday wear for work or just going to the grocery story,  can look very silly.

Especially with over the top styles that one sees in Gothic Beauty magazine and others.

If you are 50 plus or even 45 plus, we cannot look like Morticia Adams because as my Doyle would say "It would freak out the Muggles".

I've covered this before in much earlier posts a few years ago, and frankly the reason why I have not recently posted about it is that many styles that I see out in the Muggle world are designed for young people, I mean Vogue, Vanity Fair, Elle, In Style, etc.  so much so that I have not seen anything that would inspire me to say  “YES an Elder Goth can wear this.  

Just the other day, Sis and I went to TJMax and we saw a woman who must have been 60 to 65 if she was a day, with long dyed blond hippie length hair, a cap right out of the late 1960’s, wearing a tank top, pink leggings and much too much hippie bead jewelry and majorly over-size sunglasses.

About the only thing I liked was the hat and the sunglasses, but the rest of it just did not suit her, Tank top without a bra, no, because the “girls” hit the navel,  scrawny arms with wing flaps, Bad wing flaps and legs that were so thin they bordered on tooth picks no, no and no.   The hair was all wrong too, it went well past her hips.

If she was trying to recapture Woodstock then she was living in another world, and it looks foolish on her.

I would have taken her hair and given it a Jackie O. pageboy look, convert  the tank top to have long sleeves and something to support the “girls”, convert the pink leggings to boot cut jeans with maybe a bit of embroidery and remove 99 percent of the jewelry and keep the hat and sunglasses.  She still would have embraced the “ghost of Woodstock” but as suitable for her age.  

And I’d be the first to admit that such Goth magazines such as Gothic Beauty is really suitable for the late teens to mid-thirties.  But in looking at that magazine one can get a few idea’s to inspire a person.

Because to be an Elder Goth one has to “cherry pick” what will look good on you, what will give the effect you want without going over the top.

With that in mind you have to consider your age, and Know  your body shape, that way you’ll know what style will look good on you, know what colors will and won’t work on you,  and know what would be appropriate for where you work.

Another thing is that it does pay to know how to sew or have a friend or good seamstress who can sew for you.

So what do you do?  Well I like to look at what is being offered at most department stores, Dress Barn is my favorite go to store for affordability.

 But for a tallish person like me I've been finding that they are offering what one would call Day dresses or for work dresses in which the hemlines are above the knee.

At my age my knees do not look all that good, or as Mae West use to say "I like long dresses, they cover a multitude of Shins” Meaning not everyone has great shaped legs or knees, but by the same token you do not want to be stuck in pant suits all the time and you don't want to look like you're wearing Granny dresses either or have come off an old West movie looking like you've cross the great plains in a covered wagon.

This means you have to look for separates, blouses and skirts, especially for work and I've found that skirts that have the hemline at where the calf begins to swell is good unless you have thick calves, then I recommend skirts which end above the ankle bone, to prevent dragging on the ground and with just a slight lift of one's hand. 

Some of the skirt lengths from the 1980’s which are just below mid-calf, work very well with dress boots, excellent for winter time and with the simple colors of Black, purple or grey with the right accessories can look very dramatic.

Now I have found some lovely things in the Pyramid Catalogue with just a little down play can give the edgy corporate look slightly bordering on Steam Punk Goth.

Yes Darklings I’ve found that the Hard Edge take no prisoners corporate look is best for Elder Goths.

Why?  Because we’ve lived longer and have been through the wringer.

I have found the best styles for me is in vintage fashion.  The trick is to wear Vintage Fashion without looking like you’ve gone through Grandma’s trunk.

Vogue Patterns as well as some other pattern companies like Folklore sell modern recreations of vintage patterns and with choosing the right one’s you can find something that will work very well for you.

But sometime you’ll find a vintage pattern that will deliver the look you want.

I found one of a day dress, with a slightly full skirt, ¾ length cuff sleeves, and a pointed collar that would open v-neck style and it was in my size---I had my seamstress trace the patter to protect the original and had several day dresses made from it in black, dark maroon, and a deep dark green with a black pattern all in light weight material perfect for Summer.  She was even able to convert the top part into blouses for me as well.  And considering the hot days we had it was perfect.

An Elder Goth is not afraid to wear a wide brim hat to protect her face from the sun and use the highest possible Sunblock available.

I have found for myself the clothing styles of the 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and very 60’s work very well for me, they give me that slight other worldliness, like I’m part of the real muggle world and yet not.

I’ve found a hair style that suits me perfectly, it’s the one Gloria Holden wears in “Dracula’s Daughter” but I do wear a wide brim hat on very sunny days and gloves as well.  But not so that it looks ridiculous, but as if to have people think have they walked into a time warp and yet seem part of the current world.

I have posted here several items I’ve come across that you may like

This evening dress is from Dress Barn, and with a lacy silvery shawl can look very goth, just change the make up a bit for a more dramatic look.

 
This is from the Pyramid collection (the top) now although shown with leggings you can wear it with a skirt that flows, or for work, with black slacks that fit nicely, not saggy.

This jacket is also from the pyramid collection and is perfect for work or going out, it has that steampunk yet edgy felling to it, if you go out on the town in the evening wear one of those little fascinator hats with a veil.   For work a skirt that's mid-calf and dress boots will look good with it.

 

 

Now with this one also from the pyramid collection, I don't use the hat and had the veiling removed and made it detachable and it makes for a really wicked evening dress.

 

This is just a few things I've come across, Sometimes Darklings I'll go through an entire fashion magazine and find only one tiny item that I simply have to have, last year it was a ring that I saw in Vogue magazine, and of all places I found it several months later at TJ Max. 

 

Simple dressing always can make a statement.

 

Another place that I look for Elder Goth ideas is the movies, I'm still inspired by Vera West, but a lot of those period gems, the Film Noir up to the early 1960's can be very inspiring.

 

So I will get back to my "roots" so to speak, but I have been having so much fun and ups and downs with family.  But I will start looking again and see what I can find.

 

Later Darklings.

Of Art Deco Preservation Ball~~~~

Hello Darklings,

Just a brief post.

Well my sister and I did our mani-pedi's yesterday and the color is just beautiful.   But when we came home Doyle surprised us with tickets to the Art Deco Societies Preservation Ball. 

Food, wine, music, silent auction all in the wonderfully restored Paramount Movie Theatre, I could not have been happier and we were dressed in our 1930's best.  It was such a joy.

And I was amazed at how well I was able to get around,  I was using a cane to be on the safe side, and I had to wear my low heeled shoes until I'm fully back to par, but it was exciting and colorful.

They even had a fortune teller or card reader there, the gentleman was dressed in a tuxedo and with a turban much like one would see a "Swami" wear in those old 1930's serials, his booth was set up to reflect the 1920's/30's and I enjoyed having my fortune read, all very amusing and it was a very nice fortune too.  I got his card in case I want to hire him for a party.

I was a bad girl this morning, I slept in, so did my sister, and she is going forward on purchasing the house next door, the agent was able to do a walk thru with her earlier along with our contractor friend.  The repairs are do-able and he privately told her that the former owners had done some illegal electrical work, which would give off high EMF readings, no wonder people didn't want to stay there. 

The damage done by the pot growers was not that bad except that the floors in which they were growing the pot plants is going to have to be redone.  Kitchen and Bathrooms and fine, need serious cleaning but fine.  And no bug or any kind of issues, but Marie is going to have it fumigated especially for bed bugs just to be on the safe side.

The price is good, the monthly payments will be fine as well as the property tax.  And she will be able to get some serious tax deductions on it.

So now we are relaxing, Doyle is bar-b-quing, the garden is nice and sunny and fragrant, birds are chirping, Belladonna is snoozing in the sun and it feels good.

Doyle has found some charities that are helping the victims of the bombing to help offset their medical expenses that we are going to donate to.  In the midst of all this beauty we are very lucky and so it is important to remember those who are struggling and we should count ourselves blessed, so it is important to send those blessings on.

Later Darklings

Being Goth after the Holidays~~~

Well my little Darklings, I know I haven’t been blogging but work, blasted work makes demands upon me.

The Christmas holidays were just so upbeat, but for me who loves to indulge in the meanderings and gloomiest of Charles Dickens, I chose to indulge in the Annual San Francisco Dickens Fair, and for any Goth or steam punk enthusiast I certainly recommend it to help you get through the Holiday cheerfulness.

The Dickens Fair offers the perfect accessories and clothing for all but the Mod/Grunge or Baby Goth, Dark Garden offers corsets that are perfect for those who love to torture themselves into tiny waists. And with how they do their layouts of pretend Dickens London, one can get ideas how to create a wonderful Gothic Victorian setting.

Scanning through the stores and through magazines I discovered some wonderful Vampy Goth styles.

Merle Norman cosmetics has a lovely little clutch to hold your makeup or just for fun, in black velvet with a bejeweled lipstick and lips design on it and it offers their new Hussy red shade for lips and nails as well as a new fragrance Hussy Eau de Parfum. Just check it out to see if it’s still offered at merlenorman.com.

If you want to sleep during the day my vampire beauties, Prada offers a black satin eye mask for only $195 at prada.com. all soft Black Satin with a little satin ruffle around the edges. Frankly for the money if you have the talent to sew your own I would recommend that.

With the cold, cold weather for those of you who love being frozen like the dead this weather would be perfect for you, but for many pajamas are coming back in style both for sleeping and lounging in. Can you picture yourself my Darklings, in a pair of black satin pajamas with gold piping and a matching robe? Toss in a pair of black satin mules with gold, black or red marabou toppings for extravagant decadence.

And the hell with all those rules about smoking in one’s home, if you are going to do it do it with style with a long, elegant cigarette holder right out the 1920’s.

I had to have a pair of DKNY suede and leather booties in black suede and gold leather with impossibly high heels, not spiky but thick enough to support you heel and high enough to torture your calves.

In jewelry both real and costume for the holidays it was gold, Gold, GOLD! Metal bracelets, actually cuffs, are the in style, Ben-Amun, Delfina Deletriz and Fallon offered very edgy designs as well as Giamattista Valli’s gunmetal cuff.

Can you picture yourself Darklings in a long black skirt, or skin tight black pants with a long sleeve mock turtle sweater in black, all tight fitting and wearing only as an accent a gold metal cuff? What a statement. It would show-off your self assurance, that you totally take charge. What a way to indicate your dominance.

And for perfume or cologne my Darklings, indulge yourself with either J’adore and strut like Charlez Theron or go with Guilian’s Insolence.

There is one other thing that I indulged in my Darklings, although many of you would say wrong, wrong, wrong, but you have to remember I am my Own woman, and I do not take criticism from anyone----so what did I indulge in? A black mink coat…PERFECT for such cold, cold evening weather, mink is not an endangered species, as a matter of fact they prey upon the fishing industry and are considered a nuance, but with raised mink on “ranches” they are not endangered.

But not to worry….the coat was made in the 1970’s and in perfect vintage condition, Yes Darklings, a vintage mink coat, done in a long sleeve swing style, plus a vintage black fox fur jacket that comes to the top of my hips. I scored wonderfully there. But I would only use them in the evenings when it is extremely cold and even a wool coat can not keep out the chill, and especially where we had near freezing conditions where I live. I am not about to catch a cold! But if you are going to use a wool coat then top it with a black mink scarf for your throat, and if possible top it with a blank mink beret, can you picture that and wearing your eye mascara in a cat’s eye line with red, red lips and red, red nails? I certainly can.

Even Francisco Costa the designer for the Calvin Klein Collection believes in a fur coat and in the last issue of Allure magazine (Dec 2011) said that a knee length shearing coat is superpractical, and extends your wardrobe. But again make sure it comes from a non-endangered species.

Going back to nails--- (I can’t seem to get away from manicures and nails) If you love to do designs but don’t have the time for it, there are these “skins” that you can apply to your nail and then just file, I believe Sally Hanson makes them, I’ve seen some styles that are just edgy enough for a business Goth and they last for up to 10 days, not a bad investment especially if you have a serious shortage of time. Also for more dazzling glitz, a brand of nail skins called “Kiss” which you can find in, of all places, Walgreens, can be perfect when you want to club hop.

If there is one thing this Gothic Rose loves it’s Art Deco Antique Shows, and the Art Deco Society of San Francisco’s Deco the Halls was not at all bad, a bit smaller than previous years, (we can only blame the economy) but it was a wonderful experience for me, so that I can indulge in my art deco Gothness, get information on materials to update my home. Yes, Darklings, if I’m going to be Goth then Art Deco/Art Modern is the style for me.

Why do you think I’ve chosen the photo of Gloria Holden as Dracula’s Daughter, to represent me? She is perfect, her and the Tamara DeLapinka painting of the girl with the green racing car, I managed to get a quality poster of that painting and had it beautifully framed. The DeLapinka poster is in the room that I have my collection of books, DVD’s and Cd’s in that I call my “Bat-cave”.

Which will bring me to another subject in another post, I’ve had some people ask me how have I styled my home, well I got very, very lucky in the house that I have, and not to many of them in the Art Modern style were built where I live but it is very perfect for me, I had been saving up for a long time to put a very hefty down payment, but a “spinster” aunt of mine (great-aunt really) had died, I didn’t know how much she really liked me, I mean I was the only one of the extended family who would check in with her, take her shopping, she just adored my 1940’s Black Ford sedan, even take her to her doctor and dental appointments.

She was very sharp but I had noticed she was getting a bit more tired, so I got her one of those medic alert buttons, praying that she’d never have to use it but that day Darklings did come and I got the call, we rushed her to the hospital, a broken hip, one of the worst things that could happen to an elderly Goth---yes Darklings, she was in her own way Goth. Perhaps that is why we got along so well.

I visited her every day in the hospital and then in the convalescent home, we were planning on ways she could be independent, I was even thinking of moving in with her and subletting my apartment to one of my Goth friends on a month to month.

But Prince Serki, aka the Grim Reaper took her away from being old and in pain, I will have to tell you about her funeral another day Darklings.

I was fortunate to have her papers outlining her funeral arrangements and I also got in touch with her lawyer. How surprised I was to discover I was receiving the “bulk of her estate” which included her wonderful home, plus all it’s furnishings as well as a serious monetary income from investments. Oh, she left bequests to other family members but since I wasn’t on great speaking terms with them, their opinions didn’t matter to me.

Her 1925 Gothic revival home is more than large enough for me to put my things into rooms that were not being used, so I have expanded my style which comfortably blends my Art Modern things with hers. So I am using the money to restore the house bit by bit, updating wiring, plumbing, etc., and when the weather is nice getting it painted.

I also found out how quirky she was, her house is on the 600 block of my lovely community, but she specifically got the City planning department to change the house number to 666, it was 664 and then the one after it was 668, but she enjoyed being different, one thing I’m going to have done is have her portrait cleaned up, it is fantastic of her in her total glory, with her dark raven black hair and pale skin and sharply blue eyes. She was the beauty of her generation and I’d have to say of the family.

My Mother always admired her aunt, but she wasn’t ready to rebel like she did.

My family, mostly my Uncles (except Uncle Mannie)and my other great-aunts, always considered her to be the “black sheep” they were so traditional, but my Grandmother always loved her sister my 'great-aunt' and she always came to the rescue giving of herself, her money and her time without reservation, I have her diaries and she was a woman after my own heart.

She outlived my Grandmother and my Mother and Dad, she was very old when she died, but she LIVED!!

Until later Darklings.

Of Ghosties & Ghouliess---the inner Goth

“Of Ghosties and Ghoulies and long legged Beasties, Good Lord Deliver Us!”

Isn’t that a wonderful sentiment, it’s like discovering that the earliest collectors of fairy tales was named Grimm, wonderful last name.

Today is Halloween, All Hallow’s Eve, Samhain and what other names that is associated with this Day and Night.

For the Mundane people it is one night of the year that they can let their strangeness out, but for the Elder Goth Halloween is 364 days of the year---After all there is Christmas and it needs to have it’s own day. It’s really hard to live Christmas 365 days of the year, except in good fellowship spirit, which even an Elder Goth should maintain, after all Snarklings we do have to get along with all the “Muggles”.

Of course you have to decide “Addams Family” or “Munsters”. Frankly I prefer “Addams Family” but both shows and even the iconic cartoons of the Addams Family did show and practice family values. The Munsters took in a niece that although they secretly pitied because they thought she had a disadvantage, they still loved her and protected her, and she loved them because she knew they loved her and always watched out for her, even if the rest of the world would run in horror.

In the Addams Family T.V. show, there was one program in which a wealthy young man who tried to be a rebel ran away from his father and the family wealth. The Addams’ took him in, accepted him as he is, and demonstrated it to his father who learned to accept his son and his son accepted his father. O.K it was overly simplified, in the real world it would be a very hard lesson to learn, but the messages were always there, and done with a smile.

But I love Halloween because it let’s your inner Goth come out with a vengeance.

The trick is how does one maintain it all year round, you start with little things and slowly build up to your inner Goth, with me it was easy, as a child I wore what my parents bought me, the red plaid jumper, the black patient leather shoes for Sunday best wear, but as I got a little order, especially when I was 13 and 14 I started my inner Goth without realizing it.

I loved classical music, so saving up my pennies to buy the classical record albums that were on sale at the nearby drug store was not consider unusual, I would read ghost stories, and even the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boy mysteries, like the “The Clue of the Phantom Showboat” or something like that…not unusual. But I kept my slacks and skirts to dark blue or black, which could be a little hard in the 7th and 8th grade as Mom wanted to buy me a print skirt that had little poodles on it with the background as being in Paris, it was the thing back then, she wanted to buy a pink skirt, but I spotted one with a soft light gray background and I suggested it to her saying that it would go with any color blouse I wore, she could see the wisdom in that. So I had a poodles skirt but NOT in pink….compromise always worked.

Later on in high school I realized that it wasn’t wise to stand out too far, you could be improperly labeled, that still happens to day but for other reasons. So I had to suppress my inner Goth with dark blue, gray and in the spring even a few pink and white blouses and blouses bought by well meaning family members for my birthday or Christmas.

Then I discovered in music my Uncle’s 1920’s and 30’s Jazz and Blues collection, in old 78’s, I had fun with that and in high school my Mother and Dad decided that the baby furniture that I grew up with was too babyish for me, of course by that time I had a baby sister and it was perfect for her, but there was no money for new bedroom furniture for me, what to do….Again my Uncle who was a widower and my Grandma came to the rescue, my Uncle moved in with Grandma after Grandpa passed away. His wife had died some years before and he was rattling all alone in his house, Grandma all alone in hers, he packed up everything, sold his house and moved in with Grandma, but he had this vintage from the very early 1930’s bedroom set.

It was perfect! And although I still had pink wallpaper in my bedroom, the wall paper had tiny harps and filigrees in silver, it was a perfect combination. And her dresser set all black enamel with silver chrome decorations, also perfect. I still have it to this day, except for the wall paper. But that is when I discovered antiques and art deco vintage could satisfy my inner Goth.

And that is how one does it by degrees….unless one wants to go all out and build either an Addams Family or Munster House, which several couples have done, and not an easy thing to do.

But for today, just today on Halloween to all you “muggles” let your inner Goth come out.

A New Style of Goth?~~~~

First off there is something that a lot of young people in the Goth scene seem to disagree on---- They disagree on who is Goth and who is not.

Of course there are the Posers, those who dress in black, with black nail polish, black lipstick, dyed hair and say they are into a certain band or bands.

But there are a number of older Goths who really define Goth as just understanding that nothing in life is a certainty----we do die, but like the “Days of the Dead” we laugh at it, and also understand it.

We celebrate it in a way, we embrace the night side of life, therefore it is important to enjoy life, but embrace the finiteness of it and its dark side, without going into the abyss.

When I was a “Baby Bat” or “Baby Goth” in the late 1950’s I and my Mother enjoyed going to cemeteries and looking at tombstones, as a matter of fact, when we were putting flowers on the graves of our loved ones, we’d look at the nearby graves of our ‘neighbors’, sometimes even clearing away old dead flowers, noticing what graves were being taken care of and which one’s weren’t, we’d even notice if their was a new date of death or a new name.

More than once my Mother would say “Oh, Oh they lost their (son, mother, husband, daughter) and she would look the grave over and say a prayer. Going to the cemetery was visiting our “dead neighbors”, we may not know them, but sometimes it felt like family and yes, if we were there for a long time cleaning graves and such, we packed picnic lunches and eat there, of course it was a long walk to the bathrooms for the adults if we had to use them, sometimes several of the family members would use the car to get there and then come back.

I didn’t realize it but my Grandmother, who was born in 1890, was Goth, living a Goth life style but she and many like her didn’t flaunt it, they lived it differently. She never wore bright colors, especially after Grandpa died, it was always dark colored dresses, either dark blue or black with a dark print, she had three hats, two were straw, one was a black straw with dark purple flowers the other was a beige straw with lavender flowers, mourning and half mourning. The remaining hat was black wool with a wide brim.

She had two coats, the very good black coat for formal occasions, and the other good black coat for everyday use. Even her sweaters were black or dark blue. And always black shoes with lace ups.

The rooms were always dark, except for the kitchen; she’d always say “We need the light to see if the meat is done.” And her stove was an old Buck Stove, that you would see in a Victorian home, she used it until 10 years before she died, then my know it all Uncle had it replaced, the kitchen never felt the same again.

Nothing was ever replaced unless it had to be replaced. It was hard to get anything new into her house unless it was a mattress, sheets or towels, the one break through was the Television set, and it was years before it was replaced and only because the picture tube finally burnt out.

Music only the classical music stations or the Catholic Hour, especially the Rosary Hour, every evening at Sundown, 6 p.m. on the dot.

But that’s not to say we didn’t have fun, we did, playing board games, card games, dominos, puzzles, the puzzles were the best because we could talk about things.

Going to the Funerals was an occasion, there was always someone dying or dead as the case maybe, I got to be a connoisseur of funeral parlors, flower arrangements, churches funerals services, cemeteries, headstones, prayer cards, etiquette for funerals, all of that.

Then back to my Grandmother’s place to critic the funeral service from casket to final prayer.

In a way we were like that Adams Family, but we looked normal but just had this “dark side” outlook on life. And if that is not being Goth then I don’t know what is.

It’s more than music; it is a life outlook, which a lot of young people simply don’t know. Or think they know but really they don’t.

There is one style of Goth that I have not seen, maybe I’m the first to create it or maybe they are out there and thought they had to be Victorian or romantic.

This style Goth is what I call in reference to the furniture style either Art Deco or Art Modern. Some people may refer to them as Corporate Goth, but it goes beyond that.

The films they like are horror films, spy films, Hitchcock or the German noir films of the silent era, and the same genre from the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s, especially the film noir and Val Luton films---eventually I’ll create a list.

The music they like can be jazz, blues from the 20’s to early 50’s, some big band, classical as well, Gregorian chant eventually I’ll put together a list.

They will attend art galleries, museums, opera, ballet, concerts, and film revivals, explore antique shops, historical locations and homes, auctions, and for fun Flea Markets; they will pretty much shun the extreme modern artists, and love Tamara De Lempika.

They will read spy novels, murder mysteries, history, literature, be familiar with the era of the 20’ through the 1950’s in history, literature, art, fashion etc. even old funeral practices.

Be well educated, dress classy, with makeup and hair from the time frame of the 20’s to the 50’s without looking overdone, always look well put together without it looking fussy, always courteous, refrain from using obscenities, and look neat even at Burger King.

They maybe members of a local Art Deco Society, or Film Society, perhaps a Historic Preservation Society or members of a Tatofile society

In terms of etiquette they will follow Emily Post, Amy Vanderbilt but knowing the 21st century mores, but will honor the laws, especially in cell phone and black burry usage.
Be friendly, not aloof but reticent.

The idea is by their presence and example to make and encourage people of all ages to come up to your level not you go down to theirs, this will wake up young people to start dressing better, it may take time but one needs to be a good example.

They will not be flustered by anything, nor allow anything to irritate them, it simply is not done.

They distain extreme vulgarity and tasteless jokes, but are aware that not everyone is at their level, they will have the good manners to not look down upon those with no taste but simply not comment on it.

They can have fun and enjoy fun; they know how to laugh, sometimes to even delight in the very simple pleasures of watching butterflies, cutting out snow flakes, enjoying the expression of children who discover something for the first time.

For the Elderly Goth They KNOW that life is fleeting, that all blossomings are the beginnings of decay.

So I will continue to Explore this Style of Goth, incorporating the fact that they are aging and Elderly, but it will be something for the yearlings aka Baby Bats to learn from.