More Halloween Brews and a plus size Steampunk shop~~~

Hello Darklings,

I have not been able to post anything for a while, the medication for discomfort made me sleepy and if I did post anything it would have been gibberish.

But now they have me on extra strength Tynoldo and that works,  I’m still in a walking cast but it’s not so bad,  and I might be able to have it off by Thanksgiving (I hope).

I’ve been looking around for nail polish and lovely Halloween colors but I have to say “Wet and Wild” disappointed me,  but I have seen spider eyelashes (fake of course) and other things to enhance ones eye area.   Nothing for me to go “Oh Wow!” about.   I have noticed that a lot of this temporary designs are more on the area of either Mardi Gras or Day of the Dead, and if one likes Day of the Dead  celebrations then it’s perfect.

Spirit has come up with fun tableware especially pushing the Ouija board theme,  I had to get a pair of coffee cups that have the Ouija board on them,   I think it’s because of that movie “Ouija: Origin of Evil” but there have been other Ouija movies out there before.

Because of my broken leg healing, I have not had much mobility to really look around at what is out there for Halloween, mostly because with the cast I tire easily.   Which has proved to be frustrating for me.  

There have been some strange things happening, a homeless woman near Sacramento I think, was spotted walking around with a real human skull on a stick,  she eventually led the police to decaying remains that was near her encampment.    A neighbor who had seen her camping near his property had smelled something “really bad” but though it was the body of dead cat, didn’t even know it was a decomposing human body.  No I.d. on the remains so far.

The little girl whose coffin was found under a house, they are still trying to get an idea of her DNA and see if it links to a family that thinks she might be a lost family member.   No word so far.

Lately I’ve been getting on my e-mail articles from Dirge and Blumhouse which talk about creepy and bizarre, certainly on some of those articles not for those under the age of 21.   And I was disappointed to discover Gothic Beauty magazine has now gone digital and are not doing print.   I like print.  So I’ll have to see what is still out there, but that is a disappointment.   

Recollections clothing is now introducing a Steampunk Gothic type line of corsets and some clothing which I sort of like, the corsets especially for my back,  although I’m better from that car accident a few years ago, on occasion my back acts up and I have to wear a back brace but I’ve found that an old fashion corset works just as well and is more comfortable than a medical back brace, and it can be a fashion statement as well for you elder goths, 

What I like about Recollections is that they go up to size XXXXL  which is about size 28 to 30 or a little more.   They have a steampunk basic black crepe dress which can be dressed up with their steam punk plus size corsets many of them go up to size XXXXL and they are pretty true to size, for you plus size elder goths. 

Read the reviews,  one lady liked the Steam punk boots and said she had wider than average feet and found them comfortable even with 4 inch heels.  But only you can tell if it’s right for you.  

Check out Recollections web site its http://recollections.biz/  and on their search engine type in Steampunk.   I’m going to include the link on my links site. 

It might rain on Halloween, but it looks like things will be clear but damp for the party I’m having, which is good.

I’ve found another wine to add to the list if you like wines that have Gothic sounding names, yet taste good  it’s called Poizin. 

This is a lush, delicious and "serious" wine but in a fun package! The nose is fruit driven with fresh plum, bing cherry, spicy peppercorn and zinberry. The mouthfeel is soft with a hint of milk chocolate, sweet oak, and a long vanilla finish. The deep color and firm structure are enhanced by the addition of the Petite Sirah and the firm tannins softened by moderate oak.  As they say “Enjoy this POIZIN with caution; it is The Wine to Die for!”   This is a blend with 85% Zinfandel, 15% Petite Sirah  Doyle had tried it and liked it so we have 6 bottles down in our cellar.

But Doyle was giving a box of beer or ale from the Magic Hat Brewing Company and this call is called  The Night of the Living Dead Variety Pak contains a cabal of beers carefully selected to scare the howl out of autumn thirsts and exorcise the season’s most frightening fluid cravings. Every time one is opened, three bottles of four different ales materialize.

Here is some to give you an idea:

It Includes #9 (like in love potion #9) a sort of dry, crisp, refreshing, not quite pale ale,

Vampifier—a medium-bodied resound red ale with smooth caramel and toast malt flavors and a floral, fruity hop bitterness.

Wilhelm Screaming pumpkin ale----a pumpkin ale, ripe with fall flavors of pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and caramel malts

  Smash hits I.P.A.  A single malt single hop  beer, featuring a delectable duet of cascade hops and goldpils Vienna malt singing notes of citrus and grapefruit and rich Toasty Malt tones.

In addition There is HEART OF DARKNESS Stout Filled with the howling of black dogs that haunt the long forgotten shadows of the human soul This dense liquid silk summoned home from hibernation and balanced winter’s endless white snows with a rich swirl of creamy black rapture.

This appears to be a Fall variety pack so the flavors are not available all year round,  I’m afraid that I’ve fallen for Vampifier  which should please all you Elder Goths out there,  have that while watch Christopher Lee or Bela Lugosi  do their thing and make you swoon.

Or the Screaming pumpkin ale while watching American Horror Story: Coven----as a matter of fact while watching any of the American Horror Story series.  

The Magic Hat Brewing Company address is:

    5 Bartlett Bay Road

    South Burlington, VT 05403

Good brews to warm the insides on a cold Halloween night.

And now I must go,  last minute goodies to get for the Party.

Later Darklings

Of more protests and a possible BART shut down and clothing~~~~

Dear Darklings,

Well the commute into the City is going to be horrible tomorrow.  We heard on the news that protestors are going to muck up the commute on BART tomorrow by shutting down the Montgomery Street Station at 7 a.m. using "metal spoons"? 

What the spoons are for I don't know, but Doyle said that if they throw them from the platforms onto the third rail it could cause an explosion or seriously short circuit the electrical connection and possibly cause a fire. 

I'm hoping they will do something different, but people can be fools.

They are protesting because 14 protestors who shut down BART a few weeks ago in a "I Can't Breathe" protest are going to have to pay $70,000 dollars in fines and reparation.  Their complaint is that the protestors that blocked the freeway their charges were dismissed, so these protestors charges should also be dismissed.

Doyle thinks it's because it was handled by two different judges who had two different views on protesting.  He thinks and I certainly feel this way, that all protests including those on the freeway need to pay at least a fine and do community service like cleaning up graffiti and the rubbish on the freeways, that no one is exempt.  But we feel that the judge working with the freeway protestors felt overwhelmed. 

Doyle needs to go into the city but he'll take the Ferry instead,  My sister and I will be going to the city for the start of the Film Noir Festival but Brian said he'd drive us over in the early afternoon to allow us time to get to our hotel and settle in. 

It's all in the planning.  I'm feeling better and resting as much as possible as well, mostly its sniffling and this stubborn cough caused by dripping sinuses.  Doyle suggested that we plan on staying at the hotel for the entire time of the Film Festival, have a sort of vacation, he said he'd reimburse us half the costs of the hotel stay. 

Sis thinks that would be wonderful, she doesn't have any clients at all booked for the week, she planned on being free during that time.   So once we get to the Hotel we'll talk to the agent to see about extending our stay, even if we have to move to a different room.

I'll have all my meds with me and if we need anything Doyle can bring it to us, since he'll be commuting in.

So more packing for a longer stay,  Weiner Dog and Belladonna will be staying with our neighbor while Doyle is in the city during the day and come home with him in the evening.  I'm going to miss those precious dynamic duo, but they are use to it and our neighbor enjoys their antics.  

Sometimes because my family has said I'm to not do any heavy work that could aggravate my cold, I get bored, so besides writing to friends and family, reading, I do research, and I came across a lovely website that offers modern clothing done in the style of the 1920's and 1950's.

I will post a few examples here-----

 

The company is called ModCloth  their url is www.modcloth.com/

 

Again I recommend reading the reviews on their clothing and such, and compare their size chart,  also they seem to run their length of skirts a bit shorter than I like but I have fallen for the third image down and plan to order it.

 

They do not appear to have a brick and mortar store it appears to be all on line, which is sad in a way as I do love to hold the garment up to me and try it on, but I understand their return policy is very good, so it should not be a problem. 

 

I will keep looking for other on line shops if you are interested in vintage styles and want to take it to a slightly Gothic turn. 

 

And now I must go, the repair man is here to see what is wrong with the refrigerator.

 

Later Darklings

Of more of Dressing Darkly and the King Fire update~~~~

Hello Darklings,

Well it's Friday!   And what are you all going to be doing this weekend?

Well I know I'm going to be ordering patterns, yes patterns Darklings, dress patterns.

I can sew, but my speed is simple skirts and blouses, or mending a hem or sewing back a button or replacing a zipper, I'm very handy doing that.

That is one thing I think all young people Men as well as Ladies should learn, having a well fitted sewing kit is essential in anyone's life.

But with the more complicated patterns I leave that to my dressmaker and she does a fantastic job too.   The one thing is we do not cut the pattern, no, what is done is to trace the pattern onto a separate sheet of paper that way the pattern is preserved and there fore it can be done again in a different color. 

Now I help her with that as it's not easy and 4 hands are better than two. 

But before I get into that an update on the King Fire, Al called Doyle to tell him he's still up at his cabin and has managed to do some repair but it's getting a bit cool up there and the cabin cannot be inhabited as yet, he's making some arrangements to stay there to do repairs but he's going to have to hire some help as well.

We will be seeing him next week, no one has claimed or reported dogs like Duke and Gabby so Al is going to officially adopt them he'll come down here to do it. 

The King Fire is completely contained but still smoldering and raising smoke, there will be fire crews monitoring it and keeping it contained but it will not be completely out until a good rain fall or first snow fall.   And another fire has broken out near Auburn, and another near Yosemite. 

I had planned to go to the Gold Rush Country next year and maybe take a side trip to Yosemite from Jamestown or Sonora, but I do not know if I can bear to see all that fire scaring, but we'll know come spring.

Now in regards to clothing, ladies there are a number of web sites where you can find lovely Elder Goth clothing, but it depends upon your own taste, where you work and what events you are going to.

One of these sites is Victorian Trading company, the others that I'll list are Pin Up Girl Clothing, the Pyramid Collection,  and for fun Hot Topic, I love the nail polish that comes in those glass skull bottles, but I do recommend that you check out Dress Barn, and Macy's, if you search carefully you will find things that will work.

But as I said I do like to have my clothes sew from vintage patterns, or modern versions of vintage patterns,  a number of new patterns coming out for Fall are being sold by the Vogue pattern company and I recommend checking them out.


The Vogue/McCall pattern company always sends me the latest news on new patterns, it is also how I get modern versions of vintage patterns.  Now in my next post I will show, especially for you Rebecca how Blondes can be wicked and femme fatal. 
For now I present to you two of the patterns that I'm going to Order.

Later Darklings

This give you the over all length that I prefer but for some they may prefer to shorten it a bit, depending upon height.

 

Yes Darklings I do wear gloves much like in this photo.

Now in this photo except for the fake fur, I never wear fur to the city for work, but this gives you and idea of how I dress, although I would not use this color.

Of Dressing Darkly, Full Moons and Death Parlors~~~~~~

Hello Darklings,

I really should get back on how an Elder Goth should dress, but frankly I have to admit that a lot of the clothing that I've seen from Macy's and Nordstrom are a bit "preppy".

And having your hemline end above the knees is not aesthetically pleasing.  As Mae West once said "Long Dresses hide a multitude of shins".   Of course in the work place that is not possible and in some cases not practical either.

But what you want to "advertise" is your "Power" not your legs and too short a hemline is not at all attractive.

On the subject of pants most pants too are not Goth in my way of thinking, unless however they project a feminine, feline Gothic grace.

Now when I'm working in the yard or doing housework, or even on vacation or camping (yes Darklings I've done camping) then pants would be called for, but if I'm vacationing at a luxurious location, then again remember feminine, feline Gothic grace.

At work I usually wear either suits, a dress with long sleeves coupled with a coat (mostly for cold) or if hot then a scarf and hat when commuting.  Many of my suits have been sewn up for me by a wonderful seamstress following vintage patterns, and fit me beautifully.

But most of us are not that fortunate, in the Macy's collection for fall I've seen some suits with interesting collar designs and fitted waists, which I think would be very nice, but of course many ladies would say "Oh that's not goth", well you have to take into account where you're working, if you're in a bank, insurance office or lawyer's office etc. what you can do to make it goth is choose a piece of jewelry (costume) that would indicate you're a bit different. 

Like a spider pin, or and I have seen them an octopus pin, or a cross in black stones, you will know it when you see it. 

Most of my suits, dresses, skirts  are in black, with a few in deep maroon, or the deepest darkest, richest purple or green one can find.  The slacks or Jeans that I have are in black, it goes with everything. 

My hem line for work is several inches below my knee, for sure mid-calf, unless your legs cannot carry off that length, then stay with several inches below the knee,

I always wear a hat and gloves, it protects the face and hands. 

Now I have seen some lovely shoes on line from Woman Within, but their clothing tends to be granny style  and a Elder Goth is never granny looking.   Think of Regina in the T.V. series "Once Upon a Time" she is the epitome of powerful, elder goth.

One thing I do HATE is panty hose, the worse abomination to give a woman a disagreeable discomfort that you have to go to the doctor for. 

Thigh high stockings are fine but I always back it up with a good garter belt, and not those froo-froo one's from Victoria Secrets either, but one's that will hold up to a full days work.  And wearing shoes without nylons is asking to get blisters on your toes and backs of your heels,  flip-flops are only proper for wearing at a pool, and should be banned from your car or to the store, if need be wear a good pair of flats.

Another thing I detest is the wearing of pajama bottoms and tops to the store, to me it means that you don't care, you haven't showered or bathed, nor even brush your teeth, Yuck!!! 

Now at home what I do is if I am cooking then I wear an apron if I just got home to prepare dinner, most of the time it's either in a slow cooker or I've put it in the oven, after dinner and picking up the dishes to wash I switch out of my outer clothes and nylons into a house dress to wear under the apron,  and then I do the clean up.

After clean up I switch to one of several lounge outfits, with mules that have the little fluff on the toes, to sit around the house as I read or watch T.V.  if someone drops by, I'm at least in an outfit that is acceptable to receive unexpected company.

For bed well it depends on how cold it is, but I have several silky, soft night gowns with matching robes or penoirs, when it's really chilly out comes the flannel night gowns. 

On nail polish I have not be overwhelmed by much except that I have seen a few colors by Essie that look intriguing, right now I'm wearing one by Sinful called Starry Night, perfect for October.

Much of my cosmetics is either by Besame especially their lipsticks, Clinique and Physican's Formula.  Now that I'm older I've tone down my eye make up, but do enough to define my eyes, the lipstick I still remain bold with, and no matter what I continue to wear cologne or perfume.

My favorites are Channel No. 5, Elizabeth Taylor's Passion and Black Pearls, and an old tried and true favorite Tabu,  my Mother use to wear Tabu.  I'm not above trying a few others if the scent pleases me.

On hair, if I could wear the hair styles from the 1940's I would but they are complicated, most of the time I wear it as seen in the movie "Dracula's Daughter" as it is so long, but my sister has taken to coloring her hair as close as possible to it's original color, and I too am going to succumb to that,  there is too much grey appearing in my hair that although I do still get carded on occasion when I ask for Senior discount, because facially I have few wrinkles (Lucky in the DNA department) my hair is becoming a give away----YES Darklings I AM vain.

But all this straight hanging getting into one's eyes stuff, no,  and cutting it short, no, Betty Page?  Not really, but there are some styles depending upon your facial structure would look very good, again Regina, and Meryl Streep in "The Devil wears Prada".

Well enough of that....

Last night was also a beautiful Full Moon, and Sis had dropped by,  Doyle and I were setting out the lights for the Halloween display, seeing what would work best, so we relaxed on the front porch sitting on the steps, we had the metal front gate closed so Belladonna and Weiner Dog would not dash out, and they were sitting on the steps with us.

Sis told me that a colleague of hers had invited her to a "Death Parlor" conference being held in the City, an all Day affair that would last until past 9 p.m. she tried to get one or two more tickets knowing that I would be interested in it but alas no more were available it had sold out quickly.  She told me about this Web site called "Order of the Good Death" and I could check to see when they would hold another one, although she heard that the one for next year would be held back east.

Oh it would have been fascinating to go, but it was not meant to be, but I told her to gather as much info as possible.  And I'm going to check out this web site.

Just then we looked up as Brian joined us  and enjoyed and remarked about the full moon, after a few minutes Belladonna and Weiner Dog started to howl, and we couldn't resist Sis and I joined in, Brian with a shrug of his shoulders as if saying "why not?"  joined us as we howled, our neighbors who were walking by with their dogs joined us in the Howlfest.

 After a minute Doyle came back out side and I heard him exclaim "again??!!  Children of the Night!!  Shut  Up!!"   we stopped, and then Brian turned to him and said "Spoil Sport."   All of us including our neighbors, laughed. 

Now today, I will be getting out the Halloween serving platters and such, and getting them ready for our event.

But I am going to check that web site.

Later Darklings

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 "The Black Queen" and other thoughts~~~~

Hello Darklings,

Oh my!  Did anyone see "Criminal Minds" this last Wednesday (U.S.)?   The Character of Penelope Garcia as the hacker "The Black Queen" in all her corested Gothic Beauty.   Doyle called me during a commerical break for a quick check in with me, he said even his eye's popped out when he saw her. 

I did enjoy the episode, it gave more background to the character as well as solving a case, but I loved what Penelope wore as "The Black Queen".

It gave me thoughts on clothing----I've on occasion receive e-mail news letters from PINUP GIRL Clothing, and I decided to see if they had anything I'd be interested in, and I have to say if you are into Retro Goth, or even Retro, this web site has a lot to choose from, and if you are plus size you can look sexy and wicked in their clothing. 

They have a couple of evening bags that I like that I'm going to order, but I love some of their lipsticks in their retro cases, all cruelty free and made in the USA. 

Early last evening my niece Coralline called me, it seems that her parents let her and her older brother watch "Criminal Minds", but not the twins,  Monica was supervising the viewing.   I asked wasn't that past her bed time and she replied that as long as she has done her homework and has her clothes ready for the next day and completed her chores she could stay up till 10 p.m.  not every night, but if something was special like "Sleepy Hollow"  Coralline likes the Penelope Garcia character so her mother gave in, unless it got too gruesome.  

Coralline asked me about the two sides of the character and I said everyone has two sides a light and dark, the trick is to balance the two, but in Penelope's case she is more light but since she has seen the dark she uses it to her advantage to help solve crimes.  The main trick is to not fall "into the abyss", which I said some people unfortnately do.  

Coralline asked her Mother if she could stay with me this coming weekend, since the "Boys" are going to be focused on the 49'ers game, I said it was fine with me but I wanted to talk to her Mother, Monica said it was fine, so Coralline will be coming over later this afternoon and we'll do our ususal things,  Sis is looking forward to seeing her too.

But I have an idea that Coralline is going to be asking the both of us a lot of questions.   It will be interesting to see what road it is taking.

Later Darklings  

Of "Frizzel", Nail Polish, Clothing and flu shots for an Elder Goth~~~

Hello Darklings,

Well I could not believe it but we had "frizzel" on Saturday----O.K. so what is frizzel, well its less than drizzel but more than fog and with enough of it, it can cover the wind shield so you do have to use the wipers and at least cover your hair.

It helps clear the air and freshen everything, and it seems to keep the heat in the house, yet dampen bus benches so you better have a coat to cover your bottom.  Orchids and Redwoods love it.  And if you're in a cemetery it is very atmospheric.   But Weiner Dog and Belladonna do not like it, "oh yuck, wet stuff, no no mummy I's not take bath"  at least they act like that.

But I do love frizzel, except when I'm driving my car.  Oh well can't have everything.

I do wish though that we'd start having rain, not gully washers but rain to soak the ground, and fill the resevoirs, many are below 50 percent, and the entire state is on high fire watch, the hills should be green but instead they are dry and brown as if it were August.   Already there is a fire on one of the islands in the Sacramento Delta, and I pray we don't have a fire like that which occured near Yosemite.  The rain can come any time now.
I've been having fun with the Essie nail polish line,  they seem to come out with lovely colors, that one could almost paint with them, and such lovely names like "Power Clutch", "Chinchilly", "Sand Tropez" etc.

Now I did talk about nail polish for the Elder Goth and to avoid dark colors that make the hands look very old, I still believe in that premise, but sometimes one just had to have a fling and enjoy it.   I mean Darklings, why should the Baby Bats have all the fun.  So if you can wear a dark color and get away with it, then do it Darklings, just do it.

But I still reserve the opinon that at work, one must always present a very business-like appearance and not go too over the the top with a bright tropic blue or green, but save that for fun times, which means re-doing your nails Sunday Night or going over the bright color with a conservative dark color.  Unless you're wearing Gerainium, then have fun at work.

I was trying to make up my mind, last Sunday evening after the Frizzel had left us,  should I go with "Wet Cement", "Chinchilly", or something else, the reason behind that is now we are into winter---bleh! Winter!  And after all the holiday fun, but now it's winter---now if you're back east with all the snow I can understand the "Bleh!"  But here in California we are having days of 70 degree weather AND high fire Danger, Why?  Well Darklings if you've been following the weather reports, no RAIN, not a drop, all because of a High Ridge that won't move, we maybe into water rationing soon. 

But still it is winter, no special events, no holiday celebrations, except for Martin Luther King Day, but nothing to really "sparkle" darkly about.  So I've decided to wear nail polish of the dark tan or brown hue, but I still have to have some sparkle so I've gone with Essie's "Over the Knee" which is a browish copper with a bit of shimmer to it.  It's perfect for even a corporate environment and still have fun going out.

I was thinking about Revelon's "Stormy" but the minute my eyes saw "Over the Knee" well that was it.

On our "Frizzel" Day Sis and I went over our wardrobes,  our regular wardrobes, I leave the vintage things alone except to check for wear, tear and freshing and updating.

But we do the same with our regular wardrobes as well,  things to be mended, things that are outdated, if I haven't worn it in two years I'll never wear it,  what works well together what doesn't, and we weeded out a lot of things, some to be donated, and some we'll take to the consignment shop to see what sells, what doesn't sell will also be donated.

I've also done that with my costume jewerly (not the vintage stuff) and shoes and purses,  one thing I've discovered is that we seem to always fall back on certain classic favorites, so I was looking at the items that were just flash in a pan stuff or impulse buys that didn't work out.  We did it with clothing, shoes, purses, jewerely.

Doyle decided to hide down stairs with the dogs, he thought it was safer that way.  So after hours of trying on, and taking off, deciding, sorting, bagging,  Sis and I looked at each other and we laughed at how disheveled we were,  then we realized we had not prepared dinner.  HORRORS!!!  NO DINNER!!

We kicked around idea's until Brian came over to the house and announced he had coupon's for Papa Murphy's take and bake Pizza---Fresh made there, take home and bake and hot out of the oven here,  Doyle said "That's Dinner---Pizza and Beer!!"   Beer??   Oh well the men were paying for it, so we surrendered to Pizza and Beer, well after all Doyle had been stocking up on specialty ales and such, so why not.

And we ate family style in the kitchen with Belladonna and Weiner Dog begging for "Pizza Bones"  the rounded cooked edges of the pizza---but we had to be careful, no cheese or tomato sauce, didn't want upset doggie tummys.  

Afterwards Sis and I made plans to first take our consignments and donations next Saturday to the shops and then with lists in hand go clothing shopping---I said I wanted to see what Dress Barn had on hand,  I did see on line some lovely work dresses, but nothing above the knee please, anything skirts or hem lines above the knee is so inelegant, clunky and awkward, fine if you are 5 years old but not for anyone older, and even if you're a 20 something hemlines about the knee shows too much thigh fat, or nobby knee's,  even Mae West once said about short skirts that it was better to be wearing a long slinky evening gown because it hides a multitude of "shins".   And I have to agree.

I still say that Dress Barn's clothing focus on the upwardly mobil woman, espeically in the corporate world, that store has the best selection in an afordable range.  So it has always been my first go to clothing store, then I go to Macy's, Nordstrum, Neman-Marcus, Saks 5th Avenue.

But one thing an Elder Goth  must always do is maintain one's wardrobe, no tossing clothing on the floor, no, when one undresses, at least drap it over a chair until it can be hung up, check shoes and purses for scuffs and wear and fix them.   WHY?  Its so obvious Darklings---you are WORTH IT!

Now flu shots---well Sis did not get her flu shot, so Monday afternoon I took her to her medical clinic for the shot, she thought it was going to hurt, but she didn't feel the needle at all, her arm felt a little sore but it soon wore off by the next day, however within an hour she felt sleepy, and it was a good thing she did not have any clients, so picking up a double order of War Won Ton Soup I took her back home and put her to bed to sleep.   Doyle wasn't going to be home until very late, and Brian was visiting friends, so it was just us,  even I felt sleepy and napped for a while after picking up the dogs.

Now Darklings if you have not received your flu shot You Should get it,  just in our area alone there have been 19 deaths of all ages from the flu,  the H1N1 is back and its a killer, it is always important for Elder Goths to maintain their health, not only important but vitally essential.

But tonight Darklings, I am going to have fun watching "Criminal Minds".  Why?  Well Penny Garcia is going back to her hacking roots and oh my Dears I WANT to see her in her Corseted Goth Best, if the glance I saw is any indication,  she is going to be WOW!

Later Darklings

Ahhhhh.....***sigh****...Recap~~~~

Ahhhhh****sigh**** Darklings,

We survived the Thanksgiving Holidays, despite disaster, with laughter and dark thoughts, and now to re-cap and bring you up to date my Darklings.

On our Mundane Friday, Coralline found the Pet Cemetery in the farthest back portion of the property; a very adventuress and momentous discovery for the both of us as I was not aware of its existence, having just listed that area to simply be cleaned up, now with this discovery I have another project to enjoy doing.

Our brother and his friend with his truck moved the few pieces of furniture from our Sisters’ storage unit to the house and put them either into place in her rooms or in the upper storage room.  Sis could finally sign off on the rented storage unit and be grateful she no longer has to pay out that money any more, she also claimed her car that was in storage at a garage and has it parked in our driveway off the street. 

Since there is a two car garage in the back of the property that I keep my vintage Buick in, she can put her car in the other bay, and I can put up a canopy to cover my car, although Doyle has suggested that since there is un-used space behind the garage that is not being used for anything we could extend the back of the garage and move his vintage police car from his storage unit into the garage and still have space for another car if need be.   It sounds promising, something I’ll have to look into.

Sis finished updating her work schedule and started putting her things into place and getting her rooms organized while Coralline and I ran errands.

That Friday evening Doyle came home happy, the assignment that he was on came to a happy successful conclusion so there was a little celebration, while Coralline told Doyle about her wonderfully macabre discovery, so much so that both of them went back out in the dark to look at the hidden graves by flashlight.  Doyle’s reaction when he came back in later was to remark “Steven King Lives”.

When Coralline and I were running our errands we discovered that the Kardashian sisters have come out with a holiday line of nail polish, and we saw “nail polish by the yard” being sold, little bottles of different colors in a plastic tube a yard long going for $9.99 at our CVS drug store.  I thought what a wonderful fun gift, which I will cover further in another post.

Saturday of course was the Dickens Faire, which I’ve already told you Darklings about, the upside is now Coralline wants to read Dickens and the Sherlock Holmes stories and Edgar Allen Poe works as well a Jules Vern, I told her that since we had those books in the Library aka “Librarium” she was welcomed to read them here at the house, but Sis and I are thinking about buying Corallines’ own copies for Christmas along with other wonderful things.

Sunday, what fun we had on Sunday, instead of going to Target or Wal-mart we went to JC Pennys to buy Coralline clothes for her wardrobe, my sister and I had a chance to go through what she already had and her Mother admitted that Coralline had outgrown much of what was in her closet, but they didn’t have a chance to go shopping because of the boys sporting events taking up a lot of their time.

So my sister and I solved the problem, and shop we did, we found several dresses for her that had black backgrounds but were softened with a bit of color or ruffles and not baby like at all, jeans and pants in black, tops and blouses and a couple of cardigans for the chilly days, shoes, socks, undergarments, slippers and sleep wear, two coats to keep her warm, and a black beret which she fell in love with, clips for her hair and a cute purse to keep whatever she thought important inside of.

But she wanted another long skirt which no store had in her size, Sis said it would not be a problem to have made (she is clever with sewing).  And she was hoping to find a ruffle Victorian type blouse, no such look but since we know her size we can look for something like that in second hand shops.  And with many of them coming up with Christmas things we may get lucky.

Coralline said she’d like to have a separate wardrobe left at my house of things she’d like to wear around the house, so we did double up on some things that we hung up in her closet at my home.  Sis had fun finding a few things for her grandchild and grandchild to be while we were shopping, but she said she will send gift certificates to her adult children, much easier she said.

We had already talked to my brother and his wife and agreed no gift exchange, but secretly Sis and I will surprise Coralline with a few special things that she is not to tell her brothers.

Are we “corrupting” our niece??  Of course we are, but in our defense, and it was my sister who suggested it, we were really doing a sort of home education for the child.  Instead of being subjected to sports all the time, we were balancing her creative instincts and what we seemed to see is her inclination toward our sort of thinking, but we had to be careful that we didn’t run counter to what our brother and sister in law wanted for her, however so far it seems that harmony reins in their home with this balancing act.

I did tell my sister that we were still in the “honeymoon” phase, it could completely fall apart by the middle of next year, but she, having raised two of her own didn’t think so, since we were only having her for the weekends and the school breaks and as long as she maintained good grades and a positive attitude even if its darkly thinking it could become a very good thing, for all involved.

As I looked at this child who was lying on her stomach on the rug in front of the Victorian fireplace reading my old copy of Grimm’s Fairy Tales with Belladonna snoozing next to her, relaxing before we left to take her home, as the cd of Christmas Harp music played on the cd player that looked like it came out of something from the 1930’s, I could see that my sister was right, and perhaps it was expanding our own world as well.

I could see a bit of my sister and myself in this child, mentally I prepared myself for mud on the carpets, perhaps a stray cat or two, tantrums as she gets older and questions, lots of questions, but my concerns were temporarily dispelled when Coralline looked up from the book and petting the sleeping Belladonna asked “When are we going to buy a spooky Christmas Tree?”

Later Darklings