Saturday, November 30, 2013

Fictional Characters Inspire

I'm sure all of us have gotten tuck in a style rut at least once in our life. We get bored with what we're wearing and want to change it up a bit, but aren't sure how. There are only so many real-life examples you can look at before you run out of ideas. When I'm in doubt, and the Trad Goths, or Deathrockers, or beautiful Victorian Goth ladies aren't doing it for me, I turn to the fictional. There's all sort of inspiration to be taken from characters in Movies, TV, comic, or even video games. Here are some of the

Lestat

You could take inspiration from any of the marvelous creatures in Interview with the Vampire. I simply chose the brat prince because he's my favorite. The movie is full of delightful costumes, but I only have to read the book before I'm searching for grey, velvet blazers on Ebay.

 Dorian Gray

I will stand by my previous assessment of the movie. I can't stand it. Not when that book is one of my favorites and I had to watch it's story ripped apart in the film. But that's not to say Ben Barnes isn't a very dapper Dorian. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is even worse as far as movies go, but I loved the Dorian in that and he's got a sense of style.

Clive

I want to steal just about everything Clive wears. Not to mention, he's absolutely adorable. However, Gypsy with her wonderful Stevie Nicks inspired wardrobe is a close contender.

Duckie

Chances are if I'm watching a movie from the 80s then I'll see a million wonderful things to wear. Pretty in Pink is not an exception and I love Duckie's eccentric wardrobe.

Andie

Ok so I'm stealing from the same movie here, but that 80s rule still stands. Change most of her things to black and I'd be a happy camper.

Ingrid Dracula

Young Dracula is a kids' show. I don't care, I love it. Most of Ingrid's outfits (especially in the first couple of seasons) are pretty cheesy, but there are some gems in there. Her father's clothes ain't bad either. Now if we could only get rid of their penchant for cheap capes...

Mona

My Cousin Vinny is a funny movie, but the reason I liked it the first time I saw it was because of Mona's kickass attitude, and the fact that she could rock anything. She sure stood out in that little town.

Lisbeth

I know we're all tired of being compared to her, but that doesn't make her any less awesome, so Lisbeth is going up here. The Swedish version because the Hollywood version is lackluster and Noomi Rapace was a brilliant Lisbeth.


Any others to add? Who do you guys look to for inspiration when the real life examples run dry?

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Classical Music for Goths

Classical Music! How I do love thee. Actually, I've found that a lot of Goths seem to have a certain fondness for classical music. It's very Goth-friendly. I'm not particularly well educated when it comes to composers so don't think me an expert by any means. I know my Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, etc. like everyone else, but I don't generally listen to those three unless the mood strikes. I typically have a fondness for Wagner, Strauss, Liszt, and Shostakovitch.

Classical music has had an influence on the Goth scene as well. Some bands involved in the scene rely on strings and the like very heavily. There are unmistakeable uses of orchestral music in Neoclassical Darkwave if we're going to get very specific. Three bands off the top of my head that utilize classical/orchestra type music in their own are Dead Can Dance, Love is Colder than Death and Soper Aeternus. I'm not big on the former, but classical music is what got me started listening to the other two. Then there are groups like Rasputina or Emilie Autumn who rely heavily on strings and they're pretty adored by the Goth scene themselves.

Of course, being a complete band nerd means that I've been exposed to classical music since middle school. It's ridiculous how exited I get over hearing the oboe played in a piece. I jump around like an idiot and go 'That! That's my instrument!'. And I tend to listen to classical while studying so I don't get sidetracked by lyrics.

Below I'm compiling a few videos from my Itunes that that could fall under the classical label and might appeal more to the Gothic crowd.

Danse Macabre- Saint-Säens



Faust Fantasy Op. 13- Sarasate




Waltz No. 2- Shostakovitch




String Quartet No. 8 Op. 110 Mvt. 2- Shostakovitch




Nocturne in B flat minor, Op. 9 No. 1- Chopin




Dance of the Knights- Prokofiev




Lieutenant Kije/Romance- Prokofiev




Moonlight Sonata Mvt. 1- Beethoven




Cello Concerto Mvt. 1- Walton



So this kind of music might not be everyone's cup of tea. But hey sometimes if you feel like enforcing a fun cliche, such as reading a vampire book by candlelight, I figure you might as well have some music to back you up ;)

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

My Hair Just Keeps Disappearing

Well I've chopped my hair off again! This time I went shorter too. Watch out, I'll have a pixie cut and then a mohawk before you know it. But here! Have some pretentious Facebook photos.




My months seem to be getting busier and busier. I've joined the community orchestra, a club that volunteers around town, and I've started writing book reviews for my library. On top of that, I'm stressing to get back to my cosplay, which I haven't been able to work on since the move (and I've been thinking that my mask is too big. I do hope I won't have to redo it). So I apologize for being so inactive on here. I'm certain things will calm down soon and I'll get back to my normal routine. Today I'll throw some more outfit pictures at you and perhaps next time I'll have something with a bit more substance.

I found this dress while thrifting and couldn't decide if it was weird or cool.
The front is lolita-esque though you can't see it
I keep returning to this jacket because well...it's cold!

Huge, warm, comfortable jackets for the win.

Friday, November 1, 2013

Sophistique Noir Theme~ Sweaters


Sweaters! I love sweaters. They're just so comfortable. I own several cardigans, but didn't have a sweater until a week ago where I picked up an adorable cat one at Target. Someone in my textiles class stole my phone yesterday (And my faith in humanity has dropped even further than normal) so it was difficult finding a picture of it. Luckily, I was wearing the sweater while doing a school project so some silly pictures remain.

If I were practicing for real I'd probably need some sheet music XD
The cats think they're Batman and I'm wearing a scarecrow mask. Contradiction?
School projects are fun on occasion as you can see.

I also have pictures of the sweater dress I bought the same day. Thankfully, I'm paranoid and normally email photos I think I'll need for something (Ex. a blog post) to myself right away. I really like the pattern and I can rock it with a leather jacket which is always a plus.

I really liked my hair that day. It made me forget that I need a haircut.

And well, I can't leave without showing you guys the Cecil costume I put together yesterday for Halloween. Luckily, I was wearing a sweater vest so I can sneak it in and it still fits the theme.

My mom's closet is the only place with a full length mirror.
Can you tell we haven't been here long?


I hope everyone had a great Halloween!