Day 10 – What do you hate and love about the subculture?

Beautiful but you won't be seeing me like this any time soon, source.

Love.

• The amount of inspiration behind Goth, several centuries and genres of wonderful music!
• That big boots are always acceptable, specially when my favourite pair are comfortable and waterproof.
• Going to gigs or clubs and admiring other people's outfits.
• The community and how nice it feels to belong.
• The fashion and music in general.
• The nod you give to fellow Goths.

Hate.

• Elitist attitudes.
• Double glances and whispering, I've learnt to rise above but sometimes it gets to me.
• The pressure to wear make up, I love being bare faced and I still remember the Goth who told me it's not appropriate to only wear minimal make up. Wut?
• How expensive and hard shopping can be, last year I tried on over 30 pairs of boots before deciding to buy a brown pair. Fuck it.

Adding a touch of Victoriana to your outfits.

My favourite Queen! Source.

• Corsets.

It would be more historically accurate to wear the corset under your clothes but who cares? This is inspiration! Personally I would recommend a good quality steel boned corset because the plastic boned ones are foul, they bend and become unwearable.

• Victorian booties.

They're also known as Granny Boots but I would refer to my favourite pair of boots more nicely, they're usually mid- calf to under the knee length and are laced up. They're not particularly common in high street shops but I got my pair from Schuh, if you see any then snap them up!

• Victorian mourning.

It wouldn't be a post without mentioning the Victorians and their mourning etiquette. I'm not suggesting you follow the "rules" of mourning because a black veil might be a touch too far. An embroidered handkerchief folded inside pocket with only the initials visible is a nice touch. I love jet jewellery which is commonly associated with mourning culture but black glass is also a good alternative.

• Bustles and ruffles!

You can even add some Victorian details to items you already own, you can pin up your skirt to create a bustle and add ruffles to a skirt with a few simple techniques.

• Costume jewellery.

You can find victorian inspired jewellery anywhere and everywhere but if you're picky then try looking in vintage and antique shops, you probably won't find a genuine item in your first shop and be prepared to spend a lot of money. Esty is the best online place to find unique jewellery so go ahead and browse, even if it's just for fun.

• Lolita fashion.

Lolita has lots of Victorian inspiration so check out Daily Lolita or create a discussion on EGL, even a basic outfit has wonderful details such as petticoats and puff sleeves. There's also tons of brands that release Victorian inspired clothes including Mary Magdalene, Victorian Maiden and (my favourite) Excentrique.

• Gloves.

Gloves are always available during Winter but why don't you try and create a mini wardrobe of gloves? I always wear them when my nails are stained from my classes or whenever I want to add a touch of elegance to my outfits. Real leather is easily found but I suggest looking online for materials such as velvet, mainstream shops nearly always use bad quality. I advise wearing velvet during the Winter or using silk underneath fingerless gloves, lace and crochet gloves are fantastic during Summer. Vintage gloves are very small, I rarely fit any pairs which is surprising because I have tiny hands. They're also mostly white or ivory but I have found blue before, I believe it relates to weddings and other special occasions.

Perhaps I should write a full post on gloves?

Day 9 – What genre of music do you dislike?

• Country.
• Hip Hop.
• Dance Pop.
• Emo.
• Free style.
• Metal.

There are a few exceptions but I don't like majority of music in these genres.

Day 8 – What's your worst and best experience with non-Goths?

Source.

Worst.
Having a milkshake thrown at me from a car and yelled at, of course they missed completely but I don't appreciate being called a freak. Everyone was looking at me and waiting for me to react, not one single person looked sympathetic and actually a few looked quite smug.

Best.
Sitting in a chemist waiting for my prescription when a mother with a pram sits opposite me, her son starts to giggle and I ignored him at first. But eventually he starts to giggle hysterically everytime he looks at my stripy socks and I can't help but smile, even when I think about it now it makes me feel happy. I wish I was that easily amused.

Tips on how to run a successful blog.

Source.

Basics.

• Practise your writing by correctly spelling and using appropriate grammar everyday.
• Spell check and proof read your posts, I always spell check mine because I'm terrible at it. But you need proof read because if the word is spelt right it won't correct it, sometimes you can also leave notes in or repeat things. If you proof read and people still point out mistakes then sent your drafts to other people, it's better to get an outside perspective.
• Please break up your posts with bullet points, paragraphs, pictures and lists. Anything but a wall of text!
• Use a title that relates to your post, one blogger I used to follow used lyrics as her titles and I barely read any of her posts. A good title means your post is more likely to appear in search engines.

Source.

Your blog posts.

• Jot down blog ideas anytime and anywhere, you never know it could lead to your best post yet.
• On a good day you're more than capable of writing a few blog posts, it takes the edge off when you need to update.
• Create a blogging timetable just for yourself, leave days during the week to write posts and update regularly.
• If you leave huge gaps your readers will lose patience but nobody wants to follow a blogger who posts several times a day, this isn't facebook.
• Consider what your readers would actually be interested in, would they be intrigued by a tutorial or by a new outfit post? If you're unsure what your audience likes then try looking at your top posts by using Google analytics or creating a poll.
• Don't use your first draft, reread and leave it for a few days. My posts are always better when I go back to a topic with a fresh mind.
• Avoid writing off topic in the first paragraph, in blog lists and update emails people usually read the first few sentences before clicking. I do this all the time and ruin my preview by gabbing about cats, oops.
• Change the subject occasionally, as much as I love hearing about other people's lives/favourite bands/pattern making I don't want to read about it all the time. Use your blog to help others with tutorials or offer advise.
• Add sharing buttons at the end of your blog, this makes it easier to spread your content around. You and other blogs.

Source.

You and other blogs.

• Other bloggers aren't your competition so get to know them and introduce yourself. Good relationships between bloggers means lots of networking and support.
• Make posts that everyone can participate in, you'll discover new blogs and understand your readers more.
• Create a blog roll of your favourite bloggers and get to know them, blogging creates communities.
• Know the difference between commenting and spamming. Comments are a great way to socialise and leave feedback, I appreciate all comments but spam is another thing. Filling out the whole box and including your website is fine, leaving a generic comment and asking a blogger to look at your website is not. It's self-promotion and majority of people will ignore it.
• Always list any sources and credits, link back to the website and make it easy.

Usability.

• Remove the CAPTCHA because it's not necessary, spam isn't as common as you think and it's very simple to remove. If you get spam or unwanted comments then use comment moderation so you can remove with one simple tick.
• Make sure people can actually comment, get a friend to try and comment on your blog to see if it works properly.
• Check that nothing is over five clicks away, your reader will get bored after the third and simply give up.
• Any links should pop up in a new window so your readers don't leave your blog too early.
• Please remove anything unnecessary as many of your readers will experience slow connections, note that I've shrunk my gifs down.
• Check out your blog roll and old posts occasionally, sometimes blogs become inactive or your links no longer work.

Day 7 – Ten of your favourite goth bands.

I'll do Day 6 when my camera works, besides my handwriting is the worst of the worst.

Source.

1. The Cure.
2. Siouxsie and the Banshees.
3. Alien Sex Fiend.
4. Frank the Baptist.
5. Frozen Autumn.
6. Faith And The Muse.
7. Girls Under Glass.
8. Joy Division.
9. Revue Noir
10. Kommunity FK.

Not strictly Goth but you get the idea of what kind of music I prefer.

Tips on setting up a successful blog.

Source.

I've had my blog for over two years now and I've loved every second of it, however it's not always easy to make the effort and sometimes it feels like it's going nowhere! Here are some tips, trick and lessons I've learn along the way...

• Have a good blog name.

I know that sounds obvious but looking back I wish I had chosen a name that relates to my blog's theme, people can instantly see whether they'd be interested without even clicking. But please check that the name isn't taken by another blog.

• Choose a good host for your blog.

As you can tell I use blogger and Wordpress is also a good website, it's also worth setting up Bloglovin' because people can still follow you even if they use a different website.

• Create a unique layout.

Majority of website hosts allow you customise so don't bother with pre-made ones, they always leave an advert banner on your website. Make your own header to display your blog's name but don't make too big, if it's more than a whole page then shrink it. It's worth researching fonts to download and use, it makes everything look more personal and polished. Besides who wants Comic Sans?

However don't go mad with your layout. A major pet peeve of mine is a website that has several bright colours, I'm not going to stay and wait for my eyes to stop exploding. If you're unsure what people hate on websites then just ask around! Typical answers are: auto music players, clashing colours, fancy fonts, unpleasant or poorly placed ads etc etc.

Create specific areas in your layout, one block for links and another for adverts etc. Prioritise what's more important, for example you wouldn't have your Follow This Blog button at the bottom would you?

• Provide information.

Somehow you need to explain who you are, what your blog is about, how to contact you, etc. Majority of people have links on their blog or create mini tabs under their header, but as long as it's easily accessible it doesn't matter.

• Post before you link.

Before leaving your blog's link anywhere you should have a few decent posts so readers can establish whether they will be interested, nobody will follow a blog that doesn't exist yet.


Hopefully I can create a mini series of tips and what to do when you've set up your blog, feel free to leave your own advise and tips in the comments.

Day 5 – Is there a local Goth band or group in your area?

Sadly there's no Goth bands in Hull and there's no group of Goths as far as I know, surely I can't be the only Goth in Hull? Because this post is so boring I will treat you to a GIF:

Day 4 – Name a stereotype or cliche you can relate to.

Source.

• Halloween! However I really don't think everyday is Halloween because that's just silly, besides imagine cutting pumpkins everyday.
• Stripy socks, you will never remove me from them because they're so cosy. I always carry a pair that matches my outfit around with me in case I get too chilly.
• I rarely wear colour because I can never find a dress that I wouldn't prefer in black, sometimes I even buy clothes and dye them black.
• I'm an art college student so I can relate to the "All Goths are creative" stereotype, however if you looked at my work you wouldn't immediately assume I'm a Goth.
• I always wear my Ankh necklace even though I own God knows how many other necklaces.

Positive review of Rockalily's Rockette Red lipstick!

Packaging? The outside packaging is nice and original, the lipstick tube itself is nice and chic. The plastic is strong and I have no worries about putting this in my handbag.

Shade? As promised this suited me perfectly, I'm really grateful she put it into categories for skin tones. My main problem with lipsticks is finding one that suits my pale skin or finding a blue based one but thankfully her collection makes it easy to find one that flatters.

Texture? It's creamy and quite matte but doesn't dry at all. Matte lipsticks will always cause drying to some degree but my lips surprisingly wasn't at dry all when I removed this. I don't even need to wear lip liner with this, it never feathered in the three hours I didn't touch it.

How easy is it to apply? Quite easy, it has a pointed end to allow precision but I'll always have to clean up afterwards.

How wearable is it? Much more wearable than other lipsticks, I don't have to touch it for hours but I prefer to.

Pigment? Fantastic! I had bright red lips in one stroke and it's easily layered up, plus it smells vanilla-y. It faded evenly but definitely left a lip liner look after eating, I'm quite a messy eater but thankfully it was easy to touch up.

Service? Quick and simple, the packaging that it was posted in was cute! The sticker had a caption that said: "Because life is too short not to wear lipstick!" It's these little touches that make me squeal slightly when I receive new parcels.

Value for money? Fair, at £14 pounds this isn't exactly cheap but it's one of the best I've ever owned. Besides she's a not a big company that's all about profit, with such friendly service I would rather put my hard earned money in her pocket.

Where can you buy? Right here along with links to other reviews and her blog etc.

Day 3 – When did you come out the Goth closet?

Source.

I've previously talked about coming out as a goth but I've never talked about my own experiences, mostly because they're quite boring! For some people it's quite difficult to admit they're a Goth and for a long time I was reluctant, generally it was because of the whole "I'm not a soup tin" phenomena. It was in the last year of my school years that I decided I wouldn't deny it or pretend to be someone else anymore, plus I didn't have to sit in a classroom with fucking idiots five days a week anymore. Actually the college I first attended before I left for Park Street was quite bad that's another story.

There's always going to be those special snowflake individuals who believe labeling yourself is completely wrong and practically spit at anyone who dares to admit they're a part of a subculture. When I started to casually mention Goth it attracted some teasing but the worse moment was when it caused an argument. My friend stubbornly insisted that Goth was nothing more than a label, half an hour I was compromising that yes it could be used as a label but it was a wonderful subculture. But nope, she wasn't budging and I had to let it go.

My family didn't care about how I dressed, it didn't change my personality or my performance during school. The closet thing I have to a problem is the really tacky presents I sometimes receive, or worse pastel pink teddy bear PJs. Urgh no thanks.

Coming out the Goth closet has shown me for what some people really are, please don't be afraid to show your true self but you may be in for a few surprise reactions.

Day Two: Share photos and experiences of your babybat days.

Oh God thankfully I've destroyed most of my photos but here's a few embarrassing photos to keep you amused.

September 2007.

I'm not ashamed to say I still like that outfit, stripy shirt with v neck jumper on top and teamed with skinny jeans. I just hate studded belts now because they remind me of my Baby Bat days. This was when I moved away from the pre-teen look and I was 14 years old, before this I used to wear Hello Kitty t-shirts and my friends would look at me in dismay. I destroyed all my "girly" things which is a shame but I really love Hello Kitty! I have no idea why I'm posing with a stuffed bunny so lets just ignore it...



Early 2008.

 This was when I went through my Myspace Emo phase and went to hairdressers to get a proper side fringe, she really screwed it up and I cried all day. She cut my fringe so short that it looked like a full fringe but obviously it wasn't straight across and to be honest it looked awful, I spent the next month applying hair wax and having weepy moments. Perhaps a tad over dramatic but I was a teenager and believe me nobody would have wanted that fringe. Basically looked like I had being attacked by a lawn mower :'(

May 2008?

 This was when I discovered alternative shops in my town and had a few Iron Fist tops, I didn't have a clue what Goth was but I still aimed for that look. Thankfully I discovered it soon enough and the Iron Fist tops joined Hello Kitty in the bin.

2008.

And this was when I discovered Goth and started putting together outfits, I still went for brand because it was cheap and easy to buy. Hell Bunny tutu (that I still have), Poizen Industries top, Criminal Damage jeans, Emily the Strange shoes and a velvet blazer bought from The Gothic Shop. I only got rid of the velvet blazer when my friend ruined it after putting her straighters on it :(

Near Summer 2008.

This was when I started to rebel and decided to wear casual tops sometimes, in case you haven't noticed that's a rather awesome Spongebob T-shirt! I had to throw it away eventually because of white mark stains but it had it's fair share of casual days. I realised that in reality most people don't dress gothic everyday and it's okay to leave the house without fitting a check list.

2008.

This was after going out with my friends and I had the full works on my face! Foundation, concealer, powder. Urgh I felt gross and it put me off wearing anything on my skin for years, even now I refuse to apply foundation all over my face. It's a shame that I gave into pressure, I have such good skin here as it was before my acne developed.

2008.

I wasn't popular in school but there was a few unhappy moments and I found it difficult at times. I adored English and loved all the romance in Juliet and Romeo, thankfully I never wrote any crappy poetry! This was when my love for gothic fashion developed, I wasn't fully educated on Goth music but I liked it. It was the fashion I was truly passionate about and even now I still prefer to talk about fashion.

And I'm afraid that's it, I don't have any interesting Baby Bat stories :(

The Goth Challenge! Day: How did you come across the subculture?

Source.

I didn't think anyone would take part in this but lots of you have! I'm reading all of them and it's brilliant (because I'm so nosy in case you haven't noticed), I won't be doing mine everyday because I won't be online so *cracks fingers* lots of catching up to do.


It was only when I was a pre-teen that I had an interest in something considered beyond the norm, my friends started getting into the alternative look and listening to music such as The Birthday Massacre. Of course I jumped on the bandwagon and spend two years in hideous make up and clothes, my friends later moved onto other things. Some changed completely and started to follow trends and some developed into other alternative looks such as rockabilly. My interest all things otherworldly stayed so I began to read books and explore the internet, finally I found out what Goth actually was! My outfits became more refined and I started to create my own outfits rather than buying Goth brands. My love for music? I discovered this last when I got off my stubborn high horse and realised it's actually quite good.

A hundred followers!

Well 106 as of this moment but lets not get picky, I was very happy to log in and find I had hit a milestone on my blog. Thanks to everyone who's linked my blog on their reading list and gives me lovely comments to read whenever I log in, I appreciate them all.




I love how we have our own Goth blogging community, cheers everyone and I hope you like the gif!

The Goth Challenge!

Those boots! Source.

I've seen lots of different versions but now I've created a Goth one. It's a whole month of questions for you to answer and share with your readers, it's a great way to spend spare time.

Day 1 – How did you come across the subculture?
Day 2 – Share photos and experiences from your Baby Bat days.
Day 3 – When did you come out the Goth closet? (If you didn't then simply discuss the topic)
Day 4 – Name a stereotype or cliche you can relate to.
Day 5 – Is there a local Goth band or group in your area?
Day 6 – Hand write your favourite lyric and take a picture.
Day 7 – Ten of your favourite goth bands.
Day 8 – What's your worst and best experience with non-Goths?
Day 9 – What genre of music do you dislike?
Day 10 – What do you hate and love about the subculture?
Day 11 – Is Goth a lifestyle for you?
Day 12 – What's your gothic inspiration?
Day 13 – What was your first band t-shirt?
Day 14 – What was your best and worst DIY disaster.
Day 15 – Your favourite or most expensive item in your wardrobe.
Day 16 – What's the most casual you've ever dressed?
Day 17 – Your favourite Goth brand.
Day 18 – Worst hair experience.
Day 19 – Share beauty advise and take a photo of your make up.
Day 20 – If you could dye your hair any colour what would it be?
Day 21 – What body mod do you have or have you considered?
Day 22 – If you could attend any Goth event what would it be?
Day 23 – Your favourite artist or photographer.
Day 24 – Name the best websites for Goths.
Day 25 – Did you ever consider leaving the subculture?
Day 26 – Show a photo for every year (or month if you're new) that you've being into Goth.
Day 27 – The worst thing you ever did to a newbie.
Day 28 – Do you consider yourself an eldergoth?
Day 29 – What do you think will happen to Goth in the future?
Day 30 – Make a list of blogs you regularly read and link to them.

I'll be starting day one during the week, will you be joining me?

How to deal with negative comments.

No you cannot kill those who leave negative comments, source.

When someone leaves you a negative comment they're usually jealous, getting something off their chest, taking a personal issue out on you or looking for entertainment.

• If you've read the first sentence and it's starting to become obvious it's nasty then don't read the rest, you'll only upset yourself.
• Check and block the IP address, also block it on other websites you publicly use to prevent further comments.
• Delete immediately and don't bother replying, it'll only show them they've gotten to you. Besides the situation will soon get out of control and it's never fun to be involved in an internet war.
• Revamp your settings, don't allow anon commenting and make sure you have comment moderation on. People can get really rude without an identity because there's no consequences and at least with moderation on other people won't see it.
• If it escalates and you're being personally attacked frequently then keep a personal record of their contact. Also, privately let other bloggers know in case they move onto someone new.

Why you shouldn't support, advertise or buy from Milanoo.

Milanoo is a shop you need to avoid for several reasons, in this post I will provide links and hopefully a mini history lesson. Since EGL removed the warning about Milanoo many newbies have come forward and asked about them, I also see many bloggers using "their" stock photos and posting about them. Please read this post because deciding to advertise, support or even just browsing their website. If the text is bold (for this post only) it means it's a link, please click these for evidence and personal stories.

In 2009 Milanoo started to appear on EGL with a few good reviews but when October rolled round things started to shift, of course Milanoo had plenty of negative reviews before this but this was when it came to my attention. At first the replicas seemed to be okay but more and more people came forward with bad experiences.

• There's a ridiculous amount of negative reviews off EGL, if you're interested in reading all the reviews on EGL please click here and follow the tags. However if you're lazy then just look at this review here, it's one of the worst reviews I've read. A lack of quality, incredibly late shipping and terrible construction is what they're all about. Now we've established that there's more negative reviews than children in the world I'll move onto the next issue.
• There's a lack of customer service to say the least, some people have had their money took even though they cancelled. In some cases the service simply doesn't exist for them, they get no replies and no refunds.
• Milanoo trolled the community and tried to justify their actions, they also created several sock puppets accounts and tried to manipulate people again. Yahoo answers was also a victim at one point but the questions and accounts was deleted after it was posted.
• They steal stock photos from other sites, they change the background and enlarge the item which is why the pixelation is so bad. Just because it has a massive watermark across it doesn't mean it's their image, they don't always use photos of their actual items. Click here for advise on recognising stolen stock photos.
• They have several shops in different names, click here to view the list.
• The company is so awful that a boycott was arranged and they was eventually banned from the community.

As always I recommend you do extra research on Milanoo and form your own opinions, please be careful about this company.