#goth thrifting

[vampbloodx]

DIY Basics

-Goth DIY Tutorials Number 1 (Part 1)- Hi there, I decided to start a little DIY series! I’m not the most professional at anything lol but I’ve been doing DIY and crafts my entire life and been part of the goth subculture for 10+ years. I’ve seen a lot of baby bats and people inexperienced in crafts online saying they don’t know how to DIY thrift store clothing to be goth so I’m here to help! I believe DIY is super important to the goth subculture and should be easy and accessible, and if I can stop anyone from buying big fast fashion brands I’ve done my job.

For the first post of this series I thought I’d link some sources for people new to DIY or looking for some easy projects to do yourself (projects will be in part 2)🖤This will help you find a starting point if the idea of DIY is overwhelming.

None of these links are mine! I will be posting my own tutorials as part of this series though:)

Some of the most basic starting points for goth DIY are using fishnet tights as a top (just cut a hole in the crotch and cut off the feet), putting safety pins in everything, adding holes to clothes, and adding pins and patches. I like to make my own patches, either by free handing or stenciling, which I linked a tutorial for in this post.

Helpful tools to have:

(I don’t agree with buying from aliexpress but their other sources are great!)

Sewing Tips for Beginners:

T-Shirt Design Methods:

This is just s few ways to weave t-shirts, there are a ton of different ways to do it and YouTube has some great tutorials, especially on Angela Benedict's channel

RIT Dye Tutorial:

Patches:

Sewing them:

Stenciling them:

[borninwinter81]

Today I was reminded once again that you shouldn't neglect any section of the charity shop. Given my music taste its super rare that I come across any shirts for a band I like, however today in the men's t-shirts....

I wouldn't say I'm a huge fan of The Damned at this point in my life (I'm nowhere near as into them as I am some other groups) but they are nonetheless an extremely important band for me, as they gave me one of those seminal moments you sometimes get with music where you know nothing is gonna be quite the same for you again after.

It was seeing them perform their song "Nasty" on the TV show The Young Ones. I knew of The Damned before this because my mum was a punk back in the 1970s and had played me some of their music, but before Nasty I had no real concept of goth music. Although strictly speaking The Damned aren't goth, by the mid 80s when that show was filmed they were leaning into that aesthetic very heavily with Dave Vanian's massive backcombed hair, frock coats and fangs. Most goths have a lot of respect for The Damned.

Throughout their performance I was 👀 👀 👀 and after that a whole world opened up for me.

I should probably share it here in case anyone hasn't seen it:

The shirt was £7 which is more than I'd usually spend on a charity shop t shirt, but how often does one find something like this? I couldn't leave it behind.

Its enormous on me so I'll have to do some resizing but I enjoy that process ����

To balance things out, I also got a dress for £2. Muddy grey/green which is a colour I love and fits me perfectly! Great for an orphaned waif look.

[b0tster]

hey chat whadaya think should i get this top

[borninwinter81]

Earlier this year I found a Ralph Lauren skirt in a charity shop down the street from me for £8. Black burnout velvet in a rose pattern with a split up the front. I'm not particularly bothered about designer labels but that was a nice find.

I genuinely do not understand why anyone spends the earth on goth or alternative fast fashion brands when there are treasures like this to be had in your local charity shop/thrift store/op shop. Any time I see this stuff advertised or watch someone do a haul, all I'm thinking is how I have stuff in my wardrobe that's way nicer that was a fraction of the price. One of my favourite dresses was £1 FFS!

You've just gotta have a bit of patience and willingness to go often and rummage.

having a good thrifting experience is actually unmatched emotionally...like. i recently tried a local place instead of goodwill, and a lot of the shit still had fucking original tags on!! like, i got 3 NICE sweaters for less than $10; i'm talking michael kors and GAP. i really recommend local places instead of chains, ESPECIALLY things like goodwill or plato's closet.

plus, you get to partake in fashion trends without creating more useless trash to go into a landfill 2 years from now. a small step to battle ultra fast fashion that has the world in it's grip these days. lower prices, gently used, more sustainable. it's literally a win all around.

[jasperthehatchet]

my bag 🌿⛓️🌻⚙️ more details in the image ID and more pics below

I found a small plain black leather backpack at the thrift store for $6 and made it my own :) I used silver sharpie for the swirls and made the buttons all myself with the exception of the metal ones

[Image ID: a small black leather backpack covered in patches, buttons, safety pins, studs and silver and metalic green spirals in the spaces with no patches. There are four patches on the front, an orange patch with a white trans rights symbol sewn on with white thread, and a circular green patch with a simplistic sun and moon drawin on it in black (a mirrormask patch) sewn on with black thread. And on the front pocket on the bottom, theres a dark green band patch with white lettering that says "she past away" sewn on with white thread and a black patch next to it with a red anarchy symbol sewn on the bag with red thread. There are silver spike studs lining the edges of the bag along the zipper and on the front pocket as well as soda tabs sewn onto the front pocket flap with off-white thread. And on both sides of the pocket there are safety pins decorating the empty space next to it. There are four pins on the side of the bag, a light green and white spiral pin, a light green and white "eat the rich" pin, and a metal fairy pin on the top half, and theres a metal frog with an umbrella pin on the front pocket in-between the two patches. Theres also a small orange carabiner on the pocket zipper.

On the left side of the bag, there is a patch on the bottom where a side pocket would normally be. An off-white band patch that says "bauhaus" in black lettering and it's sewn on with black thread, and there are silver spirals around it filling the space. There are some areas I left blank to make the swirls/spirals look like they're hanging down or growing up the bag like vines. There's a horizontal seam above all this that makes the area look like a pocket, and above this seam there's a metal pin with a sun, moon and stars on it.

The right side of the bag, there's no patch where a pocket should be, I instead filled this space with some spirals and more handmade bottle cap buttons. Two buttons, a larger type o negative band button that's black with white thorny vines, and a smaller red band button that says "doom scroll" on it in off-white lettering. Above the seam on this side I drew a bunch of silver spirals that look like they are growing out from behind the seam.

All thread mentioned in this post is embroidery thread, and some groups of spirals drawn on the bag are metallic green. End ID]

Here's the top of the bag as well as the straps that hang down

[Image ID: the bag has a rounded arch shape, and across the top of the leather I drew a cluster of green spirals in between the silver spirals I drew on the sides. There are some blank spots to avoid making the bag look busier than it already is. The loop at the top for hanging the bag is embroidered with a green leafy vine pattern. The same pattern is embroidered on the right strap that hangs down from the bottom of the bag, and on the right one, a gray barbed wire pattern is embroidered. I plan on sewing some more soda tabs onto the top of the bag at some point for the sake of adding more shiny things and also fill up some of that space I mentioned because while I don't want the bag to be too busy, I think the blank space i left on the top is a little too much blank space. End ID]

[leebiird]

flea market finds in mt dora

[shiftythrifting]

Submission from @doctorbeverlycrusher

[robson-gurl]

My first Monster High Lagoona Blue doll restoration + process!!!

Heyy!! so a few days ago i mentioned i got a G1 Monster High doll and was going to restore her and share my process here so this is that post!! I’m literally blown away by the results I actually can’t believe how well I did for my first time and I had so much fun doing it!

Before and After

So as you can see, when she arrived her hair was a gluey and sticky MESS! It was all straggly and rock hard lol. Additionally her skin was stained and the accessories/stand were all dusty and a bit brown… so to the wash basin I went!!

I begun by giving her body, hair, and all the accessories (minus the clothing) a good wash in the sink in lukewarm water with both some hand soap and dishwashing soap. I did this using a toothbrush.

I also made sure to take off her fins so I wouldn’t lose them down the drain lol.

i set the washed accessories aside on a towel to dry.

Now that the hair was wet I went in with some conditioner and a comb to get all the knots out easier. I made sure to brush from the tips and move my way upwards. Surprisingly hardly any hair came out which I was baffled by considering when I brush my G3 dolls hair it fall out like CRAZY!

Anyway, next I washed out all the conditioner and went in with the goo remover. Since we don’t have ‘Goo Gone’ here in Australia I found this alternative spray at bunnings which worked sooooo well! I simply sprayed it multiple times in the hair, both roots and ends, then spent time really massaging it in all throughout the head with my fingers. I did this a few times over without rinsing between. I then set her aside to let it sink in for as long as I could.

Meanwhile I popped all her clothes in a mug of lukewarm water, laundry detergent powder and fabric softener, which helped them smell nicer hehe! I scrubbed them around and let it sit on the side. Once they had sat for a few hours, I layed them to dry, and made sure to sit the skirt upright and rounded nicely so it wouldn’t dry wonky.

After about 3-4 hours I came back and washed the goo remover out as thoroughly as possible. I made sure there was absolutely no scent of it left. I did this using shampoo and then once it was out I conditioned her hair for a second time to once again remove any knots.

Then it was time for the boil wash so I boiled the kettle and poured the hot water into a mug. I dipped her head in for about 15 seconds and then took it out twice.

I then went over to the sink and poured the water straight over her head to get the hair to lay down flat. BE CAREFUL THO cause I got it all over hand and burnt it a little cause I wasn’t paying attention hahah!

I popped her on the doll stand backwards so her hair wouldn’t get caught in it and brushed it all down so it could dry straight and perfect :)

I left her here overnight to make sure it was totally dry.

In the morning I dressed her back up in her clothes and accessories, then twisted her hair back and secured with a clear elastic.

And TAADAAA!! She’s finally done!! Her hair feels like ACTUAL SILK and it’s so shiny and smooth with absolutely no stickiness. I actually can’t believe this is the same doll i started off with. I’m so so happy with how she turned out and I can’t wait to get started on another G1 doll soon!!

Anyway yeah this was my process - I hope you enjoyed having a peek into it and maybe share around or like this post for it to get a little traction to hopefully help someone else on their first restoration journey☺️☺️☺️

Have a lovely day and remember to embrace your freaky flaws ;)

Xx

[spookysalem13]

I've never minded the term aesthetic. But I do agree that fast fashion needs to be put to a stop, that it's ruining the true definition of cultures and subcultures such as goth, punk, grunge and even turning people's cultures into aesthetics which I think is entirely inappropriate for them to make a claim on.

I believe alt subcultures are so much more than a trend. I got into gothic music and even emo music, I've always liked both. When I was in middle school. I liked the music, the literature, dark things before I even found the fashion and fell in love with it.

I've always been an eco warrior, anti capitalist etc. And found that my true self was goth. I can like things that aren't goth. It doesn't make me less goth. But that's the difference between someone whose in a subculture and someone whose doing it for the trend.

I always say be who you are, truly and authentically. Don't hide behind what's trending.

I have no hate towards the word aesthetic itself. But I do see the harm in what capitalism has done using aesthetic culture.

[viveela]

My vision for the main 4 as teens... just hear me out

Everyone has to have a breakdown and dye their hair at some point amiright

[vampbloodx]

Goth Jacket DIY Tutorial

-Goth DIY Tutorials Number 2-

(Beginner Friendly!)

Not so much a tutorial but I wanted to share an easy way to make any jacket (or anything with a collar really) into a more gothic look!

I freehanded this with some Speedball white screen printing ink, but you can use fabric paint, acrylic paint with a fabric painting medium, or just straight up acrylic if you don’t mind the chance of cracking/peeling

[borninwinter81]

DIY budget cyber/industrial outfit - first time in public!

I made a couple of previous posts about this dress here and here, as well as the matching collar, and I thought it would be fun to show how I styled it when I wore it for the first time on Friday. Honestly I was a little concerned it would just look dumb, but when I tried it with the full makeup and shoes I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked it.

Apologies for the abysmal photo quality, especially in the first image. I don't have a good camera and I wanted to try and show the full outfit. That blurred mirror selfie is the only head to toe picture I got.

I didn't mention in my other posts but in addition to making patches for the dress I also nipped in the seams so it fit me better (it was my size but kinda shapeless, and I wanted to give myself a waist). This is very easy to do with almost any dress, skirt or top, you just put the garment on inside out, pinch in the side seams so they fit the contours of your body (try and do this equally on both sides) and pin them together. Safety pins are best so you don't accidentally hurt yourself.

Take the garment off and draw a smooth line with tailors chalk connecting all the pins, then sew along that line, either with a machine or by hand. Turn right side out and try it on again. Provided you're happy with the fit, trim away the excess fabric. You may need to be careful if it's a fabric that could fray - I usually go over the seams again with a zig-zag machine stitch to try and minimise this. There are also products you can buy like fray-check. If in doubt, or there isn't much excess fabric you could just leave the seams untrimmed.

The length is a little out of my comfort zone so I wore gym shorts underneath to help myself feel less exposed and reduce the risk of flashing - I tend to do this with any dress or skirt that's above the knee anyway.

Continuing the budget theme, rather than buying any new accessories (again, cyber stuff is mega expensive) I looked through my wardrobe for items I already had that might work.

These goggles are not the usual kind of cyber goggles, but they matched everything else I was wearing. I was given them by a friend who was getting rid of them ages ago so they cost me nothing!

I really didn't feel like making and wearing cyberlox, so instead I just got some yellow hair elastics and did a ponytail.

I made these arm warmers about 12 years ago. You can probably tell that they began life as a pair of skinny jeans. To cut down on the amount of sewing I needed to do I used the existing hem and seams. After cutting them to a length I liked I did the pinch and pin thing to make them fit to my arm, and put in zips along the outer seam to make them easier to put on. As it turned out this wasn't necessary because the fabric is stretchy enough that I can pull them on and off. The zips add a nice bit of visual interest though.

I ripped a hole in each one for my thumb, and I had a pack of extra large hook-and-eyes, so I sewed the "eye" parts down them and added some old bootlaces. I've never been 100% happy with this decoration, but I haven't had any inspiration on how to change them in the last 12 years.

I wanted a necklace in addition to the collar, and couldn't think of anything more appropriate than this. I originally got it for a cosplay, Vasquez from Aliens, and with the big yellow industrial loader from the end of that movie which Ripley uses to fight the Queen alien... it seemed there was kind of a connection there.

I once met Jeanette Goldstein whilst dressed as Vasquez and told her she was my childhood hero and she signed these tags, but unfortunately most of the signature has come off when I was cleaning them.

Lastly, the boots. As with any goth outfit the footwear tend to be the most expensive, particularly if you want ridiculous platform heels like these.

When it comes to footwear, I really would not recommend any alternative brand names like Killstar, Koi or similar. They're often terrible quality, the heels will snap, the soles will peel off, zips will break. In my opinion the only decent specifically alternative shoe brand are New Rock (even they're lower quality than they used to be in the 90s) and although New Rock do make heels I wouldn't wear them often enough to justify spending £200 on a pair. I prefer flats the majority of the time!

The brand of these is Funtasma, and I believe they are intended for use by pole-dancers, meaning they're decent quality and will be up to a night of dancing in a club. I took a change of shoes along with me to put on at the end of the evening but they are surprisingly comfortable for the first few hours.

I got them about 15 years ago on sale, and at that time they were around £40. Not cheap but not super expensive either, and I've definitely got my money's worth out of them. I had them re-soled once with special toughened soles that have extra grip so they're safer to walk in, but that's it. One time I even did the 3 mile walk home at 2am in 6 inches of snow wearing these because I didn't want to wait hours for a taxi (an occasion where I did not take a change of shoes!)

So, not your standard cyber outfit, but one that gives my own spin on this look (which should be the goal with any fashion style - a guideline to create something unique, not a rulebook that you have to follow 100%) and was put together super cheaply. The only new things I bought were the dress, fabric to make the patches, and a pack of multicoloured hair elastics.

[cemeterydolll]

𝔞𝔱𝔱𝔦𝔠 𝔳𝔞𝔪𝔭𝔦𝔯𝔢 ☥ 🦇 ݁ ˖ִ ࣪ (ft me + vintage lingerie)

[askmeaboutmyknome]

why should i be limited to one aesthetic when i can be multiple?? victorian era vampire creepy goth? fuck yeah. early 2000's trashy white dad who beat on the wifey and listened to nu metal? absolutely! tim burton character? cat grandma? scene emo?? i was MEANT to be limitless this is my destiny

[leebiird]

helped my yard guy steal a dog today

[willowsavail]

part 1 of this months haul (all second hand)