Picturesque greetings from New York!

I am currently in New York City on a holiday and I wanted to share some of the things I've seen so far. I will do more posts about art I'll see here but these are some goth-y or pretty things I've seen so far!

These remains of a sticker graffiti are super cute, so sad that we do not know how it continued! Altough I quite like the combination now, with the reading person spray painted through a template.

 Yesterday I visited The Merchant's House Museum. It is a Row House from the 19th century and it is perfectly preserved with all furniture, clothes etc. Victorian aesthetics are close to many a goths heart.

Here is another picture, showing one of the gowns the lady of the house owned.

Enjoy your weekend, I am now off to explore NYC some more!

Monthly Homework Assignment: On the Cutting Table

The Professor Z's this month's homework assignment is about unfinished projects we have, knitting, sewing and so on. My project is really not even in the beginning, because I've been really busy this week and had not time to find materials and right knitting equipment.

My friend gave me a brand new Finnish knitting book for goths and I really want to make some of their knitted clothes. Now that I have stated this in public, I really have to get those yarns! The book is made by Mila Duktig and Marjukka Vuorisalo, the title is Synkät kuteet - Musta neulekirja which means something like Grim clothes - the Black Knitting Book. Here is the blog of Mila Duktig and Marjukka Vuorisalo. It is mostly in Finnish, but there are entries in English too.

Source

My ultimate favorite and the one I plan to try to make myself is Gargoyle. It is a long skirt that has a subtle print of a huge gargoyle on the hem. It is subtle because one does not use different color or yarn to make it, it is done simply by knitting purl stitches. I am currently in the United States due to things related to my studies, so unfortunately I do not have the book with me at the moment. I only took photocopies of quite awful quality of the instruction and they are not suited for showing in a blog. Neither can I find photos of the Gargoyle online. Instead here is one of the cutest products in the book, A Mustard Gas - sleeping bag for infants! I might try to make this too, since in my circle of friends there are going to be two babies in a few months.

Source

Do click the Monthly Homework Assignment badge and check what Professor herself and other participants have posted! I am a bit annoyed I did not get the yarn in time for this post, but that's life. I've been in Washington DC for a week now and I have barely got rid of jet lag. My mission is to get that skirt with a gargoyle finished during my stay here! I am spending here three months, so I believe this is indeed achievable challenge for me. As long as I find some decent store where I can get me some cable needles and good black yarn. If you know or have a favorite place you can recommend, please mention it in a comment!

Mid-Month Status Report: Suits you (Sir)!

The Mid-Month Status Report is here again! Trystan from This is CorpGoth has asked us to show our more official suit jackets. Unfortunately I have not used a suit jacket in ages, partly because the one I am going to show you no longer fits that well and I have not found a jacket that would fit. I would love a suit jacket I could use closed, which is not the case with the one I am showing.

These pictures was taken 2010 by my friend, when we had a little photo shoot. As you can see, that jacket is one of those one can not wear closed, unless one is several inches smaller from chest and waist than what I am in that picture. 

Still it was a nice suit jacket I found from a flea market. It seems to me, that all my favorite clothes are from flea markets, so I guess I should stop even to go to clothing stores.

Now, thanks to this Status Report I really need a new suit jacket! My style has evolved into more casual lately and I would love to wear more office-like clothes.

Thanks for reading and do check other participants too! Just click the Mid-Month Status Report logo in the beginning!

A Goth Tourist in Budapest: where to shop and what to buy

The next episode of a not-so-fictional goth tourist's (also known as me) escapades in Budapest is about what funny or weird things I bought there.

As I mentioned in a previous post, a little white rabbit led my travel group of two into a big flea market on Saturday. The flea market is held every weekend (at least during warmer months) in the city's park Városliget. According to all tourist guides one is sure to make great finds in that flea market but I was rather disappointed. There were some sellers with nice old things but nothing really weird or creepy that would fit a goth's taste. There was also many people selling their clothes and unopened everyday products like toothpaste in big bulks.

I still managed to find something to buy. Two dead old watches and some small metallic plate. I intend to do some DIY and make a steampunk inspired brooch or a hair accessory or something.

Me and my companion also wondered around a regular shopping center and I found some casual and smart shoes for this fall. Though they are fake suede, so they are not good if there is any rain. From another shoe shop I found these gorgeous green legwarmers and stockings. The stockings were on sale and 990 FT is about 3 euro.

A shop I really adored in Budapest was Szputnyik Shop on Dohány utca 20, in the centrum area. They had interesting second hand clothes, accessorizes, hats and other stuff and a huge amount of clothes, jewelry and what not by local designers.

I had my eye on several really cool print tops but alas I am not the right shape for them! They look good on more flat people and with my curves there was no chance. My companion bought one I wanted to buy too. It did not look half as good on me as in this pic.

If you are interested of design and local artists, I must recommend Magma, a Hungarian design and contemporary art gallery in the centrum, pretty close to the river, on the side of Pest. I bought this cute little fox from there!

Unfortunately this print is on a slightly shimmering paper so trying to take a good photo of it was quite frustrating. Here is a link to the artists webpage. I cant remember how much I payed for my little fox but it was not too expensive. I also bought three postcards from the museum shop of Ludwig Museum, of which I am going to write the next post, since it was a great art museum. Here are the three works of art on postcards:

I shall tell more about them in the next post, why ruin the content of it now! Finally the last three things I bought from another design shop. These are more goth-y too.

A skull of coarse. This is the perfect size and if I am any judge, it probably belonged to an European roe deer. It was the first thing I saw in the design shop. The place is Szimpla Design Shop, their webpage is under construct but here is their facebook page. 

When I saw the second object that interested me the conversation between me and the salesperson was this:

me: That's pretty. What is it and how much is it?
salesperson: To be honest, I do not know what it is but it costs 10 euros.

A short silence. 

me: I'll take it.

So, if any of you know what that thing is on the right, please tell me! I do know that the thing on the left is a ballpoint pen, I put it there to show you how big that other thing is. Me and my entourage of one soul pondered this for a while. We wondered if it might be a part of a door handle. But where could one grab it? We saw those metallic middle parts by themselves of the flea market I mentioned earlier.

 The last thing I bought and am going to show you is this.

This too costed only ten euros. It is made of porcelain and it is exactly the size you might think it is. 

It is a vase for flowers, though I am not going to put real live flowers in it. The shape might be cool but it is inconvenient if one tries to actually clean it well from inside. I predict it would soon start to smell, if there was water and organic things like parts of plants in it. I shall buy a black fake flower to make this perfect.

This porcelain gun has so far been the most fun thing I bought. Since it is of such delicate material, of coarse I had to take it back to Finland in my hand luggage! I must say it was rather fun at the security check before we could go to the gate area. No surprise, my bag was taken for a more thorough inspection than mere translumination. The inspecting person asked me to open the bag and started to go through it. To make things speedier I said something like "What you are probably looking for is in that small pocket on the lid part of the luggage. I mean, if you are looking for a gun shaped object, there is a designer vase that fits that description". I was as nice as it was possible and explained how I really could not have put a delicate object like that in to the cargo bin. In the end the inspector said it was actually rather cool a gun and let me proceed to the gates.

I hope these recommendations of shops have been helpful if somebody is planning to visit Budapest and that this post has been at least entertaining! Next time, some culture tips, an art museum and some museums of specific parts of history.

The Professor's Monthly Homework Assignment: Spring

Our lovely professor has given the Monthly Assignment and this time it is Spring! What does it mean to us, what do we like about it? Go and check what other participants think of spring too!

I like spring, because then one doesn't have to wear endless layers off winter clothes and ugly but sensible boots. Instead one can wear lovely high heels. These green beauties are made of silk, so one can hardly wear them if it is even the smallest chance of rain.

I have waited so long to use these again!

Spring is also the time of rebirth, the season of finding a mate and everybody's got their hormones all wind up and I am not sure if I personally like it. Usually I have not been affected by it that badly, but now this spring I got this feeling I'm like a bloody high-school student, slave to one's hormones and way too easily infatuated. It is annoying, but at the same time quite nice. Of coarse I have a hard time admitting it publicly, it makes me feel so embarrassed. Yeah, I've been listening to this song a lot, because I am starting to feel a bit obsessed.

And last, a nice picture of flowers.

CorpGoth's Mid-Month Status Report: March forward!

It is once again time of CorpGoth's Mid-Month Status Report! This time the task is to show our work shoes, meaning the ones we use everyday due to the realities of walking long distances or dress code or other reasons. You can find other participants from here, go check their shoes too!

I live in a cold and bleak city, where is snow and hale and slush snow, and they can change from one to the other within a week. For the last six months I've been walking to the university or to the shops and other places, because it was just two kilometers from my old flat. This means that I walked from 4 to 8 kilometers daily, so the shoes had to be comfortable.

One can clearly see, that those shoes are used and the surface is slightly damaged. They have served me well, but I hope I find better ones before winter comes back and buries me into her cold whiteness again.

Now that I live 400 meters away from the university, I shall be able to use more high heals. Also, the spring is coming, so soon I do not need to worry about snow and icy roads anymore. These boots are lovely, but there is one slight problem. I found them at a flea market and they are one size too big for me. Therefore my ankles start to hurt, if I walk with them too long. I shall try to figure some way to make them more my size, so that I can wear them as "work shoes". I wonder if somewhere they sell some sort of ankle support thingies I could wear inside the shoe.

Winter's Bride

As I mentioned, I made a trip to Stockholm, the capital of Sweden with a friend. We went to see some art exhibitions, shopped and generally acted like tourists. Except we made a little photo shoot too. Since it was almost Winter Solstice (18th of December), we decided to do a Winter's Bride. In the pics I am wearing a wedding dress my friend found from a second hand shop and some vintage furs of my own. Lipstick is Make  Up Store's Black Orchid.

We took these photos at the garden of Royal Library and some dog-owners and joggers apparently were a bit amused by our behavior. I'm just happy if we brightened somebody's day.

Once again I'll mention that the furs are heritage from my mother's side and the creatures were skinned before I was even born. Also, a poor student like me could not afford furs. :)

Have a happy Christmas, Yule and slightly late Winter Solstice!

Sophistiqué Noir's monthly theme post: maxi skirt

The winter has arrived to my home town, so maxi skirts are a sensible way to dress against the frost and ice.

I went to a nearby park to take some pictures of me and the amazing weather. In the pictures I'm wearing a winter coat with fake fur collar. The hat is mink, but it was inherited from a relative so I do not have a bad consciousness about it. The maxi skirt is a product of Raven and it is some weird fake material. Though sometimes it looks like leather and sometimes like PVC.  I bought it 2006 or something, so it is a good product, there is no abrasion or anything.

Here are the other participants of Sophistiqué Noir's Monthly Theme.

Flea-market findings and a new wig

I'm once again going to mention how great thing flea-markets are. First of all, it is ecological to recycle things one does no longer need. Other man's dirt is other man's treasure, or whatever that old phrase goes. That is the second reason, and I would like to show quickly my new purchases.

Last Wednesday I happened to go to a self-service flea-market. It is the way almost all flea-markets in this town are organised. It was not that common in the city I lived before, so first I was a little sceptic about it. I was used to the idea, that the owner of stuff is there selling and one can ask about the things one is possibly going to buy.

Pic was taken by Timo Liimatta

Anyways, here is two pictures where I am wearing both of my findings. These boots are probably not real lether, but they sure are comfortable and look good. The other purchase was the vest I am wearing. It is made of a thick, satin-like material, deffinately by some gothgirl who happened to be my size and was very stylish. I adored the turquose lace behind and I could not believe the prize tag said 2 euros! The lovely boots were 3 euros, so one can guess I was not going to hesitate.

What is your dearest flea-market find?

I am also wearing my new wig. I bought it because I am tired of being blond all the time. I've allways wanted to have black/dark blue hair and possibly some stripes. This is basically a dream I had and somebody made it true in the form of a fake hair. I allready have one short wig, black with bangs. When I had no time to wash my hair before lection, I would use it. I think it is better than a cap with a print "BAD HAIRDAY". They sell those in Finland, you know.

As I said, I'm getting tired with my own hair. It is so weak I can not dye it and besides I wouldn't feel up to keep it up. I decided I could get a new pretty wig which I could use when ever I pleased. I ordered the new wig via eBay and must say it was very easy and the order was not late at all, eventhough it came all the way from China.

Pic was taken by Timo Liimatta

The pictures were taken at a larp. It was a cyber-punk game and the photographer was one of the players called Timo Liimatta. As for me being not that cyber, I was a NPC (non-player-character) and I was just some office clerk having a night out. Nothing too flashy, so I wore something I could easily use myself at a bar-night.

I feel so dumb, because when I was visiting my family and went to museums and galleries and had extremely nice time with my friends, I forgot that little cable I need to transfer photos to a computer and also load the batteries. So, there is no way for me to load those photos. Luckily I'm off to my folks at Thursday and on Friday we shall travel to Warsow! Then at least I can load the photos.

How to fix a too short sleeve.

I believe many people besides me has had this annoying situation. One has found a beautiful coat at the second hand shop or the local charity shop, or got a used item from a friend. The coat fits otherwise perfectly, BUT the sleeves are tiny bit too short. There is also no way to extend the original fabric.

I once found a leather jacket for 5 euros and its sleeves were about 4 cm too short, leaving my wrist totally exposed to this cold climate. So, I decided to make arm warmers that could be used with that particular coat but also with other occasions too. I did not have a sewing machine so they really are totally handmade. At that time I was more active about LARPing, and that’s why the stitching is made so “rough”. It was perfect for a little Celtic fantasy game I attended.

Basically I just went and bought the fake fur, I asked for a kind I could work by hands and I already had that white fabric. Then I just made two tubes, inside white and outside black fake fur, that came just a bit over from the ends of the tubes.

They are very nice, one can just make them as tiny as possible and put the on, sleeve insidethe tube, or if it is the coat, then tube is under the sleeve, fur side to the skin and the part that comes out of the sleeve is just turned over and there is a nice little fur collar, warming one’s fingers. One tube can be also used as a muff. That fake fur is not that thick, so One can attach some lovely gothic jewellery to them. Like if it is a muff, then at the middle some huge golden or sivery symbol.

Close-up of the stitching.

Living next to a mansion

Come and meet my next door neighbours! I live in a block of flats, 2 kilometers form the centrum square, but next to my apartment is actually an arboretum and two manor houses. Those mansions are quite next to each other, so the city has decided to make it an outing area for common folk. This is the first manor house, if I have understood correctly, one can rent it for special occasions.






The day I went to the garden was a bit chilly and when I was leaving it started to rain. I was wearing a hat with one of those "Skeleton Bride" camees. The blue scarf is cashmere and it was a present from my father. The shirt underneath is just plain ordinary shirt, from H&M.

I am one of those people whom have large breasts, so most of the shirts made by gothic designers do not fit me well. The prints get stretched and if the fabric is not elastic, then my bosom is going to be crushed, or the cloth is way too big from waist. Also, I am not crafty with my hands and it is rather expencive for a student to buy custom made clothes.

The other pictures show how wonderfully this garden is decayed. It is taken good care, of course, but the old structures are left in the state they are, with no restoration.


Unfortunately the weather has been quite cold, so the arboretum and all those beautiful flowers and roses and  plants weren't in a very picturesque state, but here are couple pictures of more prettier sights. The mansions are situated at a lake, actually the whole town where I live is surrounded by water.

Finally, the last mansion. There were many cars in front of it and around it, so I did not go too close. I did not want to interfere, if somebody was having a meeting or a wedding reception. Still, it looks very pretty and those stairs just scream after a fair gothic lady to walk down in a gorgeous evening dress. 

 

Red and black week: basic wear for grocery

I was in a bit of a hurry, so I didn't have time to actually find a good angle to make my face look pretty. I do not normally have that weird chin. But, this is a casual look, I'm off to the super market.

 


Honestly, my face and hair looked so weird, that I had to cut it out of the other picture. :( I really should get a proper place to take pictures.

In the picture(s):
Jacket Vero Moda
Top H&M
Skirt Bazar collection
Shoes Bata