Goth Wardrobe Tips and Tricks

Goth fashion rages from cute and kawaii to elegant and sophisticated. We have Lolita Goth, Elder Goth, Trad Goth, Cyber Goth, NuGoth, the list is endless! But one thing all Goth's can agree on? Well apart from why are there so many shades of black and why do they not all match! Is Goth fashion can be expensive!

With the rise of brands such as Killstar and Disturbia, Goth fashion is becoming wildly more accessible in our online shopping age. With the rise of instagram small Goth brands are becoming more visible and easier to access to many of us. 

Showing my age here but I remember in my hometown either having to wait for the market stalls that came once a week to the high street to find some cool goth t-shirts to add to my wardrobe, or save up and hunt through the handful of small alternative clothing stores your town had to offer (if you were lucky!) 

Or there was the holy grail, saving up and doing a day trip to London with your friends to hunt for the pièce de résistance of your wardrobe.

But one thing remains from those days, and that is the cost of Goth Fashion.

So how do we keep our wardrobe looking fresh whilst keeping our bank balance happy?

Buy Versatile Items

We've all been there, bought shoes that we only want to wear with a certain dress or a shirt that only looks good when paired with one particular skirt, but this can get costly and limit your outfit choices. 

Buying a pair of velvet bellbottoms that look good with a range of tops already in your wardrobe gives you variety and options with limited resources.

We personally love following Kyden.Fire on instagram as she shows us multiple ways to style one item. You'll constantly find her mix and matching her wardrobe to give us new fresh looks.

Fabric Dye

Though almost everything comes in black these days, there will still be times when the item you want doesn't come in the shade you desire. Or the black/goth version of what you're after is inexplicably more expensive than its over colour counterparts (a phenomenon I like to call the Goth Tax). Fabric Dye is going to stop you crying over an empty piggy bank. It's also going to help you top up beloved items that have faded, even help you create unique items that no one else has. 

Customise

With almost everything available online these days, and HobbyCraft stocking everything you need to get creative, lots of savvy goths are customising affordable plain items to make them more Goth. Really want that studded leather jacket but don't have the £200 to splash on it? Find a faux leather jacket in your price range and add the studs yourself. There's so many ways to make something completely unique for you. Use fabric paint to add your own graphics, embroidery thread to add a classic ivy design. Even if you're not artistically inclined, sew own patches help had your own style and flare to any clothing.

Halloween

Or Goth Christmas as many like to call it. Shops now start stocking Halloween items as early as end of August, which is great as gives us more time to shop for accessories! Spiderweb tights, skeleton jewellery and witchy accessories help elevate a plain black outfit to a Goth outfit. And for the discerning shopper if you wait till after October 31st, our beloved Halloween items go on sale (but of course in limited stock so get there first!)

Sales

Eventually everywhere, every shop, every place, has a sale. This is a great opportunity to grab yourself a bargain on an otherwise expensive luxury item. There is always the risk that what you covet may no longer be in your size but that is the risk, and makes the joy of finding your hearts' desire in your size all the more pure.

Buy Second Hand

If you don't mind wearing something that has been worn and loved before there is a whole treasure trove of Goth clothing and accessories on Ebay and apps such as Depop. Here you'll even be able to find things that may no longer be in production, making for a rare find. Of course it takes a little hunting and searching to find something you want in your size, but for the patient and focused shopper, gems are waiting to be discovered!

Accessories!

You don't have to be wearing a full on goth outfit to be goth. Accessorising with Belts, fishnets, necklaces, earrings, and gloves can truly display your style, and most times accessories are a lot cheaper than clothing.

Special thanks to Olive Oyll, Danielle Smith, Kitty Bat, Zoe Cheryleigh Pipe, Helen Pyre, Taz Baxenden, Roz McCann for their contributed tips and tricks in this blog post.