Winter Woolies!

It's cold.

COLD!

Image labelled for reuse. Click for source.

Today was one of the coldest days yet here in Ireland. Aside from a driving lesson and a thirty minute walk I spent the majority of my day in fleece pyjamas and in bed with my electric blanket on.  And whilst it is only November I also watched Miracle on 34th street because that's how I roll.

Anyway, on with the post! In light of the approaching frost I figured it was a good time to share some of my tips on keeping warm with you guys. Enjoy!

• Layer. Layer layer layer. All those string tops and vests that you put at the back of the wardrobe as soon as the first frost hits? Wear them underneath your clothes in winter as an extra layer. It really does help! :)
• Leggings are your best friend. I don't like jeans or trousers and always get annoyed by people implying that you can't wear skirts in winter and stay warm. Substitute leggings for your tights where possible, I use cheap ones from Penney's/Primark and they do the job! 
• Alternatively wear your tights underneath legging for extra extra warmth 
• Fingerless gloves are useful if you need to use your hands but still want to keep warm. I work with animals so having my hands fairly mobile is important. You can buy thermal ones and cut the fingers out
• Wear many many many pairs of socks. Ski socks are good. Nothing worse than cold feet. You will never feel warm if your feet can't heat up! 
• Thermal vests and t shirts are light and warm. WARM.
• If you're doing work outside or if you are really cold then boil the kettle and fill a bowl with the water. Every now and again dip your fingers in the hot water
• Hats gloves and scarves. Simple but effective! I see lots of people without scarves and I just don't understand! 
• One of my favourite Winter breakfasts is porridge with honey and cinnamon, its so warm and filling
• Mulled wine if you are old enough/hot chocolate just in general are two very good drinks for making you feel all toasty and warm
• Buy a travel flask and fill it with a drink of your choice- tea, coffee, soup etc. Good for when you are waiting on public transport and freezing your unmentionables off

As though I could write a post on this topic and not include this theme song!

Hope you enjoyed the read!

Rebecca.

Miaow. 

Goth girl problems.

After Sary Walrus posted this cute video I thought a post with my goth girl problems would be fun.

• Losing black things amongst other black things. I bought an expensive black make-up brush which I proceeded to lose for the next week in my room full of black stuff. In fact I recently bought a white phone on purpose for that very reason
• When your tights don't have ENOUGH holes and rips
• When you put your corset on first. Remember its boots first and then corset 
• When that gorgeous lace top comes in every colour except for black
• Not having enough time to do your eye makeup properly. Because thirty full minutes is apparently not enough time
• Smacking your head of the overhead luggage holder on the bus because you forgot that your Demonias make you four inches taller and thus you have to sit down sooner than normal
• When you cut your fringe unevenly. Every damn time! 
• When your Demonias get caught in a stool at the goth club and you end up dragging it halfway across the room before you realise what happened 
• That powder says translucent but its still slightly orange
• When you don't have enough money to buy all the bat-shaped things at Halloween 
• Spending hours on an intricate nail design only for it to chip when you apply your eye-liner
• Not having a back up eye-liner ready and running out
• Hitting other people in the club whilst industrial dancing

What are your goth girl/guy problems?

Rebecca.

xx

Retiring My Beloved Doc Martens

Hello everyone! :)

Today's post is on the retirement of my eight year old baby Doc Marten boots. 

I bought my first pair of docs when I was 15. I worked for two weeks in a local newsagents before realising that the schedule would interfere with my school work too much. So I took my two weeks wages to Dublin and bought my 8 hole docs. After I bought them I decided that they didn't look good on me but a little while later I began to wear them more and more and continued to wear them pretty much continuously for the last eight years. However I replaced them last week after saving up enough money to do so- there is a hole in one of them big enough to put your fingers through and whilst it does look kinda cool, it is cold and wet when it rains! 

I have worn these boots to China, Switzerland, Germany and probably loads more I can't remember. Multiple gigs. Many nights out. Throughout the duration of my two college degrees.  Rain hail and snow. I wore them on my first ever proper night out. Even as my style changed these boots were a constant. It may seem silly but I am so incredibly attached to these boots. So much history! 

Looking good for eight years of pretty much continuous wear, no? 

Unfortunately in cold wet weather this is a problem. I live in Ireland.
It's cold and wet here a lot! 

Behold my new babies. They are eight hole again but this time in
sexy patent leather.
I love them.

I bought a pair of patent ones because I love love love patent and whilst I didn't have a problem with the style of my first ones, I thought a change would be good. They have already kept me company during a night in A&E (muscle strain causing dizziness nothing madly serious) so I think that they shall be part of many more interesting memories.

Yes I really do care this much about my boots ;)

What about you guys? Anything you are very attached to and dread having to replace/retire one day? I would love to hear about it!

Regards,

Rebecca. 

Halloween Shaped Finds!

Hey guys! 

So after Cherish at Babybat's Blog showed us her awesome Halloween finds  I figured I would share some of mine also.

Enjoy! 

Bat stickers. Easily removable but still sicking quite well.
They glitter around the sides and it was 4 Euro for the lot! 

T-shirts courtesy of Penneys/Primark. The Hello Kitty one was 7 Euro and the others
were 3 Euro each. I sleep in the one on the right.

A stream of bats. Kind of cheap looking so may not last much longer but pretty all the same.
Around 3 Euro for the lot I think. 

My awesome skull mug. He was 2 Euro and is quite durable.
I drink water from him mostly. I tried him in the microwave but he started to get hairline cracks.

Skeleton basket and two fluffy pens,
I also put my nail varnish in here.

What did you guys buy this year?

Rebecca.

xx

Rebecca Through the Ages

Hello everyone! 

So I was looking around for some blog inspiration and it occured to me that I haven't done one of those 'Through the Ages' kinds of posts. I dug the majority of these pictures up from forgotten photo albums on Facebook and one or two were already up on my blog. Enjoy! :)

So I was 16/17 and hadn't a clue about maintaining hair colour or trimming my hair or anything really.  I loved that red vest and sparkly scarf soooo much. First night I ever got drunk too. I was wearing blue jeans with this.
My style then was jeans and vest tops with cardigans and little decorative neck scarves.
As in that's ALL I wore ever.
Jesus.

My debs! I was 17 and only a month away from 18. My dress was floor length red satin and my hair was a nice warm dark brown. I got so many compliments on that dress. 

I was 19.
Before I learned about the joys of filling in one's eyebrows
and foundation that actually LASTS!
And liquid eyeliner.
Love my hair colour here though actually. 

When I was around 20 and had awesome hair. I miss that fringe but couldn't have it now with work.
My hair was quite short here actually and this was one of the last times in my life that I wore jeans.

International suit up day when I was  maybe  20  or so. Tiny hat.  Although I was dressed up I would
definitely wear something like this with a shorter jacket and bigger boots nowadays just cus.
My hair was red again. 

My grad ball when I was 21. My hair was straight. Tiny hat + corset= slowly developing style.
Thank Christ. 

22 and a casual night in Dominion which is a goth club in Dublin city.
My hair is dyed black again and I had stopped using sulphates and silicones in my hair for well over a year
at this point. The curl is more defined and much shinier. Woo! 

22 and still with the better fitting clothes and well applied make-up.
I love that shirt.  

I look so awkward in this photo!
This is pretty much how I dress these days.
Kind of crazy when you compare to the first picture!
Neck chokers, gloves and stompy boots form the basis of my
current style.

So there you have it. I've never been one to feature in photographs so it was difficult to find some diverse ones but I think you can still get the idea! I went from casual jeans and t-shirts to a more groomed and generally improved and put together style. 

Thanks for reading and hope you all had a lovely Halloween :) 

Miaow

xx

Edgar the Sock Monster

So I'm quite sick at the minute and I made my first ever sock monster in a bid to cheer myself up. I took some photos and stuff to share with you guys.

Enjoy:)

Supplies:

• Sock/s. I have two in case I messed up somehow
• Colourful sock for contrast
• Buttons for eyes
• Scissors
• Needle and thread
• Something to stuff your monster with. I used stuffing from a really old toy.

Lay your sock flat, cut down the middle of the toe part to make two ears. Then place your buttons and mouth on to get an idea of the monster's proportions and see how much material you can cut off for the arms.

Cut off the bottom part. You will then cut this part up the middle to make two arms. Cut up the middle of the remaining fabric to make the legs.

Sew the edges of everything to make it neat and hold together. It is important to do this when the fabric is inside out so that when you turn it the right way up, it will be lovely and neat. Leave a hole in the crotch area for stuffing. Heh I could probably have phrased that in a less vulgar way couldn't I... :p

Figure out where you want the arms to go. With a scissors cut a hole in the side to thread the arms through. Mine was exactly where the scissors is in the above photo. Now, whilst the rest of the monster is currently inside out, you actually place your arms through the hole right side up. Otherwise, when you turn the whole thing the right side up, the arms will be inside out. 

Sew the edges of the arms to the edge of the arm hole you made.

Turn your monster inside out and stuff it. Next add some eyes and a smile and whatever else you want and you have a sock monster :)

Mine is named Edgar and he is currently chillin alongside my fancy hair accessories. Like a boss.

Rebecca.

Miaow.

My Week in Photos

Hey guys,

I saw a few fashion bloggers doing this and I thought it was a cute idea.  Enjoy the pictures, I hope this post isn't mind-numbingly boring! 

Spent a great deal of my week watching season 2 of Babylon 5 and drinking tea.
Got the skirt and shirt for 4 euro each in my local
charity shop :)

Dyed my hair and got my cat, changed his name from Anubis
to Loki. Suits him perfectly. 

Did some DIY. Which for me means ripping things.
Stripy jumper also has safety pins in the
shoulders but you can't see.
Those are ripped leggings with lace tights underneath.

Trying to decide what to wear to ye olde goth club.
Finally settled and wore my Demonia's along with the stuff to the right.
Couldn't get a good photo of it on, unfortunately :(

My sister got me the star on her holidays.
Incense burning, that  particular one was Lavender to help me sleep. 

Thanks for looking,

Rebecca.

Of Bram Stoker and Count Dracula

Hey guys,

In my Friday the 13th post, here, I mentioned that I was planning on doing a post on Bram Stoker. I finally got around to doing it today and I hope that you all enjoy it.

Bram Stoker is the author of the one and only Dracula. Stoker was born in November in 1847 and spent most of his childhood bed-ridden due to a mysterious illness. It is understood that his mother would keep him entertained with stories of Irish folklore, the occult and tales of the Famine (1845-1849) thus fuelling a Gothic imagination. 

Stoker recovered from his illness at age seven and during his adult years attended Trinity College in Dublin. He befriended the actor Henry Irving and went to England where he became manager of Irving's Lyceum Theatre. His connections to Irving meant he became a member of high society and travelled all around Europe, studying folklore and collecting vampire stories. 

It has been speculated that Stoker belonged to a secret society called The Order of the Golden Dawn. Interestingly W.B. Yeats has also been linked to this order. 

Dracula first lands at Whitby Castle in the novel.
Labelled for reuse. Click for original source.

Stoker died in April 1912 following a series of strokes although it is also suggested that he died of tertiary syphilis.

There have been countless adaptions of Draula. One of the earliest, if not the earliest film adoption was Nosferatu in 1922. Those involved were unable to obtain the rights and thus changed characters names for their unauthorized adaptation, for example the vampire became Nosferatu and Count Dracula was Count Orlok. I put up a review of a cool Dracula pop-up book I read ages ago here. 

The famous shadow from the 1922 Nosferatu.
I'm currently eyeing up a t-shirt with this print on it, actually.
Labelled for reuse. Click for original source.

Dracula was published in 1897 and despite the fact that Stoker has several published works, Dracula remains his most well-known and widely read piece of writing.

Although there is much debate surrounding the extent of the influence, it is often thought that the infamous Vlad the Impaler was a source of inspiration for the character of Dracula. Vlad the III Dracula was a terrible ruler of Wallachia (Romania) during the 15th century who had quite the gruesome penchant for impaling his victims. There's a guy you wanna party with. It is often argued that Stoker most likely took the name Dracula for his novel and actually knew little of Mr. Stab-happy's life. Dracul means dragon or devil in Romanian. 

One of the many genres of fiction that Stoker's novel has been linked with is Invasion Literature. His novel taps into fears and concerns of the period, namely over potential threats to the English Empire from outside her boundaries. The idea of the foreign body landing on British soil and essentially infecting her citizens, figuratively and literally, was quite a powerful one at the time.  For example The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells was published the following year, 1898, and tells the story of a Martian invasion upon London. I am reading that book now actually, it's quite creepy and delightfully timeless I think.

And how could we forget the episode of Buffy where she faces off with Dracula and Xander plays the bug-loving character of Renfield. Speaking of, who else loves Dracula Dead and Loving It? Peter MacNiol is a fabulous Renfield. I think I linked this video on my blog before but hey, tis a good 'un .

If you like vampire stories perhaps you'd enjoy this old post of mine which is about an old Irish Vampire myth. Click here to read.

Thanks for reading guys,

Hope you enjoyed.

Rebecca. 

I Got a Kitty!

Hello lovely internet people and hello to my latest followers! I hope you are all doing well. This is just a small post showing you my new cat.  I decided to call him Anubis, he is 6 months old and is completely adorable. He got neutered over the weekend so is still a little sleepy and stuff but he is settling in well. My mother's pets are all a little unimpressed at the minute but I think they will all get on eventually.

Thanks for stopping by,

Rebecca.

Miaow. 

13 Things a Goth Needs

Happy Friday the 13th to all of my followers and readers! 

I had the day off work and so spent this spooky day re-arranging my room, watching science fiction, drinking coffee and thinking up things to blog about. Expect a post on Bram Stoker and one on industrial dancing in the coming weeks :) What did you guys get up to today? 

Now The Everyday Goth had a post like this ages ago, here. I had it mentally bookmarked as a good one to do but for some reason never got around to it! I will list 13 things in honour of Friday the 13th because I'm easily amused like that :D Sorry if I repeat a lot of The Everday Goth's list but her list was awesome. Just sayin'. 

1) Pressed powder. If you're not bothered with foundation or don't have time then powder is a great way to even out your skin tone and take the 'just woken up' look off your face. Also invaluable at the club or on a hot day. I am currently using Maxfactor's Creme Puff pressed powder in Translucent. 

2) Old faithful black eyeliner. I may flirt with other brands but I will never abandon you Collection 2000 Extreme Felt Tip Liner. You mean too much to me.

3) Black boots that go with everything. My baby doc martens are perfect for this. I love my Demonias but  my docs will always have a special place in my heart.

4) Plain black well fitted basics and also some accessories. This is the basis for my wardrobe. A black skirt with a black frilly blouse, a flower in my hair and a spiked necklace is my go-to look. Combine with massive amounts of black eye make-up and some patterned tights and you have a simple, affordable but spookified type look.

5) Goes without saying but I'll say it anyway. A basic knowledge of the subculture. Amongst the obvious reasons its a cool history full of lovely styles and sounds. 

6) A copy of Jillian Venters Gothic Charm School. Even if its just to look at the cute illustrations!

7) Both an uber-gothified outfit and a more wearable outfit suitable for visiting family and job-interviews.

8) A sense of humour and the ability to laugh at oneself. Like when my Demonia boots keep getting caught in chairs and I end up dragging half the furniture around with me. Because that's pretty funny.

9) A copy of The Castle of Otranto, Frankenstein and Dracula. Because gothic fiction is just so damned good.

10) A chill out/mope-out song and a lift your spirits song.  My mope out song would be either One Hundred Years by The Cure or Marian by The Sisters of Mercy. My lift your spirits song would be This is Not Salvation by Say Just Words or Just Like Heaven by The Cure. In general I listen to a lot of Industrial to lift my spirits also. Too many bands to mention here.

11) A statement piece. Whether it be 4 inch Demonias, a corset, an elaborate piece of jewellery or a customized piece of clothing, something to instantly uber-gothify a standard outfit is invaluable in ones gothy wardrobe.

12) Some kind of basic dance style. Just for when your at the club and want to dance but aren't sure how to. It can be anything from swirly hands or industrial dancing. Of a combination of both if you're me. I love to Industrial dance when I'm at home on my own, its great exercise and great fun! 

13) Sunscreen.

What are your gothy must haves?
Thanks for reading,
Miaow.
x

More Stuffs.

Greeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeetings :)

I bought and photographed all of this stuff quite a while ago but just never got around to making a post on it.

Skeleton Cameo necklace from Draculaclothing.com. It was only
7 euro. It did fall and break and have to be superglued back
together but hey, you get what you pay for.

Illamasqua green lipgloss, called 'Violate'. It's kind of awesome.

BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE.

Excuse the oddness of this photo but I couldn't get a decent one
for this lipstick. Kept coming out blue or a different shade of purple.
This is Kontrol by Illamasqua. I really like it. 

I will so get around to using these. Honest. 

Sleek palatte- PPQ Me Myself and Eye. Amazing colours

Pretty blouse from Penneys/Primark. Looks awesome with
a high waisted black skirt, ripped tights, the skeleton cameo
pictured above and backcombed to death hair.

Hope you all enjoyed this little post. What have you guys been buying/eyeing up?
Rebecca.
:)

The Liebster Award

Hey guys!

So I received the Liebster award from both Katelynn at 'The Life of a Babybat'  and Cherish at 'Babybat's Blog' . Thanks to both of you beatiful ladies for thinking of me when writing up your posts! I really enjoyed reading your reponses, hope you like mine! :)

The Rules.

• Each person must post 11 things about themselves
• Answer the questions the tagger has set for you
• Create 11 questions for the people you have tagged to answer
• Choose 11 people and link them in your post
• Go to their page and tell them
• No tag backs

11 Things about The Phantom Cat

1. I love science fiction! Currently obsessing over Babylon 5. Great show!
2. Wrote my post-graduate thesis on nationhood and reproduction in Battlestar Galactica. The new one, although of course the 80's one was mentioned a few times.
3. I just started learning to drive. It's fun!
4. Aside from the sweatpants I wear to work, leggings are the only pants I wear. Skirts are the way to go for me.
5. Marian by The Sisters of Mercy is one of my all-time favourite songs.
6. I've seen Rammstein twice, the second time I ended up getting accidentally punched in the face and had to go to hospital with what I though was a broken nose.Turned out (thankfully) to be just soft tissue damage. Luckily I went after the show so missed nothing. 
7. Currently reading War of the Worlds.
8. If I find out that you haven't seen the Alien movies I make it my sworn duty to force you to watch them. And I take that duty very seriously. When I made my friend Christine watch them all the electricity in our whole town went and we had to walk home in the dark. She loved that :)
9. My current can't-live-without make uppy thang is Gosh's green colour correcting concealor. That stuff works magic.
10. I've only ever broken one bone and that was my wrist during a horse riding lesson when I was younger. Around 12 years old. I continued going for a few weeks after the cast came off but I lost confidence at it. Would love to go for a few lessons now though.
11. Autumn is my all time-favourite month. Such a beautiful time of year.

The Questions I was asked by Katelynn of The Life of a Babybat 

1. Favourite Movie? The first two Alien movies. Or Con Air.
2. Are you on Tumblr, if so post your URL. Yeah but I hardly ever use it  http://thephantomcat.tumblr.com/
3. Cats or Dogs? Could never choose. Both are amazing creatures. 
4. Do you find bats cute? Oh good god yes. 
5. Favourite cosmetics brand? Currently its Gosh. 
6. A word you use way too often? Either frak or win. 
7. Favourite season? AUTUMN!
8. Favourite non-goth band? Children of Bodom. 
9. Your current celebrity crush? Ooooh Michael Fassbender. 
10. Biggest fear? Would have to be of spiders. 
11. Favourite author  Stephen King.

The Questions I was asked by Cherish of Babybat's  Blog 

1. Who is your favourite author(s)? Stephen King.
2. Your crush(s)? Michael Fassbender, Chrish Hemsworth, Jason Statham.
3. Your favourite tv show? Of all time is the reimagined Battlestar Galactica. Currently its Babylon 5.
4. Favourite food? Pancakes with golden syrup and chopped banana. Combined with a nice cup of rich coffee...mmmm... 
5. Lipstick or eyeshadow, which do you prefer? Eyeshadow. I find lipstick a lot of effort. 
6. Something you love about yourself? My hair. It's fun and naturally giant. 
7. Favourite band? The Sisters of Mercy. 
8. Do you believe in the paranormal? Having had some experiences with it I would have to say yes!
9. Fan of vampires? Oh good lord YES!
10. Black/none or other shade of nail polish? Black or a nice deep purple or blue. 
11. Favourite movie? The first two Alien movies or Con Air. Also Hocus Pocus.

The People I am Tagging.

bats-and-bunnies.blogspot.ie/

cemeterydreamer.blogspot.ie/

katysioux.blogspot.ie/

notthistimenaylandsmith.blogspot.ie/

www.colormegoth.com/

geekygothgirl.blogspot.ie/

gothicallyyours.blogspot.ie/

catacombxkitten.blogspot.ie/

myspotinthespectrum.blogspot.ie/

rufflesnotdiets.blogspot.ie/

theeverydaygoth.blogspot.ie/

My Questions.

1. Your first goth band?
2. New or early batman movies?
3. The longest you have ever gone without sleep
4. What are your phobias?
5. Tea or coffee?
6. The one country in the world you would love to visit
7. Is you hair natural or dyed? 
8. Any body modifications you would never consider getting done?
9. Your most hated tv show.
10. What book are you reading at the moment?
11. What do you do to chill out after a long day?

I'm sure that most of you guys have been tagged already but I stick by my choices :p

Hope you all enjoyed this post, can't wait to see the answers to my admittedly not very thrilling questions.

Thanks for reading,

Rebecca. Miaow :)

Warm Weather Loves and Hates

Hello lovely internet peoples :)

In light of the (in my opinion) dreaded summer months I decided to do a blog post on the things that I find both win and fail about warm weather. In general I'm fairly anti-heat; I freckle and burn easily and my hair tends to get lighter. Not to mention the fact that I get hay-fever, headaches when I'm too warm and generally just get grumpy when over-exposed to heat. Having said that, there are a few redeeming plus points to the hot weather and thus I figured a list of pros and cons would make for a fun post.

Fails.

1) People asking you if you're going to start wearing colours because it's warm. NO I'M NOT.

2) People in heavy jeans and t-shirts asking if I'm not too warm in my light linen and black dress. YOU'RE.WEARING. JEANS. 

3) Make-up tends to melt off all too easily. Especially eye make-up. 

4) Gangs of annoying young people hanging around more.

5) So difficult to find anything that isn't electric or pastel coloured in the shops. 

6) Trying to find an appropriate bikini capable of holding up one's... assets ;)

I could handle summer if it meant spending it on a beach like this. Image labelled for reuse. Click for source

Wins.

1) Warm weather makes everyone happy and puts a smile on everyone (else's) face.

2) Ice cream.

3) Drunken barbecues.

4) Wearing fewer layers of clothing and less make-up means getting to play with fun accessories instead.

5) When appropriately attired, lying out under the Day Star for a short while can feel amazing ;)

6) Walking around and hearing random heavy dance music pouring out of open windows. Only in summer :)

Ignoring the snow in the picture for this video, this song always makes me think of summer. 

What are your summer wins and fails? Would love to see some blog post responses  :)

Thanks for reading,

Rebecca :)