I live in kentucky(us) and the closest thing we have to a "goth shop" is ONE hot topic, I cant really shop online because I have no bank account, credit card, etc(I AM 14, its not that bad) so I usually go to consignments, though sometimes the clothes I find there are a bit worn, I cant sew, atall, and I was wondering if anyone had any ideas as to how I might get some better clothes...?

Maybe your parents are willing to buy stuff online for you?

Otherwise try thrift stores.

Learning to sew might be an idea as well, if your mother knows how ask her to teach you. Also, just needle and thread by hand and a lot of time and you should be able to make small alterations and additions (new buttons or sewing on little additions like a lace trim on something).

A lot of my 'day-to-day' wardrobe is pretty basic and I recently bought new black pants at Old Navy of all places. You can buy basic stuff and jazz them up with buttons, trims, a bedazzler, fabric paint... you name it.

Sometimes you get lucky and can find gothy or gothable stuff in normal department stores, velvet shirts etc. especially with the winter collections. Basic items and some imagination and a local fabric store might help out a lot.

Hope this helps,

Lilith

ah, thank you, I already shop at the thrifts, and the liklyness my mom would consent to buying me anything, uh, wearable(though I know I should be happy she buys me anything at all, even if it is a pink fuzzy sweater)is slim to none. Oh, well =:) guess Il still be wearing ragtag punk/goth...uh, style?

Most Goths started out that way, especially in the era before "goth" mall stores and other stores catering to the scene.

I know lots of goths who still either supplement their wardrobe with thrift items or whose wardrobe consists mainly of thrift store stuff.

Nothing wrong with thrifting.

Lilith

I was a thrift Goth for a loooooong time. nothing like buying black clothing to stock your wardrobe... shredding them, buying more black clothes...etc, etc.
besides... you can find some really interesting stuff at a thrift shop.
Ex: three black satin slips cut with pinking shears to good lengths and layered makes a good clubbing dress.

If you shop at hot topic, go there for small items to spice up your wardrobe, such as striped stockings or fishnet. Walmart carries fishnet and striped stockings, too, so you can go there.

damn corporate america...*grumble grumble grumble*

If online shopping is availible to you, try www.nyapparel.com for stockings etc. They apparantly carry the same brands that Hot-Topic does for a lot cheaper.

Recommended to me by someone on another board, and their prices do look very good. Physical store location in San Francisco.

Lilith

I have to add that eBay is also a good place to look. I just received my first clothing eBay purchase, a long black dress with a mandarin collar that buttons down the front until mid-thigh where it continues as a split. Made of rayon/acetate iirc and with short sleevs, a nice addition to my summer wardrobe... and until that time an excuse to go to nyapparel and buy new tights/stockings, lol.

Won for $9.75 ... score! (still under $16 including shipping from Canada to the US). It fits like a glove too and I'm very happy with it.

Lilith

I live in a very small town and there is one Hot Topic 35 miles away.

I usually just buy plain black or dark clothing from various department stores and try to dress them up by altering them or sewing trim or something like that. I have to hem every long dress I buy anyway because I am so short--pants too.


lizbeth



Edited By lizbeth on April 06 2002 at 16:42

Trust me, you're not missing all that much.

They have a website which is linked on the GOTH.NET Links section in case you're curious.

Buying clothing and altering them and sewing on additions etc. is also a lot more original. Good for you!

Lilith

Sorry, Ive been away for a while, I moved to a larger town recently where there are much more shops, when I get settled I will go bout town one day..Thanks for your help...(They even have really large nice thrift shops..I found a long black skirt that looks as if it was made out of those tarps they put over cars the other day..yayness...oh wait, no cheerfullness, must not be cheerful, lest you become perkigoth! the horror!)

well they pretty much said it all. i live in a remotely small town myself, (country hicks, ugh.) and i find things from like everywhere. sewing is out of the question, i won't eve BEGIN to go there. lol. thrift stores are good, but limited here. i found an awesome bracelet at this one thrift i'm going this weekend. thrift stores carry only so much...and i am rediscovering the internet...i don't have a bank account but my parents let me buy off the internet, if i pay them back. they really don't like this 'goth' thing but they say if it's what i want to do and who i am and stuff blah blah.
so i'd say the internet
thrift stores, and if you uhave the talent, sewing.
but department stores can have suitable things too.
i have't been to the mall in like 4 months i think last time i went was to buy someone a bday present.

Now that Ive been here longer and have gotton (deep voice) into THE SCENE(oh, that was just tacky...) Ive seen some better shops, one is "The Paisly Peacock" very nice store...great stripeid shirt I want, the 20 hole boots Ive longed for..and..other stuff...right next to tally-ho's too...

yes, i live in a small town in canada, and i must say it's quite hard to find anything that i really like. It just takes a lot of searching to find things. Shit I've never even heard of Hot Topic before reading stuff on this page...

I made this skirt from a piece of plain black material just by cutting it and adding some safety pins.. it just takes a little creativity thats all.

Dont just stick to womens clothing either, sometimes you can find some cool things in the mens sections or the kids sections of stores like wal-mart and etc. (if you can fit)
Once you find things you can sort of piece them all together and come up with something decent looking..

hope i was of some help
???

also, as is mentioned in grey eyes' thread, small shopping at department stores is a good idea too.

But not in the summer. Wait until the holidays when they sell lots of black clothes. I saw every variety of stocking on the shelf at this one store for $4.99 a pair.

Just a note... people often complain about small town shopping... well, I have access to NYC and a lot of shopping and also quite a bit of Goth clothes shops too. But I have to say that I don't actually buy much of anything Gothy when in NYC because the markups are usually astronomical and not at all relevant to the quality of the item being sold.

So, while I might have a lot of stuff availible to me, I don't exactly buy all that much due to the quality often being substandard or the markups being astronomical (like US$40 on top of the price of a parasol when ordered online from the site itself).

Sometimes there are things that I'd like to get, but more often than not there are online stores that are small goth owned businesses that have similar items cheaper and at better quality.

Lilith