Background and introduction to Goth

I had first started being ‘interested’ in Goth when I was about 7. I saw some Goths down in the city one night and while I was almost scared of them, I still admired how they looked, well really I was in awe :)

But only since last month have I realised that I really wanted to be a Goth. I was stumbling around Wikihow to pass the time and on accident I clicked the ‘Goth’ help section. I decided to have a look around any way and as I read, I got more and more interested and soon I was wondering how I could apply Goth to my life.

The first Gothic band I started listening to was the Sisters of Mercy. Their band sounded kind of catchy, and the fact that I was already into music ‘Before the 2000s’ it appealed to me immediately.

It wasn’t too hard transferring basic black clothes into my wardrobe. Being fond of lace, I already had a couple of lovely black lacy shirts in my drawer and a puffy black skirt that I wore immediately.

I always like to research heavily whatever I do, so I kept looking around for Gothic help guides and whatnot, and that’s when I found ‘Ultimate Goth Guide’ a fabulous blog that helped me so much in my humble beginnings!

About my family, they were kind of surprised that suddenly my nails were black, my clothes were more of darker colors and that I had started putting candles all over my room, but no one really said much.

My mom was the most receptive, and even helped me sew and alter some of my old clothes to fit a more ‘Gothy’ genre. Even though she was at first wary of the ‘stereotypes’ that she’d heard, after I explained things too her and showed her Goth websites, she was almost completely fine with it. (Just no dying my hair or getting piercings and no skulls)

Due to the help I was getting from Ultimate Goth Guide and such, I didn’t really have a mallgoth stage. Here in Perth there are only a few alternative shops and they’re too expensive for me to shop at. I found that Op Shops were perfect for everything I wanted...not to mention DIY, a livesaver in all respects!

However, during the first two weeks of growing into Goth I really thought that Nightwish and Evanescence were ‘Serious Goth Bands’…I found out later I was quite wrong.

The first time I really dressed up Goth, not just casual black clothes was at my Grandfather’s funeral. I went as Goth Lolita, complete with a huge black bow and ringlets. (Yes…I did kind of look crazy, but it was my first time!)

I know it’s only been a month, and I’m very much a baby bat still, I am proud of my achievements so far, (Including my pretty candle filled room!) and what I’ve learned about the subculture.

A bit about my past that led up to this:

Being raised in a Christian family, I didn’t really watch that many ‘spooky’ cartoons or films as a child, and more often I wanted to be a princess or fairy as a toddler. And yes…up until I was 10 my favourite colours were pink and purple and I played with Barbies.

At about 11 I first watched ‘Casper's Scare School TV show’ and started being allowed out trick or treating on Halloween. Around that age I also started getting a fascination for mythology, legends and folklore.

At 14 I met one of my first ‘friends’ and she introduced me to a lot of interesting stuff. Another step towards Goth was that I became a fan of the TV show Supernatural. It was then that I stopped being nervous about liking ‘Dark and Spooky’ things. On my 15^th birthday, we had a Supernatural themed birthday party and I dressed as Bloody Mary. Probably my first real ‘Scary Costume’.

Even though I’m not in great contact with my friend, she left an influence on me and pushed me heavily towards Goth and spooky things…(Probably without realising it though…)

Well, that ends my background and first month of being a baby bat. I 'celebrate' tonight with some potato chips, chocolate and juice...I know...so dramatic..........ehe...

If you happen to read this and feel like commenting or sharing tips for me or telling your own experiences, please comment!

Picture 1: My 'Lolita' inspired outfit.

One of my 3 candle displays.

My 15th birthday, first 'scary' costume: Bloody Mary