Dark Fashion NYC: Dos and Don'ts

If you are like me, you like to dress like a local whenever you visit a new place. If you are planning to visit New York City, where I live, you should just come with an empty suitcase, because the shopping here is pretty awesome. But seriously, here are my Dos and Don'ts for wearing dark fashion in NYC.

DO: Wear black, and only black

It kind of sucks wearing dark fashion in NYC, because literally the entire city wears black all the time. If not all black, then neutrals. If I see anyone in color, it's usually a tourist. The city is dirty and anything that isn't black turns black soon lol.

From Soho to Midtown

Sorry I haven't been posting Thursday mornings as per usual, but I just finished getting settled in to a new job. I'd enjoyed my old job, but this company reached out and made a better offer, so I took it. I'd mentioned how unbelievably stuffy and corporate my old job was, and like many large multinational corporations, there wasn't a whole lot of room for growth. The new company is leaner and there is a lot more opportunity, even if it was a lateral move. I'm getting into the stage in my career where the only place higher is being a department head, and most of the time they promote from within. If I'd stayed, I'd have probably had to wait for another 10 years before I got a promotion. I do have to say I miss working in a big corporation. I had my own office and an assistant, while here I'm in a department of three and we all sit in cubes.

Superficial stuff though. I believe in this new company much more and their mission and values align much better.

Weirdly, the move affects this blog! My old company used to be in SoHo, which is the trendiest shopping place in NYC. All the "it" stores are there, and all the celebrities shop there. Goths there (and there were a number) were chic and stylish, and that affected some of my "trend reporting." Also, the stuff that goes in the SoHo stores tends to be a little weirder, even for fast-fashion stores.

fabulous in soho

Witches Festival

Is Goth "Hipster"?

I was in Bushwick about a week ago, the new hipster neighborhood now that Williamsburg is too expensive. In my neighborhood an hour away, I'm often called a hipster, and I've just dismissed as the norms not knowing what dark fashion is or that they call "HIPSTER!!!" to anyone who doesn't walk around wearing a Yankees hat. That I'm a gentrifier "taking over" their neighborhood even though they live in new condos/historic houses and I live in tenement housing with all the immigrants.

taken at the block party

Psychic photo series

Day Trip: Sleepy Hollow

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery

Open Studios

When I first moved to NYC, I used to love hanging out in the art scene in Williamsburg, which is now multi-million dollar condos and rich kids. All the artists are in Bushwick now and once a year, the artists open their studios to the public and there's a big block party and tons of free booze and amazing artwork. Honestly, seeing artwork in an artist's studio beats going to a museum any day.  I feel like art goes to a museum to die. 

here are a some photos from the two days I went. 

#carolinehayward

A photo posted by @axp259 on Jun 7, 2015 at 8:13pm PDT

New York Style: Winter

I'm interested in what people around the world are wearing, so I'll post what the typical NYC person wears (in the winter, for now) with the hope that maybe you'll share what people wear in your city. All these pictures are from WWD street scene pictures.

NYC is the fashion capital of the USA, and all of our major brands are here. With stores like Century 21, Beacon's closet, and numerous sample sales, you could get runway clothing ($500-$1000+)for fast-fashion prices ($10-$100). Also, no-name designers who knock-off runway clothing also work in NYC, so our typical dollar store and ghetto fashion store will have some trendy stuff (I've got a post on knock-off fashion scheduled for next week) Bottom line is you could look great for not a lot of money.

The most NYC outfit ever. black-on-black, classic shapes, timeless pieces

'20s Finger Waves

A while back I styled my hair in finger waves for a model train show at the New York Botanical Gardens (read on...it was awesome). Gardens, cocktails, ice sculptures (you know an event is fancy when there's ice sculptures), and model trains--I felt like dressing up. I really hate my hair right now...growing it out blows. So I decided to do some very 20s-30s finger waves. 

worn with my vintage Arts & Crafts-style earrings (read about them in this post)

The Goth Gym

Not far from former gutter punk hangout/current K-town annex St. Marks Place is David Barton Gym. We actually have a song we sing in our Peter Murphy voice when we walk by this place.

They just outgothed themselves and are opening a new location at an old church, the Limelight. If you aren't from NYC, you're probably wondering wtf kind of name is that for a church. This church used to be a nightclub (the Limelight), then a mall, and now it's going to be another David Barton Gym location. 

so awesome. Of course i can never afford a membership, but that would probably be the only way to get me to a gym...decor and a premium membership.

Baby, the Stars Shine Bright: NYC store opening

Sorry...instagram pictures until i get my camera from my sister

So, yesterday was the grand opening for the NYC Baby, the Stars Shine Bright store. I went with my sister and we made our teenage selves pretty happy. Lolita was pretty out of reach for us growing up. Back then it was only DIY or you had to go to Japan, so it was pretty much just for the super-rich. (not that it isn't still expensive!)

Brooklyn Night Bazaar

Brooklyn Night Bazaar: it's a music venue, arcade, and craft fair in an old warehouse. Free to enter, but get there early to avoid the lines.

I'm still super sick but I had to brave the cold to go see one of my favorite BK band, Crystal Stilts (I wrote about em in this nu-goth music post) before they headed back on their world tour. here's the full lineup:

By the way, if you are ever in NYC, this is a great venue for seeing local bands. There wasn't a single weak set and the atmosphere is fantastic. I normally hate live music shows (I hate standing, hate all the tall people, hate all the downtime between sets) but this place was really awesome. 

Red and Black: Big Bar

So, for today, I'm going to move away from fashion/beauty to offer a--surprise!--bar review. Stay with me. This is for Big Bar in NYC. What kind of bar is Big Bar? well, from yelp:

Don't be mistaken by the name, Big Bar is tiny.  Surprisingly, it was fairly empty when we stopped by Saturday night but it filled up shortly before we took off on a quest for our next destination. 

No frills. One beer on tap.

Big Bar is nothing you'd stop in your tracks for.  You would not think twice about this bar.  It is: Unnotable, Unimportant, Easily Overlooked

EXCEPT for one thing: the RED lights everywhere, coloring EVERYTHING in red and black (full size of the place, btw):