World Goth Day 2016: First Annual World Goth Day Picnic!

This year Inverness had its first annual World Goth Day Picnic, and I organised it! 

The assembled World Goth Day picnic contingent!
I'm hiding at the back under my hat and parasol, trying to pretend I'm short.
Photo credits are to Suzy_Bugs, who isn't shown in the photo as she's taking it!

It wasn't a big public event, I just invited every Goth I personally knew in the Inverness area to come have a picnic with me - especially as the date was after the end of my last exams and after my birthday (which was in the middle of exams!) so there were plenty of excuses to celebrate. 26 out of just about 60 people invited turned up, which considering most of those who didn't come were not doing so because of either work of family commitments, is pretty good. I didn't want to organise an official public event because that is a lot of work for something where I didn't know whether people would even want to come or not. 

I was actually surprised that 26 people turned up; I was expecting about half that. I have organised Goth events before, and in the past no more than a dozen people have turned up because it is a very small community in the Highlands, and most of the Highland Goths have at least 1 job, plus are quite spread out over a broad geographic area. 

One of my friends drove me over to the city. I have moved house, and I can't drive due to neurological issues, and it wasn't practical to take all the picnic stuff on public transport, as I had all the cups, napkins, paper plates, etc. and quite a few big bottles of soft drinks that were rather heavy. She also brought her adult-size hoops with her, and I brought my ribbons. I used to do rhythmic gymnastics as a kid, but quit due to then-undiagnosed dyspraxia making me pretty useless at it, and she does hooping, and as it was a park we were heading to we thought we'd trade skills and let some of the others have a play. We had a lot of fun, and it must have been quite surreal for the non-Goth people in the park to see Goths hooping and ribbon dancing with brightly coloured hoops and ribbons.

The picnic was held at the Bellfield Park. Initially, we were going to have the picnic at Ness Islands, but I found out less than a week before the picnic that the Inverness Race for Life 10k run was scheduled to be routed through there at the same time as our picnic (this is what happens when I am busy with university and out of touch with what is going in Inverness!), so I picked the park as a back-up location as it has picnic tables and a sheltered area. 

I ended up half an hour late to my own picnic because of a few last minute delays and traffic and suchlike, and when we got there, there were a handful of Goths, and I thought that the picnic would only be 10 people at most. As the afternoon progressed, it turned out to be 26 in total. 

We sat, chatted, ate picnic food - I baked shortbread 'bone' biscuits, and specially decorate black and purple fairy-cakes, and other people brought their own home-made food - all very delicious - and some packets of crisps, sweets, etc. If I organise a bigger, better picnic, I will definitely bake more and bring more savoury food. I wish I had photographs of all the food - the bat cupcakes, my Goth-decorated fairy-cakes (some had ankhs on them, others were black with edible silver pearls making a studded effect!) and the bone biscuits especially. 

The best thing about the picnic was it being an opportunity for Goths of all ages from the area - from 15 year old younglings to elder-Goths who remember the scene in the '80s - to enjoy being Goth, make new friends, take pride in being ourselves, and generally have fun and socialise. I had so many positive and thankful messages after the event; there has to be another picnic next year, and I will have to organise an official venue. I am not sure how to go about running a proper public event - there's things like insurance, permission from the council, making posters, etc. - but I will look into these things and hopefully next year there will be a proper public World Goth Day event, rather than a personal picnic that got rather larger than anticipated! 

Before the picnic, I had made a FaceBook group for the event, and made sure that there were basic rules on behaving in the park - no scaring the children or going to the play-park area, no dropping litter, no alcohol, and no getting in the way of other people's enjoyment of the park. Everyone kept to those rules pretty well, except for a bit of litter, and I made sure to pack everything away and throw all litter I could find in the bins there and not leave a mess for the park warden/person working at the refreshment stand. Despite the numbers, we only really used 3 of the available benches, and kept to our own little group. It didn't seem like we were interfering with the use of the nearby tennis courts or causing any sort of bother. The weather included two thunderstorms, so the park wasn't very busy that day anyway. 

9 Gothic Social Ideas (That Aren't Clubbing)

As my regular readers know, I am an adult Goth in her late 20s, heading inexorably towards my '30s, and I am getting towards the age where my social circle is no longer centred around the club scene. I may be child-free, but a lot of my friends are now parents, and late evening/night life events mean childminding or babysitters for them. A lot of my friends have complex and varying work-schedules, and can't be up half the night because they'll have an early start the next day, or are simply too tired after a long week at work to want to go out.  Often, in these bad economic times,  it's also just not affordable to go out clubbing when you consider the cost of entry (for pay at the door events), drinks, food (even if it's just a kebab on the way home) and the taxi home. 

However, we're still social people, and we still want to meet up and be part of an active subculture, and as such seek alternative socials. In years past I have been the "organising type" and been the one to organise most of the things listed below, either as private parties or group functions (such as with Highland Lolitas), but I'm now a university student, and far, FAR too busy. 

1) The Café Meet

This is the simplest to organise, and depending on where you go, can be a cheaper option (I know places where it's £1.75 for tea and £2 for a food item). There are plenty of independent cafés in even small towns, so you don't have to fork out to spend extra in chain cafe and can still support local businesses. Independent cafés sometimes take bookings, too, if you're planning on more than say, 4 people meeting up - for example our Lolita group went to the Velocity cafe, where they have a large table, and 5 of us turned up (read about that ::here::). Most cafés are not fussed about dress, and will not be upset at a small collection of Goths turning up as long as they're well behaved paying customers. Café meets can be all ages, and younger Goths can have tea, hot-chocolate or other non-caffeinated beverages if they so choose, plus most café opening hours (in the UK at least) are primarily daytime hours, and include weekends. This means it can be a lunch-break catch-up, or a Saturday afternoon leisurely chat. 

2) The Graveyard Picnic

A bit of a Gothic cliche, but certainly not without reason. In the UK, a lot of Victorian graveyards and cemeteries were also intended as public parks - hence the broad paths and frequent benches.  It was seen as a way for people to remember death (part of Victorian mourning culture) and therefore be inspired to make the most of life, and also as a bit of greenery, a verdant space in the rapidly growing cities.  It was not abnormal then to visit graveyard as if they were parks, but this was in a time when public behaviour was expected to be more restrained than it is now, and these were not intended as spaces for loud games or sports. Over time, visiting cemeteries in a park-like fashion dwindled, and they became somewhere you only really went for funerals or to visit a grave. I do not think it is disrespectful to visit graveyards in other capacities, as long as one is sensible when visiting. I will probably write a more elaborate post on what I think of graveyard etiquette, but for now my suggestions are as follows:

⚰ There's no need to adhere to silence, but it is more polite to people who may be visiting the graveyard to pay their respects to deceased family members if you use quiet voices, and avoid shouting and giggling noisily. 

⚰ Respect that statuary, and do not clamber on it or over it; it can become fragile and brittle over time, and the carvings can be scuffed and damaged. It is VERY expensive to have markers repaired, and can be very upsetting for the families if they are damaged. 

⚰ Do not drop litter, in fact, if you spot litter, pick it up and dispose of it, even if you didn't drop it yourself. If you are planning to consume food, bring a bag for rubbish, or at least make sure you dispose of all waste in a proper waste-bin. 

⚰ Don't run about and act the fool; even older graveyards can still be visited both by people visiting their ancestor's graves, and by people seeking solitude and quiet contemplation. Charging about both endangers the statuary (and those who might trip over them) and spoils the atmosphere for those who wish to visit for more sombre reasons. 

Graveyard picnics may not be suitable for very young or energetic children who might find it hard to sit quietly for a while, and may be too tempted to climb on the statues. 

3) The Gothic Picnic

This is can range from grand events like Viona's famous Victorian Picnic at Wave Gotik Treffen, to just a few friends with a (black) blanket and some snacks. A picnic of the non-graveyard variety can be held in a public park, out in the countryside, or even in someone's garden. This is a very flexible idea, and can easily be made more "Goth" by selecting a specific theme, dress-code or just by music selection and aesthetic. The great thing about picnics is that they are very child-friendly for Goths with families. Things like black or themed napkins, bringing nice cutlery, and even aesthetically unusual or themed foodstuffs can really make a picnic feel more Gothic, as can choice of location. Personally, I'd go for somewhere with scraggly trees, a nice open patch of dry ground, and enough solitude as not to be bothered by anyone who thinks Goths are there for either their amusement or mockery. 

4)Exotic Pet Sanctuary Visit
A lot of reptile and exotic pet rescue centres have visiting days where people can visit and learn about caring for these sorts of animals. This is often an important means to fund-raise to cover the costs of looking after animals that people have handed in. Some of them even let you handle some of the animals. Going to the ::Skye Serpentarium:: with my father a few years back is what cured me of my fear of snakes! I used to think they'd be cold and slimy and horrible, and then actually held one, and found out they weren't like that at all. Some may allow for group bookings. 

5) The Tea Party

The Mad-Hatter's Tea Party from the wonderfully surreal Alice In Wonderland has brought this into the Gothic subculture, and with the influence of Lolita, where tea parties are a huge staple of the social scene, this is definitely now a popular form of Gothic social. Tea Parties can either be private affairs in one's own home, or be booked at many places from a café to high tea at a fancy hotel.  The cost of this will vary by venue, but there is a great flexibility for time and place, as well as for varying sized groups. The Scottish Lolita's International Lolita day in the summer was quite the grand event, both in numbers and location, but the small Highland Lolita group have been known to have tea in the Botanic Garden's café in a group of 3 or 4 - this idea can easily overlap with the cafe meet. If you live in the UK where afternoon tea is part of the culture, you are more likely to be able to find a tea house, cafe, restaurant or hotel where high teas or afternoon teas are offered. Holding a tea-party at home is my favourite version of this; it gives me an excuse to bring out the nice tea-sets, and set the table with napkins and a fancy cake stand, as well as to try and bake something nice for my guests. 

6) Visiting Parks and Gardens

This world thankfully has a lot of very beautiful parks and gardens in them, and sometimes it's nice to just go for a stroll, sit on the benches, and admire the planting, statuary, etc. This can just as easily be a group activity as a personal one. Some stately homes open their gardens up to visitors (usually with an entrance fee), and some public parks happen to have beautiful gardens which are accessible for free. If you are in the UK I would suggest looking at: 

The Royal Horticultural Society's gardens ::here:: 
The National Trust's ::gardens and parks::, 
And in Scotland specifically:
Look at ::this:: page for places to visit with the National Trust for Scotland
There is also ::Scotland's Gardens:: which facilitates opening of gardens of various sizes. 

The gardens of old stately homes often included follies, which can be especially interesting to visit if you're Gothic in the manner of 18th and 19thC Gothic novels - about the same period as when these follies were built! Plenty of gardens include a rocky grotto, especially those from the Romantic era, or those who tried to include something "picturesque". 

There are plenty of botanic gardens and arboretums to visit too, not listed above. Most major cities have a botanic gardens, and the one in Inverness is a favourite both for Lolita meets, and just for me visiting the cactus house! 

7) The Museum Visit

There's a Witchcraft museum and a Museum of Death... More conventional museums often appeal to those with Gothic inclinations - after all, history is full of murder, torture and death, plus looking at times past is a retroscopic vision of how all things pass and how weirdly decadent humanity is. Some museums are, admittedly, far more interesting than others, however. A day trip to a specific museum can be a special occasion, and a proper trip out - however I am fully aware of how expensive this can be. Many museums are now far more child-friendly (some are still endless glass boxes of shiny stuff you can't touch, but museums are often heading towards being far more interactive and educational than they once were), and can be an interesting trip out for the whole family.

8) Ghost Walks

A lot of towns have organised 'Ghost Walks' put on by companies usually catering to tourists. If you live somewhere with particular historic interest or a reputation for being haunted, you're probably in luck.  Ghost walks or tours can cost anything from £5 up, depending on who is running them. These usually occur late in the evening during peak tourist seasons, and may need booking, especially if a large group all want to go on a tour together. You don't have to necessarily believe in ghosts to go on them, as quite a few are interesting just for the narration of historic events and local legend, especially if the guide has a flare for the dramatic. 

9) Monster Movie Marathon

"Monster" here can refer to either the content (werewolves! vampires! zombies! ghouls!) or to the amount of movies watched at once. This is best for a small group of friends at home with a common interest in a specific genre (e.g horror movies, vampire movies, film noir, etc.) and requires several hours, maybe a whole a day.  Depending on the movies, this can also be family activity, for example an afternoon of Tim Burton movies like 'Nightmare Before Christmas', 'Frankenweenie' and 'The Corpse Bride. Films like the 'Addams Family' movies and 'The Labyrinth' can be good choices for older children, too. There's quite a few more "gothic" or "spooky" films that are fun for children (and age-appropriate) but also still enjoyable for adults.

Summer International Lolita Day 2015

Photo by Surrealistic Meow

For this year's Summer International Lolita Day, I decided to make a trip down to Edinburgh for the Scottish Lolitas Community's big event. They hosted a very posh tea-party at the Royal Howard Hotel. Now, for those who don't know Scotland, Edinburgh may not sound like a big trip, but it actually entitled a bus trip to Inverness, and then about four hours by train to Glasgow, and then another hour and a half by train from Glasgow to Edinburgh. I ended up wearing my Lolita co-ord on the train to Glasgow, but sitting on my petticoat for four hours flattened out my petticoat, so I had to borrow a second one off my friend K, who now lives in Edinburgh but is one of the founding members of the Highland Lolita Community. 

The weather in Glasgow was damp and a bit blustery, but was nothing compared to the weather in Edinburgh. Edinburgh train station (the central one) is in a valley, and quite sheltered, so when I got off the train, I didn't think it was too windy, even if it dishevelled all the chiffon in my outfit. I had missed meeting up with the other Lolitas travelling from Glasgow in Glasgow Queen Street station, so met up with them at the station in Edinburgh. I had arrived a bit late, because I had missed that the train we were catching had been changed to catching the earlier one as I had not had internet access and missed the communications, but the others had waited and I was glad of this as we were all walking as a group to the hotel. The other girls took the escalator up all the stairs, but because of my balance and co-ordination issues, it is actually easier for me to walk up static stairs because I find it very hard to constantly adjust my balance on the moving stairs of the escalator and have a tendency to fall on them, and I actually got to the top of the stairs first, and found out just how windy it really was! It was blowing something of a gale. I was leaning into the wind, and letting it catch my petticoats and huge bell sleeves and could feel it pushing back! Walking through the wind to the hotel totally tangled all of our wigs and dishevelled all the moveable bits on our co-ords.

Once we got to the hotel, we were glad to be inside. I was rather impressed with the period decor in the hotel, and it is very beautiful and reminded me of the stately country homes I have visited in England. I did not feel like I was in the midst of a metropolis at all! The Edinburgh Lolitas and those who had got there earlier were already sat down, and our tabel was ready and waiting for us. Once we were indoors and sat down out of the wind, introductions were made and we began chatting. 

Photograph of Eleanor and I and the spread, taken by Hazel

The food was absolutely amazing, as hopefully is visible from the photographs. On the bottom tiers of the stands there were delicious sandwiches including brie with mango, which is probably my favourite sandwich filling ever! There were also tiny haggis balls on cocktail skewers, which was something I have never encountered before. The second tier had scones of various sorts, and the top tier had brownies, miniature tarts, and trifles topped with lemon curd. We each got our own tea menu from which to choose a pot of tea, and I chose roiboos tea. The hotel has its own special blend of black tea, which I was tempted to try, but I cannot resist some good roiboos tea.

Photograph copyright of Photobara

It was really nice catching up with both members of the community I already knew, such as ::Oh Velveteena:: and meeting new people and making some new friends, such as H. who took the photograph above. H. is an entrepreneur who has started her own cupcake boutique. I am not always the most socially fluent person, and I can get "word vomit" when I am nervous or just clam up entirely, and I managed to avoid most for the most part, and everyone was very welcoming and friendly.

There was a Lolita quiz, with prizes, and everyone was automatically entered into a raffle draw. My prize from the raffle was a lovely floral mug, which is unfortunately still at my friend's appartment in Glasgow! I drank tea out of it the morning of my departure, and somehow forgot it entirely! We had an official event photographer, ::Photobara:: who took the photo immediately above. Each of us got three outfit photos, and she also took photographs of the event in progress. 

Photograph by Surrealistic Meow

K., Hazel and I walked back to Edinburgh train station together, and chatted, and then I met up with Sarge and his girlfriend, who I was staying with that weekend. I was so tired out from the meet and everything that I actually dozed off on the train back to Glasgow, which is incredibly rare for me as I usally find public transport far too stressful and public to sleep on! It just goes to show how very tired I was. After we were back in Glasgow, Sarge's girlfriend who is an arts student (focusing on ceramics) and photographer at ::Surrealistic Meow:: went out in Glasgow with me and I posed in a lot of door-ways, by the Gallery Of Modern Art, and other such places, including in Sarge's appartment block.

It was altogether an amazing day, and I had a lot of fun. My thanks go out to everyone at the ::Scottish Lolitas:: who organised it.  

Co-Ord Rundown:

♕ Veil: Hand-made by me, with bought fabric flowers from Claire's Accessories ♕ Wig: Lockshop ♕ Blouse: New York Laundry, with lace collar added by me ♕ Necklace: eBay ♕ Dress: Metamorphose ♕ Underskirt: Hand-made by me ♕ Tights: H&M ♕ Shoes: secondhand on eBay, not sure who made them ♕ Gloves: handmade, but I can't remember who by, someone on Etsy.

Hallowe'en Fun - Ness Islands: Haunted!

This evening I went to 'Haunted!' at Ness Islands in Inverness. It is a family-friendly event, so it's not meant to be very scary, more entertaining. Most of the set up was created by the Highland Council’s Lighting Department, which considering the Islands already have lots of cool lighting that lights up the trees in colours, and involves chains of coloured bulbs strung along the paths, was quite bright but still atmospheric - I think it would have been spookier without the crowds, and the regular (non-Hallowe'en) lighting is always quite magical. The acting and suchlike were done by Arts in Motion, Eden Court Creative and Fly Agaric. A lot of the performers were young people and children, and I think it is excellent that there were so many young people getting involved. 

It was a costume event, and as the event was themed around witches, I came dressed up as a fairytale witch, with black lace cape, fancy makeup (to the point that it was almost face-painting with makeup) and, of course, a point hat! My pointy hat is from Poundland, and is covered in spiderweb lace. I used tome extra lacey stuff that was lying around my closet to tie my hat onto my head, with a bow under my chin, as it was quite windy out. A lot of the visitors, especially the children coming to watch, were dressed up. I saw some really good costumes on visitors, some out-doing the performers! One little girl came as a zombie in a once-pretty white dress, and I thought her costume was very good, and actually quite scary for someone so young! My costume must have been fairly good because  a lot of the children and several of the adults apparently thought I was part of the haunt. I took that as a compliment and did a few random cackles and spooky poses for children that I thought would appreciate them. It was really busy, and there were loads of children. I saw a few of the children that go to the school I work at, and gave them all a wave. 

The first section of the haunt was a gathering of witches around a cauldron, dancing and creeping through the trees. The cauldron was glowing and frothing, and the witches dancing around it. The actresses playing witches ranged in age from young teenagers to adults. Their creeping through the trees was certainly the best part of their act, and quite spooky for the younger children. The next part was a shadow-play of a devil. The path curved 'round, to where the witches were visible once more, chanting around their cauldron. The next section was mainly done with lighting effects, and involved projections of skulls and creepy things onto trees, and section where UV reactive skeletons hung near UV lights, which was not particularly in itself (although the UV lights do glow strangely) but was a good opportunity for me to stand around and let my makeup glow, seeing as a lot of it was done with UV reactive makeup! A pair of stilt-walkers guarded the entrance to the next section, both dressed as 18thC ghosts. The female ghost had a flintlock in one hand, and a knife in her chest, so I asked her if she managed to shoot her attacker before she got stabbed, to which she replied that she had, and gotten away with his money! 

There was a projection of a toad, which seemed odd, and it was animated, and deliberately an unpleasant specimen of a toad! He was projected onto a large screen just over the small bridge joining the island. Some people were dressed as skeletons, which beckoned you over and reached out as if to shake hands - as visitors reached back out, they'd jump backwards! There was a game for children, involving a projection of a skeleton with a sword, and some foam swords, where one went up against this projected skeleton on a screen, and had to hit it with the foam sword until it collapsed in a pile of bones. It was clearly aimed at young children, and I think would be quite fun for that age group. At Ness Islands there is a circular seating area cut into an artificial mound, which for Haunted! served as temporary Hellish arena, lit in an eerie red, for a dance troupe dressed as the undead  that lurched and danced in front of a live string ensemble (also in ghoulish costumes). Their dance was quite athletic, and I must imagine that repeating it over, and over, and over throughout the evening must have been quite tiring, especially considering how cold out it was.  There was a very large inflatable skull, but it did not seem to be part of any haunt scene. 

Some chaps dressed as wizards did a dance in front of a projection of occult symbols and a portal, but while the set was good, their costumes were let down by them wearing their winter clothes visibly under their cloaks. It would have been better if the cold of a Scottish winter had been taken into account when they were designing the costumes, so that they could be both warm and more convincingly wizardly. I did see one of the visitors in a warm-looking wizard costume (with a vast fake beard!), so it is certainly possible. A chap dressed as a medieval flautist akin to the pied piper was playing an eerie tune, and a group of ghostly children in night clothes (over black warmer clothes) were following him around. His music was spookily enchanting.  

The next section had eerie red lights, and a group of girls on temporary pedestals acting as living statues, who'd suddenly move. Their costumes were very good. With them were 'undead' children, carrying lanterns, who would mingle with the crowd as they moved past, and then suddenly shriek and all drop down! I knew it was coming and still gave me a start. I think their movements as eerie members of the undead, and the empty gazes on their faces were very good for such young actors, and this was certainly the creepiest section of the haunt. Maybe this is because I've watched too much Dr. Who and it reminded me of the Weeping Angels. There was an acrobat on  a broom suspended between two trees, doing all sorts of gymnastics and stunts, including hanging upside down from her broom-trapeze and generally larking about high in the air. I thought she did a good job doing such fancy things while in costume, and did very well not loose her hat! She was very impressive and entertaining, and I wish I could clamber about like that! 

There were a pair of actors dressed as giant seagulls, with articulated snapping beaks who were deliberately messing with the visitors. Any person who has been mobbed by a flock of seagulls for food will be able to say that as far as birds go, seagulls are indeed bothersome creatures! I thought this interactive section was quite good, as it was both funny and engaging with the visitors. The last section of the haunt was a series of ghosts from various historical periods, including a casualty of the Battle of Bannockburn, still dragging about his sword, and a zombified WW2 soldier! There was also a victorian maid with one kitchen knife in her back, and another in her chest, ranting about how the blood had ruined her best white pinny and how she'd have to make new rice pudding, and how this was a lesson for children not run with knives! 

All in all, it was good fun, and I think the actors put in a good effort, especially considering it was outdoors and it was raining out. It wasn't particularly scary, but I didn't expect any real scares, just some Hallowe'en fun, and that it provided. The haunt was free to enter which was very good, and unexpected. There were a few food stands and public toilets, which was very sensible, considering the numbers. I bought myself an artisan pizza with no tomatoes!