Summer Goth
In which I indulge my love of all things creepy, dark and downright weird, but still keep it light(weight) for the hot weather.
Hello, my friends! Welcome to my little corner of the fashion discourse. Consider me your Gen X fairy gawdsister - I have a closet full of wacky clothes, a decades-curated jewelry collection and all the funneroo shoes, and most of it is pre-loved. I do not dress like other people, and that’s the way I like it! Take up space, be seen and wear all the colour!
Circular fashion is my ultimate aim - I only shop in-person, locally, 95% secondhand (I have a Fluevog thing). I sell - again, in-person only - clothes that didn’t quite make the grade to other fashiony folks, and the money I earn from my sales is my budget for shopping.
I’ve been at this wardrobe journaling thing since I started my blog, Ephemera [insert service announcement below]*, way back in 2008 - every outfit and purchase have been recorded there, along with major (and minor) bits of my life. Here on Substack (since 2024), I share a week’s round-up with you Gentle Readers, and blather on about whatever’s on my mind. Doesn’t that sound divine?
*Hello, I’m Sheila of the blog Ephemera. I like to swear (clutching pearls and fainting couches sold separately), I link ‘cause I love (no affiliates), and I do not use AI - I’ll make my own fucking typos, thank you!
One of the benefits of blogging/writing about my style, is that I notice trends (MY trends, of course; yours may vary). I’ve been leaning into goth-y tendencies lately, so hey, let’s explore that, shall we?
What does it mean that I’m looking at black more in June? Was I ever a Goth?1 Am I some kind of poser?2 Can you be a Summer Goth, or is that all bullshit, made-up crap?3
Buckle up, let’s find out!
This week was mostly just worky-work, going to the office, no special events…until Saturday night, which was WINESDAY, the most beloved of regular events in my social calendar. Yay, I get to see my women!
Goth Crinkle
But first, work. Monday came as it always does: not enough sleep and as I had to be in the office half an hour earlier, seriously under-caffeinated.
I styled up this early 00s thrifted blouse, tying it in the front (it’s vast and wide, huge tracts of land), and did not like it. It’s synthetic, the pattern is too large and hard to see - it’s dragonfly wings - and aside from just how I FELT in it4, I really don’t like it in the pictures.
But whatever - waves airily - it was $7 to a good charity, and I’ll just move it along to one of my friends or colleagues. It has to look good on someone, right?
So, what makes this goth? (Do we capitalize? (do we care?))
The blouse kinda felt badass (the dragonflies! it’s sheer!) when I bought it and of course it could be my not-a-pro asstastic styling…maybe if I left the wrist ties dangling down as I moan dramatically on my chaise longue while I write longhand poetry about death, crows and rain5. And DESPAIR.
Or I could just say fuckit.
The skirt is a dark grey-green and it’s just a big mass of angsty crinkles, isn’t it? It’s doing all the heavy lifting. Poor skirt, I done you wrong with this fit.
Verdict: Only vaguely goth-y. Could use a corseted frock coat.
Branded items: Shoes are by Sol Sana. Earrings are Chan Luu.
Cheeky retail: The round sparkly pin was bought c. 1999 at Eaton’s. The lace cuff was handmade and bought from a shop selling locally-made stuff in 2018, I think? The filigree cuff is from the St. Paul’s Cathedral gift shop in London in 2010. That snake ring again (bought in 1986). The rest is secondhand!
Watery Goth
I find comfort in dresses, great swaths of fabric wrapped around me like a hug. The best dresses have pockets and go with oodles of things. We call those…Jammy Dresses. They come in all sizes and shapes, and this one is pea-shaped.
She is the princess who tossed and turned, then said fuck it and threw herself into the ocean where she was embraced by kelp and sea lettuces and cucumbers6, a veritable watery salad of blues and turquoise and greens with the sun streaking through as she looked up from the watery depths.
She rose.
She turned the waves into boots of the bluest sea-glass and laced them with seaweed, and strode into the world, carrying the ocean on her back. The green turned to grass, leaves, apples, peas…moths and bees fluttered to her, a beetle marched up her hand.
This was my Tuesday office outfit, styled up as a recovery from the bad vibes of that horrendous blouse from Monday7. Jammy comfort, soothing happy colours, badass boots just in case I need to stomp around dramatically.
Now, is it goth or is it just batshit crazy?
It kinda makes me giggle8, especially when I add the DRAMA of the Movie Star Wrap, with this most wonderful vintage Yves Saint Laurent scarf. In my defense, it was really windy.
Verdict: Goth’s a state of mind, darlings. I’m a watery tart in need of a lake and a sword. FETCH.
Branded items: Silk scarf is 80s YSL. The boot are the Original Sabado by John Fluevog. Scarab ring is by Heidi Daus. Snake front & back earrings are Betsey Johnson. The enameled cuff is Lauren G. Adams (it comes in different colours).
Pre-Loved or…? I saved up gift cards to buy the boots. Otherwise, it’s all secondhand, oh yeah!
Peplum Goth
For Wednesday’s office lewk, I fussed around with this new-to-me top the night before, until I finally landed on something I liked. I had another outfit made with it (a skirt version with red accents) for last week, but ditched it because it made me nervous and felt a little out of my comfort zone…but now I have to wear it, don’t I?9
Anyway, this felt more office-appropriate (the other outfit involved sheer) and I was able to assess this top for wearability. It’s very voluminous - that’s not all boobbage in there, I swear!
I landed on creating a peplum with a belt, as it just eats me up (gobble gobble) if I wear it straight up and down. I could fit both cats in there.
When in doubt, denim, so count on seeing this with one of my blue denim mermaid skirts, my white denim skirt, that sort of thing. Maybe a turtleneck under it for the Fall Vampire Season?
I predict that I’ll change up the “pops of” to red, blue, yellow, teal, orange…pretty much anything I have in shoes, layering pieces and jewelry10.
Now, the big question! Is it goth?
Verdict: Summer goth to a tee! A giant black lace shawl would be awesome, but I did wear my Craig Morrison Bug Bag11 with this, so I have street cred.
Branded items: The reversible belt is Ralph Lauren. The shoes are 2003-4 vintage Freedom Suki by John Fluevog (more on those in a sec). 1970s snake coil cuff is Whiting & Davis. Gold/amethyst ring is Frances Jewellers.
Whoop! Whoop! 100% pre-loved in this one, folks!
And…the shoes!
I’ve featured them before (because I re-wear everything), but I never tired of bragging about them.
Isn’t the shape cool? I love that kitten heel, the raised heel cup, the stitching (which I coloured black), and the uber-pointy toe.
Pro tip from the past: stuff your pointy toes with tissue paper. It keeps them from curling up, bending, and your toes from squishing into that itty-bitty living space.
Such a show-off…[scoffs]
Mom Goth
As I got ready to spend hours on the bus to go visit my mom12, I flipped through a bunch of my dresses on Thursday, moving some along to Limbo and really LOOKING at which ones are my favourites.
202013: This silk beauty was jammed into a rack of about 300 dresses in the basement of the Patch. The pattern caught my eye, as did the long sleeves and the gorgeous hand-feel of the textile.
When I can rattle off a list of fabulous details, you know it’s a keeper.
100% silk
100% silk LINING
Floopy pirate cuffs (!!!)
Reversed/mirrored fabric on each section
Barely touches me
I’ve worn this with blue shoes, blue sandals, white shoes, OTK boots - it’s an easy Jammy Dress that does all the work when I want to feel good.
But is it goth?
Not reeeeeallllly? The dark colour mix is enlivened by the little pops of white, and the silver chains give whiffs of badass.
Verdict: It’s Mom-approved, and can you get any less goth than that? But like I said, it’s a state of mind. I am goth; ergo, my outfit is goth.
Branded items: Vintage 70s Halston silk scarf. Danier Leather crossbody purse. Geox leather sandals.
New-to-me review:
Light the beacons!
This is another 100% pure secondhand/preloved outfit.
Along with the dress, I also thrifted the purse, scarf and shoes (they were new/unworn!).
Goth Daisies
My silly cat photobombed my pictures on Friday morning, so eh, enjoy an uncropped view of my closet door, and my Rowenta Master Valet steamer. It’s 8ish? years old, and the best features are the pant clips - I clip all my shirts to this as the shoulders on it are too fucking big for women’s clothes, prolly made for a man, gawdammit - and the pull-down screen for tension as you steam, so you can do creases and push at thicker textiles to get those deep ditches out. I use it every day!
But this is no ad (pfft…I don’t do those), I’m just sharing knowledge and experience. Also my sexy cat. Like I was going to crop him out!
This is the Gothiest Goth fit of the week - EASILY - due to the vampire cosplay going on below the waistline, sunshine. Moire-textured taffeta in perma-box-pleats are their own section in the orchestra. SWOOSH! You could hear me coming.
In addition to my tried-and-true deployment of a graphic tee/band tee to badass up a Fancy Skirt, I added my joyful daisy bomber jacket for sun coverage.
This is totally the kind of skirt I would set aside to wear in the dark months when I indulge my love of horror, black and creepy stuff, but this is a good step towards making my wardrobe year-round. This was not overly hot to wear, unlike the nylon bag of a jacket, which induced buckets of sweat.
Verdict: Even vampires like a touch of sunshine. Summer Goth!
Branded items: Kenzo silk scarf. Patent leather shoes are Karl Lagerfeld, about 8 years old. That gold Francis Jewellers ring from the 60s.
Pre-loved assessment: I bought the shoes new on deep clearance at the Bay department store, but everything else is secondhand or a gift.
As always, if you have any questions about any of this *waves*, you’re always welcome to ask.
Pop Goth
I had various reactions to Saturday’s all-day fit (worn from 11am until nearly 2am):
Proof that I actually wear this stuff in the wild - that’s me at Winesday in pal Vero’s backyard, about to spend the next 3 hours miserably swatting away mosquitos. FUCKING BUGS GET AWAY FROM ME.
*ahem*
Look, see my big skirt! I was all about the billowy/swooshy silhouette for our usual Saturday morning (Logan plays Ulti, I join him/other(s) for brunch, we grocery shop for the week).
It always boggles people when I tell them the skirt is H&M - it’s from their “A Tribute to Marimekko” collection from 2008, and the skirt is 70% cotton, 30% silk. SILK! You would never see that nowadays.
As you can see, the skirt has POCKETSSS. It’s also a size 4 with a teeny waist, and even at my own personal teeniest, I’ve never done it up - I leave it half-way unzipped and tuck the waistband inside and throw a belt over it. Fuck it, I want this skirt to fit, so I’m gonna make it happen!
There’s nothing new here - these are all old favourites that I’ve had for years, all pieces that my friends had seen before.
But is it goth? Well, there’s a bunch of black and I was quoting Shakespeare in a gloomy way, so yeah, it TOTALLY is. Soft goth, Summer goth…whatever you want to try, it can be goth.
Verdict: Neon and brights plus black equals goth. Fashion math!
Branded items: Shell brooch is stamped JJ. Shoes are the Groovy Aubrey by John Fluevog. Suede/leather bag is by Aimee Kestenberg. Silk scarf is Marc Rozier (of France, so CLASSY). Mixed earrings are by Martha Sturdy. The fishbone necklace is Roberto for RLM.
Secondhand scope: I bought the shoes new several years ago. Every other piece was pre-loved, or a gift. Mom’s olivine/coral ring was from Hawaii, c. 1976; the opal ring is from 1983ish, bought locally for me at Francis Jewellers for my sweet 16.
Ah, Winesday was the perfect way to cap off the week, like reward for all the hard work leading up to it.
These Are My People
I’m grateful to have so many colourful people in my life.
And These Are My Cats
Sending you all purrs and soft fur.
Well, here we are! You made it! And for that, I am ever so grateful for your presence. The interwebz and Substack are a Big Place, and knowing that you chose to spend a few minutes with me is just…everything.
THANK YOU. I see you all (new people, hiiiii!).
So, how’d I do this week? Sufficiently gothy enough for you, or am I Not Goth At All? Do tell! I’d love to hear from you in the comments (I always answer).
Next week is relatively quiet, but I’m still going to work and still need office outfits, as much as I would like to be goth every day…
Enough rambling? Yeahhhhh…
Cheers,
Sheila
No. I have never been a Goth, a punk (steam or otherwise), a metal chick, a New Wave girl, or any other box. When I was 16, my mom said, “Never wear the same thing twice, always keep them guessing.” Best Fashion Advice Ever.
I prefer “dabbler” or a “creator of homages,” or perhaps “curator of vibes”?
Of course it is.
Saggy and Droopy, the two saddest dwarves. Not great.
I was a poet of tiny renown for a short time.
Actual things: sea lettuce, and sea cucumber, (links ‘cause I love). I know, I’m a weirdo.
No need to spiral. Pop goes the outfit bubble. Let it go.
I have always been a giggler. Tee hee!
Will I? Sure! When it’s cooler. Or maybe never. I don’t know.
On that note, people LOVED that my earrings matched my lippy (it’s a MAC one). Don’t underestimate the power of the lipstick!
A rubber backpack with spikes all over it. Prickly but soft (kinda like me).
Enjoy lots of pictures of blue sky and greenery.
My mission during the pandemic was to keep shopping in person as much as possible at my favourite stores, to help them stay in business. I like to think I helped, although the Patch and My Sister’s Closet both closed for good.
“That’s racist,” I said, then proceeded to quote The Tempest and mutter about sea changes.
Asked of server Shane, because I looked FANCY. I think this is a common thing that people think when they see someone dressed up: They must be someone important. Yes? What would you think if you saw me in public like this?
There’s really no good answer to this. I refrain from being snarky (but I totally am in my head, where my brain writes cheques I can’t cash).
I love the term “summer goth!” And of course your daisies and the losing my religion blouse. So fun and very Lestat 🧛♀️
One of the things you do so well is mixing shapes and textures. I need more weird volume in my life! (That’s a pea dress reference. What a cool shape)